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CJI calls for saving the judiciary from social media trolls, asks central agencies to deal with such ‘synchronised’ attacks

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CJI calls for saving the judiciary from social media trolls, asks central agencies to deal with such ‘synchronised’ attacks

Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana on Friday called for saving the judiciary from motivated and targeted attacks on social media. He said that the onus lies on the central agencies to deal with the synchronised, sponsored attacks against judges on social media.

“An area of grave concern for the judiciary is the increasing attacks on judges. Physical attacks on judicial officers are on the rise. There are also attacks on the judiciary on social media. These attacks appear to be sponsored and synchronised. Law enforcement agencies must deal with them effectively. The government is expected to create a secure environment to let judicial officers work effectively,” he said while speaking at the constitution day celebration organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA)

The CJI further added: ” We are all ultimately part of one large family. Protect the institution from motivated and targeted attacks. Do not shy away from standing up for what is right, and against what is wrong.”

Further urging young lawyers to respect the seniors, the CJI said, “Please respect and pay due regards to your seniors,” adding that they have immense experience, knowledge and wisdom, which no amount of book learning can provide.

“Perhaps, the most important feature of the Indian Constitution is the fact that it provides a framework for debate. It is through such debate and discussion that the nation ultimately progresses, evolves, and achieves higher levels of welfare for the people,” the CJI said.

He added that “the most direct and visible players in this process are, of course, the lawyers and judges of this country”.

The Chief Justice noted that the judiciary “has lived up to the faith reposed in it by the Constituent Assembly” in terms of its duty in relation to the executive. The purpose of judicial involvement, according to CJI Ramana, is to prod the administration toward unresolved public issues, not to supplant its duty.

The Chief Justice emphasised the importance of establishing state and national judicial infrastructure authority, for which the CJI solicited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assistance, who was also present during the event.

Recalling the contributions of legendry lawyers – Mahatma Gandhi, Dr BR Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru, Lala Lajpat Rai, Sardar Patel, and Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer – in India’s freedom struggle and the making of the Constitution CJI Ramana exhorted lawyers to take up cases pro-bono whenever possible.

After judges complain of being ignored, CBI seeks Interpol help to nab 2 social media trolls

It may be noted that earlier in August 2021, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana had lamented that judges were not on priority for the investigating agencies and that their complaints of being harassed and intimidated were not being important enough to be addressed despite the involvement of specialised bodies like the CBI in the investigation.

In response, the CBI in November had sought Interpol’s help for the deportation of two men who are currently believed to be in the United States in connection with a case involving derogatory remarks posted against judges and judiciary on social media platforms.

According to the sources close to the CBI, the agency had arrest warrants issued against the two suspects and had also filed six more charge sheets in the case. About 6 people from different places in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have been already arrested and sent to judicial custody in relation to the case. They are accused of making disparaging remarks against judges of the Andhra Pradesh High Court over certain verdicts.

Besides the 6 arrested, the CBI had arrested another 5 accused in July and August and also filed five separate charge sheets against them. 

In addition to this, the probe agency had also questioned Lok Sabha MP Nandigam Suresh and former MLA Amanchi Krishnamohan, both belonging to YSR Congress, in the case. In a separate case in October 2020, the Andhra Pradesh HC had fumed over derogatory posts made by YSRCP leaders after they had accused the judges of being ‘partial’. The YSRCP leaders were criticising the HC after its request for a CBI probe into the ‘Amaravati scam’ was rejected by the High Court.

CBI took over the case in November 2020 and filed a case against 16 people accused of making derogatory remarks against the judges and the Indian judiciary. Until then, the CID, Andhra Pradesh, was probing the matter and had filed 12 FIRs in the case. The original FIRs were registered on complaints of Registrar General of high court of Andhra Pradesh. After taking over the case, the CBI had gotten social media companies to delete the contentious posts, along with getting YouTube channels blocked from the social media platforms and public domain.

Punjab Deputy CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa terms protests of contractual employees a drama, tells them ‘do whatever you want’

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab Deputy CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa terms protests of contractual employees a drama, tells them ‘do whatever you want’

Protesting contractual employees of state-owned Punjab Roadways confronted Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Transport Minister Amarinder Singh Raja Warring on Friday over the regularization of their jobs. The contractual employees have been staging protests demanding to make their contractual jobs regular and also increase the bus fleet size from the present number which is around 2500 to 10,000.

