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Punjab: Khalistani Amritpal Singh on the run after police launched a massive crackdown on his Waris Punjab De, mobile internet and SMS services suspended

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab: Khalistani Amritpal Singh on the run after police launched a massive crackdown on his Waris Punjab De, mobile internet and SMS services suspended

After reports that self-proclaimed radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh was detained earlier on Saturday, Punjab Police have said that he is still on the run. The police confirmed a massive crackdown on Waris Punjab De led by Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh.

The police have said that so far 78 persons have been arrested and many others have been detained during the operation. “Several others including Amritpal Singh are on the run & a massive manhunt has been launched to nab them,” Punjab Police said in a press release.

The official spokesperson of Punjab Police said that on Saturday afternoon, several activities of Waris Punjab De were intercepted by the Police at the Shahkot-Malsian Road in Jalandhar district and seven persons were arrested on the spot. Several others including Amritpal Singh are on the run and a massive manhunt has been launched to nab them.

The police informed that nine weapons, including one .315 bore rifle, seven rifles of 12 bore, one revolver and 373 live cartridges of different calibers have been recovered so far during the state-wide operation. The Spokesperson informed that WPD elements are involved in four criminal cases relating to spreading disharmony among classes, attempt to murder, attack on police persons and creating obstructions in the lawful discharge of duties of public servants.

The police also appealed to the citizens to not pay heed to fake news and rumours. “Situation in the state is completely stable. All persons indulging in mischievous activities for disturbing peace and harmony in the state shall be dealt with strictly,” the press release added.

Press Release by Punjab Police

Earlier it was reported that Amritpal Singh was arrested after a high-intensity chase while his associates were nabbed earlier. He was going in a convoy of three vehicles. During this time, the police caught two vehicles near Mehtabpur in Shahkot, but Amritpal Singh managed to escape in the third vehicle.

Several media reports had said that he was detained after a chase at Nakodar and is being taken to Jalandhar. But now it has been confirmed that he is still on the run, while the police teams are searching for him and other members of his organisation.

The move came after the Punjab police launched a crackdown on the separatist leader and his group.

A heavy police force of around 50 vehicles was chasing Amritpal Singh’s convoy since morning. When the convoy reached Mehtabpur, the police surrounded it and detained six of his associates in two vehicles. The police also recovered a huge cache of weapons from Amritpal Singh’s accomplices. However, he escaped from his Mercedes car.

Earlier, supporters of the Waris Punjab De leader shared unverified videos of police pursuing his convoy in Moga district, with the vehicle eventually speeding to Shahkot near Jalandhar. Sources indicate that while en route to Bathinda, the police attempted to intercept Amritpal Singh, who is believed to be a sympathizer of Khalistan, near Mehtabpur village in Jalandhar. 

In the meanwhile, the Punjab government suspended mobile internet and SMS services in the state after the development. In an order issued yesterday, all mobile internet services, SMS services (except banking and mobile recharge), and dongle services provided on mobile networks, except voice calls, have been suspended in Punjab till Sunday, in the wake of a police operation against Amritpal Singh and his aides.

The order issued by the Additional Chief Secretary of the Punjab govt said that as per the state DGP, certain sections of the society are likely to threaten public order by incitement to violence and resort to wide spread violence with an intention to stoke and cause communal tension. The DGP said that such sections may use social media and messaging platforms like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Telegram etc and also SMS services to spread inflammatory material and false rumours, to provoke mobilization or mobs of agitators and demonstrators, mobilize their own manpower and resources To their anti-national activities.

“There is a clear potential of threat to public safety, disruption of public utilities, damage to public assets and amenities and disturbance of public law and order in the state of Punjab on account of misuse of mobile internet services, SMS services and other dongle services,” the order stated quoting the DGP.

Therefore, the ban on mobile internet and SMS has been imposed from 12 noon today to 12 noon on 19 March.

Amritpal Singh has a kidnapping case registered against him at the Ajnala police station in Amritsar. It is unclear whether any further cases were filed against him after his supporters forcefully entered the police station on February 24, following the arrest of one of his associates. During the clash, the supporters protested and clashed with the police. The police have not disclosed any information regarding additional charges filed against Singh related to the incident.

Who is Amritpal Singh?

Amritpal is a 30-year-old pro-Khalistan leader who leads an organization named Waris Punjab De. Within six months of his arrival to India and taking over the organization started by late actor-turned-activist Deep Sidhu, he has reached the point where he can mobilize thousands of supporters and direct them to barge into a police station to get his aide released.

He was born in Jallupur Khera, Amritsar, in 1994. In 2012, he moved to Dubai to join his family’s transport business. Amritpal’s LinkedIn page shows he was the operations manager at Sandhu Cargo, and his mail ID was [email protected]. Hel did his Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Mechanical Engineering from Lord Krishna Polytechnic College, Kapurthala, Punjab, per his LinkedIn page. OpIndia checked and confirmed the existence of the LinkedIn page that can be accessed from here.

