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Uttar Pradesh Police arrest one Mehboob from Karnataka for allegedly kidnaping a Hindu girl and trying to convert her to Islam

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh Police arrest one Mehboob from Karnataka for allegedly kidnaping a Hindu girl and trying to convert her to Islam

In what appears to be another case of grooming jihad, Uttar Pradesh police yesterday arrested a Muslim man from Karnataka who allegedly kidnapped a Hindu girl from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh with the intention of her forcefully converting her to Islam. The 21-year accused has been identified as Mehboob, a resident of Vijayapura district of Karnataka.

Accused allegedly befriended the victim on social media

According to reports, Station House Officer (SHO), Chiluatal police station, Neeraj Kumar Rai said that the girl’s father, a retired Army man, had filed a missing report on January after she did not return home from college. He said that it was revealed on scrutiny of call records of the girl’s mobile phone that she used to make frequent calls to a man mentioned as Mehboob on Truecaller app. Mehboob’s location was found in Karnataka. Following her father’s complaint, a case was lodged against the accused on January 11. Later on, a three-member police team was sent to Karnataka to trace the accused and the girl.

The case was lodged under sections 366 (kidnapping, abduction) and 363 (punishment for kidnapping) of the Indian Penal Code and under the relevant provisions of recently enacted anti-conversion law in Uttar Pradesh.

Accused allegedly promised the victim to provide her a job

The girl’s father had reportedly mentioned in the FIR that the accused had befriended his daughter through social media and he lured her by promising to provide her with a job. The accused was reportedly arrested by Indi Rural Police and their Chiluatal counterparts near Indi Railway Station when he came to meet his father yesterday. The father of the accused, a porter at the railway station in Vijayapura’s Indi, said that he was not aware of his son’s relationship with the girl. He said that police came to his house and informed him that his son had kidnapped a girl from Uttar Pradesh and that he tried to forcefully convert her. He said that he offered the police to help them trace his son.

The Uttar Pradesh government had recently passed the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion Ordinance of 2020 that nullifies marriages performed for the sole purpose of conversion and penalises forced, deceitful religious conversion.

Kashmiri-origin appointee in Joe Biden’s White House team has links to Islamist org, CIA Director pick has concerns about ‘Hindu majoritarianism’: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Kashmiri-origin appointee in Joe Biden’s White House team has links to Islamist org, CIA Director pick has concerns about ‘Hindu majoritarianism’: Details

President-elect Joe Biden has appointed Sameera Fazili of Kashmiri origin as the Deputy Director of the National Economic Council. Formerly, Sameera Fazili has served as the Director of Engagement for Community and Economic Development at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

The matter of concern, however, is that Fazili appears to be a member of Stand With Kashmir, an Islamist organization that is a proponent of Kashmiri Separatism. In August 2019, following the abrogation of Article 370, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) introduced her as a member of SWK.

She said in a statement, “We urge people of conscience to come out and show support and solidarity for the people of Kashmir as authoritarianism and Islamophobia rise around the world, from India to the United States to Europe. Come show your support for human rights, international law, and democracy.”

Stand With Kashmir (SWK) is a “Kashmiri diaspora-driven independent global citizen grassroots group committed to standing in solidarity with the people of Kashmir in ending the occupation and supporting their right to self-determination.”

The organization believes “any proposed resolutions must foreground Kashmiri aspirations. We condemn the use of Islamophobia to undermine Kashmiri aspirations for freedom.” It also calls the presence of the Indian military in Kashmir an ‘occupation’. There are indications as well that the organization may have Pakistani backing.

SWK recently tweeted about the death of Riyaz Naikoo in an encounter and did not bother to mention that he was, in fact, a senior commander of Hizbul Mujahideen. SWK also calls Asiya Andrabi a ‘sociopolitical activist’ despite her known links to terrorists. In fact, they have a long history of supporting terrorists, including Yasin Malik who is linked with the LeT, an Islamic terrorist outfit banned under US law as well.

Another appointment that might raise a few eyebrows for those in India, and is a matter of far more concern, is Biden’s pick for CIA Director. William J Burns, the president of the Carnegie Endowment, has been picked to head the CIA. His views on Narendra Modi and Kashmir are worth taking into consideration.

As recently as February 2020, Burns wrote in an article for The Atlantic, “After a resounding reelection last spring, Modi has struggled with India’s most severe economic slowdown in three decades. Lacking a compelling strategy for the economy, he has doubled down on the one set of issues for which the BJP has a very clear and unified vision: Hindu majoritarianism. With coercive force and scant regard for constitutional limits, Modi’s government has put its Hindu chauvinism on full display.”

He continued, “His government has pushed a new citizenship law that discriminates against Muslims seeking refuge in India, and has fed tensions over disputed religious sites. Pressures against critical journalists and academics have increased. The BJP has run into political difficulties in state and local elections, but its national opposition, the Congress Party, is a shell of its former self, and the courts and civil society are on the defensive.”

