Catherine Herridge, a veteran journalist who worked on the Hunter Biden laptop story and covered investigations into the Biden family, was fired by the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) News on 13th February this year.
It has now emerged that the network seized her personal files, computers and records, including confidential source information.
The unprecedented move by CBS officials has been condemned by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), which deemed the action as ‘very unusual and completely inappropriate.’
REPORT: After firing investigative reporter Catherine Herridge who was investigating the Hunter Biden laptop story, CBS reportedly seized her belongings.
Nothing to see here.
The network reportedly seized all of her belongings including files, computers and most importantly,… pic.twitter.com/oLFIlZwsOA
“It is completely inappropriate for an employer to lay off a reporter and take the very unusual step of retaining and searching the reporter’s files, inclusive of confidential source identification and information,’ it emphasised.
“The retention of a media professional’s reporting materials by their former employer is a serious break with traditional practices which supports the immediate return of reporting materials,” SAG-AFTRA added.
It concluded, “This action is deeply concerning to the union because it sets a dangerous precedent for all media professionals and threatens the very foundation of the First Amendment.”
CBS cries foul
Following the controversy, the news network claimed that no belongings of Catherine Herridge had been seized and that it had planned to return her files.
“Catherine’s personal belongings were delivered to her home one week ago, and we are prepared to pack up the rest of her files immediately on her behalf – with her representative present as she requested,’ a spokesperson for CBS News claimed.
The official added, “We have respected her request to not go through the files, and out of our concern for confidential sources, the office she occupied has remained secure since her departure.”
According to an article by New York Post, Catherine Herridge ‘faced roadblocks’ while covering the Hunter Biden laptop story. She had authenticated the abandoned laptop of US President Joe Biden’s son in November 2022.
Prior to her firing, the veteran journalist had also covered the House impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden. Catherine Herridge has previously served as the chief intelligence correspondent at Fox News.
Given her abrupt firing and seizure of personal files, the House Judiciary Committee has written to the CBS News President Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews on Friday (23rd February) seeking information about the termination of Herridge’s contract.
“The unprecedented actions of CBS News threaten to chill good journalism and ultimately weaken our nation’s commitment to a free press,” it stated.
The Hunter Biden laptop story
It is notable here that in the last weeks of the 2020 US presidential elections, the New York Post published an explosive story about Hunter Biden’s problematic emails with a Ukrainian gas company executive from Burisma.
In its report, the news outlet alleged that they had accessed material from a damaged Macbook that was brought to a service centre for repair. The customer who brought the laptop never collected or paid for the services.
The shop owner said he repeatedly tried to contact the client. Though he could not identify the owner as Hunter Biden, he said the laptop had Beau Biden Foundation’s sticker.
The report has several documents and mentions a video that proves that Joe Biden met a high-profile businessman from Ukraine when he was Vice President of the United States.
Column’s up: Jack Dorsey and Mark Zuckerberg censored the @nypost Hunter Biden stories before the election to hide the real Joe Biden https://t.co/bjx7cCw0hU
Reports suggested that Biden may have helped his son Hunter, using his influence as the VP of the United States, in his business in Ukraine. The Biden Camp categorically denied all the allegations.
The story was heavily censored by both Twitter and Facebook and was branded as a piece of fake news. Initially, the report was dismissed as a hoax by Biden-supporting media, but it was eventually confirmed that the laptop’s contents did really belong to Hunter Biden.
Following the restriction of the NYP report, Twitter justified the action by claiming that its policies forbid the sharing of compromised information. After the elections were over and Joe Biden was declared president, it became clear that the NY Post story was indeed true.
Twitter’s former head Jack Dorsey then expressed regret over censoring the story and blocking New York Post from their Twitter account.
On Wednesday (21st February) the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Samajwadi Party finalised the seat-sharing formula of the I.N.D.I. alliance in Uttar Pradesh for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. According to the agreement, the Congress is set to contest 17 seats from the largest state while the Samajwadi Party and other small parties in the alliance will contest 63 seats. However, the Congress is now reportedly asserting its demand for Lakhimpur Khiri and Shravasti seats as well. The Samajwadi Party, on the other hand, is not ready to give these seats to the Congress.
With only 17 seats in Uttar Pradesh for the Lok Sabha elections, many senior Congress leaders have been left disappointed and upset. These leaders have started trying hard from Delhi to Moradabad to push their cases, as most of the party leaders have arrived in Moradabad to join the second phase of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra starting on Saturday. Former union minister Salman Khurshid is one such leader.
Expressing his disappointment over the seat sharing formula, Khurshid posted from his X handle, “How many tests will my relations with Farrukhabad have to face? The question is not about me but about the future of all of us, about the future generations. Never bowed before the decisions of fate. I can break, I can’t bend.”
