Indian democracy must be celebrated, says President
Against the backdrop of the lynching of a 50-year-old man in Uttar Pradesh’s Dadri tehsil last week over rumours that he had stored and eaten beef, Indian President Pranab Mukherjee said on Wednesday that the core values of diversity, tolerance and plurality of Indian civilisation must be kept in mind and cannot be allowed to wither away. Mukherjee added that these values “have kept us together over the centuries”. Remarking that Indian democracy is a marvel, the President said that “we must celebrate, preserve and promote its strengths”.
UP Police deny booking politicians for Dadri comments
The Uttar Pradesh Police on Wednesday denied that any politicians who visited Bishara village in Dadri last week had been booked for making inflammatory remarks. The clarification followed reports that the police had lodged cases against Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Mahesh Sharma and Sangeet Som, and the Bahujan Samaj Party’s Naseemuddin Siddiqui, for violating prohibitory orders. Meanwhile, an outfit floated by BJP MP Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday offered all possible help, including guns, to the Hindus of Bishara village, as they believed they were being hounded by the police following the lynching of Mohammed Akhlaq last Monday.
Bharti gets bail in domestic violence case
Aam Aadmi Party MLA Somnath Bharti was granted bail by a Delhi court on Wednesday in a domestic violence and attempt to murder case lodged against him by his wife. Bharti was named in an FIR filed last month by his wife Lipika Mitra, who said he had been abusing her since they got married in 2010. After managing to avoid arrest for a week, Bharti surrendered to the Delhi police last Monday.
Poet Ashok Vajpeyi returns Sahitya Akademi award
A day after writer Nayantara Sahgal returned her Sahitya Akademi award to protest the rising intolerance in the country, Hindi poet and literary critic Ashok Vajpeyi decided to do the same on Wednesday. Vajpeyi questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on issues such as the Dadri lynching and the killings of rationalists MM Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare. Vajpeyi also expressed his disappointment at the silence of Sahitya Akademi, the national academy of letters, and said it "failed to rise to the occasion and respect its autonomy."
Ghulam Ali’s Mumbai concert cancelled
A concert featuring Pakistani ghazal legend Ghulam Ali in Mumbai was called off on Wednesday following threats from the Shiv Sena. Members of the Sena’s film wing met with organisers at the venue and conveyed that they would face the anger of the party if the concert went ahead. The Sena has frequently protested against Pakistani artists and sportsmen performing in Mumbai and Maharashtra.
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Against the backdrop of the lynching of a 50-year-old man in Uttar Pradesh’s Dadri tehsil last week over rumours that he had stored and eaten beef, Indian President Pranab Mukherjee said on Wednesday that the core values of diversity, tolerance and plurality of Indian civilisation must be kept in mind and cannot be allowed to wither away. Mukherjee added that these values “have kept us together over the centuries”. Remarking that Indian democracy is a marvel, the President said that “we must celebrate, preserve and promote its strengths”.
UP Police deny booking politicians for Dadri comments
The Uttar Pradesh Police on Wednesday denied that any politicians who visited Bishara village in Dadri last week had been booked for making inflammatory remarks. The clarification followed reports that the police had lodged cases against Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Mahesh Sharma and Sangeet Som, and the Bahujan Samaj Party’s Naseemuddin Siddiqui, for violating prohibitory orders. Meanwhile, an outfit floated by BJP MP Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday offered all possible help, including guns, to the Hindus of Bishara village, as they believed they were being hounded by the police following the lynching of Mohammed Akhlaq last Monday.
Bharti gets bail in domestic violence case
Aam Aadmi Party MLA Somnath Bharti was granted bail by a Delhi court on Wednesday in a domestic violence and attempt to murder case lodged against him by his wife. Bharti was named in an FIR filed last month by his wife Lipika Mitra, who said he had been abusing her since they got married in 2010. After managing to avoid arrest for a week, Bharti surrendered to the Delhi police last Monday.
Poet Ashok Vajpeyi returns Sahitya Akademi award
A day after writer Nayantara Sahgal returned her Sahitya Akademi award to protest the rising intolerance in the country, Hindi poet and literary critic Ashok Vajpeyi decided to do the same on Wednesday. Vajpeyi questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on issues such as the Dadri lynching and the killings of rationalists MM Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare. Vajpeyi also expressed his disappointment at the silence of Sahitya Akademi, the national academy of letters, and said it "failed to rise to the occasion and respect its autonomy."
Ghulam Ali’s Mumbai concert cancelled
A concert featuring Pakistani ghazal legend Ghulam Ali in Mumbai was called off on Wednesday following threats from the Shiv Sena. Members of the Sena’s film wing met with organisers at the venue and conveyed that they would face the anger of the party if the concert went ahead. The Sena has frequently protested against Pakistani artists and sportsmen performing in Mumbai and Maharashtra.
