Home Blog Page 2864

Gujarat: AAP leader Bhagu Vala booked over casting couch allegations

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Gujarat: AAP leader Bhagu Vala booked over casting couch allegations

In Gujarat’s Veraval, a controversy erupted after a rape complaint was filed against Bhagu Vala, who left Congress and joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). A complaint has been filed in the name of Vishwas Films Creation alleging that the girl was raped while being lured to work. The girl has been taken for a medical examination. The police have registered a case under 376 and are investigating further.

The casting couch case has come up in Veraval. Bhagu Vala, an AAP leader and the owner of a film production company called Vishwas Films lured the victim under the pretext of casting her as a model and raped the girl in his flat.

Accused Bhagu Vala had recently joined the AAP before being Vice-President of the Congress state unit a few months ago. The complaint claims that the accused lures young women into casting them for modelling work. The accused Bhagu Wala, who has an office on Rajendra Bhavan Road, called her to his flat and lured her to make her a model in his company.

The police have filed a case against the AAP leader and launched an investigation into the matter.

Ankita Bhandari murder: Locals say another girl had gone missing from the same resort 8 years ago and was never found; police assure probe

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Ankita Bhandari murder: Locals say another girl had gone missing from the same resort 8 years ago and was never found; police assure probe

On Saturday, a day after the Uttarakhand Police arrested three persons in the case of Ankita Bhandari who had gone missing five days ago from a resort in Pauri district, the police recovered the dead body of the deceased. Police have arrested three persons so far in the case, Pulkit Arya, owner of the Vanantra resort where Ankita worked, Pulkit’s friend Ankit Gupta and resort manager Saurabh Bhaskar, for the murder.

During the probe, it has been found that Pulkit Arya, son of former BJP minister Vinod Arya, was forcing Ankita to have sex with him and the guests of the resort as ‘service’ to them. As Ankita didn’t agree to this demand, this led to a fight between them, and Pulkit pushed her into the river on September 18. Reportedly, arrested Saurabh Bhaskar confessed to the crime and narrated the entire incident to the police.

As more details of the case are emerging, now it has come to light that a similar incident had happened in the resort eight years ago. A girl had gone missing from the same resort, but she was never found and the case remains unsolved.

One of the locals named Bittu Bhandari revealed that a similar incident had happened in the now-demolished Vanantra resort around 8 years ago. “7-8 years ago a female staff named Priyanka working at the same resort had gone missing and has not been found to date. Nobody knows what happened to her”, he said, adding that the resort managers and directors then had said that she had fled away with resort cash and a few expensive handy assets.

The Police who are investigating the case of Ankita Bhandari have said that they will look into the matter of the missing girl Priyanka and will take the necessary action required.

Police recover voice messages and chats of Ankita

In the meanwhile, during the investigation of Ankita Bhandari, the Police also recovered several voice messages and chats of Ankita with a person from Jammu. The messages indicate that Ankita was being harassed in the Vanantra resort where she worked.

According to the reports, Anikta’s friend named Deep Pushp from Jammu appeared before the Police and Ankita’s family after the incident and said that the two had become friends through Instagram and Facebook. According to Deep, he had only got Ankita this job through an online job advertisement.

During interrogation, he told the Police that Ankita had talked to him before she was murdered. “Ankita said that she was being trapped”, Pushp said adding that the resort owner and the manager had pressured Ankita to have physical relations with them and their customers. He also revealed that resort owner Pulkit Arya had molested her in an inebriated state.

“We talked at around 8:30 pm on September 17 after which her phone went off. Then I called Pulkit Arya to know where Ankita was. He told me that Ankita was in the resort, sleeping in her room. The next day Pulkit’s phone also went off. Then I called Ankit, the manager. He told me that Ankita was in the gym”, Pushp said during the investigation.

Reports mention that Pushp was worried for Ankita as nobody knew where she was. He also called the resort chef to check on the situation. “Chef said that he had not seen Ankita for hours and that the manager had gone to her room to serve her dinner. The next day the manager happened to declare that Ankita had gone missing”, Pushp said.

Ankita Bhandari joined the resort on August 28 and was reported missing on September 18. Deep Pushp mentioned that Pulkit’s behavior was very good towards Ankita in the initial days of her job. “He used to respect Ankita. When a guest of the resort once had tried to hug Ankita in a drunken state, it was Pulkit who had saved her”, he said.

He also confirmed other audio messages recovered by the Police in the case and said that she was leaving the resort on the evening of September 17 but don’t know why she went to Rishikesh with Pulkit. The audio message recovered by the Police was sent by Ankita to a staff member named Karan asking him to fetch her bag. Deep said that Ankita was a good girl and wanted to make her career out of her cooking skills and interest in hotel management.

According to the police, the accused had thrown the girl in the Rishikesh chilla after an argument. Pulkit wanted Ankita to work as a prostitute for him and his customers at the resort. Pulkit and the manager pushed her into the chilla after she refused to entertain their demands. After the incident, Pulkit and his group returned to the resort and pretended that nothing had happened. On the same night, they went to Haridwar, and from there Pulkit called the resort asking to talk to Ankita, to establish an alibi that he was not present when the girl went missing. When the resort staff told him that she is not around, he called the Revenue Police and reported that the girl had gone missing.

As reported earlier, the Uttarakhand Police have recovered the dead body of the deceased girl and have sent it to AIIMS Rishikesh for further investigation. CM Dhami meanwhile has announced the formation of a Special Investigation Team, which would be led by Deputy Inspector General of Police P Renuka Devi, to look into the case.

