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Modi-Putin phone call: PM Modi appeals for immediate cessation of violence, expresses concern for safety of Indian citizens in Ukraine

OpIndia Staff
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Modi-Putin phone call: PM Modi appeals for immediate cessation of violence, expresses concern for safety of Indian citizens in Ukraine

Hours after Russia launched an attack on Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephonic conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin today evening over the ongoing crisis. In his conversation, PM Modi expressed concerns over the safety of Indians living in Ukraine, especially the students. He also appealed for an immediate cessation of violence and called for concerted efforts from all sides to return to the path of diplomatic negotiations and dialogue.

The official press release from PMO reads, “President Putin briefed Prime Minister about the recent developments regarding Ukraine. Prime Minister reiterated his long-standing conviction that the differences between Russia and the NATO group can only be resolved through honest and sincere dialogue.

Prime Minister appealed for an immediate cessation of violence and called for concerted efforts from all sides to return to the path of diplomatic negotiations and dialogue.

Source: PIB

Prime Minister also sensitised the Russian President about India’s concerns regarding the safety of the Indian citizens in Ukraine, especially students, and conveyed that India attaches the highest priority to their safe exit and return to India.

The leaders agreed that their officials and diplomatic teams would continue to maintain regular contacts on issues of topical interest.

It may be noted that after Russia launched an attack on military bases in Ukraine earlier today, Ukraine had urged PM Modi to talk to Putin to stop the invasion. Ukraine’s Ambassador to India Igor Polikha had urged PM Modi to intervene in the matter and hold talks with Putin, given the special ties between the two countries. He had said that India has a special relationship with Russia, and New Delhi can play a more active role in managing the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis.

“We urge PM Narendra Modi to immediately contact Russian President Vladimir Putin and our President Volodymyr Zelensky,” the Ukrainian ambassador had said.

Taiwan says 9 Chinese Air Force planes entered its air zone amidst Chinese media talking about requiring Russian support on Taiwan issue

OpIndia Staff
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Taiwan says 9 Chinese Air Force planes entered its air zone amidst Chinese media talking about requiring Russian support on Taiwan issue

While the world grapples with the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, the Taiwanese Ministry of National Defence has reported that at least nine Chinese aircraft have flown into its airspace. This came after Chinese news media was seen issuing instructions on social platforms about their coverage on Ukraine while highlighting a note on China’s ‘need for Russian support’ regarding Taiwan. 

The Defence Ministry of Taiwan posted on its website the details of recent Chinese aggression in the Taiwanese Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Thursday. Reportedly, a command of 8 J-16s and 1 Yun-8 technical reconnaissance aircraft (RECCE) crossed the Taiwanese air defence space on Thursday. While Chinese escalation over Taiwanese airspace has become a normal happening, the timing of this crisis when China’s longstanding ally Russia has come dubious.

This came after a Fox News report saying that a Chinese media outlet had accidentally posted guidelines on ‘what should’ and ‘should not be published’ on the Russia-Ukraine tussle. A blog emphasized how critical is Russia’s support in solving the question of Taiwan against America’s wishes. Xinhua News Agency’s Ming Jinwei in his WeChat blog talked in length about how his agency should maintain a fine line while reporting on its Ukraine coverage.” China has to back Russia up with emotional and moral support while refraining from treading on the toes of the United States and European Union,” his blog said.

While taking a pro-Russia stand he added, “In the future, China will also need Russia’s understanding and support when wrestling with America to solve the Taiwan issue once and for all.” This comes at a time when critics have already started comparing Russia’s designs of Ukraine invasion with China’s ambition to grab Taiwan.

Indian government trying to rescue every Indian in Ukraine after issuing multiple advisories to leave the country in the lead up to the war

OpIndia Staff
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Indian government trying to rescue every Indian in Ukraine after issuing multiple advisories to leave the country in the lead up to the war

As Russia started an invasion of Ukraine today morning, the question of securing the Indians in Ukraine has suddenly become one of the top priorities. Prior to the invasion when Russia had started a massive military buildup on the border, the government of India had issued multiple advisories to the Indians in Ukraine to leave the country well before the war began. After the invasion has begun, now the government is trying to rescue every Indian trapped in war-hit Ukraine. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said on Thursday, 24th February 2022, that it is taking measures to bring back around 18,000 Indians from Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced a military operation in Ukraine on Thursday. This has left more than 18000 Indians stranded in Ukraine. The number includes students as well as professionals.