फ़र्रुख़ाबाद से मेरे रिश्तों के कितने इम्तहान का सामना करना पड़ेगा? सवाल मेरा नहीं पर हमारे सब के मुस्तक़ाबिल का है, आने वाली नस्लों का है। क़िस्मत के फ़ैसलों के सामने कभी झुका नहीं । टूट सकता हूँ , झुकूँ गा नहीं। तुम साथ देनेका वादा करो, मैं नघमे सुनाता रहूँ
Salman Khurshid has been a Member of Parliament from Farukkhabad twice, winning in 1991 and 2009.
Earlier, the Samajwadi Party and the Congress held talks regarding seat-sharing for the Lok Sabha election. Now, it has been revealed from sources that the Congress also wants Lakhimpur Kheri and Shravasti seats from UP in addition to the 17 seats it got in the seat-sharing agreement. Of the 17 seats that the SP has given to the Congress, both these seats are currently not with the Congress. The Congress has offered to the SP to exchange these two seats with any two of the Ghaziabad, Mathura, and Barabanki seats.
According to reports, Sonia Gandhi herself has spoken to Akhilesh Yadav about this demand. The Congress wants to field Ravi Verma and Naseemuddin Siddiqui respectively from Lakhimpur Kheri and Shravasti seats. The seats allotted to the Congress as per the formula decided between the coalition parties in the I.N.D.I. alliance are Amethi, Rae Bareli, Varanasi, Saharanpur, Amroha, Sitapur, Jhansi, Ghaziabad, Maharajganj, Fatehpur Sikri, Kanpur, Mathura, Deoria, Bansgaon, Bulandshahr, Prayagraj, and Barabanki.
Former minister Nakul Dubey, former state Congress Brijlal Khabri, and Rajesh Pati Mishra are among other leaders who are left disappointed by the seat-sharing. Nakul Dubey was seeking a ticket from Lucknow or Sitapur. Lucknow has gone to SP in the seat-sharing formula. Former MLA Rakesh Rathore is set to be fielded from Sitapur. In this situation, Nakul Dubey is preparing to contest the election from Sitapur independently.
Brijlal Khabri was claiming ticket from Jalaun but this seat was also not allotted to INC in the alliance negotiations. Similarly, Rajesh Pati Mishra was planning to contest from Bhadohi. However, the Congress state president Ajay Rai said, “Preparations were made to contest elections on all 80 seats. Party leaders have made preparations for every seat. But we have got 17 seats under the I.N.D.I. alliance. At present, elections will be fought on these seats only.” He also refuted the claims of senior Congress leaders being disappointed by the seat-sharing formula finalised.
Earlier on Wednesday, Congress Uttar Pradesh in-charge Avinash Pande said while addressing a press conference, “I am delighted to tell you that it has been decided that in Uttar Pradesh the INC will contest on 17 seats and the remaining 63 seats will have candidates from the I.N.D.I. Alliance – from SP and other parties.”
Uttar Pradesh is not the only once where Congress leaders are expressing their disappointment over seat sharing agreements with alliance partners. Earlier, family members of the Late Congress leader Ahmed Patel expressed their disappointment over seat sharing agreement with Aam Aadmi Party in the state of Gujarat. Ahmed Patel’s daughter Mumtaz Patel and his son Faisal Ahmed Patel took to social media to express their disappointment after their father’s stronghold of Bharuch was given to AAP as part of the seat sharing agreement.
In a major breakthrough in the Haldwani violence that broke out on 8th February in the Banbhoolpura region, the mastermind Abdul Malik was arrested on Saturday (24th February). As per reports, Malik who had been absconding till now has been arrested from Delhi by Uttarakhand police. Following his arrest, his lawyers have reportedly applied bail petition.
According to his lawyers Ajay Bahuguna and Shalabh Pandey, the Uttarakhand Police has arrested the Haldwani violence mastermind Abdul Malik from Delhi. Following his arrest, a bail petition has been filed.
As per reports, his lawyers had filed the bail petition in the Haldwani ADJ First Court in the Sessions Court which will be heard on 27th February.
Around 78 accused have been arrested in connection with the 8th February violence in Haldwani’s Banbhoolpura region which broke out after the local administration demolished an illegal madrasa in the Malik colony following court orders.
The accused have been charged with hatching a criminal conspiracy to mislead the government departments and the court based on false affidavits.
Earlier, a lookout notice was issued against Malik and his son Abdul Moid. He had built the illegal madrasa and vehemently opposed its demolition, police said. His wife had even moved the court challenging the municipal corporation’s notice for demolition.
Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Police have continued the crackdown against rioters who were involved in the 8th February Haldwani riots that took place in the Banbhoolpura region. Following the court orders of property attachment, the Police earlier attached the house of Abdul Malik, the mastermind of the Haldwani violence. The Police also seized antique items and valuables worth crores from his luxurious house.
