The Union government opposed the full re-opening of the controversial Nizamuddin Markaz building in southeast Delhi, the epicentre of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country during the first wave, and submitted that only a few people could be allowed to offer prayers at the mosque in the complex during the festival of Shab-e-Baraat.
According to reports, the centre said that a few people might be allowed to offer prayers on the upcoming Shab-e-Baraat as fully opening of the Markaz would hamper the investigation in connection with a Tablighi Jamaat event held at the Nizamuddin Markaz, an event that emerged as the Covid-19 epicentre in March 2020.
In its affidavit, the Centre submitted to the court that it was necessary and incumbent to preserve the Markaz property as the investigation in the case registered for violation of the Covid-19 protocols has “cross borders implications and involves nation’s diplomatic relations with other countries”.
Delhi Waqf Board had filed a petition seeking the complete reopening of the Markaz building, which was sealed for violating Covid-19 norms during the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in March 2020. The application was filed seeking to reopen the premises comprising the Banglewali Masjid, Madarsa Kashif-ul-Uloom and attached hostel, which are currently locked up.
However, the centre argued that the mosque is a case property, and the petitioner board has no locus to seek its reopening. The counsel said even on earlier occasions, a concession was made to allow a few people to offer prayers, and the Centre had no objection to allowing a few people if certain conditions were fulfilled.
During Ramzan last year, the court had allowed 50 people to offer namaz five times a day at the Nizamuddin Markaz, contending there is no direction in the DDMA notification to close down places of worship.
The Nizamuddin Markaz – the epicenter of Covid-19 in India
In March 2020, hundreds of people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz tested positive for coronavirus. Reportedly, thousands of people had travelled to attend the event from various states. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, 1746 people lived in Markaz, including 216 foreign nationals. The Delhi government said that the congregation violated the Covid-19 protocols in place that prohibited large gatherings.
Countering the allegations, Markaz claimed that they had not flouted any rules and ended the congregation when the nationwide lockdown was imposed. In addition, it alleged that several of the participants were stuck as no mode of transport was available.
From the Markaz, Tablighi Jamaat members travelled all over India, often hiding their travel details and avoiding quarantine. Those members that were caught and sent to institutional quarantine centres were found misbehaving with healthcare staff and creating a nuisance.
On March 31 last year, Delhi Police registered a case against the officials of the Markaz, including Maulana Saad, under sections of Epidemic Disease Act,1897 and Section 269, 270, 271, and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code. By April 3, 2020, 30% of the Covid cases in India were reportedly linked to the congregation that took place at the Markaz.
The Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections are in their last leg now. The 6th phase of voting has just concluded and the 7th phase is scheduled for 7th March. With result day only days away (10th March), Congress scion Rahul Gandhi seems to be making a last-ditch effort to garner some residual votes by lying through his teeth and dragging in Hinduism to make his lies seem elaborate.
While the Uttar Pradesh Elections are on, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra are already on a temple run. Hours before PM Modi was supposed to pray at the Kashi Vishwanath temple, Rahul and Priyanka reached there as a part of their seasonal-Hindu program.
However, right after visiting the temple, Rahul Gandhi peddled a long-debunked lie against PM Modi and dragged in Hinduism to provide more impact to his lie. Speaking in Varanasi, Rahul Gandhi repeated the “Rs 15 lakh” lie.
He said, “Never seen a religion telling you to lie, let alone Hinduism…I’ll die but never tell you that I’ll deposit Rs 15 Lakh to your accounts…I respect you enough to not lie to you. Modi Ji lies&says he protects Hinduism; no, he protects lies”.
#WATCH | Varanasi | Never seen a religion telling you to lie, let alone Hinduism…I’ll die but never tell you that I’ll deposit Rs 15 Lakh to your accounts…I respect you enough to not lie to you. Modi Ji lies&says he protects Hinduism; no, he protects lies: Rahul Gandhi(04.03) pic.twitter.com/npxw476nnp
In the past 7 years, the lie about PM Modi promising the deposit of Rs 15 lakhs in every citizen’s account has been repeated over and over by various political opponents of PM Narendra Modi.
However, this assertion is just that – a lie.
The speech that Rahul Gandhi is now lying about is from the 7th of November 2013 when PM Modi was addressing a public rally in Chhattisgarh.
