Monthly Archives: August 2018

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif holds a telephone conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the evolving West Asia tensions on Sunday

Iran has rejected claims that it has agreed to participate in a second round of peace talks, which the United States said were scheduled for tomorrow, Al Jazeera reported.

Al Jazeera reported, citing the IRNA news agency, which criticised what it described as “Washington’s excessive demands, unrealistic expectations, constant shifts in stance, repeated contradictions, and the ongoing naval blockade, which it considers a breach of the ceasefire”.

“The published news about the second round of negotiations in Islamabad is not true”, it said, adding that “The news published by the United States is their media game and part of the ‘blame game’ to pressure Iran.”

Meanwhile, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a telephone conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the evolving West Asia tensions on Sunday, according to an X post of Sharif.

He further stated that he shared insights from his recent engagements with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkiye.

Meanwhile, on the other hand, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright expressed optimism about the ongoing diplomatic efforts, saying the US “is not too far away from a deal”, Al Jazeera reported.

“There are negotiations with the Iranians going on despite what you hear in the chatter in public. I think those are actually going well,” Wright told Fox News Sunday.

He described US President Donald Trump as “a creative negotiator” who uses “pressure in different ways, uses uncertainty in different ways”.

“I think we’ll have a nice end of this conflict,” Wright said, adding that restarting shipping “will take time but probably not too much time” once the Strait is reopened.

. Uncertainty in West Asia Despite a truce between Iran and the US-Israel, uncertainty contin ues to hang over West Asia with both the sides giving mutually conflicting versions of progress being made in resolving the conflict through diplomatic channels. While the US President has repeatedly declared the war is all but over following understanding reached with Iran, the Iranian leadership has indicated that no deal has been struck because of the maximalist demands put forth by the US side. Hence, there will be no further talks on the issue. Not only this. Iran has now announced that it is reversing its decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and has warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.

The escalating standoff over the critical choke point threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy and push the two countries toward renewed conflict, even as mediators expressed confidence that a new deal was within reach. The strait is closed until the US blockade is lifted, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard navy declared. Hours earlier, two gunboats from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard opened fire on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The the tanker and crew are safe though the identity of the vessel or its destination has been disclosed. The only positive sign in the situation is that a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iran backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon appears to be holding. The fighting in the Middle East conflict, which is approaching the two-month mark, has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, nearly 2,300 in Lebanon, 23 civilians and 15 soldiers in Israel, and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. T

hirteen US service members have also been killed. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has said in a Truth Social post that repre sentatives are going to Islamabad for Iran negotiations. Iran has committed a “serious violation” of the ceasefire but he still thinks he can get a peace deal. Iran’s chief negotiator says his country wants “a lasting peace so that war is not repeated again.” Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made the comments in a televised interview late Saturday, a few days before a ceasefire deadline is set to expire, according to Iranian state media. “What is fundamental for us is distrust of the United States,” he said. “At the same time, we have good intentions and seek a lasting peace – one that prevents the recurrence of war.” He said that the Islamabad negotiations didn’t address the mistrust, but that the US and Iranian negotiators “reached a more realistic understanding of one another.

US President Donald Trump said that Ameri can negotiators will be in Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran. Trump, in a post on so cial media Sunday, didn’t detail which officials the US would send to a second round of in-person talks with Iran in Islamabad. The White House and the office of US Vice President JD Vance, who led the first round of talks, didn’t im mediately respond to mes sages Sunday morning. In his post, Trump ac cused Iran of violating the ceasefire agreement by fir ing bullets on Saturday in the Strait of Hormuz and threatened to destroy civil ian infrastructure in Iran if it doesn’t take the deal that the US is offering. “If they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran,” Trump wrote. AP

Standoff escalates after Iran closes Strait of Hormuz over US blockade Iran reversed its deci sion to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect. The escalating stand off over the critical choke point threatened to deep en the energy crisis roiling the global economy and push the two countries toward renewed conflict, even as mediators ex pressed confidence that a new deal was within reach. The strait is closed until the US blockade is lift ed, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard navy said Saturday night. Hours earlier, two gunboats from Iran’s Rev olutionary Guard opened fire on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said. It reported that the tanker and crew were safe, with out identifying the vessel or its destination. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait, and further limits would squeeze the already constrained sup ply, driving prices higher once again. Meanwhile, a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon appeared to be holding

NEPAL PMs DARING STEPS:

