The special session of the parliament, which will begin on September 18, will be shifted to the new parliament building on the next day on the auspicious occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, reported news agency ANI citing sources.
According to a notice issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, the forthcoming special session, slated for September 18th to September 22nd, will exclude Question Hour, Zero Hour, and private members’ business.
The special parliamentary session has left political parties perplexed, as the government has not provided any agenda for the five-day session. Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the Congress parliamentary party, expressed her concerns by writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, highlighting the lack of transparency surrounding the special session due to the absence of a shared agenda.
The shifting of the parliament on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi holds special religious significance, especially among the Vedic faiths such as Hinduism and Jainism, adherents of whom consider it auspicious to start any new endeavour by invoking Lord Ganesha first. In Hindu tradition, the phrase ‘Shri Ganesh’ symbolises the commencement of something, particularly the initiation of something auspicious and favourable. It is a widely held belief that conducting an endeavor after worshipping Lord Ganesha leads to the successful resolution of any obstacles that may arise.
The new Parliament building saw its inauguration by Prime Minister Modi on 28 May 2023. Constructed at a total cost of ₹971 crore, the new state-of-the-art parliamentary facility symbolises the new India’s aspirations of growth and development. It can house 888 members in the Lok Sabha and 300 members in the Rajya Sabha. Notably, the monsoon session of Parliament took place in the old building, marking the upcoming special session as the inaugural event held in the new Parliament building.
The marriage of Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner is reportedly coming to an end. Joe Jonas is the brother-in-law of actress Priyanka Chopra. According to CNN, Joe Jonas filed for divorce in Florida’s Miami-Dade County on 5th September. The motion cited an “irretrievably broken” marriage as the reason behind the decision.
Joseph Adam Jonas or Joe Jonas is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He rose to fame as a member of the pop rock band the Jonas Brothers, alongside his brothers Kevin and Nick Jonas who is the husband of Priyanka Chopra. Sophie Belinda Turner is a British actress. She is very popular for her role as Sansa Stark in the epic fantasy television series “Game of Thrones.”
They have two children, born in the years 2020 and 2022 and Joe Jonas has asked for dual custody. It further added that a prenuptial agreement exists between the couple. They started dating in 2016 and proceeded to get engaged in 2017. Sophie Turner was seen sporting her new engagement ring in the image the singer shared on his verified Instagram account at the time along with the words “she said yes.”
The pair tied the knot twice. They got married for the first time in 2019 in Las Vegas after attending the Billboard Music Awards where they exchanged vows in front of a select number of loved ones during a ceremony presided over by an impersonator of Elvis Presley.
DJ Diplo who was a wedding guest uploaded a number of photographs and footage from within the location which spread the word of their nuptials. Later, a representative of the actress confirmed that the couple had married. Afterward, the two remarried in an extravagant ceremony at the exquisite Château de Tourreau in the south of France.
A few days after the occasion, she gave followers a peek into the celebration when she captioned a black-and-white Instagram snap of the pair during their recessional with “Mr and Mrs Jonas.”
Sophie’s Game of Thrones co-star and on-screen sister Maisie Williams, who played Arya Stark in the series is believed to have served as her maid of honor. Joe Jonas’s brothers and bandmates Nick Jonas and Kevin Jonas were also in attendance at the French ceremony.
Elon Musk on 5th September threatened to file a defamation lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for accusing him and his social media platform X of anti-semitism. He also accused the ADL of allegedly pressuring US advertisers to boycott the platform thereby declining its US ad revenue.
To clear our platform’s name on the matter of anti-Semitism, it looks like we have no choice but to file a defamation lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League … oh the irony!
Musk claims that X’s (formerly Twitter) US ad revenue is down 60 per cent and that the company has lost roughly $22 billion, which is half its value. Musk had purchased Twitter for $44 billion in October last year.
Our US advertising revenue is still down 60%, primarily due to pressure on advertisers by @ADL (that’s what advertisers tell us), so they almost succeeded in killing X/Twitter!
The entire saga began with the hashtag “BanTheADL” trending on X over the last weekend (3rd September to be precise), which saw an indirect participation by Elon Musk. X user and far-right commentator Eva Vlaardingerbroek wrote, “The fact that #BanTheADL is trending shows how done people are with the “we’re labeling everything we don’t like as hateful/racist/dangerous/far-right” BS. People aren’t afraid of your intimidation tactics anymore, @JGreenblattADL. Your labels have lost their power.”
The fact that #BanTheADL is trending shows how done people are with the “we’re labeling everything we don’t like as hateful/racist/dangerous/far-right” BS.
People aren’t afraid of your intimidation tactics anymore, @JGreenblattADL. Your labels have lost their power.
Many free speech activists came out in support of Elon Musk’s proposal and hinted how the tables had turned as they shared a thread by ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt who in November 2022 asked if it was time for Twitter to go. Greenblatt’s tweets came merely two months after Musk took over the social media giant.
.@elonmusk's decisions over the last month have been erratic and alarming, but this decision is dangerous and a threat to American democracy. We need to ask — is it time for Twitter to go?
Moreover, Musk also responded to a post by far-right Youtuber Keith Woods, who has been actively seeking a ban on ADL on X. He wrote that the ADL is the biggest generator of anti-semitism on X. “The ADL, because they are so aggressive in their demands to ban social media accounts for even minor infractions, are ironically the biggest generators of anti-Semitism on this platform!”
The ADL, because they are so aggressive in their demands to ban social media accounts for even minor infractions, are ironically the biggest generators of anti-Semitism on this platform!
This came days after Musk had liked two subsequent tweets by Woods arguing for #BanTheADL. Keith Woods has reportedly identified himself as a “raging antisemite”. Musk’s likes for Woods posts and further response to #BanTheADL campaigners are being deemed as an endorsement of antisemitism by left-liberals.
