West Bengal Police recovered bomb-making material in 24 Parganas’ Bhangar on Friday following the recent violence during nominations for Panchayat elections.
A total of seven bags filled with husk-like material were recovered. Moreover, a division bench of Calcutta High Court, led by Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam, on Thursday directed the election commission in West Bengal to request the deployment of central paramilitary forces in all districts of the state within the next 48 hours, ahead of the upcoming panchayat elections in the state.
The final day of filing nominations witnessed continued clashes across various parts of the state, including an outbreak of violence at the Block Development Office in Birbhum’s Ahmadpur, where crude bombs were reportedly thrown.
However, as per the officials, no casualties have been reported in the incident. As per the visuals, crude bombs have also been hurled in the area. Police have detained a few people involved in the clash.
In an effort to maintain order, heavy security deployment has been made in the South 24 Parganas district. Tension and unease prevailed in several areas, particularly the Bhangar block, where clashes between supporters of the ruling TMC and Naushad Siddiqui-led Indian Secular Front (ISF) over the past two days.
The two sets of supporters were seen on the roads, wielding sticks, as the police struggled to maintain law and order. Some police personnel, including the SDPO, sustained injuries during the clashes.
Canning sub-divisional police officer Dibakar Das said, “There was a clash between two groups. The mob attacked the police as well. I also got hurt on my hand during that time. Some policemen got minor injuries. 2 people were injured. We have arrested 17-18 people. The incident is being investigated.”
The Panchayat elections in West Bengal will be held in a single phase on July 8, with the counting of votes scheduled for July 11.
Ritlal Yadav, a member of the Bihar legislative assembly from Rashtriya Janata Dal has issued a controversial statement regarding the Ramcharitmanas. He stated that the holy text was written in a mosque. He also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of creating a rift in society in the name of Hindutva.
“You are attempting to incite hostility among the communities. How much longer will this last? Ram Temple was formerly discussed. If you remember, the Ramcharitmanas was penned in a mosque. Look into the past. No threat existed to our Hindutva at that time. Our Hindutva wasn’t in danger back when the Mughals ruled over us for such a long duration,” he asked.
The legislator charged, “Where were they when an 18-year-old girl won the Bhagavad Katha contest globally? Why were they not speaking up that a Muslim girl promoted Bhagavad Katha as well as absorbed it? People should also learn from it. If you are a true flag bearer of Hindutva then expel all the Muslims from your party. Why did you introduce the triple talaq bill?”
'रामचरितमानस मस्जिद में बैठकर लिखा गया था': RJD विधायक
राजद विधायक रीतलाल यादव ने मानस ग्रंथ पर विवादित बयान दिया है और कहा है कि रामचरितमानस मस्जिद में बैठकर लिखा गया था, तब तो हिंदुत्व खतरे में नहीं था? यादव यहीं नहीं रुके, और आगे कहा कि अगर इतना ही हिंदुत्व का सहभागी बनना है… pic.twitter.com/0G7kVYAJ5K
Ritlal Yadav has come under criticism from Janata Dal (United), the ruling alliance partner of RJD in Bihar. Abhishek Jha, a party’s spokesperson, mentioned people speak according to their convenience. “These types of claims need to be avoided because this sends the wrong message to the public. Anyone is free to practise any religion. This a personal matter of the people. This kind of agenda suits the BJP. They create tension in the name of religion.”
A BJP spokesman, Prem Ranjan Patel also refuted Ritlal Yadav’s argument and pointed out that Sanatan Dharma is the oldest religion in the world. “People from all over the world have embraced its culture. It is ignorant to speak against such a religion. Those who use Ramcharitmanas in their speech must be knowledgeable. Collect the right information first before discussing Ramayana’s formation.”
Notably, there has been a rain of similar utterances from several politicians in the country. The education minister of Bihar, Chandra Shekhar, who is also from the RJD, recently stoked outrage when he remarked that Ramcharitmanas spreads hate in the society. He declared that it should be burnt like Manusmruti because it spreads hatred in society.
“A nation becomes great with love and affection. Books like Ramcharitmanas, Manusmriti and Madhav Sadashivrao Golwalkar’s Bunch of Thoughts sowed the seeds of hatred and social divide. This is the reason why people burnt Manusmriti and took exception to a portion of Ramcharitmanas, which talks against education for Dalits, backwards and women,” he voiced while addressing the 15th convocation ceremony of Nalanda Open University.