Temple of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust’s President also falls prey to ‘land jihad’, Muslims along Nepal border using Palestinian land grab model: Ground report

राहुल पाण्डेय
-
0
Temple of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust’s President also falls prey to ‘land jihad’, Muslims along Nepal border using Palestinian land grab model: Ground report

Several recent ground reports by OpIndia have shown how demography is changing rapidly along India’s border with Nepal. The number of mosques and madarsas is rapidly increasing in the area. From August 20 to 27, 2022, an OpIndia team visited several areas in Nepal bordering India to observe the ground situation. What follows here is the 20th report of the series of reports documenting the facts noticed by the OpIndia team.

In prior reports, we discussed what locals think about the mosques, Islamic shrines and places of worship spread along the highways leading from Balrampur to Barhni and Jarwa along the open international border running between India and Nepal. We also reported how the authorities have sprung into action after the exclusive reportage by OpIndia along the UP-Nepal border.

In this report, we bring to you the conversations we had with a few Mahants and seers about the demographic changes and the rise in the number of Islamic sites of worship in Nepal and India’s border areas. We first spoke to Mahant Mahendra Das of Hanuman Garhi temple, which is located in the heart of Balrampur. Mahendra Das Ji Maharaj, the successor of Ayodhya’s revered saint Kamalnayan Das Ji Maharaj, is the Mahant of this temple. This temple is linked directly to Chhoti Chhawani, a revered structure in Ayodhya.

Mahant Mahendra Das replied to us on his official letterhead. He himself claimed that a portion of the temple was in the hands of an unauthorised occupant named Badruddin.

Temple belonging to the chairman of Ramjanmabhoomi Trust also fell prey to ‘land jihad’

Naresh Kumar, the manager of Hanuman Garhi Temple, told OpIndia that the temple was initially controlled by Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, the president of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust, but the current Mahant of this temple is Mahendra Das. He added that for many years, Muslims have illegally encroached upon a large area of this temple, which they are gradually trying to reclaim.

The portion of the Hanuman Garhi temple encroached by Badruddin

Police administration helpless despite court orders

According to the written response by Mahant Mahendra Das to OpIndia, the unlawful occupants in Balrampur, near the Nepal border, do not even heed the court’s ruling. Mahendra Das also blamed administration officials for the non-compliance.

He noted that as the Mahant of a Hindu temple, he is a witness and sufferer of the illegal occupation of the temple’s land by some Muslims, which the administration is still unable to free even after a court order.

Document of the case filed against the illegal occupation of the temple land by Mahant Nritya Gopal Das

Palestinian land grab model

According to Mahant Mahendra Das, the Palestinian strategy was employed to seize the temple land. He added that similar to how women and children are exploited in Palestine, Muslims here used the same tactic to illegally encroach on temple land.

Elaborating on his aforesaid statement, Das said that when the Muslim parties were unable to acquire custody of the temple land after years of paperwork and legal battles, which they eventually lost in court, they placed their women and children here on the temple grounds. Their aim, like that of the Palestinians, was to utilise women and children as pawns. They made small children the perpetrators, then played the minor victim card, or else urged their women to character assassinate anyone attempting to regain the temple grounds. The temple has been unable to reclaim the land from them as a result of their tactics.

Some journalists and govt employees play an important role in this land grab

According to Mahant Mahendra Das, several media and government personnel are rallying behind the women and children in this Palestinian model of land grab in Balrampur. He stated in the letter that he will initiate a campaign to liberate all places of worship that are illegally occupied in the Shravasti Lok Sabha seat, which borders Nepal. He also asserted that he would see to it that this task is accomplished, regardless of the cost.

Balrampur police had promised to act on the court’s direction: Mahant Mahendra Das

Mahant Mahendra Das had told us previously, that the Balrampur police had stated in an official tweet that the court’s directives on illegal possession would be obeyed. In a perplexed tone, he inquired, “Then why are the authorities delaying in taking action against the illegal encroachers of the temple land”.

Who leaked information to the Muslim encroachers about the impending police action against them?

According to Naresh Kumar, who manages the Hanumangarhi temple in Balrampur, after winning the case in court, Mahant Nritya Gopal Das approached the authorities and urged them to remove the illegal encroachments from temple land. According to Naresh Kumar Sehrawat, in response to this demand, higher authorities also issued directions to subordinates.

Following this, the mahant expressed his surprise, stating that two days after the administrative officials signed the letter which ordered action against these illegal encroachers, many women and children gathered at the temple site and sat there in Shaheen Bagh style.

Naresh Kumar voiced concerns that someone within the government took action and released all of this information to the Badruddin side.

Occupied during the previous regime…we will take action

OpIndia spoke with Paltu Ram, a BJP MLA from Balrampur city, about this issue of unlawful occupation along the Balrampur-Nepal border. He stated that wherever unlawful occupations are visible along the border area, are the result of the previous government’s appeasement policies. According to him, the current government is looking into the issue very seriously.

He told us that he will convey information about the situation on the Nepal border to the government and administration at his level and that he will work to resolve it as soon as possible. MLA Paltu Ram termed the media reports from the Nepal border as concerning.

A creeping Islamisation of Nepal and its border areas appears to be underway, with Islamists steadily establishing their foothold in distant villages, including those on the Indian border. In the first four parts of this series, OpIndia documented the demography change ongoing in Nepal, as well as the worrying surge in the number of mosques and madrasas in the Himalayan nation’s border villages. Additionally, we also spoke about the rising incidents of love jihad in Nepal, as well as its Delhi connection and smuggling, and various other notorious activities that are going on along India’s border with Nepal.

