SRINAGAR: The government on Wednesday appointed Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Vijay Kumar Bidhuri as the inquiry officer to probe various aspects related to the visits of Gujarat conman to Kashmir.
According to an order, the inquiry officer has been asked to identify the lapses on part of officers concerned.
The officer has been asked to submit the inquiry report within a week.
“Sanction is hereby accorded to the appointment of Vijay Kumar Bidhuri, IAS, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, as Inquiry Officer to inquire into the various aspects related to the visits of Kiran Patel to Kashmir during the past months and security arrangements made thereof. The Inquiry Officer shall identify the lapses on the part of the Officers/ Officials concerned and submit a detailed report within one week,” reads the order. (KNO)
“There’s no plans for Prime Minister Netanyahu to visit Washington. Israeli leaders have a long history, tradition of visiting Washington, and Prime Minister Netanyahu will likely take a visit at some point, but there’s nothing currently planned,” Dalton said.
After two days of protest, Netanyahu announced a delay in his judicial overhaul plan Monday, stating that he wanted to find a compromise with his political opponents. Over the weekend, Netanyahu also fired his defense minister for opposing the overhaul.
The White House on Monday said they welcomed Netanyahu’s announcement as an “opportunity to create additional time and space for compromise.”
“Compromise is precisely what we have been calling for. And we continue to strongly urge Israeli leaders to find a compromise as soon as possible,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Monday.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
Srinagar, Mar 28: Just nine days after the garden was thrown open for the general public, at least one lakh seventeen thousand people have visited Asia’s second largest Tulip Garden in the foothills of Zabarwan Range.
Ikhlas Shayiq, In charge of Tulip garden while talking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that on average, nearly 15,000-17,000 visitors visited the garden in the first week after its opening on April 20, 2023.
He said that the rush of the visitors has reduced to 9,000-10,000 now, saying that the visitors, especially the tourists, throng the garden every day here.
In charge Tulip Garden further stated that a total of 1,17,000 people have witnessed the tulip bloom at the garden this year, adding that compared to last year, the response this year is quite appreciable.
Pertinently, the fountain channel has been extended this year as for the first time, the authorities decided to involve the third terrace of Asia’s largest tulip garden in Srinagar where more than 15 lakh tulips are in full bloom to attract the visitors from different parts of the globe.
About 60 gardeners have made hectic efforts to beautify the garden, which is being thrown open for the public in April every year, depending upon the weather conditions—(KNO)
Katie Telford, the prime minister’s chief of staff, joined the mix of business leaders and political insiders who gathered at Ottawa’s National Arts Centre. Jenni Byrne, the fixer behind the rise of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, was also in the crowd.
Hardly inaudible was the persistent chatter about the vultures circling over the Trudeau government.
Telford is at the center of allegations that China interfered in Canada’s last elections. Conservative MPs — and Canadians — want to know what she knew, and what she told the prime minister.
A steady drip of scoops from the Globe and Mail newspaper and Global News broadcaster have cited intelligence reports and sources who claim the Chinese government targeted candidates in recent elections.
After the most recent reporting alleged that Toronto Liberal MP Han Dong colluded with a Chinese diplomat, Dong left the caucus and vowed to clear his name.
News of Dong’s resignation from the Liberal caucus broke last Wednesday evening, a day before Biden’s arrival for his first presidential visit to Canada.
That night at a barbecue joint in Ottawa’s ByWard Market, conservative activists in town for a conference smelled blood. The news reverberated from huddle to huddle, the most anti-Liberal room in the city considering it a game-changer. Stephen Harper, the last conservative prime minister and a headliner at the conference, posed for photos with party faithful, while the talk was all about the Dong scandal.
The opposition parties had united to demand that Telford appear at a parliamentary committee. After weeks of delay and Liberal filibusters, Telford relented last week. She’ll testify in the near future.
At that Friday night party to celebrate the U.S.-Canada relationship, and work off the stress of the presidential visit, senior Liberals in the room acknowledged concern about the specter of foreign interference in Canadian elections. But only when asked. They considered it a night for networking, not negativity.
This won’t be a sufficient answer starting Monday, when everyone is back to work.
Biden glow
Biden’s visit secured real wins for the government. A senior Liberal source close to the talks was over the moon. “Did we solve every issue? No, but real progress was made,” this person said. “Overall, the day exceeded my expectations.”
