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Showing posts from May 18, 2018

Kashmir Ceasefire Comes After 50% Rise In Armed Encounters, Killings During 2015-2017 Over 2012-2014

India Spend Athar Parvaiz,   May 18, 2018 Srinagar : The Ramzan  ceasefire  announced by the Indian government on May 16, 2018, comes after a period of heightened armed violence and killings in Kashmir. An  IndiaSpend analysis of Jammu & Kashmir Police data shows that in the three years since March 2015, when the current government assumed power in the state, armed encounters between militants and security forces have increased by 53% over the preceding three years. Deaths in conflict have similarly increased by 51%. The Peoples Democratic Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party formed a coalition government in Jammu & Kashmir in March 2015. Data suggest an increase in violence and related deaths since then, particularly after the July 2016 killing of militant commander Burhan Wani–209 militants were killed in 2017, up 65% from 136 in 2016.  The data also attest to a spurt in incidents of stone pelting, pellet and bullet injuries, as well as damage to homes and priv

SC refuses to stay RBI virtual currency order

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Financial Express FE Bureau    May 18, 2018  Apex court allows cryptocurrency exchanges, their shareholders, traders and other individuals to present their cases to the RBI within two weeks. The regulator has given banks a deadline of July 6 to adhere to the new rule. The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to stay the Reserve Bank of India’s decision that mandated banks, e-wallets, and payment gateway providers to withdraw support for cryptocurrency exchanges and other businesses dealing with virtual currencies. However, it allowed cryptocurrency exchanges, their shareholders, traders and other individuals to present their cases within two weeks to the  RBI , which will look into the issue in accordance with the law. Various PILs, including the one filed by a group of 11different representatives from various crypto-related businesses, have challenged the RBI’s April 6 circular that declared cryptocurrency-related businesses like virtual currencies, crypto assets, etc

China to use Taiwan as nuclear, conventional military base to isolate India, Japan, warns US lawmaker

Financial Express PTI   Washington  May 18, 2018  China claims almost all of South China Sea and also laid claims on the Senkaku islands under the control of Japan in East China Sea and resorted to aggressive patrols in the last two years. China will turn Taiwan into a major nuclear and conventional military base, a move which will allow it to project power into the Indian Ocean and consolidate more control over the disputed South China Sea to “isolate” both India and Japan, a US lawmaker has warned. China will turn Taiwan into a major nuclear and conventional military base, a move which will allow it to project power into the Indian Ocean and consolidate more control over the disputed South China Sea to “isolate” both India and Japan, a US lawmaker has warned. Expressing concern over China’s growing economic and military power, Richard D Fisher of the International Assessment and Strategy Center told lawmakers yesterday that Beijing had a new strategy for gaining

Defence buys won’t be dictated by the US: India on Russia sanctions

Hindustan Times Jayanth Jacob    May 18, 2018  On May 21, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Sochi for a “four- six hour” informal summit, which would mostly be a series of one-to-one meetings with Russian president Vladimir Putin, a source said. The Indo-Russian relationship was a stabilising factor in a fast changing regional and global order, persons familiar with the planning of the May 21 meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday. Modi would be in the Black Sea resort of Sochi for a “four- six hour” informal summit, which would mostly be a series of one-to-ones with Putin, “an old friend and a trusted partner”, a source said. India’s defence purchases wouldn’t be dictated by another country such as the US, said the source on New Delhi’s view on the US sanctions on Russia impacting country’s defence purchases from Moscow. Russia continues to be India’s biggest arms supplier, though its share in Del

Peace gets a chance

Indian Express   Firdous Tak   May 17, 2018  The cycle of violence in the Valley needs to be broken. The ceasefire could be a precious beginning. As a citizen of the trouble-torn state of Jammu and Kashmir, I am finally at peace. I have felt the pain of every mother who lost a child and each son who has been orphaned across Kashmir. Every coffin takes us away from hope. But optimism has returned, and hope revived. The unilateral ceasefire announced by the Government of India in Jammu and Kashmir is the biggest Confidence Building Measure (CBM) since  Atal Bihari Vajpayee ’s initiatives for peace and reconciliation. The situation in Kashmir has not presented an encouraging picture. Crowds are growing at the funerals of slain militants. Pictures and videos of gun-wielding youth in army fatigues on social media have become a common trend. The “last call” audio messages by the militants to their families present a depressing picture of how Kashmir youth are choosing the

Should There be a 'Developing Country' Template For Data Protection Legislation?

The Wire Prashant Reddy T. 17/MAY/2018 If we are to follow the European path, we first need to see some rigorous Indian scholarship explaining why a European-style General Data Protection Regulation is the best way for India and how it affects our existing rights. A few weeks ago, in  his weekly column  on law and technology in  Mint , lawyer Rahul Matthan questioned whether India should be adopting European standards of data protection instead of designing its own system. He illustrates this dilemma by giving as an example the American experience with upholding copyright law. For the longest time, the US was known as an outlier to international copyright law until its domestic industry was strong enough to compete with the world after which it took the lead in setting global IP standards by forcing the agreement on  Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)  on the world. The Indian experience with negotiating IP treaties has been similar. Ever since th