India News
Ram mandir in Ayodhya, Masjid in Lucknow, proposes Shia Waqf Board
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Shia Waqf Board on Monday said it has submitted a draft proposal in the Supreme Court suggesting construction of Ram Mandir at the Babri mosque site in Ayodhya and of a ‘Masjid-e-Aman’ in Lucknow’s Hussainabad area for an amicable resolution of the vexed Ayodhya dispute.
Parties to the dispute in the Supreme Court have been dismissive, even critical, Shia Waqf Board’s approach and efforts and even the Shia Personal Law Board has opposed it. Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, who concluded his talks with various parties for an amicable resolution of the dispute with a meeting with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Saturday, also failed to make much progress with others. He and the Shia Waqf Board have both been in touch with each other.
“The draft for resolving the Ayodhya issue, prepared by the Shia Waqf Board, has been submitted in the Supreme Court on November 18,” board chairman Waseem Rizvi told reporters in Lucknow.
The draft was submitted by Waqf Board chairman Waseem Rizvi, although he is not a party to the case. President of All India Akhada Parishad, Mahant Narendra Giri, who is also not a party to the dispute, was also present on the occasion.
Rizvi said that they have come up with the proposal following discussions with different stakeholders. Earlier, the Shia Waqf Board had proposed to the apex court that a temple can be built in Ayodhya and the mosque be located nearby in a Muslim-dominated area.
Rizvi, once a close aide of Samajwadi leader Azam Khan, briefed the media saying, “There is no meaning of building a mosque now at the disputed site in Ayodhya. Instead, a mosque dedicated to peace and brotherhood should be built in Lucknow.”
“The Board is of the view that instead of Ayodhya, a ‘Masjid-e-Aman’ be constructed in Lucknow’s Hussainabad area and it has requested the government to provide one acre land for it,” he said.
Claiming that the formula for resolving the matter proposed by the Shia Waqf Board was the best, Rizvi said the board which is the ‘mutawalli’ (caretaker) of the Babri Mosque had suggested giving up its right over the land in Ayodhya.
“We have made a draft in which it has been clearly said that now Shia Waqf Board will not claim the disputed land, and now the land belongs to the side favouring construction of Ram Mandir. We have already submitted this draft to the Supreme Court on November 18,” he added.
Countering UP Sunni Central Waqf Board’s claim over the disputed site, Rizvi said the one-third land given by the Lucknow bench of the the Allahabad High Court through its September 2010 judgement was to Muslims and not to the Sunni Waqf Board.
Rizvi alleged that the Shia Board’s views on the matter were never put forward in a forceful manner because the lawyers deployed for the purpose were ‘fake’.
“On perusal of the files of the board, we have found that the lawyers pursuing the matter had not even been given the “vakalatnama” by the board,” Rizvi said, demanding that the government order an inquiry into it.
“The Shia Waqf Board is being accused of becoming active on the Ayodhya dispute lately but the reality is that it had no knowledge that lawyers have been deployed in the court from its side…The government needs to inquire as to who had deployed counsels on behalf of the board who did not plead the case properly,” Rizvi said.
Mahant Narendra Giri said that a Ram temple in Ayodhya will be constructed and said that an amicable settlement should be reached on the issue by talking to all the parties concerned.
Rizvi further said the solution would ensure peace and brotherhood in the country. He had recently met several Mahantas, including Mahanta Dharamdas and Mahanta Sureshdas in Ayodhya, for resolving the long-standing dispute, news agency ANI reported.
The Supreme Court had earlier suggested that an out-of-court settlement was the best recourse to the dispute. The court would commence the final hearing of the long-standing matter from December 5, a day before the 25th anniversary of the demolition of the medieval-era structure.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
India News
PM Modi says change in government certain in Chhattisgarh
According to PM Modi, the second Parivartan Yatra was launched from Jashpur in north Chhattisgarh on September 15 while the first one left Dantewada in south Chhattisgarh on September 12.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the closing ceremony of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) two Parivartan Yatras in Bilaspur. This is PM Modi’s third trip to the state, which is governed by the Congress and will host assembly elections later this year.
The Prime Minister attacked the Bhupesh Baghel-led governance during a public rally by claiming that Chhattisgarh is steeped in corruption and misrule. Every plan of the Congress government contains a fraud.
According to PM Modi, the second Parivartan Yatra was launched from Jashpur in north Chhattisgarh on September 15 while the first one left Dantewada in south Chhattisgarh on September 12.
Before reaching their conclusion in Bilaspur, both yatras covered a distance of more than 3,000 km over 87 assembly segments (out of the total 90), he said, and included 83 Swagat Sabhas (welcome gatherings), four roadshows, and several public meetings.
The Maoist-affected districts of Bijapur, Sukma, and Antagarh are not on the schedule, although residents from these districts participated in the yatra when it went through their neighbouring districts.
