“Ecosystem wants to bury truths about Hindu exodus from Kashmir”, says Modi :::::: India shared with UK details on Oxfam India on FCRA

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday slammed the “ecosystem that is involved in burying the truths” and urged the Bharatiya Janata Party’s lawmakers to stand up for those who “bring out the truths and facts that have been suppressed for years.”

Referring to the uproar over The Kashmir Files, the Prime Minister said while addressing the BJP’s Members of Parliament in the parliamentary party meeting that the reluctance over presenting history and historical figures in the right perspective has led to the delayed recognition of Mahatma Gandhi as well.

The Kashmir Files, written and directed by Vivek Agnihotri, depicts the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the valley in the 1990s. It stars Anupam Kher, Darshan Kumar, Mithun Chakraborty and Pallavi Joshi among others.

BJP even released the video of the PM’s speech in which he referred to the film. “History has to be presented in the right context before the society from time to time. Just as books, poetry and literature play a role in this, in the same way even films can also do so.

“Post India’s Independence, we have been hearing about Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela but not so much about Mahatma Gandhi. Had someone taken the effort to make a film on Gandhi and presented it to the world, the message may have been delivered. For the first time, a foreigner made a film on Gandhi and even won an award for it, that is when the world got to know how great Gandhi was,” he told party MPs.

India has shared with UK details on Oxfam India on FCRA issue

New Delhi

The Indian government has shared with the United Kingdom the details on the status 
of 'Oxfam', the Britain based social organisation, which did not get the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 (FCRA) clearance in January this year.

"The Government of the United Kingdom raised the issue of status of Oxfam India under the Foreign Contribution 

(Regulation) Act, 2010 (FCRA, 2010) during the bilateral dialogue held on February 10," Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said in Lok Sabha on Tuesday. 

He said India was shared with the UK side during the dialogue. 

"The renewal application of Oxfam India was refused as it did not fulfil the eligibility criteria specified in the 

FCRA, 2010 and rules made thereunder," the minister said. 

In December 2021, in a highly controversial decision, a plethora of institutions like Oxfam India, Hamdard 

Education Society, Indian Institute of Technology (Delhi), Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA), 

Indian Institute of Public Administration, National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH), Nehru Museum, 

Delhi College of Engineering, Goa Football Association, and Press Institute of India were denied FCRA extension.

An FCRA license is mandatory to receive foreign donations in India.

This was not the first time the Modi government has acted against NGOs and voluntary bodies

virtually crippling the fund flow of the organisations - most of them also allegedly indulging in undesirable

actions like conversion to Christianity.

"Oxfam India has filed an application for revision of refusal order under Section 32 of the FCRA, 2010. 

The registration, renewal and cancellation of registration is done based on the criteria specified in the FCRA, 

2010 and Rules made thereunder," the Minister stated. 

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147 foeign nationals of 18 countries evacuated by India from Ukraine, says Jaishankar 

Nirendra Dev

New Delhi

In line with India's principle of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam - all world a family', foreign nationals from various countries were evacuated from conflict zones in Ukraine by India. 

Stating this in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar saidthey included 147 citizens of as many as 18 countries. 

"Many Ukrainian nationals that are family members of Indian nationals have also been evacuated," he said.

The Minister, however, said the Sumy evacuation was "extremely complex".

"....our students faced the prospect of being caught in the crossfire," he said. 

"Their evacuation from the city needed a credible ceasefire. This finally materialised due to the personal intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself with the Presidents of Ukraine and Russia, Dr Jaishankar said. 

He further said PM Modi spoke to Presidents of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyon multiple occasions. 

"PM took up the issue of safe evacuation of Indians, especially from Kharkiv and Sumy. PM Modi also spoke to Prime Ministers of Romania, Slovak Republic, Hungary and President of Poland to seek support for facilitation of entry of Indians to their countries," Dr Jaishankar said. 

He said the Prime Minister also deputed four Union Ministers as special envoys to Romania, Hungary, Slovak Republic and Poland to facilitate 'Operation Ganga'. 

This included Jyotiraditya Scindia to Romania, Kiren Rijiju to Slovak Republic, Hardeep Singh Puri to Hungary and Gen V K Singh to Poland.

Under Operation Ganga, 90 flights have been operated out of which 76 were civilian flights and 14 were Indian Air Force flights. 

The evacuation flights were from Romania, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia. 

While the IAF rose to the occasion, most of the private airlines also participated enthusiastically, the Minister said. 

The Minister said, at Kharkiv, Naveen Shekarappa Gyanagoudarm, a final year medical student of Kharkiv Medical University lost his life. "We deeply mourn his untimely demise. Our Embassy in Ukraine is diligently pursuing the repatriation of his mortal remains to India". 

Another Indian Harjot Singh suffered bullet injuries on his way out in Kyiv. 

His medical expenses were taken care of and arrangements made for movement from Kyiv to the Polish border. 

He was brought back in the IAF flight to India accompanied by a doctor arranged by the Indian Mission in Poland, Dr Jaishankar said. 

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