Finally, America Has a President Who Appreciates India

You know, when you consider all of the damn issues America has had with every effing Muslim country on this planet, you would think that every U.S. President's closest friend, strongest ally would be India who struggles with Islamic terror just as bad.  But hell no, Barack Hussein Obama treated India like shit. 

Well, that is achangin' folks!  And it's about damn time.

The story comes from DAWN.

Modi vows to work closely with US after Trump invite

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged Wednesday to work closely with Donald Trump after the new US president invited him to Washington, looking to ensure an upturn in ties survives a change at the White House.

After their first phone call since Trump's inauguration, the leaders of the world's two largest democracies both indicated they had had a warm conversation and extended mutual invitations to their respective capitals.

But while both leaders share similar backgrounds as establishment outsiders, analysts say their two governments could clash on issues such as trade and visas for Indians wanting to work in the United States.

Statements issued after Tuesday night's phone call indicated both men are keen to build on the recent improvement in ties that began under Trump's predecessor Barack Obama.

Writing on Twitter, Modi said he “had a warm conversation” with the new US president and they had “agreed to work closely in the coming days to further strengthen our bilateral ties”.

“Have also invited President Trump to visit India,” Modi added after the White House revealed Washington had extended a similar invitation.

Modi, a Hindu nationalist, was effectively barred from the United States for years after deadly communal riots in the western state of Gujarat during his time as chief minister. Most of those killed were Muslims.

But after his landslide election victory, Modi built a strong rapport with Obama who became the first sitting US president to pay a second visit to India during the 2015 Republic Day celebrations.

A surprisingly convivial conversation in November between Trump and Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif caused alarm within Modi's administration which has been portraying its rival regime in Islamabad as the “mothership of terrorism”.
'True friend'

But during the call, Trump emphasised the United States “considers India a true friend and partner in addressing challenges around the world,” according to a White House readout of the call.

“The two discussed opportunities to strengthen the partnership between the United States and India in broad areas such as the economy and defense.

“President Trump looked forward to hosting Prime Minister Modi in the United States later this year.”

Several commentators have argued that Modi and Trump should have a natural affinity as political outsiders who have risen to power in part by castigating the traditional ruling elite on a nationalist platform.

Trump's chief strategist Steve Bannon described Modi's victory in India's 2014 general election as the first phase in a “global revolt” against the existing order that culminated with Trump's victory in November.

But in a speech last week, Modi castigated “rising parochial and protectionist attitudes” which was interpreted as a dig at Trump who has vowed to put “America first” as his governing mantra.

Modi's flagship “Make In India” policy is designed to fire up his country's manufacturing sector and ramp up exports, a goal that appears at odds with Trump's protectionist instincts.

Major US firms such as Walmart and Apple have in turn grown frustrated by the regulations and tariffs imposed by Indian authorities as they seek to crack what is a potentially massive market.

Rajrishi Singhal, a Mumbai-based geopolitical analyst, said other potential problem areas included Trump's reservations over an existing visa scheme allowing high-skilled foreign workers into the US.

“There are also issues with the pharma industry -- the US thinks our patent regime is too lenient -- and the US wants access to the Indian agriculture market,” he told AFP.

“These issues have been on the boil for the last few years. It won't result in a trade war right away as the leaders will gauge each other first. Later, maybe a year down the line, we will have to see.”

During his election campaign, Trump courted Indian-American voters and even released a campaign advertisement in Hindi for Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights -- albeit in a thick US accent.

The new president's hardline rhetoric towards Muslims during his campaign found favour in some quarters in India, which has had its fair share of tensions between the majority Hindu population and its Muslim minority.

Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, editor of India's Economic and Political Weekly, said there were “uncanny similarities” between Modi and Trump who both “have scant regard for the minorities and the media”.

“They are two highly polarising figures,” he added.

The Rout Continues: Putin 26 Obama 0

Once again, Russia's leader inks a deal with another world leader while America's President lines up another putt.

The story comes from DAWN.

India, Russia agree missile sales, joint venture for helicopters

India and Russia on Saturday announced plans to set up a joint venture to build helicopters in India, which will also buy surface-to-air missile systems from its former Cold War ally, as the two tighten their military relationship.

The pacts were signed after summit talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India's western resort state of Goa, where leaders from the BRICS group of emerging nations are meeting.

Indian military officials have said the plan is for the joint venture to build at least 200 Kamov helicopters required by the country's defence forces, and is part of Modi's drive to build a defence industrial base in the south Asian nation.

The S-400 surface-to-air missiles are meant to strengthen India's defences along its borders with China and Pakistan, Indian military officials have said.

Other heads of the BRICS club of leading emerging nations -- Brazil, China and South Africa -- were also gathering for this weekend's summit that is expected to focus on trade and counter-terrorism.

Putin is seeking to seal deals with India in an attempt to help revive Russia's recession-hit economy, following sliding oil prices and Western sanctions over the Ukraine crisis.

Among the agreements expected are Moscow's delivery of its most advanced anti-aircraft defence system to India, a deal that has been in the pipeline for several years.

India, the world's top defence importer, is undergoing a $100-billion upgrade of its Soviet-era military hardware, as it looks to protect its borders from arch-rival Pakistan and an increasingly assertive China.

Modi and Putin will also focus on strengthening energy ties to meet India's growing thirst for fuel and electricity for its fast-growing economy.

Russia's biggest oil company Rosneft is expected to acquire India's Essar Oil in a multi-billion-dollar deal, according to local media reports, quoting officials involved in the agreement.

“The menu is vast,” India's ambassador to Russia, Pankaj Saran said at a briefing on the talks, without detailing the deals to be signed.

“It is more than a relationship, it is a partnership and very justifiably it has been described by the two leaders as both special and privileged, as well as of course strategic,” he said.

