Connect with us
Thursday,30-January-2025
Breaking News

International News

The two Congressmen who paid the political price of 26/11

Published

on

As the nation mourns the bravehearts and civilians who lost their lives in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, and a controversy rages on Congress leader Manish Tewari’s new book, ’10 Flashpoints; 20 Years’, where he has targeted the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government for not taking any decisive action, two names of two Maharashtra Congressmen — Shivraj Patil and Vilasrao Deshmukh — stand out as the first political heads to roll in the aftermath of the tragedy.

The mild-mannered Patil, who was known for more for his sartorial sensibilities than for his administrative capabilities had to resign as Union Home Minister a day after the NSG’s Operation Tornado brought an end to the three-day siege on India’s commercial capital by Pakistani terrorists.

In secret U.S. Embassy cables exposed by Wikileaks, the then American ambassador, David Mulford, had described Patil as “spectacularly inept” and reported to the State Department that in his last four years as Union Home Minister, “he has been asleep on the watch” and each time there were calls to remove him, “Sonia Gandhi has protected him”.

But no one could stop Patil from being singed by the 26/11 attacks. The joke doing the rounds about him was that he was getting a change of clothes ironed for television appearances even as Mumbai was in the grip of terror. He was promptly replaced by the then Union Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram.

Interestingly, Patil, who represented Latur (Maharashtra) in the Lok Sabha and held ministerial positions in New Delhi off and on since 1980, airbrushed the 26/11 attacks from his autobiography, ‘Odyssey of My Life’, although he wrote at length about the 1999 hijacking of the Indian Airlines flight IC-814.

In 2010, Patil was rehabilitated and appointed the Governor of Punjab and Administrator of the Union Territory of Chandigarh, an office he demitted after completing his term in 2015. For a man who was Lok Sabha Speaker and Union Home Minister, it was evidently a demotion. And he has not been able to make a political comeback since then.

Following Patil, another politician from Latur, the late Vilasrao Deshmukh, who had become Maharashtra’s chief minister for the second time in November 1, 2004 (his first term was cut short by factionalism in the party and he to make way for Sushilkumar Shinde in January 2003).

Deshmukh lost his job on December 6, 2008, along with the state’s then home minister, R.R. Patil. He was succeeded by another Congressman, Ashok Chavan, who is at present Maharashtra’s PWD Minister in the Maha Aghadi government.

The then chief minister was under fire, but no action was taken against him immediately after the terror attacks. What tilted the scales against him was the “conducted tour” he gave to the noted film director Ram Gopal Verma around the devastated Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai. Deshmukh’s architect son, Riteish, is a well-known Bollywood actor known for playing comic roles.

Verma went on to make a film titled ‘The Attacks of 26/11’ (2013), starring Nana Patekar, who played Rakesh Maria, Mumbai’s former top cop who was given the charge of investigating the event and interrogating the Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab.

The Congress gave Deshmukh a Rajya Sabha ticket and he moved to New Delhi in May 2009 as a minister in Manmohan Singh’s second UPA government. He died in harness in Chennai in 2012.

Thirteen years after 26/11, its repercussions are still felt within the Congress as the BJP has found a new issue to flog after the sensational observations of Manish Tewari in his new book, which is to be officially released on December 2.

“For a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people, restraint is not a sign of strength; it is perceived as a symbol of weakness,” Tewari writes in his book. “There comes a time when actions must speak louder than words. 26/11 was one such time when it just should have been done. It, therefore, is my considered opinion that India should have actioned a kinetic response in the days following India’s 9/11.”

These words will haunt the Congress for some time, but they offer little solace to the families and friends of the more than 160 people killed by terrorists from Pakistan on November 26, 2008.

disaster

No survivors yet of mid-air Washington DC collision

Published

on

Washington, Jan 30: No survivors have yet been found of American Eagle Flight 5342 that collided with a US Army Black Hawk helicopter near the Reagan National Airport in Washington DC Wednesday night.

Both aircraft fell into the Potomac river.

The plane was carrying 60 passengers and four members of the crew while the helicopter had three service members.

Rescuers had pulled out several bodies from the icy cold water of the river till early Thursday morning, but no survivors. The temperature of the water in the river was dangerously low around 0 degree celsius.

NBC’s Washington affiliate has reported rescuers have recovered 30 bodies from the river.

The plane was carrying passengers from Wichita in the state of Kansas to the National Airport.

DC authorities have said the plane had broken into pieces and the helicopter was found upside down in the river.

Rescue helicopters hovered over the river with flood lights as boats and rescuers combed the river for survivors and bodies.

The collision reportedly took place around 8:47 pm, local time.

The Army helicopter was a UH-60 Black Hawk on a training flight, US military officials have said. It was assigned to Bravo Company of the 12th Aviation Battalion, which operates out of Davison Army Airfield at Fort Belvoir, in nearby Virginia.

