The plight of youths who were implicated in false terror cases and acquitted after years of incarceration was highlighted in the Delhi Assembly on 26 June. A call to provide government jobs for these youths, whose lives and careers were impacted thereof, was made. Raising the issue through special mention, Aam Aadmi Party MLA from Okhla, Amanatullah Khan, said there were a large number of cases in his constituency where the police had reportedly picked up innocent youths and slapped terror cases on them. Many of them were later acquitted by courts after protracted trials that lasted several years.
“I would request the Delhi government to provide government jobs to such people as they spend 20 to 25 years in jail. Their families are shattered and their lives are destroyed,” said Mr. Khan. He also demanded that the police officers who implicate youths in false cases should be held responsible.
AI SLAMS INDIA ON AFSPA, WANTS PROBE ON DISAPPEARANCES
In a report that called for an end to the use of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in Jammu and Kashmir, human rights group Amnesty International has released a detailed report on the basis of 58 case studies of alleged excesses by the armed forces in the State. The report, which is likely to spark a strong response from the government, recommends that India withdraw AFSPA, turn over cases of alleged human rights violations and disappearances to civil courts, and invite the UN Special Rapporteur and the UN Working Group on disappearances to visit with “unimpeded access” to victims and witnesses, a report said on 1 July.
“By not addressing human rights violations committed by security force personnel in the name of national security, India has not only failed to uphold its international obligations, but has also failed its own Constitution,” said Minar Pimple, senior director of global operations at Amnesty International, while releasing the report in New Delhi on 1 July.
INTELLIGENCE AGENCY ALARMS COMMUNAL RIOT IN UP
Reviewing the atmosphere and situation of UP, Uttar Pradesh, IB, Intelligent Bureau has submitted a report to central government that if the situation of the state has not been controlled over then once again communal riot may happen at a large scale. Reacting on this report, Home Ministry has released an advisory to the state government in which the government has been told to take appropriate action immediately to control over the situation.
WIKI ENTRIES ON NEHRU FAMILY EDITED FROM NIC IP?
A software that tracks anonymous Wikipedia edits has found that mischievous changes were made to the entries on the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and his forefathers on June 26. The revisions, which originated from a government of India IP (Internet Protocol) address, said Nehru’s grandfather Gangadhar Nehru was a Muslim, a report said on 1 July.
These edits were later deleted by volunteer editors of the online encyclopaedia. The discovery was broadcast by @AnonGoIWPEdits – the Twitter handle of the software that was created by Pranesh Prakash. Prakash, policy director at Centre for Internet and Society, noted that all these edits originated from the same IP address. When the IP was verified on whois.domaintools.com, it was found that it belongs to government-owned National Informatics Centre (NIC).
DOCUMENTARY FILM ON ASSAM’S ISLAMIC HERITAGE
Key aspects of Islamic heritage in Assam, such as formation of the Muslim community, invasions and post-invasion settlements and migrations during the time of Ahom kings have been showcased in a new documentary. Directed by Abdul Majid, the film is part of a project by Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA) under its ‘Aqeedat ke Rang’ series administered by the Indian Institute of Technology – Guwahati.
The script written by Abu Nasar Saied Ahmed is part of his research entitled “Islamic Heritage in India’s North East: Assam and Manipur.” The film looks at the life-cycle events of Sufi saints, Islamic institutions, creative heritage, folk songs and creative traditions in Assam.
KERALA COLLEGE BANS INDECENT CLOTHES
An Indian Muslim college has introduced fresh guidelines for the new academic year that bans tight jeans, short tops and leggings, in a decision that was hailed by the parents of the students for encouraging decency. “Every year we ask students not to wear jeans and short tops,” Professor B Seethalakshmi, Principal of the Muslims College, was reported as saying on 29 June.
“There are anyway very few here who wear such outfits. But since they don’t listen, we’ve brought in a dress code from this academic year.” Under the new guidelines, students at the Muslim women college are required to wear salwar, churidar bottom, and an overcoat from July 8.
AMU TO SET UP INTER COLLEGES ACROSS UP
The Aligarh Muslim University has decided to set up English medium Intermediate Colleges in every district of Uttar Pradesh as a tribute to Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, founder of the University, on his bicentennial birth anniversary falling in 2017. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was born on 17 October, 1817 in Delhi.
An organising committee has been constituted under the Chairmanship of Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah, Vice Chancellor, AMU. Gen. Shah has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the 129 years’ old organisation, All India Muslim Educational Conference to materialise the dream. This organisation was established by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan in 1886 to promote modern and scientific education among the Muslim masses.
WOMEN SEEK PROHIBITION IN KANDHAMAL DISTRICT
Women in the tribal dominated Kandhamal district have sought the help of the administration to ensure total prohibition in their areas. A delegation of about 100 persons, mostly women, on 2 July met Kandhamal district collector Yamini Sarangi and SP K B Singh, requesting them to ensure total ban of liquor in at least eight tribal populated gram panchayats under Brahmanigaon police station limit in the district.
The district administration has welcomed the initiative of the social activists but at the same time warned them not to take law in their own hands and cooperate with the concerned police and excise officials in order to achieve their goal, the Kandhamal Collector said.
GYNAECOLOGISTS UNITE AGAINST FEMALE FOETICIDE
Gynaecologists are uniting against female foeticide. Around 500 gynaecologists took an oath against female foeticide at the International Conference on Evidence and Excellence in Obstetrics and Gynaecology held by Obstetric and Gynaecological Society of India (Thissur chapter) on 3 July.
They will conduct a year-long awareness programme as part of the campaign in association with the Kudumbasree Mission and other institutions. Seminars will be conducted for the public and doctors. “Compared to north India, the rate of female foeticide is less in the south,” said Praksh Thirvedi, president of the Obstetric and Gynaecological Society of India.
AMU SCHOLAR AWARDED ‘YOUNG SCIENTIST RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP’
Aligarh Muslim University Scholar, Dr Nuzhat Parveen has received ‘Young Scientist Research Fellowship’ with a research grant of Rs 32, 79,000 awarded by Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), Ministry of Science and Technology, Govt. of India. She will work on Nanotoxicology at Cytogenetics and Molecular Toxicology Laboratory, Section of Genetics, Department of Zoology, AMU, Aligarh.
Dr Parveen was awarded PhD and M phill degrees from AMU on topics entitled ‘Mitigation of the genomic instability caused by iron induced free radicals through some antioxidants in vivo’ and ‘Genotoxic effects of anti-malarial drugs on human chromosomes in vitro’ respectively under the supervision of Dr G G H A Shadab, Section of Genetics, Department of Zoology.