Home Blog Page 4501

From Mahindra Scorpio to Land Cruiser Prado and disgraced cop Sachin Vaze: A timeline of events till now in Antilia bomb scare case

OpIndia Staff
-
0
From Mahindra Scorpio to Land Cruiser Prado and disgraced cop Sachin Vaze: A timeline of events till now in Antilia bomb scare case

Over the last few weeks, the Antilia bomb scare case has taken a dramatic turn with the arrest of Mumbai police “encounter specialist” Sachin Vaze. The controversial cop and former Shiv Sena leader Sachin Vaze is also accused of murdering Mansukh Hiren, an important witness in the case. After his arrest by NIA, Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh has also been transferred from his post.

From the recovery of an explosives-laden vehicle outside Ambani’s residence to the transfer of the Mumbai Police Commissioner, the case has turned to be one of the most controversial cases in recent history.

Here is a complete timeline of the events that have unfolded in the Antilia bomb scare case:

February 17: A Mumbai-based Businessman Mansukh Hiren’s car was stolen from Vikhroli area.

February 18: A day later, Mansukh Hiren files a police complaint at Vikhroli police station. In his complaint, Hiren claims that he had given the SUV to Sachin Vaze, who returned the car on 5 February 2021 owing to a technical snag in the steering.

Hiren said that he was forced to park the car at the Eastern Express Highway in Vikhroli on 17 February after the “steering got jammed”. The car was missing when he came back the next day and lodged a complaint with Vikhroli police station in Mumbai.

February 25: A Scorpio car with 20 explosive gelatin sticks was found outside Mukesh Ambani’s Mumbai residence – ‘Antilia’. The security staff of Antilia informed police about the suspicious Scorpio on Thursday at noon. Along with the bomb disposal squad and the canine squad, a police team soon reached the spot to look into the matter. The police cordoned off the area and removed the car from the spot.

The bomb-laden Scorpio found outside Mukesh Ambani’s home Antilia in Mumbai/ Image Source: India Today

The Mumbai Police recovered 20 unassembled gelatin sticks, some number plates and a threatening letter from the car. Several cops, including Mumbai’s crime intelligence unit headed by Sachin Vaze, reached the spot for investigation.

It is revealed from CCTV footage that two cars – an Innova (white colour) and a Scorpio (green colour) were allegedly used to plant the bombs outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence in Mumbai. The Innova had trailed the Scorpio, and after parking the Scorpio near Antilia, its driver had got into the Innova to leave the place.

The Mumbai Police also recovered a letter addressed to Mukesh and Neeta Ambani claiming that the planting explosives was just a ‘trailer’ and threatened to return later with more preparations to assassinate the whole family.

February 26: The Mumbai Police investigation reveals that the bomb-laden car belonged to Mansukh Hiren. ATS soon picks him up for investigation.

February 27: Two days after the SUV laden with explosive material was discovered outside Antilla, the residence of Mukesh Ambani and his family in Mumbai, a threatening message from a Telegram account in the name of Jaish ul Hind was posted, along with a demand for payment in a cryptocurrency (Monero) from Mukesh Ambani.

The Telegram message

The Islamic terror group Jaish-ul-Hind claimed responsibility for planting the explosives-laden vehicle outside Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani’s house in Mumbai. However, the same evening, in another letter, Jaish Ul Hind said that it had nothing to do with the car found near Ambani’s house.

On the same day, Mansukh Hiren was seen going to the commissioner’s office in a white Land Cruiser Prado with Sachin Vaze. This vehicle costing one crore rupees belongs to a Shiv Sena leader.

March 2: Mansukh Hiren alleges harassment by the police in a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, Mumbai Police chief Param Bir Singh, Thane Police chief Vivek Phansalkar. He had alleged that he was being treated like an accused despite being a victim in the case. Hiren wrote that NIA, police and journalists were harassing him, causing his mental health to deteriorate.

March 4: Hiren gets a call from “some Tawde of Kandivli Crime Branch”, who asks him to meet at Ghodbunder Road in Thane. Hours later, Hiren goes missing.

March 5: Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis makes a sensational disclosure on March 5 in Vidhan Sabha where he claims that Assistant Police officer Sachin Vaze was in touch with Mansukh Hiren, the owner of the Scorpio car that was found laden with explosives outside the Ambani residence.

Hours later, Mansukh Hiren is found dead after being “missing” for five hours. During the initial investigation, the police said that it looked like Hiren had ended his life by jumping into Kalwa creek. However, the police claim is questioned as several handkerchiefs were stuffed in his mouth, suggesting a murder.

March 6: The family members of Mansukh Hiren refuses to accept his body, stating that they will do it only after the police and the administration make his postmortem report public. 

Hiren’s wife alleges that Sachin Vaze, the Mumbai crime branch officer, killed her husband. The family points towards the letter penned by Hiren in which he alleged that he was mentally harassed in connection with the Antilia bomb scare case. Besides, the family members of Hiren rejects the notion that Hiren might have committed suicide. 

Meanwhile, the opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis alleges that the last known location of Mansukh Hiren’s phone was near Shiv Sena leader Dhananjay Gawde’s office. Both Gawde and Vaze are purportedly close as both were named in an extortion case in 2017. BJP demands Vaze’s arrest.

The Maharashtra government transfers all three cases – Mansukh Hiren death case, stolen Scorpio case and Antilia bomb scare case to ATS.

March 8: The NIA takes over the Ambani bomb scare case, but the Mansukh Hiren death case remains with the Maharashtra ATS.

March 10: Facing heat from the opposition, the Maharashtra government announces that Sachin Vaze would be removed from the Crime Branch and posted in some other department.

March 11: The Delhi police recovers a SIM card and cell phone used to threaten Ambani from Indian Mujahideen member Tehsin Akhtar’s barracks in Tihar jail.

The SIM and cell phone were used to create the Jaish-ul-Hind Telegram account that claimed responsibility for the explosive-laden SUV and demanded cryptocurrency. The mobile phone user used an app to generate virtual numbers and then made a Telegram account. He was also using a TOR browser to mask his IP address on the internet.

Meanwhile, Sachin Vaze is questioned by state ATS in Mansukh Hiren death case, and the NIA team carries raids at different locations in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar.

March 13: NIA summons Sachin Vaze for questioning, and after 12 hours of interrogation, they arrest him in connection with the case. During the interrogation, Mumbai top cop Sachin Vaze reportedly admits that he was involved in the Antilla Bomb Scare case. Sachin Vaze says he is just a very small part of the plan and the Shiv Sena leaders he named played a bigger role.

