Mumbai-based emcee and songwriter Loka, born Abhinay Lok Bista, recently revealed that he was unknowingly baptised and converted to Christianity in hostels and convent schools during his childhood. The rapper made the shocking revelation in the podcast Untriggered with Aminjaz.
Talking about his childhood days, Loka shed light on how he had been baptised and almost converted to Christianity, had it not been for his mother who came to his rescue. “I was in a Xaviers’ hostel. They had me baptised and almost converted me to Christianity. When my mother learned about these shenanigans, she came and got me out the same day,” Loka says.
Bombay rapper Loka on getting unknowingly converted to Christianity and brainwashing in convent schools and hostels [Untriggered Podcast] pic.twitter.com/ql4NZxpMUD
When asked if he converted consciously and out of his own volition, Loka said, “No, they don’t seek permission or tell you openly that they are converting you to Christianity. It happens subtly. By the time my mother learned about it, I had already celebrated 3 Christmas and became the Rosery boy.
He then further added that evangelism is rampant in schools and hostels, where missionaries employ subtle and stealthy means to convert students to Christianity. Here is the entire podcast:-
Many consider Loka to be a prominent figure among the influential Hip-Hop artists in Mumbai. The young emcee has played a significant role in crafting impactful rap records, including the “Autobiography” EP, the collaboration “Kya Bolte Bro” with Emiway Bantai, “Mafia,” and more. In March of this year, Loka’s management released “Burey Din” during a period when the rapper was undergoing trial and being held in prison.
On Thursday, 9th November, the Central government disputed the maintainability of the West Bengal government’s petition accusing the CBI of registering FIRs and launching investigations even when the state govt has withdrawn general consent for CBI probes in the state. The Centre told the Supreme Court that the state government cannot sue the Central government as the CBI is “independent” and that it does not control the probe agency.
It is notable that as per law before CBI starts probing a case in a state, the state govt must authorise the probe. However, most state governments issue general consent to the central probe agency, eliminating the need to obtain consent for each and every state. However, some states withdraw this general consent from time to time, often for political reasons.
A bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and Aravind Kumar began hearing the case on Thursday. The Court was hearing an original suit filed by the West Bengal government under Article 131 of the Constitution on the Supreme Court’s original jurisdiction over Centre-State disputes.
The petition cited the provisions of the 1946 Delhi Special Police Establishment Act and claimed that the CBI has been conducting investigations and filing FIRs without the State government’s approval, as required by the Act. The TMC government argued that since it has withdrawn general consent given to CBI, the FIRs lodged by the CBI cannot be proceeded with.
Appearing for the Centre, Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta told the Supreme Court bench that the independent existence of CBI “is in fact a product of the judgments of the apex court wherein the CBI was vested with a separate legal and functional identity.” Mehta said that the CBI cannot be a party of such suits under Article 131 adding that the petition should be dismissed.
“There is no cause of action against Union. Under the Supreme Court Rules, it is grounds for dismissal. Order 26 Rule 6. CBI is not under the Centre. No suit against it under 131 is maintainable … You cannot re-litigate by changing nomenclature and suppressing facts for favourable interim orders,” Mehta said.
Tushar Mehta additionally argued that the CBI is not a branch of the central government, but the Union of India, through the Department of Personnel and Training, is the respondent in this case. “The DoPT has nothing to do with the CBI’s registration, investigation, or prosecution of cases…If the department cannot direct the registration of a case or setting aside of the registered offence, nor direct the manner of investigation, how will the cause of action arise against it?” Mehta asked.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, who represented the West Bengal government, said the suit “has nothing to do with the CBI,” which he described as “just a repository of that power.”
Moreover, the Union of India raised a preliminary objection based on the pending status of collateral procedures stemming from the same cause of action. The Solicitor General exemplified this point by reference to an ongoing special leave case against a 2021 Calcutta High Court ruling ordering a CBI investigation into accusations of post-election violence.
“Can they maintain a proceeding under Article 131 when the same cause of action is pending in collateral proceedings, a fact that has been wilfully and deliberately suppressed? The suit is fraudulent and liable to be dismissed only on that ground. Even if the facts are different but the question of law is the same…the suit is liable to be dismissed on grounds of the principle of res sub judice.”