“It is very deep and very intense and it is poised to grow even further.”

Saran said he also expected them to discuss India's tensions with neighbour Pakistan, which spiked after last month's attack on the Uri army base that killed 19 soldiers.

Modi has sought to isolate Pakistan internationally since the attack that India blamed on Pakistan-based militants.

Subsequently, India claimed to have conducted "surgical strikes" against militants over the border in Pakistan. All such claims were rubbished by civil and military leadership in Pakistan.

“We have conveyed our views to the Russian side. We are confident that Russia will reflect upon our concerns,” Saran said.

But Putin is seen as unlikely to weigh into the dispute between the rivals, as Moscow also eyes closer defence ties with Islamabad. Russia and Pakistan carried out their first joint military exercise last month
China's Xi meets Modi.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed during talks late Saturday to work to resolve recent frustrations between the regional rivals, an official said.

Meeting on the eve of a BRICS summit of leading emerging nations, Modi and Xi agreed to further cooperate to combat “terrorism” and to work to reduce India's gaping trade deficit with China.

But Indian foreign ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said there was no resolution on China's decision to block India's entry to a nuclear trade group.

India wants to become a member of the 48-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to get better access to low-cost, clean energy which it says is important for its economic growth.

But China has so far declined to back India's request, saying it wants to wait until a consensus emerges at the group.

“Our broad concerns in the current state of the relationship were conveyed to the Chinese side,” Swarup said after the meeting -- their third this year -- in the Indian beach state of Goa.

“The intention was that both sides would narrow down the areas of difference since the commonalities far outweigh (the differences),” he said.

“Our expectation and hope is that China will see the logic of what we are saying.” There was no immediate comment from China's side.

New Delhi was also frustrated earlier this year when Beijing blocked its request to add a Pakistani militant group chief to a UN sanctions blacklist.

India accuses the Jaish-e-Mohammad rebel group of involvement in a deadly attack on an Indian airbase in January and more recently a raid on a army base that killed 19 soldiers.

Islamabad denies any involvement in either.

China enjoys close relations with India's archrival Pakistan and is pursuing a slew of infrastructure projects there.

Modi is keen to secure Chinese funding to fulfill his election pledge to overhaul India's crumbling railways and other infrastructure.

But the world's two most populous nations are jockeying for influence in Asia and their relationship is coloured by territorial disputes at both ends of the Himalayas.

They fought a border war in 1962 over the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, parts of which Beijing claims as South Tibet.

Modi will also host a dinner for the BRICS leaders, ahead of the summit talks starting on Sunday at a plush beachside resort.

BRICS was formed in 2011 with the aim of using its growing economic and political influence to challenge Western hegemony.

Indian Home Minister: 'Pakistan a terrorist state'

Tensions between India and Pakistan won't be improving anytime soon.

The story comes from DAWN.

'Pakistan a terrorist state' ─ Rajnath spews vitriol in run-up to UNGA showdown

Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh termed Pakistan a 'terrorist state' in an anti-Pakistan rant on Sunday, hours after suspected militants attacked in Indian army base in India-held Kashmir (IHK).

"Pakistan is a terrorist state and should be identified and isolated as such," Rajnath tweeted.

"I am deeply disappointed with Pakistan’s continued and direct support to terrorism and terrorist groups," the Indian home minister said.

Rajnath's vitriol comes as Pakistan and India gear up for a showdown at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) starting Monday.

Pakistan is preparing to "forcefully" highlight the situation in IHK at the UNGA, whereas India intends to counter Pakistan's stance by raising the Balochistan issue, arguing that the Baloch are also seeking independence from Pakistan and deserve international support.

India is also backing Baloch activists to hold a demonstration outside the UN headquarters during the prime minister’s speech.

Both Pakistan and India are trying to persuade the US to support their positions. The US, however, appears to have decided not to take sides.

Pakistan has had to contend with incendiary remarks by Indian lawmakers with increasing frequency as both countries lock horns over the Kashmir issue.

In a speech on India's Independence Day, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation said, in a broadside against Pakistan, that the people of Balochistan, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir had thanked him.

Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz reacted to Modi's speech, saying the Indian PM was trying to divert global attention from the tragedy in India-held Kashmir, adding that Modi’s comments only proved Pakistan’s contention that India, through the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), had been fomenting terrorism in Balochistan.

A day after Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry invited his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar for dialogue on the Kashmir dispute in August, Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar told a rally in IHK that "going to Pakistan is the same as going to hell".

Days after Chaudhry's invitation, India formally rejected Pakistan's proposal to hold exclusive talks on the issue of Kashmir and said it will only discuss the issue of terrorism alleged infiltration of militants with Pakistan.

The FO on Saturday said that Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva Ambassador Tehmina Janjua termed India’s attempts to deny its illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir is a "travesty of history".

"The sudden Indian focus on Balochistan is consistent with their playbook of seeking to distract attention from their repression in India-occupied Kashmir," the FO quoted Janjua as saying.
Kashmir clashes

Pakistan and India have been engaged in a back-and-forth over Kashmir since the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in IHK sparked violent protests against Indian rule despite the imposition of multiple curfews in the region, leaving at least 87 civilians dead and thousands others injured.

The unrest has lasted for more than two months as protesting residents clash almost daily with security forces in the worst such violence since 2010.

The Indian government has come under growing pressure over the level of casualties during the protests and over the security forces' use of shotguns loaded with pellets which can blind demonstrators.

The Foreign Office earlier this month urged the Indian government to listen to the international community and end bloodshed in IHK and asked the United Nations to send a fact-finding mission to IHK in order to investigate human right abuses.

