After making startling revelations in an interview given to Bollywood Hungama in September 2020, in which Aamir Khan’s long-forgotten brother Faisal Khan claimed that his family had forcibly administered him wrong medications and forcibly kept him under house arrest for more than a year, he has given another interview in which he expressed his desire to come out of his superstar brother’ shadow.
In an interview with the Times of India that was published on October 22, 2020, Faisal Khan spoke on an array of issues, particularly about his directorial debut and his need to break out of Aamir Khan’s shadow.
‘Want people to recognise Aamir as my brother, not the other way around’: Faisal Khan
Responding to the question of whether he had received any help from Aamir Khan for his directorial venture, the Mela actor denied receiving any assistance from his brother. He said that Aamir has not even read the script that he is working on and he doesn’t need anyone’s help owing to his extensive experience as an actor and as an assistant to the directors. He added that he has come through a process and climbed his way up from being a third assistant to the director to being the first assistance.
Faisal also added that he wanted to helm a project that he could call as his own and be responsible for its success or failure. Khan said that he wants people to recognise Aamir Khan as Faisal Khan’s brother and not the other way around, and for this, he will have to break out of his superstar brother’s shadow and make his own decisions.
“I didn’t let anyone take the decisions, ultimately, as a director, you’re supposed to take your own decisions. Also, how does one form one’s own identity? I have had my own struggles. How does one break out of that? How does Faisal Khan ever break out of Aamir Khan’s shadow? Why doesn’t one write it as Faisal Khan’s brother Aamir? The whole system needs a big change,” Khan replied when asked if he had received any help from Aamir Khan on his directorial venture.
False allegations of mental illness destroyed my acting prospects: Khan
The former actor also opened up about how his career took a hit because of false allegations of him being mentally ill and depressed. The false notions of his mental illness had dried up work for him as an actor and people in the industry were scared to work with him, owing to the rumours about his mental capacities. Recounting the hard times, Khan said he was actively seeking opportunities in the field of acting but people were simply not ready to meet him. It is at this time, he switched his career from acting to directing, Khan said.
“I realised that it won’t be easy to get into direction, it will be an equally difficult task. However, it turned out fine for me. Now that I have directed a film, I don’t need anyone’s approval for my mental state. They are entitled to think what they want, the world can think what they want, it doesn’t affect me one bit. My work will speak for itself and that’s what matters,” Khan said.
Khan was illegally administered drugs and confined by his family
Earlier in September 2020, in an explosive interview with Bollywood Hungama, Khan had rejected the talks around his depression and mental illness as a lie. “I was never depressed or had paranoid schizophrenia”, he said. However, he made some serious allegations against his family.
“When my family was under the assumption that I am depressed, I have paranoid schizophrenia, they kept me under house arrest for one year. They gave me forceful medication which is not right and it’s illegal”, he revealed. “I was quietly tolerating it all hoping that they will finally understand,” he added.
Faisal Khan had said that he had to run away from his house after his family asked him to give up his signatory rights because they thought he was not normal. This was followed by a court case. Khan has further stated that there was a legal battle over his mental fitness and he was deemed normal after an evaluation by JJ Hospital.
However, quite contrary to what Faisal Khan maintains about his mental health, a statement was given by Aamir Khan in 2007 where he said that his brother was declared mentally ill by the doctors of J J Hospital. He had also told that he had even applied for his brother’s custody but the court granted it to their father.
The TRP scam, which is being investigated by the Mumbai Police seems to have more twists and turns than a Bollywood thriller. While the Hansa Research Report and the FIR based on it named India Today, the Mumbai Police Commissioner, Parambir Singh, held a press conference less than 48 hours after the FIR was registered and named Republic TV in the TRP scam instead. Since then, the saga of harassment of Republic TV journalists and officials have continued unabated.
Interestingly, while the Hansa Research Report and the FIR based on it named India Today and subsequently, a witness, while talking to the media also named India Today, inexplicably, in front of the magistrate, the witness changed tunes and named Republic TV, as was reported by the Times of India. It was suspected that the change in the statement could be coerced, however, there was no evidence to prove that theory.
In a development that gives yet another twist to the saga, now, a conversation has come to light where a witness, in whose home a bar-o-meter is installed, is admitting to his neighbour that he is being coerced to name Republic TV and India Today in his statement.
This recorded conversation was sent through credible sources to OpIndia. The recorded conversation, which is between Person A (Person in whose home a bar-o-meter is installed) and his neighbour, makes it evident that Person A was scared for his security and his family’s safety after being allegedly coerced by the Mumbai Police.
