The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) arrested Sahil Shah alias Flacko, the drug peddler wanted in actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death case. Flacko had disappeared 9 months ago and surrendered himself to the NCB on Friday.
NCB has arrested Sahil Shah alias Flacko in connection with a drug case. Flacko, neighbour of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, was on the run for the last nine months, says the intelligence agency
According to the reports, Flacko who stayed in Sushant Singh Rajput’s immediate neighbourhood will be probed by the NCB in connection with the seizure of marijuana from two other accused persons arrested in April 2021.
In April 2021, the NCB had seized 310 grams of contraband worth Rs 30 lakh from two persons and arrested them in the case. The peddlers were distributing highly expensive strains of buds like Blackberry, Northern, Rainbow, Forbidden imported from Europe, Canada and the USA.
The premier anti-drug agency reportedly said that Facko’s name had cropped up when they arrested the first two accused, Karan Arora and Abbas Lakhani, in a drugs case related to Sushant Singh Rajput in 2020.
NCB’s Sameer Wankhede earlier had reported that Sahil Shah used to supply drugs to Rajput. He also had said that Shah was a puzzle for us until his Malad house was raided. The NCB has been probing the drugs angle in Sushant Singh Rajput’s death case, after the actor was found dead under mysterious circumstances at his Bandra residence on June 14, 2020.
Earlier last year, the Narcotics Control Bureau had also detained a drug peddler named Haris Khan because of his alleged ties to gangster and drug dealer Parvez Khan alias Chinku Pathan. Khan was arrested after his alleged role in a narcotics case connected to the death of late Bollywood star Sushant Singh Rajput had come to light following the actor’s death in June 2020.
Parvez Khan aka Chinku Pathan is a henchman of Dawood Ibrahim and a cousin of the late mafia don Karim Lala. He was nabbed by the NCB in Navi Mumbai in January 2021 after the agency busted a narcotics trafficking network.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad(VHP) recently observed a ‘bandh’ in Gujarat following the death of a Hindu man, who was shot dead by assailants for posting an ‘allegedly’ blasphemous social media post against Islam.
However, for the Chennai-based newspaper The Hindu, not the murder of the Hindu man by religious zealots but the observance of a ‘bandh’ by VHP against the horrific killing had given the incident a “communal colour”.
In a report published in The Hindu, the publication said that the incident had assumed “communal colour” after the Vishwa Hindu Parishad(VHP) called for a bandh or a strike to protest against the murder of a 27-year-old Kishan Boliya, a Hindu man who was killed reportedly on the orders of two Maulvis.
Source: The Hindu
“The murder acquired a communal colour as the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other outfits gave a bandh call on Thursday,” the report titled ‘Two detained for gunning down a man in Gujarat over social media post’ said.
Kishan Boliya murdered over an alleged social media post against Islam
Earlier this week, the murder of a Hindu youth named Kishan Boliya in Dhandhuka taluka on Tuesday had sent shockwaves across the country. Kishan was on his way home when two bikers came and shot at him. He died on the spot. Police had filed a case and launched an investigation in the matter.
As per reports, it was alleged that Kishan had shared a post on social media platforms that Muslims found offensive. According to sources, the video shared by Kishan on social media had an image of Prophet Muhammad. Usually, those who share such images meet violent ends as Islamists have in the past gone on a rampage trying to teach those who “blaspheme” a lesson.
Yet, for The Hindu, the killing of Kishan was not a communal incident until the Vishwa Hindu Parishad came out in support of the victim and called a bandh to protest against his murder. VHP, an organisation that is at the vanguard to fight for the rights of the Hindus, has often been subjected to smear campaigns by left-leaning organisations such as The Hindu in connivance with ‘liberals’ who build a narrative that cast them in a negative light. The recent attempt to accuse them of turning the murder of a Hindu man, who was killed by Islamists over a social media post, is another bid to smear the organisation and blame them for stoking communal passions.
Kishan Bharwad’s murder executed on instructions of two Maulvis, Police identifies the suspects and arrests murderers
While The Hindu found the VHP of communalising the murder of Boliya, it is notable to mention that on Thursday, the Ahmedabad Police arrested two persons and discovered links of two Maulvis in the murder case of 27-year-old Kishan Bharwad on January 25. Kishan was shot dead in Dhandhuka as he along with his cousin, was passing by the Modhwada locality on his two-wheeler.
According to the Zee News Gujarati, the murder was carried out on instructions of two Maulvis, one from Ahmedabad and another one from Mumbai. A Maulvi from the Jamalpur area of Ahmedabad had allegedly provided weapons to the murderers and Maulana from Mumbai had given the instructions.