India has slammed Pakistan's interference in Kashmir, terming it an 'internal matter'. Pakistan maintains the issue can only be resolved through dialogue and implementation of UN resolutions on Kashmir.
Indian army base attacked in IHK

A day before Pakistan and India are set to go head-to-head at the UNGA, heavily-armed suspected militants killed 17 Indian soldiers in a pre-dawn raid on an IHK army base, the worst such attack for years in the disputed Himalayan region.

Soldiers searched the base, 100 kilometres west of the region's main city of Srinagar, for any more suspected militants, an Indian army statement said.

The Indian home minister held a high-level security meeting in New Delhi after saying he was cancelling his planned trips to Russia and the United States in the wake of the attack.

Going to Pakistan is like 'going to hell', says Indian defence minister

I swear I get a huge laugh just about every day watching the shit storm exchange between the Pakis and the Indians - it's hilarious.

The story comes from Pakistan's DAWN.

Going to Pakistan is like 'going to hell', says Indian defence minister

SRINAGAR: India's Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Tuesday told a rally that “going to Pakistan is the same as going to hell”, as Indian security forces killed five protesters and injured 10 others on Tuesday.

Parrikar went on to say that Indian troops had “sent back five terrorists yesterday”, referring to the gunmen who were reportedly killed while attempting a cross-border incursion on Monday.

It is pertinent to mention that Pakistan Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry on Monday invited his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar for dialogue on the Kashmir dispute.

The move came as relations between Pakistan and India remain strained a day after ceasefire violations along the Line of Control on August 14.

Clashes erupted on Tuesday after crowds angered by the killing of a militant in Kashmir pelted them with stones and defied a curfew, an officials claimed.

Occupied Kashmir has witnessed violent protests since July 8, when security forces killed a field commander of militant group Hizbul Mujahideen who enjoyed widespread support in the Muslim-majority region.

Kashmir also saw an upsurge in violence around India's Independence Day holiday on Monday — which was observed as Black Day by Kashmiris — when Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India would not bow to terrorism and accused neighbour and arch-rival Pakistan of glorifying it.

The latest casualties came as security forces opened fire with automatic rifles, a step up from their earlier use of shotguns, whose pellets are meant to incapacitate but not kill.

Locals say the shotguns have inflicted severe injuries, and even blinded, hundreds of people, among them innocent bystanders.

Indian troops killed a total of seven militants on Monday in two incidents, five of them gunmen who had allegedly attempted a cross-border incursion and two more, who had attacked a Srinagar police station.

One officer died in the police station shootout.

At least 64 people have been killed and thousands injured during 39 days of protests, while schools, shops, banks and offices remain closed in much of Kashmir as paramilitary troops patrol arterial roads, residential areas and mosques.

Kashmir is at the center of a decades-old rivalry between India and Pakistan, which also rules its northern part, and backed an insurgency in the late 1980s and 1990s that Indian security forces largely crushed. Both countries claim Kashmir in full.

New Delhi has rejected Pakistan's invitation to hold talks on the future of Jammu and Kashmir, India's northernmost state, and Modi said he had received messages of support from leaders in restive parts of Pakistan.

In a speech on Monday, Modi accused Pakistan of committing atrocities in its own province of Baluchistan, escalating a war of words that Islamabad said was intended to divert attention from the troubles in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Seven Indian Troops Killed In Airforce Base Attack by Islamic Terrorists

No one has officially claimed responsibility for the attack at an Indian airforce base but it is the work of Pakistani Muslim terrorists - which group?  Who cares - they are a dime a dozen and their mission is to kill as many Hindus as Mohammed will grant them.

The story comes from DAWN.

Death toll in Indian airbase attack rises to 7 troops, 4 gunmen

PATHANKOT: The number of troops killed in an attack on an Indian air force base rose to seven on Sunday, after four soldiers succumbed to injuries sustained in the hourslong gunbattle near the border with Pakistan and another died after being wounded in an explosion, officials said.

Four suspected militants were killed in the fighting on Saturday.

Gunfire and blasts were heard a second consecutive day on Sunday, and Indian TV channels reported two gunmen were still at large in the sprawling facility.

News channels cited police in northwestern Punjab as saying the two gunmen were still holed up in the Pathankot air base, more than a day after the pre-dawn raid in which four attackers and two Indian military personnel were killed.

A home ministry official said several blasts had been heard in the facility but could not confirm reports that gunmen were still at large.

Air force spokeswoman Rochelle D'Silva said that combing operations to secure the Pathankot air force base were continuing late Sunday morning. Officials gave no other details about the situation at the base.

Earlier in the day, at least one grenade blast was heard from inside the base, but officials declined to comment.

D'Silva gave no details about the death of an elite commando Sunday morning, except to say that he was seriously wounded in an explosion. News reports said the commando was killed while defusing explosives.

A gold medal-winning Indian shooter was among the troops killed. Subedar Fateh Singh won gold and silver medals in the first Commonwealth Shooting Championships held in 1995, the National Rifle Association of India said.

The attack by gunmen disguised as soldiers came a week after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an unscheduled visit to Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in an effort to revive talks between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

Officials said the attack on the military base, just 25 km (15 miles) from the border with Pakistan, bore the hallmarks of previous suspected assaults by Pakistan-based militant groups, underscoring the fragility of recent efforts to revive bilateral talks between the often uneasy neighbours.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Pakistan condemned the attack and said it wanted to continue to build on the goodwill created by the impromptu meeting between Modi and Sharif last month.

Two security personnel were wounded in a blast on Sunday, a police official in Pathankot said, as troops scoured the base.

Dozens of armed forces stood guard outside the base.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh had said on Saturday five militants had been “neutralised”, but there were no reports yet of the body of the fifth attacker being found.

In New Delhi, two trains were delayed early on Sunday after officials received information about a possible bomb threat on a train running between the capital and Lucknow to the southeast, railways spokesman Neeraj Sharma said.

