In continuation of the Islamist practice of glorifying accused anti-Hindu rioters and advocating political representation for them, multiple Muslim organisations in Rajasthan have urged the Congress party to nominate 2020 anti-Hindu Delhi Riots accused mastermind Umar Khalid for the coming Rajya Sabha elections. The demand comes as three seats of the upper house are set to fall vacant in June this year.
Rajasthan Muslim organisations cite a lack of political representation to seek a Rajya Sabha nomination for Umar Khalid from Congress
On 23rd March, Muslim organisations presented a joint representation to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, advocating Umar Khalid’s candidature, arguing that it would showcase the party’s commitment to ‘civil rights’ and address the issue of a lack of sufficient Muslim representation from Rajasthan in the Rajya Sabha. They lamented that despite forming 9 to 10% of the state’s population, Muslims remain unrepresented in the Parliament.
In this vein, Mohsin Rashid, a Congress worker and state president of the Rajasthan Muslim Alliance from Tonk, said, “In the 2023 assembly elections, Muslims accounted for roughly every fourth vote polled by the Congress, and this share rose further in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.”
Most of the Muslim leaders who back the demand seeking Rajya Sabha candidature for Umar Khalid from the Congress party invoked the Constitution and the issue of Muslim representation.
It is, however, ironic that neither Umar Khalid identifies as a practising Muslim nor his past shenanigans indicate his respect for India’s constitution beyond using it as a shield to cover up his anti-India and anti-Hindu activities.
Umar Khalid, by his own admission, identifies as an atheist; thus, Muslim organisations should ponder if they want an atheist to represent Muslims in the parliament, given that Islam mandates the same disdain for atheists that it does for idolaters like Hindus.
It is also interesting that the pre-partition “separate (Muslim) electorate” mindset has not died, even after a country was carved out of India on Islamic lines. A significant section of Indian Muslims continues to believe that they are more Muslims than Indian citizens and that only Muslims can and should politically represent them.
Muslim organisations want an anti-Hindu accused rioter to represent them in the Rajya Sabha
The Muslim organisations demanding Umar Khalid’s Rajya Sabha candidature also lamented the Delhi Riots accused mastermind’s prolonged incarceration. They, however, have no reservations about seeking the candidature of a person accused of planning and actively partaking in anti-Hindu violence in the national capital just a few years back.
It must be recalled that on 14th September 2020, Umar Khalid, former JNU student and son of an ex-SIMI member, was arrested for his role in the Delhi anti-Hindu riots that broke out on the 24th of February. He, along with others, was booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or UAPA and other relevant provisions of the IPC for being the masterminds of the riots. Umar Khalid, son of Ilyas, on the other hand, admitted to the Delhi police that he was involved in organising Muslim groups, instigating them, and preparing for the large-scale violence.
The riot that Khalid and others instigated claimed 53 lives.
He had mobilised the Muslims to run riots, block roads, and harass the public by asserting that the new law was ‘against Muslims’ and had also planned to involve women and children in the ‘Chakka Jam’ amid the visit of US President Trump to India. He had allegedly met the former AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain and another accused, Khalid Saifi, to assure logistical support during the riots through his contacts in the PFI. According to the reports, the agencies have been watching and warning about the nexus between Maoists, whose front organisation Khalid is aligned with, and hardline Islamists allegedly represented by Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Welfare Party of India, and the banned outfit SIMI. He had also repeated Pakistani talking points in Kashmir and claimed that the Indian Union territory was occupied by Indian forces.
Umar Khalid’s prolonged incarceration, which Islamo-leftists regularly cry over, is also his own doing. OpIndia has reported earlier that out of the 14 adjournments in 2023 and 2024, 7 delays and adjournments were sought by Umar Khalid himself. It therefore becomes evident that the withdrawal was certainly not because of the famed “delay” in hearing. While the Islamo-leftist ecosystem continues to cry ‘injustice’, it is the alleged failed forum shopping attempts of the accused’s lawyer that have Khalid rotting in jail for so long.
OpIndia’s analysis has been corroborated by former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud’s statement that the real problem lies in the mindset of some lawyers and political groups who want their cases heard only by certain judges. Highlighting what OpIndia has reported multiple times, the former CJI said that court records showed that Khalid’s legal team, led by Sibal, had sought at least seven adjournments before finally withdrawing the bail plea in February 2024, citing “a change in circumstances.”
On 23rd March (Monday), residents in various cities hurriedly left their homes to obtain fuel in response to the circulation of rumours about a petrol and diesel shortage in Gujarat. This resulted in extensive lines at petrol pumps and created a chaotic environment. The conditions worsened, and government intervention became necessary. Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi conducted a press conference to emphasise that the state has a sufficient supply of petrol and diesel, assuring that no interruptions are expected and encouraging citizens to remain calm and avoid a frantic rush.
The matter escalated to such an extent that the deputy chief minister had to make a public appeal, urging individuals not to share incomplete information on social media and to refrain from spreading or believing in unfounded rumours. Afterwards, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Minister for Energy and Petrochemicals of the state, Rushikesh Patel provided similar clarifications.
From the President of the Petrol Pump Owners Association to representatives from various other associations, many stakeholders have clearly indicated that the state has adequate fuel supplies and that the real circumstances do not align with the rumours that are presently being spread. Subsequently, local police forces in different cities intervened to handle the situation. They visited petrol stations, talked to the public and encouraged them to return to their homes.
फेडरेशन ऑफ गुजरात पेट्रोलियम डीलर्स एसोसिएशन (FGPDA) के अध्यक्ष, अरविंद ठक्कर ने स्पष्ट किया है कि देशभर में ईंधन की उपलब्धता पूरी तरह सामान्य है और आपूर्ति लगातार स्थिर बनी हुई है। उन्होंने कहा कि किसी भी प्रकार की कमी की कोई स्थिति नहीं है। https://t.co/O2Yz8Cd29c
Let us comprehend what truly transpired and the part played by the Gujarati media, which consistently acts irresponsibly in such circumstances.
The association and the government have collectively declared that there is no fuel shortage in the state under the existing conditions, and supplies are available. In fact, the challenge did not stem from the supply itself, rather, it was the delays in fuel arriving at certain areas that were due to specific modifications in the fuel supply chain and payment systems, along with certain logistical obstacles. Historically, petrol pump operators received fuel on a credit basis, under usual circumstances.
This meant that they would first obtain the fuel and settle the payment by the evening or within a specified timeframe. Nonetheless, acting prudently, oil companies have recently instituted an advance payment system due to the ongoing war in West Asia and the global disruption it has caused in crude oil supplies. It implies that fuel will be delivered after the payment.
On 20th March, stock was delivered to all locations precisely as scheduled. This was followed by the weekend, Saturday, in particular, aligning with Eid. As a result, there was a turnout that was slightly above the usual. During this same period, rumours began to intensify, indicating that, following the challenges with LPG, there could be potential shortages of petrol and diesel.
Although the situation was not genuinely critical, and the government consistently clarified this, such rumours nonetheless proliferated, causing individuals to begin purchasing petrol in advance. Consequently, this factor contributed to a minor increase in fuel sales over the weekend compared to usual numbers.
On the other hand, the oil companies declared that dealers must make advance payments to obtain their stock on Friday evening. As a result, the quantities that had been dispatched earlier under the credit system were held back. On Monday morning, petrol pump operators who had not finalised their advance payments during the weekend were unable to receive any delivery. Hence, fuel did not arrive at some locations.
On one hand, there was an overall increase in demand, which led to the swift sale of fuel. The quantity of fuel that pumps are usually sold over a span of one and a half to two days was depleted in just one day. On the other hand, as a result of modifications in the payment system, the supply that should have been received was unavailable due to the “payment-first” policy. As a result, these circumstances caused a short period of disarray at the pumps for a few hours.
In an interview with The Times of India, Mehul Patel, who serves as the President of the Gujarat Petroleum Dealers Association, elaborated on this particular issue. He noted that in the past, dealers would obtain fuel initially and settle the payment afterwards, however, the current requirement is for payment to be made in advance. This alteration led to delays in supply, but the situation has since stabilised, alleviating any need for concern.
