The Indian Panorama

Month: July 2022

  • Unmarried women have right to safe abortion: SC

    Unmarried women have right to safe abortion: SC

    New Delhi (TIP)- In a significant order, the Supreme Court Thursday, July 21,  expanded the scope of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act to include unmarried women and allowed a 25-year-old woman to abort her 24-weeks pregnancy arising out of a consensual relationship.

    The top court said, “a woman’s right to reproductive choice is an inseparable part of her personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution and she has a sacrosanct right to bodily integrity”.

    A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant, and AS Bopanna said, “Denying an unmarried woman the right to a safe abortion violates her personal autonomy and freedom. Live-in relationships have been recognized by this Court”. It requested the Director of the AIIMS, Delhi to constitute a Medical Board in terms of the provisions of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, by Friday. It said, “In the event that the Medical Board concludes that the fetus can be aborted without danger to the life of the petitioner, a team of doctors at the AIIMS shall carry out the abortion in terms of the request which has been made before the High Court…”

    The bench said that before doing so the wishes of the woman shall be ascertained again and her written consent obtained after due verification of identity and a report shall be furnished to this Court after compliance with this order within a period of one week thereafter.

    It said, “In the meantime, we are of the view that allowing the petitioner to suffer an unwanted pregnancy would be contrary to the intent of the law enacted by Parliament. Moreover, allowing the petitioner to terminate her pregnancy, on a proper interpretation of the statute, prima facie, falls within the ambit of the statute and the petitioner should not be denied the benefit on the ground that she is an unmarried woman”. It added that the distinction between a married and unmarried woman does not bear a nexus to the basic purpose and object which is sought to be achieved by Parliament which is conveyed specifically by the provisions of Explanation 1 to Section 3 of the Act. “The petitioner had moved the High Court before she had completed 24 weeks of pregnancy. The delay in the judicial process cannot work to her prejudice”, it said.

    The bench said that Parliament by amending the MTP Act through the Act of 2021 intended to include unmarried women and single women within the ambit of the Act which is evident from the replacement of the word ‘husband’ with ‘partner’ in the provisions.

    Source: PTI

  • National Herald case: Cong alleges govt conspiracy as ED grills Sonia Gandhi

    National Herald case: Cong alleges govt conspiracy as ED grills Sonia Gandhi

    New Delhi (TIP)- Congress leaders and workers protested across the country on Thursday, July 21,  against what they called the government’s conspiracy to silence the Opposition as the Enforcement Directorate questioned Sonia Gandhi in the National Herald case. Senior leaders said there was no need for the interrogation as all the relevant information had been in the public domain for several years. They alleged that the government’s real objective was to frighten the Congress leadership into giving up posing uncomfortable questions to Narendra Modi. And the implied message to all critics and opponents of the government was that if Sonia and Rahul Gandhi could be treated in this manner, others could not hope to be spared, they said. “There is no substance to the National Herald case. They grilled Rahul Gandhi for five days, till late in the night every day. We never saw such an interrogation in history despite so many big scams,” Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot said. “Now the 75-year-old, ailing Congress president has been summoned. This is low-grade behaviour,” the chief minister added. “They could have sent a couple of officers to her residence to record her statement if it was that important to the investigation,” Gehlot said.

    He added: “We know that everybody is equal before the law. But it is not so under the Modi regime. Those who are with Modi are immune to the power of law. Ongoing cases are put in the cold storage when you join the BJP. Only opponents are to be harassed. “They are setting a dangerous precedent. There is an atmosphere of fear and suffocation. Don’t think that Hindutva will keep you in power forever.” Party spokesperson Pawan Khera, who addressed the media with Gehot, said: “Everybody sees the political alliance of the Modi government with the central agencies. The conspiracy is to silence critics and opponents. They don’t want us to show them the mirror; they get intolerant when we recall their false promises and expose their betrayal. “But the perception of the Congress they have in mind is based on the cowards who defected. They don’t know the Gandhi-Nehru family and the real Congress.” If the government’s intention is indeed to scare the Congress into silence with the case, the result has so far been unsatisfactory because it has caused the largely inactive Congress workers to erupt in anger.

    While party workers protested across the country, the mobilisation in Delhi was far bigger than the protests seen during Rahul’s interrogation. While all the office-bearers and senior leaders assembled at the Congress headquarters, MPs protested in both Houses and then marched to the party office. All of them courted arrest as the police refused to let them march to the ED office. Senior leaders and MPs were detained at various police stations and released only after Sonia’s three-hour questioning ended. The Youth Congress, Mahila Congress and student arm NSUI held flash demonstrations at several spots. Youth Congress workers stopped trains and road traffic in Delhi defying the heavy police deployment. The Congress sought a discussion in Parliament on the subject of the central agencies harassing Opposition leaders and the government’s other critics. A statement by 13 parties accusing the government of vendetta politics too was released.

    “The Modi sarkar has unleashed a relentless campaign of vendetta against its political opponents and critics through the mischievous misuse of investigative agencies,” the statement said.

    Source: Telegraphindia

  • PM urges people to hoist, display Tricolor at home between Aug 13 and 15

    PM urges people to hoist, display Tricolor at home between Aug 13 and 15

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday appealed to people to strengthen the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ movement by hoisting or displaying the national flag in their homes between August 13 and 15. In a series of tweets, he said the movement would deepen our connect with the Tricolour and noted that it was on July 22 in 1947 that the national flag was adopted. “Today, we recall the monumental courage and efforts of all those who dreamt of a flag for free India when we were fighting colonial rule. We reiterate our commitment to fulfil their vision and build the India of their dreams,” he said.

    He said, “This year, when we are marking Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, let us strengthen the Har Ghar Tiranga movement. Hoist the Tricolour or display it in your homes between 13th and 15th August. This movement will deepen our connect with the national flag.” Modi also posted details of official communications leading to the adoption of the Tricolour as the national flag. He also posted a picture of the first Tricolour unfurled by India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The government has envisioned the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ (Tricolour at every home) exercise in the run-up to the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence.