Appearing for the West Bengal government, senior advocate Kapil Sibbal challenged the Central government’s assertions. He claimed that the Solicitor General erred in using language like ‘fraudulent’ to describe the litigation.
He went on to say that the Union government supervises the CBI and that the major relief sought was that cases not be registered without the consent of the State government. The matter will now be heard on November 23.
Ahead of the upcoming elections in Telangana, the Congress party has resorted to open and brazen minority appeasement politics in the name of ‘inclusivity.’
In a tweet on Thursday (9th November), the X (formerly Twitter) handle of Telangana Congress listed out a list of doles to be given exclusively to religious minorities (Muslims, Christians, Sikhs etc) in the State. It essentially implied that the benefits would not apply to the Hindu community.
The grand old party promised to provide ₹10,000 in financial assistance to 10th pass students, ₹15000 to 12th pass students, ₹25000 for graduates, ₹1 lakh for postgraduates and ₹5 lakhs for MPhil and PhD holders exclusively belonging to the minority community.
The party declared, “Monthly honorarium of Rs.10,000 12,000 for priests from all religions including Imams, Muezzins, Khadims, Pastors and Granthis”. This is similar to the Imam bhata given to Islamic clerics by the Mamata Banerjee government.
The Congress announced that all land and property records of the Wagt Board would be digitised. It has assured to reclaim ‘encroached properties’ and allot land exclusively for Christian and Muslim graveyards.
Prior to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, about 123 properties in Lutyen’s Delhi were given to the Delhi Waqf Board by the Congress-led UPA government.
Job recruitments, houses exclusively for ‘minorities’
The Congress also vowed to establish ‘Telangana Sikh Minority Finance Corporation’ and fill vacancies in minority institutions. It promised to conduct special training for recruitment of ‘Urdu medium teachers.’
The grand old party promised to amend the Telangana State Minorities Commission Act of 1998 [pdf] and make it a permanent body. It will then table annual reports and make policy changes for the ‘welfare’ of minorities in the State.
Under the pretext of ‘inclusivity’, the Congress party has promised to provide a house site and ₹5 lakhs for construction for minority families who do not own houses. Besides, it promised cash support of ₹1,00,000 for newly married couples belonging to Muslim, Christian, and Sikh Faiths.
In order to woo Muslim voters, the party said, “Revitalise SETWIN and skill development training: transform Quil Qutub Shah Urban Development authority (QQSUDA) to develop infrastructure in the Old City.”
Congress party announces freebies ahead of Telangana Vidhan Sabha elections
In September this year, the Congress party announced a plethora of freebies and cash handouts to entice the voters. On September 17), Congress President Malikarjun Kharge said that the party would provide ₹12000 to farm workers annually, and ₹15000 per acre per year to tenant and landholding farmers.
Congress also claimed to provide ₹500 per quintal extra for paddy, besides the Minimum Support Price (MSP), under ‘Rythu Bharosa’ scheme. Party leader Sonia Gandhi also announced ₹2500 monthly dole for women under the ‘Mahalakshmi scheme’.
In line with its poll promises in Karnataka, the grand-old party also announced free rides for women in Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRC) buses and free electricity for up to 200 units.
“2,500 per month financial assistance will be given to women in Telangana under the Mahalakshmi scheme, gas cylinders at ₹500, and free travel for women in TSRC buses across the state, to fulfill the aspirations of the people of Telangana we are announcing 6 guarantees and we are committed to fulfill each one of them,” Sonia Gandhi was heard saying.
The Congress party also vowed to provide LPG cylinders at ₹500 and ₹5 lakh under ‘Indiraamma Indulu’ housing scheme. Earlier in July this year, Congress scion Rahul Gandhi announced that the party would provide ₹4000 monthly handouts to senior citizens under the ‘Cheyutha pension’ scheme if it is elected to power in Telangana.