Trains were deemed safe and were running on schedule by mid-morning, Sharma said.

Militant Attack in India Kills 20 Indian Troops, Wounds 12

Okay, so terrorism in India isn't my strong suit and I can find no article that can identify which terror group in India conducted this ambush on an Indian military convoy in Manipur but this is a significant loss of life for the Indian military.

Apparently, there are nearly 40 terror groups operating in the Manipur area of India - some Muslim, quite a few communists so it's too soon to say who carried this out.

The full story comes from Times of India.

20 Army personnel killed in militant attack in Manipur


NEW DELHI: NEW DELHI: At least 20 Army personnel were killed and 12 injured in a militant attack in Manipur's Chandel district on Thursday, TV reports said.

The 6 Dogra convoy came under attack while it was coming from Motul towards Imphal. The incident took place at 8.45am. The injured soldiers have been airlifted to Nagaland.

An Army spokesman said that the militants first fired rocket-propelled grenades at the four-vehicle convoy which was on its way to Imphal from Chandel. The ambush took place when the convoy reached between Paralong and Charong villages.

Most of the bodies were charred.

This is being seen as the worst attack on the Indian Army in at least a decade. A dozen soldiers were also wounded in the most deadly attack in the region in recent years.

Security analysts suspect the attack was in retaliation against the reported killing on Monday of a woman by soldiers. The district observed a complete shutdown on Wednesday in protest over the killing.

Manipur, which has a population of 2.5 million, has faced an armed insurgency for years in which several tribal militant groups are active.

Security forces have struggled to contain the unrest despite being granted sweeping shoot-to-kill powers in so-called "disturbed areas" under the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA).

The AFSPA is in force in most northeastern states, where clashes claimed 450 lives last year, according to South Asian Terrorism Portal. Lawmakers recently lifted the act in one state, Tripura, that borders Bangladesh.

India Politician Claims Muslims Are TOO Secular! LOL

Every day you just have to keep shaking your head.

This comes from Times of India.

Muslims are too ‘secular’, should be ‘communal’: Shazia in video


NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party found itself in an embarrassing position when Shazia Ilmi, its senior member and party candidate from Ghaziabad, was seen in a video telling Muslims that they should stop being "secular" while casting their vote and be "communal" in these elections.

"Muslims are too secular. Muslims will have to be communal for the first time. Muslims are not communal, they do not vote for their own. Arvind Kejriwal is our own," Ilmi is heard telling a group of Muslims in a room. The 79-second clip was ostensibly shot when Shazia was in Mumbai recently.

Faced with a barrage of criticism over Shazia Ilmi's purported remarks, the Aam Aadmi Party refused to defend her, saying there was no place in the party for such sentiments.

Ilmi's video went viral on Tuesday and the party promptly distanced itself from the comments. An official statement from AAP said that it "does not believe in this kind of politics nor do we endorse it. All our representatives should be careful in their choice of words so that there is no scope for misinterpretation".

Senior party leader Manish Sisodia tweeted, "I've seen Shazia's clip. She should have not said it. AAP does not believe in communal politics. Our politics is to unite all Indians."

In the video, Ilmi is heard saying, "So far we have been making Congress win. Don't be so secular. Think of your interests this time. Muslims are secular and vote for everyone. Other parties do not do this. They have a set vote bank. Our votes are constantly getting divided. Think of your self this time."

Individuals in the clip are seen to be nodding at Ilmi's remarks. One person adds that Muslims are often responsible for turning the tide in an election even though they are victimized. "Dare bhi hum aur jitaye bhi hum lekin malai khaye koi aur (We are used as a vote bank but also forced to live in fear. Meanwhile others reap benefits)," the clip shows him saying.

To this, Ilmi, says that this time they should change their strategy and 'fight and win'.

While Ilmi's remarks drew sharp and quick reaction on social media, a few said the AAP leader came through as "clueless". Tweeted social activist Kavita Krishnan: "Shazia Ilmi's 'Muslims shd b communal' remark isn't communal. Only shows she hasn't 1st clue what 'communal'/'secular' mean. #embarrassing (sic)."

Composer Vishal Dadlani, an AAP supporter, addressed BJP supporters on the issue. "I don't know if this is the full clip or not. But I will not defend it. In my view, both Hindu and Muslim communalists and fundamentalists are anti-national ... However, unlike the RSS or the VHP, parent organizations of the BJP, this speech/instance is an aberration in AAP. Either she has a foolproof explanation, or she will be expelled, I'm sure of that. AAP is full of good, non-communal, non-corrupt people, striving for India. This incident, real or not, can't take away from that," he said.

If the People of India Doesn't Have Enough Just Trying To Survive Their Muslims, Now They Are Dodging Maoists...13 Killed In Latest Attacks

From DAWN.

Election-related violence in India's Chhattisgarh kills 13



BHUBANESWAR: Suspected Maoist rebels set off two bombs in the eastern Indian state of Chhattisgarh on Saturday, killing 13 people, most of them paramilitary soldiers and officials charged with holding elections in the region.

The attacks, half an hour apart, were the most serious since voting to elect a new federal government began last week in a six-week process to allow security forces to move across the country.

The first explosion took place in a bus in Bijapur carrying election officials who were on their way back after completing the vote. Seven people were killed.

A second bomb hit an ambulance in the thickly forested Bastar region killing five members of the Central Reserve Police Force and their driver, said R.K.Vij, the head of anti-Maoist operations.

It was not clear why the soldiers were travelling in the ambulance, but in the past government officials are known to be have used such vehicles to avoid attacks by the Maoists.

The rebels have operated for decades across a wide swathe of central and eastern India, and grew in strength during recent times in areas where poor, tribal villagers came into conflict with mining companies seeking resources for industrialisation.

