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What happened in UP was illustrative of Twitter’s arbitrariness in fighting fake news: RS Prasad hits out on Twitter after it loses its safety net

OpIndia Staff
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What happened in UP was illustrative of Twitter’s arbitrariness in fighting fake news: RS Prasad hits out on Twitter after it loses its safety net

Amid the speculations that micro-blogging platform Twitter will lose the safe harbour protection for not complying with the Intermediary Guidelines that came into effect from the 26th of May, Union Minister for Law and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad lashed at social media giant Twitter for refusing to follow Indian laws.

The social media platforms and other digital portals were given three months to comply with the new guidelines released by the government of India to bring transparency into the working of social media companies. Despite asking for a three-week extension, Twitter failed to appoint statutory compliance and grievance redressal officers as per the new IT rules. As a result, the social media giant will lose the intermediary platform, making it liable for content posted by users.

Union Minister hits out at Twitter

In a long thread comprising of nine Tweets, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad labelled Twitter’s disobedience as a deliberate decision of non-compliance.

On queries arising on Twitter losing safe harbour protection, the Minister said, “There are numerous queries arising as to whether Twitter is entitled to safe harbour provision. However, the simple fact of the matter is that Twitter has failed to comply with the Intermediary Guidelines that came into effect from the 26th of May.”

“Further, Twitter was given multiple opportunities to comply with the same, however it has deliberately chosen the path of non compliance,” he added.

Hinting at how unmonitored fake news can spark menace in the country, Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “The culture of India varies like its large geography. In certain scenarios, with the amplification of social media, even a small spark can cause a fire, especially with the menace of fake news. This was one of the objectives of bringing the Intermediary Guidelines.”

The Minister also took a jibe at the company for being opaque with the government while championing free speech.

Prasad also reminded Twitter of its selective labelling of content as ‘manipulative’ without furnishing any proof for their decision.

Talking about the latest Ghaziabad crime where a conscious effort was made to fan fake news, Prasad said, “What happened in UP was illustrative of Twitter’s arbitrariness in fighting fake news. While Twitter has been over enthusiastic about its fact checking mechanism, it’s failure to act in multiple cases like UP is perplexing & indicates its inconsistency in fighting misinformation.”

Questioning the company’s intent, Prasad questioned, “Indian companies be it pharma, IT or others that go to do business in USA or in other foreign countries, voluntarily follow the local laws. Then why are platforms like Twitter showing reluctance in following Indian laws designed to give voice to the victims of abuse and misuse?”

Finally, the Minister warned that no foreign entity can escape the law of land.

UP government files FIR against Twitter

The Uttar Pradesh Government has initiated action against Twitter India for failing to take down tweets that spread misinformation about a crime in the state. An FIR has been lodged against the social media platform in connection with the same.

This comes after the legal immunity that was provided to Twitter over content moderation in the country is officially over now.

Gujarat govt implements stringent law to curb the menace of forced religious conversion. Read who all can be held guilty

OpIndia Staff
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Gujarat govt implements stringent law to curb the menace of forced religious conversion. Read who all can be held guilty

The Gujarat government has notified the Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill 2021 with effect from June 15 to curb the menace of forced religious conversion in the state. The Bill was passed in the state assembly on June 1 and got Governor Acharya Devavrat’s nod in May, which is now a law in the state.

The development comes in the wake of the rising number of Grooming Jihad cases being reported from different parts of the country and on the heels of a similar law passed by the state of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. According to the law passed by the Gujarat government, if anybody is found guilty of forced conversion, they will be punished with four to seven years of imprisonment. The law also has a provision of strict punishment to those who are found complicit in the conversion through marriage.

Forcing religious conversion by luring them or by pretending to be in love/relationship by hiding religious identity is now illegal.

Provisions of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill 2021

As per the provisions of the law, marriage just for the sake of conversion or conversion just for the sake of marriage will be deemed illegal by the Family Court or the Court. The law prohibits people directly or otherwise to coerce or deceive one to get married or help in getting married for the sake of conversion.

Additionally, the burden of proof to prove one’s guilt will be on the accused, accuser, and those who have abetted in the purported crime. The law also holds everyone—who commits the crime, abets in committing the crime, advises in committing a crime—equally guilty of committing the crime. Those who are found to be guilty of breaching these provisions will be sentenced to jail for 3 to 5 years and a fine of at least Rs 2 lakhs. In the case of women belonging to Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, there is a provision of 4 to 7 years of jail and a fine of Rs 3 lakhs.

Furthermore, the organisations who do not abide by these provisions will have their registrations cancelled and those found guilty will be sentenced to 3 to 10 years of imprisonment and asked to pay a fine of Rs 5 lakhs. Such organisations will also be stripped of any state grants or financial aid since the day of filing the charge sheet.

The provisions of the Bill make Grooming Jihad a non-bailable and cognisable offence and will not be probed by officers below the rank of Superintendent of Police.

Govt refutes New Indian Express’s report on FCI’s involvement in rice scam, says distribution is state govt responsibility

OpIndia Staff
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Govt refutes New Indian Express’s report on FCI’s involvement in rice scam, says distribution is state govt responsibility

On June 15, the Government of India refuted the claims that suggested the Food Corporation of India was involved in a Rice Scam in Assam and Meghalaya. As per the reports, Assam Police busted an alleged scam and seized one lakh bags of rice, weighing 50 KG each, from a private godown at Boko in Kamrup district. The rice was meant for Meghalaya. The New Indian Express published a report about the alleged scam and asserted that FCI officials could be involved in it.