Further reports by News18Gujarat state that the police has formed 7 different teams to investigate the matter. Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghvi reviewed the investigation process by the Police and collected all the details of the case.
On Thursday, the Rashtriya Ekata Abhiyan in Nepal held demonstrations against China in Biratnagar, Morang, Khabarhub. The civil society of Nepal protested against excessive Chinese interference in Nepal’s internal affairs and encroachment of Nepali territory at various places along the northern border.
The members of Rashtriya Ekata Abhiyan marched from Mahendra Chowk to Bhatta Chowk in Biratnagar and raised slogans against Chinese expansion and its undue interference in the top political circle of the country. They also burnt pictures of Chinese President Xi Jinping during the course of the demonstration.
According to the reports, China has imposed an unofficial blockade at border points affecting Nepali traders and has also portrayed apathy towards the Nepali students who are yet to complete their medical degrees from Chinese Universities. Jitendra Yadav, the Morang coordinator of the group, said that they held protests to make the society and the government realize China’s overarching interference in Nepal’s internal affairs.
Since the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Nepal in October 2019, the country has been witnessing an increasingly assertive Beijing, trying to dictate the political and governmental agenda in Nepal. Reports mention that Nepal is the only country where China wields a certain kind of leverage. However, the situation for China is said to have become difficult after Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli resigned as PM of Nepal in July 2021.
Protests against China has become a regular affair in Nepal. Earlier on January 13, the Rashtriya Ekata Abhiyan had held similar protests and burned pictures of the Chinese Ambassador to Nepal, Hou Yanki in Kathmandu. The protesters had chanted slogans against Yanki and demonstrated placards that read ‘Go Back China’.
Ahead of the upcoming Vidhan Sabha polls in Punjab, Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu has been embroiled in a controversy over the non-payment of electricity dues, reportedIndia Today.
The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has issued a pending bill of ₹4,22,330 on January 19 this year. Navjot Singh Sidhu has not paid the electricity bill of his residence in Amristar for the past 6 months. The latest bill issued by the PSPCL also includes surcharge and interest, which have been incurred on the unpaid dues.
Despite defaulting on the payment since August 2021, Sidhu’s electricity connection has remained intact. India Today reported that this is not the first time since he did not pay his bill. In July last year, he created a hullaballoo after PSPCL handed him a bill of ₹8,74,784.
Punjab already provides 9000 Crore Subsidy but we must do more for Domestic & Industrial consumer giving power at Rs 3-5 per unit instead of surcharge inflated Rs 10-12 per unit, along 24-hour supply with No Power-Cuts & Free Power (Upto 300 Units).. It is definitely achievable.
In a tweet of July 4, 2021, Navjot Singh Sidhu had demanded free power supply of up to 300 units to domestic consumers. “Punjab already provides 9000 Crore Subsidy but we must do more for Domestic & Industrial consumer giving power at Rs 3-5 per unit instead of surcharge inflated Rs 10-12 per unit, along with 24-hour supply with No Power-Cuts & Free Power (Upto 300 Units)…It is definitely achievable,” the Punjab Congress chief wrote.
The BJP has questioned Sidhu on his doublespeak. BJP leader Vineet Joshi slammed, “Navjot Sidhu, on one hand, is raising the issue of losses caused by the mafias to the state exchequer and is looting his own government on the other. He is a defaulter and the PSPCL is not daring to disconnect his power connection due to his influence.”
NRI sister makes serious allegations against Navjot Singh Sidhu
On Friday (January 28), Sidhu’s sister Suman Tur alleged that he had thrown her and their mother out of home in 1986 after the death of their father. Weeping inconsolably, Tur revealed the heart-rending tale of how their mother was “left to die unattended by her son, after the demise of her beloved husband.” Their mother died at Delhi railway station unattended in 1989, Tur claimed.
“We have endured harsh situations. My mother was in the hospital for four months. I have documentary evidence to back my claims,” Tur said. Calling Sidhu a “cold-blooded person”, Tur, an NRI and US citizen, alleged that her brother did not even bother to offer condolences after the tragic death in an accident of his eldest sister and other family members. She urged the public to seek answers from Sidhu on the matter.
Can you recall Neeraj Prajapati? Neeraj Ram Prajapati was an artist and an idol maker who had become the target of a frenzied Muslim mob in January 2020. Neeraj was a part of the pro-CAA tricolour march in Lohardaga, Jharkhand on January 23, 2020 when a Muslim mob had attacked the rally. Neeraj was hit on the head with an iron rod by the violent mob on 23 January. He was forced to hide in his shop to save his life. On reaching home, he lost consciousness and fainted. The ambulance service was denied to the family despite repeated requests. Neeraj was taken to the Orchid hospital but the doctors raised their hands and instead referred him to Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS). He breathed his last after battling with life for 5 days.