In the conversation, Person A tells his neighbour that at 3:30 AM, the police barged into his house. He says that they have arrested someone and an enquiry is underway about this machine (bar-o-meter). His family was further asked how much money they get, who gave them the money and in whose account was the money being received. He alleges that the arrested person was also with the 10-12 policemen who had barged into the house. On being enquired, the arrested person says that he had paid this family Rs 500 in cash and Rs 200 in the account. He also says that the police had taken all his details, like his address, phone number, account details etc. The person arrested is one Umesh, who is reportedly connected to Person A.
At this point, his neighbour advices him to lie and say that he watches none of the channels and gets only Rs 250 as rent. Person A, however, refuses to lie and says that the arrested individual has already said that they receive money, and now, it makes no sense to lie to the police.
Here is where the conversation becomes interesting.
Person B (the neighbour), asks Person A (the concerned person with the bar-o-meter installed) whether the police asked them what channel they watch.
Person A sounds nervous, clearing his throat, he says that they were told that there is a scheme of -channel name redacted- and ‘it’s their system’. Person A was enrolled in this ‘scheme’ and that was the reason they were getting ‘all the facilities’. He then says that his younger son was there and he said that they were told that -channel name redacted- has a ‘scheme’ and they would provide ‘facility to customers’.
The police then allegedly tells Person A’s family that “this has got nothing to do with -channel name redacted- but India Today and Republic Bharat”. Person A then says that his son told the police that they do not watch either India Today or Republic Bharat, but just watch -channel name redacted- when his father is at home.
Thereafter, Person A then says that the police had already written Republic Bharat in their papers (It is unclear what papers Person A was talking about, but presumably, he was talking about the witness statement).
The neighbour at this point says that the police is doing this to “trap them” (presumably meaning Republic TV). Person A at this point gets even more nervous and says that the police will also implicate him in false allegations. He says that the police will stand in front of his door and then, the rest of the building residents will say what is the “lafda” that he is involved in.
It becomes clear that Person A was not home when the police had barged into their house. He tells the neighbour that his wife told them that 10-12 policemen had barged into their home to question them. The neighbour at this point tells Person A that even if there were 20 policemen, they should tell them categorically that Republic Bharat does not give them money. Further, the neighbour tells him to say that Maharashtra government is against Republic and is trying to find something against them, however, they are just customers (people with bar-o-meters in the house). He says that if they paid them, they would watch them too. Concluding his comment, he tells Person A to tell clearly that -channel name redacted- pays them and not Republic Bharat.
Person A then says that the arrested person who was with the police “must have got beaten” and wonders what he must have told the police under duress. “if they have beaten him and made him say R Bharat, then he will confess it was R Bharat”, he says.
Person A reveals in the conversation with his neighbour that while 10-12 policemen were in his house, another 5-6 were standing at the gate of the building. He reveals that they have “already written R Bharat on paper” and while today police have come to his doorstep, tomorrow, others will become while his wife is alone.
Audibly shaken, he wonders what his plight would be, worried about Mumbai Police showing up at his door everyday and the other residents of his building getting worried about the mess and asking him to vacate the residence. The neighbour admits that “they are trying to make a case against R Bharat’. Person A says that he is extremely worried about the “lafda” with the police and courts and sounds increasingly agitated about the prospect of being dragged into the mess.
From the entire conversation, certain pertinent questions come to the fore:
Under what circumstances is it acceptable for the police to question anyone at 3:30 AM in the morning?
Does this not point towards coercive tactics?
If the customer (Person A and his family) had repeatedly said that they were enrolled in a ‘scheme’ to watch -channel name redacted-, why did the Mumbai Police insist that the case does not concern them, but is about Republic Bharat and India Today?
After losing face with the Hansa Research Report and FIR details emerging, is the Mumbai Police trying to create more evidence, independent of the initial FIR and Hansa Report to hound Republic TV?
Why did the Mumbai Police add the name of Republic TV, as alleged by Person A, to its documents while the witness kept insisting that he DID NOT watch Republic Bharat at all and instead, was asked to watch -channel name redacted-?
Can an investigation into any case be carried out with the police force being personally vested in implicating one channel?
The full conversation can be heard here:
What the advocate of arrested accused (Umesh) told OpIndia
OpIndia reached out to Advocate Giri, who is representing accused Umesh. He was told about the audio conversation that OpIndia is in possession of where Person A, in whose home a barometer was installed was talking, supposedly to his neighbour. At this point, Advocate Giri confirms that Person A was indeed talking to his neighbour and that he, in fact, is connected to accused Umesh (who he is representing).
