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Ajay Bisaria to be India’s new High Commissioner to Pakistan

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7 years ago

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Ajay Bisaria

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Bisaria takes over from Gautam Bambawale, who moves to China. MEA likely to make formal announcement soon.

India has decided to appoint Ajay Bisaria as its new High Commissioner to Pakistan replacing incumbent Gautam Bambawale, who is now proceeding to China.

Ajay Bisaria, India’s “most presentable face” is an expert on Russia and will be, according to the Indian media, able to “address Russia’s nascent strategic proximity to Pakistan which will no doubt be an important focus area for him.”

Though officially the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has not made any announcement, the news was leaked to the Indian media and is being highlighted in both countries, as reshuffle at this level is always of great interest.

The Indian media says a 1987 batch IFS officer, the new High Commissioner to Pakistan, Bisaria, has had an impeccable career as a diplomat. A savvy diplomat, Bisaria has also served as private secretary and aide to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1999 to 2004 and in that capacity handled a range of defence, economic and foreign policy issues.

Fluent in Russian, Bisaria headed the Eurasia division from 2009 to 2014. As his official profile says, he helped articulate an ambitious policy vision for India in Central Asia and coordinated India’s approach to six annual Indo-Russian summits. Bisaria also worked on India’s policy for multilateral entities like SCO and the Russia-India-China trilateral.

For the outgoing envoy, Bambawale, his must be the shortest stint for any Indian High Commissioner in Pakistan. Bambawale had been given the role on January 13, 2016 and it’s not been even a year before he’s being sent off to China. Bambawale came to Pakistan after heading the Indian mission in Bhutan, and his posting to China shows the great regard that the Modi government has in his diplomacy skills. It would not be unlikely that on completion of his posting in Beijing, Bambawale could be brought back to New Delhi as the new foreign secretary if there is an opening at the South Block.

Gautam Bambawale

Bambawale will be remembered in Islamabad for his cool demeanor in the face of some of the most difficult periods in bilateral relations. Heating up of the Line of Control (LoC) which saw body bags on both sides with scores injured and homes destroyed to Pakistan expelling officers from his mission for undesirable activities to the arrest of a high-profile Indian spy Commander Kulbhushan Jadhav, nothing appeared to have gone right during his tenure.

However, Bambawale also experienced some embarrassing moments for his remarks on Kashmir which led to the Karachi Chamber of Commerce canceling an event in which India’s top diplomat was to speak.

In his remarks in Karachi, Gautam Bambawale had called Kashmir an ‘internal matter’ of India.  “There are problems in both India and Pakistan and you [Pakistan] should focus on resolving your problems before looking into the problems of other countries,” he had said.

Even the expected foreign secretary level talks scheduled after the arrival of Bambawale had to be postponed mutually after the Pathankot terrorist attack. However, Bambawale and his wife, Amita Sathe Bambawale were a popular couple on the diplomatic circuit and frequent guests at homes of Pakistani admires.

Amita even indulged in some food diplomacy where she shared some exclusive Indian recipes with an NGO which runs a café and these are even now the most popular dishes on the menu. Bambawale is a fan of Pakistan’s pride — poet Kishwar Naheed — and enjoyed hearing her poetry saying he understood Urdu but could not read it.

Knowing the constraints in the time that he spent here, the high commissioner concentrated on trade as a means to improve and bring some semblance to bilateral relations.

“…We want to strengthen the relationship between India and Pakistan and that will be my effort while I am posted there….The road to normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan can only be accessed through trade and the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) can play a critical role in this regard, says the Indian envoy”, he had stated, adding that there was no better way of improving bilateral relations than mutually beneficial economic ties.

It was in his tenure that the Indian government introduced multiple visas for three years exclusively for businessmen. These include visits to 15 Indian cities with exemption from police reporting.

Moreover, the businessmen can travel to India by road and return via air. A 1984 batch IFS officer, Bambawale has served as joint secretary of East Asia Division where he handled both China and Japan.

He, in fact, was one of the longest serving joint secretaries there with his tenure lasting from 2009 to 2014.

According to the Indian media, “there are few who know China better than him as he has also served as India’s DCM in Beijing. His understanding of the region is also expected to help India deal with the North Korea situation more effectively.

Bambawale has also served as India’s ambassador to Bhutan and is well-versed with the situation at Doklam which is claimed by China.  As a young IFS officer, Bambawale opted to learn mandarin Chinese and also served in Beijing and Hong Kong from 1985 to 1991”.

– With Agencies

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AAP not to fight Maharashtra elections, Arvind Kejriwal will campaign for MVA

Kejriwal is also set to campaign for Hemant Soren’s ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha in Jharkhand Assembly polls.

Published

28 mins ago

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October 26, 2024

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Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party will not fight the upcoming Assembly elections in Maharashtra but the AAP convener will campaign for the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition, said party leader Sanjay Singh on Saturday.

The MVA coalition consists of Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT), Sharad Pawar’s NCP-SP, and the Congress.

