1. Uddhav Will Lead Alliance, Says Sharad Pawar After NCP, Cong, Sena Meet
Uddhav Thackeray, 59, will lead the alliance between three bitter rivals - Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and the Congress - that will stake claim to form Maharashtra’s next government, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said on Friday. The announcement came after a rare meeting that put, for the first time, top leaders of the three parties in the same room to seal the ground rules for the alliance.
The Shiv Sena, which had broken up with its ally of three decades Bharatiya Janata Party over its refusal to share the chief minister’s chair, will get to hold the top post in the government for the next five years.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
2. Alwar Police Asks 9 Muslim Cops to Shave Beards, Withdraws Order Day Later
The police in Rajasthan’s Alwar district ordered nine Muslim members of the force to shave their beards, only to withdraw its instructions a day later.
The original order on Thursday said the nine policemen were asked to cut their beards so that they acted and looked “unbiased”.
As the news got out, on Friday Alwar Superintendent of Police Anil Paris Deshmukh withdrew his own order.
(Source: PTI)
3. Supreme Court Notice to Centre on Petition Over a ‘Backdoor’ in Aadhaar Law
The Supreme Court on Friday sought the response of the central government to a petition that challenges amendments to the Aadhaar law cleared by parliament in July this year.
The petition by a retired army officer and a rights activist has argued that the amendments in the law create a backdoor to permit private parties to access the Aadhaar ecosystem. The petition contended that this would pave way for surveillance of citizens by State and private parties.
In their petition, SG Vombatkare and human rights activist Bezwada Wilson also challenged the Aadhaar (Pricing of Aadhaar Authentication Services) Regulations, 2019 on the ground that they permit commercial exploitation of personal information collected for the State alone.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
4. After Ayodhya and Article 370, BJP Plans Campaign on NRC
The next big issue on the agenda of the Bharatiya Janata Party is the implementation of the National Register of Citizens, which it will translate into a campaign as intense as the one seeking the building of a Ram temple in Ayodhya, senior party functionaries said on condition of anonymity.
The Supreme Court, on 9 November, ruled in favour of a Ram temple in Ayodhya, helping the BJP check one of the long-pending issues in its manifesto.
In August, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) scrapped Article 370 of the Constitution that gave special status to Jammu & Kashmir, another manifesto-item of long standing.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
5. Centre Panel Set to Suggest Rollback of JNU Hostel Fee Hike
The Union government’s high-powered committee is expected to recommend that the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) should reconsider the hike in hostel fee approved earlier this month.
The panel, set up by the HRD Ministry on November 16 to “recommend ways to restore normal functioning in JNU”, held its most recent meeting Friday. Former UGC chairman V S Chauhan, AICTE chairman Anil Sahasrabudhe and UGC Secretary Rajnish Jain met students on the university campus.
Over the last five days, the committee has held meetings with the university administration, which Vice-Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar chose to skip, the students and teachers.
(Source: The Indian Express)
6. Govt Dropped Idea of Seeking Feedback from Parties, Public on Electoral Bonds
The government suggested the possibility and then dropped the idea of seeking comments from national and state political parties of India and the general public on the structure of electoral bonds, reveal official file noting accessed under the Right to Information Act by Anjali Bharadwaj of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information.
Records show that on August 21, 2017, Prashant Goyal, then Joint Secretary (in the Budget division of the DEA), made a note that stated: “Secy EA (Subhash Chandra Garg, then Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs of the Finance Ministry) made a presentation of the draft structure of the Electoral Bond Scheme to the PM today in line with the approval and directions of the FM… Based on the ensuing discussion, the following broad structure of the Scheme emerged…”
(Source: The Indian Express)
7. ‘Meet Many Godmen...’: DK Shivakumar Clarifies On Photo With Nithyananda
Congress leader DK Shivakumar today admitted that he had met controversial self-styled guru Nithyananda at his ashram during the Karnataka election more than a year ago. The former Karnataka minister was clarifying after a photo of him with Nithyananda emerged online and was widely circulated.
"I met him more than a year ago for a few minutes when I went to his ashram during elections. We meet many godmen, they are also a part of our constituency. I don't know the issues associated with that person," Mr Shivakumar told news agency ANI.
Nithyananda, who is wanted by the Gujarat police in a case of kidnapping and wrongful confinement of children at his Ahmedabad ashram, is believed to have fled the country.
(Source: NDTV)
8. Godhra Train Fire Part Of Congress “Conspiracy”: Gujarat Board Book
The February 2002 Sabarmati train fire, which killed 59 kar sevaks and triggered large-scale riots, was part of a "conspiracy" hatched by Congress's elected members from Godhra, according to a reference book on political history of Gujarat published by a state board.
The opposition Congress, however, termed it as the BJP government's attempt to saffronise the University Granth Nirman Board (UGNB), which has published the Gujarati book, and said it would seek a legal opinion against the writers for "twisting" the court verdict in the Godhra train burning case.
The book, titled ''Gujarat Ni Rajkiya Gatha'' (Political Saga of Gujarat) and published in December 2018, is edited by Bhavnaben Dave, a former BJP MP and current vice-chairperson of the board.
(Source: PTI)
9. Shabana Azmi's Mother Actress Shaukat Azmi Dies at 93
Veteran actress Shaukat Azmi - mother of Shabana Azmi - died in Mumbai on Friday due to age-related illness, reported news agency PTI. She was 93. Speaking to PTI, the actress' son-in-law - writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar - confirmed the news of her death and said: "She was 93 and she was having one problem after another. She was admitted to Kokikaben Dhirubai Ambani hospital, for certain days she was in the ICU and then she was out of ICU. It was all age related." He added: "Ultimately they brought her home. She wanted to come back to her own room she stayed for a day or two and then passed away. Shabana is in Mumbai," reported PTI.
Shaukat Azmi's last rites will be held on Saturday evening in Mumbai, reported PTI. Shaukat Azmi's husband was renowned Urdu poet and film lyricist Kaifi Azmi.
Shaukat and her husband were the prominent personalities of the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) and the Progressive Writers Association (IWA), which were the cultural platforms of the Communist Party of India. Shaukat Azmi's husband died in 2002. She is survived by actress daughter Shabana and cinematographer son Baba Azmi.
(Source: NDTV)
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