5aaban
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Posts posted by 5aaban
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2 minutes ago, dallysingh101 said:
Who knows. I think a lot of apnay feel desperate, and politically isolated out there. There is no telling what Mann's motive was?
I haven't heard him speak in decades. Is he still cogent and articulate? He's not losing his marbles is he?
Do you think the treatment of ethnic minorities during conflict in Ukraine is a reflection of what ethnic minorities could face in western nations in situations of war?
Disturbing Videos Show Indian Students Fleeing Ukraine Brutally Beaten By Forces At Borders
Fleeing African and Indian students face racism at Ukraine border
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10 hours ago, dallysingh101 said:
It's easy for them to support the statement, most wouldn't let their own sons do it though I reckon.
Anyway, if they did, they might fighting these guys:
10,000 Muslim soldiers from Chechnya are on their way to Kiev to help Russia. Not something people would have guessed.
Leaders wouldn't make that statement if their sons were in the situation.
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On 3/1/2022 at 12:24 AM, dallysingh101 said:Exactly. Used and then dumped with not required. A few condescending pats on the head maybe.
So many Sikhs died fighting wars for colonisers. And the same nation trying to extradite young Sikh men today.
No one should be proud for taking part in useless wars. They should be seen as a lesson, never to be repeated again.
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11 hours ago, dallysingh101 said:I got to say it. Mann was one of the few politicians in Panjab who had any respect and spoke about autonomy. I know he made sacrifices including prison time.
But that being said, he seems to have lost the plot now. First the stuff about hijabs, now this.
He's lost his mind. Like all those laurels from ww1 and ww2 mean shyte. Brits didn't bother to pay the ww2 Sikh sepoys pensions in the end. He's talking like a proper brainless jut now. That loyal lapdog talk.
Find another way to get our guys military training Mann.
Sikhs/Panjabi life shouldn't be lost in conflict which doesn't concern us. Nobody will remember their contributions and none of these nations will support Sikhs when needed.
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SAD(A) chief says stranded students must stay back, fight for Ukraine
Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) chief Simranjit Singh Mann said, “Instead of packing up your bags and coming back to India, the Sikhs among you must volunteer for military service against the Russian invasion."
Amid SoS calls to evacuate Indian students stranded in Ukraine after Russia’s invasion, Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) chief Simranjit Singh Mann urged Punjabi students, particularly Sikhs among them, to “not leave Ukraine, opt for army training, and fight for the country they have tasted salt from”.
In a video message, recorded both in Punjabi and English languages, Mann, who contested the February 20 Punjab Vidhan Sabha polls from Amargarh constituency, said, “Instead of packing up your bags and coming back to India, the Sikhs among you must volunteer for military service against the Russian invasion. You should go to the nearest military post, declare your identity as a student and volunteer for active military duty. You should ask for 15 days’ training in infantry and artillery. And then join the defences of Ukraine against Russia.”
A former IPS officer and a former MP, Mann said that the Sikhs were “peeved with Russia” for 1984 Operation Bluestar “at the call of Indira Gandhi and other like minded parties, including Soviet Union and British forces in attacking the stateless Sikhs” and reducing “the golden temple complex to dust”.In the video message, recorded from his native Qila Harnam Singh village on Thursday, 77-year-old Mann asked the students to “volunteer for two weeks’ military training in infantry and artillery in the Ukraine’s period of crisis”.
“Go to nearest army camp. Tell them that you have come to study in Ukraine. Tell them that in this hour of crisis you are volunteering to help militarily. We are a martial race. There is no need to flee to other countries or to come back to India,” Mann said, accusing Russia of highhandedness on Ukraine in 2014 also by “robbing it of a huge territory”.
Mann said if students volunteered for military service for Ukraine, “it would result in big laurels for Sikh community across the world”.“Je aapan ne Ukraine da ena chir loon khaada, parayee keeti te vaapis Indian aun di lor nahi ai ..aapni martial race aa (If we lived and had food and salt in Ukraine, studied there then there is no need to return. We are martial race)” Mann said, urging the youth to join military ranks to side with Ukraine.
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‘Shots fired, people kicked’: Indian student says being pushed back into Ukraine from the border
The police in Ukraine was forcing students back from the border where people were crossing over into Poland back into Ukraine and even attempted to ram cars into the crowd, she said.
Students at the Ukraine-Poland border have sent out videos alleging that Ukrainian soldiers and police are forcing them back into Ukraine from the border of Poland by firing in the air and attempting to drive their cars into the crowd. They have also alleged that they have been beaten and kicked...