Amritpal Singh remained active on social media throughout his time in Dubai and propagated his ideology extensively via his posts. He used a specific ID, sandhuamrit10, on Twitter to spread the propaganda. That Twitter account has now been deleted. After the death of Deep Sidhu, in a social media post, Amritpal Singh was declared heir of Waris Punjab De. However, the family of Deep Sidhu denied any connection to Singh.

In May last year, Deep Sidhu’s relative came out as the chief of “real” Waris Punjab De, but it did not gain the traction Amritpal Singh managed to get. Amritpal Singh came to India in September 2022. He went to Georgia before coming to India, and intelligence agencies hinted at a possible connection to ISI in their reports.

Note: This report has been updated with the latest developments

Photos with big leaders, nexus with police, and fraud of crores of rupees: Know how Kiran Patel, the conman caught in J&K, earlier cheated people

Gopal Tiwari
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Photos with big leaders, nexus with police, and fraud of crores of rupees: Know how Kiran Patel, the conman caught in J&K, earlier cheated people

On 17th March 2023, Kiran Patel – the arrested conman – was produced before a court in Jammu and Kashmir after completing police custody for 15 days. Kiran Patel is accused of getting security coverage and VIP treatment from the local administration by falsely presenting himself as an additional secretary at the PMO. He was arrested in Jammu and Kashmir on 3rd March 2023, but the incident appeared in the media much later.

As he became the issue of discussion over social media, many shocking facts about the conman surfaced. According to reports, Kiran Patel was also jailed in the past in a case of fraud. A Twitter user Harshal Purohit shared news reports about his past frauds on Twitter and wrote in the caption, “He is a very confident man. He gave away cheques worth 78 lakhs while he had only 113 Rs. In his account. Must be good at whatever he was doing. He always got away but not this time.”

According to news reports attached to this tweet, in August 2019, the same Kiran Patel and his associate Dipesh Sheth were arrested by the Raopura police of Vadodara. He was accused of cheating a sub-contractor of Rs 1 crore at the Kalanagari Garba Mahotsav 2018 at Navlakhi Garba Ground.

It was also alleged that Kiran Patel used to get his work done by pretending that he knew big leaders and also got VIP treatment at the police station. But the list of frauds committed by Kiran Patel does not end here. Twitter user @keetliwado has created and put up an entire thread of all his fraud cases. It is also alleged that Kiran Patel attempted fraud of lakhs of rupees by telling people that he has to give a car to the Vadtal Swaminarayan sect.

In 2019, Kiran Patel and his brother Manish Patel approached retired DYSP NK Parmar in Naroda. Patel duped the retired officer of lakhs of rupees as he schemed him saying that he wants to give a car to the Vadtal Swaminarayan temple.

Both these brothers have cheated the farmers in the past. Lakhs of rupees of poor farmers were spent on the pretext of giving good returns by investing money taken from these farmers in good schemes.

When the farmers demanded the money back, the conman Kiran Patel threatened them with an FIR by senior police officers. During this time, he also made the farmers talk to many big police officers.

Kiran Patel used to cheat people by showing them his photos with various big leaders. Sometimes he used to say that he works for the then Home Minister Jitu Vaghani and sometimes he would say that he is the PA of RSS official Sanjay Joshi. In this way, many cases of cheating by thug Kiran Patel are coming to light on social media.

Kiran Patel was detained in Srinagar on March 3, 2023, for impersonating a prominent official in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and meeting with key authorities in the Union territory. An FIR lodged in the Nishat police station in Srinagar mentions that the accused conman ‘indulged in activities within the jurisdiction of this police station and other parts of the Kashmir Valley’. He was also given official hospitality, a personal security officer (PSO), and a room in a posh hotel.

‘When I eliminate Salman Khan, I will think of myself as a gangster’: New interview of Lawrence Bishnoi surfaces; petition filed in HC

OpIndia Staff
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‘When I eliminate Salman Khan, I will think of myself as a gangster’: New interview of Lawrence Bishnoi surfaces; petition filed in HC

On Friday (March 17), a second interview of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi named ‘Operation Durdant’ was conducted by journalist Jagwinder Patial and aired on ABP News.

During the course of the interview, Lawrence denied targeting the family of the deceased rapper Sidhu Moose Wala. On being asked about the man who threatened to attack Salman Khan and Moose Wala’s father, he claimed that the man has no connection to his gang.

He also spoke about his aide, Goldie Brar, and claimed to have no knowledge about his precise location. “Goldie tells me that he is not in the United States. Once he told me about his hideout in Europe and in Canada the other time…We planned the whole thing (murder of Moose Wala) with Goldie bhai..” he said.

