i don't promote breaking up of any country: defence...

CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BRAMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON

'PAKISTANIS THEMSELVES GIVE ABAD NAME TO PAKISTAN AND

ISLAM,' SAYS MALALA YOUSAFZAI

I don't promote breaking up of any country:Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan on Khalistan issue

INDIAN MINISTER FOR FINANCE, CORPORATE AFFAIRS AND DEFENCE ARUN JAITLEY HELD MEETING WITH CANADIAN DEFENCEMINISTER HARJIT SINGH SAJJAN IN NEW DELHI AND DISCUSSED BILATERAL DEFENCE AND SECURITY COOPERATION ISSUES.

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan held meeting with Vikas Swarup, India's High Commissioner to Canada prior to his trip to India.

Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder: Canada defenceminister Khalistani sympathiser, won't meet himPunjab CM remarks on Canada ministersdisappointing, inaccurate: CanadaSukhbir Badal to Capt: Should refrain from makingdisparaging remarks against SajjanAAP chief whip Khaira: Capt insulted Sajjan, willwelcome himSGPC chief Kirpal Singh Badungar: We welcomeamritdhari Sajjan on his visit to the Golden TempleDefence Minister Harjit Sajjan: Trip focused onstrengthening Canada-India relationshipDefence Minister Harjit Sajjan: Not scheduled to meetany representatives from the Punjab government.

I DETAILS ON PAGE 4

NEW DELHI: Referring to the recent mob-lynching of a universi ty student for'blasphemy', Pakistani Nobel LaureateMalala Yousafzai, in a strongly-wordedvideo message, said no one but Pakistanis to blame for the poor image it has in theworld. "We talk about Islamophobia andhow people give a bad name to ourcountry and our re l ig ion. No one isgiving a bad name to our country or ourreligion. We are doing that all by ourselves. We are enough for that,"Yousafzai said in the video message.

I CONTD. ON PAGE 14

Captain Amarinder lists HarinderMalhi as Khalistani sympathiser; I ama Sikh, replies Harinder on Channel Y

My Motion on 1984 is different thanJagmeet SinghMy Motion on 1984 talks abouttruth and reconciliationMy Motion on 1984 not for Political GainsCaptain Amarinder l ists her asKhalistani sympathizer; I am aSikh, replies Harinder onChannel Y

I DETAILS ON PAGE 6

25-year-old Sikh cab driver attacked,turban forcefully taken off

DESK REPORTNEW YORK - A 25-year old Sikh cab driver wasassaulted by four drunken passengers, whoabused him, called him Ali Baba and also took off histurban. The cab driver Harkirat Singh, an immigrant fromIndian Punjab who came to US three years back, pickedup three men and a woman who told him to drop themat a location in Bronx. But after reaching there, the passengers started com-plaining it was the wrong location. One of the passengers also tried to smashhis cab meter and punched his arm. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, hassupporting Harkirat saying: "Harkirat Singh - You are welcome here. Whathappened to you was wrong. You did the right thing by calling the NYPD." But Singhsaid: "I'm so afraid. I don't want to work. It's an insult on my religion, also - aninsult of my faith. It's horrible."

CAPT AMARINDER'S TOUGH STAND: NO PUNJAB MINISTER TOACCOMPANY SAJJAN DURING HIS PUNJAB VISIT

DESK REPORTCHANDIGARH - Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has saidhe is "not bothered" about what Canada thinks about his stand on its min-ister Harjit Sajjan and asserted that he will not associate himself withKhalistani sympathizers. "I am not bothered about what Sajjan or others inthe Canadian government think about my stand. I am concerned only aboutthe detrimental impact of these Khalistani sympathisers on this country,particularly on Punjab," he said.Canada has termed as "disappointing and inaccurate" the comments byAmarinder that five ministers in the Justin Trudeau government, includingDefence Minister Harjit Sajjan, were "Khalistani sympathisers". During aprogramme of a private TV channel, the Chief Minister had alleged, "HarjitSajjan is a Khalistani sympathiser and so was his father. There are, infact, five ministers in the Justin Trudeau government who were Khalistanisympathisers.” Reiterating his stand on the issue, Amarinder saidwhile, as a democratic nation, India believes in freedom of speech,which was enshrined in the Constitution, he would personally not meet any"Khalistani sympathiser". I CONTD. ON PAGE 4

• I don’t promote breaking up of any country: Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan’scomments on Khalistan issue

• My job is to build relationship with India: Minister Sajjan

• I don't want to get sucked into internal politics of India or Punjab: Minister Sajjan

• Ontario resolution on 1984 Anti-Sikh Violence ‘unreal, exaggerated’ Indiatells Canada

• Ontario 1984 resolution in Provincial Parliament does not reflect the viewof the Canadian government: Minister Sajjan

• I will offer to meet Punjab CM Captain Amarinder: Minister Sajjan

• Punjab CM Capt Amarinder's tough stand - No Punjab Minister will accompanyCanadian Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan during his Punjab visit

• Captain Amarinder is right about Minister Harjit Sajjan: Media Adviser toPunjab CM

• Enough information available in the public domain; intelligence reportsare confidential: Media Adviser to Punjab CM

• Sajjan – Amarinder issue, opinion in Punjabi community divided

2 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017

416-871-7276 647-273-6445

MidWeek 3MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

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Is 'Fashion 2' on the cards?

SHRADDHA KAPOOR MESMERISED EVERYONE WITH HER DANCE MOVES IN KOLKATA.

MUMBAI, (PTI) Actress KanganaRanaut has refuted repor ts of be-ing approached by f i lmmakerMadhur Bhandarkar to star in thesequel of "Fashion". There wererepor ts that the director ap-proached Kangana to star in thesequel of the 2008 film, whichfeatured her alongside actressPriyanka Chopra. "There is nosuch thing. There are so manyrumours floating around. Madhursir last called me for his housewarming par ty and that was it.Our conversation was only re-garding that and nothing else,"Kangana told PTI.Incidentally, Kangana bagged herfirst National Award for "Fashion"post which she went on to fea-ture in commercial and criticallysuccessful films like "Once Upona Time in Mumbai", "Tanu WedsManu" and the game-changer"Queen". Her last release, themuch-ambitious Vishal Bhardwajdirected "Rangoon" failed to makea mark at the box office and the

actress says the team could notcome up with a film which wouldstrike a chord with the audience."Nothing can stop a film from be-ing a hit if the audience loves it. Ihave worked with several firsttime directors who went on tomake great films so I believe ifthe film is good, you'll get the love.May be we somewhere lacked(referring to "Rangoon") in what

we presented," she says. The 31-year-old actress, however, saysthe saddest par t about "Rangoon"not working was that her perfor-mance in the film went unnoticedas not many people saw the period-drama. "Most critics said that was mybest work so far. I just felt sad that thefilm couldn't reach as many peopleas it could have. It's hear tbreak-ing," she says.

Katrina's rigoroustraining for 'Tiger

Zinda Hai'

MUMBAI, (PTI) Director Ali AbbasZafar says Katrina Kaif will beundergoing an extensive combattraining to perform stunts in his next"Tiger Zinda Hai". The forthcomingproject is a sequel to 2012 superhit "EkTha Tiger", directed by Kabir Khan andproduced under Yash Raj Films. The'Tiger' series centers on a fictional char-acter of an Indian spy (RAW), codenamed Tiger (Salman) who falls in lovewith a Pakistani spy (ISI), played byKatrina. "Katrina will be going through arigorous training programme in hand-to-hand fighting along with Kali knifefighting with specialised trainers fromthe UK and LA," Zafar said in a state-ment here. The "Bang Bang" actress,who is currently shooting for a musicalsong for her next "Jagga Jasoos", willstart her training from April 20. She willshoot for some high-octane action se-quences along with Salman Khanat a studio in Mumbai and otherforeign locations.

Won't bring shame tomy parents by

reacting to RGV: TigerMUMBAI, (PTI) Actor Tiger Shroffsays it wouldn't be fair if he saidhis "mann ki baat" about what hetruly feels about filmmaker RamGopal Varma who cal led himnames in a series of tweets re-cently. In a Twitter rant, RGV hadsaid it would be cool to see a face-off between Tiger and actor VidyutJammwal, who both are mar tialar ts exper ts. Later, the "Com-mando" actor shared a sound re-cording of a conversation be-tween him and the filmmaker onTwitter where RGV was trash-talk-ing about Tiger and even calledhim "the greatest woman I saw inmy life." Tiger, however, says hewould refrain from commentingabout the filmmaker and is happythat his work is making peopletalk about him. "RGV is a seniorperson, he has been in the indus-try for years. I've just recentlyentered the industry. Ab agarmann ki baat bolu toh shayad ap-propriate nahi hoga (It won't beappropriate if I speak my hear tout)," he told repor ters. "But I amjust glad I've made some sor t ofan identity, mark in the industrythat people are at least talkingabout me. I've made some sor t ofimpact," he adds.


TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017s p e c i a l r e p o r t

DEFENCE MINISTER HARJIT SAJJAN REVIEWING THE TRI-SERVICES GUARD OF HONOUR IN NEW DELHI.

meanwhile. FROM PAGE 1The Chief Minister said while Sajjan is welcome to attend conferences andmeets and even to visit Darbar Sahib, he would personally not entertain theCanadian minister as he has "concrete information about him being a Khalistanisympathiser, just as his father Kundan Sajjan. The state government wouldprovide full security to the minister and ensure that he gets due treatment asper protocol but I will not be seen hobnobbing with a Khalistani sympathiser,"Amarinder said.However, Capt toughened his stance on Tuesday saying no Punjab ministerwill accompany Sajjan during his Punjab visit. Talking to media the MediaAdviser to Punjab CM said Captain Amarinder is right about Minister HarjitSajjan and enough information is available in public domain but intelligencereports are confidential and so they cannot be shared.Responding to Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's accusation that hewas a "Khalistani sympathiser", Harjit Sajjan on Tuesday said, such com-ments hurt, but he had not come to India for petty politics. Sajjan whoarrived in India on Monday is on a week-long visit. He is also scheduledto visit Punjab.He said: "It does hurt, but not here for petty politics, my actions speak for me.I don't want to be sucked into the internal politics of a province of a nation. Mygoal is to build relationships. I am proud of the fact that I was born here," he

said. Amarinder's poll campaign in Canada was stalled last year in the run-up to the Punjab Assembly Elections.Sajjan held wide-ranging talks with Defence Minister Arun Jaitley on a hostof bilateral issues, particularly on ramping up defence and security ties.Harjit also downplayed the Ontario legislative assembly recently passing a

motion describing the 1984 anti-Sikhriots as "genocide" in India. Sajjansaid it was a resolution by a privatemember and the Canadian govern-ment and the people do not at all sub-scribe to such a view.Talking about Punjab chief minister'srejection to meet him for being aKhalistani, Harjit said: "I do not haveany problem if he does not want tomeet me. I was born in Punjab and Iam attached to it. The relationshipbetween Canada and Punjab is basedon its people. Nobody can take awaymy village, my parents. These thingsdo not bother me" adding "I don't pro-mote the breaking up of any country."Sajjan, who is in India on a seven-day visit held extensive talks withhis counterpart, Defence MinisterArun Jaitley. Calling for deeper de-fence ties between the two sides, hesaid there is huge scope for joint pro-duction of military platforms by thetwo countries. Terming the talks"fruitful" Sajjan said, both sides re-solved to work closely in the area ofdefence and security and broadencurrent level of engagement.Asked whether time has come to callPakistan a terrorist state, Sajjan saidhe would not like to get involved in"regional difficulties. India can playan important role in overall stabilityin the region." On Taliban, Sajjan saidit needs to be studied how it grew.During his days in the Canadian Mili-tary Sajjan has served in Afghani-stan. Speaking about the ISIS, he saidthe bigger concern is not just Iraq butto prevent them from building up fur-ther. Sajjan informed: "I have beeninvolved in uniform - either police ormilitary uniform. India and Canadahave great opportunity to build a de-fence relationship. We want to movethings forward. India has tremendousexperience in conflict resolution."In Chandigarh, meanwhile, carryingforward the tough stance againstSajjan, Capt Amarinder Singh gov-ernment has decided that no minis-ter would accompany the dignitaryduring his visit to various places inthe state. Sources said only the DC andSSP concerned of the district would fa-cilitate Sajjan's visits. Sajjan will payobeisance at the Golden Temple andvisit his native village near Hoshiarpur.

