Activists

In Delhi, activists called the Tuesday arrests a mockery of the legal system. “It is a coup against the Constitution. It is a very dire situation, potentially more dangerous than the Emergency,” writer Arundhati Roy said, flanked by lawyer Prashant Bhushan and Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani, among others.

The five activists have been charged with criminal conspiracy, creating fear and enmity between groups, and under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The arrests were part of an investigation into violence that broke out in Bhima Koregaon in Maharashtra on January 1 during the bicentennial celebration of a British-era war by Dalits.

State government officials said on the condition of anonymity that they assured the Centre they possessed strong evidence in the form of literature and communication seized from devices.

“We had detailed communication with our legal cell in Delhi in the backdrop of the remarks by the SC. We are in the process of dispatching the documents to Delhi, and by Wednesday, the submission in the SC will be completed. Sensitive documents will be submitted to the court in sealed envelopes,” an official from the home department said.

According to Pune Police, an event called Elgar Parishad on December 31, 2017 in Pune where various activists and Dalit organisations came together, was responsible for stoking the violence the next day. In June, the police arrested five people -activist Sudhir Dhawale, lawyer Surendra Gadling, activist Rona Wilson, researcher Mahesh Raut, and retired professor Shoma Sen – for alleged Maoist ties. A separate probe by Pune (rural) police in the January 1 violence has named two Hindu right wing leaders, Milind Ekbote and Shambhaji Bhide.

Senior Pune police officials said on the condition of anonymity they recovered “incriminating” and “conclusive” evidence. “What we submitted before the court on Wednesday was part of evidence. We have around 250 documents and large amount of electronic evidence, which we will submit in the court,” said another senior official monitoring the probe who asked not to be named.

“We are confident of nailing the suspects,” said Venkatesham.

Pune Police has claimed before the court that the arrested activists were allegedly part of an “anti-fascist” front of the Maoists, were involved in recruiting students and young people, had links with separatists in Kashmir and were intending to strike “high functionaries” in the government. Defence lawyers have rejected the charges, and questioned the arrests. shops, businesses, and schools and colleges in the state were closed, and roads bore a deserted look with few venturing out. Even government offices saw thin attendance. The protest, called for by separatists, is to continue on Friday. This is the fourth day in August that the state has seen a complete shutdown on account of protests related to the court hearing.

Malik said that even in the case of Article 370 of the Constitution which gives significant autonomy of the state “there are sentiments involved and I think a decision on such issues could be best deferred”.

Since August 1, there have been intermittent protests in the state against any change in Article 35A and Article 370 with the state’s main regional mainstream parties such as the National Conference and the PDP also hitting the streets and warning of a deterioration of the situation in the state if any changes are made to either article. Senior Congress leaders in the state have also warned of a massive agitation if Article 35A is altered in any way.

Separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik, who, under the banner of the Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL), gave the call for the two-day shutdown blaming the “Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh of attempts to change the demography” of the state through the legal route have warned of a “mass agitation of hitting and occupying streets” if any change is made in the act.

“Despite curbs, curfews, house arrests complete strike across J&K as people express their strong resentment &protest against the nefarious design of tinkering with state subject laws. No amount of coercion will deter people from fighting this assault with all our might & conviction,” Mirwaiz Umar Farooq tweeted on Thursday.

The Supreme Court will on August 31 hear a bunch of petitions against the Article 35A of the Constitution filed by NGOS and individuals. Jammu and Kashmir has been on the boil for the past couple of years due to a spurt in local militancy and mounting deaths in security operations — the latter being an issue that was seen as a factor behind the split between the BJP and the PDP. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said her country will not allow “its soil to be used for terrorist activities” against any neighbouring country.

Referring to the move to enhance counter-terror cooperation, foreign secretary, Vijay Gokhale, later said: “Peace and stability are essential for economic growth and the home ministers meeting and the existing mechanism of the national security advisers’ meeting shows the importance of this issue.”

Explaining the foreign policy framework of Bimstec, Gokhale said the grouping serves as a link between South Asia and Southeast Asia. India’s emphasis on “neighbourhood first” and its Act East policy, which is also aimed at developing the northeastern states, fits in with New Delhi’s vision for deepening ties with the grouping, he said.

The fourth summit of the grouping, founded in 1997, began in Kathmandu on Thursday. It is focused on ways to strengthen Bimstec through various means, including framing a charter for the grouping and ensuring follow-up mechanisms for commitments announced by leaders in earlier meetings.

On the margins of the summit, Modi on Thursday met Bangladesh Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, and Sri Lankan President, Maithripala Sirisena.

With the Saarc process almost defunct, India is giving a greater push to Bimstec.

“For India, Bimstec fits in well with its Act East policy and India’s natural strategic framework is much broader. Compared to Bimstec, Saarc tries to box India into a narrow region,” said strategic affairs expert, Brahma Chellany. Rs 10.02 Lakh crores.”

The minister also said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) was implemented in the post-demonetisation period and the number of registered assessees increased by 72.5% in the first year. The original 6.61 million assessees have increased to 11.4 million, he said.

Opposition parties, especially the Congress, have criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s shock announcement in November 2016 to ban Rs 1000 and old Rs 500 notes. After the RBI report, Congress leader Manish Tewari reiterated that demonetisation missed its targets of curbing terror financing, eliminating black money and eradicating fake currency.

“It wiped out the MSME sector, cottage industry and crores of daily wage-earners lost their jobs. The Indian economy lost 1.5 per cent in terms,” he alleged on Wednesday. India-us nuclear deal, argued in an article published on Thursday the enactment of the waiver provision was “misread” in India as a waiver in the bag.

The provision only grants the President the authority to waive, but, he added, “there is not yet any evidence that he will do so”. He pointed out that despite the perception of Trump’s “fondness for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, he is opposed to the proliferation of S-400 systems globally”.

Trump’s “antipathy toward the S-400…extends to acquisitions across the globe, whether by putative adversaries such as China, treaty allies such as Turkey, or emerging partners such as India”, he added.