Foreign minister S Jaishankar has strongly responded to the comments by Rahul Gandhi in London against the Indian government. The Congress leader had launched an attack on the Modi government at the ‘Ideas for India’ conference in London in the UK, where he had also targeted the Indian bureaucrats.
During his interaction at the event, Rahul Gandhi had said that the several European bureaucrats have told him that Indian foreign service has changed, and they have become arrogant. He said, “I was talking to some bureaucrats from Europe and they said that Indian Foreign Service has completely changed, they don’t listen to anything. They are arrogant. Now they are telling us what orders they are getting, there is no conversation.” Saying that what Indian foreign service officials are doing is wrong, Rahul Gandhi said, “You can’t do that.”
Responding to this statement, union foreign minister S Jaishankar, who is a former Indian foreign service bureaucrat, said that it is not arrogance but confidence that the Indian officials are showing under the Modi government. He accepted that the service has changed, that they are following government orders, and not blindly agreeing with others, as the European officials expect. The union minister also said that by standing their grounds, the foreign service officials are defending national interest.
“Yes, the Indian Foreign Service has changed. Yes, they follow the orders of the Government. Yes, they counter the arguments of others. No, its not called Arrogance. It is called Confidence. And it is called defending National Interest,” S Jaishankar tweeted, posting a video clip of the comments by Rahul Gandhi.
In the backdrop of the Russia-Ukraine war, the west has been unhappy with India over the country’s position on sanctions against Russia. Despite pressures from European countries and the USA, the Modi govt had refused to severe economic ties with Russia, and has not stopped importing oil from the country. India also didn’t vote against Russia several times at the UN, choosing to abstain from vote instead.
While the European nations continue to import gas from Russia, they want Indian to stop buying oil from Russia. And as India has not relented keeping own national interest in mind, the western governments are not happy with the Indian government, and it is clear that some of them told Rahul Gandhi that Indian officials have become arrogant.
But instead of supporting the Indian government in the issue, Rahul Gandhi is supporting the foreign officials. Everyone knows why the Europeans are angry with Indian officials for not toing there line, but still Rahul Gandhi said that what the Indian officials are doing is incorrect and they can’t do this.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi spoke at the ‘Ideas for India’ conference in the United Kingdom, where he made some contentious statements against his own country India. In response to a question on India’s role in the Russia-Ukraine crisis, Rahul Gandhi replied that Ladakh is to China what Ukraine is to Russia.
Rahul Gandhi asserted that one will have to understand the “parallels.” Saying about the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Rahul Gandhi said that the issue is because of Russia which has stated to Ukraine that they refuse to accept Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
Decoding the entire conflict in his understanding, Rahul said, “Putin is saying I am not ready for you to have an alliance with the United States so I am going to question your territorial integrity and I am going to attack you. Please recognise the parallels between what is going on in Ukraine and what is going on in Ladakh,” he said, comparing the two.
He said that there are the same ideas at play in both conditions. “There are Chinese forces sitting in Ladakh and there are Chinese forces sitting in Doklam. It is the same principle at work. The Chinese are saying that we do not accept your territoriality and therefore we do not accept your relationship with the United States,” he added.
He said, “My problem is that the government doesn’t allow discussion. Chinese forces are sitting in India today.”
It is worth noting that there have recently been problems in the Ladakh and Doklam regions, but the Indian government has handled the situation effectively. Chinese efforts near the Pangong Tso lake in Ladakh were promptly thwarted by Indian security forces working in tandem with Indian diplomacy. Similarly, the Doklam standoff in Arunachal Pradesh ended after China was pushed to bend on its hostile stance by India.
Rahul Gandhi’s persistent desire for US intervention in India’s politics
Rahul signalled his desire for US intervention two times throughout the discussion. The first one is during the mention of the Russia Ukraine issue and the second one during the mention of human rights violations. Rahul Gandhi has long advocated for foreign meddling in Indian affairs. In April 2021, Rahul similarly sparked anger by requesting American intervention in India’s domestic affairs.
Rahul Gandhi made the remarks during an online conversation with Harvard Kennedy School Ambassador Nicholas Burns. The Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics asked him to speak on India’s difficulties and prospects, as well as his comments on politics and public service.
A Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader named Alo Rani Sarkar, who contested the 2021 West Bengal State Legislative polls from the Bangaon Dakshin constituency, has turned out to be a Bangladeshi national.
The matter came to light after she moved the Calcutta High Court, challenging the election result and the victory of BJP leader Swapan Majumdar from the said constituency. The petition was heard by Justice Bibek Chaudhuri.
The Court noted that Alo Rani Sarkar was a Bangladeshi national on the date of filing the nomination, election date, and on the date of declaration of result. “From the face of the petitioner’s own document, it is found that the petitioner had no right to contest the assembly election of 2021,” it observed.
“As she is not a citizen of India, she shall not be qualified to be chosen to fill a seat in the legislature of a State in terms of Article 173 of the Constitution read with Section 16 of the Representation of People Act, 1950,” the Court emphasized.
The Hon’ble Calcutta High Court rejected the Petition today. Want to know why? Her name is registered as a voter in the electoral rolls of Bangladesh.
Yes, you read that right. She is a Bangladeshi citizen.
— Suvendu Adhikari • শুভেন্দু অধিকারী (@SuvenduWB) May 21, 2022
Alo Rani Sarkar contested Vidhan Sabha polls despite her name in Bangladesh’s electoral rolls
The Calcutta High Court observed that the TMC leader was married to a Bangladeshi citizen named Harendra Nath Sarkar in 1980 and stayed with him in the neighboring country for a few years. Following matrimonial discord, she began staying in India permanently.
As per her own affidavit, she submitted an application for cancellation of her name from the electoral roll and National Identity Card (NIC) of Bangladesh on November 5, 2020. However, it was only on June 29, 2021, that the Senior District Election Officer (Barisal) recommended the deletion of Sarkar’s name from the electoral rolls of Bangladesh.
It may be recalled that the TMC leader had filed her nomination from the Bangaon Dakshin constituency on March 31, 2021. The voting was conducted on April 22, 2021, and the results were declared on May 2 of that year.
Thus, she was a Bangladeshi national while filing her nomination or casting her vote during the Vidhan Sabha polls. Given that ‘dual citizenship’ is not valid in India, it means that Alo Rani Sarkar was not an Indian citizen when she contested the polls as a TMC candidate.
TMC leader ‘lied’ about being born in India
In her defense, Alo Rani Sarkar had claimed that her name had appeared erroneously in the voter list of her husband’s native place. However, it came to light that she had ‘voluntarily’ opted for her name to be included in the electoral rolls by submitting her SSC certificate to the authorities.
The TMC leader also alleged that she was born in Baidyabati, in the Hooghly district of West Bengal on 22nd March 1969. She claimed to be an Indian citizen by birth under the Citizenship Act of 1955.
However, she failed to provide any document that could prove that her parents resided in Baidyabati or that she was born in that place. In an inquiry report, the TMC leader had claimed that she is the daughter of Samar Halder and that her ancestors hailed from Necharabad Upazila in the Pirojpur district of Bangladesh.
She also conceded that her brother and mother still live in Necharabad. Sarkar informed during the inquiry that she used to live in the North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal with her uncle.
“It is needless to say that the petitioner has claimed to be a citizen of this country by birth. But from the inquiry report on which she relies in her written objection against the application under Order VII Rule 11(d) of the CPC it is ascertained that her parents used to live in Bangladesh and she came to India with her uncle in her childhood, meaning thereby that the petitioner was born in Bangladesh,” the Court held.
Justice Justice Bibek Chaudhuri also observed discrepancies in the date of birth (DOB) of the TMC leader in Indian and Bangladeshi documents. While her DOB has been mentioned as March 22, 1969, on her Aadhar/ Pan Card, it is listed as January 15, 1967, on her National Identity Card (NIC) issued by Bangladeshi authorities.
Court unsure whether TMC leader is even an Indian citizen
The Court noted discrepancies in her election affidavit and the inquiry report. “It is not clear even on this date as to whether her name has been deleted from the electoral roll of Bangladesh,” it questioned. The Court also added that it was unclear as to how she became an Indian citizen.
