Home Blog Page 4822

Kanpur Grooming Jihad: Woman trapped by ‘Sahil’ using fake Hindu identity, forced to eat beef and have sex with Maulvi

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Kanpur Grooming Jihad: Woman trapped by ‘Sahil’ using fake Hindu identity, forced to eat beef and have sex with Maulvi

Among the several cases of Grooming Jihad and subsequent cases of forced conversions and harassment of Hindu girls that have been reported in Kanpur, one victim has narrated her story in harrowing details. As per a report in Zee News, the girl, one of the many victims of Grooming Jihad in Kanpur, has stated that a man named Sahil had met her 2 years ago pretending to be ‘Sachin Sharma’.

The girl has narrated further that Sahil alias Sachin Sharma used to apply Chandan paste and wear a Kalawa to falsely pretend that he is Hindu. He used to even take the girl to temples. After winning her trust, Sahil had allegedly convinced the girl to come with him away to Noida. As per the Zee News story, in Noida, when the girl came to know about Sahil’s real identity, he had forced her to consume meat and even beef, telling her that she is no longer a Hindu.

Eventually, Sahil became more assertive and later forcefully converted her. Her name was changed to ‘Zoya’. Later Sahil allegedly started forcing her to ‘provide pleasure’ to one Maulvi. As per the girl’s story, she was repeatedly sent to the Maulvi to be sexually exploited. When she got pregnant, Sahil’s family allegedly started pressurising her to abort.

The girl has added that they performed an illegal sex-determination test on her foetus and when they came to know that she was carrying a girl, they decided to ‘keep’ the child, saying that she can be ‘used’ in the future.

The threat of violence and murder

The victim has further narrated that she was unable to seek help from her family members as they were unhappy with her relationship with Sahil and she had gone with him against their wishes. The victim has stated that the only help she got was from her grandmother in Kanpur. Gathering courage, she left Sahil and started living with her grandmother in Kanpur.

Later, Sahil allegedly came to Kanpur and started threatening the victim, saying that if she doesn’t do whatever he commands, he would have her newborn girl murdered, kill her too or make her intimate videos viral. Scared by his threats, the victim started living with Sahil’s family in Kanpur. Sahil went back to Noida.

Later, Sahil’s family also started torturing the victim. They started forcing her to formally change her religion. Fed up with the torture, the victim again escaped from their house. One day, Sahil talked to her and convinced her to meet him outside. When she reached there, he attacked her with a knife. However, the victim was saved when bystanders intervened. She was taken to a hospital for treatment. She later registered an FIR against Sahil.

UP govt’s law against forced conversion under pretext of marriage

The increasing number of cases where non-Muslim girls are being targeted and trapped under false identities and are later being forced into religious conversions, torture and sexual exploitation, has forced the government of UP to pass an ordinance named The bill is titled Uttar Pradesh Vidhi Virudhh Dharm Samparivartan Pratisdhedh Adhyadesh, 2020 or UP Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance- 2020.

As Mamata Banerjee continues tirade against BJP, key leaders start abandoning her ahead of crucial 2021 assembly elections: Details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
As Mamata Banerjee continues tirade against BJP, key leaders start abandoning her ahead of crucial 2021 assembly elections: Details

Ahead of the upcoming State Assembly elections, the ruling Trinamool Congress has been caught up in a state of political turmoil. While party supremo Mamata Banerjee have been up-in-arms against the BJP, several TMC leaders are now deserting the party.

In the latest development, TMC MLA Mihir Goswami, from Coochbehar Dakshin, has resigned from the party on Thursday evening and speculations are now rife about him joining the BJP. Goswami had earlier met BJP MP Nitish Pramanik in October, after conceding that he had to ‘digest insults’ on several occasions. He remained a TMC loyalist until now, owing to his allegiance to Mamata Banerjee.

In a Facebook post, Mihir Goswami recounted that he wrote, “Those who felt my decision was justified, let me tell them I had been neglected in the past ten years within my party. There was no perceptible change even after I took up the matter with my supreme leader. After crossing all tolerance levels, I am of the view that the present TMC is not the same party I had joined two decades back.” Goswami had also informed about being exempted from all organisational duties on October 3, this year and was often neglected and insulted within the party.

