From the Newsroom: Pakistan denies Dawood Ibrahim's presence in Karachi

In your evening news brief, From The Newsroom, Pakistan does a U-turn on info on Dawood Ibrahim; Battle Lines are drawn in Congress over Rahul’s presidency and BJP clears the air over Ranjan Gogoi’s name being considered for the party’s Assam Chief Ministerial candidate.

Here are the top news of today, Sunday: August 23, 2020:

After a statutory regulatory order (SRO) issued by Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed the addresses, aliases and passport numbers of Dawood Ibrahim, the ministry issued a statement that reports claiming “Pakistan admitting to the presence of certain listed individuals on its territory, based on the information contained in the SRO, are baseless and misleading.”

Dawood is one of the most wanted men by Indian authorities for perpetrating the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts and he is among 88 others who were in a list of persons under an arms embargo, whose assets were ordered to be frozen and is placed under a travel ban.

The SRO was issued by Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to avoid being blacklisted by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The statement read: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued two consolidated SROs on 18 August 2020, reflecting the current status of the UN Taliban and ISIL(Da’esh) and AQ Sanctions list. These lists contain names of individuals and entities designated under the two sanction regimes established pursuant to the UN Security Council resolutions. The consolidated SROs are issued periodically as a routine matter. Similar SROs have been issued, by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in the past, as per statutory requirements to meet our international obligations. Last such SROs were issued in 2019.It is once again reiterated that the information contained in the SRO is reproduced as per the details in the list entry of the individuals/entities designated under the two sanctions regime, which is publically available, and contains names of individuals who despite their confirmed deceased status still continue to be on the sanctions list.”

Other than Dawood, Lashkar-e-Taiba head Hafiz Saeed, head of LeT’s operations Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi and Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar are among the list of those sanctioned.

IIPM director Arindam Chaudhuri has been arrested by Central Goods & Services Tax South Delhi Commissionerate for an alleged Rs 23 crore tax evasion case.

He has been arrested under Section 89 of the Finance Act which enlists penalties for evading payment of service tax.

IIPM was found guilty of giving false MBA degrees to students in 2014.

Battle Lines were drawn ahead of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting tomorrow with at least 23 leaders writing to party chief Sonia Gandhi flagging the leadership crisis and calling for internal elections, while another section pressing for the return of Rahul Gandhi as Congress president.

The letter is the first united attempt by Congress leaders to intervention of the party chief to set right things in the organisation which appears adrift with the lack of a full-time president to take on the challenge posed by well-oiled machinery of the BJP.

While the 23 leaders, including veterans Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma to youngsters Manish Tewari, Milind Deora and Jitin Prasada, have called for sweeping changes in the Congress organisation, section of party leaders see it as a move to derail Rahul’s return to the helm of party affairs.

Asking Rahul to stop being adamant and return as Congress president, former Mumbai Congress President Sanjay Nirupam said that the letter is a new conspiracy to blunt the leadership of Rahul Gandhi.

Rahul had quit as Congress President in July last year, accepting the responsibility of the party’s second successive debacle in the Lok Sabha elections and conveyed that the Congress should look beyond the Gandhi family for leadership.

In a letter addressed to members of the Congress Working Committee, AICC Secretary Vamshi Chand Reddy: “In view of existing conditions, any further delay in promoting Rahul ji as the President-AICC can cause incalculable harm to the progress of the Congress party and can be dispiriting to the entire Congress family.”

The joint letter by 23 leaders to the Congress President is said to have been written about a fortnight back, but the Congress had officially denied the existence of any such letter.

Rahul has conveyed to the party on numerous occasions that he was unwilling to return as party president and was ready to work for the party as an ordinary member.

However, since his resignation as Congress president last year, Rahul has had a say in key appointments in the party and selection of candidates for Rajya Sabha elections.

Rahul had also stepped in to defuse the crisis in Rajasthan where Sachin Pilot had rebelled against the style of functioning of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Pilot gave up on his rebellion after discussions with Rahul and AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

Former Assam Chief Minister and veteran Congress leader Tarun Gogo has claimed that he got information that former CJI Ranjan Gogoi was in the list of BJP's Chief Ministerial candidates for next year's Assembly elections.

But BJP was quick to rubbish it and termed it as "a desperate statement" by 85-year-old Congress leader, saying Gogoi says whatever comes to his mind.

Chief spokesperson of BJP's Assam unit, Rupam Goswami told DH: "Has Tarun Gogoi joined BJP? He is a veteran politician and served as Chief Minister for three terms. How can he make such a light and irrelevant statement about decision by another party and about a former CJI? It suggests he has become frustrated as he knows that BJP and its allies will again form the government."

Tarun Gogoi, who declared that he would not be Congress' CM candidate this time, had claimed that BJP could consider the former CJI as CM candidate as BJP was happy with his judgement over Ram Mandir issue at Ayodhya.

Tarun Gogoi told reporters: "Why did not he refuse Rajya Sabha seat? He could become chairman of human rights commission or any other similar body. This shows he is interested in politics. I have information that Ranjan Gogoi is in the list of BJP's CM candidate."

When asked about BJP's CM candidate for the Assembly elections slated next year, Goswami said, "The election is still six-seven months away. Let the time come. But BJP will not ask Tarun Gogoi while deciding on this."

Another leader in BJP said the ruling party would not like to change Sarbananda Sonowal for the CM post given his clean image and acceptability among voters and leaders belonging to different communities. This despite the fact that a section within the party wants senior leader and cabinet minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to be BJP's CM candidate.

While BJP plans to continue with the pre-poll alliance with the regional AGP and Bodoland People's Front, the Congress is trying to stitch a "grand alliance" with Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front and other smaller political forces like left parties to unseat the BJP from power.

The Assembly elections in Bihar, due later this year, would be held on time, highly placed sources in the Election Commission told PTI.

The term of the 243-member Bihar legislative assembly comes to an end on November 29.

Indications are that the polls could be held sometime in October-November.

a senior official of the poll panel said: "Bihar elections are definitely happening on time."

The state's principal Opposition party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, has questioned the need for holding the elections amid the pandemic. The Lok Janshakti Party, a constituent of the ruling NDA, has urged the poll panel to postpone the polls in view of the pandemic.

Some other parties like the NCP and the National People's Party too have demanded postponing the elections.

Political parties had recently responded to a letter from the EC seeking suggestions on how to conduct campaigning during the pandemic for the upcoming Bihar elections and certain other by-elections.

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