Ministry of External Affairs taking firm steps to ensure safe return of the Indians

According to a report by the Republic World, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan has informed, “The MEA is taking steps to bring back about 18,000 Indians including students from Ukraine. As the air space in Ukraine is closed, alternative arrangements are being made for the evacuation of Indian nationals. The central government will ensure the safety of all Indians.”

He further added, “I spoke to Malayali students in Ukraine on phone. Indian students in the southern areas of Ukraine have told us that they are getting food, water, and power. Students and parents should not panic. Our government has brought back Indians even from places like Iraq.”

Advise for the Indians in Ukraine amidst war situations

Partha Satpathy is the Indian envoy to Ukraine. He has told all Indians in Ukraine to stay wherever they are as the situation is highly tensed and that the air space is closed, railway schedules are in flux, and roads are crammed. Till now, two flights full of Indians have come from Ukraine to India.

Earlier advisories by the government of India to the Indians in Ukraine

It is notable that Ukraine is not attacked by Russia all of a sudden. The possibilities of this war were expressed well in advance when Ukraine had received the first shipment of US military aid against Russia on 22nd January 2022. Following every new development on this front, the government of India had advised the Indians in Ukraine time and again to return to India.

On 15th February 2022, an advisory was issued by a mission urging Indian nationals to leave Ukraine. In this advisory, the Indian embassy in Kyiv had said, “All Indian students should leave Ukraine in view of the escalating military tension with Russia. In view of the uncertainties of the current situation in Ukraine, Indian nationals in Ukraine, particularly students whose stay is not essential may consider leaving temporarily.” The Embassy also urged Indian nationals to keep the mission informed about their location so that they could be contacted in case of emergency.

In fact, the Embassy of India in Kyiv had been contacting Indian citizens based in Ukraine and collecting information of those who would require evacuation in case a conflict flares up between Russia and Ukraine. This process was initiated more than three weeks before the advisory of 15th February 2022 was issued.

On 16th February 2022, the Indian government removed the restrictions on the number of flights and therefore the number of passengers to be moved between Ukraine and India. The civil aviation ministry had removed the restriction on the number of flights that can be operated between India and Ukraine under the bilateral air bubble arrangement to facilitate the travel of Indians from the eastern European nation.

On 18th February 2022, Air India announced that it will operate three flights between India and Ukraine on 22nd, 24th, and 26th February 2022. However, there was no takers for tickets in these flights. As a result on 20th February 2022, Air India was thinking to reschedule or postpone the flights owing to no bookings from Ukraine.

On 20th February 2022, the mission had issued a second advisory to Indians in Ukraine urging them strongly to leave Ukraine and come back to India. The embassy said, “In view of the continued high levels of tensions and uncertainties with respect to the situation in Ukraine, all Indian nationals whose stays are not deemed essential and all Indian students are advised to leave Ukraine temporarily.”

On 22nd February 2022, a third advisory regarding the additional flights was issued. Among about 20000 Indians in Ukraine, more than 18000 are students. Even after the repeated advisories were issued, many students were not ensuring that they leave Ukraine. Instead, they were worried about their academics. Therefore the embassy advised them to move back to India immediately rather than waiting for some confirmation from their universities. The embassy had also assured that it will talk about this issue with the respective authorities in order to cause no harm to the academics irrespective of the conditions.

On 22nd February 2022 itself, the students were also advised about the online classes by Ukrainian Universities as many students were not willing to leave in absence of online classes. Two Russian-speaking officers were also sent to Kyiv to help with the return of Indian nationals. Finally, as the war started, a fifth advisory was issued on 24th February 2022.

