The concerted attack on Vikram Sampath over his scholarship of Swatantryaveer Savarkar and his two-volume magnum opus on the freedom fighter seems never cease to exist. This time, the slandering is a new invention, accusing Sampath of ‘plagiarism’ over his lecture ‘The Revolutionary Leader Vinayak Damodar Savarkar’ which he gave at the India Foundation way back in 2017.
It started when associate professors of History and Communication from three universities in the USA, namely – Ananya Chakravarti, Rohit Chopra and the infamous Audrey Truschke wrote to the Royal Historical Society, UK making a case for Plagiarism against Sampath. In the letter dated February 11, 2022, the professors have accused Sampath of allegedly ‘borrowing from essays, lifting sentences without attribution and merely paraphrasing material’ from certain essays and thesis dissertations. Not only do their claims completely fall flat when they themselves find required references been cited in the index, but their attempts to ‘dismantle’ Sampath’s scholarship have also put their own academic credentials in question.
Last year, he was elected as a fellow of the Royal Historical Society (@RoyalHistSoc).
Here, The accusation of Sampath over alleged plagiarism comes in two parts – One where the professors claim that the author has not quoted the works of Scholars Vinayak Chaturvedi and Janaki Bakhale in his speech to the Indian Foundation. The Second – on another hand, is a hard-hitting claim of Vikram Sampath not crediting a thesis by a deceased undergraduate student Paul Schaffel from Wesleyan University in 2012. A Simple deconstruction of the letter of accusations reveals that the case against Sampath is rather weak, and is yet another exercise in tainting him over his scholarship of the revolutionary leader Savarkar.
Over citation of works by Chaturvedi and Bakhale
The recent attempt of accusing Sampath over his works is regarding the speech he gave at an India Foundation Event on March 18, 2017. The letter accuses him of ‘borrowing’ the central theme of Dr Vinayak Chaturvedi’s essay “A revolutionary’s biography: The case of V D Savarkar”. The cabal also accuses Sampath of ‘plagiarising’ from Dr Janaki Bakhale’s work. The professors while running his published speech on a plagiarism-detecting website, allegedly found a 50% resemblance of the content with Chaturvedi’s work and thence concluded that the work of Sampath was compromised.
While any speech however based on facts cannot be counted as an academic exercise, Vikram Sampath has explicitly mentioned Dr. Vinayak Chaturvedi in the questioned speech. Vikram Sampath without mincing his words gives credit to Dr. Chaturvedi and acknowledges his work repeatedly during the lecture. He has also mentioned his work in the list of referenced articles so published.
Moreover, publishing a full list of referenced articles while publishing his speech as an article in the India Foundation Journal, Sampath has also given due acknowledgement to Dr Bakhle for her research. In 2019, when Sampath came with his first Volume of the biography of Savarkar, she was herself to write a critical review of Sampath’s book without any allegations of plagiarism.
Third, Janaki Bakhle reviewed Vikram’s book on Savarkar. She had both positive & negative comments, but nowhere did she mention plagerism 4/n https://t.co/eZlXpbysbH
The letter also accuses Vikram Sampath of incorrectly sighting Paul Schaffel in his bibliography of ‘Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past’ (Volume I of the Svarakar biography). In the attached reference, Savarkar is clearly seen narrating an incidence independent of Schaffel’s writing. As he is not quoting Paul Schaffel directly, he has made sure to acknowledge the latter’s undergraduate thesis in his bibliography of works referenced. Thus, the allegation of plagiarism of incorrect referencing does not hold water, as the author has made sure to credit every source in an equally voluminous and thorough bibliography of references.
(Excerpt from the letter) There is no point in crediting Paul Schaffel while narrating a similar incidence in history, where the scholar has not been directly quoted as seen above.
Continued harassment of Sampath
This is not the first time when scholars and historians who are not necessarily sympathetic to the left have been targeted over their popular yet academically rooted scholarship. The generation of Vikram Sampath, Sanjeev Sanyal, J Sai Deepak and many others has made many strides as their narratives and perspectives of history are being widely accepted by scholars and the masses equally. The letter has been also called out for its tone, which sounds a yet another complaint about The Royal Historical Society’s felicitation of Vikram Sampath as a member.
As many of you are aware, @vikramsampath is constantly attacked personally by the Left cabal for the crime of writing a book about Savarkar. The latest is that he is accused of plagerism. The evidence is very weak as explained below 1/n
I feel sad that the agni pariksha of @vikramsampath continues. History must always be seen from multiple viewpoints. Vikram has merely provided an additional view that allows us to appreciate the multidimensionality of narratives. He does not deserve to be pilloried for that.
Seems like the left will continue to expose itself while engaging in targeting based on rhetorics, less on substance. Meanwhile, there is much space and acceptance for new-age historians, thinkers and policy experts who are reclaiming and defining the ideas of India in many an intellectual churn.
Devadatt Kamat, the senior counsel who presented in the Karnataka High Court on behalf of the Muslim petitioners and argued in favour of wearing hijab in schools, cited Quranic verses from the website quran.com.
He argued that the headscarf is an essential element of the Islamic dress code, citing Quranic references. In court, Kamat read verses 24.31 and 24.33 of the Quran to explain that wearing a hijab or veil over one’s head is an essential Islamic practice.
We’ve selected a few verses from the same website that Kamat used and have some far-fetching implications. Also, the translations we are using here are the same ones that were referred to by Kamat before the court.
Non-Muslims are the worst of creatures (Chapter 98, Verse 6)
This verse asserts unequivocally that non-Muslims are the lowest of beings and will perish in the fires of hell. Quoting, “Those who disbelieve among the People of the Book and the idolaters will have the Fire of Hell, there to remain. They are the worst of creation.”
Disbelievers are to be beheaded (Chapter 8, Verse 12)
This verse, which comes under Al-Anfal chapter of the Quran, states that disbelievers (non-Muslims) are to be beheaded and their fingers chopped off. “Your Lord revealed to the angels: ‘I am with you: give the believers firmness; I shall put terror into the hearts of the disbelievers- strike above their necks and strike all their fingertips.’ reads the mentioned verse.
Women are less trustable than men (Chapter 2, Verse 282)
This commandment focuses on the need for having a witness in any circumstance regarding debt. A man is equated with two women in this case because one woman is not as trustworthy as a man. “Call in two men as witnesses. If two men are not there, then call one man and two women out of those you approve as witnesses, so that if one of the two women should forget the other can remind her. Let the witnesses not refuse when they are summoned.” a part of the whole verse reads.
