The Karnataka High Court has quashed an FIR against BJP President JP Nadda filed during the election campaign in the state earlier this year, calling the complaint vague.
The single-judge bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna stated that allowing further investigation into the case will become a classic case of the abuse of the legal process, and will expose how a reckless registration of crime was allowed.
“The complaint does not say that the petitioner had interfered with the free exercise of anyone’s electoral right. It also doesn’t say that the petitioner is guilty of personation as defined under Section 171D of the IPC in the elections”, justice M Nagaprasanna stated.
“The allegation is that the Code of Conduct has been violated by the petitioner, on speaking at a public gathering on 07-05-2023 by threatening the voters. The complaint is so vague that it would daunt vagueness itself. On such a vague complaint which is loosely made against the petitioner, the crime in Crime No.89 of 2023 is registered and the ‘Damocles sword of crime’ is left hanging on the petitioner projecting it to be an offence,” the Court stated, as per LawBeat.
JP Nadda had filed a writ petition in the case against the FIR. The court allowed it, and added that considering Sections 171C, 171D, and 171F of the IPC if the complaint and FIR is allowed, what would unmistakably emerge is, “reckless registration of crime and a loosely laid offense”.
The FIR against Nadda was filed at Harapanahalli police station on May 9, accusing Nadda of violating the model code of conduct and ‘threatening voters’.
On May 7, JP Nadda held an election rally in Karnataka’s Vijayanagara district. In his speech at Harapanahalli’s IB Circle, the BJP chief reportedly stated that if the BJP loses the elections, the voters may be deprived of the benefits of central government schemes.
The complaint against Nadda was registered by the officials of the Election Vigilance Division in Karnataka, accusing Nadda of violating the model code of conduct. During the hearing in the High Court, the state government’s counsel tried to pursue the court to allow an investigation and remit the case back to the magistrate. However, the court ruled that the complaint itself is too vague and asserted that the case should be nipped in the bud.
On 20th August, the founder of dubious organisation Miles2Smile, Aasif Mujtaba, shared a thread on X (formerly Twitter) accusing the Government of Haryana of demolishing structures that his organisation built over three years. He said that he felt like going to a war zone after visiting Firozpur Jhirka in district Nuh of Haryana. A total of 106 structures built by his organisation were razed down following a crackdown on illegal structures by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) Haryana Government.
He wrote, “Returning from #FirozpurJhirka at #Nuh feels like coming back from a war zone. One of the villages of #FirozpurJhirka, called #DoodhGhati, looks like an earthquake-affected area. In the entirety of 3.5 years of our relief works through #Miles2smile, I have never seen the devastation of this scale by bulldozing. A total of 106 structures(semi-permanent) were razed to the ground by the administration.”
Ahmad, a moazzin in the local mosque was living in the area for almost a decade. His house was bulldozed & everything was crushed in the rubble. + pic.twitter.com/FIDVePG22U
He claimed that the people of Doodh Ghati, whose organisation provided “semi-permanent” structures, were not given time to take household goods from the house. In another tweet, he claimed that the belongings in the structure built by his organisation Miles2Smile were crushed under the bulldozer during an anti-encroachment drive by the administration.
Through @miles2smile_ we have started relief & rehabilitation work in the village. We have also made lists as per priority and are hoping to relocate & rebuild houses of some of the families. pic.twitter.com/nKk22nAVYi
He accused the administration of pulling people out of bed and bulldozing the illegal structures. Aasif has restarted the “relief” work in the village, aiming to relocate and rebuild the houses for the “affected”.
In one of the campaigns for Nuh, M2S has already collected the targetted amount of 2.52 lakhs. While Aasif is running a campaign after the demolition of illegal structures in Nagina of Nuh, it has to be pointed out that the rioters burnt an oil mill belonging to a BJP leader in Nagina during Nuh Violence. BJP’s Shiv Kumar Arya’s shop was looted and burnt to ashes. He suffered losses worth Rs 1.5 cr+.
Source: Miles2Smile
What is Miles2Smile
Miles2Smile Foundation is a dubious organisation that gained popularity for its “relief work” for illegal Rohingyas and Muslim victims of the Delhi anti-Hindu riots in 2020. From time to time, the organisation has raised funds via its campaigns and built semi-permanent structures, arranged education for illegal Rohingyas’ children and more. In general terms, it claims to be an organisation that provides relief and rehabilitation to distressed individuals or groups and educational upliftment of the marginalised and underprivileged.
Several other left-liberal ‘journalists’, including propaganda portal Alt News’ co-founder Mohammed Zubair also shared the links of the alleged fundraisers asking people to fund M2S campaigns.
Miles2Smile came into existence after anti-Hindu riots in Delhi to support “Muslim Victims”. From medical camps to “legal aid” to the Muslims, the organisation has been proactively supporting Muslims and illegal Rohingya immigrants. In 2022, it was claimed actor Hritik Roshan donated to the organisation, but it was later debunked.
Miles2Smiles work with Rohingyas and work specifically in Nuh
In April 2022, OpIndia reported that the organisation had set up a learning centre at a Rohingya camp at Nuh in Haryana. The organisation had raised funds for the construction work for the Rohingya Refugees at Nuh in Haryana and had also built housing units, he claimed on Twitter in January this year. It is worth noting that Nuh belongs to Mewat in Haryana, the region that is notoriously known as “Mini Pakistan”, where tales of abduction, rapes and forced conversions of Hindus have been routinely reported.
