TOO EARLY TO TALK ABOUT RECOGNIZING THE TALIBAN REGIME: MEA

India's immediate focus in Afghanistan is to ensure that Afghan soil is not used for terrorist activities against it and it was still "very early days" to talk about any possible recognition to the Taliban, the external affairs ministry said on Thursday.

"That's not our focus. Our focus is that Afghan soil should not be used for anti-India activities and terrorism of any kind," MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at his weekly briefing when asked about India's engagement with the Taliban and whether it is not a terrorist organisation.

Two days after the Indian envoy to Qatar held talks with a senior Taliban leader in Doha, Bagchi faced a volley of questions on whether India was ready to recognise a Taliban regime in the backdrop of the Doha meeting and India's future plans regarding the engagement with the Taliban.

Asserting that it was too early to talk about it, the spokesperson said, "let's treat the Doha meeting for what it is. It was just a meeting. I think these are very early days." "We used the opportunity to convey our concerns whether it is in getting people out (from Afghanistan) or on the issue of terrorism. We received a positive response," he said.

On bringing back the remaining Indians from Afghanistan, he said India will be able to revisit the matter once the Kabul airport resumes operation.

FAKE, COMMUNAL NEWS ON SOCIAL MEDIA MAY BRING BAD NAME TO INDIA: SC

Expressing serious concern over dissemination of fake news on social media platforms and web portals, the Supreme Court yesterday said even news broadcast in a section of TV channels had a communal tone, which might bring a bad name to the country.

“Everything shown in a section of private news channels bears a communal tone. Ultimately, the country is going to get a bad name. Did you ever attempt to regulate these private channels?” a Bench led by Chief Justice of India NV Ramana asked the Centre.

The  CJI said this during hearing on petitions filed by Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind and others. The petitioners have sought directions to the Centre to stop fake news on Tablighi Jamaat’s March 2020 congregation at Markaz Nizamuddin and act against those involved.

“There is no control over fake news and slandering via web portals and YouTube channels. If you go to YouTube, you will find how fake news is freely circulated and anyone can start a channel on YouTube,” the Bench noted. Agreeing with the Bench, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said, “Not only communal, but also planted news.” The new IT rules made social media intermediaries more accountable, he claimed.

60% ACTIVE CASES IN KERALA; MUST TAKE PRECAUTIONS IN FESTIVAL SEASON: GOVT

Almost three-quarters of all active cases of Covid-19 are now in the two states of Kerala and Maharashtra, government data show. Kerala accounts for almost six out of 10 active cases in the country (59.16 per cent), and Maharashtra 14.02 per cent.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said that 69 per cent of the total cases in the last week were reported from Kerala.

Bhushan, ICMR chief Dr Balram Bhargava, and the head of the country’s Covid-19 task force Dr V K Paul, all underlined the imperative of following pandemic-appropriate behaviour during the coming festival season.

Bhargava said that with cases continuing to rise in some parts of the country, full (both doses) vaccination should be a prerequisite for all participants in case a gathering is unavoidable.

Fifty-four per cent of the country’s adult population (about 38% of total population) have received at least one dose, and 16 per cent of adults (about 11% of total population) are now fully vaccinated, Bhushan said.

KEY COVID NUMBERS

Current Active Cases Countrywide: 3,93,531

New Cases in last 24 hours: 45,475

Recovered in last 24 hours: 34,988

Change in no. of Active cases in last 24 hours: +10,130

No. of deaths in last 24 hours (Total Covid Deaths so far): 357 (4,39,916)

Daily Tests (Wednesday): 16,84,441

Daily Positivity Rate (Proportion of Positives among total Tested): 2.7%

Percentage of Population Vaccinated (At Least One Dose / Two Doses): 38.2% / 11.5%

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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MULLAH AKHUNDZADA TO LEAD TALIBAN GOVT IN AFGHANISTAN

The Taliban are all set to announce the formation of a new government in Kabul on the lines of the Iranian leadership. “Consultations are almost finalised on the new government, and the necessary discussions have also been held about the cabinet,” Mufti Inamullah Samangani, a senior official in the Taliban's information and culture commission, said on Wednesday.