TNIE report suggesting involvement of FCI in Rice Scam

MK Gogoi, Executive Director, Northeast, Food Corporation of India, visited DSF Khanapara to investigate the matter and submitted a report. It was found that the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, had allocated 3098 MT Rice and 1094 MT wheat under the WBNP Scheme for Meghalaya State for the 1st quarter of the year during 2021-22 vide letter dated May 6, 2021. The authorities issued an order to lift the food grains on four instances in May and June 2021.

DM Shillong informed that the Director of the Social Welfare Department issues the food grains to approved suppliers for finished products like fortified rice, biscuits and other products. The Department concerned also informed that the said stock for the supplier was received.

The report further said, “During the visit to FSD Khanapara on 15.06.2021 to investigate into the veracity of the afore-stated media reports, it has been learnt that the said rice had been issued from FSD Khanapara to the nominated State Government of Meghalaya nominee under WBNP scheme as per extant rules and guidelines.” As the stock was issued, it is not possible for FCI to track the onward distribution under PDS or OWS by the nominee as the state is responsible for such tracking.

FCI’s involvement in the distribution was limited to the phase where the food grains were delivered to the state. After that, the state has to ensure that foodgrains are reaching the real beneficiaries. The report further added, “It can be concluded at this juncture that FCI has no role in the said alleged diversion of food grains and that the apprehensions of media regarding FCI’s involvement are devoid of facts and a manifestation of the lack of operational understanding of FCI’s role in PDS mechanism.”

What did The New Indian Express’s report say?

In its report, TNIE alleged the involvement of FCI in the food scam. They quoted Kamrup Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Kalyan Kumar Pathak, saying, “A huge quantity of rice was seized, and we are going by the laws. We have written to the agency concerned. A response is awaited.” Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma claimed he had no information about the alleged scam. The CM said if such a huge quantity had gone missing, it would have come to the notice.

Reports by other publications

The alleged scam was initially reported by some local media houses. On June 12, The Shillong Times said that the Police unearthed the scam after locals reported the suspicious movement of 13 trucks in the area. It further added that the police learned that the said rice was repacked by Maruti Quality Products Pvt Ltd (MQPPL) into the East Sunrise brand owned by Continental Milkose India Ltd and supplied to Assam Rifles.

East Mojo quoted a police officer involved in the raid on the godown, saying, “We seized one lakh bags of FCI rice, each weighing 50 kgs, from the godown. The private company was repackaging the commodity in their own brand and then sending it to Meghalaya.” Deepak Agarwal, owner of MQPPL and the godown where the rice was found, is absconding.

Here is a list of 20 incidents where the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan has been misused to turn a random crime into ‘hate crime’

OpIndia Staff
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Here is a list of 20 incidents where the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan has been misused to turn a random crime into ‘hate crime’

Islamist apologists, the ‘liberal’ brigade and their friendly media have started liberally using the sacred ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan as a tool to demonise Hindus. This venomous cabal, which has been nurturing a deep-seated hatred for Hindus, have mastered the art of crafting misleading and phoney tales around the Hindu chant in order to turn every random crime, especially in cases where the victim happens to be from the Muslim community, into a ‘hate crime’.

Interestingly, this penchant for peddling the ‘Dara Hua Musalman’ narrative has especially become prevalent since BJP, which has been unreserved about its Hindutva moorings, came to power in 2014.

Though the actual number of such incidents are likely to be far higher, we have compiled a list of 19 instances from recent times in which the left-leaning brigade has sought to demonise the Hindu by defaming the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ chant which has long been deeply sacred to Hindus.

Alt News cofounder Mohammed Zubair communalised a petty fight to defame ‘Jai Shri Ram’

On Monday (June 14), Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair took to Twitter to claim that an elderly Muslim man, Abdul Samad Saifi, in Ghaziabad was assaulted and forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. While speaking about the matter, Abdul Samad Saifi had also claimed that he was locked inside a room and brutally thrashed by miscreants who forced him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

However, the truth is far from this Hinduphobic narrative weaved by Zubair and the ‘victim’. The video of the assault does not contain any audio, which can verify the claim that Saifi was coerced into chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ or ‘Ram Ram’. Moreover, the victim had alleged that a gun was used by the accused to intimidate him although it wasn’t visible in the video footage.

The Uttar Pradesh police had also clarified that the accused and the victim knew each other prior to the incident and that it was a case of personal rivalry. The cops did not mention any reference to religious slogans in their statement.

Fake communal angle in Asif Khan murder case

Last month, Haryana Police had ruled out any communal angle in the murder of Muslim youth Asif Khan from Mewat. As per reports, Asif, along with his two cousins was returning from his sister’s house when he was allegedly attacked by a group of men and was beaten to death. However, soon after the report of his death poured in, some media houses claimed that he was forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ before being killed, thereby giving it a communal angle.