Marrying a slave is preferable to marrying an idol worshipper (Chapter 2, Verse 221)
Here, it is advised that a slave who is a Muslim can be married but any non-believer cannot be married until one converts to Islam. “Do not marry idolatresses until they believe: a believing slave woman is certainly better than an idolatress, even though she may please you. And do not give your women in marriage to idolaters until they believe: a believing slave is certainly better than an idolater, even though he may please you.” reads the verse.
Hit wife if she disobeys (Chapter 4, Verse 34)
“If you fear high-handedness from your wives, remind them [of the teachings of God], then ignore them when you go to bed, then hit them. If they obey you, you have no right to act against them: God is most high and great.” reads this verse advising Muslim men to hit the wife in case they don’t agree with them.
Notably, the reference used to explain the burqa/hijab contains much of misogynistic content in all of its interpretations, which is striking.
The hijab controversy that started in Karnataka has gained attention all over the country. Several individuals and organizations have rushed to the defense of girls who want to wear the burqa at school, claiming that it is a religious need. These individuals should verify the prescriptions of their experts, such as Abdul Haleem, whose translations were adopted by Kamat and whom we have also mentioned, who interpret the Quran and indicate that a wife should be abused and trusted less than a man.
A scuffle erupted in the Budh Vihar Colony in the Chhijarsi Chowki region of Uttar Pradesh’s Gautam Budh Nagar district (Noida) after a WhatsApp story in favour of the BJP was posted. Five youths were assaulted by a group of Muslim men. Two of them were severely beaten and assaulted with sharp objects. Salim Pasha is the prime accused in this crime. In this 11 February incident, six people have been detained so far, along with a juvenile.
Two @agniveer Gausevaks Ravi & Pawan attacked with swords & knives in Noida by peaceful mob for ‘my vote for BJP’ status on WhatsApp. Mob abducted & confined them in a house. @Uppolice liberated boys. A peaceful said outside Thana-“let’s stab them all here whoever files FIR”. pic.twitter.com/l0NtHpB6VX
Virender Singh Jat wrote in the complaint filed with the police, “On February 10, I made a BJP-supporting status update on my phone. At roughly 10:35 p.m., Salim Pasha of my neighbourhood responded with filthy obscenities. Following that, on the 11th of February, at 5 p.m., as I returned home with my friends Atul and Ajay following the treatment of a cow, we were ambushed by Salim Pasha and his companions Shadab, Salman, Raja Altaf, Afroz, and Aman Chukchi. About 30 more unidentifiable persons were among the assailants.”
The FIR.
“After the incident, we were encircled and attacked again when we were going to the police station to get the FIR registered,” the complaint said. “In this encounter, Ravi Thakur and Pawan Thakur were hurt. They were kidnapped and taken into a residence in this condition. In the home, both of them were attacked with sharp weapons once again. We called the police on 112 and notified them of the situation. The cops arrived and rescued Ravi and Pawan from the accused’s home. Ravi has been admitted to the hospital,” it added.
Case details.
A case has been filed in this regard by the Uttar Pradesh Police. In this case, Salman, Raja, Salim, Aman Chukchi, Afroz, Altaf, and Shadab have all been implicated. The accused has been charged under sections 147, 149, 323, 324, 365, 342, 506, and 67 of the Information Technology Act. The attack’s victims are between the ages of 20 and 30, and they work for the service of cows.
थाना सेक्टर-63 नोएडा पर पंजीकृत मुकदमे में 05 अभियुक्तों को गिरफ्तार कर लिया गया है, अग्रिम कार्रवाई की जा रही है।
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GAUTAM BUDDH NAGAR (@noidapolice) February 12, 2022
Gautam Buddh Nagar police tweeted to confirm that a case has been registered in the matter under strict sections, and five accused were arrested till yesterday.
Ravi Thakur is the most severely injured in the incident and is being treated at SJM Hospital in Chhijarsi.
Outside SJM hospital.
OpIndia reaches SJM hospital
OpIndia conducted an on-the-ground inquiry into the incident. We began our ground reporting from SJM Hospital at 3 p.m. on February 12. More individuals were not permitted to approach the injured at the hospital because of security concerns. There were no police officers on the scene. Apart from the injured’s family, some Hindu activists and media personnel were there at the moment.
We were able to reach the injured Ravi Thakur after obtaining permission from the SJM Hospital security guard. Ravi Thakur was taken for an ultrasound at the time. Ravi Kumar’s family members were in attendance. We asked their families to speak outside the hospital’s gate so that the hospital’s protocols and other patients were not disrupted. They agreed to this request.
Family and Acquaintances of Ravi Thakur.
Injured Ravi Thakur’s mother talks to OpIndia
Pinky, the injured Ravi Thakur’s mother, told OpIndia, “My son had gone to serve the cow.” I only have one son. These individuals (accused) stabbed him several times. We discovered it at about 8 p.m. Our son had already been admitted to the hospital by the time we received the call. My husband is a security guard. We are residents of Kanpur Dehat, Uttar Pradesh. We are handling the entire treatment ourselves. The cops have arrived at the hospital and interrogated my son. My son is not in a position to convey the facts correctly. He’s in a lot of pain. His head is shattered. The head has been assaulted from four different angles. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to hear his voice.” During this entire conversation, Ravi Thakur’s mother kept crying.
Ravi Thakur’s father speaks to OpIndia
“My name is Thakur Sukhveer Singh,” said Ravi Thakur’s father. ” My son was working in addition to learning. During the lockdown, he had lost his job. We had gone to the village in the meanwhile. He was seeking for work once he returned. I have no knowledge of the situation. I received the information while on duty. When I arrived after hearing the news, I discovered this situation. I have no ill will toward anyone. The formation of the BJP government has led to this scuffle.” he added.
Parents of Ravi Thakur.
OpIndia talks to Pawan Kumar Tomar, the second victim of the attack
Pawan Kumar Tomar is the second victim, whom the attackers tried to kill by locking them in the house. Pawan Tomar told OpIndia, “The main reason behind the incident is the posting of BJP WhatsApp status by my friend Virender Chaudhary (Virender Jat). On this status, a boy named Salim Pasha abused him. Salim is infamous for doing vagabonds in 25 futa area. At the time of the incident, 25 to 30 people attacked Virender Chaudhary. Virender called me after the attack. Then I was taking care of the cow. I sent Virender to the police station and then drove there myself. When I arrived, I noticed that the friends with me were rushing ahead of me. They were being chased by a group of Muslim men.”
Pawan Kumar in the hospital.
