NSF to hold rally in Kohima over 'Vande Mataram' directive
Kohima (PTI): The Naga Students' Federation (NSF) is scheduled to hold a public rally here on Monday in protest against the "compulsory imposition" of the national song, 'Vande Mataram', following a recent directive by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
According to the federation, the rally will be held at Old MLA Hostel Junction at Phoolbari from 10 am, during which participants will march to Lok Bhavan.
A memorandum highlighting the concerns and demands of the Naga people will be submitted to the President through the governor, it said.
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The NSF said the protest was prompted by a notification by the MHA on January 28 mandating that the revised national song be sung or played during official functions and in educational institutions.
Expressing concern over the directive, the NSF maintained that while the Naga people respect the national songs and symbols of all nations, the compulsory enforcement of 'Vande Mataram' raises concerns as the song carries religious and devotional imagery that may conflict with the beliefs and conscience of many in the state.
In its note, the federation stated that the Naga homeland has historically been a land of peaceful coexistence where people of different religions and communities have lived together in mutual respect.
It asserted that educational institutions should remain spaces of learning and dignity and should not become platforms where symbolic practices are enforced against the will of students and communities.
The federation has also directed all its units and subordinate bodies across Naga areas to organise peaceful demonstrations in their respective jurisdictions on the same day in solidarity with the Kohima rally.
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Trump rushed out of dinner event after shots fired; one arrested
Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump and other top White House officials were evacuated unharmed from the annual dinner of White House correspondents after a man armed with multiple weapons fired shots outside the ballroom of the hotel.
The incident took place at around 8:34 PM local time when dinner was served. At that time, Trump was seen having a conversation with Weijia Jiang, the President of the White House Correspondents' Association, and mentalist Oz Pearlman, who was scheduled to present a show at the marquee event at the Washington Hilton here.
Secret Service officials and other security personnel covered the President, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President J D Vance, and the Second Lady Usha Vance, who were seated at the head table, and escorted them out of the ballroom.
Several guests at the dinner, including leaders across the political spectrum, journalists and other invitees, ducked under the table, apparently as a reflex reaction.
Putting up a brave face, President Trump later announced on Truth Social that the dinner would be rescheduled within 30 days.
“Boom, boom, boom, boom is all that I heard, and many guests ducked under the table,” a C-SPAN reporter at the dinner said.
Hours later, Trump addressed a press conference at the White House and announced that the security personnel had captured one person who hails from California.
“I heard a noise and sort of thought it was a tray going down. I've heard that many times. It was a pretty loud noise, and it was from quite far away. He (the attacker) hadn't reached the area at all. They really got him,” Trump told reporters, recalling the incident.
Trump said one security officer was shot at but saved as he was wearing a bulletproof vest.
Several protestors had lined up on the road outside the hotel, raising slogans against the Trump administration and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.
A CNN reporter who was outside the ballroom at the Washington Hilton said he saw a gunman opening fire just a few feet away. He was among the dozens of attendees who took cover as law enforcement swarmed the venue.
The suspect has been identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen from California.
Asked how Saturday’s incident impacts him as the US president, Trump told reporters he is in a dangerous job but that he is no “basket case.”
“I like not to think about it. I lead a pretty normal life, considering, you know, it’s a dangerous life. I think I handle it as well as it can be handled,” Trump said.
Trump has survived two assassination attempts over the past two years – first at a presidential election campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, and later in Palm Beach, Florida, on September 15, 2024.
“I will say you had Republicans, Democrats, independents, conservatives, liberals, and progressives...everybody in that room, big crowd, record-setting crowd,” he said.
“We had some great work done by law enforcement, but in light of this evening's events, I ask that all Americans recommit with their hearts in resolving our differences peacefully,” Trump said.