A member of a State Legislative Council (MLC) from the Samajwadi Party, Swami Prasad Maurya caused a major uproar when he alleged that several crores of people have not read Ramcharitmanas. The revered Hindu literature, he commented, was “all nonsense.” He demanded that the government either ban the entire book or outlaw its offensive sections. He claimed that the scripture considered ‘Shudras’ to be of low caste and added that Tulsidas composed it for his own pleasure.
Afterwards, members of the Akhil Bharatiya OBC (Other Backward Classes) Mahasabha in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, burned copies of the Ramcharitmanas and declared their support for Swami Prasad Maurya. Following the incident, a First Information Report (FIR) was booked on a complaint filed by BJP leader Satnam Singh Lavi against Devendra Pratap Yadav, Yashpal Singh Lodhi, Satyendra Kushwaha, Mahendra Pratap Yadav, Sujit Yadav, Naresh Singh, S S Yadav, Santosh Verma and Saleem along with the SP lawmaker.
Another party leader Lalji Patel extended his support to the MLC and announced, “Ramcharitmanas is not a religious book. It is a book that creates a divide in society and insults backward caste people and Dalits. It should be burnt.” Additionally, he made an appeal to members of the backward class and encouraged them to burn copies of the Ramcharitmanas during the festival of Holi.
“This book is like any other novel and it is being wrongly used to propagate the Hindu religion. Tulsidas has just stated his opinion. He had written the book for his own pleasure. It is not a religious book. The copies of the said book should be burnt on the day of Holika. Only then will the backward class people and Dalits get their rights,” he added.
In the USA, a professor from the Pennsylvania State University has been caught and arrested for sexually abusing his pet dog in a public forest. He has been charged with multiple cases and has now been sacked from his job. He was arrested on June 13.
As per reports, Themis Matsoukas, a 64-year-old professor (now sacked) at Penn State University has been charged with animal cruelty, disorderly conduct, open lewdness, and indecent exposure among other charges. Matsoukas was caught sexually abusing his dog in the trail cameras installed in the Rothrock State Forest. As per reports, there are multiple instances where Matsoukas’s activities of sexually abusing his pet dog have been recorded in the cameras, with the earliest clip from 2014.
As per reports, after Matsoukas was again spotted sexually abusing his dog near a restroom in the Alan Seeger Parking Area and filming the activity on an iPad, the rangers in the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources launched an investigation against him. The forest officials have stated that the spots that Matsoukas used for sexual activities with the poor animal were within the viewing range of public roads that lead to picnic spots and popular camping grounds in the forest.
Earlier in April, the rangers were yet to identify Matsoukas. In May, however, he returned to the same spot with an iPad and was seen walking naked and sexually abusing his dog. His car also matched with the vehicle spotted in previous instances.
The videos filmed by Matsoukas are explicit and feature him walking naked, masturbating, and making his dog perform perverse activities involving his private parts. When the local authorities gathered all evidence and finally confronted Matsoukas, he was reportedly ‘very nervous’ and uttered, “I am done. I am dead”. He later told the investigating authorities that he was doing sexual activities with his dog to “blow off steam”.
Matsoukas was a professor of chemical engineering at Penn State University for over 30 years. He has been sacked by the University after the charges against him were brought. He is scheduled to appear in court in July. Matsoukas has received multiple teaching awards at the University during his long career. The collie dog spotted in the videos was found at his house during the search by the authorities.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accepted an invitation from US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden to undertake an official state visit to the United States from June 20 to 23. The Ministry of External Affairs has announced that the visit will commence in New York, where the Prime Minister will lead the celebrations of the International Day of Yoga at the United Nations Headquarters on June 21.
The following day, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Washington D.C. where he will receive a ceremonial welcome at the White House. PM Modi is scheduled to hold meetings with President Biden on that day as part of their ongoing high-level discussions. Additionally, he has been invited by several Congressional leaders, including Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy and Speaker of the Senate Charles Schumer, to address a joint session of the US Congress on the same day.
On June 22, an impressive welcome ceremony will take place on the South Lawns of the White House, followed by a State Dinner hosted by the Bidens in honour of Prime Minister Modi. The dinner is expected to be an extravagant affair with outstanding entertainment, celebrating strong US-India relations. The event has generated significant interest, with requests for tickets pouring in daily.