The Maoists seek the violent overthrow of the Indian state, accusing it initially of taking over land from poor peasants and now plundering the mineral wealth of states likes Chhattisgarh.

The Hindu That Muslims Fear

Mwahahahaha.

The story comes from DAWN.

'Anyone but Modi': many Indian Muslims fear the worst



AYODHYA: Some recoil at his name, while others still refuse to acknowledge his popularity. India’s Muslims have watched the rise of election front-runner Narendra Modi anxiously and are now united in their wariness.

Many of the worshippers at the Jama Masjid Terhi Bazaar mosque in Ayodhya, a kilometre from India’s most notorious religious flashpoint, were too young to remember the 1992 riots which left more than 2,000 people dead.

Not Mohammad Sagheer, a teenager at the time of India’s worst post-independence violence. "What could be worse than seeing Muslims being beaten up, cut up and burned to death?" he said.

The dispute in Ayodhya, which boiled over when zealots tore down a mosque believed to have been built over the birthplace of the Hindu god Ram, left deep scars but vaulted Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to national prominence.

The enduring sensitivity can be judged by the police presence today. Each visitor negotiates five layers of security as they proceed under caged walkways topped by razor wire to the shrine at the centre.

From watchtowers and gathered in groups, paramilitary police keep guard, automatic weapons at the ready.

It is a potent reminder of the consequences when religious tensions in one of the world’s most diverse countries, bound together by a secular and liberal constitution, are given vent.Now wrapped up in India’s famously inert legal system, the once-explosive dispute over ownership of the site has cooled in litigation.

"But if the BJP comes to power with a full-fledged majority, then the atmosphere will become a bit tense here," warned Sagheer, now aged 36.

For long a central plank of its agenda, the BJP manifesto still contains a pledge to construct a Ram temple on the site of the old Babri Masjid mosque.

Although largely overlooked due to his association with a more recent religious conflagration — riots in his home state of Gujarat in 2002 — Modi has links to this struggle too.

The 63-year-old, tipped to become prime minister after elections starting April 7, was an organiser in Gujarat for BJP leader L.K. Advani who began a nationwide march to demand a temple for Ram in 1990.

"The Muslim community is anxious about Modi," said Mujibur Rehman of the Centre for Minority Studies at Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia university.

"What scares Muslims is essentially that they are convinced that this is a person who doesn’t have much respect for them, for their lives and for their future." Modi’s background, and his lack of outreach to religious minorities even during campaigning, gives them reasons for concern, Rehman said.

The strict vegetarian joined a grassroots Hindu nationalist group as a boy, entered the BJP at a time of deteriorating inter-religious ties, and is tainted by the 2002 riots. In that spasm of violence, more than 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, died.

Modi had just become chief minister of Gujarat at the time and has been repeatedly investigated — and never found guilty — over suspicions he did too little to prevent the bloodshed.

When his aide Amit Shah called for a Ram temple in Ayodhya while visiting last July, some worried that the dispute’s embers could be reignited.

"Not Modi. I wouldn’t want to see someone like Modi in my lifetime," says Haji Mahboob Ahmad, head of the group defending the right of Muslims to worship at the contested site in Ayodhya. "Anyone but him."

During campaigning, Modi has presented himself as a moderate nationalist focused on economic development and good governance.

"For me my religion is ‘nation first, India first’," he has told rallies, adding that the constitution was his "only holy book" and that toilets should come first, "temple later".

He also came as close as ever to apologising for the 2002 riots, saying he felt "grief" and "misery".

But his decision to contest a seat from the Hindu holy city of Varanasi was a reminder to supporters that he had not forgotten his roots. And he has also spoken about how "75 per cent of people" in India — meaning Hindus — have been ignored by the Congress party, in power for the last decade. Muslims account for around 13 per cent of India’s population.

Any Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) agenda he might seek to project in power would likely be limited by the compulsions of coalition politics. A BJP parliamentary majority is highly unlikely, although some supporters still dream of what it could lead to.

"If a Hindu party wins a majority of votes then we will ask that a law be passed by parliament to free Ram’s birthplace and it be given to the Hindu community," Sharad Sharma from the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP, World Hindu Council) told AFP in Ayodhya.

Around him, stone carvers chiselled away at pieces of an under-construction Ram temple overseen by the VHP which many hope will one day take form on the site of the former mosque.

I Guess It Was About Time That the Obama Administration Pissed Off India As Much As Every Other Ally

 Demonstrators protest across the street from the Indian Consulate building in New York. -Reuters Photo




The story comes from DAWN.

India demands apology for diplomat arrest in NYC


NEW DELHI: India's information minister lashed out at the United States on Friday and demanded an apology for the treatment of a diplomat who was arrested in New York, saying America cannot behave ''atrociously'' and get away with it.

The Dec. 13 arrest and strip-search of Devyani Khobragade, India's deputy consul general in New York, has sparked a diplomatic storm between the United States and India.

US prosecutors say Khobragade lied on a visa form about how much she paid her housekeeper. The diplomat has pleaded not guilty.

India has protested Khobragade's treatment and said the strip-search was degrading and unnecessary.

The US Marshals service said it is standard procedure. But in India, such treatment for an educated, middle-class woman is almost unimaginable.

''The fact is that American authorities have behaved atrociously with an Indian diplomat and obviously America has to make good for its actions,'' Information Minister Manish Tewari told reporters.

''I think it's a legitimate expectation that if they have erred, and they have erred grievously in this matter, they should come forth and apologize.''

The case has become major news in India, touching on issues of class, status and the rights of domestic workers. The two sides of the case have offered starkly different accounts of what happened.

Khobragade says she's being targeted by a vindictive housekeeper. The housekeeper, meanwhile, says she was overworked and underpaid and needed to escape.

