Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai, Assembly Speaker Raman Singh pay tribute to ASP Akash Rao Giripunje
Raipur (Chhattisgarh) [India], June 10 (ANI): Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, Assembly Speaker Raman Singh and other dignitaries paid their last respect to ASP Akash Rao Giripunje, who lost his life in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast carried out by Naxalites in Sukma's Konta.
The body of Giripunje reached the Mana Fourth Battalion of Raipur on Tuesday. Family members of Giripunje, Assembly Speaker Dr Raman Singh, Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao, and Cabinet Minister Laxmi Rajwade also reached the Mana Fourth Battalion.
Police officials and local residents also paid tribute to the slain police personnel.
The IED blast occurred on Monday and claimed the life of ASP Giripunje.
Earlier, CM Vishnu Deo Sai condemned the IED blast in Sukma district and said that his sacrifice would not go in vain.
CM Vishnu Deo Sai also visited the residence of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Akash Rao Giripunje in Raipur on Monday to meet his family members.
'We pay tribute to ASP Akash Rao Giripunje. The Naxals are doing this as they are rattled. His sacrifice will not go in vain. The naxals are taking their last breath and doing all this in frustration. We condemn this incident. May his family get the strength to bear this loss. Those injured will be brought to Raipur for the best medical treatment,' CM Vishnu Deo Sai said.
He said, 'A reputed Additional SP has lost his life due to the IED blast. This is very sad news. ASP Akash Rao Giripunje's sacrifice will not go in vain, and the naxals will have to pay a price for this cowardly act. The naxals will get a befitting reply for this.'
IG Sundarraj said in his statement, 'A pressure IED blast near Dondra on Konta-Errabora road; ASP Konta Division, District Sukma, Akash Rao Giripunje sustains serious injuries. Some other officers and jawans have also been injured in this pressure IED blast.'
According to IG, ASP Giripunje was on foot patrol duty to prevent any Naxalite incident, given the call by CPI (M) for Bharat Bandh on June 10. (ANI)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Gazette
26 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"The grievances about Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the Khalistan movement were not real": Former Pentagon official slams Trudeau for amplifying exaggerated claims
Washington, DC [US], June 11 (ANI): Former Pentagon official and senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, Michael Rubin, has strongly criticised former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for amplifying what he called exaggerated claims around Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the Khalistan movement. He also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's strategic diplomacy and called for firm action against Khalistani extremism. 'The grievances about Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the Khalistan movement were not real': Rubin said, accusing Trudeau of appeasing radical Sikh extremists in Canada and shifting blame to India rather than acknowledging domestic issues. Rubin further elaborated on Prime Minister Modi's leadership, saying, 'Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi's critics will acknowledge that he has grown tremendously in office and he's now one of the most influential statesmen not only in Asia but in the world. The fact of the matter is that this magnanimity is strategic and it also forces the Canadians to recognise that the problem all along was in Canada and not with India. So, kudos to Prime Minister Modi for this strategy and for rejoining and agreeing to go to Alberta and the fact of the matter is that a strong relationship between India and all of North America is within everybody's interests, especially given the rise of China.' Touching upon the issue of Khalistani extremism, Rubin stressed the importance of decisive measures from Canada. He said, 'It is so essential that India continued to press Canada to address the Khalistan movement head-on to designate the Khalistan movement and extremists as terrorists, to uproot terror finance and to stigmatize forever these groups that really have no popular legitimacy back home in Punjab or for that matter, among the larger peaceful Sikh community in Canada. It's time to stop allowing the loud, extreme voices to win and instead recognise that those same loud, extreme voices oftentimes deserve to be in prison for their involvement in terror, tax fraud and organised crime in Canada, in San Francisco and elsewhere.' Reiterating his criticism of Trudeau, Rubin again dismissed the narrative around Nijjar and the Khalistan movement. He said, 'The grievances about Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the Khalistan movement were not real. They were exaggerations that Justin Trudeau Trudeau may have wanted so much to appease radical Sikh extremists in various constituencies that he was willing to take