Seeing his family’s plight OpIndia had started a campaignto crowdfund monetary help for his family and Rs 15 lakh were donated by concerned citizens in a single day. Several of our readers had stepped up to assist Neeraj’s destitute family.
Today, a little over two years have passed since the family lost their sole breadwinner and the local police station in-charge seems to have completely forgotten about Neeraj’s death. Be it the government of Jharkhand or the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), none have come forward to extend any sort of help to the family of the deceased and now the situation of the family is very precarious. Neeraj’s wife is distressed as she feels that many people had made big promises at that time, however, with the passage of time everyone’s forgotten them.
What happened to Neeraj Ram Prajapati
In Jharkhand’s Lohardaga, when the pro-CAA march was passing through a Muslim locality near Amla Toli on 23 January, stones and petrol bombs were hurled at the participants by the local Muslims. Women became the specific targets of the ruthless mob. Shops and homes belonging to the Hindus were set on fire. This created a state of panic and resulted in a stampede. Roughly, 100 participants and 24 policemen had sustained injuries during the unprovoked attack by the violent mob.
Neeraj Prajapati had also been caught in the crossfire. He was hit on the head with an iron rod by the violent mob who chanted slogans such as ‘Nara-e-Takbir, Pakistan Zindabad.’ He’d experienced a cerebral bleed as a result of a rod attack from behind. On January 27, 2020, he passed away at Ranchi’s RIMS.
Neeraj Prajapati was the sole bread earner of his family
Neeraj was the source of support for his ailing parents. He ran a sculpting shop with the help of his elder brother. Besides the pension that Neeraj’s father receives from his erstwhile job as a teacher, the shop bore the expenses for the family.
Neeraj is survived by his wife and two children, a daughter aged eleven years old, and a son aged five. It may be noted that Neeraj’s wife had earlier written a letter to Hemant Soren, the Chief Minister of Jharkhand, requesting justice for her husband’s death and compensation for the family’s upkeep.
Neeraj Prajapati’s final rituals were performed in complete darkness, using only torchlight
It may be recalled that after the unfortunate death of Neeraj Prajapati questions were raised on the local administration and police’s apathy in handling his case. His family had then alleged that the administration had tried to cover up the iron rod attack on him by the Muslim mob.
The local administration had restricted the number of people who could attend Neeraj’s funeral procession to 35 people. They had not only barred outsiders from attending his funeral procession but also denied permission to use the village crematorium for his last rites due to a mosque that fell in the way.
Threats were issued to a local journalist who tried recording Neeraj’s last journey. Moreover, the local administration had not even allowed the people of the area to stand on the roofs of their respective houses to watch Neeraj’s last journey. The entire procedure was carried out in complete secrecy. In fact, Neeraj Prajapati’s final rituals were performed in complete darkness, using only torchlight.
OpIndia started a campaign to raise funds for Neeraj’s family
OpIndia had decided to assist Neeraj’s family financially in January 2020. Approximately Rs 32.5 lakh was raised from the general public during this time. A total of Rs 11.4 lakh was collected through crowdfunding, with the remaining amount was transferred to the deceased’s wife’s bank account directly.
The family’s present circumstance as revealed by Neeraj’s nephew
OpIndia spoke with Neeraj Prajapati’s nephew, Abhishek Prajapati who said: “About 20 days after his Neeraj (Abhishek’s maternal uncle) died, Neeraj’s father died as well. He could not bear the loss of his son, said Abhishek adding that last year Neeraj’s sister too passed away due to breast cancer. The father’s pension was reduced following his death.”
“Now only Neeraj’s mother, his brother, his wife and 2 children are left in the house. His daughter is currently studying in class 3, while the son is not going to any school yet. Neeraj’s brother is taking care of the house by making idols etc. Since this is a seasonal job the income of the family keeps fluctuating. The family is sustaining with the money that they received as help as they do not have any source of fixed income,” added Abhishek.
Neeraj’s nephew further revealed that the Hemant Soren government in Jharkhand had once provided only Rs 20,000 as an aid to Neeraj’s family. After that, they have not received any help from the administration, rued Abhishek.
No separate arrest has been made in Neeraj’s murder case
While speaking about the unresponsiveness of the state machinery in handling Neeraj’s murder case, Abhishek Prajapati further revealed how the police, in the last two years, have not taken any interest in the case. The police and administration had constantly pressurized the family to say that Neeraj died due to a fall in the bathroom. Neither did the police file a separate case nor did it make any separate arrests pertaining to Neeraj’s murder.