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On 2/27/2022 at 10:30 AM, proudkaur21 said:
We literally are in danger. These resources are so important to us. we have nothing no state ...not even control over our own resources ..... they could use the same gold to help poor sikhs in Punjab.
The SGPC announced a 1 Crore rupee prize for Indian mens hockey team for winning a bronze medal! As if they aren't paid well or have many sponsors already.
Donate directly to poor families or Sikh organisations and individuals that actually help.
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9 hours ago, dallysingh101 said:
Aaja Mexico Challiye reveals the story of Punjabi youth, who wish to move to America for a better life but unfortunately find themselves in a trap of illegal immigration which leds them to struggle to secure a passage to America
Starring Ammy Virk, Nasir Chinyoti, and Zafri Khan
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Lost touch with Indian Embassy, say around 450 Punjab-origin students stranded in Ukraine
Even as an Air India plane from Mumbai landed in Ukraine’s neighbouring country, Romania, to evacuate students who had managed to make it across the border, those still stuck in parts of Ukraine said they have been left to fend for themselvesOver 450 students from Punjab, who are taking refuge at a local school in Ukrainian capital Kyiv, decried the lack of communication from Indian Embassy about evacuation plans.Even as an Air India plane from Mumbai landed in Ukraine’s neighbouring country, Romania, to evacuate students who had managed to make it across the border, those still stuck in parts of the war-torn country said they have been left to fend for themselves.
Arjun Batish, a fourth-year MBBS student at Kharkiv National Medical University, said, “Even as the Indian government is sending evacuation planes to Romania and Hungary, there are no plans on ground to move students stuck in different parts of Ukraine, who are unable to reach the borders on their own.”
Batish, along with a few others, had reached the Kyiv airport on February 24 to board a plane back home when Ukraine shut its airspace in view of the Russian invasion.
The Indian Embassy had shifted them to the school, but since then, there has been no communication.
“The living conditions here are deplorable. There are so many of us, and food and water supplies are fast depleting. We don’t have enough toilets here. It is especially difficult for girl students (approximately 250 in number) here,” said Batish.
Chandan Arora, another student in the group and a native of Nabha in Punjab, said the Indian authorities should make arrangements to shift stranded students to safe areas.
Meanwhile, Arjun’s father Harish Kumar Batish, who is a professor at Punjabi University in Patiala, said, “The authorities should remain in touch with those stranded in different parts to ensure their safety. The families of stranded students have no choice but to contact them every hour.”
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8 hours ago, Premi5 said:Iqbaal, Amar and other names which are shared by Muslims and Sikhs
I have always found people named 'Kabul Singh' or 'Kashmira Singh/Kaur' or even 'Panjab Kaur' funny names
Peshaura and Multana were also used used by Sikh males.
Kunwar Pashaura Singh (1821 – 11 September 1845) (also spelled Peshawara Singh) Sometimes styled as Shahzada was the younger son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Rani Daya Kaur.
Kunwar Multana Singh Bahadur, sometimes styled as Shahzada (1819 - 1846) was the son of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja of Sikh Empire and Rani Ratan Kaur.He was said to be the son of a Muslim slave girl in the household of Maharani Datar Kaur , by an attendant in the zenana. He was procured by Ratan Kaur and presented to and accepted by Ranjit Singh as her son
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Ukraine Crisis: Video goes viral where Sikh youth offers 'Langar' to people in train as they travel towards Polish border
True to their inherent humanitarianism, a group of Sikh youth could be seen in a video trying to help provide langar food to international students travelling on a train towards the Poland border from war-hit Ukraine.
The video was shared on Twitter by Khalsa Aid group CEO Ravinder Singh.
He wrote: " #Ukraine: Guru Ka Langar on a train These guys were fortunate to get on this train which is travelling east of Ukraine to the west (to Polish border ). Hardeep Singh has been providing Langar and assistance to many students from different countries.What a guy."
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2 hours ago, MisterrSingh said:
What's wrong with Harinder?
That's a decent name too.
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The incident took place in Okara, Punjab, Pakistan.
Five booked in Pakistan for 'sexually assaulting' goat
Okara: Police have booked five men for allegedly sexually assaulting and killing a goat in Pakistan's Okara city on Thursday, media reports said.
The incident occurred in the limits of Satghara police station.
According to the police report, five men untied a labourer’s goat and took it to a nearby compound. The suspects raped the animal, tortured and killed it, reports The Express Tribune.
The owner of the goat later lodged a complaint.
Police registered a case against the five people.