On Thursday (9th November), two Jewish facilities in Montreal, Canada were attacked by assailants days after the violent confrontation between the pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian groups at Concordia University. Two Jewish schools Yeshiva Gedolah and Talmud Torah Elementary School were attacked by assailants who opened fire at the schools in a deliberate attempt.
BREAKING:
Terror attack in Montreal, Canada
Unknown assailant fires a gun at 2 Jewish facilities – Yeshiva Gedolah and Talmud Torah Elementary School.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took cognizance of the event and condemned the attack. “The reports of overnight shootings at Jewish schools in Montreal are horrifying. I condemn these violent acts of antisemitism in the strongest terms possible – and I want to be clear: This hate has no place in Canada, and we must all stand united against it,” the Prime Minister tweeted.
The reports of overnight shootings at Jewish schools in Montreal are horrifying. I condemn these violent acts of antisemitism in the strongest terms possible – and I want to be clear: This hate has no place in Canada, and we must all stand united against it.
According to the initial reports, the incident is said to have happened on Thursday (9th November). Earlier on Monday (6th November), a West Island synagogue and Jewish community center were targeted by firebombs.
Tensions have spiked since 7th October when more than 1,400 Israelis, many of them civilians, were murdered in an attack from Gaza by Hamas, which the Canadian government describes as a radical Islamist-nationalist terrorist organization.
Israel’s counteroffensive against Hamas after the brutal terrorist attack has sparked reactions and violent protests all across the Western world, where pro-Hamas and pro-Islamist groups have been blaming Israel and condemning its bombing on Gaza.
Jewish communities seek government and public help
“Schools are a place where we send our most treasured possessions — our children. No child in Montreal should see their place of learning targeted by a weapon created to kill. It’s odious and evil. Our community has 250 years of history in Quebec. We are proud, we are Quebecers, we’re not going anywhere. This attempted campaign of terror against us will not succeed,” said Eta Yudin, Quebec vice president at the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.
The attack on the schools, according to Yudin, is all the more traumatic since it occurred on the anniversary of Kristallnacht, an outbreak of anti-Jewish violence in 1938 that signified the start of the Holocaust.
Meanwhile, Yair Szlak, the CEO of Federation CJA, another Jewish organization also commented on the issue and asked the government to help in the case. “If we don’t name what is wrong in society today, antisemitism will continue to fester, hate will continue to grow. We need everybody around us to say, ‘Enough is enough — we can no longer stand quietly as Jewish hate perpetuates in our streets,” he was quoted as saying by the Montreal Gazette.
Montreal Police searching for clues
The police officers are searching for clues at the Yeshiva Gedola-Merkaz Hatorah school after shots were fired at two Jewish schools Thursday (9th November). Montreal police say two Jewish schools in the city were hit overnight by gunshots. “Nobody was inside at the time of the shootings,” the officers confirmed.
Vincent Richer, the assistant director general of the Montreal police department further stated that the police officers have decided to increase their visibility at areas of significance for the targeted communities. “I wish to remind everyone that hateful acts are unacceptable and we take them seriously. They are prohibited by the Criminal Code. Montreal police are in close contact with representatives of the Jewish and Muslim communities. Anyone feeling harassed or witnessing such acts should call 911,” the ADGP said.
Montreal Police looking for the clues
Rise of Antisemitism in US and Canada
Anti-semitism has been surging in the US and Canada since the Israel-Hamas war erupted on 7th October. OpIndia reported last month how Jewish students in several countries including the US were attacked and harassed by Hamas supporters at various universities. On 30th October, a Cornell University student was arrested for circulating horrendous anti-Jewish death threats over the campus. Before this, on 25th October, Jewish students at Cooper Union College in the United States were kept locked in the library at night by a security team as a precaution against a pro-Palestinian mob that attempted to burst through the doors.
Recently on Sunday (5th November), a 65-year-old Jewish man was killed after an anti-Israeli protestor hit him on the head with a megaphone. The incident took place at a pro-Palestine rally in the Westlake Village area in North Los Angeles city in the United States.
Also, a Jewish woman was stabbed at her residence in Lyon city in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France. As per reports, the unidentified attacker stabbed the victim twice in the abdomen. He also drew the Nazi symbol (also called Hakenkreuz or hooked cross) on the door of the apartment. The assailant, who was wearing all black, managed to flee the crime scene.
