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Mahant Balak Das says 18 lakh Naga Sadhus will take to the streets to protect Nupur Sharma from Islamists: Watch

OpIndia Staff
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Mahant Balak Das says 18 lakh Naga Sadhus will take to the streets to protect Nupur Sharma from Islamists: Watch

A video of Mahant Balak Das, Chief of the Paatal Puri Math, has gone viral on the internet, in which he can be heard declaring that 18 lakh Naga Sadhus will march to the streets to protect suspended BJP spokeswoman Nupur Sharma if Islamists attempt to harm her. The video has been gaining rounds on the internet fascinating people about the Naga Sadhus.

The video was shot on June 11, at the Dharma Parishad in Kashi. The Dharma Parishad was hosted in Varanasi’s Sudam Kuti of Har Teerath. Mahant Balak Das, Chief of the Paatal Puri Math, presided over the session. This gathering was attended by the head priests and leaders of several Maths, Peethas, and Akhadas in Kashi, as well as many other Hindu saints and sages.

Mahant Balak Das, while speaking to the reporters, said, “Anarchy is being spread day by day. Now it has reached such an extent that lord Shiva is being made fun of, they are cracking jokes about it. They even drilled it and called it a fountain. And even after this, the people of Sanatan Dharma kept peace.”

“But today it has reached the limit, a daughter of India said what has been written in their Quran, that too after listening to derogatory remarks on Lord Shiva so much. Sanatani people are all peaceful, yet these clerics are calling people from mosques to come and throw stones and spread chaos,” he further said.

Mahant Balak Das said elaborating that Naga Sadhus will be out on the streets to protect Nupur Sharma if things go wrong. “Today our daughter is being threatened with rape! If anything happens to her, then note that this seer community will not remain calm and 18 lakh Naga sadhus will come down on the road, along with the whole saint society will come down on the road and then you can imagine the scene.”

Kashi Dharma Parishad

Several Hindu seers have openly supported Nupur Sharma at the Dharma Parishad in Kashi. They have said unequivocally that those threatening Nupur Sharma should be apprehended and prosecuted. They also condemned the violence that erupted in several parts of the nation during the Friday Namaz on June 10th, 2022. Hindu gurus have warned Islamists that they will also fight in the streets. In all, 16 such resolutions were passed in the Dharma Parishad convened in Kashi on June 10, 2022.

Who are Naga Sadhus?

The Naga Sadhus are Shaivites (Lord Shiva’s devotees) who reside in the Himalayas. The Kumbh Mela is the only time of year when they come down to the plains, making it a very important occasion for them. The Naga Sadhus have distinct characteristics derived from Lord Shiva. They carry tridents topped with human skulls. Their bodies are covered with thick ash, and their heads are adorned with heavy coils of matted hair. Even in the freezing weather, these ascetics stay without clothes.

To avoid the cycle of life and death and to reach salvation, the Naga Sadhus reject the material world and embrace celibacy. Dattatreya is believed to have started the sect of the Naga Sadhus in ancient times, but the date of their inception is unknown. Shankaracharya was the first to initiate the Nagas to defend Sanatan Dharma (Hinduism). Naga Sadhus carry weapons like swords, tridents, and spears and their camps are called ‘chhavni’, like military camps. They hold jousting matches to practice their weapons.

Govt launches Agnipath Scheme for recruitment in Armed forces, Agniveers to get preference in PSUs and state govt jobs after four-year of service

OpIndia Staff
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Govt launches Agnipath Scheme for recruitment in Armed forces, Agniveers to get preference in PSUs and state govt jobs after four-year of service

On June 14, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, along with the chiefs of three armed forces, launched the Agnipath scheme for the recruitment of youth in the armed forces. Those who get enrolled in the armed forces under this scheme would be called Agniveers. The enrollment under the scheme will be open for both men and women for a four-year period, including the training.

