Can't give timeline for Masood Azhar's listing as global terrorist at EU: German envoy
New Delhi: Germany is "very much" pushing for the listing of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist at the European Union (EU), but a timeline for it cannot be given, Jasper Wieck, the Deputy Head of the German Mission in India, said Tuesday.
He said Germany is hopeful that at a certain stage, Azhar will be designated as a global terrorist at the United Nations too.
"We are working on it... We still have hope that the listing will take place at the United Nations at a certain stage and that would be a better solution.
"In the short-term, we are working on this within the European Union. I cannot give you an exact timeline on how it will be done, but Germany is among those who are very much pushing for this," Wieck said at a press conference.
"What is important is to know that even if it did not work out at the UN when we tried a couple of weeks ago, we should not give up hope that we will succeed in this endeavour in the next round at the UN," he said.
In March, Germany initiated a move at the EU to designate Azhar as a global terrorist, days after China blocked a bid at the UN to designate him so.
Germany is in touch with several EU member-nations in this regard.
All the 28 member-countries of the EU will have to support the move as the bloc decides on such issues under the principle of consensus, sources had earlier said.
On March 15, France imposed financial sanctions on Azhar and stated that it would work with its European partners to put the JeM chief's name on the EU list of persons and entities involved in terror acts.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