While speaking about Black Money stashed abroad, Modi said rhetorically that the amount stashed abroad is so large that if the Indian government could succeed in bringing back all of that, then every citizen would get 15 lakh rupees in their account.
Modi said, “The whole world says that crooks in India deposit their money in banks abroad. Black money is hoarded abroad in banks. My brothers and sisters of Kanker, tell me, this stolen money should be brought back or not? Should we take back every penny hoarded by these crooks? Doesn’t the public have a right over this money? Should this money not be utilized for the welfare of the people? If even once, the money hoarded by these crooks in banks abroad, even if we bring only that back, every poor Indian would get free of cost Rs 15 to Rs 20 lakhs, just like that. There’s so much money.”
Quite clearly, Narendra Modi was making a rhetorical point about the amount of black money stashed abroad and was hinting at the strict measures his government would take when it came to power. He was not actually promising to deliver 15 lakh rupees to every citizen’s account.
This lie has been repeated ad nauseam before every election and other occasions as well by politicians of the Congress party, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra despite facts being put to the fore several times.
In this occasion, Rahul Gandhi did not only peddle this lie but also dragged Hinduism to give his lie more heft, in his mind.
He said that Narendra Modi claims to protect Hinduism but he lies and that no religion teaches to lie. There was essentially no need to drag in Hinduism into the discourse in a political speech targeting a political opponent. Ironically, Rahul Gandhi said that those who protect Hinduism don’t lie and goes on to lie, thereby admitting that he is the last person who can protect Hinduism.
This is not the first time that Rahul Gandhi has dragged in Hinduism for no apparent reason. Recently, Rahul Gandhi had blamed Hindutva for inflation.
He had started off with a lot of philosophy saying that two ‘jeevs’ cannot have one ‘aatma’. He then asked the rhetorical question to the stunned audience whether two lives can have the same soul. When he did not get an answer, he answered it himself and said how two words don’t have the same meaning. After a lot of buildups, he said that the two words he was speaking about ‘Hindu’ and ‘Hindutvawadi’. The rally was to protest against inflation and high prices, but somehow, Rahul Gandhi thought this was the perfect time to talk about Hindu and Hindutva.
British supermarket chain Sainsbury has decided to rename ‘Chicken Kiev’ to ‘Chicken Kyiv’ to support Ukraine amidst the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. According to reports, Sainsbury’s – the UK’s second-biggest supermarket said they would be changing the packaging of the dish to reflect the change in the next few weeks, switching the Soviet-era name for the country’s capital for the Ukrainian version.
Kiev was the standardised spelling of the Ukrainian capital during Soviet rule. However, after its breakdown in 1991, the spelling was changed to ‘Kyiv’, to reflect Ukrainian ethos.
Not only did the chain decide to change the spelling, but also remove all products sourced from Russia. “We stand united with the people of Ukraine. We have reviewed our product range and have decided to remove from sale all products that are 100% sourced from Russia,” a spokesperson for Sainsbury’s said.
The move comes after several vendors in the UK announced a switch to Chicken ‘Kyiv’, including the Better Naked brand and Essex-based Our Local Butcher, and Marks & Spencer. Chicken Kiev, a popular dish across Europe, is chicken breast stuffed with cold herb-infused butter. The marinated chicken is then coated in flour, eggs and breadcrumbs before being deep-fried or baked.
In addition to Chicken Kiev, the supermarket chain will no longer sell two other Russian products – Russian Standard vodka and Karpayskiye black sunflower seeds.”
Sainsbury’s also said it had also reviewed JJ Whitley products, a range of vodkas and other spirits made in Russia.
Meanwhile, other supermarkets such as Waitrose, Aldi and Morrisons have also decided to withdraw Russian-made vodka from their shelves to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine.
In a statement, Waitrose said that it would not be selling Russian vodka, while its sister department store chain, John Lewis, will take off pizza oven pellets that are sourced from Russia.
Aldi has also decided to remove Russian vodka on Friday after the Co-op and Morrisons decided to boycott the Russian products earlier this week.