The first report in this series can be read here in Hindi: कभी था हिंदू बहुल गाँव, अब स्वस्तिक चिह्न वाले घर पर 786 का निशान: भारत के उस पार भी डेमोग्राफी चेंज, नेपाल में घुसते ही मस्जिद, मदरसा और इस्लाम – OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Demographic change hits other side of the border too, Mosques and Madarasas mushroom in former Hindu dominated areas in Nepal: Ground report

The second report in this series can be read here in Hindi:  घरों पर चाँद-तारे वाले हरे झंडे, मस्जिद-मदरसे, कारोबार में भी दखल: मुस्लिम आबादी बढ़ने के साथ ही नेपाल में कपिलवस्तु के ‘कृष्णा नगर’ पर गाढ़ा हुआ इस्लामी रंग – OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Islamic flags flying atop houses and mosques, madarsas influencing businesses: The creeping Islamisation of Nepal’s Krishnanagar

The third report in this series can be read here in Hindi:  नेपाल में लव जिहाद: बढ़ती मुस्लिम आबादी और नेपाली लड़कियों से निकाह के खेल में ‘दिल्ली कनेक्शन’, तस्कर-गिरोह भारतीय सीमा पर खतरा – OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Rising cases of love jihad in Nepal and its Delhi connection, smuggling plaguing India’s border with Nepal: Ground report

The fourth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: बौद्ध आस्था के केंद्र हों या तालाब… हर जगह मजार: श्रावस्ती में घरों की छत पर लहरा रहे इस्लामी झंडे, OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Steady rise in mazars and madarsas adjoining Buddhist places of worship in UP’s Shravasti near Indo-Nepal border: Ground report

The fifth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: महाराणा प्रताप के साथ लड़ी थारू जनजाति बहुल गाँव में 3 मस्जिद, 1 मदरसा: भारत-नेपाल सीमा पर बढ़ती मुस्लिम आबादी का ये है ‘पैटर्न’ – OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Rising number of mosques, madarsa along Indo-Nepal border: Ground report on Islamisation of village of Tharu tribe that fought along Maharana Pratap

The sixth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: बौद्ध-जैन मंदिरों के बीच दरगाह बनाई, जिस मजार को पुलिस ने किया ध्वस्त… वो फिर चकमकाई: नेपाल सीमा पर बढ़ती मुस्लिम आबादी – OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Dargah and mazar built around Buddhist and Jain temple premises, illegal mazar once demolished surfaces again: UP’s Shravasti near Nepal border

The seventh report in this series can be read here in Hindi: हनुमान गढ़ी की जमीन पर कब्जा, झारखंडी मंदिर सरोवर में ताजिया: नेपाल सीमा पर बढ़ती मुस्लिम आबादी, असर UP के बलरामपुर में – OpIndia Ground Report

The same report can be read here in English: Muslim encroachment of temple land, Karbala built in temple compound, and more: Ground report on Islamisation underway along the UP-Nepal border

The eight report in this series can he read here in Hindi: पुरातत्व विभाग से संरक्षित जो जगह, वहाँ वक्फ की दरगाह-मजार: नेपाल सीमा पर बढ़ती मुस्लिम आबादी, मुसीबत में बौद्ध धर्मस्थल – OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Mazars built at places protected by Archaeological Department along India-Nepal border, Buddhist shrines in trouble- OpIndia Ground Report

The ninth report in this series can he read here in Hindi: 2 मीनारों वाली मस्जिदें लोकल, 1 मीनार वाली अरबी पैसे से… लगभग हर गाँव में मदरसे: नेपाल बॉर्डर के मौलाना ने बताया इसमें कमीशन का खेल – OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read in English here: Mosque with two minarets funded locally, another one funded by Saudi Arabia, Maulana at Nepal border speaks about construction mafia, foreign fundings and more

The tenth report in this series can he read here in Hindi: SSB बेस कैंप हो या सड़क, गाँव हो या खेत-सुनसान… हर जगह मस्जिद-मदरसे-मजार: UP के बलरामपुर से नेपाल के जरवा बॉर्डर तक OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read in English here: From SSB base camp to deserted fields, Madarsas and Mazars cropping up everywhere between UP’s Balrampur and Jarwa border in Nepal: Ground Report

The eleventh report in this series can be read here in Hindi: हिंदू बच्चों का खतना, मंदिर में शादी के बाद लव जिहाद और आबादी असंतुलन के साथ बढ़ते पॉक्सो मामले: नेपाल बॉर्डर पर बलरामपुर जिले में OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Circumcision of Hindu children, love jihad, increased POCSO cases and more: Ground report from UP’s Balrampur district along Indo-Nepal border

The twelfth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: गाँवों में अरबी-उर्दू लिखे हुए नल, UAE के नाम की मुहर: ज्यादा दाम देकर जमीनें खरीद रहे नेपाली मुस्लिम – OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Muslims buying Hindu land at higher price, building ‘Saudi-style’ mosques, installations with details inscribed in Urdu and Arabic- Ground report from UP-Nepal border areas

The thirteenth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: नए बने ओवरब्रिज के नीचे मज़ार-कर्बला, सड़क किनारे मस्जिद-मदरसे-दरगाह: नेपाल के बढ़नी बॉर्डर हाइवे पर ‘हरा रंग’ हावी – OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Mazar-Karbala emerge under newly constructed overbridges, ‘green’ colour pervasive throughout Barhni highway along Indo-Nepal border: Ground report

The fourteenth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: ‘4 और 14 वाली नीति से एकतरफा बढ़ रही आबादी… उस गाँव में मस्जिद बनाने की कोशिश, जहाँ नहीं एक भी मुस्लिम’ : UP-नेपाल बॉर्डर से OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: ‘Saudi-returned Muslims of the new generation do not want to live in harmony with Hindus’: Ground report from Indo-Nepal border