On June 23, Prime Minister will be jointly hosted at a luncheon by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Bilnken.
In addition to the official engagements, PM Modi is scheduled to have interactions with leading CEOs, professionals, and other stakeholders. He will also meet members of the Indian Diaspora.
A US senior administration official said in an interaction with news agency PTI, “I think the State Dinner will be really a celebration of the US-India relations with supporters and advocates coming from India, but also around the United States. We have a saying …it’s a very hot ticket. Hardly a day goes by when I haven’t received requests from people to get the last tickets to the state dinner. I believe it will be a wonderful celebration.”
In the lead-up to the visit, the Pentagon has expressed anticipation that this visit will establish new milestones in the bilateral relationship between the two countries. Notably, significant announcements pertaining to defence cooperation and the enhancement of India’s indigenous military industrial base are expected to be made during the visit, with the potential for historic achievements in these areas.
From the USA, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Cairo to pay a State Visit to the Arab Republic of Egypt from 24-25 June 2023. He is visiting Egypt following an invitation from President Abdel Fattah El-Sis during his visit to India in January to attend the Republic Day celebrations as the chief guest.
Apart from his talks with President Sisi, PM Modi is likely to interact with senior dignitaries from the Egyptian Government, some prominent Egyptian personalities, as well as the Indian community in Egypt. Relations between India and Egypt are based on ancient trade and economic linkages as well as cultural and deep-rooted people-to-people ties. During the State Visit of President Sisi in January 2023, it was agreed to elevate the relationship to a ‘Strategic Partnership’.
On Thursday (June 15), a Muslim man named Fazil Khan willingly converted his religion from Islam to Hinduism and married a Hindu girl. The man married his love Sonali Rai and accepted Hinduism as his new religion at Shriram temple in Madhya Pradesh’s Kareli district. The man will now no more be identified as Fazil Khan but as Aman Rai.
According to reports, a Janeu Sanskar ceremony was performed on Fazil Khan amid religious chants at the Ram Mandir. He then changed his name to Aman Rai swearing by the Ramcharitmanas, a revered Hindu-epic scripture on the life of Ram.
In the video of the event shared by IBC24 News, Fazil Khan, who performed ghar wapsi, is heard confirming that he reverted to Hinduism of his own volition. He said that Sanatan Dharma has always interested him. “Hindu caste mujhe acha lagta tha, isliye mein wapsi ki” (I love the Hindu religion that is why I did Gharwapsi), Fazil Khan is heard saying.
Fazil Khan added that his father was a Hindu by birth but he had converted to Islam and became Sheikh Abdul in order to marry his Muslim mother.
Speaking about the incident, Bajrang Dal district head Devendra Sharma also confirmed that Fazil Khan’s father had converted to Islam to marry a Muslim woman and he too is now thinking of reverting to Hinduism.
Fazil Khan further described the experience of the Janeu sanskar ceremony, performed as part of the ritual to revert to Hinduism in front of Lord Ram’s idol as incredibly gratifying. He said he was happy that he had accepted Hinduism.
He added that his desire to marry Sonali Rai, the woman he had been dating for the last five years, and his interest in the Sanatan Dharma led him to convert his religion from Islam to Hinduism.
Fazil Khan, who lives in Chichli in the Gadarwara tehsil of the district, and Sonali Rai who lives in Amgaon hamlet in the Kareli police station both met in the Damru Valley Shiv Temple in Gadarwara about five years ago. Following that, they both started talking and fell in love with each other. They eventually decided to get married.
Sonali Rai told the media that Fazil Khan had expressed his desire to revert to Hinduism, which is why she agreed to marry him.
While Fazil Khan has categorically said that he had accepted Hinduism of his own volition, various vernacular media outlets like Nai Dunia and Jagran tried to give a twist to the incident by suggesting that Fazil Khan took the decision to revert to Hinduism under duress. These media houses reported that Fazil Khan was under pressure after a copy of his marriage application went viral on social media and Netizens began criticising him for his decision to enter into an interfaith marriage.
How media twisted the incident to portray that Fazil Khan was pressurised to revert to Hinduism
These media reports suggested that the couple had submitted an application for marriage in the district in accordance with the Special Marriage Act of 1954, a copy of which was pasted on the marriage registrar board.