Hours later, the X owner posted on the platform on Tuesday (5th September) that he is against anti-semitism of any kind. He said, “I am pro-speech, but against anti-Semitism of any kind.” When asked by a user as to who was questioning this, Musk replied by saying that the ADL has been trying to kill the social media platform X. He wrote, “Since the acquisition, The @ADL has been trying to kill this platform by falsely accusing it & me of being anti-Semitic”.
To be super clear, I’m pro free speech, but against anti-Semitism of any kind
A few hours later, he tweeted, “To clear our platform’s name on the matter of anti-Semitism, it looks like we have no choice but to file a defamation lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League…oh the irony!” Even as Musk and X were accused of antisemitism during the course of #BanTheADL trend, some of his tweets pointing to the underlying problems with the left-leaning ADL were underreported.
Replying to an X user, Musk said that “the ADL has done a lot of good work in prior decades, but has been overzealous in recent years & hijacked by woke mind virus.” When criticised by an X user for “pushing the #BanTheADL campaign”, Musk replied saying that the ADL will not be banned from X.
In an apparent display of his ardent support for free speech, Musk wrote, “Despite the immense harm ADL has done to X/Twitter, they still will not be banned in this platform, unless they break the law.”
Despite the immense harm ADL has done to X/Twitter, they still will not be banned in this platform, unless they break the law
On 31st July, the Tesla Motors CEO filed a lawsuit against the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), a so-called non-government organisation that often partners with ADL. The CCDH, which also claims to be working to stop the spread of online hate, was sued for running “a scare campaign to drive away advertisers from the X platform”. Soon after, UK-based anti-semitic organisation Stop Funding Hate (SFH) huddled together a bunch of tweets targeting “free speech absolutists”.
Similarly, after Musk announced filing a lawsuit against ADL, SFH came out in support of the footmen of George Soros. Stop Funding Hate had run a sinister campaign against OpIndia in the past targeting our ad revenues, similar to the case of ADL allegedly targeting X’s ad revenues.
Time and again, self-described "free speech absolutists" end up threatening to sue other people for using their free speech…
"Free speech absolutism" is incoherent in theory and unworkable in practice.https://t.co/DvCB5ojVEw
The link between George Soros and his apologists and their conspiracy to target ad revenues of any entity that takes a non-leftist line
ADL, which is being sued by Musk, has rather done more activism for George Soros than against anti-semitism. In fact, in ADL’s dictionary, any criticism of Soros qualifies as anti-semitism. Soros is a Hungarian-American billionaire who has declared his intentions to “fight nationalists” and funds several NGOs working to malign India, particularly Hindus.
On 16th May, Elon Musk tweeted that Soros reminds him of Magneto, a villain who is a Holocaust survivor in the X-Men series. Soros too is a Holocaust survivor. Further to his tweet, Musk added, “You assume they are good intentions. They are not. He wants to erode the very fabric of civilization. Soros hates humanity.”
ADL chief Jonathan Greenblatt was quick to jump to Soros’ defence saying that the latter is often blamed by the far-right using anti-semitic tropes as the source of the world’s problems.
He wrote, “Soros often is held up by the far-right, using antisemitic tropes, as the source of the world’s problems. To see @ElonMusk, regardless of his intent, feed this segment — comparing him to a Jewish supervillain, claiming Soros “hates humanity” — is not just distressing, it’s dangerous: it will embolden extremists who already contrive anti-Jewish conspiracies and have tried to attack Soros and Jewish communities as a result.”
Soros often is held up by the far-right, using antisemitic tropes, as the source of the world’s problems. To see @ElonMusk, regardless of his intent, feed this segment — comparing him to a Jewish supervillain, claiming Soros “hates humanity" — is not just distressing, it's… pic.twitter.com/ECAuYahSga
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) May 16, 2023
In fact, the Leftist ADL has penned an entire article dedicated to how Soros, a “philanthropist”, is an innocent victim of conservative and right-wing conspiracy theories who object to his funding of “liberal causes”.
A big part of these fundings, it must be pointed out, fuels anti-India narratives through NGOs to target Indian businesses and to manipulate public perception against the Modi government by inciteful interference in India’s internal affairs.
When, on 8th February 2020, OpIndia published a report on George Soros and his ill-intended propaganda machinery running in India, Stop Funding Hate – much like ADL – took particular offence and began a tirade against us to target our ad revenues.
Stop Funding Hate often cites so-called research reports published by the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH). Several CCDH reports largely refer to reports published by ADL or are published in partnership between the two Leftist organisations.
"CCDH research found that the social media company failed to act on 89% of anti-Jewish hate speech and 97% of anti-Muslim hate speech on the platform" https://t.co/VjHTYe9HEA
— Stop Funding Hate (@StopFundingHate) July 31, 2023
ADL has a history of coming to the rescue of Soros’ facade of a public image. In 2019, the ADL hit out at former US President Donald Trump’s attorney Rudy Giuliani for asserting that far-left propagandist George Soros is “hardly a jew”. “Soros is hardly a Jew. I am more of a Jew than Soros is,” Guiliani had reportedly said.
To this ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt responded by saying, “For decades, George Soros’ philanthropy has been used as fodder for outsized anti-Semitic conspiracy theories insisting there exists Jewish control and manipulation of countries and global events. Mr. Giuliani should apologize and retract his comments immediately unless he seeks to dog whistle to hardcore anti-Semites and white supremacists who believe this garbage.”
Is there also an Omidyar Network link to the leftist campaign against X?
A report by Front Page Magazine suggests so. While taking on Elon Musk for not addressing the larger problem, Daniel Greenfield, a Shillman Journalism Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, pointed out that there are currently 60 organisations running the #StopToxicTwitter coalition campaign against X and Musk.