Pawan Kumar Tomar further said, “I heard that there was an announcement from the mosques that there was a fight with the Bajrang Dal people. We will have to see them today. Everyone was gathered at Salim’s house. Ravi Bhai was also with me. Me and Ravi Bhai were assaulted. When I stopped there with a bike, seeing the Chandan on my forehead, they (the attackers) said that he too belongs to the Bajrang Dal. They abducted us both threatening to slay us. After taking us inside a house and locking, a fat man made the first attack on Ravi Bhai with a sword. Blood began to pour from Ravi Bhai’s head as a result of that impact. I felt a bit frightened. I was terrified so I rushed to the room in front of me. I locked from the inside after that. Then I dialed 112 for assistance. After then, the cops arrived. After the cops arrived, we were free to depart. At least 7 to 8 police vans had arrived. Women were also involved in this incident, along with men. They threw bricks from the roofs. A brick did hit me on the back. There is still some swelling. I told them I wasn’t there and they shouldn’t harm me, but they said you’re from Bajrang Dal as well. They kept shouting Bajrang Dal throughout the attack.”
Complainant and victim Virender Singh Jat spoke to OpIndia
Virender Singh Jat is the same young man who is claimed of being assaulted by Salim Pasha, based on WhatsApp statuses he wrote in favour of the BJP. In this case, Virender is also the complainant. “On the 10th, I typed ‘Only BJP Bhagwadhari’ with the status of my voter ID,” he stated in an interview with OpIndia. Salim Pasha, a student alongside me, verbally harassed me because of my standing. I also responded to him. Then he invited me to meet him the next day. We work as cow helpers. In the evening, we went to a look for an ill cow. We were on our way back home but were besieged and beaten. We ran from there. Then, as we were about to report it to the police, the inhabitants in his entire neighborhood did beat us up again.”
House of Virender Singh Jat.
Virender Singh Jat further said, “Two of our friends were picked up and locked in the house. Their names are Pawan Kumar Tomar and Ravi Thakur. Pawan Bhai called 112 and called the police. In the meantime, Ravi was wounded due to beating with swords and knives. Along with them, 1-2 more boys were also beaten. After information on 112, the police reached and took them to the police station. Ravi Bhai was taken to the hospital for treatment. With us, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Gau Raksha Dal, and Agniveer teams arrived at the police station. There, a group of Muslims began to arrive. There were a lot of people that came from there. They were escorted away by the cops. Even with the cops, they were doing “tu-tu, main-main.”
Virender Singh Jat.
According to Virender, “Our house is in street number 7 and Salim’s house is in street number 4. There is only a short distance between our house. There are more Muslim people and fewer Hindus. Salim Pasha has not been caught yet. I am Jat I support Yogi-Modi. None of the politicians they helped me. Sunil Chaudhary or anyone from Samajwadi Party did not come to ask us anything. I would like to tell my Jat brothers not to fall for them.”
Victims’ friend and their Gau Seva group chief Vishal Gautam spoke to OpIndia
Vishal Gautam told OpIndia, “On the day of the incident, as usual, these boys were coming after doing cow service. A few hours before that, there was a dispute about their WhatsApp status. Status was in support of BJP. Because of this, the Muslim youth of the same place disputed with them. The rule of our Agniveer organization is to inform the authorities after every incident. That’s why he (complainant Virender Singh Jat) informed me about the whole incident. I instructed them to go to the police station and file a complaint. That’s when they (the assailants) declared, ‘If we have to go to jail, we’ll go after murdering them.’ They issued a call and assembled all of the men. Several of our men were harmed there, most notably Pawan Tomar and Ravi Thakur. They were stabbed with whatever was in the form of a knife. He has one and a half to two-inch incisions on his skull. In addition, there are 13-14 stitches.”
Vishal Gautam further said, “Ravi was left by the attackers as dead. After this they started beating Pawan. Pawan had locked himself in the room. I live in Dasna so it took me a while to come. By then the police and some friends in the media had been informed. I went down that street. As soon as I entered my street, the father of the accused Salim Pasha blocked the street. At the same time, he went inside to call more people. Sensing the situation, I came out with a scooty. Then the teams of Noida and Ghaziabad police reached the spot. The police took both (Ravi and Pawan) out of the house and got Ravi admitted to the hospital. They took the rest to the police station.”
Vishal Gautam
“We have filed a named complaint against eight persons,” says Vishal Gautam. ” Some are unidentified. While filing a complaint at the police station, the accused were there. Then one of his men entered and drove the accused away. Amirul Hasan is one of their leaders’ names. In Buddha Vihar, he runs an illegal school. There is no acknowledgment of that school. Outside the police station, Amirul Hasan stated that ‘if they do not agree to stop from filing an FIR, beat them cruelly.’ This was heard by the cops themselves. From there, they reprimanded Amirul and drove him away. Following that, the men from Buddha Vihar informed us that the announcement had been made in the mosque here. According to the announcement, our men were being thrashed by cops at Sector 63 police station. While not a single boy was ever harmed. Following this, around 300 people packed into vehicles and lined up in groups of 10-12 at each junction in Noida Sector 63.”
Vishal Gautam went on to say, “When roughly 50 people arrived from our side as well, the cops urged us to remove the throng. They stated this in order to maintain societal peace. It also reminded me of election season. We returned our friends. Afterward, at one and a half a.m.in the night, Amirul Hasan arrived at the hospital in his car. I was sitting outdoors on my scooty with 4-5 buddies since I had not received clearance from the hospital authorities upstairs. Amirul Hasan began by claiming that the police had apprehended another Salman as a result of his actions. Amirul Hasan requested that I negotiate Salman’s release. In addition, he warned me with penalties if I did not comply. He began attempting to get a friend of mine, Atul Tiwari, to sit in his car.”
Vishal Gautam went on to explain, “So far, the police action is ongoing.” The police are raiding. According to reports, the suspects have fled. The attack comprised between 300 and 400 persons. They’d poured bricks from their rooftops. They have shattered the glass in their own home in order to bring this action against us. They also removed the AC wires, etc. Around 70 of our men had arrived to assist in the rescue. However, the number of these persons (attackers) was steadily growing. They came from all around, including Noida, Kaila Bhatta, Islam Nagar, and Dasna. There were also other ladies who claimed to have been molested. They threatened to file a bogus rape accusation against us. At the time, the police had them removed from the area. During this time, the opposition also called the Samajwadi Party’s Noida District President. The automobile of the SP district president was spotted there.”