The contractual employees have alleged that Sukhjinder Randhawa misbehaved with them during the altercation. As per reports, the protesters had surrounded the ministers of Punjab and put their demands in front of them on Friday at Sri Muktsar Sahib. While Transport Minister Warring said, “Protesting is your right,” adding, “I along with Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa stepped out of our cars to talk to you.” Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa claimed, “It’s a drama.” Following which the angry protesters replied back and said, “The government is doing drama.”

But Amarinder Singh Raja Warring was not happy with this reply and reminded the protestors that they are talking to ministers. “You are talking to a Home Minister and a Deputy Chief Minister,” he said. After that Sukhwinder Singh Randhawa told the contractual employees, “Do whatever you want then.”

The Deputy CM also directed the DC to suspend the protesting employees who are supposed to be on duty at that time.

The protesting employees have also claimed that the Punjab government made a number of promises before the 2017 elections and they were not fulfilled yet. They had earlier protested during Amarinder Singh’s government and were told that their jobs would be made regular in twenty days. A protester named Gurpreet Singh had said, “We have also held a protest two months back that continued for nine days when Captain Amarinder Singh was the chief minister of Punjab and demanded to make our jobs regular,” adding, “The former chief minister back then promised us to make our jobs regular in twenty days but then it did not happen because he resigned from power and Charanjit Singh Channi took over the CM position. The current chief minister also promised the same. It has been two months now there is no update from this government too,”

The contractual employees in Ludhiana had earlier warned that they would hold indefinite strikes and block roads if the Punjab government did not consider their demands. Gurpreet Singh had said, “from November 23, we will start an indefinite strike, if the government will not listen to us even after that, we will start blocking roads.” 

Kanpur resident whose ‘gutkha pose’ went viral during India-NZ test match clarifies about entire incident

OpIndia Staff
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Kanpur resident whose ‘gutkha pose’ went viral during India-NZ test match clarifies about entire incident

A Kanpur resident, who had instantly shot to fame after his picture of allegedly chewing gutkha while talking on the phone during the first Test between India and New Zealand had gone viral, issued a clarification on Friday. He said it was sweet supari and not gutkha or tobacco that he was chewing during the test match that later on became the fodder for meme fest on social media.

Shobhit, a resident of Sarvodaya Nagar in Kanpur, was at the stadium during the second day of the ongoing test match as well. On Friday, he spoke to news channels and clarified that it was sweet supari and not gutkha that he was chewing when the camera panned at him, making him the subject of the online meme fest.

“I had gone to watch the match with my sister. I was talking to someone on my mobile phone while chewing sweet supari when the camera captured the video that later went on to become viral on the internet,” Shobhit told in an interview.

Although Shobit is happy with the fame he has received after his picture went viral, he regrets some of the lewd comments made against her sister. Shobit said, “Such people who made crass remarks against my sister should realise that she is somebody’ sister, someone’s daughter. The comments made against her were totally uncalled for and unwarranted,” said Shobit while adding that he will never eat masala in his life.

Picture of Kanpur man allegedly chewing gutkha goes viral on the internet, triggers a meme fest

Earlier yesterday, the picture of Shobit chewing something while talking on the phone during the India-New Zealand Test in Kanpur instantly went viral, after social media users alleged that he was chewing gutkha. Kanpur is infamous for tobacco and pan masala and there have been several jokes and memes on the same. It took no time for netizens to come up with creative memes to link Shobit’s picture with Kanpur’s infamy, alleging that the man in the picture was chewing gutkha or tobacco.

The picture was widely shared on the internet, with netizens sharing creative and hilarious memes on it.

Former cricketer Wasim Jaffer also partook in the social media frenzy, sharing a popular dialogue from the Bollywood movie Phir Hera Pheri. Jaffer shared a meme that read, “Person on the other side of that call: Muh se supari nikal kar k baat kar re baba (speak after spitting betel nuts).”

Apparently, the incident is from the 70th over during the first day of the Kanpur test match between India and New Zealand. New Zealand is set to play another test match in Mumbai and the series is a part of WTC 2021-23.

‘Farmers’ at Singhu border organise ‘pizza langars’ to mark one year of protest, Rakesh Tikait says protestors will not budge from Delhi borders

OpIndia Staff
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‘Farmers’ at Singhu border organise ‘pizza langars’ to mark one year of protest, Rakesh Tikait says protestors will not budge from Delhi borders

Today marks the one-year anniversary of the farmers’ protest. Despite the fact that the central government has been in the process to repeal the farm laws, farmers, in a purposeless display of might, gathered at the Tikri and Singhu border today, pressing for MSP laws and other demands. A Kisan Mahapanchayat has been convened in Sector-13, close to the Tikri border, on a 7-acre plot.