  • 2 shooters who killed Moose Wala shot dead

    An encounter broke out on Wednesday, July 20,  morning in Amritsar between the Punjab Police and the gangsters involved in the killing of the singer Sidhu Moose Wala. A total of four gangsters were shot dead during the exchange of fire in Hoshiar Nagar village near the Attari border. Of these, two gangsters named – Manpreet Singh alias Mannu Kusa and Jagroop Singh Roopa – were the shooters who killed Moose Wala and were at large since then, police said. A CCTV footage recently surfaced showing both of them riding a bike at Samalsar in Moga district on June 21. Gunshots were heard from the site where the accused were hiding. A heavy police force was deployed in the village, the area was cordoned off and the locals were told to stay indoors. A video journalist named Sikander Mattu of a private media channel got injured by the bullet of gangsters. Addressing the media after the shootout, ADGP Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) Pramod Ban said the operation was concluded successfully as both Mannu and Roopa, who killed Moose Wala, were gunned down in the encounter. “Two sharp shooters involved in Moose Wala murder killed in the encounter. Police also recovered an AK-47 and a pistol along with heavy ammunition from the spot. Three policemen have also received minor injuries,” he said. Moose Wala was shot dead on May 29 in Punjab’s Mansa district, a day after the state government curtailed his security cover. Moose Wala’s cousin and a friend, who were travelling in a Mahindra Thar jeep with him, were also injured in the attack. Moosewala, 28, had fought the  assembly election on a Congress ticket from Mansa and was defeated by the AAP leader Vijay Singla.          Source: News18

  • ‘Not consulted’: TMC to abstain from V-P election

    The Trinamool Congress (TMC) announced on Thursday, July 21,  that it will abstain from voting in the vice-presidential election on August 6 as the party was “not consulted” before Margaret Alva of the Congress was selected as the Opposition nominee — a development that once again highlighted the lack of unity among Opposition parties as they bid to take on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The TMC is the second-largest opposition party in Parliament, with 23 Lok Sabha and 13 Rajya Sabha members, after the Congress.

    “The TMC will abstain in the upcoming vice-presidential election. The question of supporting the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate doesn’t even arise, and the way the Opposition candidate was decided without proper consultation and deliberation with a party which has 35 MPs in both houses, we have decided unanimously to abstain from the voting process,” said Abhishek Banerjee, TMC’s all-India general secretary, who is the nephew of party supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

    The decision, taken during a meeting between Mamata Banerjee and party MPs after the TMC’s flagship annual political rally on Thursday, also highlights recent fissures between the party and the Congress over who will take the lead in pitching a national alternative to the BJP. The closed-door meeting was attended by 32 TMC MPs. The party chief left it to the MPs to make a final decision, and 85% of them said that the party should abstain from voting, people aware of the developments said.

  • African swine fever reported in Kerala’s Wayanad

    African swine fever has been reported from two farms at Mananthavady in Kerala’s Wayanad district, officials said on Friday, July 21. The disease was confirmed among pigs of two farms in the district after the samples were tested at the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases in Bhopal.

    An official from the Animal Husbandry Department told PTI that the samples were sent for testing after pigs at one of the farms died en masse.

    “Now the test result has confirmed the infection. Directions have been issued to cull 300 pigs of the second farm,” the official said.

    The Department said steps are being taken to prevent the disease from being spread.

    The state had earlier this month tightened bio-security measures following an alert from the Centre that African swine fever had been reported in Bihar and a few northeastern states. African swine fever is a highly contagious and fatal viral disease affecting domestic pigs.

  • Murmu elected President: How Opposition missed the bus?

    New Delhi (TIP)- India has got its first tribal President. In a much-expected result, National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Droupadi Murmu defeated Yashwant Sinha, who was backed by a section of the Opposition. While Murmu bagged 64% vote share, Sinha could muster only 36%. Murmu couldn’t better outgoing President Ram Nath Kovind’s performance of 65.65% vote share.

    The result exposes the chinks in opposition unity as a few parties, such as the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which backed Sinha’s candidature, committed a U-turn and voted for Murmu instead. The spearheaders of Sinha, namely the Congress, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), were unable to garner support from fence-sitters such as the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) to name a few.

    On the other hand, the BJP, by announcing a woman and a tribal candidate, made it difficult for most fence-sitters to oppose its candidate. Strategically, the opposition could have waited out to see who the BJP announces as its candidate and could have then finalised its own move. On the other hand, the BJP, by announcing a woman and a tribal candidate, made it difficult for most fence-sitters to oppose its candidate. Strategically, the opposition could have waited out to see who the BJP announces as its candidate and could have then finalised its own move.

    This way, the opposition would have been able to contain damage amongst women and tribal voters, a section of whom may not like their attitude of contesting a candidate from their community. The opposition could have also gained the high moral ground that it supported Murmu despite the fact that the BJP didn’t reach out to them for discussions and for ensuring a consensus candidate.

    Massive Cross-Voting Benefited Murmu

    The electoral college consisted of 4,809 MPs and MLAs. The total value of the votes was 10.86 lakh. However, there were 11 vacancies and 44 MPs/MLAs who abstained from voting. While the Presidential polls saw a high turnout of 99.1%, vacancies and a few electors’ not turning up reduced the electoral college votes to 10.72 lakhs.

    Based on the strength in the electoral college, Murmu enjoyed the support of 49.5% of electors. Together with parties like the BJD, the YSRCP, the Shiv Sena, the JMM, the TDP, the BSP, the SAD and others, she gained the support of another 11.5% of electors, taking the total to 61.1%. On the other hand, 38.9% of electors were expected to back Sinha. These included the UPA led by the Congress and anti-BJP/NDA parties such as the TMC, the Samajwadi Party (SP), the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M), etc. In Presidential elections, parties are not allowed to issue whips and MPs/MLAs can vote on the basis of their conscience. This generally leads to cross-voting. Lacking the numbers to win, Sinha had openly exhorted MPs/MLAs to cast a conscience vote to save democracy. While no cross-voting was reported from the NDA camp, a few MLAs of the Congress (Odisha), the SP (Uttar Pradesh) and the NCP (Gujarat & Jharkhand) openly declared that they had voted for Murmu, not Sinha.