“These (accused persons) stand under the underpass at night,” Vishal says. “They steal people’s phones and money. Someone informed me that one of them is a young man named Salman or Salim. He asked a Hindu girl to marry him. When the girl refused, he broke into her home and severed the girl’s vein. The girl’s relatives did not file a complaint because they were afraid. We are disseminating this information. At the same time, we are looking into the offenses they committed. We’ll keep everything in plain sight of the cops. We’ve urged the cops to beef up security. If someone can come in the middle of the night to bully, why can’t he walk upstairs to kill? At least till the injured is in the hospital, the security should be kept strong. There were 2 policemen deployed in the night, but there is no security as of now.” he added.
Accused Aman alias Chuchi has made a video with weapons on Owaisi’s 15-minute statement
A video posted on Twitter by a user with the handle According to Jatin Raj, depicts Aman alias Chuchi, the culprit in the incident. In this video, a young man is shown holding a firearm. The voice of Akbaruddin Owaisi’s 15-minute address is echoing in the background. In this video, Jatin Raj has also tagged Noida Police.
After visiting the victims, family, and friends of the injured at the hospital, the OpIndia crew traveled to the site of the incident. This location is on NH 24 after crossing the Hindon River on the way from Noida to Hapur. We arrived at the location after descending the underpass and walked through the underpass wall on the right side. On the route, there is a rutted mud road. The main market is around 300 meters away from the event scene, and a half-dozen police officers were spotted stationed there. Other police station personnel were also spotted arriving in cars on the scene.
Police near the place of incident.
We arrived at the location where the entire event occurred after walking through the busy market for around 300 meters from where the police force was deployed. A diverse populace, as well as shops, could be seen at the market. This route is known as the 25 futa road. There was no police presence in the street where the event occurred. Neighbors said that the cops were still showing up from time to time. Any local declined to speak about the event in front of the camera.
The underpass next to NH 24
Life was normal on 25 Futa Road. Shops were open and people were busy with their daily activities. However, there was silence in the street where the incident took place. Only a few people were seen there.
The street where the incident took place
OpIndia spoke to the local SHO in this matter
Inspector Dharmendra Kumar Shukla, in charge of Sector 63 Police Station, spoke with OpIndia. “So far, six arrests have been made in this case,” added the inspector. ” A minor is also among the offenders. I’m now putting together the paperwork to present the accused in court. I’ll be able to provide the remainder of the action information later this evening.” he added.
A shocking video from Rander of Surat has emerged on social media in which a female caretaker (‘Aayaa’ that is a babysitter) is seen beating an eight-month-old baby boy brutally for unknown reasons. The woman had even slammed the child on the mattress. On a complaint by the child’s parents, the woman was arrested by the Rander police on 5th February 2022 and booked under section 307 of IPC for an attempt to murder.
The eight-month-old baby boy was rushed to a hospital in critical condition after he was found in an unconscious state on Friday 4th February 2022. The video of the incident was caught by a hidden camera installed by the family due to suspicions about the caretaker’s behaviour.
Monstrous. Itni bhi kya paise ki bhookh hai yaar jo itne chote bachcho ko kisi ke bhi haath mein de dete hain maa baap. Sick pic.twitter.com/5sIL0Gzax9
Komal Tandelkar, aged 27, used to work as a caretaker at the house of Mithesh Patel who is a sports teacher in a local private school. Mithesh’s wife is also a working woman, she is an instructor at the Industrial Training Institute (ITI). As both of them go for their jobs, they had employed Komal Tandelkar as an Aayaa to take care of their twin children.
Recently, Patels were informed by their neighbours that when the couple had gone to their respective workplaces, the baby boys were crying a lot while the caretaker was in their house. Out of suspicion, Mithesh Patel had installed a hidden camera inside the house, as he had noticed minor injury marks on the bodies of the twin boys. On Friday, 4th February 2022, Komal Tandelkar called and informed Patel that one of the baby boys has fainted. Patel rushed him to a private hospital where he was admitted.
A police officer has reportedly said “The boy has suffered a brain injury and is on a ventilator. Preliminary investigation has revealed that Tandelkar slammed the baby hard on the mattress resulting in serious head injuries. Accused has been booked for attempt to murder.”
The officer added that “When the father asked the accused what happened to the boy she did not say anything. Later when Patel checked the camera footage he came to know about the torture.” In the video that went viral, Komal Tandelkar is seen beating and thrashing the boy. She committed this monstrous act when she was supposed to take care of the twin babies.
Patel filed a complaint against the accused in Rander police station. Based on the complaint, the accused was arrested on 5th February 2022.
As the Karnataka hijab row is being exploited by the political parties during the ongoing assembly polls, usual suspects have started to familiar arguments in support of Islamic veil rules for woman. In the latest episode, Congress leader Zameer Ahmed has claimed that women without hijab get raped.
B. Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan, Congress MLA from Chamrajpet constituency in Karnataka, has joined the hijab debate by claiming that the Islamic veil is for protecting the beauty of women from potential rapists. When asked about his views on the matter, he said, “Hijab means purdah in Islam, (those who are opposing it) may not have women and children in their house, if they had, they would have known it. The purpose of the hijab is, after the girls grow up, it is used to keep them under Purdah, as their beauty should not be seen. Hijab is used to keep their beauty hidden’.
#WATCH | Hijab means ‘Parda’ in Islam…to hide the beauty of women…women get raped when they don’t wear Hijab: Congress leader Zameer Ahmed on #HijabRow in Hubli, Karnataka pic.twitter.com/8Ole8wjLQF
Zameer Ahmed Khan further added, ‘As you must have seen, the rape rate in India is perhaps the highest in the world. What is the reason, because the women are not kept under purdah.’
He however added that hijab is not compulsory, but those women who want to keep their beauty hidden can wear it to prevent getting raped. He said that there is nothing new in this, and this is a years old system.
As expected, the comments made by the Congress MLA are baseless and misleading. First, Karnataka govt has not banned Muslim women from wearing hijab like the Congress party and the so-called feminists are claiming. Only the students of colleges, where dress codes are in place, are being prevented from wearing hijab inside classrooms. They can wear it elsewhere, and other Muslim women are free to be under purdah as per their wish. The restriction is only on students, as they are expected to follow the uniform rules of their colleges.
The claim that exposure of body by women leads to more rape has been debunked numerous times, as the data on rape does not support this claim. Fully clothed women are raped and harassed regularly, and incidents of women in burqa getting raped also have quite often.
And the claim that rape rate in India is highest is completely wrong. According to data, the rate of rape in India is 1.81 per 100,000 population, which at 95th position among 119 countries, which implies a significantly lower rate. Botswana tops the chart with 93 rapes er 100000 citizens.
