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Twitter communication reveals how ‘Hunter Biden story’ was censored using dubious justification, with Vijaya Gadde at the helm: What happened

OpIndia Staff
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Twitter communication reveals how ‘Hunter Biden story’ was censored using dubious justification, with Vijaya Gadde at the helm: What happened

Days after Elon Musk vowed to restore public trust in Twitter, he revealed all internal communications pertaining to the censorship of the Hunter Biden story on the social media platform. The development took place on Friday (US local time) during which the new Twitter chief shared a 37-tweet-long thread, posted by independent journalist Matt Taibbi.

The said Twitter thread detailed how the former Legal Head of the company, Vijaya Gadde, was at the helm of the censorship exercise under the garb of vague and arbitrary rules. It is pertinent to note that Gadde was accused of refusing to take down child porn even as the victim’s parents had pleaded for removal.

The internal communications revealed how the Twitter moderation team routinely received directives from the Biden administration to censor tweets. “More to review from the Biden team,” read a response by a Twitter executive dated October 24, 2020.

Thus, it came as no surprise when the social media platform censored an article by the New York Post, which published an explosive story about Hunter Biden’s problematic emails with a Ukrainian gas company executive from Burisma in the run-up to elections. It is pertinent to note that when the Hunter Biden story was censored, Biden was not in power.

“Twitter took extraordinary steps to suppress the story, removing links and posting warnings that it may be “unsafe.” They even blocked its transmission via direct message, a tool hitherto reserved for extreme cases, e.g. child pornography,” Matt Taibbi revealed.

According to the independent journalist, the Twitter moderation team went ahead with their crackdown and even locked the account of former White House spokeswoman, Kaleigh McEnany.

This prompted an angry letter from the campaign staffer of Donald trump, Mike Hahn, who said, “All she did was cite the story and firsthand reporting that has been reported by other outlets and not disputed by the Biden campaign.”

“I need an answer immediately on when/how she will be unlocked…Like I said, at least pretend to care for the next 20 days,” he took potshots at the partisan behaviour of the Twitter moderation team.

“Several employees noted that there was tension between the comms/policy teams, who had little/less control over moderation, and the safety/trust teams,” Matt Taibbi emphasised.

Twitter’s internal communication exposed how the censorship was justified under the guise of the ‘hacked materials policy.’ “Per checking, the user was bounced by Site Integrity for violating our Hacked Materials policy. Adding them here for further insights and guidance,” a Twitter executive had justified.

Matt Taibbi emphasised that the decision to censor the ‘Hunter Biden story’ was made at the highest level of the company but Twitter founder Jack Dorsey was apparently not privy to it. He added that the former Legal Head of Twitter, Vijay Gadde, played a crucial role in the process.

“They just freelanced it. Hacking was the excuse, but within a few hours, pretty much everyone realized that wasn’t going to hold. But no one had the guts to reverse it,” a Twitter employee described the decision-making process.

Former U.S. Policy Communications Manager at Twitter, Trenton Kennedy, had expressed doubts over the manner in which the New York Post article was gutted.

“I’m struggling to understand the policy basis for marking this as unsafe, and I think the best explainability argument for this externally would be that we’re waiting to understand if this story is the result of hacked materials,” he remarked during the internal Twitter discussion.

“We’ll face hard questions on this if we don’t have some kind of solid reasoning for marking the link unsafe,” Kennedy had highlighted. However, former Head of Trust & Safety at Twitter, Yoel Roth, had justified the move.

He had said, “The policy basis is hacked materials – though, as discussed, this is an emerging situation where the facts remain unclear. Given the severe risks here and lessons of 2016, we’re erring on the side of including a warning and preventing this content from being amplified.”

Several other top Twitter executives, including Brandon Borrman, had indicated that the ‘hacked materials policy’ invoked to withhold the Hunter Biden story was questionable. “Can we truthfully claim that this is part of the policy?” he had inquired.

Matt Tabibi emphasised, “A fundamental problem with tech companies and content moderation: many people in charge of speech know/care little about speech, and have to be told the basics by outsiders.”

The independent journalist also pointed out how Indian-origin Democratic Congressman, Ro Khanna, expressed concern about the censorship of the New York Post article.

Vijaya Gadde, the former Legal Head at Twitter who was sacked after Elon Musk took charge of the company, had justified the decision to lock the account of White House spokeswoman, Kaleigh McEnany. She also tried to rationalise the gutting of the ‘Hunter Biden story.’