A copy of Fazil Khan and Sonali Rai’s marriage application (Source: Nai Dunia)
From there, these media outlets said that the application letter’s picture somehow reached social media platforms and quickly went viral. Internet users soon began talking about boycotting and organising a condolence meeting for those who were the witnesses to the marriage. After seeing these social media posts, Fazil Khan got worried and decided that instance to convert to Hinduism, the reports said.
Speaking about the aforementioned marriage application, Priyank Jain, the Yuva Morch district president confirmed to the media that the couple did submit a marriage application around January 21, 2023, but, somehow, the marriage did not take place and now the couple has gotten married as per Hindu customs after Fazil Khan reverted to Hinduism out of his own free will.
Fazil Khan, in the above video, can also be heard confirming that he accepted Hinduism of his own volition because he was interested in Sanatan Dharma. Fazil Khan’s words clearly invalidate the assertion’s made by these media outlets.
A group of Christian missionaries engaged in conversion activities in some areas of Jharkhand have faced backlash from locals.
The residents of the Tandwa neighbourhood of Garhwa city in Jharkhand on Wednesday, 14th June, caught a group of people connected with Christian missionary organisations who had travelled from Andhra Pradesh and Bihar for suspicious conversion activities. Afterwards, they were handed over to the police, a report in Jagran mentioned.
The people accused of converting locals in Garhwa are being taken away by the police. (Source: Dainik Jagran)
Police took those people into custody and interrogated them. Approximately 60 persons affiliated with Christian organisations are rumoured to have come to Garhwa from other states in order to convert people. They have organised themselves into various squads and have been located in various parts of the city.
The Jagran report mentions that the team also has women members. G. Raju, one of the people apprehended, identified himself as a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel. He is originally from Andhra Pradesh and claims to be posted in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. A large number of religious literature related to Jesus Christ have been recovered from them.
The police are looking into the matter but are refraining from making any comments at the moment. A group of 25-30 locals from the Tandwa area requested to file a First Information Report (FIR) and book the concerned individuals for using misinformation and allurement to convert locals to Christianity.
There is significant anger in the populace as a result of the incident. The majority of those captured are reportedly from Munger and Guntur in Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, respectively. A person named Ashutosh Anand son of Madan Prasad is reportedly the group leader and his current whereabouts are unknown. He is a native of Nawagarhi which falls under the Muffasil police station area in Munger and was living in the Tandwa Mohalla.
The locals have accused him of trying to convert people while living in a leased home with his entire family. He has reportedly been carrying out missionary and conversion activities for the past six years throughout Garhwa.
He called the campaign team from the southern state to Garhwa to intensify his campaign. The 60 members went to different areas of the city to share information with people about Christianity, distribute books and motivate them to get converted, as per the report. Some of them were housed in the city council’s shelter facilities, while others rented properties.
Those in police custody comprise G. Raju, Adaina, from district Kurnool, K. Nagesh, Prem Kumar, Praveen Kumar, B. Rajesh from Guntur, Ajay Ram from Kitasoti in Garhwa, Priya Bharti, Munni Devi, and Ruhi Devi all from Nauvagarhi, Munger among others.
Four people were recently arrested for a religious conversion drive and distributing related publications under the pretext of offering free education in Chakradharpur City, West Singbhum district, Jharkhand. Three women and a man in the Kendo panchayat of Devgaon used to make their way to the Neeche Tola’s Kolsai village and stated that they were there to encourage education and give out supplies like pens, pencils, notebooks etc., to the children.
The locals, however, discovered on June 7 that their kids had been provided books containing information related to Jesus Christ and the Bible. They objected to this and informed Sangeeta Savaiya, the local panchayat’s deputy head about it after which the instance was reported to Chakradharpur Police Station. The four accused were taken into custody by Sub-Inspector Vivek Pal after he arrived in the aforementioned area.
The Centre recently decided to rename Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) as Prime Ministers’ Museum and Society. Following this, the Congress on Friday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Centre’s decision to rename Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.
Slamming the Centre, senior leader and Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “Pettiness & Vengeance, thy name is Modi. For over 59 years Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML) has been a global intellectual lamdmark and treasure house of books & archives. It will henceforth be called Prime Ministers Museum & Society. What won’t Mr. Modi do to distort, disparage and destroy the name & legacy of the architect of the Indian nation-state. A small, small man overburdened by his insecurities is the self-styled Vishwaguru.”
