1. Muslims in Ayodhya cite past violence, request strict security

Abdul Waheed Quraishi has a ringside view of preparations for the consecration ceremony at the Ram Temple taking place just a few hundred metres from his house, and his anxiety is growing as the countdown to January 22 gets closer.

“Administration assured us that no untoward incident will happen, but among lakhs of people, some elements definitely have different motives. Our family has seen 1990 and 1992 communal incidents in Ayodhya,” he said.

Mr. Quraishi is among the hundreds of Muslims living in Ayodhya who are worried despite the Uttar Pradesh government’s repeated assurance that it will maintain peace in the area on the date of the consecration ceremony and afterwards, amid a likely influx of devotees.

Petition to IGP

A local Muslim organisation submitted a petition to local authorities demanding strict security.

“In Ayodhya town, Hindus and Muslims have lived in peace, but in the past, due to mobs of outsiders at various events, the Muslim community has suffered loss of life, property and religious places. From January 22, after inauguration of the Ram Temple, it is estimated that a large crowd of outsiders are slated to visit, hence Muslims residing in Ayodhya town are fearful of life, property and religious places. In view of previous experiences, we request for strict vigil and security in localities such as Terhi Bazar, besides Teen wali Masjid, Gol Chauraha Sayyadbara, Begumpura, Durahi Kuan, Mughalpura, among others,” reads a January 16 letter by the Anjuman Mohafiz Masjid- Wa- Maqabir, an organisation of local Muslims, addressed to the Inspector-General of Police, Ayodhya division.

“Some Muslims have sent their children and women family members to relatives’ homes in Lucknow, Barabanki or other nearby districts. We tried to convince them as administration guaranteed security, but the fear of 1990 and 1992 communal incidents is difficult to forget for many people,” said Mohammad Azam Qadri, president of the Sunni Central Waqf Board sub-committee in Ayodhya.

2. IT Ministry issues draft road maps for critical tech sectors

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has put out draft road maps for conducting indigenous research and development for cyberforensics, quantum computing technologies, mobile security, cryptography, and Internet of Things (IoT) security.

The road maps, prepared by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), aim to solve a series of issues in different time spans between now and 2047, the centenary of Indian independence.

The cybersecurity road map, for instance, seeks to develop “social media analytics” by 2026, while “Dark Web forensics” has until 2030 for completion. Detection of child exploitation and human trafficking is marked as ongoing efforts that will start in 2027 and continue beyond 2047. GPS and vehicle forensics will be completed by 2027 and 2029, respectively, while banking fraud and UPI payment forensics solutions have until 2029 and 2030, respectively.

On the quantum computing side, the road map says that research and development efforts to develop quantum computers will carry on till 2034. The mobile security road map aims, on the other hand, to engage in fostering “enterprise-grade” security systems, creating an “indigenous system for secure [operating systems] and mobile device hardware.”

While these road maps envision activities that will stretch even beyond 2047, the cryptography road map — which seeks to achieve domestic digital encryption development goals — says goals for “asymmetric cryptography” and IoT devices should be done by 2028-33, including “quantum-resistant cryptography.”

3. In party meet, Mamata hints at going solo for LS election

Amid the discussion of seat sharing between the Congress and the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has directed the party leaders in Murshidabad to step up political activities in the district — considered a stronghold of the Congress. In a closed-door meeting of party leaders of Murshidabad district on Friday, Ms. Banerjee gave clear hints that the party is willing to go solo in the State.

“No single person is a factor in Murshidabad. If you all fight together… We will win all the three [Lok Sabha] seats in Murshidabad,” the Trinamool chairperson reportedly told party leaders. Though she did not take the name of any leader, she hinted at State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

The Trinamool had won two of the three seats (Murshidabad and Jangipur) in the district in 2019, whereas Mr. Chowdhury managed to retain Baharampur. In the 2021 Assembly election, the Trinamool won 20 of 22 Assembly seats in the district while the remaining two seats were won by the BJP.

The Chief Minister, however, did not completely rule out any alliance. “If something happens in future, we’ll think about it,” Ms. Banerjee said. She asked Trinamool leaders Firhad Hakim and Subrata Bakshi to oversee the party affairs in Murshidabad.

While Trinamool Congress is offering two seats to Congress — Baharampur and Malda Dakshin — the grand old party wants at least six seats. The State Congress president is not willing to agree to the proposal and has gone on record saying that “Trinamool needs Congress more than Congress needs Trinamool’. West Bengal elects 42 MPs to the Lok Sabha. Mr. Chowdhury has not made any comments on the Friday meeting.