After the mob lynching incident of Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, where 17-year-old Rupesh Pandey was murdered by an Islamist mob during the Saraswati Visarjan, instead of punishing the culprits, the state govt is taking action against Hindu groups protesting against the murder and demanding justice. The Jharkhand Police has now registered an FIR against the protesters who had organised a candle march in Chatra condemning the murder.
Thousands of people including the members of Bharatiya Janata Party, BJYM, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, Vishwas Hindu Parishad have been protesting the brutal killing of Pandey. In Jamua of Giridih, Vishwa Hindu Parishad protested against the murder and demanded capital punishment for the killers of Rupesh Pandey.
Meanwhile, the youth in Chatra had taken out a candle march on February 10 and demanded the government action against the culprits. The youths involved in the rally had said that the state government was giving protection to the accused of mob lynching and warned that if strict action is not taken against the culprits, the protests would be more aggressive.
Alok Kumar, Ankit Pandey, Baijnath Yaduvanshi, Bhavani Roy, Pintu Kumar, Rajkumar, Santosh Kumar, Satish Pandey, Umesh Bharti, Rajesh Ram, Himanshu Gupta, Kanhai Pandey, Rajdeep Pandey and Uttam Pandey who were a part of candle march protest in Chatra have specifically been named in the FIR.
The Police officials have charged them under section 147 (nuisance or rioting) and section, 188 (violation of government instructions during the pandemic) of IPC in addition to section 51 (Disobeying government orders during disaster) of the Disaster Management Act (NDMA) and Section 3 of the Epidemic Act.
BJYM says govt, police trying to cover up the case-
BJYM leader Suman Saurav while talking exclusively to OpIndia said that the protest rally in Chatra was huge and banners demanding justice for Rupesh Pandey were established all over the city. “Many Hindu organisations had participated in the rally. They questioned the government about the law and order in the state. The protest was not at all violent and hence the Police was also silent during the march. But the next day we were informed that an FIR has been registered”, he added.
Suman Saurav said that the protest march was conducted peacefully, and even the police didn’t object to it. But on the next day, the case was filed for organising the march by the police.
He stated that the Hindus have often been targeted by Chatra Police and SHO Luv Kumar Singh. “Candle marches, protests have been organized in various cities of Jharkhand. BJYM wants the matter to be heard in fast track court and capital punishment must be given to the culprits. We have also lodged complaint to the NCPCR”, he said adding that a govt job and compensation of Rs 50 lakh must be given to the family of Rupesh Pandey.
It is important to note that a crime report has been registered against 27 accused Muslims and 5 of them have been arrested so far in the case. Suman Saurav has further said that the Police is looking at the murder as some small fight and is trying to cover up the case. The matter should be looked upon as a severe ‘mob lynching’ act and the govt should also extend its helping had to the victim’s family, he added.
Muslim women had teased unconscious Rupesh, said “He’s alive, probably not beaten properly”
It is reported that Rupesh Pandey was an intermediate student and was working part-time in a mobile shop to support the family expenses. His brother died long back due to snake bite leaving Rupesh alone to look after his family. Rupesh’s mother who works in a women’s committee and father who is a small scale farmer are worried about the murder case as they say the matter can escalate to the Supreme Court.
According to Rupesh’s parents, they don’t see the case resolved at the earliest as it pertains to mob lynching by Muslims. BJYM leader said that they have initiated collecting funds via crowdfunding to help the family of Rupesh.
Reports mention that the Muslim women of Hazaribagh who witnessed the murder of Rupesh Pandey were passing intimidating comments on the victim. When Rupesh was being admitted to the hospital, the women said, “He’s alive, probably not beaten properly”.
The BJYM held the protests in the entire state under the leadership of former CM Babulal Marandi. It has also led the initial talks with the state governor Ramesh Bais and demanded justice in the case. Accusing the state government of ignoring the matter, Suman Saurav said that the protest is not only from the political party, but even the public wants justice.
‘Either hang them or give them to me, I will kill them’, Rupesh Pandey’s mother demands capital punishment for killers of her son
Earlier, Rupesh’s mother had demanded justice for her minor son’s brutal murder. She had demanded that the culprits be hanged. “I don’t want anything else, simply return my son to me. They have taken away the apple of our eye. We cannot bear the loss, we are going crazy. So far, no concrete action has been taken by the police. I’m alone. My son was my only hope. I do not keep well. Somehow we were making ends meet”, she had said.
She recalled receiving a call from a doctor on the day of the incident, informing her that her son was lying unconscious. When she arrived, the cops refused to let her see Rupesh, she claimed. Remembering her minor son, Rupesh’s mother had said brusquely, “Either hang the culprits or give them to me. I will kill them. Just like they tortured and brutally hacked my son to death, I would kill them too”.
What does the FIR read?
The initial report filed by Anil Kumar Pandey, Rupesh’s uncle narrates the exact episode of Rupesh’s murder. According to the report, Rupesh was sitting in the mobile shop at around 5 pm on February 5. Some of his friends invited him to the Saraswati puja. Suddenly the Muslim crowd led by Aslam Ansari alias Pappu Miya approached Pandey and started beating him.
The crowd also consisted of Muslim women. The mob attacked Pandey and sat on him so he could not escape, the report mentioned. The accused named in this case are – Aslam Ansari, Mohammad Naushad, Mohammad Kaif, Mohammad Gufran, Mohammad Chand, Mohammad Osama, Mohammad Ehtam, Mohammad Zahid, Mohammad Sonu.
Mohammad Faisal, Mohammad Shahbaz, Rabbani Miyan, Mohammad Ashiq, Mohammad Jashid, Mohammad Ashiq. , Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Salman, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Salman alias Bhale, Mohammad Chhote, Mohammad Istekhar, Mohammad Iqbal, Mohammad Hassan, Mohd Anees and Mohd Naushad have also been mentioned as accused in the report.
The Hijab row in the southern state of Karnataka has been a talking point across the country. The Karnataka government’s decision on strict enforcement of already existing rules and regulations on the uniforms has angered a section of Muslims and radical Islamic organisations, who have now descended on the streets to protest against such rules. They have also insisted that they would be wearing Hijab inside educational institutions, challenging the country’s secular ethos.
The Hijab ban in schools and the subsequent violent reaction of Muslims have now given a major shock, putting the pluralistic foundations of the nation at risk. Moreover, the mounting attacks on the idea of secular-democratic constitutional value by a section of society and their attempts to impose theocratic values on a nation that is bound by civilisational values have put the indigenous communities of the nation into a state of trepidation.
Amidst all of these raging debates over the future of India’s secular-democratic republic and fears of Islamisation, there is a growing demand for the immediate introduction of a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) that could act as a check against the misuse of personal laws, especially by the Muslims, to challenge the foundational ideas of the country such as secularism and pluralism.