“We put out a clarifying thread of Tweets earlier this evening to explain our policy around the posting of private information and linking directly to hacked materials,” she had said.

“The press secretary’s account was not permanently suspended – we requested that she delete the tweet containing material that is in violation of our rules and her account is restricted until she complies,” Gadde further remarked.

Matt Taibbi pointed out how Jack Dorsey was allegedly kept in darkness over the ‘Hunter Biden laptop story coverup.’

“An amazing subplot of the Twitter/Hunter Biden laptop affair was how much was done without the knowledge of CEO Jack Dorsey, and how long it took for the situation to get “unfucked” (as one ex-employee put it) even after Dorsey jumped in,” he concluded.

The Background of the Controversy

It is notable here that in the last weeks of the 2020 US presidential elections, the New York Post published an explosive story about Hunter Biden’s problematic emails with a Ukrainian gas company executive from Burisma.

In its report, the news outlet alleged that they had accessed material from a damaged Macbook that was brought to a service centre for repair. The customer who brought the laptop never collected or paid for the services.

The shop owner said he repeatedly tried to contact the client. Though he could not identify the owner as Hunter Biden, he said the laptop had Beau Biden Foundation’s sticker.

The report has several documents and mentions a video that proves that Joe Biden met a high-profile businessman from Ukraine when he was Vice President of the United States. 

Reports suggested that Biden may have helped his son Hunter using his influence as the VP of the United States in his business in Ukraine. The Biden Camp categorically denied all the allegations.

It was heavily censored by both Twitter and Facebook and was branded as a piece of fake news. Initially, the left and liberal cabal dismissed the report as a hoax, but it was eventually confirmed that the laptop’s contents did really belong to Hunter Biden.

Following the restriction of the NYP report, Twitter justified the action by claiming that its policies forbid the sharing of compromised information. After the elections were over and Joe Biden was declared president, it later became clear that the NY Post story was true.

Twitter’s former head Jack Dorsey then expressed regret over censoring the story and blocking NY Post from their Twitter account.

Madras HC rejects ‘backward quota’ claim of man who converted to Islam, had missed merit list after being treated as ‘general category’: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Madras HC rejects ‘backward quota’ claim of man who converted to Islam, had missed merit list after being treated as ‘general category’: Details

The Madras High Court ruled on Friday that a person “cannot carry his caste after conversion to another religion.” The remark was made while rejecting a man who converted to Islam from Hinduism’s claim of backward class reservation.

Justice GR Swaminathan on December 1 dismissed the plea of a petitioner challenging the action of the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) treating him as the ‘General’ category in the Combined Civil Services Examination-II (Group-II Services) instead of Backward Class Muslim. 

Justice Swaminathan citing multiple Supreme Court judgments observed that once a person born a Hindu converts to another religion that does not follow or recognize the caste system, the converted person would no longer belong to the caste he was born into.

Relying on the Supreme Court judgment in the Kailash Sonkar vs Maya Devi case which ruled that the caste of a Hindu is determined by his or her birth. Therefore, if a Hindu converts to Christianity or Islam, or any other religion that does recognize the caste system, he or she ceases to belong to that caste. Upon reverting to the original religion the person automatically will belong to the caste he was originally born into.

The High Court also stated that whether a person who has converted to another religion is eligible for community reservation is a matter before the Supreme Court. As a result, it will not be appropriate for the High Court to decide on the matter.

The TNPSC’s decision was therefore upheld by the court, which declined to intervene and held that the decision of the commission was right.

Notably, the petitioner informed the High Court that he and his family were Hindus from the Most Backward Class (MBC). In May 2008, the petitioner and his family converted to Islam. The petitioner took the Tamil Nadu Combined Civil Services Examination in 2018.

He did not make the merit list, and the response to his RTI request revealed that the TNPSC treated him as a general-category applicant rather than a Backward Class Muslim applicant.

He claimed that by converting to Islam, he was exercising his fundamental right to practice any religion he desired. However, prior to his conversion, he was an MBC, and the state of Tamil Nadu identified some Muslim communities as belonging to the Backward Class.

The petitioner argued that the TNPSC should have considered his candidacy in the Backward Class community.

The petition was opposed by the state government, which claimed that the TN government did not recognize all Muslims as belonging to the Backward Class.

