Home Blog Page 3408

Congress uses the Russia-Ukraine War to target Modi govt, had earlier fanned North-South divide: How the statement that plays petty politics

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Congress uses the Russia-Ukraine War to target Modi govt, had earlier fanned North-South divide: How the statement that plays petty politics

The All India Congress Committee has issued a statement on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War on the Congress’ Twitter handle on Monday. The statement says that the party is ‘alarmed and distressed’ over the escalation of military conflict in Ukraine, two weeks after Russia started its invasion of Ukraine.

The statement also indirectly accused the Central government’s operation to rescue Indians laced with ‘partisan propaganda’. The statement said, “It is the duty of Government of India to make all efforts to bring back our citizens and it is important to remember and recall that India has in the past undertaken successful large-scale operations by its Air Force and Navy to evacuate Indians during Gulf War, Lebanon, Libya and Iraq without indulging in partisan propaganda”.

At a time when rescue operations of Indians under the Central Government’s Operation Ganga are underway, the AICC has asked to remember how ‘large-scale rescue operations’ were carried out by India during the Congress rule as well. While close to 16,000 have already been evacuated from war-torn Ukraine, Central ministers including Gen. VK Singh, Hardeep Singh Puri, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Kiren Rijiju are themselves monitoring the rescue operations from neighbouring countries.

While tom-toming their own achievements, Congress seems to have forgotten how they endangered lives of Indians during the Libya evacuation.

What was, however, far more concerning was their first paragraph where they issued a statement on the war itself, given that when international events take place, like a war between two nations, it is the government of India that issues statements and decides the policy on how to deal with the situation. Generally, political parties do not issue statements on international conflicts.

However, this is not the first time Congress has gone beyond the foreign policy of the nation and has issued a personal official statement on matters concerning international politics. In 2021, The AICC had issued a similar patronizing statement on the Israel-Palestine issue saying it was concerned about ‘the intrusion by Israeli forces into the Holy Al Aqsa mosque during Ramzan prayers (which) ruptured the delicate peace in the region’

Earlier, the Congress itself tried to peddle its propaganda when the statement made by a Congress leader’s daughter who was evacuated from Romania was used by Rahul Gandhi to attack the Modi Government. The Congress leader had shared a selected excerpt from the NDTV interview of the student quoting, “Evacuation is a Duty, not a Favour,”

Congress Party ally in Tamil Nadu, the DMK did not spare the occasion of the war, to further its North-South divide rhetoric. By claiming that the evacuation efforts of ‘Tamil’ students needed to be accelerated, The TN government made a PR stunt by sending an additional fleet of DMK MPs to look after the operation. Here, TN Chief Minister M K Stalin was toeing the similar line Congress line to that of Rahul Gandhi when the latter claimed that India was just a “union of states” and not as a nation.

In more ways than one, Congress has cultivated an opportunity in times of calamity at a time when a war has broken out between two countries while rescue operations to bring back Indian nationals is underway. Congress and its allies seem to be playing dangerous politics, not just by issuing statements on an international event that is contrary to the stand of the Indian government but also by playing petty local politics during tumultuous times.

Russia announces ceasefire in Sumy, opens two different routes for stranded Indian students to evacuate

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Russia announces ceasefire in Sumy, opens two different routes for stranded Indian students to evacuate

Amidst the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, Russia has announced a ceasefire for many regions including Sumy. Also, Russia announced the opening of two different routes for evacuation of more than 500 stranded students in Sumy.

In a tweet, journalist Sidhant Sibal stated that two routes have been opened by Russia to allow Indian citizens to pass after it announced a ceasefire.

The first route is the one that gives passage to Indian students stranded in Sumy, Ukraine to Belgorod, Russia on the eastern side. The second route facilitates the passage of Indian students through central Ukraine.

Notably, some Indians were only allowed to get to Ukraine’s western border, rather than Russia’s eastern border. Apart from those in Sumy and Pisochyn, Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, said there aren’t many Indians remaining in Ukraine.