The only arrest made by the Jharkhand police was that of twenty-two persons who were connected with the violence at Lohardaga, that too people from both the Hindu and Muslim communities were apprehended, said Abhishek.
He added, “Muslims have also been compensated for their burnt shops and vehicles. As regards the victim’s of the Hindu side, no one has been provided with any sort of compensation to date. Until now, no government official has approached us. Since Neeraj was brutally injured in the attack, he was unable to identify his perpetrators. A month ago, the police had asked us to provide a copy of Neeraj’s brother-in-law’s statement that he had recorded two years ago. That we submitted. Apart from that, there has been no action taken by the authorities in our favour, lamented Neeraj’s nephew.
My husband was the backbone of the house: the wife of Neeraj Prajapati awaits justice
OpIndia spoke with Divya, Neeraj’s wife. “My husband was the backbone of the house,” Divya rued adding that they were all shattered after his untimely demise. “My father-in-law died as he could not bear the loss of his son. My sister-in-law died later that year, in September 2021. Now we are five people left in the family. When my husband died, many came up and made huge promises, like looking after the education of my children and so on. But no one has shown up thereafter. Never make a promise you can’t keep,” said the distressed Divya adding that she had apprised about her family’s situation to Human Rights authorities in Delhi, but to no avail.
Letter to Human Rights Commission
It may be noted that Neeraj’s wife had filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission on March 2, 2020, but the statutory body had dismissed it on December 1, 2020, stating: “Since the prayer of the complainant relates to the policy decision and no atrocity is alleged to have been committed by any State /Public Authority with regard to the occurrence in question, this petition is not entertainable at this level. However, taking a sympathetic view let a copy of the petition along with this order be sent to the Deputy Commissioner, Lohardagga for needful, in accordance with the law. It is made clear that no proceeding is drawn at this level. With the above observation(s)/direction, this case is disposed of. Let a copy of this order be sent to the complainant for information.”
Letter to Human Rights Commission
Local SHO is not aware of the case
OpIndia contacted the SHO of Lohardaga police station to inquire about the matter. The SHO said, “There was another officer at that time. I was not here then. I am not aware of this case.”
In the US state of California, a judge in Los Angeles County court has ordered that 26-year-old child molester ‘Hannah Tubbs’, who was earlier James Tubbs, will be sentenced to two years in a juvenile facility. Tubbs had pleaded guilty to the crime of sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl inside a bathroom in 2014.
As per reports, District Attorney George Gascon’s office had refused to try Tubbs as an adult. Tubbs was 2 months away from turning 18 when he had committed the crime.
Hannah Tubbs (pictured) sentenced to be housed with females in juvenile detention facility for molesting female child.
After being arrested, Tubbs had declared that he is trans, he ‘identifies as a female’ and prefers to be known as Hannah Tubbs. At the time of committing the crime, he was James Tubbs and was a biological male.
Tubbs is also a serial sexual offender. L.A. Deputy District Attorney Jon Hatami has been quoted by Fox News as saying, “Tubbs is 26 years old. Unlike George Gascon’s false narrative, she is not a kid. There was evidence presented at the juvenile proceedings which showed that Tubbs sexually assaulted two young girls in different incidents in the past. The child victims will suffer lifelong trauma. Tubbs also has prior violent convictions and conduct as an adult.”
A 26-year-old child rapist is sentenced to only 2 years in jail. Hannah Tubbs, who now identifies as a transgender female, will serve the sentence in a juvenile lockup. Why critics blame D.A. George Gascón and state law. Tonight at 11 from ABC7. https://t.co/YWIOdADnq3pic.twitter.com/JujcnUzi10
In 2014, Tubbs had walked into a bathroom at a store and had grabbed the 10-year-old victim by the throat and had locked himself with the child inside a stall. He had forcefully pushed the little girl against a wall and had put his hands inside her pants. He stopped when another person walked into the restroom, as per reports.
Despite the conviction in a case of sexual molestation of a minor girl and prior allegations of similar crimes, Tubbs will not be registered as a sex offender.
Far-Left DA George Gascon has been facing criticism over the case. He had declared that ‘brain development isn’t complete till 25 years of age’ and he will not let ‘children tried as adults’.
As per the court verdict, the newly ‘trans’ Hannah Tubbs, will be sent to a juvenile facility. Since Tubbs is now ‘Hannah’ because he identifies as a female, he will be staying in a female facility. The order mentions that Tubbs will be kept in isolation, separated by sight and sound from other inmates.