The party officials and employees spirits were unaffected by the rain, he said, and they joyfully took part in the two yatras, which attracted a large number of people.
According to Sao, who expressed confidence that the Congress will be defeated in the 2019 elections, the two yatras, in which almost 50 lakh people participated, have converted the tide of change into a storm.
The program’s location has been heavily fortified with security, according to the police. There will be a total of 1,500 security personnel deployed, including police officers, members of the Special Protection Group (SPG), members of the Chhattisgarh Armed Force, and members of the National Security Guard (NSG).
According to a police, a three-kilometer radius around the city has been designated a no-fly zone, and anti-drone weaponry have also been deployed in anticipation of the PM’s visit.
The Congress gave the BJP, which had been in power for 15 years under Raman Singh, a crushing loss in the 2018 assembly elections. The BJP had only won 15 seats, while the Congress had won 68. There are 71 seats in the current Congress.
India News
Punjab: Farmer’s rail roko protest enters 3rd day, disrupts train services
Many trains have been cancelled, short-terminated, or diverted as a result of the unrest, according to railway officials.
The rail roko protest of Punjabi farmers demanding MSP legal protection, a broad debt relief, and compensation for crops damaged in the recent floods began its third day today.
Many trains have been cancelled, short-terminated, or diverted as a result of the unrest, according to railway officials.
As part of their three-day agitation, the farmers have been blocking railway tracks at various locations in Faridkot, Samrala, Moga, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, Patiala, Ferozepur, Bathinda, and Amritsar since Thursday.
In Punjab and Haryana, the protest has halted hundreds of rail passengers.
A train passenger at the Ludhiana station claimed that he had travelled by road from Jalandhar City in order to board a train to Gorakhpur, but the arrival time of the train was unknown.
Another passenger at the station claimed that the Amritsar-bound train that was scheduled to carry 12 members of his family to Bihar had to be cancelled due to the unrest.
Later, they discovered that the family had journeyed by road from Amritsar and that the train would leave from Ludhiana. He continued, however, there has still been no update on the train.
According to officials, the Ambala and Ferozepur railway divisions have suffered specifically as a result of the farmers’ unrest.
The Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, Bharti Kisan Union (Krantikari), Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Azaad), Azaad Kisan Committee, Doaba, Bharti Kisan Union (Behramke), Bharti Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh), and Bharti Kisan Union (Chottu Ram) are among the farmer organisations taking part in the three-day demonstration.
The angry farmers have stated that the three-day protest will end on Saturday.
Their requests include a financial aid package for those in north India hit by floods, a statutory guarantee of the minimum support price (MSP) for all crops, and a farmer debt forgiveness programme.
The Swaminathan Commission report’s proposals for MSP and a 50,000 crore flood relief package for the states of northern India are what the farmers are asking for.
In addition, they want the debt of all farmers and labourers to be forgiven, as well as compensation of Rs 10 lakh and a government job for the families of each farmer killed during the protests against the three farm laws that have since been repealed.
India News
Sankalp Saptaah: PM Modi today launches week-long initiative for aspirational blocks at Bharat Mandapam
The country’s Sankalp Saptah programme, which is being implemented in 500 aspirational blocks throughout 329 districts, seeks to increase block-level government while also improving civilian quality of life.
At Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced a week-long project named Sankalp Saptaah for the country’s aspirational groups.
He also conversed with attendees, including members from the panchayat and the block level.
The week-long programme, which is described in an official news release, is closely correlated with the national Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP), which Modi introduced in January of this year.
The country’s Sankalp Saptah programme, which is being implemented in 500 aspirational blocks throughout 329 districts, seeks to increase block-level government while also improving civilian quality of life.
Chintan Shivirs were held nationwide at the village and block levels to help with the effective execution of the ABP and to create strong block development strategies. The result of these careful considerations, which will be seen in each of the 500 aspirational blocks, is Sankalp Saptaah.
On October 9, the final day of the seven-day event, a celebration of the week’s worth of effort will take place under the banner of Sankalp Saptaah – Samavesh Samaroh.
Speaking at the inaugural function, the prime minister claimed that more than 25 crore people’s lives in 112 districts throughout the nation had been improved by the aspirational districts plan. He asserted that the quality of living had changed. Now, the aspirational blocks programme will be built on the success of the aspirational districts programme, he said.
According to the statement, about 3,000 panchayat and block level functionaries and representatives of the people are expected to attend the inaugural event at Bharat Mandapam, in addition to about two lakh farmers, block and panchayat level functionaries, and people from other walks of life who will participate virtually.
Starting on October 3 and running through October 9, each day of Sankalp Saptaah is devoted to a distinct development subject on which all aspirational blocks will focus. Sampoorna Swasthya, Suposhit Pariwaar, Swachhta, Krishi, Shiksha, and Samridhi Diwas are some of the themes for the first six days, according to the statement.