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, the Ukrainian Navy’s flagship Hetman Sahaidachny (U 130) was seen in a partially submerged state. According to reports, Ukraine has sunk its own frigate in an attempt to prevent Russia from securing a major propaganda win. As there are fears that Russia may capture the port city Odessa, Ukraine does not want Russia to lay its hands on the ship as a major battlefield trophy.
Images of the sunk vessel appeared on social media on Thursday 3rd March 2022 in which the ship is shown sitting half-submerged on one side. This ship is a 3,100-ton displacement Krivak III/Menzhinskiy class frigate and it is insufficient to take on Russia’s mammoth Black Sea fleet. But if in case Russia seizes it, this would gain a major propaganda win to Russia in the ongoing war.
The flagship of the Ukrainian navy Hetman Sahaidachny has been reportedly scuttled in Mykolaiv, Satellite Imagery from Feb 28 shows the ship close to the pier at the time. pic.twitter.com/xr6ODLaKrX
Confirming the development, Ukrainian defense minister Oleksiy Reznikov has said, “The commander of the flagship of the Ukrainian Navy followed the order to flood the ship so that the Hetman Sahaidachny frigate, which was under repair, would not fall into the hands of the enemy. It is hard to imagine a more difficult decision for a courageous soldier and crew.”
The minister added that in the future Ukraine will build a new fleet, “modern and powerful.”
Hetman Sahaidachny was supposedly the pride of the Ukrainian Navy. The ship had a 100mm deck gun, smaller guns, anti-submarine grenade launchers, torpedo tubes, and a helicopter. The ship had taken an active part in ‘Operation Active Endeavour’ in the Mediterranean Sea, aimed to prevent the movement of terrorists. It has also taken part in NATO’s “Operation Ocean Shield,” an anti-piracy campaign off the Horn of Africa.
This ship was decimated in the Crimean war of 2014, after which Ukraine had lost its primary base in Sevastopol, 12 of its 17 major surface combatants, most of its naval aviation assets, as Russia had annexed the Crimea peninsula. The main centers for repair, maintenance, training, and depot facilities had gone under the control of Russian forces.
The frigate was not active at present, as it was undergoing repairs and modernization work at Mykolayiv Shipyard in Mykolayiv, also known as Nikolaev.
Meanwhile, a large flotilla of Russian ships near Crimea is seen in some videos on Twitter. The fleet includes eight Russian tank landing ships, which were previously used for a landing between Berdyansk and Mariupol.
The Uttar Pradesh Police registered an FIR in the Saharanpur rape case where a Dalit girl was raped and poisoned to death. This is after the family of the girl submitted a video to the Police in which the victim herself has narrated the incident. On Thursday, the Police arrested a person named Sahil for attempting to rape a Dalit girl and then poisoning her in the Dehat Kotwali area of Saharanpur. The girl was recovered in a very critical condition from a nearby Bijopuri forest and was immediately shifted to the hospital where she was declared dead.
According to the initial reports, the girl who was studying in class 9 had left her home for school exams. While on her way to school, the accused from the same village had abducted her and took her to a hotel. He abused her and made several attempts to rape her. The girl kept on resisting his attempts to sexually assault her. The accused then forcefully poisoned her and abandoned her in the nearby Bijopuri forest area.
In an update to the case, the complainants have revealed that Sahil was not the only person to attack the girl. He was accompanied by one more person who is yet to be identified. The girl in the video has specifically mentioned that Sahil had poisoned her through some liquid after he raped her in a hotel. He then threw her in critical condition in the forest.
While confirming the arrest of Sahil, Saharanpur police said the Police was taking prompt actions in the case. Talking to OpIndia, Saharanpur SSP Akash Tomar said, “Necessary legal action is being taken after registering a case. The accused has been arrested. The situation will be more clear after the medical reports arrive. Accordingly, further legal action will be taken.”
थाना कोतवाली देहात पुलिस द्वारा तत्काल मुकदमा पंजीकृत कर त्वरित कार्यवाही करते हुए नामजद अभियुक्त शाहिल को गिरफ्तार कर लिया है। अग्रिम आवश्यक कानूनी कार्यवाही की जा रही है।
The video of the deceased is making rounds over social media. In the viral video, the victim is seen lying on the stretcher of the hospital. In the video, a woman is heard saying, “I don’t know, I had sent her to the school to give the paper. The schoolmaster and 6 men came and informed us about our daughter’s condition”. The video has been accessed by Opindia in which the victim is seen going through a lot of pain.