The valuable items seized on Saturday (17th February) include sofa set, Maharaja dining set, fridge, cupboard, expensive foreign brand watches, perfumes from Arabic countries, AC, computer, printer, geyser, oil heater, TV, other electronics items, swords, jewellery, fans, beds, mattresses, Curtains, doors, windows, and scooters, etc.
Additionally, a case of cheating and criminal conspiracy was recently registered against six individuals including the main accused of Haldwani violence, Abdul Malik and his wife. The Nainital Police had also released the posters of the main accused who were allegedly involved in the 8th February incident. The posters of 9 miscreants included the names of Abdul Malik (mastermind), Tasleem, Wasim alias Happa, Ayaz Ahmed, Abdul Moeed, Raees alias Dutt, Shakeel Ansari, Maukin Saifi and Zia Ul Rehman.
Furthermore, the Municipal Corporation here issued a recovery notice of Rs 2.44 crore against Abdul Malik, asking him to deposit the money to cover damage caused to government property during the clash.
In the violence, four people were killed and 250 policemen were injured. According to the police, the mob burnt down Banbhoolpura police station. A curfew had to be imposed in the entire town for two days. In our ground reports, eyewitnesses and victim told OpIndia that the rioters were attacking administration officials, police personnel, journalists, and commoners after asking for their names and allegedly spared the Muslims. They also allegedly tried to burn Police officials and journalists alive.
On Saturday, February 24, the prominent Bangladeshi author and Blitz magazine editor Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury took to X (formally Twitter) to call attention to the vile anti-Hindu and anti-Indian propaganda being disseminated by Pinaki Bhattacharya, a Bangladeshi medical practitioner and popular YouTuber who is in exile in France seeking political asylum.
Pinaki Bhattacharya: From fake medicine seller to Islamist lapdog
Only few years ago, Pinaki Bhattacharya was kicked-out of his family by his parents for leaving Hindu dharma and embracing Islam at the influence of Tablighi Jamaat. His father Shyamal Bhattacharya, a school… pic.twitter.com/0lMgWh3SeY
On Thursday, February 22, Pinaki Bhattacharya, who is based out of France, as he had sought asylum under the false pretence of being a ‘political victim’ of the current ruling Awami League government led by Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, put up a Facebook post telling Bangladeshi directors and actors not to work in West Bengal-based OTT platform Hoichoi or any other Indian platforms.
In the post, Bhattacharya appealed to Bangladeshi actor Mosharraf Karim to not promote his upcoming movie ‘Hubba’ for Hoichoi. The post ends with a veiled threat to Bangladeshi directors and actors. Bhattacharya wrote he hoped he would not have to be tough on them.
This new post, however, is not surprising given that Bhattacharya has been releasing videos condemning India’s interference in Bangladesh’s national elections on January 7, which resulted in Hasina’s return to office.
Pinaki Bhattacharya, through his YouTube channel and other social media accounts, has been running a vile anti-India campaign, where he has been urging his 1.6 million followers to boycott Indian products in Bangladesh.
In fact, a day after PM Narendra Modi performed the Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya, Pinaki Bhattacharya released a video on his YouTube channel in which he castigated the Indian Prime Minister for constructing Ram Mandir in the very place where the Babri Masjid once stood.
In the video which garnered over 793k views since its release, Bhattacharya slandered Modi and his supporters among the Hindu community in Bangladesh and also called for a boycott of Indian businesses including Marico, Emami, Dabur, Asian Paints, Godrej, and others.
Pinaki Bhattacharya has likewise posted several anti-India videos and posts through all his social media handles. In one video he slammed the Indian multinational engineering and construction conglomerate Larsen and Toubro for partaking in the designing and construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
In fact, if one goes through Pinaki Bhattacharya’s YouTube page, one would see umpteen anti-India videos where he has been inciting his followers against India and exhorting them to boycott Indian products.
SS of Pinaki Bhattacharya’s YouTube page
Expressing concern about the growing popularity of the ‘Boycott India’ campaign on social media, which would just not only adversely affect Indo-Bangladesh trade relations but also Bangladesh’s economy, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, provided some background information about Pinaki Bhattacharya, one of the torchbearers of this campaign, to expose his rabid Islamist mindset.
He revealed how only a few years ago, Pinaki Bhattacharya’s parents disowned him as he quit Hinduism and embraced Islam under the influence of Tablighi Jamaat. His father Shyamal Bhattacharya, a dramatist, writer, and school teacher, became very irritated with his son’s religious conversion. As a result, the enraged father severed all ties with Pinaki. Pinaki was born in Bangladesh’s Bogra district. He graduated from the Rajshahi Medical College in 1992. This medical college, according to Salah Uddin, is the epicentre of Jamaat-e-Islami activities.
After learning of Pinaki’s affiliations with Pakistan’s ISI and his friendly relationships with Islamists, jihadists and terrorists, his wife, who is also a doctor, also distanced herself from him.