Kerala-based portal Maktoob Media claimed that Asif was ‘forced to chant Jai Shri Ram’ and referred to the religious slogan as ‘warcry of Hindu nationalist militants’. Sharjeel Usmani, the Newslaundry columnist, also used the unfortunate crime in Haryana to peddle hatred against the Hindu community. However, Maktoob Media offered no evidence to prove this fact. In fact, even the initial statement of one of the witnesses said how they were attacked by a group where most men were known to them.

Eventually it turned out to be a case of internal political rivalry and there was no communal angle in it.

Outrage over ‘Jai Shri Ram’ written on walls of a mosque in Bhainsa, Telangana

On May 26, communal tensions erupted in Bhainsa, Telangana. Some members of Muslim community led riots against the Hindu community when they saw “Jai Shri Ram” inscribed on the walls of a mosque. Later, it turned out that the culprits were Muslims. One of the individuals were identified as Mohammed Abdul Kaeef and the other was a minor. Both the accused lived in the near vicinity of the Masjid. The police revealed that the minor boy wrote ‘Jai Shri Ram’ after being instructed to do the same by the older of the two.

Apart from the CCTV footage, the handwriting also matches with the suspect. The accused have confessed to the crime, the police officer said.

Liberals peddle fake narrative that Tanishq showroom was attacked by ‘Jai Shri Ram’ chanting Hindu mob

Last year, after the Tanishq showroom in Gandhidham, Kutch in Gujarat issued an apology to Hindus for the controversial advertisement glorifying ‘love jihad’, the ecosystem came together to build a narrative that the showroom was ‘attacked’ by a ‘mob’ and the owners ‘forced’ to put up apology.

Basically, NDTV created the narrative of the showroom being attacked, which the leftist ecosystem eagerly lapped up. Screenshots were shared and people made to believe ‘Hindus intolerant of inter-faith marriage ads’.

Alt news co-founder Mohammed Zubair also jumped onto the bandwagon to claim that a mob chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ attacked the Tanishq showroom.

OpIndia then wrote in details how this news was completely devoid of facts and obviously peddled with a sole aim to slander Hindus. We mentioned how the Kutch Police had confirmed that there was no attack on the showroom. Moreover, the Tanishq showroom employees at Kutch’s Gandhidham were absolutely clueless about the ‘mob attack’.

The truth was that, contrary to the Hinduphobic cabal’s portrayal, a few people did sit outside the showroom peacefully and chanted “Jai Shri Ram”, expressing their disapproval against the Tanishq ad.

Leftist media peddles Muslim cab driver was ‘lynched to death’ and forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’, Noida police refutes claim

In September 2020, the leftist media worked overtime to attribute a communal angle to the death of a Muslim cab driver named Aftab Alam claiming that he was lynched to death by a communal mob after forcing him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

Leftist propaganda website like TheWire and Amar Ujala claimed that Aftab Alam was made to chant Jai Shri Ram.

These fake narrative was soon busted by the Noida police who confirmed that they had examined the audio recording and the victim, Aftab Alam, was not asked to chant Jai Shri Ram.

Muslim auto driver in Rajasthan thrashed by drunk miscreants for tobacco and money, leftist media gives communal angle

On August 9, 2020, a 52-year-old Muslim auto driver named Gapphar Ahmad had reportedly claimed that he was thrashed by miscreants in Sikar in Rajasthan. He alleged that the assaulters forced him to chant slogans such as ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Modi Zindabad.’

Several media organizations including Jansatta, Aaj Tak and Navbharat Times gave the incident a communal spin.

The truth was that some drunk miscreants had asked the auto driver for tobacco, who refused. This led to an altercation between the auto driver and the miscreants, who chased the auto driver and beat him up.

The fact behind a Nepali man tonsured and forced to shout ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Nepal PM Murdabad’ 

The July 2020 incident of a Nepali man being tonsured and forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ had created quite a storm across the nation. After media outlets blamed ‘Hindu outfits’ for the incident, it came to light that the man responsible for performing the said act on the Nepali man was one Arun Pathak, who belonged to the Shiv Sena, currently a ‘secular’ party after its recent alliance with the Congress and the NCP.

Later, the Varanasi Police also confirmed that the Nepali man in question was an Indian citizen.

Furthermore, it has now been confirmed that the whole incident was a pre-planned act. As per reports, the so-called Nepali youth, identified as Dharmendra Singh, was contacted by Arun Pathak’s men 16th July and was told that his services are required for a couple of hours at Ganga Ghat. He was told that there is some event where he would have tonsure his head and chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. For his services, he would be given Rs. 1000.

The Godhra ‘hate crime’ lie peddled by mainstream and digital media outlets proved untrue

On August 2, 2019, many mainstream media outlets had reported that 3 youth in Gujarat’s Godhra was assaulted by a group of miscreants the previous night for not chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

As per reports, a complaint lodged with the Godhara A Division police by one Siddiq Abdul Salam, a resident of Mohamadi mohalla in Godhara town, six unknown miscreants assaulted his son Samir (17) and two of his friends, Salman and Sohail for not chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

However, the Godhra police had stated that after a detailed examination of all available CCTV footage and an inquiry, it has been revealed that Siddiq was lying. As reported by Desh Gujarat, the police investigation confirmed that the clash had nothing to do with chanting of any religious slogan.

Despite the truth coming out in the open, the leftist media shamelessly did not bother to issue any clarification and apology for peddling the misleading ‘hate crime’ narrative.