However, when asked about the authenticity and contents of the audio conversation, Advocate Giri said that it would not be proper for him to comment on the contents or the authenticity of the tape since he was not present during the conversation and since, the matter is sub-judice. However, Giri did confirm that Person A was indeed talking to his neighbour and that he was connected to his client, Umesh, who is now in police custody.
The saga of the fake TRP scam and the curious case of Republic TV being implicated by Mumbai Police, while the complaint and FIR mentioned India Today
The TRP scam case has seen several twists and turns. While the Hansa Research report and the FIR filed on the basis of it named India Today, in less than 24 hours, Mumbai Police had seemingly made up its mind that Republic TV was the culprit instead and sent a notice to BARC to acquire their viewership data. In 48 hours, Parambir Singh had held a press conference naming Republic TV in the TRP scam and not even mentioning India Today.
Later, the Hansa Research FIR, their report based on which the FIR was filed and a witness statement naming India Today surfaced, putting the Mumbai Police and India Today in a tight spot.
After it was revealed that India Today had earlier been implicated by BARC Disciplinary Council in the manipulation of viewership, the drama had reached its Zenith, or so it seemed.
Soon, the witnesses, after being guarded by Mumbai Police closely, told the magistrate that it was Republic TV that had paid them. With this audio emerging where a customer in whose home a bar-o-meter is installed, alleging that he is being pressured by the Mumbai Police to name Republic TV in the TRP scam, the investigation further becomes questionable.
In the entire suspicious chronology of the case where Republic TV was being implicated in the TRP scam, not a shred of evidence, except the inexplicably changed statement by the witness, has surfaced against the channel run by Arnab Goswami in the public domain. While their CEO, CFO, journalists and Arnab Goswami himself continue to be hounded by the Maharashtra coalition government and the state machinery, including the Mumbai Police, it remains to be seen how many more twists and turns this case throws up.
Note: OpIndia has emailed the CBI earlier today informing them of this potential evidence that has come in our possession. As independent journalists, while it is our duty to put this critical information out in the public domain, we have informed the CBI that we are willing to handover the information we have with regards to this audio conversation, to assist in their investigation of the TRP scam. If an when the CBI responds to our email, we will update this report with the relevant information.
Note: Person A mentions another channel which he watches and had subscribed to owing to a ‘scheme’ they were being offered. That channel’s name has been redacted in the report since no police investigation, FIR or Hansa Report mentions that channel’s name thus far. The only mention of that channel is in this conversation. Therefore, OpIndia is withholding the channel name for the purpose of this report, pending inquiry.
The teams of the Special Task Force (STF) which were entrusted with the investigation of the alleged conspiracy of inciting caste rioting following the Hathras case have reached Hathras, Mathura and Aligarh where FIRs were registered in relation to the alleged conspiracy. The administration came to know about the alleged conspiracy to incite caste riots from the Local Information Units (LIU) reports of Hathras and nearby districts and a preliminary report prepared by an Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising of three IPS officers.
As per reports, the STF teams surveyed the critical locations, and collected all available updates and investigation details in the FIRs registered in the case.
Based on the information received from these reports, FIRs were registered in Hathras, Mathura and Aligarh in relation to different matters. In addition to that, FIRs were also lodged in Lucknow, Bijnor, Saharanpur, Bulandsheher, Prayagraj and Ayodhya against those spreading misinformation on social media. Police officials had reportedly admitted that there was a conspiracy to incite riots.
Involvement of PFI and Bhim Army
According to reports, the names of members of extremist Islamic organisation Popular Front of India (PFI) and Bhim Army have also emerged in the alleged caste riots conspiracy. The police are also investigating the people who were in touch with the family of the Hathras victim after the incident. The police had registered a case against unidentified people at Chandpa police station on October 4 in relation to the caste riots conspiracy. The four arrested members of the PFI have reportedly now also been made accused in the case by the police. The STF team in Hathras met CO Sadabad late in the night yesterday and obtained the documents related to the case.
The STF team is also procuring relevant material from social media accounts. As per reports, the STF team is expected to file an application before the court seeking permission to interrogate the four PFI members. Foreign funding angle will also be probed by the team.
Hearing on October 29
Yesterday, the hearing of the bail application of on of the four PFI members was held in the court of Additional District Judge (ADJ)-10. During the hearing, the Crime Branch opposed the bail of the accused on the ground that the investigation has been transferred to the STF that will collect the evidence in the case. The court adjourned the hearing of the matter till October 29 and directed the STF to appoint an investigating officer and to produce the documents related to the case before the court.
