1. ASEAN Formalises $2.57-Trillion Giant
Leaders of the ASEAN grouping on Sunday formally created a unified economic community, a move that could bolster economic ties with India and give it greater access with a market whose combined GDP is $2.57 trillion.
The 10 ASEAN leaders formally signed the 2015 Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community, known by its acronym AEC. The ASEAN members have already taken several steps, such as the removal of tariff barriers and visa restrictions between members of the grouping. Click here to read more.
2. Peter Mukerjea Tried to Tweak Insurance
Was Peter Mukerjea trying to dissociate himself from his wife Indrani when she was arrested by the CBI? In what could be an indication of this, more than a month before he was arrested in the Sheena Bora murder case, Peter had started the process of changing the nominees for one of the four high-value life insurance policies he had bought from two private insurers in Kolkata in 2003 — from Indrani and Vidhie to his two sons Rahul and Rabin, according to The Times of India. Click here for more.
3. Modi Urges Nations to Unite Against Terror
The focal point of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s interaction with the Indian disapora in Malaysia on Day 2 of his three-day visit to the country was terrorism. The PM called for both countries to unite against terror and buttressed the need to delink religion from terror.
The PM addressed the 20,000 crowd of Malay expatriates from India at Malaysia International Exhibition & Convention Centre, and credited the community for contributing to the rapid growth of Malaysia. Click here for more.
4. Drivers, Hawkers Made Directors in BoB Scam
Rasool, 40, a vegetable seller from north Delhi became the director of a company last year — without even knowing it — for a remuneration of Rs 10,000 per month. Like Rasool (name changed), 58 other people, mostly living in slums and working as rickshaw-pullers, street vendors, drivers and household workers were approached by black money hoarders, as per the CBI and Enforcement Directorate that’s investigating the Bank of Baroda money laundering scandal.
These ‘directors’ of fake companies were the most crucial cog in the Rs 6,172 crore BoB scam. Click here to read more.
5. Assam Governor Adds to Row, Says Muslims Free to Go to Pakistan, Bangladesh
They (Indian Muslims) are free to go anywhere. They can stay here (in India). If they want to go to Bangladesh or Pakistan, they are free to go.Assam Governor P B Acharya
Assam Governor P B Acharya was caught in another controversy on Sunday when he remarked that Indian Muslims were free to go anywhere, including Pakistan and Bangladesh. His remark came a day after he was reported to have said that “Hindustan is for Hindus”. As his reported statement came under fire, Acharya held a press conference on Sunday, where he claimed he had been misquoted. However, he stirred up a hornet’s nest once again, with his response to a question on Indian Muslims who face persecution. Click here to read more.
6. Police Apologise Over Treatment of ‘Saving the Cow’ Installation Makers
After a ‘cow’ntroversial art installation at the ongoing Jaipur Art Summit that was meant to raise awareness about the health of cows landed its makers in trouble, the Jaipur Police was forced to apologise after coming under fire for its treatment of the two artists behind the work. Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje had expressed her displeasure over the incident.
Click here to read more.
7. Why the IS sÍurvives
True, the IS positions on the ground are eroding — it has lost 25 to 30 per cent of the territory it held in Iraq and is under growing pressure in Syria. But at the same time, the organisation is proving quite resilient, well organised and capable of causing considerable damage in the societies where it intervenes, as expressed in an editorial in The Indian Express.
And the impact of its belligerent attacks have the potential to really influence the political debate on the place of Muslims in Western society. Click here to read more.
8. “Rajiv Gandhi Showed no Remorse in 1984”
Lawyer and human rights activist H S Phoolka places blame for 1984’s anti-Sikh riots squarely upon then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Speaking to The Times of India, Phoolka discussed his view of Rajiv’s role in the riots.
Instructions for 1984 had definitely come from the top. Rajiv Gandhi was responsible for the killing of Sikhs in 1984. There is enough evidence to prove it. There was no remorse from his side. After these riots, Rajiv Gandhi didn’t even bother to count the riot victims. It was only after three years in 1987 that the report came of the actual number of people killed.H S Phoolka, lawyer and human rights activist
Phoolka also spoke of the Congress’ “intolerance”, as he went on to talk about how the party had rewarded leaders who had led the rioters. Click here for the full story.
9. Bad Monsoon Memories
Every day of the 2015 monsoon session, we witnessed pandemonium in the Rajya Sabha as the Speaker helplessly pleaded with members of parliament to discharge their responsibilities and maintain the decorum of the House. The justification advanced by the opposition for disrupting proceedings was preposterous — when they were in the ruling front, those in the opposition (who are in power now) used the same tactics.
An opinion piece by K T Thomas, former judge of the Supreme Court suggests that the Rajya Sabha should exclusively re-examine the decisions of the Lok Sabha, and that if any decision is unacceptable, it should be returned to the Lower House for reconsideration but the decision of the latter that is then adopted shall be final. Click here to read more.
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