After the Russian invasion started, the airspace in Ukraine was closed, so evacuation of Indians stuck there at present is not possible. Therefore the guidelines for Indians in the country have been changed in the advisory issued today. In this advisory, the Indians in Ukraine are advised to return to their respective cities temporarily and not to leave homes and hostels considering martial law imposition. They are also informed of the closing of airspace and alternative arrangements for evacuation. The Indians in Ukraine were advised to relocate to western areas, and were informed the number of helplines has been increased.

In the meanwhile, Indian embassies in Ukraine’s neighbouring countries have started efforts to help Indians who are able to exit the country through land routes. The spokesperson MEA has informed that the MEA officials from Indian embassies in Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Romania are moving to the adjoining land borders with Ukraine.

The MEA also posted names and contact information of officials who can be approached by Indians after crossing the Ukrainian border with the respective countries. As flights have been suspended, entering these countries through land route by crossing the border remains the best option for Indians who want to leave Ukraine now.

One school was used to launch petrol bombs using a grand catapult, another was ruined: The state of two schools two years after Delhi riots

OpIndia Staff
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One school was used to launch petrol bombs using a grand catapult, another was ruined: The state of two schools two years after Delhi riots

It has been two years since the anti-CAA Delhi riots. Northeast parts of Delhi were severely hit by these anti-Hindu riots. Two schools in northeast Delhi had become the centres of discussions in those days. One of them was the Rajdhani School and the other one was DRP School. Both the schools are situated in Shiv Vihar. It is notable that Chaandbaag and Shiv Vihar were among the areas worst affected by the Delhi riots.

The terrace of the Rajdhani school owned by Faisal Farukh housed the grand catapult that pelted the petrol bombs aimed at the Hindu properties in the surroundings. Yatendra Sharma’s DRP school is not much away from here. This school was vandalized in the Delhi riots. After two years, both these schools are running normally as before.

But the Delhi riots have traumatized the local people so much that even today they hesitate to talk anything about it on camera. The DRP school has undergone a revamp and is smoothly running now. People associated with the school are hesitant to talk about the riots now. They said, “You make a video from outside. We have to run the school among these people only.” Even the people living in the nearby locality have said the same thing. “Children of Hindus and Muslims study in this school and right now there is no danger here.”

On the other hand, people associated with the Rajdhani school avoided making any comment. All they told was that the police are doing their job in this matter. It is notable that Faisal Farukh, the owner of this school, has been set free on bail since 2020 itself. The video attached here shows the current situation of these two schools.

It is notable that the first charge sheet filed in the anti-Hindu Delhi riots was about the violent acts that took place on 24th and 25th February 2020, especially in the Rajdhani School. Yatendra Sharma, owner of the DRP school had lodged a complaint in this regard. Rioters had gathered on the terrace of the Rajdhani school and they caused major damage to the DRP school. Most of the calls received by the police control room on that day were made by the security guard of the DRP school. The statement of this security guard is also recorded in the charge sheet filed by the police.

A square in the Shiv Vihar area falls under three different police stations viz. Karaval Nagar, Dayalpur and Gokulpuri. There are three roads. One road goes towards Mustafabad which is an area with a major Muslim population. Second road heads to the Shiv Vihar and Babu Nagar area that houses a joint population of Hindus and Muslims. Even in the areas with a major Hindu population, there are some Muslim houses and properties.

The violence that emerged at the Shiv Vihar square was very dreadful for the Hindus. It is the same place where Dilbar Negi was killed and his dead body was recovered, many small huts were burnt, two garages were set on fire and hundreds of vehicles were burnt to ashes. Many people were injured in the firing while Dinesh Kumar Khatik and Alok Tiwari had died on the spot.

Rioters entered the DRP school from the Rajdhani public school with the help of an iron chain. These rioters set the DRP school on fire. From computers to ceiling fans, the rioters had looted everything in the school. The attached video explains very well how did the school look like after it was looted and burnt by the rioters.

After the arrest of Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik, state BJP chief Chandrakant Patil says more ED probes coming in the next 2-3 days

OpIndia Staff
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After the arrest of Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik, state BJP chief Chandrakant Patil says more ED probes coming in the next 2-3 days

A day after the Enforcement Directorate took custody of Maharashtra Minority Affairs Minister Nawab Malik over a case involving money laundering, Maharashtra BJP Chief Chandrakant Patil has claimed that more enquiries from the central agency will be taking place in the coming days. Patil was speaking at a protest held by state BJP leaders demanding the resignation of Malik from the cabinet.

