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Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal recounts how a drunk Mumbai Indians player had him dangling outside a balcony on the 15th floor of a hotel: What he said

OpIndia Staff
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Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal recounts how a drunk Mumbai Indians player had him dangling outside a balcony on the 15th floor of a hotel: What he said

Yuzvendra Chahal, an Indian leg-spinner who currently plays for Rajasthan Royals after a seven-year stint with the Royal Challengers Bangalore team in the Indian Premier League (IPL), has spoken out about a terrifying incident that occurred in 2013 while he was playing for Mumbai Indians in the sixth edition of the IPL.

Chahal revealed how a drunk MI player had him dangling outside of a balcony on the 15th floor of their hotel building, in a talk with new companions Ravichandran Ashwin and Karun Nair.

Ravichandran Ashwin, Karun Nair, and Yuzvendra Chahal were discussing some hitherto unheard anecdotes from their respective cricketing careers. When Chahal’s turn came, he recounted the incident. Chahal, however, declined to divulge the player’s identity in order to avoid causing a stir.

“I never told this story, from today everyone will know. I never shared this. This dates back to 2013 when I was with Mumbai Indians we had a match in Bangalore. There was a get-together after that. So there was a player who was very drunk, I won’t say his name,” Chahal said. “He was very drunk, he was looking at me for a long time and he just called me and he took me outside and he hung me on the balcony,” he added.

“Had I lost my grip, I was on the 15th floor… Suddenly many people who were there came and handled the situation. I kind of fainted, they gave me water. Then I realized how responsible we need to be when we go anywhere. So this was one incident where I felt I had a narrow escape. Had there been the slightest of memories, I would’ve fallen down,” he further recounted.

Chahal claimed that few people knew about the incident since he had kept it to himself until now. He admitted that things could have gone tragically wrong if his hands had slipped. However, a few more people entered the room and took charge of the situation.

Gorakhnath Temple attack: Terrorist Ahmad Murtuza Abbasi, with connections to ISIS, confesses he was angry over ‘CAA, NRC, atrocities against Muslims’

OpIndia Staff
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Gorakhnath Temple attack: Terrorist Ahmad Murtuza Abbasi, with connections to ISIS, confesses he was angry over ‘CAA, NRC, atrocities against Muslims’

Ahmad Murtaza Abbasi, accused in the attack on security personnel outside Gorakhpur’s Gorakhnath temple, has said that his attack was a response to the passing of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).

According to reports, the accused Ahmad Murtuza Abbasi confessed to the police that his hatred spawned from alleged atrocities committed against Muslims. The attacker said he was not happy with the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) as he deemed them as an act of “injustice to Muslims”.

“I thought about the act from various angles before committing the crime. They [government] were implementing CAA and NRC against Muslims. Even in Karnataka, Muslims were being wronged. No one was doing anything about the issue. Someone had to do something. This is how I justified the act in my mind,” he said.

Abbasi confessed that he decided to attack Gorakhnath temple as there was a constant police presence at the premises, and it was easy for him to escape after attacking the cops.

“I was depressed and wasn’t being able to sleep,” Abbasi reportedly confessed to the police.

The police said that the confession indicated that Abbasi had been radicalised to the extent that he was even willing to die committing such crimes.

Abbasi, who is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), had attempted to break in to the Gorakhnath temple premises on April 3 while shouting Allahu Akbar. The 30-year-old chemical engineering graduate attacked the security personnel with a sickle when they tried to stop him, injuring two Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) constables.

He was later captured by other security staff and arrested.

The attack had come a day before UP CM Yogi Adityanath was scheduled to visit the temple. Following the attacks, Abbasi’s family claimed he was mentally unstable, however, the claims were refuted by police and doctors who treated him after the attack.

Abbasi, Gorakhnath Temple attack accused, had connections to ISIS

During the interrogation, it was revealed that Abbasi had sent lakhs of rupees to bank accounts linked to ISIS. The investigating agencies are now looking into its financial dealings with Abbasi.

