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Nepal: Seven persons die in chopper crash, including Tourism and Civil Aviation minister and senior govt officials

OpIndia Staff
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Nepal: Seven persons die in chopper crash, including Tourism and Civil Aviation minister and senior govt officials

The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has confirmed the death of seven people, including country’s Tourism and Civil Aviation minister Tourism Rabindra Adhikari, due to a helicopter crash at Taplejung district’s Pathibhara area.

In addition to the death of Minister Adhikari, other people who were accompanying him were: Prime Minister KP Oil’s close aid Yubaraj Dahal, an aviation and hospitality entrepreneur Ang Tsering Sherpa, General of Civil Aviation Authority (CAAN)Birendra Prasad Shrestha, CAAN Deputy Director Dhurba Bhochhibhoya, and security guard of Minister Arjun Kumar Ghimire. The helicopter was being flown by Captain Prabhakar KC.

Ang Tsering Sherpa is the chairman of Air Dynasty, and also the Managing Director of Yeti Airlines. The names were revealed after Air Dynasty, the company which operated the chopper, released the passenger manifest.


The crew reportedly had gone for the feasibility study of an airstrip in Chuhandanda. Chuhandanda is a sparsely-populated region in Tehrathum district of Nepal. The accident happened when the crew was returning to the nation’s capital Kathmandu from offering worship at Pathibhara Mata temple.  According to local eyewitnesses, the helicopter crashed a minute after it took off from Pathibhara temple.

The rescue operations have been delayed in the wake of severe climate, the office of Tribhuvan International Airport of Kathmandu said.

Old videos and photos used by Pakistanis on SM to show captured pilot and Indian aircraft ‘shot down’

OpIndia Staff
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Old videos and photos used by Pakistanis on SM to show captured pilot and Indian aircraft ‘shot down’

Pakistani jets have violated Indian airspace on Wednesday morning and entered the border areas of Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district reported ANI. They had reportedly dropped bombs but were pushed back by Indian aircraft.

The PAF jets were confronted by the Indian Airforce and the bid to infiltrate was thwarted. Reportedly, Pakistan F-16s attempted to infiltrate but were pushed back by India.

However, Pakistan has resorted to posting old videos to claim that it has shot down two fighter jets of the Indian Air Force (IAF). The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the propaganda wing of the Pakistan armed forces, had issued a statement claiming that the country had shot down two fighters of the IAF and arrested a pilot flying one of these jets.

The first video that the ISPR and Pakistan media are propagating is of a MiG-27 crash in Jodhpur which took place in 2016. The fighter jet depicted on social media platforms by the Pakistani media has a tail number TU657. According to Shiv Aroor, Defence journalist, Pakistan media is showing 2016 images of MiG crash in Jodhpur to claim these are IAF jets shot down today.


Some Pakistani Twitter handles also peddled old videos of February 19 Surya Kiran crash survivor Vijay Shelke in Bangalore, saying it is captured IAF pilot.


Pakistan media and social media were also busy peddling images of a 2018 crash in Odisha trying to suggest they are IAF jets shot down today.

However, the government of India has now confirmed that one Indian pilot is missing and that they are trying to ascertain more details.
According to the MEA statement, Pakistan had responded to India’s ‘non-military pre-emptive strikes’ by using its airforce to target military installations on the Indian side. Pakistan Air Force was detected immediately and Indian Air Force responded instantly to thwart its attempts. In the aerial engagement, one Pakistan jet was shot down by Indian MIG 21 Bison of IAF. The Indian Airforce has lost a Mig 21, the pilot is missing. Meanwhile, Pakistan has claimed that he is in their custody.

MEA: IAF thwarted Pak attempt to target military assets, 1 Pak jet shot down, 1 MiG 21 lost, trying to ascertain Pak claims of captured pilot

OpIndia Staff
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MEA: IAF thwarted Pak attempt to target military assets, 1 Pak jet shot down, 1 MiG 21 lost, trying to ascertain Pak claims of captured pilot

In a joint press conference by the MEA officials and Vice Air Marshal RK Kappo, the government has confirmed that one Indian pilot is missing and that they are trying to ascertain more details.

In the press conference, the government said:

“India has informed about Counterterrorism action it took yesterday against Jaish-e-Mohammad camp in Pakistan based on credible evidence that they intended to launch further attacks on India. Pakistan responded by using its airforce to target military installations on the Indian side. Due to our alertness, Pakistan attempts were foiled successfully. Pakistan Air Force was detected and Indian Air Force responded instantly. In the aerial engagement, one Pakistan jet was shot down by Indian MIG 21 Bison of IAF. The Pakistani aircraft was seen by ground forces falling on Pakistan side. In this engagement, we lost 1 Mig 21, the pilot is missing. Pakistan has claimed that he is in their custody. We are ascertaining facts.”

