Hate speech on LS floor, may consider quitting House if action not taken against Bidhuri: Danish Ali
New Delhi (PTI): Bahujan Samaj Party MP Danish Ali on Friday said if action is not taken against BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri for his derogatory remarks in the Lok Sabha, then he could consider quitting the membership of the House. He also said that people had not elected him to listen to "hate speeches".
Bidhuri made certain objectionable remarks targeted at Ali on Thursday night during a discussion in the Lok Sabha on the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission.
"This is unprecedented. I have written to the Speaker. I hope action will be taken," Danish Ali said.
"This is nothing less than hate speech. This is hate speech on the floor of the House. Hate speeches were being made outside Parliament but now hate speech has been delivered on the floor of the House by a BJP MP," he told PTI.
He also said that Bidhuri has shamed the entire country and demanded the BJP MP's suspension.
Asked what would he do if action was not taken against Bidhuri, Ali said, "I expect that the speaker will take action on this. But if action is not taken, then with a heavy heart, I can consider quitting the membership of this House because people have not sent me to Parliament to listen to hate speeches." He also alleged that there was a difference between the words and actions of the BJP.
"Where is this kind of behaviour and culture taught? He (Bidhuri) is a senior MP. (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi ji's two former cabinet colleagues, senior parliamentarians Ravi Shankar Prasad and Harsh Vardhan, were laughing and thumping desks. This behaviour of the BJP has been witnessed by people in new India's new Parliament's first special session," the BSP MP said.
On the BJP issuing showcase notice to Bidhuri, Ali said, "That is the BJP's lookout. I can only say that the people who have elected us have not sent us to Parliament for this." "Are the BJP MPs learning hate speeches in RSS shakhas or in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's new laboratory of new India?" he posed.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday took "serious note" of the objectionable remarks made by Bidhuri in the House and warned him of "strict action" if such behaviour is repeated in the future, officials said. The speaker later expunged those words.
Union minister Rajnath Singh had expressed regret for Bidhuri's remarks.
The video of Bidhuri's controversial references to the Muslim MP has gone viral with opposition parties demanding strict action against him, including suspension from the House.
Ravi Shankar Prasad and Harsh Vardhan on Friday distanced themselves from their party colleague Ramesh Bidhuri's objectionable remarks.
While Prasad said he does not support any indecent comment, Harsh Vardhan alleged that some people with vested interests have "dragged" his name into the row and claimed that he could not "clearly hear" what was being said due to the "chaos" in the House at that time.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
US warns shipping firms they could face sanctions over paying Iranian tolls in Strait of Hormuz
Dubai (AP): The United States is warning shipping companies that they could face sanctions for making payments to Iran to safely pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
The alert posted Friday by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control adds another layer of pressure in the standoff between the US and Iran over control of the Strait of Hormuz.
About a fifth of the world's trade in oil and natural gas typically passes through the strait at the mouth of the Persian Gulf in peacetime.
Iran effectively closed the strait to normal traffic by attacking and threatening to attack ships after the US and Israel launched a war on Feb. 28. It later began offering some ships safe passage by detouring them through alternate routes closer to its shoreline, charging fees at times for the service.
That "tollbooth” effort is the focus of the US sanctions warning.
The payment demands could include transfers not only in cash but also “digital assets, offsets, informal swaps, or other in-kind payments,” including chartibale donations and payments at Iranian embassies, OFAC said.
“OFAC is issuing this alert to warn US and non-US persons about the sanctions risks of making these payments to, or soliciting guarantees from, the Iranian regime for safe passage. These risks exist regardless of payment method,” it said.
ALSO READ: Student preparing for NEET dies after falling from hostel's fourth floor in Kota
The US responded to Iran's closure of the strait with a naval blockade of its own on April 13, preventing any Iranian tankers from leaving and depriving Iran of oil revenue it needs to shore up its ailing economy.
The US Central Command said 45 commercial ships have been told to turn around since the blockade began.
Trump rejects Iranian proposal
--------------------------------------
The warning came as US President Donald Trump swiftly rejected Iran's latest proposal to end the war between the countries.
“They want to make a deal, I'm not satisfied with it, so we'll see what happens,” Trump said Friday at the White House. He didn't elaborate on what he saw as its shortcomings but expressed frustration with the Iranian leadership.
“It's a very disjointed leadership,” Trump said. “They all want to make a deal, but they're all messed up.”
Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported Iran handed over its plan to mediators in Pakistan on Thursday night.
The shaky three-week ceasefire between the US and Iran appears to be holding, though both countries have traded accusations of violations. The standoff is increasingly putting pressure on the global economy, driving up prices and leading to shortages of fuel and other products tied to the oil industry.
Negotiations continued by phone after Trump called off his envoys' trip to Pakistan last week, the president said. Trump this week floated a new plan to reopen the critical passageway used by America's Gulf allies to export their oil and gas.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has briefed many of his regional counterparts on the country's initiatives to end the ear, according to his social media. He also held talks Friday with European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who is in contact with the EU's Gulf partners.
China's UN envoy urges Iran to lift restrictions
------------------------------------------------------
Fu Cong, the Chinese ambassdor to the United Nations, said Friday that maintaining the ceasefire is “the most urgent issue" as well as bringing together the sides to resume good faith negotiations “to make sure that the ground is laid for reopening of Hormuz.”
Foreign Minister Wang Yi “has been on the phone almost constantly” with representatives from all sides, Fu said, adding that China supports Pakistan's efforts to mediate between the parties.
Fu stressed the root cause of the tremendous suffering in Iran and neighboring countries and the growing turmoil in the global economy, especially in developing countries, “is the illegitimate war by the US and Israel.