In the new set-up, 60-year-old Mullah Akhundzada will be the Supreme Leader of the Taliban government, which will follow the pattern of the Iranian leadership.

In Iran, the supreme leader is the highest political and religious authority of the country.

Mullah Akhunzada is the top religious leader of the Taliban and has been serving at a mosque in Kachlaak area of Balochistan province for 15 years.

Samangani said that under the new governmental set-up, governors will control the provinces, while the district governors will be in-charge of their respective districts

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy leader of the Taliban political office in Doha, on Thursday told the foreign media channels that women and members from all tribes in Afghanistan will be part of the new government set-up. "Any person who was part of any former Afghanistan governments during the last 20 years will not be included in the new Taliban administration," he said.

The Taliban want to have friendly relations with the European Union, the US and India, and members of the Taliban political office in Doha are in close contact with different foreign countries, he said.

The Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul will be functional in next 48 hours and people with valid travel documents will be allowed to leave the country, Stanakzai said, adding that it will cost USD 25-30 million to renovate the airport.

Meanwhile, the battle between the Taliban and Resistance-2 defending Panjshir Valley has entered a serious phase after reports of casualties on both sides and an indirect signal of support to fellow ethnic Tajiks by Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon.

Resistance-2 said Wahed Khan became its first martyr in Shotul, one of the eight districts in Panjshir Valley. It was an indirect admission of Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid’s statement that fighters had entered Panjshir.

Afghan Vice-President Amrullah Saleh claims Panjshir Resistance is for the “whole country”.

Tajikistan’s President Rahmon sent signals of solidarity to Resistance leaders on Thursday by awarding former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani and former Defence Minister Ahmad Shah Massoud with the country’s highest distinction.

Both Rabbani and Massoud were Afghan Tajiks and implacably opposed to the Taliban’s version of Islam. They were also assassinated, Rabbani by a Taliban suicide bomber and Massoud in an Al-Qaida hit on behalf of the Taliban. Significantly, Massoud’s son Ahmad Massoud is leading Resistance-2.

THE REST

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CBI ARRESTS ANIL DESHMUKH’S LAWYER FOR ‘INFLUENCING’ PROBE

The CBI has arrested former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh’s lawyer Anand Daga for allegedly making efforts to subvert the Bombay HC-directed preliminary enquiry (PE) against his client.

Officials in the agency said Daga, who was arrested in Mumbai, had been brought to the national capital on a transit remand. He, along with CBI Sub-inspector Abhishek Tiwari, were produced before a competent court and sent to two days’ police remand. Tiwari was taken into custody on late Wednesday night for allegedly receiving bribe from Daga.

The attempt by the Deshmukh’s team to influence the investigation was an act of contempt of the Bombay High Court, which had directed that all concerned should cooperate with the CBI while conducting the PE.

ACCOUNT AGGREGATOR TO EXTEND FINANCIAL SERVICES TO MILLIONS

India’s top banks five years ago built the interoperable UPI rails - scores of firms, including local firms Paytm, PhonePe, CRED and international giants Google and Facebook,  in India today support the UPI infrastructure, which is now reporting 3 billion transactions each month.

Banks are now ready for their second act.

On Thursday, eight Indian banks announced that they are rolling out — or about to roll out — a system called Account Aggregator to enable consumers to consolidate all their financial data in one place. (Participant banks are HDFC, Kotak, ICICI, Axis, SBI, IndusInd, IDFC and Federal. Four of them are rolling out the system on Thursday; others say they will roll out the new system soon.)

The objective of Account Aggregator (AA) is to aggregate all financial information of an individual. The new system makes it possible for banks, tax authorities, insurers and other finance firms to aggregate data of customers — who have provided their consent — to get better understanding about their potential customers, make informed decisions and ensure smoother transactions.