The Ministry of External Affairs and teams of Union Ministers stationed in Ukraine’s neighboring countries to oversee the evacuation are constantly working to ensure that Indians stuck there get safe passage.

The Indian government has repeatedly requested the Russian and Ukrainian governments to establish a safe passage for students to be evacuated. The Indian mission in Ukraine had also arranged for buses to be sent to Sumy for evacuation of Indian students.

As per reports, Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed Russian forces to protect the Indian students with “all possible efforts.” A senior Russian general, Mikhail Mizintsev, has also stated that the Russian army is working to evacuate Indians to safety.

Arindam Bagchi tweeted on March 5th “We are deeply concerned about Indian students in Sumy, Ukraine. Have strongly pressed Russian and Ukrainian governments through multiple channels for an immediate ceasefire to create a safe corridor for our students.”

According to the MEA, over 21,000 persons have already left Ukraine, and the remaining Indians who are safe in neighboring countries would be returned to India within a few days. On a daily basis, 3,000 Indians arrive in India on special flights arranged by the Indian government. In addition, the Indian Air Force is assisting with the evacuation too.

Amid Russia-Ukraine war, women in Paris go topless to protest against Vladimir Putin

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Amid Russia-Ukraine war, women in Paris go topless to protest against Vladimir Putin

Latest in the series of various sanctions, cancel culture and protests against Russia for starting military operations in Ukraine, women in Paris went topless to protest against the Russian president Vladimir Putin. A video of this has appeared on Twitter on 7th March 2022.

News agency Visegrad24 has shared a video from its Twitter handle in which many women are seen protesting topless in front of the Eifel Tower in Paris. They have painted the Ukrainian flag on their body and have painted slogans in protest of the war. The slogans read ‘Stop war Putin’, ‘Feminists against War’, ‘Slava Ukraini’, etc.

With each passing day, various governments and organizations from the West have started boycotting or sanctioning Russia one after the other. The cancel culture has not even spared the space research sector. In such times these topless protests by the women in Paris have appeared on Twitter as they express their opposition to the war and to the Russian president Vladimir Putin in particular.

In the next tweet, Visegrad24 has said that Putin had faced similar topless protests by feminist women back in 2013. At that time he had reportedly replied, “I liked it … I didn’t catch what they were shouting, I didn’t even see if they were blondes, brunettes, or chestnut-haired.”

This is not the first time that some feminist women from Europe have staged their protest going topless. Earlier in 2019, a woman from Ukraine had protested outside a polling station in Kyiv, where then-presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelenskyy had cast his vote.

Zelenskyy is now the President of Ukraine.

Amidst continued provocation, Uddhav Thackeray hopes for Chinese money, may have to scrap plans due to Modi govt’s strict policy

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Amidst continued provocation, Uddhav Thackeray hopes for Chinese money, may have to scrap plans due to Modi govt’s strict policy

After stalling the MoUs signed with Chinese companies following the Galwan Valley clash in June 2020, The Maharashtra Government is now keen on revisiting the status of Chinese investments in the state. When the Galwan Valley Clash broke out in June 2020, the Maharshtra Government was busy signing MoUs with three Chinese companies worth over ₹5,000 crores. However, after advice from the Central government, The state Industries Ministry had put the Chinese proposals on hold within a week after the clash in Galwan broke.

The Uddhav Thackeray led-Maharashtra Government had signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with three Chinese companies including Hengli ( ₹250 crores), Great Wall Motors ( ₹3,770 crores), and PMI Electro Mobility Solutions, a joint venture with Foton, ( ₹1,000 crores) in June 2020. As of now, the investment proposals remain on hold, while it has been learnt that the Maharashtra Government is keen on seeking clarity from the Centre as to whether these projects can be restarted.

While talking to the Hindustan Times, state industries minister Subhash Desai said, “The policy adopted by the state government back in 2020 over Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) still stands because the matter is of international relations. However, we are yet to receive any communication or approval from the Centre,” Arguing that the proposals are from non-strategic sectors on which guidance was sought from the Centre, the Maharashtra government arguably sees a future with China.