Besides learning centres for illegal Rohingya Muslims settled in the county, the Miles2Smiles had also started a fundraising event to enrol around 150 Rohingya kids on the centre to make them learn English, Maths, Science, and Computers along with Urdu and Arabic. Strangely, the foundation had also arranged Quran classes for the Rohingya kids at the refugee camps at Nuh, Haryana.
In March 2022, Aasif Mujtaba tweeted that it was heart-wrenching for him to witness the atrocities and genocide being allegedly committed against the Rohingya Muslims and expressed happiness for working with them in Nuh and Delhi.
Did Miles2Smiles build houses illegally?
Days after Islamists unleashed violence in the Nuh district of Haryana, the BJP-led State government cracked down on the illegal encroachments of over 200 rioters on Thursday, 3rd August 2023. The demolition drive continued for a couple of days, after which the Punjab and Haryana High Court stayed the process.
On 17th August, In an affidavit submitted before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Nuh district Dhirendra Khadgata refuted allegations of “pick and choose policy” with regard to the recent demolition drive conducted by the state administration against illegal construction in the district.
DC informed that most of the encroachers were issued notices pertaining to their illegal constructions between two to six years back. The affidavit stated that five departments, public authorities, and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) had undertaken routine demolition drives in their respective areas in Nuh till 7th August.
“It is pertinent to mention here that the Department of Town & Country Planning had detected unauthorised constructions in the form of shops, masjids, and foundations of structures at DPC level,” the affidavit stated.
According to the 400-page affidavit, a total of 354 people were affected by the demolition drive in Nuh, of whom 71 were Hindus and 283 were Muslims. Furthermore, it was stated that out of the 38 shops demolished, 55 per cent belonged to Hindus. It was mentioned that a total of 443 properties were demolished, of which 162 were permanent while 281 were temporary. The affidavit emphasised that caste, creed, or religious considerations had no bearing on the government’s decisions.
According to the affidavit, the district had a total population of 10,89,263, of which 79.20 per cent were Muslims and 20.37 per cent were Hindus, according to the 2011 Census. “The 2011 Census demonstrates unequivocally that Nuh is a district with a Muslim majority. Furthermore, 14,21,933 people are anticipated to live in Nuh in 2023. It is important to note that Muslims make up approximately 87% of the population in Ferozepur Jhirka and Punhana tehsil in Nuh district, respectively”, the affidavit stated.
As the government has categorically said the structures were illegal, does that mean the organisation did not take prior permission to build the structures as part of the “relief work” for the illegal immigrants in Nuh? Miles2Smile’s found is evidently admitting indirectly that the “semi-permanent” structures were indeed illegal as the government demolished them after serving notices more than two years ago. Notably, his “relief work” was reported in 2021 by OpIndia, which syncs with the Government’s affidavit that the encroachment was going on for over two years.
Rohingyas arrested for Nuh violence
According to reports, there are approximately two thousand Rohingyas currently residing in Nuh, and a large number of them possess UN-issued refugee cards. They have again attracted attention due to their involvement in the recent violence in Nuh on 31st July. The police have registered more than 20 cases and arrested around 25 Rohingya refugees.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the UN had given all of them refugee identity cards. Most of the Rohingyas living in Nuh are from Myanmar’s Rakhine state. After the violence in 2017, they came to Nuh through many routes in India.
Following the emergence of a Rohingya link to the Nuh violence, the district administration has initiated a comprehensive inquiry. Two Rohingya Muslims were caught with an Aadhar card and other documents during the investigation. According to a police official, their investigation unveiled the presence of approximately 2000 Rohingya families within the district, whose identification documents will undergo thorough scrutiny. The process of obtaining Aadhaar cards for this populace will also be subjected to investigation. The administration employed a bulldozer to raze around 200 slums in Tavdu, where these Rohingya families resided.
The investigation has brought to light the participation of numerous Rohingya families residing in both Nuh and its neighbouring villages in the recent outbreak of violence. The apprehension of Saifullah and Mehboob has effectively jolted the administration awake from its previous slumber. Notably, the 200 slums situated in Tavdu were constructed on land belonging to the Haryana Urban Development Authority. In the aftermath of the violence, the administration demolished these slums.
In March 2021, it was reported that Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) had been raising the issue of Rohingyas in the country for a very long time. They have specifically pointed out that thousands of illegal Rohingyas were present in Nuh. According to a 2021 Jagran report, 2 thousand Rohingyas live in Mewat district alone. However, the VHP does not believe these numbers. The national spokesperson of the VHP, Vinod Bansal, claims that their numbers are in lakhs. Most Rohingyas living in Haryana reportedly settled in Mewat (Nuh), Faridabad, Gurugram, Palwal and Yamunanagar districts. Other districts in the state also have Rohingya Muslims, but it is difficult to trace them since most of them have forged IDs like Aadhar cards, Ration cards and voter cards.
Background on Nuh violence
On 31st July, a mob of hundreds of Muslim rioters attacked Hindu devotees participating in the Brijmandal Jalabhishek Yatra in Nuh, Mewat of Haryana. At least six people, including innocent 4 Hindus and two policemen, were killed as a result of the riots.
Furthermore, a cyber crime police station was attacked in Nuh. Police officials were injured. Home guards were killed. The rioters first shot one of the Bajrang Dal activists, Abhishek, then his throat was slit, and his head was crushed, leading to his death.
During the investigation into the riots, OpIndia accessed over 25 FIRs and complaints that provided a clearer picture of what happened during the violence. Based on information available via FIRs, complaints and witnesses, the attack appeared pre-planned. OpIndia came across several videos posted two days before the Jalabhishek Yatra instigating Muslims against Hindus.
