PM Hasina Warns Bangladeshis Against Attacking Hindus

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today warned Bangladeshis against attacking the minority Hindu community, saying such assaults could have repercussions in neighbouring India.

"Don’t forget that Muslims are the minority in India. So, if you attack Hindus here (Bangladesh), minority Muslims may be attacked in India," she told a rally in south-western Satkhira district.

"People of all religious faiths would continue to enjoy equal rights in Bangladesh...I want to warn you not to break the peace of the people, otherwise you have to pay for it."

Satkhira witnessed widespread violence, with minority Hindus being major victims, ahead of the controversial January 5 polls that were swept by Hasina's Awami League after the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) boycotted the general election.

Hasina, who visited Satkhira during her first tour outside Dhaka since the re-election of the Awami League, said operations by paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh and police will continue in the region to track down those responsible for violence.

"The culprits involved in killing people and destroying their homes and business establishments will be tracked down wherever they take shelter," she said, accusing the BNP’s main ally, the fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami, of spearheading the attacks.

Security forces were deployed in Satkhira, a Jamaat stronghold, on December 15.

The High Court had on January 15 directed the government to take adequate steps for the security of Hindus. It asked authorities to submit a report on damage caused by recent attacks on the minority community.

The Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Unity Council (HBCUC), a major forum of minority communities, welcomed the order and acknowledged that the new government had given "due importance" to the issue, but reiterated its demand that perpetrators of violence should be tried by special fast track courts.

A report by HBCUC said since the election schedule was announced on November 25, a total of 495 Hindu homes were damaged, 585 shops were attacked or looted and 169 temples were damaged.

"During this period, nearly 2,500 Hindu families were affected," HNCUC leader Rana Dasgupta told PTI.

A police report stated that losses of Hindu property and resources during January 5-12 were worth Taka 28 lakh.

According to the 2012 census, Hindus make up 8.4 per cent of Bangladesh's population of 150 million.

source:news dot outlookindia dot com

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No fun fair on temple grounds

THE Batu Caves Thaipusam task force, a coalition comprising Hindu Temples and Hindu-based NGOs, has banned any form of entertainment during the Thaipusam festival on Jan 17.
The playing of non-religious music and the setting up of a fun fair on temple grounds are also not allowed.
The ban includes the carrying of kavadis that are disrespectful and mock the religious festival.
At a press conference held at the Malaysian Hindu Sangam office, its president Datuk Mogan Shan warned that devotees carrying fancy kavadis, such as those bearing logos of soccer clubs, company logos or other images deemed inappropriate, will not be allowed inside the premises.
This includes kavadi bearers with durians, chillies and apples stuck to their bodies. Items such as swords, tridents, knives, whips, poles, cigar, liquor bottles are also prohibited.
Mohan said leaflets with information on the significance of Thaipusam would be distributed to the public, listing the do’s and don’ts.
“The guidelines are applicable nationwide,” he said.
Meanwhile, Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) councillor G. Gunaraj, who was representing MPS, said the police and about 200 volunteers would be recruited to help ensure that the guidelines are observed.
“The volunteers will be wearing a special T-shirt and cap and stationed in strategic areas to monitor activities,’’ he said.
On the fun fair, Gunaraj said MPS had already issued a notice to the temple that it was not allowed for safety reasons.
“Due to space constraints, it is not conducive to have the fun fair during the festival, so the council will not allow this,’’ he said.
In previous years, the Batu Caves Temple committee leased out space in the temple’s compound to a local operator to set up the fun fair during Thaipusam.
Those interested in volunteering can call 010-298 5002 or visit the task force Facebook page at facebook.com/thaipusam2014

Courtesy:thestar dot com dot my

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Hindus laud Albuquerque Public Schools for offering yoga

