1. Solar Scam: Had Freedom to Enter Chandy’s House Anytime, Says Saritha N Nair
Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy is facing a political storm following the outbreak of allegations of corruption in his government.
Speaking to The Indian Express, solar scam accused Saritha Nair has revealed more damning details about the access she had to Chandy’s house around 2011.
I was never a stranger to him or his family. I had the freedom to enter his house anytime… the kind of freedom to enter another person’s kitchen, I was that close. I was a frequent visitor.Saritha Nair, Solar Scam Accused
Read the full story here.
2. J-K Govt Formation: PDP Chief Mehbooba Hints at Snapping Ties with BJP
The logjam over government formation in Jammu and Kashmir is seeing a new twist with PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti threatening to exit the alliance with the BJP in the state.
According to a report by Hindustan Times,
People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti hinted on Friday she could snap ties with coalition partner BJP if the Centre didn’t announce confidence-building measures (CBMs) to end the political stalemate in Jammu and Kashmir and form a government.
Read the full report here.
Also Read: Can J&K Governor Wait Endlessly for PDP, BJP to Form Government?
3. As Customs Duty Exemption Goes, 76 Life-Saving Drugs to Get Costlier
According to The Hindu, the finance ministry has withdrawn the tax exemption on the import of 76 life-saving drugs. The report says the list contains at least 10 HIV-related medicines, four cancer drugs but the maximum impact will be on patients of haemophilia.
The two drugs — one is blood-based and it is a bad product from an Indian company. The other Indian alternative is a company that makes only IX but does not make factor VIII. We will die. We need between 1,500-1,700 units a year and we already spend over Rs 30,000 out of pocket. Withdrawal of exemption from import duty means the per-unit cost will go up by Rs 3-Rs 4.Rupal Panchal, founder of the Mumbai-based Haemophilia Society
Read the full report here.
4. The ‘One-Family’ Fixation
Taking a potshot at the Congress leadership, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said while the opposition wanted parliament to function, one family holding a grudge for its electoral defeat was not allowing the Rajya Sabha to function.
Modi’s focus on “the family” comes at a time when the Congress has been complaining that the government is not interested in constructive engagement. As evidence, the Congress pointed to the comment of finance minister Arun Jaitley last month when he contended that “a few individuals” in the “high command”, not the entire Congress or the Opposition, were responsible for the blockade of key legislation in Parliament.
Read the full The Telegraph report here.
5. Delhi’s Air Not Worst in India: CPCB Data
The Central Pollution Control Board has spoken. And it took away the crown of India’s most polluted city from Delhi. That’s right. The national capital could be the second, but its air is not the worst anymore, according to The Times of India.
CPCB has published air quality indices (AQI) for 24 cities that help in comparing pollution levels at a glance with a colour code and a numerical value. In India, AQIs are determined based on the concentrations of seven pollutants, including PM2.5 (fine, respirable particles), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and carbon monoxide (CO).
Read the full report here.
6. If I Get Elected, They Will Feel Our Terror, Says BJP Leader Rampal Singh
Deoband did not see communal clashes even though Muzaffarnagar burned in 2013. But BJP candidate and former RSS pracharak Rampal Singh Pundhir believes, there is a fight between Hindus and Muslims, according to The Indian Express. He is, of course, talking about the election.
This election has become a fight between Hindus and Muslims because Hindus are unsafe. Honour of our mothers and daughters is threatened. Hindu traders face theft, dacoity, are murdered. Deoband mein kisi Hindu ki himmat nahi hai ki kuch bol jaye (No Hindu here has the guts to speak out).Rampal Singh Pundhir, BJP candidate
Read the full report here.
7. BJP-BJD Poster War Reaches Flashpoint: Bhubaneswar Mayor Lodges FIR
The poster war between the BJP and Odisha’s ruling BJD turned into quite the battle when supporters of the two posters tore their rival’s posters, according to The Telegraph.
Tension erupted when BJD activists found that the posters of chief minister Naveen Patnaik had been torn along the 3 km stretch from Vani Vihar Square to Ram Mandir Square in Bhubaneswar. As the news spread, tension gripped some areas of the state capital and the Paradip industrial town as BJD supporters retaliated by removing posters put up by the BJP.
Read the full report here.
8. US Will Look into India’s Concerns on Visa Fee Hike: Obama Assures Modi
According to The Hindu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with his US counterpart and raised concerns over a hike in the US visa fees. According to the Consolidation Appropriations Act 2016, the fee will be hiked for certain applicants of H1B and L1 visas.
Both leaders discussed issues, including the bilateral ones like the visa fee increase, and the President assured that his government would soon “see what best can be done under the circumstances to limit the impact on the Indian tech industry.”
Read the full report here.
9. Who Cares About Temple Entry?
With protests at several places about women entering places of worship, Swami Agnivesh presents an argument explaining the predicament to the women.
The last few weeks have seen protests by women demanding that the ban on their entry be lifted. Protests in the Shani Shinganapur temple in Ahmednagar and Haji Ali in Mumbai are relevant examples.
The right to pray cannot be separated from two basic questions: Who are we praying to? What does it mean to pray? If it is to god that we are praying, it does not have to be done in a temple. Temple, kitchen and marketplace are all alike in respect of god’s presence. Men may be irrational enough to believe that god lives in only their temples and that they have a monopoly over such a god. That is why they are, quite rightly, worried about women entering their temples. They are right to worry that if women are allowed into these structures of make-believe, serious harm could come to their gods. The reason is that women are feared to be more rational. Rational creatures will know only too soon that omnipresent god does not stay confined to man-made temples.
Read the full opinion piece here.
Also read: Why It’s Time to Junk the Boys’ Club of Institutional Religion
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