Besides, hundreds of tractors adorned with lights and placards drove through the Singhu border protest site to commemorate one year of protests against the three agricultural laws. Pizza langars have been organised for the ‘farmers’ at the Singh border to mark the occasion.

Despite the central government rolling back the three farm laws, which were primarily introduced to benefit farmers, against which the farmer protests had started, there is no likelihood of the farmers returning from the protest sites on the borders of Delhi where they have erected several semi-permanent structures to live for months. In fact, they have now started threatening the central government yet again with other demands.

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait said: “It has been 1 year since he was sitting on the borders of Delhi. Even though the government has announced the withdrawal of all three ‘black laws’, the government has remained silent on many other issues including the Minimum Support Price (MSP). The government is not talking to the farmers on this issue. Till all the demands of the farmers are not met, the farmers are not going to leave the borders of Delhi.”

Describing his future course of action Tikait added: “There is a meeting of the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (an umbrella body of over 40 farm unions that is spearheading the protest) on November 27 and all the issues will be kept in that meeting after which the further strategy of the farmers’ movement will be decided.”

“On November 29, the farmers will take out a tractor rally in front of the Parliament. Now the farmers are not going to sit quietly because the government may have announced the withdrawal of all three agricultural laws but has provided no commitment on the MSP guarantee law which the farmers have been demanding from the beginning. The government should hold talks with us. Otherwise, we will not go home,” Tikait threatened.

Even the open letter submitted to the administration, according to farmer leader Rakesh Tikait, has not received a response. All of these concerns will be discussed at the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha meeting. The farmers’ union will then decide on the next steps for the farmers’ agitation.

Tikait added that the ‘farmers’ have been protesting agricultural laws for a year in the open air, withstanding the cold, heat, and rain. Approximately 750 farmers have been martyred in this one year. Despite this, thousands have been gathering at the three border points of Delhi. The further strategy will only be decided after consultation with the farmers, said the BKU leader.

It may be noted that a large number of farmers from Punjab are gathering again on the borders of Delhi for the Mahapanchayat. In view of this, the Delhi Police has increased the security arrangements at the three border points of Delhi, namely Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur. The paramilitary strength has also increased.

It may be noted that PM Modi, addressing the nation on November 19, had said that by the end of this month, the Centre would complete the process of repealing the three farm laws. He then appealed to the protesting farmers and middlemen to return to their homes on this Gurupurab and stop their protest. He further said that the government will form a committee to formulate laws for the benefit of the farmers. However, Tikait has continued his intimidatory tactics against the government, insisting that the protest would continue unless the farm laws are repealed in the Parliament. “

‘Stop it, Dad’: Drugs case co-accused Arbaaz Merchant gets annoyed at father for asking him to pose for pictures outside NCB office

OpIndia Staff
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‘Stop it, Dad’: Drugs case co-accused Arbaaz Merchant gets annoyed at father for asking him to pose for pictures outside NCB office

Arbaaz Merchant, one of the accused in the Cruise Ship Drugs case, was peeved at his father after the latter asked him to pose for the paparazzi outside the Narcotics Control Bureau(NCB) office on Friday. Merchant, along with his father, paid a visit to the NCB office as a part of his bail condition that required the accused to mark their attendance every week.

After marking his attendance, when Merchant left the NCB office, his father Aslam Merchant asked him to pose for the shutterbugs. As Aslam drew Arbaaz close and smiled for the cameras, his son facepalmed and said, “Stop it, Dad,” leaving the photographers in splits. Arbaaz, who looked visibly exasperated with his father’s antics, then walked off and entered his car.

Aryan Khan, Arbaaz Merchant and others arrested in the Cruise Ship Drugs case

On October 3, the NCB officials arrested Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan, Arbaaz Merchant, Munmun Dhamecha, along with five others, after a raid at an alleged rave party on a Goa-bound cruise ship. After spending more than 3 weeks in jail, the accused were granted bail by the Bombay High Court on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh each.

Aryan and others were awarded bail by the Bombay High Court with 14 conditions attached. The court specified that even if one condition is violated, NCB would be entitled to apply to the special court for cancellation of bail. As per one of the conditions of their bail order, the accused had to appear before the NCB every week.