I don't promote breaking up of any country:Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan on Khalistan issue

CAPT AMARINDER'S TOUGH STAND: NO PUNJAB MINISTER TOACCOMPANY SAJJAN DURING HIS PUNJAB VISIT

Punjab CM remarks on Canadaministers disappointing,inaccurate: CanadaNEW DELHI (PTI) - Canada termed as "disappointing andinaccu ra te " t he comments by Pun jab Ch ie f M in i s t e rAmarinder Singh that five ministers in the Justin Trudeaugovernment, including Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, wereKhalistani sympathisers Singh had alleged that Sajjan likehis father is a "Khalistani sympathiser" and he would notmeet him during his scheduled visit to India later this month.Reacting to the remarks, the Canadian High Commissionhere said, "The comments regarding Canada's ministers areboth disappointing and inaccurate." It also asser ted thatCanada greatly values its relationship with the people andthe government of Punjab, and look forward to fur theradvancing this relationship. "We regret that the Chief Ministerof Punjab is unavailable to meet with Canada's Minister ofDefence. The Chief Minister is welcome to visit Canada," the highcommission added. Sajjan will be in India next week to hold talks with theleadership here as well as speak on 'conflict prevention and peacekeepingin changing world' at a think-tank here.

Sukhbir Badal to Capt: Should refrain frommaking disparaging remarks against SajjanCHANDIGARH, (PTI) Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir SinghBadal has asked Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh not to act"petty and spiteful" and give the defence minister of a sovereign countrythe respect he deserved. Reacting strongly to the "irresponsiblestatement" of Amarinder about Canadian Defence Minister HarjitSingh Sajjan, he said, "Amarinder should not have let a personalincident cloud his judgement and he should have refrained frommaking disparaging remarks against Sajjan as well as all otherPunjabi representatives in the Canadian parliament." Punjabisworldwide were proud of their elected representatives in Canadaand Sajjan was an example of personal accomplishment for theentire Punjabi diaspora, Sukhbir added. "He (Sajjan) should not beshown disrespect in this manner," the former Punjab deputy chiefminister said here. Describing such stands as "counter-productive",he warned that it would not augur well for Punjab and come in theway of trade and bilateral relations with Canada. "Moreover, it isnot in the fitness of things for senior political leaders to show suchrancour. One can take a lesson from Prime Minister NarendraModi. He was denied visa by the US, but that did not make himbitter towards that country. In fact, he has gone out of the way toimprove the relations between India and the US," said Sukhbir.Punjabis worldwide expect Amarinder to behave similarly, showpolitical statesmanship and use his office to improve the relationswith Canada, not ruin them, he added.If the Centre and the other states are giving due respect to Sajjan,so should Amarinder and the Punjab government, the Akali leadersaid. "This is the least that is expected of them, considering Sajjanis from their state," he added. Sukhbir also mentioned how theprevious SAD-BJP government in Punjab had witnessed a numberof visits by Punjabi ministers from Canada. "We had alwaysaccorded due respect to visiting dignitaries and even invited electedPunjabi representatives from around the world to the NRIsammelans to focus on the issues of NRIs and find solutions," hesaid. Former Akali Dal general secretary Manjit Singh Calcuttaalso said: "In case the CM does not welcome the Minister (Sajjan) itwill hurt the sentiments of the community."

AAP chief whip Khaira: Captinsulted Sajjan, will welcome him

DESK REPORTCHANDIGARH - AAP has claimed that Capt Amarinder Singhhad attended a function organised by alleged Khalistanisympathisers in Canada in May 2005. HS Phoolka, Leader ofOpposition, and senior AAP leader also posted a photo of CaptAmarinder addressing a gathering in Canada with KhalistanJindabad slogan Phoolka said thus Capt cannot question Sajjan'slinks with anyone when he himself was at an event organisedby Khalistani leaders. Capt Amarinder, however said he wasnot aware of that banner in the background.AAP said it will organise a function to welcome Sajjan duringwhen he arrives in Punjab with Phoolka saying Capt insulted aSikh leader who became the Defence Minister of a country likeCanada. He denounced Capt's refusal to meet Sajjan during his visit tothe state to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple. AAP chief whip, SukhpalSingh Khaira, said the party will welcome Sajjan as he represents Sikhs inCanada which is an honour not only for Sikhs but for all Punjabis. Khairasaid: "Amarinder 'outburst' against Sajjan proves that he is vindictive to-wards him. He (CM) wanted to take 'revenge' from NRIs in Canada as theydid not welcome him during his pre-poll visit there."



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017 s p e c i a l r e p o r t

Pakistan Taliban ex-spokesperson EhsanullahEhsan surrenders to security forces

ISLAMABAD (IANS) Pakistani military on Monday announced thatEhsanullah Ehsan, former spokesperson of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pa-kistan and senior member of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, had turned himself into Pakistan's security agencies. The Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor announcedthat Ehsanullah Ehsan had turned himself over to the security forces.He did not say when and where, however."I want to take this oppor tunity to announce that Ehsanullah Ehsan,the former spokesperson of the TTP and a leader of the Jamaat-ul-

Ahrar, has turned himself in to our security agencies," he added.Maj. Gen. Ghafoor said, "There can be no bigger achievement forPakistan than the fact that our biggest enemies are now turningthemselves in." He said, the people, the state and the institutions ofPakistan "have made considerable progress in the betterment of thecountry's security situation.""We have progressed to the point that the people who've been plan-ning attacks on Pakistan's soil from across the border have star tedto see the error of their ways," the ISPR Director General said.

NEPALESE PRESIDENTARRIVES WITH A 'MESSAGE

OF FRIENDSHIP' IN INDIA

NEW DELHI, (PTI) Nepal's President Bidhya Devi Bhandariarrived here today on her first overseas tour, carrying a 'mes-sage of friendship' for India and to fur ther strengthen bilat-eral ties. She will hold talks with President Pranab Mukherjeeand Prime Minister Narendra Modi tomorrow to explore waysto step up cooperation between the two close neighbourswhose ties faced some strains following the agitation by theMadhesi community last year."We are carrying a message of friendship from Nepal,"Nepal's Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat, who is ac-companying the president, told PTI. During the talks, Bhandariis expected to seek India's suppor t for local body polls to beheld in Nepal on May 14. "We are going to have election inMay and we want suppor t for it from India," he said.On the proposed blockade by the Madheshi community, hesaid the Nepalese government is trying its best to fulfil aspi-rations of all sections including the Madheshi community.Vice President Hamid Ansari, External Affairs MinisterSushma Swaraj, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and FinanceMinister Arun Jaitley will also call on the Nepalese leader.Nepal's Ambassador Deep Kumar Upadhyay hosted a dinnerin honour of the president which was attended by a numberof leading political leaders including Murli Manohar Joshi ofBJP and CPI's D Raja. Bhandari was scheduled to visit Indiain May last year, but the trip was cancelled after the thencabinet in Nepal did not endorse the visit, citing lack of prepa-rations on the par t of the government. Earlier in the day, theexternal af fa i rs ministry spokesperson tweeted,"Neighbourhood first. Bidhya Devi Bhandari, President ofNepal, arrives in New Delhi on State Visit to India." Presi-dent Mukherjee will host a banquet in her honour on April 18.Bhandari will also visit Gujarat and Odisha and pay obei-sance at temples of Dwarka, Somnath and Puri.

12 INJURED IN SUSPECTEDACID ATTACK IN LONDON CLUB

FROM ADITI KHANNALONDON, (PTI) At least 12 people suffered burns after a mansprayed a corrosive substance inside a packed club in east Londonon Easter evening, prompting authorities to launch an investigationinto the incident. Scotland Yard officers believe a man threw acid attwo men after a dispute between two groups inside the venue, fromwhere hundreds of partygoers were evacuated."A total of 12 people attended hospital suffering burns. Ten peoplewere taken by ambulance and two people presented themselves atan east London hospital," Metropolitan Police said in a statement.Two of those injured remain in a serious but stable condition andothers were treated for minor injuries. "Officers believe a disputebetween two groups of people developed inside the venue, result-ing in a noxious substance being sprayed by a male suspect di-rectly at Victims 1 and 2. Other people inside the venue suffered theeffects of the substance. The substance is yet to be identified, but itis believed to have been acidic," the Met Police said. An investiga-tion is underway and no arrest has been made yet. "There is nothingto suggest that this is gang related," the Met said. It is understoodabout 600 people were at an event in the club on Easter Sundaywhen the incident took place. A London Fire Brigade spokespersonsaid: "The only information that we have is that it was an unknowncorrosive substance thrown within the nightclub. "It was identifiedby a pH paper test as a strong acidic substance."

Australian model, Isobella Fraser, 22, and her sister Prue,

20, were among 12 people injured during the suspected acid

attack in a London nightclub.

UAE-based businessman to make costliest ever Indian filmUAE (IANS) UAE-based busi-ness honcho BR Shetty hasannounced that he will invest Rs1,000 crore to produce the costliestever Indian film titled "TheMahabharata". In a statement

issued here, Shetty said the filmwill be produced in two partsand the shooting will begin nextyear. He said the first part wouldbe released in 2020 and 90 dayslater the second part also would

be released. The film would bemade in English, Hindi, Tamil,Malayalam, Telegu and Kannadabesides being dubbed into otherIndian and foreign languages. Tobe directed by ad film maker V.A.

Shrikumara Menon, the story ofthe film is an adaptation of M.T.Vasudevan Nair's JnanpeethAward winning novel,"Randamoozham", whichnarrates the Mahabharata storythrough the perspective ofBhima. National award winningactor Mohanlal will don thegrease paint to portray thecharacter of Bhima and will haveleading national and internationalstars besides the crew also wouldhave big names from Hollywood."This movie will be a true 'Make inIndia' made for the world. I amconfident that this film would beadapted in 100 languages andreach three billion people," saidShetty. "I feel honoured that myname has been heard for therole of Bhima ever since thenews of a cinematic adaptationof Nair's 'Randamoozham'star ted doing rounds. I feelhumbled and honoured at thesame time that the authorhimself has envisioned me forenacting Bhima," said Mohanlal.

PAKISTANI NOBEL LAUREATE MALALA YOUSAFZAI WITH PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU AFTER ADDRESSING THEPARLIAMENT HILL IN OTTAWA. SHE IS THE YOUNGEST PERSON TO LECTURE THE CANADIAN PARLIAMENT. MALALA RECEIVEDHONORARY CANADIAN CITIZENSHIP ON THIS OCCASION BECOMING THE SIXTH SUCH INDIVIDUAL.

