Crying Foul

The Hindu Newsletter - UNprecedented Intervention Wednesday 11, March 2020 [alt_text]( The Evening Wrap Welcome to The Evening Wrap, your guide to the day’s major news developments with concise analysis from The Hindu. Here are the major stories you need to know about today: Crying Foul In his [reply in Parliament]( today during the debate on the communal riots that had erupted in Delhi on February 23, Home Minister Amit Shah said that the violence was the result of a conspiracy. While Opposition leaders had sought to pin the blame for the violence on allegedly incendiary speeches by BJP leaders, Shah linked the riots to allegedly inflammatory speeches made in anti-CAA rallies. He also lauded the Delhi police for restoring law and order “within 36 hours” and ensuring that the riots did not spread to other parts of the city. He further claimed that there were no incidents of communal violence after February 25. Multiple media reports of communal incidents on February 26-27, however, contradict this claim. On being asked how many Hindus and how many Muslims were killed in the riots, Shah replied that “52 Indians” perished in the violence. On the question of progress of the investigations, Shah said that a total of 2,647 people have been detained or arrested and that CCTV footage, along with facial identification software, are being analysed to identify the culprits.” Switch Complete The week started with Jyotiraditya Scindia as a long-serving Congress stalwart, albeit one slightly unhappy with his party for not being given his due. Just two days later, making a mockery of the popular idiom that a week is a long time in politics, Scindia is now a full fledged member of the BJP, readily showering praises on the leadership of party that he had, until this week, excoriated as being “divisive”. “Nadda, PM Modi and Amit Shah have given me the opportunity to serve the people. “PM Modi has made India shine abroad. He has implemented so many schemes. I believe India’s future is safe in Modi’s hands. I am excited to work with Nadda, Modi and Amit Shah and so many BJP workers,” he said. Just two weeks ago, on February 26, he had tweeted, “The [@BJP4India]( leaders have got to stop spreading the politics of hate.” There were many notable quotes during the day, but this one from former Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the Scindia family stands out. “Today, I remember Rajmata Scindia (one of the BJP’s founding members). Jyotiraditya Scindia has become a member of the BJP family. The entire family is with BJP. They have a tradition where politics is a medium to serve the people,” he said. [Scindia was duly named the BJP’s Rajya Sabha candidate]( from Madhya Pradesh. There will be many who see Scindia’s move as purely opportunistic. An alternate reading would be to acknowledge that he was part of a group of young Congress leaders who are tired of waiting in the wings. The Hindu’s In Focus podcast discusses his exit and you can [listen to that episode here](. Eyes on the Floor All eyes now turn to the Madhya Pradesh Assembly which will soon see a floor test soon as the BJP attempts to wrest power from the Congress. In a bid to keep the flock together, the Congress and the BJP resorted to resort politics, sending their MLAs to Jaipur and Gurugram respectively. One person not panicking is Congress veteran Digvijaya Singh, who claimed that 13 of the 22 MLAs who resigned in the lead-up to Scindia’s departure “have assured that they are not leaving the Congress”. COVID watch - National An 85-year-old man who returned from Dubai to Jaipur on February 28 has tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 62. Fourteen more have people tested positive for COVID-19 — [eight in Kerala]( and three each in [Karnataka]( and [Maharashtra](. A 76-year-old man in Karnataka who showed symptoms of COVID-19 after his return from Saudi Arabia died on Tuesday. However, authorities, in an emergency press conference, clarified that it was not a confirmed case of COVID-19, as the medical investigation report was still awaited. India has banned the entry of any international cruise ship, crew or passengers with a travel history of having visited coronavirus-hit countries after February 1, 2020, from entering its major ports. The ban, as of now, will be in force till March 31. In Brief Just in Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison on a rape charge in New York. The Lok Sabha revoked the suspension of seven Congress members, including Raj Mohan Unnithan, TN Prathapan, Dean Kuriakose, Benny Behanan, Manick Tagore, Gaurav Gogoi and Gurjeet Singh Aujla. On the day Jyotiraditya Scindia joined the BJP, the Congress filled posts in Karnataka and Delhi that have been lying vacant. D.K. Shivakumar will head the Karnataka unit and former MLA Anil Chaudhary is the Delhi unit chief. Iran today said that the coronavirus has killed 63 more people, raising the death toll to 354 amid over 9,000 cases in the Islamic Republic. Italy, meanwhile, has announced a €25 billion package to fight the coronavirus. That’s it for this edition of The Evening Wrap. We’ll see you tomorrow. You are receiving this email because you are a user of [thehindu.com]( If you do not wish to receive any such emails, [unsubscribe here.](mailto:rm-0b4dyh1jbf2f90kauhqqkhbysa8hkkz@newsalert.thehindu.com?subject=Unsubscribe&body=You will be unsubscribed from our mailing list.) 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