Friday, 10 January 2014, 2:30 pm
Press Release: Zed Rajan
Hindus have applauded Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) in New Mexico (USA) for reportedly offering yoga in its various schools, and have urged all New Mexico school districts to do the same for their pupils.
Calling it a “step in the right direction”, distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, suggested all school districts of New Mexico to incorporate yoga in the lives of the students. Yoga, referred as “a living fossil”, was a mental and physical discipline, for everybody to share and benefit from, whose traces went back to around 2,000 BCE to Indus Valley civilization, Zed pointed out.
In the 2013-2014 APS Wall Calendar, Superintendent Winston Brooks, in his message, wrote: “We’ve definitely evolved as a district. Just look at the pictures in this calendar:..fourth graders use yoga to help prepare for rigorous learning...”
Its Volcano Vista High School, which reportedly has a yoga room, offers a course titled "Yoga/Pilates" whose "syllabus" says "by incorporating yoga into your lives, you will learn how to harness positive energy and use it to help you focus on you and forget about negativity".
APS has posted "Yoga with Kermit the Frog" PowerPoint presentation on its website; Eisenhower Middle had a "Yoga Class"; Johnson Middle and Coronado Elementary have yoga clubs; APS promoted "asthma and exercise class" last year which started with yoga; West Mesa High is holding one hour weekly Yoga events; Pajarito Elementary last year offered yoga class for the staff; Desert Ridge Middle planned a "short yoga lesson"; Arroyo Del Oso Elementary had monthly yoga events in 2013; Mission Avenue Elementary held yoga workouts in 2013 focusing on "breathing, balance and body control" and exploring a variety of Yoga poses; Family Fitness Nights at Zia Elementary included yoga and it organized a Family Fitness Night in 2013 focusing on "Yoga for the whole family"; Alvarado Elementary finished a Yoga unit in 2013 and its website says that “Yoga is an ancient system of exercise that focuses on integrating mind and body”; its 2013-2014 Wall Calendar shows Longfellow Elementary students practicing yoga; "Yoga by Julia" offers special discount for APS employees; reports suggest.

Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, further said that yoga, although introduced and nourished by Hinduism, was a world heritage and liberation powerhouse to be utilized by all. According to Patanjali who codified it in Yoga Sutra, yoga was a methodical effort to attain perfection, through the control of the different elements of human nature, physical and psychical.
According to USA’s National Institutes of Health, yoga may help one to feel more relaxed, be more flexible, improve posture, breathe deeply, and get rid of stress. According to an estimate, about 21 million Americans, including many celebrities, now practice yoga. Yoga was the repository of something basic in the human soul and psyche, Rajan Zed added.
APS, largest school district in New Mexico and 30th largest in USA, has about 90,000 students, including over 5,000 homeless, in its 140 schools. Over a third of its students come from homes where the primary language is not English; and one of its schools has its own film studio. Martin Esquivel is President of APS Board of Education.
ENDS
courtesy:scoop dot co dot nz

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Hindus Attacked in Bangladesh, Police Detain Jamaat Activists

Bangladesh police Tuesday detained two Jamaat-e-Islami activists for their suspected involvement in attacking Hindus and filed cases in this connection in Jessore and Dinajpur districts.

Emdad Hossain, officer-in-charge of Abhoynagar police station, said at least 250 people were involved in attacking the houses of the minority Hindu community in Maloparha and Chapatola villages in Jessore district Sunday, reported bdnews24.com.

Rioters vandalised and looted more than 50 Hindu houses in Maloparha.

A temporary police camp has been set up in the area, said Reshma Sharmin, assistant superintendent of police.

Police blamed the Jamaat and its students wing Islami Chhatra Shibir for the attacks.

Awami League leader Ranjit Roy, who was elected from Jessore-4 constituency, alleged that Jamaat activists had carried out the attacks.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders alleged that police were blaming the 18-party opposition alliance in order to harass them.

Police also detained five people for attacking houses and shops of Hindus at Kornai village in Dinajpur district.

Police filed a case against 215 people in connection with the incident, said Altaf Hossain, officer-in-charge of Kotwali police station.

More than 100 houses and shops belonging to Hindu were vandalised and set on fire at Kornai village.

Meanwhile, the BNP-led 18-party opposition Tuesday extended its strike till 6 p.m. Wednesday demanding cancellation of the 10th parliamentary polls results and calling for fresh elections under a non-party caretaker government.

