
Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal seeks compensation, job to victim's kin
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Will make Punjab education hub of India: Minister
Chandigarh Punjab higher education minister Harjot Singh Bains on Monday directed officials to expedite the processing of proposals from private colleges seeking university status. The move aims to streamline the upgradation process, reinforce academic excellence, and expand access to quality higher education in the state. To ensure effective coordination and real-time monitoring, the minister designated director higher education Girish Dayalan as the nodal officer for overseeing the progress of all such proposals. 'We are committed to removing unnecessary delays and creating a robust ecosystem for higher learning and make Punjab the education hub of India,' said Bains.
Day 93 of war against drugs: 98 smugglers held
Chandigarh The anti-drugs campaign, Yudh Nashian Virudh, launched by the Punjab government entered 93rd day on Monday, and the state police arrested 98 drug smugglers and recovered 1.5 kg heroin, 2,508 intoxicant pills and ₹3,900 drug money from their possession. With this, the number of total drug smugglers arrested has reached 15,117 in 93 days. The operation was conducted on the directions of the DGP, Punjab, Gaurav Yadav simultaneously in all 28 police districts of the state.

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Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Punjab DGP: Five of ISI-backed smuggling network arrested
A trans-border smuggling network of sophisticated arms and drug money, operated by Pakistan's ISI backed handlers, has been dismantled with the arrest of five members, police said on Sunday. The Amritsar Rural police, in coordination with central agencies, has also seized a consignment of firearms and ₹7.50 lakh drug money, said director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav. The seized items with Amritsar police on Sunday. (ANI) Those arrested have been identified as Jobanjit Singh and Gora Singh of Rangarh village, Jaspreet Singh alias Motu of Mughal Majri village in Ropar, Sunny Singh and Shahenshah Singh alias Shalu of Rasulpur Kallar village . The seizure includes an AK Saiga 308 assault rifle with two magazines, two Glock pistols (9 mm) with four magazines, 90 live cartridges of AK rifle, 10 live cartridges (9mm), ₹7.50 lakh drug money, a car and three mobile phones. Sharing further detail, SSP (Amritsar rural) Maninder Singh said, 'A preliminary investigation revealed the accused had direct links with Pakistan-based ISI operatives. The intercepted consignment was intended to be delivered to Navdeep Singh alias Nav Pandori, a known associate of gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, indicating a broader terror-gangster nexus.' 'The special cell received a tip-off that Jobanjit, Gora, Motu, Sunny and Shalu were in contact with Pakistan-based smugglers backed by the ISI. The accused had already received a consignment of arms and were preparing to deliver it, as per the directions of ISI handlers, to Nav Pandori, a close associate of gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria. The accused had previously delivered several consignments to Nav Pandori,' he said, adding that the accused were caught at a special checkpoint near a newly constructed bridge in Kaler village. A case has been registered at Lopoke police station under Sections 21-C, 25, 27-A, 29, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act, Sections 25, 25(7), 54 and 59 of the Arms Act, and Sections 111, 113 of the BNS. The forward and backward linkages of the arrested persons are being looked into, officials said. A verification is being conducted to ascertain if the accused acquired any property through illicit means. If any such property is found, the same will be frozen, officials added.


Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Sikh girl not allowed to take exam for wearing ‘kada', Badal writes to PM
Chandigarh: Expressing grave concern over "growing incidents of disrespect and discrimination against the sacred symbols of the Sikh religion", Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "intervene directly to put an end to this painful chain of events in the country". Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In a letter to the Prime Minister, Badal sought to draw the PM's attention to an incident on Sunday in which a baptised Sikh girl, from Tarn Taran district, was reportedly stopped from entering the examination centre as a candidate for the Rajasthan Judicial Services at Poornima University, Jaipur, on the plea that she was wearing her sacred articles of faith – 'kada' and 'kirpan'. "This was a gross violation of her constitutional rights guaranteed under Article 25 of the Statute, and it denied her fundamental right to practise her religion. Article 25 of the Constitution specifically mentions 'kirpan' among other symbols of the Sikh religion, which are exempt from any bar even on flights," Badal said. He added in the letter to the PM, "It is shocking that rules, if any, are framed by lower authorities flouting the sacred Constitution of India. The govt of India should issue -- or, if necessary -- re-issue clear-cut guidelines to all states and Union Territories about the exemption to the inseparable articles of faith." Badal stated that it was "not a one-off incident but part of the ever-increasing number of examples of religious intolerance towards the uniqueness of Sikh identity. In a similar incident last year, two Sikh girls were stopped from appearing for Rajasthan Judicial Services (RJS) in an exam centre in Jodhpur." "Sikhs and their identity are inseparable, and this was duly acknowledged and constitutionally mandated for compliance for all purposes in the country by the Founding Fathers. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now But some officials at lower rungs deem themselves even above the Constitution. This must stop as this vitiates communal harmony in the country," Badal wrote in the letter to the PM. "You are personally aware of the profound spiritual and emotional significance of the Sikh religious symbols and what these mean to our devoutly religious and fiercely patriotic community. I request you to issue immediate directions for compliance to ensure full respect to these symbols at all levels across the country," the letter read. Badal also urged the Rajasthan high court to provide the victimised Sikh girl, Gurpreet Kaur, a special opportunity to appear for the RJS examination, ensuring her right to uphold her faith is respected. Earlier in the morning, the SAD president had taken to X, asking Rajasthan chief minister Bhajan Lal to take strict action against the guilty officials to ensure such incidents were not repeated in his state. Will Raise Issue in Parliament: Harsimrat Kaur Badal SAD MP from Bathinda, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, while condemning the incident as "unfortunate and discriminatory" and demanding strict action against officials who "barred" the girl from appearing in the examination, took to X and wrote, "I will definitely raise this issue in Parliament so that such incidents do not happen with our Sikh children in the future and a permanent solution is found."


Time of India
9 hours ago
- Time of India
Badal condemns denial of entry to Sikh girl to Rajasthan exam centre for wearing kirpan, kara
Sukhbir Badal, Shiromani Akali Dal president, has condemned an incident in Jaipur where a Sikh girl was barred from a judicial services exam for wearing Sikh religious symbols. Badal cited a violation of constitutional rights and urged Prime Minister Modi to intervene, highlighting increasing disrespect towards Sikh identity. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Chandigarh: Shiromani Akali Dal SAD ) president Sukhbir Badal on Sunday claimed a baptised Sikh girl from Punjab's Tarn Taran district was stopped from entering a centre for Rajasthan Judicial Services examination in Jaipur as she was wearing 'kara' and 'kirpan', both sacred articles of Sikh faith."This was a gross violation of her constitutional rights guaranteed under Article 25 and it denied her fundamental right to practise her religion. Article 25 of the Constitution specifically mentions 'kirpan' among other symbols of Sikh religion, which are exempt from any bar, even in flights," Badal said in a SAD chief expressed grave concern over "growing" incidents of disrespect and discrimination against the sacred symbols of Sikh religion, and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene in the matter to put an end to this "painful chain of events" in the a letter, Badal drew Modi's attention to the latest incident in which Gurpreet Kaur from Tarn Taran was stopped from entering the examination centre in Jaipur."It is shocking that rules, if any, are framed by lower authorities flouting the sacred Constitution of India. The government of India should issue -- or, if necessary -- re-issue clear cut guidelines to all states and Union territories about the exemption to the inseparable articles of faith," Badal said in his letter to the prime Akali Dal chief said this was not a one-off incident but part of the ever-increasing number of examples of religious intolerance towards the uniqueness of Sikh a similar incident last year, two Sikh girls were stopped from appearing for the Rajasthan Judicial Services (RJS) exam in Jodhpur."Sikhs and their identity are inseparable and this was duly acknowledged and constitutionally mandated for compliance for all purposes in the country."But some officials at lower rungs deem themselves above the Constitution. This must stop as this vitiates communal harmony in the country," Badal also urged the Rajasthan High Court to provide the Sikh girl a special opportunity to appear for the RJS exam, ensuring that her right to uphold her faith is in the day, the SAD chief asked Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma to take strict action in the matter to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in his state.