2 Muslim youths kidnapped and burnt to death allegedly by Bajrang Dal hooligans

New Delhi: The Ministry of Law and Justice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has made an amendment to the Conduct of Election Rules, restricting public access to certain electoral documents that were previously available.

The original Rule 93(2)(a) of the 1961 Conduct of Election Rules stated, “all other papers relating to the election shall be open to public inspection.” However, following the amendment on Friday, the rule now reads, “all other papers as specified in these rules relating to the election shall be open to public inspection.”

Activists have raised concerns, claiming that the insertion of the phrase “as specified in these rules” limits access to various official documents created during elections to Parliament and Assemblies, which are not explicitly mentioned in the rules.

RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak pointed out that there are numerous documents, though not listed in the rules, that are generated by election officials such as Presiding Officers, Sector Officers (responsible for constituency vulnerability mapping), and those in charge of EVM movement and replacement of defective machines on polling day. These include reports from general, police, and expenditure observers, as well as Returning Officers and Chief Electoral Officers.

Nayak emphasized, “Access to these documents is crucial for ensuring the fairness of elections and the accuracy of results.”

The amendment comes shortly after the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the Election Commission to provide video footage and documents related to votes cast at a polling station in the recent Haryana Assembly elections to lawyer Mehmood Pracha. Pracha has criticized the amendment, asserting that it will withhold essential information. “This is a reconfirmation of the Election Commission’s bias,” he said.

Nayak further stated, “This amendment undermines the principle of full transparency established by the Supreme Court in the Electoral Bonds case. The notification of this amendment on the very day Parliament was adjourned sine die has deprived MPs of the opportunity to challenge its necessity in real time.”

Israeli forces have captured two towns in the southwestern Syrian province of Quneitra near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and are moving towards the neighboring Dara’a province, after militant groups took control of the Arab country.

Israeli troops seized the towns of Madinat al-Baath and Hader after they pushed into the buffer zone in the Quneitra area and launched artillery shelling in the strategic region.

According to Israeli media outlets, the incursion was launched following heavy shelling of surrounding areas.

Israeli army soldiers are now heading towards areas in Dara’a, located about 90 kilometers (56 miles) south of the capital Damascus.

Earlier, Israeli soldiers had taken over a Syrian army outpost at the summit of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights.

Soldiers from Shaldag, the Israeli Air Force’s commando unit, captured the outpost “without encountering resistance,” according to Kan TV News.

The commander of the Israeli military’s Northern Command, Ori Gordin, and the commander of the Training Command, David Zini, also visited the summit, the broadcaster said.

The Syrian army reportedly left the post amid the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s government.

Israeli media also reported the entry of the regime’s tanks into Khan Arnabeh, which is to the northeast of Quneitra and five kilometers from the border of the occupied Golan.

The regime’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the decades-old agreement with Syria had collapsed, and he ordered Israeli forces to grab a buffer zone in the Golan Heights after Syrian soldiers had abandoned their positions.

The Israeli military also issued a warning, calling on residents of five towns in southern Syria to stay in their homes until further notice as it carried out dozens of air strikes against Syrian military bases, facilities and weapon depots.

These towns are Ofania, Quneitra, al-Hamidiyah, western al-Samadaniyah, and al-Qahtaniyah. 

Armed groups, led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) militants, announced on Sunday that they had fully captured the Syrian capital and confirmed reports of the fall of the Assad government.

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said the government was ready to “extend its hand” to the opposition and hand over its functions to a transitional government.

Minister of military affairs Israel Katz has ordered Israeli troops to "prepare to remain" throughout the winter in Syria including the strategic Jabal al-Shaykh mountain which they occupied after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad. 

In an announcement on Friday, Katz said he had issued the order during an assessment the previous day with the Israeli army's chief of staff Herzi Halevi, and other officers.

"Due to the situation in Syria, it is of critical security importance to maintain our presence at the summit of Mount Hermon [Jabal al-Shaykh], and everything must be done to ensure the (army's) readiness on-site to enable the troops to stay there despite the challenging weather conditions," he said.

Israel started its push to grab more Syrian land on Sunday, after foreign-backed militants led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) announced the fall of President Assad’s government following a rapid two-week onslaught.

Israeli forces seized the so-called buffer zone, which separates the occupied Golan Heights from the rest of Syria, in violation of a 1974 disengagement agreement. The occupation forces have entered several towns in Quneitra, forcibly evacuating residents. 

They occupied the summit of Jabal al-Shaykh which provides an observation point for areas in Syria and Lebanon. It rises to 9,232 feet (2,814 meters) and is the highest point on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

Israeli troops have advanced beyond the so-called buffer zone toward Damascus, with the regime's warplanes conducting hundreds of aerial assaults on Syria.

Katz had earlier said that the regime was planning a "sterile defense zone" in southern Syria. Several regional countries said Israel is taking advantage of the chaotic situation in Syria to expand its occupation of the Arab state.

Israeli soldiers entered the town of al-Hurriya in Quneitra province on Thursday. Local sources said Israeli forces also carried out a forced evacuation of the residents of the village of Rasem al-Ruwadi in the region. 

On Wednesday evening, Israeli forces stormed the towns of Ruwaihinah and Umm Batna in the central countryside of Quneitra as well.

Residents of the town said the occupying regime forces asked them to evacuate their homes to annex them to the so-called buffer zones. The incursion involved tanks and infantry units, during which several houses were searched. 

Many Syrians and others watching the fast-moving pace of events say Netanyahu is using this moment of change in their country to permanently seize further territory.

“They are saying they will give it back, but they are already occupying the Golan Heights which they haven’t given back. What would make you believe they will give this back?” Haid Haid, a senior consulting associate fellow at Chatham House, told Middle East Eye. 

Israel has wiped out Syrian naval vessels, sea-to-sea missiles, helicopters and planes, including the entire fleet of MiG-29 fighter jets and stockpiles of ammunition in attacks on at least five air bases.

Reports say Israel and militant groups in Syria have previously come to successful arrangements whereby Israel provided emergency aid and medical care to militants so long as the groups did not attack the Zionist regime.

In a note to correspondents issued on Thursday, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he is "deeply concerned" over "extensive violations" of Syrian sovereignty.

The UN chief also said he is "particularly concerned over the hundreds of Israeli airstrikes on several locations in Syria." 

He further stressed that the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement between Israel and Syria “remains in force” and that it must be upheld by "ending all unauthorized presence in the area of separation and refraining from any action that would undermine the ceasefire and stability in Golan.”