The NIA books Sachin Vaze under Sections 120 (B) for criminal conspiracy, Section 286 for negligent conduct with respect to explosive substance, Section 465 for forgery, Section 473 for making or possessing counterfeit seal and 506(2) for criminal intimidation.

Before the arrest, Sachin Vaze puts up a dramatic WhatsApp message –  “time to say goodbye to the world coming closer.”

March 14: The National Investigative Agency officials recover the white Innova car from the Mumbai Police Commissionerate office. In addition to the Scorpio, the white Innova was used to plant the explosives outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence in Mumbai on February 25.

The Innova seized by NIA

The NIA officials traced the white Innova to the Mumbai Police Commissionerate office, where the suspicious car was parked. The NIA officials found that the white Innova belonged to the Mumbai Police’s CIU unit and was used by Sachin Vaze. In the meanwhile, the ATS already looking for the car but ‘could not find it’.

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut comes to the rescue of Sachin Vaze, says the tainted cop is “very honest and capable officer”.

March 15: NIA says it has accessed CCTV footage, fingerprints and other evidence against Sachin Vaze. NIA gained access to CCTV footage covering a 2 km radius of Sachin Vaze’s CIU office from 25th February to 5th March 2021.

As per NIA, the CCTV footage confirms that Sachin Vaze met Mansukh Hiren on 25th February, the same day, gelatin laden Scorpio was discovered at Mukesh Ambani’s residence. 

Arrested Mumbai cop and controversial “Encounter specialist” Sachin Vaze suspended by an order of Addl CP Special Branch, says Mumbai Police PRO.

Subsequently, Maharashtra BJP leader Nitesh Rane makes serious allegations against Sachin Vaze involving the Indian Premier League. Rane alleges that Vaze was in touch with bookies that start operating before the T20 cricket league.

Meanwhile, The NIA reveals that CCTV footage of Vaze’s society had gone missing. The NIA says Sachin Vaze’s aide API Riyaz Qazi had visited Sachin Vaze’s building in Saket society in Thane and took CCTV footage of and between February 17 to February 24.

March 16: The next day, it is disclosed that the CCTV footage was procured by none other than the tainted police officer himself. Vaze had reportedly seized the CCTV footage of his society, stating that the DVR was needed for official use by the police.

The footage was subsequently damaged. Vaze had allegedly confiscated the video footage so that no evidence can be found during the interrogation.

In another sensational disclosure, the NIA says that the explosives-laden Scorpio car that belonged to Mansukh Hiren that was found outside Antilia was never stolen but used by Assistant Police officer Sachin Vaze. That is the reason Vaze destroyed the CCTV footage, as it would have proven that the car with him before it was planted near Antilia.

It is reported that the car was used by Vaze, who had asked Hiren to file a false complaint about it being stolen. The NIA believe the owner of the car was pressurised to file a complaint about his missing car.

Not just his residence, Sachin Vaze also collected CCTV footage from a linked to the case, and destroyed it. He visited the shop where the fake number plates for the Scorpio and the Innova cars were made, and took away the DVR of the CCTV and the register of the shop.

March 17: The NIA seizes a black Mercedes car used by the tainted Mumbai cop from the Crawford market area. The NIA officials also recover the number plate of the Scorpio car that used to plant bombs outside Antilia from the Mercedes car.

The NIA officials also recovered unaccounted cash of Rs 5 lakh, a few clothes and a cash counting machine from the car, in addition to the number plate that was attached to the Scorpio. The car used by the police officer had a fake number plate on it.

On the same day, one of the staff of Vaze admits before the National Investigation Agency saying that Vaze was seen wearing a PPE kit near Antilia a day before a bomb-laden car was parked outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence. The National Investigating Agency officials also recover a shirt from Sachin Vaze that was allegedly worn inside the PPE kit.

Maharashtra government sacks Param Bir Singh as Mumbai Police chief transfers him to DG Home Guard’s post. Hemant Nagrale replaces Singh.

March 18: The National Investigation Agency seizes two more luxury cars in the Antilia bomb scare case, which are linked to API Sachin Vaze, raising the total tally of the seized car in the case to 5.

NIA brings two more luxury SUVs to its office in Mumbai in connection with the case. One of the cars is a black luxury SUV, a Mercedes Benz ML 250 CDI. After that, the agency brought another high-end SUV, a white Toyota Land Cruiser Prado GRJ 120 R. The Prado belongs to Vijaykumar Ganpat Bhosle, who is a Shiv Sena leader. It is also reported that NIA is looking for two more cars in the case, a blue Mercedes and a Skoda car.

The Land Cruiser Prado and Mercedes cars

The NIA also takes control of video footage recorded outside the Crime Branch that shows the tainted Mumbai Cop and former Shiv Sena leader Sachin Vaze with Mansukh Hiren, the owner of the bomb-laden Scorpio.

Sachin Vaze, the prime accused in the Antilia bomb scare case, was seen arriving at the Crime Branch unit in a Land Cruiser Prado along with Mansukh Hiren. The footage was recorded on February 26, a day after the bomb-laden Scorpio was detected outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence in Mumbai. The Prado car belongs to Shiv Sena leader Vijaykumar Ganpat Bhosle.

March 19: Top sources in the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) says that they had found injuries on the body of businessman Mansukh Hiren’s head and neck. An unnamed source in the Maharashtra ATS says that Hiren might have been assaulted before his death. The ATS official says that it appeared that someone might have assaulted Mansukh Hiren with a blunt and heavy object.

The investigation into all the three cases are currently active. Any information pertaining to the cases will be further updated.

Facebook building an ‘under-13’ version of Instagram for children to increase the user base

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Facebook building an ‘under-13’ version of Instagram for children to increase the user base

In an internal announcement on Thursday, Facebook Inc. let its employees know that it is building an ‘under-13’ version of the image-sharing social media tool Instagram. This move from Facebook is seen as an effort to market its products to the upcoming generation of internet users. The announcement comes in light of Instagram’s Vice President of Product Vishal Shah’s post on an internal message board for employees.

“I’m excited to announce that going forward, we have identified youth work as a priority for Instagram and have added it to our H1 priority list. We will be building a new youth pillar within the Community Product Group to focus on two things: (a) accelerating our integrity and privacy work to ensure the safest possible experience for teens and (b) building a version of Instagram that allows people under the age of 13 to safely use Instagram for the first time.” Shah’s post read.