Earlier, the opposition had called for a 48-hour strike starting from Monday morning.

Source:newindianexpress dot com

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Tamil Nadu Hindu Mahasabha members protest in Chennai

Members of the Tamil Nadu Hindu Mahasabha. Photo: Petlee Peter



Members of the Tamil Nadu Hindu Mahasabha protested outside Ayodhya Mandapam on Monday morning against the taking over of the historic mutt by the Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments Board.

courtesy:the hindu dot com, http://tamilnaduhindumahasabha.com

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No country for Hindu-Sikh: Cremation grounds vanishing, families compelled to bury dead in Pakistan

New Delhi: Hindu and Sikh families are certainly having a bad time in Muslim-dominated Pakistan.

 

With cremation grounds are vanishing fast in Pakistan, the minority Hindus and Sikhs are compelled to bury the the mortal remains of their dear ones, Amritsar-based Sikh historian Surinder Kochhar told Mail Today.

 

In a shocking revelation, Kocchar said that some travel hundreds of kilometers just to perform the last rites, while others have no option but to bury the dead.

 

 

According to Kochhar, there were about 12 cremation grounds before Independence in Lahore. But not even a single facility exists at present. After Independence, there were 1,200 Hindu families living in Lahore which has now come down to only six.

 

The condition is quite similar in other Pakistani towns too including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly called North-West Frontier Province), where about 35,000 Hindus and Sikhs live, he said.

 

A member of the Hindu community, whom the report did not identify, said that the cremation sites that had existed in Lahore before 1947 had either been demolished or converted into houses.

 

He further added that the Hindu families in Swat and Tirah Valleys, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, Kohat, Malakand, Bunair, Naushera and Peshawar are forced to travel long distances to reach Hasan Abdal (Panja Sahib) to cremate the dead, the historian said. 

 

Each of these journeys can cost around Rs 50,000, he said, adding that the danger of robbery is also there.

 

The grieving families are stopped at every district and wait for hours to get a no-objection certificate (NOC). Besides Hasan Abdal, another cremation ground is located 86 kms away from Lahore.

 

courtesy:daily dot bhaskar dot com

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International meet of Vedic scholars in Kozhikode from Jan. 7

The sixth international vedic workshop slated to be held at Kozhikode from January seven to 10 has attracted Sanskrit and veda researchers and writers from universities across the world. Besides theoretical deliberations, veda chanting would be a special feature of the workshop, the event co-ordinator Vinod Bhattathiripad and programme core committee members Dr MGS Narayanan and P Bhaskaran Nair said at a press conference on Saturday.

The workshop would begin with chanting of Rig veda by Dr Parvathy, who, the organizers said, is the only female Rig veda chanter in Kerala.

This is the first international vedic workshop to be hosted by India. The others were held in Harvard University, US, Kyoto University, Japan, Leiden University, the Netherlands, University of Texas, US, and the Centre for Eurasiatic and Afroasiatic Studies, Bucharest in Romania.

The vedic workshop in Kozhikode would focus on vedic texts and rituals, scholarly interpretations of vedic texts, vedic traditions of Kerala, and the recent resurgence of interest in the Vedas in the West. As many as 75 research papers would be present at the seminar in Kozhikode.

Out of the nearly 120 participants expected for the event in Kozhikode, as many as 50 are from within the country and the rest from other countries. While 14 scholars from universities and research institutes in the United States and 12 from Japan have confirmed participation, five vedic experts are expected from France and four each from Germany and the United Kingdom.

The event has evoked worldwide interest among Sanskrit and vedic scholars, proof of it being the fact that scholars from Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Poland, Russia, Slovenia, Croatia, Russia, Australia, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Lexumberg and Canada would also be participating in the event

The workshop is being arranged by a committee comprising Dr P Bhaskaran Nayar of Lincoln University, UK, MGS Narayanan, former chairman Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), CM Neelakantan, former Professor- Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kaladi and C Rajendran, former Professor of Sanskrit, Calicut University. 

