Unveiling Global Narratives: India in Focus (March 31– April 06)

WebDesk
Updated: April 7, 2024 3:44
Fisherman Boats on the southern coast of Tamil Nadu Image source: Wikimedia Commons

In a dynamic world where information is abundant, understanding India’s global representation is essential. This edition of “India in Global Media,” spanning to March 31 – April 06, offers an in-depth exploration of India’s portrayal through the lenses of international news outlets. Delve into this weekly compilation as we navigate the narratives that frame India’s image on the world stage.

 

Reuters – India will enter Pakistan to kill terrorists who run away there, defence minister says

  • India will enter Pakistan to kill anyone who escapes over the border after trying to carry out terrorist activities in the country, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told broadcaster CNN News18 on Friday.
  • The minister’s comments come a day after Britain’s Guardian newspaper published a report stating the Indian government had killed about 20 people in Pakistan since 2020 as part of a broader plan to eliminate terrorists residing on foreign soil.
  • India’s foreign ministry did not respond to a Reuters’ request for comment on the report, while Pakistan’s foreign ministry refused to comment. Pakistan denies harbouring militants.
  • “India always wants to maintain good relations with its neighbouring countries … But if anyone shows India the angry eyes again and again, comes to India and tries to promote terrorist activities, we will not spare them,” Singh said.

For detailed report click on: https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-will-enter-pakistan-kill-terrorists-who-run-away-there-defence-minister-2024-04-05/

 

The Guardian – China will use AI to disrupt elections in the US, South Korea and India, Microsoft warns

  • Beijing did a test run in Taiwan using AI-generated content to influence voters away from a pro-sovereignty candidate
  • China will attempt to disrupt elections in the US, South Korea and India this year with artificial intelligence-generated content after making a dry run with the presidential poll in Taiwan, Microsoft has warned.
  • The US tech firm said it expected Chinese state-backed cyber groups to target high-profile elections in 2024, with North Korea also involved, according to a report by the company’s threat intelligence team published on Friday.
  • “As populations in India, South Korea and the United States head to the polls, we are likely to see Chinese cyber and influence actors, and to some extent North Korean cyber actors, work toward targeting these elections,” the report reads.
  • Microsoft said that “at a minimum” China will create and distribute through social media AI-generated content that “benefits their positions in these high-profile elections”.
  • The company added that the impact of AI-made content was minor but warned that could change.
  • “While the impact of such content in swaying audiences remains low, China’s increasing experimentation in augmenting memes, videos and audio will continue – and may prove effective down the line,” said Microsoft.

For detailed report click on : https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/apr/05/china-using-ai-disrupt-elections

 

Reuters – Sri Lanka sees no need for talks with India on island it ceded decades ago

  • Sri Lanka does not see any need to re-open talks on a contentious island ceded to it by New Delhi 50 years ago, the foreign minister has said, after the low-key territorial squabble turned into a hot-button election issue in India.
  • The party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is expected to win general elections that start on April 19, has flagged the issue of Indian fishermen discontented after a 1976 pact between the neighbours barred them from the waters around the island.
  • On Monday, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said Sri Lanka had detained more than 6,000 Indian fishermen and 1,175 fishing vessels over the last 20 years, following the no-fishing pact.

For detailed report click on : https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/sri-lanka-sees-no-need-talks-with-india-island-it-ceded-decades-ago-2024-04-04/

 

The Guardian – India and Pakistan tried to meddle in Canada elections, spy agency says

  • As a closely watched public inquiry investigates the scope of foreign interference, on Thursday night the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) released a report suggesting a growing number of countries see Canada – and particularly its large diaspora populations – as a target for subterfuge.
  • It said India had “intent to interfere and likely conducted clandestine activities” in the 2021 Canadian federal election, including the use of a government proxy agent who attempted to provide illegal financial support to pro-Indian candidates, according to reporting from CBC News.
  • Proxy agents are a “specific individual who takes explicit and/or implicit direction from a foreign state while obfuscating the link between influence activities and a foreign state”, CSIS said.
  • It also suggested India targeted electoral districts in which Indo-Canadian voters sympathized with Pakistan or the Khalistan separatist movement.

For detailed report click on : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/05/india-pakistan-interfere-canada-elections

 

Gulf News – India: Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal becomes first sitting Chief Minister to be lodged in Tihar Jail

  • Kejriwal has been non-cooperative and gave evasive replies, lawyers for ED tell court. An Indian court renewed detention on Monday for key opposition leader Arvind Kejriwal until April 15 in a graft case, his lawyers said, less than three weeks before voting begins in general elections.
  • In a move that sparked protests last month, India’s financial crime-fighting agency arrested Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, over graft accusations related to the city’s liquor policy and he was remanded to custody until April 1.
  • Kejriwal will be lodged in Jail Number 2 of Tihar Jail, sources said. Kejriwal has become the first sitting Chief Minister to be lodged in Tihar Jail.

For detailed report click on : https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india/india-delhi-chief-minister-kejriwal-becomes-first-sitting-chief-minister-to-be-lodged-in-tihar-jail-1.1711953595374

 

Arab News – India’s top court puts order to ban Islamic schools on hold

  • India’s top court put on hold a lower court’s order that effectively banned Islamic schools in the country’s most populous state, lawyers involved in the case said on Friday, giving a breather to thousands of students and teachers in the system.
  • The directive comes days before the country begins voting in a national election where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party are seeking a third term.
  • The top court was responding to a challenge to the March 22 order of the Allahabad High Court which scrapped a 2004 law governing the schools, called madrassas, in Uttar Pradesh state, where one-fifth of the 240 million population is Muslim.

For detailed report click on : https://www.arabnews.com/node/2488826/world

 

(The Report is curated by Dr Vinay Nalwa)

 

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