    As per reports, 17 MPs and 104 MLAs cross-voted for Murmu till the third round of polling. As many as 22 MLAs in Assam, six in Chhattisgarh, 10 in Jharkhand, 19 in Madhya Pradesh, 16 in Maharashtra, 10 in Gujarat, one in Arunachal, six in Bihar, four in Goa, one in Haryana, three in Himachal, and seven in Meghalaya cross voted for India’s first tribal President. The choice of Murmu clearly frustrated the calculations of the opposition.

    Social Considerations Matter

    Cross-voting was expected since many women MPs/MLAs, especially those who won on ST-reserved seats on opposition tickets, were caught in a dilemma as to whom to support. Also, some elected representatives of the opposition from the Northeast and other states such as Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh, which have a high ST population, were expected to back Murmu.

    While the BJP put up a new breed of leaders for President and Vice-President, the Opposition put up tried, tested and failed candidates. It went with an 84-year-old Presidential candidate in a country where 60% of the population is below 35 years of age.

    Murmu recorded 64% vote share (+2.9%), while Sinha recorded a 36% vote share (-2.9%). This indicates that electors worth 2.9% of votes in the electoral college cross-voted in Murmu’s favour.

    Opposition Unity a ‘Myth’?

    The BJP hopes to consolidate the ST community’s votes by making Murmu the President of India. In 2017, it appointed Ram Nath Kovind as President, who belonged to the SC community. The BJP’s support from the community increased by 10% in the 2019 general elections (34% as against 24% in 2014). The party received 38% support from the STs in the 2019 general election as per the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), and now, it hopes to reach the halfway mark by appointing Murmu as President.               Source: The Quint

  • World’s oldest male giant panda dies at age 35 in Hong Kong

    Hong Kong (TIP): The oldest-ever male giant panda in captivity has died at age 35 at a Hong Kong theme park after his health deteriorated. ‘An An’ lived most of his life at Ocean Park after he and a female panda were gifted to Hong Kong by China in 1999. The female panda, ‘JiaJia’, died in 2016 at age 38, making her the oldest-ever female panda in captivity. Ocean Park mourned AnAn as a family member who grew with the park and built bonds with locals and tourists. “An An has brought us fond memories with numerous heart-warming moments. His cleverness and playfulness will be dearly missed,” Paulo Pong, chairman of Ocean Park Corporation, said in a statement.

    An An had high blood pressure, a common condition among geriatric pandas. Over the past three weeks, AnAn had been kept out of sight from visitors at the park as his health worsened. He stopped eating solid food and was significantly less active in recent days.

    Last week, hundreds left comments on an Ocean Park post about AnAn’s condition, wishing him a speedy recovery.

    He was euthanized to prevent further suffering Thursday morning after veterinarians from Ocean Park and government authorities consulted the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, Ocean Park said.

    “An An lived a full life that ended at the respectable age of 35 – the equivalent of 105 years in human age,” the statement read. Hong Kong was given another panda pair — Ying Ying, a female, and a male, Le Le — in 2007 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the city’s return to China. China commonly engages in “panda diplomacy” where the mammals exclusively found in China are leased to other countries as a sign of goodwill. (AP)

  • UK boosts arms supply to Ukraine with more anti-tank weapons

    UK boosts arms supply to Ukraine with more anti-tank weapons

    London (TIP): Britain will send scores of artillery guns and more than 1,600 anti-tank weapons to Ukraine in the latest supply of Western arms to help bolster the country’s defence against Russia, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said on July 21. The boost comes after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson last month promised another 1 billion pounds ($1.2 billion) of military support, bringing total UK support to Ukraine since the start of the war, which Russia calls a “special operation”, to 2.3 billion pounds.

    “Together with our international partners, we will ensure Ukraine has the tools to defend their country from Putin’s illegal invasion,” Wallace said in a statement. Wallace said Britain would also provide counter-battery radar systems, hundreds of drones and more than 50,000 rounds of ammunition.

    The UK has already supplied Ukraine with a range of military equipment including almost 7,000 anti-tank weapons, hundreds of missiles and armoured fighting vehicles, and has also been training Ukrainian soldiers. Reuters

  • Australians urged to work from home as winter Omicron wave swamps hospitals

    Australians urged to work from home as winter Omicron wave swamps hospitals

    Sydney (TIP): Australians admitted to hospitals from COVID-19 neared record levels on July 20 as authorities urged businesses to let staff work from home and recommended people wear masks indoors and get booster shots urgently amid a major coronavirus outbreak. Australia is in the grip of a third Omicron wave driven by the highly transmissible new subvariants, BA.4 and BA.5, with more than 3,00,000 cases recorded over the past seven days.

    Authorities say the actual numbers could be double that total, and Wednesday’s 53,850 new cases was the highest daily tally in two months. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is resisting pressure to reinstate tough curbs to halt the spread of the virus, including making masks mandatory indoors, though he encouraged people to wear it.

    “The truth is that if you have mandates, you’ve got to enforce them,” Albanese told reporters on Wednesday. “Whilst there are mandates on public transport … not everyone is wearing a mask.”

    Albanese said businesses and employees must decide together on any work-from-home arrangement, as unions called for employers to do more for their staff.

    Employers must go beyond the government’s pandemic leave payments and provide paid leave at full pay for workers who need to isolate, and offer free rapid antigen tests, Australian Council of Trade Unions President Michele O’Neil said. “No worker should have to decide between putting food on the table or isolating with COVID,” O’Neil said. Last week, Australia reinstated support payments for casual workers who have to quarantine.

    Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly predicted the number of people ending up in hospital will soon hit a record high, and urged businesses to let more staff work from home.

    Australia could see “millions” of new cases over the coming weeks, authorities have warned. About 5,350 Australians are currently in hospital with COVID-19, not far off the record 5,390 recorded in January during the BA.1 outbreak, official data showed. Numbers in the states of Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia are already at their highest since the pandemic began. Many frontline health workers are also sick or in isolation, further straining the health system. Australian doctors said masks must be made mandatory in indoor venues. “We don’t have optional seat belts, we don’t have optional speed limits. There’s a lot of limits on our freedoms that we accept because it’s the right thing to do,” Australian Medical Association President Omar Khorshid told radio station 2GB. (Reuters)

  • China fines Didi Global $1.2 billion for violating data security laws

    Hong Kong/Beijing (TIP): China’s cybersecurity regulator on July 21 fined Didi Global Inc $1.2 billion, concluding a probe that forced the ride-hailing leader to delist from New York within a year of its debut and made foreign investors wary about China’s tech sector. Didi ran afoul of the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) when it pressed ahead with its US stock listing even though it was urged to wait while a cybersecurity review of its data practices was conducted, sources previously told Reuters.

    The CAC said its investigation found Didi had illegally collected millions of pieces of user information over a seven-year period starting June 2015, and carried out data processing activities that seriously affected national security.

    It fined Didi 8.026 billion yuan ($1.2 billion) and, in an unusual move, said founder and Chief Executive Cheng Wei and President Jean Liu were responsible for the violations, and imposed penalties of 1 million yuan each.

    “Didi’s violations of laws and regulations are serious …

    and should be severely punished,” it said. Didi, backed by investors including US peer Uber Technologies Inc and Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp, in a statement on its Weibo account said it accepted the CAC’s decision and would conduct comprehensive self-examination and rectification.

    The regulatory action against Didi was part of a wider and unprecedented crackdown by authorities for violation of antitrust and data security rules, among other issues, targeting some of China’s best-known corporate names.

    Authorities have in recent months changed their tone toward the crackdown as they seek to boost an economy hurt by COVID-19 containment measures. The shift has raised hope for companies and investors that the worst is over, though jitters remain. Chinese technology stocks rose after the Didi announcement, with the Hang Seng Tech Index rising over 1% in afternoon trade. “The fine should mark the end of Didi’s regulatory troubles,” said analyst Travis Lundy at Quiddity Advisors who publishes on research platform Smartkarma.

    “If there were more, they’d have waited until those were understood and addressed to levy the fine,” he said, adding the development should allow Didi to move toward listing in Hong Kong.

    Didi, which delisted from New York last month, previously aimed to list in Hong Kong by June. It put such plans on hold indefinitely after failing to win approval from Chinese regulators, Reuters has reported.

    APP RELAUNCH

    Didi’s fine would be the largest regulatory penalty imposed on a Chinese technology company since Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Meituan were fined $2.75 billion and

    $527 million respectively last year by the antitrust regulator.

    Alibaba’s fine equated to about 4% of its 2019 domestic sales, while Meituan’s was equivalent to 3% of its 2020 domestic sales. In comparison, Didi’s fine would be equal to about 4.6% of the firm’s $25.7 billion revenue last year.

    The CAC announced its inquiry into Didi shortly after its New York debut on June 30, 2021. It also ordered app stores to remove 25 apps operated by Didi and told the firm to stop registering new users, citing national security and the public interest. The regulator did not say in its Thursday statement whether it would allow the apps to return to app stores or allow new user registration. Didi previously said it would need to apply for the apps to be restored and three sources told Reuters that the company has updated the apps to ensure they were compliant once a relaunch was allowed.

    (Reuters)

  • Indian arrested with Rs 41.55 lakh cash in Nepal

    Kathmandu (TIP): A 25-year-old Indian national has been arrested for carrying 41.55 lakhs of Indian currency in cash without any legal document to support its source, police said. He was arrested on July 20 by a special team of police while heading toward Nepal. “The police confiscated bank notes worth Rs 41,55,000. In Nepal it is illegal to carry more than Rs 25,000 cash without any supporting documents,” a senior police official said. “The person was hiding the bank notes inside a petrol tank beneath the seat of the motorbike. The police have initiated legal action against the man under Bank and Financial Institution Act. (PTI)

  • Nepali Sherpa sets climbing record on Pakistan mountain

    Kathmandu (tip): A 47-year-old Nepali sherpa has set a climbing record by scaling all the world’s 14 peaks that are higher than 8,000 metres (26,247 ft) for a second time, his agency said on July 21. Sanu Sherpa, from Sankhuwasabha district in east Nepal, reached the top of Pakistan’s Gasherbrum II, which at 8,035 metres is the 13th highest, on Thursday morning, his Pioneer Adventure hiking company said in Kathmandu. “He is the only person in the world to scale each of the 14 highest mountains twice,” NibeshKarki, the company’s executive director told Reuters. No further details were available. Eight of the 14 highest peaks, including Mount Everest, are in Nepal. The other six are in Pakistan and the Tibet region of China. Reuters

  • Imran Khan demands fresh general elections in Pakistan after impressive show in Punjab by-polls

    Imran Khan demands fresh general elections in Pakistan after impressive show in Punjab by-polls

    Lahore (TIP): Imran Khan has demanded fresh general elections in Pakistan after his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party routed the ruling Pakistan Muslim League party in the crucial Punjab assembly by-polls, dealing a major blow to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif whose son HamzaShehbaz is all set to lose his post as chief minister. The election for the chief minister will be held on July 22 on the Supreme Court’s order and PTI-PMLQ joint candidate ChaudharyParvezElahi is likely to be the new chief minister of the politically crucial province Punjab.