“The petitioner has not claimed acquisition of citizenship under Section 3 or 4 of the Citizenship Act, 1955. She has not acquired citizenship by registration under Section 5 of the Citizenship Act of 1955,” it said.
“The petitioner also does not fall within the purview of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. Therefore, even if the petitioner has a voter identity card, Aadhar card, and passport, the said documents do not prove her citizenship of this country,” the Calcutta High Court ruled.
It added, “The petitioner never acquired citizenship of this country following the provisions of the Citizenship Act, 1955. On the contrary, the admitted position is that the petitioner was a Bangladeshi citizen on the date of declaration of General Election of West Bengal State Assembly by the Election Commission, filing of the nomination paper, date of the election, and declaration of the result.”
The discovery of a Shivling in the disputed structure of the Gyanvpi Masjid in the state of Uttar Pradesh has become a contentious issue with the Hindus celebrating the court-monitored survey and the Islamists deliberately demeaning it. The central intelligence agencies are reportedly keeping a close watch on the activities of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and its executive member Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas who constituted a legal committee to review the details of the Gyanvapi mosque case.
The AIMPLB board on May 18 decided to provide legal aid to the maintenance body of the Gyanvapi Mosque, Intezamia Masjid Committee and its lawyers in the case. It also decided to launch a nationwide agitation if necessary to apprise the public about the alleged real intention of people creating disputes over places of worship.
According to the reports, the Central Intelligence Agencies are concerned about the security of the land and are keeping a track of the activities of the board and its members. The escalated interest of the Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas in the Gyanvapi case is a point of concern, the officials said. Ilyas was also associated with the Babri Masjid Action Committee and had been issuing statements on its behalf.
The agencies, meanwhile, have also flagged Ilyas, who is the father of JNU activist and Delhi anti-CAA riots accused Umar Khalid, for his past association with the Islamic Terrorist organization SIMI, and the Welfare Party of India (WPI). Reportedly, the agencies also see WPI as the political wing of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind.
All India Muslim Personal Law Board on Gyanvapi case
In the Gyanvapi case, Ilyas, Executive Member of AIMPLB, has been pressing his argument based on the provisions of the Places of Worship Act. In an exclusive interview with the Indian Express, he said on May 21 that since the Places of Worship Act has come into being in 1991, there is simply no space for controversy regarding any place of worship. “It had been unanimously decided and passed in Parliament, with even the support of the BJP, that after Babri Masjid, such matters would be put to rest. It is extremely disheartening that the lower court permitted the survey”, he was quoted.
He disrespected the court orders and accused it of favouring one particular side in the case. He also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government of distracting people from issues like rising prices, unemployment, and the health issues brought to light by the pandemic. “It is regrettable that the central government and the state governments are silent on this. Apart from this, the political parties who call themselves secular parties are also keeping silent”, he said on behalf of the AIMPLB.
About Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas and son Umar Khalid
It is important to note that Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas is a former member of the banned Islamic Terrorist organization, SIMI. He had left it in 1985, well before Umar Khalid was born. In the year 2019, he also contested the Lok Sabha Elections from West Bengal on a ticket from the Welfare Party of India (WPI) from the Jangipur constituency, a Muslim-dominated seat in the Murshidabad district. The former SIMI member is now a member of the Central Advisory Council of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and AIMPLB.
Khalid, son of Ilyas on the other hand had become the prominent face of the Anti-Hindu riots in Delhi in 2019. He admitted to the Delhi police that he was involved in organizing Muslim groups, instigating them, and preparing for the large-scale violence.
He had mobilized the Muslims against the law, by asserting that the new law was ‘against Muslims’ and had also planned to involve women and children in the ‘Chakka Jam’ amid the visit of the US President Trump to India. He had allegedly met the former AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain and another accused Khalid Saifi to assure logistical support during the riots through his contacts in the PFI.
According to the reports, the agencies have been watching and warning the nexus between Maoists whose front organization Khalid is aligned with, and hardline Islamists allegedly represented by Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Welfare Party of India, and banned outfit SIMI.