Hate crimes up since 7th October in Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary, say Police
Earlier, on 3rd November, Ottawa Police said in a statement to CBC News that reports of hate crimes had gone up in several Canadian cities since 7th October when Hamas launched its brutal attack on Israel, including spikes of antisemitism and Islamophobia in Toronto and Montreal.
Police in Toronto, which has the largest Jewish and Muslim populations in Canada, said hate crime reports were over twice as high for much of October compared to the same period last year. Myron Demkiw, the city’s police chief, stated there were 15 noted antisemitic hate crimes from 7th October to 25th October, compared to seven in 2022 and three in 2021.
TPS is investigating two hate-motivated incidents involving mezuzahs. In one incident a mezuzah was stolen, in the second, hateful remarks were made. Call 4168082222 if you experience any intimidation, harassment, or hateful behaviour.
Demkiw also stated that five Islamophobic hate crimes had been reported between 7th and 25th of October this year. There were none in 2022, and only one in 2021. Demkiw characterized what he found as “a very significant rise.”
For the same time period, Montreal police indicated 14 and 38 hate crimes against the Arab-Muslim and Jewish communities, respectively. In 2022, there were a total of 50 hate crimes targeting religion and 21 non-criminal hate “incidents” for the entire year.
In Ottawa, police recorded 29 hate-motivated instances between after 7th of October and the 23rd of October. They were unable to provide data from the previous year, but the majority of the 29 incidents “are somewhat linked to the ongoing conflict in the Gaza area,” Cailey Walker, the service’s spokesperson was quoted as saying.
According to Matt Messenger, Calgary police hate crimes coordinator, “11 files came in after just two weeks of the attack by Hamas. Situations that cause an increase in hate crimes usually only have a short-term impact. However, according to Messenger, these hate crimes do not appear to be abating.
“It’s been spread out since 7th October whereas in previous years … we’ve seen a bulk of files come in the first couple days and kind of fade away,” he said.
Anti-semitism and its history
Antisemitism refers to prejudice or hatred of Jews. The most extreme instance of antisemitism in history occurred during the Holocaust, which was the state-sponsored persecution and murder of European Jews by Nazi Germany and its allies between 1933 and 1945.
Pogroms, which were violent riots against Jews that were often incited by the government, were among the most prevalent examples of antisemitism throughout history. Blood libels—false rumors that Jews used the blood of Christian children for ritual purposes—were frequently used to incite pogroms.
The Nazi Party, established in 1919, gave political expression to racist theories. Propaganda against Jews played a part in the Party’s rise to prominence.
Following the Nazi party’s rise to power in 1933, anti-Jewish economic boycotts, book burnings, and legislation targeting the Jewish community were all enacted. The Nuremberg Laws of 1935 established a racial hierarchy by classifying Jews according to their “blood.”
The Nazis demolished synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses’ storefronts across Germany and Austria on the evening of 9h November 1938, in what is now known as the Kristallnacht pogrom. This incident signaled the start of a destructive period when Nazi antisemitism concentrated solely on genocide.
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has provisionally attached three immovable properties belonging to CMD and Chairman Hero MotoCorp, Pawan Kant Munjal. The properties are located in Delhi and are estimated to be worth Rs 24.95 crore.
In a release Friday, the central enforcement agency said it initiated an investigation on the basis of a prosecution complaint filed by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence against Munjal and “others” for taking foreign exchange or currency out of India illegally.
The prosecution complaint alleged that foreign currency/foreign exchange equivalent to Rs 54 crore was illegally taken out of India.
The investigation claimed that Pawan Munjal got issued foreign exchange/ foreign currency in the name of other persons and thereafter utilised the same for his personal expenditure abroad.
“The foreign currency/ foreign exchange was drawn from authorised dealers by an event management company in the name of various employees and thereafter handed over to Pawan Kant Munjal’s relationship manager. The relationship manager carried such foreign currency/ foreign exchange in cash/ card secretly, for the personal expenditure of Pawan Kant Munjal during his personal/ business trips,” the ED release stated.