Pettiness & Vengeance, thy name is Modi. For over 59 years Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML) has been a global intellectual lamdmark and treasure house of books & archives. It will henceforth be called Prime Ministers Museum & Society. What won't Mr. Modi do to distort,…
This came after a special meeting of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Society, resolved to change its name to the Prime Ministers’ Museum and Library Society. The Special Meeting was presided by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh who is also the Vice-President of the Society.
Speaking to ANI, Vice Chairman, Executive Council, NMMLA, Surya Prakash said, “The passage of the resolution by the General Body of this Society is not a small step. It is rather a very big step to reiterate our commitment to democracy and to acknowledge our national political leadership.”
“Hon’ble Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, Vice-President of the Society in his address welcomed the proposal for change in name, since in its new form the institution exhibits the contributions of all prime ministers from Jawaharlal Nehru to Narendra Modi and their responses to various challenges faced by them. Describing Prime Minister as an institution and comparing the journey of various prime ministers to the varied colours of a rainbow, Shri Rajnath Singh emphasized that all the colours of a rainbow have to be proportionately represented in order to make it beautiful. Thus the resolution has given a new name, respect to all our previous prime ministers and is democratic in content,” the official release has stated.
In 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had proposed the idea of setting up a museum dedicated to all the prime ministers of India at the Teen Murti premises.
This project was approved by Executive Council, NMML in its 162nd meeting held on 25-11-2016. On April 21 last year, The Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya was opened to the public.
Interestingly, during the inauguration, despite having received an invitation from the government, no member of the Nehru-Gandhi family was present for the function. Three members of the Nehru-Gandhi family including Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi have served as Indian Prime Ministers in the past.
The museum, which has seen a huge footfall, is a seamless blend that begins at the renovated and refurbished Nehru Museum building, now completely updated with technologically advanced displays on the life and contribution of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Housed in a new building the museum then goes on to tell the story of how our Prime Ministers navigated the nation through various challenges and ensured the all-round progress of the country.
On Thursday, June 15, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath inaugurated 44 development projects worth Rs 212.5 crore in Ayodhya. He also laid the foundation stone for 38 projects worth Rs 1763.2 crore. This comes ahead of the inauguration of the grand Shri Ram Temple in January 2024. The consecration ceremony of the temple will be led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The CM inaugurated 44 projects on Thursday, five of which were under the urban development department and 13 under the PWD. Health and family welfare (2), secondary education (5), housing and urban planning (13), tourism (2), Namami Gange, irrigation and water resources, Panchayati Raj (1), and Ayush (1) are the other departments working on projects. The Panchayati Raj department has built libraries and reading rooms in 500 Gram Panchayats, which the chief minister has inaugurated.
Moreover, CM Yogi laid the foundation stone for 38 projects, 32 of which are PWD-related and four of which are technical education-related. Medical education and home departments are undertaking one project each. This includes the widening and expansion of 10.77 KM of the Panchkosi Parikrama Marg into a four-lane road with an estimated cost of Rs 473.2 crore.
CM Yogi also inaugurated a project worth Rs 1,140.2 crore involving the expansion of the 23.94 km-long 14 Kosi Parikrama Marg.
CM Yogi during his two-day visit to Ayodhya, met with saints and Ram temple trust officials and highlighted that the development of the “Dharma Nagari” is one of his government’s top priorities.
At a review meeting of current development initiatives in Ayodhya, the UP CM also reviewed the advancement of the Ram Temple construction. He also went to Hanumangarhi to offer prayers and observe the construction of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple.
According to an official statement quoting the Chief Minister, the entire development of ‘Dharmanagari’ Ayodhya is one of the government’s top priorities in keeping with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision.
During his address to the crowd on Thursday, CM Yogi highlighted the various development projects being undertaken by his government. He said that the construction work of the international airport at Ayodhya will be completed by the end of this year.
The UP CM also announced that on the occasion of Diwali (Deepavali) this year, a grand Deepotsav will be celebrated and 21 lakh diyas will be lit in the “Dharma Nagari” Ayodhya.