On being asked about his life of crime, Lawrence Bishnoi said, “I still think of myself as a student. When I eliminate Salman Khan, I will think of myself as a gangster. I came to jail directly from my college hostel. Life teaches you a lot of lessons. I will also teach you when I meet you in person.”

Journalist Jagwinder Patial inquired, “Are you not afraid that someone else may kill you in a similar fashion as you did to other people?” The gangster replied, “Yes. I have resigned to my fate. This is bound to happen one day or the other.”

Lawrence Bishnoi later claimed that he did not murder Sidhu Moose Wala although it was his original plan. He said that Goldie Brar executed the final plan and took out the Punjabi rapper. “I am in jail for a long time and I’m being falsely implicated in the case,” he alleged.

The gangster, however, conceded that his only aim in life is to eliminate Salman Khan. On being asked by the reporter about an alternate plan for the actor to seek forgiveness, Lawrence suggested Salman Khan offer prayers at Mukti Dham Mukam temple and apologise for his act of killing a black buck.

During the course of the interview, he refused to take ‘protection money’ ever from any singer. He also claimed that the jail authorities do not allow him to step out of his cell but casually showed the interiors using his phone.

Interview not recorded inside the Bathinda prison: Punjab police

Interestingly, the Punjab police had earlier claimed that the interview was not shot inside the Bathinda jail premises, where Lawrence is currently being lodged.

Punjab Anti-Gangsters Task Force (AGTF) Assistant Inspector General Sandeep Goel had said, “This is not from Bathinda jail or any Punjab jail or Punjab Police custody. Bathinda jail, where he is lodged, is a high-security dead phone zone”.

Petition filed against Lawrence Bishnoi’s interview

A Chandigarh-based lawyer named Gourave Bhayyia Gilhotra has filed a petition before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking an investigation into the interview of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi from inside the jail.

Gilhotra has requested that a central agency be appointed to inquire and register an FIR against the person responsible for conducting the interview from within the jail premises. Bishnoi is a Class-A category gangster, who has been involved in over 30 cases of murder, extortion, and ransom.

The petitioner accused the state of Punjab of not conducting any preliminary inquiry into the live telecast/streaming of the interview. He said that the jail manual and Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) do not permit access to prison inmates to the internet/ mobile use or give interviews to media without court authorisation

Gourave Bhayyia Gilhotra has requested the intervention of the High court and direct judicial inquiry into the incident by a national-level agency.

Amritpal Singh’s treasurer received funds from Pakistan: Report citing intelligence note

OpIndia Staff
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Amritpal Singh’s treasurer received funds from Pakistan: Report citing intelligence note

An intelligence note accessed by Times Now revealed that Waris Punjab De head and Khalistan supporter Amritpal Singh’s treasurer, Basant Singh, received funds from Pakistan.

According to reports, the agencies have got reports of Amritpal Singh’s connection with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence.

Reportedly, while Amritpal Singh was in Dubai, he maintained close contact with Jaswant Singh Rode, the brother of Lakhbir Singh Rode, the chief of the Pakistan-based International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF). Amritpal Singh currently heads ‘Waris Punjab De’. Furthermore, the source also revealed that Amritpal Singh’s treasurer, Basant Singh Daulatpura, was receiving funds from Pakistan.

Amritpal Singh has been under close surveillance by security agencies ever since he arrived in Punjab last year. The Punjab Police have been consistently informed about his activities.

The revelation came hours after the detention of Amritpal and his associates on Saturday. The Punjab Police detained self-proclaimed radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh after a high-intensity chase while his associates were nabbed earlier. He was going in a convoy of three vehicles. During this time, the police caught two vehicles near Mehtabpur in Shahkot, but Amritpal Singh managed to escape in the third vehicle. 

He was detained after a chase at Nakodar and is being taken to Jalandhar. The move came after the Punjab police launched a crackdown on the separatist leader and his group.

A heavy police force of around 50 vehicles was chasing Amritpal Singh’s convoy since morning. When the convoy reached Mehtabpur, the police surrounded it and detained six of his associates in two vehicles. The police also recovered a huge cache of weapons from Amritpal Singh’s accomplices. However, he escaped from his Mercedes car. But after a brief chase, police detained Amritpal Singh. 

Earlier, supporters of the Waris Punjab De leader shared unverified videos of police pursuing his convoy in Moga district, with the vehicle eventually speeding to Shahkot near Jalandhar.

Who is Amritpal Singh?

Amritpal is a 30-year-old pro-Khalistan leader who leads an organization named Waris Punjab De. Within six months of his arrival to India and taking over the organization started by late actor-turned-activist Deep Sidhu, he has reached the point where he can mobilize thousands of supporters and direct them to barge into a police station to get his aide released.