Aryan, Arbaaz and Munmun had moved to the Bombay High Court on October 20 after the NDPS court in Mumbai refused to grant bail.

The NCB had arrested over a dozen people in the cruise ship drug case. NCB had stated in Court that Aryan Khan has international links and has been in contact with drug peddlers.

The Court had noted that no drugs were found on Aryan’s person, though the NCB had stated that he was aware that Arbaaz had concealed drugs in his shoes.

‘Colonial mindset’: PM Modi takes potshots at western countries in Constitution Day speech

OpIndia Staff
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‘Colonial mindset’: PM Modi takes potshots at western countries in Constitution Day speech

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address on Constitution Day took potshots at western countries over concerns related to the environment. He said that countries which had achieved the status of developed countries through a specific method now want to deny developing countries the same opportunities.

During his speech, he called out the “colonial mindset” of developed countries. Narendra Modi said that developed countries want to deny developing countries the very means through which they became developed.

Narendra Modi said that India is the only country which has achieved its target set by the Paris Accord before time but even so, time and again, India is pressurized on environmental concerns. According to the Prime Minister, it is due to a colonial mindset.

He said that it was unfortunate that even in India, some people use the ruse of freedom of expression and other excuses to hinder the development of the country.

Prime Minister Modi said that the colonial mindset is the greatest obstacle towards strengthening the promises made during the independence movement of the country.

The Prime Minister also spoke of other issues such as the manner in which the sex ratio has been improving of late and the mortality rate during child birth and of new born children are falling. On the occasion of Constitutional Day, Narendra Modi addressed an event at Vigyan Bhavan where he made the comments.

After a sharp rise, tomato prices to come down soon, here is why

OpIndia Staff
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After a sharp rise, tomato prices to come down soon, here is why

Tomato prices are on the rise for almost two months now, which started to increase since the end of September. The rise in tomato prices was first caused by unseasonal rains in northern producing states of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, which led to damage of crops and delay of arrival of tomatoes from these states. This was followed by heavy rains in southern states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka, which again resulted in crop damage and led to disruptions in tomato supply.

Retail tomato prices are hovering around Rs 80 in most of India, but the situation is worse in southern states where the crop is retailing at around Rs 120. According to reports, the situation in major tomato producing state Karnataka is so grim that the state is now getting the vegetable from Nashik in Maharashtra.

Price as of 25.11.21 (Rs/kg)1 Month back 25.10.21 (Rs/kg)1 Year back 25.11.20 (Rs/kg)5 Year average (Rs/kg)% variation over 1 Month% variation over 1 Year% variation over 5-year average
66.6150.0040.9529.5533.2262.66125.41

This has led Crisil Research to predict that tomatoes will continue to be a costly vegetable for two more months. The agency has said that standing crops have been damaged because of excess rains in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, the key supplier states during the October-December period.

Crisil Research said that Prices have risen 142% as of November 25 and will remain elevated for two more months till harvest from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan starts reaching the markets from January. It said that prices will come down by 30% once the fresh arrivals start.

Source: DA&FW

However, the union govt is much more optimistic about the tomato price scenario and says that prices will start to fall from December itself. According to a note prepared by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Tomato arrivals from the north Indian States will start from the beginning of December 2021 which will add to availability and lead to fall in prices.

According to the department, the all-India average price of Tomato was Rs.66.61/kg on 25th November, which was 62.66% higher than that of last year and 125.41% higher than the five-year average price.

Tomato price is highly volatile as slight disruptions in the supply chain or damage due to heavy rains result in a spurt in prices. On the other hand, bulk arrival and logistics problems have the potential of creating a situation of a glut in the market which can cause a reduction in retail prices.

Oct 2019Nov 2019 Dec 2019 Oct 2020Nov 2020 Dec 2020 Oct 2021Nov 2021 Dec 2021
Karnataka0.870.74 2.220.650.6131.761.23
Gujarat 3.144.71 4.136.19 3.294.93
Andhra Pradesh2.422.570.972.462.470.932.762.831.15
Tamil Nadu1.11.531.422.544.263.511.092.172.27
Madhya Pradesh3.063.51.373.43.8481.472.6023.9022.168
Telangana1.21.090.920.760.630.680.790.750.63
Himachal Pradesh0.01  0.54  0.54  
Chhattisgarh0.680.961.090.841.181.350.831.161.33
Uttar Pradesh0.681.531.190.721.631.260.731.641.27
Maharashtra0.70.70.3221.271.871.51.61
Rajasthan0.010.120.110.180.170.160.360.260.21
Jharkhand0.210.630.410.220.360.410.220.360.41
Total10.9516.5112.4915.8921.3217.8414.7919.6217.21

A report by the Department of Agriculture estimates that the Kharif production in the current year will be 69.52 Lakh metric tons, which is comparable with 70.12 LMT produced last year. According to the report, the harvest of tomatoes in November will be 19.62 lakh ton, and the same will be 17.21 lakh ton in December, up from 14.79 lakh ton in October. While this represents a dip in November harvest by around 2 lakh tons in November compared to 2020, the production in December will be similar to the 2020 level.