It is noteworthy that although some petrol stations were closed for a few hours on Monday morning, this was not due to a fuel shortage, but rather logistical challenges arising from the new payment system. Supplies were held up for a short period of time. After the supplies arrived, the situation slowly returned to normal.
It is important to note that the residents have been standing in line since yesterday and acquired enough fuel for 2-4 days all in one day. Hence, if there genuinely was a scarcity of petrol and diesel at multiple pumps, then where did all this fuel come from?
How did the media contribute to the spread of rumours
The media’s primary role is to report on current events, however, in situations like these, merely rushing to the scene with cameras to capture and broadcast images is not appropriate. This method poses the danger of exacerbating rumours and spreading incomplete information, which is precisely what occurred recently. Furthermore, it is also vital to uncover the true underlying reasons for these events and the circumstances. Many individuals did not make this effort, while news outlets simply displayed headlines announcing a “petrol shortage” in the state.
The dissemination of this information through social media and other media outlets prompted people to rush to the petrol pumps, leading to the formation of long lines and the eruption of chaos. Subsequently, Instagram accounts became involved, visiting gas stations to capture and share videos, which added to the complexity of the situation.
Listing some other Instagram pages and screenshots of their posts that fueled the rumor about a petrol and diesel shortage.
The media outlets that first spread incomplete information began to report on the situation only after queues started to form; as a result, rather than improving, the situation deteriorated further. Ironically, when Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi conducted a press conference to offer clarification, those same channels and journalists did a complete turnaround and began urging the public not to disseminate rumours.
Obtaining accurate information demands effort and on the other hand, it was easier to create panic among the public by asking questions such as, “How many petrol stations are shut down in which city?” Thus, some of our journalists selected this easier option and did not take into account the nature and scale of the effects that such posts would produce.
Several channels contacted petrol pump operators, however, even after receiving the accurate explanation, they produced headlines that were both misleading and sensational.
— VTV Gujarati News and Beyond (@VtvGujarati) March 23, 2026
During a discussion with VTV, a petrol pump operator thoroughly explained that a new payment system was launched over Friday and Saturday due to certain logistical complications that hindered the arrival of supplies and hence the stock was depleted by Monday. Nevertheless, tankers have now arrived, and sales are anticipated to resume soon. Furthermore, the operator indicated that the stock had, in fact, run out just half an hour ago. Despite this, VTV reported the headline: “Petrol and Diesel Stocks Depleted.”
Zee 24 Kalak also released a report with a headline indicating that petrol and diesel prices were increasing. Staying true to its tendency for sensational headlines, this media outlet stated that “this price increase has taken place in one specific state.” That state is, in fact, Himachal Pradesh, which is presently under the governance of the Congress party. The exclusion of the state’s name from the headline resulted in significant confusion among the public, as clearly demonstrated by the comments section.
Did citizens flock to petrol pumps as a result of PM Modi’s address
During this time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered a speech in the Lok Sabha on 23rd March. He discussed the situation that has developed in India in relation to the West Asian conflict for approximately 25 minutes, elaborating on the government’s initiatives and sharing several crucial details.
In the aftermath, the blame for the narrative spread by the media was directed towards Narendra Modi. It was asserted that people were flocking to petrol pumps in a frenzy solely as a result of his remarks. However, the Prime Minister did not say anything in his address that would instil fear; instead, he reassured the public. Additionally, it is important to note that queues had begun to form even before the speech was delivered.
The immature conduct exhibited by the Gujarati media was also evident during the Corona epidemic, where every circumstance was portrayed with exaggerated and incomplete information, along with sensational headlines. This pattern has reemerged in the recent incident as well.
Some self-styled journalists, defending their peers, claim that the media accurately represented the situation. However, the media’s responsibilities go beyond that. It is crucial to delve into the reasons behind any situation. In today’s social media landscape, anyone can snap a photo by simply pulling out a mobile phone and opening the camera, so why do people seek information from the media? These people will not be able to provide an answer to this question as long as this conduct persists.
In the Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal, 3,509 Waqf properties have been rejected during the verification on the UMEED Central Portal. Of the 85,110 existing waqf properties uploaded on the UMEED Portal, only 18,497 properties have been validated and approved. These figures were revealed by the Central Ministry of Minority Affairs in response to a query by Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya.
Of 80,548 Waqf properties in West Bengal, only 23,091 uploaded on UMEED Portal: BJP MP questions reasons behind the shortfall and seeks info on action taken against defaulting authorities
BJP MP Samik Bhattacharya had asked whether the Centre took note that out of 80,548 Waqf properties in West Bengal, only 23,091 were uploaded on the UMEED Portal before its closure on 06th December, 2025.
He also questioned if this shortfall amounted to non-compliance with the statutory timeline prescribed under the UMEED framework and the reasons behind the low level of uploading by the West Bengal Waqf Board despite repeated reviews and capacity-building measures.
The MP further inquired if any action has been taken or proposed against defaulting authorities, in addition to seeking information on the status, legal validity and future course of action for waqf properties that could not be uploaded within the prescribed period.
Minister of Minority Affairs reveals 85,110 existing waqf properties in West Bengal initiated on UMEED Portal, 18,497 validated, while 3,509 properties rejected during verification
In response to Samik Bhattacharya’s unstarred question, Kiren Rijiju, the Union Minister of Minority Affairs, provided a detailed response on 23rd March. Rijiju stated that on 6th June 2025, the statutory portal UMEED Central was launched, and it was mandated that details of all existing waqf and dedicated properties to waqf registered before the commencement of the amended Act shall be uploaded on the Portal within a period of six months, with a provision for further extension of up to six months by the Waqf Tribunal on sufficient cause being shown by the mutawalli. The minister added that the initial six-month period concluded on 6th June 2025, and the UMEED Portal was closed at 23:59 hours that day.
Regarding West Bengal, the minister said that during the initial six months, “23,091 existing waqf properties were initiated by Makers on the Portal. Out of these, 716 properties were validated and approved by Approvers, while 161 properties were rejected during verification. The remaining were at various stages of uploading.”
Rijiju added that extension of time was granted to the West Bengal State Board by the respective Waqf Tribunal. In respect of the West Bengal State Waqf Board, the UMEED Portal has been reopened for six months, that is, up to 24th June 2026.
Giving details of the total number of Waqf properties-related data uploaded on UMEED, number of properties approved or rejected, the minister stated, “As on 17.03.2026, in respect of West Bengal, 85,110 existing waqf properties have been initiated on the Portal, out of which 18,497 properties have been validated and approved while 3,509 properties have been rejected during verification.”
The Ministry of Minority Affairs further stated that the process of uploading, verification, and validation of Waqf property data is ongoing till 24th June, and various Waqf Boards, including West Bengal, have sought additional time for completion of the process.
“Therefore, the final number of waqf properties and other related information, such as litigation, encroachments, categories, estimated values, etc., is ascertainable only after the entire process of uploading, verification and validation on the Portal is completed,” the Minority Affairs Minister stated in a written response.
Meanwhile, the BJP has raised several questions over the massive number of rejections of Waqf properties in West Bengal during the verification process. BJP leader Amit Malviya took to X, and asked: “How did such a massive number of properties fail verification? Were these entries inaccurate, manipulated, or lacking proper documentation? Who is accountable for this glaring administrative failure? Even more alarming is the broader context, earlier, only a fraction of total Waqf properties in the state had been uploaded within the mandated timeline. Now, among those processed, thousands are being rejected.”
Shocking revelations on Waqf properties in West Bengal!
Out of the total Waqf properties uploaded for verification, 3,509 properties have been REJECTED during verification as of 17th March 2026.
West Bengal’s consistent low participation in registering Waqf properties on the UMEED Portal
Notably, the “Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Rules, 2025” were notified by the Modi government on 3rd July 2025. In April last year, a digital framework under the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, was implemented to manage Waqf properties through a centralised platform. The objective was to digitise records, enhance oversight, expedite audits and introduce transparency through different IDs.
The Mamata Banerjee-ruled West Bengal, which saw widespread protests and Muslim mob violence during the anti-Waqf Bill agitation, has consistently lagged in registering Waqf properties on the UMEED portal. In December 2025, it was reported that West Bengal registered only 716 assets out of 80,480 (0.89%) as the Muslim-appeasing TMC government remained reluctant to enforce the Waqf (Amendment) Act for months until recently, when it issued instructions to share details about these assets to the online platform.
