A 22-year-old youth Chandru was brutally stabbed to death by three youths, reportedly for not speaking Urdu. The incident took place on Monday in Bengaluru’s JJ Nagar police station limits.
According to the reports, the deceased, identified as Chandru, a resident of Jaimaruthinagar, had attended a party with his friends on Monday. At around 2:30 AM, he went out to have a snack.
As he passed by Haleguddadahalli, his bike touched another bike. The bike rider, identified as Shahid Pasha, picked up an argument with Chandru. The arguments took an ugly turn when the accused attacked Chandru with a knife.
According to the Kasturi News report, Shahid Pasha was joined by a few other accomplices. The mob thrashed and stabbed him after Chandru spoke to them in Kannada and not Urdu. The severely injured Chandru was rushed to the hospital, where he succumbed later.
The incident was captured on CCTV, in which it was seen that Chandru was brutally stabbed by the accused Shahid Pasha and his friends, who brandished swords and knives. Chandru was seen severely injured and pleading with the accused to let him go.
The police have now arrested 21-year-old Shahid Pasha, 22-year-old Shahid Goli, and a juvenile for stabbing Chandru to death. The police arrested the accused based on the CCTV footage and local intelligence gathered from the crime scene.
Kamal Pant, Bengaluru Police Commissioner, tweeted, saying that Shahid stabbed Chandru on his right thigh, and the assailants fled from the spot. The police commissioner said Chandru belonged to the Christian community and had gone to an eatery on Mysore Road along with his friend Simon Raj.
It led to a quarrel, which was joined by others. During the fight, Shahid stabbed Chandru on his right thigh and assailants fled from the spot. Chandru was shifted to Victoria hospital, where he succumbed to injury. All the 3 accused persons are arrested. 2/2
— Kamal Pant, IPS. ಪೊಲೀಸ್ ಆಯುಕ್ತರು, ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ನಗರ. (@CPBlr) April 5, 2022
All the three accused have been booked for murder and taken into custody for further investigation, the police added.
Update: Police has denied that Chandru was killed for ‘speaking only in Kannada’.
Former head of Amnesty India, Aakar Patel has been stopped at Bengaluru airport from boarding a flight to the USA. He took to Twitter to say that he is on exit control list. Patel tweeted that he obtained the passport back through court order.
immigration says CBI has put me on the list why @PMOIndia
Patel said that the CBI officer informed him that he is on a Look Out Circular because of the case against Amnesty International India regarding the FCRA violations.
In November 2019, the CBI officers raided Amnesty India offices in New Delhi and Bengaluru where it had come to the fore that the organisation allegedly violated the FCRA (Foreign Currency Regulation Act) provisions. It was reported that activities carried out by Amnesty India were not commensurate to activities of for-profit company. These activities by Amnesty India were allegedly either prohibited or were regulated under the FCRA. The CBI had said that Amnesty International (UK) invested approximately 10 crore as fixed deposit (FD) in Amnesty India Private Limited, Bengaluru, by subscribing to the debt instruments, debentures.
In February 2021, the Enforcement Directorate attached movable properties of Amnesty India worth Rs 17.66 crore in a money laundering case. During the investigations, ED had found that after the cancellation of the FCRA license by the Indian government, Amnesty International India Foundation Trust and Amnesty entities adopted ‘new methods’ to receive money from abroad.
ED had registered case based on CBI’s FIR
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had registered an FIR against AIIPL, IAIT, Amnesty International India Foundation Trust (AIIFT) and Amnesty International South Asia Foundation (AISAF) under sections of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) and the Indian Penal Code (120-B which denotes criminal conspiracy). Based on CBI’s FIR, ED had registered a money laundering case against the NGO.
Aakar Patel has often taken to Twitter to share images of Modi bobbleheads and dolls where he is often seen scolding those dolls of PM Modi.
