[NEWS OF THE DAY]

Bring situation under control: Sri Lanka’s acting President instructs armed forces

Amid mayhem and chaos in Sri Lanka, acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe instructed armed forces and police to bring the current situation under control. As protests intensified in the Sri Lankan capital city of Colombo, protestors who had gathered outside Sri Lanka PM’s office have taken over his residence at Flower Road in Colombo. Security personnel today resorted to tear-gas shelling to drive away protestors on the streets of Colombo. (here)

Sri Lanka declares state of emergency after Lanka’s President ‘flees’ to Male, likely to head to Dubai or Singapore later: Reports

Sri Lanka has declared a state of emergency after President Gotabaya Rajapakasa fled the country, said reports citing the Island nation’s PM’s office. Military personnel uses tear gas shells to disperse protestors who scaled the wall to enter Sri Lankan Prime Minister’s residence in Colombo. According to an ANI report, hundreds of furious protestors entered the premises of the Sri Lankan PM’s residence in Colombo as they breach the security deployment amid tear-gas shelling. Former Advisor to Sri Lankan Foreign Affairs ministry told ANI, “We want the PM to resign because as per our constitution if the President resigns the PM becomes the acting President. People want both of them to leave.” According to media reports, 73-year-old Rajapaksa, his wife, and two bodyguards left aboard a Sri Lankan Air Force plane for Male, the capital of the Maldives. (here) The Maldives on Tue expressed concern about the volatile situation in Sri Lanka which is facing an economic and political crisis where thousands of people stormed into the President’s House in Fort on Sat. Parliament Speaker said I have not yet received President’s resignation: (ANI) 2 state-run channels go off air amid stir, one resumes service.

China silent on the crisis in Sri Lanka, aims to ‘de-hyphenate’ from Rajapaksas, say experts

ThePrint-The exit of Sri Lanka’s China-friendly president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, could be a critical blow to ties between the island nation and its single-largest foreign investor, experts say. China offered no immediate official comment following Rajapaksa’s flight overseas early Wed. Following the storming of the Presidential Palace by protestors Sun in Colombo, China’s F Ministry stated that it hoped Sri Lanka would “overcome the current difficulties and strive to restore stability, revitalize the economy and improve people’s livelihoods at an early date”.

“Through a combination of authoritarianism, nepotism, cronyism, and hubris, the Rajapaksa family weighed down Sri Lanka’s economy with more debt than it could possibly bear. The country’s next leaders will have to address shortages of basic necessities, rebuild a wrecked economy, and reestablish the rule of law”.Indian expert, Brahma Chellaney

US Embassy in Sri Lanka on Wed canceled all consular services for today and Thu amid fresh protests.

India, China to hold 16^th round of corps commander-level talks on July 17

India and China are likely to hold the 16^th round of Corps Commander-level talks on July 17. The Indian side will be represented by Fire and Fury Corps Commander Lt Gen A Sengupta. The meeting would be held to discuss disengagement from friction points along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh. The last such meeting was held on Mar 11. (here) [so far 15 rounds of such talks didn’t give any positive result for India]

India intensifies fighter operations as China raises temperature near Ladakh

India has intensified fighter operations in Ladakh, with frontline jets carrying out increased sorties including night operations, as the Chinese air force has embarked on an aggressive defense exercise across the border in Tibet. ET reported citing sources, that fighter aircraft including Rafales and Su 30MKIs have been operating with enhanced frequency from Leh and Thoise air bases for the past few days, even as the People’s Liberation Army Air Force has activated its air defense network across the border, which includes the latest S-400 systems procured from Russia and locally manufactured HQ-9 systems, has been activated and is conducting a large-scale exercise involving its combat jets. On the Indian side, night flying is being undertaken with enhanced frequency, as there have been instances of Chinese fighter jets probing areas close to the contested zones in eastern Ladakh. In an instance, Chinese fighter jets flew close to a contested area at around 4 am in late Jun, triggering a response from the Indian side. The incident did not escalate into a bigger crisis as the Chinese combat jet did not breach the border, but a formal protest was lodged by India. China has also moved several of its advanced J-20 fighters to an airbase close to the Indian border. (here)

In a first, UNGA President calls for text-based negotiations on UNSC reforms process

In a first, the President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Abdulla Shahid, has called for formalization or “text-based negotiations” when it comes to reforms at the United Nations Security Council. So far, no president of the UNGA has specifically mentioned text-based negotiations in such clear terms when it comes to the reforms at the key UN body, which last saw a major expansion in 1965. What is significant this time is that his letter also, for the first time since the commencement of the IGN, makes a strong emphasis on the process to “gradually move” to “text-based negotiations using the Co-Chairs Elements Paper and the Framework Document of 2015.” India has been backing the Common African Position as mentioned in the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration. Naturally, the development is music to ears for India which has been long calling for text-based negotiations for reforms, leading to a more substantive discussion on the reforms. India along with Japan, Germany, and Brazil, part of the G4 countries, have been calling for urgent UN Reforms. The coffee group of Uniting for Consensus (UFC) group, led by Italy has Pakistan, and Turkey as its members and aims to counter bids by the G4 countries. (here)