The modus was adopted to override the limits of USD 2.5 Lakh per annum per person under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme of RBI, it added.
The agency ED had earlier conducted search operations on August 1, 2023 with respect to P K Munjal and related entities/persons and seized valuables worth Rs 25 crore along with digital evidences and other incriminating evidences. The total value of seizure and attachment now stands at about Rs 50 crore.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
On Friday (10th November), the Madhya Pradesh Police arrested one individual identified as Rahim Khan for threatening and blackmailing a married woman and her minor sister to convert to Islam. The accused forced and blackmailed the woman to follow the Islamic rituals and divorce her husband to marry him.
According to the reports, the Police took cognizance of the event and arrested the individual based on the complaint filed by the woman. The woman stated in the complaint that the accused was known to her mother and had arrived at their home for the birthday party of her 12-year-old sister. He then deceptively transferred the photos of her mother to his phone.
The next thing he did was to put pressure on the woman to establish sexual relations with him. He uploaded the picture of the victim woman over the internet and also made derogatory comments about it. He later blackmailed the woman to establish sexual relations with him.
Rahim would force the woman to give divorce to her husband and marry him instead. He also forced the woman to follow Islamic rituals and convert her religion to Islam. On refusing, the man would say, “We are allowed to have four marriages in our community.”
Further, he wanted the woman to make her 12-year-old sister learn some Islamic rituals and practices.
He tried to convert the woman and her sister to Islam. He would also ask the minor girl to read Fateha-Sifara. ACP Kunan Mandloi commented on the matter and said that the accused has been booked under various sections of the law. The accused has been arrested and now is being interrogated by the Police.
The Rishi Sunak-led UK government has minced no words in its opposition to the pro-Palestinian march planned for 11th November, when the United Kingdom marks Armistice Day. Pro-Palestinian groups in London have decided to organise a march calling for a ceasefire in Gaza on Armistice Day, which commemorates the signing of the Armistice which brought an end to the First World War and remembers those who died in the war.
On 3rd November, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak underlined the potentially violent nature of the pro-Palestinian demonstrations, something that countries around the world have witnessed.
He said, “To plan protests on Armistice Day is provocative and disrespectful, and there is a clear and present risk that the Cenotaph and other war memorials could be desecrated, something that would be an affront to the British public and the values we stand for.”
The UK PM and the chief of Metropolitan Police have been at loggerheads over the issue.
On 8th November, UK Health Secretary Steve Barclay said that it’s “provocative to have a protest like that on that day” even as he supported the right to protest. This was followed by an article written by Home Secretary Suella Braverman.
Braverman categorically stated that while vigils held by the British Jewish community in London have been dignified, “it is the pro-Palestinian movement that has mobilised tens of thousands of angry demonstrators and marched them through London every weekend”.
“From the start, these events have been problematic, not just because of violence around the fringes but because of the highly offensive content of chants, posters and stickers. This is not a time for naiveté. We have seen with our own eyes that terrorists have been valorised, Israel has been demonised as Nazis and Jews have been threatened with further massacres,” Braverman wrote.
Braverman did not mince her words when objecting sternly to the planned pro-Palestinian protests. She wrote, “Now as we approach a particularly significant weekend in the life of our nation, one which calls for respect and commemoration, the hate marchers — a phrase I do not resile from — intend to use Armistice Day to parade through London in yet another show of strength.”
The Home Secretary also pointed that some of the organisers of the planned march have links to terrorist groups, including Hamas.
Braverman pointed out that there is a “perception that senior police officers play favourites when it comes to protesters”. She wrote, “Right-wing and nationalist protesters who engage in aggression are rightly met with a stern response yet pro-Palestinian mobs displaying almost identical behaviour are largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law? I have spoken to serving and former police officers who have noted this double standard.”
Braverman also mentioned that football fans are policed more as compared to the “politically connected minority groups who are favoured by the left”. One of the possible reasons for this, she pointed out, could be the concerns among the police force about facing flak for taking action against such groups.