According to its proponents, UCC will bring some kind of parity among all the communities and halt the growing Islamisation in the country. The UCC, if implemented, will make personal laws applicable to all citizens equally regardless of their religion.
However, Supreme Court Advocate J Sai Deepak, who is one of the leading voices on Indic issues, has an interesting take on the idea of the Uniform Civil Code. Sai Deepak, who has extensively written and spoken about the issue of the Uniform Civil Code, has, in fact, raises a flag of caution on the scope and the nature of the Uniform Civil Code.
Recently, in a debate on Times Now, Advocate Sai Deepak pointed out that nobody yet understands the rationale behind the Uniform Civil Code. According to Sai Deepak, for Hindus, the discussions around the Uniform Civil Code will start with a compromise. Hindus will be pushed to start from a loser’s position as a part of the bargain, notes the Supreme Court advocate.
“Hindus have already lost a lot due to the policies of Nehru. The diversity of Hindu culture has been destroyed by codifying Hindu personal laws. With the introduction of the Uniform Civil Code, it is the Hindu culture that will lose out,” Sai Deepak said, adding that the proposed Uniform Civil Code’s fundamental nature will yet again revolve around the colonial ideas of secularism and democracy.
Sai Deepak notes that the Nehru government had codified the Hindu personal laws into four successive bills under the Hindu Code Bill. He adds that the personal laws were not only codified, but a good number of Hindu customs were completely done away with, and the community was never consulted.
“Only two people decided it, Dr Ambedkar is a mixed bag, and in this case, he completely supported Nehru in his unilateral imposition of this position without any consultation because Dr Ambedkar had already prepared the framework even before the independence. In the 1940s, Ambedkar had already worked on this, during which there was no consultation undertaken with respect to Hindus,” Sai Deepak argues.
Sai Deepak says he neither supports the Uniform Civil Code nor rejects it as the basic structure of the policy is yet to be decided. “We also want to know what the other communities are willing to compromise. If anybody thinks that this discussion will be a secular one, then they are wrong. This is an absolute religious-communal discussion issue. There is no point in secularising this issue,” Sai Deepak notes.
The Supreme Court advocate points out that the Hindu Civil Code has been based on only two schools – Mithakshara and Dayabhaga. As per him, there are more than two schools. The lawmakers established a polarity among all the practices in North, South, East and West regions to codify a personal law for Hindus.
The area of Muslim personal law has been effectively left entirely to the community and its religious authorities, in stark contrast with Hindus, says Sai Deepak.
In the current situation, if the countries want to arrive at a Uniform Civil Code, the Hindus will be made to compromise for accomodating concerns of non-Hindus. In addition, the Uniform Civil code will be presented as the biggest project of minority victimhood for the rest of the world, Sai Deepak expressed his worry about pushing for a Uniform Civil Code that is not include concerns of Hindus.
The Supreme Court advocate also suggests a pragmatic solution in place of a Uniform Civil Code. Sai Deepak says that instead of the UCC, the political class should first arrive at a uniform civil code for each religion, which is to say that a process should start first to at least rationalise the internal operation of each religion.
On question of reactions from Muslim community and on Muslims becoming the subject matter whenever there is a discussion on Uniform Civil Code:
One of the major talking points regarding implementing the Uniform Civil Code in the country is the opposition to the idea from the Muslim community. Even though there are legitimate concerns from the Hindu community, the left-liberal secular establishment of the country has often ignored it; instead, they have resorted to fear-mongering that the UCC would violate the religious rights of the Muslims in the country.
On the issue of perpetual display of victimhood by the Muslims and their response to the idea of UCC, Sai Deepak observes that the Muslims in the country reacted violently for the simple matter of Hijab not being allowed inside a secular classroom.
“When we start a discussion on Uniform Civil Code, India will have a larger issue on its hands. When former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee wanted to bring Uniform Civil Code, the critics of UCC said the Muslims were not ready; this was in 1998 and not 1947. Now it is 2022; we are being told the same thing,” he laments, adding that the government should not raise the issue of UCC without any preparation.
“If it wants to decide on UCC, people have a right to ask, how does it smell, how do we touch it, what is its flesh and blood character,” says Sai Deepak in his interview with Journalist Arihant Pawariya.
In the discussion, Sai Deepak also explains how the Indian state has consistently been anti-Hindu when it comes to interference with Hindu customs. Therefore, more than the impact of the Uniform Civil Code on the Muslim community, he says, adding that he is concerned with the impact it will have on the Hindu community because the standard operating procedure of the Indian state, regardless of the ruling dispensation, is that if the state wants to undertake a measure which is specific to the non-Hindu community. The secular state will not be able to sell it across the board unless there is a compromise that is made by the Hindu community.
Therefore, since this is seen as a slap on the face of minorities, the Hindus will also be slapped. This is the traditional position, he adds.
The Supreme Court advocate also challenges the detractors to name one legislation that is Muslim-centric or non-Hindu centric in nature that has been passed since 1947, which has the effect of imposing even reasonable constitutional restrictions on their religious rights. “None, zilch,” says J Sai Deepak.
The only legislation that was doing this was the Maintenance Act, concerning marriage maintenance, which led to the Shah Bano, and that snowballed into the controversy of Ram Janmabhoomi, whose consequences Hindus are still facing.
Hindus cannot be used a cannon-fodder by a political party
Responding to BJP and RSS’s ideological position on the Hindutva movement, J Sai Deepak says that Hindus have sentiments independent of the BJP and RSS.
“Hindus have certain issues with the way they have been treated in this country independent of what BJP and RSS says. Hindus certainly have a problem with the fact that over 40,000 temples are under occupation within their country under the name of Places of Worship Act, 1991. Kindly do not reduce the Hindu concerns to a political party’s concerns as these are legitimate concerns,” adds Sai Deepak.
Sai Deepak asks, “Was there a BJP when Ram Janmabhoomi started? BJP did not even exist. Even RSS did not exist. RSS was formed in 1925, whereas the Ram Janmabhoomi has been going on since at least 1858 when the very first police complaint was filed.”
“So, it is extremely convenient on the part of some of these people to reduce all Hindu interests and issues as pro-BJP or pro-RSS as if they are pure political issues. No, they are very serious cultural, civilisation, and religious issues with which we have a legitimate problem. In every other country, we speak of reclamation of places that colonisers have taken over. Bharat has seen two waves of colonisation, maybe three waves of colonisation, first by the Muslims, second by the Christians and third by the Nehruvian-Marxists, who are hell-bent on propagating the first two colonisations and changing the self-image of the country and its natives. That is a fact.”