For this, the Maharashtra Government has written letters to different authorities allied to the Central Government on the underlying fate of the MoUs with Chinese companies. In March 2021, additional chief secretary to industries, Baldev Singh, wrote a letter to Guruprasad Mohapatra, secretary, DPIIT. A letter was also was sent to Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog, by P Anbalagan who is the CEO of Maharashtra Industries Development Corporation (MIDC), in September 2021. Reportedly, the issue was also discussed in the pre-budget meeting with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman this year.

While the Central Government has not responded on the issue yet, Maharashtra Government’s intent to revive the Chinese memoranda is quite clear. On June 25, 2020, when the decision to put the investments on hold was announced, Subhash Desai had asserted, “We have decided to put the MoUs signed with the three Chinese firms worth ₹5,020 crores on hold. However, this doesn’t mean that they have been cancelled. We will be waiting for a clear policy from the Central government on this issue before taking any decision,” Desai was also open about the possibility of the projects being implemented in the state if the relations between the two countries improve.

Even before the rising anti-China sentiment in the country which broke after the Galwan Clash, The Central Government revised its FDI policy by making approval mandatory for FDI from countries sharing land borders with India, which includes China.

Chinese Investments in Maharashtra

With a move to boost jobs in the state, Maharshtra Industries Ministry signed 12 MoUs worth ₹16,300 crores with major global companies. Pacts worth over ₹5,000 crores were signed with three Chinese firms alone, with companies like Hengli, Great Wall Motors and PMI Electro Mobility Solutions. According to a senior official from the department, the MoU with Hengli is deal with the automobile sector with the company being a major auto component manufacturer. The Maharashtra Industries Development Corporation (MIDC) was ready to allot land to the Chinese company but the decision was taken back in June.

The Great Wall Motors (GWM) wanted to buy a closed General Motors (GM) plant in Talegoan while both the companies signed an agreement in January 2020. GWM is an electric vehicle and auto-manufacturing company.

Speaking on behalf of the Chinese companies, the industries minister requested in the pre-budget meeting, “Hengli is one of the biggest investors from China…However, with the implementation of the revised FDI rules requiring companies based in neighbouring countries to receive government permission before investing in Indian business, the Chinese companies such as Hengli are still awaiting the decision by the Centre.”

While the Maharashtra state government is keen on seeking guidance from the Centre on the matters pertaining to the existing Chinese investments in the state, its ambitions to review Chinese investments while working on new proposals have caught the light of the day.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal spent ₹11 lacs of taxpayer’s money in ‘medical treatment’ of family members between Financial Year 2015-2021, reveals RTI

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal spent ₹11 lacs of taxpayer’s money in ‘medical treatment’ of family members between Financial Year 2015-2021, reveals RTI

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has spent a whopping ₹11.46 lakhs of public money on his medical treatment and that of his family between the Financial Year 2015-2021. This was revealed in a recent Right to Information (RTI) reply, which was filed by activist Vivek Pandey on December 16 last year.

In his RTI query, the activist had asked details pertaining to medical reimbursement claim for Delhi Chief Minister and his family during FY2015 to 2021.

Screengrab of the RTI query filed by activist Vivek Pandey

As per the RTI reply obtained on January 10, 2022, Arvind Kejriwal and his family have spent ₹11,46,102 of taxpayers’ money on medical treatment. While the Delhi CM spent ₹2,91,913 in FY 2015-2016, the medical expenditure was more than double at ₹7,95,453 in FY 2016-2017.

Between Financial Year 2017-2018, the taxpayers bore the cost of Kejriwal’s medical treatment to the tune of ₹54,968. However, the medical expenditure was reduced to ₹3,750 in FY 2019-2020.

In a tweet on Monday (March 7), he informed, “Arvind Kejriwal was against VIP culture but on medical expenditure, he spent ₹11,46,102. It doesn’t matter who you are, but this is (the) money of people. Why (are) political parties using people’s money for their own benefits?”

Earlier, an RTI reply obtained by activist Vivek Pandey had put the Arvind Kejriwal-led-Delhi government in dock over fund utilisation for its waste management scheme named the ‘Mukhyamantri Septic Tank Safai Yojana.’ In November 2019, the Delhi government launched the scheme to ensure the safety of sanitation workers and the proper management of waste.