While giving the verdict, Judge Mario Barrera stated that he does not have the authority to send Tubbs to county jail because the DA’s office had not tried Tubbs as an adult.
Tubbs is a repeat offender
It is notable here that after molesting the little girl, Tubbs had evaded arrest for a long time. In 2019, his DNA was entered into the criminal database after he was involved in a crime of assault and battery in Idaho. He also has pending cases of drug possession, battery, parole violation and another allegation of sexual assault of a minor.
Jon Hatami had expressed disappointment over the events and has blamed far-Left DA Gascon’s blanket policy over juvenile offences. “Tubbs will be 26 and housed with juveniles for a very short period of time and will be released with no probation or parole monitoring. The victims will get no justice. The public will get no safety,” he has added.
It is notable here that there have been multiple instances in the USA and the UK where biological males have been sent to prison for females because they identify as ‘trans women’.
Popular online music streaming service Spotify is removing Neil Young’s music after he called for the platform to choose between him and podcaster Joe Rogan, whom he accused of spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines through his popular podcast show on Spotify The Joe Rogan Experience.
On Wednesday, Spotify responded to the ultimatum given by Neil, saying it “regrets” the move and hopes the rock star would return to the platform soon. In a statement issued by the streaming service, Spotify said, “We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safeties for listeners and freedom for creators. We have detailed content policies in place and we’ve removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to Covid since the start of the pandemic.”
Speaking to the Financial Times, Spotify Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ek said that his organisation is into the business of creating and streaming content to people, and not into regulating what the creators should say or behave. “We want creators to create. It’s what they do best. We are not looking to play a role in what they should say,” he said.
Neil Young had accused Spotify of allowing its platform to be used for spreading COVID misinformation
Earlier this week, Young had written a letter to Spotify, asking them to make a binary choice between him or Rogan, whom he accused of spreading misinformation over COVID-19 vaccines. In his statement posted on Wednesday, Young accused Spotify of being “home to life-threatening COVID misinformation” and a place where “lies were being sold for money”.
“They can have Rogan or Young. Not bot,” Young had said in an ultimatum to Spotify.
Rogan has been at the receiving end of criticism for interviewing an infectious disease expert Dr Robert Malone, who in the podcast episode streamed on December 31 had opposed COVID-19 vaccines for children. Since the podcast raising aspersions on vaccines for children was broadcasted, a large number of people have slammed Rogan for providing his platform to a sceptic who was trying to sow disinformation about vaccination among the public.
Young, a Canadian-American musician, best known for classic hits such as Harvest Moon and Heart of Gold, joined the band of critics who have been criticising Spotify for hosting Joe Rogan. He publicly accused the streaming giant of “spreading fake information about vaccines – potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them”.
In his original letter, which was published on Wednesday, Young thanked his label, Warner Records, for standing with him and taking the hit, which meant losing 60% of the singer’s worldwide streaming income that came from Spotify. “Spotify has a responsibility to mitigate the spread of misinformation on its platform. I want you to let Spotify know immediately TODAY that I want all my music off their platform,” he said.
Joe Rogan was roped in by Spotify for $100 mn, had defended him during controversy featuring Alex Jones
Joe Rogan was roped in by Spotify in 2020 at a whopping $100 million for the exclusive rights of his popular The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. The programme is among the top podcasts on Spotify and is reportedly downloaded by over 200 million times a month.
Spotify is an online streaming behemoth with more than 300 mn monthly listeners, including more than 170 mn who pay for subscriptions to the service.
It is noteworthy to mention that this is not the first time that Spotify has sided with Joe Rogan. In the past too, the online streaming service had stood in support of Rogan, after a controversy erupted following an episode in 2020 that featured conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
Fake news peddler masquerading as fact-checker Mohammad Zubair, the co-founder of Islamist propaganda site Alt News, was caught spearheading yet another fake news to attack BJP and pimp for Samajwadi Party. The propagandist deliberately confused between district and assembly constituency to claim that BJP was doing the same error after slamming SP for the same.
Mohammed Zubair posted two candidate lists published by SP and BJP for UP assembly elections and alleged that both parties used old names for districts renamed by the Yogi Adityanath led BJP govt.
At 2:11 PM, BJP targets SP for writing Allahabad instead of Prayagraj. At 2:30 PM, BJP tweets a list of candidates for UP. Ironically, Even they've used Allahabad instead of Prayagraj. ??♂️??♂️ Hypocrisy ki bhi Seema Hoti Hai @BJP4UP ?? pic.twitter.com/CICAu5BT3U
Earlier in the day, it was reported how the Samajwadi Party in its third list for UP had used the names Allahabad and Faizabad, the old names for the two districts which have been renamed as Prayagraj and Ayodhya. The SP was slammed by netizens and some members of BJP for still using the Mughal-given names in the list issued yesterday when the two districts were renamed three years ago.
