Categories
-Top News India News

Top JeM commander & Pulwama conspirator killed in J&K encounter

Mohd. Ismal Alvi, alias Lamboo, was family member of Masood Azhar and was involved in conspiring in the February 2019 Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed, reports Asian Lite News

A top Pakistani terrorist commander of the Jaish-e-Mohammad, who is related to terror mastermind JeM chief Masood Azhar, was one of the terrorists killed in an early morning encounter between militants and security forces in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, officials said on Saturday.

“Top most Pakistani terrorist affiliated with proscribed terror outfit JeM, Lamboo, killed in today’s encounter. Identification of second terrorist being ascertained,” police said.

Police said Mohd. Ismal Alvi, alias Lamboo, was family member of Masood Azhar and was involved in conspiring in the February 2019 Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.

“Mohd Ismal Alvi, alias Lamboo, alias Adnan, was from family of Masood Azhar. He was involved in conspiracy and planning of Lethpora Pulwama attack and figured in charge sheet produced by NIA,” police said. “He stayed with Adil Dar till the day of fidayeen attack, the viral video of Adil Dar had Lamboo’s voice in it.”

Adil Dar, acting as a Fidayeen, rammed his explosive laden car into the CRPF convoy at Lethpora on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway in Pulwama district on February 14.

The gunfight at Nagberan-Tarsar forest area took place after a joint team of the police and the army cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about presence of terrorists.

As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.

IG Kashmir Vijay Kumar has congratulated the army and police for the successful anti-terror operation.

Azhar was exchanged along with two other terrorists, Omar Saed Sheikh and Mushtaq Zargar for the safe release of passengers of Indian Airlines Flight 814 which was hijacked to Kandahar in Afghanistan on December 24, 1999.

Second terrorist identified

The second terrorist killed in encounter in the forest area of Namibian and Marsar, general area of Dachigam forest in Kashmir on Saturday has been identified, officials said.

Police said the second slain terrorist has been identified as Sameer Ahmad Dar alias Hanzala Jihadi, resident of Gundibagh, Kakapora Pulwama and was affiliated with proscribed terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed.

“As per police records, Sameer Dar alias Hanzala Jihadi was A+ category terrorist and also figured among the list of most wanted terrorists operating in the Valley. He was also involved in 2019 Lethpora Fidayeen attack and figured in NIA’s chargesheet,” police said.

With the elimination of terrorist Sameer Dar, eight terrorists have been killed so far out of 19 terrorists involved in the Lethpora Fidayeen attack, seven terrorists/Over Ground Workers (OGWs) have been arrested and four terrorists are still absconding, police added.

“Sameer Dar was also involved in a series of grenade attacks on Police/Security Forces including attack on Army camp Kakapora, patrolling party at Gundibagh and killing of two CRPF personnel at Chinar Bagh and Railway Kakapora for which several cases are registered against him. He was also influential in motivating and recruiting the youth to join terror folds and brainwashing them to seek new members in the terrorist ranks,” police said.

Soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir. (Photo IANS)

Major tragedy averted

 A major tragedy was averted on Saturday when the security forces detected and successfully defused an improvised explosive device (IED) on Jammu-Poonch highway in Jammu and Kashmir.

Traffic on Jammu-Poonch Highway was suspended for around 3 hours on Saturday after the security forces recovered an IED on the highway.

Sources said specific information was received by the police that suspicious movement has taken place in Dalogra area along the highway.

“Traffic was immediately suspended and an operation was launched during which the security forces detected an IED.

“Bomb disposal squad later successfully defused the IED”, police sources said.

ALSO READ: India, China end 12th round of border talks

ALSO READ: Indian migrant workers seek justice over wage theft

Categories
-Top News India News Karnataka

Karnataka cabinet expansion soon: CM Bommai

According to sources in the party, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and the party top brass are said to have agreed upon giving chance to 6 new faces in the cabinet…reports Asian Lite News.

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said here on Saturday that a decision on cabinet expansion will be taken very soon.

