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Indian Army to purchase SkyStrikers suicide drone under Make in India initiative

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The Commune
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The Indian Army under its “Emergency Procurement Powers” on Wednesday (1 September) has signed a contract to procure over 100 armed drones called “SkyStrikers” from Bengaluru-headquartered Alpha Design-led joint venture (JV) with Israel’s Elbit Security Systems (ELSEC), reports Economic Times.

The procurement of these drones would also enhance the government’s Make in India and indigenisation push in the defence sector and these drones would be manufactured in Bengaluru and they are also referred to as suicide drone as it crashes into the target with explosives

As per the information on ELSEC’s website, SkyStriker is a cost-efficient loitering munition that is capable of long-range precise tactical strikes and gives the army more situational awareness, survivability, and performance capability by allowing special forces and manoeuvrable troops to harness its direct-fire aerial-precision capabilities.

Skystriker’s electric propulsion offers a minimal acoustic signature, allowing covert operations at low altitude operations.

Chairman and managing director of Alpha Design Col (retd) HS Shankar said, “Location details (GPS) will be loaded onto the drone before launch. Upon launching, it will hover around the area, pick up the target, relay the information back to ground control equipment and strike only after getting clearance.”

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Afghan women judges and human rights activists fear reprisal from prisoners freed by Taliban

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The Commune
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After the Taliban announced the formation of its government, the fate of some 250 Afghanistan women judges is hanging by a thread as they fear for their lives as the country heads back to the brutal Sharia law.

There was a time when it was unfathomable for a woman to be a judge in Afghanistan, however, after the American invasion it all changed, and now these judges who had once jailed men for various crimes are in fear for their lives as they were freed by the victorious Taliban and now looking to kill them.

Though some women judges were able to escape in recent weeks, many are still left behind and are still trying to get out which is unlikely.

The Taliban have already banned women from most work after their return and no one is willing to accept that they will respect women’s rights.

Women judges were already been high profile targets and two female Supreme Court justices were gunned down in January and after the Taliban released prisoners across the country, it “really put the lives of women judges in danger,” a high-level Afghan women judge who fled to Europe said from an undisclosed location.

This is exactly what ISIS did when it took control of parts of Iraq and freed prisoners who then became mujahadeen fighters.

In Kabul, “four or five Taliban members came and asked people in my house: ‘Where is this woman judge?’ These were people who I had put in jail,” she told Reuters in an interview, asking not to be identified.

Since then she has been in touch with colleagues back home: “Their messages are of fear and complete terror. They tell me if they do not get rescued their lives are in direct danger.”

Also, in danger of being raped and murdered are around a thousand women human rights defenders, said Horia Mosadiq, an Afghan human rights activist. Freed prisoners “are calling with death threats to women judges, women prosecutors and women police officers, saying ‘we will come after you’,” she said.

For the West, these judges and human rights activists are not a priority but admit that they are “very vulnerable people” and fearful about the reprisal that could now face now the Taliban is completely in charge.

“Governments had zero interest in evacuating people that were not their own nationals,” said Sarah Kay, a Belfast-based human rights lawyer and member of the Atlas Women network of international lawyers.

“The responsibility that we bear is almost unbearable at the moment because we are one of the few people taking responsibility for this group,” one of the effort’s leaders, Patricia Whalen, an American judge who helped train Afghan female judges in a 10-year programme, told Reuters.

“I am furious about that. None of us should be in this position.”

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Harvest India’s President Bishop K Suresh Kumar is not Christian but a Hindu-SC

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The Commune
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In a development bound to hurt the bourgeoning business of Christian evangelicalism, it has emerged that Harvest India’s President, Bishop K Suresh Kumar is not a Christian, but a Hindu-SC.

This information was shared on Twitter by the SC-ST Rights forum who are working to protect the Constitutional, Legal & Socio-Cultural Rights of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in India.

The District Collector of Guntur, Andhra Pradesh had reportedly confirmed that the pastor in question was not a Christian but a Scheduled Caste. 

The Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF) has written to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes seeking action against the pastor for misusing benefits meant for Scheduled Caste.

“Para 3 of the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order outlines that no person who professes a religion different from Hindu, Sikh or Buddhist religion shall be deemed to be a member of a Scheduled Caste.”

The Supreme Court in a 2015 ruling had said, “Once such a person ceases to be a Hindu and becomes a Christian, the social and economic disabilities arising because of Hindu religion cease and hence it is no longer necessary to give him protection and for this reason he is deemed not to belong to a scheduled caste.”

Those people from Scheduled Caste community who have converted their religion to Christianity are popularly known as ‘Crypto-Christians’ aka (Cryptos).

