PM ON CAA: PAK WILL NOW HAVE TO ANSWER FOR OPPRESSING MINORITIESAmid the ongoing protests, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said somesections were trying to "misguide" the youth on the Citizenship (Amendment)Act (CAA) which, he said, is "a law to provide citizenship, not snatch itaway".Addressing a gathering at Belur Math, the headquarters of RamakrishnaMission, on the second day of his visit to Kolkata, Modi said: "On theoccasion of national youth day, I want to tell the youth of the country, theyouth of West Bengal, the youth of North-East that the law to grantcitizenship was not changed overnight. We should all know that any personfrom any country, of any religion, who believes in India and itsConstitution, can be granted Indian citizenship. There's no doubt aboutthis.""I will reiterate that CAA is not about taking away citizenship, but aboutgranting it. The change that we have brought is that we have made theprocess to get Indian citizenship easier. Who have we done this for? It isfor those people who, after Partition, had to face persecution due to theirreligion, faith, in Pakistan."The Prime Minister said the dispute that has arisen over CAA has made theworld take notice of the persecution of minorities in Pakistan. "Had we notamended the citizenship law, this "vivaad" (dispute) would not have arisen.Had this dispute not arisen, the world would not have known about the kindof atrocities that were perpetrated on the (religious) minorities inPakistan. It's the result of our initiative that Pakistan will have toanswer for its acts of oppression against the minorities there," he said.West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who said she had asked him torepeal CAA during a "courtesy meeting" with him on Saturday, was not presentat any of Modi's programmes on Sunday."We've only done what Mahatma Gandhi had said decades ago. Should we sendthese refugees back to die? Are they our responsibility or not? Should wemake them our citizens or not?" said Modi.He said some sections with political interests were deliberately spreadingrumours about the new citizenship law, despite "complete clarity" on theCAA. Seeking the help of the youth to spread awareness on CAA, he said: "Theyouth have understood the issue, but those who want to indulge in politicsover it will not. What is there in this Act? Why was it needed? There aremany questions in the minds of people, which has been fuelled by varioussections. Most of the youth have understood it. But there are some who arevictims of misconception and rumours. It is our responsibility to make thesepeople understand. It is our duty to satisfy them on this issue."Meanwhile, waving black flags and chanting anti-Modi slogans, a group ofprotesters gathered outside Netaji Indoor Stadium, where Modi addressed afunction to mark 150 years of Kolkata Port Trust and renamed it after JanaSangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee. They were quickly bundled into policevehicles and whisked away.BELUR MATH DISTANCE ITSELF FROM PM'S SPEECHSoon after Modi left the premises, the monastic order distanced itself fromhis speech, saying it is an apolitical organisation where people of allreligious faiths live like "brothers of same parents". "Ramakrishna Missionwill not comment on PM's speech. We are strictly an apolitical body. Wecannot comment on the PM's speech on CAA. We have come here after leavingour homes to answer to eternal call. We do not respond to ephemeral call,"Ramakrishna Math and Mission general secretary Swami Suvirananda, toldreporters."We are above politics. To us Narendra Modi is the leader of India andMamata Banerjee is the leader of West Bengal," he said, adding "we areinclusive as an organisation which has monks from Hindu, Islam, Christian(faiths). We live like more than brothers of same parents".ENVOYS' J&K VISIT IMPORTANT STEP, DETENTIONS REMAIN A CONCERN: USThe US State Department has described the recent visit of envoys of 15countries to Jammu and Kashmir as an "important step" but expressed concernover the continued detention of political leaders and restrictions oninternet in the region.The restrictions were imposed on August 5, when India scrapped the specialstatus of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the state into two UnionTerritories.In the first such trip by foreign diplomats since August 5, envoys of 15countries, including the US, visited Jammu and Kashmir last week andinteracted with select political representatives, civil society members