Burns went so far as to say that a “battle for the idea of India is under way” between the “tolerant constitutional convictions of its founders and the harsher Hindu majoritarianism that has lurked beneath the surface.” Earlier in November 2019, he had said that India must ‘pay attention’ to concerns in Washington regarding Jammu & Kashmir.

All you need to know about Navdeep Bains, minister who resigned from Trudeau govt: Corruption, Khalistan, immigration scam and lobbying for China

OpIndia Staff
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All you need to know about Navdeep Bains, minister who resigned from Trudeau govt: Corruption, Khalistan, immigration scam and lobbying for China

Earlier this week, High-profile Indian-origin Canadian Sikh minister Navdeep Bains resigned from his post and quit politics on ‘personal grounds’ surprising many in Canada.

According to the reports, Navdeep Bains, who is considered to be a strong supporter of the Khalistan movement, stepped down as Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry claiming that he wanted to ‘spend more time with his family’.

However, in reality, Navdeep Bains, who played a key role in Justin Trudeau’s first term since 2013, was forced to resign from the cabinet after he was exposed to a massive corruption scandal in Canada. The resignation of Bains is being seen as an attempt by the ruling Liberal Party to save itself from frequent embarrassments on corruption charges.

In November 2018, a Canada-based media outlet had exposed the news of corruption involving Navdeep Bains. According to the report, an irregularity had occurred land deal concerning a piece of land measuring 20-acre between Navdeep Bains and another liberal MP Raj Grewal. The expose had shocked Canada after a brazen corruption scandal involving lawmakers surfaced. Subsequently, the local authorities had ordered a third-party investigation into the matter and sent its details to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

The case of corruption in the land deal is itself an interesting one highlighting how two liberal MPs had indulged in act of corruption without any fingers pointing at them. The pro-Khalistan Navdeep Bains and another Liberal MP had purchased that specific piece of land from the Ontario Province and then sold it to the Brampton City at a much higher price than what the City was planning to offer initially.

The land the city was planning to purchase for an amount of $3.3 million, eventually was sold to them by Bains $4.4 million – an extra $1.1 Million on accounts of the public exchequer. Interestingly, the company involved in the land deal was Goreway Heaven and one of its directors, Bhagwan Grewal, accompanied Prime Minister Trudeau to his infamous trip to India in 2018. Besides, about half of its directors have been making handsome donations to the Liberal Party.

Reportedly Grewal is a former MP, was a history-sheeter in corruption and has been practising it on a blanket basis at various levels.

Navdeep Bains, a pro-Khalistan sympathiser and member of World Sikh Organisation

Reportedly, Navdeep Bains is considered to be one of the aggressive Khalistani sympathizers within the Canadian government. Bains has been groomed by the pro-Khalistani radical outfit World Sikh Organisation (WSO), which is accused of radicalizing the Sikh community and making efforts to divide it.

Canada-based World Sikh Organization (WSO), a body of Sikhs formed in July 1984 post-Operation Bluestar, has been openly raising the demand for Khalistan. In fact, the Sikh diaspora in Canada has themselves labeled WSO an extremist organization.

Not just in Canada alone, but across North America and Europe, radical Sikh elements belonging to WSO have used the political climate in their respective countries to build up a political support base for their ideology. Along with another pro-Khalistan terror group Sikh for Justice (SFJ) the World Sikh Organisation and Sikhs for Justice has been funding the Khalistan movement and also does social media propaganda to revive the Khalistan cause.

Incidentally, Navdeep Bains’s father is also a prominent leader of the WSO and is also associated with the Dixie gurdwara — an epicenter of anti-India activities. Bains also has direct connections with Khalistan terrorists as his father-in-law Darshan Singh Saini was listed by the Canadian authorities as a witness for investigating the 1985 Air India bombing case.

In fact, during a debate on anti-terrorism legislation in the House of Commons in February 2007, the then Canadian PM Stephen Harper highlighted the connection of Bains’ father-in-law with the Air India bombing in which 329 people were killed including Canadian, British, and Indian citizens.

The then PM Harper had said that the opposition of the anti-terrorism legislation by Bains was a tactic to protect his father-in-law from appearing in before the RCMP as the Conservatives argued about using the law to use it for investigating the Air India 1985 bombing case. Earlier, the Vancouver Sun had reported that Bains’ father-in-law was on the list of potential witnesses in the bombing case.

Bains was also targeted by Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh for what he termed as their “well known for their leanings towards the Khalistani movement”. Apart from Canadian defense minister Harjit Singh Sajjan and Former Sikh MP Raj Grewal, the Punjab CM had also referred to Navdeep Bains as a Khalistani sympathizer in 2018.

Bains involved in illegal immigration from India

Apart from sponsoring the Khalistani terror network, Bains is involved in several other alleged corrupt deals. Navdeep Bains’s name emerged in the infamous Fort Erie gurdwara scam last year as well. The gurdwara has sponsored three religious preachers from India and got them special visas from the Ottawa administration.

Later, it was revealed that the gurdwara was not operational at all and was used as a cover by Bains and his associates to sneak in immigrants illegally from India to Canada. Since then, the Canadian authorities have not able to find the traces of three Indian priests sponsored by Navdeep Bains as they have now disappeared after landing in Canada.