The fifteenth report in this series can be read here in Hindi: फ़ारसी में ‘गरीब नवाज स्कूल’ का बोर्ड, उस पर बने चाँद-तारे… घरों-दुकानों में लहरा रहे इस्लामी झंडे, सड़क से सटी हुई मजारें: UP-नेपाल बॉर्डर से OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Signboards on Mazar in Persian, Islamic flags and symbols on almost every house, shop, and commercial establishment: Ground report from UP-Nepal border

The sixteenth report in this series can be read here: ’10 km में 20 गाँव मुस्लिम बहुल, हिन्दू दब कर मनाते हैं अपने त्योहार’: नेपाल सीमा के ग्राम प्रधान ने बताया – गरीब दिखने वाले मुस्लिमों के पास भी बहुत पैसे: UP-नेपाल बॉर्डर से OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: ‘Celebration of Hindu festivals a challenge, Muslims acquire all lands on highways’: Ground report from Indo-Nepal border

The seventeenth report in this series can be read here: 150 मदरसे, 200 मस्जिदें… नेपाल सीमा से 15 km के दायरे का हाल, जानिए बॉर्डर के उन गाँवों की स्थिति जो बन गए हैं मुस्लिम बहुल: UP-नेपाल बॉर्डर से OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Over 150 madarsas and 200 mosques mushroom within a 15-kilometre radius, rapid demographical shift in villages along UP-Nepal border: Ground report

The eighteenth report in the series can be read here: ‘संयुक्त अरब अमीरात एसोसिएशन’ के नल से UP-नेपाल बॉर्डर पर पानी, सिद्धार्थनगर का मुस्लिम बहुल बाजार डुमरियागंज है सप्लायर: OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: Water supply from ‘UAE Association’ tap, hundreds of mosques, madrasas and shops selling burqa in villages of Siddharthnagar: Ground Report

The nineteenth report in the series can be read here: ‘नेपाल से अपराधी को पकड़ कर लाना Pak से लाने के बराबर’: सीमा पर तैनात रहे DSP ने बताया – नेपाल पुलिस नहीं दिखाती हमारे जैसी सक्रियता – OpIndia Ground Report

The same can be read here in English: ‘Extraditing a criminal from Nepal as difficult as bringing one back from Pakistan’, police officer posed at Nepal border says: Ground report

As ED says PFI got concealed funds from abroad, here is their connection to countries from UAE to Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar: Report

OpIndia Staff
-
0
As ED says PFI got concealed funds from abroad, here is their connection to countries from UAE to Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar: Report

The Enforcement Directorate, along with the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and different state police forces, has been conducting a nationwide crackdown on the Islamist organisation Popular Front of India (PFI). The agency revealed on Friday how members of the extremist Islamic organisation had been getting hidden funding from abroad.

The investigative agency said that certain members of PFI based abroad were sending funds to their NRI accounts in India and then transferring them to the leaders of the radical Islamic organisation in order to evade the foreign funding regulation law.

As central agencies attempt to probe all of PFI’s clandestine activities, CNN News 18 has delved into the notorious organization’s global footprint. According to the report, a top intelligence source revealed how PFI has tentacles in various countries ranging from the UAE, Oman, and Qatar to Turkey, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.

According to intelligence sources, the PFI has three front organisations in the Gulf countries: India Fraternity Forum (IFF), Indian Social Forum (ISF), and Rehab Indian Foundation (RIF). These organisations serve to conceal the PFI’s direct engagement in anti-India operations abroad.

In the Middle East, IFF and ISF are well-organized and gather finances for anti-India operations. According to reports, the IFF has emerged as the premier conduit for raising cash for the PFI in the Middle East.

PFI presence in the UAE

Leaders of Kerala’s Jamat-E-Islami (JEI), PFI, and its affiliates, the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), and the National Development Front (NDF), travel frequently to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), particularly Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

According to the News 18 report, they frequent these Islamic locations because of their ideology and jihadi proclivities. The Emirates India Fraternity Forum (EIFF) and the Indian Cultural Society (ICS) Karnataka Chapter are fronts of the PFI in Dubai.

The PFI is allegedly involved in money laundering to India via hawala routes. They also work in real estate. According to sources, Saifu, a resident of Kerala’s Chavakadu district, oversees the real estate industry in Abu Dhabi.

Another business that the PFI engages in is ‘Rent A Car,’ for which they organise large investments over a four-year period.

Saudi Arabia and PFI connection

The PFI’s fronts in Saudi Arabia are the ISF and IFF. They approach Indians during the Haj period under the guise of assisting them. The organisations allegedly raise large sums of money, the majority of which is delivered to India via hawala route and gold smuggling, which is, in turn, used to support the organization’s “radical activities”.

PFI here also sends funds through e-wallets in the name of legal aid and community support.

Oman

The PFI, together with the ISF and IFF, operates in Oman under the aegis of the Social Forum (SF). The Kerala wing of the PFI, National Development Front (NDF), is also active in Oman, spreading the radical ideology. It has also allegedly sent Rs 44 Lakhs to the PFI through hawala routes.

Through the SF, ISF, WFS, and WSKA, they carry out radicalization operations. Ashfakh Chaikinakath Puayil, a major NDF and PFI leader, is reportedly in charge of fund collection. Money is also donated directly to the Rehab India Foundation, a cover organisation for PFI.

PFI in Turkey

According to the report, with the assistance of Indian students, the radical Islamic outfit PFI has built a base in Turkey. They have sent one student, Noushad, to Turkey to pursue a PhD at Sabahattin Zaib University, and he is in charge of raising funds for the organisation.