Muslims have claimed the riots happened because of Bajrang Dal activist and Gau Rakshak Monu Manesar. Old videos of Manesar were circulated to instigate Muslims, saying he was going to Nuh on that day. The video that was mostly circulated was from October 2022. Detailed reports can be checked here.
OpIndia’s complete Mewat Shobha Yatra Attack coverage can be checked here.
‘Historian’ Audrey Truschke, who has a history of anti-Hindu propaganda, received a rude shock on Friday (August 18) when none turned up for her event at the Parliament of World’s Religions in Chicago.
She was scheduled to speak on issues such as ‘censorship’, ‘free speech’ ‘disinformation’ and supposed ‘threats and harassment from right-wing groups’ alongside other anti-India propagandists such as Sunita Vishwanath and Rasheed Ahmed.
Although the event titled ‘The Importance of Freedom of Speech to Defend Human Rights ‘was conducted virtually, Truschke was greeted with empty chairs and vacant halls.
— CoHNA (Coalition of Hindus of North America) (@CoHNAOfficial) August 20, 2023
In a tweet, the Coaliation of Hindus of North America (CoHNA) wrote, “LOL! Attendees at @InterfaithWorld voted down peddlers of propaganda, #Hinduphobia and outright lies. Crickets at the hate fest featuring #AudreyTruschke, #EqualityLabs, Indian American Muslim Council, Hindus for Human Rights and FIACONA.”
“Hopefully the professor has learned that it is hard to sell hate if no one is buying it,” the Hindu advocacy group tweeted. In another tweet, CoHNA informed that there was a huge turnout for the President of the advocacy group at the Parliament of World Religions in Chicago.
“In contrast, after attempting to cancel CoHNA president Nikunj Trivedi from speaking about a sacred Hindu symbol, the Swastika session was a full house with a powerful and diverse panel of experts and attendees in a standing room only session. Truth sells itself.
In contrast, after attempting to cancel CoHNA president Nikunj Trivedi from speaking about a sacred Hindu symbol, the Swastika session was a full house with a powerful and diverse panel of experts and attendees in a standing room only session. ? Truth sells itself. https://t.co/OmkgONjsst
— CoHNA (Coalition of Hindus of North America) (@CoHNAOfficial) August 20, 2023
In an article published by Milli Chronicle, it said, “…The lack of attendees conveyed a clear message: the public is increasingly unwilling to entertain narratives perceived as potentially harmful and divisive.”
“This incident serves as a reminder that the responsibility of speakers and intellectuals extends beyond exercising the right to freedom of speech. It is crucial to approach topics with sensitivity, integrity, and a commitment to truth, in order to avoid undermining the very values they claim to defend,” it added.
I'm speaking today at 1 p.m. CST at the Parliament of World Religions (@InterfaithWorld) on human rights and free speech.
What's an academic doing at an interfaith gathering?
Well, a far-right group sued me alongside some stellar interfaith leaders. We won… Join us for more!
On Friday (August 18), ‘historian’ Audrey Truschke tweeted that she would be speaking at the Parliamnent of World’s Religions on ‘free speech’ and ‘human rights.’
“What’s an academic doing at an interfaith gathering? Well, a far-right group sued me alongside some stellar interfaith leaders. We won… Join us for more!” she claimed. Her tweet recieved poor response from her followers, which also reflected in the audience turnout for her session.
The day was July 28, 2023. I was working on an urgent news story when I got a call from an unknown number – 080 3710 1888. I usually avoid picking up unknown calls but an Amazon package was scheduled to be delivered later that day.
When I answered the call, a computer-generated voice (also called Interactive voice response/IVR) informed me that an attempt had been made to change the phone number associated with my OLA account.
I was surprised. “Why would anyone want to change the phone number of a ride-sharing app?” I thought for a second. The IVR asked me to press 1 if I approved the ‘phone number change’ or else press 2.
Screengrab of my call history
Similar attempts to break into my Facebook and Amazon accounts had been made in the past. As I was already preoccupied with work, I wanted to settle the issue as soon as possible. So, I went ahead and pressed 2 on the keypad.
The automated voice thanked me for the confirmation and asked me to enter the verification code sent to my number. At that time, I received a notification for a one-time password (OTP). So I went ahead and entered the 6-digit ‘verification code’ in the hopes of thwarting the ‘phishing’ attempt.
The IVR informed me that the ‘phone number change’ request was aborted. The call was then automatically disconnected. So, I went back to my work, only to receive one of the most distressing text messages of my life.
Screengrab of the text message received from OLA
“Payment of Rs. 10000.0 using OlaMoney Postpaid for your transaction hj2f-1d4k-le1r on www.woohoo.in is successful,” the message read. I was taken aback. I quickly installed the OLA app (which I usually uninstall after rides to save phone storage) to confirm if the message was real.
To my shock, my OLA Postpaid account was ₹10,000 short of its maximum limit of ₹15,500. The due date for the re-payment of ₹10,000 was written as August 27, 2023.
I am scammed – the reality dawned on me soon. So, I went online and quickly searched for OLA’s customer care number. It led me to the website of OLA Postpaid, where the customer care number was listed as 080 3710 1888.
Screengrab of the OLA Postpaid customer care number
I was surprised to learn that it was the same number from which the scam call originated. Until then, I was deeply embarrassed to have been randomly defrauded by an automated voice call. As a journalist and tech-savvy millennial, I did not expect such things to happen to me.
When it became clear that the fraud IVR was initiated by the official customer care number of OLA postpaid, I called the number immediately. It connected me to ‘OLA financial services’. I was able to talk to a representative of the ride-sharing company and register my complaint.