Family of a Hindu girl has accused that her school teacher, one Nisar Ahmed, beat her up when she went to school wearing a tilak as they had a puja at home for the ongoing Navratri.
In a video clip shared by CNN News 18 journalist Tejinder Singhi Sodhi, the family can be heard talking about their ordeal.
The family of a Hindu girl in Rajouri has accused that her daughter was beaten by a school teacher Nisar Ahmed as she went to school wearing a Tilak on her forehead as she had Pooja at her home for Navratras. The teacher has been placed under suspension by the Government pic.twitter.com/orAgF8njIi
— Tejinder Singh Sodhi ?? (@TejinderSsodhi) April 5, 2022
“I would like to say that if this kind of thing continues in the name of religion, we will all end up breaking each other’s heads,” he said.
The teacher, Nisar Ahmed was posted in Government Middle School Khadurian in Draman Panchayat of Kotranka subdivision. After the allegations surfaced, Rajouri district administration has initiated action in the matter and the teacher has since been suspended.
On this Ram Navami, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) is planning to carry out over 1,000 rallies or Sobha yatras throughout the state of West Bengal, a report published in India Today said.
Speaking about their plans to have grand celebrations with over 1,000 Shoba Yatras in West Bengal on Ram Navami, Sourish Mukherjee, the senior spokesperson of VHP’s Bengal Mandal, told India Today that the VHP will be going extravagant this year after they could not celebrate Ram Navami in a magnificent manner following the construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya because of the COVID-19 situation.
“We are planning to carry out over 1,000 Shobha yatras in West Bengal. As many as 20 rallies will be taken out in Kolkata as well on the Ram Navami,” said Mukherjee.
The VHP spokesperson further added that instead of seeking police permission, they will intimate local administration and police station about the rallies planned in their respective areas.
Responding to the question of what would the VHP do in case they are not permitted to carry out the rallies, Mukherjee said they would organise the Shobha Yatras regardless of whether they are granted permission or not. “We don’t think that permission is required for taking out a Shobha Yatra but we will notify the police. Even if they don’t allow it, we will still take out rallies on Ram Navami,” said Mukherjee.
When asked if the Ram Navami rallies will see the participation of supporters carrying arms such as swords, bows and arrows, Mukherjee stated that it is the public that brings the weapons to the rallies as a way to pay tributes to Lord Ram who himself carried a bow and arrow. “VHP does not bring weapons or provide its supporters with weapons in the rallies,” said Mukherjee.
Mukherjee also asked the West Bengal Police to ensure that miscreants and mischief-makers are not allowed to impede any event of VHP during the Ram Navami celebrations.
Police has been deployed in the Chotigam village of Shopian district to protect the two remaining Kashmiri Pandit families after one of them was attacked on Monday, 4th of April 2022. When most Hindu families in the village left Kashmir during the ethnic cleansing of the 90s, the two families had decided to stay back in the valley.
As per reports, one of those remaining Hindus, Anil Kumar Bhat, was sitting outside his medical shop when he saw two youths drive up on a motorcycle and one of them got off and entered the shop. Anil thought they had come to buy some medicines but soon after, his brother Bal Krishan Bhat came out screaming having been shot at by the intruder.
A critical Bal Krishan Bhat was rushed to the Army’s 92 Base hospital in Srinagar where he is reported to be stable.
The Bhat family used to live under the protection of Police in their village till 2016, however, after Burhan Wani was killed, these small Police posts became vulnerable to terror attacks, and were hence withdrawn. After this attack, a team of Jammu & Kashmir Police returned to the village to guard the 2 Hindu families.
The police officials have said that they are working on some leads, and have provided security cover to the 2 families in the meanwhile.
A protest was also held in Jammu against these targeted attacks against the few remaining Kashmiri Hindus and Bihari migrants in the Union Territory. Led by the Muthi Migrant camp president Anil Bhan, a rally was taken out to protest against the selective attacks on the Hindus in Kashmir.