Greenfield in his report has criticised Musk in sharp words for targeting only one of the 60 organisations lobbying against X, that is ADL, and “almost “allying with an antisemite to conduct a smear campaign blaming Jews for a boycott backed by money from an Iranian billionaire.”
As per the report, ADL received a $250,000 seed grant from the Omidyar Network to “build a state-of-the-art command centre in Silicon Valley to combat the growing threat posed by hate online”. This is the same Omidyar Network whose promoters were named by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the FCRA funding scam.
The report also brings to light the $100 million fund pledged by Pierre Omidyar in the name of combating “fake news” and supporting investigative journalism. Another report by The Washington Free Beacon alleged that the left-wing billionaire donated $509,500 to Accountable Tech and $2 million to at least six other organisations targeting Musk.
Greenfield writes, “Musk ought to know who Omidyar is because he became quite rich in part because of him, eBay bought PayPal, and then was behind the boycott against him” adding that “If Musk really wants to fight back against the boycott, he can take on Omidyar.”
Omidyar Network is known for funding many publications across India. While the name of Omidyar Network has cropped up in the FCRA bribery scandal, the organisation has several other questionable antecedents.
In September 2021, the Ministry of Home Affairs put the Omidyar Network under the FCRA watchlist. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had sent an internal note to all the banks directing them to put a specific number of foreign organizations, including Omidyar Network, in the PRC list (Prior Reference Category) under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act 2010.
Back in 2019, it came to light that the Omidyar Group was one of the donors to Forbidden Stories (FS), a dubious organisation launched with the underlying aim of effectuating regime changes and installing pliant governments in countries across the world that align with the left-liberal ideology and reinforce the primacy of the Left’s narrative.
While the strategic plan and its animosity towards nationalism made its ideological orientations abundantly clear, it is important to note that the Omidyar Group funded a host of media organisations worldwide, mostly leftist globalist portals such as Scroll.in.
The left was put off after Elon Musk restored previously banned accounts following the acquisition of X
Before Musk acquired X (then Twitter), the social media platform saw severe censorship of non-left and anti-left views and views which criticised Islamists. The “Twitter Files” story was initially broken by independent journalist Matt Taibbi exposing how the Twitter moderation team justified the censorship of the Hunter Biden story, under the guise of the “hacked materials policy,” by the likes of Vijaya Gadde.
The second part of the “Twitter Files” gave a glimpse into the high-handedness of a “select few” employees at the social media platform, who routinely censored right-wing accounts and non-mainstream narratives with complete disregard for Twitter’s rules.
In complete violation of its own mission, Twitter became a hotbed of censorship through the creation of blacklists, arbitrary prevention of tweets from trending on the platform and deliberate reduction of visibility of trending topics and accounts.
Prominent far-right US journalist Tucker Carlson was among the many Twitter (now X) users who were axed from the platform. The former Fox News anchor’s account was suspended in March 2022 for allegedly defending “hateful” comments about a transgender woman posted on Twitter.
@TuckerCarlson was all set to have me go on his Fox News show to talk about my defamation suit against the ADL, then he got removed. This has been in the pipeline since the end of April!
ADL CEO Greenblatt has been quite vocal about his dislike for Carlson, who too has targeted Greenblatt extensively during his Fox News days. Greenblatt has called on Musk to ban Carlson from the platform. Musk, of course, reinstated Carlson after the acquisition. This is to say that Musk has been restoring dissenting voices on X in what can be deemed as a display of free speech.
Source: Twitter/@Chadwick_Moore
Similarly, several such accounts have been salvaged by Musk. These accounts now identify themselves as such and actively support the business magnate. As for Tucker Carlson, Musk has said that he is welcome to join the lawsuit against ADL.
Musk also accused the ADL of pushing hard for X to shut down accounts like “that of”Libs of TikTok” run by Chaya Raichik, a Jew. The account was suspended six times in 2022 alone and blocked for a week each time for alleged “hateful conduct”. Musk wrote on X, “ADL has pushed hard for us to shut down accounts like Chaya’s, even though it has nothing to do with anti-Semitism, which is their supposed charter!”
ADL has pushed hard for us to shut down accounts like Chaya’s, even though it has nothing to do with anti-Semitism, which is their supposed charter!
Has campaign coverage against Elon Musk and X been amplified in order to salvage Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook’s public image which was brought down by the very coterie?
A similar campaign was launched against Facebook in 2020 which led to ad revenue losses amounting to $7.2 billion after a big chunk of advertisers boycotted the platform. A whopping $56 billion was eliminated from the social media platform’s market value pushing down Zuckerberg’s net worth to $82.3 billion. More than 1,000 advertisers had reportedly pulled out of Facebook.
The boycott campaign #StopHateForProfit included ADL and partner organisations including Free Press, Colour of Change, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Of the 100 advertisers that spent the most on Facebook, nine companies announced a pullback in paid advertising. This reportedly cut their spending from $26.2 million to a mere $507,500.
Digging deeper into the ad boycott campaigns, Musk shared a report from March 2020 which talks about the impact of the campaign on Facebook. He shared the report with the caption, “The Facebook caved to far-left pressure groups and now allows them to silently dictate policy in exchange for ad money.”
The Facebook caved to far left pressure groups and now allows them to silently dictate policy in exchange for ad moneyhttps://t.co/9ZeygfO2SQ
Musk’s fanbase on X has also called out the US media for underreporting the similar allegations that persist against Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg. Twitter user ALX @alx pointed to a report by The Washington Post which talks about how “under Elon Musk, Twitter has allowed Russian propaganda against Ukraine to reach more people”.