After the arrest of Malik, Mumbai saw protests from both sides of the political spectrum in Maharashtra on Thursday. Leaders from the Shivsena-NCP-Congress alliance which runs The Maha Vikas Aghadi government protested in front of the Mantralay building (secretariat) against the arrest of Nawab Malik alleging that the move was politically motivated. On the other hand, senior BJP leaders including State President Chandrakant (Dada) Patil, Kirit Somaiya and others took out a protest near Dadar East Railway station demanding the sacking of Malik from the ministry.

While speaking to the media during the demonstration, Patil hinted that more enquiries from the ED are yet to come in the next 2 to 3 days. While stating that Nawab Malik’s case has proven to be a threat to national security, he demanded the arrest of the Minister.

At the same time, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya released a list of probable leaders from the MVA upon whom ED enquiries could take place. The list includes 12 leaders from Shivsena, Congress and the NCP who have been recently caught in controversies relating to corruption, land grabbing and money laundering. Terming the list as ‘MVA’s dirty dozen’ Somaiyahas called out Anil Parab, Sanjay Raut, Sujeet Patkar, Bhavna Gavali, Anand Adsul, Ajit Pawar, Hasan Mushrif, Pratap Sarnaik, Ravindra Waikar and Jitendra Awhad.

The other two are Nawab Malik – who was taken in ED custody yesterday and Anil Deshmukh – the ex-home minister who was arrested in November last year for violating the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The BJP leaders during the protest reiterated their stand that Nawab Malik cannot retain his chair as a minister when serious enquiries are taking place against him.

Allegations against MVA leaders

BJP leader Kirit Somaiya has always been on the front to ‘expose’ scams related to deals, properties held by leaders from the ruling alliance. Earlier this month, Somaiya alleged that Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has links with Sujeet Patkar’s company which is allegedly complicit in a 100-crore Covid Centre scam. The ED had already summoned transport minister Anil Parab in the Rs 100 crore extortion case in September 2021. The revenue department had already found the leader’s resort in Dapoli to be illegal and the documents submitted were forged.

Are US-run biological labs in Ukraine one of the reasons behind Russia invasion? Read how Russian govt had raised ‘bioweapons’ alarm

OpIndia Staff
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Are US-run biological labs in Ukraine one of the reasons behind Russia invasion? Read how Russian govt had raised ‘bioweapons’ alarm

As Russia has started attacking military installations in Ukraine, there are speculations that the United State’s Biolabs that have been established in Ukraine in the name of research and defence are also among the targets. The US has several such labs in Ukraine under its “Biological Threat Reduction Program”.

Social media has been abuzz with discussions on how the Russian government, in addition to objecting to NATO’s expansion in the region, has been highlighting their concerns, accusing the USA of running bioweapon labs near their border. A Twitter handle named @WarClandenstine claimed that it may be a possibility that Russia is targeting the Biolabs. Nothing has been confirmed yet.

There is a lot of discussion on social media regarding the alleged bioweapons labs run and funded by the US government on Ukrainian soil.

As per the details made available by the US government, the US Department of Defense’s Biological Threat Reduction Program has been working with partner countries to “to counter the threat of outbreaks (deliberate, accidental, or natural) of the world’s most dangerous infectious diseases.”

Screenshot from US Embassy in Ukraine’s website

In Ukraine, the program’s aim is to consolidate and secure pathogens and toxins of security concerns and provide support to the nation in detecting and reporting outbreaks caused by dangerous pathogens before they “pose any stability or security risks.”

In 2019, BTRP established two laboratories for the Consumer Protection Service of Ukraine with Biosafety Level 2 in Kyiv and Odesa. Both regions are under Russia’s attack. The US not only provides support for laboratory establishment but has also been funding research projects in Ukraine where the Ukrainian and American scientists work together.