Two renowned former Russian figure skaters were on board the passenger plane, the Kremlin has said according to reports.

They were Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov did not identify them at a briefing but confirmed when asked if they were on board.

He also suggested that other Russian nationals were aboard the crashed flight.

“There were other of our fellow citizens there as well,” he said.

Shishkova and Naumov won gold at the 1994 Figure Skating World Championship for Russia. The Washington Post reported the married pair lived in the United States since at least 1998, where they coached young ice skaters.

Continue Reading

International News

Quran burner Salwan Momika shot dead in Sweden, five arrested

Published

on

Stockholm, Jan 30: Salwan Momika, the 38-year-man who held several demonstrations in Sweden and was accused of burning the Quran, has been shot dead in the city of Sodertalje in Stockholm County in east central Sweden, Swedish media reported on Thursday.

Momika was allegedly shot dead while he was conducting a live broadcast on social media from his apartment in Hovsjo late on Wednesday, a day before a verdict was scheduled to be announced by the Stockholm District Court in an incitement case against him.

“I can confirm that five people have been arrested, suspected of murder,” prosecutor Rasmus Ohman was quoted as saying by Sweden’s leading daily Dagens Nyheter.

According to the spokesperson for the Stockholm Police Region, the police received a report of the shooting in Hovsjo at 11:11 pm, local time.

The newspaper detailed that the crime scene was investigated overnight and the apartment building remains cordoned off on Thursday with several police officers on site. It was reported that drones have also been sent up over the area.

“The police have been questioning me and they confirmed that he has died,” Salwan Najem, a friend of Salwan Momika, told Swedish state broadcaster SVT.

Najem, who said that he has been told “you’re next”, had also spoken during the night with Momika’s girlfriend.

“She started crying and said they killed him,” Najem told SVT.

The desecration of the Quran had sparked an angry reaction from several countries, including Saudi Arabia, which strongly condemned the burning of a copy of the Islamic holy book in the Swedish city of Malmo by Momika, an individual of Iraqi origin, in October 2023.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry had “reiterated the Kingdom’s rejection of such flagrant acts,” and said such a move had inflamed the feelings of millions of Muslims worldwide.

Momika had allegedly torn pages of the holy book and also burnt it in full public view during demonstrations.

Continue Reading

disaster

US figure skating team members among victims of Washington plane crash

Published

on

Washington, Jan 30: Several members of the US figure skating team were on board the ill-fated flight from Wictha to Washington, which crashed over the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport Wednesday night, according to an athlete.

A devastating mid-air collision on Wednesday has claimed at least 18 lives so far as rescue teams continue search for survivors. The crash involved American Airlines Flight 5342 and a Black Hawk military helicopter.

Team USA pair skater Luke Wang confirmed the tragic news on X, writing, “Praying for all those on the flight from Wichita to DC. Among the passengers were skaters and coaches. Absolutely heartbreaking.”

“As we hold everybody on board in our thoughts, we will continue to wait for official information to be released,” he added.

The skaters were part of the National Development Team, a training programme for top juvenile figure skaters. Many competitors had remained in Kansas to participate in the National Development Camp after the US Figure Skating Championships, which took place in Wichita from January 20 to January 26.

Some athletes had stayed on until January 28 for the advanced training programme.

Team USA ice dancer Ethan Peal also reacted to the news, posting on social media, “I am in shock. Praying for families and my skating community.”

Russia’s state-run TASS news agency reported that Russian figure skater couple Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were also on board the ill-fated flight.

Their 23-year-old son, Maxim Naumov, a figure skater for Team US, recently competed in the US Championships in Wichita, securing a podium finish. However, it remains unclear whether he was also travelling with his parents on the flight.

The collision occurred around 9 pm local time on Wednesday as the regional passenger jet was approaching the airport for landing.

The jet had 60 passengers and four crew members on board. No survivors have been found so far.

The US Federal Aviation Administration confirmed that a PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet, operating as Flight 5342 for American Airlines, collided mid-air with a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter while approaching Runway 33. The National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation into the cause of the crash.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said that the Pentagon and the Army had launched an immediate investigation. Calling the incident “absolutely tragic,” he expressed condolences and assured that search and rescue efforts were ongoing.

Emergency response teams, including the Metropolitan Police Department and the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department, were swiftly deployed to the crash site. Rescue boats continue to scan the Potomac River for potential survivors.

Reagan National Airport confirmed on X that all takeoffs and landings were halted while emergency personnel responded to the incident. The terminal remained open, and authorities promised further updates.

Authorities have urged the public to stay clear of the area to allow emergency teams to carry out their duties. Multiple agencies are working together to manage the crisis and provide assistance to those affected. The search continues, and more details are awaited.

Continue Reading

Trending