On Wednesday, CM Yogi Adityanath hinted that meat and liquor can be banned in Ayodhya, where the grand Ram Mandir will be inaugurated next year. He has not specifically discussed any such action but mentioned that Ayodhya is a sacred city and there these items should not be allowed. “In accordance with the feelings of the populace, meat and alcohol use should be prohibited here,” he stated.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lead the consecration ceremony of Shri Ram Temple: CM Yogi
Yogi Adityanath on Thursday announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will preside over the consecration of Ram Lalla in the grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya in January 2024.
Furthermore, CM Yogi has asked BJP MPs to participate in various programmes and activities in Ayodhya. He also complimented the city, saying that Ayodhya is paving the way for “Ram Rajya” as it did during the “treta yuga,” and that it is motivating the entire country under PM Modi’s leadership.
He also stated that there is no scarcity of funds for the development of religious sites such as Ayodhya, Kashi, Mathura, and Prayagraj. CM Yogi also took a dig at the previous government saying that “there was a shortage of funds only when such people were in power who looted the state funds and promoted familyism and casteism. For us, the Janta Janardan is the family. We have diverted the funds for development work for the welfare of the people.”
Notably, he stated that the roadways in Ayodhya will be akin to those on Delhi’s Rajpath and that the road through Sugreev Qila leading to Ram Janmabhoomi will be known as the Bhakti Path.
किसी बड़े लक्ष्य को प्राप्त करने के लिए प्रारंभिक कठिनाई और चुनौती तो झेलना ही पड़ता है… pic.twitter.com/ovYd3tYdtK
He stated that development projects worth 32,000 crore are being carried out in Ayodhya, with the objective of transforming the temple city into one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
Amid the deteriorating law and order situation in Bihar, another incident of blatant lawlessness has come to the fore. As per reports, on Thursday, June 15, CM Nitish Kumar had a narrow escape from being hit by two bike-borne criminals in Patna.
On Thursday morning, CM Nitish Kumar was out on his morning walk routine, two overspeeding bike-borne miscreants suddenly came very close. CM Nitish had to climb on the sidewalk to save himself hurriedly.
The CM had started from his 1, Aney Marg official residence and was walking towards Circular Road in Patna’s VIP area. At around 6.45 am, the speeding bikers zoomed into the CM’s proximity while fleeing the area at high speed. The CM had a narrow escape and had to run to save himself, as per reports.
SSP Rajeev Mishra reportedly rushed to the location after the incident. The identity of the bike-borne miscreants overspeeding through a VIP area in the early hours was not confirmed immediately. However, media reports have suggested that they were later found to be chain snatchers operating in the area.
As per a report in Bhaskar, the bikers were later arrested. They were found to be habitual chain snatchers operating in Patna. The bike’s number is 01 DK 7148 and it is registered in the name of a person named Himanshu Kumar.
The report further states that upon interrogation, the chain snatchers confessed that they had snatched a gold chain from a person in the SK Puri area. 3 persons were involved in the chain-snatching incident and one of them had escaped earlier. The police are now looking for him.
Earlier, in another instance of a serious security breach, a young man in Bakhtiyarpur had punched the CM’s face.
On Thursday (June 15), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Minister Atishi Marlena went on an anti-India tirade during a conference on ‘India at 100; Towards becoming a global leader’, which was held at the University of Cambridge.
At about 4 minutes and 12 seconds into the event, she tried to downplay India’s economic success story. “We are often told that India’s GDP has now crossed the trillion dollar mark. We are told that India is the fastest G20 economy and many other such pieces of information. But, the reality is far more worrying and underwhelming from that,” the AAP leader claimed.
“I think a better indicator, which really tells you about the State of the country, is the human development index…There are some indicators in which 190 countries participate I think. India ranks 132 out of 191. This is India at 75,” she alleged.
Atishi Marlena remarked that while India seeks happiness, believing that it is better off than its neighbours, countries such as Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Pakistan are supposedly ranked higher in the Human Development Index (HDI).
The truth about India’s decline in HDI
In September last year, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) released its report [pdf] on Human Development Index for 2021-22. At the very onset, it noted that 90% of the countries listed in the index had witnessed a decline in HDI value in 2020 or 2021.
India, which ranked 132 on the index out of 191 countries, was not an exception. First, UNDP itself acknowledged that India’s decline is in line with global trends in the face of crises such as the Russia-Ukraine war, the Covid-19 pandemic and ‘dangerous planetary changes.’