According to locals, Bains had forged details of a gurdwara on papers to bring in immigrants illegally under the cover of religious activities, which in turn, make huge financial profits. The gurdwara is controlled by Bains through his father Balwinder Bains and is seemingly a money-making machine for the family. An investigative report had suggested that Fort Erie gurdwara was nothing but a long-abandoned motel surrounded by scrubland overgrown with weeds.

The Liberal leader has also been using other institutional structures of the Sikh community to his advantage. Father of Bains, who enjoys a stronghold over the administration of gurdwaras, had appointed men close to him as the directors of Fort Erie gurdwara, a prominent Mississauga gurdwara that is in the constituency represented by Bains. 

Most importantly, the Bains family has been allegedly making massive amounts of money through corruption in Sikh institutions in Canada for ages now. It is alleged that Bains is making a lot of money by not sparing even the Gurdwaras. Locals highlight that Bains and his father run an immigration nexus consisting of IELTS coaching centres in India and colleges and gurdwaras in Canada.

The father-son duo used to facilitate illegal immigration by offering seats to students in these institutions, most of which only exist on paper.

Telecom lobbying and favoured Chinese companies in Canada

Bains is also accused by Canadian civil society groups of favouring certain telecom groups while serving as a minister. He is facing allegations of favouring the telecom companies to hike internet prices. Bains is also accused of siding with the big telecom companies on their appeal to the lowered wholesale rates. 

During his tenure as a minister in Trudeau’s government, Navdeep Bains had given the green signal to multiple Chinese companies with a dark track record and connections to the CCP, without proper national security review. Bains is also believed to be providing back support before allowing Chinese telecom giant Hytera to enter Canada without a proper national security review as well. 

Furthermore, the Canadian leader has also been allegedly involved in corruption in the procurement of public goods. Bains is accused in a public procurement irregularity worth $200 million. Bains is facing charges of providing the tender to a company that did not have a manufacturing facility at all.

Shockingly, the pro-Khalistani Canada leader Navdeep Bains had also expressed his solidarity with the protestors in India, who have now camped on the streets of Delhi to oppose farm reforms initiated by the Modi government. It is a known fact today that the so-called ‘farmer’ protestors have been hijacked by the Khalistani elements, who are trying to incite the protestors to fight against the Indian government.

‘Dawai bhi, Kadaai bhi’ is the new mantra, says PM Modi while flagging off world’s largest vaccination program against Covid-19

OpIndia Staff
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‘Dawai bhi, Kadaai bhi’ is the new mantra, says PM Modi while flagging off world’s largest vaccination program against Covid-19

India is all set to fight the Wuhan coronavirus pathogen which has left 1,52,000 people in India and more than 2 million people worldwide dead. An emotional PM Modi Saturday flagged-off the first phase of the pan-India rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the world’s largest inoculation exercise against the novel coronavirus on January 16 at 10.30 a.m.

In the first phase of the vaccination drive, around 3 crore frontline workers including doctors, healthcare workers, Safai Karamcharis etc will be given the vaccine. After that, people above 50 years of age, and people below 50 with co-morbidities, estimated around 27 crore, will be selected for vaccination. Therefore, around 30 crore people will be vaccinated in this round.

On this historic day, PM Modi, while virtually launching the vaccination drive said that for so many months everyone has been asking when the vaccine will come and now it is here. Minutes from now, the world’s largest vaccination drive will begin. Congratulating everyone, especially the scientists who are involved in the process, the Prime Minister said: “They have worked relentlessly. The process of developing a vaccine takes years, but in such a short time we have been given two Made-in-India vaccines.”

The world has immense faith in India’s scientists and capacity of vaccine production. We have got two vaccines in such a short time, this was proof of India’s scientific ability and talent, he said.

“India’s vaccination programme is based on humane protocol since the most vulnerable are getting the vaccination first. Our doctors, nurses, paramedic and cleaning staff have the first claim to this vaccine”, said PM Modi, adding that in the next phase, people involved in essential services like police, fire personnel etc., will be vaccinated and the Govt would bear the complete cost.

“Our corona warriors remained away from homes for days, in the call of duty. By reserving the first vaccines for these people, the society is expressing its gratefulness”.

He stressed upon the importance of taking both doses of the vaccine. “I would like to remind you again that it is very important to have two doses of corona vaccine. Between the first and second doses, a gap of about one month will be kept. Only 2 weeks after the second dose, your body will develop the necessary strength against the virus,” reiterated the PM.

The Prime Minister proudly said that a vaccination campaign as large as this one has never before been run in history. There are more than 100 countries in the world whose population is less than 30 million. And India is vaccinating 30 million people in its first phase of vaccination.

He urged people not to fall prey to rumours and myths regarding the vaccines. “The DGCI gave approval after they were satisfied with the data of the two vaccines. India goes through strict scientific processes. So stay away from rumours. Our vaccine developers have global credibility. Life-saving vaccines given to 60% of children globally are made in India,” he said.