PFI presence in Kuwait

The Kuwait Indian Social Forum (KISF), a PFI shell organisation, operates in Kuwait and is supported by annual subscriptions. The organisation claims that all of these funds are primarily intended to ‘aid’ the Muslim cause. The group primarily targets wealthy Kuwaiti employers and businessmen, who are subsequently radicalised through handpicked videos of violence and videos like that of the demolition of the Babri Masjid.

PFI and its roots in Qatar

The Cultural Forum (CF), a PFI arm, is widely popular in Qatar’s Malayali community. They support the Islamic State’s (IS) cause in Syria, and one of its supporters, Muhammad Fahimi, is involved in selling used vehicles to ISIS networks in Syria.

The ISF, IFF, and CF collect funds from Malayalam expatriates in Qatar for the PFI and SDPI, which are then sent to India via hawala routes.

According to News 18, the PFI has operations in Bahrain, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Bangladesh, and Mauritius, in addition to the aforementioned countries.

In fact, the report suggests that after the Hathras gang-rape incident, PFI’s cover organisations in Mauritius wired about 500 million to PFI in India to create communal disharmony in Uttar Pradesh (UP).

NIA raids PFI offices and houses across 10 states, 106 members, including top leaders arrested

Notably, the revelations came after the federal agencies led by NIA had on Thursday conducted raids across 10 states, including Assam, Bihar, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana, and arrested 106 PFI activists for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country. 

The agency arrested 106 cadres, including top leaders of the organization. The maximum number of arrests was made in Kerala (22) followed by Maharashtra and Karnataka (20 each), Tamil Nadu (10), Assam (9), Uttar Pradesh (8), Andhra Pradesh (5), Madhya Pradesh (4), Puducherry and Delhi (3 each) and Rajasthan (2).

As per reports, the raids were conducted by joint teams of NIA, Enforcement Directorate (ED), and respective State Police, and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs was monitoring the action against the organization.

These searches were conducted at the homes and offices of top PFI leaders and members in connection with five cases registered by the NIA in response to ongoing inputs and evidence that the PFI leaders and cadres were involved in funding terrorism and terrorist activities, organising training camps for armed training, and radicalising people to join banned organisations.

Members were involved in terror fundraising, encouraging Muslims to join ISIS: NIA 

Following the raids, National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday also revealed that PFI’s office bearers, members, and cadres, along with others, were involved in radicalising and recruiting Muslim youth to join proscribed terror organisations like ISIS. The disclosure came while seeking remand for the 106 members and cadres of the Popular Front of India (PFI) arrested in the country’s first-ever massive operation against the extremist Islamic organisation.

Pune: ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogan raised by PFI while protesting against NIA raids on its offices, 40 detained and over 60 booked

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Pune: ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogan raised by PFI while protesting against NIA raids on its offices, 40 detained and over 60 booked

Pakistan Zindabad slogans were raised at a Popular Front of India (PFI) protest march in Pune on Friday, following the arrest of more than 100 members of the radical Islamic organisation across the country. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted searches at the PFI office in Kondhwa, Pune, on September 22, as part of its nationwide action against the organisation.

The PFI members had gathered outside the Pune District Collectorate office to protest against the arrest of its members in several states. During the protests, the PFI members were heard chanting slogans of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. Apart from te anti-India slogan, they were also chanting Islamic slogans like ‘Allahu Akbar’ and ‘Nara e Takbeer’ during the protest.

Following the protest, at least 41 protestors were detained by police and taken away from the spot in police vehicles. The Pune Police have registered a case against 60-70 for unlawfully gathering in front of the District Collector’s Office. The Police also informed that a man named Riyaz Sayyad has been named in the FIR. Pune Police said that it was an unathorised gathering as PFI had not obtained prior permission for the protest

“We have registered an offence against more than 60 persons, including 41 who were detained yesterday, for organising a protest without permission, for unlawful assembly and for blocking the road,” senior inspector Pratap Mankar of Bundgarden police station said. He informed that the police had earlier asked the organisers of the protest to not hold it, but they still went ahead.

Therefore, a case was registered against them under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 141, 143 ,145, 147,149 (all pertaining to unlawful assembly), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 341 (wrongful restraint), and also under sections the Maharashtra Police Act.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted several raids on locations linked to the Islamist organisation Popular Front of India (PFI) across several states, including Bihar, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Telangana, between September 21 and September 22.

The agency detained 106 cadres across the country, including senior organisation officials. According to sources, the searches were carried out by combined teams of the NIA, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and the relevant State Police, and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs was monitoring the organization’s actions.

The Popular Front of India (PFI) staged a hartal in Kerala on Friday to protest the National Investigation Agency’s statewide searches and arrests (NIA). On Friday, many cases of stone pelting were recorded in Kerala. Two trucks, as well as the windshields of two Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) vehicles, were damaged.

PFI protesters also threw stones at vehicles in the districts of Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Kozhikode, and Wayanad. The NIA has apprehended PFI’s senior executives in Kerala, including chairman OMA Salam. Kerala state chairman CP Mohammed Basheer, national secretary VP Nazarudheen, and national council member Prof P Koya were all arrested.

After “taking note of the illegal call for hartal” issued by the organisation in Kerala, a division bench of the Kerala High Court on Friday launched suo motu contempt of court proceedings against the PFI and its state general secretary A Abdul Sathar.

The bench ruled that the PFI and its general secretary had violated the court’s orders by convening the flash hartal without adhering to the proper procedure as stated in “our earlier order of 2019.”