I inquired as to how such fraud calls can be made to customers from the official OLA postpaid number. She had no answer but assured me that the OLA team would investigate the matter with utmost priority.
Hey Dibakar, we want to help you with this. Please share your registered contact details via DM so that we can assist you further. https://t.co/6DHSELSc7K
Meanwhile, I also shared the story on X(formerly Twitter) and sent a Direct Message (DM) to OLA support on the micro-blogging platform. Several X (formerly Twitter) users began narrating their stories of fraud. “Exactly the same thing happened with me too,” wrote Sudesh.
Saptarshi B and Naresh Gupta were also defrauded of their OLA Postpaid money.
Exact same thing happened to me with Ola money but their response is pathetic. Now they have generated the bill as well. 2 weeks and not even a single call back @olamoney_in
X (formerly Twitter) user Aditya Singh, who lost ₹9500 in the fraud, wrote, “Their CC replies are the same every day… (They say) we are not authorised to recover funds. Already complained (to) cybercrime (department). Let’s see what will happen.”
Same scam happen with me 9500rs lost from ola postpaid theier CC replies are same everyday like ki we are not authorised to recover funds already complained in cybercrime lets see what will happen@olamoney_in@ola_supports#fraudola#stopusingola
My sister, who works as a clerk at a nationalised bank, informed me that she has received similar ‘OLA Postpaid’ fraud calls in the past. She asked me to install the app ‘TrueCaller’ as it raises alarms about such ‘fraud calls.’
In the past, I had been hesitant about using ‘TrueCaller’ due to privacy issues. After having lost ₹10,000 in one day, I was no longer worried about privacy. On installing the app, the official customer care number of OLA was flagged as ‘OLA Postpaid Scam’.
There were a dozen comments by TrueCaller users who have similarly been defrauded by IVR, originating from the number. “They first play an IVR asking you to deny the transaction and once you press 1, they send you an OTP asking you to confirm and that is where the brilliance of the scam is. DO NOT SHARE OTP AT ANY COST!” wrote one user.
Screengrab of the comments by TrueCaller users
Another user warned, “Fraud- Do not share OTP with them. change your account password if you are receiving calls from this number regarding mobile number change and asking for OTP for request cancellation.”
After interacting with some of the victims, I learnt that they had been defrauded from the official number of OLA as well as unofficial/ unknown numbers. My mother, who was disturbed by the development, lambasted me for sharing the verification code on call.
“I did not think of the OLA postpaid wallet when I received the call. In my mind, I wondered why someone was trying to change the phone number of my ridesharing app. Had it been a bank or third-party transaction app (such as PayTM, GPay or PhonePe), I would perhaps have been more vigilant,” I told her in my defence.
Taking the legal route
Although I was disheartened and embarrassed by the development, I knew I could not waste time and proceeded to file a cyber complaint.
First, I visited the website of the ‘National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal’, and chose ‘Financial Fraud’ from the drop-down menu of ‘Report Cyber Crime’. I accepted the terms and conditions and created a new account.
While the onboarding process is easy, the online complaint must be filled out quickly. If such a thing is not done, then, the page will get timed out and you need to start afresh. It took 3 attempts to finally register my online complaint.
Screengrab of the Cyber Crime Reporting Portal
To make things easier, I will suggest compiling all screenshots, bank statements etc. in the form of a pdf. After the online complaint is registered, you will receive an acknowledgement number on your given email ID.
Within a day’s time, your complaint will be assigned to a nearby cyber crime police station and a designated police officer (the email will include phone number). Most people do not follow up after this step.
You need to physically visit the said police station and meet up with the concerned cop for the registration of the First Information Report (FIR).You will need documents such as a copy of your Aadhar card, address proof, written complaint (in the format attached in the tweet) and proof of fraud (screenshots, mail transcripts, transaction ID etc).
#Update: Submitted all required documents for the registration of FIR against @ola_supports .
I will collect the FIR copy tomorrow and approach all agencies possible. Fingers crossed! The fight is on.
— Dibakar Dutta (দিবাকর দত্ত) (@dibakardutta_) August 3, 2023
You can skip the bank statement part in this case, given that the OLA Postpaid Scam is an ‘e-wallet fraud’. Within a day’s time, you can collect a physical copy of the FIR from the said police station.
Resolution of my issue
I did not receive any help from the OLA Team for the first 3 days, except for bot replies to my tweets and generic emails. Thereafter, I was greeted with an email that read-
“We would like to inform you that, as per our technical team OTP was generated and shared for the transaction. We are sorry to let you know that we are not authorized to recover funds from a successful transaction.”
After wasting 72 hours on the issue, @olamoney_in sent me this beautiful email –
"We would like to inform you that, as per our technical team OTP was generated and shared for the transaction. We are sorry to let you know that we are not authorized to recover funds from a… pic.twitter.com/wEQPtX2l9L
— Dibakar Dutta (দিবাকর দত্ত) (@dibakardutta_) July 31, 2023
Despite being pointed out repeatedly that the OTP was shared with the IVR, originating from the official number of OLA postpaid money, the support team initially did not do anything about it. They carefully avoided responding to the mail, which highlighted this aspect and chose to focus solely on the OTP part.
In the meantime, I kept writing emails to the OLA team, highlighting the issue but to no avail. On August 7, 2023, I finally received a mail from OLA Money representative Vippu Lokesh, stating that my defrauded postpaid balance of ₹10000 has been refunded.
