The Latest: Top stories of the day
1. A Muslim couple was beaten up on a train in Madhya Pradesh over beef.
2. Islamic State claims responsibility for the Jakarta blasts.
3. Pixar animated short film Sanjay’s Super Team gets nominated for Oscars.
4. Sikkim is now India’s first fully organic state.
5. St Stephen’s College students to adopt odd-even formula for cell phone usage.
The Big Story: Tag teaming terror
Talks between the Foreign Sectaries of India and Pakistan will not take place as scheduled on Friday. The decision to defer the discussion was made by “mutual consent” and Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said that both sides were holding consultations to reschedule the talks.
In the background, Pakistan had made moves to contain the terror group, Jaish-e-Mohammad. The Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office officially accepted that operatives of the group have been arrested while a Punjab minister declared that its leader, Maulana Masood Azhar was in “protective custody”.
The Indian government seems mostly satisfied with Pakistan’s actions, even as it pushed for more stringent action against Azhar. Vikas Swarup, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, called the action taken against the Jaish “an important and positive first step”. In an unprecedented measure, Swarup also announced that India will allow a Pakistani Special Investigation Team to probe the Patankot terror attack in India.
The Big Scroll
View from Pakistan's Dawn newspaper: Crackdown on Jaish must lead to long-term dismantling of militant groups
Politicking and policying
1. India should hold talks with Pak after Masood Azhar’s arrest and hand him over: Shiv Sena.
2. Punjab ready for three-horse race as Kejriwal steals the show at Muktsar.
3. Even as the Indian government prepares to work jointly with Pak on terror, Hindu Sena activists attack Pakistan International Airlines office in Delhi.
4. Petitions related to the removal of the Arunachal Pradesh speaker have been referred to Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.
5. The Border Security Force wants phone-tapping powers, but the Centre is reluctant.
Punditry
1. In a liberal market economy, economic laws should facilitate smoother transactions without having to always resort to the courts, argue Avirup Bose and Pratik Dutta in the Business Standard.
2. In the Indian Express, Khaled Ahmed explores the multiple identities of Adnan Sami.
3. In the Telegraph, Swapan Dasgupta dissects Mamata Banerjee’s response to the Kaliachak incident.
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