Facebook had acquired Instagram for $1 billion in 2012 amid fears of competition with other tech giants like Twitter and Google. Since then, Instagram has been the premier photo-sharing social media app, boasting about 1 billion users. Instagram is uniquely popular with teenage internet users, despite Instagram policy prohibiting any children under the age of 13 from using the platform.

This announcement comes following Instagram’s publication of a blog post three days ago, titled “Continuing to Make Instagram Safer for the Youngest Members of Our Community.” This blog post details Instagram’s plans to make the social media site safer for Instagram’s younger users. However, this post makes no mention of Instagram’s plans for building a new under-13 version of the platform. Some of these methods include Instagram blocking adults from sending Direct Messages to anyone aged below 18 who does not follow them, alerts from Instagram to underage users in order to caution them about interactions with adults etc.

In an interview with Buzzfeed, Adam Mosseri, the Head of Instagram said that “more and more kids” want to use social media apps like Instagram and creating a version of Instagram for kids where parents have control is “part of the solution”.

Throwback to ‘Messenger Kids’

This is not the first time Facebook Inc. will create a product exclusively for kids. In 2017, Facebook launched Messenger Kids, a product aimed at children between the ages of 6 to 12. Messenger Kids includes many parental control measures ensuring the safety of children. However, Messenger Kids has endured its fair share of criticism.

After the launch of Messenger Kids, a group of more than 95 organizations and individuals concerned with children’s health sent a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, asking him to discontinue the product. In their letter, the group cites research saying, “excessive use of digital devices and social media is harmful to children and teens, making it very likely this new app will undermine children’s healthy development.”

In 2019, there were reports of a bug that allowed underage Messenger Kids users to chat with adults their parents had not approved of. The bug allowed the underage users to interact with unapproved adults through the group chat feature. No clear reason for the existence of this bug was found. This particular incident raises serious concerns regarding the safety of children of such “kids only” social media websites going forward.

Resignation of PB Mehta from Ashoka University: What he said, what alumni and faculty believe and the speculations in liberal circles

K Bhattacharjee
-
0
Resignation of PB Mehta from Ashoka University: What he said, what alumni and faculty believe and the speculations in liberal circles

There is much debate and discussion underway following the resignation of ’eminent intellectual’ Pratap Bhanu Mehta as a professor of the Ashoka University. After Mehta’s resignation, Arvind Subramanian resigned as well, leading to a host speculations regarding the reasons behind the same.

As is to be expected, the resignation drove liberals on social media into a frenzy alleging a sinister government plot behind the resignation. Pratap Bhanu Mehta was made to resign because the Modi Government cannot tolerate dissent, so goes the claim. And some of it was fueled by a report that surfaced soon after his resignation and Mehta’s own statements.

The Edict Report and what other ‘sources’ said

The Edict, an independent student newspaper of Ashoka University, claimed that there was a plot of land that was behind the resignation. It reported on the 17th of March, “A source, who wishes to remain anonymous, told The Edict that the resignation of Professor Pratap Bhanu Mehta was endorsed by the Founders of the University. This endorsement, according to a senior faculty member with whom our source spoke, was motivated by an understanding that if Prof. Mehta resigned, the University’s efforts to acquire a new plot of land to expand the campus would get much smoother.”

“Additionally, formal recognition for the fourth-year post-graduate diploma, Ashoka Scholars’ Program, was also hinted at being part of the deal,” added the report. Vineet Gupta, a trustee and co-founder of Ashoka University, however, rubbished the allegations made in the report.

He told The Print in a statement, “The Edict article about Prof. Pratap Bhanu Mehta’s departure and its purported link with either the plot for Ashoka’s new campus or statutory approval for the four-year UG programme is factually inaccurate.”

“The plot of land for Ashoka’s new campus was acquired three years ago. There is no question of approval for the four-year UG programme being a factor, because that is governed by a national law and is not specific to any university. The four-year programmes have anyway been approved by the government under the new National Education Policy for all universities. The article is purely speculative. Please treat it as such,” he added.

However, faculty members appear to believe that his criticism of the government may have played a part. “The university has always tried to stay away from unnecessary media attention. Being a private institution, it does not want to be seen as anti-government, and Pratap’s columns were doing just that, drawing attention to the university,” one faculty member was quoted by The Print as saying.

“The founders were not happy with it, hence he was first asked to step down as V-C, which slowly paved the way for his resignation.”

Indian Express reported that ‘sources’ had told them that Ashish Dhawan and Pramath Raj Sinha, the founders of the University, met Pratap Bhanu Mehta recently and ‘suggested’ that they could not protect his ‘intellectual interventions’ given the “current political environment”.

Pratap Bhanu Mehta in his own words

The perennial critic of the Modi Sarkar, in his resignation letter, is reported to have claimed that he is a victim of his political opinions. “After a meeting with founders it has become abundantly clear to me that my association with the university may be considered a political liability. My public writing in support of a politics that tries to honour constitutional values of freedom and equal respect for all citizens, is perceived to carry risks for the university,” he stated.

“It is clear it is time for me to leave Ashoka. A liberal university will need a liberal political and social context to flourish. I hope the university will play a role in securing that environment. Nietzsche once said that “no living for truth is possible in a university.” I hope that prophecy does not come true,” Mehta added. Vice Chancellor Malabika Sarkar is reported to have tried to convince him to reverse his decision but to no avail.

“The VC also stated that unfortunately, Prof. Mehta did not wish to rescind his resignation after she asked him to do the same this evening. Furthermore, there were questions on issues of accountability and why there was little to no transparency regarding Prof. Mehta’s resignation from the university. The VC replied that she was hoping for him to withdraw his resignation and hence the university had not put out an official statement yet, which would be done by the night or the following morning, since there is some certainty with respect to his decision at the present moment,” The Edict reported.

Resignation letter of Arvind Subramanian

Arvind Subramanian, former chief economic advisor to the Modi Government, had much to say about the episode in his own resignation letter, which came two days later. He said, “However, the circumstances involving the ‘resignation’ of Professor Pratap Bhanu Mehta, who is not just a dear friend but a truly inspirational national figure, have devastated me. I am acutely aware of the broader context in which Ashoka and its trustees have to operate, and have so far admired the university for having navigated it so well.”