Reportedly, Mamata Banerjee had sent senior leader Rabindranath Ghosh to convince Goswami, however, all attempts at reconciliation had failed. It is said that several other leaders are also in talks with both the BJP and the Congress and may switch parties ahead of the elections. As per reports, party leaders are miffed at the growing influence of Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee in the party.

Influential TMC leader Suvendu Adhikari hints at his exit

On Thursday, TMC leader Suvendu Adhikari resigned from his position as the Chairman of the Hooghly River Bridge Commission. Adhikari, who holds influence in over 35 constituencies and the former Minister for Transport, Irrigation and water resources, has been replaced by TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee. Ever since his resignation from the Transport Department, rumours are rife about his exit from the party.

Reportedly, Suvendu Adhikari has been skipping key cabinet meeting and holding rallies, not under the flag of Trinamool Congress or the posters of party supremo. Mamata Banerjee had sent election strategist Prashant Kishor to Adhikari’s residence but he had refused to meet him. A desperate attempt was also made to pacify Adhikari through senior party leader Sougata Roy but the talks have remained ‘inconclusive.’ While speaking on the development, a TMC source conceded, “The Adhikari family always decides as a family.”

Mamata Banerjee resorts to damage control

With a growing discontentment within the party, Mamata Banerjee is now trying to win over the estranged TMC leaders. “The TMC will rectify if some mistakes have been committed. There can be misunderstanding or someone may be angry with some individuals, but please don’t misunderstand the party for that. Some have grievances over who will act as the party observer of which district. I want to make it clear that I am the party’s observer for the entire state.”

She further stated, “When you are in a political party you need to take everybody along. I am occupied with administrative work. But from now on, I will look after both – the party and the government. If someone thinks that Didi is not aware of their activities, then they are wrong. I am aware of everything. I want to say it clearly that I am very well aware of the intentions of those who are keeping in touch with the opposition camp.”

Trinamool Congress uses ‘outsider’ card against the BJP

With the Trinamool Congress on the backfoot, the party has now resorted to using the ‘outsider’ card against the BJP. The party had earlier accused the so-called ‘outsiders’ of trying to occupy West Bengal. Reiterating the ‘outsider’ fallacy, Mamata Banerjee claimed on Thursday that BJP represented the outsiders and had no place in the State.

“There is no place for outsiders in Bengal. I welcome those who have made Bengal their home…. But those who come to the state only during elections and try to disturb the peace of the State are not at all welcome…Bengal is the land of Rabindranath and Nazrul Islam; it is not a land of communal riots like Gujarat,” Mamata Banerjee had remarked. She had also attacked Union Home Minister Amit Shah and said that she had never seen a Home Minister like him, supposedly busy with elections amidst escalating border tensions.

Yogendra Yadav is not a farmer leader: Here is why urban Indians should reject this hollow emotional blackmail

Abhishek Banerjee
-
0
Yogendra Yadav is not a farmer leader: Here is why urban Indians should reject this hollow emotional blackmail

This is primetime news from yesterday, hosted by Rajdeep Sardesai. On one side of the debate is a representative of the BJP. On the other side of the debate on farmer protests, is Yogendra Yadav, the president of Swaraj India. The banner reads “Gold standard of journalism” as they discuss the ‘farmer protest’ in Punjab.

The Prime Time debate on India Today, hosted by Rajdeep Sardesai on the farmer protest

At one point, Mr. Yogendra Yadav said, “I, on behalf of all the farmers of this country…“

And that, in a nutshell, is all you need to know about the media circus around so called “farmers protests” yesterday. By the way, I am also pointing a finger at the BJP for validating this, by humoring the president of Swaraj India, whatever that is.

Now you may ask: what if a representative of the world’s largest party is willing to debate what appears to be the world’s smallest party? Should we not respect every voice, big or small? But then, the question is, why only Yogendra Yadav? Why the same Yogendra Yadav on every issue from Bihar election to Delhi riots to agriculture in Punjab? This is not a show of respect for every voice. This is about one person being showered with the privilege of being heard on every forum and on every issue. All because he has friends in the media.

Yogendra Yadav as the face of “farmers” protest is not a show of our democratic values. It is a show of privilege. It is an insult to the democratic spirit.

If you want to understand how made up the so-called “farmers” protest is, consider the numbers. In India, over 50% of the population depends on agriculture. That is 60 crore people. According to “activists,” these 60 crore people are in danger of losing their livelihood due to the new farm laws. And in the 3 months since these 60 crore people have been supposedly protesting, they have managed half a day of “Bharat Bandh” in some parts of Punjab and managed to fill one tiny bridge on Punjab-Haryana border yesterday.