On 23rd March, US President Donald Trump announced a pause in military action against Iran. Minutes before the announcement, a series of high value trades across global oil and equity markets triggered serious questions over whether geopolitical messaging is being used to influence financial markets, and whether certain participants may have profited from advance knowledge or anticipation.
Source: Truth Social/Donald Turmp
According to fresh data and trade analysis, there is an indication that the episode was not limited to isolated oil trades. It involved a coordinated multi market strategy that may have yielded profits running into hundreds of millions of dollars within minutes.
Massive coordinated bets placed before announcement
According to trading data, around 6,200 Brent and West Texas Intermediate futures contracts changed hands between 6:49 am and 6:50 am New York time on Monday. This activity took place roughly 15 minutes before Trump posted on the social media platform Truth Social, where he claimed that the United States had engaged in “productive conversations” with Iran.
Sources: LSEG • *Number of contracts traded | US Eastern Time
The approximate value of these oil trades alone stood at around $580 million. It is significantly higher than typical activity during pre market hours. Such trades are usually characterised by thin liquidity and lower participation. However, on that particular day, these trades formed part of a much larger and more structured set of positions. Market tracking platforms indicated that traders simultaneously executed two coordinated bets across different asset classes.
First, a large long position was taken in S and P 500 futures. It was valued at around $1.5 billion, which was positioned for a rally in equities in the event of easing geopolitical tensions.
Sources: LSEG • *Number of contracts traded | US Eastern Time / Dall-E
Second, traders sold oil futures worth around $192 million, anticipating that crude prices would fall if the perceived risk of supply disruption from the US Iran conflict declined.
When combined, these trades amounted to a value of over $1.7 billion, or more than Rs 14,000 crore. These two types of trades were placed within a narrow time window before any public announcement was made by the US President.
Market reaction delivers massive profits within minutes
At 7:04 am New York time, Trump posted on social media, which triggered an immediate and sharp reaction across markets. Oil prices fell rapidly. Brent crude dropped from around $109 per barrel to as low as $92 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate dropped by around 6% and touched $88.70 per barrel. These prices show a sudden shift in market expectations as Trump’s announcement reduced fear of prolonged conflict and supply disruptions among traders.
At the same time, equity markets showed positive markers. S and P 500 futures surged more than 2.5% before the opening bell, which added significant value in a matter of minutes. The outcome of these coordinated positions was notable. According to media reports, it could have generated profits exceeding $100 million or Rs 840 crore within just 20 minutes. Gains from the equity positions are likely to have further increased the total profit.
No prior signal raises questions over timing
The scale and speed of these gains have drawn attention from market experts, particularly given the absence of any visible trigger at the time when the trades were executed.
When these trades happened, there were no scheduled economic data releases, no Federal Reserve speeches, and no official indication of a shift in US policy towards Iran. Pre market sessions at that hour are typically slow and dry, which made the scale of the trades even more unusual.
Market experts have described this activity as difficult to explain through conventional trading logic. Some experts believe that such patterns on a quiet Monday morning without event risk were highly abnormal.
Iran rejects claims, alleges “fake news” to influence markets
The narrative took a sharp turn shortly after the initial market reaction, as Iranian officials publicly denied Trump’s claims of ongoing negotiations. Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf stated that no talks had taken place between Washington and Tehran, stating that “fake news is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped”.
2/ No negotiations have been held with the US, and fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped.
— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) March 23, 2026
Iran’s Foreign Ministry also confirmed that there had been no direct or indirect negotiations with the United States during the ongoing conflict, contradicting Trump’s assertion of “productive conversations”.
Following these denials, market sentiment reversed partially. Global equities pulled back and energy markets witnessed renewed buying.
Pattern of pre announcement trades raises concerns
Several hedge funds and market participants indicated that this was not an isolated incident. According to traders and energy consultants, multiple instances in recent months where large and well timed trades were executed ahead of significant US government announcements have been noticed. These patterns have fuelled speculation about whether certain participants may be acting on early signals, expectations, or other forms of informational advantage.
An Israeli security establishment source tells me: “I’d approach this cautiously, with a grain of salt. It’s early Monday morning in the U.S., the start of the trading week. Markets opened higher, largely as expected following the weekend reports on the negotiations and the… https://t.co/2C3krvCPpD
Similar concerns have been raised in prediction markets as well. For instance, large bets were placed on platforms such as Polymarket ahead of US actions involving countries like Iran and Venezuela, prompting questions about whether some traders may have access to insights not available to the broader market.
White House response and regulatory silence
White House spokesperson Kush Desai responded to the concerns and said that the administration remains focused on acting in the best interests of the American people. He rejected the allegations of insider profiteering and stated that the White House does not tolerate any official illegally benefiting from non public information. He added that such claims are “baseless and irresponsible” in the absence of evidence.
As of now, US regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, have not issued any public statement or indicated whether an investigation into the trades is underway.
While there is no conclusive evidence at this stage linking Trump’s announcements directly to market manipulation, the sequence of events, the scale of the trades, and the conflicting claims from Iran have left several critical questions unanswered.
The tensions in West Asia and the closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz have created a serious threat to global energy security. The extensive disruption in supply chains for crude oil and LPG has created a major challenge for economies. As the world is overwhelmed by this problem and seeks solutions or alternatives, some nations appear to be better positioned to confront the same than others.
India, which imports a substantial portion of its crude oil and natural gas through the strait is also tackling the challenge. However, the fears have been alleviated by the consistent assurances from the centre, the arrival of vessels carrying oil from the sensitive passage and the energy reserves available within the country.
“India relies on imports for 60% of its LPG needs. Consequently, there is a focus on enhancing domestic supply. Additionally, measures are being implemented to guarantee a steady supply of petrol and diesel. Over the last 11 years, the Indian Government has expanded its energy import sources,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared in the Lok Sabha on 23rd March (Monday).
He added, “In the past, crude oil, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and other items were sourced from 27 countries. Currently, energy products are procured from 41 nations. Our government has established strategic storage units to address crises such as this, and their capacity is being consistently augmented.”
भारत अपनी जरूरत की 60% LPG आयात करता है। इसकी वजह से डोमेस्टिक सप्लाई को प्राथमिकता दी जा रही है। पेट्रोल-डीजल की सप्लाई निर्बाध रूप से जारी रहे, इसके लिए भी काम किया जा रहा है। भारत सरकार ने बीते 11 सालों में एनर्जी इंपोर्ट का डायवर्सिफिकेशन किया है। पहले क्रूड, एलएनजी इत्यादि… pic.twitter.com/FATBTXdrT0
Notably, the Modi government after storming to power has concentrated not only on the establishment of oil reserves but also the creation of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) reserves for difficult times such as these.
India’s largest LPG storage cavern in Mangaluru
LPG has taken the place of more conventional fuels like firewood, dung cakes and kerosene as one of the most significant home fuels in the country. The access to clean cooking and better public health has been greatly increased by programs like the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, which gave impoverished households deposit-free LPG connections.
These schemes enhanced environmental benefits and energy availability, but they also raised demand. Therefore, the storage cavern constructed by the government could prove instrumental in times of emergency and need. There are two LPG storage caverns in India: Mangaluru and Visakhapatnam (Vizag). Nearly 1.4 lakh tonnes of LPG can be stored in these together.
“Engineers India Limited has successfully executed the development of India’s largest underground rock cavern for LPG storage for Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited at Mangalore, Karnataka. The facility has now achieved a successful gas-in, marking a major milestone,” Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri informed last year.
It is the biggest LPG cavern in India, with a storage capacity of 80,000 metric tonnes (MT). It is situated below the grounds of an existing LPG plant. This project’s unique architecture, which involves excavating the cavern beneath the existing surface structure, makes it even more impressive. This creative method enables the use of land for two purposes, greatly maximising space usage and setting a standard for upcoming infrastructure work.
Puri pointed out, “It not only strengthens the nation’s energy security but also demonstrates innovative land utilisation through its dual-use design.”