Sunni leader slams pledge, taken during Kerala govt’s ‘gender campaign’, to give equal property rights to women, calls it violation of Muslim rights, Quran

OpIndia Staff
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Sunni leader slams pledge, taken during Kerala govt’s ‘gender campaign’, to give equal property rights to women, calls it violation of Muslim rights, Quran

On Friday, a cleric of Kerala’s influential Muslim body ‘Samastha’ voiced his opinion against a vow which was administered to Kudumbashree volunteers stating that Muslim women shall have equal legal rights to their father’s estate. Sunni leader Nasar Faizi Koodathayi, the general secretary of the Samastha Kerala Jam-Iyyathul Qutba committee said that the pledge amounted to a violation of the fundamental rights of Muslims.

According to the reports, Koodathayi who is also the state secretary of Sunni Yujana Sangham opined that the Constitution empowers followers of all religions to practice personal laws on marriage, divorce, property rights, and burial rites. He reiterated that the oath violated the Quran, which states that men are entitled to double as much as women in the share. 

The cleric happened to write a Facebook post on December 2 which read, “Islam declared post-right to women in the property of the father, husband, and son to the world is mythically believed as that woman have no property rights. But in the property of the father, it’s not discrimination to make them half of the man (their brother).”

Screenshot of his Facebook post translation

The Kerala Government is conducting various projects through Kudumbasree from November 25 to December 23, 2022, as a part of the Gender Campaign conducted by the Central Ministry of Rural Development. The leader amid the campaign also added that it is a man who has to bear all the expenses of a woman’s life and that woman is dependent upon a man. “Even if the husband is poor and the wife is rich, it is the husband’s responsibility to bear the expenses of their husband and children. Islam gives women the right to keep whatever they get afterwards without having to bear a single penny at the expense,” he wrote.

The leader also meanwhile said that women being allowed half of what men get from their father’s property cannot be construed as injustice. “Those who criticize the stipulation forget the additional burden on men. The attempt to violate fundamental principles of the Constitution and religion in the name of gender neutrality will certainly invite protests,” he added.

The comments of the leader have come to the fore amid the gender campaign conducted by the Central Rural Development Ministry in the state. Every Kudumbasree as a part of the campaign has been instructed to pledge through gender resource meeting.

The Kudumbashree circular further invites members to vow that they will celebrate the births of both male and female children equally and give equal opportunities in school and work to both. Koodathayi said that such pledges would invite severe protests in the state.

Bacteria in the holy river Ganga effective in treating human diseases, could be substitute for antibiotics that have lost efficacy, finds research: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Bacteria in the holy river Ganga effective in treating human diseases, could be substitute for antibiotics that have lost efficacy, finds research: Details

According to a Times of India report, an AIIMS New Delhi study discovered that a certain type of bacteria that thrives in the Ganga is more effective than some existing medications in treating serious human diseases.

The novel bacteria, in the opinion of the researchers, would be the greatest substitute for presently used antibiotics that had lost their efficacy in treating bloodstream infections, severe burns, surgical sites, and lung infections including pneumonia, bed sores, and diabetic infection.

The AIIMS microbiology department conducted research on water samples collected from several Ganga ghats in Varanasi four years ago. The holy river Ganga is reputed to be a rich source of bacteria.

One of the microorganisms in the water included DNA that may be utilised to treat human diseases that are drug-resistant, according to researchers. The department gave the microbe the name Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, in particular, is a bacteria that affects immunocompromised persons.

Dr Rama Chaudhry, the department’s head, asserted that antibiotics including ceftazidime, imipenem, and amikacin have been shown to be ineffective at treating infections. Additionally, bacteria were developing drug resistance, creating a conundrum of few antibiotic choices and higher treatment costs.

Dr Rama said, “Some types of bacterial infections are often severe and even have high mortality and morbidity. There are cases where people develop severe skin sores because of diabetes and body parts have to be cut off.”

“This aeruginosa has also been identified by WHO as a priority pathogen. This indicates a need to prioritise the discovery and development of new antimicrobial treatments,” she added.

Dr Rama continued by mentioning other occasions in which patients with severe cases of bodily ailments arrived at the hospital but no antibiotics were available or useful for use in their circumstances. She stated that it is anticipated that this novel bacteria would be quite effective in treating such cases.

In contrast to previous antibiotics that kill helpful body microorganisms, this unique Ganga water microbe has been demonstrated to be immune system unharmful, according to Dr Nisha Rathor, a member of the study team.