Cases of terror funding, money laundering and radicalization against PFI

Several reports have shown that PFI was involved in terror funding, money laundering, and indoctrination of Muslim youth in the country. In May 2022, the ED filed a ‘prosection case’ in a Rs 22 crore money laundering case against two PFI fanatics, Abdul Razak Peediyakkal alias Abdul Razak BP and Asharaf Khadir alias Ashraf MK. According to the charge sheet, these PFI officials set up a firm in Munnar, Kerala, to launder money obtained abroad and finance the organization’s “radical activities.” It is also stated that these leaders were involved in the creation of an alleged “terror group.”

The two are also related, according to the ED, to the payment of Rs 3.5 lakh (from August 2018 to January 2021) to PFI member Anshad Badharudeen, who was nabbed by the Uttar Pradesh Police Anti-Terrorism Squad last year, along with PFI member Firoz Khan. The authorities discovered homemade explosive devices, a 32-bore pistol, and seven live rounds in their possession.

According to News18, the ED investigated the accounts of over 600 donors and 2,600 recipients in India. The bulk of these accounts were discovered to be fraudulent, and the people whose identities were used to open the accounts were not found in physical verifications.

Telangana police raided PFI-run radicalisation camps earlier this year, wherein Muslim youngsters were given firearms training. The organisation has been linked to scores of murders in Kerala.

Haryana: Farmers suffer as Arhtiyas hold an indefinite strike against transparency in procurement of paddy. Read details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Haryana: Farmers suffer as Arhtiyas hold an indefinite strike against transparency in procurement of paddy. Read details

On September 19, the arhtiyas (middlemen) went on an indefinite strike after the Harayana government announced the trading of basmati rice varieties on the National Agriculture Market (eNAM) portal.

The strike has disrupted procurement operations at local mandis and caused inconvenience to the farmers. While speaking to news agency ANI on Friday (September 23), a farmer in Haryana’s Karnal informed how he was forced to leave his paddy in the open despite the incessant rain.

“Paddy produce lies in the open amid rains in Karnal as procurement is hindered due to strike by ‘arhtiyas’ (23.09). It’s raining constantly & we can’t sell our produce as arhtiyas are on strike. Govt is yet to take action on the issue,” he emphasised.

The arhtiyas had sought support from the farmers and asked them to not visit mandis for procurement until the government gives in to their demands. According to the Haryana State Anaj Mandi Arhtiyas (HSAMA), the procurement through e-NAM portal has increased the burden of the middlemen and the producers.

It claimed that uploading details of the procurement on the portal, meant to provide transparency in the process, would be time-consuming. President of HSAMA, Ashok Gupta, alleged that farmers were unable to sell early maturing varieties of parmal rice in mandis after the government did not advance the date of procurement.

With arhtiyas having refused to purchase a single grain until their demands are met, Basmati rice farmers are in a state of dilemma. In its defence, a Haryana State Agriculture Marketing Board (HSAMB) official said that procurement through e-NAM portal would impose a levy of 6.5% on arhtiyas and bring transparency.

Meanwhile, the Haryana government is holding meetings with representatives of HSAMA to resolve the issue at the earliest.

Direct Benefit Transfer is changing the lives of farmers in Punjab

In April last year, the Modi government procured 18.24 lac tonnes of wheat from Punjab at the Minimum Support Price (MSP). The Centre had transferred a total of ₹13.71 crores to the account of farmers in Punjab through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) at MSP (Rs 1,975 per quintal).

It must be mentioned that since 2018, Punjab sought exemption from DBT implementation in the State. As such, 2021 was the first time that farmers in Punjab received the payment for their produce (at MSP) directly into the accounts.

While speaking about the matter, a 39-year-old farmer named Dalip Kumar said that he was the happiest since he started farming 15 years ago. He had received ₹1.90 lac and ₹1.48 lac directly into his bank account for 171 quintals of wheat sold at the Rajpura mandi.

He said that this was the first time he received such a large payment at once. “This is the best system. What could be better than getting paid for our crop in our account? Earlier, arhtiyas gave us a cheque. After we took our crop to the mandi, everything was in the hands of the agent,” he said.

“The final settlement of accounts took time, as the arhtiya always found an excuse to defer the payment even after the farmer had repaid any debts he might have had,” the farmer recounted.

PFI had set up a training camp to target PM Modi, had other Hindu leaders on ‘hit list’: NIA and ED after arrests

OpIndia Staff
-
0
PFI had set up a training camp to target PM Modi, had other Hindu leaders on ‘hit list’: NIA and ED after arrests

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has said that the Islamist organisation, Popular Front of India (PFI), had plotted to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a rally in Patna. In addition, the ED claimed that the PFI was preparing terror modules and other attacks. The PFI was also involved in the acquisition of terrorist modules, lethal weapons, and explosives for use in assaults on critical locations and individuals in UP.

According to a Times of India report, the ED in its remand note against PFI member Shafiq Payeth, who was arrested in Kerala on Thursday, made a shocking assertion that the PFI had organized a training camp to attack PM Modi during his visit to Patna on July 12 this year. It is worth remembering that in October 2013, militants linked with the Indian Mujahideen, who, like the PFI, are members of the banned Students Islamic Movement in India (SIMI), bombed PM Modi’s rally.

The ED also revealed data of Rs 120 crore collected by the PFI over the years, largely in cash, and how the money was used to foment riots and terror attacks across the country. Following a nationwide raid on the organization in which multiple agencies, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), arrested over 100 activists linked with the organization, the ED nabbed four PFI members on Thursday.