He was born in Jallupur Khera, Amritsar, in 1994. In 2012, he moved to Dubai to join his family’s transport business. Amritpal’s LinkedIn page shows he was the operations manager at Sandhu Cargo, and his mail ID was [email protected]. He did his Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Mechanical Engineering from Lord Krishna Polytechnic College, Kapurthala, Punjab, per his LinkedIn page. OpIndia checked and confirmed the existence of the LinkedIn page that can be accessed from here.

Notably, on February 21, Amritpal Singh issued a veiled threat to Home Minister Amit Shah saying that the latter will have to face a similar fate as that of Indira Gandhi. “Indira tried to suppress, what happened? Now Amit Shah can fulfil his wish and see”, he said.

The organization Waris Punjab De was established by Deep Sidhu, an actor-turned-activist. He gained popularity among pro-Khalistani elements during farmer protests. Sidhu died in a road accident in February 2022. Amritpal Singh was declared head of Waris Punjab De following Sidhu’s death. At that time, Singh was in Dubai. In September 2022, he returned to India and officially took charge of the organization.

UP CM Yogi Adityanath becomes the first chief minister to visit Kashi Vishwanath Temple over 100 times

OpIndia Staff
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UP CM Yogi Adityanath becomes the first chief minister to visit Kashi Vishwanath Temple over 100 times

On Saturday, March 18, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath achieved a unique feat. CM Yogi visited Kashi Vishwanath Temple for the 100th time in the last six years on Saturday morning after offering prayers there.

During his six years tenure as chief minister, Yogi Adityanath averaged a visit to Varanasi every 21st day. Along with offering prayers to Mahadev, CM Yogi also reviews Together development work in the holy city.

Reportedly, CM Yogi Adityanath has visited the Kashi Vishwanath temple more frequently than any other chief minister in the state—in fact, across the nation. Yogi Adityanath worships here and uses the Shodashopachar method of worship.

During this, Shodashopachar and Panchopachara Pooja are conducted, and Shodasha mantras such as Purush Sukta’s Namaste Rudra and Rudra Sukta’s Namaste Rudra, among others are recited.

Along with assessing the law and order, he surveys the development projects on his visit. The administration of the Kashi Vishwanath temple was also quite impressed with Yogi Adityanath’s accomplishments as Chief Minister. Speaking to OpIndia, Sunil Verma, CEO of the temple administration, termed this record count as a government figure.

He stated that no records of who attended the temple and how frequently are kept by the temple administration. But, Yogi Adityanath has come to Kashi Vishwanath more than any other chief minister in history.

Yogi Adityanath’s two-day tour, according to the office of the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, was related to the prime minister’s scheduled visit to Varanasi. On March 24 of this month, PM Modi is expected to visit Varanasi.

CM Yogi also created a record by becoming the first chief minister to visit Kaal Bhairav Temple 100 times during his tenure as CM. Notably, Kaal Bhairav is called the ‘Kotwal of Kashi’.

He performed “aarti” and offered prayers at the temple on Saturday morning.

On Saturday morning, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also went to the Circuit House to examine the newly constructed building.

On Friday evening, after arriving in Varanasi, CM Yogi conducted an on-site inspection of the construction projects and delivered instructions to the officials.

Two weeks before the crackdown on Amritpal Singh and his Waris Punjab De, CM Bhagwant Mann had met union home minister Amit Shah: Here is what had happened

OpIndia Staff
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Two weeks before the crackdown on Amritpal Singh and his Waris Punjab De, CM Bhagwant Mann had met union home minister Amit Shah: Here is what had happened

On Saturday, 18th March 2023, the Punjab Police launched a massive crackdown on self-proclaimed radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh and Waris Punjab De led by him. While several of his associates were arrested, Amritpal Singh managed to escape after a high-intensity chase, and he is currently on the run. He was going in a convoy of three vehicles. During this time, the police caught two vehicles near Mehtabpur in Shahkot with six of his associates, but Amritpal Singh managed to escape in the third vehicle. The move came after the Punjab police launched a crackdown on the separatist leader and his group ‘Waris Punjab De’.

It is notable that the preparations for this operation were going on for the last few days. The Punjab police were bolstered especially after Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and discussed the Ajnala incident in which Amritpal Singh and his supporters forcefully entered the police station on February 24, following the arrest of one of his associates. During the clash, the supporters protested and clashed with the police. They were able to release the man from police custody after the seizure of the police station.

At the time when Amritpal Singh mobilized thousands of supporters and directed them to barge into a police station to get his aide released, Punjab’s Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that the law and order situation in Punjab state was fine. But fact remains that this major operation of arresting this Khalistan sympathizer came only after chief minister Bhagwant Mann met Amit Shah on 2nd March 2023 in this regard and the subsequent deployment of heavy forces in the state.