    According to unofficial results so far, the PTI has won 15 seats while the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of Sharif has just four. An independent candidate also won. PTI chairman Khan in a tweet on Sunday thanked party workers and voters of Punjab for defeating, what he called, not just PML-N candidates, but the entire state machinery, especially harassment by police and a “totally biased” Election Commission of Pakistan. “The only way forward from here is to hold fair and free elections under a credible ECP. Any other path will only lead to greater political uncertainty and further economic chaos,” Khan, who was ousted as prime minister in April after he lost a confidence vote in Parliament, said.

    PTI party’s senior leader Asad Umar said Khan would announce the party strategy after a meeting of the core committee on Monday. He said now the PML-N is left with only one option and that is “immediately calling for fresh general elections.” The Punjab Assembly currently stands at 369 members: the PTI has 178 lawmakers and its ally PML-Q 10. The PML-N has 167 members while its coalition partners PPP seven, six independents and one Rah-i-Haq Party. The ruling PML-N of the Sharifs has accepted its defeat and even congratulated PTI Chairman Khan for a ‘landslide victory’ in the by-polls.  (PTI)

  • Indian Army Chief Manoj Pande calls on Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka

    Dhaka (tip): Indian Army Chief ManojPande paid a courtesy call on Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina at her official residence here on July 21 and held talks with top military commanders on his maiden visit. The Army Chief is on a three-day visit at the invitation of his Bangladesh counterpart General SM Shafiuddin Ahmed. “General ManojPande visited Defence Service Command & Staff College, Mirpur, and delivered a lecture on India’s security perspective,” the Indian High Commission in Dhaka tweeted. The Army Chief also visited and interacted with the members of the Bangladesh Institute of Peace Support and Operation Training, a premier institute of training peacekeepers for UN operations. General Pande is being accompanied by his wife ArchanaPande and a three-member delegation. He will pay tributes to Sheikh MujiburRahman at the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum in Dhanmondi.

  • Indian-origin woman on FBI’s ‘Missing Persons’ list

    Indian-origin woman on FBI’s ‘Missing Persons’ list

    NEW YORK (TIP): The Federal Bureau of Investigation has added a 28-year-old Indian-origin woman, who has been missing from New Jersey for the last three years, to its list of “Missing Persons” and is asking for assistance from the public on her whereabouts. Mayushi Bhagat was last seen in the evening hours of April 29, 2019, leaving her apartment in Jersey City, New Jersey. She was last seen wearing colorful pajama pants and a black T-shirt. Bhagat was reported missing by her family on May 1, 2019. She is described as 5 feet 10 inches tall, medium build with black hair and brown eyes. Bhagat came to the United States in 2016 on an F1 Student Visa. She was enrolled at the University of New Hampshire and then the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), according to information released by the FBI. FBI’s Newark Division on Wednesday added Bhagat to the list of “Missing Persons” on its webpage, FBI Special Agent in Charge James Dennehy said. Bhagat speaks English, Hindi, and Urdu and has friends in the South Plainfield, New Jersey, area. The FBI said any person with information about Bhagat should contact the local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate. The FBI has put Bhagat’s ‘Missing Person’ poster on its website under the “Most Wanted” list of “Kidnappings/Missing Persons.”

  • Indian American writer Aadrita Mukerji signs deal with Universal Television

    Indian American writer Aadrita Mukerji signs deal with Universal Television

    NEW YORK (TIP): Aadrita Mukerji, an Indian American film and television writer originally from Kolkata, India, who worked on ‘The Endgame’ and ‘Reacher’, has struck an overall deal with Universal Television, media reported. Mukerji, who will write, develop and produce projects across all platforms for the USG studio, has already signed up to her first job as part of the pact – she will join NBC’s reboot of ‘Quantum Leap’ as a co-exec producer. “I am thrilled and honored to join the Universal Television family,” said Mukerji. “I count myself lucky to have found a creative home with such a talented, dedicated, and supportive team, and I look forward to the stories we’ll tell together.” “We were fortunate enough to develop with Aadrita last season while she was also an integral part of The Endgame writing staff,” added Vivian Cannon, EVP of Drama Development at UTV. “She’s a truly gifted writer and producer who brings her own unique perspective to everything she writes. We are thrilled to continue our relationship with Aadrita and look forward to lots of continued success with her in the future.” Mukerji got her start as a writer on the CBS television series Scorpion before becoming an executive story editor of Supergirl. She recently worked as a supervising producer on Universal Television’s ‘The Endgame’ for NBC and a producer on Amazon’s ‘Reacher.’ She has also developed with Skydance Media and CBS.

    Mukerji will join Universal Television’s ‘Quantum Leap’, which premieres on NBC on Sep 19.

    The series, a reboot of the classic 1990s sci-fi drama, stars Raymond Lee. It takes place 30 years since Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator and vanished, according to media reports.

    Now a new team has been assembled to restart the project in the hopes of understanding the mysteries behind the machine and the man who created it. Steven Lilien and Bryan Wynbrandt write the reboot and executive produce with Don Bellisario, Deborah Pratt and Martin Gero. Universal Television produces in association with I Have an Idea! Entertainment, Belisarius Productions and Quinn’s House Productions.

    The deal marks the studio’s latest overall deal, having recently signed the likes of Amber Ruffin and Jenny Hagel, Amina Munir, Gwen Sigan and Aidy Bryant, the report said.

  • AAPI Victory Fund appoints two Indian Americans advocates to top jobs

    AAPI Victory Fund appoints two Indian Americans advocates to top jobs

    Shehn Datta and Vaibhav Jain have been appointed to top posts in AAPI Victory Fund.