The four PFI members were arrested in Mathura
The police had arrested the four persons associated with the PFI and its sister organisation Campus Front of India (CFI) on October 5 from Mont Toll Plaza. The four accused are Siddique Kappan who is a journalist and a resident of Malappuram, Kerala, Atiq ur Rehman who is a resident of Muzaffarnagar, Masood Ahmed who is a resident of Bahraich and Alam who is a resident of Rampur. The police had also recovered some provocative material relating to the Hathras case from the accused. The accused were travelling from Delhi to Hathras.
In a legal battle that Republic Media Network and another media giant Bennett Coleman & Co. that owns the Times Now channel, have been fighting in court for over two years, the Delhi High Court today reportedly refused to grant interim relief to the latter with respect to use of the tagline “nation wants to know”, stating that a detailed examination of the issue is required. This means that Times Now cannot refrain Republic TV from using the tagline, which was popularised by Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami when he worked as editor and news anchor for Times Now.
At the same time, the court barred Republic TV from using the tagline ‘NEWS HOUR’ or any other tag that may be similar to it for its primetime debate show.
#LIVE | ‘We’ve been fighting this battle since 2017. It wasn’t easy. Finally, today we have succeeded,’ says Malvika Trivedi of Phoenix Legal who represented Republic in court, with Arnab & Team Republic now able to use the phrase #NationWantsToKnowhttps://t.co/rGQJsiKgt2pic.twitter.com/iOz4geXcBl
The Single Bench of Justice Jayant Nath has held that Arnab Goswami led Republic TV channel is free to use the said tagline as part of his speech/presentation of any news but in case he chooses to use the same as a trademark, then the channel will have to maintain an account of the usage of the same, stated the court.
The Times group had moved the High Court seeking a permanent injunction against Arnab Goswami’s Republic TV from using the phrases ‘News Hour’ and ‘Nation Wants to Know’ or any other derivatives or combinations of the same.
Times Now alleged that Goswami took “undue advantage” of the popularity of the program he anchored at Times Now. Despite his employment agreement with Times Group vesting all rights to intellectual property exclusively with the plaintiff company, Goswami proceeded to use the disputed marks, the Times Group argued in the High Court.
Meanwhile, Republic argued that the words “News Hour” are generic, widely used and as such Times Group cannot claim a proprietary right on the same.
On the tagline “nation wants to know”, Republic TV submitted in court that the phrase was neither scripted nor planned, but casually used by Arnab Goswami during his time at the Times Group. It argued that it was just a line that happened to be used as part of a common speech by Goswami during his then debate program on Times Now. Over time, this line became synonymous with Arnab Goswami and Times Group cannot claim a proprietary right over it in any way, Republic TV argued.
After the HC refused the plea for an injunction, Malvika Trivedi of Phoenix Legal who represented Republic in court said: “We’ve been fighting this battle since 2017. It wasn’t easy. Finally, today we have succeeded”.
The ‘Nation wants to know’ conundrum
The tussle between Times Group and Republic Network over these taglines begun when Arnab Goswami quit Times Now in 2016 to set up his own media venture- ARG Outlier Media Ltd, of which the Republic Network is a part.
When Goswami was associated with Times Now, the channel had launched a debate programme which was called “New Hour”. This program was hosted by Arnab Goswami.
Bizarre as it may sound, when Arnab Goswami quit Times Now, the media network had sent a legal notice to him in 2017 asking him not to use the phrase, he had actually popularised: ‘The Nation wants to know’ on his news channel Republic TV. Claiming that it had got the trademark “News Hour” registered under Classes 16, 35 and 38 in 2014, Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd also claimed that the tagline is their intellectual property.
Arnab had then released an audio clip on YouTube informing people that he has received this notice. He had not revealed the name of the group that has sent him the notice. “A media group has sent me a six-page letter threatening me with imprisonment if I ever use the phrase ‘Nation wants to know’. They say that they own the phrase.” He had then accused the media group of trying to delay the launch of Republic TV.
Days after Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh falsely tried to implicate Republic TV and its Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami in the alleged TRP scam, the Mumbai police have now reportedly demanded all financial transactions from the media network.
Republic TV reported that the Mumbai police Crime Branch has sought details of every financial transaction made by the channel in the past 4 years. Meanwhile, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sundaram S have been asked to submit the details at the police station. Despite being well aware that collecting information of such transactions may take months, the Mumbai police have provided just 12-hour window to Republic TV for submitting the details.
