Vijayan condemns Assam CM''s alleged "point-blank" video
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday said he was "shocked" by a purported video posted on the 'X' account of the BJP's Assam unit that appeared to incite violence against a minority community, and called for a united resistance to what he described as "communal hatemongering".
The now-deleted video purportedly showed Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma taking aim with a rifle and firing a shot at two people, one wearing a skull cap and the other with a beard, with "point-blank shot" as the caption.
In a post on X, Vijayan said, "the video of Assam CM @himantabiswa is a shocking, direct incitement of violence against the Miya community."
"Such nefarious attempts to normalise hate for electoral gains are an affront to our Constitution," the veteran CPI(M) leader said.
He alleged that the "silence" of the BJP national leadership "confirms their complicity" in this divisive politics.
"Secular and democratic forces must unite to resist this communal hatemongering and protect the pluralist soul of India," he said.
Separately, in a Malayalam Facebook post, Vijayan said that standing at the doorstep of elections in Assam, a person holding a constitutional position was challenging the Constitution and spreading communalism in order to attract majority votes.
"How can a person who calls for genocide against minorities lead a state in a secular country," he asked.
Alleging that the national leadership of the BJP had so far been unwilling to rein in the Assam CM, Vijayan said: "The truth is that Himanta Biswa Sarma openly said what they hesitate to say publicly."
Meanwhile, the Assam Chief Minister on Monday expressed ignorance of the state BJP's video, which created a controversy and was deleted.
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345 Indian fishermen stranded in Iran return home via Armenia
New Delhi (PTI): A group of 345 Indian fishermen, who were stranded in Iran amid escalating regional tensions, returned to India via Armenia on Saturday, officials said.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar thanked his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan for assistance in return of the Indian nationals.
The Indian nationals arrived in Chennai this evening, the officials cited above said.
The circumstances that led to them being stranded in Iran were not immediately known.
"Thank FM @AraratMirzoyan and the Government of Armenia for facilitating the evacuation of Indian fishermen today from Iran, through Armenia to India," Jaishankar said on social media.
Over 1,500 Indian nationals have left Iran through land border crossings in Armenia and Azerbaijan since the start of the West Asia conflict over a month ago.
"A group of Indian fishermen, stranded in Iran, are returning home via Armenia today; their flight is expected to reach India this evening," a government statement said.
It said the Ministry of External Affairs continues to closely monitor the evolving situation in the West Asian region, with the safety, security and welfare of the Indian community being accorded the highest priority.
It also made a mention of five Indians being injured in Abu Dhabi on Friday.
According to Abu Dhabi authorities, the Indian nationals were among the 12 people injured by debris from an intercepted missile.
"In an attack in Abu Dhabi, five Indian nationals were injured; four have been discharged, one remains under treatment," the Indian government's statement said.
It said the Indian mission in Abu Dhabi is extending "full" assistance and coordinating with local authorities, adding that their flight is expected to reach India this evening.