“Hello Dibakar, we regret the inconvenience caused. We would like to inform you that being our valuable customer we will go ahead and refund the full amount. However, moving forward please make sure that you do not share any OTP over call/SMS/IVR/Email as Ola representative will never ask you for OTP,” the mail read.
Email sent by OLA Money representative Vippu Lokesh
I was finally relieved. I quickly checked my OLA postpaid wallet and the refund was reflected in the account. I called up the OLA support number (the same one as the fraud IVR) and permanently deactivated the postpaid service with the help of their customer care executive.
Plight of other fraud victims
Another victim of the OLA Postpaid scam call, identified as Naresh Gupta, was also refunded the defrauded amount of ₹7500. While I and Gupta were among the fortunate ones to receive a full refund, the plight of other victims tells a different story.
Many of the defrauded individuals are now being harassed by OLA officials to cough up the amount, which was siphoned off in the scam. As the due dates for repayment of OLA postpaid are inching closer for the victims, they are receiving threatening calls from OLA recovery agents.
On X (formerly Twitter), Rahul Jungade narrated that he is being blackmailed and mentally harassed by OLA officials.
Siddhartha, another victim of fraud, tweeted, “My case is not resolved by Ola Money. Getting WhatsApp messages on (my) personal number from Ola folks asking to pay. Ola Money, we have already filed a cyberfraud police complaint on @Cyberdost against you and @woohoogifting both.”
My case is not resolved by @olamoney_in Gettin WhatsApp messages on personal number from Ola folks asking to pay ??@olamoney_in we have already filed cyberfraud police complaint on @Cyberdost against you and @woohoogifting both.
There are several questions that need to be addressed by OLA, pertaining to the misuse of its official customer care number and the plight of those victimised in the fraud. I have prepared a set of 8 questions that require immediate answers from the management of the ride-sharing app.
How can an automated voice call, aimed at defrauding customers, originate from the official number of OLA Postpaid?
How did the fraudsters know that the victims were OLA postpaid users? Was there a breach of customer data that we do not know of?
What is being done on OLA’s part to protect the data of the customers?
Are you aware of the cyber fraud involving OLA postpaid? If yes, what action has been taken in this regard? If no, then who should be contacted for redressal of customer grievances?
There are several postpaid/ pay later services in the markets. How have they been able to protect their customers from falling prey to fraudsters, which is not the case with OLA?
Will the victims be refunded/ compensated for the fraud originating from the official number of OLA postpaid and in cases where scamsters had access to OLA customer data?
Will OLA officials/ executives/ recovery agents stop harassing those customers who have been defrauded of OLA postpaid money until a resolution is reached?
What is the top management doing to safeguard OLA users from future cyber fraud?
Disclaimer: I have sent two emails, seeking answers to the above-mentioned questions, to OLA’s top management and itsmedia enquiry centre. No response has been received so far. The article will be updated accordingly if OLA chooses to respond to the questions
The property crisis in China, which has led to billions of dollars flowing out of the country, is not just Beijing’s own making but has also exposed the ‘reality’ of Beijing’s property boom, the New York Times reported.
What started three years ago as a crackdown on risky business behavior by home builders, and then an ensuing housing slowdown, has spiraled rapidly this month.
The broader economy has been threatened, and the confidence of consumers, businesses and investors has been undermined. So far, China’s typically hands-on policymakers have done little to ease anxieties and seem determined to reduce the country’s economic reliance on real estate.
“What is happening in the Chinese property market is really unprecedented,” NYT quoted Charles Chang, who heads corporate credit ratings for Greater China at Standard & Poor’s.
For the last three decades, China’s population surged and its people flocked to cities seeking economic opportunity. The developers couldn’t build modern apartments fast enough, and the property sector became the engine of a transforming economy. Real estate employed millions and provided a store for household savings. Today, the property sector accounts for more than a quarter of all economic activity.
China’s dependence on real estate was lucrative during its strong phase when it seemed like a never-ending property boom, but today it has become a liability after years of excessive borrowing and overbuilding, as per NYT. When China was growing faster, the excesses were papered over as developers borrowed more to pay off mounting debts. But now China is struggling to regain its footing after emerging from the “paralyzing pandemic lockdowns” its leaders imposed, and many of its economic problems are pointing back to real estate, NYT reported.
Today, Chinese consumers are spending less, in part because a slump in housing prices has affected their savings, much of which are tied up in property. Jobs tied to housing that were once abundant — construction, landscaping, painting — are also disappearing.
In addition to all this, the uncertainty of how far the crisis might spread is leaving companies and small businesses further afraid to spend.
Financial institutions known as trust companies, which invest billions of dollars on behalf of companies and rich individuals, are staring at losses from risky loans handed out to property firms, prompting protests from angry investors, NYT reported. As per the New York Times, the current property crisis is a problem of the government’s own making.
The regulators allowed developers to gorge themselves on debt to finance a growth-at-all-costs strategy for decades. Then the government intervened suddenly and drastically in 2020 to prevent a housing bubble. It stopped the flow of cheap money to China’s biggest real estate companies, leaving many short on cash.
One after another, the companies began to crumble as they could not pay their bills. More than 50 Chinese property developers have defaulted or failed to make debt payments in the last three years, NYT reported citing credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s.
The defaults have exposed the ‘reality’ of China’s property boom: the borrow-to-build model works only as long as prices keep going up.
However, even as the property crisis has worsened, Chinese policymakers have defied calls to step in with a major rescue package. Instead, they have opted for modest gestures like relaxing mortgage requirements and cutting interest rates. NYT cited an editorial of the state-run Economic Daily, which stated on Friday that it would take time for recent policies to take effect: “We must be soberly aware that the process of defusing risk cannot be completed overnight, and the market must give it a certain amount of patience.”