He has accounts in ICICI Bank, IDFC First Bank, and Platinum Federal Bank, among others. He had transferred money from a bank account in Nepal to Syria.

During the interrogation, it was revealed that Abbasi’s mentor was an American identified as Imam Anwar al-Halaki, who originally hails from Yemen. Abbasi was highly influenced by banned Islamic preacher Zakir Naik as well.

Some documents recovered from Abbasi revealed a link to Jamnagar. Gujarat ATS would be interrogating him as well in Lucknow.

TMC leader Babul Supriyo equates Indian and Pakistani Muslims to wash away the “communal stamp” that was supposedly put on him: What he said

OpIndia Staff
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TMC leader Babul Supriyo equates Indian and Pakistani Muslims to wash away the “communal stamp” that was supposedly put on him: What he said

Singer Babul Supriyo, who had jumped ship from BJP to TMC amidst the post-poll violence unleashed by TMC goons against BJP workers, is now trying his best to wash away the “communal stamp” that was put on him.

Babul Supriyo was attending an Iftar party with Kolkata mayor and TMC minister Firhad Hakim. The candidate from Ballygunge was attending the Iftar party after campaigning alongside Abhishek Banerjee, TMC leader and the nephew of CM Mamata Banerjee.

After the campaign was over, speaking to the media, Babul Supriyo proceeded to equate Indian and Pakistan Muslims.

Sporting the Islamic skull cap, Babul Supriyo said, “A fake communal stamp was imposed over my image. But it is not true. Earlier I could only meet 70% population, now I am free to meet 100% population. I am among those few singers who performed shows in Pakistan”.

Reportedly, after saying this, Babul Supriyo told the media that whoever wishes to create a controversy over his statements can do so and he will have nothing to say to them in this regard.

Babul Supriyo’s statement comes ahead of the April 12th bypolls, where he is set to fight the BJP’s Keya Ghosh, also a singer and politican.

It is interesting to note that while attending Iftar in Kolkata, where presumably only Indian Muslims were present, Babul Supriyo felt the need to bandy his “secular” credentials by claiming that he had performed in Pakistan. By doing so, Surpriyo essentially equated Indian and Pakistani Muslims by saying that one can only work for Indian Muslims if they have no problem with the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Muslims of Pakistan, who regularly infiltrate India and carry out terrorist attacks, killing security personnel and civilians.

Essentially, by saying this, Babul Supriyo was also trying to justify his move from BJP to TMC, which had come under criticism from several quarters. In 2021, after the Assembly Elections in West Bengal, Babul Supriyo had switched parties and joined TMC. When TMC goons were murdering, raping and burning the houses of BJP workers, Supriyo had haplessly abandoned his cadre saying that he was scared to venture into the areas where violence was taking place because he would come under attack.

Soon after abandoning his party workers, who were under attack from TMC goons, Supriyo had changed parties and joined TMC. At the time, he was criticised not only for abandoning his party cadre, but also compromising with the ideals he had claimed to espouse to save his life because he was scared of what TMC might do to him.

Now, it seems that Babul Supriyo had decided to criticise his former party, BJP, by claiming that when he was a part of it, he could meet and greet only 70% of the population, insinuating that earlier he was allowed to meet only Hindus and that the BJP was communal. However, now that he is a part of TMC, he is also free to meet the Muslim population of India.

To appease the Muslims further and toe the party line, Supriyo not only said this but also went ahead and equated Indian Muslims with Pakistani Muslims, virtually claiming that one had to be pro-Pakistan to appease the Indian Muslim population.

Days before Ram Navami and other Hindu festivals, Rajasthan govt bans religious flags on public properties

OpIndia Staff
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Days before Ram Navami and other Hindu festivals, Rajasthan govt bans religious flags on public properties

Days before Ram Navami and other major Hindu festivals like Durga Ashtami, Hanuman Jayanti, and Mahaveer Jayanti take place, the Rajasthan government has banned raising religious flags on public properties and places. Corresponding orders are issued by collectors of various districts including Kota, Ajmer, Jodhpur, and Bikaner.