On 14th February 2019, Pakistan sponsored Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists had carried out a suicide terrorist attack on a CRPF convoy, claiming the lives of 44 soldiers. Following the attack, the Indian Air Force had conducted airstrikes deep inside Pakistan territory and India’s nuclear-capable Mirage-2000 jets had gone right up to Balakot in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa to destroy JeM terror camps.

Following the airstrikes, Pakistan indulged in spreading lies and fear. On the wee hours of Wednesday morning, Pakistan also resorted to heavy firing across the Line of Control, to which it got a befitting response from the Indian side, which destroyed 5 Army posts on the Pakistan side. Pakistan then proceeded to violate India’s airspace. Sources say that 1 Pakistan F16 was shot down by India. However, unfortunately, India lost one MiG 21 and the whereabouts of one Indian pilot remains unknown.

It now remains to be seen whether the military retaliation would escalate more or die down into a diplomatic tussle.

AgustaWestland scam: Key accused Rajiv Saxena to move court seeking to turn approver

OpIndia Staff
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AgustaWestland scam: Key accused Rajiv Saxena to move court seeking to turn approver

The UPA era VVIP chopper scam has seen several brisk developments since middleman Christian Michel was extradited to India from Dubai. In the latest, one of the prime accused in the AgustaWestland case, Rajiv Saxena, who was picked up by UAE government security agencies in Dubai and later extradited to India on January 30, 2019, is likely to turn an approver.

According to reports, Rajiv Saxena, who was recently granted bail by a Delhi court in the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland scam, is all set to move an application in the Patiala House Court in Delhi today, seeking to become an approver in the case. His request will be supported by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

The agency, which believes that Saxena has extensive information on the bribe that was paid to certain politicians and bureaucrats in India, are also hoping that once Saxena turns an approver he will also reveal significant details on the role of Christian Michel and Gautam Khaitan who are the co-accused in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal.

According to ED, three of Rajiv Saxena’s companies, Interstellar Technologies (Mauritius), UHY Saxena (Dubai) and Matrix Holding (Dubai) had received kickbacks from Gordian Sarl (Tunisia) and IDS Technologies (Tunisia), firms that were set up by AgustaWestland accused Gautam Khaitan. Middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke were directors in this firm.

Since the agency was certain that Saxena had complete knowledge about the money trail that was paid as kickbacks to manage the chopper deal in favour of AgustaWestland and claimed that he was cooperating with the agency and helping in establishing the same, the ED had refused to oppose his bail, which was granted to him on medical grounds. Prior to this, the agency had opposed the bail plea in December 2018.

This development holds significance as Rajiv Saxena was described as the “key money launderer” by ED in the case. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had named him in a supplementary charge sheet filed in the VVIP Chopper scam in September 2017. Saxena and his wife Shivani Saxena are directors in two Dubai based companies, while he is a director in another Mauritius based company, and it is alleged that all those companies received proceeds of the kickbacks paid in the AgustaWestland deal.

It was reported that Rajiv Saxena has several accounts in Switzerland. OpIndia has acquired the list of accounts that Rajiv Saxena allegedly used for kickbacks received in the AgustaWestland scam.

Prior to the extradition of the two main accused Rajiv Saxena and Deepak Talwar, several startling revelations came to light in the VVIP chopper scam soon after the case gained momentum post middleman Christian Micheal’s extradition to India. From the names of “Italian Lady”, to “Italian Lady’s son R“ to how Christian Michel was lobbying for the Eurofighter and against the Rafale deal and how he had unbridled access to the PMO under Congress regime, the CCS and even the investigative agencies.

India on January 1, 2014, scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica’s British subsidiary, AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the Indian Air Force over an alleged breach of contract and charges of paying kickbacks totaling to Rs 423 crore to several politicians and bureaucrats in order to secure the deal.

India’s Air strike: Pakistan to hold National Command Authority meeting, which overlooks country’s nuclear weapons

OpIndia Staff
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India’s Air strike: Pakistan to hold National Command Authority meeting, which overlooks country’s nuclear weapons

India, in the wee hours of Tuesday, conducted air strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, blowing hundreds of terrorists staying in terror camps, to avenge the killing of more than 40 CRPF jawans this month in Pulwama. Now, the rattled Pakistan, which has acknowledged the air raid but refused to confirm the casualty numbers, has now resorted to issuing veiled nuclear threats against India.