The Prime Minister said the vaccines approved by the government were much cheaper than alternatives being used in the west, referring to the shots developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. He said those vaccines would cost around Rs 5,000 to vaccinate a person and would need to be stored at temperatures around -70 degree Celsius, making the logistics tougher.

India’s vaccine is built on technology that is tried and tested in India. These vaccines adapt to Indian conditions and conditions from storage to transportation. This vaccine will give India a decisive victory in the fight against Corona, furthered the PM.

Showing immense confidence in the nation PM Modi said that mo matter how big the crisis is, the people of the country never lost confidence. When the Wuhan Coronavirus reached India, there was only one lab of Corona testing in the country, we believed in our strength and today we have more than 2,300 networks, said the proud Prime Minister which virtually addressing the nation on this historic day.

On January 30, the first case of corona was found in India, but less than two weeks before that India had formed a high level committee. India kept vigil 24X7 hours, watching every event, and taking the right decisions at the right time. January 17, 2020 was the date when India released its first advisory. India was among the first countries in the world to start screening passengers at its airports. The Janata curfew was also a test of the restraint and discipline of our society against the Corona outbreak, in which every countryman succeeded. The Janata curfew prepared the country psychologically for lockdown.

At a time when some countries had mercilessly left their citizens in midst of rising cases of COVID-19 in China, India brought back every Indian trapped in China. And not only people of India, we also brought back citizens of many other countries stuck there. Today the whole world has not ony accepted but also lauded the way India has dealt with this epidemic. India also put forward the example of how central and state governments, local bodies, every government institution, social institutions can work in unison.

India has shown how everyone from DRDO, ISRO and the military to farmers and laborers can work together with firm resolution.

This vaccination campaign will go on for a long time and we have got a chance to contribute in saving the lives of the people, worldwide.

PM Modi warned that people should not become complacent during and after the vaccination. He reiterated the mantra- “Do Gaj Doori, Mask hai Jaruri’, stressing it is very important to wear masks and maintain the distance of two-yards that promotes social distancing, which is a powerful tool in the fight against COVID-19. Along with this, PM Modi, today requested the citizens to take another pledge- ‘Dawai bhi, Kadaai bhi’ and wished best of health to all the citizens in the televised address before the vaccine rollout.

Billed as the world’s largest vaccination program, covering the entire length and breadth of the country, the drive aims to first inoculate millions of its healthcare and frontline workers and reach an estimated 3 crore people by the end of its first phase. A total of 3006 session sites across all states and union territories have been virtually connected during the launch today.

The drive will be held daily from 9 am to 5 pm, except on the days earmarked for routine immunisation programmes.

BHU to induct degree course on Hindu Studies with Ancient scriptures, Vedas, Puranas and more: Exclusive details

रवि अग्रहरि
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BHU to induct degree course on Hindu Studies with Ancient scriptures, Vedas, Puranas and more: Exclusive details

A new course on Hinduism and culture under the banner of Hindu Studies is going to start at Bharat Adhyayan Kendra of BHU. Banaras Hindu University has once again risen to the occasion of nation-building and will soon be instituting a structured degree course on Hindu traditions.

Besides being a centre of modern education, the historic Banaras Hindu University will now provide its students with a formalised education on Vedas, Puranas, Brahmins and Shraman traditions along with epics such as Ramayana, Mahabharata, in courses based on the characteristics and traditions of Hinduism.

A postgraduate degree course is designed by the Bharat Adhyayan Kendra under the chairmanship of Vijay Bahadur Singh. Several prominent religious and spiritual leaders have contributed towards developing the course which was unanimously approved at the recent Board of Studies meeting chaired by the Faculty of Arts.

Scholars from across the country, including from universities such as BHU, JNU, IIT-Kanpur decided to come together for the first time to teach Hindu studies at the BHU. It has been finalised that the new two-year MA course in Hindu Studies will begin from the first session of the year 2021-2022.

Course to encompass various facets of Hinduism and Hindu scriptures

This is, perhaps, for the first time in the country that the various fields of Hindu scriptures such as military science, philosophy, epistemology have been given an academic format. The syllabus includes the tradition of Hinduism, which mainly consists of the principles, interpretations, debates and methods of determining the meaning of scriptures, Western knowledge epistemology, Ramayana, Mahabharata, architecture, folklore, Folk-drama, linguistics and ancient military science.

The key individuals who played a crucial role in bringing to bear the decision of formalising a degree course on Hindu scriptures at the Board of Studies meeting headed by the Faculty of Arts chairman Vijay Bahadur Singh included JNU Professor Ramnath Jha, Prof. of IIT-Kanpur Nachiketa Tiwari, Prof. Kamlesh Dutt Tripathi, Prof. Brajkishore Swai (Odisha), Prof. BHU Sanskrit Vidya Dharm Vigyan Faculty Vindhyeshwari Prasad Mishra, and folk singer Prof. Malini Awasthi.