An exceptional engineering feat
The official website mentioned, “The cavern construction in Mangalore comprises two large underground tunnels with 1,220 metres and 225 metres in length respectively. The project involves digging an access tunnel over a kilometre long, with depths reaching 128 metres below sea level. The cavern itself is situated 156 metres below sea level, allowing for efficient fuel storage.”
The cavern is built within granitic gneiss rock and comprises the drill-and-blast method of construction, which necessitated thorough geological analyses and technical accuracy. Its depth guarantees that the LPG is safely confined by the water’s hydrostatic pressure.
This was the inaugural use of underground rock cavern technology for LPG storage in the country which lowers the risk of leaks to nearly zero in contrast to traditional tanks and founded a new benchmark for energy storage. Likewise, it incorporates two-tier water curtain technology that reduces the likelihood of gas leaks.
The storage area is composed of several elements, such as a 1.1 kilometre-long access tunnel for the removal of debris along with an upper and lower water curtain system featuring 13 kilometres of vertical and inclined boreholes. There are also main storage galleries that are 18 metres wide and 21 metres high, and an operational shaft with a diameter of 6.5 metres that extends to 164.5 metres for housing submersible LPG pumps, fill lines and instrumentation.
The cavern would be able to store nearly 6 lakh barrels of gas which is equal to 60 million litres of fuel. Additionally, it is environmentally friendly and fully safeguarded against weather conditions or attacks. The strategic site was chosen to improve the administration of LPG throughout India. “About 500 skilled workers and engineers are on-site, utilising advanced machinery to ensure the project’s success,” the website added.
“This project is a shining example of engineering excellence and collaborative execution of a complex mega project. The successful completion of this cavern will significantly strengthen India’s LPG storage infrastructure and ensure energy security for the nation,” expressed Vartika Shukla, former Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Engineers India Limited (EIL).
Visakhapatnam LPG storage cavern
The nation’s first subterranean LPG storage centre was set up beneath the rocky Dolphin Hills stretch near the Visakhapatnam coast in Andhra Pradesh. It operates at a depth of over 196 metres below sea level and is regarded as South Asia’s deepest and safest underground LPG cavern installation with a storage capacity of about 60,000 metric tonnes of LPG.
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and France’s largest energy company, “TotalEnergies,” launched a joint venture to execute the task. Each partner has an equal share in the project. It has Cavern A, possessing an occupancy of 1.03 MMT (Million metric Tonnes) and Cavern B which has a potential to hold 0.30 MMT.
The cavern’s construction started in November 1999, and because of the depth of excavation and the geological conditions, it presented difficult engineering hurdles. A significant safety milestone was also reached by the engineers and employees, who recorded 4.48 million work hours without an accident during its building.
Caverns and their importance
Caverns are man-made caves that are used to store petroleum as opposed to warehouses and bunkers. They are custom-built to meet safety regulations for fuel storage, while bunkers provide security during times of conflict and warehouses store food grains and products.
“Caverns are essential to ensure energy security, especially in a country like India, which depends on imports to meet its energy needs. By storing fuel during low-demand periods, India can mitigate the risks associated with fluctuating international prices and supply shortages,” the website read.
Conclusion
India has to cover a substantial path ahead in fortifying its LPG and other energy infrastructure to satisfy local demands without interruption during unforeseen circumstances. Nonetheless, the country has been making notable progress towards this goal, despite the hardships. OpIndia has already provided insights into the Strategic Petroleum Reserves in the country.
In early March 2026, the National Investigation Agency arrested American Christian mercenary Matthew VanDykye and his six Ukrainian companions for allegedly arming and training Chin-Kuki insurgents in Myanmar by using Mizoram as a gateway. OpIndia reported how this could be connected to ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s warning of a US “Christian nation” plot, sparking concerns against an evangelical-driven geopolitical conspiracy in the WESEA region. However, many unarmed Matthew VanDykes are operating freely within India. One such is American Christian evangelist Sean Feucht.
Matthew VanDyke, Daniel Courney to Sean Feucht: Names change; methods vary, but the soul-harvesting project against Hindus continues
There has been a pattern of foreign nationals, particularly Christian missionaries, arriving in India on tourist visas and openly flouting the visa conditions of non-involvement in political activism or religious proselytisation. Northeast and South India have been particularly infected by the missionaries, employing fraudulent means to brainwash and convert locals to Christianity. American evangelist Sean Feucht’s activities suggest that he may be following the footsteps of the likes of VanDyke and Daniel Stephan Courney.
Courney first entered India on a tourist visa in the year 2009, stayed for over a decade and participated in and supervised conversions to Christianity in Andhra Pradesh and Manipur.
A musician, former Bethel Church worship leader, failed politician, and now a full-time Christian missionary, Sean Feucht, recently visited India to dedicate the Zion Centre, a three-story facility comprising a community hub and an underground church. The facility is reported to be located on Settur Road in Kalyandurgam Municipality in Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur District.
Taking to X, Feucht announced the opening of a self-funded Christian missionary facility and wrote, “THE ZION CENTRE IS OFFICIALLY DEDICATED. We invited 2000, and over 3500 showed up for our grand opening today! This dream of God is now a reality! We worshipped, prayed and anointed the doors with oil — now it’s time to feast!!”
THE ZION CENTRE IS OFFICIALLY DEDICATED ✂️🇮🇳🔥
We invited 2000 and over 3500 showed up for our grand opening today!
This dream of God is now a reality! We worshiped, prayed and anointed the doors with oil — now it’s time to feast!! pic.twitter.com/88yO0O15eA
In the visuals shared on social media from the Zion Centre’s inauguration event, Sean Feucht and his wife Kate can be seen in traditional South Indian attire, demonstrating how they blend among the local populace, giving the “we are your own” impression, only to take away the religious identity of local people and replace it with a foreign one.
In a video akin to the cringe, ‘bolne lagi’ type videos that emerge from the fraud Changai Sabhas of Pentecostal pastors like Bajinder Singh or Ankur Narula, Feucht showed the visuals from a prayer meeting he organised in India, with people shaking their bodies in weird ways and making absurd gestures.
INDIA ON 🔥🔥🔥 FOR JESUS!!!
This prayer meeting has been going for 2 days leading up to LET US WORSHIP in Bangalore!
“My wife and I anointed the doors and thresholds of the new building today. Every child rescued from the sex trade, labour camps and extreme poverty will feel the love of the Father when they enter this place. Zion Centre is where heaven touches the earth,” Feucht wrote.
Notably, Feucht’s conversion activities are not confined to Andhra Pradesh or Bangalore but extend to West Bengal and other states as well.
Over 10,000 responded IN THE POURING RAIN to the altar call in West Bengal!!
Moreover, Feucht has frequented India in recent years for conversion activities more than 28 times, although this time, many on social media called out the fraud.
Before this, Sean Feucht, the founder of the Light A Candle ministry, published an alarming post on X along with a video message featuring him and his wife Kate on 18th March.
In the video recorded on the streets of Bangalore, the duo expressed excitement over the huge population of India, and how they have the opportunity to ‘reach’, which essentially means conversion to Christianity, the massive non-Christian populace.
The missionary couple boasted that they have been engaged in Christian conversion activities in India for over a decade now.
“India is home to over 2,000 unreached people groups. That’s nearly 1.4 BILLION people who have little to no access to the Gospel—many who have never heard the name of Jesus even once. No churches. No Bibles. No witness. This isn’t just a statistic—it’s a call. “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel…” — Mark 16:15 Let it start with us,” Feucht wrote.
While Sean Feucht describes it as “call”, the Christian missionary’s post shows that Hindus, and all non-Christians in India, are mere statistics that need to be converted into Christianity’s favour. The framing “1.4 billion people with no access to the Gospel” sounds as if people in India lack water and food, and that he is doing a service to Indians by converting them to his religion.
In his excitement over the opportunity to harvest souls for Christianity in the Hindu-majority India, Feucht missed a key detail: India has a significant Christian population. More importantly, as much as Indians would wish it were not true, the country is not untouched by Christian missionary frauds like him. Numerous missionaries are operating at individual and organisational levels across the country using illegal and fraudulent methods to lure Hindus and other non-Christian communities, particularly in rural and tribal areas, into the Christian fold.