Users who provide consent — and it only takes a few taps to do so — will be able to share their financial information from one Account Aggregator participant to another through a centralized API-based repository.

The Account Aggregator system is also positioned to dramatically increase the addressable market for online insurers, lenders and players in several other industries.

JUDGE PULLS UP DELHI POLICE 2ND TIME THIS WEEK, SAYS IT ‘HARDLY CARRIED OUT PROBE’ IN RIOTS CASES

When history will look back at the worst communal riots since the partition in Delhi, the failure of the investigating agency to conduct a proper probe, using latest scientific techniques, will surely torment the sentinels of democracy, a Delhi court said Thursday, while discharging three persons in two cases related to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

In a critical commentary on the nature of Delhi Police’s probe in the two cases, additional sessions Judge Vinod Yadav said the “sort of investigation conducted” and the “lack of supervision” by the superior officers “clearly depicts” that Delhi Police have merely “tried to pull the wool over the court’s eyes and nothing else”.

The two orders come days after the same judge had in a separate case (on the riots) remarked strongly against the investigating officers for not co-operating with the special public prosecutors appointed to argue the northeast riots cases in trial courts. It was observed by the judge that the police officers were not briefing the prosecutors adequately for arguing the matters.

NASEERUDDIN SHAH HAS A MESSAGE FOR INDIANS `CELEBRATING TALIBAN`S RETURN`

Naseeruddin Shah, who has time and again spoke his mind, be it on social platforms or in media interviews, shared how a section of Indians are celebrating the return of the Taliban`s power in Afghanistan. He not only strongly criticized the act but also questioned it by drawing a distinction between `Indian Muslims` and Islam that has been followed in different parts of the globe.

"Even as the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan is a cause for concern for the whole world, celebrations of the barbarians by some sections of Indian Muslims is no less dangerous," says the actor ina video shred on social media.

The video ended with Naseeruddin was saying, "I am an Indian Muslim and as Mirza Ghalib said years ago, my relationship with God is informal. I don’t need political religion."

FAKE OWNERS, FAKE TENANTS IN BENGALURU EVICTION RACKET

A nexus of operators creates fake documents and claims ownership to prime property. Then, a case is filed in the small causes court, which deals with civil matters, for eviction of a fictitious tenant named by the fake owner. Once a favourable decree is obtained, it is used to try and forcibly evict the legal owner.

So far, 118 cases have been unearthed in Bengaluru, where “fake decrees” were obtained by the nexus including a former public prosecutor and at least six lawyers, in an investigation conducted by the CID after the racket came to the notice of the Karnataka High Court last year.

There have been at least 12 arrests so far and the CID is likely to file dozens of cases on charges of forgery, impersonation and hoodwinking of courts over the coming days, based on records maintained by the registrar of the small causes court.

ACTOR SIDHARTH SHUKLA DIES AT 40

Actor Sidharth Shukla had always defied the odds when it came to his career. For many in the TV and film industry, appearing in the popular reality show Bigg Boss is a last-ditch — and often futile — effort to arrest a slide into irrelevance. But Shukla, who won the 13th edition of the show in 2019, became a household name, cementing himself as a bonafide reality TV star.

The TV personality died early Thursday from a suspected heart attack. He was 40. The exact cause of his death is yet to be ascertained.

A police officer said: “The family called an ambulance and rushed to the Dr RN Cooper hospital. They reached around 9.45 am and he was declared dead before admission.” Before the autopsy, doctors and the police found no external injury on his body. Dr Sailesh Mohite, dean at Dr RN Cooper hospital, declined to comment on the autopsy findings.

The Oshiwara police believe he died under natural circumstances. They have not registered an offence or an accidental death report.

TRAI ORDER PAVES THE WAY FOR TARIFF HIKE BY TELECOM OPERATORS

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has directed telecom operators against discriminating between subscribers of the same class in tariff offers. In an order, that would make it difficult for telcos to offer highly discounted segmented tariffs, the regulator has also made it clear that differential pricing for subscribers porting out from a rival firm would not be allowed.