During his stay in Bangladesh, a ‘neo-Muslim’ Pinaki, under the garb of producing life-saving drugs in his pharmaceutical factory, was in reality, producing illicit sexual drugs, counterfeit medicine and ‘Yaba’ tablets – a dangerous drug containing a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine and distributing these contraband items through underworld crime rackets in Bangladesh. His illicit activities caught the attention of law enforcement agencies. The Bangladesh government filed a case against him for selling counterfeit drugs and engaging in anti-national activities.
As a result, Pinaki Bhattacharya fled Bangladesh and landed in France, where he sought asylum under the false claim of being a “political victim” of the Awami League government.
While running a business of contraband medicines, Pinaki Bhattacharya was regularly forcing his female staff into sexual relations, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury alleged in his lengthy post.
He is currently carrying out extremist activities through social media channels. He has become a popular figure among Muslims in Bangladesh for his jihadi books and anti-India; anti-Modi campaign. The majority of the audience of Pinaki’s YouTube channel are half-educated and uneducated people from Bangladesh and West Bengal. He also has substantial viewers who are working as labourers in Bangladeshi and other Islamic countries like Malaysia and the Middle East. In France, he has hired three employees for his activities – one of whom is a Palestinian female member of Hamas.
The Blitz editor further wrote how Pinaki Bhattacharya, an agent of the Pakistani spy agency Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI), has been disseminating hate speech and slanderous propaganda on his YouTube channel against the Hindu community, India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and anti-Islamist and anti-jihadist groups in Bangladesh and India.
In his videos and posts, Pinaki persuades Bangladeshi Muslims to wage jihad against Hindus. His anti-Indian posts are extremely popular in Bangladesh. Time and again, he has held Modi accountable for all the attacks on Bangladeshi Hindus by Muslim extremists.
Here are a few examples of the vile anti-India and anti-Hindu posts of Pinaki Bhattacharya
Here Pinaki Bhattacharya captioned his post in Bengali which roughly translates to, “How was the Gaumata politics of Hindutva formed and how did a part of Hindus of Bangladesh get involved? To know the details you may watch the video.”
During the 2020-2021 so-called farmers’ protest in India, Pinaki Bhattacharya had taken to X, formally Twitter to sympathise with ‘climate activist’ Disha Ravi, who was arrested in connection with the ‘Greta toolkit’ that exposed a global conspiracy to defame India on a global scale. Sharing an article written by the left-propaganda website Scroll, Pinaki wrote, ” I condemn the arrest of #DishaRavi by the Delhi Police, for supporting the #FarmerProtests.”
Notably, during the initial investigation, the police found that Disha Ravi also collaborated with a Khalistani outfit named Poetic Justice Foundation (PJF). The police informed that the objective was to spread ‘disaffection against the Indian State.’ Reportedly, it was Disha who had originally shared the Toolkit document with the Swedish activist Greta Thunberg.
In the post, the Blitz magazine editor Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury also wrote how in one particular video on his YouTube channel, Pinaki Bhattacharya started a vile propaganda against Blitz for exposing notorious conspiracy of these anti-India and Hindu-hating elements with their recently launched “India Out” campaign aimed at jeopardizing existing cordial relations between Dhaka and New Delhi.
“In one of his videos that has garnered 7.1 lakh views within five days, Pinaki Bhattacharya has compared Hindutva to Zionism, expressed concerns over India’s growing influence in the world and named me as both an Indian and Israeli agent in Bangladesh. He also calls me an enemy of the people and asks his supporters to bully me on social media by branding me as “bastard”, Saah Uddin wrote in his lengthy post adding that Pinaki in the same video, promoted a Pakistani YouTube channel named ‘The Blank Page Official’.
The video by this anti-India channel stated, “India has activated powerful assets to counter Bangladesh’s India Out campaign” and made foul attempts of branding Blitz as an “asset” of India and Israel.”
Salah Uddin further revealed how the channel also criticized Blitz for condemning October 7 Hamas pogrom in Israel and for terming Hamas as monsters.
“According to an Indian website, Pinaki Bhattacharya is anti-Hindu and anti-Bharat extremist. He has been regularly publishing contents defaming Hindu dharma. He even goes further by branding every Hindu as “bastards” while he also does the same with Bangladeshi citizens and media outlets that confront “India Out” activities,” the Blitz editor wrote.
The Blitz editor also emphasised how the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which has ties to Al Qaeda, and its ideological allies like Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) and Bangladesh-based media outlet The Daily Star, endorse and fund the ‘India out’ campaign led by anti-India fake news peddlers like Pinaki Bhattacharya.
“Recently, Dhaka’s leading English newspaper The Daily Star published a lengthy opinion editorial criticizing Blitz and me for branding BNP as an ultra-Islamist and Al Qaeda-connected force. On February 1, 2024, The Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam gave a huge space in his newspaper to an Islamist propagandist named Qadaruddin Shishir,” Salah Uddin wrote in his post on X.