“But that someone of such integrity and eminence, who embodied the vision underlying Ashoka, felt compelled to leave is troubling. That even Ashoka — with its private status and backing by private capital — can no longer provide a space for academic expression and freedom is ominously disturbing. Above all, that the university’s commitment to fight for and sustain the Ashoka vision is now open to question makes it difficult for me to continue being part of Ashoka,” he continued.

The Alumni Speaks, so does the Faculty

The Ashoka University Student Government and the varsity’s Alumni Council backed Pratap Bhanu Mehta in a statement. “We express our unconditional support to Professor Mehta who always taught us to be critical of the structures we live around and question what is taken for granted,” it said.

“The events that have transpired point to a failure on the chancellor and vice-chancellor’s part in protecting the university faculty from external pressures, and more importantly, also point to the failure of the founders to ensure the same,” the statement read.

“We are also concerned about the larger implications this has on the freedom of speech for Ashoka’s students and faculty. This is not the first time that professors have come under fire for their opinions and/or their course content. We are worried about the support they will have in the future, whether it will force them to self-censor, and what this means for the quality of our education,” it added.

The University Faculty, in its own statement, stated, “This would fly against the principles of academic freedom on which Ashoka University has been set up — and which Professor Mehta, in his time as vice-chancellor and university professor, has so scrupulously fought to defend. It would also set a chilling precedent for future removals of faculty, curtailing our sense of who we are as researchers and teachers.”

The narrative in liberal circles

The circumstances of his resignation are still unclear. Pratap Bhanu Mehta claims that he has become a political liability but the Vice Chancellor of Ashoka University insists that she attempted to convince him to reverse his decision. It does not come across as the conduct of a Vice Chancellor who wants him gone.

Additionally, there are reports that the founders of the University themselves intervened in the matter. What was said in the meeting between them and Mehta, if such a meeting occurred at all, is not entirely known and all that we know is what has been reported in the mainstream media and from Mehta’s own comments.

The mainstream media, as we are well aware, has a well established tendency to misreport and misrepresent facts. Therefore, it is in the interests of everyone to reserve judgment until the founders present their own version of events.

Nevertheless, liberals have decided to paint Mehta a ‘martyr’ and interpret everything as he says as gospel truth. Sheldon Pollock, a professor at Columbia University, expressed his dissatisfaction with the Ashoka University in a statement to the Indian Express.

Pollock said, “With the resignation of Prof. Mehta, the University’s foremost scholar and public intellectual, my respect for the institution has been seriously tested. I have great admiration for the Chancellor of the University, Rudrangshu Mukherjee, and for many of the trustees. I call upon them to provide a full, public, accounting of whatever policies or pressures brought about the circumstances that forced Prof. Mehta’s resignation, and to offer an unequivocal, public repudiation of them.”

Sheldon Pollock’s statement to the Indian Express

“If this is not done, and done soon, the stain on the University will be indelible, and the support of its most fervent admirers permanently lost,” he added. Ichchhadhari protester Yogendra Yadav, who has been larping around as a farmer recently, said, “Pratap Mehta has single handedly raised the bar of public discourse in India.His mid-semester “resignation” shows we’ve entered next phase of suppression of ideas, that there are no “safe heavens” for dissenters, not even in private univs.”

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor opined, “There’s more to this than meets the eye but it ends the claims of AshokaU to be the leading liberal arts university in India. This craven caving in confirms my statement to the LokSabha Tues that Universities are no longer safe spaces for free expression.” Kapil Sibal, calling it an ‘induced resignation’, said, “The last bastions of resistance too are falling”.

The Indian Express said in an editorial, “Craven surrender by Ashoka’s founders inaugurates its slide, shows how private capital is unable and unwilling to stand up. As Universities go, Ashoka University is still young. But it is, sadly, already in decline. It took only about seven years for its founders and trustees to let down the fundamental idea that animated its institution.”

Indian Express editorial

Sanjay Jha, who was unceremoniously humiliated by the Congress party, said, “Pratap Bhanu Mehta is an exceptional commentator, bipartisan, candid and erudite. We need more public intellectuals like him. His resignation is a loss for the students of Ashoka University, which apparently is the fountainhead of liberalism. Irony just died.”

Ramachandra Guha, another ’eminent intellectual’, commented, “In its journey thus far, Ashoka University had shown much promise. They may have frittered all that away by the spinelessness of their trustees, who have chosen to crawl when asked to bend.”

There were some who used the episode to once again hail the students of Jamia Milia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University. One user said, “When you see what likes of Pratap Bhanu Mehta couldn’t put up with, try to imagine what students of Jamia and AMU have courageously endured.”

Pratap Bhanu Mehta: Political ideology and antecedents

Mehta has been a fierce critic of the Modi Government in recent times. In an interview to The Wire, he had said, “Even though the government is committed to winning elections to secure power, in every other way it ticks the checklist of fascist qualities”. Mehta claimed that “colloquially speaking, this is a fascist government and it is, therefore, not incorrect to use that term”. He also alleged that the current situation is worse than Indira Gandhi’s Emergency.

At the India Today Conclave ahead of the 2019 General Elections, Mehta declared that democracy in India was in a crisis and there was a “deep diminish of hope”. More recently, V-Dem released a report classifying India as an “electoral autocracy” where initially, its website mentioned Mehta as an advisor but his name has been wiped out since then. Mehta himself claims that he has not been on their advisory board since 2007.

Pratap Bhanu Mehta was also a Board member at Namati, an organisation where George Soros sits on its Advisory Council. But he appears to have been removed from his position since then as the website no longer mentions him as a member. It is pertinent to recall that George Soros had declared war against nationalism and Narendra Modi. Madeline Albright, former US Secretary of State during the Bill Clinton administration, is on its Advisory Council too.

Thus, from the onset, Mehta appears to be a foot-soldier for the neoliberal world order that is facing tough resistance from countries around the world. Even so, the precise reasons behind his resignation from Ashoka University remains unclear.

As Microsoft alleges its mail server were hacked by China-sponsored hackers, a brief look into various Chinese cyber-espionage groups

OpIndia Staff
-
0
As Microsoft alleges its mail server were hacked by China-sponsored hackers, a brief look into various Chinese cyber-espionage groups

Just a few days ago, Microsoft reported a cyberattack on its mail server software. Microsoft has since then come forward to claim that a Chinese cyber-espionage group was responsible for this. According to Microsoft’s Threat Intelligence Centre, the cyber-group named Hafnium was responsible for the attack on Microsoft. Hafnium has previously been accused of both being sponsored by China and operating out of the country. Microsoft claims that its conclusion is based upon “observed victimology, tactics and procedures”.

