News Dabba 18 August: Five stories across the web for a balanced news diet

Anushka Vani brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from Algeria forest fire breakout, granting of bail to the accused in Kozhikode sexual harassment cases, to BJP MLAs recommending the release of convicts in Bilkis Bano case.

The Indian Express reports about the Kozhikode sexual harassment case and the Kerala courts decision

The Kozhikode district sessions court in Kerala recently observed that the offences under the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) Prevention of Atrocities Act would not prima facie stand against writer and social critic Civic Chandran, who has been accused of sexual harassment by a Dalit writer. The Court observed that it is “highly unbelievable that he (the accused) will touch the body of victims fully knowing that she is member of the SC”. The report says that the court made this observation in a sexual harassment case that was filed against Chandran by a Dalit writer. There are two harassment cases filed against Chandran and he was granted anticipatory bail in both, says the report. Read the full report on IE.

The Guardian reported 26 killed and dozens injured in the Algeria forest fires

Dozens have been injured and 26 have died in the fires that destroyed 14 districts of northern Algeria, as reported by The Guardian. 24 people died in fires in the El Traf region near the border with Tunisia, while two others died earlier in Setif. As the fires spread in Souk Ahras farther to the east, people were seen fleeing their homes before the firefighting helicopters were deployed, says the report. Read the full report on The Guardian.

75-hours long farmers strike in Lakhimpur Kheri, Hindustan Times reports

Hindustan Times reported that the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) on Thursday started a 75-hour long strike in Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh (UP). Thousands of farmers gathered from various outfits under the SKM from Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and parts of UP. The main objective behind this 75-hour-long strike includes the withdrawal of cases against farmers in connection with the year-long protest against the Centre’s three farm laws which were rolled back in 2021. The farmers have also sought justice for victims of the Lakhimpur Kheri violence on October 3 last year, and have demanded the sacking of Union minister Ajay Kumar Mishra. Read the full report on HT.

The Wire’s report about the panel which backed Bilkis Bano Convicts Remission

The report by the Wire states that the panel headed by Godhra Collector and District Magistrate (DM) Sujal Mayatra, that backed the remission of the convicts in the Bilkis Bano case, involved two of the Bhartiya Janata Party’s (BJP) MLAs, legislator CK Raoji and Suman Chauhan. This panel is responsible for the release of convicts, as it recommended the release of the accused. The report also mentions that Bano issued a statement on August 17 wherein she stated that “no one inquired about her safety and well-being before taking such a big unjust decision”. Read the full report on The Wire.

Salma al-Shehab: Concerns for Saudi student jailed for 34 years over tweets, BBC

BBC reported that Leeds University expressed deep concerns for one of its PhD student Salma al-Shehab, who has been jailed for 34 years in Saudi Arabia over critical tweets. She was arrested in 2021 while on a holiday in the kingdom. The report mentions that before her trip she had called for reforms and the release of activists. The Human Rights groups said the harsh sentence gave the lie to Saudi claims it was improving women’s rights and showed that the situation was getting worse. Read the full report on BBC.