NATIONAL NEWS
Pegasus case | Supreme Court panel may look into allegations
Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana on Thursday indicated the Supreme Court’s intention to form a committee to examine allegations that the government used Israeli-based Pegasus software to spy on citizens. The revelation came when the Chief Justice informed senior advocate C.U. Singh, who represented one of the petitioners in the Pegasus case, that the court wanted to pass orders in the case this week but could not because some of the members it had shortlisted for the committee were unavailable due to personal reasons. Chief Justice Ramana said the court would now pass orders in the Pegasus case sometime next week. We wanted to pass the order this week, but some of the members we thought of in the committee said they would be not be able to for personal reasons. We will pass the order next week sometime, Chief Justice Ramana addressed Singh. The CJI asked Singh to inform the other lawyers in the case. While reserving the case for interim order on September 13, the court had mentioned it would be pronounced in the next two or three days. The court had decided to go ahead with an interim order after the government expressed reservations about filing a detailed affidavit responding to the allegations. The Centre had said it would be public and compromise national security. The petitioners had asked for an affidavit from the Cabinet Secretary or for the court to form a committee led by a sitting judge to probe the snooping controversy. A Bench of Chief Justice Ramana and Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli made it clear on September 13 that there would be no more beating around the bush in the issue. The CJI had said the court had given the government a fair opportunity to file a detailed affidavit in order to get a clear idea of its stand in the Pegasus case. We thought the government would file a counter-affidavit now we will pass our interim orders, Chief Justice Ramana had remarked. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for senior journalists N. Ram and Sashi Kumar, had found the government’s refusal to file a detailed affidavit unbelievable.
Large grazing area lost to growing Chinese presence in eastern Ladakh
Villagers have lost access to a vast grazing area near Gogra in eastern Ladakh owing to growing Chinese presence in the area, Konchok Stanzin, a councillor from Chushul has claimed. Gogra is one of the several friction points in eastern Ladakh where Indian and Chinese troops have been engaged in a stand-off since April-May 2020. The troops have disengaged from the north and south banks of the Pangong Tso and Gogra sector, creating no zones in areas along the undemarcated Line of Actual Control (LAC) that was regularly patrolled by Indian troops pre-April 2020. Stanzin told The Hindu that the Army has stopped the villagers’ access to the Kiu La pass that was till a few years ago frequented by the villagers of Lukung, Phobrang and Yourgo for cattle-grazing. A group of villagers marched to the Kiu La pass a few days ago but they were denied access by the Army. There used to be a bunker on the upper reaches, but it is no longer there. We fear that the Chinese are nibbling away at our territory. This was never a disputed area, Stanzin said. He added that the area does not have a phone or Internet connectivity and the villagers had decided to go there on their own initiative. Since April 2020, Chinese troops have blocked Indian troops from reaching at least 10 patrolling points (PPs) in eastern Ladakh — running from Depsang plains in the north to the Pangong Tso lake in the south. In all, there are more than 65 PPs from the base of the Karakoram to Chumar. Stanzin said that China has constructed permanent structures and roads close to the LAC while the Indian side could only boast of a few roads. There is no mobile connectivity in border areas and despite repeated pleas, the administration has not acted. It is frustrating. They fix the phone lines for a few hours whenever a VIP arrives here. It’s back to square one once they leave, he said. On April 2, the Ministry of Defence in a communication to Stanzin said, Due to the present operational situation in Ladakh, grazers have been asked to restrict their cattle movements.
Kin of those who died by suicide within 30 days of COVID-19 diagnosis can get financial help, MHA tells SC
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that the families of those who died by suicide within 30 days of a COVID-19 positive diagnosis would be eligible for financial help under the Disaster Management Act. The statement came in the backdrop of the guidelines issued by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), which recommended ₹50,000 each as ex gratia assistance to the families of people who died of the virus. The NDMA has proposed that the States should provide the money from their State Disaster Response Fund. In the previous hearing of the case on September 13, a Bench of Justices M.R. Shah and A.S. Bopanna urged the government to consider ex gratia payment to the families of people who committed suicide, unable to bear the shock of a COVID-19 positive diagnosis. On Thursday, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Ministry, stressed that these families were also entitled to avail financial help as granted under the SDRF in accordance with the NDMA guidelines of September 11. That is, they too would be eligible for the ₹50,000 ex gratia payment. If the person committed suicide within 30 days of a positive test, it should be deemed that the person took his own life because of COVID-19, he submitted. During the hearing, the court suggested that the committees proposed to be formed at the district level under the NDMA guidelines to deal with grievances regarding certification of death should be able to directly access hospital medical records to check claims of COVID-19 deaths. This would help resolve cases in which families claim ex gratia assistance but do not have medical records of COVID-19 treatment to show. The court would pass formal orders on the NDMA guidelines on October 4.