Trudeau’s government signed a deal that allowed them to close the irregular border crossing at Roxham Road in Quebec, a key Conservative demand on border security that earned immediate condemnation from the left-wing New Democratic Party. Critics say the closure will push asylum-seekers to attempt more dangerous crossings elsewhere, but the semi-permanent Roxham facilities were a political liability for Trudeau.
Trudeau and Biden also agreed to “continue discussions to carve-in Canadian goods into Buy America requirements” — a promise that spells relief for business leaders north of the border who constantly fear that Canada will be cut out of lucrative American contracts.
The Canadians committed more money for Great Lakes protection and accelerated the planned procurement of new radar warning systems for continental defense.
By all accounts, Biden flew home a happy neighbor.
Liberals have another big moment coming this week when Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Tuesday puts forward her latest budget — a roadmap for economic growth, including help for struggling families in a sluggish economy.
“The Biden visit met our expectations in that it confirmed the opportunity for us to be true partners with the U.S. is real — not just rhetoric,” said the Business Council of Canada’s Goldy Hyder, a CEO who has the ear of legislators in both capitals.
“All eyes now turn to the budget to see if we’ll seize it,“ he said. “We have what they need, now we have to deliver the goods.“
Picking a line of attack
Conservatives face a choice to attack Trudeau on economics or China.
Freeland has promised restraint, but her fiscal projections won’t impress Conservatives. The party’s leader, Poilievre, sailed through a leadership race last year on the strength of a stump speech aimed at Canadians struggling with the cost of living.
Poilievre has complained that Liberal spending has only driven up inflation, and a carbon tax that came into effect in 2019 has hurt taxpayers. When he addressed that national conference of conservatives last week, Poilievre’s message sounded like a stump speech designed to appeal to all Canadians.
“We’re going to bring home a Canada that works for the people who work,” he said. “We’re going to bring home lower prices by getting rid of the inflationary deficits and taxes that have caused it in the first place.”
But in recent weeks, Poilievre has also used the daily question period in the House of Commons to pelt the government with questions about Chinese interference — sometimes more than 20 in a day, virtually every slot allotted to the Conservatives.
On the same day Biden arrived in town, 16 Conservative MPs asked the prime minister a combined 24 times to tell the House when he first learned of the allegations facing Dong, and what he did next. Trudeau was not present in the House. It fell to Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc to defend the government’s actions.
“Mr. Speaker, it feels like the noose is tightening and every day brings more information to light,” said Conservative MP Dominique Vien.
The public view on interference
The polls aren’t looking good for Trudeau.
A Mainstreet Research survey that polled Canadians from March 8–10 found that two-thirds of respondents have paid attention to news stories about Chinese interference. A slim majority (53 percent) believe the Chinese government interfered in the 2019 and 2021 elections.
Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) support an independent public inquiry into the allegations. Only one-third said Trudeau’s decision to appoint a “special rapporteur“ to look into the allegations was a “satisfactory“ step.
Another pollster, Léger, found nearly identical support for a public inquiry in a mid-March survey — including 71 percent of Liberal voters.
A third pollster, Abacus Data, learned that 25 percent of Conservative voters viewed Chinese interference as having changed the result of the 2021 election.
The House of Commons leaves March 31 for a two-week break. Liberals will parade their budget around the country, selling its component parts to target groups all over Canada.
Poilievre will leave Ottawa, too. If he spends more time talking about foreign interference than the economy, it’s because he sees that as the riper target.
Trudeau wants to be talking about anything else, and the Biden visit’s promise of strengthened cross-border supply chains is a boost for him. But as the hours since Biden left have shown, he is finding himself again on the political defensive.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
The gala dinner at the Ottawa Aviation Museum concluded a busy day of meetings, photo-ops, speeches and a joint press conference. Biden’s visit marked the first true bilateral meeting in Canada between the two leaders since the Obama years.
“And today, I say to you, and to all the people of Canada, that you will always, always be able to count on the United States of America,” Biden said during his speech to Parliament. “I guarantee it.”
While the two leaders took advantage of the opportunities to lean into the imagery of a productive relationship, they discussed an array of complex topics behind closed doors.
The trip was not expected to produce much in terms of deliverables, but Biden and Trudeau made modest announcements on the North American Aerospace Defense Command, semiconductors, Haiti and climate issues. A deal they struck on migration drew the most headlines from the trip.