Deputy mayor of the Ajmer municipal corporation Neeraj Jain tweeted, “Gehlot Saab’s Nadirshahi decree in Kota, Bikaner, Jodhpur and now in Ajmer and other cities. It is a crime to put up flags of a religious symbol, to play the DJ! It is notable that these orders have come just before the procession and Shobha yatra of Mahavir Jayanti, Durga Ashtami, Ambedkar Jayanti, Ram Navami, and Hanuman Jayanti.”

Neeraj Jain also attached the order signed by Ansh Deep – district collector of Ajmer – that said, “During religious purposes to be held in Ajmer district the individual or group of person attempt to disturb the communal harmony by affecting the law and order situation in the Ajmer district by raising the flags with religious symbols on public property such as Government Buildings, Government Undertakings, Board Corporation building, public community building/ Rest houses, public parks, circle electric and telephone poles, etc. constructed at intersections/tirahas or property of another person without any valid sanction. This may lead to apprehensions of breach of public peace and adversely disrupting law and order and social harmony. In such a situation, preventive action is necessary immediately to maintain social harmony and public peace.”

It further says, “Therefore, in view of the above circumstances, I, Ansh Deep, District Magistrate, Ajmer, in the exercise of the powers conferred under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, impose prohibitory orders prohibiting the installation of flags with religious insignia on public property in the entire urban and rural area of Ajmer district without any competent sanction. I direct all citizens to comply with this order and not to ignore it. If a person violates the above prohibitory orders, he may be prosecuted under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code.”

Ansh Deep further said in his order, “The order will be effective in the entire urban and rural area of Ajmer district from 10 am on 7th April 2022 to the next one month.”

It is notable that on 2nd April 2022, in Karauli of Rajasthan, tension prevailed in the city after a bike rally taken out on the occasion of Hindu New Year was attacked while passing through the Muslim-dominated area of Hatwara Bazar in the city. Stones were pelted at the rally, and the miscreants set on fire more than a dozen shops and three bikes. The rally was organized to celebrate ‘Nav Samvatsar’, the first day of the Hindu New Year. Curfew have been imposed in the area since then to contain communal tension.

United Nations General Assembly votes to suspend Russia from Human Rights Council, India abstains from voting

OpIndia Staff
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United Nations General Assembly votes to suspend Russia from Human Rights Council, India abstains from voting

The United Nations General Assembly today voted to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the massacre in Bucha.

In the voting on the resolution to suspend Russia from the UN Human Rights Council headquartered in Geneva, 93 countries voted in favour of the resolution, while 24 member countries voted against it. 58 countries abstained from the voting, including India.

The UNGA needed two-thirds of the votes to remove Russia from the UNHRC, which was comfortably achieved, as abstentions are not counted.

India has been abstaining from all resolutions on the Russia-Ukraine conflict at the UNm and this was also no exception. Apart from India, some major member states to abstain the voting include Brazil, Egypt, Mexico, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa etc. Nations that sided with Russia include Belarus, China, North Korea, Iran, Kazakhstan etc.

The draft of the resolution had said that the General Assembly may “suspend the rights of membership in the Human Rights Council of a member of the Council that commits gross and systematic violations of human rights.”

The Ukrainian ambassador to the United Nations, Sergiy Kyslytsya, had requested the member states to support the resolution suspending Russia from the Human Rights Council. “Now the world has come to a crucial juncture. We witness that our liner is going through treacherous fog towards deadly icebergs. It might seem that we should have named it the Titanic instead of the Human Rights Council. … We need to take an action today to save the council from sinking,” Kyslytsya had said.

On the other hand, deputy Russian ambassador to the United Nations, Gennady Kuzmin, had asked the member states to reject the resolution, saying it would set a “dangerous precedent.”

