1. BJP has decided it won’t adopt path of appeasement and vote bank politics: PM Modi
2. PM Modi calls on President Murmu in Delhi
3. GE 414 engine deal is about growing India-US ties, not China: Indian official
4. Manipur Violence: Tribal body not aggrieved party, has no locus standi to appeal, says govt
5. Situation from Kashmir to Kerala makes it must to retain colonial-era sedition law: Law panel chief

What Else

6. J-K: Al-Badr terrorist killed in Kulgam encounter
7. ECI announces elections to 10 Rajya Sabha seats in Goa, Gujarat, WB; polls on July 24
8. 3 Bangladeshis Arrested For Stealing ATM In Jammu And Kashmir
9. White House ‘blasts’ online vitriol against WSJ journalist who asked Modi about minority rights
10. Hope for IMF bailout decision in a day or two, Pakistan PM says
11. PM Netanyahu says invited to China, with US-Israel ties tense
12. US deputy secretary of state, Chinese ambassador hold ‘substantive’ call after Blinken’s trip
13. Republican lawmakers urge U.S. to scrap China science deal

BJP has decided it won’t adopt path of appeasement and vote bank politics: PM Modi

• PM Modi on Tue said the BJP has decided it would not adopt the path of appeasement and vote bank politics.
• The policy of appeasement practiced by some is “disastrous” for the country, he said during his visit to Bhopal in MP, where the Assembly polls are due this year-end.
• Even the SC has advocated for the Uniform Civil Code, but those practicing vote bank politics are opposing it, he said addressing selected BJP workers from across the country
• The Indian Constitution also talks about uniform rights for the people of the country, he said.
• Modi said the BJP follows the path of “santushtikaran” (satisfaction), instead of “tushtikaran” (appeasement).
• He also said that Pasmanda Muslims, who are backward, are not even treated as equal because of the vote bank politics.
• PM Modi gave a guarantee that his govt will take action against those involved in “scams”. (here)
• Hours after PM Modi batted for UCC, several Opposition leaders came forward to accuse Modi of bringing up the issue because of upcoming elections and said that he was trying the distract people from “real issues” in the country. (here)

PM Modi calls on President Murmu in Delhi

• PM Modi on Tue called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan in the national capital
• Earlier today, PM flagged off 5 Vande Bharat Express trains from the Rani Kamalapati Railway Station in Bhopal
• It was not immediately known what transpired during the meeting which comes days after the PM returned from his first State visits to the US and Egypt.
• The meeting also comes against the backdrop of ethnic violence in Manipur.
• PM on Mon chaired a meeting on the situation in the northeastern state after his return from the visit. (here)

GE 414 engine deal is about growing India-US ties, not China: Indian official

• India made economic corrections with the US in the 1990s and has made a defense correction now after engaging bilaterally and dealing with complicated technology transfer issues for the past two decades.
• The approval to transfer vital “hot engine” technology by Washington under the GE-HAL F-414 jet engine deal has raised red flags in Beijing.
• Beijing has now raised concerns over India-US defense cooperation by saying that it should not target third countries.
• To add to Chinese discomfort is that Delhi has bitten the price bullet and given approval to the acquisition of 31 Reaper drones, which will reduce the military imbalance.
• HALE drones armed with air-to-ground missiles and precision-guided bunker-busting bombs will be a game changer and will counter the challenge posed by China.
• The Chinese spox’s response to expanding India-US ties is disingenuous, to say the least as over the past decades it is Beijing, which has supplied high-end military platforms to India’s neighbors particularly Pakistan, and in turn, undermined the regional peace and stability of the Indian subcontinent.
• While Beijing raised concerns over growing India-US ties saying that it should not target a third party or even the interests of a third party
• This is exactly what China has done to India by supplying armed drones, nuclear missiles, frigates, fighters, and now possibly submarines to Pakistan.
• GT on the visit is now pandering to the Indian ego by saying a major power like India should not give up its strategic autonomy by aligning its interests with the US. (here)