Excerpt from Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury’s post on X
“Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s hosting Al Qaeda group including Ayman al-Zawahiri was first exposed by eminent journalist and counterterrorism expert Alex Perry, who in a TIME magazine article on April 14, 2002 had exposed Al Qaeda kingpin al-Zawahiri and other members of the terrorist group’s arrival and stay in Bangladesh.
“But Jamaat propagandist Shishir has no shame in hiding these proven facts. Instead, he challenges BNP – a party that is termed as Tier-III terrorist organization by the US courts and a party with direct link to Al Qaeda or being termed as ultra-Islamist party stating: “The original Blitz report was based on a source referred to as “it has been learnt”—meaning no source at all! The wording used when introducing the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) says a lot about what the article was trying to portray. In no way can BNP be identified as an “Islamist” party, let alone be called an “ultra-Islamist” one. The loaded language of the Blitz article, lack of any sources and evidence to support its main claim, and the website’s record of spreading political disinformation against independent journalists and critics of the government are enough to debunk its new assertion that BNP has launched a so-called India Out movement in Bangladesh”, the post read further.
The Blitz editor went on to draw attention to the way that ultra-Islamist media outlets, such as Al Jazeera, unfairly profited from such sinister schemes hatched by ultra-Islamist individuals like Pinaki.
“Taking undue advantage of such evil plots of ultra-Islamist forces, Al Jazeera in its report on February 7, 2024 gave a false description stating – responding to BNP’s “India Out” movement, Bangladeshi consumers have started boycotting Indian products.”
He further wrote how Al Jazeera in its anti-India report termed Jamaat-e-Islami activists Pinaki Bhattacharya as ‘exiled Bangladeshi physician’ and lauded him for carrying out what they termed as a ‘social media movement’.
Al Jazeera report stated “Exiled Bangladeshi physician Pinaki Bhattacharya, who fled alleged government harassment in 2018, has emerged as the key figure in this burgeoning social media movement accusing Bharat of interfering in Bangladesh’s recent elections to keep Hasina in power.”
In the end, Salah Uddin urged the authorities in New Delhi and Dhaka to take appropriate measures against Pakistani ISI asset Pinaki Bhattacharya and bring the matter to appropriate authorities in Paris. At the same time, he stresses that complaints should be pressed with YouTube, Facebook and X against Pinaki’s use of these social media platforms in spreading jihadist and extremist propaganda. France needs to immediately extradite this notorious criminal, he asserted.
Pinaki Bhattacharya sued for spreading misleading information and being involved in anti-Bangladesh activities
Notably, in 2021, the french police have received a complaint against Pinaki Bhattacharya for being involved in anti-Bangladesh activities. All European Awami League President M Nazrul Islam, who had submitted the complaint, told the media, “Pinaki Bhattacharya is involved in anti-Bangladesh activities. This so-called writer is sitting in France trying to confuse people with misleading and false information about Bangladesh, the government of Bangladesh, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Bangabandhu family.”
Nazrul said a vicious circle is trying to create chaos in non-communal Bangladesh and Pinaki Bhattacharya is one of the members of this circle led by convicted BNP leader Tarique Rahman.
“Behind them are the defeated forces of 1971 and their allies. They’re pouring huge amount of money for this propaganda. We’ve filed a complaint because such propaganda cannot be allowed to continue. Legally it needs to stop. Propaganda against Bangladesh is being carried out on French soil, which we have brought to the notice of the law of this country,” he said.
Similarly, in November 2022, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police had sued Pinaki Bhattacharya and two others under the Digital Security Act alleging them of tarnishing country’s image.
Deputy Commissioner (Media) Faruq Hossain had then said, “Pinaki posted on Facebook regarding a police operation in the capital’s Pallabi recently. The two other accused from Dhaka sent fake information to Pinaki. One of them has been arrested already. Interpol’s help will be sought to bring him [Pinaki] back to Bangladesh.”
The central government announced that the three criminal laws replacing the colonial-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and Indian Evidence Act of 1872 will come into effect from July 1, 2024.
Three new criminal laws replacing IPC, CrPC, Evidence Act to be effective from July 1 this year
The Union Home Ministry issued a gazette notification to this effect on Friday, February 23, 2023.
Sub Section (2) of Section 106 of the BNS, which concerns ‘causing death of a person by rash and negligent driving of a vehicle’, has been put on hold for now.
The Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita, and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) bills will replace the Indian Penal Code of 1860, Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) of 1973, and Indian Evidence Act, of 1872.
The three bills were first introduced in Lok Sabha on August 11, 2023, as Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhitaand theBharatiya Sakshya Bill before being referred to a parliamentary committee headed by Brij Lal for further examination.
They were passed by the Lok Sabha on December 20 before being passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 21. The three new criminal code bills became laws after getting assent from President Draupadi Murmu on December 25.