On 30th April 2025, Sean Feucht published a video on his “Light A Candle” YouTube channel that showed the under-construction Zion Centre building in Bengaluru, with a voiceover thanking unnamed people who helped purchase the land after “renting other facilities became impossible due to rising persecution in India.” The video describes the Zion Centre, a part of the ‘child sponsorship program’ run by Feucht’s organisation, Light A Candle.
In a video published on his Instagram page, Sean Feucht said that the Zion Centre facility will house 1300 children, supposedly rescued from human trafficking and child sex abuse-related crimes.
“We’re gonna mobilise pastors from it…we’re also going to plant churches from the Zion Centre,” Feucht said.
Ironically, while Mother Teresa used to offer ‘a ticket’ to heaven, which was a sophisticated term for conversion to Christianity, to patients on their deathbed at her ‘charity’ hospitals, Sean Feucht, using the garb of a ‘child sponsorship program’, gave his Christian conversion activities a ‘social service’ spin.
On 21st March, Feucht shared a video recorded at the recently-opened Zion Centre, and wrote, “The massive crowd OUTSIDE the Zion Centre today! We couldn’t fit everyone inside—but no one left hungry. Every single person was fed… all 3,500 of them! 250 chickens, 4 goats, and lots and lots of rice. This is what the Kingdom looks like—meeting needs, loving people, and tangibly sharing Jesus. We’re not stopping. We’ll do it again and again!”
While Islamic conversion rackets use love jihad, population explosion, brainwashing, coercion, and even terrorism as tools of converting Kafirs to Islam, Christian missionaries use deceit, financial inducements, healing promises, “lots and lots of rice”, to lure in poor and vulnerable ‘heathens’ into the Christian fold.
As per his website, Sean Feucht, a San Diego, USA resident, is a missionary, musician, activist, author, and speaker. Pivoting towards Christian missionary activities from his initial music career, Feucht has been running various Zion centres and missionary facilities in various countries, including India.
Giving an insight into how foreign missionaries set foot in India by exploiting legal loopholes, building networks and carrying out their conversion activities in an organised manner, Feucht emphasises buying land and claiming it for Christianity, particularly, amidst rising ‘persecution’ in India, and the electoral victory of the BJP in the last Lok Sabha elections.
“As persecution rises to an all-time high in India, the word of the Lord has been clearer than ever: “Buy land, take ownership in the natural and supernatural… and build!” The Zion Centre will not only house the growing Child Sponsorship program long into the future, but will be a training centre for the Underground Church! With the results of the last elections, there is a limited window of time to build before regulations change. God’s favour is already on this project so strongly! This is more than a building, it is a centre for revival!” The Light A Candle website describes its ‘Vision’.
The Zion Centre is a multi-purpose facility; it is a warehouse, a secure base for conversion activities of Light A Candle across India, a training centre for the Underground Church, a central office and accommodation for Feucht’s team.
“As a warehouse, the Zion Centre enables us to buy supplies in bulk to fight inflation as well as save thousands per year, ensuring our 1,300+ Sponsor Children receive a month’s worth of food every month despite prices rising over 300% in the past few years alone! The Zion Centre is not just a strategic move against persecution and governmental control; it is a step toward sustainability and empowerment. It is creating a safe and stable environment for both our workers and the communities we serve. It is a place where hope is cultivated, and futures are built!” the website claims.
Feucht organised a fundraiser event in Wisconsin in the US for the Zion Centre, which he inaugurated on 18th March in India. At the event, around $60,000 were raised within hours.
A cursory glance at Sean Feucht’s social media profiles gives away his hypocrisy. As an American Christian, Feucht wants America to be a Christian nation, and is completely opposed to the idea of a secular America. However, Feucht himself has formed a full-fledged organisation, established a multinational network to run Christian conversion missions and alter the religious demography of those non-Christian countries, all while calling this fraud an act of ‘saving’ those people and ‘sharing’ Jesus.
Scratch a missionary, find a fraud: Political career crashed before a take-off, allegations of financial fraud and abuse, a man of controversies
Born in 1983 in Montana, John Christopher “Sean Feucht was raised in a conservative Christian family, with his parents having missionary ties. Feucht studied at Oral Roberts University and was profoundly influenced by New Apostolic Reformation figures, particularly Lou Engle and Ché Ahn.
In around 2005, Feucht founded Burn 24-7, a global 24-hour prayer and worship movement. In 2010, he launched Light A Candle, a so-called ‘humanitarian’ arm that sponsors children and organises short-term missions. It is to be noted that these are all fancy terms for proselytisation activities. Burn 24-7 has been active in India as well.
Feucht also served as a worship leader at the controversial megachurch Bethel Church in California’s Redding.
In 2019, Sean Feucht participated in a prayer at the White House amidst then US President Donald Trump’s impeachment probe gaining traction.
In January 2025, a day after the Trump administration’s inauguration, Feucht met US Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, who recently invoked Biblical prophecy of Armageddon to justify Trump’s war on Iran.
“So Sean, what do you think about doing worship at the Pentagon?”@PeteHegseth today at church. It just keeps getting better and better! 🔥🙏🏽🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/HrnwAWlD08
While Feucht had built a massive conversion network already, he gained global attention with the 2020 “Let Us Worship” movement. He launched this movement as a protest against the Biden administration’s rules barring churches from meeting in person as a part of lockdown rules during Covid pandemic.
His tour somehow gained immense popularity in Canada, although the leftists there soon rose against him, and many Canadian cities cancelled his 2025 “Let Us Worship: Revive in ’25” tour.
In 2020, Feucht ran as a Republican candidate for the 3rd congressional district of California. However, Feucht failed to light the candle of his political career and lost the election.
Feucht also participated in a protest against The Walt Disney Company for its rejection of anti-LGBTQ legislation in Florida.
Unsurprisingly, Sean Feucht also has been linked with QAnon, election denialism and other such controversial subjects.
Moreover, Sean Feucht has been accused by many of his former leaders and staff from his ministries, including Burn 24/7, of mismanaging millions in donations. He has been accused of diverting funds for personal use and questionable real-estate purchases worth $7 million. In addition, Feucht is also accused of underpaying staff, overstating attendance numbers, and having bad financial transparency.
Feucht also faces allegations of emotional, psychological and spiritual abuse.
One of the alleged victims of Feucht is Christy Gafford, who was associated with Burn 24/7 and was involved in the Let Us Worship project as well, and who alleged volunteer exploitation.
There is a foundation by the name Truth and Freedom Stories, which was launched in June 2025. This says that its goal is to “share the real stories of those impacted by the moral, financial, and spiritual allegations against Sean Feucht, ensuring the truth is given a voice while seeking the transparency and accountability to his ministry .”
As per this outfit, Sean Fuecht is embroiled in financial disclosure fraud, credit card fraud, donation diversion, payroll fraud, underpayment of wages, illegal private benefit, restricted donor fraud, embezzlement, and more.
The foundation has documented the testimonies of the alleged victims of Sean Feucht and what they call evidence of the Christian missionary’s fiscal frauds.
Feucht’s association links with MAGA leaders have helped him amass wealth, with reports suggesting that his revenue surged from $243,000 in 2019 to $5 million in 2020.
Christy Gafford has alleged that Feucht used to demand money from volunteers to appear at their communities. She also raised questions over why the millions of dollars in donations were not being used for local ministries but were used by Feucht and his organisation for real estate purchases.
Since 2020, Feucht is reported to have bought two parsonages in Washington, D.C., and San Juan Capistrano, California, a 40-acre hunting property with a cabin in Creston-Bigfork, Montana, and 458 acres in Real County, and the “Swiss Alps of Texas.” Feucht and his wife, Kate, personally own real estate properties, including rentals, worth over $4.5 million.
Over the years, Sean Feucht and his organisation have come under the scanner of various Christian watchdog organisations like MinistryWatch, as well. The watchdog has rated Feucht Ministries an “F”, urging donors to “withhold giving” to his outfit.
In March 2026, Steve Bray, owner of Power Plus, a California-based power generator company, filed a lawsuit against Sean Feucht, accusing him of misusing his $250,000 donation for the 2020 Let Us Worship tour to buy personal property.