During the press conference, Defence Minister said that after the four-year service period, Agniveers will get preference in PSUs, and State Governments’ jobs and announcements for such jobs will be made soon by the respective authorities. The Government has announced the recruitment of 46,000 Agniveers this year.

Agnipath scheme would allow the patriotic and motivated youth to serve in the armed forces for a short period of four-year. As per the press release by the Defence Ministry, the scheme has been designed to enable a youthful profile of the Armed forces.

During the press conference, Chief of the Army Staff Manoj Pandey said that while formulating the recruitment structure under the scheme, the strategies followed by different countries were studied. Adding to the fact, Defence Minister said everyone should understand nothing has been copied from the armed forces of other countries, but the recruitment model was studied, and features were modified and adapted as per the needs and requirements of the Indian Armed Forces.

The Ministry added, “This is a major defence policy reform introduced by the Government to usher in a new era in the Human Resource policy of the three Services. The policy, which comes into immediate effect, will hereafter govern the enrolment for the three services.”

Benefits for the recruited under the Agnipath scheme

The recruits under the Agnipath scheme, also known as Agniveers, will get attractive benefits that include a customised monthly package clubbed with risk and hardship allowances as applicable in the three services. After Agniveers complete four-year of service in the armed forces, they will get a one-time ‘SevaNidhi’ package that would comprise their contribution, including accrued interest thereon.

The Government will match the contribution from the accumulated amount of their contribution, including the interest. As per the press release, the contribution made by the recruits will be around Rs 5.02 Lakh, which will be matched by the Government. At the exit, Agniveers will get Rs 11.71 lakh as SevaNidhi fund. It is noteworthy that the amount paid to the Agniveers as SevaNidhi will be exempt from Income Tax.

Sevanidhi breakdown as per govt’s press release. Source: PIB

The Ministry said, “The ‘SevaNidhi’ would aid the Agniveer to pursue his/her future dreams without any financial pressure, which is normally the case for young people from the financially deprived strata of society.” Apart from that, Agniveers will also get a non-contributory Life Insurance Cover of Rs 48 lakh for the duration of their engagement period in the Indian Armed Forces.

During the period of service, the recruits will learn various military skills, including discipline, physical fitness, leadership qualities, courage and patriotism. The Ministry added, “Post this stint of four-year, the Agniveers will be infused into the civil society where they can contribute immensely towards the nation-building process. The skills gained by each Agniveer will be recognised in a certificate to form part of his unique resume.”

Enrollment of Agniveers for JCO and other ranks

Around 25% of the recruited Agniveers will be enrolled in Armed Forces as regular cadres post the four-year service. 100% of candidates can apply on a volunteer basis to enrol in the regular cadre. The Ministry said, “They would be required to serve for a further engagement period of a minimum of 15 years and would be governed by the existing terms and conditions of the service of Junior Commissioned Officers/Other Ranks in Indian Army and their equivalent in Indian Navy and Indian Air Force and that of Non-Combatant enrolled in the Indian Air Force, as amended from time-to-time.”

Terms and Conditions laid down for recruitment

The Agniveers recruited under the scheme would form a distinct rank in the armed forces. It will be different from the existing ranks.

Post four-year service, they will be offered an opportunity to apply for permanent enrolment in the Armed Forces. These applications will be considered in a centralised manner based on objective criteria, including performance during their four-year engagement period, and up to 25% of each specific batch of Agniveers will be enrolled in the regular cadre of the Armed Forces.

Enrollment of the Agniveers will take place via a centralised online system for all three services with specialised rallies and campus interviews from recognised technical institutes such as Industrial Training Institutes and National Skills Qualifications Framework, among others.

It will be based on an ‘All India All Class’ basis. The eligible age will be between 17.5 years to 21 years. Agniveers have to pass required medical eligibility conditions as per the armed forces as applicable to respective categories/trades.

The educational qualification for Agniveers will remain as in vogue for enrollment in various categories. For example, for entry into General Duty (GD) soldier, the educational qualification is Class 10.