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): The AAPI Victory Fund has appointed two Indian American community advocates to top jobs as part of efforts to educate, empower, and mobilize its 23 million-strong electorate ahead of 2022 midterm elections. Shehn Datta, a seasoned strategist who worked on President Barack Obama’s campaigns in 2008 and 2012, has been appointed National Political Director. Vaibhav Jain, who served as Senior Advisor for AAPI Outreach and Engagement on Joe Biden’s winning presidential campaign in 2020 and then joined his transition team, has been named National Outreach Director. “We, at AAPI Victory Fund, are so excited to have Shehn Datta and Vaibhav Jain join our team as National Political Director and National Outreach Director, respectively,” AAPI Victory Fund President and CEO Brad Jenkins stated. “These two individuals have dedicated their time, resources, and lives to empowering communities and ensuring our democracy works for everyone.”

    “Shehn Datta comes to us with over a decade of experience and expertise in advocacy, creating collaborative spaces, and movement building,” Jenkins said. “As National Political Director, we look forward to strategizing with her to build AAPI political power across the country.” “Vaibhav Jain has been an integral member of the AAPI Victory Fund, dating back to his organizing work on the 2021 US Senate runoff elections in Georgia.” “Thanks to Vaibhav, we have expanded engagement with diverse community groups across the country, increased our digital footprint, and are better positioned to mobilize key blocs of AAPI voters in upcoming elections,” he stated.

    “With their guidance, we can help the AAPI community reach its potential and save the future of our democracy,” Jenkins added. “I am elated to join AAPI Victory Fund as their National Political Director and join in on their efforts to engage and empower progressive AAPI voters to be the margin of victory at all levels of the ballot,” Datta stated. “This year’s elections are going to steer the direction of our democracy, making it more important than ever to band together and get out the vote.”

    “As National Political Director, I look forward to working with AAPI Victory Fund to enfranchise and motivate the AAPI community to flex their political power, while bringing culture to the forefront of our work,” Datta added. “As an immigrant, I have learned that America’s promises of equality, opportunity, and freedom are not a guarantee. They are commitments that must be renewed by each successive generation,” Jain stated. “Civic engagement and participation in democratic processes are what bind us together and strengthen our union. I am humbled to serve the AAPI Victory Fund as National Outreach Director to ensure that we continue to be the margin of victory in elections and the redeemers of the values that drew so many of us here.” “I look forward to scaling our efforts to recruit, educate, mobilize, and turnout 11 million AAPI voters, whose voices will be heard at the ballot box and whose leadership will be reflected in the halls of power,” Jain stated.

    Datta most recently served as the Senior Political Strategist at the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, where she collaborated closely with external partners and internal teams to bring about just and fair redistricting, while battling an undercount in communities of color and for marginalized people. Over her career she has worked to elect candidates who support progressive policies with a focus on mobilizing the young voters and climate champions at NextGen America.

    She has advised donors on political programs and opportunities in the states at the Democracy Alliance and fought for a stronger democracy at both State Voices and the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center. Datta additionally fought to elect – and then re-elect President Barack Obama, spending the majority of the campaign cycles in North Carolina.

    Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Datta received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Oregon School of Law and her Bachelor’s degree from Mills College, in Oakland, California.

    Jain is responsible for developing and executing the Fund’s strategy to mobilize and turnout 11 million Asian American and Pacific Islander voters in US elections. Jain leads constituent outreach, manages candidate endorsements, and is responsible for curating the Victory Fund’s digital and social media channels. A public health specialist, graphic designer and consummate organizer, Jain began his career as a community health dentist in small villages across southern India.

    Prior to his experiences in electoral politics, Jain spent five years as a qualitative researcher at the American Institutes for Research. He was also a fellow at the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. Jain has a master’s degree in public health from George Washington University in Washington, DC and a bachelor’s degree in dental surgery from Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences in Bangalore, India. Jain is a vocal advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. He grew up in New Delhi and now lives in New York with his husband Parag Mehta. In October of 2020, they filed a petition with the Delhi High Court seeking recognition of their marriage.

  • Indian American Physician Nahid Bhadelia joins White House Covid-19 response team

    Indian American Physician Nahid Bhadelia joins White House Covid-19 response team

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): Nahid Bhadelia, an Indian American infectious diseases physician has joined the White House Covid-19 response team as senior policy advisor for global Covid response. A Boston University School of Medicine associate professor of infectious diseases, Bhadelia is founder of BU’s Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases Policy & Research (CEID). She is taking a sabbatical for the duration of the full-time position, according to media reports.

    Established by President Joe Biden to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic in the US, the response team is currently led by White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha. Jha is currently on a short-term leave from the Brown University School of Public Health where he served as the Dean. Born in India, Bhadelia grew up in Sweden and Saudi Arabia. She came to the United States as a young teenager. “Some big personal news,” Bhadelia tweeted. “I am honored to join @WHCovidResponse as the Senior Policy Advisor for Global Covid-19 Response. I am humbled to have the opportunity to serve my country & to continue working with our global partners.”

    “Dr. Bhadelia is widely known as an international expert and leader in highly communicable and emerging infectious diseases,” says Gloria Waters, BU vice president and associate provost for research.

    Bhadelia is also an associate director of BU’s National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL) and helped launch and develop the Special Pathogens Unit at Boston Medical Center, BU’s primary teaching hospital.

    “She has extensive clinical, field, academic, and policy experience in pandemic preparedness,” says Waters. “Her background in health and human security, international affairs, and her training in infectious disease, coupled with her extensive experience in health system response to emerging infectious diseases—such as Ebola, Zika, and more recently, Covid-19—have provided her with invaluable insights into the underlying challenges to pandemic preparedness.”

    Bhadelia brings a broad global health background to the White House position, the report said. She worked in West and East Africa during multiple Ebola virus outbreaks, contributed to pandemic preparedness in Liberia and Uganda, and codirects the BU and University of Liberia Emerging and Epidemic Virus Research Program, which is funded by the Fogarty International Center. She’s also a member of the World Health Organization’s Technical Advisory Group for Universal Health and Preparedness Review, which is working to improve the metrics used to measure pandemic preparedness. Since founding CEID in 2021, Bhadelia has grown it into a hub for research and actionable policies—the center has contributed to congressional hearings, advised legislative offices, prepared policy briefs, and provided input on pandemic preparedness bills, the media reported.