Courtesy:thehindu dot com

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50 Pak Hindu widows get Indian citizenship

Published: Friday, January 3, 2014, 9:57 [IST]

New Delhi, Jan 3: Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday accepted applicqations for citizenship from 50 Pak women who have been living in Haryana for past 21 years without valid visa and passport, said a Times of India report. Around 64 families migrated to India after communal tentions broke out in Pakistan due to Babri Masjid demolition in 1992. The families, originally from Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan in Punjab province of Pakistan, settled down in Ellenabad, a small town in Haryana. During their stay, their passport and visa expired. The applications for citizenship were accepted online last week by sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) after the police found that their residence proof requirements were valid. Bikaner MP Arjun Meghwal and Sirsa MP Ashok Tanwar initiated the process of approving the families' citizenship. Thanks to their effort, MHA intervened and communicated the district administration to initiate police verification and other procedures. However, only 51 out of 64 migrant families are entitled to Indian citizenship as only those applicants whose mother or father were born prior to Partition and had travelled to India prior to December 31, 2004, and refused return to Pakistan could apply. Oneindia News

courtesy: news dot oneindia dot in

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Tension in Rentadi as Dalits Thrash Caste Hindu Youth

Police trying to defuse the situation in Rentadi village near Sholinghur on Wednesday night. | Express Photo 

Tension gripped Rentadi village near Sholinghur after a group of Dalits allegedly assaulted three caste Hindu youth on Wednesday night and damaged their motorbike. Police brought the situation under control and  arrested 10 persons of the colony in connection with the incident.
Tension erupted after Ponnuvel (38), Manoharan (50) and eight others of the colony assaulted panchayat president R Nagaraj Varma’s son Nedumaran and two of his friends around 6 pm on Wednesday. Sources said, Nedumaran and his friends, Naresh and Moorthy, had gone to his farm on a motorbike to irrigate the crops. While they were passing through the colony, Ponnuvel and a few others intercepted the trio and beat them. They also damaged the motorbike, said a Sholinghur police officer.
The injured youth informed their family and villagers. Angered over this, the caste Hindus gathered in large numbers and retaliated. However, the police from Sholinghur and Arakkonam rushed to the village and thwarted a communal clash.They dispersed crowd of caste Hindus and promised action against the perpetrators. Police have been deployed in and around the village to maintain law and order, said additional superintendent of police (head-quarters) M Salethu Raj. He accompanied the SP of Vellore P Vijayakumar to the village in the late hours of Wednesday.
After registering a case under section 147, 148, 341, 323, 324 of IPC read with 3 of PD Act, police arrested Ponnuvel and nine others, including three youth Prabhu (24), Mohan (22) and Chellamuthu (20). The DSP of Arakkonam S Seetharaman and revenue department officials held a peace talk between the two groups to prevent such incidents in the future.
“Even a slight tussle can lead to a communal clash. We are monitoring the village,” a policeman said.

Courtesy:newindianexpress dot com

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UK Sikhs, Hindus criticise use of 'Asian' in criminality talk

British Sikhs and Hindus have launched an online petition asking politicians and media to stop using vague terms like "Asian" while talking of child sex grooming by gangs as it besmirches their communities.
Four leading religious groups — the Hindu Council UK, the Network of Sikh Organisations, the Sikh Media Monitoring Group and the Sikh Awareness Society — have sponsored the online petition, The Times said in a report today.
Political correctness should not stop the government from identifying "an emerging pattern of criminality" perpetrated by some British Pakistanis against predominantly white girls, they were quoted as saying by The Times.
The petition has called on British politicians and the media to stop using vague terms that "besmirch" their communities.
"By masking the identity of perpetrators by using the vague terminology 'Asian', we are unable to have a mature discussion or get to the root cause of an emerging pattern of criminality," the organisations claim, according to the report.
"In order to help find a solution to the problem, we need to be clear on the identity of those involved. We will not be able to do this if we mask the identity based on misguided views of protecting a vulnerable community of perpetrators and not looking at the vulnerable community of victims. Political correctness by some of our elected representatives is stifling an important debate," they were quoted as saying.
More than 600 people have signed the "ipetition" till last night, the report said.
Lord Indarjit Singh of Wimbledon, director of the Network of Sikh Organisations, complained in 2012 to the BBC about the word Asian being used "in an unhelpful, misleading and insensitive way".
His complaint was not upheld because the BBC said it was used in the relevant broadcast "to refer to the ethnicity of those involved, rather than their religion". However, the BBC did acknowledge his concerns.
The petition criticises Simon Danczuk, the Labour MP for Rochdale.
He said in a BBC interview: "We still need a breakthrough, I think, in terms of the Asian community."