LRPF had earlier filed a complaint against ‘Harvest India’ and its chief functionary Suresh Kumar, for indulging in proselytization activities and violating FCRA laws.  The organization has established more than 1500 ‘community centres’ all over the country for proselytizing purposes. This complaint listed the various instances where the organization had conducted events called ‘crusades’ to induct new members to their religion as well as train religious preachers for this purpose. 

Suresh Kumar who had attended the Mission Conference 2018 held at Biola University, USA three years ago, said “Right now, we are under Hindu rule. Our Prime Minister, he is a bad guy. He doesn’t want any Christians in India. He wants to make India as only Hindu country. So many pastors killed in last 5 years. Many missionaries, they send them out. There is unrest, turmoil. Pastors are killing, Churches are burning. The government is not doing anything. Brutal mentality, we are struggling. We do not know what is going happen tomorrow to Christianity in India, to Church in India but I am believing powerful god on our side. Next year we have election, please pray. I don’t want this party to come back. This guy is doing so much bad for Christianity”.

The fact of the matter is people like Bishop K Suresh Kumar who enjoy the patronage of the Andhra Pradesh state government hate Modi because his government put an end to foreign funds which were being used to convert Hindus and falsely accuse him and the Hindus of attacking Christians. 

Right now many people who convert to Christianity from the SC-ST community do not forgo their privileges of enjoying quotas accorded to them. 

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Periyarist and DMK sympathizer who insulted Hindu God Athivaradhar arrested after Hindu Munnani’s protest

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The Commune
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Hindu activists and organizations have been protesting against the DMK government’s move to ban processions and installation of Vinayagar idols at public places for Vinayaga Chathurthi while letting state-owned liquor outlets to be open.

Hindu Munnani has been carrying out protests outside temples and has declared that they would defy the DMK government’s order and celebrate Vinayagar Chathurthi with procession.

In light of this, members of the Hindu Munnani had protested outside the Sangupaani Vinayagar Temple in Kanchipuram. Just outside the temple, a flower shop selling flowers, coconuts and other items required for pooja had hung a picture of Hindu God Athivaradhar Perumal in a slipper on the door of his shop.

When confronted, the shop owner Boopathi said that he was a member of the DK (an organization founded by E.V. Ramasamy Naicker known as ‘Periyar’ by his followers).

“I’m a member of DK. This is the DMK rule. We will do like this only. Nobody can question us.”, Boopathi had reportedly said.

Following his impudent remark, he was thrashed by the public and members of the Hindu Munnani. They also protested outside his shop demanding the police to arrest the man. As commotion ensued, police arrived at the spot and took Boopathi into custody.

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Farmers Plant 1.23 Lakh Saplings In Tamil Nadu To Mark The River Revitalization Project

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The Commune
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“We wish to remember Sadhguru’s birthday as River Revitalization Day”. With this message, farmers in more than 20 districts of Tamil Nadu planted 1.23 lakh saplings on 485 acres of agricultural land to mark the day.  It was September 3 when Rally For Rivers and Cauvery Calling movement were kickstarted by Sadhguru.

Observing the day as “River Revitalization Day”, farmers in Pudukottai, Thanjavur, Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Cuddalore, Ariyalur, Dharmapuri, Salem, Virudhunagar, Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli and other districts planted high-value timber saplings on their farmlands in the Cauvery river basin districts.

Tamil Nadu Field Coordinator of the Cauvery Calling Movement, Shri Tamil Maran said, “1.23 lakh saplings were planted on September 2 and 3 in collaboration with farmers across Tamil Nadu as part of Cauvery Calling movement.” The Movement aims to plant 242 crore trees in the Cauvery river basin over 12 years. This is expected to significantly revive soil health, enhance groundwater tables and augment source flow of river Cauvery.

Shri. Maran revealed that “timber trees such as Teak, Vengai, Sandalwood, Rosewood, Melia Dubia, Kumil teak, Karumarthu and Mahogany were planted which could provide cash benefits to the farmers.”

He said the special plantation drive “was enthusiastically attended by farmers from across the state.” Cauvery Calling volunteers with expertise and experience in agriculture and soil health interacted with the farmers and advised them on tree species that would suit their agricultural lands.

The farmers expressed their happiness in being a part of the plantation activity. “Trees can improve soil fertility and revitalize rivers. We are proud of this. We wish Sadhguru a Happy Birthday,” they said.

Twitter was flooded with greeting messages for Sadhguru and people from all walks of life wished him on his birthday.

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Indian Navy to commission state of the art satellite and ballistic missile tracking ship INS Dhruv

By
The Commune
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The Indian Navy will commission India’s first satellite and ballistic missile tracking ship, INS Dhruv, code designation VC-11184 on 10 September becoming a select group of nations to have such capabilities including France, the US, the UK, Russia, and China that operate such ships.

