CM Stalin to be felicitated for SC verdict on governor: Minister Govi Chezhiaan
Replying to a discussion on the demands for grants for higher education department, Chezhiaan announced that, on the lines of NIRF, Tamil Nadu will have State Institutional Ranking Framework published by Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education. 'It will help to know the strengths and weaknesses of various institutions in the state and improve their quality,' he said.
Chezhiaan said a review committee will be constituted to recommend new courses for government arts and science colleges. To send government college students to foreign universities for a term, MoUs will be signed by the department with universities abroad. 'Fifty students will be taken abroad to study every semester', Chezhiaan said.
The minister said Central Institute of Technology, Taramani, will be upgraded at a cost of Rs 100 crore. Unmanned aerial vehicle training centres will be set up in five government polytechnic colleges at a cost of Rs 50 lakh each.
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Scroll.in
22 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
In May crackdown on ‘foreigners', only Bengali-origin Muslims sent to Assam detention centre
On May 24, the Matia detention centre began to fill up as the Assam police launched a drive to round up alleged illegal immigrants in the state. Over the next few days, reports appeared of Bengali-origin Muslims held at the centre being taken to India's border with Bangladesh and being forced to cross over at gunpoint. Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told the Assembly that 303 'foreigners' had been pushed into Bangladesh. But he did not disclose their identities. Scroll filed a Right to Information query with the office of the Inspector-General of Prisons, Assam, asking for information on the number of detainees at the Matia centre, details of their cases, and when they were admitted inside. We also asked for detailed information on those who had been released, deported or 'pushed' into Bangladesh since April 2025. The Assam government's reply to our questions was incomplete. It did not share any information about those forced to cross the border into Bangladesh. However, it gave us a list of those detained at the Matia detention centre between May 27 and July 8. All 53 of them are Muslims. The RTI response Most of those rounded up in that crackdown were declared foreigners like the 51-year-old teacher from Morigaon, Khairul Islam, who was arrested and then forced out of Indian territory. Declared foreigners are typically long-term residents with families and properties in Assam, who have failed to prove that they are Indian citizens before the state's foreigners tribunals. Islam was forced out even though his case, challenging the foreigners tribunal order, was pending in the Supreme Court. Similarly, Shona Bhanu, a 59-year-old resident of Barpeta, was expelled from Indian territory. Both had told Scroll that they were first kept at the Matia camp before being taken to the no man's land between India and Bangladesh. However, the Assam government does not seem to have acknowledged these arrests, let alone their being expelled from India. The Assam prisons department informed Scroll that 53 declared foreigners were arrested and admitted in the camp on May 27, 28 and 29and July 8, all of them Muslims. However, the RTI reply has no record of Islam and Bhanu being admitted to the camp in May. Moreover, when Scroll put together an Assam government affidavit in the Supreme Court and the information from the RTI response, it became clear – in the last nearly 12 months, only Muslim declared foreigners have faced arrest and incarceration in Assam. The CAA model Foreigner tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies unique to Assam, which rule on citizenship cases. They have been accused of arbitrariness and bias, and declaring people foreigners on the basis of minor spelling mistakes, a lack of documents or lapses in memory. Many of the appeals to FT orders are pending in the higher courts. In the last five decades, Assam's foreigners tribunals have declared 1.6 lakh people as non-citizens, of whom 69,559 are Hindus. In recent years, several declared foreigners had been released from imprisonment after the Supreme Court and the Gauhati High Court ruled against their prolonged incarceration. But that changed in August 2024. The Assam government began a renewed crackdown on declared foreigners, who were arrested and sent to the Matia detention centre. By September 2024, the number of detained declared foreigners at Matia, the largest detention centre in India, had increased by four times to 72. However, all the newly arrested declared foreigners, who were sent to the detention centre in August, were Muslims, according to the Assam government affidavit filed before the Supreme Court on February 3 this year. The admission list at the Matia centre, which is maintained by the camp authorities and was seen by Scroll, also showed that only Muslim declared foreigners were admitted following the crackdown. As is evident from the RTI response from the Assam prisons headquarters, the May crackdown leading to 'pushbacks' followed the same pattern. The decision to spare Hindu declared foreigners is in line with the Assam government's implementation of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act, which had triggered fierce protests from Assamese nationalists in 2019 . For instance, in July 2024, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party government asked the state's border police not to forward cases of non-Muslims who had entered India illegally before 2014 to foreigners tribunals. As Scroll had reported, this was a clear sign of the Assam government putting in place a citizenship regime that excludes Muslims. Last month, too, the Assam Government asked district authorities and members of the foreigners tribunals to drop cases against the members of six non-Muslim communities who are granted amnesty under CAA. While Assamese nationalists were opposed to all immigrants, whether Hindu or Muslim, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has raised the alarm against 'Muslim infiltration'. 'In Assam, we are fearlessly resisting the ongoing, unchecked Muslim infiltration from across the border, which has already caused an alarming demographic shift. In several districts, Hindus are now on the verge of becoming a minority in their own land.' No Rohingyas In May, Scroll had reported that all the Rohingya detainees had been expelled from the detention centre even though their cases were pending in the courts. The Assam prison headquarters' reply confirms that there are no Rohingya inmates at Matia. As of July 23, of the 110 inmates at Matia, three are 'convicted foreigners', 80 declared foreigners and 27 Chin refugees. But on April 24 this year, there were 103 Rohingya refugees – 37 of them children – at the Matia camp, according to the lists maintained by the detention centre, which were accessed by Scroll. The department said there is 'no record available pertaining' to whether the refugees were deported or pushed across into Bangladesh. Scroll had reported that they were expelled from the detention centre without following due process. Sarma had announced that several inmates of the Matia detention centre in Assam, including Rohingya refugees, were 'pushed back' into Bangladesh as part of a countrywide 'operation' by the Indian government.