Furthermore, Prof. Pradyuman Shah, Prof. Vimalendra Kumar, Prof. Sachchidanand Mishra, Director of Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts, Varanasi, Prof. Vijay Shankar Shukla, Prof. Rakesh Upadhyay, Prof. Keshav Mishra, Dr. Arpita Chatterjee, Prof. Sada Shiv Kumar Dwivedi, along with several other prominent Hindu scholars were amongst those who were involved in long deliberations and gave their recommendations on the course.

OpIndia talks to Professor Rakesh Upadhyay to understand the motive behind having a course on Hindu scriptures at BHU

OpIndia had a detailed conversation with Professor Rakesh Upadhyay to understand the vision of the University behind inducting the course, its necessity and objectives of studying the Hindu scriptures. Professor Upadhyay said that India has centres for Buddhist studies, Jain studies, Islamic studies but it lacks any credible centre for studies on Hindu religious texts. In such a scenario, Hindu scriptures are arbitrarily interpreted by people least qualified to do the job. He said when historians with no knowledge of Sanskrit language interpret Hindu religion, scriptures and Sanatan tradition, it is all too easy to guess what their explanation would yield.

Professor Rakesh Upadhyay said, “These are mostly left-wing ideologues whose sole purpose is to malign Hinduism and Sanatan Tradition and push their narrative and not to provide an explanation or have a realistic discussion about it.”

Referring to Left historians, Professor Upadhyay said that the leftists have been holding forth on Hindu religion while having no knowledge about their original texts. Those who have read Rig Veda from the scriptures won’t find a single instance of cow slaughter mentioned in it, but those whose express purpose is to discredit Hinduism, they would resort to distortion and propaganda to pervert the glorious tradition of this nation.

He also added that the purpose of having an academic course is not to have a dispute with anyone but to foreground Sanatana and Hinduism in the coming days, from ancient scriptures to yoga, knowledge, military and scriptural traditions while imbibing its unique characteristics.

Professor Upadhyay asserted that research and writing on Hindu traditions and scriptures have to be augmented so that the uniqueness of the religion is not lost on the future generations and they are not made to wallow in the self-pity by the leftist propaganda. There is something special in our Sanatan Tradition that despite the ravages of time, it is still intact, he said.

Citing the Buddhist and Jain traditions, Professor Upadhya emphasised that no matter what religion, belief or ideology, the origin of all of them remains the same. He said keeping all this in mind, the study of Brahman to Shraman traditions is also a major part of this course.

How did the other traditions originate from Sanatan on this ancient land? How far they travelled? How was their origin? What has been the source of their epistemology? are some of the questions that will be attempted to be answered through this course, not only from the classical perspective but from the practical and experimental point of view as well.

Professor Rakesh Upadhyay further added that the course has been designed in such a way that with its popularity, net-JRF and research will get a boost and the coming generations would get to know and understand the scriptures in their true spirit and not in their distorted versions. An overwhelming number of scholars believe that the induction of a formalised course on Hindu scriptures would serve to remove the erroneous beliefs spread by the propagandists and enlighten people on the true teachings of the Hinduism and its traditions.

Watch: Sanitation worker Manish Kumar becomes the first person to receive Coronavirus vaccine at AIIMS Delhi

Jinit Jain
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Watch: Sanitation worker Manish Kumar becomes the first person to receive Coronavirus vaccine at AIIMS Delhi

Manish Kumar, a sanitation worker, became the first person to receive the Coronavirus vaccine at the AIIMS Delhi under India’s coronavirus vaccination drive that was launched today. Kumar received the vaccination in presence of Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan.

Amongst the others who got inoculated, were AIIMS, Delhi Director and AIIMS Director and Vice Chancellor of SOA University.

PM Modi on Saturday launched India’s COVID-19 vaccination drive — the world’s biggest immunisation exercise yet —with three crore healthcare and frontline workers first in line to be vaccinated against the deadly contagion. Two shots manufactured in India, one developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca with the help of Serum Institute of India, and the other by Bharat Biotech, are being injected.

On the first day of the vaccination drive, around 100 beneficiaries will be given the first jabs of the two indigenously made coronavirus vaccines at 3,006 session sites across the country.

In a televised address before the vaccine rollout, PM Modi said that there are several nations whose entire population is less than 3 crores, but India will be vaccinating as many people in just the first phase, as he saluted scientists for developing the vaccines in such a short span of time. He also said both vaccines being made in India was yet another example of how the country was moving forward on the path of self-reliance.

He emphasised the importance of taking both doses of the vaccine. “I would like to remind you again that it is very important to have two doses of corona vaccine. Between the first and second doses, a gap of about one month will be kept. Only 2 weeks after the second dose, your body will develop the necessary strength against the virus,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister said the vaccines approved by the government were much cheaper than alternatives being used in the west, referring to the shots developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. He said those vaccines would cost around Rs 5,000 to vaccinate a person and their distribution would be difficult since they were required to be store at around -70 degree Celsius.

