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India refuses to sign Bali declaration against Myanmar’s persecution of Rohingyas

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Rohingya Muslims

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Indian delegation led by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan says Parliamentary Forum was for sustainable development goals, reference to Myanmar on violence in Rakhine state “unjustified”

At a time when leading countries from across the globe have condemned the ongoing persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, India refused to sign a declaration at the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development held at Nusa Dua in Indonesia, on Thursday, because it urged all participating countries to “respect the human rights of all people in Rakhine state (the epicenter of violence against Rohingyas)”.

The decision of the Indian parliamentary delegation led by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to not sign the Bali declaration, on Thursday, can be seen as an extension of the stand taken by India during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first bilateral talks with Myanmar’s State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday.

The joint statement issued by India and Myanmar after the bilateral talks between the two leaders had predictably glossed over the atrocities on the Rohingya Muslims – term that neither establishments recognise in official dialogue, choosing instead to call it an issue of illegal immigrants or developments in the Rakhine state.

The joint statement had said: “India condemned the recent terrorist attacks in northern Rakhine State, wherein several members of the Myanmar security forces lost their lives. Both sides agreed that terrorism violates human rights and there should, therefore, be no glorification of terrorists as martyrs. They called on the international community to end selective and partial approaches to combating terrorism and, in this regard, jointly called for the expeditious finalization and adoption of a Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the United Nations General Assembly.” In effect, India stood by Myanmar on its justification of the violence against Rohingya Muslims – one of the most persecuted ethnic minorities in the world.

Expectedly then, the Indian parliamentary delegation distanced itself from the Bali declaration on Thursday as being a signatory to it would have meant that India was going back on its assurances to Myanmar during the bilateral talks.

The Bali declaration, which had called on all parties to contribute to restoring stability and security in the region, had urged everyone to “exercise maximum self-restraint from using violent means, respect the human rights of all people in Rakhine state regardless of their faith and ethnicity, as well as facilitate and guarantee safe access for humanitarian assistance.”

Sumitra Mahajan

The Indian delegation claimed that: “The country-specific amendment to the draft declaration was proposed at the eleventh hour by selective countries which referred to the violence in Rakhine state of Myanmar. India argued that specifying a particular country is unjustified as this Forum is focused on SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) and inclusive development for all countries based on cooperative and collaborative approach to achieve the 2030 Agenda for the world.”

A statement issued by the Lok Sabha secretariat to explain the delegation’s rationale for not signing the declaration said: “This was in view of the fact that the declaration, which was to be adopted at the conclusion of the forum, was not in line with the agreed global principles of sustainable development.”

“Never before country-specific issues have been included in the declaration as these dilute the objective of these Forums which require unity and focused efforts of all the countries,” the statement added.

The diplomatic parlance of the Indian establishment over its decision to not sign the declaration aside, the fact is that India has been trying to shut its doors on the Rohingya Muslims who are fleeing Myanmar amid mass killings of members of the community by the Myanmar Army. The Narendra Modi government has also been consistent in its stand of calling the Rohingyas “illegal immigrants” and officially maintaining that they must be sent back to their country. There are an estimated 40,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees in India; spread across Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan and Delhi.

Meanwhile, Yanghee Lee, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, has said: “Perhaps about a thousand or more are already dead” in the recent spate of violence in the Rakhine state and that while the figure may be indicative of casualties of both – the minorities and the Myanmar Army – but the deaths “would be heavily concentrated on the Rohingya population”.

Aung San

Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi – a Nobel Peace Prize winner – has been facing widespread criticism for her government’s tacit support for the killing of the Rohingyas, with many even calling for a case to be filed against her at the International Court of Justice in The Hague to try her for condoning hate crimes, violence and killings.

On Thursday, Suu Kyi said: “The issue (Rohingya Muslims) is one of the biggest challenges Myanmar has to face, because you know that the situation in Rakhine has been difficult for many decades and in fact it goes right back to pre-colonial times… It is a little unreasonable to expect that the issue can be resolved in 18 months as you know that our administration has been in power for the last 18 months.”

Suu Kyi, whose government has not allowed a delegation led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to visit the Rakhine state to ascertain the extent of the human rights violation, said: “We are implementing recommendations given by former U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan as quickly as possible to create harmony and peace in the Rakhine state. Our recommendation is harmony and we shall be addressing it quickly”.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Tax terrorism has to stop, says Congress after Income Tax Department issues fresh Rs 1,700 crore notice

The Congress has accused the BJP of squeezing it financially and of using tax authorities against it ahead of Lok Sabha elections beginning April 19.

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Ahead of the Lok Sabha election, the Congress’ financial woes worsened once again with the Income Tax Department issuing a fresh Rs 1,700 crore notice. The tax department issued the notice due to discrepancies in tax returns. 

The fresh notice is for assessment years 2017-18 to 2020-21 and includes penalty and interest. This comes a day after the Delhi High Court dismissed the party’s petition challenging the tax notices. 