Indian Express
22 minutes ago
- Indian Express
After Supreme Court direction, EC publishes list of names deleted from Bihar voter list along with reason for deletion
Bihar's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on Sunday published details of 65 lakh names deleted from the draft electoral rolls in the first phase of the special intensive revision (SIR). This comes after the Supreme Court, while hearing petitions against the SIR, had directed the Election Commission to publish the details of those whose names were deleted from the draft rolls and the reasons for the deletion. Bihar CEO Vinod Singh Gunjiyal said in a statement, 'In light of the interim order passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court on 14.08.2025…, it is hereby notified that the list of such electors whose names were included in the Electoral Roll of the year 2025 (before the draft publication) but are not included in the draft roll published on 01.08.2025, along with reasons (Deceased/Permanently Shifted/Absent/Repeated Entry), has been published on the websites of the Chief Electoral Officer, Bihar, and all District Election Officers of the State of Bihar.' Names can be searched on the Bihar CEO's website using electors' photo identity card (EPIC) numbers. Booth-wise lists can also be downloaded. The list has details such as name, EPIC number, father's name and reason for deletion. The Opposition welcomed the move. RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari said, 'The decision came on the day INDIA bloc leaders Rahul Gandhi, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav and others have embarked on a yatra to travel through 22 Bihar districts to make voters aware of their voting rights. We can now analyse data and take up cases of voters whose names are wrongly deleted.' Opposition parties and other activists have raised concerns over potential wrongful deletions during the SIR process. They have claimed that several people declared dead during the process, and have had their names deleted, are in fact alive. Out of 7.89 crore voters in Bihar, 7.24 crore were enrolled in the first draft. Out of the 65 lakh names deleted from the list, 36 lakh were shown to have permanently moved elsewhere, and 22 lakh were said to be dead.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
‘I don't know what Quran he is reading': Eric Adams slams Zohran Mamdani over prostitution stance; questions religious values
File photo: Mayor Eric Adams (left) and Zohran Mamdani (Picture credit: AP) Mayor Eric Adams has taken aim at his main rival in the upcoming New York City mayoral race, Zohran Mamdani , criticising the Democrat's record of backing the decriminalisation of prostitution and questioning how such a stance aligns with his religious faith. Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Adams said, 'I can't be more clear. I'm a man of God, just as Mamdani says he's a Muslim. I don't know where in his Quran it states that it's okay for a woman to be on the streets selling their body. I don't know what Quran he is reading. It's not in my Bible. As a man who said he is of faith, I don't quite understand what religion supports prostitution.' Mamdani's religion is Islam, which prohibits prostitution under its laws of morality. The comments followed reporting by the reports highlighting Mamdani's history of pushing to change state law so that selling sex would no longer be treated as a crime. As per the New York Post, Adams argued that such a policy would fuel trafficking and crime, saying, 'I think he's lost on the fact that sex trafficking is very much part of prostitution. We are trying to bring down crime and he is talking about legalising sex work.' by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Could This NEW Collagen Blend Finally Reduce Your Cellulite? Vitauthority Learn More Undo He added, 'You're not doing any service to a woman who is on the street who is forced to sell her body for whatever reason. No one should be on our streets selling their bodies. No one.' Mamdani's record on sex work According to the New York Post, Mamdani has been a consistent advocate of decriminalisation since his first run for the state Assembly in 2020, when he declared: 'Not only must we decriminalise sex work, we need a comprehensive platform of justice for all.' Since then, the 33-year-old Socialist has co-sponsored several bills in Albany that would remove criminal penalties for sex work across New York state. In 2021, he told colleagues at an Assembly meeting, 'I would like to register my support for [decriminalising sex work] legislation, my eagerness for that debate and for my fundamental belief that sex work is work', as per the New York Post. Despite that record, Mamdani has said little about the issue since entering the mayoral race, raising concerns among critics that he may attempt to advance such measures from City Hall if elected. As mayor, he would not be able to change state law on his own, but he would hold a powerful platform to campaign for reforms and could also deprioritise prostitution enforcement by the NYPD. Supporters vs critics Supporters of decriminalisation argue that legalising sex work makes those in the industry less vulnerable to violence from pimps, clients and police. However, research in places such as Nevada and parts of Europe has shown that trafficking often rises when prostitution is legalised, as organised crime expands to meet demand. Sonia Ossorio, executive director of the National Organization for Women NYC, has warned that Mamdani's plans could turn the city into a 'sex tourism destination' comparable to Amsterdam's Red Light District. Rosa Sanchez of the Restore Roosevelt Avenue Coalition was cited by the Post saying her Queens community is already struggling with prostitution and gang activity, and predicted matters would worsen under Mamdani. Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa also warned the city risked seeing 'all 350 neighbourhoods' turned into red-light districts if Mamdani wins. Mamdani's campaign hit back on Sunday, though it stopped short of confirming whether he still supports decriminalisation. A spokesperson said, 'Mayor Adams' reckless budget cut over $3 million in funding from Safe Horizon, putting thousands of victims of crimes related to sex trafficking and prostitution in harm's way. As Mayor, Zohran will prioritise genuine public safety for all, including investing $40M through his Department of Community Safety towards victims services.' Former governor Andrew Cuomo stressed he had long opposed attempts by Mamdani and other progressives to decriminalise prostitution during his time in Albany. Adams, running as an independent for re-election, framed the debate as a question of protecting vulnerable women and ensuring public safety. 'Our city needs to be a safe city. It should not be a city where women are standing on corners, or boys are standing on corners, or young men standing on corners selling their bodies,' he said. 'If that is his belief, it is a danger for our city.'