Farmer protest in Punjab (scpeengrab from NDTV coverage)

Apparently, a few dozen jawans of Haryana Police have managed to hold off an agitation that comprises 60 crore people. If 60 crore people in this country were angry, which police force could stop them? Which road or bridge would they block? Would the country stay on track for even one second, let alone three months?

But, according to media, “farmers” are protesting. You just didn’t notice 60 crore people protesting because Haryana Police has been stopping them by putting barricades on one bridge somewhere.

This can’t be. Nobody can hide protests that big.

So let us turn the tables against this media circus. For one, let us stop calling them “farmer protest.” Here is the famous farmer’s march from 2018 that took social media by storm, pictured here in The Hindu.

Farmers march of 2018

Come on here. We have eyes. That’s not a “farmers march.” That’s a bunch of people walking with CPIM flags. If they were marching with BJP flags, we would call it a BJP protest. But for some strange reason, when they march with a Communist banner like that of All India Kisan Sabha, we call it a “farmers march.” When the CPIM women’s wing protests, it is called a “women’s protest.” When the left wing AISA is on the streets, the media calls it “student protests.” If ABVP does the same, it is however called an “ABVP protest.”

How long are we going to let the media get away with this privilege reserved only for Communists and well connected far left elites like Yogendra Yadav? When will we stop pretending that they represent general groups of people (farmers, students or women), instead of just a handful of their comrades? And in the case of Yogendra Yadav, just himself.

Put yourself in the shoes of a farmer and think clearly. Would you really choose Yogendra Yadav as your leader?

The media focus on a few hundred protesters on a tiny bridge and Yogendra Yadav as the face of the supposed agitation shows that this is a mere circus. They are not raising any real issues, this is just to get your blood pressure and their TRPs up. By taking the whole thing seriously, you are not doing farmers a favor. You are in fact insulting them.

In India, someone or the other is always angry. A few hundred protesters are always blocking a bridge somewhere. Yes, they have a right to be heard and they will be. Whatever settlement they reach with the government will in turn make another group of 500 people angry. And they will go block another bridge somewhere.

Grooming Jihad: Family of Hindu girl accuses Mushtaq Malik and family of kidnapping, police says no ‘love jihad’ angle in the case

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Grooming Jihad: Family of Hindu girl accuses Mushtaq Malik and family of kidnapping, police says no ‘love jihad’ angle in the case

In another alleged case of ‘Grooming Jihad’, a 21-year-old Hindu girl has been allegedly kidnapped by Muslim youths from her house in Syana, Bulandshahr district of Uttar Pradesh. 

According to the complaint, the parents of the girl have alleged that their daughter has been kidnapped by a neighbouring Muslim family and they fear for her life.

In the complaint, the father alleged that two Muslim girls had visited their house on the morning of November 24 to speak to her daughter. Later, the two girls – Hina and Laiba, had asked the girl to come with them and she went. As the girl did not return home in the evening, they enquired about the whereabouts of their daughter.

The parents stated that one Rakesh Kumar, a friend of the family, informed them that the girl was seen in a white car with Faizal, Sonu and Irshad. The car was seen going outside the city. All three men named, along with the girls Heena and Laiba, are the children of one Mushtaq Malik.

Alleging ‘Grooming Jihad’ or ‘Love Jihad’, the father of the victim in the complaint said that Faizal, Sonu and Irshad have taken his daughter and the girl’s life is in danger. He added that all three accused have a criminal background.

Police denies ‘Grooming Jihad’ angle

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh police have denied any forceful abduction or ‘Grooming Jihad’ angle by claiming that the Hindu girl was in a relationship with her Muslim neighbour.

SSP Santosh Kumar Singh said that the girl had a love affair with one of the accused youth. Denying any love jihad angle, he added that the girl has run away with her boyfriend.

On the basis of the complaint of the family members, the police have registered an FIR against Faizal, Sonu, Irshad, Heena, Laiba and Mushtaq Malik for allegedly aiding to kidnap the girl. A case has been registered under IPC under sections 120 and 366. The police have been questioning several people in connection with the case. The police officer stated that some members of the family have been detained based on the FIR.