A police team shifted the goat to a livestock hospital. The medical report confirmed the goat was raped before it was killed. Police launched a hunt to arrest the alleged rapists, the newspaper reported.
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2312555/bestiality-five-booked-for-raping-killing-goat
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21 hours ago, dallysingh101 said:If you click the link at the bottom you can see a video of the poor women trying to escape and being dragged back into the property by the scum's staff:
US national who is the son of one of Pakistan's richest families is sentenced to death for raping and beheading diplomat's daughter, 27, after she rejected his proposal
- Zahir Jaffer brutally murdered Noor Muqaddam at his Islamabad home last year
- Mukadam, 27, the daughter of a former ambassador made attempts to escape
- CCTV footage showed her being stopped from leaving and dragged on the floor
- The court heard 30-year-old Pakistani-American Jaffer tortured her with a knuckleduster, raped her, and used a 'sharp-edged weapon' to behead her
- Jaffer comes from respected family. His father is a director of a trading company
- In Pakistan, the conviction rate for violence against women is around 3 percent
A US national has been sentenced to death for raping and beheading a diplomat's daughter after she rejected his marriage proposal.
Zahir Jaffer, the son of one of the richest families in Pakistan, brutally murdered Noor Muqaddam, 27, at his home in Islamabad on July 20, 2021.
Security camera footage showed Mukadam, the daughter of a former ambassador, had made repeated attempts to escape the sprawling mansion but was blocked by two members Jaffer's staff.
That footage has been released to the public, and shows Muqaddam trying to flee the compound through a large gate, but being stopped by the staff.
CCTV footage then shows her being dragged by her arm along the floor by a man, through a door and back into the property.
Zahir Jaffer (pictured Thursday leaving court), the son of one of the richest families in Pakistan, brutally murdered Noor Muqaddam, 27, at his home in Islamabad on July 20, 2021
Security camera footage showed Noor Mukadam (pictured), made repeated attempts to escape the sprawling mansion but was blocked by staff
The court heard that the 30-year-old Pakistani-American tortured her with a knuckleduster, raped her, and used a 'sharp-edged weapon' to behead her.
'The main accused has been awarded the death sentence,' said judge Atta Rabbani at the Islamabad district court.
Jaffer's parents, Zakir Jaffer and Asmat Adamjee, were found not guilty of attempting to cover up the crime.
The two staff members were sentenced to 10 years in prison for abetting murder.
'I am happy that justice has been served,' said Shuakat Mukadam, Noor's father, while pledging to challenge the acquittal of Jaffer's parents.
The case prompted an explosive reaction from women's rights campaigners reckoning with the pervasion of violence against women.
The shocking nature of the murder, involving a couple from the privileged elite of Pakistani society, led to pressure for the trial to conclude swiftly in a country where the justice system is notoriously sluggish and cases typically drag on for years.
According to the Asma Jahangir Legal Aid Cell, a group providing legal assistance to vulnerable women, the conviction rate for cases of violence against them is lower than three percent.
Targets of sexual and domestic abuse are often too afraid to speak out, and criminal complaints frequently not investigated seriously.
The case prompted an explosive reaction from women's rights campaigners reckoning with the pervasion of violence against women. Pictured: Women rights activists hold placards and candles during a protest rally against the brutal killing of Noor Mukadam, February 22
'Convictions have been dismally low for victims... making today's guilty verdict all the more significant,' said Amnesty International South Asia campaigner Rimmel Mohydin.
The court verdict dictates Jaffer be 'hanged by his neck till he is dead', however he was also given a concurrent sentence of 25 years in prison for abduction and rape.
He will also be able to challenge Thursday's verdict.
According to local reports, Jaffer belongs to a high-society family in Pakistan who founded a trading company in 1849 - Ahmed Jaffer and Company.
His father, Zakir, serves as a director of the company, according to his profile on LinkedIn. Jaffer's mother Asmat is reportedly a housewife.
Executions have rarely been carried out in Pakistan in recent years - and usually only involving terrorism cases - in part due to pressure from the European Union.
The last was in December 2019, according to the Justice Project Pakistan, making it likely Jaffer will only serve jail time, with remissions for religious holidays and good behaviour.
Jaffer was thrown out of court several times during the trial for unruly behaviour.
He was frequently carried into proceedings by stretcher or wheelchair, and his lawyers argued he should be found not 'mentally sound' - a manoeuvre prosecutors said was designed to have the trial suspended.
At one hearing he claimed someone else had killed Mukadam during a 'drug party' at his house.