The opposition party is already facing a funds crunch after Income Tax authorities imposed a penalty of Rs 200 crore and froze its funds. Furthermore, the party has not received any relief from the High Court in the case and is likely to approach the Supreme Court. The Congress has accused the BJP of squeezing it financially and of using tax authorities against it ahead of Lok Sabha elections beginning April 19.

Addressing a press conference, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said that the notices are being sent to cripple the party financially. Calling the action as tax terrorism, Jairam Ramesh said that this attack on Congress has to stop.

Earlier in February, the Income Tax department had found fault in the party’s tax returns and demanded Rs 200 crore. Subsequently, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) had asked the party to pay the dues and froze their accounts. The Congress stated the tax tribunal’s order freezing its funds was an attack on democracy as the order came just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

AICC general secretary K C Venugopal stated that this is a deliberate attempt by the Narendra Modi-led to bankrupt the Congress ahead of elections. He mentioned that the timing of the penalty notice, following the Delhi High Court’s dismissal of Congress petitions challenging tax reassessment proceedings, reeks of political vendetta.

He underlined that while political parties are typically exempt from taxes, this penalty is allegedly due to delayed filing of returns. He asserted that it is a blatant move by the Modi government to cripple the Congress financially, especially during the elections. He further asserted that in response to the notice, the Congress plans to stage a nationwide protest, condemning BJP’s exploitation of central agencies to target opposition parties. 

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Akhilesh Yadav, Mayawati, Tejashwi Yadav mourns demise of Mukhtar Ansari, demand probe

Akhilesh Yadav mentioned that such doubtful cases should be investigated under the supervision of a Supreme Court judge.

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Mukhtar Ansari, gangster turned politician, who has been in jail since 2005, died due to cardiac arrest on Thursday. After Ansari’s death, his family alleged that the politician had been poisoned in the jail.  

Expressing sorrow, several opposition leaders demanded a probe into the death of Mukhtar Ansari. Notably, the gangster turned politician submitted an application in Barabanki court, alleging he was given some poisonous substance along with his food. He claimed that on March 19, his nerves and limbs started paining after he consumed the food.

Former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav wrote on X that a few days ago Mukhtar Ansari complained that he had been poisoned in jail, yet it was not taken seriously. He added that prima facie the move does not seem justifiable and humane. He stated that constitutional institutions should take suo motu cognizance of such strange cases and incidents.

Former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and Samajwadi Party Chief, Akhilesh Yadav said that the state is going through the worst phase of government anarchy. He added that it is the responsibility and duty of the government to protect someone’s life in every situation and at every place. 

The former Chief Minister added that the death of a hostage or prisoner while being confined in the police station, in a fight inside the jail, on falling ill inside the prison, while being taken to court, while being taken to hospital or during treatment in hospital will erode public confidence in the judicial process. He mentioned that such doubtful cases should be investigated under the supervision of a Supreme Court judge. He claimed that the way the government bypasses the judicial process and adopts other methods is completely illegal. 

Taking to social media platform X, Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati said that the persistent apprehensions and serious allegations made by Mukhtar Ansari’s family regarding his death in jail require a high-level investigation so that the facts in his death can be revealed. 

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi said that the people of Ghazipur lost their favourite son and brother. He added that Mukhtar Ansari had made serious allegations against the administration that he was poisoned, but the government did not pay any attention to his treatment.

Congress spokesperson Surendra Rajput stated that custodial deaths and firing in jail has become very common in Uttar Pradesh. He added that high level investigation should be conducted.

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Uttar Pradesh on high alert after gangster turned politician Mukhtar Ansari death, probe ordered on poisoned in jail charge

Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP), Prashant Kumar said that as a precautionary measure, Section 144 of the CrPC has been imposed across the state.

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Several towns in Uttar Pradesh are on high alert and security has been strengthened after jailed gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari died of cardiac arrest. His family alleged that the gangster, who has been in jail since 2005, was poisoned. 

The jailed gangster was hurried to a hospital after he fell unconscious at district jail on Thursday night. After a few hours, he was declared dead by the doctors at the Rani Durgavati Medical College. 

Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP), Prashant Kumar said that as a precautionary measure, Section 144 of the CrPC has been imposed across the state. The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has also been called in to assist the police. Reportedly, the CRPF units have already been deployed in Banda, Mau, Ghazipur, and Varanasi.

Additionally, the social media cell of the Uttar Pradesh Police is also on high alert to track unlawful elements that may try to spark a riot. Furthermore, a magisterial investigation into the death of Mukhtar Ansari will be carried out by a three member team, reports said.

A former five-time MLA from Mau Sadar seat Muktar Ansari, had 60 criminal cases pending against him. The gangster turned politician was sentenced in eight cases since September 2022 by different courts of Uttar Pradesh and was lodged in the Banda jail.

Earlier, the former five-time MLA from Mau submitted an application in Barabanki court, alleging he was given some poisonous substance along with his food. He claimed that on March 19, his nerves and limbs started paining after he consumed the food.

Muktar Ansari was born into a family with deep roots in the independence struggle. His grandfather served as the Indian National Congress president in 1927. He was initially affiliated with the Bahujan Samaj Party before forming the Quami Ekta Dal (QED) after being expelled.

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