Congress leader tweets fake letter attributed to Amit Shah, deletes it after netizens call her out

OpIndia Staff
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Congress leader tweets fake letter attributed to Amit Shah, deletes it after netizens call her out

On Monday (June 13), Congress leader Nagma Morarji courted controversy after she tweeted a fake letter attributed to India’s Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

The purported letter directed Uttarkhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to provide Z security to former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma on an urgent basis.

“In current scenario, I recommend you to evaluate emerging threats to the family house of Smt Nupur Sharma in Dehradun and provide Z security on urgent basis,” the letter said.

Screengrab of the letter tweeted by Nagma Morarji

Furthermore, the alleged letter identified Nupur Sharma as an RSS ideologue who could help achieve the goal of a Hindu Rashtra.

“Both Shri Ajay Gupta and Smt Nupur Sharma are icons to promote Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideology that will ultimately lead us to accomplish Hindu Rashtra goal,” the letter claimed.

While tweeting a copy of the letter, Nagma Moraraji wrote, “No remorse by even the Home Minister of our country. Instead, he endorses what she stated on Prophet Muhammad. He says she is a role model for Hindu Rashtra when the ethos of our country is Hindu-Muslim Bhai Bhai. Quite understandable when BJP Minister garlands lynchers.”

Nagma Morarji deletes fake letter on being caught

Journalist Swati Goel Sharma was quick to call out her bluff. She tweeted, “This is how braindead former Bollywood professional and now Congress leader Nagma Morarji is. She is tweeting a letter in name of Amit Shah that has fake written all over it.”

On being pointed out that the letter is fake, Morarji quickly deleted her tweet without bothering to tender an apology.

However, this is not the first time that the Congress leader had tweeted a photoshopped image to peddle her agenda. In April 2019, she shared a morphed picture of Sambit Patra to claim that the promise of LPG stoves made by PM Modi was hollow.

Nagma Morarji tweeted a picture wherein Patra was seen having food on the roadside with a homeless couple. The image showed a woman cooling on a chulha instead of an LPG stove. On investigation, Opindia found that the image was in fact a merger of two different pictures.

‘I respect Hinduism a million times more than Islam’: Dutch lawmaker gives ‘befitting reply’ to trolls asking him to condemn Hinduism too

OpIndia Staff
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‘I respect Hinduism a million times more than Islam’: Dutch lawmaker gives ‘befitting reply’ to trolls asking him to condemn Hinduism too

Days after Geert Wilders extended his support to ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, Islamists have been trolling the Dutch legislator to speak against Hinduism.

“When are you going to criticise Hinduism? When are you going to make disrespectful pictures of Hindu deities? There are a lot of radical atheists in South India. Why don’t you support them just like you support ex-Muslims?” wrote one Ubuntu.

Screengrab of the tweet

One Islamist asked the Dutch politician to study Hinduism to know about the age of consent. “And don’t have to focus so much on other Prophets and their marriage,” he added.

Screengrab of the tweet

One Islamist named Sayed wrote, “Hey Geert Wilders, bast*rd ask Nupur Sharma to speak the truth about child marriages in Hinduism. Ask about a man who use to steal the clothes of bathing women…etc.”

Screengrab of the tweet

Befitting reply by Geert Wilders

On Tuesday (May 14), the Dutch politician tweeted, “Cultural relativism is a misleading concept. People are equal but cultures are not. A culture based on humanity and freedom is always better than a culture based on intolerance and submission.”

He further emphasised, “Therefore, I respect Hinduism a million times more than Islam. #IsupportNupurSharma.”

Earlier on Sunday (June 12), he had vowed to help the former BJP spokesperson in any way possible.

“The police registered a FIR on charges of hurting religious feelings, promoting enmity and causing public mischief against Sharma. This is outrageous. She did nothing wrong. If I can help her in any possible way, I will,” informed Geert Wilders.