The two countries announced plans to apply the terms of the Safe Third Country Agreement to migrants between points of entry along the Canada-United States border, in an aim to deter illegal migration. The new policy was to go into effect at midnight Friday. Canada will also welcome an additional 15,000 migrants from countries such as Haiti, Colombia and Ecuador over the course of the year.
The agreement will allow Canada to turn away migrants from unofficial crossing points like Roxham Road, a small, well-traveled road that straddles the Canada-U.S. border between Quebec and New York. Quebec Premier François Legault has hammered Trudeau, calling on the prime minister to raise the issue with Biden. Roughly 40,000 asylum seekers entered Canada through this path last year.
“We couldn’t simply shut down Roxham Road and hope that everything would resolve itself because we would have had problems. The border is very long and people would have looked for other places to cross,” Trudeau said during Friday’s press conference. “And so that’s why we chose to modernize the Safe Third Country Agreement so that someone who attempts to cross between official crossings will be subject to the principle.”
The two leaders also fielded questions on Russia and China, in which Biden questioned the close ties of the authoritarian regimes. He noted that China hasn’t provided Russia with weapons in its war in Ukraine.
“I don’t take China lightly. I don’t take Russia lightly. But I think we vastly exaggerated. I’ve been hearing now for the past three months: China is going to provide significant weapons to Russia and they’re going to go up and talk about that. They haven’t yet. Doesn’t mean they won’t, but they haven’t yet,” Biden said.
He also defended the state of the economy amid the banking crisis, noting his administration did a “pretty damn good job” in its response. The president opened his remarks by addressing the U.S. military’s airstrikes in Syria after a suspected Iran-made drone killed a U.S. worker and wounded other troops.
“I’m also grateful for the professionalism of our service members who so ably carried out this response,” Biden said. “And to make no mistake, the United States does not — does not, emphasize — seek conflict with Iran. But be prepared for us to act forcefully to protect our people. That’s exactly what happened last night.”
Even on the crisis in Haiti — one of the more challenging topics Biden and Trudeau had to broach — the two leaders presented a united front. The White House for months has suggested it wants Canada to take the lead in a multi-national military intervention to bring stability to the country, but standing next to Trudeau on Friday, Biden lowered the pressure.
The president told reporters he wasn’t disappointed in Trudeau’s reluctance to lead the effort, calling it “a very, very difficult circumstance.”
The prime minister nodded in agreement.
Kierra Frazer contributed to this report.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
Beijing: China on Tuesday hit out at Japan after its Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made a surprise visit to Ukraine and overshadowed Chinese President Xi Jinping’s meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow, saying Tokyo should do more to de-escalate the situation rather than aggravating it.
Beijing was caught by surprise as Kishida, who was on an official visit to New Delhi from March 19-21, entered Poland from India using a secretly chartered plane instead of the standard government aircraft, Japanese TV channel NHK reported.
The chartered plane left Tokyo’s Haneda Airport at around 8 pm on Sunday, about three hours before a government plane carrying Kishida departed for India.
After wrapping up his scheduled events in India, the prime minister secretly boarded the waiting plane in the early morning hours of Tuesday, the Japan Times daily quoted an NHK report.
Kishida’s visit to Ukraine and his scheduled meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv stole the limelight of Xi’s Moscow visit aimed at projecting himself as a global peacemaker after Beijing successfully brokered a peace deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to end their hostilities.
In a statement on Kishida’s visit to Ukraine, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said he will express to President Zelenskyy his respect for the courage and perseverance of the Ukrainian people standing up to defend their homeland under Zelenskyy’s leadership.
“At a summit meeting with President Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Kishida will resolutely reject Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and unilateral changing of the status quo by force, and reconfirm his determination to uphold the international order based on the rule of law,” it said.
Kishida will “directly convey our solidarity and unwavering support for Ukraine” as Prime Minister of Japan and the current chair of G7 countries, it said.
Asked about Kishida’s visit, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the international community “should keep to the right direction to promote the peace talks and create conditions for a political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis”.
“We hope the Japanese side will do more to de-escalate the situation instead of the opposite,” he told a media briefing here.
“China’s position boils down to promoting peace talks and China will continue to uphold an objective, just position and work with the world to play a constructive role in the political settlement,” he said.