The user points out that even as the report mentions Meta too, the headline is only about Musk and Twitter (now X). To this, Musk replied, “It’s almost like they have an axe to grind”.
Notice this is also the case for other platforms and Meta is actually the worst offender but they buried that in the article because The Washington Post had to make the headline all about Elon Musk and X. pic.twitter.com/HvItjG6b4X
X user and author Ashley St. Clair pointed out that The Washington Post has not reported on the alleged “rampant child exploitation on Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta platforms”.
Yet Washington Post won’t report on the rampant child exploitation on Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta platforms
Mark Zuckerberg has ignored the Florida’s Attorney General request for him to speak to the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking regarding Meta platforms being used most… https://t.co/GNqHcf5lGapic.twitter.com/YLr3f3AqwV
She further wrote, “Mark Zuckerberg has ignored Florida Attorney General’s request for him to speak to the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking regarding Meta platforms being used most frequently to “assist, facilitate or support human trafficking.”
These observations raise suspicion as to whether Zuckerberg has been spared, although partially it seems, from the smear campaign by the leftist coterie for catering to their divisive demands.
Whether free speech is good or bad can still be debated. But the “hate speech” hatemongers are certainly dangerous and deserve such lawsuits to expose them
The #BanTheADL campaign began trending on X following a meeting on 29th August between X CEO Linda Yaccarino and ADL President Jonathan Greenblatt. Greenblatt said after the meeting that ADL will be vigilant and give Yaccarino and Musk credit if the service gets better and reserve the right to call them out until it does. The highhandedness of a group running #StopToxicTwitter campaign cannot be more apparent than this response.
Greenblatt wrote, “I had a very frank + productive conversation with @LindayaX yesterday about @X, what works and what doesn’t, and where it needs to go to address hate effectively on the platform. I appreciated her reaching out and I’m hopeful the service will improve. @ADL will be vigilant and give her and @ElonMusk credit if the service gets better… and reserve the right to call them out until it does.”
Musk has said that while it would be nice to see the lost US advertising return, the social media platform no longer needs to restore US advertising on prior levels for survival. According to account X News Daily, the platform has been seeing significant revenue from non-US advertisers, API fees, and verification subscriptions.
Exactly.
We no longer need to restore US advertising to prior levels for survival.
And considering that he has ruled out the possibility of a ban unless an X account breaks the law, it is only natural that the Left will continue to hound Musk for the want of their controlled version of free speech.
Following a request by the “Libs of TikTok” account, Musk has hinted that a data dump will be released of all communication on ADL and other organisations pushing to censor free speech on X. He wrote in another post, “Document discovery of all communications between the ADL and advertisers will tell the full story.” The data dump is expected in the next few weeks.
Dear Elon,
Please consider releasing all communications and providing full transparency on the ADL & all other organizations who have pushed to censor certain accounts on Twitter/X.
Sincerely,
Thousands of users who have been suspended, throttled, silenced, and shadowbanned. pic.twitter.com/ZcvoBSvR84
On 4th September (local time), the Permanent Mission of India at the United Nations strongly rejected comments by UN experts on Manipur. India has termed them “unwarranted, presumptive and misleading” while adding that the situation in the state is peaceful.
The statement by India came as a verbal note to the Special Procedures Branch of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Indian mission noted in its response that the situation in Manipur was peaceful and stable. Furthermore, the mission added that the Government of India was committed to taking the required steps to maintain peace and stability in the state.
The Permanent Mission of India to the UN office and other International Organizations in Geneva said, “The Permanent Mission of India completely rejects the news release as it is not only unwarranted, presumptive and misleading but also betrays a complete lack of understanding on the situation in Manipur and the steps taken by Government of India to address it.”
“The Government is also committed to protecting the human rights of the people of India, including the people of Manipur,” it added.
The remarks came in response to the press release by the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner on 4th September, stating that UN Experts were “alarmed” by “continuing abuses in Manipur.
The UN experts raised the alarm over “alleged acts of sexual violence, extrajudicial killings, home destruction, forced displacement, torture and ill-treatment”. They claimed that most of the persons killed in the conflict were Kukis and pointed out that Meiteis are predominantly Hindus and Kukis are predominantly Christians, forming a divide between the communities based on religion. Furthermore, the experts claimed that most of the gender-based violence targeting women and girls of all ages was against the Kuki community.
“It is particularly concerning that the violence seems to have been preceded and incited by hateful and inflammatory speech that spread online and offline to justify the atrocities committed against the Kuki ethnic minority, particularly women, on account of their ethnicity and religious belief,” they said.
They accused the Government of India of a “slow and inadequate” response to the violence. Furthermore, the experts “praised” the lawyers and human rights defenders in Manipur for responding to the reports of violence. “We are also concerned about reported criminalization and harassment of human rights defenders documenting the cases,” they said.
Questionable past of the “experts”
Irene Khan
Irene Khan hails from Bangladesh. She has been a regular critic of India and has often tried to interfere in India’s internal matters using her position on International platforms. According to the official profile of Irene Khan on UNCHR, she was Secretary-General of Amnesty International from 2001 to 2009. Interestingly, Khan had to leave the organization in 2009 after she was accused of receiving over USD 700,000 from the organization. Under her leadership, Amnesty faced criticism for supporting Moazzam Begg, the former Guantanamo detainee and its links to Islamist groups. In 2022, she came out in support of a dubious journalist who is under ED’s scanner for alleged fraud done while raising funds for Covid relief work, Rana Ayyub.
Amnesty International is a dubious organization that has indulged in anti-India activities for a long time. Despite the non-issuance of FCRA licenses for its Indian chapter, the organization kept receiving foreign funds in India. After strict action from the Indian government in 2020, when ED froze its accounts, the organization closed its Indian chapter.
