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Here’s what you need to know:



‘Fight against terrorism is not against any religion’. Addressing the first World Sufi Forum, PM Modi said while some are trained in organised camps, there are others who “find their inspiration” in cyberspace. The four-day long event is organised by All India Ulama and Mashaikh Board (AIUMB), the apex body of Sufi Dargahs in India. The event will see more than 200 Indian and International delegates, spiritual leaders, scholars, academicians and masters of Sufism, under one roof.



‘Give suggestions, not ultimatums’. Amid looming threat of a renewed stir by Jats, Haryana government on Thursday said a bill to give reservation to the community will be passed during the ongoing Budget session which ends on March 31. Finance Minister Abhimanyu said it is taking time to draft the bill as the government wants to make sure that the new law does not get entangled in a legal quagmire. He said Jat organisations should give their suggestions to draft this for their benefit instead of giving any ultimatum on resuming agitation.



No takers for Kingfisher house. The auction for the headquarters of the defunct Kingfisher Airlines failed to draw any bids on Thursday. The base price for this multi-storey building, with a built-up area of over 17,000 sq ft was set at Rs.150 crore. One real estate consultant said that today’s market is a distressed market and 17,000 sq ft for a ready asset for Rs.150 crore comes close to Rs.88,000 per sq ft and the average commercial property price in the Vile Parle area where Kingfisher House is located is at around Rs.28,000 per sq ft.



Other Notables



No sexual assaults took place in Murthal during Jat Quota Stir, the Haryana government has told the Centre in a report submitted to the Union Home Ministry. Since some women clothes were found in a field of Murthal, it was suggested that the sexual assault had taken place but it was later discovered that there was a cloth shop near the place of the alleged incident which was looted.



Good Economics, Bad Politics. The move in budget 2016 to impose levies on jewellery has triggered a political backlash from the trading community, an important constituency of the BJP. Only jewellers with an annual turnover of more than Rs.12 crore will be liable to pay the excise duty. Despite the backlash, the government, however, has no plans to roll back its decision. FM Jaitley defended the levy as a step towards the eventual transition to a uniform GST regime.



Op-eds you shouldn’t miss



Privacy is a fundamental right: The rights to liberty and freedom of expression cannot survive if the right to privacy is compromised.



Stifling innovation with regulation: The lawmakers should craft statutes to require regulators to provide an objective rationale for a proposed regulation. Further, the rationale should be justiciable in courts and subject to consultation with consumer groups complete with the requirement that the regulators disclose how the concerns raised by stakeholders are proposed to be addressed.



Flagging a canal: The BJP talks nationalism at the Centre but turns a blind eye to ally SAD’s disregard of the national interest in Punjab.



Swarajya Special



End Of Ideology - Why Left-Right Binary Needs To Be Replaced With What Works: Solutions to state’s and society’s problems increasingly found beyond labels of Left and Right.



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