The ED apprehended three other Islamist leaders in Delhi, including Parvez Ahmed, Mohammad Ilyas, and Abdul Muqeet. Since the money laundering probe against PFI began in 2018, the agency has questioned all of them several times. The Enforcement Directorate has charged arrested PFI member Shafiq Payeth, who was previously stationed in Qatar, with illegally using his NRI account in India to transfer money from outside to PFI in order to cause disruptions in the country.

When the ED investigated Payeth’s premises last year, it found investments in real estate businesses and the diversion of those funds into PFIs. “In the last five years, about Rs. 120 crore has been placed in the accounts of PFI and its linked businesses,” the agency claimed.

“A significant portion of this fund was transferred in accounts from unknown and suspicious sources both within and outside the country. These funds have been used for illegal activities such as inciting Delhi riots in February 2020, sending PFI workers to Hathras with the intent of fanning communal tensions, instigating riots and terror, and gathering lethal weapons and explosives to launch attacks on important and sensitive places and leaders in Uttar Pradesh in order to undermine the nation’s unity, integrity, and sovereignty,” ED added.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which arrested 45 of the 109 leaders and activists of the Popular Front of India on Thursday during a nationwide crackdown with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the police across 15 states, has seized documents revealing that prominent Hindu leaders were on target.

Jharkhand Grooming Jihad: House of fugitive criminal Arzoo Mallick demolished, had pretended to be Hindu, forcibly married and raped a woman

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Jharkhand Grooming Jihad: House of fugitive criminal Arzoo Mallick demolished, had pretended to be Hindu, forcibly married and raped a woman

In Siwandih in Azadnagar, Jharkhand, the house of an absconding criminal Arzoo Mallick was demolished by the administration. The fugitive accused first married a Hindu woman while concealing his faith and name, then blackmailed her by recording an indecent film and distributing it to his accomplices. In this case, the victim has filed a complaint against five persons. Since the incident, the accused has been absconding.

Arzoo first changed his name to a Hindu one got into a relationship with the girl in 2021 in Bokaro city. Then, he took the girl to a different place and forcibly married her. Following this, he handed over the girl to his friends who raped her and the crime was filmed by Arzoo. He kept blackmailing the girl using the video and forcing her not to reveal anything to anyone.

At last, devastated by the physical and mental torture, the victim filed a complaint at the Chas Police Station against 5 people. Ever since the registration of the FIR, Arzoo Mallick has been absconding. Police are trying to apprehend him and bring him to justice.

The BSL Management and SDO Court issued the order on the recommendations of the Bokaro Police and directed the Marafari Police to take action. A magistrate was tasked with handling the demolition. On September 20, in the presence of Marafari Balidih Police and the City Police Force, the criminal’s residence was completely demolished under the supervision of the delegated magistrate.

Arzoo Mallick is a wanted criminal in several serious cases, including gang rape, according to police records in Bokaro. The police had advised SAIL management and the SDO that criminals were seeking refuge by unlawfully appropriating property under the domain of the Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL).

Arzoo was managing the city’s crime from a bungalow he had built. Action has been taken against such offenders who have built opulent homes on BSL and government land without authorization. This is the first action by the district administration and BSL management.

Uttarakhand Police, SDRF recover the body of Ankita Bhandari, murdered in a resort, from Rishikesh Chilla Canal, CM orders SIT probe

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Uttarakhand Police, SDRF recover the body of Ankita Bhandari, murdered in a resort, from Rishikesh Chilla Canal, CM orders SIT probe

The Uttarakhand Police on Saturday recovered the dead body of Ankita Bhandari who had gone missing five days ago from a resort in Pauri district. Ankita worked as a receptionist at Vanantra resort and was murdered by its owner named Pulkit Arya (son of ex-BJP minister), resort manager Ankit, and another person named Saurabh.

According to the reports, the Police yesterday arrested the three who confirmed that Ankita had been murdered. The culprits informed police that she was murdered for refusing the demands of the resort owner for sexual favour for himself and his guests in the resort. The culprits had murdered the girl and thrown her in the Rishikesh Chilla barrage.

The Police and the SDRF teams yesterday conducted a search operation and reduced the water in the Rishikesh Chilla barrage to recover the dead body. The Police confirmed on September 24 that the remains of Ankita had been recovered and that her family members had been called to identify the body.

“The deceased’s brother and father were here and they identified the body. The body found at the barrage is of Ankita Bhandari. A search operation was going on from 7 am, we took out the body of a woman, her relatives came here & identified it to be the body of Ankita Bhandari. A dead body has been taken to AIIMS in Rishikesh”, Shekhar Suyal, Additional Superintendent of Police was quoted.

Meanwhile, the enraged locals demanded strict punishment for all the arrested accused. According to a tweet shared by AajTak journalist Shubhankar Mishra, after the police arrest, the locals stopped the police vehicle and thrashed the arrested culprits for executing the brutal crime. One of the arrested individuals named Pulkit Arya who is the owner of the resort is also the son of former state minister Vinod Arya.

Father Arya had yesterday claimed that his son was innocent and that he knew nothing about the incident. However, the police arrested the three and registered a case under several sections including murder. While investigating the murder case, the Police also happened to check the documents of the resort and found that the resort was being run illegally.

Reportedly, the resort on September 23 was demolished by the state authorities on the orders of Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. Following Ankita’s murder, Uttarakhand Chief Minister also directed district magistrates to take necessary action against all the illegally running resorts in the state.

He stated that information about the working conditions of employees at hotels, resorts, and guest homes throughout the state should be obtained and that complaints in this respect should be treated seriously. The Uttarakhand Police have recovered the dead body of the deceased girl and have sent it to AIIMS Rishikesh for further investigation. According to the reports, CM Dhami has announced the formation of a Special Investigation Team, which would be led by Deputy Inspector General of Police P Renuka Devi, to look into the case.