US Secretary of State John Kerry has expressed regret, and State Department officials have declined to provide details about the case, citing law enforcement restrictions that prevent them from discussing it. They say they are still trying to assess what occurred.

But US Attorney Preet Bharara said earlier this week that Khobragade was treated well, and questioned why there was more sympathy in India for the diplomat than the housekeeper.

US Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman spoke with Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh for a second day Thursday.

''Both parties affirmed our intent to keep working through this complex issue. We certainly look forward to having further conversations,'' US State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said.

On Friday, the diplomat's father, Uttam, said his daughter treated the housekeeper, Sangeeta Richard, like a member of the family. He said Richard had Sundays off and was free to attend church and visit her friends.

He filed a lawsuit in India earlier this year on his daughter's behalf, saying Richard was wrongly accusing his daughter of treating her like a slave.

But Richard's lawyer said Thursday that the housekeeper worked from morning until late at night, seven days week, for less than $3 an hour. Unable to get better pay, she made sure Khobragade's two children were cared for one day and walked out, lawyer Dana Sussman said.

From that moment on, Sussman said, Richard relied on the kindness of strangers within the Indian community in New York City, and even was looked after at one point by a Sikh temple. She eventually connected with the nonprofit group Safe Horizon, which has an anti-trafficking program.

''She was basically just trying to find her way. She was left with the clothes on her back, with very little money,'' Sussman said. Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid has questioned the premise of the case and demanded the charges be dropped. He said Richard had threatened over the summer to go to the police unless Khobragade arranged a new passport for her, along with a work visa and a large sum of money.

Khurshid did not say how much money Richard sought. But two top Indian officials said the housekeeper asked for $10,000 in the presence of an immigration lawyer and two other witnesses. Both officials have close knowledge of the case, but spoke on condition that their names not be published because of the sensitivity of the case.

Sussman said the claims are inaccurate. ''There was no extortion or anything along those lines,'' she said.

''She essentially worked very long hours, was isolated within the home, and attempted to ask for more time off, ask for more reasonable hours, but those attempts to resolve the issues were unsuccessful.''

Khurshid said India does not want to sour relations, but would insist on the return of its diplomat and the dropping of charges against her.

''We are keen that no damage of an irreversible nature should happen to our relationship,'' he said.

Khobragade could face a maximum sentence of 10 years for visa fraud and five years for making a false declaration if convicted. She is accused of submitting false documents to obtain a work visa for Richard.

According to prosecutors, Khobragade claimed she paid the woman $4,500 a month, but actually paid her around $3 per hour.

Khobragade has said she had full diplomatic immunity. US officials say her immunity is limited to acts performed in the exercise of consular functions. She was transferred to India's UN mission this week.

Anti-Nuke Activists In India, Who Protest Potential Nuclear Accidents, Accidentally Set Off Bomb That Almost Blows Up Nuclear Reactor

Apparently, anti-nuclear activists in India are just as much a bunch of dumbshits as the ones here in America.

Indian nuclear plants = 0 dead
Anti-Nuke activists   = 6 dead

The story comes from DAWN.

Blast near Indian nuclear plant kills six



NEW DELHI: A crude bomb has exploded near a nuclear plant in southern India, killing six people and seriously injuring three others, including an anti-nuclear activist whom police say is a suspect.

Police say the Russian-built Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu state is unaffected and operating as normal.

Local residents have protested for years against the plant over fears an accident could create a health hazard.

Police say the bomb that exploded Tuesday night likely went off accidentally as suspected activists were making several crude explosive devices in a house about 15 kilometers from the plant.

Superintendent Vijayendra Bidari says police recovered two unexploded bombs, but have yet to question the injured suspect who is receiving treatment for serious injuries.

Death By Stampede Hits India Again, At Least 60 Dead On Bridge

The story comes from DAWN.

Stampede in India kills 60: police


BHOPAL: A stampede on a bridge outside a Hindu temple killed at least 60 people in India on Sunday and dozens more may have died after they leapt into the water below, police said.

“Sixty people are confirmed killed and the figure could reach 100,” said local Deputy Police Inspector General D.K. Arya.

“More than 100 others have been injured” in the disaster in the Datia district of central Madhya Pradesh state, he added.

Arya said the stampede was triggered by rumours that it might collapse after being hit by a heavy vehicle.

“There were rumours that the bridge could collapse after the tractor hit it,” he said. “Many people are feared to have fallen into the river and are unaccounted for.”

Hindus are celebrating the end of the Navaratri festival, dedicated to the worship of the Hindu god Durga, which draws millions of worshippers to temples especially in northern India.

India has a long history of deadly stampedes at religious festivals, with at least 36 people trampled to death back in February as pilgrims headed home from the Kumbh Mela religious festival on the banks of the river Ganges.

Some 102 Hindu devotees were killed in a stampede in January 2011 in the state of Kerala, while 224 pilgrims died in September 2008 as thousands of worshippers rushed to reach a 15th-century hill-top temple in the northern town of Jodhpur.

Pakistani Jihadis Attack Indian Police Station and Army Base In Kashmir, 9 Dead

 The attackers escaped after hijacking a truck and were now engaged in a fierce gunbattle with Indian troops in the Samba district of Indian administered Kashmir, the NDTV news network and other local media reported. — File Photo by AFP




In just days after the widely publicized Islamic terror attack on the shopping mall in Kenya, Islam continues to cull the human population of the Earth as Islamic terrorists from Pakistan stole into Indian-controlled Kashmir attacking a police station as well as an Indian army installation - between dead police, civilians and Indian troops, the death toll stands at nine.


The story comes from DAWN.