“Today is not the time nor the place for theatrics, or these kinds of extremely theatrical performances like the one presented by Ukraine. In fact the draft resolution we are considering today has no relationship to the actual human rights situation on the ground,” Kuzmin had said.

Maharashtra: Kashmiri Hindu activist detained by police for seeking permission to attend a propaganda program against The Kashmir Files, released after hours

OpIndia Staff
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Maharashtra: Kashmiri Hindu activist detained by police for seeking permission to attend a propaganda program against The Kashmir Files, released after hours

On 7th April 2022, Kashmiri Hindu activist Rohit Kachroo was illegally detained by Maharashtra police when he visited a police station in Pune to seek permission to peacefully question a talk by a propagandist. Yuvak Kranti Dal led by 80-year-old Kumar Saptarshi has organized a talk by Ashok Kumar Pandey on the topic ‘The Kashmir files: A Half Truth’ at Gandhi Bhavan situated in the Kothrud area of Pune.

The talk was organized by Yuvak Kranti dal led by 80-year-old Kumar Saptarshi.

Rohit Kachroo decided to attend the program and ask some questions to Pandey after his talk. In order not to appear as an intruder, he felt it necessary to get the help of the Pune police to get a safe presence in the program and seek permission to question the speaker as to what exactly did he find to be not true in the film The Kashmir Files. But instead of helping Rohit Kachroo, the Pune police illegally detained him for a few hours and then released him only after handing over a notice that holds him responsible if any unsolicited incident occurs after he attends the program.

Rohit Kachroo narrates the incident

While speaking to OpIndia, Rohit said, “Today I visited the Kothrud police station in Pune with an application. A program is organized in Pune where a speaker Ashok Kumar Pandey will be speaking on the topic ”The Kashmir files: A Half Truth’. I felt it necessary that the Pune police must know in advance that we are going to attend that program and we must not be seen as some intruder there. We are Kashmiri Hindus. When the program heads into the question and answer session after the talk is delivered, at that time we want to ask the speaker and the organizer what exactly did they find to be untrue in the film ‘The Kashmir Files’? If the film is half true then please answer our question.”

He further said, “So we gave an application to the police. We told the police that if you feel like a law and order situation may arise there, then please cancel the program. And if they can’t cancel the program citing freedom of expression then allow us to attend the program and peacefully ask them a question because we also have freedom of expression. We told the police that we are here just to inform you of all these things.”

Informing about the detention, Rohit Kachroo said, “From 11 AM, the police detained us. They kept us in a small chowki made in the backyard of the main premises of the Kothrud police station. We asked for a written notice so many times but they did not provide any notice till 5:30 PM. We asked them to at least put a received stamp on our application, but they refused to do so. It is my right to know why I am being detained and on what charges. This should not happen with anyone who is willing to express himself in a civilized manner that too giving an idea to the police department in advance. Otherwise, people will directly go anywhere and do whatever they want.”

He further said, “I was accompanied by two of my friends. I was advised to just drop an application at the CP office and go to the program. But I thought the local police station must be informed. Because if we don’t follow the law of the land, then who else will? Such bad treatment should not be given to a law-abiding citizen. I could have directly gone to the program and asked them my questions, but I felt it necessary to seek the help of the police because I too come from a law-enforcement agency background. I know what is the proper way to put up the things. But unfortunately, this happened to me.”

Rohit Kachroo was handed over a notice by the Pune police. The notice is given as per section 149 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The notice said, “You have applied for the cancellation of the ‘Kashmir Files – Ek Ardh Satya’ program to be held at Gandhi Bhavan in Kothrud police station limits to maintain peace and order. At present, the subject of the film ‘The Kashmiri Files’ is sensitive in the country. Therefore, there is a possibility of a law and order problem if you go to the venue of the ‘Kashmir Files A Ardh Satya’ event to be held at Gandhi Bhavan and take any action. However, you are hereby advised that you should not go to the venue of this event. If you go there and a law and order problem arises, it should be noted that action will be taken against you under the prevailing law, holding you solely responsible for it.”

