UK's indifference on Khalistan protest at embassy is unacceptable: India

News Network
March 20, 2023

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New Delhi, Mar 20: The foreign ministry summoned the senior most diplomat of UK in New Delhi late last evening as the Indian flag was pulled down from the Indian High Commission in London by Khalistan sympathisers protesting against the police crackdown on separatist Amritpal Singh. 

In a sharply worded statement, the ministry demanded an explanation for "absence of security" at the high commission premises and said the UK government's "indifference" to Indian diplomats and personnel was "unacceptable".

The protests over the crackdown started last evening evening. Cellphone videos posted on social media showed protesters climbing the building and taking down the Indian flag. In Australia's Brisbane, pro-Khalistan groups carried out what they called a referendum on Khalistan.

"An explanation was demanded for the complete absence of the British security that allowed these elements to enter the High Commission premises. She was reminded in this regard of the basic obligations of the UK Government under the Vienna Convention," the foreign ministry said in its statement.

The ministry also said it finds "unacceptable" the "indifference of the UK Government to the security of Indian diplomatic premises and personnel".

"It is expected that the UK Government would take immediate steps to identify, arrest and prosecute each one of those involved in today's incident, and put in place stringent measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents," the statement read.

British High Commissioner to India Alex Ellis, meanwhile tweeted: Over the weekend, 112 supporters of Amritpal Singh have been arrested. Amritpal Singh is on the run. The crackdown started after they broke into a police station with swords and guns to ensure release of one of them. Six police officers were injured in the clash.

Since then, 78 supporters of Amritpal Singh were arrested, many of them after a daring car chase. His close aide Daljeet Singh Kalsi, who handles his finances, was arrested this morning from Haryana's Gurgaon.

The Punjab police tweeted details of the crackdown, saying 34 arrests were made today and the situation in the state is peaceful.

"Punjab Police is acting within the law. #AmritpalSingh is still absconding and not yet arrested. Don't believe the rumours and false news. Request all citizens to maintain peace & harmony & not panic," read another tweet.

Punjab police sources said Amritpal Singh has been maintaining close links with Pakistani intelligence agency ISI and terrorist groups based in foreign countries.

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News Network
May 27,2023

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The Bharatiya Janta Party-led government of India plans to push back against the country rankings produced by global agencies on topics like governance and press freedom, a key advisor to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was quoted as saying by news agencies.

Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of Modi's Economic Advisory Council, said India has begun to raise this issue at global forums. He said the indices were being compiled by a "tiny group of think tanks in the North Atlantic," sponsored by three or four funding agencies that are "driving a real-world agenda."

"It is not just narrative building in some diffused way. This has clear direct impact on trade, investment and other activities," Sanyal said.

India ranked lower than Afghanistan and Pakistan in the new World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders. It was below Pakistan and Bhutan in an academic freedom index by V-Dem Institute.

Over the past year, Indian government has in various meetings pointed out the flaws in methods used to compile global indices used by institutions like the World Bank, World Economic Forum (WEF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Sanyal said.

The "World Bank is involved in this discussion because it takes these opinions from these think tanks and effectively sanctifies it by putting it into something called the world governance index," Sanyal said.

The World Bank, WEF, Reporters Without Borders and V-DEM Institute did not immediately respond to requests for comment. UNDP said it would respond shortly.

Sanyal said the ratings also get hard-wired into decision-making through environmental, social and governance (ESG) norms and sovereign ratings. Multilateral development banks offer subsidised loans to ESG-compliant projects.

"The idea of having some ESG norms is not the problem in itself. The problem relates to how these norms are defined and who certifies or measures compliance to these norms," he said. "As things are currently evolving, developing countries have been completely left out of the conversation."

The matter is being taken up by the Cabinet Secretariat, which has held more than a dozen meetings on the issue this year, a government official said. The Cabinet Secretariat and finance ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

India has said it plans to be an advocate for developing countries under its G20 presidency. Sanyal did not say if India has flagged the issue of country rankings with the G20.

"There are other developing countries who are also concerned about this because effectively this is a form of neo-colonialism," he said, adding that concerned ministries have been asked to establish benchmarks and engage continuously with rating agencies.

Some of the upcoming indices being watched out by India are the financial development index by International Monetary Fund, gender inequality and human development indices by UNDP, logistics performance and worldwide governance indicators by the World Bank, sources said. 

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News Network
May 21,2023

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Karwar, May 21: For the first time, India's indigenously-built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant on Saturday berthed at the strategically key Karwar naval base in coastal Karnataka. 

The Indian Navy described the docking of the aircraft carrier at the base as a "landmark" in the context of ship-berthing capacity at the newly-built facility.

"In a first of its kind for the Indian Navy, this berthing of INS Vikrant at the new aircraft carrier pier with a two-deck configuration providing enhanced ship support facilities is a substantial infrastructural feat," a Navy spokesperson said.

In September last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi commissioned India's first indigenously-built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant that made the country part of an elite group of nations capable of manufacturing aircraft carriers above 40,000 tonnes category.

The Navy had said the aircraft carrier would be able to play a role in ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Indian Navy is expanding the strategically crucial naval base in Karnataka's Karwar as part of project 'Seabird'.

Once the base is fully operational, it will be one of the largest naval bases in Asia. 

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News Network
May 15,2023

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As the race for the next Karnataka chief minister heats up, all eyes are on the Congress' top leadership here on their pick for the top post in the southern state.

After the Congress party staged a stupendous victory in the May 10 assembly polls, intense lobbying for the chief minister's post in Karnataka started between former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president D K Shivakumar.

The three central observers deputed by the Congress on Monday returned to the national capital after speaking individually to the newly elected MLAs.

The observers will hand over the report on the views expressed by all the newly elected MLAs to party president Mallikarjun Kharge soon.

Kharge is likely to take a decision on who will be the next chief minister of Karnataka soon. He is also likely to hold consultations with top Congress leadership, including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Meanwhile, the party is also gearing up for preparations for making the swearing-in ceremony of the chief minister a big show of strength, where several opposition leaders will be invited.

With Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar both staking claim to the top post, they are lobbying hard for it with supporters of each one raising the pitch in support of their leader.

A poster war by supporters of both leaders also erupted soon after the party won the election.

Kharge had appointed former Maharashtra chief minister Sushilkumar Shinde, party general secretary Jitendra Singh and former AICC general secretary Deepak Babaria as observers for the election of the CLP Leader of Karnataka.

The three leaders along with AICC general secretary in-charge of Karnataka Randeep Surjewala left Bengaluru for Delhi and will meet Kharge soon.

The observers spoke individually to all the newly elected MLAs and sought their opinion on who should be the chief minister of the state.

They spoke to all the MLAs after dinner at a private hotel on Sunday night and completed the process late at night.

Earlier, during the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Bengaluru on Sunday evening the MLAs passed a one-line resolution authorising the party president to appoint the CLP leader in the state who would be the next chief minister. 

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