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During 26/11 Mumbai attack, Param Bir Singh refused to be on ground and take on terrorists, then Mumbai CP Hasan Gafoor had said

OpIndia Staff
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During 26/11 Mumbai attack, Param Bir Singh refused to be on ground and take on terrorists, then Mumbai CP Hasan Gafoor had said

Hasan Gafoor, who was the Mumbai Commissioner of Police during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, had accused senior police officials, including Param Bir Singh of not taking on the terrorists. Gafoor had said Joint Commissioner in-charge of law and order K.L. Prasad, Crime Branch Additional Commissioner Deven Bharati, southern region Additional Commissioner K. Venkatesham and Anti-Terrorism Squad Additional Commissioner of Police Param Bir Singh “did not appear keen on responding to situation”.

The four police officers were critical of Hasan Gafoor while deposing before the Pradhan Committee that was set up to probe the response to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. To Gafoor’s remarks, Param Bir Singh had threatened legal action for ‘defaming’ him. Singh had defended himself and claimed that he was seen on several television channels when he was at Hotel Taj and Oberoi. The television channels were live telecasting the siege which had eventually helped the terrorists, as per reports.

Param Bir Singh’s father, Hoshiar Singh in March 2010 filed a defamation case against Hasan Gafoor which was stayed by the Bombay High Court.

26/11 Mumbai terror attack

On 26th November 2008, ten terrorists from Pakistan wrecked havoc in Mumbai. They held the country on ransom for almost three days as some of them holed up inside star hotels in Mumbai, holding hostages, many of them foreign nationals, as the ghastly scenes were telecast live in our living rooms.

In 2009, soon after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, a petition was filed against Parambir Singh and three other additional commissioners of police on the charges of dereliction of duty during the Mumbai terror attack.

A Public interest litigation (PIL) seeking action against these officers and their suspension on the charges that officers such as Param Bir Singh had failed to follow orders of the then police commissioner.

The petitioner had claimed that had the senior officers obeyed the orders, the terror situation would have been brought under control much earlier and many lives could have been saved. The petitions said that if the officers had acted properly, two more terrorists could have been caught alive. The petition was filed on Hasan Gafoor’s statement.

Former Mumbai Police Commissioner Julio Ribeiro called Singh a ‘Bad cop’

In July 2018, Ribeiro had written an article on the two cops fighting for the post of the Mumbai Police Commissioner. Without naming Param Bir Singh, Ribeiro had drawn up a ‘good cop-bad cop’ analogy, where Singh was believed to be the ‘bad cop’. Taking an offence to the same, Singh had sought an apology from Ribeiro and had even threatened to sue him.

Sadhvi Pragya alleged Param Bir Singh tortured her in custody for ‘Hindu terror bogey’

One of the most controversial tenures of Param Bir Singh was during his days at the ATS. Param Bir Singh, who was the Additional Commissioner of Police (ATS), was accused of severe torture by current Bhopal MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh.

Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur had alleged that she was subjected to extreme torture by the Mumbai ATS to make her forcefully confess to her role in the alleged ‘saffron terror case’. Making serious allegations against then members of the Mumbai ATS, Sadhvi Pragya had disclosed that ATS officers including Param Bir Singh had kept her in illegal detention and tortured her for 13 days.

Param Bir Singh gave clean chit to Ajit Pawar in irrigation scam

Param Bir Singh, IPS officer of the 1988-batch, was appointed as the Mumbai police commissioner in February this year. Singh, prior to his appointment as the Mumbai Police, he was the Director-General (DG) of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).

Param Bir Singh’s tenure at the Maharashtra ACB was also controversial. In December last year, the ACB under Singh had given a clean chit to then Deputy Chief Minister and NCP leader Ajit Pawar in the irrigation scam. Ajit Pawar was accused in a scam involving 12 Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation (VIDC) projects.

Live streaming of ‘Ayodhya ki Ram Leela’ on DD National’s YouTube channel gains over a million digital views

OpIndia Staff
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Live streaming of ‘Ayodhya ki Ram Leela’ on DD National’s YouTube channel gains over a million digital views

The city of Ayodhya is all decked up and is in a festive mood this Navratri as a grand Ram Leela is being held. Doordarshan is streaming Ayodhya’s Ram Leela, a theatrical enactment of the life events of Bhagwan Ram, live from Ayodhya this year. The broadcast by DD National, which started on 17th October, is happening in collaboration with the tourism and cultural department of the Uttar Pradesh government.

The first video on Doordarshan’s Youtube channel has already crossed a million views. Prasar Bharti CEO Shashi S Vampati wrote on Twitter that the telecast has already crossed multi-million minutes of digital watching.

The live telecast of the event was launched by Neelkanth Tiwari, Tourism, Culture, Religious Affairs Minister of Uttar Pradesh, and Pravesh Sahib Singh Verma, MP Uttar Pradesh. It can be viewed on both TV and Youtube. Ram Leela runs for ten days and ends on Vijay Dashmi with ‘Raavan Vadh’ by Bhagwan Ram. The first episode on Youtube has already gained one million+ (ten lakh) views, while the second video has clocked over seven lakh views.

Every episode of Ram Leela runs for more than 2 hours and 45 minutes.

Grand Ram Leela in Ayodhya

This year, the city of Ayodhya is hosting a star-studded, grand Ram Leela at Laxman Qila on the banks of the Sarayu river. Bollywood actors Asrani and Bindu Dara Singh are playing the roles of Narad Muni and Lord Hanuman respectively. Bhojpuri superstars and current BJP MPs Manoj Tiwari and Ravi Kishen are playing the role of Angad and Bharat. Popular actors Raza Murad and Shahbaz Khan are also playing important roles.