PROTESTORS IN SEVERAL US CITIES HELD DEMONSTRATIONS DEMANDING US PRESIDENTDONALD TRUMP PUBLISHES HIS TAX RETURNS.


TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017c o m m u n i t y

Captain Amarinder lists Harinder Malhi as Khalistanisympathiser; I am a Sikh, replies Harinder on Channel Y

DESK REPORTMISSISSAUGA: MPP Harinder Malhi was invited over theweekend by Channel Y to give details of her motion on 1984Sikh riots. The interview was conducted by Yudhvir Jaswal,Group Editor and CEO of YMedia.Malhi moved a private member`s motion in the Ontario as-sembly a couple of days back seeking the 1984 anti-Sikhriots as 'genocide' that was passed by 34 votes in favour andfive against, accounting for just about a third of the Assembly`stotal strength of 107. The motion was rejected by the Indiangovernment. "We reject this misguided motion which is basedon a limited understanding of India, its constitution, society,ethos, rule of law and the judicial process," said externalaffairs ministr y spokesperson Gopal Baglay. He said theviews of the Indian government "have been conveyed to thegovernment and political leadership in Canada." Explainingher point of view, Malhi said her motion on 1984 was different

from the one brought in the parliament by Ontario NDP Deputyleader Jagmeet Singh as it talked more about truth and recon-ciliation. During this live and interactive session, several com-munity members commended her effor ts while others alsocriticized her. One caller asked if she brought the motion to getpolitical mileage. Replying to this concern, Malhi said: "MyMotion on 1984 is not for any political gains." She said it wasbrought to condemn all forms of communal violence, hatred,hostility, prejudice, racism and intolerance in India and any-where else in the world, including the 1984 genocide that wasperpetrated against the Sikhs throughout India.Thus Malhi said she called on all sides to embrace truth, jus-tice and reconciliation. On another question posed to her by acaller that Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder has listedher as a Khalistani sympathiser, Malhi did not clearly addressthe issue but replied that she was a Sikh and has been taughtthose values.

Y MEDIA HELPS GURU GOBIND SINGH CHILDREN'S FOUNDATIONGENERATE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS

MP Sonia Sidhu Celebrates Charter ofRights and Freedoms' 35th AnniversaryBRAMPTON- Liberal Member of Parliament for Brampton South, SoniaSidhu, is joining with everyone in Brampton and all those across Canadato celebrate the 35th Anniversary of the Canadian Charter of Rights andFreedoms. Canada's history was forever changed for the better in 1982when the constitution was repatriated and a Charter-along with prin-ciples such as multiculturalism, bilingualism, and equality-within it.Member of Parliament for Brampton South, Sonia Sidhu, said, "OurCharter. Our values. Our path forward. Canadians consistently point tothe Charter as a source of pride and a reason why our communities arestrong, diverse, and vibrant. I see it in Brampton, and I am so pleased tobe celebrating our beloved Charter this month." The Charter includesrights, such as democratic rights, language rights, equality rights, legalrights, mobility rights, freedom of religion, freedom of expression, andfreedom of assembly and association. MP Sonia Sidhu is encouragingeveryone to learn more about the Charter, and to be actively involved inour democracy. "The Charter and section 35 are woven into historybooks and laws, and into the very fabric of our society. As we celebratetheir anniversary and Canada 150, let us embrace our constitutionalrights and recognize their continued role to helping to shape the Canadaof tomorrow," stated Minister of Justice, Jody Wilson-Raybould. OnMarch 13, the Department of Justice launched a countdown to today.Over the past 35 days, Canadians from across the country have em-braced our celebration and learned about the Charter, shared what itmeans to them and taken part in local celebratory activities.

SOON YOU CAN GET YOURMORNING COFFEE ON THE GOONTARIO - Ontario is making GO Transit even more convenientfor busy commuters by bringing Tim Hortons to select GO stationsas part of a year-long pilot project. Transportation Minister StevenDel Duca visited Oakville GO Station today to announce the newpartnership between Kilmer Group and Metrolinx. This partnershipwill result in four new Tim Hortons at Oakville, Clarkson, Ajax andOshawa GO stations starting this spring. Commuters will be ableto grab their morning beverage or snack right at the GO stationbefore getting on the train, making it even more convenient to takeGO Transit. Improving people's commute by making it more conve-nient to use public transit is part of our plan to create jobs, grow oureconomy and help people in their everyday lives. "The new partnershipbetween Kilmer Group and Metrolinx is another way that we are mak-ing transit more convenient and more attractive for people to use everyday. Making it easier to grab a cup of coffee or a snack on the gois par t of our plan to transform public transit across theGTHA." - Steven Del Duca, Minister of Transpor tation.

Reducing Class Sizes,Boosting Special EducationONTARIO - Ontario is boosting its suppor t for students andfamilies across the province by reducing class sizes, providingnew support for students with special education needs, and ensur-ing labour stability for at least two more years.Mitzie Hunter, Minister of Education, was at Sunny View Junior andSenior Public School today to make the announcement. The prov-ince has reached negotiated agreements with all teachers andeducation workers in Ontario. The agreements have now beenratified and provide an additional two years of stability for studentsand parents. Ontario is also investing in smaller class sizes forstudents in full-day kindergarten (FDK) and Grades 4-8.FDK classes, which are supported by a teacher and an earlychildhood educator, will now be capped at 30 students next schoolyear, falling to 29 students in 2018-19, and average no more than26 students per class within each school board. Support will alsobe provided to ensure that for students in grades 4-8, all schoolboards have average class sizes of 24.5 or fewer students. Addi-tionally, the province is supporting hiring approximately 875 teach-ers and 1,600 education workers to support students with specialeducation needs and other students at risk.Reducing class sizes, boosting support for students, and bringing sta-bility to the education system is part of our plan to create jobs, grow oureconomy and help people in their everyday lives. "Through the agree-ments reached with our partners, Ontario's students and families willexperience smaller class sizes, more staff in special education and afocus on local community needs. I am proud of our continued progressto provide students with a world-class, publicly funded edu-cation system." - Mitzie Hunter, Minister of Education.

ONTARIO RELEASES REPORTON AUTO INSURANCEOntario - Ontario continues to move ahead in making autoinsurance more affordable for Ontario's almost 10 milliondrivers. The government released a report by David Marshall,Ontario's adviser on auto insurance, which recommendstransformative steps to strengthen consumer protection,improve health outcomes for those injured in collisions andreduce insurance costs, including:* Prohibiting most cash settlements* Implementing mandatory programs of care to treatcommon injuries* Introducing independent, hospital-based examina-tion centres to provide single medical assessments* Increasing the financial services regulator's rolein monitoring and investigating practices in the auto insur-ance systemThe government will consult on the recommendations andannounce details of those consultations in the coming weeks.Affordable auto insurance and improved health outcomesfor those injured in accidents are par t of Ontario's plan tocreate jobs, grow our economy and help people in their ev-eryday lives. "Over the last several years, we've introducedimpor tant changes that have reduced auto insurance costsand lowered average premiums. We know that to achievemore savings for drivers and to address fraud, we need totransform the current system. Mr. Marshall has put muchthought into these recommendations and I want to thank himfor his work." - Charles Sousa, Minister of Finance.

SENIOR PUNJABI JOURNALIST VARINDERSINGH SPENT BUSY DAYS IN CANADA

DESK REPORTONTARIO - Senior Punjab-based jour-nalist and principal correspondent ofIndia's prominent daily the Tribune,Varinder Singh visited Canada re-cently. He had a busy schedule whilein the country and not only met withthe community but many senior gov-

ernment officials including MPs andMPPs. He met with Dinesh Bhatia,Consul General of India in Canada atthe Indian Consulate General inToronto during his North America trip.He paid visit to the Vice Consul ofIndia in Canada, Mahesh KumarLakra at the Indian Consulate.

Varinder also caught up with MPPHarinder Malhi, MPP HarinderTakhar and MPP Vic Dhillon in thecorridors of the Ontario Legis-lative Building at Queen's Parkin Toronto. Varinder Singh gotthe chance to chat with formerBrampton Counc i l l o r V icky

Dhillon in Toronto. He also vis-ited the Channel Y studios andin a discussion prior to elections inPunjab told Yudhvir Jaswal, GroupCEO and Editor of Y Media during aninterview predicted that AAP will onlyclinch 20 seats. Of course his pre-diction came true.

Volunteers from the Guru Gobind Singh Children's Foundation were invited by Southasian PULSE radio show between 10am to 12 noon and 3pm to4pm to generate funds for the needy and poor kids in India. Thousands of dollars were collected during the two shows.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017 c o m m u n i t y

PEEL MEMORIAL CENTRE STRENGTHENSCARE FOR BRAMPTON RESIDENTS

MP RANDEEP S. SARAI, MP RAJ GREWAL WITH IMMIGRATION MINISTER AHMED HUSSEN CELEBRATED VAISAKHI AT PARLIAMENT HILL.

MP SONIA SIDHU CELEBRATED EASTER BBQ AND A FUNDRAISER ORGANISED BY PEEL REGIONAL POLICE.

Indian in USA pleads guilty ofrunning call centre scamWASHINGTON (PTI) A 43-year-old Indian in the US has pleaded guiltyto illegally running a multi-million dollar Ahmedabad-based call centreand defrauding individuals. Bharat Kumar Patel was arrested for hisrole in the fraud and money-laundering scheme alongside 55 otherindividuals and five call centres in an indictment returned by a federalgrand jury in the Southern District of Texas on October 19. Thesentencing of Patel is scheduled for July 7.As part of the guilty plea he has agreed to be depor ted to Indiaafter serving his sentence. He was earlier living in Illinois.Accord ing to cou r t documen ts , Pa te l and h i s co-conspi ra tors perpet ra ted a complex scheme in whichind i v idua ls f rom ca l l cen t res loca ted i n Ahmedabadimpersonated officials from the IRS or US Citizenship andImmigration Services in a ruse designed to defraud victimslocated throughout the United States.Using information obtained from data brokers and other sources, call cen-tre operators targeted victims who were threatened with arrest, imprison-ment, fines or depor tation if they did not pay alleged mon-ies owed to the government, federal prosecutors said. Vic-tims who agreed to pay the scammers were instructed howto provide payment, including by purchasing stored value cards orwiring money, and upon payment, the call centres would immediatelyturn to a network of "runners" based in the US to liquidate and launderthe fraudulently-obtained funds, the Justice Department said.