As per Republic TV, the fresh demand for financial transactions is a part of the witch-hunt of the Mumbai police against the news network, carried out on the behest of the Maharashtra government. The channel has claimed that the cops have sought for petty and trivial transactions including the cost of toilet paper, coffee vending machines, makeup kits, stationery, furniture and so on.
Republic TV issues statement against Mumbai Police’s diktat
In a statement issued by the channel, Republic TV has called out the blatant attack on press freedom by the Mumbai police. It stated, “Republic Media Network has now been issued a Section 91 notice by the Mumbai Police to submit details of every single transaction the organisation has entered into ever since its inception. As part of the ongoing witch-hunt against Republic Media Network by the Mumbai Police led by Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh, preposterous details of our financial, contractual and transaction details have been sought.”
The channel further added, “The CFO of the Republic Media Network on 22 October 2020 was issued a notice under Section 91 of the CrPC whereby details of “valuation report”, “ledger copies”, “trade receivables”, “broadcasting expenses”, “employee benefit expenses”, “promotion expenses” amongst others have been sought. This effectively means from electricity bills to editing machine expenses, to details of provident funds of employees, to details of loans issued to employees for medical emergencies, the cost of cameras, cost of studio maintenance, the cost of purchasing hand sanitizers, carpeting costs in the office – every single ledger and expense detail has been sought.”
#RepublicWitchhunt In a brazen, blatant & shocking attack on press freedom by Mumbai Police, Republic Media Network has been issued notice to submit details of every transaction since inception & list every single journalist & employee. We will fight each & every strongarm tactic pic.twitter.com/qvG8ZlqWt6
While calling out the brazen attack, Republic TV pointed out how the Mumbai Police had sought details of every employee and journalist working for the media channel. “This an overt attempt to harass a news organisation, infringe on its operations and bring back the Emergency-era way of functioning. There is a clear and motivated attempt by the Mumbai Police to target Republic Media Network which has been falsely named in the TRP scam case,” the channel said.
“Republic Media Network will stand tall amidst the pressure tactics. Republic Media Network will continue to put the news first, the truth first and the nation first. We shall fight every strong-arm tactic in the court of public opinion and the courts of law,” the news channel concluded.
Mumbai Police threatens Republic TV Executive Editor with imprisonment
Earlier, Republic TV informed that their executive editor Niranjan Narayanaswamy was questioned by Mumbai Police for almost 9 hours on 21st October. The network says that he was threatened with imprisonment repeatedly for his decision to not reveal the source of the Hansa report. Niranjan revealed that he was warned that he will be booked under sections 174 and 179 of the IPC if he refuses to divulge the source of the report by Hansa Research, but Niranjan refused to divulge the source.
On Friday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi yet again lied about China transgressing into Indian territories by falsely claiming that the Chinese troops had occupied nearly 1,200 kilometers of land.
Speaking at an election rally at Nawada ahead of the Bihar assembly elections, Gandhi-scion Rahul Gandhi resorted to blatantly mislead people by making false claims that the PLA soldiers have occupied Indian lands up to 1,200 km deep inside into country’s territory after the clashes between Indian and PLA troops in early May.
Attacking PM Narendra Modi over Chinese aggression at the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, Rahul Gandhi alleged that it was PM Modi who handed over 1,200 kilometres of India’s land to China.
“The Chinese army killed 20 of our soldiers and took over 1,200 kilometres of our land. Why did our PM insult the heroes by lying that no one came inside India when Chinese soldiers came inside our land. Today he say I bow my head,” said Rahul Gandhi during an election rally at Nawada, Bihar.
#WATCH चीन की सेना ने हमारे 20 सैनिकों को शहीद किया और हमारी 1200 किलोमीटर ज़मीन ली है। जब चीन हमारी ज़मीन के अंदर आया तो हमारे PM ने वीरों का अपमान करते हुए ये क्यों बोला कि हिन्दुस्तान के अंदर कोई नहीं आया। आज कहते हैं कि मैं सिर झुकाता हूं: नवादा, बिहार में राहुल गांधी pic.twitter.com/iiL1KSWotA
This is not the first time that Rahul Gandhi has been making such false claims pertaining to the alleged Chinese incursions into Indian territories. Even last week, during an election rally in Bihar, Rahul Gandhi had alleged that PM Modi handed over 1200 sq km of India’s land to China only to protect his own image.
The Gandhi-scion had alleged that PM Modi had lied to the entire nation only to protect his own image. The blatant lies of Rahul Gandhi come even as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had said on the floor of the Parliament that China has not intruded into Indian territory.