aswell as top military brass, with the Indian government rejecting criticismthat it was a "guided tour".TALK LESS, WORK MORE: ADHIR RANJAN CHOWDHURY TO NEW ARMY CHIEFA day after the new Army Chief, Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane, said they wereready to act if they get orders from the political authority to take backPakistan-occupied Kashmir, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir RanjanChowdhury on Sunday asked the General "to talk less and work more".Taking to Twitter, the opposition leader said, "@ New Army Chief, Parliamentalready had adopted unanimous resolution on #POK in 1994, Government is atliberty to take action and may give direction (sic)." "If you are soinclined to take action on POK, I would suggest you to confabulate with CDS,and @PMOIndia. Talk Less, Work More."Chowdhury had earlier attacked Naravane's predecessor Gen Bipan Rawat whenthe latter had remarked that leading people to arson and violence duringanti Citizenship Amendment Act protests was not a mark of leadership. Atthat time, the Congress leader had tweeted, "Army Chief's remark on CAA ishighly objectionable, unethical and beyond his remit, he is appeared to be aBJP leader who is going to be promoted or rewarded as cds. Rawat needs to berestrained to maintain the impartiality of our army.SLOGANS ON FEW CAMPUSES WARN OF CENTRES OF CONSPIRACY, SAYS CM YOGIADITYANATHChief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday criticised the protests on thecampuses across the country, saying that slogans raised in "select" highereducational institutions "warn" about the centres of conspiracy. "The peoplewho thrive on the resources of the country are trying to throw India in thecauldron of terrorism, Naxalism and extremism. This is confirmed by theirstatements. The slogans being raised in certain institutes of highereducation in the country continuously trouble us. They warn us about wherethe centres of conspiracy against the country are located," he said."The country got Independence in 1947 and at that time there were manypeople who thought the country came into being in 1947 and so those havingthe mentality of Macaulay exaggerated that we are in the process of becominga nation. Some others went further and said I am Hindu by accident. Yaanilog durghatna se paida ho gaye. Yeh kehne mein bhi kuch logon ko sankochnahi hua," he added."DON'T KILL YOUR PROTESTERS, US IS WATCHING," TRUMP TELLS IRANUS President Donald Trump warned Iran Sunday against killing protesters whohave risen up over the regime's downing of a civilian airliner as hisdefense secretary left the door open to talks with Tehran withoutpreconditions.Trump's salvo came as Iran's Islamic regime faced a challenge from angrystreet protests, having come to the brink of war with the US after a seriesof tit-for-tat confrontations."To the leaders of Iran -- DO NOT KILL YOUR PROTESTERS," Trump tweeted,warning that the world and "more importantly, the USA is watching."In an interview with CBS's "Face the Nation" just before the tweet, USDefense Secretary Mark Esper said Trump was still willing to hold talks withIran's leaders. "We're willing to sit down and discuss without preconditiona new way forward, a series of steps by which Iran becomes a more normalcountry,"aid.And if something happened to the protesters? Esper replied: "The presidenthas drawn no preconditions other than to say we're willing to meet with theIranian government."US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday he was "outraged" by anothermissile attack on an Iraqi airbase where US forces have been stationed, evenas Iran signalled a wish to de-escalate regional tensions."Outraged by reports of another rocket attack on an Iraqi airbase," Pompeotweeted. "These continued violations of Iraq's sovereignty by groups notloyal to the Iraqi government must end."There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Sunday's rocket attacks.The US has previously blamed such attacks on Iran-backed groups in Iraq.CHINA SAYS WON'T CHANGE POSITION ON TAIWAN AFTER LANDSLIDE ELECTIONChina will not change its position that Taiwan belongs to it and the worldwill only ever recognise that there is "one China", Beijing said on Sundayafter President Tsai Ing-wen won re-election and said she would not submitto China's threats.China's ramped up efforts to get democratic Taiwan to accept Beijing's ruleunder a "one country, two systems" model, as well as anti-governmentprotests in Chinese-ruled Hong Kong, dominated the election campaign.China