In his interview, Sai Deepak says the victimhood complex displayed by the Muslims is way past its expiry date because if Saudi Arabia can look at its past and say, “We wish to move forward, and this is not what we want to be for the rest of our lives, and this is not we wanted to be known far. I am sorry to say, in this country, where we recognise specifically three categories, it is time for the Ashrafs, Arzals and Ajlafs of this country to change.”
Pointing out the patience displayed by the Hindus, Sai Deepak notes, “In which of the country with close to 80 per cent majority, would – you have expected the majority population to wait for 200 years to get one of its places out of 40,000 places and that too through the court. The matter reached the Faizabad court; from there, it went to the Allahabad High Court in 1989. In 2010, the matter got transferred to Supreme Court delivered a judgement in 2019. This is the extent of patience Hindus have exhibited.”
Sai Deepak also cautions the secular Indian state not to take the tolerance of Hindus lightly. He says it is essential for the state to know that at times the community patience runs out, failing which the faultiness may keep on appearing again and again.
“Even after being patient for so many decades, when Hindus have finally said enough is enough, we are only asking for parity and not preferential treatment, and even if parity is seen as inequality and discrimination, well history has a way of teaching lessons and no constitution can come in that particular way because the constituent is part of the history and history is not the part of the constitution.”
Alleged journalist Rana Ayyub recently issued a statement in connection to the seize of funds by Enforcement Directorate and accepted almost all the charges laid down by the agency. The international lobby has come in her support, alleging the Indian government is hounding Ayyub for her “fearless” journalist. Twitter user Hawk Eye, who had initially busted the alleged charity scam by Rana, has published another thread on Twitter explaining how the scam took place. In the thread, Hawk Eye compared the claims made by Ayyub with what actually happened in the background.
In the Tweet threat, Hawk Eye published the timeline of the events that took place across three campaigns run by Ayyub on crowdfunding platform Ketto. During the first campaign that ran from April 2020 to May 2020, she made three claims. On April 28, 2020, Ayyub had posted on Twitter that she had provided relief material to 2500 families. On May 17, she alleged her team provided relief material to 23 thousand families across Maharashtra, including migrant workers, Adivasi families and more.
Take a close look at this illustration and the entire charity scandal’s modus-operandi will be clear.
How to read: At the center check the timeline and follow the sequence of events in order only.
(spent 2 min time on this infographic before scrolling down)
The next claim was made on May 18, 2020, in which she said to have arranged transport for 600 migrants. Amidst all the claims, she quietly created an FD of Rs 50 lakh in her father’s name allegedly to establish a Covid care centre or a hospital. In the first campaign, she had collected 1.24 crore.
When she started the second campaign, to boost up her image, she allegedly flaunted tall claims for her previous campaign. She claimed to have provided relief to 70,000 families and sent 10,000 migrant workers back to their homes. She further claimed the distribution of relief material including 8 tonnes of food, 80,000 litres of milk, 50,000 litres of oil, 50,000 KG pulses, 1 lakh KG flour, 700 PPE kits and more.
And then started a series of tall claims & photo-ops. Rana claimed to provide relief to 70K families & sent 10K migrants home, 8 tonnes of food, 80K ltr milk, 50K ltr oil, 50k kg dal, 100k kg flour, 700 PPE kits etc. The estimation of such relief work would be in crores. 4/ pic.twitter.com/o816InQide
Hawk Eye said, “One month of relief to 15K families would cost with rough estimate 4.5Cr (with just 100/- per day of a family of 4 members). Rana Ayyub claimed to have sent 10,000 migrants from Mumbai to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh (a rough estimate would be 37.5L). However, NO bills were produced to ED/I-T that of transport.”
During the investigation, Rana produced bills worth 40 Lakh to the ED that included Taurpolin sheets and grains. Hawk Eye said, “The biggest lie was, in August 2020 claimed that “all funds are exhausted & donate more”, while 50 Lakhs FD and 57 Lakh unutilized funds are reported at the same time by ED.”
To put things in perspective, she had alleged to have donated sunflower oil in the relief package. At that time, the price of a one-litre pack of sunflower oil was around Rs 140. If she got a discount for buying in bulk, it would not have been less than Rs 125 per pack. She claimed to have donated 50,000 such packets that would clock to 62 lakh 50 thousand just for the oil. Similarly, she would have spent Rs 30 lakh on the flour and approx 32 lakh on rice. Only these three items sum up to an estimate of 1 crore 24 lakh. However, she had collected only 1.24 crore from the campaign, out of which 50 Lakh were used for FD, and 57 Lakh were lying in her account unutilized as per ED.
“70K families & 10K migrants” “50L FD to earmark hospital & earn interest” when ppl were dying of starvation (as per one tweet). “My PAN not available” but sister’s one was arranged who live abroad” “Hospital refused to accept a 90L donation bcz I writes against govt.” 8/ pic.twitter.com/0XQIPfnwDP
Hawk Eye added that her fictional stories, from her PAN not being available to the hospital refusing to accept donations, have fallen flat. What he found most hilarious was the argument where she donated 74.5 Lakh CM/PM Care funds because funds were unutilized, even during the deadly second wave!! Notably, she keeps questioning PM Care day and night.
ED seized 1.77 crore funds in Rana Ayyub and her family’s accounts
On February 10, OpIndia had reported that ED seized Rs 1.77 crore in Ayyub’s and her family’s accounts under the Money Laundering Act. The ED has, in its attachment order, said, “Rana Ayyub has cheated the general Public Donors in a pre-planned manner and with the intention to cheat the general public donors”.
On February 12, lifestyle and entertainment magazine Filmfare shared a video of a toddler who recreated Gangubai Kathiawadi look where Alia Bhatt played the role of a madame sexually assaulted by the mafia. Filmfare wrote, “Knocked it out the park! How amazing is this recreation of Alia Bhatt’s scene in Gangubai Kathiawadi?”
Filmfare shared video of toddler recreating scene from upcoming movie Gangubai Kathiawadi. Source: Twitter
The child artist who recreated the scene has a popular Instagram account managed by her parents, Amit Aboti and Hemal Joshi. With little research, OpIndia found tens of such videos where toddlers and minor children had recreated scenes from Gangubai.
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Child recreating scene of movie Gangubai Kathiawadi based on the life of madame Gangubai starring Alia Bhatt in the lead role. Source: Instagram
Netizens in aghast watching children portraying a madame
Netizens on both Twitter and Instagram have heavily criticized parents for portraying their kids as madame. People were disturbed by the fact that toddlers were portrayed as role of a woman who was thrown into brother by her own father.
