My Opinion

On Tuesday, National Conference and Congress leaders and workers in Kashmir shouted ‘Indian Democracy Murdabad’ to protest the postponement of Anantnag Lok Sabha byelection. This is really shocking. Moreover, a senior Congress leader, who has been a Union Minister, Saifuddin Soz, on the same day, addressing an India-Pak intellectuals’ meet in Delhi in the presence of Pakistani ambassador and former Pakistani foreign minister, blamed India for the Kashmir problem. Both these news would warm the cockles of the hearts of the Pakistan establishment.
Contrast this with our CRPF jawans, armed with AK-47 rifles, practising utmost restraint on polling day, when militants and their supporters brandished arms and tried to disrupt polling in Srinagar parliamentary constituency. The supporters of militants hurled abuses and stones at our CRPF jawans, but the latter did not lose their temper. Naturally they had orders from above to practise utmost restraint during polling, but separatists and terrorists should know that the day orders for restraint are withdrawn, they will have to face the hard end of the stick. Moreover, the restraint shown by CRPF jawans indicates the level to which they can go to protect our Kashmiri brethren, and those levelling charges of repression in the valley, should surely watch this video.

A military court in Pakistan has given death sentence to ex-Indian Navy man Kulbhushan Jadhav on charges of espionage, but the evidence that has been shown is laughable. The so-called confessional video running to 349 seconds has 102 cuts. In most of the video, lip movements hardly match with the audio sync, meaning the audio was superimposed. The video clearly shows Kulbhushan Jadhav being forced to read from a teleprompter. Despite India’s request, no consular access to Jadhav was given. In such suspicious circumstances, if news comes out of a Field General Court Martial giving him the death sentence, it will be assumed that Pakistan is presently in a mood to spoil its relations with India. The neighbouring country is clearly playing with fire, and Pakistan may have to bear the consequences.

It is heartrending to watch Muslim women narrating their ordeals once they are given Triple Talaq by their husbands. According to Sharia customs, these women can return to their husbands only after they perform Nikah Halala, wherein they have to marry another person, get talaq and then return. Even this custom of Nikah Halala is being misused by men, which is really perturbing. This centuries-old custom undoubtedly goes against all norms of humanity. It amounts to disrespect and atrocity towards women. I admire the courage of Muslim women who are coming forth to narrate their ordeals. A large section of people in Muslim community is against this tradition. They should also come forward in solidarity with these women. Moreover, Islamic scholars, clerics, maulanas and moulvis should understand the problems of Muslim women, and come forward to stop the traditions of Triple Talaq and Nikah Halala.

When he came to power two years ago in Delhi with a huge majority, Arvind Kejriwal had promised that he would not live in a government bungalow, he would not use official cars, nor would he take excessive security. One by one, Kejriwal reneged on those promises. He currently stays in a government bungalow, uses official cars and has a big security cordon following him. Kejriwal had also promised that he would root out corruption in Delhi government, stop nepotism and wasteful expenditure. The V.K.Shunglu Committee report has nailed most of his lies. Relatives and close friends of his ministers and those in his coterie were given plum jobs at fancy salaries, bungalows and flat were allotted, party leaders were appointed in plum posts and ministers went on foreign jaunts with the public exchequer footing their bills. It is not that previous governments did not indulge in nepotism and splurging, but their leaders never claimed that they were pristine pure. On the other hand, Kejriwal presented a facade of honesty, but the Shunglu committee report has now exposed his false claims about morality in public life.

The decision of All India Shia Personal Law Board to support a ban on beef eating and cow slaughter, and its call to make strict law against misuse of triple talaq is a welcome step. The Board has said that it has issued a fatwa against cow slaughter and beef consumption after consulting its top Shia cleric from Iraq Ayatollah Sheikh Basheer Najafi. The Ayatollah has asked all Shia Muslims in India not to slaughter cows and respect the sentiments of people at large in India. The Shia Personal Law Board has also called on the government to make strict law to ensure that the provision of triple talaq is not misused. It has also favoured resolution of Ayodhya Babri Masjid dispute through negotiations. Islamic scholars have a big role in bringing progressive changes in society on contentious issues like cow slaughter, triple talaq and Ayodhya dispute. On the triple talaq issue, the views of most of the Muslim women are clear. They are against this outdated practice. There are 22 Islamic countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Egypt, Sudan, Yemen and Morocco, where triple talaq is prohibited. Indian Muslims should also come forward to bring about this radical change.

UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath has fulfilled PM Narendra Modi’s poll promise to the farmers to waive off their loans.

This is a welcome step. For the last three years, farmers in the state were in distress because of failed crops and mounting loans, and Tuesday’s cabinet decision will bring relief to many of them.

Looking at other major decisions taken at the cabinet meeting, it appears that Yogi Adityanath has a clearcut roadmap in front of him. He will not only be fulfilling populist promises, but also try to bring about reforms in governance.

Exodus of people from the state due to agrarian crisis and unemployment is one major problem. Yogi has sought to address this by formulating a new industrial policy that can create new jobs.

