1. Ramjas Protest Gets Violent: Journos, Professors Among Injured
Violent clashes broke out between two student groups outside Ramjas College, leaving many injured on Wednesday – a day after the ABVP forced the suspension of a conference ‘Cultures of Protest’ where JNU student Umar Khalid was scheduled to speak.
At least a dozen students and a professor of English were wounded during a march from Ramjas college to Maurice Nagar police station when students affiliated to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which is the RSS students wing, launched an attack on protesting students.
The students had taken out the march to protest the violence displayed by the ABVP members earlier on Tuesday, during the conference.
(Read the full story on The Quint)
2. Children's Bank of India Currency Notes? Cop Doesn't Believe It, Pays the Price
Not believing the claims that a State Bank of India ATM in South Delhi had dispensed bogus notes proved costly for Delhi Police sub-inspector Saurabh Kumar.
The policeman swiped his own card at the ATM to check whether the complainant, Rohit, was telling the truth. In the process, he too received a similar note, losing Rs 2,000 from his account for the time-being.
Rohit, a customer care executive at a call centre in Chhatarpur, had visited the SBI ATM located in Sangam Vihar’s Tigri on February to withdraw Rs 8,000. What he received were four notes with ‘Churan Lable’, ‘Children Bank of India’ and ‘Bharatiya Manoranjan Bank’ written on them.
When the guard deployed at the ATM booth refused to believe that the bogus notes were dispensed by the ATM, Rohit dialled 100 to seek police’s help.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. Amit Shah Attacks Congress, BSP, SP With New Acronym, Says 'Get Rid of KASAB'
Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah on Wednesday urged people to get rid of ‘KASAB’ for the betterment of the state.
Addressing a rally in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh’s Chauri Chaura, Shah took a potshot at Samajwadi party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Congress saying, “If you want UP to become a developed state, then you have to get mukti from KASAB.”
The party president slammed the three political parties and said, “While Ka and Sa stand for Congress and Samajwadi Party, B stands for Mayawati’s BSP.”
He further said, “They will ask your religion & caste first, if that doesn’t seem favourable to them, they won’t give you laptop.”
Meanwhile, Shah’s ‘KASAB’ remark drew sharp criticism from the Congress party. Reacting to Shah’s statement, senior Congress party leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi told news agency ANI: “Need to end acronyms. BJP’s repulsive thinking brought out... party’s communal mindset.”
(Source: Indian Express)
4. Wrong Name, Wrong Picture, Wrong Story Cost Him IPL Berth
A case of mistaken identity has cost a promising cricketer dearly.
Incorrect social media news updates that mixed up the names of one-time Mumbai left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh and in-form Madhya Pradesh batsman Harpreet Singh resulted in the latter losing a chance to be picked by an IPL franchise.
During the IPL auction on Monday, several newsfeeds named Harpreet as the cricketer who was arrested earlier in the day for driving his car straight to the platform of Andheri railway station in Mumbai.
It was, in fact, Harmeet who had allegedly broken the law.
The incorrect news updates were later corrected, but the damage was done.
We wanted to buy him, but as news came of Harpreet’s arrest, we decided not to do so since it would give the franchise a bad image. But later, when the auction got over, we came to know it was Harmeet and not Harpreet.Franchise Official
(Source: Indian Express)
5. Burden of Proof Against Masood Azhar Not on India, Jaishankar Tells China
India on Wednesday dismissed China’s contention that it has not furnished enough evidence against Pakistan-based terrorist Masood Azhar, with foreign secretary S Jaishankar telling senior Chinese officials that the burden of proof is not on India.
China’s efforts to block moves to sanction Azhar at the UN, despite its “principled” stand on counter-terrorism, was a political decision, he said.
Jaishankar also reiterated India’s concerns on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that passes through PoK, making it clear that it was a “sovereignty” issue and the reason why India will not be part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive inter-continental connectivity project floated by President Xi Jinping.