During this meeting, CM Bhagwat Mann briefed the Union Home Minister about the Ajnala incident and the law and order situations in the state. He urged that state and central agencies should work together. Notably, even before this meeting, The Ministry of Home Affairs requested that the Central Armed Police Force (CAPFs) send around 2,430 security personnel, including eight companies of its Rapid Action Force, to Punjab ahead of the annual Hola Mohalla celebration.

After this meeting, Bhagwant Mann tweeted, “In the meeting with Amit Shah, we discussed the issue of drones and drugs on the border. The issue of shifting the barbed wire on the border was also discussed. Asked to release Punjab’s stalled rural development fund soon. Centre-Punjab will work together on the issue of law and order.”

After this meeting, Union Home Ministry extended support to the border state in the wake of the programs regarding the G-20 summit organized in Amritsar from the 15th to the 17th of March 2023, amid reports that the event will be shifted to some other place outside Punjab due to the law and order situation. At the request of the Punjab government, the central government sent 50 teams of central paramilitary forces to Punjab. The additional deployment provided by the centre included 10 CRPF, 8 RPF, 12 BSF, 10 ITBP, and 10 SSB units. Besides, Union home Ministry also sent eight specialized anti-riot squads of CRPF to Punjab.

These troops reached Punjab on 6th March 2023. They were instructed to stay in the border state from 6th March to 16th March. Their further deployment in the state was kept subject to discussions between the state and centre.

Though these forces were deployed in Punjab days ahead of the G-20 program, the Union home Ministry also had an eye on Amritpal Singh’s activities. According to sources, inputs from the intelligence agencies were also discussed in the meeting between CM Bhagwant Mann and Home Minister Amit Shah.

After four to five months of tracking Amritpal’s actions, intelligence agencies compiled a dossier on the 30-year-old Amritpal Singh, documenting more than ten hate speeches he delivered, the flaunting of firearms by his accomplices, his interactions in cyberspace, social media accounts, and visits to drug rehabilitation centers, among other things. This dossier was also presented in the meeting between the two leaders.

Amritpal Singh’s arrest has come on 18th March – the very next day. The extra security forces heavily deployed by the center in the state during the G-20 program are still in Punjab.

Who is Amritpal Singh?

Amritpal is a 30-year-old pro-Khalistan leader who leads an organization named Waris Punjab De. Within six months of his arrival to India and taking over the organization started by late actor-turned-activist Deep Sidhu, he has reached the point where he can mobilize thousands of supporters and direct them to barge into a police station to get his aide released.

He was born in Jallupur Khera, Amritsar, in 1994. In 2012, he moved to Dubai to join his family’s transport business. Amritpal’s LinkedIn page shows he was the operations manager at Sandhu Cargo, and his mail ID was [email protected]. He did his Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Mechanical Engineering from Lord Krishna Polytechnic College, Kapurthala, Punjab, per his LinkedIn page.

After the death of Deep Sidhu, in a social media post, Amritpal Singh was declared heir of Waris Punjab De. However, the family of Deep Sidhu denied any connection to Singh. In May last year, Deep Sidhu’s relative came out as the chief of “real” Waris Punjab De, but it did not gain the traction Amritpal Singh managed to get. Amritpal Singh came to India in September 2022. He went to Georgia before coming to India, and intelligence agencies hinted at a possible connection to ISI in their reports.

Note: This report has been updated with latest developments

Pakistan: Judge allows Imran Khan to leave after marking attendance, says hearing can’t take place due to clashes between cops and PTI workers

OpIndia Staff
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Pakistan: Judge allows Imran Khan to leave after marking attendance, says hearing can’t take place due to clashes between cops and PTI workers

Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Zafar Iqbal on Saturday permitted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan to leave after his attendance was marked outside the G-11 Judicial Complex amid unrest between police and party supporters, The Express Tribune reported.

Judge Zafar Iqbal stated that the hearing and appearance cannot take place in the current situation due to the ongoing hostilities between Islamabad Police and PTI workers outside the Judicial Complex, as per The Express Tribune report. He advised all those present to disperse peacefully without resorting to any form of violence, including shelling or pelting stones after Imran Khan’s attendance. The judge further said that the hearing cannot be conducted today and the next date for the hearing can be decided after obtaining Imran Khan’s signatures. PTI chairman departed for Lahore without stepping out of his bullet-proof vehicle at the gate of the Judicial Complex, as per the news report.

Intense clashes broke out between PTI supporters and police as former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s convoy reached the judicial complex ahead of the party chairman’s appearance before a district and sessions court in the Toshakhana case, according to The Express Tribune report.