Complaint filed against Sean Feucht: What do the tourist visa and missionary visa rules say?
On 22nd March, advocate Girish Bharadwaj informed on X that he has lodged a complaint with the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) in Bengaluru. Bharadwaj alleged that Feucht entered India on a tourist visa, which explicitly bars foreign nationals from religious preaching and proselytisation, but violated the rules by conducting conversion activities.
“I have addressed a representation to the FRRO, Bengaluru, seeking immediate action against foreign national Pastor @seanfeucht, who has entered India on a tourist visa but is engaged in activities such as proselytisation and religious evangelism. Such conduct constitutes a clear violation of Indian visa regulations, which explicitly prohibit foreign nationals on tourist visas or any visa category from undertaking religious preaching or conversion-related activities…” Bharadwaj wrote.
I have addressed a representation to the FRRO, Bengaluru, seeking immediate action against foreign national Pastor @seanfeucht who has entered India on a tourist visa but is engaged in activities such as proselytisation and religious evangelism.
Notably, as per the rules of the Ministry of Home Affairs, a tourist visa allows foreign nationals to visit religious sites; it bars them from preaching religious ideologies, making speeches in religious places, distributing audio or visual displays/ pamphlets about religious ideologies, spreading conversion, etc.
Under a tourist visa, “A foreign national may undertake recreation, sightseeing, a casual visit to meet friends or relatives and attend a short-term yoga programme.”
It is, however, pertinent to note that there is no official confirmation that Feucht and his family arrived in India on a tourist visa. Many people are also speculating whether the Christian missionary might have been on a missionary visa (M-1). However, this possibility seems unlikely given that the Missionary visa process is very rigorous, and if Feucht had obtained a Missionary visa, he would have most likely produced the documentation to shut down the massive backlash.
The fact that Feucht and his wife stayed in India for only over a week, inaugurated the Zion Centre, cementing their presence in the country, and left, suggests that they may have most likely been on a tourist visa.
Even if, for argument’s sake, it is assumed that Feucht and his wife had a Missionary visa, they were legally not allowed to indulge in proselytisation activities. As per the MHA rules, a Missionary visa is “granted to a foreigner whose sole objective of visiting India is missionary work not involving proselytisation.”
Emphasising the explicit bar, the MHA states, “Visa shall NOT be granted to preachers and evangelists who desire to come to India on propaganda campaigns, whether on their own or at the invitation of any organisation in India.”
Sean Feucht’s documented actions, including ribbon-cutting a new ‘Zion Centre, holding large public Christian worship events, anointing doors, openly talking about plans to convert 2,000 unreached groups to Christianity, and posting it all on social media for a boast, are textbook Christian proselytisation and propaganda.
Thus, whether Feucht was on a tourist visa or a missionary visa, he breached the visa conditions. Amidst outrage against him and the Ministry of Home Affairs, and a legal case, Sean Feucht and his wife, Kate, have left India.
Many on social media are calling out the failure of the authorities in preventing the entry of Christian missionaries in India on a tourist visa and the blatant violation of the non-proselytisation rules. India is already grappling with a religious demographic challenge, with both Islamist and Christian missionary forces competing to outnumber the Hindu majority to assert their religious dominance.
OpIndia has reported how Christian conversion outfits like World Vision, The Joshua Project, Pentecostal frauds like Bajinder Singh, among others, on one side, and the many Jalaluddin Chhangur Babas, Bangladeshi and Rohingya Muslim infiltrators on the other are altering India’s religious demography. Failure in the strict implementation of laws to restrict the entry and activities of foreign religious proselytisers in India is further exacerbating the crisis.
In a major espionage bust, the Kaushambi police in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, have arrested a woman identified as Meera Thakur, a resident of Mathura, for her role in a Pakistan-linked spy network. Notably, she was earlier arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in an illegal arms and fake currency case, but later released on humanitarian grounds. The present case involved installing CCTV cameras at sensitive locations, sharing critical site data, and links to illegal arms supply, which has raised serious national security concerns.
देश की जासूसी करने वालों से पूछताछ जारी,आरोपी मीरा से पूछताछ में बड़ा खुलासा… दिखावे के लिए मीरा चलाती थी ई-रिक्शा-सूत्र पाक में बैठे सरफराज के संपर्क में थी मीरा-सूत्र#BreakingNewspic.twitter.com/q6UW1Y2zTN
The Kaushambi police have exposed the espionage network and arrested Meera Thakur along with 17 others, including a minor. According to police, the accused were connected to a Pakistan-based handler identified as Sarfaraz alias Sardar.
Speaking to media, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Trans Hindan, Dhawal Jaiswal, said that the arrests were made following specific intelligence inputs. The arrests have been made across Ghaziabad and nearby districts.
Posed as e-rickshaw driver, key operative in network
Investigations revealed that Meera operated under the guise of an e-rickshaw driver in Mathura. Media reports suggested that this was merely a front, as she played a central role in the espionage network.
Her name reportedly figured at the top of the supply network list, and she acted as a crucial link connecting different operatives. She was part of a core group where the Pakistani handler directly communicated through video calls and secret applications, assigning tasks in return for payments.
CCTV installations, religious sites targeted, use of minors
The network was tasked with collecting and sharing sensitive information, including photographs and location details of major religious sites and key institutions.
The accused were also assigned to install CCTV systems at high-value locations such as railway stations. Sources said that details of places like Khatu Shyam were shared. Women and minors were deliberately used for reconnaissance activities to avoid suspicion.
Linked to illegal arms supply, Delhi case and bail details
Police sources stated that Meera had direct links with illegal arms dealers and supplied weapons to criminals across Delhi NCR. She had contact with multiple dealers and maintained a network ranging from gangsters to local offenders.
She was earlier arrested by the Delhi Police Special Cell in an illegal arms trafficking case. During that operation, multiple accused were held and weapons, cartridges and counterfeit currency were recovered. The cartel used coded social media messages to procure weapons from Madhya Pradesh and distribute them across northern states.
In July 2025, Meera was arrested from her Mathura residence, where five live cartridges were recovered, forming the basis of a separate Arms Act case. Based on the information she provided, another operative, Shamsu Khan, was arrested. Police recovered pistols and fake currency from his possession. Earlier, Kuldeep, Ravi and Yogesh were arrested as part of the cartel.
According to court documents accessed by OpIndia, in September 2025, the Patiala House Court, New Delhi, granted her bail on humanitarian grounds, noting that she is the mother of two minor children who depend on her care and that prolonged custody would adversely affect their well-being.
Source: Patiala House Court, Delhi
While she was released on humanitarian grounds, Meera appeared to have continued her activities and used that opportunity to spy for Pakistan.
Digital evidence and reconnaissance across states
According to media reports, over 100 videos and photographs of various locations have been recovered from her mobile phone. These materials are being analysed to assess the extent of surveillance carried out by her. Other accused, including Naushad, were involved in travelling across states to conduct reconnaissance. Communication within the network took place through encrypted or secret apps.
Personal life, isolation and past links
Meera Thakur is originally from Agra and was living in Mathura’s Aurangabad area. She had purchased a house around eight years ago and lived separately from her family. Her husband, Mukesh, a halwai by profession, reportedly separated from her around two years ago.
She has two daughters and was known to keep minimal contact with neighbours, maintaining a low profile. Investigations have also revealed that she was previously associated with Rahul alias Shamsu Khan, an alleged arms and fake currency trafficker, and became involved in illegal activities after coming into contact with him.
Police action and ongoing probe
Meera has been booked under provisions of the Official Secrets Act, Arms Act and relevant sections of law related to sedition and national security.
When discussing health insurance in India, most people still consider ₹5 lakh to be enough. This amount would have been sufficient a few years ago. However, in today’s time, when the costs of medical procedures are skyrocketing, and medical inflation is increasing manifold, a single hospitalisation can result in a medical bill of lakhs, casting doubt on this coverage amount. In a health insurance plan that covers multiple family members, this question becomes even more critical.
So, the question remains: what sum insured is enough for a family in 2026?
Is ₹5 lakh Health Insurance enough for a family in 2026?
A medical emergency not only impacts a family financially, but it is also emotionally draining. In an emotional situation where your family member is in a lot of physical pain, getting an unexpected bill for an enormous amount is the last thing one wants.