In recent years, China has successfully established itself as one of the world’s foremost forces in terms of cyber power. A 2020 report titled the “National Cyber Power Index 2020” published by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University, ranks China as 2nd in the world in terms of cyber power, only behind the United States. This index measures a multitude of factors including government strategies, capabilities for defence and offence, resource allocation, the private sector, workforce, and innovation. Therefore, as far as cyber-attacks go, China is more than capable of facilitating such cyber operations.

China has long been suspected of funding and facilitating malicious cyber groups which engage in cybercrimes. Here are only some of the most notorious cyber groups which are either suspected or confirmed to be Chinese-backed:-

APT10 (Advanced Persistent Threat 10)

According to a report by the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Chinese-backed cyber-espionage group APT10 has been active since at least 2006. APT10’s focus is to facilitate economic and commercial espionage against powers like Japan, the U.K., the United States etc. APT10 utilizes a variety of methods on its targets including spear phishing, usage of various Chinese malware, persistent targeting of MSPs (Managed Service Providers) etc.

In December 2018, two Chinese hackers belonging to APT10 were charged by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) with conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. According to the U.S. DoJ, these two Chinese hackers were working in association with the Chinese Ministry of State Security’s Tianjin State Security Bureau, therefore revealing themselves to be working for the Chinese government.

APT10 continues to be active and goes by a number of aliases including MenuPass, Red Apollo, Stone Panda, Cicada etc.

Mustang Panda

Mustang Panda is a China-backed cyber-espionage group with a history of committing cyber attacks against Western NGOs which have a nexus with Chinese minority groups. This cyber group dates back to at least 2017. Mustang Panda utilizes malware like PlugX and Poison Ivy which is in use by almost all the Chinese-backed cyber groups operating today. Mustang Panda also relies on phishing lures that look like official documents written in the target’s native language in order to get the target to open an attached file that contains a .zip archive that executes malware like PlugX when opened.

In 2020, it was reported that Mustang Panda was targeting organizations associated with the Catholic Church. At the time of these cyber attacks, the Chinese Government and the Vatican were discussing the renewal of a 2018 accord between China and the Vatican, fueling speculations that the cyber activities of Mustang Panda were meant to provide an insight into the negotiations between China and the Holy See.

Mustang Panda goes by a number of aliases including RedDelta, TA416, BRONZE PRESIDENT etc.

BlackTech

BlackTech is a cyber threat group which primarily operates in East Asia countries like Taiwan and Japan, conducting cyber espionage operations. Known targets of BlackTech include finance, engineering, technology and government sectors of countries like Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong and the U.S. with relation to East Asia. BlackTech’s strategy for cyber attacks often includes using compromised legitimate software in order to achieve its goals.

Reports state that BlackTech continues to remain active, utilizing new strains of malware to attack sectors in countries like Japan, Taiwan etc. In August 2020, the Taiwanese Government linked the cyber group BlackTech to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), saying that BlackTech was working for the CCP in order to target multiple Taiwanese government and commercial entities.

BlackTech is known by several aliases including Palmerworm, CIRCUIT PANDA etc.

APT40 (Advanced Persistent Threat 40)

APT40 is a Chinese-backed cyber group which specifically focuses on countries and issues related to the South China Sea. The South China Sea is a disputed region over which China claims territorial sovereignty. APT40 is documented to digitally target maritime, engineering as well as government entities of countries bordering the South China Sea. A 2018 analysis report on APT40 infrastructure reveals that servers in Hainan, China were utilized by the group, which heavily suggests backing from the Chinese state. It is also important to keep in mind that Hainan is an island province of China located in the South China Sea.

In September 2020, Microsoft revealed that APT40 attempted to maliciously gain control of the cloud server but were identified and disrupted. A month before this, the Taiwanese government accused APT40 of digitally targeting various Taiwanese entities. Earlier in 2020, Malaysia’s Computer Emergency Response Team (MyCERT) issued an advisory naming APT40, linking the Chinese-backed cyber group to an espionage campaign against Malaysian officials.

APT40 goes by a number of aliases including GADOLINIUM, Leviathan, TEMP.Periscope etc.

APT 41 (Advanced Persistent Threat 41)

APT41 is one of the most prolific Chinese-backed cyber groups, with targets across various sectors and countries. Sectors like healthcare, media, and video games have been a target for cyber crimes by APT41. These cyber attacks by APT 41 hit multiple countries, including the U.S., Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, and the U.K. APT40 utilizes various ways in order to digitally attack their targets. These methods include using stolen digital certificates to sign malware, exploitation of remote access, using a custom malware Trojan known as Winnti etc.

In September 2020, in an effort to shine a light on the activities of APT41 the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) unsealed three indictments against five Chinese hackers and two Malaysian businessmen for a plethora of cyber crimes. The DoJ linked the activities of the Chinese hackers to a Chinese company known as Chengdu 404 Network Technology, which most likely operates at the behest of Chinese Ministry of State Security, which is a secret police agency in China. The DoJ indictments state that the Chinese hackers associated with APT41 are responsible for cyber attacks against over a hundred different organizations located in multiple countries.

APT41 is known by many other aliases. These include Barium, Winnti, Wicked Panda, Wicked Spider etc.

Chinese cyberthreat is real

As evidenced by the National Cyber Index 2020, China is the 2nd most powerful cyber power in the world. What’s even more impressive is the fact that China did not feature in the top 10 of a similar list titled Global Cyber Security Index 2018 provided by the International Telecommunication Union, a specialized U.N. agency. This indicates that China’s rise in cyber power is very recent and that the abovementioned examples of Chinese-backed cyber groups do not fully represent China’s future capabilities, which could also target India.

India was also under analysis for the National Cyber Index 2020. Out of the 30 countries assessed, India secured a rank of 21, clearly nowhere close to our neighbour. In terms of cyber offence or defence, India lags behind China in various indicators. This is a potential cause of concern for India, with military tensions at the Line of Actual Control heightening in the past year. Clearly, in order to achieve parity with China, India needs to heavily invest in its cyberinfrastructure and cybersecurity across the board in general.

Municipal Corporation of Gurugram decides to keep meat shops closed in the city every Tuesday

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Municipal Corporation of Gurugram decides to keep meat shops closed in the city every Tuesday

In its House meeting on Thursday, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram has decided that all the city meat shops will remain shut once a week every Tuesday. The directive was issued after a few councillors raised the issue during the meeting citing the religious sentiments of the Hindus. After long discussions and deliberation, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) officials approved the proposal.