Braverman concluded her op-ed with what appeared to be both, a warning of sorts and a call to the police to display an “assertive and proactive approach to any displays of hate”.
“If the march goes ahead this weekend, the public will expect to see an assertive and proactive approach to any displays of hate, breaches of conditions and general disorder,” the Home Secretary wrote.
Notably, last month, Braverman sought answers from the chief of the Metropolitan police regarding the force’s decision not to arrest pro-Palestinian protesters calling for “jihad” against Israel. The Metropolitan Police had downplayed open calls for jihad which were raised by Hamas supporters in Central London during a protest on 21st October (Saturday).
Instead of taking cognisance of the matter, the UK’s Metropolitan Police came out in defence of the Islamists and said that calls for jihad against Israel had nothing to do with terrorism.
Meanwhile, the Met chief has said that there is no legal ground as yet to ban the pro-Palestinian march on 11th November.
Metropolitan police chief Sir Mark Rowley said, “If over the next few days the intelligence evolves further and we get to such a high threshold – and it’s only been done once in a decade where we need to say to the home secretary ‘we think we need to ban the march element’ – then of course we will do.”
He added that this is, however, a last resort which the force has not reached yet. “There will be a protest this weekend – the law provides no mechanism to ban a gathering, a static protest, a rally, anything like that… if the organisers want that, then it will happen.”
Moreover, UK PM Rishi Sunak has reportedly said that he will hold the Met police Chief “accountable” for allowing the demonstration on Armistice Day. This came after the UK PM held a meeting with the Met Chief to discuss the protest.
The UK security forces and local government agencies have often been criticised for not acting against radical Islamism for fear of being labelled racist and Islamophobic. The prevailing grooming gangs in the country are a case in point.
Interestingly, the Met police have given a green flag to the 11th November march despite having stated on 28th October that antisemitic hate crimes have seen a 14-fold increase ever since the 7th October attacks in Israel by Hamas terrorists.
On 31st October, a Palestine supporter in Birmingham threw a box full of rats painted in the colours of the Palestinian flag inside a McDonald’s outlet.
In a shocking case of love jihad in Lucknow, a Muslim youth named Mohammad Mazhar posed as a Hindu named Rahul to lure a married Hindu girl into his love trap, record her obscene videos, and use it to blackmail and rape her multiple times. The accused had drugged the victim before raping her and recording the act.
The matter pertains to the Madiyaon police station precinct wherein a Sitapur resident victim had a dispute with her husband and she came to Lucknow’s Madiyaon a few months ago. While searching for rented accommodation, the victim woman met petrol pump operator Mohammad Hasan.
Subsequently, Mohammad Hasan gave the Hindu woman’s mobile number to accused Mazhar who talked to the victim pretending to be Rahul and promised to help her in finding a rented home. The two soon started talking over the phone frequently and the accused posing as Rahul promised the victim to marry her.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Mazhar raped the Hindu victim by intoxicating her and filming an obscene video. Using that video, the accused began sexually abusing the woman repeatedly. Later when the victim learned about the real identity of Rahul, she confronted the accused.
The victim has alleged that Mazhar was pressuring her to convert to Islam along with her children, perform Nikah with him and move to Pakistan. Accused Mazhar said that he would arrange fake passports and visas as well. However, when the victim objected to this, he threatened to kill her, along with her husband and children.
The police have registered a case against accused Mohammad Mazhar, his brother-in-law and a friend under relevant sections. The accused has been arrested and further investigation into the matter is underway.
Notably, a similar love jihad case was reported from Lucknow recently wherein a Muslim man named Saud Alam posed as a Hindu named Raj to lure a Hindu girl staying in Lucknow into his love trap and had sexual relations with her. But when the man vanished after some days, the girl arrived at his house, only to find that he is a Muslim. Following this she filed a police complaint.
In addition to massive flour shortage, soaring inflation, exorbitant electricity bills and depreciating currency among other things, Pakistani citizens are now facing difficulties in securing new passports due to scarcity of lamination paper used in printing passports, which is yet another evidence of the crippling state of affairs in the country.