Families often underestimate the costs associated with a hospitalization or medical procedure, which can create a gap between the expected and the actual medical bill. If a person has bought health insurance per the undervalued calculation, their coverage won’t suffice. Without insurance, the family will have to incur the medical bill as out-of-pocket expenses.
For instance, a knee replacement surgery in a metropolitan city can go up to ₹4 lakh or even ₹6 lakh. And this is just the surgery cost; there are other hospitalization costs too. If you have coverage of only up to ₹5 lakh, a single surgery can either exhaust the sum insured or reduce it leaving the remaining balance insufficient for other family members’ coverage.If health insurance coverage falls short, the family can lose all their savings in one go.
Moreover, medical inflation in India is approximately 12-15%, which is 3X the general inflation rate. This implies that the treatment that costs ₹3 lakh today will double to ₹6 lakh in nearly 7 years only, i.e., less than even a decade.
This implies that in the near future, a coverage of ₹5 lakh will be insufficient to cover the medical expenses of even an individual. Hence, choosing the right sum insured for health insurance for your family is important to protect your hard-earned savings.
How to approach Family Health Insurance?
A family health insurance plan is a floater mediclaim policy that covers multiple members under a single plan. This means that all covered members share the same sum insured and the same common benefits. Usually, these plans cover the proposer, their spouse and children. Some plans also extend coverage to the dependent parents, grandparents or other family members.
If you want to buy a family health insurance plan, the right approach is to evaluate the health risk parameters of each individual you want to insure under the plan. The ideal coverage should be based on family size and individual healthcare requirements.
Consider coverage benefits, waiting periods, the number of network hospitals, NCB and other additional benefits. Geographical location and preferred hospital type affect treatment costs and should be considered when calculating the ideal coverage amount.
The premium for a family health insurance plan is usually lower than the sum of the premiums for individual policies bought separately for each member. You can compare health insurance plans for family on online portals, like Policybazaar.com, which allows easy comparison of different plans on a single window.
How much sum insured is enough for a family in 2026?
The sum insured for a family health insurance plan depends on various factors.
For a family in a metropolitan city, a minimum of ₹15-30 lakh is recommended, depending on the family size and the health conditions of the members to be insured.
If senior citizens are included in a family floater plan, the coverage amount should be anywhere between ₹25-50 lakh.
For a family in tier 2/3 cities, at least ₹10-15 lakh coverage is needed.
Disclaimer: These are indicative figures. The reader is advised to assess their health conditions and consider the factors important to them to determine the exact sum insured they should opt for.
It is also important that families review and upgrade their health insurance plans from time to time so that their coverage amount does not fall short. You can also opt for super top-up health insurance plans alongside the base policy to expand your coverage with a slight increase in premium.
In conclusion, a health insurance plan for a family is a practical way to cover more members under a single policy. Considering the rising medical treatment costs and preventive healthcare expenses, families must choose a sum insured that is optimal for medical needs, not just today, but also in the near future.
Aditya Dhar’s “Dhurandhar: The Revenge,” in addition to setting box-office on fire, appears to be shattering the meticulously crafted image and dismantling the false narratives peddled by the opposition and its Islamo-leftist ecosystem. As a result, potshots being taken by them to discredit the events depicted in the film, either as fiction or as a calculated endeavour to defame a specific community or a political party.
A controversy has currently arisen concerning the portrayal of late mafia-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed, who has been shown participating in a plot to establish a Pakistan-backed government in Uttar Pradesh with the backing of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge’ has a character named Atif Ahmed who resembles the late mafia turned politician in looks as well as in criminal activities.
Ahmed became a member of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) during the later years of his life, having previously held significant influence within the Samajwadi Party for an extended duration, and was even elected to the Lok Sabha on its ticket.
Consequently, his representation in the film has angered the party and its chief Akhilesh Yadav, who asserted that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is investing in propaganda that tarnish the reputation of other political entities. “I believe they possess substantial financial resources, as they are also allocating funds for movie releases,” he accused during a party event in Lucknow.
सपा प्रमुख अखिलेश यादव ने फिल्मों को लेकर बीजेपी पर निशाना साधते हुए कहा कि पैसा देकर फिल्में बनवाई जा रही हैं और उनके जरिए दूसरे राजनीतिक दलों को बदनाम करने की कोशिश की जा रही है। उन्होंने ‘धुरंधर 2’ में ‘आतिफ अहमद’ के किरदार पर भी नाराजगी जताई और कहा कि फिल्मों का इस तरह… pic.twitter.com/LxonuL2CW8
“The Bharatiya Janata Party operates a mechanism that generates films based on its invented tales. Through these cinematic works, there is an effort to forge a particular image among the citizens,” argued Rajeev Rai, a member of the parliament from SP. Former MP and another party leader, ST Hasan, stated that no Indian investigation agency reported such a relation between Ahmed and ISI.
The Islamo-leftist rapidly mobilised to contest the plot lines in the spy-thriller. “According to Dhurandhar 2, Atiq Ahmed was a Pakistani agent and a terrorist. Then why tributes were offered to him in the Parliament by the Prime Minister and the Home Minister,” a Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supporter asked.
Dhurandhar 2 फ़िल्म के अनुसार जब अतीक अहमद पाकिस्तानी एजेंट था, वो आतंकवादी था, तब देश के संसद भवन में उन्हें प्रधानमंत्री और गृह मंत्री के द्वारा श्रद्धांजलि क्यों दिया जा रहा था..?
The claim was reiterated once more when a Muslim account charged that Dhar does not want to conceal his motives as he openly “slapped the ISI on Ahmed link with dramatic music” for his propaganda.
Aditya Dhar : Atiq Ahmed’s direct connection to ISI in the movie Dhurandhar2 he isn’t even trying to hide it anymore, just slap ISI link, add some dramatic music & boom…Dhurandhar 2 is nothing but a propaganda.
It is noteworthy that Atiq was named alongside other deceased parliamentarians by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla because he was a former member of the house. This is merely a part of the democratic tradition that neither absolved him of his crimes nor disregarded them.
Was there a relationship between the notorious mobster and the Islamic Republic
A First Information Report (FIR) indicated that Ahmed himself confessed to having associations with India’s hostile neighbour. “The ISI, using drones, used to drop weapons in Punjab, and someone linked to the ISI used to collect these arms and send some of them to LeT, some to Khalistan separatist organisations and some weapons like .45 bore pistol, AK-47 and RDX were made available to me and I paid for the same,” he disclosed to the authorities.
He unveiled, “People belonging to these groups came to my place and information gathered from their conversations suggested that they wanted to cause a major incident in the country.” Police expressed that the statement was documented on court orders.
Ahmed further accepted that he was familiar with the locations of some of these people affiliated with LeT and ISI while his brother knew details of others. He even admitted to the killing of Umesh Pal and the two officers with the weapons procured from across the border. “I know the sites where the weapons have been kept. They do not have house numbers. If you take me and my brother together, we can identify these places,” he mentioned.
“There should be no doubt about this. When Atiq Ahmed was alive, his gang was listed as IS-277 (Interstate-277). In his confessional statements, he admitted that weapons, including .45 calibre pistols, AK-47s and RDX, were brought to him via drones from Pakistan and reached Punjab. Through his contacts, he also had connections with Lashkar-e-Taiba and the ISI,” outlined, former Director General of Police (DGP) Uttar Pradesh, Vikram Singh.
“The truth is harsh. When movies were made with Dawood Ibrahim’s money, it was ok, now that movies are being made about him, people are feeling pain, because truth is always bitter. On the question of Atiq Ahmed, he was a gangster. He was an MP but was also a gangster. The whole world knows that he received illegal weapons, and his links with Pakistan are known to the world. What has been shown is based on the truth. Our own leaders were involved in fake currency racket,” former Jammu and Kashmir DGP, Shesh Paul Vaid, provided a similar response.
Atiq Ahmed’s criminal empire and the political patronage
The gangster who was shot dead in 2003 had been instilling fear in the state for many years, even during his incarceration, until the Yogi government eventually terminated his reign of terror and ended the patronage he enjoyed under the previous administrations.