When an organism becomes resistant to an antibiotic or antifungal that it was previously susceptible to, this is known as antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The typical treatment for that particular ailment then stops working, leading to the continuation of the infection. Antibiotic resistance in bacteria may be to blame for 13 million deaths in 2019, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Uttar Pradesh: Maulana brainwashes students and instils hate, when questioned by villagers, instigates students to attack them, arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Maulana brainwashes students and instils hate, when questioned by villagers, instigates students to attack them, arrested

In Uttar Pradesh’s Basti, a case has emerged where a Maulana has been arrested for brainwashing Madarsa students. The reported incident is from Darul-Uloom Aleemia madarsa in Walterganj. 

The accused who has been identified as Maulana Akhtar Hussain is an assistant teacher at the madarsa. An audio clip of the accused Maulana is doing rounds on social media in which he can be heard making disparaging remarks about former President of India Abdul Kalam Azad, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, RSS, and the BJP.

As the villagers heard the clip they went to confront the Maulana and question him over why he is instilling hate in the minds of students and brainwashing them. The Maulana, however, instigated the students to attack the villagers. Later on, the villagers informed the police about the incident.

A case was registered on the basis of a complaint lodged by a villager Fazal-ur-Rahman from Jamdashahi village.

Following this, the Police reached the Madarsa and arrested the accused Maulana. A case has been registered under sections 323, 054, 505, and 506 of the IPC.

Speaking on the matter, SP Ashish Srivastav said, A complaint has been lodged in Walterganj police station accusing a Maulana of making derogatory remarks about former President Abdul Kalam. Police has heard the viral audio clip. The accused Maulana has been arrested.”

Bengaluru: Hindu man files complaint against his wife, Sunitha Gracy, for forcing him and his parents to convert to Christianity, giving death threats

OpIndia Staff
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Bengaluru: Hindu man files complaint against his wife, Sunitha Gracy, for forcing him and his parents to convert to Christianity, giving death threats

On Friday, December 2, the Bengaluru Police said that a Hindu man lodged a complaint against his Christian wife accusing her of forcing him and his family to convert to Christianity. A court directed the police to investigate a private complaint of the 28-year-old Hindu man. Subsequently, an FIR was registered at Mahalakshmi Police station. The wife, Sunitha Gracy, has reportedly also threatened the Hindu man and his parents of filing false cases if they refuse to convert.

Deepak, a welder living in Mahalakshmi Layout’s Ashokapuram, filed a complaint against his 26-year-old wife Sunitha Gracy, and five others. Deepak and Gracy were in courtship before marrying on January 18, 2019, at a temple in Electronics City. The couple lives in a rented home. According to reports, the complainant travels to different states for work and would inform his wife before leaving. Gracy, on the other hand, is accused of filing missing complaints about her husband, deliberately to harass him. 

In his complaint, Deepak alleged that his wife and her family members were harassing him and also started giving death threats for refusing to convert.

Deepak in a private complaint alleged that his wife was not paying her rent, despite the fact that her husband provided the money. Gracy took loans without informing her husband however when the loan was due, she would send them to her husband’s workplace and ask them to take money from him.

“The couple’s relationship is strained. Gracy has filed three missing complaints whenever her husband has been absent from work. Deepak is also irritated because she has taken money from several people in his name. He filed a private complaint in a city court, and the FIR was registered as directed by the court. If Deepak’s allegation of forcible conversion is ascertained, it will be included in the chargesheet,” said an officer involved in the investigation.

Rahul Gandhi gives gyan on Jai Sri Ram vs Jai Siya Ram to target BJP. Here is how he exposed his own lack of gyan

OpIndia Staff
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Rahul Gandhi gives gyan on Jai Sri Ram vs Jai Siya Ram to target BJP. Here is how he exposed his own lack of gyan

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday attacked BJP-RSS, claiming that they don’t chant ‘Jai Siya Ram’ or ‘Jai Sita Ram’ and instead opt for ‘Jai Sri Ram’ because women have no place in their organisation.

In a gathering at Agar during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, Gandhi, whose party had questioned the existence of Lord Ram previously, co-opted ‘Jai Sri Ram’, ‘Jai Siya Ram’ and ‘Hey Ram’ and gave it his own spin to attack the BJP-RSS.