The policymakers have tolerated the fallout of the real estate crackdown because even the companies that aren’t able to pay all their bills have continued to build and deliver apartments.
China Evergrande, for example, defaulted on 300 billion UYD of debt in 2021 and yet managed to finish and deliver 3,00,000 apartments out of the more than 1 million that it had taken money for but not completed at the time of its collapse, New York Times reported.
Evergrande filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States on Thursday. However, a lot has changed in recent months. Households pulled back on big purchases, and apartment sales abruptly plummeted. This shock altered the fortunes of Country Garden, a real estate giant that was once put forward as a model by the government.
The company is now anticipating a loss of as much as 7.6 billion USD in the first half of the year and said that it is facing the “biggest challenge” to its business in its three-decade history, NYT reported.
Country Garden has just weeks to come up with the cash to make interest payments on some of its bonds or join its peers in default. It also has hundreds of billions of dollars in unpaid bills.
These developments have also concerned home buyers, who were already wary. In July, new home sales at China’s 100 biggest property developers fell 33% from a year earlier, NYT reported citing the data from the China Real Estate Information Corp.
The sales also fell 28% in June. The investors also worry that policymakers are not acting quickly enough to prevent a bigger crisis.
“I don’t think they have yet found the right solution to solve the problems,” NYT quoted Ting Lu, the chief China economist for Nomura. Lu and his colleagues have also warned that falling home sales and defaulting developers risk a chain reaction that threatens the broader economy.
The fears have spread to other markets as well. In Hong Kong, where many of China’s biggest companies are listed, confidence has plunged so drastically that stocks have fallen into a bear market, down 21% from their peak in January. Over the last two weeks, investors have pulled 7.5 billion USD out of Chinese stocks, NYT reported.
According to New York Times, real estate troubles are also spreading to China’s so-called shadow banking system of financial trust companies. These institutions offer investments with higher returns than standard bank deposits and often invest in real estate projects.
Earlier this month, the latest troubles have also surfaced. Two publicly traded Chinese companies warned that they had invested money with Zhongrong International Trust, which is managing about 85 billion USD in assets, and said that Zhongrong had failed to pay the companies what they were owed.
Meanwhile, videos have emerged showing a crowd of angry Chinese investors gathering outside the Beijing offices of Zhongrong demanding that the company “pay back the money” and calling for an explanation, NYT reported. But it was not clear when the protest took place; videos of it were uploaded to Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, this month.
The demonstration was reminiscent of other acts of defiance in China rooted in the housing crisis. While such occurrences are rare, there are a few recent examples.
In February, thousands of retirees in Wuhan confronted officials to protest cuts in government-provided medical insurance for seniors. The cutbacks were a sign of the strain on local governments caused in part by the downturn in real estate that had hurt land sales, a reliable source of revenue.
Last year, hundreds of thousands of homeowners refused to pay mortgage loans on unfinished apartments. Some staged protest videos on social media, while collectives of homeowners tracked boycotts online.
Both protests drew notice, but the momentum petered out as the government intervened to limit discussion on social media while adopting some steps to ease tensions. Last week, a new video outside of Zhongrong’s offices showed no demonstrations but police cars and vans were parked in and near the facility, NYT reported.
(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 Monday (21 August), the BJP will mark the second death anniversary of Former UP CM Kalyan Singh as ‘Hindu Gaurav Diwas’ in Aligarh. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will attend the event commemorating the late Kalyan Singh at the Numaish Maidan in Aligarh.
हम सबके प्रिय श्रद्धेय बाबूजी कल्याण सिंह के द्वितीय पुण्यतिथि (21 अगस्त) के अवसर पर 'हिन्दू गौरव दिवस' कार्यक्रम का आयोजन नुमाइस ग्राउंड अलीगढ़ में किया जा रहा है। आप सभी महानुभावों का हम ह्रदय से स्वागत एवं अभिनन्दन करते हैं : @thisissanjubjp जी, बेसिक शिक्षा मंत्री यूपी सरकार pic.twitter.com/n8oOOERwmm
BJP’s city unit president, Vivek Saraswat confirmed the development. Lauding Kalyan Singh as a staunch Hindu, Saraswat said, “Late Babuji (Kalyan Singh) epitomised Hindu pride. He willingly stepped down from his position as the CM in support of the cause of Sri Ram Janmabhoomi. We are observing the second death anniversary of Babuji as Hindu Gaurav Diwas. This day provides BJP workers with an opportunity to hear from senior party leaders, including Amit Shah.”
Other major attendees of the event may include BJP state president Bhupinder Singh, and deputy CMs Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak.
लोकप्रिय जन नेता, सुशासन के संवाहक, यूपी के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री व राजस्थान और हिमाचल प्रदेश के राज्यपाल रहने वाले 'पद्म विभूषण' श्रद्धेय स्व• श्री कल्याण सिंह 'बाबूजी' की पुण्यतिथि 21 अगस्त 2023 को हिंदू गौरव दिवस के रुप में मनाया जायेगा… #KalyanSingh#HinduGauravDiwas#MPEtahpic.twitter.com/gSdFtBTu3Y
— Rajveer Singh – Raju Bhaiya (@RajveersinghUP) August 20, 2023
In the wake of this event, Rajveer Singh aka Raju Bhaiyya, who is the son of Kalyan Singh and serves as the MP from Etah, along with Sandeep Singh, Kalyan Singh’s grandson and a minister in the U.P. cabinet, conducted a review of the preparations on Sunday, August 20th.