The recently released film ‘The Kashmir Files‘ has put a spotlight on the atrocities against Kashmiri Hindus, but looks like it will take a long time for things to change on the ground.
The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, 5 April, passed The Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, paving the way for the unification of three municipal corporations of Delhi.
The Bill was tabled by the Government on Tuesday to unify the three municipal corporations of Delhi to ensure a robust setup for synergised and strategic planning and optimal utilisation of resources.
Rajya Sabha passed the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, with voice vote.
The Bill seeks amendment to the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957, to unify three municipal corporations of Delhi into a single entity.
The development came after Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday questioned in Rajya Sabha the step-motherly treatment given to three Municipal Corporation of Delhi(MCD) by the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party government in the national capital.
“Questions have been raised on the government’s constitutional capacity to bring the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022. Those who call us power-hungry should look at themselves in the mirror,” Amit Shah added.
In his speech in Rajya Sabha, Shah emphasised the need for the smooth functioning of the three municipal corporations that control around 1,400 sq km of the city.
He also added that the trifurcation of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was done in a hurry in 2012 which led to an imbalance.
“I searched the reason for which the municipal body (MCD) was divided but no reason was available in any file,” he said, adding that the objective for such a move was known only to the people who had brought it.
The Home Minister further added that after 10 years of division, the results were not as expected. All the three municipal corporations took different policies, he averred.
“There was no unanimity in the policies adopted for a city. This is because when they were trifurcated their financial resources and responsibilities were not properly addressed,” he said.
Last week, the Lok Sabha had passed the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, to unify the three municipal corporations in Delhi.
On April 1, the Jat community of village Inayatpur of Majitha sub-division in district Amritsar, Punjab, announced a boycott of the Muslim Gujjar community also known as Heer Gujjars. The boycott has been called following the clash between the Jats and the Muslim Gujjars on March 22. As per reports, the Jats opened fire at Muslim Gujjars during the clash, leading to the death of two Muslim Gujjars identified as 35-years-old Ali and 18-years-old Surmuddin. The Police arrested two Jats, Billa and Jiddu, who were among those who had opened fire. Reacting to the arrest, the Jat community approached Panchayat and called for a boycott of the Muslim Gujjars.
Notably, not only the members of the Jat community of village Inayatpur have announced to boycott of Muslim Gujjars, but the Jats of nearby villages have also announced support. Reports suggest Sikhs, Nihangs and members of Kisan Unions have reached Inayatpur to show support for the Jat community. The members of the community of one of the nearby village Mohan Bhandari sent a document announcing a boycott to the Police as well.
As per the instructions given by the community leaders and Panchayat, no one would be allowed to support Muslim Gujjars. No one could sell fodder to Muslim Gujjars or buy milk from them. Earlier, they had issued a warning to Muslim Gujjars to ensure their animals do not enter the farms of the Jat community. Since the incident of March 23, police companies have been deployed in the village to maintain law and order.
According to a report by Hamdard Media Group, the locals alleged that Muslim Gujjars leave their animals near the river at the night. The locals use the water supply from the river and the presence of animals pollutes it. It is being seen as one of the reasons for a boycott of the Muslim Gujjar community.
The clash between Muslim Gujjars and Jats
On March 22, at around 8 AM, two Muslim Gujjar youths, Makkhan and Bagu, were going on their tractor to buy cow fodder. Meanwhile, two Jat youth Billa and Jiddu, were coming back to the village after buying fodder. The Jat youth parked the bullock cart in the middle of the road near the river. When Muslim Gujjar youth reached that spot, they requested them to move the bullock cart.
The Jat youth obliged and started pulling back the cart. However, during that process, the tractor hit the bullock cart, and it turned upside down. Makkhan and Bagu rushed to their help and picked up the cart. They also apologised to them for the accident. Meanwhile, Jiddu had already called home and informed us about the accident. Around 15-20 people rushed to the spot, but somehow everything calmed down.