On whether Xi will speak to Zelenskyy, he said: “Our position is consistent and clear. We keep communication with all parties”.
He shot back when asked whether China will work with the US to stop the war, saying the US should be asked whether it would like to promote peace talks and stop the war.
“China would like to work with the international community to play a constructive role in the Ukraine crisis,” he said.
On US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s assertion that the world should not be fooled by the Russian-Chinese peace plan for Ukraine, Wang said China’s peace plan covers all aspects including respect for sovereignty, ceasefire and stopping of unilateral sanctions.
He claimed that many countries support China’s peace plan as they want de-escalation.
“China is not a creator of the Ukraine crisis, not a party to the crisis and does not provide weapons to any side of the conflict and the US is in no position to point fingers at China and blame it,” he said in response to Blinken’s assertion that Beijing is providing a “diplomatic cover” for Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“The US should see China’s efforts more objectively than holding on to the Cold War mentality and stop escalating tensions,” he said.
In Tokyo, US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel tweeted that Prime Minister Kishida is making a “historic visit” to Ukraine to protect the Ukrainian people and promote the universal values enshrined in the UN Charter.
“Approximately 900 kilometres away, a different and more nefarious partnership is taking shape in Moscow,” Emanuel said.
The coincidental timing of Xi and Kishida trips “does indeed create a stark contrast,” James D J Brown, said political science professor at Temple University in Japan.
“It presents the image of two blocs, with Japan and Ukraine on the side of democracy, and Russia and China representing an axis of authoritarianism,” he told the Japan Times.
In Moscow, Xi and Putin held a “restricted session” of talks on the second day of the Chinese leader’s three-day visit, following up on their four-hour talks on Monday. Xi said on Tuesday that he has invited Putin to travel to China for the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation to be held this year.
While meeting Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Xi said that the invitation was made in his informal meeting with Putin.
It fits the historical logic that Chinese leaders take Russia as a primary choice for their overseas visits, Xi said, referring to his visit, his first overseas trip after getting endorsed for an unprecedented third term as president and head of the military by the Chinese Parliament this month.
He said China and Russia are each other’s biggest neighbours and comprehensive strategic partners of coordination, and that such a relationship has withstood the test of the world’s profound changes.
Xi also called for continuous regular meetings between the Chinese premier and Russian prime minister, and invited Mishustin to visit China, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Tehran: Just over a week after Tehran and Riyadh agreed to restore diplomatic relations, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has invited Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to visit Riyadh, a senior official here has confirmed.
Mohammad Jamshidi, deputy chief of staff for political affairs to Raisi, confirmed the development in a tweet on Sunday, saying the invitation was extended to the President from the Saudi monarch in a letter, reports Xinhua news agency.
Jamshidi added the Saudi king said in the letter that he welcomed the recent deal between the two “brotherly countries” on the normalisation of bilateral ties and called for strong economic and regional cooperation between Riyadh and Tehran.
Raisi welcomed the invitation and stressed Iran’s readiness to expand cooperation, the official noted.
China, Saudi Arabia and Iran on March 10 announced that Riyadh and Tehran had reached a deal that included the agreement to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions within two months.
Also on Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told reporters that the two countries had agreed to hold a meeting at the Foreign Ministers level, and that three possible locations had been proposed.
He did not name the locations, nor say when the meeting might take place.
The two nations have also announced they will reopen embassies within two months and re-establish trade and security relations.
Saudi Arabia cut ties in January 2016 after demonstrators stormed its embassy in Tehran after Riyadh had executed the prominent Shia Muslim cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, who was convicted of terror-related offences.
Since then, tensions between the Sunni- and Shia-led neighbours have often been high, with each regarding the other as a threatening power seeking regional dominance.
They have been on opposing sides of several regional conflicts, including the civil wars in Syria and Yemen.
(Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Guwahati: The Election Commission will meet a variety of stakeholders, including political parties and civil society, and hold discussions before the delimitation exercise of constituencies in Assam, an official statement said on Saturday.
The full bench of the Election Commission, which consists of Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and two Election Commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel, will visit Assam from March 26 to 28 to undertake conversations with various sections, it said.
“The Commission has chosen to visit Assam in order to ascertain the actual situation and the expectations of the stakeholders and general public regarding the ongoing delimitation exercise in the state.
