PM Modi meets Palestinian President Abbas; expresses deep concern at humanitarian situation in Gaza
New York (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas here and expressed deep concern at the humanitarian situation in Gaza, reaffirming India's support for the early restoration of peace and stability in the region.
Modi is in New York on the second leg of his three-day US visit and met the leader on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session on Sunday.
"Met President Mahmoud Abbas in New York. Reiterated India’s support for early restoration of peace and stability in the region. Exchanged views of further strengthening long-standing friendship with the people of Palestine," Modi said in a post on X.
“PM @narendramodi met H.E. Mahmoud Abbas, President of Palestine, on the sidelines of UNGA today,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X.
Modi "expressed deep concern at the humanitarian situation in Gaza and reaffirmed India’s continued support to the people of Palestine,” the post added.
PM Modi arrived in New York on Saturday after attending the Quad Leaders’ Summit in Wilmington, Delaware, where he also had bilateral discussions with US President Joe Biden.
Modi addressed thousands of members of the Indian-American community at the ‘Modi&US’ mega community event in Long Island Sunday afternoon. He also interacted with the top tech leaders and CEOs of the US in a roundtable conference. Later in the day, he held bilateral discussions with world leaders.
India has underscored its commitment towards a just, peaceful and lasting solution to the Israel-Palestine issue and reiterated that only a two-state solution achieved through direct and meaningful negotiations between both sides will lead to enduring peace.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), citing Ministry of Health in Gaza estimates, has said that between October 7, 2023 and September 16 this year, at least 41,226 Palestinians have been killed and 95,413 injured.
According to the Israeli military and official Israeli sources cited in the media, more than 1,542 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed during this period, the majority on October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel.
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SC should take suo motu cognisance of Tirupati laddu adulteration allegations: VHP
Tirupati (AP)(PTI): The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Monday appealed to the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of Tirupati laddu adulteration allegations and launch a probe to identify the culprits.
The Kendriya Margdarshak Mandal of VHP met at Tirupati and took this decision. It was attended by VHP’s international secretary Bajrang Bagra and other pontiffs.
VHP's decision comes in the wake of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu recently claiming that the previous YSRCP government did not even spare Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple and used substandard ingredients and animal fats for making the popular Tirupati laddus, known for their unique taste.
"Supreme Court should take suo motu cognisance of this matter and investigate it in a definite time period to identify the culprits of this unforgivable crime and punish them stringently," said VHP in a release.
Further, it noted there is no room for negligence and delay in this matter as such a scenario could result in nation-wide agitations by Hindu community members, who are already impatient over this issue.
According to the VHP, allegations and counter allegations of the ruling NDA and opposition YSRCP in the southern state over the past 4-5 days on Tirupati laddus have caused immense consternation in the Hindu community.
It noted that these developments have hurt the sentiments of crores of Sri Balaji (Sri Venkateswara Swamy) devotees across the globe, observing that laddu prasadam (consecrated food) is considered and consumed as a divine blessing with utmost faith.
VHP said the allegations of laddu adulteration have 'horribly' insulted Lord Venkateswara Swamy devotees.