INS Dhruv will not only track the satellite and ballistic missiles but also has the capability to detect enemy submarines and map ocean beds for research. It will serve as a “force multiplier” for the Indian Navy by enhancing and assisting in planning “subsurface [submarine], surface, and aerial offensive operations.

INS Dhruv has been built by the Hindustan Shipyard in collaboration with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), and is likely to be commissioned by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval from Visakhapatnam.

The ship is 15,000 t (15,000 long tons; 17,000 short tons) and will reportedly be manned by Indian Navy personnel and the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) and this is the largest warship after INS Vikrant that has been built in India under Make in India initiative.
 
After some delays, the ship was delivered in 2018 and completed sea trials in 2019. The ship, 175 meters long and has a crew complement of 300, and reportedly cost 1.5 million rupees crore ($206 million) in total.
 
Nothing much was known about this ship as it was part of a highly classified project and with the commissioning of INS Dhruv, India has an early warning system for enemy missiles headed towards Indian cities and military establishments and will spearhead India’s future anti-ballistic missile capability.
 
The sensors onboard this vessel are so powerful that the ship mounts three auxiliary power generators to generate electricity by its two combined diesel engines, bringing total power output to 14 MW.
 
INS Dhruv has command, control, and communications (C3) systems, and electronic support measure antennas (ESMs) capable of spying on electromagnetic emissions generated by other country’s ships and aircraft—a capability known as electronic intelligence, or ELINT that would be used to monitor the movements of ships and aircraft in the water surrounding the Indian subcontinent as China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy increases its presence in the Indian Ocean.

Both China and Pakistan have nuclear ballistic missile capability and INS Dhruv will give India the advantage and it will become an important part of 360-degree maritime domain awareness in the Indo-Pacific at the time when the era of underwater armed and surveillance drones has dawned.

The ship is equipped with DRDO developed state of the art active scanned array (AESA) which will give India the capability to understand the true missile capability of the adversary when they test their ballistic missiles and help the Indian Navy in planning better military operations in all three dimensions- sub-surface, surface, and aerial.

There are also reports that a second, smaller (118 meters long) surveillance vessel with specialised in tracking cruise missiles is under construction at the Cochin shipyard.

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Taliban to form govt today, Haibatullah Akhundzada to be group’s supreme leader

By
The Commune
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The Taliban which took over Kabul on August, as per reports is all set to form a new Sharia-compliant Islamic administration after Friday (jummah) afternoon prayers. The new authority will be most like the one in Iran where the Ayatollah is the spiritual leader.

In Afghanistan, the group’s top spiritual leader will be Amir ul Momineen Haibatullah Akhundzada who will now act as the supreme authority. Also, Akhundzada has been referred to as  “za’eem” or “rahbar” in official discourse, both meaning “leader,” an Islamic theocratic title.

According to Bilal Karimi, a member of the Taliban’s cultural commission said on Thursday (September 2) that leaders within the Taliban have reached a “consensus” on the formation of a new government and cabinet under Akhundzada’s leadership.

“The consultations on forming an inclusive Afghan government within the Islamic Emirate’s leaders, with the leaders from the previous government and other influential leaders have officially ended,” Karimi was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. “They have reached a consensus. We’re about to announce a functioning cabinet and government in a few days, not weeks,” he added.

Along with Haibatullah Akhundzada, the other people who will be in the governing council is the co-founder of the Taliban Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who will be the public face of the Taliban and is likely to be in charge of the daily functioning of the government. Also, in the cabinet will be the Haqqani Network leader Sirajuddin Haqqani and son of Mullah Omar, Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob. 

The Taliban after it took power promised to be a more “inclusive” government and be more accommodating and will not implement the brutal and violent interpretation of Sharia, and its treatment of women. However, it is clear that these were just words meant for public relations because already there are several restrictions on women which include freedom of movement and girls being banned from school.

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Sri Lankan Muslim in Auckland carries out ISIS inspired terror attack: 6 injured, 3 critical, Jihadi shot dead

By
The Commune
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Another Illegal Bangladeshi Infiltrator Arrested From Kolkata Hotel

The largely peaceful country of New Zealand has experienced an Islamic State-inspired attack which has resulted in six people getting injured out of which three are in critical condition in an Auckland supermarket knife rampage on Friday (September 3).

The Islamic terrorist who carried out this attack was shot dead by undercover police officers who had him under round-the-clock surveillance.

The attack was carried out by a Sri Lankan national and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she was “gutted” the man, a Sri Lankan national, had managed to carry out his “hateful” assault even though he was on a terror watchlist. Asked about the man’s motivations, she said: “it was a violent ideology and ISIS-inspired”, using another name for the Islamic State group.

There are unverified reports that the jihadi was in Pakistan for five years.