ONTARIO SETS BUDGETDATE FOR APRIL 27ONTARIO - Charles Sousa, Minister of Finance, has announcedthat he will deliver the 2017 Ontario Budget on April 27. The Budgetwill outline the government's plan to create a stronger, healthierOntario through investments in key services that help people andtheir families. Minister Sousa made the announcement during aspeech to the Empire Club of Canada in Toronto, and provided anupdate on Ontario's economic growth. According to the Fourth Quar-ter Ontario Economic Accounts released today, the province's realGDP increased by 2.7 per cent in 2016, outpacing Canada's increaseof 1.4 per cent, higher than all the G7 countries and beating private-sector forecasters' projections. Ontario has been one of the fastest-growing provinces over the past three years, and private-sectoreconomists expect that will continue for at least another two years.Since the recessionary low in June 2009, Ontario has added nearly700,000 jobs, the majority of which are in full-time positions and inthe private sector. Balancing the budget in 2017-18 is part of Ontario'splan to continue to create jobs, grow the economy and help people intheir everyday lives. "Ontario is creating jobs, the economy is grow-ing, and we will deliver on our commitment to balance the budgetthis year. These are meaningful accomplishments in a time of globaleconomic uncertainty. A balanced budget and strong economicgrowth allow us to continue making important investments in theservices and supports that people rely on, including health careand education. I look forward to delivering the 2017 Budgetand expanding on these important commitments in the com-ing weeks." - Charles Sousa, Minister of Finance

Council Passes Resolution toSupport School Bus Safety BillBRAMPTON - Last week at General Committee, MississaugaCity Council passed a motion in support of Bill 94, Highway TrafficAmendment Act (School Bus Camera Systems), 2017 after theyreceived a deputation from Student Transportation of Peel Region(STOPR). STOPR plans and implements home-to-school transpor-tation for approximately 65,000 students travelling to 400 schoolsites.Today, Council passed the resolution.The resolution states that the City of Mississauga will work with theMinistry of Transpor tation and the Ministry of the Attorney Gen-eral to assist on developing policy and regulations in supportof Bill 94. Bill 94 will make it easier to get convictions fordrivers who don't stop when lights are flashing and the stoparm is down on a school bus. The Bill updates the HighwayTraffic Act to provide clear rules on using photographic orvideo evidence obtained through school bus camera systemsin order to penalize offenders."The City of Mississauga is proud to be a leader in suppor tingtechnology that helps keep our citizens and streets safe," saidWard 3 Councillor Chris Fonseca. "This bill will assist schoolbus drivers if they need to repor t a dangerous and aggressivedriver while on their route." The resolution, brought forward byCouncillor Fonseca, suppor ts the City's commitment to roadtraffic and pedestrian safety. Councillor Fonseca is a memberof the Traffic Safety Council, an advisory committee of Councilthat makes recommendations designed to protect studentsfrom the dangers of vehicular traffic.

ONTARIO - Ontario is helping people in the Brampton area get accessto the health care services they need closer to home with an investment in thenew Peel Memorial Centre for Integrated Health and Wellness. Premier KathleenWynne was in Brampton today to celebrate the opening of the new centre, whichbrings together a full range of health care services under one roof.The hospital will provide outpatient care and same-day surgeries atits Urgent Care Centre. It will ease the pressure on neighbouring hos-pitals and help patients with non-life-threatening illnesses or injuriesto get access to the care they need and receive that treatment morequickly. Patients will also have access to dieticians, chiropractorsand other specialized services such as dialysis day clinics, clinicsfor expectant and new mothers, targeted care for youth and seniors,wellness programs, and mental health and addictions programs.Increasing access to health care by building and upgrading hospitalsis par t of our plan to create jobs, grow our economy and help peoplein their everyday lives. "This new hospital will make it easier andfaster for people in the Brampton area to get high- quality health care.Brampton's population is growing quickly. This hospital is meeting

that demand now and also creating better care for the future. It is par tof our unprecedented investment across the province in hospitals,schools, roads, bridges and transit that is making a difference inpeople's everyday lives." - Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario"I'm proud to celebrate the opening of the new Peel Memorial Centrefor Integrated Health and Wellness. With this investment, we willensure that the people of Peel Region have access to high quality,integrated health care close to home. This hospital will lead the wayin building community par tnerships and providing innovative modelsof care that truly put patients at the hear t of our health system." - DrEric Hoskins, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care"I'm thrilled to see the new Peel Memorial Centre for Integrated Healthand Wellness officially open here in Brampton. This is great news forpeople in our community, who will have access to a full range ofhealth care services under one roof. This hospital demonstrates ourgovernment's commitment to providing families with top quality healthcare close to home." - Vic Dhillon,MPP Brampton West

DEFENDING ONTARIO WORKERS AND BUSINESSESONTARIO - Premier Kathleen Wynne released the following statement regarding New York State's decision on Buy American provision:"I am pleased that New York State has dropped Buy American provisions from its budget. Ontario's economy is deeply interconnectedwith New York State's and that relationship suppor ts good jobs and growth in both of our regions. This decision recognizes lawmakers'commitment to building on that strong relationship. The result also suppor ts and sustains the economic oppor tunities created for peoplein Ontario and New York through open access to government procurement."The decision reflects a clear understanding among New York State's political leaders of just how impor tant our ongoing par tnership isto both economies. The tremendous volume of trade between Ontario and New York State, which totaled US $22.7 billion in 2016, willcontinue to help drive prosperity in both regions. Our government has worked closely with our par tners in the federal and Québecgovernments to ensure that Canada was top of mind as New York State's legislators considered the Buy American provisions."Michael Chan, Minister of International Trade, and Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development and Growth, travelled to Albany inlate March to advocate for Canadian businesses and workers. Monique Smith, Ontario's Representative in Washington, D.C., was alsoon the ground several times in Albany, including last week, to ensure ongoing awareness of Ontario's close relationship with New YorkState and solicit suppor t. We also enlisted the suppor t of experts in the state budget process to ensure our position was heard."As par t of that process, our government was also prepared to react quickly if discriminatory Buy American provisions had passed withthe budget. Cabinet met last week and discussed how that response would have included introducing legislation next week to allowOntario to respond strongly to the Buy American policies. This effor t has paid off. Through our government's extensive engagement withstate legislators, we have made sure that they clearly understand the value of the impor tant business relationship between Ontario andNew York State."We do not take for granted our deep and long-standing relationship with New York State. I look forward to continuing to work closelywith Governor Cuomo and with our other par tners across the US, including at the National Governors Association meeting in RhodeIsland in July. I will also continue to suppor t Ontario workers and businesses by advocating for free trade and open, fair and competitiveaccess to government contracts. We will continue our effor ts to enhance our trade relationships with par tners in the U.S. and around theworld. As Premier, I am working to create oppor tunity and security for people in our province and free trade creates good jobs for thepeople of Ontario. I will continue to stand up on their behalf every time."

NEW LOCATION FOR OTTAWASERVICEONTARIO CENTREONTARIO - A ServiceOntario centre in Ottawa is moving to anew location on Monday, May 8. The new centre, located at2339 Ogilvie Road, Unit 14 (Beacon Hill Shopping Centre),offers plenty of free parking and many accessible featuresincluding an automatic door opener and barrier-free access. Itis located 5.7 km from the current location, at 349 St. LaurentBoulevard (Manor Park Plaza), which permanently closed at5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 12. For services April 13 throughMay 6, please visit one of these nearby centres:* Ottawa South: 1800 Bank Street, Unit 5* Ottawa City Hall: 110 Laurier Avenue West

The hours of operation at the new Ottawa ServiceOntario cen-tre will be:* Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday: 9:00am to5:00pm* Thursday: 9:00am to 7:00pm* Saturday: 9:00am to 1:00pmCan't get to a ServiceOntario centre in person? Save time andmoney by accessing more than 40 services online -- 24 hoursa day, seven days a week.


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AMARINDER VS SAJJAN: POLITICSOF A CAPTAIN AND A COLONEL

NEWS ANALYSIS

NOT 'BJP LITE', CONGRESS MUSTBECOME A MODERN, LIBERAL PARTY

BY AMULYA GANGULI

CHANDIGARH: One is Canada's Defence Minister and the other is theChief Minister of a state (Punjab) that has strong connections with theNor th American country. Both are politicians of standing and share amilitary background too. One has been a frontline trooper in war-ravaged Afghanistan as a Lt. Colonel in the Canadian Army; the otherhas seen war from close quar ters as a Captain in the Indian Army.But the for thcoming visit of Canadian Defence minister Harjit Sajjanto Punjab, the land of his bir th, has led to a political war of sor ts withPunjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh. Amarinder has gone on recordto say that Sajjan is a "Khalistani sympathiser" and that they will notmeet during the latter's visit to Punjab star ting next week. Even thoughthere is no direct proof of Sajjan's links to Khalistani elements,Amarinder has stuck to his guns.Amarinder's stand, besides the protocol issues involved with the vis-iting Canadian Defence Minister, has stirred up a political storm inPunjab -- a state which has such strong connections with Canadathrough its non-resident Indians (NRIs) settled there that the countryis, in a lighter vein, referred to as Punjab's 23rd district. The back-ground of Amarinder's rather hard stand on Sajjan dates to as recentlyas April last year when his visit to that country was scuttled at the lastminute after the Canadian authorities denied him permission to visit.Amarinder was to address rallies and meet with Punjabi NRIs inCanada, who are an influential and cash-rich group, in the run-up tothe Punjab assembly elections.A hur t Amarinder had shot off a letter to Canadian Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau, protesting the move. Amarinder had later even re-fused to meet the Canadian High Commissioner in India. Amarinder,who became Chief Minister of Punjab for a second time last month,feels that pro-Khalistan political leaders of Punjabi origin, includingSajjan, secretly backed the move by radical elements to deny him

entry into Canada.While the Canadian authorities did not let Amarinder in on the groundthat political activity was not allowed, leaders of the Shiromani AkaliDal and Aam Aadmi Par ty (AAP) openly campaigned within the NRIcommunity in Canada. The Punjab Chief Minister has, however, saidthat Sajjan will get all the security and protocol in the state that has tobe provided to a dignitary of his stature.Sajjan, 46, otherwise has strong credentials for visiting Punjab. His

parents and family lived in Punjab's Hoshiarpur district before mi-grating to Canada in 1976. He is the first Sikh to become the DefenceMinister of another country. During his visit to Amritsar, Jalandhar,Hoshiarpur and Chandigarh, Sajjan won't essentially miss meetingAmarinder as political and religious leaders in Punjab will welcomehim with open arms. The controversy over his visit to Punjab wasquite avoidable had Amarinder not taken a stand. After all, politicalleaders do hobnob with all kinds of elements in public life.

Having failed to delineate a cogent and credible line onsecularism, the Congress will have to ar ticulate a newposition to find its way back into political reckoning. For astar t, the par ty will have to realise that its effor ts to delinkreligion from politics, or the church from the state - theessence of secularism - went off track because it identifiedthe "church" too closely with Hinduism and did not payenough attention to keep Islam also at a distance from thestate.Because of this tactical error, the Congress played into thehands of the Bharatiya Janata Par ty (BJP) which made nosecret of its closeness to Hinduism and accused the Congressof being par tial to Islam for the sake of Muslim votes. This isa factor which A K Antony, among others in the Congress,acknowledged in a repor t on the par ty's defeat in the lastgeneral election. However, the repor t banked on run-of-the-mill explanations for the par ty's setback such as infighting,demoralisation among the workers, the absence of pre-pollalliances, the par ty's corrupt image and communalpolarisation orchestrated by the BJP.While much of this may be true, the repor t did not spell outhow the Congress could recover its earlier prime position. Asuggestion which has been floated in recent weeks is that theCongress can try "soft" Hindutva as a means of wooingvoters. This is a line which has long been prevalent in theCongress with V N Gadgil (1930-2001) being one of the earlyproponents. For Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, however, "forCongress, peddling 'BJP lite' is like Coke Zero. It will get uszero". Instead, the former Minister of State for External Affairswants his par ty to be demonstratively uncompromising onsecular ism.Apar t from the pursuit of secularism in its pristine form whichkeeps religion, in all its manifestations, at a far distance fromgovernance, what the Congress can do is to reboot itself as apar ty of the 21st century which rejects the superstitiousmedievalism of the saffron brotherhood with its propagation ofa milk-drinking Hindu deity - Ganeshji doodh pi rahein hain --or the conjuration of a patently fictitious past when Indianswere said to have invented everything from stem cell re-search to cars to planes to television, or astounding claimsabout cows exhaling oxygen and cow dung providing protec-tion against nuclear radiation.To rescue the country from such outrageous, antediluvianideas, the Congress has to present itself as the exact opposite- a forward-looking, progressive par ty committed to thedevelopment of a rational, scientific temperament so that thecommon man will not be prone to sectarianism based on hateand prejudice. To achieve this objective, the Congress itselfwill have to shed some of its present inhibitions such as adisinclination to take a for thright stand on the crucial issuesof the day. These include the country's economic direction towhich the merit versus quotas debate is related and thequestion of bans.To star t with the last, the Congress will have to set its faceagainst bans of all kinds - on books, thereby acknowledgingthat it made a mistake in banning Salman Rushdie's "TheSatanic Verses" in 1988 (P Chidambaram has done so, thoughonly in 2015); on films; on liquor and on beef. It has to beremembered that the Congress was the first to ban beef inMadhya Pradesh in 1955 when it was in power and the BJP