“What does ‘Jai Siya Ram’ mean? Jai Sita and Jai Ram, means Sita and Ram are the same. That’s why the slogan is Jai Siya Ram or Jai Sita Ram. Lord Ram fought for the honour of Sita Ji. We call ‘Jai Siya Ram’ and respect women like Sita in the society,” Gandhi said.

He further added, “…The people of RSS and BJP do not live life in the spirit in which Lord Ram lived his life. Ram didn’t do injustice to anyone. Ram did the work of uniting society. Ram gave respect to everyone. The people of RSS and BJP do not follow the way of life of Lord Ram. They cannot do Siya Ram and Sita Ram, because there is no woman in their organisation, so it is not the organisation of Jai Siya Ram, Sita cannot come into their organization, Sita has been thrown out.”

Just like most statements Rahul Gandhi makes, it doesn’t take too much of a search to recognise them as lies. Even though the Congress scion claimed BJP members never say Jai Siya Ram, a basic google search would have landed him at this video of PM Narendra Modi chanting Jai Siya Ram.

Sanskrit scholars and scriptures say ‘Jai Sri Ram’ and ‘Jai Siya Ram’ have the same meaning

Even as Gandhi co-opted ’Jai Siya Ram’ and ’Jai Sri Ram’ to attack RSS-BJP and tried to draw a distinction between the two, eminent Sanskrit scholars and authorities on scriptures have revealed that there is no difference between the two slogans.

Nityananda Misra, one of the foremost authorities on Sanskrit and Vedic scriptures, had in April this year tweeted that both ’Jai Shri Ram’ and ’Jai Shriram’ are correct and are used to hail both Goddess Sita and Lord Ram.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement or Hare Krishnas, has also, time and again, cleared misconceptions of ignorants who believe ’Jai Sri Ram’ and ’Jai Sita Ram’ mean two different things.

In 2019, the official Twitter account of ISKCON stated that both the slogans ’Jai Sri Ram’ and ’Jai Sita Ram’ mean the same and are sanctioned by the Shastras.

“According to Sanskrit Dictionary, “Sri” as a noun, means Srimati Radharani, Laxmidevi, Sita Mata, wealth, opulence, beauty, fame, knowledge, strength, any virtue or excellence etc.,” ISKCON had tweeted.

Women’s representation in BJP-RSS

While Gandhi used the slogans chanted to hail Lord Ram and Goddess Sita for his attack against the RSS-BJP, his claim that women are absent from these organisations is misleading, given that many women are in the leadership positions in the BJP and the BJP-led central government, namely, Smriti Irani, Nirmala Sitharaman, Meenakshi Lekhi, and many others.

The RSS, too, has a dedicated women’s organisation, Rashtriya Sevika Samiti, a group that works for the betterment of women in the sectors of labour, agriculture and economy, among others. The RSS also have women in their national executive committees and as office bearers. 

Madras High Court instructs Tamilnadu government to ban mobile phones inside temples to maintain purity and sanctity

OpIndia Staff
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Madras High Court instructs Tamilnadu government to ban mobile phones inside temples to maintain purity and sanctity

On Friday, December 2, 2022, the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court instructed the Tamil Nadu state government to prohibit the use of mobile phones by devotees inside temples. The court said that mobile phones should be banned in temples in order to maintain the purity and sanctity of the places of worship. The court ordered this directive in response to a petition filed by a temple priest of Subramaniaswamy Temple in Tiruchendur, Thoothukudi district, seeking a direction to the State to prohibit the use of mobile phones inside the temple.

M. Seetharaman is a temple priest of Subramaniaswamy Temple in Tiruchendur in Tamilnadu. He filed this petition in November 2022. In his plea, he contended that the temple was an ancient temple and that agama rules played a vital role in the worship and administration of the temple. Every Hindu temple’s Agama laws forbid the use of cameras to photograph the god and the rites conducted to the deity. Therefore, the temple management does not allow the use of still or moving cameras inside the temple.

“However,” the petitioner said, “Nowadays, mobile phones are used to take snaps and for video coverage. Devotees are taking snaps of idols and pujas. Temple staff face hardship as a result.” The petition had said that as visitors take selfies and make videos in the temple using their phones, they obstruct other devotees, and hamper religious functions.

He added, “The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department has taken efforts to restrict worshipers from taking cell phones into Madurai’s Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple. Separate locker rooms have been established outside the temple premises. The same should be done at Tiruchendur’s Subramaniaswamy Temple.”