According to Hindu mythology, Tuesday is dedicated to Lord Ganesha, Goddess Kali and Lord Hanuman. While many Hindus observe fasts on Tuesday some refrain from eating non-vegetarian food. Garlic and onions are also avoided as they are both rajasic and tamasic in nature.

Contending against the proposal, MCG commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh said that food was a personal choice. “One shouldn’t raise such issues, you may believe in closing meat shops on Tuesday. In my opinion, this is an individual choice. I eat meat but my wife doesn’t. I do not force her, and she does not force me. It is completely a personal choice. When households have differences on this issue, the House should give this a serious thought before making any decision regarding the entire city. Food is an independent choice,” said Singh.

The MCG commissioner, however, left the decision on this matter to the House as councillors emphasised that by-laws allow for the same.

Mayor Madhu Azad also lent her support to the motion and subsequently, the resolution on closing meat shops falling within the MCG area on Tuesdays was approved.

As per the provisions of the Haryana Municipal Corporation bylaws, 2008, a municipal corporation has the power to order the closure of meat shops on a single day of a week.

Moreover, the MCG also discussed resuming the issuance of licences to meat shop owners and doubling the license fee from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000. The municipal body has also decided to increase the challan amount f unauthorised meat chops from Rs 500 to Rs 5000.

Soon after the agenda was tabled, MCG councillors Ashwani Sharma of ward no. 23 and Dharambir Singh of ward 21, said that the civic body should raise the licensing fee to Rs 50,000 and requested the closure on Tuesdays, citing religious sentiments.

The MCG’s original agenda of increasing the licensing fee from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 was approved after officials decided that Rs 50,000 was not feasible.

Expressing his displeasure over the orders, Pritam Singh, the president of Jacobpura meat shops association, said the move would cause revenue loss. “If the MCG has passed this resolution, there is little else the association or the shopkeepers can do. The MCG should have taken into account that even if a few members of one community do not consume meat on Tuesday, other communities consume it. We were open seven days a week but now, will be forced to close on Tuesdays and lose revenue,” said Singh.

According to the MCG officials, there are 129 licensed meat shops in Gurugram. According to an estimate, there are more than 150 shops that are operating without obtaining a license. 

Maharashtra: MBBS book linking COVID-19 outbreak to Tablighi Jamaat withdrawn after objections raised by Students Islamic Organisation

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Maharashtra: MBBS book linking COVID-19 outbreak to Tablighi Jamaat withdrawn after objections raised by Students Islamic Organisation

A reference book for the second-year students of MBBS in Maharashtra has created a stir after its contents linked the coronavirus outbreak in the country to the infamous Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi in March 2020. The book was later withdrawn after objections were raised for ascribing the COVID-19 outbreak to the event organised by the Islamic seminary.

An apology was issued by the authors of the third edition of the book titled ‘Essentials of Medical Microbiology’ for attributing the flare-up to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation.

The Students Islamic Organisation had raised objections over the claims made in the book. The organisation claimed there was no epidemiological study to conclude that the COVID-19 spread was hastened because of the congregation of Tablighi Jamaat.

Following the objection, the book’s authors – Dr Apurba Sastry and Dr Sandhya Bhat – apologised “if they inadvertently hurt the sentiments of a group of people”. The authors also assured that necessary changes will be made in the new edition.

The withdrawal of the book was also confirmed by a government official. The organisation has welcomed the decision to withdraw the reference book.

Tablighi Jamaat congregation and the spread of COVID-19

The Tablighi Jamaat congregation was held in Nizamuddin Markaz in the first half of March. Scores of people who attended the event had later tested positive for the coronavirus. Many of them were later arrested and faced legal action. At one point, the congregation had contributed to about 30 per cent of the total active cases in the country.

It was termed as a mega-spreader of coronavirus in India, as many as more than one-third of cases in India are linked to that event now. The Muslims who had attended the event, and their family members and those who came into contact with them are testing positive regularly, contributing to the increase in the number of coronavirus cases in the country.

The labelling of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation as the most potent COVID-19 hotspot was also precipitated by the fact that many of those who attended the event and tested positive for the coronavirus threw tantrums and misbehaved with the medical staff. A large number of Tablighi Jamaatis had reportedly spat on the doctors, nurses, ward-boys at the quarantine centres. In another instance, a few of the quarantined Tablighi Jamaat members were reported to have defecated in open.

Watch: BJP MP Babul Supriyo harassed by TMC mob led by Wasim Ahmed at Kolkata’s Bhawanipore

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Watch: BJP MP Babul Supriyo harassed by TMC mob led by Wasim Ahmed at Kolkata’s Bhawanipore

BJP MP Babul Supriyo said that he was harassed by TMC workers when he stopped at Balwant Singh Dhaba in Bhawanipore for a cup of tea after a day of campaigning in Kolkata ahead of the assembly elections in the state. He said that the mob of Trinamool karyakartas were led by Wasim Ahmed.

In videos shared by Babul Supriyo, who happens to be the BJP candidate from Tollygunge, a short distance away from Bhawanipore, a raucous mob of TMC workers gathered around his car. When Supriyo got down to talk to them and politely ask them to not indulge in such conduct, they began to chant ‘Khela hobe’ (Let the games begin), TMC’s campaign slogan.

Babul Surpiyo can be seen to reason with the TMC mob but they refused to heed his politeness. The BJP MP said that there was the risk that a clash might erupt even if he chose to drive off from the area but he feared that cadres of political parties might embroil in a fight and end up injured.

The TMC mob, nevertheless, got into his face and invaded his personal space in an effort to intimidate the BJP leader. But Supriyo remained undaunted and emphasised that it will not be good for anyone if sons of Bengal end up injured.

Afterwards, Supriyo got into his car and left the area. Bhawanipore is Mamata Banerjee’s current constituency and is a Trinamool bastion.

West Bengal is heating up with elections set to begin on the 27th of March. The elections will occur over eight phases and end on the 29th of April.

Kerala Gold scam: State Crime Branch registers case against ED for ‘pressurising’ Swapna Suresh to name CM Pinarayi Vijayan

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Kerala Gold scam: State Crime Branch registers case against ED for ‘pressurising’ Swapna Suresh to name CM Pinarayi Vijayan

In a sensational twist to the Kerala gold scam case, the Kerala Police registered a case against the central probe agency Enforcement Directorate for allegedly pressuring Swapna Suresh, the prime accused, to give a fake statement against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

According to the reports, the Kerala Crime Branch has now registered a case against the Enforcement Directorate on the offences of conspiracy. The complaint has been registered after Swapna Suresh had alleged that ED officials forced her to give a false statement against Chief Minister Vijayan.