“There is a joint session of parliament tomorrow and then the prime minister has summoned a meeting of the National Command Authority on. I hope you know what the NCA means and what it constitutes,” Maj General Asif Ghafoor, head of Pakistan military’s media wing was quoted as saying. He also added that Pakistan will surprise India by its upcoming move. The meeting will happen on Wednesday.

NCA or National Command Authority of Pakistan is a joint-command that oversees Pakistan’s strategic components, especially the nuclear capabilities. The declaration of NCA meeting at a time when India has launched lethal air offensives against Pakistan-based terror camps seems nothing but one of its tactics to intimidate India. After India’s air raids, Pakistan Army has also targeted civilian areas of Jammu and Kashmir violating the ceasefire by resorting to heavy mortar shelling on 55 forward areas in Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch districts on Tuesday.

The NCA was set up after National Security Council chief executive General Pervez Musharraf overthrew Pakistan’s Nawaz Shariff government, by a powerful military coup in 2000. Musharaff, however, in the wake of the air strike recently, had warned his own country that if it attacks India even with one atomic bomb, it will be wiped by 20 of them hurled by Inda.

In 2019, NCA was established as a “civilian-led body in charge of the country’s nuclear assets” by Imran Khan government.

“The NCA will be responsible for policy formulation and will exercise employment and development control over all strategic nuclear forces and strategic organizations. It will comprise the Employment Control Committee and Development Control Committee as well as Strategic Plans Division which will act as secretariat,” A report was quoted by News18.

NCA consists of  Employment Control Committee, Development Control Committee and a Strategic Plans Division of Pakistan. The first two sections are handled by Head of State, that is Prime Minister of Pakistan, with the help of ministers. The third section, Strategic Plans Division is headed by a senior army officer.

US, France, others back India’s right to self-defence even as Pakistan cries foul over its airspace violation

OpIndia Staff
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US, France, others back India’s right to self-defence even as Pakistan cries foul over its airspace violation

As India conducted ‘non-military pre-emptive strikes’ deep inside Pakistan obliterating the Jaish-e-Muhammad camps on Tuesday, a humiliated Pakistan had run crying foul over the violation of its airspace and sovereignty. However, the global community has chosen to ignore Pakistan’s rant while deciding to back India for its resolve on fighting terror.

The Indian air strikes had pushed Pakistan into a corner following which it had to rush to the global community to seek support over the alleged violation of its sovereignty. However, none of the global powers has chosen to side with the terrorist state of Pakistan on the issue and rather supported India’s proposition for conducting ‘non-military pre-emptive strikes’ for self-defense.

CHINA:

The biggest embarrassment for Pakistan was that its ‘all-weather’ ally China could not muster the courage to support Pakistan’s claim of violation of sovereignty. Instead, China has asked both Pakistan and India to exercise ‘restraint’ amidst the soaring tensions. With this China has clearly sent out a signal to Pakistan that it would try to ease tensions between the two countries rather than supporting its ally Pakistan.

UNITED STATES:

The United States has backed India in its quest to respond to the Pulwama attack in Kashmir, which had killed 40 CRPF personnel. Two days after the suicide bombing, John Bolton, the U.S. National Security Adviser, had said the United States supported “India’s right to self-defense.”

Bolton said the US has been very clear to Pakistan on ending support to terrorist safe havens. “We have been very clear on that score. And, we are continuing to be in discussions we are going to have with the Pakistanis,” he said. Earlier, the White House and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo asked Pakistan to end its support to terrorist safe havens inside the country.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday has said that he spoke to Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on the issue of taking “meaningful action” against terrorist groups operating on Pakistan soil, following an air strike by India inside Pakistan.

FRANCE:

Meanwhile, one of India’s oldest and reliable partners, France has supported India’s “legitimacy to ensure security” and asked Pakistan “to put an end to the operations of terrorist groups established on its territory” while asking both countries to show restraint. The French government also seems to be least concerned about Pakistan’s territorial integrity.

“Resumption of dialogue between Islamabad-New Delhi is necessary to initiate peaceful settlement of differences. France, which stands by India in the fight against terrorism in all its forms is fully engaged in mobilising the international community to sanction terrorists responsible for this attack (Pulwama) and freezing their financing networks,” the spokesperson of France’s Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs said.

AUSTRALIA:

The Australian government has put Pakistan in a tough place after it stood behind India and urged Pakistan to take “urgent and meaningful action against terrorist groups in its territory. In a press release, the Australian government said, “Pakistan must do everything possible to implement its own prescription of Jaish-e-Mohammed. It can no longer allow extremist groups the legal and physical space to operate from its territory.”