  • Indian American Frank Islam named by Biden to Commission on Presidential Scholars

    Indian American Frank Islam named by Biden to Commission on Presidential Scholars

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): President Joe Biden has announced his intent to appoint Indian American entrepreneur and philanthropist Frank F. Islam to the Commission on Presidential Scholars. The 21-member commission, announced by the White House Friday, July 15,  in a press release, includes prominent Americans from across the country in various fields. It will be chaired by Delawarean Margaret Aitken Haggerty, a communications professional who previously served as the spokesperson and press secretary for Biden during his Senate days.The commission is tasked with selecting 161 Presidential Scholars from academics, the arts, career and technical education. “It is an honor to be appointed to the Commission on Presidential Scholars,” Islam told The American Bazaar. ” Those students who are selected to be Scholars represent the best of America and will be leaders in creating its future.  I look forward to serving on the Commission with the other members and collaborating with them to choose Scholars who will use this experience and their already impressive accomplishments in order to help build an even stronger and better America.”

    Islam, a resident of Potomac, MD, just outside of Washington, DC, is a prominent Democratic donor, who has raised millions of dollars for Democratic presidential nominees Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, besides Biden. Previously, he has served on the boards of the U.S. Institute of Peace, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the Woodrow Wilson Center. Other boards and advisory councils he serves or has served include the U.N. Foundation, Johns Hopkins University, American University, George Mason University, the University of Maryland, and Harvard University. The Aligarh, India, -born Islam came to the United States in the early 1970s to attend University of Colorado, in Boulder. After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in computer science from the university, he worked for different companies for two decades before launching his own company, the QSS Group, an information technology firm, in 1994.

    He sold the company in 2007 and set up a private investment holding company, FI Investment Group. Following the exit from QSS, Islam and his wife, Debbie Driesman, established a philanthropic foundation. The mission of the Frank Islam and Debbie Driesman Foundation is to promote education, art and culture, and peace and conflict-resolution.

  • Ranil Wickremesinghe sworn in as Sri Lanka’s 8th President

    Ranil Wickremesinghe sworn in as Sri Lanka’s 8th President

    Wickremesinghe is the first Sri Lankan President to be elected by Parliament following a vote

    COLOMBO (TIP): Veteran politician Ranil Wickremesinghe was on Thursday, July 21,  sworn in as Sri Lanka’s eighth president and will face the tough task of leading the country out of its economic crisis and restoring order after months of mass protests. Wickremesinghe, 73, was sworn in as the Executive President of Sri Lanka at the Parliament complex before Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya. Wickremesinghe, who took over as the Acting President after his predecessor Gotabaya Rajapksa fled the country and resigned last week, is the first Sri Lankan President to be elected by Parliament following a vote. Late D B Wijetunga was elected uncontested in May 1993 after the demise of R Premadasa who was the then President. Wickremesinghe, a six-time former prime minister, was elected as Sri Lanka’s President by lawmakers on Wednesday, July 19,  in a rare move that could provide continuity for crucial discussions with the IMF for a bailout deal for the cash-strapped nation. He secured 134 votes in the 225-member House while his nearest rival and dissident ruling party leader Dullas Alahapperuma got 82. Leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake secured just three votes during the voting held in Parliament amidst tight security. He faces the task of leading the country out of its economic collapse and restoring order after months of mass protests. A Cabinet of 20-25 members will be appointed within the next few days to serve under President Wickremesinghe, the Daily Mirror newspaper reported. Wickremesinghe’s comfortable victory with the backing of the Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party showed the Rajapaksa family’s firm grip on Sri Lankan politics despite the resignations of President Rajapaksa, former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa in recent weeks in the face of massive anti-government protests. Wickremesinghe’s victory could inflame the situation once again as many anti-government protesters see him as inextricably tied to the erstwhile Rajapaksa regime, blamed for the country’s worst economic crisis since independence in 1948. Wickremesinghe, who has been in Parliament for nearly five decades, was appointed as prime minister in May, nearly two years after his United National Party (UNP) was routed and failed to win a single seat in the general election held in 2020.

    Widely accepted in political circles as a man who could manage the economy with far-sighted policies, Wickremesinghe is struggling to fix the economy which, he said, had collapsed at the time of his appointment in May.

    Wickremesinghe, who is believed to be close to India and its leaders, has held many important posts during his career. His immediate challenge, along with trying to ensure a steady supply of food and fuel, is to convince the protesters to give him a chance.

  • Rupi Kaur First Ever Indian American is Mrs. Illinois American 2022

    Rupi Kaur First Ever Indian American is Mrs. Illinois American 2022

    Mrs. Illinois American 2022 Rupi Kaur

    CHICAGO,  IL (TIP): Rupi made us all proud by being the First ever Indian American to win this title and will be going for the Nationals in Las Vegas in August 2022 to compete for Mrs. American. Rupi Kaur has been in the USA since 2002. Her homeplace is Punjab, India.  She migrated to USA back in 2002. She is married with two kids and resides in Chicago. Rupi completed her MBA in 2013. She has had the opportunities to work with some of the top fortune 500 companies and is currently working in Corporate. She is also a Real Estate Agent affiliated with Coldwell Banker and was featured in the Chicago Agent Magazine in early 2021. A mother of two with a full-time corporate job and a Real Estate Agent, she still manages to get involved in the community and volunteers in many Organizations. Her hobbies are traveling, volunteer work, and spending time with her family. She Enjoys Participating in Fashion Shows and Beauty Pageants. Her platform is Women Empowerment and throughout her reign as Mrs. Illinois American, she will continue her legacy to represent her community, her State, and the Country as a whole.

    Rupi believes living in USA anything is possible. USA is the land of opportunities! She is always exploring and looking for the right opportunities. Never take anything for granted in life, God always has a plan for everyone, says Rupi.