Later, at around 11 AM, a group of Jat youth came back to the spot where Muslim Gujjars live near the river and opened fire on them. During the firing incident, two Muslim Gujjars identified as Surmuddin and Ali were fatally injured. Three other Muslim Gujjar youth identified as Saku, Bagu and Satto were injured and are currently under treatment at Guru Nanak Hospital.
Other reports suggest it was not Jats who attacked Muslim Gujjars first. After the initial clash, the reports said Muslim Gujjars attacked the houses of Jats. The Jats opened fire in retaliation. Some reports suggest that the clash between the communities reached the tipping point after Muslim Gujjars’ buffalos entered the farms of Jats after the initial spat between the youth of the two communities in the morning. A few videos emerged where Muslim Gujjars could be seen allegedly attacking Jats in large numbers.
The Police were informed about the clash and firing incident. Jat youth Happy, Ladi, Manjinder Singh, Billa, Jiddu, Simar, Angrej, Nishan, Gullu and Avtar were identified as involved in the firing incident. Out of these, Police arrested Billa and Jiddu.
Sarpanch narrated Jats’ side of the story
Speaking to The Khalas TV, Inayatpur Sarpanch Nirmal Singh said he came to know about the firing incident around 11 AM. When he reached the spot, the injured and dead were already taken to the hospital by the Police.
He said everything started after the bullock cart of Jats got hit by Muslim Gujjar’s tractor. The bullock cart overturned, and a person sitting on it got injured. There was a verbal argument between the two sides, after which the Muslim Gujjars, who always carry batons etc., with them, hit the Jats, and one of the Jats sustained injuries on the head.
At around 10 AM second scuffle broke out between the two communities. Several people were injured. Jats claimed Muslim Gujjars burnt the straw themselves, but Muslim Gujjars claimed Jats burnt it. Later at around 11 AM, the firing incident happened.
After that group of Muslim Gujjars came to Jats’ house and started banging the houses, there were hundreds of people gathered in the village. He said no one knows who fired the shots. It is notable he claimed Police were present at the scene, but they were outnumbered.
Singh, who himself had shifted from the village three months ago, said the main reason for him leaving the village was Muslim Gujjars. He said when they started shifting to the village, he had requested them to ensure their animals did not cause any trouble to the locals. However, they did not listen. “The area around the river remains dirty because of the buffaloes of Muslim Gujjars,” he said. Other reports have also mentioned that the locals had an argument with the Muslim Gujjars in the past because of the problems caused by the animals.
‘No one knows from where they came’
Singh said the Muslim Gujjars came to the village around ten years ago. When questioned where they came from, he said no one knew their background and no one ever asked them. He further added there were three Muslim Gujjar families, and all of them had over a hundred animals. Only a few of them are registered, voters.
Jats left the village for a few days
He further said after the incident, the Jats got so scared of the Muslim Gujjar community that all the Jat families temporarily left the village. In the report, Khalas TV had mentioned that the families started to come back with heavy police presence on March 29.
He said most of the men of Jat families had rushed to hospital. There were only women in the houses when people of the Muslim Gujjar community reached the village and started banging doors of the houses.
Contents of the FIR
An FIR under Sections 302, 307, 341, 436, 148, 149, 25 and 27 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered in the matter. OpIndia accessed a copy of the FIR based on the complaint registered by Surmu’s father Ferozdeen. In his complaint, 50-years-old, Ferozdeen said that he had lived in the village for a long time and indulged in cattle farming. Since the day he shifted to the village, everyone was against him and wanted him to leave. He alleged when the daughters of his house go out to buy fodder, the young men of the village gather and harass them.
FIR copy. Source: Punjab Police
On the day of the incident, when his relative Karim was going to buy fodder with his sons Makkhan and Bagu on their tractor trolley, Billa and Jindu blocked the road with their bullock cart on which they were bringing fodder. When his relative requested them to move the bullock cart, they moved it a little on the side. Makkhan tried to take the tractor from the side, but it hit the bullock cart and turned it upside down. Ferozdeen said he was present at the scene with his son.