Russia has accused the US of developing bio-weapons at its borders, at Ukraine and Georgia

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 Kommersant reporter that Russia believed the US was developing bio-weapons near its borders.

He said, “you pay attention to the fact that in the world, more and more new biological laboratories under the control of the United States are growing by leaps and bounds. Moreover, by a strange coincidence – mainly at the Russian and Chinese borders.” He added that the US claims they work with local scientists to develop ways to fight dangerous pathogens but what happens inside those walls was unknown.

He added, “We are told that peaceful sanitation stations operate near our borders, but for some reason, they are more reminiscent of Fort Detrick in Maryland, where Americans have been working in the field of military biology for decades. By the way, we should pay attention to the fact that outbreaks of diseases that are not typical for these regions are recorded in the surrounding areas.”

When asked if he meant Americans were developing biological weapons at those Biolabs, he said, “We have good reason to believe that this is the case.” He further said, “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.”

Speaking about the allegations against Russia over the development of chemical weapons, he said there were no evidence and only conjectures. The Russian government has made similar allegations multiple times.

Russia has raised concerns multiple times that the USA is running bioweapons labs in Ukraine and elsewhere
Russia had alleged that US is running bioweapons lab in Georgia

US-funded gain of function reasearch to ‘enhance’ viruses at Wuhan laboratory in China

It has been now been established by now that scientists from the USA, with NIH funding, had been running gain of function research into a number of SARS-like viruses in the Wuhan laboratory in China, which is widely believed to be the origin of Covid-19 infection. In September 2021, it was revealed in a book that the US had funded research on deadly viruses in Wuhan under the supervision of Anthony Fauci.

US scientist Peter Daszak, who had received an NIH grant, through his organisation EcoHealth Alliance had been engaged in ‘gain of function’ research for years in the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China. Daszak has himself admitted on numerous occasions that they are running breakthrough research into coronaviruses.

Earlier this year, an investigation by Project Veritas had revealed that coronavirus research deemed ‘too dangerous’ by DARPA, was approved by Anthony Fauci’s NIAID and was conducted by Daszak’s EcoHealth Alliance at Wuhan.

In October 2021, it was revealed via leaked emails that Anthony Fauci’s NIAID funded institute trained researchers at Wuhan lab housed fatal aerosol-borne viruses.

Russia invades Ukraine

On 24 February, after weeks of speculations, Russia finally invaded Ukraine, triggering a massive outrage all over the world. It is notable here that NATO, USA and Russia have been at loggerheads for years over NATO’s alleged plans to expand eastward, threatening Russia’s security. As Russian troops gathered on Ukraine’s borders over the last few weeks, NATO and USA have dropped billions of dollars worth of weapons in Ukraine, proclaiming support for Ukraine’s sovereignty.

Addressing the people, Putin had announced that it is launching a military operation directed towards the ‘demilitarization’ and ‘denazification’ of Ukraine. The alleged biological weapons program is one of the many concerns Russia had raised regarding Ukraine.

NATO countries including the USA have promised to impose severe sanctions on Russia as a retaliatory measure against the invasion.

As Russia invades Ukraine, here is how Vajpayee govt was right in conducting nuclear tests despite criticism by opposition

OpIndia Staff
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As Russia invades Ukraine, here is how Vajpayee govt was right in conducting nuclear tests despite criticism by opposition

With Russian troops attacking Ukraine on 24th February 2022, the attention of the whole world has been diverted to the crisis between giant Russia and its eastern European neighbour. Russia has threatened of using a nuclear weapon, should any other force enter the war. It, therefore, becomes necessary to revisit the importance of the Indian nuclear program and the Pokhran nuclear tests of 1998 performed by the then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee and APJ Abdul Kalam despite futile criticism by the Congress and the left. It must be noted that Vajpayee and Kalam both are Bharat Ratna awardees.

Pokhran is the place where India has conducted its nuclear tests. In 1974, for the first time, India had performed the nuclear test. Indira Gandhi was the then Prime Minister of the country. However, the way the Congress party had reacted over the nuclear tests of 1998 is certainly not appreciable. Rather, at the time when a country like Russia is threatening to use a nuclear weapon, it becomes necessary to take an account of the reactions which had portrayed India’s commitment to strengthening its self-defence as the attempts to create unrest in the subcontinent.