He had also exposed the hypocritical treatment meted out to people, in the name of secularism, for committing blasphemy.

“I am not Indian nor a Hindu. But I know one thing. Secularism should not mean that demeaning Hindu Gods is justified and telling the truth about Muhammad is not. So when Nupur Sharma reacted to someone demeaning Hindu Gods it was totally justified,” he wrote.

It must be mentioned that the Dutch legislator had received multiple assassination threats for supporting Nupur Sharma. He had shared screenshots of threats sent by Islamists on social media.

One of the threats read, “InshaAllah, a day will come when I will take off your head with my dagger and hang it on the minaret of Pakistan, then we will raise a slogan. Mumtaz Qadri has passed away but the gun is still there. You have no more days.”

Another one read, “You Son of a bitch you will be killed soon. We will make you a sign of fear for people like you till the end of times..” Wilders has maintained that he receives death threats on a daily basis from Pakistani and Turkish Muslims who wish to kill in the name of Prophet Muhammad.

Entrepreneur Arun Pudur announces reward for legal action against AltNews’ Mohammed Zubair over Hinduphobic posts

OpIndia Staff
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Entrepreneur Arun Pudur announces reward for legal action against AltNews’ Mohammed Zubair over Hinduphobic posts

Indian-origin billionaire businessman Arun Pudur, who is known for speaking up in support of Dharmic causes on Twitter, has taken up a battle against Alt-News co-founder Mohammed Zubair. Pudur has announced a host of rewards for those who are willing to take ‘legal action’ against Zubair over his Hinduphobic posts.

Pudur, who runs a software firm Celframe Technology Group of Companies, took to Twitter to make the announcement. According to the rewards, the person who will get Zubair convicted of Hinduphobia with a long-term jail will be awarded ₹50,000/- from Pudur.

Those who get a jail term for Zubair through legal action get ₹10,000/- and ₹1,000/- for the very first FIR filed in every Indian state and Union Territory against Mohammed Zubair and his ‘fact-checking’ portal Alt News.

This came after Mohammed Zubair deleted his Facebook account – perhaps to scrub it clean of its controversial content against Hinduism and Hindu Gods. Zubair, who has been a serial offender of Hinduphobia according to many netizens, has been caught in an ire after his old tweets mocking Hinduism and Hindu Gods have surfaced online in the wake of the Nupur Sharma controversy.

According to the announcement made by Arun Pudur, the action against Mohammed Zubair must be legal. Those interested in participating should message the official documents against the Alt-News cofounder to the businessman privately. Talking about the announcement, Pudur writes, “Zubair has long abused, lied and manipulated Media. It is time he serves the time that fits the crime. Too many got hurt, riots and deaths. This has to stop!”

Malaysia-based Pudur has decided to take serious cognisance of Mohammed Zubair’s offences, especially in light of the derogatory social media posts made by him against Hinduism. After Zubair’s Facebook account was taken down, people are unearthing his old tweets mocking Hindu Gods.

Nupur Sharma has already pointed out how the ‘fact-checker’ has instigated blasphemy threats against her by sharing cropped versions of her comments on Prophet Mohammed. It turned out that the AltNews co-founder himself has a history of making derogatory posts about Hinduism and Hindu Gods.

‘We want Nupur Sharma beheaded’: Muslim women, students in Kashmir take out protests demanding death for comments on Prophet Muhammad

OpIndia Staff
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‘We want Nupur Sharma beheaded’: Muslim women, students in Kashmir take out protests demanding death for comments on Prophet Muhammad

“We want Nupur Sharma beheaded’, ‘Sar tan se Juda’, the Islamist cries targeting suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma have now emerged in the Kashmir valley too. Videos of Kashmiri Youth and women have surfaced on the Internet demanding gory punishments for Sharma over her alleged ‘blasphemous’ remarks.

