CANADA, INDIA RED-FACED OVER INVITE TO KHALISTAN ACTIVIST
WHAT HAPPENED ? A convicted terrorist was personally invited to a reception by the Canadian High Commission in Delhi. WHAT WAS CANADA’S REPLY ? The Canadian High Commission said it had “rescinded” the invitation to Jaspal Atwal. WHO IS JASPAL ATWAL ? He is an Indian-origin businessman, and former member of the banned International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF). THE CONTROVERSY : • He is responsible, along with the Babbar Khalsa, for the 1985 mid-air bombing of Air India flight 182, killing 329 persons. • Mr. Atwal was one of four men convicted for shooting Punjab Minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu in 1986 during a private visit to Canada.
CANNOT ANNUL MARRIAGE BETWEEN ADULTS: SC: The Hadiya case.
WHO IS SHE ? Ms. Hadiya, a 26-year-old homoeopathy student, had converted to Islam and then married a Muslim.
THE MOOT QUESTIONS :
“Can a court say a marriage is not genuine or whether the relationship is not genuine?
“Can a court say she [Hadiya] did not marry the right person?”
WHAT DID HIGH COURT SAY ? The Kerala High Court had annulled Ms. Hadiya’s marriage to Shafin Jahan.
THE ALLEGATION : Her father alledged that she was about to go abroad to SYRIA TO WORK AS “SEX SLAVES” IN NAME OF THIS MARRIAGE.
COURT’S DECISION ( SC ) :
If there was trafficking of citizens involved, the govt. had the power to stop it on the basis of credible information.
But in personal law, we cannot annul marriages because she did not marry the right person.
CRPF TO GUARD INDIAN EMBASSY IN BAGHDAD : PROPOSAL BASED ON HIGH THREAT LEVELS
THE PLAN : The government is planning to send Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) commandos to provide security to the Indian embassy in Baghdad.
WHY ? It was being made on the request of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) as threat exist in Iraq.
BIOMETRIC DATA IN STATE HUBS DESTROYED: UIDAI
The UIDAI chief said : All biometrics stored in State Resident Data Hubs have been “destroyed”.
WHERE ARE THEY STORED THEN ? The biometrics were now stored in the Aadhaar central database or the Central ID Repository.
WHY DONE SO ? The Aadhaar Act of 2016 does not allow biometrics to be stored with State-level authorities.
REASON ? This is a precaution to prevent leakages.
SC AGAINST DISCLOSURE OF IAS PRELIMS MARKS
WHAT DID SUPREME COURT SAY ? Details of marks — raw and scaled — scored in the Civil Services Exam cannot be “mechanically” disclosed under Right to Information.
WHY ? The need for transparency and accountability championed by the Right to Information Act should be balanced by the requirement of confidentiality of sensitive information.