an organised crime hit between various Sikh groups and mafias and blame an outside power for it, rather than acknowledge the problem and the fault was Canada's alone. That is Justin Trudeau's problem. But now that Justin Trudeau is gone and likely will never return to power, Prime Minister Carney is taking a sober approach and recognising that he is not going to be tied to Justin Trudeau's fictions...' In this context, Rubin has come out swinging against Khalistanis while praising Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to accept Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's invitation to the G7 Summit (from June 15 to 17) in Canada. He believes PM Modi's magnanimity in attending the summit shows 'India has nothing to hide.' Speaking to ANI on Wednesday, Rubin contrasted former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's approach with that of Carney's, saying Carney 'understands the importance of India' and wants to 'restore maturity to the relationship.' 'Canadian PM Mark Carney originally is a banker. He understands the importance of India. Justin Trudeau was a politician who peddled in image and imagination, and therefore it makes sense that Carney wants to restore maturity to the relationship,' Rubin told ANI. 'It actually makes sense for Prime Minister Modi to show that the problem was not Canada itself, but the immaturity and unprofessionalism of Justin Trudeau,' he added. Further, the American security expert highlighted that the Indian government is 'willing to have a serious dialogue, much like they had with the United States.' Rubin added that the problem with 'Justin Trudeau is that for his own domestic, political reasons and to assuage radical constituencies, he was basically shooting from the hip without any factual basis to support his accusations against India.' 'What Prime Minister Modi is showing is that India has nothing to hide. If you're going to have a serious law enforcement dialogue, it's got to be two-way. We've got to talk about illegal immigration into Canada, terror finance in Canada, radical Sikh mafias and how the Khalistan movement is tied to organised crime and terrorism,' he added. Rubin also raised concerns about the Khalistanis' movements, stating, 'when you give safe haven to any terror group. Ultimately, your own interests are going to be subverted.' 'Justin Trudeau and frankly Pierre Trudeau before him, by embracing and tolerating the Khalistan movement in the face of some of the worst terrorist attacks in the 20th century, what they did is ultimately undermine Canada's moral authority and its strategic importance,' he added. (ANI)
India Gazette
26 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"Diversity of our discourse is strength, not weakness": Manish Tewari defends Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi [India], June 11 (ANI): Congress MP Manish Tewari has come in defence of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over the latter's 'Narendra Surrender' jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that the diversity of India's domestic discourse is 'strength, not weakness'. He said that the contesting opinions and narratives set India apart from Pakistan and other totalitarian states. He argued that people in a democracy have the right to articulate their opinions, given the freedom of speech and expression. 'The strength of our democracy is its diversity, and the contesting opinions and narratives distinguish India not only from Pakistan but from a large number of other totalitarian states. The diversity of our domestic discourse is actually a strength, not a weakness. The fact remains that in any democracy, everybody has the freedom of speech and expression, and people have the right to articulate their opinions,' Tewari told ANI. Speaking about the mission that multi-party delegations were tasked with, the Congress MP said that the delegations were able to put Pakistan in the dock of international public opinion. 'The objective of this mission was clearly to put Pakistan in the dock of international public opinion, and to that extent, the various delegations that fanned out across the world have been able to plant that seed,' Tewari asserted. Talking about his delegation's meeting with the Prime Minister, the Congress MP emphasised that it was an informal and freewheeling conversation. 'It was an informal interaction, and the members of various delegations shared their impressions with the Prime Minister, who heard everybody out. He conveyed his own impressions. On the whole, it was an informal and freewheeling conversation. Most importantly, everybody was able to share the inputs they had collected across various nations. It was a holistic and comprehensive conversation,' Tewari said. Furthermore, Manish Tewari asserted that this initiative (sending delegations abroad) would help proscribe all states that use terrorism as an instrument of state policy. 