Man stabs college student to death near Chennai’s Tambaram railway station
A 20-year-old college student was murdered in broad daylight by a man near Tambaram railway station in Chennai on September 23. The youth, who knew the victim for a few years, also attempted to kill himself but was stopped by the public. He was later handed over to the police. A senior officer of the Chennai Police said Shwetha, a diploma student at Madras Christian College in Tambaram, was on her way home when the accused Ramachandran, working in a private company in Maraimalai Nagar, wanted to speak to her near the railway quarters located on the east side of the railway station. Though Shweta, a resident of Chromepet, knew him for a few years, she had ended the relationship. They had a verbal spat during which Ramachandran took a small knife kept hidden in his bag and stabbed her. On hearing her cries, nearby residents rushed to her rescue. In the meantime, the 25-year-old accused also attempted to kill himself, but was stopped by the public. Even before the people could take the victim to a nearby hospital she died, the police officer said. Tambaram Police rushed to the crime scene, and arrested the accused Ramachandran, who is from Nagapattinam. The victim’s body has been sent to Chromepet Government Hospital for post mortem. Senior police officials inspected the crime scene, and are investigating.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
China sends record number of warplanes towards Taiwan.
China sent a record number of warplanes into Taiwan’s air defence identification zone on Friday and Saturday ahead of a visit to Taipei by French lawmakers. The escalation of Beijing’s intimidation against Taipei comes as China endures growing economic pressures while stepping up domestic regulatory and political crackdowns. According to Taiwan’s defence ministry, 38 military aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defence identification zone on Friday, including 28 J-16 fighters, four SU-30 fighters, four H-6 bombers, an anti-submarine plane and an early warning aircraft. On Saturday, the Chinese Air Force sent 39 aircraft, including 26 J-16 fighters, 10 SU-30 fighters, two anti-aircraft planes and one early-warning aircraft, Taiwan’s defence ministry said. On both days, the numbers markedly exceeded the daily record of 28 planes, which was set in June. Some 16 Chinese military aircraft entered the zone on Sunday, including 12 fighters. Military experts define the incursions as grey zone tactics, operations aimed at eroding Taiwan’s security but stopping short of war. China claims Taiwan as its territory and threatens to invade it if Taipei refuses to submit to its control indefinitely. The Taiwanese government on Saturday denounced the latest incursions. China has been wantonly engaged in military aggression, damaging regional peace, said Su Tseng-chang, the premier. Last week, Beijing described Joseph Wu, the Taiwanese foreign minister as a shrilling fly in an unusual verbal attack that Taipei described as slander and abuse. October is traditionally a politically charged season because both China and Taiwan celebrate their national days this month. On Friday, Beijing marked the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. On October 10, Taiwan celebrates the Republic of China, the state that was overthrown in mainland China by the PRC but continues to exist in Taiwan, where the ROC government fled in 1949. Last year, however, there was no marked increase in air incursions by China’s People’s Liberation Army.
Taipei’s bid to join transpacific trade pact could be held hostage by Beijing
Some observers in Taiwan said the PLA’s increased harassment could be an attempt to intimidate Taiwan ahead of planned exchanges with Europe. Next week, a delegation of French lawmakers is due to visit Taipei. Later this month, Taiwan’s chief economic planner is scheduled to lead a 65-strong delegation to several central and eastern European countries. However, military experts noted that the level of PLA air activity near Taiwan had been at a heightened level for weeks. Since Taiwan conducted its regular annual military exercise in early September, PLA air incursions frequently included fighter jets, a pattern rarely seen until now. The PLA has been sending aircraft into Taiwan’s ADIZ on an average of 20 days per month since September 2020, when Taipei made the incursions public for the first time. Often only one or two anti-submarine warfare or early-warning aircraft a day enter the zone for extended periods. Large numbers of fighters and bombers, like this weekend, have in the past appeared when Taiwan has enjoyed international attention or engaged in foreign exchanges. The warplanes do not enter Taiwan’s sovereign airspace, which begins 12 miles off the coast of its territory. But by frequently entering the ADIZ, they force Taiwan’s military to continuously scramble fighter jets, exhausting its resources and gathering intelligence in the process.
