Police stop oppn march to ED office in

Delhi

China. You said - “Earlier, you felt ashamed of being born Indian. Now you feel proud to represent the country” Was this not an insult to India and Indians? Tell your Ministers to refresh their memories.”

Several Congress leaders spoke out on the matter with Gandhi too sharing a screenshot of the report.

Mallikarjun Kharge has ruled out any apology from Rahul Gandhi in his UK speech. Kharge said that Gandhi did not say anything wrong and only spoke about democracy, “whereas the Prime Minister spoke at many places in foreign lands and insulted the country”.

Amid the uproar over Rahul Gandhi’s statement, the Congress has tried to make it clear that the party is not going to yield on the subject and will be offensive on the issue and press its demand of JPC in Hindenburg-Adani row.

Hitting out at PM Modi, Congress chief and Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge had tweeted: “I want to remind you of your statement made in

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also hit out at the government over the media report in a tweet in Hindi.

“A leading newspaper of the country has revealed the co-ownership of a dubious Mauritius-based company with a firm of Adani Group. This firm of Adani Group has important contracts in ISRO-DRDO and the defense sector,” Priyanka Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.

“But the prime minister neither wants a discussion on this in Parliament, nor any investigation. Why?” she said. Party general secretary Jairam Ramesh, posed a set of three questions to Adani.

Cong brought to political perish: Smriti Irani hits out at Rahul

Modi raising internal politics abroad.

NEW DELHI, MAR 15 (PTI): Delhi Police on Wednesday erected barricades and stopped leaders of several opposition parties marching towards the ED office here from Parliament House demanding a JPC probe into the Adani issue, saying prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC were in place in the area.

The opposition leaders were stopped near Vijay Chowk in Lutyens’ Delhi.

Police made regular announcements using loudspeakers and urged the protesting MPs to vacate the area as CrPC Section 144, which prohibits the assembly of four or more people in an area, was in effect.

When the leaders could not move past the barricade, they called off their march and returned to Parliament House.

A senior police officer said earlier in the day that the police had made adequate security arrangements outside the ED office in view of the protest march.

The leaders wanted to hand over a complaint to the Enforcement Directorate on the Adani-Hindenburg issue.

Before starting their march, the leaders met in the office of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge in Parliament House complex to chalk out a joint strategy on the issue.

The protest march began around 12.30 pm from Parliament House and MPs from several opposition parties took part in it. However, it was soon stopped by police. The opposition has been demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the AdaniHindenburg issue and has been stalling proceedings of Parliament over their demand.

Oppn attack govt over Adani

Several Opposition leaders on Wednesday attacked the government over a media report claiming that a key Adani Group investor is also co-owner with the conglomerate in a defence firm.

A report in The Indian Express claimed that ELARA India Opportunities Fund (Elara IOF), a venture capital fund managed by Elara Capital, is one of the top four entities registered in Mauritius that holds shares predominantly in Adani Group companies.

According to the report, records show that along with the Adani Group, it is a promoter entity in a defence company, Bengaluru-based Alpha Design Technologies Private Limited.

This defence company, incorporated in 2003, works closely with ISRO and DRDO and has a Rs 590 crore contract with the Union Ministry of Defence in 2020 to upgrade and digitise the ageing Pechora missile and radar systems, the report said.

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra shared screenshots of the report on Twitter. “The ‘Chhupa Rustom’ category award at the Oscars goes to @ DRDO_India and @PIBHomeAffairs. Happy to have unknown foreign funds controlling sensitive defense contracts! Only for their best friend Mr Adani,” she said.

Citing the same media report, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said on Twitter, “This is in India’s Defence space, a key investor in Adani Group, Mauritius based Elara IOF, with 96% of its corpus invested in the group till Dec, ‘22 is also co-owner in a Defence company, the firm works closely with ISRO & DRDO, both jointly hold over 51% stake. Amazing coincidence!”

NEW DELHI, MAR 15 (PTI): India’s democracy is not in peril but the Congress party has been brought to “political perish” by the people for the kind of behaviour its leader Rahul Gandhi exhibited overseas, Union minister Smriti Irani said on Wednesday as the BJP stepped up the ante against the opposition leader over his recent remarks in the UK.

Gandhi’s grudge with Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken the shape of a grudge with India, she charged, demanding that the Wayanad MP of the Congress apologise to Parliament for his remarks.

During his interactions in the UK recently, Gandhi alleged that the structures of Indian democracy are under attack and there is a “full-scale assault” on the country’s institutions.