Manipur Violence: Tribal body not aggrieved party, has no locus standi to appeal, says govt

• Tribal body AMTU is not an aggrieved party and thus has no locus standi to file an appeal against the Mar 27 order of the Manipur HC that directed the State govt to recommend the inclusion of the Meitei in the ST, the Govt on Jun 26 submitted.
• The Division Bench is currently hearing an appeal against the Mar 27 order of the Chief Justice, which became the immediate trigger for the ethnic conflict. (here)
• Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will visit violence-hit Manipur on June 29: AICC general secretary announced that Gandhi will interact with society representatives in Imphal and Churachandpur during his visit. (here)
• Govt Implements ‘No Work, No Pay’ For Absent Employees: The state govt has decided to invoke the “no work, no pay” rule for its employees who are not attending office.
• The Administration Department has been asked to furnish details of employees who are not able to attend their official work due to the prevailing situation. (here)

Situation from Kashmir to Kerala makes it must to retain colonial-era sedition law: Law panel chief

• Amid a clamor for sedition law to be repealed, the Law Commission chairman said on Tue it is an important tool to safeguard the “safety and integrity of India” given the state
• Chairman said that the law being a colonial legacy was not a valid ground for its repeal.
• Defending the endorsement, which is at present under abeyance following directions of the SC issued in May last year, he said enough safeguards have been proposed to prevent its misuse.
• he told that special laws such as the UAPA and the NSA operate in different fields and do not cover the offense of sedition. (here)

J-K: Al-Badr terrorist killed in Kulgam encounter

• Al-Badr terrorist identified as Adil Majeed Lone was neutralized by security forces in an encounter on Tue in the village Hawoora area of Kulgam in J&K.
• After receiving inputs, the area was cordoned off and the terrorist was eliminated in a joint operation by Jammu and Kashmir Police, Army, and CRPF.
• During the search operation, one J-K police personnel got injured in the indiscriminate firing by the terrorists hiding there.
• Implicating materials, arms, and ammunition including 1 Pistol with live ammunition and a Grenade were recovered from the site of the encounter. (here)
• BSF arrests a Pakistani national for illegally crossing India-Pak border: BSF arrested a Pakistani while he was illegally crossing the international border in Ferozpur, Punjab.
• During the examination, it was revealed that he had crossed the border unintentionally.

ECI announces elections to 10 Rajya Sabha seats in Goa, Gujarat, WB; polls on July 24

• The Election Commission on Tue announced the schedule for the election on 10 Rajya Sabha seats in Goa, Gujarat and West Bengal to be held on July 24.
• EC said that 10 members from 3 states are scheduled to retire in Jul and Aug.
• The 10 seats which are to be vacated in Rajya Sabha due to the retirement of members include Derek O’Brien from West Bengal and S Jaishankar from Gujarat. (here)

3 Bangladeshis Arrested For Stealing ATM In Jammu And Kashmir

• 3 Bangladeshi were arrested for stealing a bank ATM in J&K’s Pulwama.
• The ATM was dumped in an orchard area, and the police used a bulldozer to retrieve the ATM from a pit.
• The trio had stolen the ATM from J&K Bank in Pulwama on April 8.
• “The examination of suspects resulted in identifying a group of international thieves from Bangladesh,” said a police spokesman.
• It is added that the accused had committed such type of crime in the past as well. (here)

White House ‘blasts’ online vitriol against WSJ journalist who asked Modi about minority rights