The RTI reply, obtained in December last year revealed that the Delhi government allocated ₹50 crores for 2019-2020 and ₹110 crores for the period 2020-2021. Interestingly, no fund was sanctioned for the year 2021-2022 until November 21. For the first year (2019-2020), the Delhi government did not utilise any fund that was sanctioned for the cleaning of septic tanks.

Another RTI reply sought by Pandey in April last year revealed that the Delhi Government received almost Rs 35 crores under LG/CM Relief Fund from March 2020 to January 2021 but spent ‘nil’ on preventing Covid-19 in the National Capital.

Russian Defence Ministry says they found evidence of US-funded biolabs in Ukraine, deadly pathogens were ‘urgently destroyed’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Russian Defence Ministry says they found evidence of US-funded biolabs in Ukraine, deadly pathogens were ‘urgently destroyed’

On March 6, the Russian Defense Ministry said they found evidence of a US-financed military biological program developed in Ukraine during the ongoing military operation. Igor Konashenkov, the spokesman of the Russian Defense Ministry, said, “In the course of the special military operation, evidence of the Kyiv regime’s hasty measures to conceal any traces of the military biological program finance by the US Department of Defense in Ukraine has been revealed.”

RIA Novosti, a Russian state-owned domestic news agency, shared the details of the information released by the Russian Defense Ministry. The agency quoted Konashenkov saying they received information from employees of Biolabs that deadly pathogens were urgently destroyed on February 24. These pathogens included plague, anthrax, cholera, tularemia and other lethal diseases infecting agents. When Russia began its military operation in Ukraine, an instruction was issued by the Ukrainian health ministry to urgently destroy the pathogens in their possession, as per the Russians.

Screenshot from RIA’s account translated from Russian to English using Google Translate.

He said, “Obviously, after the launch of the special military operations, Pentagon became afraid that secret biological experiments in Ukraine will be exposed. We will share the results of the analysis of the documents we have received in the near future. Some of them, in particular the Ukrainian health ministry’s instruction to destroy pathogens and certificates of completion from the Kharkiv and Poltava bio laboratories we are publishing right now.”

Documents shared by Russian Defense Ministry. Source: RIA

The Russian Defense Ministry said they received a series of documents that confirmed that Ukrainian Biolabs that were in close vicinity of Russian territory were developing biological weapons components. The ministry further claimed to prevent the disclosure of the work carried out in these labs by the United States and Ukraine that was in clear violation of Article 1 of the UN Convention on the Prohibition of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons, the Ukrainian authorities instructed the labs to eliminate the stock of dangerous pathogens.

Russia has accused the US to fund and operating Biolabs in Ukraine

On several occasions, Russia has accused the US and Ukraine of developing bio-weapons close to its borders. In 2021, while talking about the inability of the World Health Organisation to establish the origin of the Covid-19 virus, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev told a Kommersant reporter that Russia believed the US was developing bio-weapons near its borders.

He claimed Russia has good reason to believe that the US was developing bioweapons in Ukraine. “Not a day goes by at the headquarters of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague that the Americans and their allies do not come forward with another chapter of the anti-Russian chemical dossier,” he added.

‘Ralive, Tsalive, Galive’: The Kashmir Files should shake our collective conscience and make our politicians, media who quietly let Kashmiri Hindus die accountable

Nirwa Mehta
-
0
‘Ralive, Tsalive, Galive’: The Kashmir Files should shake our collective conscience and make our politicians, media who quietly let Kashmiri Hindus die accountable

Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files releases this Friday, March 11. Last evening a special screening was held in Delhi which I had the privilege of attending. I am not a film critic, so the following is not a film review. Plus, how do you ‘review’ tragedies of people who have lived the trauma? These are a collection of my thoughts on seeing something on screen that sent a chill down my spine.