The international community is convinced of Azhar’s culpability and it was the US, the UK and France which had moved the latest proposal at the UN Security Council to get the Jaish-e-Mohammad chief proscribed, he added.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
6. Kalikho Pul's Widow Seeks CBI Probe, Supreme Court to Hear Her Today
More than six months after ex-Arunachal CM Kalikho Pul committed suicide, leaving behind a 60-page signed note, the Supreme Court decided to hear on Thursday a complaint by his widow Dangwimsai Pul seeking a CBI probe into his charge of bribery against politicians and judges.
A bench of Justices Adarsh K Goel and UU Lalit is scheduled to hear Dangwimsai's complaint to Chief Justice of India JS Khehar alleging that the Arunachal police had brushed under the carpet serious allegations of corruption against important politicians and SC judges.
She had demanded an impartial probe into the allegations levelled in the suicide note, either by the CBI or the National Investigation Agency.
In a bold decision, Khehar ordered the registry to convert her complaint into a writ petition and list it for hearing in the open court before a bench headed by Justice Goel despite being aware that the suicide note naming a few judges had been doing rounds on social media and news portals, giving rise to the possibility of unverified charges being repeated during the court hearing.
(Source: The Times of India)
7. Four Cops Get Life Terms for Bhojpur Fake Encounter in 1996
A CBI court sentenced four policemen to life in jail till death for a staged 'encounter' in which they killed four daily wagers two days before Diwali in 1996.
On 8 November 1996, the four were shot dead around 2.30 pm near Machri roundabout in Bhojpur (Modinagar) area. The victims were Jasveer (23), Jalaluddin (20), Ashok (17) and Parvesh (17).
The cops had said they were dreaded gangsters who were sitting near Machri roundabout in Bhojpur under suspicious circumstances and when challenged, started firing, forcing police to return fire in which all four were killed.
Following outrage over the incident, local residents and family members of the victims began an agitation and eventually the case was handed over to the CBI on 1 February 1997. After 20 years, a Ghaziabad CBI court on 20 February held the four cops guilty.
Special CBI judge Rajesh Choudhary on Wednesday... awarded rigorous life imprisonment to Lal Singh, the then SHO of Bhojpur police station, sub-inspector Joginder Singh, and constables Surya Bhan and Subash Chand.Rajan Dhaiya, Public Prosecutor
(Source: The Times of India)
8. EU Team Says Rights Violations in J&K Should Be Settled by Indian Institutions
Human rights breaches in Jammu & Kashmir should be settled through domestic Indian institutions, said David McAllister, who is leading a delegation of MEPs from European parliament's powerful foreign affairs committee.
“We understand this is a sensitive issue,” he said, marking a significant change from traditional EU position of moralising to India on human rights issues.
The group consisting of Zeljana Zovko (Croatia), Cristian Dan Preda (Romania), David McAllister (Germany) and Urmas Paet (Estonia) had initially included Amjad Bashir, Pakistan-origin British MEP from Yorkshire, and a well-known critic of India. However, while four of the EU delegation arrived in New Delhi, Bashir was reportedly denied a visa by the Indian government.
I alone find myself still without the necessary piece of paper. Our political group has taken the matter up with the parliament’s authorities... there has not been a word of official explanation from the Indian authorities, but through unofficial channels I have been told it is because of my stance on Kashmir.Amjad Bashir
(Source: The Times of India)
9. NASA Finds Seven Earth-Size Planets That May Be Habitable
Astronomers have found a nearby solar system with seven Earth-sized planets, three of which circle their parent star at the right distance for liquid surface water, raising the prospect of life, research published on Wednesday showed.
The star, known as TRAPPIST-1, is a small, dim celestial body in the constellation Aquarius.
It is located about 40 light years away from Earth. Researchers said the proximity of the system, combined with the proportionally large size of its planets compared to the small star, make it a good target for follow-up studies. They hope to scan the planets' atmospheres for possible chemical fingerprints of life.
(Read the full story on The Quint)
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