was not even formed. Moreover, even today it is in favour of anationwide ban on beef, as its senior general secretaryDigvijay Singh has said, in line with Rashtriya SwayamsevekSangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat's views. Yet, this pander-ing to the Hindu cause has led it nowhere, just as its propaga-tion of "socialism" - subsided food under the Food SecurityAct, doles for the rural unemployed under MNREGA - has beenof little help to the par ty.The reason is the inherent insincerity in these gimmickswhich are seen as populist, vote-catching manoeuvres by anoutfit clutching at straws to hold on to power. In contrast, thesteps by the BJ Pagainst books such as Wendy Doniger's tracton Hinduism or on beef are seen as driven by convictionseven if they are ill-conceived in the eyes of the liberals. Thelatter cannot but be disappointed by the palpable cynicism ofJawaharlal Nehru's par ty. What is worse for the Congress isthat these duplicitous ploys do not deceive anyone.Even if the Congress calls for a nationwide ban on beef, thepolitical advantage will still be the BJP's just as RajivGandhi's shilanyas (foundation) for the Ram temple did notfetch the Congress any votes in the 1989 election that it lost.Instead of indulging in such deceit, the Congress will have tounderline its adherence to the principles of liberalism whichbelieve in a free, open society where there are no constraintson what a person reads or eats, or who he or she chooses asa life par tner.



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OTTAWA - An orphanage in Por t-au-Prince, Haiti, will get aidfrom the Boomer's Legacy Fund today, thanks to the effor ts of aHaitian-born Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) member deployedon Operation HAMLET. Major David Roberge, a Plans & Evalu-ation Staff Officer within the United Nations headquar ters inPor t-au-Prince, spearheaded the initiative which will awardthe Foyer de l'Action pour l'Avenir $9,775 wor th of householditems, school materials, potable water and children's clothing.A relationship between deployed CAF members and the or-phanage was established years ago. Members regularly visitthe orphanage to provide suppor t and to spend time with the 10children, aged 6-15. The orphanage does not receive govern-ment funding and relies on private donations to meet their oper-ating costs. Since its establishment in 2006, Boomer's Legacyhas provided funds so that CAF members, serving on deploy-ments around the world, could help those most affected by warand pover ty - with an emphasis on healthcare and educationprograms for women and children.

Deployed CAF members helpprovide essential supplies to

orphanage in Haiti

OTTAWA - Canada believes that regulating the international arms tradeis essential for the protection of people and human rights, and isstrengthening its existing practices. As part of Canada's support for a strongerand more rigorous export control system, the Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Min-ister of Foreign Affairs, today delivered on the government's commitment to intro-duce legislation so Canada can accede to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT).The ATT is about protecting people from arms. It ensures countries effectivelyregulate the international trade of arms, so they are not used to support terrorism,international organized crime, gender-based violence, human rights abuses, orviolations of international humanitarian law. To implement necessary changes, inMarch 2017 Canada announced an investment of $13 million to further strengthenthe country's export control regime. These resources will be used to implementnew brokering controls, improve transparency, and support enhancements toCanada's export controls. Canada also recognizes the importance of promoting theATT and is contributing $1 million to the UN Trust Facility Supporting Cooperation onArms Regulation, in order to help other countries accede to the ATT. "The Arms

Trade Treaty can set a real global standard, and thereby help prevent human rightsabuses and protect lives. Canada's existing system of export controls meets mostof the treaty's thresholds, and this legislation will set our standards in law. We mustcontinue to encourage other countries to join this treaty, and we must ensure it isproperly implemented globally. We committed to introduce this legislation, and Iam very pleased that we will in turn raise the bar with a stronger and more rigoroussystem for our country." Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Canada bans removing passengersfrom overbooked airplanesOTTAWA, (IANS) The Canadian government has banned all airlines inthe country to forcibly remove passengers from overbooked flights,officials said. In a letter issued on Thursday to the heads of all airlinesthat fly in and out of the country, Transpor t Minister Marc Garneauwarned that an incident like the one injuring a passenger aboard a United

Airlines flight earlier this week is notallowed to occur in Canada, Xinhuanews agency reported."I am sure that you were as disturbedas I was, and as all Canadians were,over the appalling incident that took placeonboard a United flight earlier this week,when a passenger was forcibly re-moved from his seat," he wrote. "I amwriting to you today to convey that suchan incident would be unacceptable inCanada." The warning is not only forCanadian airlines such as Air Canadaand WestJet, but also to all internationalairlines that fly in and out of the country.The minister's letter comes after a pas-senger named David Dao, 69, wasdragged off an overbooked United flightin Chicago on Sunday after refusing toleave his seat to accommodate airlinecrew members. Dao was seriously in-jured by security officers who forcedhim off the plane against his will,banging his head on armrests inthe process. The minister's warn-ing comes ahead of expected leg-islation to introduce a passen-gers' bill of rights in Canada.

Canada prepares to join the Arms Trade Treaty

Dubai gurdwara's world record withbreakfast for 101 nationalities

DUBAI (IANS) A gurdwara in Dubai broke the world record forserving free breakfast to the maximum number of people fromdiverse nationalities. Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar enteredthe Guinness World Record on Thursday for serving continen-tal breakfast titled "Breakfast for Diversity" to 600 personsfrom 101 countries in an hour-long event in Jebel Ali. TheKhaleej Times repor ted that schoolchildren, government offi-cials and diplomats attended the event while Indian Ambassa-dor to the UAE Navdeep Singh Suri was the chief guest. P eoplefrom different par ts of the city flocked to the Jebel Ali Gardensand filled a temporary tent made for hosting the marathon break-fast event. The officials from the Guinness Book of WorldRecords confirmed that the gurdwara (Sikh temple) broke theprevious record of 55 nationalities having a continental break-fast, organised by Nutella at the Milan Expo in Italy in 2015.The gurdwara, which is known for serving free meals to allvisitors through its community kitchen, caters to over 50,000Sikh devotees in the United Arab Emirates. "Sikhism has al-ways embraced diversity as it has been part of our faith and belief, thatwe are all human beings to be treated with respect," Surender Kandhari,chairman of the Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar temple, told the daily. "Thegurdwara has been spearheading charity and volunteer work not only forthe Indian community but for the entire UAE community as well. We feelblessed to give in any form, as this is our selfless service to the society,"he said. Talal Omar, Guinness World Records MENA manager, said: "Weare proud to support the Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar in breaking afantastic record that brings together people of multi-faiths. We encouragerecord breaking activities that encourage all human efforts, particularlythose that bring people together".

DEFENCE MINISTER HARJIT SAJJAN HELD MEETING WITH THE CANADIAN HIGH COMMISSIONER IN NEW DELHI NADIR PATELAFTER REACHING INDIA.


TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017c a n a d a

BANK OF CANADA MAINTAINS OVERNIGHTRATE TARGET AT 1/2 PER CENT

OTTAWA - The Bank of Canadatoday announced that it is main-taining its target for the overnightrate at 1/2 per cent. The Bank Rateis correspondingly 3/4 per centand the deposit rate is 1/4 percent. Global economic growth isstrengthening and becoming morebroadly-based than the Bank hadexpected in its January MonetaryPolicy Repor t(MPR), althoughthere is still considerable uncer-tainty about the outlook.During the rest of this year andinto 2018 and 2019, growth inCanada is expected to moderatebut remain above potential. At thesame time, its composition is ex-

pected to broaden as the pace ofhousehold spending, especiallyresident ia l investment, s lowswhile the contributions from ex-por ts and business investmentincrease. The Bank now projectsreal GDP growth of 2 1/2 per centin 2017 and just below 2 per centin 2018 and 2019. Meanwhile, theBank has revised down its pro-jection of potential growth, reflect-ing persistently weak investment.With this combination of a higherprofile for economic activity anda lower profile for potential, theoutput gap is projected to close inthe first half of 2018, a bit soonerthan the Bank anticipated in Janu-

ary. CPI inflation is now at the 2per cent target, largely becauseof the transitory effects of higheroi l prices and carbon pricingmeasures in two provinces, aswell as other temporary factors.The Bank's three measures of coreinflation, on the other hand, havebeen dr i f t ing down in recentquar ters and wage growth re-mains subdued, consistent withmaterial excess capacity in theeconomy. CPI inf lat ion is ex-pected to d ip in the monthsahead, as the temporary factorsunwind, and then return to 2 percent later in the projection hori-zon as the output gap closes.

ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER PAOLOGENTILONI TO VISIT CANADAOTTAWA - Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau has announced that Paolo Gentiloni, PrimeMinister of the Italian Republic, will visit Canada on April 20 and 21, 2017. During the visit, PrimeMinister Gentiloni will meet with Prime Minister Trudeau to deepen the close bonds between ourtwo countries, as well as to discuss the G7 Leaders' Summit, commercial oppor tunities created bythe Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), and otherinternational issues. "Canada and Italy are close allies and friends, and enjoy a strong trade andinvestment par tnership. This relationship is reinforced by the dynamic Italian-Canadian commu-nity of about one and a half million people. I look forward to meeting with Prime Minister Gentilonito discuss our respective priorities for this year's G7 Summit, and how CETA will create good, well-paying middle class jobs on both sides of the Atlantic." - Justin Trudeau

SUPPORTING CLEAN TECH AND REDUCINGGREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONSONTARIO - Ontario is challenging local and international companies to develop the next genera-tion of transformative clean technologies to help fight climate change. The Solutions 2030Challenge encourages companies to develop breakthrough technologies that will helpOntario's industrial plants reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, meet the targets set inOntario's Climate Change Action Plan, and increase innovation and entrepreneurship in theprovince.Ontario has provided suppor t for the Solutions 2030 Challenge with proceeds from theprovince's carbon market through the Green Investment Fund. The challenge will positionOntario as a global leader in building a low-carbon future while suppor ting job growth andstrengthening the economy. Eligible teams can apply through the Solutions 2030 onlineapplication por tal by September 22, 2017. Selected teams will be awarded funding to taketheir transformative idea through prototype and demonstration stages in Ontario. Interna-tional applicants are expected to establish a significant presence in the province and helpOntario meet its greenhouse gas targets beyond 2030. Helping businesses innovate whilelowering greenhouse gas emissions is par t of Ontario's plan to create jobs, grow oureconomy and help people in their everyday lives."Challenging local innovators and inviting the best from around the globe to tackle green-house gas emissions is good for job growth and for our province's economy. Most impor-tantly, this initiative will improve the air we breathe and the water we drink for generationsto come." - Reza Moridi, Minister of Research, Innovation and Science"Global competitions such as this one play a key role in developing clean technologies thatwill help Ontario businesses and industries reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Workingtogether to develop innovative solutions will help us fight climate change while preparingindustries to thrive in a competitive, low-carbon economy." - Glen R. Murray, Minister ofthe Environment and Climate Change.



