UP govt directs ATS to invoke NSA on people involved in "religious conversion racket"
Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday ordered the state’s Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) to invoke National Security Act (NSA) against people involved in what it has termed as “religious conversion racket”. The government has directed the agency to invoke Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act along with NSA.
Furthermore, the agency has also been directed to probe the financial transactions of the accused and to confiscate their properties.
On Monday, the ATS arrested two Muslim clerics Mufti Kazi Jahageer Alam (52) and Mohammad Umar Gautam (57) from Delhi’s Jamia Nagar and accused them of running an organization named Islamic Dawah Centre (IDC) which had allegedly been involved in large-scale religious conversions for the past one-and-a-half years.
The duo was sent to seven-day police custody after being produced before a court in Lucknow. “The court has sent the accused to seven-day police custody. We are yet to trace the associates of those arrested,” additional director general, law and order, Prashant Kumar said.
IG-Anti-Terrorist Squad G.K. Goswamy said that they would seek a remand of the arrested duo from the court on Tuesday. Umar Gautam and Jahangir are currently in judicial custody till July 3.
Under chief minister Yogi Adityanath, Uttar Pradesh is among a host of BJP-ruled states which have passed so-called ‘love jihad’ – an imagined conspiracy propagated by the Sangh Parivar alleging that Muslim men convert Hindu women by marriage – laws that criminalize conversion by inducement. They have usually been used to target interfaith couples. The Union home ministry and the Uttar Pradesh police have both been unable to offer concrete evidence of ‘love jihad’. In several situations, the new law has been used to harass couples and Muslims in Uttar Pradesh, with fatal consequences.
Just last year the Allahabad high court had observed that a law such as the NSA had to be exercised by the executive with “extreme care”. “Where the law confers extraordinary power on the executive to detain a person without recourse to the ordinary law of the land and to trial by courts, such a law has to be strictly construed and the executive must exercise the power with extreme care,” the court said and noted that the executive was “under obligation to pass detention order according to procedure established by law”.
With inputs from: The Wire; click here to read the original post
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Kohli's U-19 teammate Amanpreet Singh Gill dies at 36
New Delhi (PTI): Former India U-19 and Punjab medium pacer Amanpreet Singh Gill died at the age of 36 in Chandigarh on Wednesday, leaving the cricket fraternity in mourning.
The cause of death is not yet known.
Gill, who was Virat Kohli's U-19 teammate, featured in six first-class matches for Punjab, picking up 11 wickets.
He was also part of the Punjab franchise (Kings XI Punjab) in the inaugural Indian Premier League season, and later served as a member of Punjab's senior selection committee.
"Punjab Cricket Association deeply mourns the sad demise of Amanpreet Singh Gill, former Punjab cricketer and Member, Senior Selection Committee Punjab,” the Punjab Cricket Association announced on X.
"Our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and loved ones. May Waheguru grant eternal peace to the departed soul and strength to the family in this difficult time."
Two-time World Cup-winning India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh also paid tribute to Gill.
"Deeply saddened to hear about Amanpreet Singh Gill’s passing. Shared the dressing room in our early days, he was a quiet, hardworking cricketer who loved the game. My heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones. Rest in peace Om Shanti,” Singh posted on X.
Gill played five Youth ODIs and one Youth Test for India in 2007.
In the longer format, he claimed the wicket of former Sri Lanka all-rounder Thisara Perera.
However, he did not make the Virat Kohli-led India U-19 side that went on to win the 2008 World Cup.
“Deeply saddened by the passing of Amanpreet Singh Shergill, who proudly represented Punjab and was a part of the Punjab Kings family. Our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and the entire cricketing fraternity,” Punjab Kings posted on their official Instagram account.