Subramaniaswamy temple authorities informed the court that already measures are being taken to prevent the use of mobile phones in the temple. They told the court that security rooms have been arranged to store the phones of visitors and a system of issuing tokens has been established. The response filed by the temple management said that since November 14, both visitors and temple staff are not allowed to carry mobile phones inside the temple premises. People also have been appointed to monitor the use of phones inside the temple premises. The temple authority also said that they have also implemented a dress code for devotees.

“Notice boards warning, not to take cellphones in and if cellphones are found in possession inside the temple, it shall be seized and will not be returned and this information is also announced in public address system,” Subramaniaswamy temple’s executive officer said. The officer further added, “Devotees who come to the temple should wear attire that protects our tradition and culture and these information boards are placed in the temple.”

Considering this response from the temple, the High Court bench closed the case, and ordered the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department to ban phones in all the temples of the state to maintain purity and sanctity.

It is notable that the petition was filed for banning phones only in the Subramaniaswamy Temple in Tiruchendur, but the High Court decided to implement it in all temples in the state.

Mumbai: Cops lodge FIR against one Parvez for cutting optical fibre cables of Reliance Jio, disrupting internet connections

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai: Cops lodge FIR against one Parvez for cutting optical fibre cables of Reliance Jio, disrupting internet connections

The Mumbai police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Parvez, an employee of a sub-vendor of Reliance Jio, for disrupting the company’s internet and TV cable connectivity for about 2 days.

As per a report by The Times of India, the accused was identified as Parvez Khan. He had confessed to cutting the optical fibre cables of the telecom company on November 27 and November 28 this year.

His actions led to an internet outage in Goregaon and affected a whopping 2,500 customers of Reliance Jio. According to TOI, Parvez was miffed at the company for transferring him to Borivili from his work site in Goregaon.

Parvez threatened to continue disrupting Jio services

The accused also threatened to continue disrupting the services of Jio until his transfer order is cancelled. This prompted a staffer of a Reliance Jio vendor, Rajendra Mohite, to file a complaint with the Goregaon police.

Although Parvez was booked for criminal intimidation and mischief, he was not arrested at the time of writing the report. The matter came to light on Sunday (November 27) when Rajendra Mohite received information about an internet outage at SV Road in Goregaon.

Mohite, who had been working as a senior technician in the Goregaon-Dahisar belt for about 7 years, reached the location with his team. He found that an optical fibre cable was cut near the Ram Mandir flyover.

Police complaint lodged after the identity of the accused was confirmed

Although the cable was fixed, the servers still remained down. At that point, Mohite and his team discovered another severed cable and died it. On the following day, he received another complaint of disruption of the optical fibre cable at Jawahar Nagar in Goregaon.

Mohite’s team fixed it and the servers were up and running. He then contacted one of his sub-vendors, Lucky Gaikwad, to discuss the issue. Gaikwad expressed doubt about Parvez Khan, one of his employees.

This resulted in a heated argument between the two, following which the accused threatened to disrupt more such optical fibre cables. After ascertaining the identity of the culprit, Mohite registered a complaint with the Goregaon police.

RJ Sayema claims Islam says every good person will go to heaven; Netizens cite Islamic scriptures and Muslim ‘scholars’ to prove her wrong

OpIndia Staff
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RJ Sayema claims Islam says every good person will go to heaven; Netizens cite Islamic scriptures and Muslim ‘scholars’ to prove her wrong

On Friday, Radio Mirchi RJ Sayema was schooled on Twitter after she claimed that ‘as per Islam, every nice person will go to heaven’. Netizens quoted Islamic scriptures and sermons by Muslim ‘scholars’ to highlight how the self-proclaimed expert on Islam, RJ Sayema, lacks knowledge about her own religion, and only Muslims are destined to go to heaven.

It all began when Sayema took to Twitter to respond to a tweet posted by Suresh Chavhanke, the CMD and Editor-in-Chief of Sudarshan News, where he asked whether Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi would attain Jannat or Jahannum as per Islam. In response to Chavhanke’s tweet, RJ Sayema wrote in Hindi, “According to Islam, every good person will get Jannat. He will be in heaven only. We should worry about ourselves.”

Earlier today, Suresh Chavhanke responded to Sayema’s tweet asking the people of Gujarat to vote for Gandhi’s India. She tweeted, “Hey Gujarat! Vote for Gandhi’s India. #Gujarat.”