The July 2019 Chandauli fake ‘hate crime’

In July 2019, a 17-year-old Muslim boy from Chandauli, UP, named Khalid Ansari had allegedly set himself on fire in a dargah. A resident of Township of Lohia Nagar town of Thana Syedaraja he had claimed that he was set on fire for refusing to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ on 28 July. After the boy succumbed to his injuries, many media houses started peddling the conspiracy theory that Khalid was a victim of hate crime.

However, the Police, after investigating the case, examining the CCTV footage and talking to eyewitnesses had concluded that Khalid himself had set himself on fire.

When media used maliciously edited video to allege that BJP minister forced Muslim MLA to chant Jai Shri Ram

‘Nationalist’ channel Times Now has joined the rank of left-liberals in peddling the fake narrative that Hindus are forcing Muslims to chant Jai Shri Ram. They used a heavily edited video in July 2019 to accuse a BJP minister in Jharkhand of spreading hate in the name of Hindutva.

Reporting on an incident that happened outside Jharkhand assembly, Times Now alleges that minister CP Singh crossed the line when he forced Congress MLA Irfan Ansari to chant Jai Shri Ram. The same allegation with the same video clip was published by other media houses also, including the usual suspects who are expected to present such distorted news to peddle their agenda. All of them claimed that the BJP minister forced Ansari to chant Jai Shri Ram.

However, this claim turned out to be false. It was cleared that CP Singh asked Ansari to chant Jai Shri Ram only because Ansari was claiming that Ram and the slogan belong to everyone, not just BJP.

When Sheikh Aamer faked ‘forced to chant Jai Shri Ram’ story to get applauded in the community

On July 23, 2019, another fake incident of ‘hate crimes’ made it to the front page of many newspapers. In this case, the alleged victim Shiekh Aamer reportedly contrived a story that the 4 youths he had an altercation with had forced him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan and filed his complaint on this basis at the police station to seek grandstanding from members of his community.

However, barely a day after filing a complaint that some persons had forcibly asked him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’, the alleged victim Aamer went back on his statement. Aamer conceded that he fabricated the story of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan being enforced upon him to raise his stature among his community members and teach those who dare to challenge people from his community a lesson.

How a Muslim man in Aurangabad transformed an altercation due to personal enmity into ‘hate crime’ to malign Hindus

One Imran Ismail Patel, a hotel employee in Aurangabad had filed a complaint on July 19, last year, against a group of 10 people alleging that a mob intercepted him while he was returning to his house and forced him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ following which he was thrashed by them.

However, according to the police, the preliminary investigation revealed that the incident is being unnecessarily communalised and the evidence suggests that the scuffle occurred because of personal enmity.

The eye-witnesses who had come to Imran’s rescue had put paid to the claims made by Imran that he was forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. Instead, they had asserted that the incident was a result of a personal feud.

Another ‘hate crime’ in Bhagpat which turned out to be fake

On July 14, 2019, several media houses had reported that one Imam (Muslim cleric) called Imlaq-Ur-Rehman was assaulted by men and was made to chant Jai Shri Ram. The report also mentioned that his beard was pulled by the assailants and that the police has booked 12 people in connection with this case. OpIndia reached out to Baghpat SP who has categorically rubbished the claims and asserted that Imam Imlaq-Ur-Rehman was not made to chant Jai Shri Ram, his beard was not pulled and there was no religious undertone to this assault. He asserted that this was a case of a petty brawl between some men and the Imam.

Unnao madarsa student injured in a fight over cricket, not for not chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram

Yet another news of Muslims forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and beaten for not doing so has turned out to be fake. The Imam of the Jama Masjid in Unnao had warned of ‘unprecedented action’ if the Hindu boys who were involved in the fight over cricket match were not arrested.

He had even claimed that the madarsa boys were beaten up by the Hindu boys after they were asked to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. But later police had found that there was no religious angle to the incident.

According to the enquiry conducted by UP police, it was found that a fight had broken out between two groups while playing cricket. In a press conference where ADG (LO) P V Ramaswamy and IG (LO) Praveen Kumar were present, they denied that anybody was forced to chant any religious slogan, and said that it was a fight between two groups on the playground that had turned violent.

News of Muslim auto driver thrashed for not chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ turned out to be fake

On July 5 2019, reports emerged that a Muslim auto driver in Kanpur, Aatib, was allegedly thrashed for not chanting Jai Shri Ram. It was reported that he was allegedly locked up inside a public toilet by three people for refusing to chant ‘Jai Shree Ram’.

The Telegraph had reported that Aatib was asked by the customers who hired his auto to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ after they refused to pay the fare. Congress mouthpiece Navjivan, had also reported how three youths mercilessly thrashed Aatib for refusing to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. In fact, there were reports that communal tensions have escalated in the area because rumours were floated on WhatsApp that Aatib had died after being thrashed for not chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

However, the allegations that Aatib was forced to chant Jai Shri Ram are false. According to Police, the men who boarded Aatib’s auto were drunk and matters escalated when they refused to pay the fare and got into a heated argument.

SP South Raveena Tyagi had then confirmed to OpIndia that the news of Aatib being forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ was false.