“Nirwa, the atrocities inflicted on us dismissed by the media, politicians and academics of India and it took someone 32 years to tell our story,” a Kashmiri Hindu friend of mine tells me. He and his family lived in camps in Jammu for a few years after the Islamic terrorists backed and supported by Pakistan as well as some Indian politicians whose hearts beat for Pakistan, unleashed terror. “You watched a virtual depiction of our reality, our lived trauma packed in less than 3 hours and that made you cry, we have lived through it,” he tells me.

There is nothing in the film we don’t already know. That the terrorists like Yasin Malik got tacit support and endorsement from those in power and the ‘intellectuals’ is not a secret.

Terrorist Yasin Malik with the then PM Dr Manmohan Singh, Arundhati Roy (author and ‘activist’), Farooq Abdullah (ex-Kashmir CM) and Hafeez Saeed (terrorist)

Just look at the happy faces. Dr Manmohan Singh, the then Prime Minister of India invited JKLF terrorist Yasin Malik ‘for talks’. He had also met Dr Singh in 2006 where he had claimed he asked the government to hold talks with ‘militant leaders’. Essentially, the Congress ruled government negotiated with terrorists. Yasin Malik is one of the terrorists belonging to Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).

Another JKLF terrorist, Farooq Ahmad Dar alias Bitta Karate confessed on camera that he had killed 20 Kashmiri Hindus.

He apparently got ‘orders’ to kill Kashmiri Hindus from other top terrorists of JKLF. The first person he killed was Satish Kumar Tickoo, who was also his friend.

Speaking of which, the Kashmiri Hindu friend of mine tells me how at one point, a few years after the exodus, he along with his mother went back to their old home to get some paperwork done. They went to his mother’s friend’s house for tea and snacks. The friend had promised to take care of the house and keep things safe for them. Except, when they left, his mother was silent for a while. While having tea it had dawned on her that the carpet they were sitting on was from their old home they had left behind.

The stories of Muslim neighbours turning on their Hindu neighbours are so many from the valley that they are now unbelievable. Except, when you see the particular scene in the film which shows this deceit it leaves you with stunned silence. The scene is brutal on so many levels that the liberal cynic in me wanted to sometimes dismiss it as creative freedom. I had to remind myself that no, this actually happened.

That Islamists chanted ‘Ralive, tsalive, galive’ ‘convert (to Islam), run or die’ on the streets of Kashmir. That they announced these from the loudspeakers of the mosques, asking Kashmiri Hindu men to leave the valley, leaving behind their women so that they can finally have their ‘azaadi’ (freedom). As Mithun Chakraborty very correctly said in the film that ‘Azaadi’ is the song of terrorism. It is, therefore, shocking when one saw the same ‘azaadi’ chants, most of which were raised by Muslim mobs on the streets of Delhi in 2019-2020. The ‘liberals’ of India, too, have romanticised the idea of ‘freedom of Kashmir’. Except, because they live in their bubble and echo chamber, they don’t realise that the terrorists’ slogans they are chanting actually want to ‘free’ Kashmir from the ‘kafirs’.

What is even more astonishing is that it took someone 32 years to tell the story of Kashmiri Hindus. Minus the romanticisation of terrorism or justifying them picking up arms. Even then, there are people who believe there was no exodus, that there was no genocide, that Kashmiri Hindus were not forced out of their homes but they left at their own free will. Many have ‘justified’ the exodus claiming how the ‘monopoly’ of Kashmiri Hindus in government jobs irked the Muslims who were ‘oppressed’ and hence they picked up arms. In 32 years, we haven’t quite heard of the Kashmiri Hindus picking up arms despite having survived rapes, witnessing murders, living in absolute poverty after being driven away from homes and countless cruelty inflicted upon them by Islamists.

Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it. Whether Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files is a cinematic brilliance or not is not the question here. The fact that he dared to make a movie about something that is pushed under the rug for 32 years now itself deserves an applaud. Every Indian must watch this movie, not only because it is very well made with brilliant performances but because we need to know what our school history books have not taught us.

So that ‘azaadi’ chants do not drive away more Hindus from their homes and that when the time comes when Kashmiri Hindus return to their homes in the valley, their wounds are healed.