Shuakat Mukadam, a former ambassador and father of the murdered Pakistani girl Noor Mukadam, speaks to the members of the media as he leaves a court after the case verdict in Islamabad, Pakistan, 24 February 2022
When questioning Mukadam's father - a former ambassador to South Korea and Kazakhstan - Jaffer's lawyer implied she was killed by her own family for conducting a relationship outside of marriage.
Prosecutions for violence and sexual assault frequently see the female victim's personal history picked over according to Pakistan's patriarchal mores - another reason why justice is rare for women.
According to a recent report by Human Rights Watch on Pakistan, 'Violence against women and girls – including rape, murder, acid attacks, domestic violence, and forced marriage – is endemic throughout Pakistan. Human rights defenders estimate that roughly 1,000 women are killed in so-called 'honour' killings every year.'
Very tragic incident. This was the victim Noor Muqaddam, holding a placard at the Pakistan Aurat March.
Aurat March is an annual socio-political demonstration in Pakistani cities such as Lahore, Peshawar and Karachi. The march calls for greater accountability for violence against women and supports women who experience violence and harassment at the hands of security forces, in public spaces, at home, and in the workplace.
The Aurat March receives backlash from conservative Islamic Pakistanis.
According to Pakistan's minister for religious affairs and interfaith harmony (Noorul Haq Qadri) Islamic societies are the best in protecting women’s rights, Qadri says Aurat March banners, placards and slogans do not match with the Pakistan's social, political and religious standard imbibed in the collective thought of the Pakistani people, and that individual or civil society participating in Aurat March ought not to get leeway to undermine the religious injunctions and instead Aurat March be celebrated as Hijab day to focus discrimination by Hindu extremists (sic) against Muslim minorities in India.
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40 minutes ago, proactive said:Shahmukhi is an invention from the late 19th century which was basically a way for Muslims to write down the compositions of the Sufis. They did not know Gurmukhi script so they used the prevalent Nastaliq script which they modified as that was known by all literate Punjabis. The falsehood that the Sufi writings were written in 'Shahmukhi' in the 13th century onwards has been debunked by the fact not none of these writings have been found. Most of the copies of the Sufis works belong to the early 19th century and many are written in Gurmukhi. The oldest work of Waris Shah's Heer Ranjha in Nastaliq script was written down in the 1860s by a Hindu scholar for a Sikh noble. The very name Shahmukhi is imitative of Gurmukhi and shows that it was created to give the Muslims a script to rival Gurmukhi.
In fact during British times, literacy in Punjabi was verified by knowledge of Gurmukhi script, and while a few thousand Muslims knew Gurmukhi over 100,000 each of Sikhs and Hindus knew Gurmukhi in the 1910s. I will try and find the figures but they illustrate how Gurmukhi was the only script for Punjabi and Shahmukhi is a made up script for the nastaliq script.
Also the promotion of Shahmukhi has been more on our side than on the Pakistani side. In fact the creation of Shahmukhi fonts for Punjabi were created by Punjabi University.
Here is an interesting article about Shahmukhi which even now is not fully developed to write Punjabi.
A case of missing alphabets | Literati | thenews.com.pk
Note below a paragraph from the article with the lazy promotion of the same falsehood about Shahmukhi having been widely used to write the compositions of the Sufis- the writer has added the additional masala of saying that even our Gurus read Shahmukhi!
During the entire process of composing, printing and designing of UPE (Undivided Punjab Edition), a few important revelations and roadblocks related to Shahmukhi script of Punjabi jolted me to write this piece so that I could bring to fore what kind of an existential challenge our script is facing. The script of Punjabi that was used by Baba Farid, Waris Shah, Shah Hussain, Bulleh Shah, Hafiz Barkhurdar, Peelo, Nijabat, Qadir Yar, Hashim Shah, Shah Muhammad, Mian Muhammad Baksh, Khawaja Farid and well read by Baba Nanak and other Gurus.
Some Sikhs and Pakistani Panjabis have been falsely claiming Shahmukhi as the original script for writing Panjabi.
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On 1/18/2022 at 1:47 AM, Ranjeet01 said:If I am correct, Gurmukhi is based on Landa script which came from which is today's Pakistan.
So basically Shahmukhi is a foreign script where Pakistanis are bowing down to their Persian and Arab masters.
Us Sikhs do best when we lead and do our own thing rather than trying to acommodate and appease.
Appeasing these lot gives us no benefit.
Yes, Shahmukhi is foreign and Gurmukhi is based on older scripts used in the Panjab region. Many Sikhs these days are trying to appease by holding Shahmukhi on the same pedestal as Gurmukhi.