Fact-check: Did Rahul Gandhi meet ‘activist’ Amulya Leona during Bharat Jodo Yatra, who raised pro-Pakistan slogan in 2020 during anti-CAA protest

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Fact-check: Did Rahul Gandhi meet ‘activist’ Amulya Leona during Bharat Jodo Yatra, who raised pro-Pakistan slogan in 2020 during anti-CAA protest

On Friday (September 23), several posts emerged that claimed that Congress scion Rahul Gandhi had met anti-India activist Amulya Leona Noronha during his ambitious ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra.’

After tweets on social media, a Whatsapp message also went viral where it was claimed that Rahul Gandhi had met Amulya Leona.

Viral WhatsApp message

Recently, Rahul Gandhi courted controversy for meeting a Christian pastor, who made derogatory remarks about Bharat Mata and the Hindu community.

Dubbed as ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, Congress kickstarted its 3,570-km march from Kanniyakumari in Tamil Nadu on September 7 this year. The march will last over 5 months and will cover 12 States before terminating at Srinagar.

Amulya raised ‘pro-Pakistan’ slogan in Bengaluru

In February 2020, Amulya Leona Noronha created a ruckus during a public meeting of AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi. She raised slogans of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ and was attempting to say more but was dragged off the stage by those present. 

She was booked under Section 124A (Offence of sedition) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and initially sent to 14 days in judicial custody. Following the incident, Amulya’s father Waji Noronha said he did not approve of his daughter’s activities.

“I had been cautioning her. The government should take action against her,” he added. It also came to light that Amulya was a part of an organised cartel, which worked in unison behind the scenes to endorse the anti-India agenda.

Amulya Leona was also part of the group that had heckled journalist Mahesh Vikram Hegde at an airport in January. They had attempted to coerce Hegde into singing “Vande Mataram” and prove his patriotism “for the country”.

Fact-check: Did Rahul Gandhi really meet Amulya Leona Noronha during his Bharat Jodo Yatra?

After the message went viral on social media, OpIndia tried to find the picture that was being claimed was of Rahul Gandhi with anti-India activist Amulya Leone. In the process, we came across posts on Instagram of the girl Rahul Gandhi had actually met.

As it turns out, the picture is actually of one Miva Anreleo, who is a KSU leader.

Taking to Instagram, Miva had 2 days ago posted the picture, saying that it was the happiest day of her life (because she met Rahul Gandhi).

In another post 2 days ago, Miva had also posted a video of the encounter during Bharat Jodo Yatra.

It is therefore evident that Rahul Gandhi did not meet Kerala anti-India activist Amulya Leona Noronha, but Miva Andreleo, who is a KSU leader. KSU The Kerala Students Union (KSU) is a students organization in Kerala, India. It functions as the student wing of the Indian National Congress in the state. KSU was founded in 1957 at Alappuzha, with M. A. John as its main organiser and Vayalar Ravi founding general secretary.

Bharat Jodo Yatra or Bharat Todo Yatra?

While it is not true that Rahul Gandhi met Amulya Leona, who had chanted Pakistan Zindabad during anti-CAA protests, the Bharat Jodo Yatra by the Congress scion has indeed met others who are secessionist and anti-Hindu.

On September 9th, Congress scion Rahul Gandhi met a rabid anti-Hindu pastor, George Ponnaiah, as part of his ambitious mass mobilisation programme ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra.’ In a video that went viral on social media, Rahul Gandhi was seen learning about Jesus Christ from the pastor. “But, He is not God? Or is he God? Jesus is also God?”

At that point, Father George Ponnaiah intervened and claimed that Jesus is the ‘real God’, unlike ‘Sakthi & other Hindu gods. The rabid Hindu hater said, “He (Jesus Christ) is a real God, revealed as a human person. Not like Sakthi and all.”

Rahul Gandhi, who otherwise claims to be a janeu dhari Brahmin, remained a mute spectator to the direct insinuation by the Christian pastor that the Hindu deities are unreal and imaginary.

Father George Ponnaiah has a history of making secessionist and anti-Hindu statements. On July 18 last year, the controversial pastor insulted Bharat Mata by claiming that She is dirty and can cause scabies. During his public address in Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu, he mocked BJP candidate MR Gandhi for not wearing footwear out of respect for Mother Earth (Bhumadevi/Bharat Mata). “But we wear shoes. Why? Because the impurities of Bharat Mata should not contaminate us. The Tamil Nadu government has given us free footwear. This bhuma devi is dangerous, you could catch scabies from it,” he brazened it out.

Father George Ponnaiah also issued veiled threats to the Hindu community about the changing demographics of the State. “We are now the majority (in the Kanyakumari district) from 42 per cent we have crossed 62 per cent. Soon we would be 70 per cent. You cannot stop us. I am saying this as a warning to my Hindu brothers.” Following his vitriolic speech, about 330 representatives from various Hindu organisations filed complaints with the police in various districts of the state. On July 21, 2021, Fr George Ponnaiah was booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different religious groups), 295A (outraging feelings by insulting religious beliefs), 505-2 (statements promoting enmity between classes), 506-1 (criminal intimidation).

Rahul Gandhi had also recently held the hand of a young girl, no more than 12-13 years of age, wearing the hijab amidst growing protests against the veil all across the globe. The image of Rahul Gandhi with a minor girl in burkha was shared on the Twitter handle of Congress, implying how Rahul Gandhi was acceptable of the attire that has been used as an instrument of repression by the Muslim fundamentalists.

1...2,8632,8642,865...7,625Page 2,864 of 7,625