It is unclear as to why the police have taken some members of the family into custody after claiming that there is no love jihad angle in the case. It is possible that the investigation is on and the police do not want to comment until further facts emerge.

UP government’s law against ‘Love Jihad’

In view of the rising cases of love jihad, the Uttar Pradesh government is planning to enact a law to deal with such cases and prevent the forceful conversion in the pretext of marriage. On November 24, the state government passed an ordinance to restrict forced conversion in the name of marriage or relationships under deceit or coercion.

The bill is titled Uttar Pradesh Vidhi Virudhh Dharm Samparivartan Pratisdhedh Adhyadesh, 2020 or UP Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance- 2020. The provides for 1-5 years of imprisonment and a fine up to 15,000 on conviction. Earlier, the Home Department of the Uttar Pradesh government had forwarded a proposal regarding the same to the Department of Law of the state.

Delhi anti-Hindu riots: Delhi police follows UP’s lead, releases poster of 20 accused Islamists, announces reward for information

Dibakar Dutta
-
0
Delhi anti-Hindu riots: Delhi police follows UP’s lead, releases poster of 20 accused Islamists, announces reward for information

In a new development, the Delhi police have released the pictures of the 20 most wanted criminals, involved in arson and rioting in the Chand Bagh area of Delhi in February this year. Releasing the poster of wanted Islamists in the Delhi anti-Hindu riots, the police have said that the identity of those who come forward with information would not be revealed.

20 criminals whose information the Delhi Police wants in connection with Delhi anti-Hindu Riots 2020
20 criminals whose information the Delhi Police wants

As per reports, the police have also announced a reward for information on the whereabouts of the accused. The cops will also put up posters of the rioters in public places, similar to that of Uttar Pradesh police. During the Delhi riots, head constable Ratan Lal was lynched to death by a violent Islamist mob while he was trying to on his duty on main Wazirabad Road in Chand Bagh.

From the 24th of February to the 25th of February, Delhi burnt with perhaps one of the worst anti-Hindu riots that the country has seen in recent times. One of the main protagonists of the sinister ploy was Tahir Hussain, the AAP leader who spearheaded the Delhi riots in which IB staffer Ankit Sharma was murdered brutally by a mob and several Hindu properties were burnt to ashes.

The involvement of Umar Khalid has also come to the fore. Khalid, who is now in Police custody, is accused of planning the riots remotely.

Ratan Lal’s murder was a part of a wider conspiracy to trigger communal riots in Delhi

It was reported at the time that the police had essentially gone to speak to the mob, pacify them and ask them not to continue with their illegal march, and it was then that they were attacked.

During the perusal of the charge sheet, OpIndia noticed that several witnesses who were examined by the authorities attested to the fact that before Ratan Lal was lynched to death by the Islamist mob, two other police officer was held hostage by the mob. Last month, a Delhi court on Thursday dismissed the interim bail pleas of two accused persons, Mohamad Ayyub and Saleem Khan involved in the murder 

UP government leads the way

The Uttar Pradesh Police under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has re-enforced a crackdown on rioters who indulged in rampant violence in the state under the garb of protests under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and have again put up posters with names and photographs and details of the rioters.

The recent posters have the pictures and addresses of eight rioters who were booked under the UP Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986 and have been declared absconders. One of the ‘accused’ is Shia cleric Maulana Saif Abbas. The eight are Mohammad Alam, Mohammad Tahir, Rizwan, Rafat Ali, Ahsan, Irshad, Hasan and Irshad. The Uttar Pradesh government has also announced a cash reward of Rs 5000 for anyone who provides information about the absconding rioters. 

Karan Johar apologises to Madhur Bhandarkar for tweaking his title without permission, Bhandarkar calls Johar’s act morally and ethically wrong

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Karan Johar apologises to Madhur Bhandarkar for tweaking his title without permission, Bhandarkar calls Johar’s act morally and ethically wrong

After being accused by filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar of tweaking a title owned by him and using it for the upcoming web series of Dharma Productions titled ‘The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives’, filmmaker Karan Johar apologised to Bhandarkar today through an open letter that he posted on Twitter. In his open letter, Johar said, “I humbly apologise for any grievance that has been caused to you during the course of last few weeks”, after mentioning he was an ardent admirer of Bhandarkar’s work.