The Congress party had actually opposed these nuclear tests during the Vajpayee government. Sonia Gandhi had then said, “Real strength lies in restraint, not in the display of shakti.” The impact of the tests on the Indian polity was so big that she too had to think for ten days before giving this reaction. The tests were done on 11th May 1998 while this statement by Sonia Gandhi was given on 21st May 1998 when she was talking on the occasion of the seventh death anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi.

Though Indian opposition and even some of the allies of the BJP looked stunned and confused on these tests, one thing was assured that none of them was openly supporting the nuclear tests. Instead, there was more wordplay and rhetorics. The left had criticized Vajpayee in their own age-old style. The core of their anger towards the then PM was for ‘trying to equate the bomb with patriotism and whip up a jingoistic ardor’. The then leader of the opposition Sharad Pawar who was in the Congress party at that time was not shy of equating the tests with national pride but at the same time he had cleverly directed the discussions in a different direction saying “I fail to understand why the BJP is linking the tests with a threat from China.”

This dubious stand of Sharad Pawar was one of the reasons for the confused oppose from Sonia Gandhi who was later advised by the likes of Salman Khurshid and Mani Shankar Ayyar to condemn the tests. Party spokesperson Salman Khurshid had said that BJP had done the test for political reasons and not to enhance the security of the nation. One must not forget that the Congress party and the left were opposing the nuclear tests despite knowing the fact that Pakistan and China had nuclear weapons.

It is also notable that as the current Russian president Vladimir Putin has threatened of using nuclear weapons in case of any interference by other international powers amidst the ongoing war, so has been the case with Pakistan. Many military officials and political leaders in Pakistan have been repeatedly threatening India of the nuclear attacks in their various talks. India has been on a war against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in Kashmir for the last three decades. Besides, Pakistan has been actively involved in various terror attacks by Islamist terrorists in various Indian cities.

It must also be noted that Ukraine’s Ambassador to India, Igor Polikha, has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene and hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin given the special ties between the two countries. In fact, it is not just because of the bilateral ties alone. If India is asked for help, then this clearly means India has a certain capacity. When Ukraine is asking for help amidst the fear of a nuclear attack, this ‘certain capacity’ essentially refers to nuclear weapons only, which India has today thanks to Vajpayee and Kalam.

HC dismisses application challenging plea seeking FIRs against Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur for ‘hate speech’ during Delhi anti-Hindu riots

OpIndia Staff
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HC dismisses application challenging plea seeking FIRs against Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur for ‘hate speech’ during Delhi anti-Hindu riots

The Delhi High Court Thursday dismissed an impleadment application challenging the maintainability of a plea seeking the registration of an FIR against various BJP leaders for allegedly making hate speeches in order to provoke the 2020 Delhi anti-Hindu riots. The court stated that the intervention application would be declined and that it would not be kept pending in the future.

The court was hearing an intervention application on behalf of a lawyer in a pending case filed by Shaikh Mujtaba Farooq, who sought the registration of an FIR and investigation against BJP officials Anurag Thakur, Kapil Mishra, Parvesh Verma, and Abhay Verma.

According to Advocate Pavan Narang, who represents the lawyer who filed the application, petitioner Farooq lacks locus standi to file the plea since, according to a Supreme Court ruling, PILs filed by people who have not even gone to the police should be dismissed. The Delhi HC bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Anup Jairam Bhambhani, however, refused to entertain the impleadment application and posted the matter for further hearing on Monday, February 28th.

The court will continue to hear another bunch of pleas seeking independent SIT investigation into the 2020 Delhi anti-Hindu Riots.

Notably, the Supreme Court had in December last year asked the Delhi High Court to decide, “preferably within a period of three months”, a pending plea seeking registration of cases against BJP leaders Kapil Mishra, Anurag Thakur, Parvesh Verma and Abhay Verma in connection with the Northeast Delhi anti-Hindu riots perpetrated by Islamists between the 23rd and the 26th of February 2020.

