1. Army Wanted to Conduct Surgical Strikes After 26/11, but Manmohan Singh Stayed Mum, Claims PM Modi
Addressing a rally at Navlakhi ground in Vadodara on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the people to vote for “vikas” and not “vinaash” that thrived during the Congress regime in the state in the early 1990s.
It is in your hands whether you want to continue walking the path of vikas the BJP has brought, or revert to times of vinash under the Congress. Were you able to peacefully celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi or take out processions during Congress rule in Gujarat? BJP gives vikas along with shanti (peace), suraksha (safety) and salamati (well-being). No one in this country has the right to harass innocent citizens. Wherever there is BJP government, priority is given to peace and security. After I left the CM post, Anandiben (Patel) and Vijay Rupani have done a good job in continuing to uproot the anti-socials.
Blaming the Congress for questioning the surgical strike, Modi said it was beyond the “comprehension of the Congress” how an operation of that magnitude could be secretly done.
(Source: Indian Express)
2. In First Winter Stay, 1,800 Chinese Troops Camping at Doklam
Around 1,600-1,800 Chinese troops have now virtually established a permanent presence in the Doklam area, near the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet trijunction, with the construction of two helipads, upgraded roads, scores of pre-fabricated huts, shelters and stores to withstand the freezing winter in the high-altitude region.
Indian security establishment sources said while India "achieved its strategic objective" of not letting China extend its existing road in Doklam southwards towards the Jampheri ridge, the fallout has been "the almost permanent stationing of People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops in the region".
Earlier, PLA patrols would come to Doklam, which is disputed between China and Bhutan, between April-May and October-November every year to mark their presence and lay claim to the area before going back.Source to ToI
"Now, after the 73-day eyeball-to-eyeball troop confrontation at Doklam between India and China ended on 28 August, the PLA troops have stayed put in what we consider to be Bhutanese territory for the first time this winter. But the status quo prevails at the earlier face-off site," he added.
(Source: The Times of India)
3. Man Accused of Allegedly Molesting Zaira Wasim Arrested in Mumbai
Dangal and Secret Superstar actor Zaira Wasim broke down on Sunday, 10 December, alleging molestation by a passenger onboard a Delhi-Mumbai flight. In a live Instagram post, Zaira mentioned that the man kept rubbing his foot against her back and neck while she was half-asleep. The man accused of the act has reportedly been arrested by Mumbai police. The man will be produced in court on Monday, as CNN News18 reported.
Mumbai Police has registered an FIR against unknown person under Section 354 IPC & POCSO Act. Mumbai Police said, “We have recorded the statement of Zaira Wasim and registering an offence accordingly (sic).”
The 17-year-old posted the video narrating the traumatic incident after landing in Mumbai.
Read the full story on The Quint.
4. Teen Cancer Patient 'Raped' by Two in UP, Then Again by Biker Who Offered Help
A 15-year-old girl suffering from blood cancer was allegedly raped by three men at two secluded places in a village on the outskirts of Lucknow on Saturday night.
Additional superintendent of police (East) Sarvesh Mishra said residents spotted the girl walking alone around midnight and informed Bijnore police outpost.
Police arrested the motorcyclist after registering an FIR. The other two men are on the run.
The girl told police that the two men met her when she had gone to an eatery near her house around 5pm. She said they offered her a lift on their motorcycle but took her to a deserted place, where she was held hostage for about six hours and raped.
They allegedly dumped her on a road and threatened to kill her if she spoke to anyone about the crime.
When she was waiting by the roadside for help, the motorcyclist arrived and promised to drop her home, when he “took her to another deserted spot, raped her and escaped, leaving her at the spot”
(Source: Hindustan Times)
5. One in 5 Urban Families Forced to Borrow to Fund Hospital Stay
About a quarter of all rural households and one in five urban families in India are forced into debt or sale of assets to meet hospitalisation costs. This is true across income levels, revealed the National Health Profile 2017 published recently by the Central Bureau of Health Intelligence.