Today BJP announced a list for UP elections, and it included some constituencies from the Prayagraj district. Eager to defend the Samajwadi Party, Md Zubair used this BJP list to claim that while the party was slamming SP for using the old name Allahabad instead of the new name Prayagraj, it itself used the old name Allahabad. He posted a screenshot of the BJP where the word Allahabad could be seen.
But this is a blatant misleading allegation by Zubair, because the word Allahabad BJP used does not refer to the district, which was renamed to Prayagraj in 2018. There are differences in how SP and BJP prepared their lists, and Zubair mischievously used to difference to make a baseless allegation against BJP.
SP list
As we can see in SP list, they used both the district names and the assembly constituency names. The second column contains the district name, the third column has the assembly constituency number, and the fourth column in the SP list has the assembly constituency names. Here, SP used the old district names Allahabad for Phulpur constituency, and used Faizabad district for Goshainganj constituency. Therefore, SP was rightly slammed for using old names for the two districts.
BJP list
On the other hand, the list released by BJP does not even mention the districts against the assembly seats, therefore, there is no question of using old district names as alleged by Zubair. The BJP list only has the assembly constituency number in the second column, and the assembly constituency name in the third column. There is no column for districts.
The two names that Zubair has highlighted as Allahabad West and Allahabad South. As clear from the list itself, they are assembly constituency names and not district names. Yogi Adityanath government had renamed the Allahabad district as Prayagraj, and Faizabad as Ayodhya. The assembly constituency names were not changed.
In fact, the state government does not have the authority to change assembly constituency names, as this comes under the authority of the Election Commission. Political parties are bound to use the official constituency names and numbers used by the EC.
Official assembly constituency names as per ECI
The Prayagraj district has 12 assembly seats, and three of them are named after Allahabad. The press note issued by the EC announcing the upcoming assembly polls in five states mentions these constituencies as Allahabad West, Allahabad North and Allahabad South. While the district name has been changed from Allahabad to Prayagraj, the assembly constituencies have not been renamed, even if they contain the same word. The assembly constituency names can be changed after delimitation, but till that happens, the old names are the official names, and parties have to use them.
Therefore, SP used Allahabad for the district name, which is no longer an official district name. On the other hand, BJP has not used any district name, and it mentioned official assembly constituency names as per the Election Commission of India. But Mohammed Zubair twisted that fact to spread the misinformation that BJP also used Allahabad instead of Prayagraj.
Gone are the days when electricity connections and uninterrupted supplies were alien things in Uttar Pradesh the largest state in the country. The Yogi Adityanath government has brought some groundbreaking changes in Uttar Pradesh’s electrification and in the power generation and distribution sector in the state.
In the last few years, it has been evident that the opposition in the state is pretentiously following the footsteps of the ruling party. Yogi is the chief priest in Gorakshanath Peeth and visiting temples or offering prayers is a part of his daily routine. In an attempt to belittle Yogi’s Hinduness, everybody else is on an electoral temple run. The list starts with Rahul Gandhi – the so-called Janeudhari of Dattatreya gotra – and terminates with Akhilesh Yadav – the self-proclaimed descendent of Lord Krishna.
On a similar note, when Yogi Adityanath and Narendra Modi were inaugurating various development projects completed in the state, Akhilesh Yadav was claiming the credit for kickstarting each one of the projects. Now, obnoxious claims and promises are being made by Samajwadi Party and its CM candidate Akhilesh Yadav, when it comes to the situation of power supplies and electricity bills in the state.
Along with so many things promised for free, the Samajwadi Party has added electricity to the list and the SP is trying to figure out innovative ways to impress the voter with the same. In fact, the party has already started the registration for the promised scheme. However, it is allegedly breaching the guidelines laid down by the election commission of India.
Earlier, when Akhilesh Yadav was the state CM, the government was unable to connect every village of the state with uninterrupted connections. Electricity rates were higher in his tenure as the state CM and the supplies were also irregular. After sitting on the opposition benches for five years, Samajwadi Party is promising free electricity to the people of UP in the run-up of the upcoming assembly elections. On the other hand, the BJP government in the state under the leadership of Yogi Adityanath has won the hearts of the poor and farmers by its phenomenal work in the power generation and distribution sector.
