oppn parties J & K Governor Needs To Consult All

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  • Maaya Rajeshwaran reaches WTA-level quarter-final. The 17-year-old Indian defeated Poland's Weronika Falkowska 6-4, 6-3, becoming the first Indian woman since Sania Mirza in 2012 to reach a quarter-final at a WTA Tour-level singles event
  • Tanvi Patri reaches Youth Olympics badminton final. The 15-year-old defeated Japan's Yuzuno Watanabe in the semi-final, assuring India of a medal and becoming the first Indian badminton player to reach the girls' singles final at the Youth Olympics
  • India beat Pakistan 3-2 in SAFF Championship. India defeated Pakistan in a closely contested match, having led 3-0 before conceding two late goals. The victory was reported as a significant result for India's second-string side
  • India beat Japan 4-1 to win a record sixth Asian Champions Trophy. India recovered from an early deficit to defeat Japan in the final at Mohali, extending its record as the tournament's most successful men's team
  • The Supreme Court issued notice to the Centre and the Election Commission on a petition challenging Section 16 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, which grants the CEC and Election Commissioners protection from legal proceedings for acts performed in their official duties. The petition argues that such blanket immunity could leave citizens without an effective remedy for alleged wrongdoing by the Commission
  • The Supreme Court told voters whose names were deleted from Delhi's draft electoral rolls not to be apprehensive about seeking re-enrolment through Form 6, after the Election Commission assured it that such applicants would not be prosecuted merely because their names had appeared in earlier rolls
  • Congress leader Rahul Gandhi opened the party's campaign for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections with an Insaaf rally in Sangrur, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's home district, accusing the AAP government of failing to control drugs, gangster violence and corruption. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge outlined six commitments, including a drug-free Punjab, protection of farmers, employment for young people and action against corruption
  • Rahul Gandhi accused the AAP government of running Punjab through a remote control from Delhi and questioned Bhagwant Mann's ability to tackle drug abuse, making personal allegations about the Chief Minister's conduct during their time together in Parliament
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J & K Governor Needs To Consult All

By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2018-09-18 13:47:48

General Bipin Rawat, the Army chief, is right when he said that the new Governor in Jammu & Kashmir, Satyapal Malik, must be given space for him to consult all kinds of people before he can assess the situation in the state. The Army chief also said that he didn’t think it fit for the Army to present him with a security plan on its own.

This is an extremely sane stand. The situation in the state is fluid, with all kinds of opinion floating around. Politically, the state is in limbo with President’s rule. The Governor first needs to consult politicians across the spectrum. Then he must take up the issues with the civil society. Only then should the security apparatus, which includes the Army and the J & K Police, be consulted. The Governor will then be in a better position to either accept or reject the suggestions of the security forces.

For, the security forces generally have a one-point agenda – to prevent disturbances. Their actions usually offend a large number of people and can often lead to further disturbances. But when the Governor consults the politicians and a large cross section of the citizenry, he can get direct knowledge of what measures need to be taken and which ones are unnecessary and can irk the people. This knowledge can help him in advising the security forces, who can then brief him on the necessity of the suggested measures.