She was also director-general of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO), as mentioned by another Twitter user, Sagorika. Her profile on UN suggests she was part of IDLO from 2012 to 2019. China is a major contributor to IDLO and has been part of the collective since 1989. 2017 IDLO and China signed a memorandum on the “One Belt One Road” initiative.
Another aspect of Irene’s connection to China is that the Chinese govt was behind her appointment at the UN. In 2020, a China-led panel appointed her as the world monitor of free speech. UN Watch categorically mentioned in a report that Khan enjoys close ties with the Communist regime.
Fionnuala Ní Aoláin
According to her resume which can be seen here, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin was a member of the Women’s Program Board, Open Society Foundation owned by George Soros in 2018. Earlier, she was Chair, the Women’s Program Board, Open Society Foundation, with an Annual Budget of around $7,000,000 between 2011 and 2018. She received the Open Society Foundations Grant on Emergency Powers (Co-I) in 2020-21. George Soros is known for his anti-India and anti-Hindu views. Our detailed coverage of Soros can be seen here.
Balakrishnan Rajagopal
Rajagopal was an Open Society Foundation fellow. The year of his fellowship at the foundation was not mentioned.
Source: Open Society Foundation
Nazila Ghanea
According to her profile at Kellog University, her research on different topics was funded by the likes of Qatar Foundation and Open Society Institute. For those who are unaware, George Soros’s Open Society Foundation was previously called the Open Society Institute.
Source: Kellog University
Morris Tidball-Binz
He was director of regional and global human rights program for Amnesty International (UK) between 1990 and 2003. Notably, Amnesty International has a history of bias against India. Our detailed reports on Amnesty can be seen here. Furthermore, he is one of the UN experts who called for immediate release of Khurram Pervez who NIA arrested in a terror funding case.
Mary Lawlor
Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders at the United Nations, is the co-author of the anti-India rant on the investigation against Rana Ayyub. Lawlor is also linked to Amnesty International. She was director of the Irish chapter of the organisation from 1988 to 2000. Alongside, Irene, she also came out in support of Ayyub.
Lawlor had repeatedly targeted India for arresting Bhima-Koregaon violence accused Stan Swamy, who died of old age-related illness in 2021. She had said his death would “forever remain a stain on India’s human rights record.”
She had been meddling in India’s internal matters and tried her best to paint a negative picture of India on the international platform in Swamy’s case. However, she conveniently ignored that the Indian security agencies had found evidence against Swamy and the court had found these allegations legitimate multiple times to refuse bail. There were allegations that Indian authorities did not provide medical assistance to Swamy, but contrary to the allegations, he was provided with the best possible medical care.
She also raised objections over the arrest of Kashmiri separatist activist Khurram Parvez, whom the investigating agencies arrested in a terror funding case. NIA had arrested Parvez in November 2021 on the charges of terror funding. He was booked under Sections 17 (raising funds for the terrorist act), 18 (conspiracy), 18B (recruiting of any person or persons for the terrorist act), 38 (offence relating to membership of a terrorist organisation), and 40 (raising funds for a terrorist organisation) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
On February 22, a Delhi court sent him and two others to NIA custody on February 25 for interrogation linked to the arrest of former IPS officer Arvind Digvijay Negi in connection to sending sensitive documents to the terrorist organisation LeT.
Fernand de Varennes
Fernand de Varennes has a long history of meddling in India’s internal affairs. In May 2023, he said in a tweet that holding a G20 meeting in Kashmir would be a massive human rights violation.
— UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues (@fernanddev) May 15, 2023
Most of the so-called experts in the list have come out in support of terror suspects, Naxalites, farmer protests and other anti-India activities from time to time.
After DMK’s Udhaynidhi Stalin, another politician of the I.N.D.I. alliance made a controversial remark on Hinduism. Karnataka Home Minister Parameshwara recently questioned the origins of Hinduism, asserting that nobody knows when it originated in the country.
“There are many religions born. Hindu dharma – When was it born? What are its origins, has remained a question mark. It still has not been answered. Buddhism was born in India. Jainism was born in India. Islam and Christianity came from abroad. The sum up of all these (religions) is betterment of society,” Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said at an event in Tumakuru.
After Udhayanidhi Stalin's remarks on Sanatan Dharma, Karnataka HM G. Parameshwara has made a statement saying what the Hindu Dharma's origins are.
Parameshwara’s controversial remarks elicited a sharp reaction from the BJP, which attacked the Congress party for its historical contempt towards Hinduism. “Congress party is always busy making derogatory comments against the majority community,” S Prakash, Joint Spokesperson of Karnataka BJP, said. The VHP, too, expressed its disapproval of Parameshwara’s remarks against Hinduism. Vinod Bansal, a VHP leader, said, “It is surprising that a person with the name Parameshwara is questioning the origins of Hinduism.”
Udhaynidhi Stalin says ‘Sanatan Dharma needs to be eradicated’
On Saturday (September 2), the Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development of Tamil Nadu, Udhaynidhi Stalin, said, “Mosquitoes, dengue, flu, malaria, corona – we should not oppose these things. They’ve to be eradicated completely.”
“The same is the case with Santanam (Hinduism). Our first work should be to abolish/eradicate Sanatanam instead of opposing it. So, my appreciation to you all for giving an apt title to the meeting,” he further added.
Congress questioned the existence of Lord Rama
This is not the first time that Congress has raised aspersions on Hinduism and its concepts. In 2007, an affidavit filed by the Congress-led government read, “Valmiki Ramayana and Ramcharitmanas admittedly form an important part of ancient Indian literature, but these cannot be said to be historical records to incontrovertibly prove the existence of the characters and occurrences of events depicted therein.” The affidavit was filed to register the UPA government’s opposition to the demand to scrap the Sethusamudram project as it would damage the Ram Setu.
Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal fought the Ram Janmabhoomi case for the Sunni Waqf Board opposing the building of a magnificent Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya. He also employed dilatory tactics and asked the apex court to delay the decision in the Ram Janmabhoomi case till the 2019 elections. Another eminent Congress leader Shashi Tharoor had earlier claimed that no ‘good Hindu’ would want a Ram Mandir at the Babri site. Tharoor urged that one should have the Ram Mandir in one’s heart.
Udhayanidhi Stalin’s insulting statements against Sanatana Dharma have sparked outrage amongst Hindus. But now, events seem to be taking a more sinister political turn, thanks to the DMK Minister.
Ayodhya-based seer Paramhans Acharya’s effigy was burned by DMK cadre in Vellore on 5th September after the seer announced a bounty of Rs 10 crore for Udhayanidhi Stalin’s head.
#WATCH | Tamil Nadu | DMK supporters in Vellore burn the effigy of Ayodhya Seer Paramhans Acharya's for his death threat to Tamil Nadu Minister Undayanishi Stalin on his 'Sanatana Dharma should be eradicated' remark. pic.twitter.com/tPopAeiKJy
The DMK protests in Gudiyattam were led by DMK town president and municipal chairman S Soundarrajan who lodged a complaint with the police seeking action against the seer.
An effigy of the seer was also hanged by the DMK cadre in the Kondasamudram area. Similar demonstrations were staged in Pernambut town wherein a complaint was submitted by DMK workers reportedly accompanied by a “sizeable number of Muslim followers.”
On 4th September, Ayodhya seer Paramhans Acharya said, “I will pay Rs 10 crore cash reward to anyone who beheads Stalin and brings his head to me. If no one dares to kill Stalin, I will myself find him and kill him.”
This was in response to Udhayanidhi Stalin’s controversial statement likening Sanatana Dharma to malaria, dengue, cholera, and COVID-19. Responding to the seer, Udhayanidhi showed no remorse for hurting Hindu sentiments and said that he is not afraid of such statements.
The BJP has called out the DMK for sparking a North-South divide. Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai tweeted a video of DMK leader Constantine Ravindran wherein he is heard saying that “no one is education in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar because of Sanatana Dharma”. “They are brainless. They don’t have rational thinking about life,” said the DMK spokesperson.
The use of such crude language against our Northern friends is totally unacceptable.
For long, DMK has been seeding the thought of divide in the minds of Tamil brothers & sisters, and despite recent attacks on migrant workers in TN, DMK seems to have not learnt the lesson. pic.twitter.com/ZRGy2L0h3S
Calling out the DMK, Annamalai said that DMK has been seeding the thought of divide in the minds of Tamil brothers and sisters, and despite recent attacks on migrant workers in TN, DMK seems to have not learned the lesson.
Udhayanidhi Stalin, who identifies as a Christian, has incited not only religious but also regional divide, a traditional strategy in Dravidian politics. It is only natural that the Nehru-Gandhi Congress has lent support to Udhayanidhi’s Hindu-hating statements but has surely put the I.N.D.I.alliance in a tough spot what with DMK leaders now coming out with statements against North Indian states.
Many videos of mazar demolitions in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, are going viral on social media these days. It has also been covered LIVE on some social media handles. Following the viral videos, some people from the Muslim community are demanding action from the administration in this regard.
Meanwhile, Swami Darshan Bharti from the Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyaan has claimed responsibility for the said mazar demolition activities. OpIndia reached out to the people from the Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyaan and described their actions as a struggle against a wider conspiracy while operating entirely within the ambits of the law.
Chandrabhushan Sharma, a local social worker, has taken the lead in the demolition action against alleged illegal mazars in Rishikesh and the neighboring areas. During a conversation with OpIndia on Tuesday, 5th September, 2023, he detailed the entire scenario stating that he launched this drive on August 26th of last month.
200 Mazars inside homes in Rishikesh and nearby areas
Chandrabhushan Sharma stated that while working in the area for a private company, he discovered around 200 tombs(mazars) have been erected inside private properties in and around Rishikesh. Ex-army officers, business owners, and even Hindu temple priests had these built inside their premises. Some Mazars were restricted to private access by people who had them built, but many others gradually became public. Annual Urs events were being celebrated in many of them by playing Qawwali and other traditional Islamic music, and visitors had begun to offer Namaz.
Giving an example of such priests of the temple, Sharma took the name of the priest of Mansa Devi Temple, Rishikesh, inside whose property a Mazar was built about 10 years ago. It has been alleged that it was promoted by priests under the name Pir Baba-Shiv Baba. According to Chandra Bhushan Sharma, the priest ultimately consented to allow the dismantling of the said Mazar after resisting it initially. He stated that an ex-soldier had constructed a mazar on such a large plot of land along the highway where at least three shops could have been opened.
Tentacles of illegal Mazars spread around Rishikesh
Several Mazars were demolished between August 27 and September 3 in Rishikesh’s Amit Gram, Mansa Devi Ward, and Suman Vihar areas. According to Chandrabhushan Sharma, this movement will continue until Rishikesh turns “illegal mazar Mukt” (free of illegal mazars). He further stated that this work is being done with personal funds as well as public assistance and that no one is informed about the next action beforehand. Anil Kumar of Rishikesh, who describes himself as an active participant in this movement, also spoke about legally removing unauthorized, illegal mazars. We have been informed that the menace of illegal mazars within private properties is spread across Rishikesh and around five kilometers of the nearby areas.