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SPORTS MINISTER VIJAY GOEL WITH OTHER BJP WORKERS HOLDING A PROTEST AT DELHI CM ARVIND KEJRIWAL'S RESIDENCE.

BJP OUT TO MURDER AAP: YOGENDRA YADAVNEW DELHI, (IANS) Swaraj India National President Yogendra Yadavon Thursday said Bharatiya Janata Par ty is out to murder Aam AadmiPar ty but the Arvind Kejriwal-led par ty will suicide before it getsmurdered. The former AAP member was addressing a public rallywhen he said, "There is no denying the fact that the BJP is out tomurder the Aam Aadmi Par ty. But the AAP, due to its misgovernance,misdeeds, corruption and compromises are all set to commit sui-cide." However, he is on the same page with CM Kejriwal when talk-ing about Delhi LG as he also accused former Lt. Governor Najeeb

Jung of an "arm of the ruling par ty (BJP) at the Centre."Jung obstructed many routine initiatives of the Delhi Government.The Delhi Police got after every real and imagined crime of AAP leg-islators like no other state police has done to any ruling par ty". Healleged that if the same standards were applied uniformly, dozens ofBJP's own MPs and hundreds of MLAs all over the country shouldhave been in jail. While the BJP has worked over time to highlight themisdeeds of the AAP, the harsh truth is that there were just too manymisdeeds waiting to be exposed.

Kejriwal defends using publicmoney in defamation caseNEW DELHI, (IANS) Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Fridaydefended the Delhi government bearing the legal expenses ofthe defamation case slapped against him by Union FinanceMinister Arun Jaitley, and questioned the BJP's motive behindraising the issue ahead of the recent Delhi assembly by-polland the capital's civic polls. The Bharatiya Janata Par ty (BJP)has been up in arms against Kejriwal over the Aam AadmiPar ty (AAP) government's decision to pay out Rs 3.4 crore tonoted lawyer Ram Jethmalani as fee for fighting the defama-tion case against the Chief Minister.But Kejriwal maintained the matter was governmental and notpersonal, unlike the BJP claim. "The rampant corruption inDelhi cricket administration is well known and as the ChiefMinister, I ordered an inquiry. I said many influential peoplewere involved in it and took one or two names," Kejriwal toldNDTV. "The defamation case resulted because of the inquirywhich I had ordered as the Chief Minister. So, how can that bemy personal matter?""If as the Chief Minister, I am endeavouring to clean up theDelhi cricket administration and have to hire legal exper ts,then it is the government which will pay for that," he said andquest ioned the BJP's motive behind raising the issue."Jethmalani has been appearing in the case for the last oneand a half years, so why are they raising this issue just daysbefore the polls?" said Kejriwal.

Congress' next aim is todecimate BJP in MCD polls: RameshNEW DELHI, (PTI) The Congress' first aim was to decimatethe AAP in Delhi, which is "evident" from the Rajouri Gardenbypoll result, and it will do the same to the BJP in municipalpolls, senior leader Jairam Ramesh said. Ramesh said thiswhile he visited Bhalaswa landfill site in nor th Delhi, alongwith Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken. "Congress' first aimwas to decimate the AAP in Delhi, which is evident from theRajouri Garden bypoll result. The par ty's next aim is the BJP,which will be seen in the MCD elections," the formerminister was quoted as saying in a statement by the DPCC.He said voters have seen that BJP is a "Bharatiya JumlaPar ty" and the Prime Minister makes "tall promises" in hisspeeches, but "nothing is evident at the ground-level."Ramesh said the Congress par ty will carry forward its fightto make Bhalaswa a zero-landfill area, and build a greenpark there for children to play. Maken said Ramesh, who isalso an exper t in environmental matters, has helped theDelhi Congress in drawing up a roadmap for solid wastemanagement and sanitation, which the par ty is takingforward to the people in the run-up to the MCD polls.Ramesh said it was his second visit to the landfill site, asthe first was when he was Union Environment Minister. Hesaid he had told the then Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshitto create a green playground for children at the site in thenext three to four years and she had said that it was a verygood suggestion, but you have to tackle the issue with theMCD as "I am tired of telling them about it". He said "talkswith the MCD continued for 2-3 years, but nothing could bedone." The central government was ready to sanction thefunds, but it was the MCD's job to execute the work, headded. He said when he became Union Urban and RuralDevelopment Minister in 2013, he took up the issue withDelhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, but "did not get anypositive response from Kejriwal either."

AAP gets drubbed in Rajouri by-poll, says people upset over MLA quittingNEW DELHI, (PTI) In a rude shock to the ruling AAP ahead of thecrucial MCD polls, the party today suffered a humiliating drubbing inthe Rajouri Garden by-poll, which saw its candidate relegated to thethird position. The par ty's vote share declined to 13 per cent as against47 per cent in 2015 Assembly polls. AAP candidate Harjeet Singhpolled 10,243 votes as compared to his BJP rival Majinder SinghSirsa, who got 40,602 votes.This is the party's second loss in less than two months after its poorshow in Punjab and Goa. Senior par ty leader and Deputy Chief Minis-ter Manish Sisodia attributed the defeat to its ex MLA Jarnail Singh,who quit as legislator to contest from Punjab against its former ChiefMinister Parkash Singh Badal from Lambi and said people were "up-set" over this. However, there was no word from Delhi Chief ArvindKejriwal on par ty's defeat."There was anger among people after Jarnail (Singh) went to Punjab.We tried convincing them but with the results we are realising that

people were not convinced and remained upset," Sisodia said. Inter-estingly, the par ty had kept Singh away from by-poll campaiging.Following Sisodia's remarks, Singh said, the par ty needs to do anhonest introspection. "Win or loss is par t of the electoral politics,but the par ty needs a deep and honest introspection. Par ty fightscollectively and win or loss is a collective responsibil i ty," hesaid.He, however, declined to elaborate on his remarks. Singh, sourcessaid, is also unhappy over par ty's functioning in Punjab duringthe state assembly polls. The AAP was expected to fare well but itcould get just 20 seats. The AAP sought to put on a brave faceeven as there is a fear that the loss could have an effect on thepar ty's prospects in the civic body polls, scheduled on April 23."We will pull up our socks in the upcoming polls and also try toconvince the people of Rajouri Garden. Whatever work was done byJarnail, we will carry it forward. After winning 282 seats in the Lok Sabha,

the BJP lost many bypolls. We will winthe MCD polls by telling people aboutthe work done by us and we will win ithandsomely," Sisodia said.



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Bypoll result will not impact civic polls: KejriwalMEMBERS OF A PARENTS' ASSOCIATION PROTESTING AGAINST PRIVATE SCHOOLS IN JALANDHAR, PUNJAB.

NEW DELHI, (IANS) A day after the AAP suffered a drubbing in theRajouri Garden assembly seat bypoll in Delhi, Chief Minister ArvindKejriwal on Friday said the defeat will not impact his par ty's pros-pects in the April 23 civic elections. In an interview with NDTV, Kejriwalsaid the Aam Aadmi Par ty lost the bypoll because the people in theconstituency were angry after par ty MLA Jarnail Singh resigned inthe middle of his term to contest the February 4 Punjab assemblyelections. "I was getting a feedback that the constituency's peoplewere angry that Jarnail Singh left to contest Punjab assembly elec-tions. People of Rajouri Garden did not like that Jarnail Singh left themmidway. We failed to convince the voters," Kejriwal said. Kejriwalsaid he is hopeful of winning the elections to the 272 wards of thethree municipal corporations in Delhi and "it will be wrong to see this(bypoll result) as a trailer for municipal elections. The Delhi loss wasjust an anger against one candidate, nothing more," the AAP national

convenor said. The Bharatiya Janata Par ty's candidate won the seatin the bypoll, the Congress came second, while the AAP candidatecame a distant third. Kejriwal also questioned the work done by theBharatiya Janata Par ty in the three municipal areas in the last 10year. "I ask people - (tell) one good thing the BJP has done in themunicipal bodies in the last 10 years." "For 10 years, the BJP hasbeen in charge of the MCDs; you can see how much filth there is onthe streets of Delhi. All the dengue, malaria… and this is despite allthe money they have. They are so short of cash that they can't pay their employ-ees. The MCDs under BJP rule did nothing. There is huge corruption in the MCDs,"Kejriwal said. The Chief Minister pointed to the work done by the AAP governmentin Delhi and said that the April 23 civic polls will be a referendum on their "goodwork" in the national capital. "There is a lot of positivity in Delhi aboutthe work we have done, especially in education, health and wateravailability," the AAP leader said.

Gujarat riots 2002 probe: SC relieves SIT chief R K RaghavanNEW DELHI, (PTI) The Supreme Cour t allowed R K Raghavan, who was heading the apex-cour t appointed Special Investigation Team(SIT) to probe 2002 Gujarat riots cases, to be relieved from the duty of heading the team. A bench comprising Chief Justice J S Kheharand Justices D Y Chandrachud and S K Kaul considered the submission of senior advocate Harish Salve, who is assisting the cour t asan amicus curiae, that Raghavan be relieved from the duty of heading the SIT. The bench hailed the work done so far by the SIT andallowed the request of Salve while asking A K Malhotra, another member of SIT, to oversee the functioning of the probe team. It alsorelieved another member K Venkatesam from the SIT and asked Malhotra to continue filing quar terly status report about the progressin the riots cases in the apex cour t. The top cour t-appointed SIT has been probing nine major post-Godhra riots cases including theNaroda Gam riots case per taining to the killing of eleven members of a community.

India rejects Pakistan's claim ofnot responding toinformation sought on JadhavKOLKATA, (IANS) Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh onFriday rejected as "untrue" Pakistan's claim that India hadnot responded to "specific information" sought on allegedIndian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav in January and said themilitary trial sentencing him to death was not transparent."I feel he did not get a transparent trial," Rajnath Singh toldmediapersons here. Reacting to top Pakistani foreign policychief Sartaj Aziz's statement that India has not respondedto a "Letter of Assistance requesting specific informationand access to cer tain key witnesses" regarding Jadhav,Rajnath Singh said: "No no, that's not true." The HomeMinister said all effor ts were being made to ensure justiceto Jadhav. "All effor ts are on to get Kulbhushan justice.India will go to any extent to get him justice," he said.Rajnath said that on Friday Indian High Commissioner inIslamabad Gautam Bambawale had sought consular ac-cess to Jadhav. "As per information with me, the IndianHigh commission met some minister of Pakistan, reiter-ated the demand for consular access" However, the con-sular access was denied again, for the 14th time.

Election Commission helpingBJP win polls, alleges KejriwalNEW DELHI, (IANS) Questioning the credibility of elec-tronic voting machines (EVMs), Delhi Chief Minister ArvindKejriwal on Friday said there are many ways to tamperwith the EVMs and the Election Commission (EC) is help-ing the BJP win elections. "There are many ways of tam-pering EVMs. I am an engineer from IIT … I can tell you 10ways how EVMs can be tampered. The EC is doing it inten-tionally… Why are they brushing the allegations under thecarpet? The EC is pulling out all stops to help the BJP win,"Kejriwal said in an interview with NDTV.Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)'s National Convener Arvind Kejriwal said:"There are solid evidences how EVMs give vote to the BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP) only, that's why we are raising the issue." Explain-ing how EVMs can be tampered with, Kejriwal said: "The chips,which are made by two different companies, can be manipulated atsource…a bug or a Trojan Horse (a virus/a malicious computerprogramme used to hack a computer) can be inserted in the chips atthe point of origin.""I am going to see now what kind of EVMs they are going to use…They are bringing back EVMs from junkyards. Earlier the EC said theywon't accept EVMs older than 2006 and now they are bringing thesemachines in polls." He also said that if EVMs are not fixed, "ourdemocracy won't survive."Asked whether he would take up the "openchallenge" by the EC to hack its EVMs, Kejriwal said: "Just waitand watch. See what happens in next 10 days."


TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017w o r l d

'Pakistanis themselves give a bad name toPakistan and Islam,' says Malala Yousafzai

Activists in Pakistan shout slogans against the killing of student Mashal Khan by his classmates in Khyber Pakhtounkhaw.

LUXURY VEHICLES: AUDI, BMW, MERCEDES, SPORTS CARS ANDCONVERTIBLE CARS. WE ALSO HAVE 7, 8, AND 9 PASSENGERS VEHICLES

NEW DELHI: Referring to the recent mob-lynching of a universitystudent for 'blasphemy', Pakistani Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai,in a strongly-worded video message, said no one but Pakistan is toblame for the poor image it has in the world."We talk about Islamophobia and how people give a bad name to ourcountry and our religion. No one is giving a bad name to our countryor our religion. We are doing that all by ourselves. We are enough forthat," Yousafzai said in the video message.On Thursday, Mashaal Khan, a 23-year-old journalism student in Pa-kistan wasmurdered by a screaming lynch mob on his universitypremises. The mob said Mashaal posted 'blasphemous' content onhis Facebook account. Not only did the lynch mob beat to a pulp andthen shoot dead Mashaal, it then continued to pound the boy's lifeless

body with sticks - all of this in the clear light of day.Yousafzai said that she spoke to the murdered student's father andsaid his message was that peace and tolerance should prevail de-spite the horrific incident. "This incident was not just about the deathof Mashaal. It was also the death knell of the message of Islam. Wehave forgotten our religion...we have forgotten our values and de-cency," the young Nobel Laureate said, not mincing any words.Yousafzai said Pakistanis need to study their religion carefully be-cause it preaches tolerance and peace. "It is the right of every Paki-stani to live safely and peacefully. If we keep wantonly murderingpeople... no one is safe," she said. Yousafzai concluded by urgingPakistani lawmakers and all political par ties to not allow such inci-dents to happen and to bring justice to Mashaal's surviving family.

Man arrested in France afteruttering threats in churchPARIS, (IANS) A man was arrested in Nice, France, onSunday after he entered a church uttering threateningwords, the media repor ted. The church was evacuated,Xinhua news agency repor ted. The man entered thechurch around 11.30 a.m., "sweating a lot and lookingexcited". The police quickly set up a security perimeterin the neighbourhood and arrested the man.

Nation must be united incondemning Mashal Khan'smurder: PM NawazISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturdayafternoon issued a strongly-worded condemnation of thelynching of a university student in Mardan over allega-tions of blasphemy. "I am shocked and saddened by thesenseless display of mob justice that resulted in themurder of a young student, Mashal Khan, at Wali KhanUniversity, Mardan. The state will never tolerate thosewho take the law in their own hands."The nation should stand united to condemn this crimeand to promote tolerance and rule of law in the society.No father should have to send his child off to be edu-cated, with the fear of having him return in a coffin." Theprime minister's condemnation came two days after theepisode, with Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leader Imran Khantaking the lead in condemning the brutal episode a dayearlier. Several social media users had criticised thepremier and other government representatives for whatthey said was 'silence' and 'apathy' from the ruling par ty.Before the prime minister, Defence Minister KhawajaAsif had condemned the murder on Twitter, saying:"Falsely accusing someone of blasphemy without veri-fication is also blasphemy.. this is not the teaching ofour Rasool Rehmat ul Almeen PBUH."The prime minister's daughter, Maryam Nawaz, alsotweeted regarding the incident soon after the premier'sstatement, saying: "Shocked to see Mashal Khan killingvideo. Vigilantism &mob justice are indicative of regres-sive & putrid mindset. Is that what we stand for?" Earlieron it was condemned by PTI chief Imran Khan and Inte-rior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.Mashal Khan's friend was pressurised to say he com-mitted blasphemy. He refusedA friend of Mashal Khan who was also accused of com-mit t ing blasphemy cla imed on Monday he waspressurised by university students to say Khan had com-mitted blasphemy, but he refused to do so. He said:"Mashal Khan was a talented and brilliant student hav-ing a kind hear t. On 13.4.2017, at around 11:00am, oneof my friends, namely Muhammad Abbas, called me onmy cellular phone and told me to come to the journalismdepar tment. Said Abbas was a conspirator. After hear-ing the shahadah from my mouth, forced me to give adeposition that Mashal Khan has committed blasphemyand has evil designs towards the religion of Islam, but Irefused as I never ever heard any unparliamentary, scan-dalous, or blasphemous words from Mashal's mouth."

RUSSIA REPORTS ARRESTOF SUSPECTED SUBWAYBOMB ORGANIZERMOSCOW, (AP) Russia's Federal Security Service saysit has arrested a suspected organizer of the suicide bomb-ing in the St. Petersburg subway that killed 14 passen-gers. The service, the FSB, said today the suspect wasarrested in Odintsovo, a city just outside Moscow. Itsaid the suspect was armed with a pistol and was ofCentral Asian origin, but did not elaborate. The bomberin the April 3 blast was from Kyrgyzstan. The impover-ished, predominantly Muslim countries in Central Asiaare seen as fer tile ground for Islamic extremists. Thou-sands of their citizens are believed to have joined theIslamic State group. The FSB said the man arrested to-day was believed to have helped prepare the suicidebomber. At least eight others have been arrested in con-nection with the bombing.

Address source of inequality:Bangladeshi economistPUDUCHERRY, (PTI) Access to rural population to tan-gible assets and making farm and manufacturing sectorworkers equity par tners are key factors in addressing"growing problems of inequality," noted Bangladeshieconomist Rehman Sobhan said. Also, establishmentof a 21st century Agrarian Reforms Commission andthe "need to address the sources of inequality" wereimpor tant, said Sobhan, who is chairman of Centrefor Policy Dialogue (Dhaka-Bangladesh).He was delivering the "UNESCO Goodwill Ambassa-dor Madanjeet Singh second memorial lecture on ad-dressing the structural sources of inequality in SouthAsia" at Pondicherry University here. "Establishmentof an agrarian reforms commission, providing accessfor rural population to tangible assets, ensuring bet-ter quality education in institutions run by the gov-ernment and also electoral reforms" are key factorsneeded to address the growing problems of inequal-ity, he said. "Even within the prevailing inequitablesocial dispensation across South Asia there is noreason why we can't explore agrarian reforms whichare politically feasible as well as economically sus-tainable," he said.

CHINA SAYS NO POLITICAL MOTIVEAS N KOREA FLIGHTS SUSPENDED

BEIJING, (AFP) China today denied any political motive in the cancel-lation of flights by its flag carrier to North Korea, as pressure mountson Beijing to help curb Pyongyang's weapons programmes. Statebroadcaster CCTV repor ted last Friday that Air China had suspendedits Beijing-Pyongyang route, leading to speculation the move wasintended to pressure the Nor th. But foreign ministry spokesman LuKang distanced his government from the decision and said it waspurely "market- based"."It's natural for Air China or other airlines to make such decisions," Lutold a regular press briefing. "There shouldn't be overinterpretation ofthis issue." Beijing is Pyongyang's only major ally and biggest tradepar tner. It is being urged by the Trump administration to do moreto rein in the Nor th's missile and nuclear weapons programmes.In February China announced it was halting all impor ts of coalfrom Nor th Korea - a crucial earner for Pyongyang -- for the restof the year. A customer service representative for Air China, theonly foreign carrier operating a regular commercial flight to Nor thKorea, said it had cancelled the flights due to low demand. "AirChina has not suspended operations for the Beijing- Pyongyang

route," the employee told AFP, adding "these flights were can-celled based on ticket sales." An operator reached through theairline's customer service hotline said the booking system in-dicated that the earliest available Beijing-Pyongyang flight wasfor March next year. Travel disruption also hit Nor th Korea'sflag carrier Air Koryo, which saw its Beijing-bound service de-layed more than ten hours.Workers at Pyongyang airpor t told passengers the delay wasweather-related, although conditions in the area and in Beijingappeared clear. Major Chinese travel agencies also told AFPthey have stopped offering tours to Nor th Korea due to lack ofinterest. "We didn't receive any request to take the trips off theshelf - the reason was poor sales," Wang Mi, a spokeswoman for theonline travel company Tuniu.com, told AFP. Gan Tingting, a spokeswoman fortourism booking site Lvmama.com, said trips to Nor th Korea hadlong been discontinued because the country was "not a hot destina-tion". Foreign companies bringing tour groups to Nor th Korea, how-ever, have seen no dip in demand. "We're business as usual," saidMatt Kulesza, media officer for Young Pioneer Tours.

CARACAS, (AFP) Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro hasordered the army into the streets as the volatile country bracesfor what his opponents vow will be the "mother of all protests"recently. Maduro, who has faced violent protests over recentmoves to tighten his grip on power, ordered the military todefend the leftist "Bolivarian revolution" launched by his latementor Hugo Chavez in 1999. "From the first reveille (onMonday morning), from the first rooster crow, the BolivarianNational Armed Forces will be in the streets... saying, 'Longlive the Bolivarian revolution,'" Maduro said Sunday night in atelevised address.State TV showed images of army units marching in the streetsof Caracas as Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino watched. Butthere was no sign of soldiers on patrol Monday morning in thecapital. Venezuela has been rocked by two weeks of unrest

Preseident Maduro orders Venezuela army into streetssince Maduro's camp moved to consolidate its control with aSupreme Cour t decision quashing the power of the opposition-majority legislature. The cour t par tly backtracked af ter aninternational outcry, but tension only rose fur ther when authori-ties slapped a political ban on opposition leader HenriqueCapriles. Five people have been killed and hundreds woundedin the ensuing protests as riot police clashed with demonstra-tors.Maduro's opponents have called for a massive protest Wednes-day, a national holiday that marks the star t of Venezuela'sindependence struggle in 1810. The president's suppor ters havecalled a counter- demonstration the same day. It is a touchydate in Venezuela, where Chavez and Maduro have built apolitics of populist, left-wing nationalism around the strugglefor independence from colonial Spain and its hero, Simon

Bolivar. Maduro is fighting offthe center-right opposition'seffor ts to force him frompower amid an economiccrisis that has sparked severefood shor tages, riots andlooting. Opposition leadershave urged the military -- apillar of Maduro's power -- toturn on the socialist president.Maduro denounced hisopponents as "traitors" andcalled the new deployment asign of the military's "honor,unity and revolutionarycommittment." The defenseminister vowed the armywould show its "fighting spiritahead of April 19," but saidthe deployment was "a call topeace." "We don't wantconfrontation," he said.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017 w o r l d

RUSSIA, US AGREE ON JOINTWORK OVER SYRIAN CONFLICT

US NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER LT. GENERAL (RETIRED) HR MCMASTER HELD MEETING WITH SARTAJ AZIZ, ADVISOR TOPAKISTANI PRIME MINISTER NAWAZ SHARIF DURING HIS VISIT TO ISLAMABAD.

