News Analysis India

Tag: Pakistan

  • MEA says Bill passed by Pakistan has shortcomings, urges review

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI:  India on Thursday slammed Pakistan for passing the International Court of Justice (Review & Reconsideration) Bill, 2020, with ‘shortcomings’ and urged Islamabad to address them. The Bill was passed by Pakistan’s National Assembly last week and provides right to appeal to Indian death-row convict Kulbhushan Jadhav.

    “The bill has a provision for inviting the municipal court to decide whether any prejudice has been caused to Jadhav on account of the failure to provide consular access in accordance with a verdict of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). We call upon Pakistan to take steps to address the shortcomings in the Bill,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said. He  added a municipal court cannot be the arbiter of whether the state has fulfilled its obligation under international law.

    Bagchi said the Bill further invites the municipal court to sit in appeal, as it were, over the judgement of the ICJ. Jadhav, a retired Navy officer, was arrested and sentenced to death by a Pakistani court on charges of espionage and terrorism. India approached ICJ for denial of consular access to Jadhav. The ICJ ruled in avour of India and directed Pakistan to make provisions for review of the sentence.

    Afghanistan issue part of India-Qatar talksIndia on Thursday confirmed that the Afghanistan issue was discussed between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and top Qatari leadership during his two visits to the Gulf nation. The Ministry of External Affairs said the leaders exchanged views on the Afghanistan situation.

  • India asks Pakistan to address shortcomings in bill relating to Kulbhushan Jadhav’s right to appeal

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: India on Thursday asked Pakistan to take appropriate steps to address the shortcomings in a bill introduced in the country’s national assembly last week providing for the right of appeal to Indian death-row convict Kulbhushan Jadhav.

    Spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Arindam Bagchi said the bill has a provision for inviting the municipal court to decide whether any prejudice has been caused to Jadhav on account of the failure to provide consular access in accordance with a verdict of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

    “We call upon Pakistan to take appropriate steps to address the shortcomings in the bill,” Bagchi said at a media briefing.

    He said the municipal court cannot be the arbiter of whether the State has fulfilled its obligation under international law.

    ALSO READ: Pakistan court adjourns Kulbhushan Jadhav’s case till October 5

    Bagchi also called upon the neighbouring country to comply with the judgment of the ICJ in the case relating to Jadhav.

    Jadhav (50), a retired Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.

    Subsequently, India approached the ICJ against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence.

    The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an “effective review and reconsideration” of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also grant consular access to India without further delay.

  • India, China, Pakistan appear to be expanding their nuclear arsenals: SIPRI study

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: China, Pakistan and India have 350, 165 and 156 nuclear warheads respectively as of January this year and the three countries appear to be expanding their nuclear arsenals, a study by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has said.

    It also said as per its assessment, Russia and the US together possess over 90 percent of the estimated 13,080 global nuclear weapons.

    China, Pakistan and India had 320, 160 and 150 nuclear warheads respectively as of January last year, the SIPRI’s study said on Monday.

    There are nine countries in the world that have nuclear weapons: the US, Russia, the UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea.

    “China is in the middle of a significant modernisation and expansion of its nuclear weapon inventory, and India and Pakistan also appear to be expanding their nuclear arsenals,” the study said.

    It has been more than a year since the military standoff between the armies of India and China erupted in eastern Ladakh on May 5, 2020, during which there were fatalities on both sides for the first time in 45 years.

    India and China have made limited progress in achieving disengagement at the Pangong lake area while negotiations for similar steps at other friction points remained deadlocked.

    India and Pakistan had on February 25 this year released a joint statement announcing a ceasefire along the Line of Control, following talks between their Directors General of Military Operations.

    The SIPRI’s study also talked about the fissile raw material stocks that the countries have for their nuclear weapons.

    “The raw material for nuclear weapons is fissile material, either highly enriched uranium (HEU) or separated plutonium. India and Israel have produced mainly plutonium, and Pakistan has produced mainly HEU but is increasing its ability to produce plutonium,” it said.

    China, France, Russia, the UK and the US have produced both HEU and plutonium for use in their nuclear weapons, the study mentioned.

    “The governments of India and Pakistan make statements about some of their missile tests but provide no information about the status or size of their (nuclear) arsenals,” it noted.