Johar claimed that the said title was chosen by him keeping in mind the format of his series and that it was distinct from Bhandarkar’s title. He said that he did not foresee that the title would upset Bhandarkar but since it had, he apologised for it. Johar assured him that the format, nature, audience and title of his series would not dent or encumber Bhandarkar’s work in any way. Although Johar apologised to Bhandarkar, he indicated that he is going ahead with the title for the series, and not changing it.

Bhandarkar’s response to Johar’s apology

Giving a stingy response to Johar’s apology on Twitter, Madhur Bhandarkar said that it did not make sense to call the industry a ‘fraternity’ when norms were flouted by those who established them. “When we blatantly disregard norms that we ourselves have established, then it makes very little sense calling ourselves a fraternity”, he said. Bhandarkar reminded Johar that he had allowed him to use his title ‘Gutka’ in 2013 after Karan Johar had requested for the same.

Bhandarkar said that he expected the same courtesy in return from Johar after he said no this time as he had registered the title. He added that he was deeply upset with Johar for going ahead with his title despite his declination. However, he accepted Johar’s apology and wished him well for his future endeavours, saying that he is leaving the matter now.

Bhandarkar had tweeted on November 20, 2020 that Karan Johar and Apoorva Mehta, CEO and Producer at Dharma Productions, had tweaked his title ‘Bollywood Wives’ to ‘The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives’ and that it was morally and ethically wrong on Johar’s part. He requested Johar not to dent his work and change the title.

On November 23, Bhandarkar had shared on Twitter a letter written by Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) to Film Guild of India and the latter’s email response to the former. In the letter written by the IMPPA to the Film Guild of India, it had asked whether Dharma Productions were given the title ‘Bollywood Wives’. The Film Guild of India responded in negative, saying that the said title was not registered in the favour of Dharma Productions.

Bhandarkar shared a number of notices on Twitter today including the IMPPA letter addressed to the Film Guild of India. He said that since November 19, two notices from the IMPPA, one notice from the Indian Film and Television Directors’ Association (IFTDA) and two notices from the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) had been sent to Dharma Productions regarding the misuse and tweaking of the said title. But Dharma Productions has not officially responded to any of the notices.

Johar’s web series ‘The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives’ is set to be released on Netflix on Friday featuring Neelam Kothari, Maheep Kapoor, Bhavna Pandey and Seema Khan. It is a reality show that revolves around the lives of these women, who are the wives of Bollywood actors Samir Soni, Sanjay Kapoor, Chunky Pandey and Sohail Khan respectively. It will also feature Shah Rukh Khan and his wife Gauri Khan as guests. The series has been compared to both Keeping Up With The Kardashian and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills due to its format. 

Last month, Johar’s production house had received show-cause notices for dumping garbage and bio-medical waste during a film shoot. Johar’s aides Kshitij Prasad and Abhinav Chopra are under the scanner of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) as part of the ongoing drug investigation.

District court in UP sentences one Sadab Alam to 20-years imprisonment for kidnapping and raping a minor girl

OpIndia Staff
-
0
District court in UP sentences one Sadab Alam to 20-years imprisonment for kidnapping and raping a minor girl

Gautam Buddha Nagar District court granted 20-year imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25 thousand to the convict in a case of grooming jihad. The convict is currently in jail. According to Jagran, the incident happened in 2015, after which a case was filed by the father of the victim at sector 49 police station. The father who was from Bihar had accused one Sadab Alam of eloping with his minor girl who studied in 10th class at that time. The convict is a resident of West Bengal.

After the father’s complaint, the police started investigating the case. The minor girl was rescued by the police from West Bengal. In her statement given before the court, she said that the accused had raped her. Relevant provisions of law were invoked after the statement of the victim and the case was proceeded in the court.

According to the report, on many occasions during the trial of the case, the witnesses were pressurised not to testify before the court. However, the police presented a strong case and did not allow the witnesses to turn hostile. After examining all the witnesses and the evidence, the court held Alam guilty and ordered imprisonment.