This notice is given to Rohit Kachroo.

Pune’s mayor expressed his concern for Rohit Kachroo

Muralidhar Mohol is the mayor of Pune. He tweeted, “It was shocking that Kashmiri Pandit Rohit Kachroo and colleagues, who had gone to the Kothrud police station to seek permission for the agitation to protest against ‘The Kashmir Files Ardh Satya’ program, were made to sit in the police station.”

Police offered to facilitate a personal meeting of Rohit Kachroo with the organizers of the event

Rohit Kachroo told OpIndia that the police officials, at one point in time, were ready to facilitate a meeting with the organizers of the program in presence of the police officials if it was so important. He said, “The police said, we will come with you and you meet the organizers in personal capacities. We are suggesting this for your safety. I said I will not meet them personally because they are taking a program in the public domain. They are saying something publicly. They are saying that The Kashmir Files is a half-truth. They are claiming that they are speaking the truth. So, someone who is speaking the truth in a public event should welcome someone else publicly. Why I should meet him in private? So, I rejected this offer.”

Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri’s film The Kashmir Files is based on the true incidents related to the genocide of the Kashmiri Hindus by Islamic terrorists in 1990 and the subsequent exodus of the Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir valley. The film has attracted large crowds to the theatres and brought the plight of the Kashmiri Pandits to the mainstream. 

Controversy over ‘only Muslim’ recruitment at Mini-Ratna Pawan Hans helicopter service, here is how there could be a Jamia connection

OpIndia Staff
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Controversy over ‘only Muslim’ recruitment at Mini-Ratna Pawan Hans helicopter service, here is how there could be a Jamia connection

On Thursday, 7th of April 2022, a controversy broke out on Indian social media over the recruitment practices of Pawan Hans Limited, a Mini Ratna of the Government of India. As per the viral message circulating on social media, all the new apprentices joining Pawan Hans are ‘Muslims’, with no representation of any other religion.

The controversy started when Pawan Hans limited shared the list of new graduate apprentices to join the organization, and all of them were from one religion.

Pawan Hans
List of Pawan Hans Apprentices

Once this information got viral, many netizens criticized the Government of India for recruiting People from only one religion for this apprentice program.

Pawan Hans Limited is a government-owned outfit under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India, that is tasked with providing exclusive helicopter services at offshore locations for Indian Oil companies, and at holy pilgrimage destinations like Kedarnath and Vaishno Devi shrine. They are also used by state governments while dealing with Maoist insurgency.

The controversy reminded people of a similar list of all Muslim candidates selected by West Bengal Police in the year 2020. However, that turned out to be a case of reservation as many Muslim castes are also listed under OBCs in the state of West Bengal. One wondered if this list by Pawan Hans Limited had a similar reason.

However, it seems that this is not a case of reservations for Muslim candidates due to any OBC list, but due to an exclusive agreement of Pawan Hans Limited (PHL) with Jamia Milia Islamia, a ‘minority educational institute’ based in New Delhi.

In the year 2017, Pawan Hans Limited had entered into an agreement for a two and a half years full-time basic aircraft maintenance training course in collaboration with Jamia Millia Islamia University. In all probability, the list viral on social media is the list of students enrolled in the aforementioned course of Jamia Milia Islamia being run in collaboration with Pawan Hans Limited.

This possibility is confirmed when one searches for the names of the students as seen on the list along with the name of Jamia Millia Islamia University. The search results take us to LinkedIn profiles of these students, which confirm them being students of Jamia Milia Islamia, pursuing courses like B.Sc. (Aeronautics) and B.Sc. (Aviation).