Mumbai Police accused of tearing Lord Shri Ram’s posters in Malwani and arresting 3 VHP workers for filming the act: What we know

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai Police accused of tearing Lord Shri Ram’s posters in Malwani and arresting 3 VHP workers for filming the act: What we know

At least three VHP leaders were allegedly arrested by the Mumbai Police in Malwani on Friday. It is alleged that they were arrested for putting up posters of Ram Mandir Nidhi Sankalan Abhiyan, a mass contact and contribution campaign for the construction of a Bhavya & Divya mandir at the birthplace of Bhagwan Shri Ramlalla in Ayodhya and then, filming while Mumbai police allegedly tore posters of Lord Shri Ram.

A VHP leader who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that the incident took place late evening on Friday when some VHP workers were returning home after campaigning for a donation drive for the construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The VHP workers allegedly saw police officials removing the Ram Mandir Nidhi Sankalan posters and tearing them apart. Some VHP workers started recording the incident on their mobile phones. Realising that their act is being recorded on the mobile phone, one of the police officers accosted the VHP workers and purportedly started beating them.

When questioned why the posters were being removed, the police officers reportedly said the posters were controversial in nature and hurt the sentiments of the locals. He also added that he had orders from above to get the Ram Mandir Nidhi Sankalan posters removed. It is pertinent to note that Malwani is a Muslim-dominated region in Mumbai.

The 3 VHP workers were detained on the charges of obstructing and preventing the police from doing their duty. Following their arrest, RSS, VHP, and BJP leaders sat on a sit-in vigil in the police station in opposition to their detention. The leaders demanded that the three VHP workers be immediately released.

BJP, VHP and RSS workers organise a sit-in vigil in police station against the arrest of 3 VHP workers

Subsequently, at around 4 AM, the ACP came and released the three VHP workers and promised to drop all charges against them. He assured appropriate action will be taken against the police officer who allegedly tore apart the Ram Mandir Nidhi Sankalan poster. The ACP also promised action in drug and addiction case in which a Dalit Rights body had written a letter to NCPCR seeking action in the case.

BJP Mumbai President Mangal Prabhat Lodha took cognisance of the incident and posted a tweet sounding an alarm about the worsening situation in Malwani. He stated that putting up posters of Lord Shri Ram has become a crime in this region and informed on Twitter that he would soon meet the Police Commissioner to have a discussion about the incident.

It is noteworthy to mention that VHP, RSS and BJP workers have alleged that while there have been numerous complaints made by the residents of the region against the illegal loudspeaker on the mosques in the neighbourhood but no action has been taken in this regard. However, when posters of Lord Shri Ram were put up at the places, seeking donation for the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the police officials displayed unusual alacrity in removing them.

Dalit Rights body writes to NCPCR seeking intervention in alleged drug and porn addiction case in Malwani

Dalit Positive Movement, a Dalit and OBC Rights initiative, had written a letter to National Commission for Protection of Children Rights (NCPCR) seeking immediate intervention in the alleged forced drug and porn addiction of Dalit children by goons in the restive region of Mumbai’s Malwani.

The Dalit Rights body had alleged that local goons under the aegis of local Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh are pushing the Dalit children into the abyss of drug and pornography addiction. It had also stated in its complaint that names of BJP leaders Gopal Shetty and Ashish Shelar are being misused by the goons to suppress resistance from Dalit families in the region.

Muslim goons in Malwani encroaching upon lands and houses of Hindus, including Dalits

Besides the scourge of drug and pornography addiction, the Hindu minority is in Mumbai’s Malwani, a Muslim majority region, also live under a constant threat and intimidation by the Muslim hooligans, who illegally encroach their homes and force them into fleeing the region. From once having more than 100 Hindu families, the locality now houses a mere 8-10 Hindu families and even they are planning to leave the area for the fear of persecution from the Muslim thugs.

HDFC Bank removes video hailing Pastor Praveen as ‘Neighbourhood Hero’ after his arrest for making hate speech against Hindus: Details

OpIndia Staff
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HDFC Bank removes video hailing Pastor Praveen as ‘Neighbourhood Hero’ after his arrest for making hate speech against Hindus: Details

Praveen Chakravarthy, the notorious Christian pastor who had made abusive remarks against Hindu deities by threatening to kick and deface idols of Hindu Gods and creating ‘Christ Villages’, has been removed from the HDFC Bank’s ‘Neighbourhood Heroes’ campaign after he was arrested for creating enmity between different religious groups and offences in places of worship. 

Andhra Police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested the pastor for his 2013 video. “We arrested him on Tuesday night itself at Kakinada. We brought him here (Guntur) and on the next day we produced him in the Court,” said R Vijaya Paul, CID Coastal superintendent of police (SP), adding the video is seven years and from 2013.

“The thing is that if somebody makes a complaint then we are there to verify it. This is not a suo motu case. Somebody has made a complaint, we verified it. We got him (Chakravarthy) and asked him, he said it is his own voice,” said the senior police officer.

The SP said the video is inflammatory in nature and police officials are verifying his bank transactions, including checking if any more such video were made.

