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BJP govt should not cite lack of funds for Mahila Samman scheme: Atishi

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New Delhi, Feb 14: Dishing out data on the AAP government’s good financial performance, outgoing Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Friday sought to plug any chance for the next BJP government offering an excuse of lack of funds for not implementing schemes like Rs 2,500 monthly financial assistance to women.

Addressing the media here, Acting Chief Minister Atishi took pains to justify the AAP government’s freebies or free social welfare schemes, dispelling doubts that the Arvind Kejriwal brand of welfare politics did not mean ‘bad economics’.

The Acting Chief Minister said she was sharing the data about the AAP government’s good economic performance so that BJP leaders do not blame the outgoing government for the alleged poor state of finances and delay the implementation of the BJP’s poll promises.

“I hope the new BJP government will not make financial excuses and fulfil all its promises made to women and others,” she said.

She said Delhi’s Budget outlay under Central rule in 2014-15 was Rs 31,000 crore and under the Congress government in 2009-10 the outlay was Rs 25,000 crore, she said.

After the 10-year rule under the AAP government, in 2024-25 the city’s Budget outlay was Rs 77,000 crore, marking a rise of 2.5 times, she said.

Talking about the debt that the AAP government acquired in legacy from the previous Congress government, she said the debt to GDP ratio in 2014 was 6.6 per cent and it came down in 2023 to 3.9 per cent and in 2024 the figure stood at 3 per cent.

“Under Arvind Kejriwal, the city’s debt to GDP ratio was halved from 6.6 per cent to 3 per cent,” she said, highlighting how well the AAP government managed the finances.

Acting CM Atishi also tried to showcase the poor performance of BJP governments in other states by sharing debt to GDP ratio in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

“In BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, the debt to GDP ratio is 32.5 per cent and in Madhya Pradesh, the debt to GDP ratio is 33 per cent,” she said.

She also highlighted a CAG report in 2022 which complemented the AAP-led Delhi government for being the only revenue-surplus state in the country since 2015.

National News

Dawoodi Bohra community met PM Modi, said thank you for the Waqf law

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Delhi News: A delegation of the Dawoodi Bohra community met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday (April 17). During this, the Dawoodi Bohra community expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recently passing the Waqf Amendment Act 2025. The community described the Waqf Amendment Act as a long-pending demand. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju was also present with the Prime Minister during this meeting.

The delegation of the Dawoodi Bohra community, who came to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said that this law was being demanded for a long time through the Dawoodi Bohra community, which has now been fulfilled by the government. The delegation said that this has strengthened the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas’.

PM Modi gave this assurance
The delegation of the Dawoodi Bohra community met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and expressed its full faith in the policy of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas’. He said that the decisions taken by the government promote the inclusion and progress of all sections. The delegation appreciated the positive changes taking place under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi and thanked him for his efforts. The Prime Minister also interacted with the representatives of the community and appreciated their contribution and assured that the government is committed to the equal development of all communities.

Who is the Dawoodi Bohra community
The Dawoodi Bohra community belongs to the Muslim sect, which is mainly from West India and whose members are settled in more than 40 countries of the world. The Dawoodi Bohra community connects its heritage to the Fatimi Imams, direct descendants of Prophet Muhammad in Egypt. Dawoodi Bohras around the world are guided by their leader Al-Dai al-Mutlaq (unrestricted preacher), who earlier operated from Yemen and has been operating from India for the last 450 years.

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Crime

Put under house arrest again, says Mirwaiz Umar Farooq

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Srinagar, April 18: Senior religious and Huriyat Conference (HC) Chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, said on Friday that authorities have placed him under house arrest, thereby denying him the right to offer congregational prayers during the day.

Mirwaiz Farooq said on X, “Every Friday I am put under arbitrary house arrest ! Putting pressure on me not to speak up, the ban also aims to weaken the centrality of Muslim institutions of the valley-the Jama Masjid, office of the Mirwaiz, and cause collective grief to Muslims and all those who oppose this authoritarian and sectarian outlook. My house detention case is still pending in court, where I am seeking relief from the Hon’ble High Court, but In such times patience remains our only strength.”

Mirwaiz traditionally delivers the Friday sermon at the Jamia Masjid in the Nowhatta area of old Srinagar city. He also heads the Anjuman-e-Nusratul Islam, a religious organisation that runs some educational institutions in Kashmir, including the Islamia High School in Rajouri Kadal area of Srinagar.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) last month declared the Mirwaiz-headed Awami Action Committee (ACC) a banned organisation for five years. The ACC was formed in 1963 during the Holy Relic agitation by Mirwaiz Maulana Mohammad Farooq. After the elder Mirwaiz was assassinated in 1990 by the terrorists, the ACC came to be headed by his son, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.

The MHA order said that the ACC has been encouraging youth to violence and is acting in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the state.

Mirwaiz Farooq, who is the chairman of the Hurriyat Conference, has witnessed the desertion of several affiliates. As many as 12 Hurriyat-linked organisations have broken off from secessionism, reposing trust in the Constitution of India.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said that “separatism has become history in Kashmir”, and the unifying policies of the Modi government have eliminated separatism in J&K. He has also said this is a victory of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’.

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Crime

Harpreet Singh, responsible for terror attacks in Punjab, arrested by FBI

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Chandigarh, April 18: National Investigation Agency (NIA) charge-sheeted Harpreet Singh, accused of carrying out terror attacks in Punjab, has been arrested by the US security agencies – the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Enforcement and Removal Operations in California’s Sacramento.

The FBI said on Friday that Harpreet Singh, alias Happy Passia, entered the US illegally and used burner phones to evade capture.

Hailing from Passia village in Ajnala, the terrorist has been linked to at least 16 grenade attacks in Punjab, targeting police posts, religious sites, and residences.

On March 23, the NIA chargesheeted four terror operatives of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) terrorist organisation in the 2024 Chandigarh grenade attack case.

The chargesheeted accused include Pakistan-based designated individual terrorist Harwinder Singh Sandhu, alias Rinda, and US-based Happy Passia.

Sandhu and Passia were the primary handlers and conspirators behind the attack. They had provided logistical support, terror funds, weapons, and ammunition to India-based on-ground operatives in Chandigarh for executing the grenade attack, said the NIA.

The September 2024 attack was intended to target a retired officer of the Punjab Police, whom the assailants believed to be the occupant of the house.

NIA investigations revealed that Rinda, along with Passia, had orchestrated the conspiracy to strike terror among law enforcement officials and the public through the grenade attack, as part of the broader aim to promote BKI’s terrorist agenda.

They had recruited local operatives, Rohan Masih and Vishal Masih, who were tasked with carrying out the attack on their direct instructions.

Rinda and Passia directed the other accused, Rohan Masih and Vishal Masih, to conduct reconnaissance on the target twice before hurling the grenade, investigations revealed.

In the chargesheet filed before the Special NIA Court in Chandigarh, all four accused have been charged under multiple sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the Explosive Substances Act, and other related provisions, for their roles in planning and supporting the attack.

Investigations in the case are continuing, and the NIA is trying to track down other members of the BKI terror group and dismantle its network in India.

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