Imran Khan’s vehicle was stopped merely 100 meters from the gate of the judicial complex as the police blamed party workers for blocking the route. Meanwhile, the PTI claimed the law enforcers were restricting the party chairman’s movement.

Despite the end of court hours, the PTI chairman could not appear before the judge. Earlier, Imran Khan filed an application in court, stating that he was present at the gate outside the complex and that his presence should be recorded at the gate.

Imran Khan was to appear in court for the first time today after repeated summons for hearings. A day earlier, the Islamabad High Court suspended the non-bailable arrest warrants issued against the former Pakistan PM till today, giving him the opportunity to voluntarily appear before the sessions court. His convoy reached the Islamabad toll plaza with reports of the route being blocked.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

NIA court frames sedition charges against ‘The Kashmir Walla’ editor Fahad Shah for publishing ‘seditious’ article, was arrested last year for glorifying terrorism

OpIndia Staff
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NIA court frames sedition charges against ‘The Kashmir Walla’ editor Fahad Shah for publishing ‘seditious’ article, was arrested last year for glorifying terrorism

A special National Investigation Agency court in Jammu has slapped sedition and UAPA charges against The Kashmir Walla editor Peerzada Fahad Shah. According to reports, a special judge designated under the NIA Act, Ashwani Kumar, framed the charges on Thursday (March 16) for publishing a “seditious” article on his news website. Along with Shah, similar charges have also been framed against the writer of the article, Abdul Ala Fazili, a Kashmir University PhD student.

Peerzada Fahad Shah has been charged under sections 13 and 18 of the UAPA, IPC sections 121 and 153B and sections 35 (accepting foreign contribution in contravention of provisions of FCRA, or any order or rule therein) and 39 (violation of FCRA by a company tantamount to contravention by the persons incharge or responsible for business of such company) of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act.

Fahad is the editor-in-chief of ‘The Kashmir Walla,’ an online news portal. The digital journal debuted in 2011. It claims to cover news and other socio-cultural concerns in J&K. The Kashmir Walla gained has been vocally opposing the Centre’s decision to withdraw J&K’s special status on August 5, 2019.

Meanwhile, Abdul Ala Fazili has been charged under sections 13 (unlawful activity) and 18 (conspiracy, advocating, abetting, inciting, facilitating a terrorist act or any preparation to commit a terrorist act) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and sections 121 (abetting waging of war against the Government of India), 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The case was filed after the news website The Kashmir Walla, the editor-in-chief of which is Fahad Shah, published an article written by Abdul Ala Fazili- The Shackles of Slavery Will Break. State Investigation Agency claimed that the article was found to be “against national integration and supported the claim of secession of a part of the country’s territory”.

Officials privy to the case said that the CIJ police station (SIA-Jammu) received information on April 4 2022, along with a copy of an article titled “The Shackles of Slavery Will Break.” SIA filed a chargesheet in the case in the special judge’s court on October 13, 2022, after procuring the requisite government sanction.

“The duo, under an active conspiracy and Pakistan’s support, resurrected a platform reviving the narrative in support of the terrorist and separatist ecosystem. They were spreading an anti-India narrative by exploiting digital platforms under a concealed and camouflaged set-up with the help of illicit funding received from hostile foreign agencies and proscribed terrorist organisations,” said the official. 

After hearing the arguments, the court decided that the SIA had gathered sufficient evidence against the accused and drafted charges against Fazili and Shah.

According to the official, the investigation revealed that the accused were in contact with secessionists across the border and with some local terrorists.

“Through their publications, they have brazenly advocated terrorism and glorified terrorists with the sole intention to radicalise youngsters in Jammu and Kashmir and entice and incite them in joining secessionist and terrorist organisations,” the official said.

The Kashmir Walla editor Fahad Shah arrested for promoting anti-national content on Facebook, glorifying terrorist activities

It may be recalled that the Jammu & Kashmir Police had in February last year detained Fahad Shah, editor of the prominent Srinagar-based news portal The Kashmir Walla for anti-national activities and sharing provocative content on the social media platform Facebook.

In January last year, Sajad Gul, a trainee reporter with The Kashmir Walla, was also held for allegedly “provoking the people against the government and spreading animosity” through his tweets. Since then, Gul has been arrested under the Public Safety Act’s provisions.

Abdul Aala Fazili was arrested for his ‘Highly Provocative And Seditious’ article

Notably, on April 17, 2022, the Jammu and Kashmir State Investigation Agency (SIA) arrested a PhD scholar of the University of Kashmir for the “highly provocative and seditious” article he wrote for Faizal Shah’s The Kashmir Walla portal.

The officials had said then that Fazili’s article, titled ‘The shackles of slavery will break’, is “highly provocative, seditious and intended to create unrest in Jammu and Kashmir, and written with the purpose of abetting the youth to take the path of violence by glorifying terrorism”. It also “promoted and propagated the false narrative, which is essential to sustain secessionist-cum-terrorist campaign aimed at breaking the territorial integrity of India.”