In yet another video accessed by OpIndia, the victim can be seen sitting on a bike between two of her family members. In that video, the relatives of the deceased are asking her – who gave you the poison? In response, the minor says – Sahil. Doctors have revealed the age of the girl to be 16 years.
Victim girl lying on the stretcher in the hospital
OpIndia further spoke to Rajneesh, cousin brother of the deceased. He said that his uncle (father of the deceased) works as a labourer. We are from the Dalit community. Our house is on the side of the road. Sahil is from our own village. He is an adult and his age is around 20 years. He usually visited our house and probably was keeping a watch on my sister.
“We protested his actions and complained about him to his family several times. Sahil’s family members just kept saying that we will make him understand but to no avail. After the incident, we called Sahil’s family members to tell them about his act. But no one came from his house”, he added.
Bajrang Dal people have helped a lot: Victim’s family
Rajneesh further said, “Ever since the incident with our family members has gone viral on social media, many people from outside the village are calling and talking to us, expressing their concerns. But no Dalit organization present here has taken the cognizance of the incident even once. The Bajrang Dal people have been with us since the beginning. They have helped us a lot.”
Final rites of the victim girl
Talking to OpIndia, the brother of the deceased further stated that the entire family was very sad over whatever has happened. “We are all very sad. We’ve performed the last rites of my sister at the cremation ground in the village itself. We are not properly aware of what further action has been taken in this case so far”, he said.
Family of the victim girl performing her last rites
‘Sahil had help from an accomplice to rape, poison my daughter’: Victim’s mother
The incident was reported to the police by the mother of the deceased. She while speaking to OpIndia said that Sahil had kept an eye on her daughter for a long time. “We had asked him to stay away from us, so he took revenge on my daughter. On March 3, Sahil abducted my daughter from the school on his bike. One of his friends was helping him. My other daughter saw all this and came home and informed. When we started searching for our daughter, she was found unconscious on a rough road to Topri. In the same condition, she told that Sahil, along with his friend, raped her. After that they gave her poison through some liquid and threw her in the forest”, she added.
The FIR report signed by her mother further read, “When we called Sahil, he said that I have left your daughter in Bijopura. We went to the Kotwali area where we found our daughter. From there we took her to the government hospital under police protection. After some time the doctors at the hospital declared my daughter dead.”
The Copy of FIR accessed by Opindia
According to the reports, the police has also registered a case against the other person who had accompanied Sahil in the crime. A case has been registered against the accused under sections 328, 302, 376 – D, and section 3 (2) (v) of the SC / ST Act. However, Opindia contacted Inspector Kotwali Dehat Saharanpur for an update on the incident so far. He said, “So far no other accomplice of Sahil has come to light in this incident. Sahil has confessed his crime. He says that he has given a ride to the victim several times before. We are waiting for the post-mortem report. The investigation is underway.”
Bajrang Dal states this is the case of Love Jihad
Meanwhile, the local Bajrang Dal activists have stated that the case is another example of the rampant Love Jihad cases in the state where non-Muslim girls are being targeted for sexual harassment and exploitation by Muslims.
Bajrang Dal Members interacting with the media
Harish Kaushik, the district convener of Saharanpur Bajrang Dal has described the incident as a well-planned conspiracy. He has demanded the death penalty for the accused.
On February 24, Russia launched a full-scale invasion in Ukraine, months after deploying over 1 lakh security forces at the border. When the Indian government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, vowed to evacuate every Indian from the war-torn country, the Opposition Congress party began casting aspersions about its efficiency.
Instead of extending support to the government of the day in evacuating stranded Indians, the Congress party saw the geo-political conflict as a ‘political opportunity.’ It tried to create hysteria by highlighting isolated cases of inconvenience caused to a handful of stranded Indian students.
The grand-old party also used these isolated cases to peddle the narrative that the government has not been catering to the needs of the students. Significantly, it attempted to undermine the government’s initiative as a ‘Public Relations (PR) stunt’.