50% relaxation in electricity bills for farmers
In January 2022, Yogi Adityanath’s government announced that there will be a 50% relaxation in energy bills for the farmers using tube wells. No less than 13 lakh farmers are going to be benefitted from this. Energy bills of the farmers residing in the urban areas were also relaxed by 50%. Also, the electricity rates for the metered connections have dropped down from Rs. 2 per unit to Rs. 1 per unit. For horsepower metered connections, the rates have dropped from Rs. 70 per meter to Rs. 35 per meter. Similarly, for non-metered connections, this is reduced from Rs. 170 to Rs. 85. This whole new development in the rates is equivalent to a flat fifty per cent off.
The urban users are also benefitted from the electricity policy brought up by Yogi Adityanath. They are now paying Rs. 3 per unit as opposed to the earlier rate of Rs. 6 per unit. The fixed monthly rental charged for the meter is also halved from Rs. 130 to Rs. 65.
On this backdrop, the Samajwadi Party and Aam Aadmi Party promising a minimum of 300 units of electricity per month for every connection is nothing but antilogy considering the past experience. Even if they promise heavens in this regard, people will first ask only if the electricity supplies will be regular in their regime. Right now, in most parts of the UP, there is a 24-hour electricity supply with a nominal power cut time here and there.
Uttar Pradesh’s electrification under the Yogi government is something exceptional
With the Yogi Adityanath government in the state, getting a new electricity connection in UP is easier than ever. With no need to visit many different offices, it now takes very little time to set up a new connection. There is also a single-window system to get the NOC needed for the electrical connection of a small-scale enterprise. This is ensured by the ‘MSME establishment and operations act 2020’. This was passed in September 2020 by the Yogi Adityanath government. Before that MSME had to coordinate with 29 departments in order to obtain 80 different NOCs.
More importantly, Yogi Adityanath is leading from the front. In October 2021, he had given strict instructions to the officers regarding regular power supplies in both urban and rural parts of the state. More focus was given to ensuring an uninterrupted power supply from 6 PM to 7 AM. In those days, there were speculations about coal crunch in the country, but it seldom had any effect on the delivery of what was promised. CM Yogi Adityanath had emphasized that people should get a 24-hour electricity supply, especially in the festive season. Moreover, CM Yogi Adityanath had even suspended the electricity board officials responsible for frequent power cuts if any.
Free power connection to 1.38 Cr households; connecting 1.4 lakh villages with power grid
Yogi Adityanath government has performed exceptionally well on the fronts of providing new free energy connections and bringing villages on a power grid network. As per the official records, 1.38 Cr households were provided with the free power connection in the four and half years of the Yogi Adityanath government. Rural power supplies and their schedules were ensured by roasters. It was a planned effort to provide 18 to 22 hours of electricity in the rural parts of the state and a 24-hour power supply in the urban parts. More than 1.4 lakh revenue villages and 2.84 lakh other villages are connected to the electricity networks through ‘Saubhagya Yojana’. According to a new rule passed by the state government, the standard transformer repairing time for rural areas is 48 hours while that for the urban area is 24 hours.
Enlightening 1.38 households in itself is a herculean task. These are the same households that were left behind in deep darkness when SP and BSP were ruling the state. UP tops the national chart of highest new connections provided. 7786.3 kilometers of new 33 kV lines are installed in order to ensure zero problems in the transmission and distribution of electricity. Officers are often seen patrolling at night for uncut supplies.
People of UP are happy about the connections, but they are even happier because now they don’t have to face any difficulties in the electrical maintenance works in case of any problems. On 7th July 2021, the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited has supplied 55.2285 crore units of electricity setting up a new record of its own kind. Almost every service regarding electricity is online and just a click away. Yes, this is digital India’s digital UP for you in a nutshell. Poor families in the state have to pay only Rs. 3 per unit for the first 100 units of use.
As UP is the most populated state in the country, naturally the demand is going to be the highest. To cope with the ever-increasing demand, the state government has decided to explore new options of non-conventional energy sources for the generation of electricity. Solar power plants of a total of 1535 megawatt capacity worth Rs 7500 Cr have been approved in the state. India is the founder of the International Solar Alliance. Uttar Pradesh is all set to make a maximum of it and set an example for the country as well as the world. In the last few years, the state has increased its generation capacity by 3978 megawatts out of which 1500megawatts come from the sugar factories, thereby assuring a special discount in the energy bills for the farmers.