According to the reports, HDFC Bank had earlier declared controversial pastor Praveen Chakravarthy as the ‘Neighbourhood Hero’. In August 2020, HDFC Bank had posted a video on its YouTube channel in which it hailed Pastor Praveen as a ‘Neighbourhood Hero’.

According to HDFC Bank, ‘Our Neighbourhood Heroes’ is an initiative that thanks and celebrates heroes from across the country, who have gone above and beyond to help those in need during these difficult times.

However, following the complaint against Pastor Chakravarthy by the legal rights NGO – Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), the HDFC Bank has taken a swift action to remove the video it had posted hailing the controversial pastor has a ‘hero’.

Deleted video posted by HDFC Bank hailing Pastor Praveen Chakravarthy

According to a report by the Commune Mag, in the video put out by HDFC Bank on August 28, 2020, it had introduced Pastor Praveen as, “A moment of courage is all it takes, to make the normal, heroic and that is exactly what you’ve done!”. The video also said that when underprivileged residents were struggling with ‘Volunteering Service & Time’ and needed help, Pastor Praveen stepped up.

“By providing Volunteering Services & Time to around more than 500 Underprivileged Residents you have truly helped and made a difference”, the video said and claimed that the bank prides itself in calling Pastor Praveen as the ‘Neighbourhood Hero’ of Kakinada.

Interestingly, this is not the first time that HDFC Bank has erred in choosing its ‘Neighbourhood Hero’. Just a few weeks back, it was revealed that HDFC Bank had designated Ashok Singh Garcha as their “Neighbourhood hero” for providing food to underprivileged residents in Ludhiana.

Garcha, later turned out to be a meme on the internet, after he claimed to be the president of Abrahamic and Indo-Abrahamic Association (AIAA), that he preaches “JEWISH/CHRISTIAN/MUSLIM and SIKH UNITY”. 

Christian pastor arrested for hate speech against Hindus

A legal rights NGO called the Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), has filed a complaint with the Union Home Secretary and the FCRA Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs against the Andhra Pradesh based NGO ‘Sylom Blind Center’ and its President Praveen Chakravarthy for indulging in forced conversions to Christianity.

The complainant has demanded that the organization’s FCRA license be cancelled, bank accounts are frozen and an investigation be carried out regarding its other activities.

Following the complaint, Pastor Praveen Chakravarthy was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) on Wednesday for promoting enmity between different religious groups and committing offences in places of worship. He has been charged under various 153 A, 153 B (1) (c), 505 (2), 295 A, 124 A, and 115 of the Indian Penal Code and has multiple FIRs registered against him.

The blatant anti-Hindu activities were first brought to light in 2019 by the NGO Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF). LRPF had lodged a complaint with the Union Home Ministry in December 2019 against ‘Sylom Blind Center’ and its President Praveen Chakravarthy for indulging in rampant rabid proselytization.

In a video tweeted by LRPF, Pastor Praveen Chakravarthy was seen saying with impunity in Telugu that he hit the ‘stone God’ and trees [sacred trees like Neem, Peepal, etc that are worshipped by village people] with his leg. The video was first made available on a YouTube channel called ‘Bangalore go-sipps’. This video was published on December 11, 2019.

Further, in the video, he can be seen describing how he converts a village to Christianity. He says that first a pastor would come and stay in the village to teach the Bible. He says that the village becomes a “Christ village” after everyone has accepted Christ as their saviour and adds that ‘stone gods’ and ‘trees’ are kicked as a finality.

“So there are many cases which (sic) I have kicked the God’s heads and I was so happy”, he said in that video.

Sylom Blind Center was established in 1989, and its stated goal is to help the orphans, widows, aged, neglected ones in the society by providing them education, shelter, medicine, clothing, care and concern. However, the organisation headed by pastor Praveen Chakraborty has been involved in religious conversion activities.

According to a report by the Organiser, The pastor and his ‘Sylom Pastors League’ group claim to have Baptized 15,000 Indians in the year 2012, 37,000 persons in 2013, 292,000 persons in 2014, 6,00,003 persons in 2015, and so on.

Praveen Chakravarthy conducts his conversion activities through Sylom Pastors League, which is headed by him. LifePoint Church’s Missions Ministry, a US-based Christian missionary organisation, list the Sylom Pastors League as their partner in India. They mention that Praveen is very active in church planting, disciple-making, and he had helped thousands of people in receiving fresh drinking water and also receiving Christ as their Lord and Savior.

As India rolls out the Coronavirus vaccine drive, health workers break out in cheer: Watch video

OpIndia Staff
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As India rolls out the Coronavirus vaccine drive, health workers break out in cheer: Watch video

Moving in the direction of bringing an end to the Covid-19 pandemic, the vaccine programme to control the infection was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today via video conferencing. On the first day of the world’s largest Covid-19 vaccination drive, over 3 crore healthcare and frontline workers will be inoculated.

The vaccines have already reached the designated vaccination centres across the country. The vaccine was welcomed by the medical staff in the hospitals as they cheered with joy. Health workers at Cooper Hospital, Mumbai clapped and cheered as the batch of the vaccine reached the hospital.