Days after a woman stood up against the bullying ‘farmers’ for stopping her and enforcing blockades, her car was vandalised by unknown miscreants. The video of the woman protesting against the ‘farmers’ had gone viral on the internet, with scores of social media users hailing her for calling out the protesters for holding the government to ransom with their protests.
The victim confirmed to OpIndia that her car was vandalised by unknown attackers who damaged her car and shattered its rear windshield.
Some "unknown miscreants" have vandalized this girl's car. Bravo. This "revenge" will go down in history as a story of ethics, honor, and valor. pic.twitter.com/aXDvuB3p9c
In the video that had gone viral, two women had a heated argument with some of the farmers over a roadblock. The two women in the car were enraged when some farmers stopped their car. The woman driving the car also showed her middle finger to the protestors.
One of the two women shows the middle finger to some protesting farmers who had blocked the road. She is seen abusing them and questioning why they stopped her car.
When a protestor inquired why she was abusing them, the visibly enraged woman responded, “Why are you doing this (blocking the road and causing inconvenience to ordinary people)?”
During the argument, one of the protesters tries to take her phone. The woman gets angry and claims: “Aapne mujh par hath kyun uthaya? Aapne mujhe harass kiya hai. Apne mujhe galat tarike se chua hai…” (Why did you lift your hand towards me? You tormented me. You touched me inappropriately).
The Delhi High Court on 23rd February refused to permit prayers at the recently demolished ‘Akhoondji mosque’ and the nearby graveyard in Mehrauli on the occasion of ‘Shab-e-Barat’ (the 15th night of the eighth month of the Islamic calendar). Muslims pray to Allah on Shab-e-Barat (the night of atonement) to pardon their sins and the misdeeds of their ancestors.
A single-judge bench of Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav after hearing an application from the Delhi Waqf Board managing committee observed that the court had instructed the site to remain in the status quo and that the location was currently in possession of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA). The Behrul Uloom Madrasa and the ‘Akhoondji mosque’ which was believed to be over 600 years old were razed by the government body on 30th January after being ruled unlawful structures in the Sanjay Van area. The DDA mentioned that the mosque was constructed during the Delhi Sultanate era.
The petitioner sought clearance for residents to utilize the site for 30 minutes before sunset on 25th February to 30 minutes after sunrise on the next day. Judge Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav, however, tossed the request, stating that the court was in session at the moment and that the primary writ petition was due on 7th March. In light of the current situation, the court declined to issue any directives at the moment.
The judge pronounced, “It is to be noted that the prayer in question as has been made in the application relates to the nature of the mandatory injunction. Respondents in their status report have stated that the structure has already been demolished and the order of status quo granted by this court is being maintained. Admittedly as of now, the site is in the possession of the Delhi Development Authority and this court is seized with the main writ petition which is to be heard on March 7. At this stage, the court under the facts of the present case is not inclined to pass any direction. Accordingly, the application stands dismissed.”
On 5th February, the Delhi High Court ordered the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to maintain the site’s current status quo. The applicant has filed a case against the DDA’s action which the court is scheduled to hear on 7th March. According to the managing committee, which was represented through counsel Shams Khwaja, the former mosque was still in use and locals had been celebrating ‘Shab-e-Barat’ there for decades. However, he contended that the visitation would not confer any rights upon them and DDA had engaged in “illegal and unlawful action in demolishing the 600-year-old masjid with the assistance of law enforcement agencies.”
Presenting through attorney Sanjay Katyal, the DDA stated that the property was located in the Ridge area. He added that the civic agency had reclaimed roughly 5,000 square meters by demolishing 77 mazars (mausoleums), Shahi Masjid, a madrasa, a graveyard and a temple close to gate number 4. Additionally, he stated that on 21st February, the court denied the application for the appointment of a local commissioner, even though the committee had recommended it.
Attorney Yoginder Handoo argued that permitting residents to access the site would cause issues because the court had ordered DDA to maintain the status quo. He noted, “Status quo has been granted and in the garb of this they will claim further rights.”
The status quo only pertains to this particular property and Justice Sachin Datta had made it clear that the DDA can take action against other illegal structures. Advocate Sham Khwaja, the petitioner’s lawyer, had contended that there was insufficient notification given to the mosque’s demolition, highlighting the mosque’s 600–700-year historical significance. He claimed that throughout the process, copies of the Quran were damaged and the madrasa and graveyard were destroyed. The petitioner argued that the committee lacked the authority to issue any demolition orders.
Sanjay Katyal, DDA Standing Counsel, refuted the allegations and guaranteed that the holy books would remain secure in the hands of the officials. Citing the mosque’s encroachment on forest property, he asserted that the mosque’s demolition followed the Religious Committee’s recommendations on 4th January. The chief executive officer (CEO) of the Delhi Waqf Board was given the opportunity to be heard by the religious committee before the decision was made, according to the DDA.
