Month: August 2021

Former Army chief Gen Shankar Roy Chowdhury said the government needs to step up outreach in Kashmir and reassure people there that India will continue to be a secular democracy as the Taliban victory in Afghanistan is likely to see a renewed offensive by Pakistan-based militants. The retired General, who had commanded 16 corps in Kashmir at the height of militancy in that state in early 1990s, and became Army chief later in the same decade when Taliban last came to rule over Kabul, believes that Pakistan, re-enforced by the recent Taliban victory, “will make a fresh bid on Kashmir” using groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed. He also said that India needs to reach out to both former Afghan government forces rallying around Ahmad Massoud, son of the late legendary anti-Taliban commander Ah...

Fourteen people were arrested from across Assam for alleged social media posts "supporting the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan", police said today. The arrests were made since Friday night and they have been charged under different sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, IT Act and CrPC, a senior police officer told news agency PTI. "We were on alert and monitoring social media for inflammatory posts," the officer told news agency Press Trust of India. Two people each were arrested from Kamrup Metropolitan, Barpeta, Dhubri and Karimganj districts, the police said. One person each was arrested from Darrang, Cachar, Hailakandi, South Salmara, Goalpara and Hojai districts, they added. Deputy Inspector General Violet Baruah said the Assam Police is taking stern legal a...