Court dismisses bail plea of travel vlogger held for spying
A local court in Haryana's Hisar on Wednesday dismissed the bail application of travel vlogger Jyoti Rani, who was arrested over three weeks ago on charges of spying and passing on secret information to Pakistani intelligence operatives. Moving the bail application in the court of Judicial Magistrate Sunil Kumar, Ms. Rani's counsel, Kumar Mukesh, had argued that the FIR in the case was based on the interrogation of the accused prior to her arrest and was 'liable to be quashed, as it in violation of Article 20(3) of the Constitution of India'.
Opposing her bail plea, the police contended that the accused, if released, could influence the investigation.
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Economic Times
39 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Client services for client state: Trump's reset with Pak is marked by a transactional, short-horizon foreign policy
US anxiety seems to centre around India's destruction of Pakistan's Nur Khan airbase. According to Imtiaz Gul, it's 'under American control'. Our forefathers believed that we were different from Hindus in every possible aspect of life. Our religion is different. Our customs are different. Our traditions are different. Our thoughts are different. Our ambitions are different.… That was the foundation of the Two-Nation Theory. It was laid on the belief that we are two nations, not one.' That was Pakistan Army chief Gen — now Field Marshal — Asim Munir speaking at the Convention for Overseas Pakistanis in Islamabad on April 17. Less than a week later in Pahalgam, Pakistani terrorists killed 1 Christian and 24 Hindu tourists, as well as a local Muslim who resisted the assailants, after the killers established their victims' religious identities. A link between Munir's rant and the Pahalgam massacre is a possibility. But the rage in India in response to the attack went far beyond what Pakistan had expected. Perhaps it had assessed that India would do what it had done after the 2016 Uri attack when 18 Indian soldiers were killed. Or, in response to the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing, which killed 41 Indian paramilitary soldiers. On both earlier occasions, India had reacted with one-off counterattacks in POK and Balakot. Rawalpindi probably expected a similar reaction post-Pahalgam. This time, the storyline changed. India's counter, launched on May 7, forced the Pakistani DGMO to speak to his Indian counterpart on May 10, and seek a ceasefire. The world is now aware of what transpired between May 7 and 10, although many would not want to talk about it. Suppliers of military equipment to Pakistan — the US, China, and Turkey — will probably be reevaluating their equipment that succumbed to Indian, Russian and French equipment. Inevitably, the Americans got into the act, mostly to save their major non-Nato ally. The resounding success of the Indian response had taken them aback. One wondered about the urgency of Trump's self-described 'intervention' to stop matters escalating on the India-Pak front when the Ukraine war and IsraelHamas conflict — or even the Houthi battles in Yemen — have been allowed to last for years. Indian denials about US intervention have been ignored by the Americans. The Pakistanis, of course, eagerly accepted this rescue. US anxiety seems to centre around India's destruction of Pakistan's Nur Khan airbase. Remember, according to Pakistani journalist and security expert Imtiaz Gul, the base is 'under American control', where even senior Pakistan Army officers are not allowed to has been extremely useful to the US. Its defence minister Khawaja Asif asserted that they had been fighting America's dirty wars for 30-odd years. From a strategic perspective, it's well-known that the US has been helping Pakistan to keep India 'occupied', while they get a geographic toehold near Iran and China. Both China and the US would like to have total control over Pakistan, to have a base looking at their interests to the east and economic rise, its decisions to choose its sourcing and look after its own interests, cause concern to the US. India tends to get under its skin, as its commerce secretary Howard Lutnick grumbled recently. Which is why the restart of the old game of hyphenating India and Pakistan, ignoring Indian sensitivities, while propping up these decisions may have been made earlier, announcements of $1 bn to Pakistan by IMF, $40 bn by World Bank, and another $800 mn during Operation Sindoor were bad optics. The latest signallings include inviting Munir to attend the 250th US Army Day celebrations in Washington on June 14 — which also happens to be Trump's 79th birthday. Undoubtedly, Munir will meet officials from the State Department and Pentagon, and get promises for military Central Command commander Michael E Kurilla, testifying before the House Armed Services Committee in Washington earlier this week, described Pakistan as a 'phenomenal partner' in anti-terrorism operations. He emphasised the need for the US to maintain relationships with both India and Pakistan, stating that he didn't 'believe it is a binary switch that we can't have one with Pakistan if we have a relationship with India'. In that case, the US shouldn't have a problem with India's relations with Russia and the a matter of conjecture if this US-Pak partnership is about Iran, Central Asia or even India. Pakistan is looking at buying 40 more Chinese J-35A stealth fighter aircraft, a rival of the US F-35, with a listed price of $9 bn, but on offer at 50% the value. This will mean that 80% of Pakistan's military purchases will be from China. Pakistan's debt to China, including CPEC, already amounts to nearly $70 April 26, World Liberty Financial (WLF) agreed to help build Pakistan's blockchain infrastructure, promote stablecoin-based remittances, and tokenise real-world assets. The agreement seeks to position Pakistan as a crypto-forward nation. Eric Trump, the president's son, is associated with WLF, whose executives met Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif as well as Munir. Enough such conditions, India should be prepared for Pahalgam-style attacks in the future, while expecting no assistance from China, and ambivalence from the US. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. How a nudge from Cyrus Mistry helped TCS unlock a USD1 billion opportunity Explainer: The RBI's LAF corridor and its role in rate transmission Is Zomato under siege? 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Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
