Indian Sub-continent

PAHALGAM, India (AP) — India is pitching a Hindu pilgrimage to a snowy cave shrine in disputed, Muslim-majority Kashmir as evidence of peace in a state marred by decades of armed conflict amid popular resistance to Indian rule.

The annual yatra, or spiritual journey, to the Amarnath shrine, the hallowed mountain cave where devotees revere an icy stalagmite as an image of Lord Shiva, presents an opportunity for the state of Jammu and Kashmir to show something beyond the frequent skirmishes between armed separatists and Indian soldiers that have cost tens of thousands of lives.

1 Aug 2019; MEMO: Amnesty International announced, Wednesday, that 130 political prisoners in the heavily guarded Scorpion Prison in Egypt have been on hunger strike for six weeks. This is due to the harsh and inhumane detention conditions.

The international human rights organisation said that among the repressive practices by the authorities against detainees in the Scorpion Prison is the prevention of family visits and legal consultations for more than two years.

New Delhi, July 31; IANS/GANASHAKTI: The total assets of the BJP in 2017-18 registered a rise of 22 per cent compared to previous financial year's asset declaration of Rs 1,213 crore to Rs 1,483.35 crore, election watchdog Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) has said.

An ADR report said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was among the seven national parties whose assets, as declared by them during 2017-18, was 6 per cent more than their declaration in 2016-17.

New Delhi, Jul 31; GANASHAKTI: The CBI has booked BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar and 10 others on murder charges in the accident case of Unnao rape survivor, officials said on Wednesday.

Immediately after filing the FIR, a team of officers from the CBI's Lucknow unit reached the crime scene in Gurubakshganj area of Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli district, where the accident took place.

According to the normal procedure, the CBI has taken over the investigation in the case from the Uttar Pradesh Police by re-registering its FIR.

31 July 2019; GANASHAKTI: Doctors across the country went on a 24-hour medical strike from 6 am on Wednesday, withdrawing all non-essential services. However, the emergency, casualty, intensive care unit (ICU) and related services will function normally. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has called for the strike in protestagainst the passage of National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill, 2019, in the Lok Sabha.

Public demonstrations against the Bill will take place across the country. Few doctors are also likely to go on hunger strikes, said the IMA.

Mumbai, Jul 31 (PTI) The wife of a sessions court judge in Maharashtra has written to the chief justice of the Bombay High Court complaining that her husband and in-laws were "harassing" her.

After receiving the letter on July 29, Chief Justice Pradeep Nandrajog forwarded it to the registry of the high court for preliminary inquiry, the woman's lawyer said on Wednesday.

In the letter, the 37-year-old woman has demanded an inquiry against her husband.

New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) The government's fiscal deficit touched Rs 4.32 lakh crore for the June quarter, which is 61.4 per cent of the budget estimate for 2019-20 fiscal.

In absolute terms, the fiscal deficit or gap between expenditure and revenue was Rs 4.32 lakh crore during at June-end, as per the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Wednesday.

The fiscal deficit was 68.7 per cent of 2018-19 budget estimate in the year-ago period.

New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar on Wednesday said reading clubs should be formed in neighbourhoods to promote a reading culture.

He made the remarks while launching several e-projects of the Publications Division such as its redesigned website, mobile application, e-version of the 'Rozgaar Samachar' and e-book 'Satyagrah Geeta'.

New Delhi, Jul 31 (PTI) Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Wednesday said he will start ordering from Zomato after the food delivery company refused to resolve a customer's complaint about being assigned a Muslim delivery executive for his order.

"I have not ordered food so far, but I think I will do so now from Zomato," Chidambaram said on Twitter.

His response came after the company responded to its customer saying, "Food doesn't have a religion. It is a religion."

Jamshedpur (Jharkhand), Jul 31 (PTI) A three-year-old girl was allegedly raped and beheaded by two men after abducting her from a platform of the Tatanagar railway station in Jharkhand last week, police said on Wednesday.

The torso of the girl, kept in a plastic bag, was recovered from a bush under Telco police station area, around 4 kilometre from the railway station on Tuesday night, they said.

Three persons, including the two prime accused, were arrested in this connection.