“In the Maharashtra elections, the party’s National Convenor, Arvind Kejriwal, will campaign for the MVA candidates. Aam Aadmi Party will not contest elections in Maharashtra,” Singh said in a post on X.

According to reports, the AAP was contacted about Kejriwal campaigning in the state by the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP-SP. Voting in 288 Assembly seats in Maharashtra will take place on November 20.

Kejriwal is also set to campaign for Hemant Soren’s ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha in Jharkhand Assembly polls. Kejriwal will campaign on the seats, where his appeal would translate into votes for INDIA Bloc, especially on urban seats

In Jharkhand, the BJP will be contesting the upcoming Assembly elections in alliance with the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), Janata Dal (United) (JD-U), and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP). On the other hand, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), Rashtriya Janata Dal, and the Congress are contesting the election together.

Voting in Jharkhand will be held in two phases on November 13 and 20, while the counting of votes in both states will take place on November 23.

AAP and the MVA constituents are part of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), which was formed before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls to take on the BJP.

AAP entered into an alliance with the Congress, the largest constituent of the INDIA bloc, in Delhi, Gujarat and Haryana for the Lok Sabha polls. However, it contested on its own in Punjab.

AAP also contested the recent Assembly elections in Haryana independently and failed to open its account.

The Congress is also a constituent of the MVA in Maharashtra and a part of the ruling alliance in Jharkhand. 

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PM Modi, Spanish PM to inaugurate Tata’s facility for manufacturing C-295 aircraft on Oct 28

“This will be the first private sector Final Assembly Line (FAL) for military aircraft in India,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement on Saturday.

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2 hours ago

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October 26, 2024

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sanchez, will inaugurate the Tata aircraft complex in Gujarat’s Vadodara on October 28 for manufacturing C-295 aircraft by Tata Advanced Systems.

According to the government, a total of 56 aircrafts are there under the C-295 programme, of which 16 are being delivered directly by Airbus from Spain and remaining 40 are to be made in India.

Tata Advanced Systems is responsible for making these 40 aircraft in India and this facility will be the first private sector FAL for military planes in India.

It will involve the full development of a complete ecosystem, from manufacture to assembly, test and qualification, to delivery and maintenance of the complete life cycle of the aircraft, the statement said.

“This will be the first private sector Final Assembly Line (FAL) for military aircraft in India,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement on Saturday.

Apart from Tatas, leading defence public sector units such as Bharat Electronics Ltd. and Bharat Dynamics Ltd, as well as private Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises will contribute to this programme, as per the release.

Modi had laid the foundation stone for the Vadodara Final Assembly Line in October 2022.

During his visit, PM Modi will also launch development projects worth more than Rs 4,900 crore in Amreli.

In Amreli, the Prime Minister will inaugurate the “Bharat Mata” Sarovar in Dudhala. This project was developed through a collaboration between the state government and the Dholakia Foundation under the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Various rail, road, water and tourism projects, among others, to be inaugurated by Modi will benefit the citizens of Amreli, Jamnagar, Morbi, Devbhoomi Dwarka, Junagadh, Porbandar, Kachchh and Botad districts of the state, the statement said.

Projects to be inaugurated include four-laning of various sections of NH 151, NH 151A and NH 51 and the Junagadh bypass. The foundation stone for the four-laning project of the remaining section from the Dhrol bypass in Jamnagar district to Amran in Morbi district will also be laid.

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Maharashtra elections: Congress alleges MLAs offered crores to join Ajit Pawar’s NCP

“It comes under anti-defection law,” the Congress leader said.

Published

3 hours ago

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October 26, 2024

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The Congress on Saturday alleged that crores of rupees have been reportedly offered to two of its MLAs to join Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction, ahead of state Assembly elections.

Congress in-charge for the State, Ramesh Chennithala, alleged that two MlAs from his party were offered crores of rupees to join the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Chennithala made those allegations while speaking to reporters in the national capital. He also questioned the Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Speaking to reporters, he said, “Reports are coming out that crores of rupees have been offered to two MLAs to join NCP (Ajit Pawar faction).”

“It comes under anti-defection law,” the Congress leader said.

He wondered why the Chief Minister who is in charge of the home department is silent. He said the CM has the responsibility to tell the people what has happened.

“Offering and accepting bribes is a criminal activity,” he said. However, the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction has not yet responded to the allegations.

On Friday, Zeeshan Siddique, son of former Maharashtra Minister Baba Siddique, who was shot dead recently, joined the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar.

In August, Siddiqui was expelled from Congress over the accusation of cross-voting in Maharashtra legislative council elections.  

Both the ruling Mahayuti alliance and the Opposition MVA comprising the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (Sharad Pawar), and Congress have intensified their preparations for the upcoming elections to 288 Assembly seats in the state.

The BJP is part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance alongside the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) and Ajit Pawar-led NCP.

Voting for all 288 constituencies for the Maharashtra Assembly elections are set for November 20 and counting on November 23. In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, and the Congress 44. In 2014, the BJP secured 122 seats, the Shiv Sena 63, and the Congress 42.

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