Madarsa teacher in Delhi not hit by a car for refusing to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’

The incidents of fake ‘hate crimes’ have become increasingly common. On June 21, 2019, a controversy had erupted after a Muslim man had claimed that he was allegedly hit by a car after he refused to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. A madarsa teacher named Mohammed Momin had alleged that he was allegedly abused and then run over by the car as he refused to chant Hindu religious slogans at Delhi’s Rohini Sector.

However, an eyewitness at the spot has now rubbished the claims of Mohammed Momin. As per the police report, the eyewitness during the preliminary investigation did not substantiate the allegations.

In Cooch Behar a Muslim man forces another to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’, liberals huddle up to hold Hindu accountable

On June 29, 2019, a video went viral, where a Muslim man was seen doing sit-ups, while holding his ears, and was allegedly being forced to chant “Jai Shree Ram”. Another Muslim man has been arrested in connection with the case. According to media reports, Apsi Miyan was arrested for making another Muslim man, Agsar Ali, chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ forcefully in Cooch Behar district of West Bengal. Despite facts being there out in the open, it was not surprising that the ‘liberal-secular’ gang had begun demonising Hindus for the act.

However, before blaming Hindus, these anti-Hindus should have considered how Hindus would get a Muslim to chant “Jai Shri Ram” in a place like West Bengal’s Chooch Behar, where under Mamata Banerjee’s regime they themselves have to think twice before chanting the slogan.

Karimnagar: No, ‘Majnu’ was not beaten up for refusing to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’

In the beginning of June, 2019, a former AIMIM leader took to Twitter to claim that a Muslim man was beaten up in Karimnagar, Telangana. He alleged that the Muslim man was beaten up for not chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

However, Commissioner of Police, Karimnagar, Telangana State, shared a video of the Muslim man where he clarified that he was beaten up over a personal issue and there was no communal side to it.

Barkat Alam ‘attacked’, forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’

In a similar incident reported from Gurugram, Haryana on May 31, 2019, a Muslim man named Barkat Alam had alleged that his skull cap was thrown away after a group of Hindus had attacked him. He had even claimed that he was forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

Prime-time debates happened around him since the incident took place right after Narendra Modi was re-elected as Prime Minister with a thumping mandate. However, the CCTV recording revealed how it was actually a scuffle between few men and the argument turned into push and shoving in which his cap fell down. The CCTV footage showed how no one had deliberately removed his skullcap. And how even his initial complaint never mentioned that he was forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

Criminal incident given a communal spin, Rajasthan in June 2017

The incident happened in Nagaur district of Rajasthan where a group of men, some hiding their faces, were recorded on camera abusing and assaulting a woman with plastic pipes and forcing her to chant religious slogans. It was not clear who recorded the incident, but the video clearly showed that the men were forcing the woman to chant “Allah” and “Jai Shri Ram”.

However, people from expected quarters conveniently ignored the ‘Allah’ part and focused only on the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ part to give the entire incident a communal spin even though the incident was purely criminal and was horrifying enough even without the communal spin.

Netizens demand action against Bollywood entertainer Swara Bhasker for peddling fake news and defaming ‘Jai Shri Ram’

OpIndia Staff
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Netizens demand action against Bollywood entertainer Swara Bhasker for peddling fake news and defaming ‘Jai Shri Ram’

In a first-of-its-kind move, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has filed an FIR against Twitter and eight others in connection with a video of a Muslim man being thrashed and propelling fake news using the video on social media. 

The FIR names Alt News co-founder Muhammed Zubair who was the first one to upload the muted video of the incident later falsely claiming that the victim was made to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ while being thrashed. 

Fanning the fake narrative initiated by the self-proclaimed ‘fact-checkers’, journalists and leftist personalities such as Rana Ayyub, Saba Naqvi and Congress leaders like Salman Nizami and Maskoor Usmani furthered the propaganda. All the aforementioned along with the leftist media portal The Wire, have been named in the FIR. 

However, Bollywood entertainer Swara Bhasker who has not been named in the FIR has been deflecting her role in spreading this fake news. Now claiming that she is a Hindu, Bhasker as usual demands every Hindu to feel ashamed as the prime accused allegedly belongs to a Gujjar community, whitewashing the crimes of others involved.

Using an utterly derogatory language, Bhasker continued to further her claims. “RW & Sanghis vomiting on my timeline ‘coz Ghaziabad police named 3 Muslims. Jackasses the prime accused is literally a Pravesh Gujjar. The man is on camera forcing the old man to chant #JaiShriRam Yes it is a desecration of my God and my religion and I’m ashamed.. as shud you be,” she said in a Tweet.

Swara claimed that she can hear the alleged accused ‘forcing’ the old man to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ in a video where the audio was muted.

It is imperative to note that still, no video has emerged with audio where the perpetrators can be heard forcing the victim to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram.’

The netizens, however, demand strict action against Bhasker for not only propagating false news, defaming the Hindu religious slogan ‘Jai Shri Ram’ but also concealing the crimes of the accused from the Muslim community, falsely giving communal colours to a petty crime. 

Netizens demand action

Indian filmmaker Ashoke Pandit tagging the UP Police has demanded strict action against Bhasker for inciting communal violence.

A Twitter handle by the name Amit Singh sharing a copy of the Ghaziabad police statement has demanded Bhasker’s arrest.