With this increase in harvest in the current and the next month, the availability of tomatoes will go up substantially and will result in a drop in prices, according to the estimates by the department.

ED raids multiple premises linked to Shiv Sena leader Arjun Khotkar in Rs 25,000 crore MSC Bank scam

OpIndia Staff
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ED raids multiple premises linked to Shiv Sena leader Arjun Khotkar in Rs 25,000 crore MSC Bank scam

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday raided multiple premises linked to Shiv Sena leader Arjun Khotkar in Aurangabad and nearby areas. Khotkar is the head of the Agriculture Produce Market Committee.

As per sources cited in various news reports, the raids were conducted in connection with the Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank scam. Multiple teams of ED personnel reached various locations, including his Bhagyanagar bungalow in Jalna, linked to the leader at 8:30 am in morning. Reports say a team of 12 people are still investigating his house in Jalna.

BJP leader Kiri Somaiya accused Khotkar, who had served as an MLA from Jalna and a minister in the Maharashtra government between 2016 to 2019, of usurping the land of 10,000 farmers.

However, sources close to the ED claim, the raids at Khotkar’s place were related to the earlier takedown of a senior Mumbai police officer’s father-in-law in Aurangabad. The raids were then carried out in connection with the purchase of a sugar mill by the officer’s relative.

Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar named in the Rs 25,000 crore MSCB scam

In the same case, the Enforcement Directorate in July 2021 had attached properties worth over Rs 65 crores, including a sugar mill in Satara, liked to Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and his wife. As per ED, the funds used to purchase the Jarandeshwar SSK sugar mill were routed through another sugar mill, which is in turn funded by Sparkling Soil Private Limited, a company linked to Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and his wife Sunetra Pawar. 

In September 2019, ahead of the assembly polls in Maharashtra, the Enforcement Directorate had registered a money laundering case against NCP chief Sharad Pawar and his nephew Ajit Pawar in connection with a Rs 25,000-crore scam at MSCB. During the investigation, the ED had found that MSCB sold Jarandeshwar SSK in 2010 in an auction at a lower price than fair value.

Other Shiv Sena leaders facing ED probe

Over the months, many Shiv Sena leaders have come under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate. Earlier in August, ED raided premises linked to Sena MP Bhavana Gawali, a member of parliament from the Yavatmal Washim constituency of Maharashtra over a money laundering case. The ED suspected Bhawana of committing fraud and siphoning off funds through her firm named Mahila Utkarsh Pratisthan.

Another Shiv Sena leader Anil Parab is also facing an ED probe related to PMLA cases in connection with the Vasooli charges against former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. 

Back in September 2021, ED had raided the residence of another Shiv Sena leader Anandrao Adsul. The Shiv Sena leader and his son Abhijeet Adsul are allegedly involved in a Rs 980-crore fraud at City Co-operative Bank.

Besides, Pratap Sarnaik was also pursued by ED sleuths for his alleged role in the ₹5600 crores National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL) scam. The premier agency had seized 112 properties linked to Pratap Sarnaik. Interestingly, when ED verified the claims with the Revenue Departments Office, it found that the 112 plots, which it took in its possession, did not show up in the records.

‘Green-eyed Afghan girl’ from famous Nat Geo cover photo has been evacuated to Italy, granted refuge

OpIndia Staff
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‘Green-eyed Afghan girl’ from famous Nat Geo cover photo has been evacuated to Italy, granted refuge

Sharbat Gula, the green-eyed Afghan girl who featured on the National Geographic Magazine’s iconic cover photo from the 1980s has been evacuated to Italy, according to reports. Gula has been granted refugee status by the Italian government as part of the plan to rescue and integrate Afghans after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

Sharbat Gula was photographed by the war photographer Steve McCurry in 1984 at the Afghan-Pakistan border when she was a 12-year-old Pashtun orphan. The famous photo of her with striking green eyes had featured on the cover of the National Geographic Magazine 1985.