“Pakistan must take urgent and meaningful action against terrorist groups in its territory, including Jaish-e-Mohammed which has claimed responsibility for the 14 February bombing, and Lashkar-e-Taiba,” said Australia while urging both the countries to show restraint. The Australian government press statement does not feature anything pertaining to violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty.

EUROPEAN UNION:

The European Union (EU) also called on New Delhi and Islamabad to exercise “maximum restraint” after Indian warplanes attacked the militant camp in Pakistan. The European Union had recently censured Pakistan for not taking adequate measures to control international terror and had advised Islamabad to undertake “clear and sustained actions targeting not only all UN-listed transnational terrorist groups but also individuals claiming responsibility for such attacks”.

Meanwhile, Dean of Diplomatic Corps Hans Castellanos, who represents more than 150 foreign missions in India, on Tuesday said that the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) airstrikes across the Line of Control (LoC) were very responsible. He had said that the airstrikes targetted the terrorists who were planning future attacks on India and not the civilians.

“We want to congratulate Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for quickly briefing us. The message was a direct one. It was a non-military preemptive strike. India wanted to target terrorists, not civilians. India behaved responsibly,” he said. “The operation was a very directed one. It did not target any civilians. It did not target any military camp in Pakistan. It was done to avoid any further attacks in India,” the dean of diplomatic corps said.

Arun Jaitley makes Osama reference, says if US could do it (take down Osama in Pakistan), anything can happen

OpIndia Staff
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Arun Jaitley makes Osama reference, says if US could do it (take down Osama in Pakistan), anything can happen

“If America can enter Pakistan and kill Osama Bin Laden, then anything is possible,” said Union Minister Arun Jaitley amidst the ongoing tensions at the Line of Control (LoC). As per reports, Jaitley said, anything is possible at this time.

Union Minister Jaitley was referring to the CIA-led Operation Neptune Spear under which United States Navy SEALs killed Osama Bin Laden who was hiding in Abbottabad, Pakistan. The raid on Osama Bin Laden’s hideout in Abbottabad was launched from Afghanistan air base and he was buried in the sea within 24 hours.

In the wee hours on Tuesday morning, Pakistan has been reporting heavy movement along the Line of Control between India and Pakistan. Pakistan has claimed that the Indian Airforce crossed the Line of Control and breached the Pakistani airspace. The air strike was carried out at 3:30 am in Balakot. One of the targets destroyed by IAF Mirage jets was in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa area.

Balakot, Chakothi and Muzaffarabad terror launch pads across the Line of Control completely destroyed in IAF air strikes. Jaish-e-Mohammad control rooms also destroyed.

The horrific Pulwama attack had left the entire nation in a state of shock and rage. The Indian government, resolute to discipline Pakistan has taken several measures against them. The most favoured nation status accorded to Pakistan under WTO norms were withdrawn, and then customs duty of 200% was imposed on all imports from Pakistan. Government is also working towards isolating Pakistan on the global front. PM Narendra Modi had announced after the Pulwama attacks that the Indian Army has been given a free rein to plan and execute a retaliatory action.

Tensions have escalated at the Line of Control since early this morning with Indian Army retaliating to Pakistan Army’s aggression. Several airports are put on high alert even as all airports in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab are shut down till May as a precautionary measure.

America tells Pakistan that it cannot use its weapons without permission. Did Pakistan breach the ‘end use agreement’?

OpIndia Staff
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America tells Pakistan that it cannot use its weapons without permission. Did Pakistan breach the ‘end use agreement’?

After the Pulwama attack, the Indian Air Force carried out airstrikes deep inside Pakistan territory to neutralise Jaish-e-Mohammad terror bases. IAF went all the way up to Balakot, which is only a few kilometres away from Abbottabad, where Osama Bin Laden was killed by the USA. Following this, Pakistan resorted to heavy shelling on the Line of Control and also infiltrated Indian airspace today, as a consequence of which, news has emerged that one of their F16s have been shot down.

Following Pakistan’s misadventure, TimesNow has now reported that the United States of America has cautioned Pakistan against using American defence equipment without its permission. The F16s are also American fighter jets that were sold to Pakistan.


The USA has a strict end-use monitoring agreement where the F16s supplied to Pakistan cannot be used to escalate. At best, the F16 can be used to defend itself and in this case, Pakistan used it to breach Indian airspace and was subsequently shot down. Pakistan has apparently done so without the permission of the USA and hence, this warning has been issued to Pakistan.

Even in 2016, when Pakistan was contemplating buying the F16 from another country other than the USA, US State Department had said that under the US law, any retransfers of US-origin defence items to a third party require approval from the US government and would be subject to end-use monitoring.