Another netizen by the name Nishant informed that the Gujjar community comprises of Muslims too. Raising a valid question he asked, “where did she (Swara Bhasker) hear Jai Shri Ram in muted video?”

Sumesh, a Twitter handle has tagged Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath to bring to his notice that the entertainer is still promulgating the fake news.

Another user remarked that Freedom of Speech can be misused for furthering a personal propaganda.

Mohammed Zubair of Alt News deletes the video

Meanwhile, after being slapped with an FIR for spreading fake news to incite communal hatred, Zubair took to Twitter to announce that he has deleted the video pertaining to the incident as the ‘facts didn’t add up’.

Uttar Pradesh CM taking cognizance of the matter had responded sharply to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s attempt to be a party to spreading the lie.

2 days after Naftali Bennet became new Israeli PM, IDF bombs Gaza in response to arson balloons

OpIndia Staff
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2 days after Naftali Bennet became new Israeli PM, IDF bombs Gaza in response to arson balloons

The Israel Defence Forces carried out counter-terror operations inside the Gaza strip on early Wednesday. As per reports, Israeli aircraft carried out a series of airstrikes at terrorist sites in the Gaza Strip, the first such raids since the cease-fire announcement between Israel and Hamas last month.

According to the reports, Israel mounted airstrikes at the terrorist sites on Wednesday in response to incendiary balloons launched from the Palestinian territory. The counter-terror operations came 11 days after the two sides had agreed to stop hostilities that had seen Hamas firing thousands of rockets into Israel’s civilian areas after the Sheikh Jarrah dispute.

The airstrikes targeted facilities used by Hamas terrorists for meetings to plan attacks, the Israeli military said, accusing the terror outfit of planning terror acts against Israel from Gaza. No casualties have reported so far.

The Israeli military said its aircraft attacked Hamas armed compounds inside the Gaza City and the southern town of Khan Younis. The IDF said that they were “ready for all scenarios, including renewed fighting in the face of continued terrorist acts emanating from Gaza”.

The Israeli fire brigade had reported that aorund 20 arson balloons were sent towards Israel.

The latest clashes between the two sides come a month after the deadly clashes erupted between the two sides over the issue of property at the Sheikh Jarrah compound in East Jerusalem. The Islamic terrorist outfit Hamas had used these clashes as an opportunity to launch terrorist attacks on Israel.

The news Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennet has taken charge just two days ago after former PM Benjamin Netanyahu stepped down.

Palestinian terror attacks against Israel

The nation of Israel and the Hamas terrorist forces were recently locked in a fierce battle, one of the worst in recent years. What was triggered from attacks on Israeli policemen at the Al Aqsa mosque, soon worsened to a military conflict. Hamas had fired thousands of rockets on Israel, targeted civilians, and Israel had opened airstrikes against Hamas in the Gaza strip. Several Israeli citizens had been killed in the rocket strikes, while the Iron Dome blocked over 90% of rockets. The death toll of Palestinians was much higher, considering that hundreds of Hamas rockets landed short of Isreal and fell inside Gaza.

In response to Hamas’s terror attacks, Israel had carried out its defensive counter-terror operations to eliminate terror threats emanating from Gaza. The Israeli army has struck more Hamas targets in the coastal enclave after Hamas started targeting civilians inside Israel. In a swift operation, the IDF also demolished a building that housed international media offices, including Al Jazeera’s in the Gaza Strip. The IDF has said that the building was being used by the Islamic terror group Hamas, making it a valid military target.

New York City: 899 people given expired doses of Pfizer vaccine, Health Department asks them to get re-vaccinated

OpIndia Staff
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New York City: 899 people given expired doses of Pfizer vaccine, Health Department asks them to get re-vaccinated

Nearly 900 people received expired Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine doses at a vaccination site in Times Square in New York City this month, health officials said on Tuesday.

According to the reports, 899 people had received doses of the Pfizer vaccine at the former NFL Experience building in Times Square between June 5 and June 10. However, it turned out that they were inoculated with expired Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine.

ATC Vaccination Services, the company that administered the expired shots, has now expressed regret for the lapse. In a statement, the company said, “We apologize for the inconvenience to those receiving the vaccine batch in question and want people first and foremost to know that we have been advised that there is no danger from the vaccine they received.”

The ATC Vaccination Services have told the patients that they need to get another shot because the company cannot guarantee the effectiveness of the doses they received.

New York health department to give another shot to affected people

Meanwhile, the New York City Health Department has insisted the 899 affected people to schedule another Pfizer shot as soon as possible.

The Health Department said that e-mails, phone calls, and letters are also being sent letters to the people who got jabbed with expired vaccines to make sure they are aware of this situation.

“We are contacting you concerning the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine you received at Times Square – NFL Experience vaccination site between June 5 to June 10, 2021. It was recognized after the vaccine was administered that it had been in the freezer beyond the approved time frame prior to it being administered,” David Savitsky said in an email to patients.

The vendor administering vaccines at the Times Square location has since been changed.

Assam: Muzammil Sheikh, Nazibul Sheikh and Farouk Rahman rape and murder two minor tribal girls, arrested within 72 hours along with 4 others

OpIndia Staff
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Assam: Muzammil Sheikh, Nazibul Sheikh and Farouk Rahman rape and murder two minor tribal girls, arrested within 72 hours along with 4 others

The Assam police on Tuesday arrested three culprits, Muzammil Sheikh, Nazibul Sheikh and Farouk Rahman, for raping two minor tribal girls and hanging their bodies on a tree after killing the two in Assam’s Kokrajhar district.