'Certain seeds have been planted by various delegations across the world. Now, it is for the foreign office to build on this initiative and to take it to the next level to proscribe Pakistan, which is a state sponsor of terror on the global stage. On the whole, the visits laid the foundation for forming an international coalition against state sponsorship of terror. This is an initiative, if taken to a logical conclusion, would definitely help in proscribing all those states which use terrorism as an instrument of state policy,' the Congress MP said. Tewari was part of a multi-party delegation led by Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) or NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule. The delegation visited Egypt, Qatar, Ethiopia, and South Africa as part of India's Operation Sindoor global outreach. Apart from Sule and Tewari, the delegation had members including Rajiv Pratap Rudy (BJP), Vikramjit Singh Sahney (AAP, Anurag Singh Thakur (BJP), Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu (TDP), Anand Sharma (Congress), V Muraleedharan (BJP), and former diplomat Syed Akbaruddin. (ANI)
India Gazette
26 minutes ago
- India Gazette
India is a preferred place for Swiss businesses: State Secretary for Economic Affairs
Bern [Switzerland], June 11 (ANI): Helene Budliger Artieda, State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Switzerland, on Tuesday said India is a preferred place for Swiss industry, as she highlighted India's huge consumer base, firm economic growth, and being a democracy. 'We certainly see India as a preferred place for our industry because you are a democracy that helps. We feel united in values. You are an excellent consumer base. You have excellent growth,' she told reporters at a press conference during Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal's two-day Switzerland visit. 'We really like to have a good relationship with as many markets as we can, but we do believe in the potential of India,' Helene Budliger Artieda said. She said she is impressed with the Indian government's efforts to improve the lives of its people and alleviate poverty. 'Minister Goyal this morning spoke about on how much people have been able to be lifted out of poverty and actually join the middle class in India, and those are exactly the consumers we hope that at one point they will eat Swiss chocolate or buy a Swiss watch, and you know, a Swiss watch you have of course the very expensive ones, but then you have also those that are equally good in quality but more affordable,' she supplemented. EFTA trade deal has currently been ratified by three of the four members - Liechtenstein, Norway, and Iceland. 'We are a direct democracy, so in Switzerland, we have to wait 100 days to see if anyone in Switzerland wishes to take a referendum. These 100 days is a formality, in the case of India it will be over 10th of July, and we are very (sure) that we can deposit our ratified document before the end of September,' she said. 'We're very ambitious about it. We spoke about it also with Minister Goyal, and we hope that it will enter into force first of October,' she said. She said the huge number of Swiss businesses that took part in an industry event, in the presence of Minister Goyal, reflected the country's interest in India. On the second day of his visit, Goyal addressed a gathering of over 1,000 Swiss businesses, accompanied by Swiss Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin. Goyal highlighted India's 'remarkable transformation' over the past 11 years in terms of technology, innovation, and how the country offers great avenues for doing business. 'We had a record number of people in attendance, you know, I know in India you're used to big events, but in Switzerland, to have an event with 1,500 people in the room carefully listening to your minister showcases how much people are interested,' she said. 'This afternoon we did one on one meetings and if I just count a little bit in my head on what we heard today, how excited Swiss companies are, I think it will be very easy to reach that target of USD 100 billion (investment in Indi as part of EFTA deal) and more importantly for me it's also the 1 million job pledge that we did,' she added. 'This partnership with EFTA India should be a win-win situation for everyone. You have a very young population that needs jobs because you're trying to uplift people out of poverty into the middle class and upper middle class, and this is what Swiss companies can provide because we do compete on quality, precision, innovation, and usually these jobs pay well.' Under EFTA, these four countries have pledged to invest USD 100 billion in India over the next 15 years. The negotiations between EFTA and India started in 2008, 21 rounds of negotiations were needed to reach an agreement on 10 March 2024, as per EFTA website. EFTA is an intergovernmental organisation set up in 1960 for the promotion of free trade and economic integration for the benefit of its four Member States. 'Norway, Liechtenstein, and Iceland have reified this agreement. Switzerland's process will last another two and a half months (or so). It is expected that we will be able to implement this in October,' Minister Goyal told ANI. (ANI)