Courtesy: dnaindia dot com

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Vedic varsity chancellor in 3-day custody in rape case

Chancellor of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Vedic University Girish Varma was Monday remanded to police custody for three days after he was arrested in connection with a rape complaint filed nearly 10 months ago in Bhopal.
The alleged victim, a teacher at Maharshi Vidya Mandir, Ratanpur, had accused Varma, a nephew of Mahesh Yogi, of repeatedly raping her between 1998 and 2013. A former employee of a group institution, the woman alleged that the couple had received threats to withdraw the complaint.
Varma, who had refused to produce himself before the police, has described the case as an "elaborate conspiracy" against him and accused the couple of trying to blackmail him after the complainant's husband was fired from job. After the spiritual guru's death in 2008, Varma was entrusted the job of running the university and other institutions in the country.
The couple had knocked on several doors, including those of the state women's commission, but the police were dragging their feet over the complaint and till the arrest on Sunday, appeared to dispute the complainant's accusations.
When the police reached Varma's Bhopal residence he tried to evade arrest by claiming that he was meditating and that he would turn himself in after two days. Having registered an FIR in the afternoon, the Jahangirabad police waited for some time outside his home before forcing Varma to accompany them to the police station.
The police Friday took his statement at the Women's Police Station but let him go. While accusing the administration and police of giving him special treatment, the woman threatened to immolate herself if Varma was not arrested.

Courtesy:indianexpress dot com

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Construction of Hindu crematorium in Buntong to start next month

Current site: The Hindu burial ground at the Indian Settlement in Jalan Madras currently has a small building to burn the dead. The state government plans to replace this with the RM1.3mil public crematorium, which only needs a space of about 0.1 ha land for its construction. — filepic

THE construction work of a RM1.3mil Hindu crematorium in Buntong is expected to start next month.
Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir’s special officer C. Sivarraajh said the tender had been awarded to a reliable contractor.
He said plans had also been submitted to the Ipoh City Council.
Sivarraajh said Devastana Paripalana Sabha, the association overseeing the project, held a meeting with the state’s Economic Planning Unit (Upen) last week.
Sivarraajh, who is the MIC Youth chief, said if all goes well, work would start by January or latest February.
“There has been a slight delay of the project because the equipment is being imported from China.
“The funds, paperwork and other necessary works have all been finalised, and I will personally monitor the progress, since I stood as a candidate in Buntong at the last General Election,” Sivarraajh said last Wednesday.
It is learned that the crematorium would be sited near the Buntong Hindu cemetery.
Buntong assemblyman A. Sivasubramaniam had said in August that the state government had in 2012, allocated RM1.3mil to the association to build the crematorium but work had yet to begin.
He had claimed that the association had received warnings for misappropriation of funds and should not be given the responsibility for a public project.
He added that the Public Works Department should handle the project instead.

Courtesy:thestar. dot com

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Hindu Married to Non-Hindu Can't Get Divorce Under Act: HC

