Ara MP returns gold coin, silver bar gifted by Railway PSUs during Parliamentary panel tour
New Delhi: Ara MP and CPI(ML) leader Sudama Prasad has earned praise for returning a gold coin and a silver bar, gifts presented to him by Railway PSUs during a Parliamentary Standing Committee tour of South India.
Prasad, who is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Railways, was gifted a one gram gold coin and a 100 gram silver block by RITES and Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL) on November 1 while the committee was on a study tour in Bengaluru. Upon realising the nature of the gifts, he immediately wrote a letter to CM Ramesh, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee, expressing his disapproval and returned the items in front of other MPs in the panel.
In his letter, Prasad condemned the gesture as "unethical" and said that it borders on corruption. He explained that the gifts were handed to him late in the night, and he initially did not inspect them due to exhaustion from the day's activities. “Later in the night, I discovered one gram gold coin and 100 gram silver block were given to me by RITES and RVNL, respectively. I was taken aback and raised questions about public morality and ethics on part of of Indian Railways for having given such gifts,” he stated.
Prasad said the organisations' action is “not only unethical but borders on corruption to silence the MPs” from raising issues concerning the public at a at a time when passengers are facing multiple challenges of railway safety, increasing fares, lack of facilities and humiliating treatment by the Railways.
Prasad also highlighted the plight of sanitation workers at railway stations, who are denied minimum wages and forced to work under harsh conditions and face harassment at the hand of contractors.
He further expressed dissatisfaction with the treatment of passengers, particularly in general and sleeper compartments. He noted that no new trains were being introduced for the poor and middle class. The focus, he said, appeared to be primarily on Vande Bharat trains.
Placing the gifts in front of the committee on November 2, he expressed “dissatisfaction and anger for treating an MP in this manner” by these organisations.
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International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Hamas officials
The Hague, Nov 21: The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants on Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defence minister and Hamas officials, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the war in Gaza and the October 2023 attacks that triggered Israel's offensive in the Palestinian territory.
The decision turns Netanyahu and the others into internationally wanted suspects and is likely to further isolate them and complicate efforts to negotiate a cease-fire to end the 13-month conflict. But its practical implications could be limited since Israel and its major ally, the United States, are not members of the court and several of the Hamas officials have been subsequently killed in the conflict.
Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders have condemned ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan's request for warrants as disgraceful and antisemitic. US President Joe Biden also blasted the prosecutor and expressed support for Israel's right to defend itself against Hamas. Hamas also slammed the request.