He has also tried to offer better prices for farm produce. All in all, we can say that Yogi has made a good beginning. What is required is careful implementation of these policies with the same seriousness with which they have been formulated.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal is fighting a personal legal battle with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, but the Delhi government wants the people of the capital to pay for his defence. The criminal defamation case was filed against Kejriwal by Arun Jaitley, and senior lawyer Ram Jethmalani had appeared for the chief minister in court. It has now come out in the open that Jethmalani has sent bills for Rs 3.42 crore to Kejriwal so far, and the latter has sent it to his deputy for clearance. Documents reveal that deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia has written on the file that the bills be cleared by the government. It is strange that Kejriwal first levels baseless allegations against an individual, and when the defamation case is filed by the aggrieved party, he wants the people of Delhi to pay for his legal defence. Similarly, Kejriwal campaigned for his party in several states, issued advertisments and splurged Rs 97 crore from the state exchequer. On one hand Kejriwal claims, he would not allow a single paisa of taxpayers’ money to go waste, but the question now arises: why should the people of Delhi pay for his baseless allegations and party campaigns? Let Kejriwal pay for the bills from his own pocket or from his party funds.

The former minister of UP Azam Khan is embroiled in a waqf properties scam worth more than Rs 500 crore, not only in his home district of Rampur, but also in several other cities of the state.

The Central Waqf Council has prepared a detailed report of irregularities committed by Khan and his cronies, who parcelled off several Waqf properties to trusts operated by his yes-men.

The report clearly calls for registering FIRs against Azam Khan and his cronies for these irregularities.

Till two weeks ago, Azam Khan was the most powerful minister in Uttar Pradesh, and common people were afraid of publicly airing their grievances. Now that his party is no more in power, people are coming forward with numerous charges of irregularities against the former minister.

While reacting to all these charges, Azam Khan has started to cry foul, saying he was being targeted, but it would be better if he replies to all the hard facts narrated in the report, point by point. The facts and figures speak for themselves.

The unsavoury incident that took place in Meerut Municipal Corporation over the singing of national song, Vande Mataram, by councillors makes all of us hang our heads in shame. A section of councillors refused to sing the song and stayed away from the meeting, citing religious reasons. It is really surprising that people who live in India are openly opposing Vande Mataram, the song that fired up several generations of Indians during the freedom movement. Such persons should emulate revolutionaries like Ashfaqullah Khan and Ghaus Khan who chanted Vande Mataram during the freedom struggle. Param Vir Chakra awardee Abdul Hamid laid his life for the nation during the 1965 War. Were they not Indians? Actually, the majority of Muslims have no objection to the song Vande Mataram, per se, but some of their leaders are indulging in vote bank politics. The Meerut civic body polls are due after four months, and Vande Mataram is being leveraged as an issue to polarize the voters. The sorry part is that the Samajwadi Party is yet to learn its lessons from the UP assembly poll rout. What Muslims really need are education, employment and a better life. Raking up religious issues will not benefit anybody in the least.

On Tuesday, Yogi Adityanath began his stay at the official residence of the Uttar Pradesh chief minister. The residence at 5, Kalidas Marg, which had an opulent look during the regimes of his predecessors, is now completely austere. Gone are the plush leather sofas, costly furniture and crockery items and airconditioners. The king-size bed, on which the UP CM sleeps, has been removed. Yogi will now sleep on a wooden plank put inside his bedroom. Such is the austere lifestyle of a yogi, and the ministers and MLAs of UP government should learn a lesson or two from their chief minister. Yogi’s message is clear and unambiguous. No more splurge and wasteful expenditure. Normally, whenever a change of government takes place in India, ministers splurge on redecorating their offices and residences. It will be good for the people of Uttar Pradesh, if the ministers follow their CM and promote austerity.

The sordid incident in Kashmir’s Budgam, where stone pelters were openly used by separatists to target security forces, at a time when they were busy fighting terrorists hiding inside a building, clearly shows the unholy nexus between terrorists, stone pelters and their masters sitting across the border.

The diabolical plan of terrorists and their handlers sitting in Pakistan is to create frenzy in the Valley so that security forces are forced to open fire on crowds of stone pelters. The ground reality is that sons and daughters of most of the separatist leaders in Kashmir are studying outside the state.

These pro-Pakistan leaders are misguiding gullible youths by asking them to pelt stones, and when firing takes place, they give calls for strike in the Valley. The day the common people of the Valley understand the nefarious motives of these leaders, most of their prob

Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal has come out with a pre-poll promise to discontinue house tax in the capital, days ahead of the MCD polls. Till last year, he was seeking hike in house tax rates in Delhi, but has now changed his tune.

It seems Kejriwal is daydreaming. He thinks voters are gullible, but the common man has the power to give him a stinging reply.

The Delhi CM has not learnt any lesson from his party’s ignominous defeats in Punjab and Goa assembly polls. It is because of his attitude and the coterie that surrounds him that his colleagues have begun deserting him. On Monday, an AAP MLA in Delhi resigned and joined BJP.

He was among those who had joined Kejriwal’s bandwagon and had high hopes from AAP brand of ‘aam aadmi’ politics.

Normally, an MLA of a ruling party never resigns with nearly three years of tenure remaining, but this MLA disclosed one significant fact. He said, AAP ministers including Kejriwal have stopped taking even telephone calls from their own MLAs.