Shahmukhi isn't a special script. Many Muslims adjust the same Perso-Arabic script to write their local languages while discontinuing the use of native scripts in several countries.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Punjabi-language
The Urdu script, written from right to left, is used for writing Punjabi in Pakistan, where it is nowadays often given the imitative name Shahmukhi.
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Rally demands Punjabi as official language of province
LAHORE: Punjab Lok Sangat and other organisations organised a rally on Monday in connection with the Mother Language Day ( Feb 21) and demanded that the government make Punjabi a compulsory subject from class one to bachelors level.
The rally, which was about an hour or so late from its scheduled time of 2pm as the participants could not gather in time, was taken out from Lahore Press Club to PIA Office, Egerton Road.
The Covid SOPs were not properly followed and fewer people were seen wearing masks.
All Pakistan Trade Union Federation, Pakistan Workers Confederation, Muttahida Labour Federation, Awami Workers Party, Mazdoor Kisan Party, Pakistan Mazdoor Mahaz, Alam Bibi Trust, Punjab Professors and Lecturer Association, Punjab Teachers Union, PHA Workers Union, Christian True Spirit Centre for Social Justice, South Asia Partnership Pakistan, Trinjan Theatre group and others participated in the rally.
Some of the participants were wearing turbans and holding red flags mostly of Mazdoor Kisan Party. They were chanting slogans like Sada Haq Aithay Rakh,Chan Punjabi Dhol Punjabi Bol Punjabi Bol Punjabi in support of the promotion of the language.
The rally passed a resolution demanding that Punjabi language should be taught from primary to BA level as a compulsory subject. In every school and college Punjabi language teachers should be appointed. The bill of declaring Punjabi as the official language should be presented in the Punjab Assembly. In every government office, including Punjab Assembly, ban on speaking Punjabi should be lifted.
Speaking on the occasion, Punjab Lok Sangat Convener Amjad Saleem said not only labourers were being exploited but also their language. He said Punjab had 62,000 schools and there would be ample job opportunities for Punjabi language teachers if it was made a compulsory subject.
Saleem said earlier Shehbaz Sharif did not honour his promise to present the bill in Punjab Assembly and now the current government is doing the same thing. He said when rulers asked for votes in their constituencies in Punjabi language what stopped them from passing a bill regarding the Punjabi language in the assembly.
One of the speakers, Nasir Jamil, said Punjabi is the language of Punjab and it should be made the official language of the province. Haroon Ranjah from Christian Lawyers Association said language is the flag-bearer of culture and heritage and Punjabi language should be promoted at all levels.
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Indian ‘doctor’ conman arrested after marrying more than 18 women
Investigators believe Bibhu Prakash Swain married more than 18 times and conned across India over a period of 20 years
Bibhu Prakash Swain believed in soulmates and true love, or so he told dozens of women he allegedly married and conned across India before his arrest more than a week ago in Bhubaneswar, the capital of eastern Odisha state.
Investigators believe Swain married more than 18 times and are now going through his mobile phone records where he saved his wives’ contacts – as Madam Delhi, Madam Assam or Madam UP (Uttar Pradesh) – named after the places in India where they stayed.
The Hindustan Times newspaper described him as “no Don Juan”, saying he stood just five feet, two inches (1.6 metres) tall, and reported that he married at least 27 women in 10 states.
“He primarily did this for their money, and some sexual pleasure,” senior police official Sanjiv Satpathy told AFP news agency.
The diminutive 67-year-old scoured marriage websites posing as a 51-year-old doctor and persuaded professors, lawyers, medics and a paramilitary officer all over the country to tie the knot, police said.
In status-conscious India he claimed he was on a chunky salary, and used fake identification cards and appointment letters to bolster his credentials and family background.
Satpathy’s team arrested Swain less than 10 days ago after months on his trail, discovering his multiple identities, bank accounts and plans for two weddings in February and March.
“He was always very persuasive,” Satpathy said, “and only targeted successful single, widowed or divorced women in their late 40s.”
A few “happy and satisfying days into the marriage”, the police said, Swain used to make excuses to borrow his new wives’ money or jewellery to help him with an emergency.
He then moved on to his next target, hoping that the women’s circumstances – as a single, widowed or divorced woman who had remarried in a conservative society – would scare them off going to the police.
For good measure he also allegedly defrauded 13 banks out of 10 million rupees ($135,000) with 128 forged credit cards, and ran a chain of medical labs where doctors and other staff went for months without pay, the Hindustan Times new paper said.