It may be recalled that Delhi Police, which has been investigating the North-East Delhi’s anti-Hindu riots, had in July 2020 informed the Delhi High Court that they have not found any “actionable evidence” which indicated any role being played by any prominent political leader, including BJP leader Kapil Mishra and MP Anurag Thakur in “instigating and/or participating in the riots”.

BJP leader Kapil Mishra and MP Anurag Thakur wrongfully blamed for the Delhi riots

The anti-CAA protests in Delhi which began after the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) got a clear passage in December 2019, turned violent when mobs went rampaging on the streets of the national capital February 24, 2020, onward. Soon the leftist media and ‘liberals’ had tried to implicate BJP leader Kapil Mishra and MP Anurag Thakur in the Delhi riots claiming that their allegedly ‘provocative’ statements ahead of Delhi elections triggered the riots. Interestingly, the Left media completely refused to acknowledge that the charge sheets clearly mentioned how Muslim leaders and leftists had started hatching a plan for the violence as far back as the 5th of December 2019 and regular incidents of violence by Muslim mobs ensued in the run-up to the anti-Hindu Delhi riots.

Did you know: Ukraine had condemned India after the 1998 Nuclear tests

OpIndia Staff
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Did you know: Ukraine had condemned India after the 1998 Nuclear tests

As Russian troops carry out “special military operations” against Ukraine to “demilitarise” the country, the Ukrainian government is pleading with all major powers to intervene and stop the Russian advance.

With Ukraine facing a grave crisis, the Volodymyr Zelenskyy-led government has requested India to intervene and hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, given the special ties between the two countries.  

On Thursday, Ukrainian Ambassador to India Igor Polikha urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to play a more significant role in de-escalating the tensions with Russia as Modi and Putin share a mutual respect. Perhaps, Ukraine understands the hegemony of India and intends to utilise PM Modi’s goodwill to de-escalate the ongoing tensions.

However, Ukraine’s relationship with India was not at all rosy in the past as it is today. The ties between Ukraine and India has seen ups and downs, especially after India decided to go nuclear. It is important to remember that Ukraine was one of those countries that vehemently opposed India’s nuclear tests in 1998 and had condemned India’s actions at the security council following the 1998 nuclear test.

In 1998, the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led Indian government decided to conduct five nuclear tests and had stunned the world. The nuclear tests – ‘Operation Shakti’ set India on a road that made not just a nuclear power but also assured the country’s long time security interests.  

Following the nuclear tests, the United Nations Security Council had passed a resolution 1172 that had demanded that India refrain from further nuclear tests and had called them to become parties to Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) treaties.

The resolution had asked India to immediately stop their nuclear-weapon development programmes, to cease the development of ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons and any further production of fissile material for nuclear weapons. Ukraine, which was not part of the UNSC, had issued a separate statement condemning India’s actions to acquire nuclear technology.

In addition to the UNSC resolution, more than 30 countries, including Ukraine, had stood against India’s security interests to express grave concern regarding India’s nuclear tests.

In a disarmament conference held on May 14, 1998, under the aegis of the United Nations, the 30 countries had expressed their regret over India’s decision to carry out nuclear tests, which according to them, violated the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).

Speaking at the conference, Mykola Maimeskul, the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations, had condemned the step taken by India, which endangered existing international arrangements for nuclear non-proliferation.

Today, as we speak, Ukraine faces a huge crisis with an imminent invasion by the Russians. Ukraine is desperate for powerful friends as its ally, the United States of America neither enjoys global hegemony anymore nor commands respect from the rest of the world. Twenty-two years after taking a stand that contradicts India’s security and strategic objectives, Ukraine today wants India to stand behind them and talk to Russians to end the humiliation being meted out upon them.

As they say, in international relations, there are no permanent friends or permanent enemies, only permanent interests. 

Hijab as ‘choice’: When 15 girls were left to die in a raging fire just because they were not ‘appropriately dressed’

OpIndia Staff
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Hijab as ‘choice’: When 15 girls were left to die in a raging fire just because they were not ‘appropriately dressed’

On March 11, 2002, 15 young girls were left to die in a fire at their school in Mecca. They could have escaped the fire but were not allowed to flee the burning building as they were not wearing proper ‘Islamic’ clothes. Saudi Arabia’s Religious Police prevented the Civil Defense Officers from entering the school to save the girls and stopped the girls from coming out of the building.