“The article has used prescriptive language with instructional intent, encouraging secessionist elements to carry out terror activities,” the official said.

The official added that the repeated reference to freedom and terror outfits’ rhetoric made it amply clear that the article is not merely propaganda, “rather, it is the articulation of Pakistan ISI and the vision of its sponsored terrorist secessionist networks.” 

Some retired judges are part of ‘anti-India gang’, trying to turn judiciary against the govt: Law minister Kiren Rijiju

OpIndia Staff
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Some retired judges are part of ‘anti-India gang’, trying to turn judiciary against the govt: Law minister Kiren Rijiju

Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday slammed some of the retired judges for their anti-India activities while addressing the India Today Conclave. He said that there were a few judges who were part of an anti-India gang trying to turn the judiciary against the government.

“Recently there was a seminar on accountability of judges which somehow turned into how the executive is affecting the judiciary. There are few judges who are activists and part of anti-India gang which is trying to turn judiciary against government like the opposition parties. Judges are not part of any political affiliation and how can these people say that the executive needs to be reigned in. How can they say this?” he said.

Rijiju said that the topic of the seminar was ‘accountability in the appointment of judges’, but the discussion the entire day was on how the government is taking over the Indian judiciary. He said that there is a small number of retired judges and activists who want the judiciary to play the role of an opposition party.

He said that the judiciary can’t play the role of opposition because the judiciary is neutral.

The law minister stressed that nobody would get away, and those who turned against the country would pay a price. He also slammed the Congress party and said that the Collegium system was a mistake made by the Congress administration and that the Central government must adhere to it till a new system is put in place.

Rijiju said that the appointment of judges is not judicial work, it is administrative, and as per the constitution, judges are to be appointed by the president in consultation with the CJI or the Chief Justice of respective high courts. He said that the system of Collegium system came due to misdeeds of the Congress party, but this is not a permanent system.

Rijiju further discussed the issue of vacations, stating that judges need time off because they handle 50–60 cases every day in addition to their administrative responsibilities. “They have a huge mental pressure and need to go for vacation etc” he said.

While referring to the recent judgement on the appointment of the Election Commission, the minister said that the judges are getting involved into lots of administrative work, while they should be primarily involved in judicial work.

Kiren Rijiju also tore into Rahul Gandhi for his comments regarding Indian democracy. He said that Rahul Gandhi uses the same language that the anti-India propagandists use, that democracy is in danger in India. He said that Rahul Gandhi speaks the most, and he complaints that he is not allowed to speak.

The Union Law Minister, Kiren Rijiju, highlighted an interview with Justice RS Sodhi (Retd. ), a former judge of the Delhi High Court, on his Twitter account in January, during a dispute between the government and the judiciary over the collegium system for choosing judges.

Sodhi in his interview with the Editor of ‘Law Street Bharat’ had remarked that for the first time, the Supreme Court had hijacked the Constitution to the degree that they (the Judges) have opted to nominate themselves, denying the function of the government.

Rijiju quoted the interview and tweeted, “Voice of a Judge… Real beauty of Indian Democracy is- its success. People rule themselves through their representatives. Elected representatives represent the interests of the People & make laws. Our Judiciary is independent and our Constitution is Supreme.”

The Minister agreed with the retired Judge and stated, “Actually the majority of the people have similar sane views. It’s only those people who disregard the provisions of the Constitution and mandate of the people who think that they are above the Constitution of India.”

Meanwhile, he stressed that there can be some sort of regulation on how the holidays are charted out for the courts. Rijiju also said there he has never encroached the territory of the judiciary and denied any events of confrontation between the government and the Supreme Court.

Brahmapuram fire: NGT imposes Rs 100 crore fine on Kochi Corporation for poor waste management

OpIndia Staff
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Brahmapuram fire: NGT imposes Rs 100 crore fine on Kochi Corporation for poor waste management

The Kochi Municipal Corporation has been ordered to pay an environmental penalty of Rs 100 crore by the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) Principle Bench for poor garbage management which led to a major fire on March 2 at Kochi’s Brahmapuram trash disposal yard. The fire resulted in severe air pollution in the city of Kochi for about two weeks at the beginning of this month.

The decision was delivered in response to the Supreme Court’s observations, that the State of Kerala and its officials were an ‘utter failure’ and routinely flouted the law regarding solid waste management. The civic body has been asked to deposit the money with the Chief Secretary in a month for necessary remediation measures, including dealing with the public health issues of the victims.

A bench headed by Justice A K Goyal put the onus on the State Government after taking up the case voluntarily based on media reports. The media reported that a massive environmental emergency was brought on by the fire at the Brahmapuram waste dump site as a result of the state authorities’ abject inability to carry out their fundamental obligations to maintain a pollution free environment.