Angry and cheated
Police launched a probe into Swain’s multiple lives in May 2021 after a complaint by one 48-year-old wife who, by chance, discovered that he was already married to at least seven other women.
The victim, feeling angry and cheated, police say, “quietly retrieved” the contact details of his other wives from his phone and contacted them individually about their shared predicament.
“This is when we came in and made discoveries about his long history of cheating, impersonation and deceit,” Satpathy said.
Swain, born in a small village in Odisha, first married in 1978 and has three children – two of them doctors and one a dentist – with his first wife.
Trained as a lab technician, he fell out with his family and moved to Bhubaneswar where he started introducing himself as a doctor and ultimately married a doctor, his second wife, in 2002.
“He has since used multiple names but always introduced himself as a doctor or a professor while looking for wives online,” Satpathy said.
The police doubt his ruses were a one-man job and are looking for people who helped him with his elaborate setups and moved his money from one place to another.
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Panjabis stuck in Ukraine
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On 2/25/2022 at 12:20 PM, Premi5 said:
Some interesting names...
Jeevan and Jagveer are nice names.
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Since the Ukraine-Russia conflict has been trending lately, how should Sikhs view it? If Sikhs are serving in foreign armies, should they take part in the conflict if needed?
Russia-Ukraine latest: Putin announces military operation
Putin has launched ‘full-scale invasion’, says Ukrainian foreign minister – latest updates
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-europe-60454795
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Russia Ukraine news: Putin orders ‘military operation’ in Ukraine
Vladimir Putin has ordered a “military operation” in the Donbas region, indicating that the invasion is now underway.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced he has authorised a “military operation” in the Donbas region in Ukraine — a move seen by Ukraine and the west as the beginning of Russia’s invasion.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has called it “full-scale war”.
Explosions have been heard in as many as five cities including Kyiv and Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, as well as the key Black Sea port city of Odessa.
Ukraine’s interior ministry has already declared “hundreds of casualties as a result of Russian missile attacks” around the country, according to CNN.
Mr Putin sparked panic by recognising the breakaway territories of Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine – known collectively as the Donbas region – earlier this week.
Thousands of troops and vehicles have already crossed the border, with a string of Western nations, including Australia, imposing harsh sanctions in response.
Ukraine has also ordered an estimated three million citizens currently living in Russia to return home “immediately” over fears of looming violence.
Follow our live coverage for updates.
Ukraine says Russia launched ‘full-scale war’ but ‘we will win’
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has responded to the news that Russia has invaded Ukraine.
On social media, he shared a pointed message to the world to ignore claims by Russia that the so-called “military operation” is anything other than a war.
“Putin has launched a full-scale war against Ukraine,” he wrote.
“Strikes continue on peaceful Ukrainian cities. This is a war of aggression. Ukraine will defend and win. The world can and must stop Putin. It’s time to act - just now.”
Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday that he had unsuccessfully sought talks with Mr Putin as the crisis between their two countries entered its most dangerous phase so far.
“I initiated a telephone call with the president of the Russian federation. Result: Silence,” Zelensky said in a late night address.
Ukraine wakes to explosions in at least five cities
Ukranians are waking to horror as explosions ring out before dawn in at least five cities including the capital Kyiv, Ukraine’s second largest city Kharkiv and the key Black Sea port city of Odessa.
AFP correspondents are reporting they heard explosions in Kharkiv, a large city 35 kilometres (20 miles) south of the Russian border.
Four loud blasts rang out in Kramatorsk, a frontline city that serves as the Ukrainian government’s effective capital for the eastern war zone, and more were heard in the eastern port city of Mariupol, AFP reporters said.
It comes as the first images emerge of bomb blasts in Ukraine.
A wave of explosions took place in Kharkiv about 5 am local time. Picture: just_kharkov_/Instagram
CNN is reporting that Ukraine’s interior ministry is declaring “hundreds of casualties as a result of Russian missile attacks” around the country...
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In Punjab's Doaba and Majha, Unemployment, Drugs and Dreams of Canada Dominate Young Minds
Unimpressed by unfulfilled promises over the years, voters are confused about who is most likely to seriously respond to their issues.
Jalandhar/Amritsar: In Punjab’s Dalit heartland and the NRI rich Doaba region, some key words that figure prominently in people’s conversations are Canada, unemployment, drugs and inflation.
Every Saturday, young people are found not outside multiplexes or shopping malls, but hotels and banquet halls to appear for the IELTS exam. This trend has been growing amongst the working class too.
