Antigua to investigate Choksi complaint he was kidnapped by “Indians”
The Hindu
Choksi complaint references Indian “chief agent”, “high ranking Indian politician” for alleged abduction
After repeatedly rejecting fugitive claim that he had been abducted from the Caribbean islands of Antigua and Barbados, announced on Monday that police there will investigate the “very serious” offence that Mr. Choksi might have been kidnapped to Dominica, ahead of a Tuesday hearing in Dominica for Mr. Choksi’s bail application. “An abduction is a serious offence and assuming the veracity of that claim, law enforcement and the executive would be very concerned. And so I said that this requires vigilance and surveillance and to ensure we step up our security in order to protect our citizens and residents,” PM Browne said in a radio interview, adding that he had earlier dismissed Mr. Choksi’s claims because Antigua and Barbados do not have a “culture of abduction”. He also “categorically” denied that Antiguan authorities had been involved in Mr. Choksi’s disappearance from Antigua on May 23 and in collaboration with Dominican or Indian authorities. Also read:Several principals of government and private schools in Delhi on Tuesday said the Directorate of Education (DoE) circular from a day earlier, directing schools to conduct classes in ‘hybrid’ mode, had caused confusion regarding day-to-day operations as they did not know how many students would return to school from Wednesday and how would teachers instruct in two modes — online and in person — at once. The DoE circular on Monday had also stated that the option to “exercise online mode of education, wherever available, shall vest with the students and their guardians”. Several schoolteachers also expressed confusion regarding the DoE order. A government schoolteacher said he was unsure of how to cope with the resumption of physical classes, given that the order directing government offices to ensure that 50% of the employees work from home is still in place. On Monday, the Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) had, on the orders of the Supreme Court, directed schools in Delhi-NCR to shift classes to the hybrid mode, following which the DoE had issued the circular. The court had urged the Centre’s pollution watchdog to consider restarting physical classes due to many students missing out on the mid-day meals and lacking the necessary means to attend classes online. The CAQM had, on November 20, asked schools in Delhi-NCR to shift to the online mode of teaching.