Yogi government planning to bring law against Love Jihad

In view of the rising cases of love jihad, the Uttar Pradesh government is planning to enact a law to deal with such cases and prevent forceful conversion of Hindu women in the pretext of marriage. On November 24, the state government passed an ordinance against forced conversions. The bill on Unlawful Conversion has been named Vidhi Virudh Dharmantaran 2020. The provides for 1-5 years of imprisonment and a fine up to 15,000 on conviction. Earlier, the Home Department of the Uttar Pradesh government had forwarded a proposal regarding the same to the Department of Law of the state

“Wikipedia has become a huge moral hazard”: Co-founder Larry Sanger accuses the website of turning into a ‘monocultural establishment organ of propaganda’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
“Wikipedia has become a huge moral hazard”: Co-founder Larry Sanger accuses the website of turning into a ‘monocultural establishment organ of propaganda’

Larry Sanger, the co-founder of Wikipedia who has many a time in the past gone on the record to talk about the bias of the online encyclopaedia, has in a recent interview with Tanujay Saha, a PhD candidate at Princeton University, spoke on how Wikipedia has become a “huge moral hazard”.

The co-founder of the online encyclopedia, who is no longer involved with Wikipedia, said that the website had started to take part in centralization of the internet. Its articles claimed to have a neutral point of view. However, contrary to the claims, the articles published on Wikipedia have a definite point of view. He claimed that Tech giants have started to take control over the discourse and started acting as the editorial controllers instead of being neutral carriers of information, making decentralization of the internet important.

Wikipedia has become a huge moral hazard. It is amongst the top 10 websites run by anonymous people with no accountability. They have become extremely opinionated and partisan. The anonymous people can easily be corrupted by governments, organisations and criminal enterprises, opined Sanger.

He further added that Wikipedia justifies its neutrality requirement by saying that each article or other page in the mainspace fairly represents all significant viewpoints that have been published by credible sources but Sanger said that the range of credible sources is becoming narrower each day.

Wikipedia has started taking cues from media leaders, Sanger opined, adding that the internet communities tend to be internally conservative and repel any opposition which causes a huge polarization, which in turn causes an informational bias. The academia, he said has become much more leftist, especially in the field of humanity and social sciences. For this reason, when they write on topics outside their expertise, the writings become dogmatic.

Wikipedia discourages primary sources as they need interpretation and wants the authors to use secondary sources which tend to summarize the information in a way that is more credible. Hence, instead of being a broad and open-minded platform, it is turning into a monocultural establishment organ of propaganda, said the co-founder.

Larry Sanger informed that he is launching Encyclosphere, a global network of encyclopedias, which will be setting the standards for encyclopedia articles. The masterclass starts in January 2021 which would focus mainly on how and why launching decentralized networks have become important. Speaking on how, through his initiative, he was attempting to build a totally decentralized network which would provide everyone with an equal voice in expressing knowledge and in rating those expressions of knowledge, Larry Sanger appealed the viewers to join his initiative at encyclosphere.org

Larry Sanger’s interview with Tanujay Saha can be viewed here.

Larry Sanger explains the leftist bias of the online encyclopedia

It is pertinent to note here that after OpIndia’s extensive coverage of the inherent bias of the platform, we also interviewed the co-founder of Wikipedia, who explained in detail why the platform is a cause lost to Left’s propaganda. He had gone on the record to talk about the bias of the online encyclopedia. Sanger had written that it has long forgotten its original policy of aiming to present information from a neutral point of view, and nowadays the crowd-sourced online encyclopedia “can be counted on” to cover politics with a “liberal point of view”.

The co-founder reveals Wikipedia’s foray into child pornography

For the uninitiated, it was none other than Larry Sanger who had also made an appalling revelation about Wikipedia’s foray into child pornography. Sanger had sent a letter to the FBI, the United States’ premier investigative agency, requesting them to probe into the organisation’s violation of federal obscenity laws. He highlighted two Wikimedia Commons categories that he believed had breached the country’s obscenity laws. 

Uttar Pradesh ranks number one in providing jobs to migrant workers by generating 10 crore person-days under Gareeb Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyan

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Uttar Pradesh ranks number one in providing jobs to migrant workers by generating 10 crore person-days under Gareeb Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyan

Covid-19 forced the nation to face lockdown to control the spread of novel coronavirus. Everyone was stuck where they were. The lockdown was expected to end in a couple of weeks, but it had to be extended to control the virus from infecting masses. Among those who were affected the most by the lockdown were the migrant workers and daily wagers.

Understanding their pain and need for urgent employment, the Government of India announced a 125-day employment program named Gareeb Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyan. The program was commenced on June 20, 2020. The government is planning to use the program as the base to provide employment to migrant workers beyond 125 days and explore possibilities of expanding it in all states.

