Asaduddin Owaisi targets Union minister Puri for remarks that Afghan situation shows need for CAA
New Delhi, Aug 23: Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday targeted Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri for linking the matter of Sikhs and Hindus fleeing the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan with the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), questioning whether he was "misleading" on the issue.
Puri, a senior BJP leader, on Sunday outlined the need for the CAA in view of Sikhs and Hindus fleeing Afghanistan taken over by the Taliban on August 15.
"Recent developments in our volatile neighbourhood & the way Sikhs & Hindus are going through a harrowing time are precisely why it was necessary to enact the Citizenship Amendment Act," he tweeted.
Owaisi, the president of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), in a series of tweets questioned Puri's assertion.
"CAA only applies to UNDOCUMENTED immigrants. It also does not apply beyond 2014. How does it help people who are now coming in to India WITH proper visas. Did you not read the law your govt enacted with such bravado? Or are you deliberately misleading?" Owaisi tweeted.
He claimed that the Afghanistan refugees would have been benefitted from a religion-neutral law that he demanded but the government did not accept.
"I'd demanded a religion-neutral law that would have actually helped these refugees, but that was too much for religion-obsessed sarkar. Such a law would have not only helped these minorities, but also those Afghans who were working with us in our 4 consulates & embassy," he said in another tweet.
Further, the Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad also accused the government of lacking "foresight", saying "exclusion" of "persecuted" Hazaras, Tajiks and Uzbeks of Afghanistan was also a "strategic blunder" that he had warned earlier.
The government of India has undertaken an evacuation exercise to airlift Hindus, Sikhs and natives from the neighbouring country.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which came into force from January 10, 2020, witnessed widespread protests across the country with Delhi emerging as a hub of resistance against the legislation.
Most of the Opposition parties vociferously protested against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, introduced in Parliament by the Modi government, alleging it was "communal" in nature.
The CAA grants citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan on the ground of religious persecution faced by them in their native country.
India on August 17 announced that it will issue an emergency e-visa to Afghan nationals who want to come to the country in view of the prevailing situation in Afghanistan.
All Afghans, irrespective of their religion, can apply for the 'e-Emergency X-Misc Visa' online and the applications will be processed in New Delhi.
"The Ministry of Home Affairs reviews visa provisions in view of the current situation in Afghanistan. A new category of electronic visa called 'e-Emergency X-Misc Visa' introduced to fast-track visa applications for entry into India," a home ministry spokesperson had said.
The visa would initially be valid for six months, officials had said.
I’d demanded a religion-neutral law that would have actually helped these refugees, but that was too much for religion-obsessed sarkar. Such a law would have not only helped these minorities, but also those Afghans who were working with us in our 4 consulates & embassy 2/3
— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) August 23, 2021
Excluding persecuted Hazaras, Tajiks & Uzbeks of Afghanistan was also a strategic blunder I’d warned about. But this govt has no foresight 3/3
— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) August 23, 2021
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4 children test HIV positive in MP govt hospital; contaminated blood transfusion suspected
Satna/Bhopal (PTI): Four children suffering from thalassemia have tested HIV positive at Satna District Hospital in Madhya Pradesh allegedly due to contaminated blood transfusions, officials said on Tuesday.
The case is four months old and an investigation is underway into it, an official said.
Officials suspect the use of contaminated needles or blood transfusions for the spread of infection to the children.
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MP Health Minister Rajendra Shukla told reporters in Bhopal that he has ordered a probe into the matter and sought a report.
“It is also being investigated whether the blood transfusion took place in other hospitals also or only in the government hospital,” he said.
The affected children, aged between 12 and 15 years, received blood transfusions from the hospital's blood bank, as per an official.
Devendra Patel, in-charge of the blood bank at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel District Hospital in Satna, said four children have tested HIV positive and an investigation is underway to determine how they got infected.
"Either an infected needle was used or a blood transfusion occurred. These are the two main reasons I believe. Blood transfusion seems to be the most likely cause," he told PTI Videos.
All these children suffer from thalassemia, and some have received 80 or 100 blood transfusions, he said.
A family member of one of the affected children said that their child was found to be HIV positive during a routine checkup about four months back, and he has been receiving medication, but it had proven to be of no use.
After taking the medication for HIV, the child starts vomiting, feels low and becomes ill, he said.
After the four children were detected with HIV infection, their family members were also tested and the results came out negative, he added.
The Opposition Congress targeted the government over the matter and demanded the resignation of Health Minister Shukla.
Speaking to reporters in Bhopal, Congress MLA and former minister Sachin Yadav claimed such incidents were continuously occurring in Madhya Pradesh.
Earlier, a case of toxic cough syrup came to light in Chhindwara, followed by incidents of rat bites at hospitals in Indore and Satna, and now children have been given HIV-infected blood, he said.
"The health minister is unable to manage the department. He should resign. A murder case should be filed against those responsible for the Satna incident," Yadav said.
Senior Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma termed it a failure of the government. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's government has no connection with ground realities, he charged.
"Somewhere rats are roaming in hospitals, somewhere children are being given HIV-infected blood. Instead of preventing HIV, you are spreading it. Mohan Yadav should wake up from his slumber. Children are the nation's heritage and should be taken care of," he added.
