UPA faced trust vote in July 2008 after Left withdrew support over Indo-US nuclear deal. Records show that Atiq Ahmed, then an SP MP, defied his party whip to vote against govt.
Atiq Ahmed was allegedly killed last week by 3 men posing as journalists. However, 4 others accused in Umesh Pal murder have been killed in alleged police encounters.
Special Investigation Team had sought 7 days' custody, it is learnt. While a ‘western UP gang connection’ is being probed, more details expected when accused are interrogated in custody.
Exceptions that might be justified in the small wars of Punjab, Kashmir have become part of the normal fabric of policing. The emergency has become the everyday.
National Crime Records Bureau data shows number of cases under Arms Act in UP about 16 per lakh, 3 times over national average (5.4), while kidnapping cases & violent crimes have gone down.
The ‘high-end’ Turkish weapons used in killing of Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf are rarely available in India and are used only by few ganglords of Delhi, Punjab and western UP.
From SP's Akhilesh to AIMIM chief Owaisi & TMC's Mahua Moitra, several oppn leaders have spoken out against the killings. They have called for SC intervention & Adityanath's resignation.
Opposition politicians and the Left and liberal intelligentsia have raised concerns about the killing of Atiq Ahmed, but it's unlikely that Yogi will be losing sleep over it.
Public support for mafia slaying is not surprising, as it is considered a cathartic response. No police officer would be expected to mourn mafia deaths either.
The brothers were buried at Prayagraj's Kasari Masari graveyard in accordance with Muslim rites amid high security with huge crowds jostling to gain entry to the grounds.
The claim that VB-GRAMG provides an employment guarantee is incorrect. The only guarantee is to 'empower' the Centre to allow partial implementation in notified areas alone.
It is argued that India-Israel ties are moving from buyer–seller dynamic to one focused on joint development & manufacturing partnership, a shift 'more durable' than traditional arms sales.
Don’t blame misfortune. This is colossal incompetence and insensitivity. So bad, heads would have rolled even in the old PSU-era Indian Airlines and Air India.
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