PM speaks of tolerance in vague reference to Dadri
Hindus and Muslims should fight poverty and not each other, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at a rally in Bihar's Munger district on Thursday, in an indirect reference to the lynching of a man in Uttar Pradesh's Dadri tehsil last Monday over rumours that he had killed a calf and eaten its meat. Modi had come under severe criticism for his silence on the murder, even as President Pranab Mukherjee and Vice-President Hamid Ansari made strong statements condemning the act. Finally, four days ahead of the first phase of assembly polls in Bihar, Modi referred to Mukherjee’s speech about the Indian values of tolerance and plurality, and asked people “not to listen to hate speeches”.
J&K MLA beaten up for serving beef
Sheikh Abdul Rashid, an Independent MLA from Jammu and Kashmir, was assaulted by Bharatiya Janata Party legislators in the state assembly on Thursday for serving beef to his guests at a private event, in defiance of a High Court directive banning cow meat in the state. On Thursday, three BJP men cornered Rashid, pushed him to the floor and began thrashing him before members of the National Conference and the Congress came to his aid. The BJP leaders later defended their actions saying, “Whoever disrespects gau mata [mother cow] will have to face this.”
IAF to induct women as fighter pilots
Changing his earlier position, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha said on Thursday that the Indian Air Force is planning to induct women as fighter pilots to "meet the aspirations of young women in the country". Last year, Raha had claimed women were not physically suited to being fighter pilots. But, as he addressed an Air Force Day function at the Hindon Air Base on Thursday, Raha said he had no doubt women could become fighter pilots. He said that the IAF has sent the proposal to the Ministry of Defence and expects it to be cleared in a year. Women officers in the defence services are currently limited to non-combative roles.
Employer cuts off Indian woman’s arm in Saudi Arabia
A Saudi Arabian woman was arrested after she chopped off the arm of her 56-year-old Indian domestic worker. The Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian embassy in Riyadh on Thursday demanded strict action from the Saudi government after being informed of the incident. The employer allegedly severed the woman’s arm after she complained to authorities that she was being ill-treated. Indian diplomats in Saudi Arabia said the case had been transferred to the foremost intelligence agency in the Kingdom, and that India is pursuing the case with the Saudi Arabia ministry of foreign affairs.
Missionaries of Charity orphanages ask for derecognition
The central government is considering a request from Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity to derecognise 13 orphanages run by it after the order refused to give children up for adoption to single, divorced or separated people. Women and Child Development minister Maneka Gandhi said on Thursday that the charity was not complying with their adoption guidelines, claiming that they run contrary to their religious beliefs. Less than two months after the new guidelines came into effect in Thursday, the orphanages stopped facilitating adoption, shifting out the remaining children to other registered homes.
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Hindus and Muslims should fight poverty and not each other, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at a rally in Bihar's Munger district on Thursday, in an indirect reference to the lynching of a man in Uttar Pradesh's Dadri tehsil last Monday over rumours that he had killed a calf and eaten its meat. Modi had come under severe criticism for his silence on the murder, even as President Pranab Mukherjee and Vice-President Hamid Ansari made strong statements condemning the act. Finally, four days ahead of the first phase of assembly polls in Bihar, Modi referred to Mukherjee’s speech about the Indian values of tolerance and plurality, and asked people “not to listen to hate speeches”.
J&K MLA beaten up for serving beef
Sheikh Abdul Rashid, an Independent MLA from Jammu and Kashmir, was assaulted by Bharatiya Janata Party legislators in the state assembly on Thursday for serving beef to his guests at a private event, in defiance of a High Court directive banning cow meat in the state. On Thursday, three BJP men cornered Rashid, pushed him to the floor and began thrashing him before members of the National Conference and the Congress came to his aid. The BJP leaders later defended their actions saying, “Whoever disrespects gau mata [mother cow] will have to face this.”
IAF to induct women as fighter pilots
Changing his earlier position, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha said on Thursday that the Indian Air Force is planning to induct women as fighter pilots to "meet the aspirations of young women in the country". Last year, Raha had claimed women were not physically suited to being fighter pilots. But, as he addressed an Air Force Day function at the Hindon Air Base on Thursday, Raha said he had no doubt women could become fighter pilots. He said that the IAF has sent the proposal to the Ministry of Defence and expects it to be cleared in a year. Women officers in the defence services are currently limited to non-combative roles.
Employer cuts off Indian woman’s arm in Saudi Arabia
A Saudi Arabian woman was arrested after she chopped off the arm of her 56-year-old Indian domestic worker. The Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian embassy in Riyadh on Thursday demanded strict action from the Saudi government after being informed of the incident. The employer allegedly severed the woman’s arm after she complained to authorities that she was being ill-treated. Indian diplomats in Saudi Arabia said the case had been transferred to the foremost intelligence agency in the Kingdom, and that India is pursuing the case with the Saudi Arabia ministry of foreign affairs.
Missionaries of Charity orphanages ask for derecognition
The central government is considering a request from Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity to derecognise 13 orphanages run by it after the order refused to give children up for adoption to single, divorced or separated people. Women and Child Development minister Maneka Gandhi said on Thursday that the charity was not complying with their adoption guidelines, claiming that they run contrary to their religious beliefs. Less than two months after the new guidelines came into effect in Thursday, the orphanages stopped facilitating adoption, shifting out the remaining children to other registered homes.