    Approximately 2,000 of the total 13,080 global nuclear warheads in the world are “kept in a state of high operational alert”, said the study mentioned in the SIPRI Yearbook 2021.

    It also said Saudi Arabia, India, Egypt, Australia and China were the five largest importers of major arms in the world between 2016 and 2020.

    Saudi Arabia had 11 percent share and India 9.5 percent in the global imports of the major arms in this time period, it added.

  • Google asked to preserve data of PDP leader Parra’s emails to Pakistan-based terror groups: J&K Police

    Parra #39;s lawyer, as well as the PDP, has denied all the allegations levelled against Parra and has termed them #39;politically motivated #39;.

  • Onus on continuation of ceasefire, removal of mistrust lies with Pakistan: Indian Army chief

    Express News Service
    SRINAGAR: Army Chief General MM Naravane on Thursday said responsibility and onus on continuity of border ceasefire and removal of mistrust with India lie solely with Pakistan.

    “The border ceasefire is holding. The onus to ensure that ceasefire lies with Pakistan. We are willing to observe the ceasefire as long as they do so,” General Naravane told media persons during his second-day visit to the Valley.

    Asked whether Army has lowered guard along the LoC, he said while a ceasefire is on, militant infrastructure, militant camps and militants continue to be on the other side of LoC. “Therefore there can be no slackening in our preparedness and alertness.”

    Asked whether the ceasefire has reduced mistrust between India and Pakistan, Army chief said, “Trust is a very difficult thing to come by. It takes a very long time to develop. There have been decades of mistrust in India and Pakistan and obviously, the situation on that score cannot change overnight”.

    “However, if the ceasefire continues and they (Pakistan) continues to observe ceasefire in letter and spirit and stop and desist from pushing militants across and foment trouble in India, then all small steps will definitely go incrementally in building trust between two countries. The onus is entirely on Pakistan to build upon whatever has been achieved so far”.

    On the thinning of troops, he said, “We cannot reduce alertness and preparedness. We have a counter-infiltration grid to prevent any movement from across LoC. We also have a counter militancy grid in the hinterland. All these deployments are dynamic and they depend on situation and threat perception”.

    “However, we keep reviewing deployments and if situation permits, then we pull out some troops from active deployment to the rare areas so that they get time for rest and relief”.

    General Naravane said Army’s role in J&K is to bring the level of violence to an extent, where civil administration and local security forces can then play their role in the development of the region.

    “Army’s role is to work with local administration and other forces. Our ultimate aim is to bring level of violence so that peace and development can take place in J&K,” he said.

    Asked how he sees the security situation in J&K, Army chief said, “All security parameters have seen great improvement. There have been very few militants initiated incidents, hardly any cases of stone pelting and no IED attacks in the recent past. All these are indicators or return of sense of normalcy”.

    In response to a question on Amarnath yatra, he said, “We are prepared and taken all necessary steps for smooth conduct of Amarnath yatra. The decision to conduct the yatra lies with the civil administration. But we are ready from our side.”

    The 56-day Amarnath yatra is scheduled to start from 28 June. However, due to the outbreak of the second Covid-19 wave, it is not known whether J&K government would allow the yatra or not.

    Asking youth to shun the path of violence, General Naravane said, “Violence does not get you anywhere. The youth should embrace the future and world over the future lies in shunning violence. And if you do that, it will only hasten the process of ushering in a new era of development and prosperity in J&K.”

    Earlier, the Army chief visited the formations and units along the LoC and was briefed by the local commanders about the existing security situation and measures taken to foil infiltration by militants from across the LoC.

    While interacting with troops, he cautioned all commanders and troops to not let their guard down and remain prepared to meet any emerging security challenges effectively.

  • MHA invites citizenship applications for non-Muslim refugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh in 13 districts

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Union Home Ministry has issued a notification under the 2009 rules of the Citizenship Act, 1955 asking non-Muslims belonging to Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan and residing in 13 districts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Punjab to apply for Indian citizenship.

    The fresh order is in no way connected to the Citizenship Amendment Act passed in 2019 as the rules under it are yet to be framed by the government.

    The Union home ministry on Friday night issued the notification for immediate implementation of the order under the Citizenship Act 1955 and Rules framed under the law in 2009.

