2 More Pak Sympathisers Arrested In Assam, Total Arrests Reach 92
Guwahati:
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that two persons have been arrested in the state for expressing their 'pro-Pakistan' stand on social media.
The arrests happened from Nagaon and Lakhimpur districts in the state.
The persons have been identified as Sabikul Islam and Dulal Bora.
Islam was taken into custody from the Lakhimpur district while Bora was arrested by Nagaon police.
According to CM Sarma, a total of 92 anti-nationals are now lodged in jail for sympathising with Pakistan.
He said, "Our systems are constantly tracking anti-national posts on social media and taking action."
Among the 92 arrested people, the most prominent is the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) MLA Aminul Islam.
He was the first person to be arrested in the state for the "pro-Pakistan" stand.
Aminul Islam, an AIUDF MLA from Assam's Dhing Assembly constituency, was arrested on May 1 on sedition charges following his provocative statement regarding the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam that claimed 26 lives.
In a video clip circulated on social media, the AIUDF leader is heard claiming that the Pahalgam and Pulwama attacks were part of a "government conspiracy".
Aminul Islam said, "Six years ago in Pulwama, when the RDX blast happened and 42 soldiers died, I said on that day that the Pulwama blast happened at the behest of a conspiracy of the Central government, and it was a conspiracy to win the 2019 Lok Sabha polls."
He added that what happened in Pahalgam is that the "BJP has been peddling that the terrorists asked about religion and opened fire only on Hindus, and they let go of Muslims".
"But the victims said that the terrorists opened fire without asking about anybody's name, and I doubt that the nexus which was involved in the Pulwama attack in which RDX was used, is behind the Pahalgam incident," he said.
"If the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government does not conduct a fair investigation into the incident and tries to bring a division between Hindus and Muslims, I would believe that this incident happened because of a conspiracy," he added.
However, the AIUDF Chief Badruddin Ajmal distanced himself from his party legislator's comments.
Ajmal said, "AIUDF stands with the government. The terrorists have no religion, and those who spread terrorism are against Islam."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
45 minutes to pack up a lifetime as Pakistan's foreigner crackdown sends Afghans scrambling
The order was clear and indisputable, the timeline startling. You have 45 minutes to pack up and leave Pakistan forever. Sher Khan, a 42-year-old Afghan, had returned home from his job in a brick factory. He stared at the plainclothes policeman on the doorstep, his mind reeling. How could he pack up his whole life and leave the country of his birth in under an hour? In the blink of an eye, the life he had built was taken away from him. He and his wife grabbed a few kitchen items and whatever clothes they could for themselves and their nine children. They left everything else behind at their home in Pakistan-controlled in Pakistan to parents who fled the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the ensuing war, Khan is one of hundreds of thousands of Afghans who have now been expelled. The nationwide crackdown, launched in October 2023, on foreigners Pakistan says are living in the country illegally has led to the departures of almost 1 million Afghans already. Pakistan says millions more remain. It wants them gone. Leaving with nothing to beat a deadline 'All our belongings were left behind,' Khan said as he stood in a dusty, windswept refugee camp just across the Afghan border in Torkham, the first stop for expelled refugees. 'We tried so hard (over the years) to collect the things that we had with honor.' Pakistan set several deadlines earlier this year for Afghans to leave or face deportation. Afghan Citizen Card holders had to leave the capital Islamabad and Rawalpindi city by March 31, while those with Proof of Registration could stay until June 30. No specific deadlines were set for Afghans living elsewhere in Pakistan. Khan feared that delaying his departure beyond the deadline might have resulted in his wife and children being hauled off to a police station along with him a blow to his family's dignity.'We are happy that we came (to Afghanistan) with modesty and honor,' he said. As for his lost belongings, 'God may provide for them here, as He did there.' A refugee influx in a struggling country At the Torkham camp, run by Afghanistan's Taliban government, each family receives a SIM card and 10,000 Afghanis ($145) in aid. They can spend up to three days there before having to move camp's director, Molvi Hashim Maiwandwal, said some 150 families were arriving daily from Pakistan — far fewer than the roughly 1,200 families who were arriving about two months ago. But he said another surge was expected after the three-day Islamic holiday of Eid Al-Adha that started June 7. Aid organizations inside the camp help with basic needs, including healthcare. Local charity Aseel provides hygiene kits and helps with food. It has also set up a food package delivery system for families once they arrive at their final destination elsewhere in Afghanistan. Aseel's Najibullah Ghiasi said they expected a surge in arrivals 'by a significant number' after Eid. 'We cannot handle all of them, because the number is so huge,' he said, adding the organization was trying to boost fundraising so it could support more people. Pakistan blames Afghanistan for militancy Pakistan accuses Afghans of staging militant attacks inside the country, saying assaults are planned from across the border — a charge Kabul's Taliban government denies. Pakistan denies targeting Afghans, and maintains that everyone leaving the country is treated humanely and with dignity. But for many, there is little that is humane about being forced to pack up and leave in minutes or hours. Iran, too, has been expelling Afghans, with the UNHCR, the UN's refugee agency, saying on June 5 that 500,000 Afghans had been forced to leave Iran and Pakistan in the two months since April 1. Rights groups and aid agencies say authorities are pressuring Afghans into going sooner. In April, Human Rights Watch said police had raided houses, beaten and arbitrarily detained people, and confiscated refugee documents, including residence permits. Officers demanded bribes to allow Afghans to remain in Pakistan, the group added. Searching for hope while starting again Fifty-year-old Yar Mohammad lived in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir for nearly 45 years. The father of 12 built a successful business polishing floors, hiring several workers. Plainclothes policemen knocked on his door too. They gave him six hours to leave.'No way a person can wrap up so much business in six hours, especially if they spent 45 years in one place,' he said. Friends rushed to his aid to help pack up anything they could: the company's floor-polishing machines, some tables, bed-frames and mattresses, and clothes. Now all his household belongings are crammed into orange tents in the Torkham refugee camp, his hard-earned floor-polishing machines outside and exposed to the elements. After three days of searching, he managed to find a place to rent in Kabul. 'I have no idea what we will do,' he said, adding that he would try to recreate his floor-polishing business in Afghanistan. 'If this works here, it is the best thing to do.'