While speaking at the ‘Ideas for India’ colloquium in the United Kingdom, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi resorted to scaremongering, asserting that a civil war in India would not surprise him because the country is extremely unstable.
He stated that India is in a horrible position and that a political revolution is required. To substantiate his contention, he stated that the Bharatiya Janata Party has poured kerosene around the country and that a single spark is enough to blow the country up.
India is not in a good place. BJP has spread kerosene all over the country. You need one spark & we’ll be in big trouble. I think that’s also the responsibility of the opposition, the Congress – that bring people, communities, states, & religions together: Rahul Gandhi, in London pic.twitter.com/Ua4b4TaEQO
On the question of how Congress will be working to revive itself in the country, Rahul Gandhi said that the party will have to follow the footprints of the RSS. He said that the RSS has devised a structure that has penetrated into the larger mass. “The Congress and the other opposition parties need to build that kind of a structure and that too more aggressively,” he said.
Further answering the question that how is Congress going to do that as it has been 8 years since the time when Congress was in power, he said that the only possible way is “mass participation.” “We are sitting on a power cake,” he said.
“We have a massive level of polarisation, huge unemployment. We have the backbone of employment broken and we have a massive concentration of wealth. We are going to have social problems and they’re coming. There’s no doubt about it,” he further said.
Rahul Gandhi went on to say that there is going to be a mass upsurge and it rests with the opposition to leverage it to change the politics of the country. “We could also have a situation where we can have an uncontrolled upsurge, which we are seeing in Sri Lanka. India is not in a good place. The BJP has spread kerosene all over the country. You need one spark and we’ll be in big trouble,” Rahul said adding that Congress “needs to cool the temperature” now.
US Interference in India under the garb of Human Rights violations
Rahul Gandhi was then asked about the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaking about human rights violations in India in a press conference. To that, Rahul replied, “I’m glad that the United States has woken up to this idea.” Tweaking the course of his answer, he said that the US is not needed in order to make us realize the issue. “It has been quite a long time to sense it,” he stated.
However, first questioning the rule by the BJP, Rahul next said that Democracy in India is a central anchor for the world. Contrary to his own point that democracy is in danger in India, a point which he has been making for a long, he said that India is the only country that has managed Democracy on such a big scale.
West Bengal was thrown into post-poll violence by TMC goons after BJP lost the Assembly Elections in 2021. Several hundred and thousands of BJP workers were murdered, raped, and driven out of their homes. Rampant arson and violence against political opponents became the order of the day by TMC goons. Amidst the chaos, a shocking case emerged where two BJP workers went missing. They were allegedly forcefully converted to Islam for supporting BJP in the state.
The Calcutta High Court transferred the case to CBI and NIA after serious lapses in the investigation were detected in a case where the two BJP leaders were supposedly given a “punishment” for supporting BJP, by forcefully converting them to Islam.
The order makes several scathing observations and details the police apathy that the wives of the two leaders had to face when they tried to file a complaint in the case after their husbands went missing.
The petitioners in the case were two sisters, whose husbands, both brothers, were BJP leaders. Their husbands went missing on the 24th of November 2021. After that, the sisters filed two complaints, first at the Mothabari Police Station and subsequently to the Kaliachak Police Station. It has been submitted in court that one complaint that was filed was received by the police station, however, was torn up by a “civic volunteer”. The order says, “The said civic volunteer also informed the petitioners that their husbands have converted to Islam”.
The allegations by the petitioner, the two wives, in this case, is that their husbands were forcefully converted to Islam as a punishment for supporting a rival party (presumably by TMC goons for supporting BJP). They have alleged that the conversion took place either under threat and intimidation or under the influence of drugs.
Court order
After their complaint was torn up and the “civic volunteer”, the order says, “A complaint has thereafter been addressed to the Superintendent of Police, Malda, on December 8, 2021. The S.P., Malda also did not take any steps. The petitioners, thereafter, complained with the Chairman, National Human Rights Commission and the other respondents herein”.
While this points towards severe police apathy and dangerous designs by TMC, the state response in the court was far more shocking.