In a deplorable incident, the two girls aged 14 and 16 from the Rabha community were first raped and then murdered by the perpetrators. Initially it was reported as suicide. However, the family of the victim refused to accept and demanded an investigation.

Kokrajhar SP Thube Prateek Vijay Kumar in an interview to The Indian Express informed that the seven people arrested in the case have confessed to raping the girls — aged 14 and 16 — and killing them.

“Based on our interrogation of the accused, we have reconstructed the crime,” Thube added.

Cracking the case in 72 hours SP Thube informed that as per the confession, the accused were known to the girls and belonged to areas near to where the girls’ families live. 

Assam CM on top of the case

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had taken to Twitter to condole the death of the minors and instructed the police to undertake an extensive investigation to nab the perpetrators.

Sarma, on Sunday, visited the families of the victim and extended support. 

“We’re extremely pained at the tragic incident of Abhayakhuti, Kokrajhar. To reassure family of 2 minor girls, whose bodies were found hanging from a tree in mysterious condition on Friday, I met them today to console & share their pain. Assam Govt stands firmly by them,” he wrote in a Tweet.

Following the case closely, Sarma on Tuesday took to Twitter to announce the outcome of the investigation.

In another Tweet, Sarma revealed the names of the accused and congratulated the Assam police for adopting a steadfast approach to solve the case. 

He said that the girls were first choked to death and their bodies were hanged on a tree in an attempt to hoodwink and make it appear like suicide.

As per reports, the three men were directly involved in rape and murder of the two girls while four tried to destroy evidence and mislead the investigators.

As UP Police file FIR over fake news, Twitter loses immunity shield it had in India. Can now be prosecuted for content

OpIndia Staff
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As UP Police file FIR over fake news, Twitter loses immunity shield it had in India. Can now be prosecuted for content

Note: Later reports suggests the main accused’s name is Parvez Gujjar and not Parvesh Gujjar.

Social Media giant Twitter has lost its intermediary status in India for not complying with the new Information Technology Rules, which came into force on May 26, reports Times of India.

According to the reports, as Twitter India did not comply with IT rules enforced by the Indian government and failed to appoint statutory compliance officers criminally liable for the content posted on the platform within the given time, the intermediary status of the platform has automatically lapsed.

The loss of intermediary status could mean that its top executives, including the country managing director, may now face police questioning and criminal liability under IPC over “unlawful” and “inflammatory” content posted on the platform by any user. The legal immunity that was provided to Twitter over content moderation in the country is officially over now.

The Indian government is reportedly unhappy with the brazenness of the social media company, which have been continuously evading compliance with Indian rules. The government believes that repeated reminders and even the temporary relaxation that was extended to social media giant as a “goodwill gesture” has not yielded results.

Govt of India had given enough time to Twitter to comply with Indian laws

In fact, the government had issued “one last notice” to Twitter, asking it to comply with the statutory provisions under the new IT Rules or else risk losing legal immunity from any third-party content posted on the platform. However, the company kept on evading such notices by claiming that it would make the appointment in a week. However, the government still awaits such an appointment.

With this, Twitter has become the only American platform to have lost the immunity – granted under Section 79 of the IT Act, even as Google, YouTube, Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram remain continues to enjoy the protection, Times of India quoted a few official sources.

Section 79 of the IT Act provides social media companies intermediary status, which gives them exemptions and certain immunity from liabilities for any third-party content and data hosted by them.

“It is evident that in spite of repeated indulgence granted, including the last notice on June 5 as a goodwill gesture, Twitter has not complied with the Intermediary Guideline Rules under the IT Act having statutory force as they have been framed in exercise of powers under Section 87 of the IT Act. Rule 7 of the Rules very clearly enjoin that where an intermediary fails to observe these rules, the provisions of subsection (1) of section 79 of the IT Act shall not apply to such intermediary, and the intermediary shall be liable for punishment under any law including the IT Act as also the penal laws of India with respect to unlawful content published on that platform,” government sources said.

Twitter fails to comply with Indian laws after repeated notices, loses intermediary status

Twitter has been resolutely opposing the new digital rules notified by the government of India. Even though other social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp have complied with the new laws, Twitter had last month asked the government for an additional three months for the same.

The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, which were announced in February and came into effect from May 25, mandates the social media intermediaries with more than 5 million users and providing messaging services to identify the first originator of problematic content that may harm the country’s interests. The companies should also appoint an Indian grievance officer to deal with the complaints.

One of the most significant provision of these rules is that if the social media platforms don’t comply with the provisions prescribed in the guidelines, this will attract penal provisions as per the Information Technology Act. The new guidelines say that the social media intermediaries must follow the due diligence mentioned in it, and if any intermediary does not follow the due diligence, the safe harbour provisions will not apply to them.

The non-compliance with rules will result in these platforms losing the intermediary status that provides them immunity from liabilities over any third-party data hosted by them. In other words, they could be liable for criminal action in case of complaints.