A total 3,006 vaccination centres have been set up across the country in various districts of all the States and Union Territories. About 100 beneficiaries will be vaccinated at each vaccination site. The timing of the vaccination will be from 9 am to 5 pm barring the days on which routine immunisation programmes are scheduled.

Vaccination of pre-registered beneficiaries

According to Mint, every pre-registered beneficiary will be required to visit the vaccination centre at the designated time and date. The beneficiaries will be required to produce government identification while entering the vaccination centre after which they will be registered and sent to the vaccination room for inoculation. The process will be managed by the central government digitally through its own app called CoWIN. The app will be used to link every vaccine dose to its recipient.

The Central government had purchased 11 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVISHIELD vaccine produced by the Serum Institute and 5.5 million doses of COVAXIN produced by Bharat Biotech.

India starts Coronavirus vaccine drive: Here is a list of those who would first get the much-awaited vaccine

Dibakar Dutta
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India starts Coronavirus vaccine drive: Here is a list of those who would first get the much-awaited vaccine

As India rolls out its Coronavirus vaccine drive today with the inauguration address of PM Modi, the country will eagerly watch the first group of healthcare workers, who will receive the vaccine. The Union government had earlier decided that healthcare workers will be prioritised over politicians for the vaccination programme. The following is a list of people, who will undergo vaccination today, as per Hindustan Times.

Vaccination drive in Gujarat

The State governments have zeroed in on individuals who would be the first to receive the first dose Coronavirus vaccine. As per reports, a total of over 16000 healthcare workers would be inoculated during the massive drive. On Saturday, 46-year-old Dr J V Modi and 58-year-old Dr Niyati Lakhani will be among the first to be vaccinated in the State of Gujarat. Dr JV Modi is the medical superintendent of Ahmedabad civil hospital while Lakhani is the superintendent of Gandhinagar civil hospital.

Roll-out of the vaccination programme in Rajasthan

Similarly, Sudhir Bhandari, the principal of Sawai Man Singh Medical College will be the first individual to be vaccinated with Covishield vaccine in the State of Rajasthan. “I have no inhibition in taking the vaccine as it is scientific and like any other flu shot. I am very comfortable,” he opined.

Inoculation drive in Chhattisgarh, Delhi

Reportedly, sanitation worker Tulsa Tandi (53) will be the first to be administered the vaccine in Chhattisgarh. In the National Capital of Delhi, three people, including a nurse, sanitation worker and a doctor will receive the Coronavirus vaccine shots at LNJP hospital, in the presence of CM Arvind Kejriwal.

First Parliamentarian to get Coronavirus vaccine in Noida

Dr Mahesh Sharma, former Minister of State for Environment and sitting Parliamentarian will become the first MP to be administered the vaccine at Kailash Hospital in Noida. He will receive inoculated around 11 am on Saturday morning.

Padma Shree awardee among doctors vaccinated in Assam

In Assam, State Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma informed that 12 doctors would be administered the first dosage for Coronavirus vaccine. The list includes ex-VC of Srimanta Sankardeva University of Health Sciences, Dr Umesh Chandra Sarma, Padma Shri award winner Dr Ilias Ali, Sahitya Akademi awardee Dr Dhrubajyoti Borah, GMC principal Dr Achyut Baishya and GMCH superintendent Dr Abhijeet Sharma.

Sanitation workers vaccinated in Goa

At the same time, sanitation workers, who work in Coronavirus wards at Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) will be among those who will be given the vaccine shot today. Highlighting that the beneficiaries might decline to take the vaccine, a hospital official conceded, “Someone can refuse to take the vaccine, so we don’t know who will be actually the first person to get the vaccine.”

Coronavirus vaccine programme in Pune

While speaking about the development, Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol emphasised, “The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) will start the vaccine drive in the city at Kamla Nehru hospital at around 10 am. The first beneficiary will be administered the dose only after the Prime Minister officially launches the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination drive.”

In Pune, the drive will be carried out at 8 centres, namely, Ruby Hall Clinic, Kamla Nehru hospital, Rajiv Gandhi hospital, Jayabai Nanasaheb Surat maternity home, Sassoon General Hospital, Noble Hospital, Deenanath Mangeshkar hospital and Bharati hospital. Reportedly, a total of 100 workers will be vaccinated at each centre. It must be mentioned that the beneficiaries can refuse to get vaccinated.

As per data, PMC has received 48000 doses for 220000 people and is likely to receive more in the coming days. About 55000 healthcare workers, including 115000 serving in the public sector, have registered for the vaccination on the CoWIN app.

Who has been kept out of the Coronavirus vaccine drive?

Yesterday, the Centre came up with new safety regulations saying Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin vaccine would not be administered to people below 18 years of age. According to the reports, a letter from the office of additional secretary at the union health ministry carrying a comparative factsheet for the two approved vaccines under emergency authorisation rules revealed that the government has “not recommended” their authorisation to people below 18 years of age.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry on Thursday said that interchangeability of COVID-19 vaccines will not be permitted and the second dose of the vaccine inoculated should be the same vaccine injected as the first dose.

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