The court had requested that DDA submit a reply on 31st January that included a detailed explanation of the steps taken and their justifications with regard to the property in question. Afterwards, it imposed the status quo after hearing both sides.
Three weeks after gunshots were fired at the house of Simranjeet Singh, a friend of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Canadian police arrested two teen boys for the crime. Royal Canadian Mounted Police has said that two teenagers have been charged with the shooting incident, adding there no evidence of foreign interference have been found. Notably, as per reports, one of the boys is the son of Simranjeet Singh.
The incident took place at around 1.20 AM on 1st February in the South Surrey residence of Simranjeet Singh located near the 2800 block of 154 Street. While shots were fired at the house, nobody was injured. The home and the car parked on site was riddled with bullets.
RCMP said that two 16-year-olds were arrested on 12 February and are being held in custody. The accused are awaiting their next court appearance. The British Columbia Prosecution Service has approved charges of discharging a firearm into a place and possessing a loaded prohibited firearm against the teenagers. Police said that they seized three firearms and multiple electronic devices from the accused.
The shooting at Simranjeet Singh’s house took place just a few days after he organised a pro-Khalistan protest at the Indian consulate in Vancouver.
While the identities of the accused have not been revealed as they are minors, some media reports are claiming that one of the two is a son is a son of Simranjeet Singh, and the shooting was the result of a family feud. According to unconfirmed reports, one of the boys is the son of Singh’s first wife, and he allegedly wanted revenge on Singh for mistreating his mother.
Notably, after the incident, Khalistani groups in Canada had blamed Indian govt for the attack. British Columbia Gurdwara Council spokesperson Moninder Singh had said that Simranjeet Singh was targeted by India. He had said, “This isn’t extortion, this isn’t a local matter, this isn’t a personal matter, this is a political matter. It’s extended, now again, from New Delhi, and landed in our lap in Canada which is extremely unfortunate.”
Moninder Singh had also alleged that the shooting incident was linked to the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot and killed in broad daylight outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey in 2023.
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun of Sikhs for Justice had also made similar allegations against India, saying that Simranjeet Singh is a member of the Khalistan movement and an associate of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. These allegations were in line of Canadian govt’s allegation that India was behind the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
However, now RCMP has denied all these allegations, saying that investigators have not established any links to foreign interference. “There was speculation circulating that this was connected to foreign interference. Investigators have not established any links to foreign interference in relation to this matter,” said a statement issued by the RCMP.
After this clarification, the Sikh community has demanded an apology from BC Gurdwara Council for blaming India. They have said that the council spokesperson lied and tried to mislead the investigation into the shooting.
After a prolonged protest, resistance by victims of systemic sexual exploitation, and massive pressure from the opposition BJP in the state, the true extent of criminal antecedents of TMC leader and Sandeshkhai mastermind Sheikh Shahjahan has started to come out in the open. Facing massive criticism and mounting pressure from the BJP, the West Bengal government was forced to start an outreach program six days ago. Through the program, it asked people to submit any complaints they have at the Block Development Office (BDO) in the Sandeshkhali village.
The BDO has received more than 700 complaints against TMC leader of excesses against villagers in the last six days, Indian Express reported on Saturday (24th February).
Speaking with The Indian Express, Block development officer of Sandeshkhali-II Block, Arun Kumar Samanta shared that out of more than 700 complaints, around 150 concerns with land grabbing-related accusations, while around 70 were related to money and extortion.
He said, “We have received over 700 complaints in the last six days. Over 150 were land-related and 70 were money- and extortion-related. We have started the process of identifying and returning land to genuine owners.”
Notably, after TMC’s local leader Sheikh Shahjahan went into hiding in connection with the Enforcement Directorate’s crackdown on an alleged ration scam, multiple women came forward in his absence, alleging mass land grabbing and systematic or institutionalised rape of Hindu women by Shahjahan, along with his two accomplices, Uttam Sardar and Shibu Prasad Hazra, and their henchmen. While Uttam Sardar and Shibu Hazra were arrested earlier in this case, Shahjahan is still absconding.
Pertinent to note that this outreach program by Sandeshkhali’s BDO is in addition to the West Bengal Police’s outreach that asked women to register complaints of sexual assault.
The BDO officer Samanta added, “Many complaints said land was forcibly taken from them. Some said land was taken on lease but money was not paid. Then there are applications related to state government services like old age pension, jobs cards, etc.”
Apart from taking complaints from villagers, the local administration has also reportedly started to return land that had allegedly been illegally grabbed by TMC men and converted to fisheries.
Samanta further added, “Police are looking into law and order. But we have initiated the process of land return. After receiving a complaint, we process it and our officers go for field visits and inspections. The land is then returned to genuine owners. So far we have identified 60 such land plots and started handing them over.”