The Bombay High Court has held that a Hindu married to a non-Hindu in accordance with Hindu rituals cannot seek divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act.   
Accordingly, a bench headed by Justice V K Tahilramani upheld a family court order which rejected a petition filed by Niranjani Roshan Rao, a Hindu, seeking divorce from husband Roshan Pinto on the ground that he was a Christian at the time of marriage and was professing the same religion till today.           
As the family court rejected her petition, she moved the High Court, which, on December 24, rejected her appeal and upheld the lower court order.         
"We are of the view that an order passed by the learned judge of the Family Court is perfectly legal and calls for no interference in exercise of appellate jurisdiction," said the bench while dismissing the appeal.         
The appellant had filed the petition in family court seeking a decree of nullity of marriage and alternatively claimed divorce on the grounds of cruelty. She said, on January 13, 1999, she was married to respondent as per Hindu rituals. At the time of marriage, she was a Hindu while the respondent was a Christian.     
After their marriage, they continued to profess their respective religions. Even at the time of filing of the petition, they continue to practice and follow their respective religions.     
The appellant-wife argued that their marriage was null and void as it was in contravention of essential condition of valid marriage provided under section 5 of the Hindu Marriage Act, i.e both the partners should be Hindus at the time of marriage.        
The family court rejected the petition in exercise of powers under Order 7 Rule 11 of C.P.C, as the petition did not disclose any triable cause of action.   
In other words, the family court said the petitioner had no right to file such a petition under the Hindu Marriage Act and as such cannot seek any relief. Both were not Hindus at the time of marriage and hence do not fulfill the conditions laid down under the Act.
The high court observed that the appellant herself has stated that the respondent was not a Hindu at the time of marriage or thereafter.      
"If this condition is not fulfilled and there was no contravention of provisions under Section 5 of the Hindu Marriage Act, the family court was right in saying that she had no right to file such a petition", the bench said.
Moreover, provisions of Hindu Marriage Act can be applied in cases when both the spouses were Hindus and their marriage is performed as per Hindu rites and rituals, the Judges said.
It is also an essential condition under the Act that at the time of filing a petition for divorce, both the spouses were Hindus by religion, ruled the bench.

 

Courtesy:newindianexpress dot com

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Hindu nationalist party leader on Friday rejected criticism on 2002 religious riots in India

 

FILE - In this Dec. 8, 2013 file photo, Narendra Modi, leader of India’s main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its prime ministerial candidate for next year's national elections, gestures at the party's office in New Delhi, India. An Indian court on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2013, rejected a petition seeking the prosecution of Modi in the killing of a former lawmaker and other Muslims during riots in the western state of Gujarat in 2002. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das, File)

NEW DELHI - A Hindu nationalist party's prime ministerial candidate on Friday rejected criticism that he did not do enough to prevent the killings of nearly 1,000 Muslims during riots in the western state of Gujarat in 2002.
Narendra Modi, the top state elected official, said in his blog that he was shaken to the core by the violence and his government had responded to the violence more swiftly and decisively than had been done in any previous Hindu-Muslim riots in India.
He is the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate for national elections to be held before May.
"'Grief', 'Sadness', 'Misery', 'Pain', 'Anguish', 'Agony' - mere words could not capture the absolute emptiness one felt on witnessing such inhumanity," he wrote.
India's Information Minister Manish Tewari, a Congress party leader, said Modi had taken 11 years to get his emotions together "but still not a word of regret."
Political rivals and human rights groups have accused Modi of looking the other way while his state suffered from one of India's worst outbreaks of religious violence. They have been demanding an apology from Modi.
The riots occurred after a fire killed 60 passengers on a train packed with Hindu pilgrims. Hindu extremists blamed the deaths on Muslims, but the cause of the blaze remains unclear.

Courtesy:canada dot com

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Bid to Alienate Tribals from Hindu Religion

Taking a serious note of the efforts at converting the members of the tribal community to Christianity and “alienate them from the Hindu culture,” Kerala Vanavasi Vikas Kendram has called upon the Hindus to take up the cause of the tribals and fight for their birth rights.
Delivering the key-note address at the cultural meeting organised as part of the birth centenary of Balasaheb Deshpande, the founder of Akhila Bharatheeya Vanavasi  Kalyan Ashram, Seema Surakha all-India joint organising secretary A Gopalakrishnan said  here on Thursday that it was from the days of East India Company that the Western Christian missionaries had started the efforts to  convert the tribals on a massive scale.
He said attempts by Pentecostal missionaries to convert the tribal people from Hinduism to Christianity in Agasthyarkoodam forests, Wayanad and Attappadi had been going on unchecked.
However, he said, the activities of the Vanavasi Vikas Kendram had started showing results.
Two books were released at the function by Narayan Dev (Vanavasi Kalyan Akhila Bharatheeya Karyakari member) and K K Balaram (Pranta Saha Sangha Chalak, RSS).Mithraniketan director K Viswanathan, Mohan Triveni (Adivasi Mahasabha), Sivamritha Chaithanya, Mallan Kani, Reshan Master, P K Bhaskaran, Lakshmi Amma, C K Rajasekharan, Narayan (novelist) and others were honoured.