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
2 hours ago
- Business Standard
US judge orders release of pro-Palestinian Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil
A US federal judge has ordered the release of Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University student who was detained after joining pro-Palestinian protests. Judge Michael Farbiarz said Khalil's continued detention was causing "serious harm to his career, family, and freedom of speech". However, Khalil, a legal US resident, will stay in custody until at least Friday, June 13, while the government considers an appeal. He must also pay a $1 bond before he can be released. First arrest under Trump's crackdown Khalil was detained on March 8 by immigration agents in the lobby of his university housing. He was later sent to a detention centre in Louisiana. His arrest was the first under a crackdown by US President Donald Trump targeting pro-Gaza student protesters. Khalil's lawyers say his detention is an attempt to suppress free speech. "The court's decision is the most significant vindication yet of Mahmoud's rights," said Ramzi Kassem, one of Khalil's lawyers. "But we aren't out of the woods until Mahmoud is free and back home with his wife and child." Wife hopes for Father's Day reunion Khalil's wife, Noor Abdalla, a US citizen, said she hopes he can return to New York in time to celebrate his first Father's Day with their baby son, Deen. "This is the news we've been waiting over three months for," she said in a statement shared by the American Civil Liberties Union, which is also representing Khalil. US government plans to appeal The Department of Homeland Security stated that it would appeal the judge's ruling. 'Today's ruling delays justice and seeks to undermine the President's constitutionally vested powers under Article II,' said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the agency. 'We expect a higher court to vindicate us in this.' US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has claimed authority to deport Khalil under a rarely used law that allows the removal of people who pose 'potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States". But Judge Farbiarz had earlier said that trying to expel Khalil under that law was likely unconstitutional. Career at risk Judge Farbiarz noted that Khalil's green card had been revoked, and this had cost him a job offer from Oxfam International. He also said Khalil had avoided taking part in further protests, fearing more punishment. 'The Court finds as a matter of fact that the petitioner's career and reputation are being damaged and his speech is being chilled and this adds up to irreparable harm,' the judge wrote. Farbiarz underlined in his ruling that the government has also argued it is detaining and deporting Khalil in part because of alleged omissions on his green card application. But the judge said evidence presented by his attorneys showed lawful permanent residents are virtually never detained for such a thing.
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Canadian political leaders back economic collaboration with India as Ottawa seeks to diversify trade, reducing reliance on US
Toronto: Canadian political leaders in the international trade space have underscored the need for Ottawa to have a dialogue with India as it seeks to diversify and reduce its reliance on the United States. Their comments came even as opposition has been voiced to the invitation to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the G7 leaders' summit in Kananaskis in Alberta next week. 'The G7 is an important avenue for the Prime Minister to discuss some of Canada's economic priorities. As you know, it's about economic collaboration, it's about issues to do with community and public safety,' Canada's Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu told reporters in Ottawa on Wednesday. Without mentioning Modi, he said he had heard concerns from some constituents over invitations to some leaders, but, he stressed, 'I think it's important to note that this time of (economic) crisis, we need to be able to collaborate and, of course, work out some issues.' He pointed out public safety and tackling foreign interference were among the core principles already outlined by Prime Minister Mark Carney in his agenda for the G7 but 'it's also about economic resiliency and economic collaboration'. His point of view was echoed by Parliamentary Secretary for International Trade Yasir Naqvi who said, 'We have to make sure as we are looking at ways to diversify our economy, lessening our reliance on the United States, there are opportunities for Canadian businesses around the world and India is a big part of that conversation.' He said there was 'no excuse' for violence on Canadian territory, but added that 'diplomacy means talking to people face to face and I think this is a very important opportunity for Canada to engage with India'. Rob Oliphant, Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs was in agreement, as he said that Carney was 'trying to open the door on relationships to say we need to diversify our trade vastly.' Among those opposing the visit was Liberal Party MP Sukh Dhaliwal, who met Carney in this regard on Wednesday. Later, he said that 'now that he (Modi) has been invited, we need to move forward.' However, Dhaliwal said the PM was 'alarmed' and 'very strong' on issues like the killing of pro-Khalistan figure Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia on June 18, 2023. In an interview in French to Radio-Canada on Wednesday, Carney confirmed he discussed that matter with Modi when the two leaders spoke on June 6. 'We've made progress with India in a bilateral sense. They are okay with having a legal process between law enforcement entities,' he added. The opposition Conservative Party's leader Pierre Poilievre had earlier supported Carney's decision to invite Modi as 'necessary' for Canada's trade interests.