According to a report in The Express Tribune, the Directorate General of Immigration & Passports (DGI&P) informed that a lack of lamination paper which is used in passports and usually imported from France has caused a shortfall of travel documents across the country and it has led to delays in their issuance.
Therefore, thousands of individuals who require the green book to travel overseas for employment, school or leisure are stuck in the country and there does not appear to be a way out of their present predicament. One such person is Zain Ijaz from Gujrat who had always wanted to go to university in the United Kingdom. His dream seemed to be within reach when he was eventually accepted to an institution in the western nation. However, his dreams are now in jeopardy due to the delay in receiving his passport.
Another person named Gul who is a native of a far-flung area in Punjab also shared his distress and lamented, “I was all set to move to Dubai for work soon. My family and I were beyond ecstatic that our fortunes would finally change but the mismanagement of DGI&P seems to have cost me my golden ticket out of poverty and this country.”
Hira, a Peshawar student, resonated with Gul’s plight. “My student visa for Italy was recently approved and I had to be in the country in October. However, the unavailability of a passport robbed me of an opportunity to leave,” an obviously irate Hira bemoaned and added that it was wrong that she was having to bear the brunt of an incompetent government agency.
It is important to note that this inefficiency is a recurring problem. The DGI&P’s debt to printers and a dearth of lamination sheets caused passport printing to come to an identical standstill in 2013.
Qadir Yar Tiwana, the Director General for Media of the Ministry of Interior which is the parent ministry of DGI&P responded to inquiries regarding the ineptness of the department claiming that the government was working its hardest to resolve the problem. He assured, “The situation will soon be under control and passport issuance will continue as normal,” and alleged that the department had already seen a consistent decrease in the backlog.
Faizan, a resident of Karachi’s North Nazimabad neighbourhood, which according to government estimates receives 3,000 passport applications daily, does not, however, believe the official’s guarantees. “I submitted my application more than 2 months ago and have not received my passport yet,” he revealed and blamed DGI&P’s poor administration which forced him to postpone his vacation.
Amir, a city dweller in the Gulshan-e-Iqbal region agreed with Faizan and asserted that the DGI&P was deceiving the public regarding the reduction in the backlog of travel documents. He mentioned that although he was provided with an SMS last month from the DGI&P indicating that his passport was available for pickup, the workers at the relevant office informed him that it had not yet arrived. “My passport has not arrived to date and I have had to cancel all my plans for travelling abroad,” he complained.
Muhammad Imran, a Peshawar resident who is facing the same scenario is fed up with the DGI&P misleading applicants rather than providing them with the facts. “Ever since September, the passport office has been stating that your passport will come next week but multiple weeks have passed and they keep repeating the same.” His local passport office did not provide him with a specific timeline and he was forced to cancel his Umrah reservations in Saudi Arabia.
Regional passport offices located in multiple cities were reportedly unaware of a specific schedule as well. For example, under the condition of anonymity, a senior officer of the passport office in Peshawar unveiled that they could only process 12 to 13 passports per day compared to 3,000 to 4,000 passports per day previously and they had no idea when the pendency would improve. He disclosed, “People may have to wait for another month or two.”
Saeed Ahmed Abbasi, Director of Passports and Immigration at the Zonal Office Saddar, Karachi, refused to reply when pressed for a deadline and claimed that he was not authorised to do so.
Notably, Pakistan has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons lately. The South Asian country has gained notoriety for its faltering economy, growing terrorism, tumultuous politics and mounting debt for the past many years with no end to its escalating woes in sight.
On 9th November, it came to light that the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee’s draft report accused Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra of “unethical conduct”. The report stated that she shared her login credentials with unauthorised individuals. The draft revealed that Moitra made multiple trips to UAE, and her account was logged in 47 times from Dubai. The Ethics committee sought a report on IP addresses and emphasised the legal consequences of the MP’s action.
Recommending Moitra’s expulsion, the report called it “unethical conduct” and “contempt of the House” while seeking a government inquiry into the matter. OpIndia accessed a portion of the report draft containing conversations between the committee members with Mahua Moitra and Danish Ali.