    Rupi would like to thank you her family & friends, her sponsors and the entire community for their support. She humbly requests you all to vote for her for the upcoming Nationals. The voting will begin soon, and the link will be shared on her social media handles. Follow Rupi Kaur and stay tuned for more details.

    Her Instagram link is

    https://instagram.com/mrsilamerican?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

    The website is – www.mrsillinoisamerica.com

    Facebook – Mrs. Illinois America Pageants

    Let’s all support Rupi to make her win Mrs. American for the Nationals as she represents the State of Illinois.

    (Photographs and Press release / Asian Media USA)

  • US President Joe Biden tests positive for Covid-19, has ‘mild symptoms’

    US President Joe Biden tests positive for Covid-19, has ‘mild symptoms’

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): President Joe Biden tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday, July 21,  underscoring the persistence of the highly contagious virus as new variants challenge the nation’s efforts to resume normalcy after two and a half years of pandemic disruptions, according to an AP report. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden was experiencing “mild symptoms” and has begun taking Paxlovid, an antiviral drug designed to reduce the severity of the disease. She said Biden “will isolate at the White House and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time. He has been in contact with members of the White House staff by phone this morning and will participate in his planned meetings at the White House this morning via phone and Zoom from the residence”.

    Biden, 79, is fully vaccinated, after getting two doses of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine shortly before taking office, a first booster shot in September and an additional dose March 30. Up to this point, Biden’s ability to avoid the virus seemed to defy the odds, even with the testing procedures in place for those expected to be in close contact with him. Prior waves of the virus swept through Washington’s political class, infecting Vice President Kamala Harris, Cabinet members, White House staffers and lawmakers. Biden has increasingly stepped up his travel schedule and resumed holding large indoor events where not everyone is tested. Top White House officials in recent months have been matter of fact about the likelihood of the president getting Covid, a measure of how engrained the virus has become in society and of its diminished threat for those who are up to date on their vaccinations and with access to treatments.

  • Green finance could be bright and robust strand of growing India-U.S. ties: Indian envoy Sandhu

    Green finance could be bright and robust strand of growing India-U.S. ties: Indian envoy Sandhu

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): The green economy is diverse globally, but concentrated in a few countries and is bound to find new and emerging markets like India, said Taranjit Singh Sandhu, India’s Ambassador to the U.S.Green finance could become a bright and robust strand of the growing India-U.S. economic relations in the next 25 years, India’s envoy in Washington has said, asserting that the two countries have the intent and will to lead the global fight against climate change. The green economy is diverse globally, but concentrated in a few countries and is bound to find new and emerging markets like India, said Taranjit Singh Sandhu, India’s Ambassador to the U.S. “This is the very reason, I see, green finance could become a bright and robust strand in the growing U.S.-India economic relations during the next 25 years,” he said on July 19 in his address to a two-day conference on green finance cooperation between India and the United States.

    The event was organized by the Indian Embassy in Washington DC in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and was attended by more than 300 participants from across the globe. “India and U.S. are natural partners, who have demonstrated time and again, that they can work together, combine their strengths and tap into synergies whenever humanity faces a crisis [COVID-19 pandemic is the most recent example],” he said. Today, the two countries have strong convergences and our leaderships have the intent and will to lead the global fight against climate change, he added.

    This was evident, during COP-26 in Glasgow last year, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Joe Biden announced enhanced and ambitious Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) goals. “In clean technology, India and U.S. together have the world’s best brains and labs to create cutting edge technologies in green infrastructure,” he added.

    In his keynote address, Mr. Sandhu quoted Mr. Modi, “75 years of Independence should not be restricted to mere celebrations and rather should be seen as the gateway to take on the challenges in the next 25 years.”

    In his remarks, Scott Nathan, CEO of the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (USDFC), highlighted that his agency’s commitments in India account for roughly 10 per cent of its active portfolio and marks its largest relationship with any single country. He added that while the USDFC has already invested $1 billion as climate finance in India, the American development bank looks forward to deepening its engagement with the Indian clean energy sector including in areas like mobility and adaptation. Other prominent speakers from the United States included Lida Fitts, Director of Sustainable Finance, U.S. Department of Treasury and Vikram Kumar, Global Head for Transport, Infrastructure and Natural Resources, International Finance Corporation. India and the United States have an existing robust collaboration in the area of climate finance. Some important and recent examples of partnership in the field include the USDFC’s debt financing for First Solar’s photovoltaic solar module manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu with a projected annual capacity of 3.3 gigawatts.

    (Source: PTI)

  • 2 Texas men are indicted in the migrant death-trailer case

    2 Texas men are indicted in the migrant death-trailer case

    SAN ANTONIO (TIP): Two men were indicted Wednesday, July 19,  in the case of a hot, airless tractor-trailer rig found with 53 dead or dying migrants in San Antonio, officials said. A federal grand jury in San Antonio indicted Homero Zamorano Jr., 46, and Christian Martinez, 28, both of Pasadena, Texas, on counts of transporting and conspiring to transport migrants illegally resulting in death; and transporting and conspiring to transport migrants illegally resulting in serious injury, an AP report says. Both remain in federal custody without bond pending trial. Martinez’s attorney, David Shearer, declined to comment on the indictments. A message to Zamorano’s attorney was not immediately returned. Conviction on the death counts could result in life sentences, but the Attorney General’s Office could authorize prosecutors to seek death penalties. The serious bodily injury counts carry sentences of up to 20 years in prison. The incident happened on a remote San Antonio back road on June 27. Arriving police officers detained Zamorano after spotting him hiding in some nearby brush, according to the U.S. Attorney’s statement. Surveillance video of the 18-wheeler passing through a Border Patrol checkpoint showed the driver matched Zamorano’s description, according to the indictment. A search of Zamorano’s cellphone revealed calls with Martinez concerning the smuggling run.