The tribunal held the Kerala government responsible for the fire, the delay in putting it out, and the resultant threat to public health.

Fire at Brahmapuram waste plant

On March 2, a massive fire broke out at the Brahmapuram waste facility, and as a result, the air quality in the port city and the other districts deteriorated as they were shrouded in a thick envelope of smoke. Locals in the region reported many issues, including breathing difficulties, dry coughs, discomfort, and dry eyes as the smoke proceeded to cover the entire town. Toxic fumes contaminated many adjacent areas.

On March 5, as massive and dense clouds of toxic smoke billowed from the site and blanketed the city, the district government of Ernakulam issued a holiday for students in all schools in regions under the Kochi corporation and the neighbouring municipalities and village panchayats.

Amid complaints of breathing difficulties and dry eyes by residents, the local administration advised people to remain indoors and use N-95 masks when they step out.

Supreme Court’s comments

The Bench said, “It is self-evident that good governance in the matter of waste management is being neglected for a long time to the detriment of the environment and public health and no one has taken moral responsibility for the gross failure of rule of law and damage to public health. It is difficult to understand what is the value of citizens’ right to life and safety with such an attitude of total neglect by authorities in Government. This calls for soul searching and also high-level inquiry to determine culpability in the larger public interest.”

“No accountability for such serious failure has been fixed and no senior person has been held accountable so far. Except for giving future plans, no fixing of accountability is proposed even now which is a matter of regret. No prosecution has been launched against the guilty for criminal offences under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and also under relevant provisions of IPC nor action taken for violation of the Supreme Court orders,” it added.

The court noted that the state’s authorities’ conduct poses a danger to the rule of law. In order to protect the Constitution and the objectives of environmental law, the Bench expressed optimism that the matter would be resolved at the higher levels of the State, such as the DGP and the Chief Secretary.

Court instructed the Chief Secretary of Kerala to determine who is responsible for such egregious errors, start criminal and departmental investigations using the proper procedures, and make the information public within two months.

Kochi Corporation to appeal against the decision

Mayor of Kochi City Adv. M. Anilkumar affirmed that an appeal will be filed against the NGT fine because the corporation lacks the financial resources to pay the fine. The panel hasn’t heard the corporation’s in-depth arguments, he continued. He added that the company would carry with all directives given by NGT, including addressing health issues.

Tony Chammani, the former mayor, deemed the NGT ruling to be exceedingly regrettable. The municipality would come to a standstill as a result of this liability, he warned.

The tribunal had been briefed by the State Government on the actions taken to put out the fire. The State Government’s attorney claimed, that while the Kerala High Court voluntarily brought a case against the government regarding the issue, the tribunal should not file a parallel case against the government. The bench retorted that they are not meddling with the High Court’s processes.

Kerala High Court findings

A committee consisting of the Ernakulam district collector and top officials of various departments, including the local self-government, the state pollution control board, Kochi corporation, and the district legal services authority was constituted by the Kerala High Court.

The committee found, that the Brahmapuram waste treatment facility did not adhere to the 2016 Solid Waste Management Regulations. According to its report, a major piece of a building has already collapsed and been removed from the site. It revealed, that the site’s existing building is in a poor state and might collapse at any time.

Operating without license

Since 2017, the civic organisation has operated the plant without a licence, according to sources with the pollution control board. The Kochi civic body was also slammed by the fire department for failing to provide the bare minimum in terms of facilities to prevent fire accidents at the landfill. The corporation was given a show-cause notice and fined Rs. 1.8 crore by the state pollution board.

Opposition and public backlash

As the CM rose to address the Legislature about the Brahmapuram fire, opposition MLAs in the assembly staged a walkout. In addition, people assembled in front of the Kerala Assembly Speaker’s office to demonstrate against the violation of their rights. They stated that they had been harassed by security personnel at the congressional complex.

Netizens denounced the government for the occurrence and demanded the adoption of stringent regulations. They also charged the ruling CPI(M) administration for staying mute on the issue and claimed that not a single leader had spoken out against the poor management.

Netizens referred to Kerala as ‘God’s own trash,’ which was derived from ‘God’s own country,’ a popular appellation of the state.

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan’s statement

While addressing the state Assembly on March 15, CM Vijayan said, “a Special Investigation Team of the State police will investigate the case registered related to the Brahmapuram fire. A vigilance inquiry will also be conducted into the cause of the fire and the proceedings of the plant right from the time of its inception.”

He declared, that the Brahmapuram fire had been totally extinguished on March 13 and that no inhabitants had suffered any significant health problems as a result of the incident. “The State government, district administration, and the Kochi Corporation worked on a war footing to control the fire.”

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