Militants kill nine in Kashmir, says Indian police


SRINAGAR: Militants stormed a police station and an Indian army base in Kashmir on Thursday, killing at least nine in an attack the state's chief minister said was aimed at derailing peace talks between India and Pakistan.

“This attack in Jammu is aimed at derailing the dialogue process,” said Omar Abdullah, chief minister of the Indian administered Kashmir.

The group of militants who attacked a police station and army camp in India administered Kashmir on Thursday had crossed the border from Pakistan the previous day, the state's chief minister said.

Omar Abdullah told reporters that the raid appeared designed to upset plans for a meeting in New York this week between Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

“Given the history, timing and location, the aim is to derail the proposed meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart,” Abdullah said. “There are forces that are inimical to peace and want to derail any peace process.”

The militants, all wearing army fatigues, lobbed grenades and opened fire at the Hiranagar police station near the border with Pakistan, police said.

Around the same time attackers struck at an army base in the nearby Samba district in the southern-most part of the the Indian-administered state where a fierce gunbattle with soldiers took place and Indian tanks were deployed.

The attacks are set to overshadow a meeting by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly this weekend, the first top-level dialogue in three years.

Manmohan Singh condemned “the heinous terrorist attack” in a statement but said that that it “will not deter us and will not succeed in derailing our efforts to find a resolution to all problems through a process of dialogue”.

Militant attacks have a history of stalling stop-start peace efforts between the two neighbours, who have fought three wars since independence, because New Delhi accuses Pakistan of abetting the groups which strike Indian targets.

The NDTV channel reported that Thursday's attackers may have driven from the police station to the army camp in a hijacked truck, but other security sources cautioned that there might have been separate groups.

“I was inside the dhaba (a roadside eatery) when I saw three men entering the camp firing a barrage of bullets. They opened the gates and entered,” one eyewitness told reporters outside the army camp in Samba.

Gunshots could be heard ringing out from inside the walled compound, while two officers could be seen running out carrying an injured man over their shoulder.

At least five policemen and two civilians were killed in the first attack on the police station in Kathua district, a police officer told AFP, and at least two soldiers including an officer died in the second assault, a separate army source who asked not to be named confirmed.

Indian premier Singh confirmed on Wednesday that he would meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif despite calls from the opposition to take a hardline with Islamabad.

Formal peace talks known as the Composite Dialogue are currently off and India has been keen to downplay any expectation they might restart as a result of Sunday's talks.

“Primarily we will see whether the dialogue process that started between the two countries, that stopped and got derailed, can that be brought back on track,” Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid told reporters at the UN on Wednesday.

Kashmir, a picturesque Himalayan territory, is divided between India and Pakistan by a de facto border known as the Line of Control (LoC) but it is claimed in full by both countries.

Riots Instigated By Muslims Spread In India, 28 Dead So Far

Imagine....Hindus and Muslims not getting along!  Well, as usual, Islam has created death and destruction as rioting has spread across northern India leaving at least 28 people dead.

The story comes from DAWN.

Communal riots spread in north India, 28 killed


MUZAFFARNAGAR, India: Communal violence was spreading into new areas of northern India on Monday, despite an army-enforced curfew put in place after deadly weekend clashes broke out between Hindus and Muslims.

Gunfire and street battles that erupted Saturday in villages around Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh state have killed at least 28 people and left many more missing, police said.

Soldiers deployed to the region have been given orders to shoot rioters on sight, state government official Kamal Saxena said.

By Monday morning police had arrested 90 people. Still, the violence spread to the neighbouring districts of Shamli and Meerut overnight.

Dozens of rioters attacked a group of soldiers who were evacuating people Sunday night from the riot-torn village of Wazidpur, Saxena said.

The soldiers responded by opening fire on the rioters, but no one was hit, he said.

The violence began Saturday night after a meeting of thousands of Hindu farmers called for justice in the killing of three young men from Kawal village who had objected when a woman was being verbally harassed.

Officials said some of the farmers had given hate-filled speeches against Muslims at the meeting.

Clashes with Muslims broke out after the meeting, with many participants carrying guns, swords and knives, senior police officer Arun Kumar said.

Incendiary rumours being spread by mobile phones and social media were fuelling the spread of violence and making it difficult for soldiers to restore calm, state police inspector Ashish Gupta said.

Shops and schools were closed Monday in Muzaffarnagar, about 125 kilometres north of New Delhi. Soldiers are searching homes for weapons.

A state of alert has been declared for Uttar Pradesh, a state of 200 million people where the 1992 razing of a 16th century mosque by a Hindu mob in Ayodhya sparked India's worst communal clashes.

The central government warned that communal violence was on the rise, with 451 incidents reported already this year, compared with 410 for all of 2012.

Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said tensions were expected to escalate further in the run-up to next year's national elections, and urged India's 28 states to remain on high alert.

India Kills 12 Pakistani Jihadis This Week Who Tried To Cross Into Kashmir and India

The Indian army has been busy this week - busy killing Pakistani Islamic terrorist jihadis that is and the total dead to this point is 12.

The story comes from DAWN.

Indian army says 12 militants killed near LoC


SRINAGAR: The Indian army has killed a dozen suspected militants in five days of fighting near the highly militarised Line of Control (LoC) dividing disputed Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

Indian army spokesman Naresh Vig said the fighting began on Monday after soldiers intercepted some militants crossing into a northern part of Indian-administered Kashmir from the Pakistani side.

Vig said Friday that militants also made attempts to cross into the Indian side at three other places in remote and mountainous northern Kashmir leading to fierce gunbattles with the army.

There was no independent confirmation of the fighting.

More than 68,000 people have been killed in the conflict since 1989.

Militant groups have largely been suppressed by Indian troops in recent years, and resistance is now principally expressed through street protests.