Amidst hoardings of Congress, AAP, SAD-BSP, BJP candidates at IELTS centres, Mandeep Singh (23) from Ahmadpur village in Kapurthala, whose family runs a taxi service, said, “People in my village are talking about a ‘jhaadu (broom – AAP’s election symbol), but I am concerned about going to Canada. I could not clear my IELTS exam earlier but I will try again. Here we don’t have any jobs and even if we get one, the salary is meagre and inflation is a headache.”
Mandeep said, “Nearly every boy in our village has moved to Canada, Australia, the UK or New Zealand. Though people from Doaba have been going abroad for a long time, with the availability of study visas the trend has picked up pace. People want jobs and a good quality life, not lofty promises.”
Like Mandeep, there are several young people who find themselves caught between unemployment, moving abroad and the burning issue of drugs.
A view of a building in Jalandhar with visa offices of all countries, especially Canada. Photo: Kusum Arora
Varinder Pal, a young graduate, is back home in Adampur from Abu Dhabi in the UAE. SAD-BSP and the Congress are locked in a close fight here. He said, “I have been working in Abu Dhabi for the last four years. I have come home to appear for the IELTS exam and move to Canada and finally the US.”
On elections, he said, “Politicians are promising moon these days but none of them have come up with any agenda to address unemployment and drugs. People in our village are talking about chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s welfare measures and SAD-BSP candidate Pawan Kumar Tinu. We will decide between the two.”
At Dalit Dera Sachkhand Ballan, The Wire met three friends – Harpal, Jaspal and Vijay Kumar from Alawalpur and Ballan village of Jalandhar – who said Channi’s performance and the SAD-BSP was a topic of discussion in the villages. “Yes, AAP is in the popular discourse but Dalits have not forgotten how our Guru Ravidass temple was demolished in Delhi. Arvind Kejriwal didn’t do anything to stop it. Recently, a Sikh girl was raped and humiliated publicly, even then Kejriwal’s response was too late and not promising enough. These might sound like non-poll issues but Dalits feel left out when such incidents take place.”
“Channi has improved the lives of not just Dalits but all communities. His decision to reduce the power tariff and petrol-diesel prices, waiving off pending water supply bills, providing jobs and supporting farmers is likely to go in his favour. Also, he stayed overnight at Dera Ballan whereas other politicians just come for photo-ops and spend hardly an hour or two,” they said.
Voters also spoke about how drugs were a major problem in villages. In Chunaini Kalan village of Nawanshahr district, Chaman Lal and his friends Ram Shah and Shekhar said, “Whether it was SAD-BJP or the Congress, drugs continue to ruin lives, houses and marriages. ‘Chitta’ is available across villages but sadly for politicians it is simply a way to seek votes by claiming that they will end it. This is why people are talking about AAP and want to give them a chance. Jhaadu will have an impact.”
For three days, The Wire tracked voters’ moods in the Doaba and Majha region of Punjab. While Doaba has 23 seats, Majha has 25. Doaba accounts for over 32% Dalit votes, which is the highest in the country and a key factor in deciding the fortunes of all political parties.
On the other hand, Punjab’s Majha belt on the Indo-Pak border is home to early Sikhism and also famous as the ‘sword arm of the country’, for sending the maximum number of young people to the armed forces.
On the Jalandhar-Amritsar highway, The Wire met Harnek Singh from Kapurthala’s Jati Ke village and Jagtar Singh from Pandori Golan village of Tarn Taran district, who run a kinnow juice stall. When asked about election issues, both said, “Nasha (drugs). Come to our village and see how youth are neck deep into drugs. This is why they are going abroad. Inflation has also made life difficult. Edible oil prices are at Rs 200 per litre while pulses are above Rs 100 per kg. We are not able to save anything and governments hardly bother.”
At Baba Bakala assembly (reserved) seat of Amritsar, Charanjit Lal, a shopkeeper at Pheruman Chowk, Rayya said, “Congress infighting in our constituency in the past few days has dented its poll prospects. Khadoor Sahib MP Jasbir Singh Dimpa’s brother joined SAD a few days ago, leading to confusion among voters too. Though Congress is in the fight because of CM Channi’s work, AAP has an edge now. While people’s lives have been affected because of drugs, it is nobody’s concern. People want stability and jobs.”
Echoing similar sentiments, a helper at a fruit cart in the same market, Paramjit Singh, said, “I have made up my mind to vote for AAP. What have Congress, SAD-BSP and BJP given us other than compounding our problems? BJP ruined us with demonetisation while Congress failed to provide anything worthwhile during Amarinder Singh’s tenure. Congress brought Channi eyeing assembly polls only. But people will not be fooled this time.”