Image sent by Anil Kumar
Dargah at the heart of the conspiracy
According to Chandrabhushan Sharma, those who visit dargahs over small issues are advised by the conspirators to construct their own mazars at home. Chandrabhushan specifically mentioned one Piran Kaliyar of Roorkee in this context. He claims that such persons not only provide masons to build shrines at home but also Islamic attire, including skull caps etc. Sharma claims that the people there additionally provided training for worship and other related aspects.
Anil Sharma told OpIndia that several ex-soldiers, business owners etc. were performing Islamic rituals at the mazars erected inside their properties as trained by the people at the Dargahs.
No demolition is undertaken without prior consent and written permission
We questioned Chandrabhushan Sharma if the police were acting against him for dismantling the alleged illegal mazars. Sharma, in response, stated that he obtained formal approval and consent for this action from the landlords who had the mazars built in their premises at the recommendation of others. Sharma further stated that before beginning his campaign to free Rishikesh from illegal mazars, he thoroughly evaluated all legal aspects.
One of the consent letter
Anil Kumar, another person involved in the campaign to demolish the illegally erected mazars in houses, stated that he had obtained approval and consent from the landowners for this. Anil Kumar also provided us with such consent letters. Permission is granted in this consent form to remove the mazars from one’s home voluntarily and out of obedience to the Hindu Dharma. In addition, it was proclaimed that such an act would not be repeated in the future, that no one would ever go to court, and so on. As seen in the image attached above, the consent letter begins with the chant ‘Om Shri Ganeshaya Namah’.
Converted Hindus behind the conspiracy
According to Chandrabhushan Sharma, an unlawful mazar network has been expanding in Rishikesh for the past 30 years. Some of the mazars demolished last week were almost two decades old. He did, however, claim that mazars had been built arbitrarily over the last five to six years. According to Chandrabhushan, many newly converted Hindus who accepted Islam are involved in the illegal mazar construction nexus.
On the condition of anonymity, Sharma mentioned a person who was formerly a Hindu but now practises Islam. Sharma claims that the person is very wealthy and has hired bouncers. The said person is working to convert people to Islam by denigrating Hindu deities.
Chandrabhushan Sharma declined to reveal the names of his other campaign associates. He also announced that the campaign will be accelerated in the near future and urged people to raise awareness about the same.
‘Wife of a Hindu man who built a mazar inside his property became the victim of Love Jihad’
OpIndia spoke with Swami Darshan Bharti, patron of the Devbhoomi Raksha Abhiyan, concerning the mazar issue. Swami Darshan Bharti informed us that a Love Jihad incident occurred at a residence in Rishikesh’s Amit Gram area, where most mazars are erected inside private properties. Darshan Bharti, requesting anonymity for the concerned family, stated that some fifteen years ago, a Hindu family built a mazar inside their house premises. While the husband continued to pray, the wife eloped with a Muslim. Swami estimates that this incident occurred roughly five years ago.
Illegal Mazars and the administration’s incompetence
Swami Darshan Bharti told us that he had already spoken with the administration about taking action against the illegally mushrooming mazars on his own initiative. He argued that the administration had demonstrated its inability to act by claiming that the Mazars were built willingly inside private properties. He described the organization’s campaign as lawful and as a last resort. He also called it a dangerous conspiracy and said that the locals have been turned against their own.
Swami Darshan Bharti claimed the saints’ dread of Muslims as the cause for surreptitiously mushrooming mazars in the spiritual city of Rishikesh. He described this fear as a compulsion for many people and urged them to join the anti-illegal mazar movement.
A group of Hindu youth in Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, took out a protest march against Tamil Nadu Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin for his remarks insulting the Sanatana Dharma. The demonstration was led by a Hindu activist named Aman who opposed Stalin’s statement in his own unique style.
The Hindu activist is known to organise unique demonstrations. In the protest march, demonstrators rallied with an effigy of Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin’s son and inserted a bamboo inside it saying that those who insult Sanatana Dharma will meet the same fate.
This is how you take "Udta hua baans".
Chad H!ndus of Hazaribagh protesting against Udaynidhi Stalin for his insulting remarks on H!nduism. pic.twitter.com/GGBraOXpn9
Aman, leading the protest said, “If you insult Sanatana Dharma, then you will be bambooed and put up at the intersection like this effigy. If you make fun of Sanatana Dharma, then you will be bambooed and displayed on the streets.”
Moreover, a man wearing Udhayanidhi Stalin’s mask was taken out of a car designed like a helicopter and was made to march with handcuffs. The man masked as Udhayanidhi was also garlanded with chappals (footwear). The protesters even beat up Udhayanidhi Stalin’s masked mannequin with slippers and shoes.
Source: Insiderlive.in
Aman added that those who hurt Sanatana Dharma will bear the brunt for it. He said that his effort has always been to unite Hindus and that he will oppose every voice raised against Sanatana Dharma. He has demanded action against such people.
Moreover, Hindu Rashtra Sangh’s Jharkhand state chief Shashi Bhushan Keshari said that for crores of years, the destructors of Sanatana have themselves been destructed. He demanded strict action against Udhayanidhi Stalin.
“Sanatana Dharma has always given refuge and security to every community from across the world which has suffered hardships; be it Christian, Jew, or Parsi. Those who have lost connect with their native land, too, have flourished in the shelter provided by Sanatana Dharma,” he said.
Keshari added that Islam too has flourished in India. “Supreme court has believes that Sanatana Hindu Dharma is the way of life. But some intellectuals still have doubts. And they keep making a ruckus with their statements on Sanatana Dharma. Action should be initiated against such people.
Udhaynidhi Stalin’s hateful, and blatantly Hinduphobic remarks have triggered widespread condemnation from political as well as non-political quarters. On 2nd September, the DMK leader and TN minister had equated the Sanatana Dharma with infectious diseases like Dengue, and Malaria and had called for its eradication. He stated that the Sanatana Dharma, the belief system of the majority of Indian citizens, needs to be uprooted.