MEA: Pakistan record on terror clear
A day after United States Military General Michael Kurilla called Pakistan a 'phenomenal partner' in counter-terrorism, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) criticised Islamabad for its continued support to terrorism, calling the terror attack in Pahalgam 'the recent example of cross-border terrorism'. In response to a question on Central Command Chief General Kurilla's comments at the Congressional hearing a day earlier, during the weekly media briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal recalled how one of the conspirators of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, Tahawwur Rana, was recently extradited from the US to India and also mentioned how Osama bin Laden was given shelter in Pakistan. 'The record of Pakistan, of what Pakistan actually is, is very clear, we all know Pahalgam's attack is only a recent example of cross-border terrorism. Only recently, the conspirator, one of the conspirators of 26/11, Tahawwur Rana, was extradited from the US to India. Obviously, none of us has forgotten that Pakistan gave shelter to Osama bin Laden …You would be aware that Dr Shakil Afridi, who helped locate Osama bin Laden, is still imprisoned by the Pakistani military,' the MEA spokesperson said. Divya A reports on travel, tourism, culture and social issues - not necessarily in that order - for The Indian Express. She's been a journalist for over a decade now, working with Khaleej Times and The Times of India, before settling down at Express. Besides writing/ editing news reports, she indulges her pen to write short stories. As Sanskriti Prabha Dutt Fellow for Excellence in Journalism, she is researching on the lives of the children of sex workers in India. ... Read More
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
"If we succeed with our plan, this would be largest attack on US ...," read encrypted message of Pakistani extradited for planning ISIS-inspired terror attacks in New York
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan entered Canada from Pakistan on a student visa in 2023. A Pakistani national residing in Canada, Muhammad Shahzeb Khan , also known as Shahzeb Jadoon, was extradited to the United States this week to face charges for plotting an ISIS-inspired mass shooting at a Jewish community center in New York City. The planned attack, intended to coincide with the first anniversary of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel. The plot was uncovered largely through Khan's use of encrypted messaging apps, which reportedly played a critical role in both his planning and eventual apprehension. FBI Director Kash Patel said Khan allegedly tried to enter the US to commit the attack and planned an ISIS-inspired mass shooting on October 7, 2024, around the first anniversary of the 2023 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel. "Major news… earlier this afternoon, Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, a Pakistani citizen residing in Canada, was extradited to the United States on charges of attempting to provide material support to ISIS and attempting to commit acts of terrorism," Patel said in a post on Twitter. How Muhammad Shahzeb Khan relied on messaging apps Khan, 20, was charged in the Southern District of New York, according to a Department of Justice press release. The investigation revealed that Khan relied heavily on encrypted messaging platforms to communicate his plans, believing these apps provided secure and untraceable communication. However, one of his contacts was an undercover FBI agent. The encrypted message that exposed Khan's intentions was sent to this agent, whom Khan is said to have trusted as an ally. In a communication with undercover law enforcement officers, Khan claimed that if the plan succeeded, it would be "the largest attack on US soil since 9/11." In it, he also outlined his goal to kill "as many Jewish people as possible" in New York City on October 7, 2024. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar Undo The investigation gained momentum after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested a father and son, Ahmed Eldidi and Mostafa Eldidi, on July 31, 2024, in connection with a separate terrorist plot in Ontario. This arrest is said to have spooked Khan, prompting him to send an encrypted message to his supposed associates, urging them to "lay low" and avoid social media to evade detection. The recipients were undercover agents who encouraged him to proceed with the attack, assuring him that weapons were ready. This deception kept Khan engaged, allowing authorities to reportedly gather further evidence through monitored encrypted communications. Khan arrived in Toronto on June 24, 2023, on a student visa, though it remains unclear which university he was enrolled in. On September 4, 2024, he began his journey toward the US border, starting in Toronto and driving to Napanee, Ontario, to pick up others allegedly involved in the plot. In Napanee, Khan and an unidentified female switched vehicles and continued to Montreal, where they changed cars again with another person driving. Approximately 19 kilometers from the US border, Canadian authorities stopped the vehicle and arrested Khan, thwarting the planned attack. He was provisionally arrested in Canada in September 2024 based on a complaint filed in the Southern District of New York. The case underscores the dual nature of encrypted messaging apps in modern terrorism investigations. While these platforms offer privacy and are widely used for legitimate purposes, they are also exploited by individuals planning illicit activities. AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