A few kilometres ahead, at the Jandiala Guru (reserve) assembly seat, an elderly Bhupinder Singh mentioned how both his daughters-in-law, despite having good qualifications, were sitting idle at home. “Then people talk about why the youth are moving abroad. There is hardly any youth left here. Everybody is rushing abroad for employment. Another big reason behind this trend is the communal divide in the country. There is a sense of insecurity among people, particularly youth. Look at this hijab issue in Karnataka. People want jobs, a good life, not Hindu-Muslim divide. We are followers of Guru Nanak Dev and it hurts to see how the country’s harmony was being disturbed,” he said...
The Wire also met some voters from Batala on the Amritsar-Batala highway, who shared how the once flourishing industrial town is on the decline and nearly forgotten. Ramesh Kumar, a shopkeeper, said, “Batala used to be the hub of iron, casting and agricultural inputs industry. Over the years, it has seen a total fall. People need jobs and the governments are not even interested in saving the existing industry.”
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Punjab polls: Doaba, hub of Dalit politics, sees 6% drop in turnout
Sandwiched between Beas and Sutlej, Doaba region comprises four districts — Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and SBS Nagar — with a total of 23 seats in the Punjab assembly
Amid a triangular contest on most seats, polling passed off largely peaceful amid 67.57% turnout in Punjab’s Doaba region as assembly elections were held on Sunday. However, the voting percentage saw a significant decline from 73.85% recorded in 2017 and 77.4% in 2012.
The region comprises four districts — Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and SBS Nagar — with a total of 23 seats in the 117-strong state assembly. In 2017, the Congress had won 15 seats, while five went to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), two to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and one to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was then an Akali ally.
Doaba is also known as the hub of Dalit politics and comprises eight reserved constituencies, including four in Jalandhar, two in Hoshiarpur and one each in Kapurthala and SBS Nagar. These reserved segments recorded 68.72% average polling, down from 73.73% in 2017. Among them, Chabbewal recorded the highest polling with 71.8% turnout.
Meanwhile, Balachaur seat in SBS Nagar district, from where SAD’s Sunita Chaudhary, AAP’s Santosh Kataria and Congress MLA Darshan Lal Mangupur were in the fray, recorded highest polling in the region at 73.8%. It was followed by Sultanpur Lodhi segment (72%) in Kapurthala district, which witnessed a four-cornered fight with cabinet minister Rana Gurjit Singh’s son revolting against the Congress legislator.
Jalandhar Central seat, from where senior BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia is in the fray, recorded lowest turnout in the region at 60.2%, followed by Jalandhar Cantonment (62.1%) that is represented by cabinet minister Pargat Singh and Hoshiarpur segment (60.2%).
Jalandhar district lags behind
Overall, SBS Nagar district led with 70.1% votes polled, though a significant drop from 77% and 79.6% in the last two elections. Jalandhar district fared the worst with 65.2 % polling, down from 72.9% and 75.6%, while the turnout stood at 67.01% in Hoshiarpur, sliding from 71.3% and 75.3% in 2017 and 2012, respectively. In Kapurthala, 67.97% polling was recorded, down from 74.2% and 79% in the past.
Jalandhar remained the only district in Doaba, where no segment touched the voting figure of 70%, whereas its total seven segments crossed this figure polling during the 2017 polls.
With the contest largely three-cornered — between ruling Congress, SAD-BSP alliance and AAP — help desks set up by Sanyukt Kisan Morcha, the newly floated political front of farm unions, wore a deserted look in most villages while the BJP help desks too witnessed a low footfall in rural segments of Jalandhar, Kapurthala and SBS Nagar. However, after bitter campaigning statewide, in a positive sign, parties shared common help desks outside polling stations at Nangal Jatta village in SBS Nagar and a few other villages in Kapurthala and Jalandhar.
Many youngsters and women in Jalandhar’s urban segments claimed that they were voting for change, with issues such as jobs and employment taking priority over security and other national issues. Meanwhile, in rural segments of Doaba, the Charanjit Singh Channi government’s power bill waivers and other schemes seems to have resonated with the electorate. With voters sealing the fate of all candidates, only the results to be announced on March 10 will tell whether the Congress’ Channi gambit and Dalit factor pays off in Doaba.
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Panjab marriages and exodus
in POLITICS | LIFESTYLE
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Maybe, but it's a break from usual love stories. The trailer showed quite gruesome things people encounter on these illegal journeys, it might help in scaring off youth who are blinded by charms of foreign countries.