America loves India, says US President Donald Trump
Washington: US President Donald Trump has said that America loves India as he thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for greeting him on the occasion of the 244th Independence Day of the United States.
The Fourth of July -- also known as Independence Day or July 4th is a federal holiday in the US commemorating the publication of the declaration of independence from Great Britain in 1776.
Prime Minister Modi on Saturday congratulated President Trump and the people of the US on the country's 244th Independence Day, saying as the world's largest democracies "we cherish freedom and human enterprise that this day celebrates".
"I congratulate US President Donald Trump and the people of the USA on the 244th Independence Day of the USA," Modi tweeted.
Responding to the greetings from the prime minister on the popular micro-blogging site, Trump said in a tweet: Thank you my friend. America loves India!
The Twitter exchange between the leaders of the world's oldest and largest democracies were welcomed by people from both the countries and it went viral on the social media.
The world is witnessing the unbelievable bond and love between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi - America and India, the two largest democracies of the world, said Al Mason, co-chair of the Trump Victory Indian-American Finance Committee.
America is blessed to have you Prime Minister Narendra Modi and India as our valued friend. America and India - the two largest democracies in the world! God's blessings to you as you lead India, popular African-American singer Mary Millben tweeted.
Kudus to both leaders for cementing such a solid relationship, which can weather any storm, he added. India loves America too, tweeted one Gurdeep Singh.
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Trouble ‘Miyas’ everywhere only then they will leave Assam: Himanta Biswa Sarma
Says “Himanta Biswa Sarma, BJP are openly against them, we are saying it openly
New Delhi: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said that four to five lakh “Miya voters” would be removed from the electoral rolls in the state once the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists is carried out. He also made a series of controversial remarks openly targeting the Miya community, a term commonly used in Assam in a derogatory sense to refer to Bengali-speaking Muslims.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an official programme in Digboi in Tinsukia district, Sarma said it was his responsibility to create difficulties for the Miya community and claimed that both he and the BJP were “directly against Miyas”.
“Four to five lakh Miya votes will have to be deleted in Assam when the SIR happens,” Sarma said, adding that such voters “should ideally not be allowed to vote in Assam, but in Bangladesh”. He asserted that the government was ensuring that they would not be able to vote in the state.
The chief minister was responding to questions about notices issued to thousands of Bengali-speaking Muslims during the claims and objections phase of the ongoing Special Revision (SR) of electoral rolls in Assam. While the Election Commission is conducting SIR exercises in 12 states and Union Territories, Assam is currently undergoing an SR, which is usually meant for routine updates.
Calling the current SR “preliminary”, Sarma said that a full-fledged SIR in Assam would lead to large-scale deletion of Miya voters. He said he was unconcerned about criticism from opposition parties over the issue.
“Let the Congress abuse me as much as they want. My job is to make the Miya people suffer,” Sarma said. He claimed that complaints filed against members of the community were done on his instructions and that he had encouraged BJP workers to keep filing complaints.
“I have told people wherever possible they should fill Form 7 so that they have to run around a little and are troubled,” he said, adding that such actions were meant to send a message that “the Assamese people are still living”.
In remarks that drew further outrage, Sarma urged people to trouble members of the Miya community in everyday life, claiming that “only if they face troubles will they leave Assam”. He also accused the media of sympathising with the community and warned journalists against such coverage.
“So you all should also trouble, and you should not do news that sympathise with them. There will be love jihad in your own house.” He said.
The comments triggered reactions from opposition leaders. Raijor Dal president and MLA Akhil Gogoi said the people of Assam had not elected Sarma to keep one community under constant pressure. Congress leader Aman Wadud accused the chief minister of rendering the Constitution meaningless in the state, saying his remarks showed a complete disregard for constitutional values.
According to the draft electoral rolls published on December 27, Assam currently has 2.51 crore voters. Election officials said 4.78 lakh names were marked as deceased, 5.23 lakh as having shifted, and 53,619 duplicate entries were removed during the revision process. Authorities also claimed that verification had been completed for over 61 lakh households.
On January 25, six opposition parties the Congress, Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiya Parishad, CPI, CPI(M) and CPI(M-L) submitted a memorandum to the state’s chief electoral officer. They alleged widespread legal violations, political interference and selective targeting of genuine voters during the SR exercise, describing it as arbitrary, unlawful and unconstitutional.