• The White House has deplored the online harassment of a WSJ reporter who asked PM, Modi, about the rights of minorities in India at a press conference last week.
• “… It’s unacceptable. And we absolutely condemn any harassment [but who did] of journalists anywhere under any circumstances. That’s just — that’s completely unacceptable,” National Security Council spox said Mon.
• of the online vitriol targeting the paper’s White House correspondent Sabrina Siddiqui.
• Thereafter, WH took the mic to say: “I just want to reiterate a little bit what John said — we’re certainly here at the White House under this administration, we are committed to freedom of the Press, which is why we had the press conference last week.” (here)
• Biden calls Fox News reporter Peter Doocy ‘a stupid son of a bitch’ President Joe Biden called Fox News WH reporter Peter Doocy “a stupid son of a bitch” on Jan 24, 2022, on a live microphone, after Doocy asked Biden whether inflation was a political liability for him. (here)

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

Hope for IMF bailout decision in a day or two, Pakistan PM says

• Reuters- Pakistan hopes a bailout decision from the IMF will come in a day or two, its PM said on Tue, as the lender said it was holding talks to “quickly reach an agreement”.
• Islamabad has been waiting for a deal after taking tightening decisions required by the IMF for the disbursal of $1.1 bn under the lender’s 9^th review of a $6.5-bn EFF in 2019
• Pakistan’s fin min Dar added in an interview that the govt was searching for a mechanism to receive all pending funds under the IMF program.
• The IMF’s mission chief stated that Islamabad had taken “decisive measures” to bring policies in line with the economic reform program supported by IMF. (here)

“Will raise issue regularly with Pak…,” US official after Islamabad protests Biden-Modi joint statement on cross-border terrorism

• US said it has been consistently calling on Pakistan to increase efforts to permanently disband all terrorist groups like the LeT, JuD, and their various front organizations
• US State Dept spox said on Mon that Washington remains committed to working with Islamabad to address the shared threat posed by terrorist groups throughout the region.
• Spox was responding to a query on the joint statement of India-US, which called on Islamabad to ensure its territory was not used as a base for terrorist attacks.
• Meanwhile, Pakistan’s foreign ministry on Mon summoned US Deputy Chief of Mission and handed a demarche to him over the joint Modi-Biden statement.
• PM Modi’s remarks came just days after China rejected UN resolutions that would have designated a Pakistan-based, Sajid Mir of the LeT, as a “global terrorist.” (here)

PM Netanyahu says invited to China, with US-Israel ties tense

• Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tue he had been invited to China and his office had informed close ally the US about the planned trip to Beijing.
• This comes during tense ties between Israel and the US, whose President Joe Biden failed to invite Netanyahu for a visit after the Israeli’s re-election in Nov.
• The premier had also informed a bipartisan Congressional delegation, and told the Congress members that the “US will always be Israel’s most vital and irreplaceable ally.”
• A spokesman for Netanyahu could not provide further details on the planned trip or when it was expected to happen.
• China has been on a diplomatic offensive in the Middle East, where Washington for decades has been the main diplomatic powerbroker. (here)

US deputy secretary of state, Chinese ambassador hold ‘substantive’ call after Blinken’s trip

• US Dy Secy of State Wendy Sherman spoke with China’s newly appointed diplomat to the US on Tue to follow up on issues discussed during the Secy of State’s visit to Beijing.
• Sherman’s call with Xie Feng was “substantive” and meant to “follow up” on Blinken’s trip to the Chinese capital earlier this month, without further details.
• Sherman, who will retire at the end of this month, held the call just a week after President Biden’s remarks likened his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to a “dictator”.
• Xie warned of “consequences” against the US for the negative comments about China’s top leader. (here)

Republican lawmakers urge U.S. to scrap China science deal

• Reuters- Republican legislators on Tue urged the U.S. State Dept not to renew a decades-old agreement on scientific cooperation, arguing that Beijing would seek to use it to help its military.
• The deal, signed when Beijing and Washington established diplomatic ties in 1979 and renewed about every 5 years since has resulted in cooperation in science.
• However, China’s growing military prowess and theft of U.S. scientific and commercial achievements have prompted questions about the continuity of the Agreement
• The letter cited concerns about joint work between the U.S. and China on “instrumented balloons”, as well as more than a dozen of other projects. (here)