It hence stands to reason that the USA has the authority to ban Pakistan from using the F16 for purpose of aggression and escalation, as it seems to have done now.

Indo-Pak tension: Several flights flying over Pakistan return or divert route to avoid Pakistani airspace

OpIndia Staff
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Indo-Pak tension: Several flights flying over Pakistan return or divert route to avoid Pakistani airspace

Earlier we had reported that flights to Jammu and Kashmir have been suspended following heightened tension between India and Pakistan after India bombed Jaish‑e‑Mohammed terror camps in Pakistan yesterday. Now it seems that the entire airspace over India-Pakistan has been closed, and airlines avoiding fling to Pakistan, are as several flights on that route have returned.

According to the status of flights shown on live flight tracking website Flightradar24, several flights scheduled to fly over Indo-Pak border have either returned or diverted to avoid Pakistani airspace. The flight no CZ6037 of South China Airlines, on its way from Guangzhou in China to Lahore in Pakistan, seems to have landed in Delhi.

Similarly, Flight RQ766, a cargo plane of Geo Sky which usually flies to Afghanistan and the Middle East, has landed at Delhi after taking off earlier today. The Singapore Airlines flight SIA308 on Singapore-London route has returned from the Indo-Pak border over Rajasthan. One TUI Airways flight from Krabi in Thailand to Helsinki in Finland also has returned from that airspace.

A similar situation has been observed on the Pakistan side too. As many as four flights of Qatar Airlines – Doha-Bangkok, Doha-Hong Kong, Doha-Kathmandu and Doha-Dhaka flights – have returned from Pakistan’s western border. Similarly, Etihad’s Abu Dhabi-Kathmandu flight has also returned.

Some of these flights seem to have taken a detour instead of returning to origin airport. They have returned from Pakistan-Iran border, moved southwards and flying over the Arabian Sea, avoiding the Pakistan air space. They may directly go to the original destination or may stop at India for re-fuelling due to increased flight distance.

Shariah Varanasi flight of Air India Express has taken a similar extended route over the Arabian Sea. Interestingly, one Jeddah-Peshawar flight of Saudia has returned from inside the Pakistan airspace. A lot of Pakistan bound flights seem to have returned or cancelled, as we can hardly see any flights coming into the country as per Flightradar24, although we can see flights going out of Pakistan.

These means that Airlines are apprehensive of flying to or over Pakistan, as they anticipate an escalation of tension between India and Pakistan. Indian Air Force Planes bombed terror camps inside Pakistan, and after that, there are reports of a Pakistan Air Force F-16 jet shot down by India. Therefore, the airspace over India-Pakistan has become extremely dangerous, and it is natural that civilian airlines, both passenger and cargo, have decided not to fly over that zone.

West Bengal police nab two more JMB terrorists, explosives seized

OpIndia Staff
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West Bengal police nab two more JMB terrorists, explosives seized

Special Task Force of West Bengal police has nabbed two operatives of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh from state’s Murshidabad district, with possession of explosives materials, taking the number of arrested operatives this month to six.

Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh or JMB is a terrorist organization which operates from Bangladesh. It was reported to be behind the Dhaka Terror attack of 2016. They have been active in Bangladesh, and demand formation of an Islamic theocratic state based on sharia, replacing the constitutionally secular republic of Bangladesh.

Moshibur Rahman alias Farooque, age 35, and Ruhul Amin alias Saifullah, age 26, were nabbed by collective efforts of Kolkata Special Task Force and Murshidabad area police.

“Both Moshibur and Ruhul, residents of Murshidabad district, are active members of the outlawed JMB. A cache of explosive materials, including aluminum dust, Calether (spirit of ether) and sulphuric acid, have been recovered from their possession,” An official was quoted by Press Trust of India.

Both the nabbed operative are associated with Kauser and Sajjad, also operatives of JMB, who were arrested last month in connection with 2014 Burdwan blast case. On 2nd October 2014, an explosion had occurred in a two-storeyed building in the Khagragarh locality of Burdwan. The budling was later discovered to be owned by a TMC leader Nurul Hasan Chowdhury. Two people had lost their lives due to blast.

According to police, Moshibur Rahman and Ruhul Amin were planning to get Kauser released, with help of acid Bombs.

On 16th February, Ariful Islam alias Arif was nabbed from Babughat area. He was nabbed in connection with the low-intensity bomb blast that exploded in Bodh Gaya’s Mahabodhi Temple complex, in 2018.

In 2017, it was reported that JMB is coordinating with the Islamic State to spread terror in Bangladesh and India. Some of the larger plans of the JMB was publicity for IS in India and to also spur recruitment for the group.

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