“It was carried out by an individual, not a faith, not a culture, not an ethnicity. He alone carries the responsibility for these acts.”

The jihadists had come to New Zealand in 2011, entered a shopping mall in suburban Auckland, and seized a knife from a display before going on a stabbing spree.

However, PM Ardern said that she was limited in what she could be publicly revealed about the attacker because the subject of court suppression orders, but media has reported that the  32-year-old who carried out the attack told the prosecutors last year of plotting a “lone wolf” terror attack using knives.

But the irony is that a judge ruled that planning a terror attack was not in itself an offence under existing laws and was under 12-month supervision after being found guilty on lesser charges of possessing propaganda supporting Islamic State.

Ardern said authorities had to release the man and the new terror laws had been drafted to close the loophole. Arden admitted, 
“The fact that he was in the community will be an illustration that we haven’t succeeded in using the law to the extent we would have liked,”.

“I know that we’ve been doing everything that we could, so I was absolutely gutted,” she said, describing her feelings upon learning about the stabbings.

When asked how many more people are under surveillance, Ardern would not disclose saying only “there are very few people who fall into this category”.

The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand called the attack an act of hate. “Terrorists who do such inhumane and vile acts do not belong to any religion,” said the group’s president Ibrar Sheikh.

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Actor Prithviraj and director Abu withdraw from movie based on life of Islamic zealot Haji of Moplah riots

By
The Commune
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After the Ministry of Culture and the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) announced that it will remove the Moplah Rebellion leaders Variamkunnath Kunhamed Haji, from the Dictionary of Martyrs of India’s Freedom Struggle, the movie based in the life of Variankunnathu Kunjahammed Haji now stands cancelled as actor Prithviraj Sukumaran and director Ashiq Abu have withdrawn from a movie project.

The movie was to portray Haji as a freedom fighter during the 1921 Malabar rebellion who was later executed by the British regime. This announcment was met with staunch critisim because the Moplah rebellion was not a freedom movement but was a fundamentalist religious movement focused on forced conversion of Hindus to Islam and the creation of a Caliphate. Haji infact was a active member of Khilafat Movement.

As per reports in The Hindu newspaper, director Abu said that he and Prithviraj have withdrawn from the movie titled “Variankunnan“ due to differences with producers.

When the project was announced, Prithviraj had said Haji stood up against an empire and, “Etched out his own country with an army that waged a never before war against the British. Though history was burned and buried, the legend lived on! The legend of a leader, a soldier, a patriot,”.

But what Prithviraj did not know or never learned that Haji was a rioter who established a Sharia court and beheaded a large number of Hindus because they were non-believers and targeted Hindus in Eranadu and Valluvanadu taluks in south Malabar in 1921.

The film was set to be released this year, coinciding with the centenary celebrations of the Malabar Rebellion but according to Hindu Aikyaved ithe idea behind this film are with “ulterior motive” and Haji and other leaders of Malabar Rebellion were responsible for atrocities committed on Hindus in Eranadu and Valluvanadu in 1921.

However, left historians who controlled the narrative until recently said that he Malabar rebellion was peasant struggle against the Hindu feudal landlords in the region which is the same argument used against the Kashmiri Pandits when they were attacked and thrown out of the valley.

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“Are we not part of Muslim ‘Ummah’?”, ask Uyghurs as Taliban plans to handover them to China for money

By
The Commune
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After the international Islamic terror group, Al Qaeda congratulated the Taliban victory in Afghanistan and called for the “liberation” of Kashmir, Palestine, Maghreb (Northwest Africa) from the “clutches of the enemies of Islam” and called on the Ummah (global Islamic community) to come together, it has emerged that the Taliban could hand over Uyghur Muslims to China for money.

After the Taliban took over Kabul on August 15, there is now a growing apprehension in the Uyghurs living in Afghanistan who fear they will be sent back to China and in return receive large sums of money.

At present, some two thousand Uyghur Muslims are living in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and already there are reports that the Taliban fighters have taken your Uygher girls according to a report by Radio Free Asia.

It must be noted that Al Qaeda which still has close ties with the Taliban and the dreaded Haqqani Network did not say anything when it came to the treatment of the Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang in China but had no problem calling on the masses in “Europe and East Asia to break free from the shackles of American hegemony”. 

China looks at the Uyghur as secessionists which the Communist regime in Bejing will never tolerate and already over ten lakh ethnic Uyghurs are inside the so-called re-education camps which in reality are the Nazi-style concentration camps.

For China the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), an Uyghur militant group is a serious internal threat and it is known that fighters from ETIM helped the Taliban invade Afghanistan. 

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TheCommune
The Commune is a news and views portal focusing on social and political issues of the southern part of India with a focus on Tamil Nadu.
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