The discussion between the committee members and Mahua Moitra revolved around her foreign trips and where she stayed. The questions led to a heated exchange centred around the “appropriateness” of the questions. Moitra and the opposition leaders vehemently raised objections to the questions.
Calling them “intrusive” questions, Moitra expressed her frustration and tried to play a victim card. She adamantly said, “This is absolutely no business of the Ethics Committee.” She further expressed her intent to file a formal complaint against the Ethics Committee member and the chairman, asserting, “I will file a complaint against the Ethics Committee and against you. I will file as a Member of Parliament.”
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP Kunwar Danish Ali, Janata Dal (United) MP Giridhar Yadav, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Sunita Duggal, BJP MP Subhash Ramrao Bhamre and others were present at the hearing. Yadav, and Ali had a heated conversation over the aaleged intrusive nature of the questions. Ali condemned the questions asked about Moitra’s travel and perceived it as an insult to a female MP. He said, “You cannot insult a female MP like this.” He further accused the committee members of following a script and questioned the chairman’s understanding of the questions that were being asked. Ali disrupted the meeting multiple times.
Sunita Duggal tried to intervene, saying, “It is her prerogative, her right to reply or not.” As the conversation continued, the chairman proposed a vote to determine the course of action. However, Yadav objected to it and said, “We won’t listen to anything you say. You have been asking questions for an hour. You will ask 100 questions, what does it mean?”
Moitra accepted she shared credentials with Hiranandani’s office
In the parts of the conversation that OpIndia accessed, Moitra accepted twice that she had shared credentials with Darshan Hiranandani. Agitated by the so-called “personal questions”, she said, “We are here to determine two things. Number one, whether I gave the login and password to Darshan Hiranandani, to which he had unauthorized access. I have already told you since 2019, he has had a person in his office typing my questions. The questions were mine but not unauthorized because it was my OTP. So he did not have access. The first question has already been answered.”
Moitra categorically refused to accept that she received kickbacks from Hiranandani in exchange for the questions asked in the Parliament. She claimed that the assertion that she received kickbacks was based on the ex-boyfriend’s complaint, referring to Supreme Court Advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai.
She added, “Second question, what did he give you? You tell me what proof you have or what he gave you. I do not have to disprove it. You give me the evidence of what you have. I will not sit here and answer the long list of what some ex-boyfriend has given you. That is not the job of the Ethics Committee of the Parliament of India, and a Member of Parliament does not have to answer it in front of anybody. You tell me. If there is proof that Darshan Hiranandani has given me X, you ask me yes/no to a pointed question, and that is that. I cannot sit here and answer this as to where I have gone and who I have stayed with. I suggest you deviate from your script. I suggest you deviate from your script, and I will say this on record.”
She continued, “Just because I am a witness here, you cannot follow a political ideology and read out these completely demeaning unethical questions, Mr. Chairman. I take strong umbrage, and I would request my fellow Members to follow their conscience and do a voting on this.”
Mahuagate
On 14th October, the Indian political scene experienced a major tremor as BJP MP Nishkant Dubey wrote to the ethics committee seeking an inquiry against TMC MP Mahua Moitra in the ‘Cash for Query’ matter. He based his complaint on the letter written by Supreme Court lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, who alleged that most of the questions asked by the TMC MP in Lok Sabha directly or indirectly benefit businessman Darshan Hiranandani. Dehadrai also accused Moitra of “kidnapping” his pet dog Henry, adding another layer of complications to Mahuagate.
Moitra filed a case against Dubey and Dehadrai but never denied accepting gifts. Interestingly, she has also been accused of sharing her Lok Sabha credentials with Hiranandani so he can post questions independently. Hiranandani has reportedly turned approver in the case and submitted an affidavit suggesting the allegations against Moitra are true. Dehadrai and Dubey were called to submit evidence of Moitra’s alleged wrongdoings in front of the ethics committee on 26th October. When the Ethics Committee initially called Moitra, she refused, claimed to have prior engagements and sought another date. She got another date for the hearing, and on the day of the hearing, she played the victim card while coming out, claiming she faced “cheerharan” like Draupadi from Mahabharat.