Additionally, district magistrate (DM) Indra Vikram Singh and Aligarh’s senior superintendent of police (SSP Aligarh) Kalanidhi Naithani, held a series of meetings to ensure proper arrangements and security for the event.
The DM said, “The venue is being provided with three-tier security arrangements. Only individuals with valid passes will be permitted to attend the event. Additionally, the venue has been designated as a ‘No Flying Zone,’ and drones will not be allowed to fly near or above the venue on Monday.”
However, the administration has duly taken into consideration that Mondays during the Shravan month attract kanwariyas in large numbers and they start arriving as early as Sunday night. For that, they have made all the proper arrangements for the same.
As a precautionary measure, orders have been issued for the closure of schools in Aligarh city on Monday.
The public relations officer of AMU in Aligarh, Omar S Peerzada said, “In line with the directives from the Aligarh district administration, all schools affiliated with Aligarh Muslim University that offer classes up to the 12th grade are to remain closed on Monday.”
Former UP CM Kalyan Singh passed away two years ago. On his death anniversary, the state’s incumbent CM Yogi Adityanath come to Aligarh and stay there overnight. He was also part of the procession that carried the mortal remains of the former CM Kalyan Singh.
भारतीय राजनीति के सिरमौर स्पष्टवादिता और ठोस फैसले लेने वाले उत्तर प्रदेश के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री जिन्होंने जनकल्याण के प्रति अपने संपूर्ण जीवन को समर्पित कर दिया श्रद्धेय कल्याण सिंह जी की पुण्यतिथि पर भावभीनी श्रद्धांजलि। pic.twitter.com/xrkFtbEMf9
For those unversed, Kalyan Singh represented Atrauli, an assembly constituency in Aligarh, several times. Currently, his grandson Sandeep Singh represents Atrauli and he also holds a portfolio in the U.P. cabinet.
As the wildfires in Canada have intensified, the authorities have asked around 30,000 households to evacuate British Columbia province. As per media reports, wildfire is raging in more than 400 different places in this Canadian province. Earlier, the authorities in British Columbia had declared a state of emergency as Canada is witnessing its worst wildfire season in modern history.
British Columbia has declared a state of emergency as Canada’s worst wildfire season in modern history tears through swaths of the western province, forcing thousands of people to flee their homes.
Officials in the province expanded the order late Friday after declaring a state… pic.twitter.com/6xUVKQj9BF
The aim of this systematic evacuation is to ensure enough accommodation is available for evacuees and emergency workers. Apart from evacuation orders, officials have issued a prohibitory order on travel to the city of Kelowna. Apparently, it is a waterside city supporting a population of 132,000 people but currently smoke from nearby fires has clouded the airspace over Lake Okanagan.
While a scarier situation prevailed in the north as the massive fire approached Yellowknife, the capital of Canada’s Northwest Territories. The official evacuation deadline passed on Friday and by then almost all of the city’s residents, approximately 19,000 people out of 20,000, managed to leave by car or plane.
Very little information coming out of Fires going around im Canada aswell, just information about mass evacuations ?
By Friday evening, the last group evacuated from the city was a group of 39 patients from a hospital. They were relocated to other facilities. However, some individuals opted to stay, following which the Environment and Communities Minister Shane Thompson encouraged them to depart.
(Image Source – Aljazeera)
As per a BBC report, the travel restrictions also apply to the towns of Kamloops, Oliver, Penticton, Vernon, and Osoyoos. The officials stated that the wildfires have destroyed homes in nearby West Kelowna, a city that supports a population of 36,000 people.
Earlier, Bowinn Ma who is the province’s emergency management minister spoke on the severity of wildfires and how important it is to pay heed to these evacuation orders.
Bowinn Ma said, “They are a matter of life and death not only for the people in those properties but also for the first responders who will often go back to try to implore people to leave.”
(Image Source – Aljazeera)
According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, more than 5,700 fires have burned approximately 137,000 sq km (53,000 sq miles) across Canada. The estimated area burnt in these wildfires in Canada is roughly the size of Greece. Canada witnesses wildfires every summer but this time the situation is more alarming as the area burnt this year is almost twice the area of the last record of 73,000 sq km (28,185 sq miles).
Reportedly, no civilian has reportedly lost live in the latest fires, however, at least four firefighters have lost their lives in this record-breaking wildfire in Canada.
Hawaii Wildfire
Meanwhile, the search operation to locate missing people in the aftermath of the Hawaii wildfires is still ongoing in Maui. On Thursday (17 August), the head of the Maui Emergency Management Agency Herman Andaya resigned on Thursday for badly handling the response to the devastating wildfires.
Andaya submitted his resignation a day after he defended his decision not to use outdoor alert sirens before the fires engulfed the region. The Hawaii wildfire has claimed as many as 114 lives. Only 10 of the 114 victims killed in the fires have been identified.
As per media reports, people in hundreds are still missing since last week’s wildfire started.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday said that he is worried about the circular issued by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) circular on the Indo-Pak partition that took place in 1947.
The NCP Chief inaugurated Sarhad Public School in Pune.
The event was organised by the Sarhad Foundation, a local NGO which helps in the education of students from the border regions of the country, especially Kashmir and Punjab.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Pawar said, ” I feel worried about a circular issued by the CBSE recently.. this circular stated that Schools must give information to the students about the situation which erupted in the society after partition”.
“According to me, the history of the partition is the history of the country’s division where a lot of bloodshed happened. Thousands of people got displaced. In the view of national and Social unity, it will not be suitable to imbibe a history in the minds of the young generation which includes bloodshed and bitterness”, said the NCP Chief.