 

Courtesy:newindianexpress dot com

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Indian court rejects prosecution of Hindu nationalist leader and PM candidate in 2002 riots

AHMADABAD, India - An Indian court on Thursday rejected a petition seeking the prosecution of a Hindu nationalist party's prime ministerial candidate in the killing of a former lawmaker and other Muslims during riots in the western state of Gujarat in 2002.
Magistrate B.J. Ganatara's ruling comes as a boost to Narendra Modi, the state's top elected official and the Bharatiya Janata party's prime ministerial candidate in national elections to be held before May.
Former Congress party lawmaker Ehsan Jafri was allegedly killed by Hindu rioters in a neighbourhood where dozens of Muslim families lived in Ahmadabad, Gujarat's largest city. Dozens of other Muslims also died in the neighbourhood attack.
In her petition to the court, Jafri's widow, Zakia Jafri, accused Modi of not doing enough to prevent the killings. Modi denies the charge.
On Thursday, Zakia Jafri expressed her disappointment with the court ruling. "I won't give up fight. I will appeal the verdict in a higher court," she told reporters.
Modi was the state chief minister when Hindu mobs rampaged through Muslim neighbourhoods, towns and villages in Gujarat in February-April 2002 that left about 1,000 people dead. Most of the dead were Muslims.
The riots occurred after a fire killed 60 passengers on a train packed with Hindu pilgrims. Hindu extremists blamed the deaths on Muslims, but the cause of the blaze remains unclear.
The religious violence was among India's worst since its independence from Britain in 1947.
 

Courtesy:canada dot com

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HC denies divorce to woman who claimed she didn’t know of husband’s religion

The Bombay High Court Tuesday dismissed a petition filed by a Hindu woman seeking nullity of her nearly 15-year-old marriage, who claimed that she was unaware at the time of marriage that her husband was Christian and hence the marriage under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 cannot be held valid.
The woman had moved the court in 2011 stating that her marriage on January 13, 1999 as per Hindu rituals was null as her husband was a Christian and continued to profess the religion even after the marriage. Her lawyer submitted to the court that under the Hindu Marriage Act, the marriage can be performed only between two Hindus and if any one of the parties is not Hindu, the marriage would be a nullity. She claimed that her consent for the marriage was obtained fraudulently. She sought the annulment of the marriage or alternatively sought divorce on the grounds of cruelty.
"The surname of the respondent is 'Pinto' which is distinctly a Christian surname. Not only has the appellant not averred in the petition that she did not know at the time of the marriage that the respondent was not a Hindu but from the fact that surname of the respondent is 'Pinto' and other facts, it was clearly to the knowledge of the appellant that the respondent was a Christian at the time of the marriage. Thus, it is too late in the day to contend that her consent to the marriage was obtained by fraud and that the respondent had concealed from her the fact that he was a Christian," Justices V K Tahilramani and V L Achliya observed.
Upholding the order of the family court that granted no relief to the wife, the High Court also noted, " The appellant (wife) has stated in her petition that her father and the respondent's father were close friends. The appellant and the respondent were acquainted with each other since their childhood. Their marriage was love marriage.... It is pertinent to note that in the petition, the appellant has stated that her parents in fact opposed the marriage as she and the respondent were from different religions."