    This benefit is extended to minorities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who fulfil all conditions applicable to any foreign citizen seeking citizenship by naturalisation after a minimum of 11 years of residency in India.

    Under the CAA, the period for this category was cut to five years.

    “In exercise of powers conferred under Section 16 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 (57 of 1955), the central government hereby directs that powers exercisable by it for registration as citizen of India under Section 5, or for grant of certificate of naturalisation under section 6 of the Citizenship Act 1955 in respect of any person belonging to a minority community in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan namely, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, residing in the districts mentioned and the states mentioned below,” the fresh notification said.

    People who are eligible to apply for Indian citizenship are those currently living in the districts of Morbi, Rajkot, Patan and Vadodara of Gujarat, Durg and Balodabazar in Chhattisgarh, Jalore, Udaipur, Pali, Barmer and Sirohi in Rajasthan, Faridabad in Haryana and Jalandhar in Punjab.

    “The application for registration as citizen of India or grant of certificate of naturalisation as citizen of India under the said rules (Citizenship Rules, 2009) shall be made by the applicant online,” the notification said.

    In 2016, the central government had in a similar step sought applications from members of these minority communities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh living in 16 districts in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.

    The district magistrates of the districts and home secretaries of the seven states were allowed to receive and process the applications of these refugees for two years by the home ministry.

    In 2018, the said notification was extended for an indefinite period or till further order.

    With Friday night’s order, the total number of districts where such facility is available has gone up to 29 districts in nine states.

    The home ministry said the verification of the application is to be done simultaneously by the collector or Secretary (Home) at the district-level and the state-level and the application and the reports thereon shall be made accessible simultaneously to the Centre on an online portal.

    The collector or the secretary will make enquiries as considered necessary for ascertaining the suitability of the applicant and for that purpose forward the application online to such agencies for verification and comments.

    The instructions issued by the Centre from time-to-time in this regard shall be strictly complied with by state or union territory and district concerned, it said.

    “The comments of the agencies referred to in clause (C) are uploaded online by such agencies and accessible to the collector or the secretary, as the case may be, and the central government,” it said.

    The collector or the secretary on being satisfied with the suitability of the applicant, will grant him the citizenship of India by registration or naturalisation and issue a certificate of registration or naturalisation, as the case may be, duly printed from an online portal and signed by the collector or the secretary in the form as prescribed in the said rules, the notification said.

    The collector or the secretary shall maintain an online as well as physical register, in accordance with the said rules, containing the details of the person registered or naturalised as a citizen of India and furnish a copy thereof to the central government within seven days of such registration or naturalisation, it said.

    “This order shall come into force on the date of its publication in the official gazette and shall remain valid until further orders,” the notification said.

    When the CAA was passed in 2019, there were widespread protests in different parts of the country and communal riots erupted in Northeast Delhi in early 2020 after clashes between those opposing and supporting the law.

    According to the CAA, Indian citizenship will be given to non-Muslim persecuted minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan — Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Parsi and Christian — who had come to India till December 31, 2014.

  • Pakistan government must ensure Sikhs’ safety: SGPC

    SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur raised the demand raising concern over reports of threats to members of the Sikh community in Pakistan.

  • #CancelAllExams trends, as Indian, Pakistan students unite online

    By Express News Service
    BENGALURU: With voices growing louder against examinations amid the pandemic, this time, not only students from India, but also from neighbouring Pakistan, have united, asking education ministers to not hold examinations this year, and #CancelAllExams trending on Twitter on Thursday.

    The CBSE on Monday announced that Class 12 exams will be held in the months of July and August. The Karnataka government has opted to hold exams, saying they will conduct them in July. This is following a meeting with Union ministers of defence and education, among others, on May 23.

    The union is reported to have asked the state governments for their opinions on how to hold Class 12 exams for CBSE Board students, and a decision is expected soon. Meanwhile, the Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) board that holds ICSE and ISC examinations, held its decision about the Class 12 board examination for June 1.

    “Students across India and Pakistan united to #CancelAllExams. In both nations, we have seen a toxic competitive culture that has put exams above health & life for decades. It’s time Ramesh Pokhriyal, Union Cabinet Minister for Education and Federal Minister Education, professional training, National Heritage and culture, Shafqat Mahmood, place students’ interests ahead of their dear crony educationalists,” said Dhruv Jatti, president and founder of Bangalore Student Community.