Md. Galib, counsel for the state of West Bengal, submitted in the court that the two BJP leaders had left their homes due to a domestic dispute and converted to Islam of their own free will. It was submitted that the two were residing at Pratappur, Malda and refused to return home. The counsel further submitted sworn affidavits by the two husbands to prove that they had converted to Islam voluntarily. It was also informed that Gouranga Mondal and Buddhu Mondal now go by the names Gousal Azam and Md. Ibrahim.
The court made a scathing observation about the affidavits submitted, saying that “It is not clear as to why the said affidavits have been affirmed and for what purpose”.
Court order
Detailing the police apathy, the court observed, “It is surprising to note that despite receipt of complaints, the IC, Kaliachak PS has not registered FIRs and the Superintendent of Police, Malda has not ordered any steps, as were required to be taken by the Kaliachak Police Station and the Mothabari Police Station, in terms of the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Lalita Kumari vs Govt. Of U.P. & Ors reported in (2014) 2 SCC 1”.
What the Calcutta High Court said while asking CBI and NIA to investigate: Mass forcible conversions, hoarding of arms, counterfeit currency, cross border infiltration and more
The court said that since the CBI and NIA are parties to the case, it would be best for them to investigate the details.
The court said, “Since the NIA and the CBI are the party respondents to the instant proceeding, appropriate inputs may be given from their side as regards the allegations made in the writ petition. The other allegation of random forcible conversion, cross border infiltration, threats and intimidation, inter alia, by accumulation and storage of huge quantities of arms and ammunition and counterfeit currency may also be addressed. The inputs may be given in the form of a report by way of an affidavit. The Superintendent of Police, Malda, shall extend necessary cooperation to the NIA and the CBI in this regard”.
Ordering the SP of Malda to extend full cooperation to the NIA and CBI, the court said that these larger allegations might not be directly related to the immediate allegations of the forceful conversion of 2 BJP leaders to Islam by TMC goons, however, they appear vitally linked to the case.
Further, the court directed the SP of Malda to submit a detailed report about the allegations levelled by the two petitioners about the forceful conversion and abduction of their husbands.
“The SP, Malda shall independently submit a detailed report by way of affidavit, on the adjourned date on the allegations of the petitioners, the steps taken by the police, any preliminary enquiry report or any other vital information that will be necessary for the determination of the issues in the writ petition. A detailed chronology of events before and after receipt of complaints from the petitioners may also be set out by the SP”, the court said.
Most importantly, the Court directed the Malda police to review their security arrangements since the two women fear that their lives might be in danger.
The next hearing in the case will be held on June 21st, 2022.
The original complaint by the petitioners about the forceful conversion of their husbands, BJP leaders, to Islam, by TMC goons
In the original complaint by the women, whose husbands had been abducted, the women had detailed how they had worked for BJP during the 2021 Assembly Elections and so had their husbands. They have also directly blamed the TMC for threats, intimidation and the forceful conversion of their husband to Islam.
Complaint by the women
In the complaint, the women say categorically that they had faced threats and intimidation from goons belonging to the TMC because they had worked for BJP in the Assembly Elections. They had further said that their husbands were under constant pressure from Muslim persons owing allegiance to TMC to convert to Islam. She says that such threats continued for several months.
A special bench of the sessions court of Mumbai took cognizance of the Enforcement Directorate’s charge sheet filed against Nawab Malik, a minister in the Maharashtra government. The court said in its order that there is prima facie evidence that Malik was directly and deliberately involved in money laundering and criminal conspiracy to take over the Goawala compound located in Kurla. In this case, the court has allowed further action against Malik and Sardar Sahavali Khan, the accused in the 1993 bomb blast case. Khan’s name is also in the case.
Special Judge Rahul N Rokde in his order said, “The accused Nawab Malik, along with Hasina Parkar, Salim Patel, and Sardar Khan, who are members of the D Company, had committed a criminal conspiracy and usurped the property of Munira Plumber. Prima facie it appears that the accused was directly involved in money laundering despite being aware of all the information. That is why he is guilty of committing a money laundering offense under section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. According to section 4, he stands punishable.
The ED charge sheet said that Malik had conducted a survey of illegal tenants in the Goawala Compound through a surveyor and had sought the help of Sardar Shahvali Khan to coordinate with the surveyor. The ED has also claimed in its charge sheet that Malik had held several meetings with Hasina Parkar and Sardar Khan to grab the land.