Courtesy:indianexpress

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Senate Approves Seat For Hindu Minority

Wednesday December 25, 2013
Kabul (BNA) At the Senate Meeting chaired by its speaker Fazul Hadi Muslimyar, the senate in addition to confirming of three international documents, confirmed the draft amendments at the election law pertaining to allocation of a seat for the Hindu community at the House of People.
Meanwhile, the agreement of friendship and cooperation between Afghanistan and Indonesia, the strategic agreement between Afghanistan and the Royal Government of Denmark and an agreement between Afghanistan and Britain and Northern Ireland with respect to aid to the academy of national army officers were adopted by the Senate meeting.
Meanwhile, the draft amendment and addition to the election law pertaining to allocation of a seat at the House of People for Hindu and Sikh community was adopted with majority vote of the senators.
However, the House of People in its general meeting had rejected it earlier while the senate considering allocation of the ten seats for the Kuchis and considering an empty seat at the House of People justified its confirmation.
It is said that in order to remove the differences of views between the Senate and the House of People a joint commission will be formed so that one of these options are confirmed.
At another part of the meeting, the senate discussed the complaints of the public with respect to electricity shortage in some parts of the Kabul city and it was decided that the head of the Breshna Company should summoned to one of the senate general meeting to provide explanation in this respect.
They also complained over the weak welcome of the protocol department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the International Kabul Airport and the head of the ministry’s protocol department was summoned to a senate meeting.
The senators also raised the issue of highway robberies and abductions on the roads towards Maidan Shahr and Ghourband were irresponsible armed people are behaving inappropriately with the commuters.
They asked the Ministry of Interior Affairs to undertake necessary preventive measures to stop such practices.
They also touched on a report released by the (One TV) that terrorists and abductors and the organizers of suicide bombings are freed with the meddling of the High Peace Council while this council without advancing reasons threatened the TV network for publishing this news.

Courtesy:bakhtarnews dot com dot af

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Senate Approves Presidential Order For Hindu Seat

News - Afghanistan 


The Upper House of Parliament unanimously approved a Presidential order from Hamid Karzai that would create one seat for the Hindu and Sikh minority groups on Tuesday.
The Lower House has rejected the order last month, saying it was contrary to Afghanistan's Constitution.
In a legislative decree, President Hamid Karzai had asked Parliament to implement changes in the election so as to allocate one seat to the Hindu minority. The legislative order further says that a special election constituency should be considered in the election law for the Hindu minority.
Members of the Upper House said the Hindu minority should have a seat as ten seats have already been allocated to the Kochis (nomads).
"The presidential order was approved in majority and only seven votes were casted against the order," Senate Chairman Fazel Hadi Muslimyar said.
A joint parliamentary commission will now discuss the future of the order.
"The senate's decision is not the final stage, it will be referred to the joint parliamentary commission, and we hope that the joint commission approves the order," Hindu Senator Anarkali Honaryar said.
The Lower House consists of 249 seats. In a presidential order president Karzai had asked the lawmakers to allocate one seat to the Hindu minority and increase the number of seats to 250.

Courtesy: tolonews dot com

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Hindu Backlash to Lower House Seat Refusal

News - Afghanistan  

Members of the Sikh and Hindu minority in Afghanistan on Tuesday criticized the Lower House's refusal to approve a Presidential Decree that would designate a single seat to them in Parliament.
Although the Senate voted in favor of the change this week, it must now be forwarded on to a joint-chamber commission to have its fate decided.
The Hindu & Sikh Council called the Lower House's vote discriminatory, and demanded that their democratic rights be respected.
"We still cope with many religious and ethnic problems, and only a few people in Parliament can defend them...so the presence of one representative or more than one that could serve the interests of the Hindus in Parliament is essential," said Zehra Sepahr, the Chairperson of the Development & Support of Afghan Women & Children Organization.

The Hindu & Sikh Council argued that the addition of a new seat for the religious minority, which would raise the total number of seats in Parliament to 250, would not have any detrimental effect on the rights and powers of the other representatives.
"This is the 250th seat approved by the Upper House, and the rights of others wouldn't be violated," said Rawul Singh, a member of the Council.

The Hindu & Sikh Council in a resolution of their own declared that their civil and political rights had been violated by the Lower House stance, calling on the United Nations and other international bodies to take steps to protect religious minorities in Afghanistan.

Source:tolonews dot com

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