The crime branch has submitted the FIR in the Ernakulam First Class Judicial Magistrate Court. A video clip, allegedly that of Suresh was circulated some months back stating that she was forced to implicate Kerala CM by ED officials.

The case was registered against the ED with the permission of the Director-General of Prosecutions. The case has been registered under various sections including conspiracy and forgery.

Mathrubumi has reported that two female police officials, namely Siji Vijayan of Palarivattom police station and S Rejimol of Kadavanthra police station had given statements that ED had pressurised Swapna to give false statements against the CM. The Crime Branch case has been based on their statements.

Earlier, the Kerala crime branch had recorded the statements of 18 persons including Swapna Suresh as part of the probe. Following this, the state home department had obtained legal advice on registering a complaint against ED officials.

The Kerala government has decided to form a special team to probe the case after Swapna Suresh had alleged that the ED officials were forcing her to implicate Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the gold scam. Recently it was reported that Swapna Suresh, the kingpin in the Kerala gold smuggling case, had revealed to the Customs Department that Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was very much involved in the gold and dollar smuggling cases.

Swapna Suresh names CM Pinarayi Vijayan and three other ministers in Gold Scam

Ahead of the crucial assembly elections in Kerala, the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) government was pushed into a spot of bother as one of the main accused in the high-profile gold smuggling case had named Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

In a sensational disclosure, Swapna Suresh reportedly had detailed Kerala CM Vijayan’s close connections with the previous UAE Consul General and alleged that Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was very much involved in the gold and dollar smuggling cases.

During her interrogation, Swapna Suresh has stated that three other cabinet ministers, along with Kerala Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan, were also involved in a gold smuggling case, the Customs Department submitted before the Kerala High Court.

In addition to this, Swapna Suresh had also revealed to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that the Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had held multiple meetings with the Consul General of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2017.

Kerala Gold Scam

In July last year, the Customs officials in Kerala had nabbed a former employee of the UAE Consulate in Kerala named Sarith where he had divulged that Swapna Suresh, also a former staffer, had forged documents to misuse diplomatic privileges, to smuggle gold from UAE illegally.

On July 5, Suresh’s baggage, marked with the UAE Consulate address, was held at the airport. Swapna Suresh worked as the marketing liaison officer of Space Park under the Kerala State IT Infrastructure Limited (KSITIL) that comes directly under the IT department. Swapna Suresh was soon arrested for obtaining fake documents to claim diplomatic privileges and smuggling gold from UAE.

The call details of the main accused, Swapna Suresh, had revealed that the accused was in regular touch with Kerala’s Higher Education minister KT Jaleel.

Uttar Pradesh: Afzal becomes Rajiv to marry Hindu woman, tries to burn her alive with children for refusing to convert

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Uttar Pradesh: Afzal becomes Rajiv to marry Hindu woman, tries to burn her alive with children for refusing to convert

In Uttar Pradesh, yet another case of alleged grooming Jihad has surfaced wherein a Muslim man assumed a fake Hindu identity to entrap and marry a Hindu woman. The case pertains to state capital Lucknow where a man named Afzal allegedly identified himself as Rajiv and married a Hindu woman in the Arya Samaj Temple.

A few years after the marriage, the accused Afzal started pressuring his wife to give up her religion and embrace Islam. When the woman refused to abandon her religion for Islam, an enraged Afzal reportedly tried to burn her down, along with their children. However, the woman somehow managed to escape the fire and rushed to the nearby police station to file a complaint against the accused. Following her complaint, the police arrested the accused and slapped a case against him under the UP Anti-Conversion law.

As per the victim’s account, she had met Rajiv alias Afzal in 2009. Afzal had then described himself as a Hindu orphan and the duo had gotten married on 13 February 2009 at the Arya Samaj Temple. The couple had two children after their marriage. There was a dispute between the two when Rajiv alias Afzal insisted on keeping non-Hindu names of their children, the victim said. Rajiv’s insistence of keeping non-Hindu names of their children raised suspicions for the woman and she discovered that Rajiv was not a Hindu and that his real name was Mohammad Afzal Siddiqui. She also learnt that Afzal had parents and was not an orphan as he had claimed earlier.

In her complaint, the woman accused Afzal of not only pressuring her to convert her religion but also forced her to have physical relations with other men. When she raised her objections to this, she was subjected to domestic violence, the woman said. The woman also claims that she had filed complaints with the police several times about the violence inflicted on her by Afzal but no action was taken against him. According to the woman, on Wednesday night this week, when she was alone in the house with her children, Afzal bolted the door of the house from the outside and set it on fire.

The woman then called 112 control room and sought help. The police force was immediately sent to her place to rescue her, along with her children. The woman then filed a complaint with the police accusing Afzal of trying to burn her down with her children. A case has been registered under the Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance, 2020 at the Thakurganj police station against Afzal, his parents and religious clerics for carrying out a murderous attack against the woman.

Republic TV vindicated as provisional attachment order of ED mentions India Today over 50 times in the context of ‘bribe for TRP’: Read details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Republic TV vindicated as provisional attachment order of ED mentions India Today over 50 times in the context of ‘bribe for TRP’: Read details

In a massive revelation in the TRP scam investigation, the Enforcement Directorate has released its Provisional Attachment Order, detailing the depth of the TRP scam and exposing the channels manipulating TRPs. India Today has been named 50 times in the order in the context of the TRP scam, along with Box Cinema, Fakt Marathi and Maha Movie for which money was paid to the households with the Bar-o-meters to increase their TRPs.

By contrast, the ED order does not mention Republic TV as one of the accused in the TRP manipulation scam as alleged by the former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh who has now been ousted in connection with the ongoing Antilia bomb scare case. Republic TV stands vindicated as the extensive findings and the elaborate testimonies in the ED order decisively debunk the Mumbai Police’s narrative that Arnab Goswami’s channels had dishonestly raised its TRP by bribing the households with Bar-o-meters.