“I am expecting a call from the high command on Monday in this regard,” he said here on Saturday.

He clarified that he has not given any list to the central leaders in this regard and there is no question of lobbying for cabinet posts, he underlined.

“I have discussed the matter with party President J.P. Nadda and am waiting for their signal,” he added.

Meanwhile, union minister Pralhad Joshi has stated that Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has already discussed the matter with the high command and cabinet expansion will be done in two or three days.

New faces

Uneasy calm prevails in the BJP Karnataka state unit leaders camp as they have got the news that the party is keen on replacing the elderly leaders with new faces, sources said.

According to sources in the party, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and the party top brass are said to have agreed upon giving chance to 6 new faces in the cabinet.

It is said that Bommai has proposed the creation of five deputy chief ministers to give representation to scheduled castes, tribes, other backward communities, Lingayat and Vokkaliga castes.

Bommai’s proposal has been agreed upon by the high command as well as former chief minister Yediyurappa, sources explain.

Though, RSS leaders are said to be hesitant on forming a cabinet on caste lines. They are also of the opinion that the creation of posts of deputy chief ministers will create unnecessary rivalry among themselves.

The senior BJP leaders, who enjoyed plum postings, are said to be disturbed after the news of laying them off in the new cabinet reached.

Former chief minister Jagadish Shettar, S. Sureshkumar, R. Ashok and former deputy chief minister Govind Karajol are lobbying hard to retain their prominence in the party.

The party has decided to induct 21 to 25 ministers into the cabinet in the first phase. After seeing reactions, decisions will be made in future, sources claimed.

But, most of the legislators who joined BJP from the Congress are likely to make it to the cabinet. Yediyurappa has been continuously issuing sympathetic statements on them, party sources say.

Meanwhile, former ministers Umesh Katti, C.C. Patil, C.P. Yogeshwar, former deputy chief minister Lakshman Savadi and MLA Aravind Bellad are camping in New Delhi and are meeting senior leaders.

ALSO READ-SC protects K’taka CM from arrest in corruption case

READ MORE-Will take everyone along, says Karnataka CM-designate Bommai

Categories
-Top News India News

VP Naidu makes case for using native languages in judiciary

Addressing a virtual conference organised by ‘Telugu Kootami’ on the protection of mother tongues, Saturday, Naidu cautioned that loss of mother tongue, ultimately leads to loss of self-identity and self-esteem…reports Asian Lite News.

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu has called for the need to make the judiciary accessible for native language speakers. Referring to the Chief Justice of India, N.V. Ramana’s recent initiative allowing a woman to speak in Telugu in court, the Vice President said the incident underlined the need for judiciary to allow people to express their problems in their mother tongues, and also deliver judgments in the regional languages.

Addressing a virtual conference organised by ‘Telugu Kootami’ on the protection of mother tongues, Saturday, Naidu cautioned that loss of mother tongue, ultimately leads to loss of self-identity and self-esteem. It would be possible to preserve various aspects of our heritage – music, dance, drama, customs, festivals, traditional knowledge – only by preserving our mother tongue, he said.

Naidu called for innovative and collaborative efforts to protect and rejuvenate Indian languages. Stressing that preserving languages and ensuring their continuity is possible only through people’s movement, he said that people must come together in one voice and pool in efforts to pass on our heritage of language to our future generations.

Referring to various best practices in the world in preserving mother tongue, the Vice President called upon language enthusiasts, linguists, teachers, parents and the media to take insights from such countries.

He said that countries like France, Germany and Japan, while using their native tongue in various advanced disciplines like engineering, medicine and law, have proved themselves strong vis-a-vis English-speaking countries in every field. He also suggested improving scientific and technical terminology in Indian languages in order to facilitate wider reach.

Touching upon various people-driven initiatives needed to preserve Indian languages, the Vice President highlighted the important role translation plays in enriching a language. He called for increased efforts in improving the quality and quantity of translations in Indian languages. He also proposed making ancient literature more accessible and relatable to the youth in plain, spoken languages.

