J&K: Two suspected militants killed while trying to infiltrate across LoC
The Army said that a security operation codenamed 'Operation Shivshakti' was launched after receiving 'synchronised' intelligence inputs from its own units and the Jammu and Kashmir Police about the movement of militants in the area.
The operation was still underway, the Army said.
This came two days after three militants were killed in Operation Mahadev, a joint security operation in the Lidwas meadows of Srinagar's Dara area on Monday.
On Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah told Parliament that the three militants neutralised in Operation Mahadev were terrorists involved in the Pahalgam terror attack.
During a discussion on Operation Sindoor in the Lok Sabha, Shah said the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Central Reserve Police Force had jointly carried out the operation.
The three men identified as Suleiman Shah, Afghan and Jibran, were members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group.
The Union home minister said that the men were identified as having been involved in the Pahalgam attack by those who had provided them shelter.
The terror attack at Baisaran near Pahalgam town in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22 left 26 persons dead and 16 injured. The terrorists targeted tourists after asking their names to ascertain their religion, the police said. All but three of those killed were Hindu.
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Hindustan Times
12 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
BJP says Congress should apologise for 'Hindu terror' claims
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday welcomed the acquittal of all the seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case and attacked the Congress, accusing it of coming up with the theory of 'Hindu terror' to appease its 'Muslim votebank', and demanded an apology from the leadership of the Opposition party. The Congress hit back, accusing the BJP of 'polarising' every issue. BJP says Congress should apologise for 'Hindu terror' claims Nearly 17 years after the blast in Muslim-dominated Malegaon in Maharashtra claimed six lives in 2008, a special NIA court in Mumbai acquitted all seven accused, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit on Thursday, noting there was 'no reliable and cogent evidence' against them. 'The Congress can go to any extent to appease its vote bank. This case was a well-calculated conspiracy of the party for sheer vote-bank politics,' BJP lawmaker and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters after the court's verdict. He slammed Congress veterans and former home ministers P Chidambaram and Sushilkumar Shinde for promoting the idea of saffron and Hindu terrorism. Chidambaram used the term while addressing the annual conference of DGPs and IGPs on August 25, 2010, he said. 'There was no evidence against any of the accused. Colonel Purohit, who fought against terrorism in Kashmir, was accused. Pragya Thakur was accused of using her motorcycle in the blast. She was tortured so much that she could not walk after that. This was a Congress conspiracy for sheer vote-bank politics,' Prasad said, demanding an apology from the Congress leadership. On Wednesday, Union home minister Amit Shah during a special discussion on Operation Sindoor in the Rajya Sabha had slammed the Congress for coining the term Hindu terror, while asserting that 'Hindus can never be terrorists'. Welcoming the court verdict, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in a post on X said: 'Terrorism was never saffron, is not and will never be.' The RSS, BJP's ideological fount, also hailed the verdict, saying the truth has been clarified by the court decision regarding the Malegaon blast case. 'Some individuals, driven by personal interests and political motives, misused power in a malicious attempt to associate Hinduism and the entire Hindu community with terrorism. Through a lengthy judicial process and based on facts, the court has today, with its decision, nullified those baseless allegations,' RSS chief spokesperson Sunil Ambekar said. Maharashtra deputy CM Eknath Shinde, who is also the president of Shiv Sena, an NDA partner, said the verdict has wiped off the stigma on the Hindu community. 'Truth is never defeated. After a long battle of seventeen years, a special court has acquitted seven alleged accused in the Malegaon bomb blast case. It is true that justice was delayed, but it has once again been proven that truth is never defeated,' Shinde wrote on X. Hitting back at the BJP, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge told reporters: 'They (the BJP) polarise everything. There was no good prosecution, good evidence was not collected… how should this matter be let go, if this is what the government has in mind, then what do they do on the prosecution side?' His party colleague Digviyaya Singh dismissed BJP's charge, saying the Congress never coined the term saffron terror. 'There is no terrorism on the basis of religion. There is neither Hindu terrorism nor Islamic terrorism. Every religion is the embodiment of love, faith, truth and non-violence. There are only a few people who use religion as a weapon of hatred. But you keep saying that the term Hindu terrorism was given by the Congress. You are absolutely wrong,' Singh told reporters. Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal asked the state government if it will move the higher court against the verdict to ensure justice is delivered in the Malegaon case. 'As soon as the verdict of the 2006 bomb blast was announced, the state government challenged it before the Supreme Court. Will the state government show the same will in this case, as both were the act of terrorism and the perpetrators of the cases should face justice,' he said, referring to the recent acquittal of convicts in the 2006 Mumbai blasts case. The top court set aside the HC order. Speaking to reporters in the Parliament complex, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said, 'Will the Modi government and the Maharashtra government challenge the verdict in Supreme Court? Or will they continue their hypocrisy on terrorism?' (With inputs from Mumbai bureau)
Mint
12 minutes ago
- Mint
Trump slams the door–Don't give in, chart a new trade path, say experts