His relative apologized to Billa and Jindu and helped them in getting the cart fixed. However, Jindu called his home, and around 15-20 men rushed to the spot. They allegedly beat up Karim and others. Ferozdeen and his son somehow pacified the situation.
Later they came and burnt down the dry fodder at his relative’s house. When his relatives tried to stop them, they thrashed his relatives. Later at around 11 AM, they came with weapons, including pistols and rifles. They fired shots at the Muslim Gujjars, and one of the bullets hit Sumurudeep. Another bullet hit Ali, who also fell down.
Three arrests so far
Speaking to OpIndia, SHO Harsandeep Singh said that the Police arrested three of the accused. Out of these three, one was sent to judicial custody by the court, and two were in Police remand. They were scheduled to appear in court on April 5. When asked about the boycott of the Muslim Gujjar community by Jats, SHO Singh said he got no such information.
Minority panel sought report
After the incident, a two-person delegation of the Punjab State Minority Commission visited the village to take stock of the situation. Lal Hussain and Dr Subhash Masih Thoba, accompanied by SP Detective Manoj Thakur and DSPs Gurmeet Singh and Ravinder Singh, visited the village and talked to the family members and investigation officers. They sought a report by the Police by March 30.
Farmer unions blamed Muslim Gujjars
On March 29, members of the farmer union Bharti Kisan Union (Rajewal) protested outside the District Administrative Complex (DAC) and handed a memorandum to the Jalandhar DC for the Chief Minister. They demanded action against the members of the Muslim Gujjar community and alleged the whole incident started because of them.
They alleged the Muslim Gujjars hit the bullock card, and an elderly of the Jat community got injured. Later, when the Jats went to the house of the Muslim Gujjars to complain against them, their family members attacked them, resulting in a clash between the two groups. The protesting farmer union members said, “We demand strict action against the members of the Muslim Gujjar community and withdrawal of FIRs against the farmers. The Punjab CM must intervene in the matter and deliver justice to the farmers.”
Notably, a day before farmer unions approached DC, SSP (Amritsar Rural) Deepak Hilori had refuted claims of any bias in the investigation. He had said, “We are investigating every angle. A special investigation team (SIT) is working on it. As far as action against Muslim Gujjars is concerned, we have not received any complaint against them so far. Only the accused have fled the village. Protection is being given to those who have returned home.”
The Uttar Pradesh Police on Tuesday arrested Hafiz Imran Warsi for issuing a bounty of Rs 1 lakh and a ‘fatwa’ against Dr Mohammad Nizam Bharti for supporting the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Bharti had showered flowers on the RSS members who had participated in a rally (padsanchalan yatra) on the occasion of Gudhi Padwa on April 2.
The rally was organized in the Mainathar area of Moradabad and Dr Mohammad Nizam Bharti and his family members had participated in the event. According to the reports, the fatwa was issued against Dr Bharti as many of the Muslim people in the locality objected to his act of showering flowers on the RSS members.
The fatwa issued by Hafiz Imran Warsi reads that Dr Mohammad Nizam Bharti should not be allowed to enter mosques and the entire Muslim community should ostracise him. The fatwa also clearly mentions that anybody who kills Dr Mohammad Nizam Bharti would be rewarded with Rs 1 lakh.
“I am a Muslim but I am also a nationalist”: Dr Nizam on his support for RSS
Dr Mohammad Nizam Bharti, meanwhile, said that he has been a staunch follower of the BJP and RSS and that he is a nationalist. “I have been following BJP and the RSS rally was passing by my residence. So I and my family showered flowers on the RSS members as a token of respect. I am a Muslim but I am also a nationalist”, he said.