Sardar Khan has recorded his statement in this regard with ED and this statement is also part of the charge sheet. In this statement, he has said that his brother Rehman was the one who collected rent on behalf of Munira Plumber for The Goawala Compound. The ‘Kurla General Store’ at Goawala Compound was closed after the 1992 floods, after which the same closed ‘Kurla General Store’ was allegedly taken over by Nawab Malik in the name of his brother Aslam Malik. Sardar Khan claimed that his tenant was then regularised in the name of Aslam. Nawab Malik later allegedly usurped the Goawala compound through Solidus Investments.
According to the charge sheet, Sardar Khan told the ED that several meetings were held between Nawab Malik, Aslam Malik, and Haseena Parkar, and in at least two meetings he (Sardar Khan) was also present. Sardar Shahvali Khan is serving a life sentence in Aurangabad jail in connection with the 1993 bomb blast case. He is learned to have attended these meetings while out of jail on parole. The ED has since alleged that Nawab Malik had appointed a surveyor to survey tenants lodged in the property illegally. During the investigation, the ED seized some documents related to the surveyor’s survey of the property pertaining to the surveyor dated May 2005 from the possession of the surveyor. It shows that Sardar Khan was mentioned as a customer in the documents by Nawab Malik.
The charge sheet also includes the statement of Parkar’s son Alishan. Alishan had earlier told the ED that his mother had financial dealings with Dawood till her death in 2014 and Salim Patel was one of her accomplices. Alishan had told the ED that his mother, along with Patel, settled the Goawala compound dispute and opened the office and took over part of it and she later sold it to Malik.
Earlier on 21st April 2022, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) submitted the charge sheet against the NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik in Special PMLA court, in connection with the Dawood Ibrahim money laundering case. The charge sheet contained 5000 pages and includes a statement of witnesses and other documentary evidence.
On Friday, May 20, the special court for the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in Mumbai took cognisance of the 5000-page charge sheet filed by ED against Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik last month. It said that prima facie evidence has been found suggesting that Nawab malik was directly and knowingly involved in money laundering and criminal conspiracy with D-company members to usurp the Goawala compound in Kurla.
The court issued a process against the NCP Minister and 1993 bomb blast convict Sardar Shahwali Khan, who is also named in the case.
“Accused Nawab Malik in connivance with D-Company members i.e. Hasina Parkar, Salim Patel, and Sardar Khan, hatched a criminal conspiracy for usurping the prime property belonging to Mrs Munira Plumber,” special judge Rahul R Rokade said.
Special judge Rahul Rokde added after going through the 5000-page charge sheet against Nawab Malik, “After going through the allegations levelled in the complaint against the accused and on perusal of various documents placed on record, it appears that there are sufficient grounds for proceeding further with this case and hence, my opinion is that process is required to be issued in this case against the accused arrayed in this complaint.”
The Enforcement Directorate on April 21, 2022, submitted a charge sheet against the NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik in Special PMLA court, in connection with the Dawood Ibrahim money laundering case. The charge sheet contains 5000 pages and includes a statement of witnesses and other documentary evidence.
The ED had arrested the NCP leader in the case of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act related to elements linked to Dawood Ibrahim and the underworld. There were reports saying that Malik was involved in the Hawala transfers operated by Dawood Ibrahim.
Nawab Malik’s name appeared in the process of investigation after the intelligence inputs directed the agency to look into the Hawala transactions while probing a money laundering case against Ibrahim, Iqbal Mirchi, Chhota Shakeel, Parkar, and Javed Chikna.
ED recently has attached properties of Nawab Malik which include Goawala Compound, Commercial Unit at Kurla West, Mumbai, 147.794 acres of agricultural land in Osmanabad district, three flats in Kurla West, and two flats in Bandra West, Mumbai. His companies named Solidus Investments Pvt Ltd and Malik Infrastructure have also been seized.