says Taiwan is its territory. Taiwan says it is an independent countrycalled the Republic of China, its formal name.Tsai won another four-year term by a landslide, and her DemocraticProgressive Party (DPP) also gained a majority in parliament.Speaking on Saturday after the scale of her victory become clear, Tsaicalled for talks to resume with China, but said she hoped Beijing understoodTaiwan and its people won't submit to intimidation.ARREST OF A DECORATED COP BRINGS FOCUS BACK ON AFZAL GURUKashmir inspector-general of police Vijay Kumar on Sunday confirmed that adecorated police officer caught travelling with two militants had beenarrested and would be questioned about a claim Afzal Guru had made, as theghost of the executed Parliament attack convict returned to haunt Valleyauthorities."This police officer has worked in many anti-militancy operations but theway he was captured yesterday.. It is a heinous crime.. We have arrested himand brought him on remand," Kumar told reporters, breaking his silence onDSP Davinder Singh's arrest on Saturday.Davinder, who received the President's police award last year, was onSaturday caught travelling with two Hizb militants in Anantnag.A senior J&K Police officer said "his (Davinder Singh's) deeds are finallycatching up with him. This time, I don't think anybody can save him". "Therewill be many questions asked. Where was he taking these two wantedmilitants? They were leaving the Valley, as they were nabbed on the way toJammu. What plan did they have,'' said the officer. "Almost every DavinderSingh's arrest has brought the focus back on Afzal Guru, who was hanged in2013 after being convicted in the 2001 Parliament attack case.Many in Kashmir believe Guru was framed and his execution had led to callsby Valley politicians to probe the circumstances of his arrest amidallegations of a "set up" by a group of Jammu and Kashmir police officials,including Davinder.PRASHANT KISHOR PATS CONG FOR RESOLUTION AGAINST CAA, COLLEAGUE TAKES SWIPEJD(U) national vice-president Prashant Kishor on Sunday took to Twitter tothank the Congress after the party's Working Committee passed a resolutionasking the government to stop the process to update the National PopulationRegister and withdraw the new citizenship law.Kishor tweeted, "I join my voice with all to thank #Congress leadership fortheir formal and unequivocal rejection of #CAA_NRC. Both @rahulgandhi &@priyankagandhi deserves special thanks for their efforts on this count.Also would like to reassure to all - Bihar mein CAA-NRC laagu nahi hoga(CAA-NRC would not be implemented in Bihar)."Shortly after Kishor's tweet, senior JD(U) leader Ajay Alok said all stateswere bound to implement the new law and also sought to know the "punishmentfor speaking the language of sedition".Taking a swipe at Kishore, Alok tweeted that that there are "some who cannotdigest love and respect bestowed upon them by the leadership".JNU VIOLENCE: POLICE IDENTIFY MASKED WOMAN IN VIDEO AS DU STUDENTA special investigation team of the Delhi Police Crime Branch has identifieda woman who was allegedly involved in the violence at Jawaharlal NehruUniversity on January 5, when groups of masked men and women with sticks hadbarged into Periyar and Sabarmati hostels and assaulted students andfaculty, leaving 34 injured.In one of the videos of the incident, a masked woman is seen wielding astick and threatening students along with two other men inside Sabarmatihostel. Police said the woman has been identified as a student of DelhiUniversity, but did not name her.A senior officer said, "The woman was identified through one of the videosof the incident. She lives in North Campus area. We approached her duringthe day but she was not home; her phone is switched off. We will send her alegal notice and ask her to come for questioning."BIGGEST CROWD AT SHAHEEN BAGH SINCE PROTEST BEGAN 4 WEEKS AGOVerses from the Quran and the Bible were read out as notes of a shabadkirtan were heard in the background and a havan was performed alongside. Awoman stood next to the four groups, holding a photograph of B R Ambedkar,as the inter-faith prayer meeting also saw some reading out the Preamble tothe Constitution. Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, where women, children and men havebeen protesting for a month now, saw thousands of people coming together insolidarity to register their protest against the new citizenship law andproposed NRC on Sunday."Many people have been trying to dismiss the movement as a Muslim issue. Thepresence of so many people here, the Tiranga march, and the interfaithprayer shows those people that out fight is not about a religion but aboutthe country and its values," said Mariam Iqbal, a resident of Chhatarpur whoparticipated in Sunday's protest.According to those associated with the protest since the beginning, Sundayevening was when they saw the highest number of people gathering at thesite.Congress MP, Shashi Tharoor, with Delhi Congress president Subhash Chopra,also visited Shaheen Bagh Sunday evening. Delayed by close to two hours,Tharoor addressed a packed gathering, telling the women of Shaheen Bagh thatthey were the pride of the nation.Tharoor also visited Jamia Millia Islamia and Jawaharlal Nehru University,where he called the violent events in JNU campus in the previous week "oneof the greatest blots on our country". At all three places, he criticisedthe CAA, NRC and NPR. "The reason for my party and my opposition to the Actis because it is wrong in principle. It is the first time that a religioustest has been introduced in Indian citizenship. Even today, we have AmitShah asking if one can name anything in this law that takes away anybody'scitizenship? That is the wrong question to be asking. The current questionis to be asking why it only mentions certain religions," he said.ISRO'S NAVIC TO FEATURE IN MOBILES, AID FIGHT AGAINST CRIMEISRO is set to find its way into mobile phone systems sold in India. Thiswill facilitate the implementation of a key mandate from the Nirbhaya caseverdict which required the installation of vehicle tracking systems andpanic buttons in all commercial vehicles.Isro's satellite navigation system NavIC is set to become the backbone of apublic vehicle tracking system in India since it offers flexibility to locallaw enforcement agencies to monitor vehicles unlike international systemslike the GPS, satellite navigation experts from ISRO said.In April 2019, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways madeNavIC-based vehicle trackers mandatory for all commercial vehicles in thecountry in accordance with the Nirbhaya case verdict."This is for the benefit of women, elderly citizens, children and for publicsafety. A mandate effective from April 1, 2019, says that vehicles must havea receiver which supports NavIC," an Isro scientist said. "This is a verycritical point since we are talking of public safety and all otherconstellations that support vehicle locations - like the other mappingsystems - are not in the control of our country. So we need an independentautonomous system that can be fully controlled by us," the Isro officialsaid.Since the NavIC system became operational two years ago, Isro has helped theindustry develop and certify receivers for the indigenous navigation system.There are now around 100 products from 35 agencies.The NavIC system has already been installed in over 2,000 trains in thecountry as part of a real-time information system for the Indian Railways onthe movement of trains.The biggest presence for the indigenous NavIC system in everyday life inIndia is however expected to be through mobile phones with mobile phonemakers, chip makers and network service providers making provisions forNavIC in their emerging systems.IT HURT WHEN SAINA LEFT MY ACADEMY: GOPIPullella Gopichand is not known for showing his emotions but theinspirational coach has shared the hurt he felt when his protege SainaNehwal left his academy to join Prakash Padukone's facility, something thatrankled him a lot. Gopichand also wondered to why the legendary Padukone,India's first badminton superstar, "never had anything positive to say abouthim".It was as if something very dear was being taken away from me. Earlier, Ihad literally begged her not to go. But by then, she had been influenced byothers and had already made up her mind. Maybe Viren or Vimal or Prakash sircould have spoken to her. I don't know why they did not. In fact, theyencouraged her to leave Hyderabad. It is a mystery to me why Prakash sir hasnever said anything positive about me while I have always looked up to himas my role modelIn an upcoming book, Dreams of a Billion: India and the Olympic Games, theformer All-England champion and national head coach Gopichand spoke aboutthe difficult times, also corroborated by Saina's husband Parupalli Kashyap.In the chapter titled 'Bitter Rivalry', Gopichand revealed how miserable hefelt when Saina decided to join Padukone's academy to train under VimalKumar in Bengaluru after the 2014 World Championships.