“During this time, the Commission will meet with political parties, public figures, civil society organisations, social service providers, and state administration officials, including District Election Officers and Deputy Commissioners, to acquire first-hand information,” the statement said.
The Commission stated that it wants all stakeholders to collaborate in the effort and offer insightful ideas so that the assignment is finished on time in order to gather information regarding the ongoing delimitation process.
The Assam government earlier scrapped four districts and merged them with other districts by a decision in a cabinet meeting, just a day before the Election Commission’s imposed ban on administrative reforms came into effect.
SRINAGAR: Anticipating a huge rush of visitors to the Tulip Garden, scheduled to be thrown open to public on Sunday, the Traffic Police City has issued a detailed advisory to the enthusiasts regarding their feasible route plan to avoid any inconvenience along the roads leading to the most sought after venue at the foothills of Zabarwan range.
“To ensure convenience and smooth flow of traffic, one-way traffic shall be regulated initially from 19-03-2023 till 26-03-2023,” reads an official order copy issued by Srinagar Traffic Police.
As per the advisory, people intending to visit the Tulip Garden shall adopt Lal Chowk-Dalgate-Boulevard/Gupkar Road to reach the garden. On their return, they shall adopt the Nishat-Foreshore-Habak-Dargah-Khanyar route to reach their respective destinations. Likewise, motorists intending to travel from Harwan-Shalimar-Nishat and other adjacent areas towards Lal-Chowk are requested to travel via Foreshore-Hazratbal route instead of Nishat-Boulevard road axis to reach their respective destinations.
“Motorists intending to travel from Gulab Bagh-Zakoora-Naseembagh-Habbak and adjacent areas shall adopt Habak-Dargah-Khanyar route to reach Lal Chowk instead of Foreshore Road. Visitors are advised to park their vehicles only at designated parking places and avoid parking their vehicles on the roadside. Wrongly parked vehicles will be towed.”
The available parking places are in front of Botanical Garden, Open land at Kralsangri, SKICC, Royal Spring Golf Course and LCMA Parking at Nishat.
The authorities have also advised that emergencies shall be allowed to take the shortest route. One-way traffic will be implemented from
The move by the authorities to regulate traffic is a welcome step to ensure that visitors have a smooth and hassle-free experience while visiting the Tulip Garden. The visitors are expected to follow the traffic regulations to avoid any inconvenience during their visit.(GNS)
Srinagar, Mar 17: Anticipating a huge rush of visitors to the Tulip Garden, scheduled to be thrown open to public on Sunday, the Traffic Police City has issued a detailed advisory to the enthusiasts regarding their feasible route plan to avoid any inconvenience along the roads leading to the most sought after venue at the foothills of Zabarwan range.
“To ensure convenience and smooth flow of traffic, one-way traffic shall be regulated initially from 19-03-2023 till 26-03-2023,” reads an official order copy issued by Srinagar Traffic Police office, a copy which lies in processing with GNS.
As per the advisory, people intending to visit the Tulip Garden shall adopt Lal Chowk-Dalgate-Boulevard/Gupkar Road to reach the garden. On their return, they shall adopt the Nishat-Foreshore-Habak-Dargah-Khanyar route to reach their respective destinations. Likewise, motorists intending to travel from Harwan-Shalimar-Nishat and other adjacent areas towards Lal-Chowk are requested to travel via Foreshore-Hazratbal route instead of Nishat-Boulevard road axis to reach their respective destinations.
“Motorists intending to travel from Gulab Bagh-Zakoora-Naseembagh-Habbak and adjacent areas shall adopt Habak-Dargah-Khanyar route to reach Lal Chowk instead of Foreshore Road. Visitors are advised to park their vehicles only at designated parking places and avoid parking their vehicles on the roadside. Wrongly parked vehicles will be towed.”
The available parking places are in front of Botanical Garden, Open land at Kralsangri, SKICC, Royal Spring Golf Course and LCMA Parking at Nishat.
The authorities have also advised that emergencies shall be allowed to take the shortest route. One-way traffic will be implemented from 0900 hrs till 1900 hrs.
The move by the authorities to regulate traffic is a welcome step to ensure that visitors have a smooth and hassle-free experience while visiting the Tulip Garden. The visitors are expected to follow the traffic regulations to avoid any inconvenience during their visit. (GNS)