Source: Twitter
Many Twitter users also urged Filmfare to remove such a post, especially in times when the Internet is full of perverts.
Committing a mistake is one thing. Shamelessly sticking to it is quite another. Before a legal action is taken against you, its better to remove this post.
Alia Bhatt starrer Gangubai Kathiawadi is set to be released on 25th February 2022. The film is directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.
Several users tagged Smriti Irani, Union Minister of Women and Child Development and Priyank Kanoongo, Chairman NCPCR, urging them to take strict action in the matter to ensure the safety of the children.
OpIndia has not embedded any video in the report and we have blackened/blurred the screenshots to ensure the child’s safety.
On February 8, a speeding van mauled 5 members of a Hindu family to death in Bangladesh in what is believed to be a ‘premeditated’ attack. The incident took place on Chakaria Upazila in Cox Bazar district in the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh.
During the accident, 5 members of the family were killed at the spot, 3 others were injured and one of them is battling with his life at the Chittagong General Hospital. According to survivor Munni Sushil, the ‘road accident’ was a pre-meditated murder. While five of her brothers were killed, two other brothers and one sister were injured in the targeted attack.
The five brothers killed in the incident are Dr Anupam Sushil (47), Nirupam Sushil (45), Dipak Sushil (40), Champak Sushil (30) and Swaran Sushil (24). They had lost their father Suresh Chandra Sushil just 10 days ago. On the day of the incident, all the seven sons and two daughters of the family had to a temple for worshipping early in the morning as a part of the last rites of Suresh. They were returning from the temple when the speeding pick-up van hit them at about 5:00 am. After hitting them, the vehicle returned to run over them. After that, the vehicle sped away towards Cox’s Bazar. Seven brothers were injured in the attack, and five of them died later at the Chattagfram Medical College hospital.
Raktim Sushil is in critical condition at the hospital, while the condition of the other brother Plaban Sushil is said to be stable. Their sister Hira Sushil has undergone surgery on her leg and is recovering at a hospital.
While recounting the tragedy that befell her family, she said, “My six brothers and one sister were about two arms’ length away from the road on the day of the accident. My other brother and I were on the street. Instead of hitting us, the pickup van targeted and crushed my brothers. The vehicle then came back and crushed my injured sister after killing my brothers.”
She said, “We could not eat in the last four days. I can’t bear to look at the little children of my dead brothers. The whole family is living in inhumane situation.” Munni further added, “It’s a premeditated murder…If not, why did the vehicle crush my brothers who were away from the road instead of killing the two of us who were standing on the road?”
Funeral ceremony of the deceased, image via Daily Star
Explaining why they believe it was a planned mass murder, Munni Sushil said that a frenzied mob of 40-50 people had attacked her family on January 29, 2022 also. She said that the mob had threatened their father, and he died a day later of a heart attack on January 30.
Narrating the reason for this attack, Munni said that her father had been organising Durga Puja in the area with her family. And in the month of January, her brother Deepak Sushil, who was living abroad, had brought about 4,000 bricks and gravel to build a small temple in Hasinapara area, which angered the Islamists.
The village is home to 30-35 Hindu families. After the temple construction began, Munni’s father began receiving threats. The mother of the deceased siblings, Mrinalini Sushil, lamented, “Whom will I go to with my grandchildren from the five sons? Champak’s daughter will be only one month old next Monday. My children have never harmed anyone. Why were my five children killed in this way?”
Mrinalini said that she hid 2 of her children under the bed during the January 29 attack. “They attacked us because we wanted to build a temple…We could not recognise the attackers,” she narrated.
The last rites of all the five brothers were conducted on Friday, participated by their wives.
After the incident, a case was registered by Plaban Chandra Sushil, the surviving brother, at the Chakaria police station. The Highway police have already recovered the pickup van used in the murder on the same day, but the driver of the vehicle was absconding, who was identified as Sahidul Islam alias Saiful.
Sahidul was arrested on Friday night from the Mohammadpur area in Dhaka. According to reports, Sahidul has accepted that he was driving the vehicle at that time, but denied kitting the Sushil family willingly. He said that visibility was low due to fog at that time, and as he was driving at high speed, he could not control the vehicle. Explaining the reason behind returning to hit them again, he said that he had returned to see the condition of the victims, but the owner of the vehicle, who was present in the van, ordered him to not stop and speed away.
The owner of the vehicle Mahmudul Karim is absconding after the incident.
However, minority groups are refusing to accept the explanation given by the driver. Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council’s Cox’s Bazar president Dipankar Baruah and secretary Priyatosh Sharma said that this is a preplanned murder.
Islamists attack Hindus, Durga Puja pandals under the garb of blasphemy
In the wee hours of October 13, 201, radical Islamists reportedly entered the Nanuar Dighir Par Durga Mandir in Cumilla district and placed a copy of the Quran on the feet of the idol of Lord Hanuman.
According to Shibu Prasad Dutta, the general secretary of Cumilla Mahanagar Puja Udjapon Committee, someone carried out the mischief in the morning when the guard was asleep. “The miscreants took some pictures of this and ran away. Within a few hours, using Facebook, the propaganda spread like wildfire with the provocative pictures,” confirmed a district official.
The foundation for orchestrating a Hindu pogrom was perfectly laid – The insult of the ‘Holy Book’, the punishment for which is death. Dipan Mitra, the Secretary-General of World Hindu federation (Bangladesh Chapter), stated, “Then they raised an issue of insulting Islam and gathered a mob and started attacked Hindu Temples in Cumilla town. After that, the attack on temples and Hindus was spread all over the country…”
He further added, “They Vandalized more than 315 Temples and its Idols and looted all valuable things in more than 30 districts of Bangladesh during 13 – 16 October 2021. They attacked and vandalized nearly 1500 Hindu houses in Cumilla, Chandpur, Noakhali, Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar, Feni, Chapai Nawabgonj and other districts.”
Mitra recounted the names of the 10 Hindus who were slaughtered by radical Islamists under the garb of blasphemy. They included Manik Saha, Jatan Saha, Prashanta Das, Priest Nimai Krishna, 4 unnamed Hindu priests and 1 more unidentified victim. Besides, 23 Hindu women and girls were raped and 17 Hindus remain missing.
Mitra concluded, “Now is the time to clarify the position of the government – do they want Bangladesh to be a secular prosperous Bangladesh or do they want to take it back to the ideology of previous Pakistan”. He also mentioned that the lack of justice is giving birth to new crimes in this country.