Prime Minister of Italy, Mario Draghi’s office said that Gula’s photograph published in the National Geographic magazine “symbolises the vicissitudes and conflict of the chapter in history that Afghanistan and its people were going through at the time”.

Sharbat Gula was photographed by Steve McCurry in 1984 and then again in 2003, image via Times of Israel

A statement released from Italian Prime Minister Draghi’s office read, “In 1985, thanks to the photography of Steve McCurry, who the previous year had portrayed her very young in a refugee camp in Peshawar for the cover of National Geographic Magazine, Sharbat Gula acquired global notoriety, to the point of symbolizing the vicissitudes and conflicts of the phase history that Afghanistan and its people were going through,”

The 1984 photograph was that of an unknown girl till 2003 when McCurry again went to the region and tracked her down. Her identity was confirmed through Iris scan and other forensic techniques.

Earlier in 2016, Sharbat Gula was spotted in Pakistan where she had been accused of obtaining fake Pakistani identities and was later deported to Kabul. Sula had sought the help of the Italian government to escape Afghanistan which was backed by various organizations in Afghanistan. According to the official statement, Prime Minister Draghi himself arranged for her evacuation from Afghanistan after receiving several requests.

The statement noted, “Responding to the requests of those in civil society and in particular among the non-profit organizations active in Afghanistan which, after the events of last August, received Sharbat Gula’s appeal to be helped in leaving their country, the Prime Minister took it upon himself and organized her transfer to Italy within the broader context of the program for the evacuation of Afghan citizens and the government’s plan for their reception and integration,”

Gula is now a 40-year-old woman and is a mother of 4 children. She has also informed that her husband had passed away long back. She also suffers from Hepatitis C and needs treatment.

Canadian school cancels book event with ISIS survivor Nadia Murad, says would foster ‘Islamophobia’ and ‘offend’ Muslim students

OpIndia Staff
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Canadian school cancels book event with ISIS survivor Nadia Murad, says would foster ‘Islamophobia’ and ‘offend’ Muslim students

The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has cancelled a book event by the Yazidi Nobel Prize-winning author Nadia Murad. The reason provided by the Canadian school to justify its decision was that the book written by her could “promote Islamophobia” and “offend” the Muslim students.

Murad, a Yazidi human rights activist, was 19 when she was taken as a sex slave in 2014 by the Islamic State terrorists who invaded her village in northern Iraq. Nadia had become the second-youngest woman to receive the Nobel Prize for Peace. 

Murad was invited to talk at Tanya Lee’s book club- A Room of Your Own, which invites young girls aged 13 to 18 from various secondary schools and allows them to read a book and then discuss it virtually with the author. The event in which Nadia Murad was invited to carry discussions on her book, ‘The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State’, is scheduled to be held in February 2022. This is Murad’s autobiographical book on how she was enslaved by Islamic State.

However, now, the Toronto District School Board has disallowed students from participating in the event, saying that the event would foster Islamophobia. TDSB superintendent Helen Fisher expressed concern over Murad’s book telling book club organizers that students should not participate in an event with the author scheduled for February.

“This is what the Islamic State means,” Lee said in response to the board’s decision to Helen Fisher, adding, “It’s a jihadist group. It has nothing to do with the Muslim community as a whole. The discrepancy should be recognised by the Toronto school board.”

The Toronto District School Board (TDSB)’s decision was criticized by several Canadian writers and media.

Canadian commentator Rex Murphy wrote: “For those with a cynical mind — and I am of course exempt from that failing — it might be concluded that equity departments actually hold existence for the sole purpose of contradicting their own purpose. And, in particular, those within school boards have honed that skill to supernal perfection.

It may be noted that the Toronto District School Board had, similarly, withdrawn support from the event the book club was to host in October because the featured author, lawyer Marie Henein, had defended Canadian radio host Jian Ghomeshi on sexual-assault charges. Jian Ghomeshi had in 2016, been acquitted of all charges in the first trial itself. Despite this, TDSB had forbidden its students to participate in the October event.

Explaining the board’s rationale behind the decision, TDSB spokesperson Ryan Bird told The Globe and Mail, “There seems to have been a misunderstanding because the ‘fairness’ department does not review and approve books for book clubs”. He also explained that “the two books were nevertheless examined by the members of the council, as is the practice, in order to decide or not their distribution to the pupils”.

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