Amid continued death and rape threats publically issued to Nupur Sharma globally, the same has come from Jammu and Kashmir where local youth could be seen giving Islamist slogans and chants calling for the beheading of the politician. Times Now Executive Editor Padmaja Joshi shared a video on Twitter in which Hijab-clad college-going girls could be seen giving ‘Sar tan se Juda‘ chants in a protest rally.

They were seen raising slogans demanding Islamic rule and beheading of anyone who insults Islam.

The rally was taken out by some teenage girls in Srinagar demanding the beheading of ‘blasphemers’ and declaring that they want Islamic rule.

In a video shared by Swarajya journalist Swati Goel Sharma, Kashmiri male students could be seen giving similar disturbing slogans against Nupur Sharma. “Bolo, Bolo kya chahiye, Gustakh-e-Nabi ka Sar chahiye!” (Tell us, what do you want – We want the head of the one who insulted the Prophet) could be heard from the men protesting against Nupur Sharma.

The brutal campaign launched by Islamists against Nupur Sharma, the former BJP spokesperson is only becoming more intense with every passing day. After the Jumma Namaz on Friday, June 10, radical Islamists wreaked large-scale havoc in states like Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal and Uttarakhand.

As AltNews’ Mohammed Zubair deletes his Facebook account over Hinduphobic posts, netizens dig up his old tweets mocking Hindu Gods

OpIndia Staff
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As AltNews’ Mohammed Zubair deletes his Facebook account over Hinduphobic posts, netizens dig up his old tweets mocking Hindu Gods

Netizens on Twitter are dredging up old tweets of AltNews co-founder Mohammed Zubair after a social media user on Monday highlighted how the ‘fact-checker’ who instigated the blasphemy threats against Nupur Sharma has a history of making derogatory posts over Hinduism and Hindu Gods.

After being exposed for his Hinduphobic posts, Zubair quickly pulled down his Facebook account, perhaps to scrub it clean of its controversial content. However, social media users pointed out how Zubair has been a serial offender, and his offences are not restricted to Facebook alone but extend well into the Twitter realm.

A raft of social media users dug up old tweets from the AltNews co-founder where he made uncharitable comments on Hindu beliefs and made Hindu Gods the object of his ridicule. They have demanded the arrest of AltNews co-founder who had recently triggered a barrage of blasphemy threats against Nupur Sharma for her comments on Prophet Muhammad derived from authentic Islamic Hadiths.

Social media users dredge up old tweets of Mohammed Zubair mocking Hinduism and Hindu Gods

For instance, in 2018, Zubair tweeted what appeared like a photoshopped picture of a hotel to insinuate that ‘Honeymoon Hotel’ had changed to ‘Hanuman Hotel’ after 2014, the year when PM Modi came to power at the centre.

In yet another tweet, Zubair mocked Lord Hanuman in his bid to take a swipe at the BJP.

In a tweet from 2018, Zubair mocked Hindu scriptures by using a photoshopped picture to depict Mahabharata’s Sanjay showing a “Facebook live video” of the Kurukshetra war to Dhritrashtra.

Days after Mohammed Zubair dog whistles Islamists over alleged blasphemy against Prophet Muhammad, the Hinduphobic posts from ‘fact-checker’ surface online

On Monday, days after India witnessed violent protests that saw Islamists running riot, indulging in violence over the alleged insult of Prophet Muhammad, Twitter user The Hawk Eye (@thehawkeye) shared a collage of past tweets and posts by Mohammed Zubair mocking Hindu Gods and beliefs.

In one of the tweets shared by The Hawk Eye, Zubair is seen mocking Shivling and comparing it with the top view of the Vatican City. He said the post comparing Shivling with the Vatican City inspired him to come up with a parody Facebook page ‘Unofficial: Subramanian Swamy’ in 2014.

Apparently, one of the posts on the Facebook page ‘Unofficial Mohammed Zubair‘ mocks Arun Govil to take a swipe at Lord Ram, suggesting that ISRO must consult the actor because he would know more about the rocketry.