He further added that Hafiz Imran possesses Talibani’s thought process. “Hafiz Imran has Talibani thought process and he is threatening the Muslim community to outlaw us. He wants me killed at any cost for supporting RSS”, he stated.
However, the Moradabad Police has confirmed that a Muslim doctor from Moradabad was threatened for his links with the RSS. The Police have registered an FIR based on the complaint filed by Dr Mohammad Nizam Bharti and have arrested Hafiz Imran Warsi in the case. The investigations are underway.
After a public exchange over Elon Musk’s poll on Twitter over the awaited ‘edit’ button, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal has jow formally welcomed the American billionaire to the company board. “I’m excited to share that we’re appointing Elon Musk to our board! Through conversations with Elon in recent weeks, it became clear to us that he would bring great value to our Board,” he wrote on the social media platform.
I’m excited to share that we’re appointing @elonmusk to our board! Through conversations with Elon in recent weeks, it became clear to us that he would bring great value to our Board.
Agrawal’s tweet came after the news of Elon Musk buying a 9.2% stake in Twitter Inc came. Musk had been hinting at building an alternative to Twitter which serves as ‘the de facto public town square’. While many people replying to Musk’s tweets expressed that the platform has failed to adhere to free speech principles, Musk further asked whether an alternative platform was needed in his exchange on March 25.
On the 4th of April, the news of Elon Musk becoming the largest shareholder in Twitter came. The share price of the Twitter stock rose about 28% in pre-market trading on the day. With his USD 3 Billion stake, Musk contributed 20% of Twitter’s network on his very first day. On Tuesday, CEO Paraga Agrawal said on Musk’s induction, “He’s both a passionate believer and intense critic of the service which is exactly what we need on Twitter, and in the boardroom, to make us stronger in the long-term. Welcome, Elon!”.
The Tesla Motors CEO has often been critical of Twitter and has made his stand unapologetically through his tweets. In December last year, when Twitter announced that Parag Agrawal would be taking over from Jack Dorsey as the company’s CEO, Musk had posted a cryptic meme that depicted Agrawal as Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin and Dorsey as Soviet secret police head Nikolai Yezhov being shoved into the water.
TWITTER INC – WILL APPOINT MUSK TO COMPANY’S BOARD TO SERVE AS A CLASS II DIRECTOR$TWTR
On the 4th of April 2022, Delhi Jal Board issued a circular announcing approximately 2 hours of leave daily for its Muslim employees during the month of Ramzan. However, the online outrage over the discriminatory treatment while several Hindus are also fasting has led to the withdrawal of the order from the Board.
Withdrawing the order, the new circular said,”A circular was issued bearing No. F. No. 524 (18)/DJB/AC(W)/2022/e-office No. 1087701 dated 04.04.2022 for short leave (approx. two hours a day) to the Muslim employees during the days of Ramzan.
Delhi Jal Board withdraws its circular for short leave (approx two hours a day) to all its Muslim employees during the days of Ramzan issued earlier. pic.twitter.com/bXJd2gXaeo
Now the competent authority vide their order has decided to withdraw the above said circular with immediate effect, the new circular added.
After Delhi Jal Board announced the leave for the Muslim employees during Ramzan while ignoring the Hindus fasting during Navratri, it led to widespread anger among the netizens. Several people expressed their anger at this selective policy.
Delhi Jal Board announced that Muslim employees would be granted a daily leave of 2 hours during the month of Ramzan. Delhi Jal Board is an agency under the Arvind Kejriwal कितने चेहरे है @ArvindKejriwal ? pic.twitter.com/ZSsRPDUahg
Delhi Jal Board announces 2 hour leave for #Muzlim employees during #Ramzan, no concession for #Hindus observing #Navratri
वाह केजरीवाल जी वाह ????
— Nishant Azad/निशांत आज़ाद?? (@azad_nishant) April 5, 2022
For now, the Delhi Government has decided to withdraw even the Ramzan leaves instead of extending the same privilege to Hindus observing Navratri fast.