New Delhi: India should continue to focus on manufacturing for the world, but with a more diversified 'US-plus" export market, even as President Donald Trump's 25% tariff and an unspecified penalty for trade with Russia have bared vulnerabilities, said experts. 'The latest set of tariff announcements has indeed exposed vulnerabilities in export-dependent growth models, necessitating a strategic recalibration of India's manufacturing framework," said Rishi Shah, partner and economic advisory services leader, Grant Thornton Bharat. 'Our 'Make in India' initiative's emphasis on scaling production capacity remains fundamentally sound, but the current trade environment underscores the need for a more nuanced approach centered on innovation-led industrial development." India must now elevate industrial security to the 'same strategic priority we've accorded food security and energy security over the past decades", said Shah. The US is India's largest export market now, followed by the UAE, the Netherlands and the UK. India has been focusing on boosting manufacturing in export-oriented sectors such as mobile phones, automobiles and components, and pharmaceuticals, especially by offering production incentives. This has been complemented by a calibrated import tariff regime that seeks to gradually increase domestic value addition from mere assembly to more complex operations. Policy makers have also been hoping to reap the benefits from a global supply chain recalibration away from China. Fresh US tariffs, however, renew worries that one of the growth engines, net exports, will continue to face headwinds. The 25% tariff on Indian exports from 1 August would mean India's exports would face a higher barrier in the US market than goods from South Korea (15% tariff rate), the EU (15%) and the UK (10%). 'With trade policies being used as tools of influence by major economies, the goal must be of industrial self-reliance," said Shah of Grant Thornton Bharat. 'This isn't about import substitution, rather about building economic resilience against external shocks and policy volatility." Sachchidanand Shukla, group chief economist at Larsen & Toubro Ltd, described the current trade uncertainty as a short-term issue and said the focus on manufacturing-centred development should stay. 'It is true the world is in a flux currently and there has been a degree of de-globalization playing out in the recent past," he said. 'But India has to pursue negotiations with the US, partner with other like-minded economies and economic blocs and get deeply embedded in the global value chains." India should keep eyes trained on harnessing all global opportunities, whether it is within Asia, which is the fastest growing region, the EU or Latin America, and continue to enter into trade deals, said Shukla. According to Shukla, India's push for scaling up domestic manufacturing capabilities has served well in building self-reliance and it should continue, especially for strategic reasons and also for meeting the demand in a growing economy, which has the potential to double its size in six-seven years. Besides, the global trade pie and the opportunity is very large at over $33 trillion and must be tapped to generate jobs and growth, Shukla added. 'The current uncertainty in trade relations with the US is a short-term bump. What has been announced by the US may not be the final outcome, as we have seen in negotiations with other countries. India's focus on manufacturing should continue, and we must make in India and make for the world," Shukla said. The path forward requires a dual approach, said Shah of Grant Thornton Bharat. That involves maintaining India's trajectory of scaling up manufacturing while pivoting toward innovation, said Shah. 'This means deepening our focus on research and development intensity, technological capabilities and knowledge-based value addition across manufacturing, services and emerging technology sectors," said Shah. 'Priority areas include semiconductor design, biotechnology R&D (research and development), pharmaceutical innovation and precision electronics—domains where our MSME ecosystem can leverage advanced technologies to create globally competitive products."
Time of India
38 minutes ago
- Time of India
‘God Will Never Forgive Those Who Framed Us'
Mumbai/Pune: It has been painful to endure accusations for 17 years, Lt Col Prasad Purohit told TOI after being acquitted in the on Thursday. Purohit, currently stationed at an Army unit in Mumbai, said, "I did not do anything against my country. There is nothing above the nation. How can a serving army officer, who sacrificed so much while serving for the nation, be involved in acts of terrorism?" He spent almost nine years in jail. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "I lost the cream period of my active service, facing difficulties on multiple fronts - personal, professional, family, friendships, and societal. What was more painful was that my wife, children (2 sons) and my family members endured these painful years." At the time of arrest, Purohit was with the Army's corps of military intelligence. "I fought for justice to prove I was never involved in this. The journey was long and unbearable. But I had faith in the judiciary, and today's verdict is testament to my belief," he said. Pragya Thakur, dressed in saffron robes, sat in the witness box and broke down after the verdict was pronounced. "I was detained illegally for 13 days and tortured. I was living my life as a sanyasi and was labelled a terrorist. My life was destroyed by the allegations," she said, addressing the court. She added, "Ye bhagwa ki vijay hui hai, Hindutva ki vijay hui hai (Saffron has won, Hindutva has won)." She said she was happy at least the judge heard their side. "My life has become meaningful now. Whoever did wrong with us, God will never forgive them," she said. Referring to police in the courtroom, she said, "The way those people did illegal work within the law, our life has been ruined. I can't live a moment in peace. I want to keep myself alive; maybe I am alive because I am a sanyasi. You have defamed the bhagwa." Sudhakar Chaturvedi, another of the acquitted accused, said, "I was framed and tortured by police. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now A bomb was planted at my house. My nails were plucked. It was not a Hindu-Muslim thing. A verdict has been delivered, not justice… It wouldn't be considered justice until those who framed us are charged." He added their legal battle was still on. "NIA has mentioned ATS planted a bomb at my house, and I was targeted due to my bhagwa attire," he said, adding that when he was taken into ATS custody, he was forced to take the names of Yogi Adityanand and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. Major Ramesh Upadhyay (Retd) told TOI, "My family and I went through pain and agony for 17 years but today is a day of celebration. Life will be much happier for me after today… On this day, I remember Balasaheb Thackeray, who stood by us." Another acquitted accused, Sameer Kulkarni, said when he was arrested, he felt like "a dirty blame" had been put on him. He argued his case himself; he said if other accused had not hired a lawyer, the trial would have ended 15 years ago. He accused the defence and prosecution of prolonging it. The verdict, he said, "is a rebirth for us." Talking to media outside the court, Purohit said, "I am extremely grateful to the court and all those who stood by me for understanding the case and delivering justice... Malice is over, and it should not be there. We are a great country, a developing nation. I expect and wish everyone should contribute positively towards the country. Let's be forward-looking." (Reported by Mateen Hafeez, Shourya Avankhedkar, Pushkraj Vernekar, Prasad Kulkarni & Sandip Dighe)