If one believes Rahul Gandhi’s statements of China occupying nearly 1,200 km of Indian lands, then according to him, at least half of Indian territories would be under Chinese occupation.
If one calculates the distance from the Line of Actual Control (LAC) near Ladakh – the epicentre of the recent clashes, the 1,200 km span would include states and union territories such as Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttarakhand, UP, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and parts of Gujarat, Chattisgarh, West Bengal and Jharkhand. The approximate areas that will be under China’s control as per Rahul Gandhi have been shown in the map below, where the distance of 1200 km from Ladakh has been estimated using the ruler feature of Google Earth.
If we calculate 1200 km distance from entire India-China border and not just from Ladakh, then even more areas will be under China’s control, including the entire northeast, Odisha etc.
In his hurry to attack Modi government, Rahul Gandhi displayed in his lack of understanding of India’s geography and gifted almost half of Indian territories to China. In that case, on Friday Rahul Gandhi made his political speech attacking Prime Minister Modi standing deep inside Chinese territories.
Rahul Gandhi’s complex relationship with facts, numbers
Rahul Gandhi has a habit of taking creative liberty when he interprets numbers. He has always used numerical figures to distort facts and make false claims to target his political rivals.
Last year, ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi had lied about the loan-waivers given to industrialists and had kept on changing the numbers in every speech he delivered to attack the Modi government.
At first, in November 2016, Rahul Gandhi had claimed that the Modi government had then waived off loans worth Rs 1.1 lakh crores of big industrialists. During campaigning for Gujarat assembly polls in 2017, Rahul Gandhi inexplicably increased this figure by 20,000 Crores to Rs 1.3 lakh crores and repeated the same trite.
In Karnataka, he went a step ahead and conjured up another grand figure- Rs 2.5 Lakh crores that was waived off. A video had gone viral where it can be him claiming that the Modi government had waived loans of 5.50 lakh crore / 3.50 lakh crore / 3.00 lakh crore / 2.50 lakh crore / 1.50 lakh crore / 1.40 lakh crore / 1.30 lakh crore / 1.10 lakh crore owed by richest industrialists.
Fictional waiver amount for industrialists is not the only number that keeps changing in Rahul Gandhi’s speeches. The Congress president has promised Rs 72,000 per year, Rs 72,000 per month and Rs 72,000 crores per year under the NYAY scheme announced by the Congress party.
Last year, in the run-up to Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi had also changed the price of Rafale jet negotiated by UPA government several times, and also changed the amount Modi gave Anil Ambani in the Rafale deal multiple times, also recently he seemed to have settled on Rs 30,000 crore, which is more than the total value of offsets under the deal.
Bihar Assembly elections are around the corner. With the campaigning for the Bihar assembly elections in its final week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed his first election rally at Biada Maidan in Sasaram. Paying his tribute to late Ram Vilas Paswan and Raghuvansh Prasad, Modi said that the voters of Bihar have taken a resolve that they won’t let those who have a history of making the state ‘Bimaru’ come near them. In a power-packed speech, PM Modi said that the days of the ‘lantern’ is over in Bihar. The state is on the path of growth and NDA has worked relentlessly to take it forward.
Hitting out at RJD, Modi said that the people who once ruled Bihar and kept it undeveloped, are again looking at the developing state with their greedy eyes. The people of Bihar voted them to power, and what did they do? they looted the state to fill their own pockets. Bihar must not forget who pushed them backward. That was the time when there was worsening law and order situation and corruption in the state, said the Prime Minsiter.
“The people of Bihar cannot forget those days when everything used to come to a halt in the state after sunset. But, today there is electricity, there are roads, there are lights and the biggest thing is the atmosphere in which ordinary citizens of the state can live without fear”, the PM said.
‘Days of jungle raj in Bihar are over’, PM Modi attacks RJD
“They who plundered Bihar for 15 years, completely lost their minds when they were ousted. They were extremely ruffled. They sat in Delhi, allianced with the Congress-led UPA government and for 10 years plotted against the Nitish Kumar led JD(U) government in Bihar. “When I as Gujarat Chief Minister and Nitish Ji attended UPA’s central meetings, Nitish Ji always told them – don’t stall Bihar’s development. But for 10 years, those who were defeated in Bihar were angry, they influenced the Centre and ensured Nitish ji cannot work. They wasted Bihar’s 10 years. They did not let Nitishji work in Bihar. When Nitishji understood their game plan he decided to break away and join NDA. We joined hands and have been working together to help Bihar develop”. Lauding Nitish Kumar, PM Modi said that days of jungle raj in Bihar were over and those who sold govt jobs will be rejected.