Congress pits India’s evacuation mission in Ukraine against Libya
The Congress party envied the ‘personal involvement’ of Ministers in the evacuation process in Ukraine and began drawing ‘superfluous’ analogies with the mission conducted by the then UPA government in Libya in 2011.
On February 26, Congress leader Manickam Tagore tweeted, “In 2011, Dr Singh Sarkar evacuated 15,400 Indians out of war zone in Libya. This was done by Congress Government not only for Indians but for Nepalis & Bangladeshis as well. But sadly today Sehenshah is busy buying Rs 8600 Crore plane for private entourage.”
Screengrab of the tweet by Manickam Tagore
On the following day, the Kerala unit of the Congress claimed that Manmohan Singh’s government repatriated 16000 Indians from a war zone in Libya without creating ‘any fuss.’ It remarked, “Last night, minister Piyush Goyal was on TV with 210 Indian students returning from Ukraine saying how concerned Modiji was, to get the reply Thank you, Modiji #IndiansInUkraine”
Screengrab of the tweet by Kerala Congress
On February 28, prominent Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury also credited Dr Manmohan Singh for evacuating 18000 Indians from Libya in 2011 without any ‘Hungama‘.
Screengrab of the tweet by Renuka Chowdhury
Congress scion Rahul Gandhi went on to politicise the tragic death of Naveen Shekharappa in Ukraine on March 1 to allege that the Indian government had no ‘strategic plans’ for the speedy evacuation of Indian nationals.
Screengrab of the tweets by Rahul Gandhi
UPA-era evacuation of Indians from Libya was slower than China
While Congress scion Rahul Gandhi had been asking the Modi government to ‘expedite’ the evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine, other party leaders had been browbeating about India’s evacuation mission in Libya in 2011. Ironically, the then Congress government was criticised for being ‘slow’ in evacuating Indians from the North African country.
As per a report in Reuters, the Indian government fell behind other countries including such as China and the United States in successfully repatriating its citizens. Until March 1, 2011, India had evacuated only 4,500 nationals while China had evacuated 32,000 of its citizens. The US government had by then almost completed the rescue operation.
Dubbed the ‘Operation Safe Homecoming’, the Congress-led-Indian government had a mammoth task of evacuating 18000 Indian nationals, who worked in the health, oil and construction sectors.
Screengrab of the news report by Reuters
“‘Out of Libya India crawls, the rest are safe at home,’ the Indian Express said, adding India remained the only major country with thousands of nationals stranded there,” reported Reuters.
When the then Indian government under Manmohan Singh faced the ire of the public for being ‘slower’ than China, Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao had infamously remarked, “We are not in competition with China here. We’re focused on the task of bringing back our people safe and sound. Please let’s not devalue this.”
In contrast, China began evacuating its nationals from Ukraine on February 28, 2022, whereas the first Air India flight carrying 219 Indian nationals reached the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai from Bucharest on February 26 evening.
China?? on Monday began to evacuate the first batch of its nationals from #Ukraine, said the Chinese Embassy in Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/nVUKHf97r4
Congress had faced the wrath of political partners over ‘slow’ evacuation from Libya
“Members in the Rajya Sabha today expressed anguish over slow progress in the evacuation and safety of Indians stranded in Libya,” read a report by Indian Express, dated March 4, 2011.
Deputy Chairman K Rahman Khan saw to it that the Congress government re-assured the Upper House about its evacuation plans. “The whole country is concerned about our people who are suffering. There is a concern over slowness (in bringing them back),” he remarked.
Screengrab of the news report by Indian Express
Similarly, Congress ally and DMK legislator Tiruchi Siva also sought answers from the Manmohan Singh-led government. He lashed out at Khan, “Our people are stranded. You (Chair) are bothered about time. You are not permitting to express our views”
Siva pointed out that China and Philipines were way ahead of India in evacuating their citizens. “Why is the progress slow on the Indian side,” the DMK MP had asked. Questions were also raised against the then government for lack of monitoring of the situation in conflict-torn Libya.
Operation Ganga: Modi government’s daunting mission to evacuate Indians from Ukraine
On February 15 this year, the Indian embassy in Ukraine had issued its first advisory, urging Indian nationals to immediately evacuate the country in the run-up to the full-fledged war.
