Nitish speaks with Rupani over attacks on non-Gujaratis
Patna, Oct 8: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said Monday he has spoken to his Gujarat counterpart Vijay Rupani and expressed concern over attacks in the western state on non-Gujarati people, including those from Bihar.
Condemning the alleged rape of a 14-month-old girl, which triggered the violent attacks, Kumar said the guilty must be punished but an entire community should not be "tarred with the same brush".
"Our government is aware and alert. I spoke to the Gujarat chief minister Sunday. Our chief secretary and director general of police are also in touch with their counterparts in Gujarat," Kumar told reporters here.
"If somebody has committed a crime, he must be punished severely. But on account of one incident, people should not generalise and hold a grouse against an entire state," he said.
Non-Gujaratis, especially those hailing from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, have been targeted by locals following the alleged rape of the girl by a native of Bihar, in Gujarat's Sabarkantha district on September 28.
The attacks intensified following the circulation of hate messages on social media. Police have arrested 342 people from various parts of Gujarat for allegedly attacking non-Gujaratis.
Meanwhile, a JD(U) leader in a two-page open letter to Congress president Rahul Gandhi, blamed the grand old party for the violence against Biharis.
"You appointed your Gujarat MLA Alpesh Thakor as one of the national secretaries in-charge of Bihar and his outfit Gujarat Kshatriya Thakor Sena is driving out migrant Biharis," Neeraj Kumar, a JD(U) MLC and spokesman, alleged.
He also took potshots at the Congress alliance with the RJD, saying the Rashtriya Janata Dal is "headed by a convicted person (Lalu Prasad) whose son (Tejashwi Yadav) is also facing corruption charges".
Reacting to the JD(U) MLC's charge, Congress leader Prem Chand Mishra said instead of writing a letter to Gandhi, Neeraj Kumar should speak to his boss Nitish Kumar who is running a government in alliance with the BJP which rules Gujarat.
Madhepura MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav expressed strong resentment over the humiliation Biharis have to face everywhere in the country, Gujarat being only the latest instance.
He asked the Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi to intervene and ensure that attacks on Biharis in Gujarat are stopped.
"If that does not happen, we will ensure that no Gujarati is able to enter Bihar for any purpose whatsoever," Yadav, who has been known for using strong arm tactics in his three-decade-long political career, said.
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Next round of Iran-US negotiations expected soon: Pak's Defence Minister
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Islamabad (PTI): Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Monday said that the next round of Iran-US negotiations was expected soon.
Asif made these remarks on Monday, a day after the Islamabad talks failed to clinch a deal.
The 21-hour talks between the US and Iran on Saturday were the first of their kind since 1979 due to the involvement of top-level officials from both sides. The two sides, however, failed to secure a lasting peace deal to end hostilities following their talks in Pakistan over the weekend.
Speaking to the media outside Parliament House, Asif said there had been a sense of satisfaction after the talks that there were no negative developments so far.
“Only positive progress has been observed,” he said, indicating that the ongoing diplomatic efforts were moving in a constructive direction.
The next round of Iran-US negotiations was expected soon, he added.
The Express Tribune reported that responding to a question about whether Pakistan would play a decisive role in shaping the region’s future, Asif said that ultimate decisions rest with Allah.
Vice President JD Vance, who led the US delegation at the negotiations in Islamabad, said the Iranian side did not accept Washington's terms for ending the war even as the US presented its "final and best offer".
Hours after the talks collapsed, US President Donald Trump said on social media that the negotiations with Iran failed as "Iran is unwilling to give up its nuclear ambitions."
Pakistan led the diplomatic push to bring the two sides to the table, which became possible after an appeal by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier this week, leading to a pause in the fighting.
The conflict began after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, paralysing global energy markets and disrupting trade.
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