Another post by ‘Unofficial Mohammed Zubair’ shows an aeroplane under the water with the caption: “Breaking: Underwater Pushpak Vimana used by Raavan 5000 years found in the Indian Ocean.”

Besides ridiculing Hindu Gods, Zubair has also poked fun at Hindu beliefs and took a dig at Sanskrit, regarded as one of the most important languages of Hinduism and the means of communication by the Hindu Gods.

As his Hinduphobic posts started getting traction, with netizens sharing screenshots to highlight how Zubair has been moving and hurting the sentiments of Hindus, the AltNews co-founder quietly pulled down his Facebook page.

Uttar Pradesh: Shahabuddin rapes cow in broad daylight in Ayodhya, arrested after videos shared with police

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Shahabuddin rapes cow in broad daylight in Ayodhya, arrested after videos shared with police

A horrifying act of animal cruelty has come to light in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya district. According to media reports, Shahabuddin, a native of Shivkar village, has been arrested for raping a cow in broad daylight. He was noticed by someone from the village, who recorded the entire incident, leading to his arrest.

Two videos of the crime have surfaced on social media, showing Shahabuddin indulging in the dastardly act. The incident occurred on June 7, when a bystander recorded Shahabuddin during the crime. The video was subsequently reported to the police by Hariom Singh, a resident of Sarai Khargi. Following the complaint, the police arrested Shahabuddin on Friday. A case has been filed against the accused under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code for having unnatural intercourse with an animal. The accused is currently in police custody.

According to Sumit Srivastava, Inspector of Kotwali Bikapur Police Station, the accused has given his statement and confessed to the crime. He said, “The accused youth has given a statement. He confessed to the rape. After that, he was arrested and presented in the local court. Now it is being ascertained why the accused committed this crime, is he mentally weak or is there something else. It is also being ascertained whether he has done such act in the past.”

What was the need for Nupur Sharma to even say it? Just because she said something you didn’t like you’d call for her beheading and run riots?

Nirwa Mehta
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What was the need for Nupur Sharma to even say it? Just because she said something you didn’t like you’d call for her beheading and run riots?

A friend of mine and I got into a slightly heated debate last night over the recent ‘unpleasant incident’ where ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s comments on Prophet Muhammad in a television debate ‘hurt religious feelings’ of Muslims and triggered riots where calls for her beheading, hanging publicly were made.

“Do you think what she did was right?” he asked. I said she cited the Islamic scriptures. What she said is written in their holy books. “But what was the need?” he asked. It got me thinking. I would have thought the same and reacted in similar fashion a few years back. Having brought up with ‘secularised education’ where Mughals are hailed as some sort of brave men who ‘gifted’ India the Taj Mahal, we were deprived of the actual history where Hindu temples were razed down and the atrocities inflicted on us because of our faith. The forced religious conversion, a menace that plagues India even today, was enforced by the ones who ruled us. Our school books never really taught us that. And most are so brainwashed that they refuse to see reality of forced religious conversion and dismiss it as imagination of ‘Hindutva’

So I don’t quite blame him. And the 80% Indians who think Nupur shouldn’t have said things (which, I must reiterate, is in the Islamic holy scriptures). But even if whatever she said upset you, how is it justified to call for her beheading? A maulana in Kashmir threatened to behead Nupur such that her head would be at one place, her torso elsewhere. In a viral video, little Muslim kids who have not even attained puberty yet are urinating on picture of Nupur while showing their middle finger.

Protests have erupted across India in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Delhi and so many places on two consecutive Fridays after the Jumma Namaz where rioting Muslim mobs have pelted stones while protesting against Nupur Sharma. All this, even after Sharma has withdrawn her statement and the BJP has suspended her. At a mosque outside Belgavi in Karnataka, an effigy of Nupur was hanging, in an apparent threat to the fate she and anyone else who does the ‘gustakhi’ deserve.