“Human Development – a measure of a nation’s health, education, and average income – has declined for two years in a row – 2020 and 2021, reversing five years of progress. This is in line with the global decline, indicating that human development across the world has stalled for the first time in 32 years,” it highlighted.
Atishi Marlena had tried to suggest that India was an isolated case when it came to a decline in HDI value while other countries were doing excellent on the front.
Second, UNDP conceded that the primary reason behind such a global trend was a drop in life expectancy. “A large contributor to the Human Development Index’s recent decline is a global drop in life expectancy, down from 72.8 years in 2019 to 71.4 years in 2021,” it pointed out.
In her speech, the AAP Minister listed various factors that contribute to HDI. Those included average income, health and education. The idea was to insinuate that somehow people’s income, education and health, as a whole, went for a toss under the Modi regime.
Third, UNDP pointed out, “The last two years have had a devastating impact on billions of people worldwide when crises like COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine hit back-to-back and interacted with sweeping social and economic shifts and dangerous planetary changes.”
It is important to note that between 2020 and 2022, the world had been reeling under a lot of challenges. These include but are not limited to the pandemic, war in Eastern Europe, rising energy prices and so on.
“These intersecting crises have impacted India’s development trajectory just as they have in much of the world,” UNDP emphasised. India, like other countries, witnessed a drop in life expectancy from 69.7 to 67.2 years.
Fourth, UNDP also pointed out that India’s HDI value is higher than the average human development in South Asia. “India’s HDI value has been steadily catching up to the world average since 1990 – indicating a faster than the global rate of progress in human development,” it said.
“This is a result of policy choices made by the country over time, including investments made in health and education,” the UN body added.
While speaking about the matter, UNDP Resident Representative in India Shoko Noda said, “India’s decline in human development mirrors this trend – impacted by intersecting crises. But there is good news. Compared to 2019, the impact of inequality on human development is lower. India is bridging the human development gap between men and women faster than the world.”
She underlined, “This development has come at a smaller cost to the environment. India’s growth story reflects the country’s investments in inclusive growth, social protection, gender-responsive policies, and push towards renewables to ensure no one is left behind.”
“Policies that focus on the 3Is (investment, insurance and innovation) will enable people to thrive in the face of uncertainty. India is already a frontrunner in these areas with its push towards renewable energy, boosting social security for the most vulnerable and driving the world’s largest vaccination drive through Co-WIN, supported by UNDP,” Shoko Noda pointed out.
Fifth, UDNP also praised India for lifting 27,10,00,000 crore people out of multi-dimensional poverty and providing access to affordable clean energy, water and sanitation. It stated that the country boosted access to social protection for vulnerable communities and demonstrated climate leadership.
“The world’s largest democracy is also fast-tracking the implementation and monitoring of the SDGs at the national and sub-national levels to meet the ambitious goals,” it concluded. As such, the scenario is not all grim, as portrayed by Atishi Marlena, at Cambridge University.
Atishi Marlena and her claims about hunger in India
“We are told that India has the largest number of billionaires…which went from 102 to 166 between 2020 and 2022. But there’s another figure which grew from 2020 to 2022 i.e. the number of hungry people in the country i.e. those who do not have enough food,” the AAP MLA claimed.
She further alleged, “And the number is from the same period when the number of billionaires was going up. It (the number of hungry people) went from 19 crores to 35 crores. India is the second largest producer of food in the world and yet it is the country where the largest number of people are malnourished.”
It must be mentioned that the said Global Hunger Report 2022, which Atishi Marlena cited during her anti-India tirade at Cambridge University, was rubbished by the Indian government back in October last year.
It had questioned the problematic methodology, undertaken to compile the report, and pointed out that 3 of the 4 indicators in the index are representative of children’s health (and thus not applicable/ representative of the entire population).
Interestingly, the fourth indicator ‘Proportion of Undernourished (PoU)’ population is based upon an opinion poll, which was conducted on a sample size of only 3000 people.
The participants were asked a total of only 8 questions, one of which included this – During the last 12 months, was there a time when, because of lack of money or other resources: You were worried you would not have enough food to eat? You ate less than you thought you should?