It thus indicates that Jamila Milia Islamia could be admitting only Muslim students in their courses being run in partnership with Pawan Hans Limited. We tried to confirm the same by calling Mohammad Ameer, the Joint General Manager (Aviation Academy) with Pawan Hans Limited but we could not get any answer. OpIndia will continue to pursue the story and will update this article as and when we get more updates.

If the list indeed is of Jamia Millia Students being given apprenticeships at Pawan Hans Limited, it raises a serious question as to how come not a single non-Muslim student could find their way to the list. Did the university not find a single non-Muslim student worth enrolling in the aviation courses being funded by a government outfit?

The incident also points out the merits in demand of many activists who have been asking that reservations for SC/STs must be implemented in ‘minority institutes’ because such institutes have poor diversity in admissions, perhaps owing to a prejudicial admission system. A constitutional change will be needed in order to make institutes like Jamia Millia Islamia implement reservations for SC/STs to avoid a repeat of such a scenario.

Washington Post columnist Khaled Beydoun spreads lies, blames Hindus for the attack on Hindu New Year celebration in Karauli in Rajasthan

OpIndia Staff
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Washington Post columnist Khaled Beydoun spreads lies, blames Hindus for the attack on Hindu New Year celebration in Karauli in Rajasthan

Washington Post columnist and law professor Khaled Beydoun posted lies on his Twitter handle regarding the recent attack on Hindus in Rajasthan. In Karauli of Rajasthan, on 2nd April 2022, Muslims had attacked a rally of Hindus celebrating the Hindu new year when it was passing through a Muslim-dominated area. But Khaled Beydoun blamed Hindus for the crime committed by the mob of Muslims.

Khaled Beydoun posted, “40+ Muslim homes + businesses were set on fire in 24 hours’ time, during Ramadan in Rajasthan India. Hindutva is terrorism.” He also posted a video in the same tweet.

In a subsequent tweet, he wrote, “Hindutva is ethnic cleansing.”

In another tweet about the same incident in Karauli of Rajasthan, he wrote, “Police and Hindutva thugs destroy 40 homes and businesses belonging to Muslims.” By mentioning the police, he blamed the Rajasthan’s Congress government for the violence that was actually committed by Muslims against the Hindus.

He also incited western media to report against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He wrote, “Why are western media outlets and ‘social justice’ leaders quiet when it comes to Narendra Modi, the BJP, and violent Hindu supremacy in India?”

On 2nd April 2022, in Karauli of Rajasthan, tension prevailed in the city after a bike rally taken out on the occasion of Hindu New Year was attacked while passing through the Muslim-dominated area of Hatwara Bazar in the city. Stones were pelted at the rally, and the miscreants set on fire more than a dozen shops and three bikes. The rally was organized to celebrate ‘Nav Samvatsar’, the first day of the Hindu New Year. There is no reports of Muslim houses being attacked or burnt, as alleged by Beydoun.

‘Better do a DNA test, you can’t be a Muslim’: MNS corporator gets threats for supporting Raj Thackeray’s call for ban on loudspeakers in Mosques

OpIndia Staff
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‘Better do a DNA test, you can’t be a Muslim’: MNS corporator gets threats for supporting Raj Thackeray’s call for ban on loudspeakers in Mosques

News has come from Maharashtra’s Nashik where a Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) corporator Salim Sheikh has received threat calls over his statements in support of Raj Thackrey’s comments over the ban on Loudspeakers in Mosques. On April 2, in a passionate address MNS Raj Chief Thackrey had asserted that if the government is not going to ban the loudspeakers in the mosques, he will put double loudspeakers in front of the mosques and chant Hanuman Chalisa.

In a new development, Salim Sheikh – MNS’ Muslim face in Nashik and a corporator in the Nashik Mahanagar Palika – has received threat calls on his phone over his statements on loudspeakers in Mosques. Earlier, Sheikh had issued a statement requesting his community to voluntarily give up playing Azaan on loudspeakers atop the Mosques.