  • Cops question two sisters in Indore for suspected ISI links

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: Two young women, both sisters, are reportedly being questioned by police and military intelligence in Mhow town of Madhya Pradesh’s Indore district on Friday for suspected links with Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).

    The two women aged between 28 and 32 years were on police and military intelligence’s radar following specific inputs about them being in regular touch with contacts in Pakistan, particularly suspected ISI operatives and possibly retired and present army officers across the LoC.

    According to sources privy to investigation, one of the sisters is a school teacher, while the other woman has worked with an electricity company in the past. They were using fake IDs on social media to regularly communicate with contacts (possibly ISI operatives) in Pakistan, for over a year.

    The two women were in contact with a man hailing from Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir. The J&K man also has possibly been picked up by the cops and military intelligence for questioning.

    The two women, who hail from Gawli Palasia area near Mhow town, are daughters of an ex-serviceman, who after retirement had worked as a security guard at a nationalized bank branch in Mhow only.

    While refusing to share details of the entire development, the Inspector General of Indore Zone Harinarayanchari Mishra told The New Indian Express that the local police and intelligence agencies are jointly working in the matter.  

  • Separatists in PoK making attempts to foment trouble in Kashmir: Officials 

    By PTI
    SRINAGAR: Peeved over the silence of leaders of separatist groups, their factions in Pakistan and in occupied-Kashmir are making desperate attempts to foment trouble in Jammu and Kashmir by giving calls from across the border for ‘bandhs’ and strikes to mark the death anniversary of Mirwaiz Farooq and Abdul Gani Lone, officials said on Thursday.

    The death anniversary of both the leaders falls on Friday.

    Farooq and Lone were killed by terrorists of the banned Hizbul Mujahideen in 1990 and 2002 for opposing growing gun culture in the Kashmir Valley. They were both considered advocates of finding a lasting solution through peaceful means.

    Officials keeping a watch on developments in the union territory as well as monitoring activities of separatists and terror activities from across the border, noted that a release issued by the Awami Action Committee (AAC) earlier this week had urged people to pray for Mirwaiz Farooq at their homes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The AAC is being headed by Umer Farooq, who is the son of the assassinated religious leader and an anointed Mirwaiz or religious head.

    However, peeved over this continued approach of not holding protests or giving ‘hartal’ calls, the faction of the moderate Hurriyat Conference in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir on Wednesday issued a release calling for total shutdown besides holding demonstrations.

    Separatists in Jammu and Kashmir have been maintaining a low profile after a series of raids by the Income Tax Department, the National Investigation Agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate.

    The agencies have questioned their funding pattern and even booked several second-rung leaders for indulging in anti-India activities.

    Mirwaiz Farooq was shot dead by three terrorists on May 21, 1990, and it was conspired by then so-called commander of banned Hizbul Mujahideen Abdualla Bangroo.

    Abdul Gani Lone was shot dead on the same day in 2002 at an Eidgah when he was on his way to pay homage to Farooq Mirwaiz.

    What these two killings had in common was that both these leaders wanted Pakistan to stop aiding terror groups in the Valley, the officials said.

    In the later part of 2000, Lone during a meeting had made it clear to the then Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf that Islamabad should stop arming terror groups in Kashmir, the officials said citing records of investigations carried out.

    Lone before his assassination had indicated to the Pakistani establishment and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) during a meeting in Dubai that he would be participating in the assembly elections that were slated to be held in 2002, they said.

    However, before he could announce the same, he was silenced by the terrorists.

    Lone’s difference of opinion with the Pakistani establishment and continued rift with the ISI was becoming a major obstacle for Islamabad’s Kashmir policy and his soft corner for democratic process in Jammu and Kashmir resulted in his assassination, the officials said.

    The assassination seen as a warning to other Kashmiri leaders not to entertain any thoughts of entering electoral processes, they said.

    Former chairman of the Hurriyat Conference, Abdul Gani Bhat, whose brother was also shot dead by terrorists, had said in one of his media interviews that “Lone sahib, Mirwaiz Farooq were not killed by the army or the police. They were targeted by our own people.”

    He had said about the non-involvement of the Indian government, and about indication of an ‘insider job’ pointing towards the involvement of Pakistan-supported non-state actors.