Here are some of the highlights of the 64-page Provisional Order released by the Enforcement Directorate:-

India Today mentioned 50 times in the order with respect to TRP manipulation

India Today has been extensively mentioned in the Provisional Order, precisely 50 times in the 64-page long document. It is the same channel that was originally mentioned in the FIR with the Mumbai Police regarding the TRP manipulation scam and was inexplicably given a clean chit by the Mumbai Police within 48 hours of the complaint being filed. The report by the Enforcement Directorate mentions that the accused relationship managers working at the Hansa Research Pvt. Ltd. were paid money to induce households with Bar-o-meters to watch the India Today channel.

Main complainant Nitin Deokar of Hansa Research names India Today in the context of ‘bribes for TRPs’

The ED order mentions that the main complainant of the TRP manipulation case, Mr Nitin Deokar, Deputy General Manager of M/s Hansa Research Group Pvt. Ltd., testified in his statement that one Vishal Bhandari had admitted of being approached telephonically by a person named Vinay to convince 5 panel-homes in Mumbai to watch India Today channel daily for two hours. Deokar further mentioned that for this Bhandari was paid Rs 5,000 as a commission and Rs 200 per household was distributed to each panel household for watching the said channel. Deokar cited Bhandari’s confession before the BARC team to state that he had done the work of paying panel households for watching the India Today channel for the period from November 2019 till May 2020.

BARC Head of Vigilance and Investigation admits abnormal viewership growth of India Today in January-February 2020

Another intriguing revelation mentioned in the released ED order is that of BARC vigilance head Dharamveer Mahecha, who said that he was informed by the Market Analytics Team of BARC about an abnormal viewership growth of India Today on 25.02.2020 and a field investigation was undertaken.

As per the company process, the channel was again re-investigated after 13 weeks and the top 25 household panel were selected wherein the higher viewership of India Today Channel was observed. This reveals that even the rating agency BARC had doubts over the unnatural rise in the viewership of India Today, further firming up the suspicions about the TRP manipulations.

The panel information was handed over to one Abhijit Mehendale for carrying out the investigation into the unusual spike in India Today’s TRPs. Mehendale, AVP BARC, found that the presence of an extra meter inside a panel house that belonged to Vishal Bhandari, who worked as the Relationship Manager with Hansa. When accosted about the additional meter, Bhandari reportedly confessed to Mehendale that he had been approached by an unknown person and paid money to induce panel homes to watch the India Today channel.

Hansa’s ex-relationship manager confesses to manipulating ratings for India Today

The Provisional Order by the Enforcement Directorate also included the testimony of a former relationship manager at Hansa who confessed to having manipulated ratings for the India Today channel. In his confession, Umesh Chandrakant Mishra, Ex-Relationship Manager of Hansa Research, said that he was approached by Mr Vinay Rajendra Tripathi, also an Ex-Relationship Manager of M/s Hansa Research Group Pvt. Ltd, who offered him to convince some of the Panel Households where Bar-O-Meters were installed to watch the channel India Today for half to one hour daily. For this, Umesh was given around Rs. 15,000 per month in his bank account.

Umesh added that around Rs. 3000 had been distributed by him among the households (Rs. 500 each) in cash and the rest of the amount was his commission and expenses for the said task. He said he had done this work of paying the Panel Households for watching the India Today channel for the period between November 2019 to May 2020, minus January 2020.

Household owners confess to being paid for watching India Today

Also, the ED order enlists the testimonies of the household owners who have confessed to being paid to watch certain channels, including India Today. One Mukesh Dauda stated that he had been paid by Shri Dinesh Vishwakarma for watching India Today and News Nation. Similarly, another household owner with Bar-o-meter installed, Rajesh Rudramani Shukla recorded his statement under section 50 of PMLA, 2002 on 13.01.2021 wherein he stated that he had been paid by Shri Umesh Mishra for watching News Nation and India Today Channel.

Likewise, Vishal Bhandari in his statement said he also watched different channels, including India Today, after Vinay Tripathi approached him to convince Households for watching India Today and since his house also had a Bar-O-Meter installed.

BARC VP confirms abnormalities in viewership of India Today

Pulak Banerjee, Vice President of M/s Broadcast Audience Research Council, in his statement to the Enforcement Directorate confirmed abnormalities in viewership in respect of India Today, News Nation, Box Cinema, Maha Movie, Fakt Marath.

Fifth channel accused of manipulating TRP

Till now only four channels were named in the case filed by the Hansa Research in the case, India Today, Box Cinema, Fakt Marathi and Maha Movie. But the ED provisional order has revealed the name of a fifth channel, News Nation. According to the ED, panel households were bribed to watch the News Nationa channel also, helping in increasing its viewership data.

ED lays out financial trails of companies that routed money to rig TRPs

The ED found that the mode and manner of the payments to the households was layered and routed through various intermediaries to obliterate the trail of money flow and to make it difficult to link the channel owners with the bribe money. However, it has laid out financial trail of 3 channels, namely—Fakt Marathi, Maha Movies, Box TV—between November 2019 to September 2020 with respect to manipulation of ratings.

The order says, “It is absolutely clear that the entire revenue generated by the aforesaid four channels, during the tabulated period, were generated by increasing TRP, consequently attracted more clients for advertisement which in turn increased the revenue for the respective channels. Hence by committing scheduled offences, the revenue of the four channels was increased during the period.”

Furthermore, the advertisement revenue generated during the period of criminal manipulation of TRPs of the channels is termed by the ED as “Proceeds of crime” in terms of Section 2 (1)(u) of PMLA, 2002 which was acquired illegally on the basis of manipulation of the TRPs rating by conniving with the relationship managers (RMs) and bribing the households to raise the TRP, which in turn helped in getting the revenue, which otherwise would not have been possible.

Channel owners and Hansa relationship managers charged under provisions of PMLA

In accordance with Section 3 of the PMLA, 2002, the channel owners namely Shri Narayan Nandkishore Sharma(Owner of Box Cinema), Shri Shirish Pattanshetty (50 per cent owner of Fakt Marathi), Shri Manish Singhal(50 per cent owner of Fakt Marathi), Shri Darshan Singh(Director of the company that runs Maha Movie) and Shri Vishwajeet(Director of the company that runs Maha Movie) are accused of having committed the offence of Money Laundering.

Additionally, the relationship managers namely/Shri Umesh Mishra, Vishal Ved Bhandari, Dinesh Vishwakarma, Vikas Burungale, Mahesh Bompalli, Ashwin Motiwale and Rajesh Vishwakarma are also held equally responsible for their knowing assistance in the entire act of money laundering in terms of section 3 of PMLA, 2002.

1...4,5004,5014,502...7,681Page 4,501 of 7,681