While rebuking the agencies for not doing due diligence, the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development said, “The report is not only disconnected from ground reality but also chooses to deliberately ignore efforts made by the Government to ensure food Security for the population, especially during the Covid Pandemic.”
“The data collected from a minuscule sample for a country of India’s size through the ‘Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES)’ Survey Module has been used to compute PoU value for India which is not only wrong & unethical, it also reeks of obvious bias,” it highlighted.
This happened even though the Ministry asked the Food and Agriculture Organization (FA) of the United Nations to not use estimates based on FIES data since the ‘statistical output’ will not be based on merit.
“The three other indicators apart from PoU, included in Global Hunger Index relate primarily to children viz. Stunting, Wasting and Under 5 mortality. These indicators are outcomes of complex interactions of various other factors like drinking water, sanitation, genetics, environment and utilisation of food intake apart from hunger, which is taken as the causative/outcome factor for stunting and wasting in the GHI. Calculating hunger based on main indicators relating to health indicators of children is neither scientific nor rational,” the Indian government added.
The Ministry also laid down measures that it had undertaken to ensure food security. This includes the distribution of rations to 80 crore Indians (the largest food security programme in the world). It has allocated about 1121 Lakh MT of foodgrains (~ ₹3.91 Lakh Crore in food subsidy) to States and Union territories.
It also praised the State governments for the effective distribution of ration, supplementing the efforts of the Union government by providing edible oils, pulses and condiments to the people.
“Under Anganwadi Services, the since Covid-19 pandemic, supplementary nutrition was provided to approximately 7.71 crore chiup ton upto the age of 6 years and to 1.78 crore pregnant women and lactating mothers. 5.3 Million Metric Tonnes of Foodgrains was supplied,” it highlighted.
“Under the Pradhan Mantri Matri Vandana Yojna, more than 1.5 Crore registered women were provided Rs 5000/- on the birth of their first child for wage support and nutritious food during pregnancy and post-delivery period,” the Union government added.
It is thus evident that Atishi Marlena tried to defame India at the University of Cambridge based on an irrational, erroneous report ‘Global Hunger Index 2022’ published by two organisations, one based in Ireland (Concern Worldwide) and another in Germany (Welt Hunger Hilfe).
Interestingly, the same report cautions individuals and organisations to not compare scores and rankings over two years (something which Atishi did in her sweeping statement on hunger).
“Global Hunger Index (GHI) scores are comparable within each year’s report, but not between different years’ reports. The current and historical data on which the GHI scores are based are continually being revised and improved by the United Nations agencies that compile them, and each year’s GHI report reflects these changes. Comparing scores between reports may create the impression that hunger has changed positively or negatively from year to year, whereas in some cases the change may partly or fully reflect a data revision,” the report said in the FAQ section
Anti-India rant of Rahul Gandhi at the Cambridge University
On February 28 this year, Rahul Gandhi reiterated the talking points of the global Khalistan movement during his infamous presentation at the University of Cambridge.
The Congress scion randomly called out a Sikh man from the audience and claimed that Sikhs have been rendered second-class citizens in India by the Narendra Modi government.
“I mean I have got a Sikh gentleman sitting here. He is from the Sikh religion. And he comes from India, right? We have got Muslims in India, Christians in India, and we have got different languages in India…They are all India,” Rahul Gandhi had said.
“Mr Narendra Modi says he is not (a real Indian). Mr Narendra Modi says he (the Sikh guy in the room) is a second-class citizen in India. I don’t agree with him,” said Gandhi while making outlandish claims about the plight of the Sikh community in India.
Rahul Gandhi is provoking people by repeating lies again and again. ???
When did Narendra Modi said that Sikhs, Christians and Muslims Are Second Class Citizens in India? ??? pic.twitter.com/McrbKAZnjZ
Despite being well aware that the global Khalistan movement has been trying to brainwash the Sikh community, he exploited the opportunity at Cambridge University to present a distorted image of India to the world.
During his talk at the University of Cambridge, Rahul Gandhi also made a sweeping claim that Muslims in India are also ‘second class citizens’ according to Narendra Modi.
By doing so, the Congress scion played into the hands of the Islamists who have been hellbent on indoctrinating Muslims en masse that they are not safe in India.
The vitriolic narrative had been in motion for a long time and amplified by several folds after the Narendra Modi government was voted to power in 2014.