Lookout circular issued against Chinese national in mobile loan app scam

At the request of the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Odisha Police, the Bureau of Immigration (BOI) has issued a lookout circular against Liu Yi, a Chinese national and main accused in a mobile loan app scam, police said on Tue. It is worth mentioning that in one APP alone there are more than 1.5 lakh downloads. It is suspected that they have cheated/ extorted lakhs of people across the country particularly targeting lower-middle-class people in the need of small loans, especially during the difficult times of COVID. He started his illegal business in India in 2019 from Bangalore. His parent company was Jianbing Technology in Hangzhou China. He is the director of Omlette technology private limited but indirectly controls or owns companies including IWT India, Ocean trading, Yellow Tune Technologies private limited, and Techlite development private limited, stated the police release. According to EOW, there are at least 2 more Chinese persons who used to assist him in his scam. They used to make their employees or any vulnerable or needy people directors of the shell companies but used to control/ operate the companies and bank accounts. They also used many Call Centres to make abusive/ threatening calls to loanees. More than Rs 6.57 Crore has been frozen. (here)

[NATIONAL]

DRI unearths Customs duty evasion of Rs. 4389 crores by Oppo India, a subsidiary of Oppo China: FM

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has slapped a Rs 4,389 crore show-cause notice on Oppo India on Jul 8 for allegedly evading customs duty by wrongfully availing exemption benefits. Oppo India, the Indian subsidiary of a Chinese firm, deals in various brands of mobile phones, including Oppo, OnePlus, and Realme. During the investigation, searches were conducted by DRI at the office premises of Oppo India and residences of its key management employees, which led to the recovery of incriminating evidence indicating wilful misdeclaration in the description of certain items imported by Oppo India for use in the manufacture of mobile phones, said the finance ministry in a statement. “This misdeclaration resulted in wrongful availment of ineligible duty exemption benefits by Oppo India amounting to Rs 2,981 crore,” the finance ministry stated on Wed. (here)

Centre launches nationwide crackdown on industrial units using urea intended for farmers’

The chemicals and Fertilizers Ministry has launched a nationwide crackdown on those industries across the country that use urea intended for farmers and a special flying squad of the Chemical and Fertilizer Ministry is taking strict action. ANI reported citing an official that urea is used in various other industries viz UF resin/glue, Plywood, resin, crockery, molding powder, etc, and the center is getting references indicating diversion, black marketing, hoarding, and supply of sub-standard quality of subsidized fertilizers by various private entities. Department of Fertilizer (DoF) identified IGU supplier’s GST evasions worth Rs 63.43 crore, shared the information with GST department Rs 5.14 crore recovered so far. Ministry official further told ANI that “Unaccounted stock of Agriculture grade urea of about 25,000 bags worth Rs 7.5 Crore recovered, 6 persons arrested under CGST Act 2017 and remanded to judicial custody, follow-up investigation under process.” (here)

India, Madagascar sign MoU on tele-education

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Madagascar govt and Telecommunications Consultants India Limited [TCIL] for participation in the e-VBAB (e-VidyaBharati and e-AarogyaBharati) network project on Tue. The Minister of Higher Education of Madagascar Elia Beatrice Assoumacou signed the MoU at the premises of the Ministry of Higher Education in Antananarivo, Madagascar in presence of the Ambassador of India to Comoros and Madagascar Abhay Kumar. Speaking on the occasion, Kumar said, “During India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-III) held in New Delhi in Oct 2015, Govt of India announced technological up-gradation and extension of Pan-Africa e-network Project (PAeNP) under which tele-education and telemedicine services were successfully implemented in 48 countries in Africa including the Republic of Madagascar.” A total of 26 major Indian universities are participating in the project offering more than 300 different courses in Management, Computer Science, Commerce, Science, Health care, Humanities, and Arts. The details of the courses are available on iLearn portal, ilearn.gov.in. (here)

India supports UNSC resolutions giving extension for Syria cross-border aid

India on Tue welcomed the adoption of the resolution by the UNSC on extending authorization of humanitarian assistance to Syria through the Bab-Al Hawa crossing. During the adoption of Syria’s humanitarian resolution for the renewal of cross-border operations, India’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador R. Ravindra said, “Today’s adoption will reassure nearly 4 million people in the northwest of Syria, 2.7 million of whom are IDPs, many of whom are women and children.’ “At the same time, we should not lose sight of the fact that more than 14.5 million people across Syria need humanitarian assistance in one form or the other, with essential food items and fuel in short supply. Food insecurity has reached historic highs and an estimated 60% of the population is food insecure, as per the UN,” he added. Ravindra said that it is clear that a decisive forward movement on the political track in Syria remains an urgent imperative to alleviate the sufferings of its people. (here)

Punjab police recover 75 kg of heroin from the container at Mundra port

Punjab Police teams in a joint operation with ATS Gujarat and Central Agencies recovered 75 kg of Heroin from a container at Mundra Port in Gujarat on Tue. According to the Director-General of Police (DGP), the contraband was kept concealed in a container of unstitched clothes using a cardboard pipe which was further camouflaged by an oversized plastic pipe. The container, which was loaded from Jebel Ali port in UAE, was booked by an importer from Malerkotla, Punjab. As per initial investigations, the DGP said that as the links of the container have been established with Punjab, this consignment seems to be routed to some other place via Punjab. “Punjab Part is being explored and investigated,” he added. (here)