You now who else does it? The Taliban.

How long do we have till the effigy becomes real?
(L), Nupur Sharma’s effigy hanged in Karnataka, (R), Taliban hang corpses from cranes in Herat, images via ANI and Pioneer

Taliban, as soon as it returned to power in August 2021, in gross violation of human rights, Taliban unleashed atrocities on dissenters and people were killed and their corpses were hung from cranes for public viewing. What Taliban did yesterday, some in India are demanding today.

How is this all okay? If what Nupur said was ‘wrong’, is all this in response to it justified?

We are all conditioned by our ‘secular’ upbringing that we refuse to see that the rioting in name of blasphemy or calling for someone’s beheading for same is a bigger crime than actually citing one’s religious scriptures which they decided is blasphemy because perhaps they just felt like. It is so deeply ingrained in our minds that while we all speak about freedom of speech, in front of a rioting mob, we end up blaming the victim for ‘triggering’ them by ‘hurting their religious sentiments’.

When Hindus feel offended that the Shivling found inside the wuzukhana of disputed Gyanvapi structure is referred to as ‘fountain’ and jokes are cracked, many Hindus themselves accuse them of being ‘too sensitive’. “My faith is not that weak that it can’t take a joke,” they would say to justify how Hindus should not feel offended at the idea that those who offered namaz at the disputed structure were washing their dirty hands and feet in the wuzukhana where the Shivling was found. That they knew and they still did it. The same people would then blame Nupur for her comments for triggering riots.

What is good for the goose should be good for the gander. Just because Hindus don’t take to street power and don’t run riots or give calls for beheading those who mock our faith, it is they who must be mindful of not hurting others’ religious feelings. Because the other side knows how to play victim and get away with it because of the ummah.

But what is the proof it is the Shivling? “You can’t go about calling every stone a Shivling,” my friend said. Fair. But the fact that Aurangzeb demolished the Kashi Vishwanath temple, the evidence of which is abundant, is ignored. ‘So now what?’ Well, now we reclaim our history. We reclaim our temples.

धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितः – The Dharma protects those who protect it.

Sri Lankan Electricity board chief quits after withdrawing his claims on Adani Group deal

OpIndia Staff
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Sri Lankan Electricity board chief quits after withdrawing his claims on Adani Group deal

In Colombo, MMC Ferdinando, the chairman of Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has resigned from his post days after claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi allegedly pitched for The Adani Group over a wind power project in the country before President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. After taking back his statement earlier in the week, Ferdinando resigned from the state-run electricity company on Monday.

During the meeting of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), Ferdinando claimed that President Rajapaksa had revealed to him that a wind power project in Mannar, Northern Province was awarded to the Adani Group after Indian PM Modi urged him to do so. Categorically denying his claims, Rajapaksa had cleared the air tweeting, “Regarding a statement made by the CEB Chairman at a COPE committee hearing regarding the award of a Wind Power Project in Mannar, I categorically deny authorization to award this project to any specific person or entity. I trust responsible communication in this regard will follow.”

According to the Times of India, Sri Lanka’s Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekara has accepted the resignation letter of MMC Ferdinando. Notably, on Sunday the official had written to the COPE chair in Parliament that his claims were wrong and he had become “emotional” due to some questions that made him uneasy. He also stated that this retraction was not under influence of either Rajapaksa or any Indian High Commission officer.

A controversy was hatched in India after Leftist media portals like The Wire disseminated the officer’s withdrawn claims as facts. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was also quick to target the BJP and Prime Minister Modi over the Wire piece.

The Adani Group has won the tender bid to build a 1,000 MW wind power facility near Mannar worth more than USD 1 billion. Adani Green Energy, a subsidiary of the Adani Group, had presented a proposal to the Sri Lanka Board of Investment (BOI) and the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB). Around December last year, the agreement was approved.

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