Syria's Assad says chemicalattack 100 per cent fabricationDAMASCUS, (AFP) Syria's President Bashar al-Assad saida suspected chemical weapons attack was a "fabrication"to justify a US strike on his forces. The embattled leader,whose country has been ravaged by six years of war, saidhis firepower had not been affected by the attack orderedby US President Donald Trump, but acknowledged fur therstrikes were possible. Assad insisted his forces had turnedover all their chemical weapons stocks years ago andwould never use the banned arms. The exclusive inter-view with AFP in Damascus yesterday was his first sincea suspected chemical weapons attack that killed dozensof civilians in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun."Definitely, 100 per cent for us, it's fabrication," he said ofthe incident. "Our impression is that the West, mainly theUnited States, is hand-in-glove with the terrorists. Theyfabricated the whole story in order to have a pretext for theattack," added Assad, who has been in power for 17 years.At least 87 people, including 31 children, were killed in thealleged attack, according to the Britain-based Syrian Ob-servatory for Human Rights monitor.But Assad said evidence came only from "a branch of Al-Qaeda," referring to a former jihadist affiliate that is amongthe groups that control Idlib province, where Khan Sheikhunis located. Images of the aftermath, showing victims con-vulsing and foaming at the mouth, sent shockwaves aroundthe world. But Assad insisted it was "not clear whether ithappened or not, because how can you verify a video? Youhave a lot of fake videos now."

FIRST MUSLIM FEMALEJUDGE IN US FOUND DEADNEW YORK, (IANS) Sheila Abdus-Salaam, the first-everfemale Muslim judge in US history and the first African-American woman to serve on New Yorks highest cour t,was found dead in the Hudson River, police said. Thebody of Judge Abdus-Salaam, 65, was discovered float-ing fully clothed on the Manhattan side of the river bythe Henry Hudson Parkway - just a mile from her cen-tral Harlem home - on Wednesday afternoon, officialssaid. She was taken to a pier on the Hudson River andwas pronounced dead by paramedics, New York DailyNews repor ted. The police were investigating how sheended up in the river, and it was not clear how longJudge Abdus-Salaam, who lived nearby in Harlem, hadbeen missing.US' mother of all bombs kills 36 IS militants in AfghanistanKabul/Washington, April 14 (IANS) At least 36 IslamicState (IS) militants were killed after the US military struckthe terror group's position in eastern Afghanistan with a mas-sive GBU-43 bomb, also known as the "mother of all bombs",the Afghan Defence Ministry said on Friday.The US military dropped the largest non-nuclear, 10-tonnemissile powered by a wave of air pressure, on an IScave complex in Achin District, in Nangahar Provincebordering Pakistan. "The strike has destroyed an ISheadquar ters, three IS hideouts along with several bun-kers and deep tunnels as well as huge amount of weap-ons and ammunition," the Defence Ministry statementsaid. No civil ian was injured in the raid which tookplace in Mohmand Dara village, Asadkhil area of thedistrict, the statement added.A spokesman for the ministry said the bombing wascarried out "in coordination" with Afghan military forces.The strike was designed to minimise the risk to Afghanand US forces conducting clearing operations in the areawhile maximising the destruction of IS fighters and facili-ties, said the US Forces-Afghanistan, which is par t of NATO-led Resolute Suppor t. "US forces took every precaution toavoid civilian casualties with this strike. US forces willcontinue offensive operations until ISIS-K (IS) is destroyedin Afghanistan," it said. Afghan President MohammadAshraf Ghani hailed the attack on the IS position.

Kulbhushan Jadhav's deathsentence based on credibleevidence: Pakistan's Sartaj AzizISLAMABAD (IANS) Pakistan has rejected India's accusa-t ions that there were no credible evidence againstKulbhushan Jadhav and warned that " inf lammatory"statements over his death sentence would only resultin escalation of tension in the bilateral ties. PakistanPrime Minister's Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sar taj Azizsaid that due process of law was followed in the trial of46-year-old Jadhav, who was sentenced to death by aPakistani military cour t for alleged spying and terroractivi t ies."Kulbhushan Jhadav, who is responsible for espionage,sabotage and terrorism in Pakistan, has been tried ac-cording to the law of the land, in a fully transparentmanner while preserving his rights, as per the Consti-tution of Pakistan," he said. "His sentence is based oncredible, specific evidence proving his involvement inespionage and terrorist activities in Pakistan."Aziz "condemned" the Indian government's reaction overJadhav's sentencing and warned that it would fur ther"aggravate the people-to-people hostility. I would liketo ask India why Kulbhushan Jhadav was using a fakeidentity impersonating as a Muslim? Why would an in-nocent man possess two passpor ts, one with a Hinduname and another with a Muslim name? Since Indiahas no credible explanation about why their servingNaval Commander was in Balochistan, it has unleasheda flimsy propaganda campaign. "Inflammatory state-ments and rhetoric about 'pre- meditated murder' and'unrest in Balochistan', will only result in escalation, serv-ing no useful purpose," Aziz warned.

MOSCOW, (IANS) Russia and the US on Wednesday agreed to keepon fighting international terrorism and continue discussions on Syr-ian conflict settlement, despite turbulent bilateral relations and a stringof pending disputes between the two countries. In a news conferencefollowing talks with visiting US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and atwo-hour joint meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Rus-sian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the discussions were fruit-ful, underlining good prospects for future joint work."It has been a long day…The talks were comprehensive, frank andcovered the whole spectrum of issues, which are key to our bilateralrelations and interaction on the international affairs," Xinhua newsagency quoted the Minister as saying. "With all the existing prob-lems, both objective and ar tificially created ones, we still havequite a few prospects for joint work. Russia is open to dialogues with

the US in different areas, and not only to dialogues but also to jointactions," he added.Echoing the Russian stance on cooperation, Tillerson said Russiaand the US will continue discussions about how to find a solution tothe Syrian conflict. "Foreign Minister Lavrov and I agreed we wouldconsider fur ther proposals made about the way forward in Syria, in-cluding consulting with our allies and coalition members." Tillersonsaid in the news conference.Earlier in an interview broadcast on Wednesday before the meetingwith Tillerson, Putin said mutual trust between Russia and the US,especially on the military level, had eroded in the first few months ofTrump's presidency. Putin's view was shared by Tillerson who, on thefirst visit by the Trump cabinet to Russia, said ties between the twocountries were at a low point marked by serious distrust.

Zarif calls US bombing of Syria unacceptableTEHRAN, (IANS) Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarifon Friday called the recent US missile attack against Syriaunacceptable, media repor ts said. Before travelling to Moscowfor talks with his Russian and Syrian counterpar ts, Zarifcriticised Washington's unilateral move and reiterated his callfor an impar tial international investigation into the attack, Efenews repor ted. Washington's bombing of the Syrian ShayratAirbase on April 6 came in retaliation for the chemical attackallegedly launched by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against

Idlib province's town of Khan Sheikhoun. Iran, Russia and Syriadeny that the authorities in Damascus were behind the attack,in which more than 80 people were killed and hundreds injured.The head of Iranian diplomacy has in recent days talked tomany of his counterpar ts in a bid to persuade them of the needto open an impar tial investigation. Later on Friday, Zarif is setto meet with his Russian and Syrian counterpar ts, SergeyLavrov and Walid al-Muallem, with whom he will also holdbilateral meetings.

US nudges Pak to 'confront' terror in all its formsFROM SAJJAD HUSSAIN

ISLAMABAD, (PTI) The US today asked Pakistan to "confront" terror-ism in all its forms as America's National Security Adviser heldtalks with the top civilian and military leadership here during anunannounced visit, the first by a top Trump administration officialto this country.US National Security Adviser (NSA) H R McMaster, who arrivedhere earl ier in the day, held talks with Prime Minister NawazSharif, Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sar taj Aziz,army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Pakistan NSA Lt Gen(retd) Nasser Janjua and Special Assistant to the Prime Ministeron Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi. "McMaster expressed ap-preciation for Pakistan's democratic and economic development,and stressed the need to confront terrorism in all its forms," saida US Embassy statement on McMaster's meeting with the topcivilian and military leadership here.The two sides discussed a range of bilateral and regional issues,it said. During McMaster's call on, Sharif, while talking aboutIndo-Pak ties, reiterated his "firm conviction" to sustained dia-logue and meaningful engagement as the only way forward toresolve all outstanding issues, including the Kashmir dispute, a

Prime Minister's Office (PMO) statement here said. Sharif wel-comed President Trump's willingness to help India and Pakistanresolve their differences par ticularly on Kashmir and noted thatthis could go a long way in bringing sustainable peace, securityand prosperity to the region, the statement said.The Prime Minister reaff irmed his commitment to a peacefulneighbourhood and apprised the US NSA of the steps taken byPakistan to reach out to both India and Afghanistan, the statementsaid. Sharing his concerns over the deteriorating security situa-tion in Afghanistan and the continuing impasse, Sharif conveyedPakistan's readiness to work with the international community toexplore ways in which the Afghan crisis can be resolved, it said.McMaster's visit to Afghanistan and Pakistan comes just daysafter the US dropped the largest non-nuclear bomb targeting anIslamic State complex in Afghanistan, close to the border withPakistan. This was McMaster's first visit to Pakistan as the USNSA and the first formal high-level exchange between the US andPakistan under the new Donald Trump Administration. During hismeeting with McMaster, Sharif stated that across-the-board con-sensus was achieved by his government to combat extremismand terrorism, the PMO statement said.

Austria calls for ending Turkey's EU membership negotiationsVIENNA, (IANS) Austria on Monday called on the European Union (EU) to end membership negotiations with Turkey in the wake of areferendum result on constitutional reform that would afford greater powers to the country's President. Foreign Minister SebastianKurz said the outcome of Sunday's referendum went against EU principles, Efe news repor ted. On Sunday, Turkey went to thepolls in a referendum on introducing an 18-point overhaul of the constitution that involves scrapping the office of PrimeMinister and handing most executive power over to the President. About 55 million Turks were eligible to vote in the referen-dum to establish a presidential system with wide-ranging executive powers instead of the current parliamentary model.Speaking to Austria's public radio, ORF, Kurz said the "Yes" vote win was "a clear signal against the European Union". While herecognised that almost half the population voted "No", he said the narrow 51.4 per cent win for the controversial constitutionalreform meant that Turkey continued to move away from the principles of the rule of law and democracy. The head of Austriandiplomacy said he hoped for a response from the EU and a change in the stance of members who defended Ankara's accessionprocess. Turkey could not become a member of the EU, he said.

Russia hopes US won't act unilaterally against PyongyangMOSCOW, (IANS) Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday said he hoped the US would not take unilateral action againstNor th Korea. Lavrov made these comments during a news conference in Moscow in the wake of Pyongyang's failed missile launchover the weekend, Efe news repor ted. "We do not accept Pyongyang's reckless nuclear and missile actions in violation of numerousUN Security Council resolutions," Lavrov said."But this does not mean that it is possible to violate international law in the same way by using force," he added, referring to a possiblestrike by the US military against North Korea. "I very much hope that there will be no unilateral actions, like those that we saw recentlyin Syria," said Lavrov. On April 6, US President Donald Trump ordered the bombing of the government-held Shayrat Airbase, located inthe Syrian province of Homs, following repor ts of a chemical attack on the town of Khan Shaykhun that left at least 80 people dead.Lavrov's comments came shor tly after US Vice President Mike Pence said during a trip to Seoul that "Nor th Korea would do well notto test (Trump's) resolve."

i don't promote breaking up of any country: defence...

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