The incident not only shocked the country but sparked outrage across the world. The Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, also known as the Religious Police, was established in 1940. It was a Saudi Arabian government body that took radical shape in 1979 in the wake of the Iranian Revolution and the seizure of the Grand Mosque of Mecca by extremists.

The incident was the tipping point that widened the gap between the Religious Police or Hayaa and the people of Saudi Arabia. Since the incident, under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia has been gradually changing to a more moderate form of Islam as a part of Vision 2030 laid down by the Saudi administration.

The school fire and role of Religious Police in death of 15 girls

On March 11, 2002, a fire broke down at Intermediate School No 31 of Macca. Reportedly, it was caused by an unattended cigarette in a room located on the top floor, but some theories suggest it was caused due to an electric short circuit. The fire spread quickly across the three-storey building. There was a narrow staircase in the building to escape. The panicked students rushed towards the staircase that collapsed.

At the time of the incident, there were around 800 students and 50 teachers in the school. The building was an over-crowded rented property. During the investigation into the fire, the agencies found there were iron bars on the windows, making them impossible for anyone to use for escape. The building lacked alarms, emergency stairs or escape routes and fire extinguishers. In case of a disaster, like the one that happened in March 2002, the lack of safety measures had put everyone at risk.

Reports suggest that it was a residential building that was turned into a school in 1990. The building had small rooms, few washrooms and narrow staircases. There were no proper arrangements for students in the school. General Presidency for Girls’ Education was managing the school. When the incident happened, the male guard, who had locked the main door, was not present around the building.

By the time firefighters reached the school, the members of Religious Police were already present at the building. During that time, the members of Religious Police often roamed around the girls’ schools to “ensure” they wore proper Islamic dress. While the innocent girls and teachers were suffocating and screaming for help, the members of the Religious Police prevented rescuers from entering the building. They also stopped the victims from escaping the building.

The reason behind such an inhumane act was that the girls were not wearing abayas and headscarves or hijab. According to the al-Eqtisadiah daily, a witness saw the members of Religious Police allegedly beating the girls who tried to escape the building. They also stopped men from approaching women as it was “sinful to approach the girls.” The Father of one of the deceased girls alleged that the guard of the school refused to open the main gate of the school.

The rescuers lost precious time to save the girls who trampled over each other while trying to escape. By the time regular police arrived and intervened to let the firefighters enter the building, 15 students were already dead, and over 50 were injured.

The action of the Religious Police sparked outrage across the country and on the international platform. In the investigation, the government agencies found the educational authorities maintaining the school was responsible for incompetent fire safety measures in the building. Though there were eyewitnesses and Civil Defense Officers who saw Religious Police preventing rescuers from entering the building, their role in the death of 15 students was dismissed by the government.

The outrage, however, forced the Saudi government to scrape the General Presidency for Girls’ Education. The autonomous government agency that was created in 1960 and managed by conservative clerics was replaced by the Ministry of Education. Notably, boys’ schools were already under the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia.

The downfall of Religious Police

Religious Police is hardly seen in public places in current times. Once feared by most of the public, Religious Police was infamous for detaining, beating up and assaulting those who did not follow Islamic Laws, especially women. They used to patrol public areas to enforce dress codes. They would not allow men and women to be at the same place.

After the 2002 incident, they slowly lost their powers, and by 2016, the government stripped them off most authority. They could not detain, pursue or question any “suspect”. As per the regulations, they were asked to act kindly and gently with the public. They could only report the incident to law enforcement officers and not take any action against anyone.

The Saudi administration has removed many restrictions on women in recent years, such as they can now drive alone, gender segregation is no longer required and more and mandatory burqa orders have been removed, as long as women wear ‘decent’ attires. The country is now moving towards becoming a more open society, but the black spots like the incident of March 2002  would keep haunting them for a long time.

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