Republic Bharat beats all news channels in daily real-time live stream viewership on YouTube

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Republic Bharat beats all news channels in daily real-time live stream viewership on YouTube

Republic Bharat leads in live viewing on YouTube, according to daily figures given by Data Beings, a data analytics business. It is the most-watched live channel on YouTube for most of the day, especially during prime time, outperforming all other rivals.

The figures were released on Twitter by Data Beings, who presented the viewership data of several Hindi news stations and their views from 8 AM to 10 PM. The numbers clearly show that live views of Republic Bharat range from 50 to 280 thousand, with peak viewing times exceeding 350 thousand views.

According to Data Beings, Republic Bharat dominated for most of the day on YouTube Hindi News Live Views on March 6, with Aaj Tak moving ahead in select non-prime times. On Republic, the peak time crossed 244 thousand views.

Live Views on March 6

The YouTube Hindi news live views on March 5 showed an upward trend, with Republic Bharat continuing to top even the non-prime slot since March 1. On Republic, the peak viewership reached 285 thousand.

Live Views on March 5

Republic Bharat took the lead on March 4 in both prime and non-prime samples. There was a contest with Aaj Tak for a few non-prime spots. The peak view was recorded 250 thousand for Republic.

Live Views on March 4

On March 3, the viewership of Republic Bharat continued to lead with it reaching 351 thousand views in the peak hours.

Live Views on March 3

Similar trends were noted on March 2, where there was a close contest visible between Republic Bharat and Aaj Tak but the former dominated the prime-time segment with over 351 thousand views.

Live Views on March 2

Republic Bharat lags in monthly and weekly viewership

From the data mentioned above, it is clearly discernible that Republic Bharat is the leading Hindi news channel viewed live on YouTube. However, it is notable that it is lagging in the monthly and weekly views gained on any YouTube video.

In weekly viewership, data sampled and analyzed shows that Republic Bharat is in the top 5 watched news channels on YouTube but is not in the first position as seen in live real-time viewership. The image below shows the weekly data from February 26 to March 4.

Weekly data from February 26 to March 4

Similarly, in monthly viewership, data sampled and analyzed shows that Republic Bharat is in the top 5 watched news channels on YouTube but is not in the first position as seen in live real-time viewership. The image below shows the monthly viewership data for February. Zee News bags the top position in both these categories.

Monthly viewership data for February

What does this data imply?

It is necessary to comprehend what these patterns entail. Rising live viewership indicates that the channel is being seen more frequently in real-time and that its users do not choose to watch dated news content.

According to the findings, Republic Bharat viewers prefer to watch the channel live during the day, especially during prime-time hours. Monthly and weekly viewing lags suggest that other channels’ news videos are seen more after they are uploaded rather than in real-time.

High monthly and weekly viewership of any channel implies people watch the channel more when it is not live. It may be accomplished by uploading a segment of the news as a separate video and disseminating it using various search engine optimization techniques.

‘Liberals’ get #MeToo accused MJ Akbar off speaker list from Jaipur Lit Fest but Festival Director who is also #MeToo accused stays

OpIndia Staff
-
0
‘Liberals’ get #MeToo accused MJ Akbar off speaker list from Jaipur Lit Fest but Festival Director who is also #MeToo accused stays

Veteran journalist and former BJP Minister MJ Akbar was recently removed from the speaker’s list at the virtual edition of Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF), over ‘unproven’ accusations of MeToo levelled against him in 2018. JLF 2022 is scheduled to be held virtually between March 5 and March 14 this year.

The development came at the backdrop of ‘liberal outrage’ on social media, prompting the organisers of JLF to take such stringent action. The controversy, over the selection of MJ Akbar as a speaker, began after ‘journalist’ Peter Griffin posted about it on Twitter.

In a tweet on Saturday (March 5), he wrote, “Look at who is on the JLF speaker list.” Griffin had posted the screenshot of the ‘speaker bio’ page of MJ Akbar. He remarked, “I see many lovely people I know on the JLF list. I know it is a fabulous platform for writers. But I wonder what they think about appearing in the same list.”