Uttar Pradesh’s star performance under GKRA

Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has done exceptionally good work under GKRA. The implementation of the program started on June 21. So far, the government has spent 9,329.57 Crores on the project and generated 10,58,17,358 Person-days. In September 2020, the UP government bagged eight awards for the programs launched under the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti. The state also secured the second rank in the overall implementation of the Gandagi Mukt Bharat scheme. The state was ranked number one in providing jobs to migrant workers.

Completed and ongoing projects in UP under GKRA (Images: GKRA)

About Gareeb Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyan

In his address on May 31, 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the government is planning to launch a program for migrant workers. The program was established for six states, namely Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, and Rajasthan, where the number of migrant workers was more than anticipated. One hundred sixteen districts in these six states saw a significant boost in employment under the project. The Central Government allotted a total of 50,000 crores for the project.

Twelve ministries and 25 work and activities

A total of twelve ministries are providing employment and support for the project. These ministries are Department of Rural Development, Department of Drinking water and sanitation, Ministry of Road Transport and Highway, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Department of Telecommunication, Department of New and Renewable Energy, Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Mines, Department of Agricultural Research and Education, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Ministry of Petroleum and Ministry of Defence.

Completed and ongoing projects in UP under GKRA (Images: GKRA)

The employment is provided in 25 categories that are Community Sanitary Complex, Gram Panchayat Bhawan, Works under Finance Commission funds, National Highway works, Water conservation & Harvesting works, Construction of Wells, Plantation (including through CAMPA Funds), Horticulture, Anganwadi Centers, Rural Housing(PMAY–Gramin), Rural connectivity (PMGSY) & Border road works, Railway works, Laying of Fiber Optic Cable under Bharat Net, Works under Jal Jeevan Mission, Farm ponds, Cattle sheds, Goat Sheds, Poultry sheds, and several others.

Completed and ongoing projects in UP under GKRA (Images: GKRA)

Under GKRA, the government is not only providing jobs but also providing training to the workers based on their skills and choice of work. The government is helping the workers to find employment in their native place so that they do not have to leave their homes for work. So far, the government has spent Rs.39,292.81 crore and generated 50,78,68,671 person-hours in all six states.

‘Professor’ Ashok Swain, known for his anti-India rhetoric and Hinduphobia, deactivates his Twitter account saying he needed a break

OpIndia Staff
-
0
‘Professor’ Ashok Swain, known for his anti-India rhetoric and Hinduphobia, deactivates his Twitter account saying he needed a break

Twitter user Ashok Swain, who is apparently a Professor at Uppsala University in Sweden, has reportedly deactivated his Twitter account. Swain whose tweets find acceptance in Pakistani media was quite popular among the Indian liberal cabal. There were speculations that Swain’s account was deleted by Twitter until Swain clarified that he deactivated his Twitter account himself. According to Clarion India, Swain said that he needed a break from the social media platform as he had been receiving abuses and threats to him and his family.

Swain a favourite of woke liberals

There are several traits of Swain that make him a favourite of Indian woke liberal. These include spreading fake news, undermining national interest and of course Hindu bashing.

Swain’s anti-India rhetoric sells well in Pakistan. His tweets in which he claimed that the NDA government was triggering conflict between India and Pakistan to gain electoral points were picked up by Pakistani media for absolving Pakistan of the ghastly terrorist attack in Pulwama. Swain had also accused the Vajpayee government of ‘setting up’ the Kargil war. Interestingly, a Pakistani Minister had recently admitted in the National Assembly that the Pulwama attack was carried out by Pakistan.

Swain’s Hindu hatred

Swain was seen spreading fake news about a Muslim boy alleging that he was set on fire by “Hindutva beasts” for not chanting Jai Shri Ram, despite the police clarifying that it was a fake news. The boy had reportedly set himself on fire but the Swain saw it an opportunity to vomit out his Hindu hatred. He was asked by police to retweet the correct news but neither did he apologise for spreading fake news that could trigger communal tension nor did he delete his tweets.

Swain wanted ‘Muslim Lives Matter’ protests in India

Following the violent riots in the United States in the name of social justice earlier this year, Swain tweeted calling “similar type of mobilisation” in India for supposed extra-judicial killings of Muslims in the country. Swain said that the kind of protests that were being witnessed in the United States and Canada regarding ‘Black Lives Matter’ needed to be replicated in India in the name of ‘Muslim Lives Matter’.

1...4,8214,8224,823...7,648Page 4,822 of 7,648