In rural India, about two-thirds – ranging from 65.6 percent in the poorest to 68 percent for the richest – depend on the household income or savings, while 27 percent of the poorest household and 23 percent of the richest households depend on borrowings for hospitalisation costs.
In urban India, 68 percent of the poorest and about 80 percent of the most well-off households depend on their own income and savings.
As they get richer, their reliance on borrowings goes down from 22 percent among the poorest to 14 percent among the richest.
(Source: The Times of India)
6. Mehbooba Mufti to Get Brother in J&K Cabinet, Secure Hold on PDP
In a move that would further consolidate her hold on the PDP (Peoples Democratic Party), J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti is all set to induct younger brother Tassaduq Hussain Mufti into her Cabinet. Sources told The Indian Express that Tassaduq, who was the PDP’s candidate for the deferred Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency bypolls, will enter the House as a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) and would be subsequently made a minister.
Mehbooba took the decision reportedly after “consultations within the party”, and a relative may step down from a party post ahead of Tassaduq’s induction.
However, there were reports of some unhappy voices.
Sources said that when PDP leader Dilawar Mir proposed the idea for discussion at a party meeting, at least two ministers voiced their reservation. However, they were overruled by the other ministers, legislators and party leaders, who were in favour of giving Tassaduq “more formal role in the government”.
(Source: Indian Express)
7. In Last 10 Years, Parliament Passed 47% Bills Without Debate
At a time when a delayed schedule for this year's winter session of Parliament is a matter of discussion in political circles, an examination of records shows that 47 percent of bills in the last 10 years were passed without any debate.
There has also been a steady reduction in parliamentary hours, a comparison with records of the first 20 years since 1952 show. Between 1952 and 1972, the House ran for between 128 and 132 days a year, according to parliamentary sources. In the last 10 years, it ran for 64 to 67 days a year on an average.
Parliament passing a good number of legislations without any debate is in itself an abuse of the parliamentary system. Records show that 47 percent bills in the last 10 years were passed with no discussion at all. Sixty-one per cent of these (24 percent in all) were passed in the last three hours of a session.
(Source: The Times of India)
8. We'll Convert to Buddhism, Mayawati Warns BJP, RSS
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati said on Sunday that she would quit Hinduism and convert to Buddhism, along with her followers, if the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party did not stop their ‘atrocities’ on Dalits and backward castes and end exploitation of these communities.
Mayawati said she wanted to give a chance to the RSS-BJP to reform and change their mindset towards the Dalits and backward communities and then take a call on conversion to Buddhism “at an appropriate time like Ambedkar.”
She also alerted the BSP workers to the possibility of an early Lok Sabha election and asked them to start preparing for it.
There is a possibility that the BJP can start the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya just before Lok Sabha elections...They can even sponsor some dramatic events in the name of patriotism to save their government and hide their failures. Be aware of such conspiracies.
(Source: The Hindu)
9. Hyderabad Student Shot at in Chicago After Parking Lot Argument
A 30-year-old Muslim man from Hyderabad was shot in his right cheek by an unidentified assailant after an argument at a parking lot in Chicago last Wednesday.
Mohammad Akbar, who was studying for his postgraduate degree in computer systems networking and telecommunications at DeVry University in the US city, is undergoing treatment at Illinois Masonic Medical Center for a bullet wound. His condition is said to be serious.
He has been in Chicago for the past three years and currently staying in a flat on Whipple Street. The attack happened 4 km away from his flat.
Mohammad Yousuf, a resident of Meerpet in Hyderabad, said his son was shot at when he was walking towards his car in Albany Park around 8:45 am local time.
Akbar’s elder brothers, Shafi and Ashraf, told reporters that his jaw needed two surgeries.
Residents and passersby reportedly rushed to Akbar’s help after hearing the gunshot and took him to hospital.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
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