No Indian fisherman in Lankan jails now
New Delhi: For the first time this year no Indian fisherman is in Sri Lankan jail, following the release of 94 fishermen on Saturday by the island nation. Officials said hundreds of Indian fishermen had been apprehended by Lanka Navy while fishing in their waters and with the release of the latest batch, none of them is now in Lankan custody. The fishermen issue is a very emotive one for both the countries. While Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa has been repeatedly pressing the Centre to take it up with Lankan leadership, there was tremendous pressure on the Sri Lankan government to initiate judicial process against the apprehended Indian fishermen, resulting in their prolonged detention. Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa had announced release of all Indian fishermen ahead of his visit to New Delhi to attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony on May 26. Lanka has released 225 Indian fishermen since the Modi government took over. (PTI)
Goa CM shares food plate with HIV-positive children
Panaji: Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar shared a meal with HIV-positive children, to dispel the misconception that the dreaded disease is transmitted by a mere touch. The chief minister shared lunch on Saturday with more than 30 children at an orphanage where they are currently studying. These children were in the news recently after a section of parents of normal kids, studying along with the HIV-affected kids at a school in South Goa, had demanded their suspension from the school. “I will provide all the support for these children. I am here to eradicate the belief that HIV spreads through touching or sharing meal,” Parrikar told reporters after eating food. The chief minister had last month announced in the Legislative Assembly about sharing food with HIV-affected children. “I will eat from a common plate with an HIV-positive child to prove my belief that the disease is not transmittable (by casual contact). If HIV were spread by physical contact then every human being would test positive. It does not spread like a common cold,” he had said. (PTI)
Hindus, Muslims must change their mindset: Katju
New Delhi: If Hindus and Muslims want to become “real Indians”, they must change their mindset, Press Council of India Chairman Justice Markandey Katju has said. In his latest blog posting, the former judge of the Supreme Court said, “Hindus will become real Indians when they stop regarding SCs as inferior, and marriages between non-SCs and SCs take place on a large scale.” Katju said, “Muslims will become real Indians when marriages between the so called ‘upper caste’ Muslims and ‘lower castes’ take place on a large scale, and when a large number of Muslims demand abolition of the unjust Muslim Personal Law which treats women as inferior. “….So it must be abolished (just as the old Hindu Law was abolished by the Hindu Marriages Act, 1955 and the Hindu Succession Act, 1956).” (PTI)