Another act of hurting the sentiments of Muslims came to surface in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh. On August 18, a Hindi daily published some disrespectful content regarding the Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) which led to anger and frustration among the local Muslims. As a protest, Muslims burnt the copies of the newspapers on a large scale. The act also gave way for many rumours which made the situation very tense and marketplaces witnessed chaos soon after the news bro...

Police has arrested a man, son of a temple priest, in Bareilly on charges of brewing up tensions in the city by sending hate SMSs from a fake name. SSP Satendar Veer Singh said that the real name of the arrested youth is Madhav Singh Dhar, however in Muslim circles he used to introduce himself as Abdur Rahman. Using fake ID, he bought a SIM card on May 10, 2012 and sent messages giving warning of violence after Eid. He also sent many other SMSs with aim of destroying peace and harmony in the ...

In a letter to Home Minister, Maulana Mahmood Madani, General Secretary of Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind, blamed the local fascist leaders for the Nangloi incident. He mentioned the incident of eve-teasing, with the support of local fascist leaders, with Muslim girls visiting their relatives on the occasion of Eid. The incident was painted as a communal one and minorities were attacked and now they are being threatened. Muslim localities are feeling insecure and fear reprisal from the sectarian forces....

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) rejected the allegation levelled by a human rights organisation which had claimed that the NCM report on Assam violence was biased in favour of a particular community. Claiming that NCM’s report on recent spate of violence in Assam was biased, Asian Centre for Human Rights (ACHR) has written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding its review.

“I don’t think that our report was biased from any point. Everyone ha...

Bodoland People’s Front MLA Pradeep Brahma has been arrested for allegedly inciting violence in Assam’s Kokrajhar district after he was named by witnesses in multiple cases. Brahma was arrested in Kokrajhar district, which was the epicentre of the violence in the state that left lakhs displaced. Five cases have been filed against Brahma for his alleged involvement in inciting violence. The party has already launched a protest rally against the arrest of the MLA and has begun block...

Press Council of India Chairman Markandey Katju slammed television news channels for “excessive” coverage on stars, cricket and astrology to boost viewership rather than focusing on real issues such as economy, poverty, unemployment and farmers’ suicides. He also lamented about the irresponsible way in which media works and flashes news items without verifying the source of the news. He said channels had a tendency to flash – without verifying the authenticity of email...

According to the latest National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) survey the bottom 10 per cent of population of India lives on just Rs 16.7 and and Rs 23.4 a day. Inequality remained high in both rural and urban areas. If the top 10 per cent of the rural population lived on Rs 115.3 per day per person, or Rs 3,459 per month on an average, the bottom 10 per cent lived on just Rs 16.7 per day, or Rs 503 per month, on an average. Similarly, in urban areas, where the top 10 per cent lived on Rs...

Drought in Gujarat has started taking its toll on farmers. As many as 11 farmers in Saurashtra region alone have committed suicide in last one month, even as the Narendra Modi government remains in denial. “In seven districts of the region, almost 80% crop has failed. Very few farmers have irrigation facilities to sustain crops without rains. Narmada canals have not been built in the interiors,” said Ramnikbhai Patel, a farmer from Babra in Amreli district. He says, the cotton cro...

The Vice Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University, Lt. General Zameer Uddin Shah will lay the foundation stone of A. H. Girls’ Higher Secondary School, Parsara in Hathras District on August 26 at 10 am. Mr. Naseem Ahmad, IAS (Retd.), former Vice Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University shall preside over the foundation stone laying ceremony. Professor Nafees Ahmad, Secretary, Noorul Uloom Education Society said that the students of Saiema Mansoor Public School, Parsara will perform th...