Screengrab of the tweet by Peter Griffin

Liberals demand removal of MJ Akbar as JLF speaker

Following his tweet, liberals demanded the de-platforming of journalist MJ Akbar from the virtual event of Jaipur Literature Festival 2022.

‘Writer’ Sandhya tweeted, “Mr Akbar took a woman to court for talking about sexual harassment at his hands. Effectively trying (to) bully her and others who had the same experience into silence. Now he has a new book out and is a speaker at JLF. @JaipurLitFest tell us why you thought this was okay.”

Screengrab of the tweet by Sandhya

“What compulsions the @JaipurLitFest has to invite MJ Akbar?? It’s an affront to women,” tweeted author Mini Nair.

Screengrab of the tweet by Mini Nair

Urdu language professor Pasha Khan accused the organisers of the Jaipur Literature Festival of harbouring rapists and alleged sexual predators. “The @JLFLitfest platforming MJ Akbar after he was accused of sexual harassment is the least surprising thing on earth, given that it platformed a rapist last year,” he alleged.

Screengrab of the tweet by Pasha Khan

“Do you really need the Twitterati to constantly remind you not to platform MJ Akbar, CP Surendran or the many harassers against whom women have come out on record? I think not,” wrote another ‘author’ Kavitha Rao.

Screengrab of the tweet by Kavitha Rao

Postdoctoral Fellow at Columbia University Christine Marrewa, claimed that the acclaimed Jaipur Literature Festival has a ‘tradition’ of providing a platform to sexual predators to ‘reform their image’. She tweeted, “The only real excuse one may still have for participating in this event is that they lack any integrity.”

Screengrab of the tweet by Christine Marrewa

CNN News18 anchor Ridhima Bhatnagar alleged that inviting MJ Akbar as a speaker at the Jaipur Literature Festival was a ‘mockery’ of justice.

Screengrab of the tweet Ridhima Bhatnagar

Jaipur Literature Festival remove page featuring MJ Akbar as ‘speaker’

Liberals on social media were successful in exercising their veto power. ‘Journalist’ Peter Griffin, who had started the controversy, informed that the name of the former Minister was removed from the list of speakers at the virtual event.

“There were 434 names when I last looked. I guess it comes down to whether that list becomes 433 quickly, or a much smaller number…And so, that page has been removed, as has item 46 in the schedule,” he informed.

Screengrab of the tweets

MeToo movement and liberal immunity to William Dalrymple

Interestingly, the website of Jaipur Literature Festival features ‘author’ William Dalrymple as one of its founders and co-Director. This is despite the fact that he has been accused of sexually predatory behaviour by multiple women.

In October 2018, Scroll employee Karnika Kohli put out a cryptic tweet asking whether everyone will remain silent over William Dalrymple. Women who felt uncomfortable around him or while talking to him over the social media platforms took the hint, and a few came forward to tell their stories.

The most detailed version of his behaviour towards young women was posted by one Preetha. She said that he sent her a random friend request on Facebook, which, as his fan, she did not find alarming. However, he started to compliment her a lot which made her feel uncomfortable.

He also asked her out for dinner and drinks. When she told him she would think about going out for dinner with him, “he replied with many winks and kiss smileys,” she said. She said that she should have snapped when he randomly asked her for dinner and called him out for being creepy.

To her post, many people said that it should have been taken as normal as it is not wrong for someone to ask a woman out for dinner or drinks that forced Preetha to write a long note. She said, “It is disheartening not at all shocking that men are questioning my intentions instead of Dalrymple’s in this case although other women have shared that they have heard of/had similar encounters with him.”

Screengrab of the author profile of William Dalrymple

She further added that refusing to admit his actions are not similar to the actions of a new male colleague as a new colleague will have a reason to know her better than William did not have. After telling him that she was his fan, his actions felt like “he is exerting his power, unlike the colleague.”

Another user MissKandpal concurred what Preetha had to say. She said she was asked to meet over dinner as well. Author and political analyst Shubhrastha also pointed out unsolicited messages from Dalrymple and said her cold reply might have saved her from such dinner requests.