His remarks triggered a massive political row, with the BJP accusing him of maligning India on foreign soil and seeking foreign interventions and the Congress hitting back, citing instances of Prime Minister

Addressing a press conference, Irani alleged that “at the feet of India’s colonial past” Gandhi lamented the “lack of foreign intervention” in India’s democracy. This is to bring to a halt India’s resilient growth story under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, she said.

The minister said Gandhi claimed that he does not have access to conversations in Indian universities and that for him was an indication of the death of democracy.

She alleged that the opposition leader visited a University in the national capital in 2016 and supported the slogan of ‘Bharat tere tukde honge’.

Gandhi also said that democracy is being “blown to smithereens” in India, Irani charged. “However, this very gentleman in Jammu and Kashmir, during the ‘Bharat jodo yatra’, said all is well in India,” she said.

“Which was a lie, Mr Gandhi? Your statement in India or your statement in England?” she asked.

Irani alleged Rahul Gandhi during his interactions in the UK not only attacked the magnificence of the country’s Parliament but also the supremacy of the institutions “such as the Supreme Court of India and the Election Commission of India.”

Criticising govt does not amount to being unpatriotic: Kapil Sibal

NEW DELHI, MAR 15

(PTI): Amid a political storm over Rahul Gandhi’s “democracy under attack” remarks made in the UK, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Wednesday said criticising the government whether at home or abroad is a citizen’s right and does not amount to criticising India or being unpatriotic.

Gandhi’s remarks during his recent trip to the United Kingdom have rocked Parliament, with both Houses failing to transact any significant business on the first three days of the budget session’s second half.

In a tweet, former Union minister Sibal said, “House Logjam, Why? Government is not synonymous with India, India is not synonymous with the Government. Criticising the Government whether at home or abroad is a citizen’s right. That does not amount to criticising India or being unpatriotic.”

“Modi ji did it often in the past,” added Sibal, the eminent lawyer who on Saturday had laid down the agenda and a new vision for the country with his newly-launched platform

Kapil Sibal

‘Insaaf’ that is aimed at fighting injustice.

During his interactions in the UK, Gandhi alleged that the structures of Indian democracy are under attack and there is a “full-scale assault” on the country’s institutions.

The former Congress president also told British parliamentarians in London that microphones are often “turned off” in Lok Sabha when an opposition member raises important issues.

Gandhi’s remarks triggered a political slugfest, with the BJP accusing him of maligning India on foreign soil and seeking foreign interventions, and the Congress hitting back at the ruling party by citing instances of Prime Minister Modi raising internal politics abroad.

Technological addiction

Technology was the mantra for catapulting human development and progress especially after the advent of the internet in the early 80s and later access to mobile web from the end of 1996. After that period, the world underwent a huge transformation with regard to information and technology and has been going on at rapid pace. However, as the good also comes with the bad, today’s online era the leap in technology has also brought deep concerns about mobile addiction among children, some as young as two years. Thus, keeping children away from a screen is a huge challenge for parents. Smartphones/tablets are becoming essential tools of learning for children nowadays. While there are many pros to the online world it is highly addictive and might leave an unfavorable impact on the child’s development. Irresponsible use of media can lead to harmful tendencies in children. Today people are spending too much time on the smartphone and for the children, it can have an adverse effect on their physical and mental health. When small children become addicted to a cell phone, they may constantly ask for the phone. If they are not given then they become angry, upset or have a temper tantrum. Children can become dependent on the cell phone and may not know what to do without it. This is to be expected, but as long as you stay firm and do not give in, they will find a new way to cope. From behavioural problems, sleep disturbances, depression, to obesity, nervous system problems and slower social development skills, there could be many side effects of excessive phone usage. According to a survey conducted by the Saurashtra University in January this year, 82% of children were found to be suffering from some psychological conditions like loneliness because of mobile addiction. While 73% of children miss their mobile while they are at school, 77% of children demand mobile phones once they return from the school. The survey has found that at least 93 % of children prefer to play mobile games and they do not like to play outdoor games. The survey has also found that the children’s mothers are responsible for the addiction among their kids. The survey reported that 54% of mothers interviewed, give mobile phones to their children to keep them engaged so that they (mothers) could complete their work without being disturbed. Of all the women contacted, about 30% were working women and 70 % were non-working. According to the survey, 82% of children demand mobile phones from their parents, while 93% children prefer to play mobile games and they do not like to play outdoor games. There are 78% children who are habituated to eating food while watching the mobile screen. There are many dangers associated with children being addicted to a cell phone. A cell phone can affect their learning process, can interfere with their ability to sleep, can prevent them from learning to cope in real life situations, and can lead to obesity. The long term effects of cell phone addition in children are not fully known at this time, as this is the first generation of kids who have access to the full scope of technology that is currently available. The future generation is in danger and it is time to remove this technological addiction and save them.