Despite multiple advisories by the government, an estimated 16000-20000 Indian nationals remained in the Eastern European country. Thereafter, the Modi government launched an evacuation mission named ‘Operation Ganga’ to bring them back to India via chartered flights from Poland, Romania, and Hungary.
It must be mentioned that the Ukrainian airspace was closed for civilian aircraft from February 24 morning onwards. As such, the Indian embassy in Ukraine had to coordinate with the embassies of neighbouring countries in Poland, Romania and Hungary for the creation of safe evacuation channels.
Under ‘Operation Ganga’, Indians are first taken in batches from Ukraine to bordering countries (currently Hungary and Romania) via buses/commute arranged by the embassy. They are then airlifted to Delhi or Mumbai through chartered Air India flights.
The Indian government has sent its 4 Union Ministers, namely, Hardeep Singh Puri, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kiren Rijiju and General (Retd) VK Singh to Hungary, Romania and Moldova, Slovakia, and Poland respectively, to coordinate the evacuation mission.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, a total of 18000 Indians had been moved out of Ukraine between February 15 and March 2. “30 flights under Operation Ganga have brought back 6,400 Indians from Ukraine so far,” he informed during a press briefing on Thursday (March 3).
Cricket Australia is monitoring the tour situations of the Pakistan tour of the Australian cricket team in the wake of the suicide bombing in a mosque in Peshawar on 4 March 2022 that has claimed over 56 lives and left hundreds of others injured. Peshawar is just two hours from Rawalpindi where Australia and Pakistan are playing the first cricket Test between the two nations in the country in 24 years.
According to a report by The Sidney Morning Herald, team officials are monitoring the situation and in contact with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Australian cricket team is on its Pakistan tour for the first time after 1998. As of now, there are no suggestions about any major changes in the tour schedule due to the suicide bombing attack.
The Australian team is staying in Islamabad for the ongoing Rawalpindi test match and the team is provided with presidential-style security for the duration of the tour. The remaining matches in the series are scheduled to be played in Lahore and Karachi.
International cricket in Pakistan had ceased for a decade following an attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in 2009. The team was attacked by gunfire while it was heading towards the cricket stadium in Lahore to play a test match. Right now Pakistan is hosting the sixth test match after 2019. Cricket Australia and Pakistan Cricket Board had taken special efforts to organize this test match series.
Earlier today, a huge blast inside a Shia mosque shook Peshawar’s Kocha Risaldar area killing 30 Pakistani citizens and injuring more than 50. The Police said that the attack took place when worshipers had gathered in the mosque for their Friday prayers. The Police and the rescue personnel reached the site to learn that 10 injured are in critical condition. According to local reports, about 150 people were present inside the Kucha Risaldar mosque in Peshawar during Friday prayers at the time of the attack.
Presenting the state budget 2022-23 in the legislative assembly on Friday, March 4, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Bommai who also holds the Finance portfolio has proposed removing government control over temples in the state by granting autonomy to those under the Endowment Department. Until now, the rules required the temple managements to seek permission from the govt to utilise their income for development purposes.
Today, while presenting his maiden budget, the Karnataka CM said, “There is a long pending demand to do away with the government control on the temples. By considering these demands of devotees, autonomy will be given to temples coming under the purview of the Endowment Department. Necessary legal action will be taken to delegate the discretion of developmental works to the temples,” said Bommai.
The demand to remove Hindu temples from government control has grown over the years, and this decision can be seen as a success for that movement in at least one crucial state.
Notably, the Muzrai (Endowment) department oversees 34,563 temples in the state, which have been classified as grades A, B, or C based on their revenue generation. A total of 207 temples with yearly revenue exceeding Rs 25 lakh fall into category A, 139 temples with annual revenue between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 25 lakh fall into category B, and 34,217 temples with annual revenue less than Rs 5 lakh go into category C.
Bommai further announced that compensation for government-owned land will be increased from Rs 48,000 to Rs 60,000 to assist Archakaru, Agamikaru (priests), and endowment temple personnel.
He also stated that the ‘Integrated Temple Management System’ software would be used to enable internet access to the temple’s many services. The government will grant a subsidy of Rs 5,000 per person to 30,000 pilgrims undertaking the ‘Kaashi Yatre’ from Karnataka, according to the Chief Minister. The ‘Pavitra Yatra’ scheme will be launched by the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation to make pilgrimage tours more affordable (KSTDC).