He was the first person in Uttar Pradesh to be charged under the “Gangster Act.” He had an extensive criminal past. He was charged of murder at the age of 17. Afterwards, he rose to such prominence in the underworld that his fame even eclipsed that of Mumbai’s dons. He was booked for 102 offences, including kidnapping, murder and threats. The Gangster Act was brought up three times against.
Ahmed, the primary accused in the Raju Pal and Umesh Pal murder cases, even made an attempt on the life of Kumari Mayawati, the head of the Bahujan Samaj Party and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, during the infamous “Guest House” scandal of 1995.
According to OP Singh, the former DGP of the Uttar Pradesh, he had the opportunity to obliterate Ahmed’s tyranny long ago, but political pressure prevented him. The top cop conveyed that as the Superintendent of Police (SP) City of Prayagraj (then Allahabad) he and a group of police officers raided his lair in 1989 and 1990 in response to a formal complaint against him.
Thousands of Ahmed’s supporters had surrounded the police squad. Singh stated that the mob was prepared to open fire had he not warned them that they, alongside their leader, would be gunned down if even one bullet was released from their side. He emphasised that political pressure forced his team to return without making any arrests, despite his desire to nab Ahmed and his group there.
He noted that things would not have escalated to such a mess if the latter had been captured that day. Interestingly, late Mulayam Singh Yadav was the chief minister of the state at the time.
However, the prison bars did not pose a barrier for the mobster, as he managed his criminal empire even while incarcerated as illustrated in the movie, continuing to torment those who dared to oppose him and his atrocities. Ahmed’s criminal empire was finally dismantled under the Yogi rule.
When the actual disinformation was hailed as truth: Article 15
In 2019, Director Anubhav Sinha released “Article 15” featuring Ayushmann Khurrana. The film garnered rave reviews from the liberal cabal for its storyline and its portrait of a “Casteist” Hindu society. However, the Bollywood venture, which was purported to be based on the actual events of the Badaun case, took significant liberties with the truth to paint the upper caste as villains, ignoring the fact that all 5 arrested accused in the case were Yadavs.
The tragedy had received extensive coverage in both domestic and foreign media, which embarrassed the Akhilesh Yadav government and was perceived as an instance of upper-caste brutality against Dalits.
However, Pappu Yadav, Avadhesh Yadav, Urvesh Yadav, Chhatrapal Yadav and Sarvesh Yadav were found to be the accused. Moreover, the police department was slammed for being lenient with the guilty, due to pressure from the ruling party, which backed the Yadavs, leading to demands for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry. In 2014, the CBI too concluded that the sisters in Badaun had committed suicide and gave a clean chit to the accused. In 2015, a special POCSO court rejected the CBI’s report.
On the other hand, Sinha, rather than adhering to the facts, exploited the case to transform it into a movie that aligns with his political agenda. The unseen Brahmin “Mahantji,” possibly a jab at Yogi Adityanath was described as the all-powerful source of evil in the movie which predominantly stressed that “upper castes,” and the aforementioned community are the exclusive originators of all violent actions.
The opposition and their left-liberal endorsers are only interested in distorting the truth to achieve their aims. The so-called artistic expressions, including the films they have supported, have been delivering misinformation and fabrications to the public under the pretence of “true events.” It is a platform for them to advance their agenda and gloss over the dreadful history of their beloved figures.
Thus, when Dhurandhar exposed the irrefutable reality that they labour so hard to obscure, it is hardly surprising that they choose to reject it. However, unfortunately for them, facts do not care about their offended feelings.
On 23rd March, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, in the Lok Sabha in a fresh push to simplify business regulations. The House adopted a motion to refer the bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination. The move is part of the government’s ongoing efforts to ease rules governing businesses in India.
According to the media reports, the bill will focus on making corporate rules more practical and less stressful for businesses, especially startups and small firms. The Union Cabinet had already cleared the bill earlier this month on 10th March, paving the way for its introduction in Parliament.
Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 introduced in Lok Sabha, sent to JPChttps://t.co/Gb82rtT0ul
The new bill proposes amendments to two key laws that govern businesses in India, the Companies Act, 2013 and the Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008. The Companies Act outlines how companies should be formed, run, and closed. The Limited Liability Partnership Act allows businesses to incorporate a new kind of company in which partners have limited liability.
By updating these laws, the government wants to make business operations smoother and reduce unnecessary legal complications. The focus is clearly on making India more business-friendly while also ensuring basic transparency and accountability.
Focus on ease of doing business
One of the biggest highlights of this bill is that there are plans to decriminalise several minor offences. This means that instead of companies being penalised criminally for minor offences such as procedural errors, they will only have to pay a fine. This will help to reduce the legal risks for entrepreneurs who will be encouraged to do business without fear of severe punishment for minor offences.
The bill will “propose several changes for ease of compliance, including decriminalisation of several provisions, regulatory ease for small firms, startups, and producer companies.” Producer companies are companies that are formed by farmers and people who are engaged in agricultural, fishing, and related industries. These companies are expected to benefit from this bill.
The bill will also try to simplify the compliance process. This could mean that there will be fewer forms to fill out, fewer procedures to be followed for routine processes such as annual compliance, or other such changes. This will help to reduce the amount of paperwork that companies have to go through and make the system more efficient.
Based on expert recommendations
The proposed changes are largely based on suggestions made by the Company Law Committee (CLC), which was set up by the government to review corporate laws. The committee, formed in 2019, included experts from different fields such as banking, law, and industry.
The CLC had recommended several practical changes, such as allowing companies to communicate with shareholders electronically, making it easier for struggling companies to raise funds, and permitting general meetings in virtual or hybrid formats. It also suggested strengthening regulatory bodies like the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA).
For LLPs, the committee focused on easing rules for small producer organisations, including those run by farmers, fishermen, and artisans.
These recommendations were later reviewed by a high-level panel on regulatory reforms, chaired by Rajiv Gauba. In her earlier budget speech, Sitharaman had said the goal was to “strengthen trust-based economic governance” and improve ease of doing business by reducing excessive inspections and compliance requirements.
Link with wider economic reforms
The bill also forms a part of a larger effort to improve the business environment of India. At the same time, the government has also initiated several changes to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code with a Parliamentary Committee chaired by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Baijayant Panda.
Some of the latest recommendations made regarding the bill include:
• Stricter timelines for resolving cases of bankruptcy
• More power for lenders through the Committee of Creditors (CoC)
• The introduction of a system of cross-border insolvency, which will help companies with international operations
Proposed changes to CSR rules
The government has also planned several important changes to the way Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) works, which will come through changes made to the Companies Act.
One of the biggest changes that has been proposed includes a lowering of the financial threshold for companies that have to spend money on CSR. Currently, companies with a net profit of more than ₹5 crore have to spend at least 2% of their average profits earned over the last three years on corporate social responsibility activities. This amount may now be reduced to ₹3 crore. This means many more mid-sized companies will now come under the CSR rules for the first time.
Another key change is related to how CSR committees are formed within companies. The proposal says that at least one member of the committee should have proper experience in planning and handling CSR projects. This is being done to make sure that CSR work is taken seriously and not treated as just a formality.
Understanding the existing laws
The Companies Act, 2013, is the main law that governs corporate entities in India. It covers everything from company registration and management to financial reporting and closure. Over the years, this law has been amended multiple times, in 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020, mainly to simplify compliance and reduce penalties.
On the other hand, the Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008, offers a more flexible business model. Under the act, partners can run a business without being held liable for its losses up to a certain extent. This model has been more popular among small businesses and professional organisations.
Both laws have already seen reforms in the past, but the 2026 bill aims to further update them based on current business needs.
Key benefits of the Corporate Laws 2026
If passed, the Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, could bring real benefits for businesses across the country. Lower compliance costs, fewer legal hurdles, and simpler processes can make it easier for companies to grow and operate smoothly.
The new amendments can prove to be a boon for startups and small businesses, which might help remove the fear of facing penalties. It can also help boost investor sentiment as the new amendments focus on transparency and governance. And for the overall economy, a more business-friendly environment can attract investment and create jobs.
With the current economic conditions being unpredictable globally, the new bill can be a welcome move towards establishing India as a more reliable business destination.