In October 2018, multiple women took to social media platforms and called out their sexual predators across industries like media, advertising, academia, the film industry and even the comedy circuit which prides itself in being the ‘liberal’ voice of India. While MJ Akbar has been de-platformed, liberals ensured that William Dalrymple continues to remain the co-Director of JLF. This is despite the multiple allegations of #MeToo against him.

Chhattisgarh police slaps charges related to pornography, fake news after arresting journalist over writing satire mocking Congress leaders

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Chhattisgarh police slaps charges related to pornography, fake news after arresting journalist over writing satire mocking Congress leaders

Raipur Police has released a multi-point press release over the arrest of journalist Nilesh Sharma. Outlook’s journalist Ashutosh Bhardwaj shared screenshots of the release issued by the Raipur Police. It has been claimed by the police that they have found incriminating material on Sharma’s phone including evidence of blackmailing, pornography and fake news.

Sharma, who was arrested on March 2 under Section 504, 505, 505 (1) (b) and 505 (2) of the Indian Penal Code, had applied for bail but it was rejected by the lower court. Sharma’s website is down since his arrest.

‘Sharma illegally obtained call records’

The Police claimed to have found additional evidence on his phone that they had confiscated from him at the time of the arrest. The Police alleged Sharma gained access to someone’s call records via a Police Officer. As per the law, only investigating agencies can get access to someone’s call records that too after submitting a request with a valid reason. However, in this case, the call records were obtained illegally. The Police Officer who provided the call records is under the scanner as well.

The Police claimed Sharma took money from many people on the pretext of getting work done and there were chats where they have asked him to return the money as the work was not done. The Police added that those people will be questioned during the investigation.

‘He was in touch with prostitutes and forwarded pornographic cotent’

Raipur Police further alleged Sharma had pornographic content on his phone and forwarded it to several people which is an offence under the IT Act. The Police might question those who received pornographic content from Sharma.

The Police alleged he was in contact with prostitutes and used objectionable and indecent language while talking to some women. “Similar chats were also found between Sharma and other men,” the Police claimed.

‘Evidence of fake news found’

The Police alleged they found a chat between Sharma and other people that indicated they were working together with an agenda to spread fake news. “All of them will be questioned,” said the Police.

‘He blackmailed under the guise of journalism’

The Police further alleged Sharma used his position as a journalist to blackmail and intimidate several people. The Police would question the victims later during the investigation.

‘Confidential documents found’

The Police alleged to have found official confidential documents on Sharma’s mobile phone. The Police said such documents can only be obtained with the help of a government officer or employee. Further investigation would be done on how he gained access to such documents.

The arrest of Nilesh Sharma

On March 2, journalist Nilesh Sharma was arrested by Raipur Police in Chhattisgarh for his popular political satire. He was accused of spreading fake news. Sharma, who is the editor of the web portal indiawriters.co.in and print magazine ‘India Writers’, uns a popular series based on political satire in the name of ‘Gharwa Ke Mati’. The series uses fictional characters resonating with the Congress leaders and MLAs in Chhattisgarh.

A little known Congress worker Khilwan Nishad complained to Sharma and accused him of using derogatory language against the Congress leaders of the state. The cyber cell of the Police immediately acted upon the complaint and arrested Sharma late in the night.

Nishad accused the journalist of favouring the BJP and the RSS and said that he is a part of ‘Godi media’. He alleged that through his show ‘Gharwa Ke Mati’, Sharma is deliberately using derogatory language against the Congress leaders. “The portal indiawriters.co.in is spreading negativity and drawing a wedge among the leaders and office bearers of Congress”, he added in the FIR. Nilesh Sharma was produced before a local court and was arrested on Thursday evening.

Notably, the same web portal ran a similar series that was highly critical of the then Raman Singh-led BJP govt. Earlier in the month of October, two journalists of another web portal were arrested for allegedly publishing content against the Congress lawmakers in the state and extorting money from them.

1...3,4073,4083,409...7,584Page 3,408 of 7,584