Karnataka CM announced govt would bring bill to free temples from govt control before the budget session of the assembly
Pertinently, Bommai had first mentioned bringing up a law aimed at ‘freeing’ Hindu temples from state control while speaking to the BJP state executive meeting in December last year. “Before the Budget session a law would be given shape to make our temples free from restrictions. The temples will be allowed to function freely, without any control or regulations from the state,” he had said.
The announcement had come days after the state Legislative Assembly passed the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021”, commonly referred to as the anti-conversion Bill.
The Kerala Police on Thursday arrested Maulvi Sharaafuddin for raping a 13-year-old girl inside a Madarsa. The Muslim cleric had raped the minor several times and threatened her to keep her mouth shut.
The incident came to light when the girl complained of severe stomach ache on February 25. She was immediately taken to the hospital where the doctors declared that she was pregnant. The girl had kept quiet as the Maulvi had threatened her that he would harm her family if she tells the truth.
The family then had to convince the girl that nothing would happen to them if she spoke the truth out. According to the reports, the Maulvi was raping the little girl from November 2021. Sharafuddin, who worked as an assistant in the madrasa used to call the girl to the madrasa even before the regular class and used to rape her.
The Maulvi had also recorded the rapes on his video camera and used the clips to threaten the minor. The police have registered a case under POCSO and the relevant sections of the IPC.
Muslim cleric arrested in Hyderabad for raping a 10-year-old minor
Several other reports have emerged indicating a rise in rapes inside Madarsas in the last two months. In another such horrific incident, a Muslim cleric Shoaib Akhtar was arrested for raping a 10-year-old child on February 14 in Hyderabad. The incident came to light on February 6 when the boy complained of heavy bleeding from his private parts.
The family members of the boy thought that the pain was casual and would disappear in the coming days. When they further inquired out of suspicion, the child told that Shoaib Akhtar had been forcing him for the past 10 days. The locals and the family members caught the Maulana and demanded the Police arrest him. The Police then conducted a medical examination of the Akhtar and arrested him under section 377 of IPC in the process of investigation. According to the reports, the boy was admitted to Madarsa two months ago.
Uttar Pradesh: Imam arrested for raping a minor girl inside a mosque in Mainpuri
In yet another similar incident on January 26, Imam Jamal Ahmad was arrested for raping an 8-year-old girl inside a mosque in Uttar Pradesh’s Mainpuri area. According to the reports, the victim girl was crying, asking the Imam to leave her but to no avail. The Imam allowed them to go her only when the girl started bleeding from her private parts.
Further adding to the heinous crime, the Imam had threatened the girl in the name of the Quran and asked her to keep shut her mouth. He also asked her to come to the mosque every day as her absence might have raised suspicion. The case was registered against him under section 376 of the IPC and the provisions of the POCSO Act.
After Russia attacked Ukraine and launched a military operation on February 24, India launched a massive operation to bring back its stranded citizens from the war-hit country. Even during such testing times, the usual gang of leftists and their friendly media portals are not abstaining from peddling fake news to undermine the Modi government’s efforts to arrange for a secure corridor to evacuate its stranded students in Ukraine.
Many leftist news portals like The Quint have published reports that the Ministry of External Affairs has denied claims that Russia halted the war for six hours on Wednesday, March 2, to facilitate the evacuation of Indians from Kharkiv at the Indian government’s request.
The report published by The Quint on March 3, 2022
Assamese news channel Pratitin Times also published a similar report claiming that the MEA has clarified that Russia did not stop war for 6 hours to evacuate Indians from Kharkiv.
A journalist working with The Hindu also took to her official Twitter handle to make similar claims. Suhasini Haider Tweeted on March 3, 2022, “MEA denies reports that Russia “stopped the war for 6 hours” in order to facilitate Indians escaping Kharkiv, adds that they received inputs from Russia that prompted them to tell citizens to leave the city and choose certain routes, no “coordination” on Russian missile strikes.
MEA denies reports that Russia “stopped the war for 6 hours” in order to facilitate Indians escaping Kharkiv, adds that they received inputs from Russia that prompted them to tell citizens to leave the city and choose certain routes, no “coordination” on Russian missile strikes.