Despite a government nudge to the industry to voluntarily hike tariffs, at least one operator had opposed such a move arguing that a similar move in December 2019 when they agreed together to hike tariffs by 30-40 per cent did not work because competing telcos started giving discounted segmented tariffs to retain customers. For instance, they pointed out that in order to encourage porting, rivals were offering discounted tariff to such users for nearly three months. They also complained that these tariffs were not even declared to Trai as required by the regulations.

The operator, which had protested against differential pricing, had said it was ready to go with the industry if the regulator or the government came out with an institutional mechanism to check such arbitrary schemes. However, the current Trai order might not be enough for them to take the plunge.

Even so, the Trai order is significant as it comes in the backdrop of incumbent operators Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea pushing for an across-the-board increase in tariffs.

SOUTH KOREA ‘ANTI-GOOGLE LAW’ LIKELY TO SET PRECEDENT FOR NATIONS

South Korea’s crackdown on the in-app billing processes that force companies like Apple and Google to open up their app stores to alternative forms of payment systems may be the first formal development with such restrictions on the tech companies but the decision may act as a precedent for other jurisdictions, including India, where now a complaint has been filed with the antitrust regulator against Apple for App Store policies.

South Korea has become the first jurisdiction to legally ban the monopolies that Apple and Google hold over payments on in-app purchases. The country’s National Assembly passed amendments to the Telecommunications Business Act — nicknamed ‘Anti-Google law’ — in a landmark decision that could globally change how platform companies like Google and Apple force developers to use their billing systems for in-app purchases.

The app ecosystem is a booming revenue stream for platforms such as Apple and Google, which run the most prominent app stores and mandate that all in-app payments go through their own processing system, on which they charge commissions ranging between 15% and 30%.

OVAL TEST, DAY 1: THAKUR, BUMRAH RALLY INDIA AFTER BATSMEN FAIL

Shardul Thakur excelled with the bat, scoring a counter-attacking half-century, but it wasn't enough to save India from another batting disaster on the opening day of the fourth Test, at The Oval, on Thursday.

The pacer saved the tourists the blushes with a sensational 57 off 36 balls that helped them put up 191 in their first innings after being reduced to 117 for 6.

In reply, England’s batsmen fared no better. Thanks to Jasprit Bumrah's menacing opening spell, India ended the day with honours even.

At stumps, England were 53 for 3, having lost openers Rory Burns (5) and Haseeb Hameed (0) to the extra pace and bounce generated by Bumrah (6-2-15-2).

Umesh Yadav (6-1-15-1) bowled an off-cutter late in the evening in his second spell to breach the defences of the in-form Joe Root (21) and enable India end the day on a high.

AC

U.S. OPEN PLAY RESUMES AFTER SEVERE STORMS CAUSE FLOODING, DAMAGE TO GROUNDS

After Wednesday night’s severe storms in the New York area, which left wind damage and flooding over various parts of the city, U.S. Open officials evaluated the readiness of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center to host matches Thursday. After a one-hour delay, matches began.

The severe conditions, which were related to the remnants of Hurricane Ida sweeping through the northeast, disrupted play Wednesday night. That included Louis Armstrong Stadium, which has a retractable roof but was still penetrated by sideways rain, causing the match between Diego Schwartzman and Kevin Anderson to be suspended and moved to Arthur Ashe Stadium, where play was able to continue indoors.

Various photos and videos on social media showed knee-deep puddles near the grounds, debris flying around and portable concession stands being knocked from their moorings. Subway service was also interrupted.

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Bitcoin - USD 48,912

Dollar Index 92.16 Brent Crude 73.03 BDI 4,001

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,813 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 4,728 / 4,628, Silver (Rs. Per KG) 68,600

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for the truth. - Benjamin Disraeli

OFF TRACK

1st woman: Which is the 'best month' to get married?

2nd woman: Octembruary

1st woman: Don't be silly. There is no such month!!

2nd woman: Exactly my point !!