Along With Sharad Pawar, former State Home Minister and Congress leader Sushil Kumar Shinde and Maharashtra Higher and technical education minister Chandrkant Patil were present at the event.
It is worth mentioning that the CBSE earlier released a circular on the observance of ‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’ on August 14.
“Government of India has announced that 14th August every year will be observed as
‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’. Educational institutions may observe the day by
organizing exhibitions on this theme”, CBSE said in the circular.
Adding further, the education board said, “It is pertinent to mention that considering the sensitivity of the issue, it may kindly be ensured that the exhibition is showcased with the sobriety and solemnness that it deserves. It may be specifically ensured that the sentiments of any section of society are not to be hurt”.
This year, the nation completed 76 years of independence and the ‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’ was observed throughout the country to remember those who have endured suffering and pain during the partition.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
The head of a real estate agency in Iran has been arrested for the bizarre crime of transferring the title of an apartment to a dog. Police took the measure after a video went public which showed his company carrying out the peculiar business transaction. The widely circulated footage revealed that an Iranian couple handed over the title of their flat to their beloved canine named Chester.
The pair can be witnessed signing a document to formally assign ownership of their property to their furry, diminutive and white four-legged companion in the bizarre clip. His pawprint was used to seal the deal and it was accomplished with the aid of a woman using an ink pad. Thereafter, he is congratulated for acquiring possession of the residence.
The strange decision was justified by the husband and wife as a result of the fact that they had no successors and wanted to give the flat to their cherished pet.
The Iranian authorities opened an investigation on 20 August in reaction to the viral video. The owner of the real estate firm involved in the sale was arrested and his business was briefly shut down. Reza Tabar, deputy prosecutor general, clarified that the deal was perceived as an effort to normalise morally repugnant and illegal acts.
The judiciary’s Mizan Online website stated, “The police arrested the head of the real estate agency and shuttered the firm on Saturday (19 August).” He was apprehended for “attacking moral values” because the animal is considered unclean in Iran. The accused has not been identified by the police.
Deputy prosecutor general Reza Tabar said that the decision to sell the apartment to Chester had no legal basis.
Iran does not have legislation that specifically forbids the ownership of dogs, but due to the influence of orthodox clerics, there is a generally negative cultural perception. They are viewed as filthy in multiple Muslim nations including Iran and hardline religious leaders sometimes advise against having them as pets.
A bill to limit pet ownership was submitted to the parliament in 2022. It would have outlawed the purchase, sale or maintenance of dogs, cats, and other animals as pets and require prospective owners to obtain government permission. The Tehran City Council further banned pets in public areas after government-affiliated media referred to dogs roaming the streets as a “major problem.”
A vet in Iran unveiled that the barring of pets started more than ten years ago. Dr Payam Moheb pointed out, “Iranian MPs tried to promote a law to confiscate all dogs and either give them to zoos or abandon them in deserts.”
Notwithstanding conventional beliefs, the country has seen an increase in pet ownership, notably among the upper and middle classes and with dogs and cats.
On Sunday (20 August), a Pakistani police official said that 13 labourers were killed and two others sustained injuries in a late-night explosion in the Shawal area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s North Waziristan district.
While speaking with Pakistani news outlet Dawn, North Waziristan District Police Officer Naik Muhammad confirmed the death toll. The police officer stated that the incident took place in Shawal region which is near the Pak-Afghan border. He added that the van in which the labourers were travelling was completely destroyed by the suspected improvised explosive device (IED) blast.
The authorities quickly suspended all mobile services in the area in view of security concerns.
Speaking to Reuters, Deputy Commissioner of North Waziristan, Rehan Khattak said, “They were working at an army post that is under construction. An IED exploded under a vehicle carrying the labourers.”
According to the Police officials, the private vehicle carrying 16 labourers hit a landmine in the Gull Meer Kor area. Following the blast, the injured as well as the dead bodies were rushed towards a nearby hospital.
As per a local leader Yar Gul, the terrorists wanted to target a convoy of security forces and had planted a bomb along the roadside.
Among those who have lost their lives, 11 labourers hailed from the Mehsud tribe belonging to the Spin Kamar area of the district. The other two deceased labourers belonged to South Waziristan’s Lower Ahmedzai Wazir area.
Following the terror attack, Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar strongly condemned the attack. Taking to X, he said, “Strongly condemn this senseless act of violence and stand in solidarity with the families affected.”
Heartbreaking to know about the terrorist attack in North Waziristan which claimed the lives of 11 innocent laborers. Strongly condemn this senseless act of violence and stand in solidarity with the families affected.
No terrorist organisation had immediately claimed responsibility for the blast. However, Pakistan has repeatedly blamed Afghanistan for a string of deadly attacks in their tribal regions bordering Afghanistan, reported Aljazeera.
Senior Pakistani officials have accused Taliban of not doing enough to control the movement of armed groups from crossing the porous border. However, the Taliban has rejected all these allegations labelled against them by Pakistani officials.
A string of attacks in Pakistan
Earlier, on the 12th of August, two people lost their lives in targeted attacks in the same district. Prior to that, on 8 August, four people including two policemen were killed in separate attacks in the district and Peshawar.
Last month, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police stated that between June 18, 2022, and June 18, 2023, more than 665 militant attacks were reported in the province. Out of these 15 were reported cases of suicide bombings.
A Pakistani think tank named Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies recently released a report stating that more than 389 people have lost their lives in just the first half of the current year.