8th Central Pay Commission CPC: Msg from Brig IM Singh, President IESL

32 years on, SC revokes illegal termination of squadron leader, restores honour

Son in US Army, 53-yr-old Punjabi woman detained by ICE, ‘denied’ food and water for 24 hours

China sets up new county in Xinjiang near PoK, Afghan border

108 cops trained in counter-terror ops

Distance from conflict does not ensure immunity: Indian Navy Chief on West Asia war

Australia names India ‘top-tier’ defence partner in 2026 strategy, plans USD 887 billion investment

Iran-Israel war: Iran fires on ships in Strait of Hormuz as Tehran imposes restrictions again

Sri Lanka reached a historic milestone as Parliament voted 154–2 to scrap the 49-year-old law providing pensions to Members of Parliament. This decision marks a major shift toward fiscal accountability, answering public calls for reform. By eliminating these lifelong perks, the government is signaling a new era that puts national development ahead of political privilege. we also wish similar law in India

Msg from Brig IM Singh, President IESL :8th Central Pay Commission CPC

Msg from Brig IM Singh, President IESL.👇

The 8 CPC has called an IESL rep for a meeting on 8 CPC issues on Tuesday 21 Apr at Delhi.

I have nominated Maj OP Choudhary, Mob 9711606828; Mail ID op_choudhary03@yahoo.co.in.

He has successfully fought the case of Majors in AFT Chandigarh, who have suffered since 6 CPC. He’s fully knowledgeable about the cases of Capts, Majs and Lt Cols.

IESL has also forwarded various issues to AGs Branch. These will also be intimated to him.
Please give this wide publicity. Any Veteran wishing to convey any point please do so directly to him.

Brig Inder Mohan Singh (Retd)
President IESL.
18 Apr 26.

A Bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice KV Viswanathan concludes that disproportionate punishment was given to the ex-squadron leader on September 22, 1993

Ending an over three-decade-long ordeal for Indian Air Force Squadron Leader R Sood, who was wrongfully terminated from service for alleged use of criminal force against a junior officer, the Supreme Court on Wednesday restored his honour.

A Bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice KV Viswanathan concluded that disproportionate punishment was given to the ex-squadron leader on September 22, 1993 while his commanding officer, a wing commander-rank officer whose order Sood followed, was let off leniently. It directed the Centre to pay him arrears of salary and allowances to the extent of 50% from September 23, 1993 till the scheduled date of his retirement.

The incident occurred in 1987, at the time when Sood was posted as ‘Senior Operation Officer’ in a remote village in the Thar desert and stationed in a building belonging to the General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF).

“…justice demands that the ignominy with which the appellant (Sood) had to survive the past more than three decades is obliterated, the wrongful termination of his service be revoked and his honour restored,” the Bench said, setting aside the September 22, 1993 order of his dismissal from service.

“Appellant could not work beyond September 22, 1993 admittedly because of the illegal order of termination and not owing to any fault on his part,” it noted.

Irrespective of service benefits, restoration of honour remains the foremost concern of defence personnel. We restore it with the direction that on a date to be fixed by the Chief of Air Staff, the appellant shall be signed off in the normal manner he would have otherwise been entitled to, but for the order of dismissal,” the top court said, seeking compliance of the order in three months.

It said for notional promotion his case may be placed before the Review Departmental Promotion Committee as per the governing rules for consideration and he has to be given pensionary benefits as admissible to him in law.

“The financial benefits due and payable in terms of this order, including increased pay subject to notional promotion being accorded, be calculated and paid to the appellant with interest at 9% per annum from the date of presentation of the writ petition before the High Court (an unspecified date of 1995, but the exact date must be gathered by the respondents from the records) till date of payment,” it ordered.

The Bench said that since Sood, having crossed the age of superannuation, cannot be reinstated in service but in law, was entitled to claim all consequential service benefits which would have accrued to him, had he not been fastened with such illegal order of dismissal.

It set aside the order of the high court which upheld the disciplinary proceedings against Sood. Finding fault with the order of termination of service, the Bench said Sood’s superior officer was visited with the penalty of “severe displeasure for three years” whereas he was ordered to be dismissed from service. It said the court finds it imperative to bear in mind that queries were repeatedly raised as to the rationale for imposing such a comparatively lenient punishment upon the senior officer while punishing the appellant with dismissal.

“The punishment of ‘displeasure’ was imposed on the Wg Cmdr before he had superannuated. It is not for us to question the government, in the course of these proceedings, why the Wg Cmdr was let off leniently; however, the question that certainly looms large is why was the appellant singled out for a harsher punishment despite his discharge from the criminal case?” the Bench said.