Out of power for six years now, the Congress party in Assam is not only facing repeated losses in elections and exodus of leaders to other parties, the party is also facing severe financial crisis. Loss of power and loss of active members have meant sources of income for the party is drying up, and the party is finding it difficult to fund its day-to-day operations. As a result, the party leadership in Assam is considering converting and redeveloping its party offices and other fixed assets into commercial complexes to earn money.
The Assam Congress is planning to convert its state headquarter Rajiv Bhavan situated at ABC on GS Road in Guwahati into a commercial complex to earn rental income. This was disclosed by Rana Goswami, the Working President of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee. Talking to reporters at the Rajiv Bhavan in Guwahati on Friday, Goswami said that the party has vast amounts of fixed assets across the country, and the party high command has asked the state units to prepare an assessment of such assets. The assessment is done to explore the option of monetising the assets, the Congress leader said.
Rana Goswami said that Assam Congress president Bhupen Bora proposed to convert the Rajiv Bhavan into a commercial complex, and a proposal for the same already has been sent to the party high command. Once the approval for the same arrives, work on redeveloping the site will start.
Along with the Rajiv Bhavan, the party is also considering developing its another property in the city. Rana Goswami said that as part of the asset monetisation plan, the Manabendra Sarma Complex owned by the party, located next to the Assam Capital Complex at Ganeshguri in Guwahati, will also be developed. He said that the party plans to build a 15-storey building at the site. Apart from being a rent-earning commercial complex, this site will also house the new head office of Assam Congress which will have all the modern facilities, Goswami said.
Rana Goswami said that Congress is facing financial crunch to run the party, therefore the decision has been made. It will be helpful to run the party using the earnings from the commercial complexes, and Assam Congress will be able to help the party’s units in neighbouring states too, he said.
“If the party has to remain powerful politically, the party needs to have its own income. Therefore it has been decided to build a multi-storey building at the Manabendra Sharma Complex also. The business complex will be built at a cost of Rs 15 crore. Pradesh Congress took decision to earn income. Half of the Manabendra Sharma Complex will be used as Rajiv Bhavan, while the entire site of the current Rajiv Bhavan will be a business complex”, Rana Goswami said.
Reacting to the development, cabinet minister and former Congress leader Piyush Hazarika supported the plan, saying that it will help Congress in running the party. He said that Congress is losing vote bank to AIUDF, AAP, AGP etc, and the Congress is losing its relevance in the state. He added that there is no alternative to BJP in Assam now, and the party will remain in power for the next 20 years.
The Rajiv Bhavan is located a prime location in Guwahati on the GS Road, where a number commercial complexes, shopping malls etc have come up. The other site Manabendra Sarma Complex is also located at a prime location. Therefore, if the Congress party’s plan is implemented, the party will ensure a good source of regular income.
Allahabad High Court on Thursday ordered that a revised petition be filed after it heard the plea seeking a direction for the restoration of the Dwadash Madhav temples located in different parts of Prayagraj and the construction of a pilgrim route (Parikrama marg) to reach these temples.
The order was issued by a division bench consisting of Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice JJ Munir, who fixed July 22 for the hearing of a petition filed by Hari Chaitanya Brahmchari of Tikarmafi Ashram and another by Advocate Vijay Chandra Srivastava.
In the PIL filed in February 2022, the petitioners stated that the twelve Madhav temples in Teerthraj Prayag are of great significance and that it is vital to repair them and make them easily accessible to saints, sages, and pilgrims by developing a path (Parikrama marg) leading to the temples. They also demanded proper arrangements for traffic in the temple areas.
According to the petition, saints and sages have been doing a Parikrama, an age-old Hindu tradition of paying obeisance to the Hindu places of worship, of the twelve Madhav temples since ancient times, but due to obstacles and a lack of a good approach, saints and devotees are unable to do so, and as such their religious sentiments are hurt.
As a result, the petitioners urged the court to grant permission for the removal of illegal encroachment on the path leading to the temples, the development of a pilgrim route, and the restoration of the Dwadash Madhavas grand temples.
The bench of Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice JJ Munir have asked the petitioners to file a revised petition that includes details of the temples and their significance in the plea itself rather than attaching affidavits for the same. The bench has fixed July 22 for the hearing of the plea.