Suresh Chavhanke responded by asking Sayema, whether Gandhi would receive Jannat or Jahannum according to Islam.

The controversial radio jockey, who has often doubled down as an apologist for Islamists, only ended up embarrassing herself with her reaction to Suresh Chavhanke’s tweet as Netizens were quick to point out Islam’s inherent hate for non-believers or ‘Kafirs’ and how the Quran, the holy book for Muslims, prescribes severe punishment for ‘Kafirs’.

Netizens react to Sayema’s tweet that said every good person goes to heaven as per Islam

Some social media users shared excerpts from Islamic scriptures that demand unleashing violence on non-believers of Islam and polytheists. Twitter user going by the handle @Toxicity____ shared a screenshot of numerous quotes from the Quran which asserts that Kufr (a non-belief in one God and prophets of God and in Holy Scriptures) shall be cast into Hell-fire.

Another Twitter user @_akshu_007 dubbed Sayema a “liar” and shared Quranic scriptures to assist her to recognize that Islam is inherently violent toward non-Muslims.

Many Twitter users also chimed in, calling out Sayema’s claims about Islam. One Dr Syed Rizwan Ahmed tweeted a screenshot of an article by the Hindi newspaper Jagran in which a Muslim ‘scholar’, Maulana Junaid, claimed that only those who pledge allegiance to Mustafa will achieve Jannat.

Another Twitter user @GabbarIsBack002 shared a video clip where Islamic hate preacher Zakir Naik is heard explaining how all non-believers get negative points and do not get to go to ‘Jannah’ after their death as they are still non-Muslims who are doing the sin of ‘Shirk’, meaning idolatry.

Islamic hate preacher Zakir Naik explains how ‘only Muslims go to heaven’

Last year, hate preacher Dr Zakir Naik, who is viewed by many Muslims as an authority on Islam, was seen interacting with his followers and taking various questions from them to explain certain Islamic concepts. In the video titled, “Dr Zakir Naik on the fate of Ravish Kumar who stands for Muslims & Righteous Non-Muslims”, he explained how Ravish Kumar and other ‘good non-Muslims’ did not deserve the Muslim heaven or ‘Jannah’. Naik had then declared that despite his noble efforts of “taking the side of Muslims” and “showing the ugly face of oppressors”, former NDTV star journalist Ravish Kumar will not find a place in the ‘Jannah’ or heaven.

Explaining the rationale behind the concept, Naik elaborated how there is a hierarchy within the ‘Jannah’ (the paradise garden) and all those Muslims who go to ‘Jannah’ will not be on the same level. Similarly, hell has different levels too.

Explaining further, Naik said that whatever the ‘good deeds’ people like Ravish Kumar may do for the benefit of Muslims since they have not converted to Islam, they will still go to hell because of the crime of ‘shirk’ (heresy, idol worship) is bigger than any other crime.

Naik effectively says that irrespective of their ‘good non-Muslim’ certificate, non-Muslims will still end up in hell, maybe a milder version of hell due to whatever they have done, but hell it will be. He adds that the worst kind of non-Muslims, like Hitler and an ‘unnamed person from India’ will get the worst kind of hell.

Radio Mirchi RJ Sayema finds space with radical preacher Zakir Naik

Last year, a video featuring Radio Mirchi RJ Sayema did rounds on the internet in which she was seen normalising anti-Hindu bigotry by legitimising the usage of radical Islamic terms such as ‘Kafir’ and ‘Jihad’.

In a video, titled ‘Urdu Ki Paathshala’, the self-proclaimed Urdu expert RJ Sayema explains the ‘real meaning’ of Islamic concepts of ‘Kafir’ and ‘Jihad’.

In an attempt to normalise the usage of such inciting words, RJ Sayema goes to length to find ways to explain how the term ‘Jihad’ and “Kafir’ never meant any bad to the ‘non-believers’ or non-Muslims.

RJ Sayema, in her video, kept on claiming that ‘Jihad’ never meant ‘terrorism’ but a ‘struggle’. Interestingly, Sayema never cites the sources from where she got the definitions of Islamic concepts.

Interestingly, these misleading videos had been shared across channels on YouTube in an attempt to distort the real meanings of Islamic terms. A YouTube channel – The Muslim Guide, which telecast videos of radical Islamic terror sympathisers such as Zakir Naik, had also uploaded RJ Sayema’s video on its channel, spreading her distorted definition of the terms ‘Jihad’ and ‘Kafir’.

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