However, the villagers have pointed out that on account of years of land grabbing and using it for fisheries, the land has been rendered unfit for agriculture. Regarding how fisheries (saltwater land) can be made agriculture-ready, the BDO said, “You will see that the water is drained in most of the land after it is returned. Then we will have to wait for the rains. After the rains, farmers will be able to cultivate paddy here again.”
According to Samanta, each complaint about extortion allegations is being verified and then referred to higher-ups, who will take a call on how to return the money to villagers.
A day earlier on 23rd February, the administration freed a public playground in Sandeshkhali which was reportedly illegally grabbed by TMC strongman Sheikh Shahjahan for over two years. He had allegedly locked it and prevented locals from using it.
The BDO has no official record of the total extent of land grabbing and conversion of agricultural land into area for fisheries
According to a senior officer of the state agriculture department, Sandeshkhali has around 8,000 hectares of agricultural land, but there is no estimate of how much was turned into fisheries over the years. The officer stated that paddy and some seasonal vegetables have traditionally been grown here. “Over the years, a large part of the land was transformed into fisheries. But that isn’t reflected in the records,” the officer said.
A local, Utpal Maity is among those who will get their land back. He had 3.5 bigha land which will be returned by the local administration. He too reiterated the same fear stating that the usage of land for fisheries has changed the character of the land.
He said, “The administration identified and demarcated my land yesterday. The land was forcibly taken by Shahjahan and his goons in 2019. But the problem is that salt water was added to the land for years for fisheries. Now its character has changed. To make it fertile, it will take three or more years.”
Mahanta Sardar (56) is among those who have lined up in front of the BDO. According to his allegation, the TMC men forcibly took his land on lease but didn’t pay anything for several years and was given a life threat when he objected to this.
Mahanta Sardar said, “TMC men forcibly grabbed four bighas of my land. They said they will give me money to lease it, but we didn’t get anything for three years. When I protested, Uttam Sardar threatened to kill me.”
Reiterating the feelings of others, Alaka Sarkar (33), who was also in the queue, stated that recent developments have given them the courage to raise their voice.
On Friday (23rd February), Trinamool Congress (TMC) politician Derek O’Brien announced that the party will contest from all 42 Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal, thereby ruling out possible seat-sharing arrangement with I.N.D.I. Alliance partner Congress.
While speaking to PTI, Rajya Sabha MP made it clear that there was ‘no change’ in the stand of the Trinamool Congress about fielding candidates on all seats in West Bengal.
He added that TMC would also contest one seat in Meghalaya and a few others in Assam in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
TMC leader Derek O'Brien says 'no change' in party's stand of contesting all 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal, a few in Assam and one seat in Meghalaya, amid reports of seat-sharing talks with Congress
“A few weeks ago…West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee stated that TMC is fighting all the 42 seats in Bengal. We are also in the fray in a few seats in Assam and the Tura Lok Sabha seat in Meghalaya. There is no change in this position,” emphasised Derek O’Brien.
In the meantime, a desperate Congress was seen clinging to the hope of having some level of seat arrangement with the TMC.
Veteran Congress leader Jairam Ramesh told ANI, “Discussions are underway. Our doors are always open for TMC. Mamata Banerjee and TMC have said that they want to strengthen INDIA Alliance and the biggest motive is to defeat the BJP”
He further added, “Heated discussions keep taking place between the two parties but we respect Mamata Banerjee.”
War of words between TMC and Congress over seat-sharing
On 2nd February this year, Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee took potshots at the Congress party for its inability to win 40 seats on its own in the Lok Sabha and aspiring for a large seat-sharing arrangement in West Bengal.
“We do not even know whether Congress will win 40 seats (in the Lok Sabha). Do you have too much pride? I had promised to give you 2 seats (in Bengal). I had assured to make you win in those constituencies. But you said that 2 seats are not enough. Do you want us to give you all 42 seats in Bengal? Rejected. Since then, we have no relation or talks with the Congress,” she had remarked.
In January 2024, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury hit out at Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee and called her an ‘opportunist.’
The development came following media reports that the TMC was planning to avoid seat-sharing with Congress and field candidates in all Lok Sabha constituencies.
He said, “We won’t fight the election with Mamata’s help. Congress knows how to fight on its own strength, and Mamata Banerjee should remember that it was with Congress’s support she came to power in Bengal.”
Reportedly, TMC had offered only 2 seats to the grand old party while it was hoping for a larger share of seats. Later, Congress scion Rahul Gandhi publicly snubbed Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury for claiming that Congress would fight elections in West Bengal without the assistance of the Trinamool Congress.
While speaking about the matter during his ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’, Gandhi remarked, “Mamata Banerjee is very close to me. Sometimes our leaders say something. Such comments won’t matter.”
He added that talks with the Trinamool Congress on seat-sharing in West Bengal for the 2024 Lok Sabha election were underway although Mamta Banerjee has clearly denied such assertions in her latest speech.