The blatantly Hinduphobic remarks have so far elicited strong responses from politicians and Hindu leaders, as well as the general public. It has also raised questions on the intents and strategies of the I.N.D.I.A bloc, where DMK is a key partner.
Congress came out in support of Udhayanidhi saying that “every political party has the freedom to tell their views”. Addressing a press briefing, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal said that Congress believes in the ideology of “Sarva Dharma Samabhava”.
Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge too supported the vitriolic statements of his alliance partner. Speaking to the media personnel, the Congress leader said, “Any religion that does not promote equality or does not ensure you have the dignity of being human is not religion, according to me. Any religion that does not give equal rights or does not treat you like humans is as good as disease.”
On Tuesday (5th September), 262 eminent citizens, including retired Justices, armed force veterans, former ambassadors, and bureaucrats wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY ChandraChud regarding Udhayanidhi Stalin’s ]remarks.
In the letter, these eminent citizens have requested the CJI to take the suo moto cognisance of hate speech by the son of Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin. The letter states that his speech could incite communal disharmony and sectarian violence in the country.
On Wednesday, 6th September 2023, the Press Information Bureau bunked the claims made by a CNN report which said that the government authorities in Delhi have left thousands of people in the city homeless after the demolition drive executed in the capital days before the G20 Summit. PIB has said that the encroachment removal drives in Delhi are in compliance with orders passed by the Supreme Court.
PIB also added that the eviction is not linked with the G20 Summit and the place where it is happening is not near the summit meeting venue.
In a post on social media platform X, PIB wrote, “CNN has made misleading claims regarding clearing encroachments in Delhi ahead of G20 Summit. Removal of encroachments is in compliance with orders passed by the Supreme Court. Demolition of structures at Tughlaqabad is unrelated to G20 & not near the venue.”
On 5th September 2023, CNN published a report by Rhea Mogul, Vedika Sud, and Sania Farooqui. The report is titled, “India, advocate for the global poor, clears slums as G20 draw near”. The report claims that the encroachment removal drive in Delhi is being executed in order to make the capital city presentable in front of foreign guests attending the upcoming G20 summit.
The CNN report claimed that “tens of thousands of New Delhi’s most marginalized residents have been evicted from their homes in the lead up to the G20 meeting, as authorities embark on a mass demolition drive in neighbourhoods across the city”. It adds that slums near Pragati Maidan – the venue of the G20 Summit – are also being removed.
While it is true that a small number of illegal houses were demolished near Pragati Maidan as per High Court orders, it was around 50 houses and no tens of thousands of residents. The bulk of the evictions are taking place around 15-20 km to the south, where a significant number of areas of encroached land have been recovered by demolishing illegal houses.
On August 26, 2023, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) undertook the demolition of approximately 150 houses situated in an illegally occupied slum within Badarpur village. Over the past year, similar demolition operations have been conducted in various other locations, including Tughlaqabad, Vishwas Nagar, Zakir Nagar, and Sanjay Gandhi camp. These areas are near the Delhi-Haryana border, far away from Lutyens Delhi where the G20 summit meeting is taking place.
The G20 Summit is held annually under a rotating presidency, which currently rests with India for 2023. The group does not have a permanent secretariat and is supported by the previous, current, and future holders of the presidency, known as the troika. In 2023, the troika consists of Indonesia, Brazil, and India. Indonesia President Joko Widodo handed over the G20 Presidency to India at the closing ceremony of the 17th intergovernmental summit in Bali in November 2022.
India officially assumed the G20 presidency on December 1, 2022, and since then it has been hosting meetings in cities including Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Indore, Jodhpur, Khajuraho, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune, Rann of Kutch, Surat, Thiruvananthapuram, and Udaipur.
The New Delhi G20 Summit, which will bring an end to a series of meetings over the course of the year, is going to be held in New Delhi on 9-10 September this year. The 43 Heads of Delegations- the largest ever in G20-will be participating in the final G20 Summit.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for India’s changed attitude at international fora, a reason for India finding its place at the high table of diplomacy.
In an interview with ANI, Jaishankar said, “It is a different world, a different India. It is a different Prime Minister. It is a different government. And that is why you have all that you haven’t seen in the past.”
Speaking on India taking up the voice of the Global South to G20, the minister said that no other presidency had aimed at getting developing countries together.
“No other G-20 presidency has tried to get together developing countries who are not on the table and say–please come, sit with us, tell us what are your concerns. And we will distil those concerns and place them before the G-20. That is a unique exercise,” the foreign affairs minister said.
Jaishankar said that India has a special responsibility in this changing world scenario. “I see it more for India as a responsibility, that we have the responsibility today in a very difficult world. How do you bring people together? How do you make everybody understand that we all have a bigger responsibility and therefore please, can we kind of get our act together here and do what is right by the world,” he said.
The External Affairs minister said he hoped that the G20 nations would understand their responsibilities to other countries. “India has a reputation of being a constructive player. Someone who bridges, divides, who kind of somewhere helps to fix problems. I am confident that every one of the G20 coming to Delhi will understand the responsibility that they bear. That the other 180 countries of the world are looking to them to set directions and that they cannot afford to fail them,” he said.
The minister said that the participation of every citizen of the country in some way in the summit was assuring.
“One of the big pluses of the G20 is really how much more interested the people of India, especially the young people of India have got foreign policy and they need it because look, this is a globalized era,” he said.
Asked about the possibility of the G20 summit being overshadowed by the presence of the American President, the minister assured that everything would go smoothly.
“We are India. We know how to handle the world. Believe me, especially in the last ten years we have shown how we can handle the world,” Jaishankar said.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