PM at Bihar rally said that NDA government abrogated Article 370. These people say they will bring it back if they come to power. After saying this they dare to ask for votes from Bihar. Is this not an insult of Bihar? They do not know that India will not go back on its decision, no matter how hard they try”, Modi said, remembering how Bihar has never hesitated to sacrifice its sons for the country.
“Sons of Bihar lost their lives in Galwan Valley for the tricolour and ensured Bharat Mata’s head is held high. Jawans of Bihar were also martyred in Pulwama attack. I bow my head at their feet and pay respect”, said the Prime Minister.
जम्मू कश्मीर से आर्टिकल-370 हटने का इंतजार देश बरसों से कर रहा था या नहीं
He said that the NDA government has arranged for free ration so that the poor can celebrate Diwali and Chhath Puja properly. During the lockdown, direct help was sent to the account of crores of poor sisters, free gas cylinders were arranged, free health services have been made available. NDA has been continuously striving to create self-employment opportunities in Bihar. Today, the poor as well as the young aspiring entrepreneurs, shopkeepers are getting loans without any guarantee through the central government’s Mudra scheme.
Attacking the Congress party he said that whenever the country tries to move forward by resolving the crisis, these people (Opposition) stand in front of every resolution of the country. When the country decided to free farmers from middlemen and brokers, they started openly favouring middlemen and brokers. “Mandi and MSP are excuses, actually, the opposition wants to save these brokers and middlemen,” PM Modi said.
Modi’s new Svamitva scheme
He then spoke about NDA’s new pilot project- Svamitva scheme, through which the BJP government aims to map rural inhabited lands using drones and latest survey methods. He said that the scheme was triggered by the fact that land records, especially maps, are either inaccurate or do not exist for vast areas across the country. “The scheme is going to bring historical change in the villages of the country. Today, one lakh people have got ownership letters for their houses, said Modi, furthering that if NDA is voted to power, it plans to introduce the scheme in Bihar also. He said that after the scheme is implemented, people would get Property Cards which would enable them to get loans easily. The move will pave the way for using the property as a financial asset by villagers for taking loans and other financial benefits, said Modi.
“Friends, today all the parties of NDA are working together to build a self-reliant, self-confident Bihar. Bihar still has to go miles ahead in the journey of development. Have to fly towards new highs and we would do it together. NDA’s win is necessary to make Bihar ‘Atmanirbhar’, said PM Modi.
साथियों आज NDA के सभी दल मिलकर आत्मनिर्भर, आत्मविश्वासी बिहार के निर्माण में जुटे हैं।
बिहार को अभी भी विकास के सफर में मीलों आगे जाना है।
Modi is scheduled to hold three rallies in Sasaram, Gaya, and Bhagalpur, starting his campaign for the state assembly election, the first phase of which is scheduled on October 28.
Bihar assembly elections will be held in three phases. Voting for 243 assembly seats in the state will be held on October 28, November 3 and November 7. A total of 1,066 candidates are in the fray for the 71 seats going to the polls in the first phase and 1, 464 for 94 seats in the second phase after the withdrawal of nomination papers. A total of 1,411 nominations have been filed for 78 assembly seats.
As per reports, he underwent angioplasty at a hospital in Delhi. Kapil Dev, former Indian cricketing captain, is regarded as one of the greatest captains of all times. He has also been dealing with diabetes related issues. However, reports suggest he is currently stable.
Kapil Dev led Indian cricket team to world cup victory in 1983 while playing against West Indies in Lord’s.
Days after a 47-year-old French teacher Samuel Patty was beheaded by an Islamic terrorist in Paris, an image has been doing rounds on the internet claiming that the deceased teacher had participated in a rally welcoming ‘Refugees’ to France.
Netizens took to Twitter to share an image of protestors in a mask holding placards that read ‘Refugees Welcome’. One social media user said that the person carrying the placard was none other than the deceased teacher Samuel Patty himself.
The social media user alleged that Patty did not know that the refugees he was welcoming to France would repay him in Shariah way. The social media user insinuated that the very refugees Samuel Patty had welcomed to France, beheaded him on the streets of Paris.
Image Source: Rajendra Arora/Twitter
Another social media user tweeted the same image to claim that the guy in the middle holding a placard and welcoming the refugees was Samuel Patty himself.
The social media was hinting that in the past Patty had happily welcomed refugees who entered France but little did he know that the same refugees will behead him.