Another Twitter user wrote that it was Defence Analyst “Nitin Gokhale who spread the news of India stopping the Ukraine-Russia war for 6 hours, to Evacuate Indian Students.” She added that the MEA had clarified that it was fake news.
This is Nitin Gokhale who spread the news of India stopping the Ukraine-Russia war for 6 hours, to Evacuate Indian Students.
Today MEA clarified that It was Fake News?#BesharamPracharMantri puts out fake news to boost his sorry image.
Following these Tweets and media reports, Defence Analyst Nitin Gokhale took to Twitter to share a snippet of a press statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi to refute the unverified claims made by the likes of journalist Suhasini Haider and the ultra-leftist media portal The Quint.
Replying to the journalist, Nitin Gokhale Tweeted, “No outright denial! ‘What was stopped, what was not stopped, I am not getting into that. We have been pressing all sides, Russian, Ukraine for safe passage. We had some indication of way out from South East Kharkiv,’ says MEA. Listen to the clip; make your own conclusions”.
?? No outright denial! ‘What was stopped, what was not stopped, I am not getting into that. We have been pressing all sides, Russian, Ukraine for safe passage. We had some indication of way out from South East Kharkiv,’ says MEA. Listen to the clip; make your own conclusions https://t.co/aSyPQQaQrVpic.twitter.com/X3WKe22ew2
As rightly pointed out by the defence analyst, MEA, in its press release, neither agrees nor disagrees that Russia gave India a window of 6 hours to safely evacuate its stranded citizens on Wednesday. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi can clearly be heard saying that “What was stopped, what was not stopped, I am not getting into that”.
If not agree, Bagchi, at no point in time, outrightly denied that there was no coordination between India and Russia on the evacuation of Indian students, as claimed by many.
It must be understood that Russia wont like to disclose any detail of any pause in the attack they did to help evacuate Indians. They are in the middle of invading Ukraine, and obviously they don’t want to reveal any operational details of their movements. As a reason of that, govt of India is not revealing officially the window provided to India to evacuated Indians from Ukraine.
Indian Embassy in Ukraine asks Indians to leave Kharkiv immediately, Russia giving safe passage at request of govt of India
It may be recalled that on March 2, it was reported that the Indian Embassy in Ukraine had asked the Indians to leave the Kharkiv city immediately and provided a list of three settlements where they must reach by 6 PM Ukrainian time.
In the tweet, the Embassy wrote, “Urgent advisory to all Indian nationals in Kharkiv. For their safety and security, they must leave Kharkiv immediately. Proceed to Pesochin, Babaye and Bezlyudovka as soon as possible. Under all circumstances, they must reach these settlements *by 1800 hrs (Ukrainian time) today*.” They wrote the advisory in all capital letters, implying how urgent it is.
Around half an hour after posting the advisory on Twitter, the embassy posted another embassy, again in all capital letters. In the second advisory, the Indian Embassy said that for their own security and safety, Indians in Kharkiv must leave the city immediately. “FOR THEIR OWN SAFETY AND SECURITY THEY MUST LEAVE KHARKIV IMMEDIATELY REPEAT IMMEDIATELY IN THE LIGHT OF THE DETERIORATING SITUATION”, wrote the embassy, repeating the word “Immediately”.
Given the urgent nature of the advisory, it seemed the Indian govt had learnt from reliable sources that a major invasion at Kharkiv was going to take place that night.
Notably, on the same day, Denis Alipov, Russian envoy designated to Delhi had said that the Russian authorities were in touch we the Indian government to provide safe passage to the Indian nationals stuck in Kharkiv. “We have received the Indian request for the emergency evacuation of all those stuck there via Russian territory. We are actively working to provide a humanitarian corridor so that people have safe passage,” he said.
A number of news outlets and Twitter users had then claimed that the war had been stopped temporarily at PM Modi’s insistence, and said that the incident showcased the “power of Indian diplomacy”. The plaudits bestowed on the Indian government did not, obviously, sit well with the leftist cabal, who rallied together to declare that the news that Russia halted the war for 6 hours as a goodwill gesture, was a complete fabrication.