Besides, the BJP government in the state has brought a major relief to those who live in their flats in multi-story apartments. According to the new system, there is a provision to connect each flat of the building separately. Earlier, there used to be a single meter for multiple flats in the same building which would often lead to disputes between the society management committees of those buildings and the tenants living in those flats. This whole practice has come to an end now. People living in Ghaziabad and Noida are the special beneficiaries of this new system of multi-point connection in an apartment in which a separate metered connection is provided for every single flat in a building.
Criminals fear the splendid light and thus the reduction in crime rate
There were times in the state when power supplies of only 10 districts would be maintained very well and the rest of the state would dwell in the darkness. Addressing this inequality, the Yogi Adityanath government gave priority to the rural power networks and connections. For the first time, a CM was talking about equal electricity distribution to all the districts of the state. Akhilesh Yadav government had made a few such pacts that would burden the treasury and in turn the common man’s pockets for almost Rs. 5000 Cr. The Yogi Adityanath government cancelled all such deals within the first 100 days of assuming the offices. 60 lakh families which were earlier denied any connections are now given the electricity connection by the state government.
उन्होंने प्रदेश को अंधेरे में रखा, आज भले ही कितनी बड़ी-बड़ी घोषणाएं करें कि हम फ्री बिजली देंगे, लेकिन जब बिजली देते ही नहीं थे तो फ्री का सवाल ही पैदा नहीं होताः मुख्यमंत्री श्री योगी आदित्यनाथ#आएगी_बीजेपी_हीpic.twitter.com/sA36J1xlDN
The situation of the Uttar Pradesh power sector is better understood by what Yogi Adityanath had once said after assuming charge of the CM post. He had said “Earlier when I used to travel by helicopter, I would notice the darkness and come to know that the helicopter has entered Uttar Pradesh. In those times, there used to be no electricity and only darkness in the night which would, in turn, invite dacoits. No FIRs would be registered for such dacoits back then.” The Yogi Adityanath government started by providing electricity connections to 100 families in Lucknow. The count has now surged to 1.38 Cr. Complaints, if any, are registered by an SMS.
Earlier, the farmers who were unable to pay the high energy bills would be harassed by the system. Their connections would be cut down. Now the government has ensured that no connection of any poor farmer is cut citing such reasons. On the contrary, farmers are not only getting increased prices for the sugarcane but they are also getting 50% concessions in the energy bills. The government has issued an order not to cut the connections of those farmers who are unable to pay the energy bills. It must be noted that there was an outstanding bill of Rs. 1.67 Cr from Mayawati’s house. It was instructed to be paid only after cutting that connection and the orders were executed.
CM of Uttar Pradesh has proved that it takes a Yogi to enlighten a state like UP which was left behind in deep darkness in the SP-BSP regime.
On Thursday, the Ahmedabad Police arrested two persons and discovered links of two Maulvis in the murder case of 27-year-old Kishan Bharwad on January 25. Kishan was shot dead in Dhandhuka as he along with his cousin, was passing by the Modhwada locality on his two-wheeler.
According to the Zee News Gujarati, the murder was carried out on instructions of two Maulvis, one from Ahmedabad and another one from Mumbai. A Maulvi from the Jamalpur area of Ahmedabad had allegedly provided weapons to the murderers and Maulana from Mumbai had given the instructions.
Further reports by News18Gujarat state that the police has formed 7 different teams to investigate into the matter. Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghvi reviewed the investigation process by the Police and collected all the details of the case.
ધંધુકા ફાયરિંગ કેસમાં ગૃહ રાજ્યમંત્રી હર્ષ સંઘવીએ ન્યાયની ખાતરી આપી. “24 કલાક અમે કાર્ય કરી રહ્યાં છીએ”મહત્વનું છે કેગુજરાતમાં બીજી વખત આવી ઘટના ના બને તેવી કાર્યવાહી કરવાની ખાતરી હર્ષ સંઘવી દ્વારા આપવામાં આવી છે. pic.twitter.com/pgJXcvm2Gn
The matter came to light when the cousin of the victim, Bhaumik lodged a police complaint in the case and said that the murder could be related to Bharwad’s social media post around 15 days back. It is alleged that Kishan had shared a post on social media platform which the Muslims found offensive.
The video shared by Kishan had an image of Prophet Muhammad. As reported, the police had taken against Kishan over the post as some people had outraged over it. His social media account is currently set to private and police, too, have not specified the content of the allegedly controversial post.
However, the communal tensions have forced the rural parts of Ahmedabad to follow bandh as it was called by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in protest against Kishan’s murder. Reports mention that after Dhandhuka, the nearby small towns of Botad, Ranpur also saw protests against the murder.
The Police has so far identified and arrested two accused murderers who fired at Kishan and is investigating the matter concerning the social media post and involvement of Maulvis.