Prophet Muhammad Row: Kanpur violence: ‘Stone-pelters were paid Rs 500-1,000, rioters who used petrol bombs received Rs 5,000’

In the latest development in the Jun 3, Kanpur violence case, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in its case diary has mentioned that miscreants were given money for spreading violence in the area. According to the SIT’s case diary filed in court, the stone-pelters were allegedly paid Rs 500-1,000 and those who agreed to hurl petrol bombs during the riots were reportedly paid Rs 5,000. The SIT has also claimed that the miscreants who agreed to participate in arson were assured free legal assistance. Notably, the miscreants were trained for 8-9 days. Police arrested 3 Popular Front of India (PFI) members -Saifullah, Mohammad Naseem, and Mohammad Umar on Jun 9 in connection with the violence. (here)

An Indian couple that arrived from Vietnam has nabbed, and 45 guns worth over Rs 22 lakh from two trolley bags were seized. They admitted their previous indulgence in smuggling 25 pieces of guns having a value of over Rs 12 lakh: Commissioner of Customs, IGI Airport & General, New Delhi.

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

US destroyer sails near disputed islands in SCS, raising tensions with China

Tension spiked on Wed after China deployed warships and jets to monitor an American guided-missile destroyer, which sailed near disputed islands in the South China Sea, challenging Chinese claims of territorial sovereignty in the maritime region. The US destroyer USS Benfold sailed near the disputed Paracel Islands (Xisha in China) as part of Washington’s so-called “freedom of navigation operations” in the SCS in response to what it says are growing restrictions on “innocent passage” imposed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam. The US Navy’s 7^th Fleet said the ship exercised its right to free passage and then continued sailing, contradicting a Chinese statement on the incident. The People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) southern theatre command said its forces had “monitored” and driven away the American warship for illegally entering Chinese waters in the SCS. The PLA reacted angrily to the ship’s passage, saying the US warship “illegally entered China’s Xisha territorial waters without the approval of the Chinese govt”. The statement said the command organized naval and air forces to track, monitor, and drive away the warship. (here)

Japanese lawmakers to visit Taiwan on security, trade trip

Seven Japanese lawmakers will visit Taiwan later this month in an apparent show of support for the island, according to Frank Hsieh, Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to Tokyo. Hsieh said in a Facebook post on Tue that it was particularly meaningful for the legislators, who belong to a cross-party parliamentary group focused on security affairs, to visit Taiwan following the death of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. Hsieh said the upcoming trip showed the Diet’s support for Taiwan would continue despite Abe’s death, and more Japanese legislators with “shared values of freedom and democracy” had joined the “pro-Taiwan camp”, increasing its influence. News of the upcoming visit came just as Taiwanese Vice-President William Lai returned from an unannounced trip to Tokyo to attend the funeral of Abe, which the island’s govt said was a “personal trip” in his capacity as the late prime minister’s close friend. Beijing protested to Tokyo on Tue, saying that allowing Lai’s visit was against the “one-China” policy Japan had committed to when the two sides established formal ties in 1972. (here)

Newest Chinese aircraft carrier Fujian gives PLA an edge in Taiwan Strait: analyst

The People’s Liberation Army’s 3^rd aircraft carrier is likely to become combat-ready within the next 6-8 years, giving its forces more options in case of armed conflict with Taiwan, a Chinese analyst said. A researcher, Jiao Tong University, said it would take the Fujian 3-4 years to enter active service. The launch of the PLA Navy’s 3^rd and most advanced aircraft carrier on Jun 17 was seen as bringing Beijing a step closer to its goal of building a “blue water navy”, capable of operating far from the shores of mainland China. It had taken the USS Gerald R. Ford – the US Navy’s newest aircraft carrier – 9 years from its 2013 launch to become combat-ready in April this year, despite entering into service in 2017, Wang noted. (here)

PM Shehbaz lauds Kashmiris for keeping the ‘flame of freedom’ alive in face of Indian tyranny

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wed paid tribute to Kashmiris on Youm-i-Shuhada-i-Kashmir (Kashmir Martyrs Day), saying they had kept the “flame of freedom” alive despite Indian aggression. It was on Jul 13, 1931, when tens of hundreds of Kashmiris had gathered outside the premises of Central Jail in Srinagar where Abdul Qadeer, a resident of British India, was being tried on the charge of sedition, for inciting Kashmiris against the Dogra ruler at a gathering in Khanqah-i-Muallah on Jun 21, the same year. At the time of midday prayer, one of the crowd members stood to make a call to prayer and was shot dead by the police. He was succeeded by another member who met the same fate. In all, 22 men rose to complete the call to prayer and all were shot dead. Kashmir Martyrs Day also used to be observed in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). However, in Dec 2019, 4 months after revoking the special status of the occupied valley, the BJP govt removed this day from the territory’s official holiday list. (here)