On Thursday, Sheikh received a call from a person who has been identified as Javed Mulla, a resident of Jamner. In the conversation, Mulla can be heard saying, “What did you suggest on the loudspeakers Sheikhbhai? If you have supported Raj Thackrey then better you would have also read the Hanuman Chalisa as well. You should definitely do your DNA test, you can not be a Muslim (Aap Muslim Ho Hi nahi Sakte).” Mulla who was seen threatening Sheikh over the call concluded that for a minor post of a (corporator) Sheikh is sabotaging his community (Kaum).

Talking to the press on the incident, Salim Sheikh said, “I openly request all the Muslim brethren, that if we are the law-abiding citizens of the country who have faith in the constitution, then we should give up on the loudspeakers on our mosques, only then it will send a message all across the country and the world.” Sheikh said that believes the Muslim community will abide by the teachings of the Prophet.”

On April 2, MNS Chief Raj Thackeray, at the annual Gudhi Padwa rally of the party asserted that the government should take action against the sound pollution caused by loudspeakers in the mosques. Thackeray launched much criticism on the current MVA alliance in power which has caused ripples in the unsteady waters of Maharashtra politics.

Punjab: AAP’s promise of 300 units of free electricity out of sight after almost one month of winning elections

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab: AAP’s promise of 300 units of free electricity out of sight after almost one month of winning elections

It has been almost a month since Aam Aadmi Party won the Punjab Assembly Elections and formed the government. One of the main promises that AAP’s Chief Arvind Kejriwal had made to the people of Punjab was that they would get 300 units of free electricity every month. The tariff for electricity for this year has been announced, and there is no sign so far that the government has any plans to fulfil the pre-poll promise.

On April 5, it was reported that the newly elected Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government has not put up the request to the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) to provide subsidies to the consumers. PSERC has kept the tariff similar to the last year in its tariff order for 2022-23. The average cost per unit in the state stands at Rs 6.48 like last year.

If any request for the subsidy had been made to the regulator, the average cost per unit would have increased, but it is not the case. The previous Congress government had also announced subsidies that ramped up the PSPCL bill to Rs 13,929 crores. If AAP’s scheme is implemented, the bill will go as high as Rs 21,000 crore, the experts told The Tribune.

Even with the net revenue expected to be Rs 36149.60 crores in the year 2022-23, there will be a gap of Rs 88.05 crores that would be carried forward to be adjusted at the time of tariff determination in the financial year 2023-24.

The Promises made by AAP

AAP has been talking about free electricity in Punjab for a long time. It was one of the first promises it had made since the party started campaigning in Punjab. The promise can be traced back to June 29, 2021, when AAP’s national convener Arvind Kejriwal announced that not only the old domestic bills will be waived off, but the AAP government, if elected in Assembly elections, would provide 300 units free to every household without any discrimination.

To be noted, he had claimed his government was providing 24×7 uninterrupted power in the national capital. Interestingly, AAP’s Delhi Government was found selling electricity in the national market when there was an alleged shortage of coal, and AAP leaders were blaming the BJP-led central government for the possibility of a blackout in Delhi.

The manifesto announcement did not mention 300 units

When Kejriwal announced the manifesto for Punjab, he only mentioned free electricity but skipped the promise of 300 units. He only said that the AAP government would provide 24×7 electricity and free units without mentioning how many units each household in Punjab would get.

The additional pressure of Rs 20,000 crores

Experts believe that with over 13,000 crores worth of financial support to all women above the age of 18 in Punjab and free electricity that would raise the bill by over 5,000 crores, the debt-ridden state will be in deep trouble. The total freebie bill may go beyond Rs 20,000 crores per annum which is not going to be easy for the state government.

Interestingly, Bhagwant Mann has already put up a demand of Rs 50,000 crores for two years to the central government during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In a recent interview, when Kejriwal was questioned when they announced freebies, why they were asking for money from the centre, he said, “It is Punjab’s money. We only requested to give back the money of the people of Punjab.”

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