Image Source: Leftycrypto/Twitter
The above tweet has been shared aggressively on various social media platforms making claims that Samuel Patty had participated in a pro-Refugee rally in France in the past.
Fact check:
However, the claim made by several social media users that Samuel Patty had participated in a rally welcoming refugees to France is false.
If one looks at the image carefully, one can see the participants in the rally wearing masks. Thus, it can be said that the image is of a recent rally, especially during the post-COVID times, contrary to the claims that this rally was held ‘a few years ago’.
A comparison of the images of Patty and the image of a person present at the rally also shows that there is no similarity in looks between the two.
Samuel Patty (Left), Refugee supporter at a rally (Right)
The text in the placards carried by the demonstrators have text in English, and if it was really organised in France, the placards, or at least some of them, should have text in French.
Rally was held in UK, not France
Actually, the rally seen in the image was not organised in France as claimed by social media users. The rally was held in Folkestone, Kent, United Kingdom early this week.
Good chance, a pro-refugee group which hold such rallies in support of refugees, on October 17 tweeted the same image of three people holding placards that read, “Refugees Welcome”. The tweet was shared on Twitter a day after Samuel Patty’s death in France. A police van in the background reading “Kent Police” can also be seen in the image.
Today the Good Chance team are in Folkestone to #WelcomeRefugees. The people of Kent are out in force at the Napier Barracks to let people know that they are WELCOME @_KRAN_pic.twitter.com/Q9EbiR2YNQ
A website called Kent Live also reported a series of photographs of the pro-refugee event that was held at Folkestone, Kent on October 17 welcoming refugees.
“Hundreds of people lined the streets in Folkestone to welcome refugees today. Asylum seekers are currently being housed at Napier Barracks following their arrival in the UK,” said the report.
From the above images and reports, it can be stated that social media users, who are making claims that Samuel Patty had participated in a pro-refugee rally in the past and got killed by the same refugees later, is wrong on several counts.
Patty, a history teacher in the greater Paris area, was beheaded by a Muslim immigrant terrorist on Friday after he had shown his students cartoons of the Prophet of Islam from Charlie Hebdo during a class debate on freedom of expression. A Muslim youth had stabbed a 47-year-old teacher in his throat while shouting “Allahu Akbar”.
In a spine-chilling incident, a 6-year-old girl was raped and burnt alive by two assailants in the Jalalpur village of Hoshiarpur district in Punjab. The half-charred remains of the girl’s body were recovered from a house in the village.
The accused, a man and his grandfather, have been arrested for the rape of a 6-year-old and murder by setting her ablaze. The accused—Gurpreet Singh and his grandfather Surjit Singh—were arrested on the charges of murder, rape and other relevant sections of the IPC and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
According to the father of the victim girl, Gurpreet allegedly took the girl from his home where he allegedly raped her. After raping the girl, both Gurpreet and Surjit reportedly killed her and set her body on fire.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh took to Twitter to express his shock and sadness over the incident.
Extremely sad and shocking incident of rape & murder of 6 year old in Hoshiarpur. Though Police have arrested the accused, have directed DGP to ensure proper investigation & that challan is presented speedily. Call for fast trial & exemplary punishment to the guilty by the Court.
Singh added that though the culprits have been arrested, he had directed DGP to ensure proper investigation is carried out and challan is speedily presented. He called upon the courts to have a fast trial and award the guilty with an exemplary punishment.
Punjab state Scheduled Caste Commission takes suo moto cognisance of the incident
The Scheduled Caste Commission of Punjab State yesterday took suo moto cognisance of the incident. The chairperson of the Commission, Tejinder Kaur, described the incident as “shocking” which came to her notice after being reported by several media organisations. The commission has asked for a detailed report on the case from Senior Superintendent of Police(SSP) Hoshiarpur by October 26, 2020, and asked the law enforcement officials to take stern and prompt action against the culprits.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has also taken cognisance of the same.
Have taken cognizance of news report about ‘half-burnt body of minor girl who was allegedly raped found at accused’s house in Hoshiarpur,Punjab. Conduct inquiry & furnish report within 3 days: National Commission for Protection of Child Rights in a letter to SSP, Hoshiarpur pic.twitter.com/F7XY5j27zH
In a letter to Senior Superintendent of Police, Hoshiarpur, the NCPCR has requested to conduct an inquiry and send a detailed report within 3 days of receipt of letter.
Besides, the Chairperson also directed commission member Prabhdiyal to visit the family to assess the ground situation and file a detailed report in this regard.