ALSO READ-SPECIAL REPORT: Telugus in Sri Lanka

READ MORE-KHOONI VAISAKHI: A Tribute to Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs

Categories
-Top News India News

NIA takes over probe on explosives recovery in Mizoram

The agency will be probing the motive behind smuggling of explosive powder, detonators and other war-like stores…reports Asian Lite News.

Amid the land dispute on the Mizoram-Assam border, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the recovery of 3,000 detonators from Champai district in Mizoram by Assam Rifles.

The Union Home Ministry had transferred the case from Mizoram Police to the country’s premier anti-terror probing agency on July 28.

The agency will be probing the motive behind smuggling of explosive powder, detonators and other war-like stores.

The agency will also look into the role of international banned groups engaged in pumping these explosives into India through the porous border of Mizoram.

Assam Rifles had recovered the explosives in Mizoram on June 21.

Back then, Assam Rifles had said in a statement, “Based on specific intelligence, the Serchhip Battalion of Assam Rifles, under the aegis of Spear Corps, apprehended two individuals and recovered 1.3104 tonnes of Class II CAT -ZZ explosive powder, Safety 2000 mtrs fuze, 925 electric detonators, 3000 special detonators and other war-like stores near Farkawn in Mizoram.”

The force further stated that the apprehended individuals along with the recovered items were handed over to the Dungtalang police station for further investigation.

The operation was carried out by the Serchhip Battalion of 23 Sector Assam Rifles, under the Headquarters Inspector General Assam Rifles (East) in the Farkawn road track junction area in Mizoram.

Sources in local police stated that smuggling is a major concern in Mizoram, which shares a long border with Myanmar.

The cops have stated that prima facie, it seems that Class II CAT -ZZ explosive powder, Safety 2000 mtrs fuze, electric detonators and special detonators were smuggled in from Myanmar.

Mizoram, earlier referred to as Lushai Hill, shares borders with three states of Tripura, Assam and Manipur, besides sharing a 722-km border with the neighbouring countries of Bangladesh and Myanmar.

ALSO READ-Assam asks residents not to visit Mizoram

READ MORE-Mizoram complains against Assam’s ‘economic blockade’

Categories
-Top News

BRICS to adopt counter terrorism action plan next month

The plan was finalized during the 6th meeting of the BRICS Counter Terrorism Working Group (CTWG) held virtually on 28-29 July under the chairship of India…reports Asian Lite News.

The BRICS Counter Terrorism Action Plan, which lists measures to implement the BRICS Counter Terrorism Strategy adopted by BRICS leaders in 2020, will be adopted next month.

The plan was finalized during the 6th meeting of the BRICS Counter Terrorism Working Group (CTWG) held virtually on 28-29 July under the chairship of India.

The BRICS Counter Terrorism Action Plan is one of the key deliverables during India’s Chairship of BRICS and will be adopted at the meeting of BRICS National Security Advisors scheduled next month, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday.

The Action Plan is aimed at further strengthening result oriented cooperation between BRICS countries in areas such as preventing and combating terrorism, radicalisation, financing of terrorism, misuse of internet by terrorists, curbing travel of terrorists, border control, protection of soft targets, information sharing, capacity building, international and regional cooperation.

During the Working Group meeting, while condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations whenever, wherever and by whomsoever committed, the BRICS countries also exchanged views on terrorism threat assessment at national, regional and global level and resolved to further enhance counter terrorism cooperation in line with the Action Plan.

The Joint Secretary for Counter Terrorism, MEA, Mahaveer Singhvi, chaired the meeting. Senior counter terrorism officials from all BRICS countries participated in the meeting.

The BRICS Counter Terrorism Working Group meeting was preceded by virtual meetings of the five thematic sub-working groups on Misuse of Internet for Terrorist Purpose, Deradicalization, Countering Terrorist Financing, Capacity Building and Countering Foreign Terrorist Fighters on 26-27 July 2021. (India News Network)

ALSO READ-BRICS countries agree to India’s Innovation Cooperation Action Plan

READ MORE-BRICS members to enhance intra-trade