Muslim Terrorists In India Spread the Wealth - Bomb the Shit Out of Buddhist Temple

Oh yeah, the Islamists in India decided to spread the wealth ...or should I say, spread the terror, so as to include the Buddhists in India - I guess they decided to give the Hindu infidels a break this weekend and go after those bastardly evil Buddhists.

The story comes from Hindustan Times via The Religion of Peace.

Terror attack rocks Bihar's Bodh Gaya, serial blasts at Mahabodhi temple


Nine serial blasts in a coordinated terror attack rocked the Mahabodhi temple complex in south central Bihar's Buddhist pilgrimage town of Bodh Gaya early on Sunday, injuring two monks.

"It is a terror attack," Union minister of state for home RPN Singh said about the blasts that took place between 5:30 and 5:58am.

Sources in the ministry of home affairs said there had been intelligence of a possible attack on the temple and Bihar was alerted last month.

The Intelligence Bureau (IB) had alerted the state that two terrorists, brothers originally from Bihar but based abroad in recent years, had entered the state to carry out terror attacks, according to an official aware about the intelligence input.

According to intelligence sources, Bodh Gaya has been in the crosshairs of Pakistan-based terrorists, who want to avenge violence against Rohingya Muslims in Buddhist-dominated Myanmar.

The police said crude explosives were used for the low-intensity blasts. No structural damage was reported to the 7th century temple, which is regarded as one of the holiest Buddhist shrines and is a Unesco World Heritage Site.

Buddhists from all over the world visit the temple, which has the Bodhi tree under which Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment.

"The holy Bodhi tree is safe and there is no damage to it," said Bihar director general of police Abhayanand.

While four blasts took place inside the Mahabodhi Temple complex, three occurred at the Terega monastery, the usual abode of the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, whenever he is in town, the police said.

The Karmapa - head of the Karma Kagyu school, one of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism - was not in Bodh Gaya at the time of the blasts.

A blast also took place near the base of an 80-feet-tall Buddha statue and another went off inside an empty tourist bus, bearing Uttar Pradesh registration, parked close to the temple complex. Gaya City superintendent of police Chandan Kushwaha said two live bombs were recovered from the area - one of them near the 80-ft Buddha statue - and defused.
The Centre rushed experts from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the National Security Guard (NSG) to the site of the blasts.

Arvind Singh, a member of Mahabodhi Temple Management Committee, said the injured monks - Myanmar national Vilas Ga, 30, and Tibetan Tenzing Dorjee, 50, were admitted to Magadh Medical College and Hospital.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar condemned the blasts and rushed to Bodh Gaya, about 140 km southwest of capital Patna. He admitted the IB and other security agencies had alerted the state government about the Mahabodhi temple complex being in terror crosshairs, but evaded questions on lapse in security.

Kumar said he would request the Centre to deploy the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to take over the security of the temple complex. "This is the appropriate agency for the job."

Last year, security of the Mahabodhi temple was handed over to the special task force of Bihar Police.

State additional director general of police (law and order) SK Bhardwaj said prima facie the serial blasts were the handiwork of some terrorist organisation.

No terrorist outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Gaya is also a Maoist stronghold.

Bodh Gaya is a high priority area and always has an adequate amount of security cover. Pilgrims are thoroughly checked before they enter the temple.

Investigators are trying to ascertain the point of security breach.

Attacks on Buddhists are rare in India but there have been tensions in the wider region recently following clashes between Buddhists and Muslims in Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

The complex attracts visitors from around the world during the peak tourist season from October to March.

Muslims In India Freak Out Over TV Cooking Show Airing a Pork Recipe

Good grief...get the protesters out, get ready for another worldwide protest by 1.5 billion Muslims!  Prepare everyone for global violence from the religion of peace because a cooking show in India had the AUDACITY to show how to make a dish out of....wait for it....PORK!

Fuck the millions of non-Muslims who watch the show who want to make a tasty dish out of pork...hell no, there's a few dozen Muslims who watch the show and they can't be offended.

The story comes from Times of India via The Religion of Peace.

Doordarshan Urdu channel's series in soup for showing pork dish


MUMBAI: Doordarshan's popular Urdu channel has landed in the soup with many Muslim viewers by airing a cooking show featuring a pork dish.

In its April 9 episode, DD Urdu's series 'Taste Ki Baat Hai' (Talk of Taste) presented a recipe with pork and went on to speak of its deliciousness.

The programming was criticized by some for being "in poor taste". A section of community leaders and scholars said since the majority of DD Urdu's viewers were Muslims, the channel had displayed a lack of "sensitivity" by showing a dish of pork, which is "haram" (forbidden) in Islam.

"An Urdu channel does not cater to Muslims alone, but it should be careful not to air a show that hurts the religious sentiments of a section of its viewers," said professor Akhtarul Wasey, who teaches Islamic studies at Jamia Millia Islamia University. "This could have been avoided."

The cooking series 'Taste Ki Baat Hai' often showcases different cuisines and lifestyles through families from different backgrounds. "We will investigate how this particular episode got telecast on the show," said DD Urdu's programming executive M Sengupta.

Islamic scholars said articles in the media and television shows should not be seen from a religious prism, but the media should "exercise self-censorship when it comes to religious sensibilities".

"There is no ban on people's tastes," said Islamic scholar Zeenat Shaukat Ali. "There is no ban on people's tastes. But if DD Urdu is viewed by a large number of Muslims, it should not have featured a cooking show on pork since the Quran forbids its consumption, and no Muslim will appreciate any session detailing the preparation of a pork dish."

Some commentators wondered how the episode slipped through scrutiny before being broadcast. "DD Urdu is becoming popular among Urdu-wallas," said activist and Urdu columnist Firoz Bakht Ahmed. "I'm surprised nobody pointed out the potential hurt it would cause to Muslim viewers before the show got aired."