Now, after losing the immunity shield as ‘intermediary’, as per the new IT rules, Twitter officials are liable for prosecution under the IT Act. As they will be held responsible for any content which is not allowed as per the guidelines, the officials of the social media companies will be liable to be prosecuted for such content. This implies that the social media officials will also be punished according to the nature of the offence, which is defined in the IT Act for various kinds of offences.

As the Indian government had enforced the new IT rules, Twitter India had cried foul, saying it was very concerned regarding the rules that make the compliance officer criminally liable for content posted on the platform. It had, however, failed to explain why it had not tried to comply with Indian laws even after more than three months time was granted to it.

First case registered against Twitter India

The Uttar Pradesh Government has initiated action against Twitter India for failing to take down tweets that spread misinformation about a crime in the state. An FIR has been lodged against the social media platform in connection with the same.

In the incident, a Muslim man was beaten up by a few individuals, however, alleged fact-checkers gave a communal colour to the crime by saying that he was beaten for refusing to chant Jai Shri Ram. However, after investigating the matter, the Ghaziabad Police has debunked the fictional narrative spread with the intent to spark communal tensions. The original video was examined, which showed no mention of ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

The Ghaziabad Police had said that the ‘victim’ Abdul Samad Saifi was allegedly beaten up by people known to him after an occult amulet he had prepared for one of them did not work as promised. Accused Parvesh Gujjar, Adil and Kallu were arrested on Monday while efforts were on to nab Arif and Poli.

Following the investigation by the Uttar Pradesh police, a case against Twitter was registered for failing to take any action against the manipulated media.

The FIR filed by UP Police names Alt News co-founder Md Zubair, who had shared a video of the incident with muted audio, and had claimed that the old man was forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. Other accused named in the FIR include Rana Ayyub, leftist propaganda site The Wire, Salman Nizami, Maksoor Usmani, Congress spokesperson Dr Sama Mohammad, Saba Naqvi, Twitter Inc, and Twitter Communications India Ltd.

Uttar Pradesh: FIR against The Wire, Alt News cofounder Zubair, Rana Ayyub, Twitter and others for fake ‘hate crime’. Details

Anurag
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Uttar Pradesh: FIR against The Wire, Alt News cofounder Zubair, Rana Ayyub, Twitter and others for fake ‘hate crime’. Details

Note: Later reports suggests the main accused’s name is Parvez Gujjar and not Parvesh Gujjar.

On June 15, Ghaziabad Police registered an FIR against Alt News cofounder Muhammed Zubair, The Wire, Rana Ayyub, Twitter and others for trying to stoke communal tension by making false claims that elderly Muslim man was beaten up and forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. While Zubair, Rana Ayyub, The Wire, Salman Nizami, Maksoor Usmani, Sama Mohammad and Saba Naqvi have been booked for spreading misleading and fake news, Twitter was booked for the lack of action against these seven.

List of accused in FIR

The FIR has been booked under Sections 153 (provocation with intent to cause riot), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion etc.), 295-A (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage reli­gious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or reli­gious beliefs), 505 (Statements conducing to public mischief), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

FIR registered under different sections of IPC

Details of the FIR

In the FIR, it was mentioned that these handles shared tweets about Abdul Shamad Saifi, who was beaten up by some miscreants. The seven handles mentioned in the FIR spread misinformation that Saifi was forced to chant “Jai Shri Ram” and “Vande Mataram”. It was alleged in the FIR that these tweets were published with a criminal intention to spread disharmony among communities. It further added that the tweets were retweeted by thousands of Twitter users in a matter of few hours. 

Excerpt from FIR

During the initial investigation, Ghaziabad Police found that people from both Hindu and Muslim community were involved in beating the elderly man. The Police issued a press release to clarify that the incident took place due to a personal fight, and there was nothing communal in it. However, none of the accused deleted the tweets or tried to come clean on social media network. Notably, Twitter Inc. and Twitter Communication India Private Limited did not take any steps to remove the said tweets.

As per the FIR, the accused deliberately tweeted in a bid to fan communal tension. “The accused deliberately spread fake news so that the enmity between communities increase. The tweets were shared by influential people through Twitter as a platform and spread it further. As influential members of society, they have responsibility of being careful. Even then, the posts were made without any evidence and gave it a communal angle. While this is not true at all. Further, this is not the first time the accused have spread such lies,” the FIR read.

The Loni Border Incident

As per reports, an elderly Muslim man was beaten up by a few individuals due to a personal fight. However, motivated actors gave a communal colour to the crime by saying that he was beaten for refusing to chant Jai Shri Ram. The Ghaziabad Police, after investigating the matter, debunked the fictional narrative spread with the intent to spark communal tensions.

The Ghaziabad Police had said that the ‘victim’ Abdul Samad Saifi was allegedly beaten up by people known to him after an occult amulet he had prepared for one of them did not work as per them. Accused Parvesh Gujjar, Adil and Kallu were arrested on Monday while efforts were on to nab Arif and Poli.

It was highly unlikely that accused like Adil and Arif would perpetrate a religious identity based ‘hate crime’ against a person of their own community. Despite this, the propagandists continued to spread fake news. Not only that, hours after the fake news were debunked, Rahul Gandhi continued to peddle the fictional narrative. As of now, Ghaziabad Police has registered FIR against only seven people. Rahul Gandhi was not mentioned in the FIR.

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