Ramayana re-run on Doordarshan broke all records

In March 2020, when a nation-wide lockdown was announced due to the coronavirus pandemic, Doordarshan had decided to bring back old television series to life, including Ramayana and Mahabharata. Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan aired on Doordarshan for the first time between 1987 and 1988. The decision to re-run Ramayana attracted unexpected viewership for the channel, and it gained 7.7 crore views on 16th April. During the telecast, social media accounts were filled with stories of nostalgia and rediscovering Ramayana. Interestingly, the re-run had attracted viewers from all age groups.

Paris beheading case: Online doxxing by Islamists, role of a local Mosque under probe, 10 arrested so far

OpIndia Staff
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Paris beheading case: Online doxxing by Islamists, role of a local Mosque under probe, 10 arrested so far

The beheading of a 47-year-old high school teacher named Samuel Paty on Friday in the Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine has sent shockwaves across the world. The terror attack was executed by an 18-year-old radical Islamist named Abdoullakh Abouyezidovitch A.

He stabbed Paty in the throat and severed his head for showcasing cartoons of Prophet Mohammed to his students in College du Bois d’Aulne during a civics class on freedom of speech. The young terrorist had also uploaded the gory pictures on Twitter, before being shot dead by the French police.

Online campaign was on to get Samuel Paty fired

Now, intriguing details have surfaced as to how online doxxing facilitated the barbarian act. On October 7, a man Brahim Chnina had uploaded a Facebook post wherein he claimed that his daughter and other Muslim students were asked to raise their hands by their history teacher. His daughter studies in the 4th grade and is 13-year-old.

The man further claimed that the said teacher then asked the Muslims to get out of class as he was about to show something that would ‘shock everyone’. While a few Muslim students complied with the request, the man’s daughter refused to do so. He alleged that the history teacher then showcased the image of a naked man and claimed that it was that of Prophet Mohammed. An agitated Brahim Chnina called the act a ‘disgrace’ and informed that he would take up the matter with the administration. He also urged others to send emails to the school principal, demanding the termination of the said teacher.

Screengrab of the Facebook post by the agitated parent, via RT.com

Although he had not named Samuel Paty in the post, the online campaign to sack the 4th-grade history teacher was enough to help agitated Muslims to identify him. It is important to note that Brahim Chnina later gave away the name of the teacher in another Facebook post. However, even before he did so, personal information of Samuel Paty began doing the rounds on the internet. This is evident from the screenshots that began circulating on social media.

In another Youtube video on October 12, the man came on air along with his daughter. A man off-camera, now known to French security agencies, had claimed that President Emmanuel Macron was inciting hatred against Muslims and called for ‘mass mobilisation’ in case teacher Samuel Paty was not removed. It is now being speculated whether the 18-year-old terrorist was motivated by the online campaign to avenge the insults against the Prophet.

Local mosque urged Muslims to contact Brahim Chnina; later deleted post

As per reports, the local mosque (La Grande Mosquée de Pantin) had also joined the online campaign to get Samuel Paty fired. While sharing the video address on Facebook, it had urged fellow Muslims to contact Brahim Chnina, the father of the 13-year-old student. Although the mosque did not give away personal details of the deceased teacher, it was allegedly a part of the mobilisation campaign that eventually lead to the gruesome crime.

However, after the beheading case came to light, the mosque authorities quickly took down the Facebook post and condemned the incident. It stated, “We strongly condemn this savagery, Islam and its teachings strongly oppose such acts.”

Screengrab of the deleted Facebook post by the mosque

Terrorist asked students to identify the teacher, prior to beheading

Abdoullakh Abouyezidovitch, born in Moscow, had come to France as a refugee and was out of the radar of the anti-terrorism police. He had earlier been to courts for minor offences. Reportedly, he wanted to ‘punish’ the teacher for his ‘blasphemous act’. The 18-year-old Islamic terrorist, who lived in the Normandy town of Évreux, had no connections with the school or the teacher. On Friday, he waited outside the school premises and asked pupils to point out Samuel Paty.

As per reports, Abdoullakh then followed the victim, who was en route to his house on foot. Abdoullakh, then, attacked Paty, inflicted wounds to his head and then beheaded him. The young terrorist then uploaded the gory picture of the severed head on Twitter and wrote, “In the name of Allah the most gracious, the most merciful, … to (President Emmanuel) Macron, leader of the infidels, I have executed one of your hell-hounds who dared to belittle (Prophet) Mohammad.”

10 people detained over beheading case

As per reports, France police have initiated a probe into the beheading of the 47-year-old high school teacher. Since Friday, the police have arrested a total of 10 people in connection to the case. On Saturday, France 24 reported that 9 people were arrested on Friday including the parents of a child at the school where the teacher was working. While condemning the incident, Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said, “Our unity and our resolve are the only responses faced with the monstrosity of Islamist terrorism.”

‘We are all items’: Kamal Nath brazens it out after referring to Dalit BJP leader Imarti Devi as ‘item’

OpIndia Staff
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‘We are all items’: Kamal Nath brazens it out after referring to Dalit BJP leader Imarti Devi as ‘item’

A day after Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath went on a misogynist tirade against Dalit BJP leader Imarti Devi, he has now issued a statement to justify his remarks.

According to journalist Pallavi Ghosh, Kamal Nath had issued a statement saying, “We are all items .. there’s nothing objectionable in it … we are referred to as item numbers ..words have been distorted .. to deflect attention from (the) main issue like joblessness.”

While addressing a political rally on Sunday, Kamal Nath referred to the Dalit politician as an ‘item’. “Wo kya hai… main uska naam kyun lun… aapko mujhe starak karna chahiye tha kya item hai… (Who is she… what’s her name? You all should have warned me… what an item!),” Kamal Nath said as the crowd of Congress supporters yelled Imarti Devi’s name. The Congress supporters were seen hooting and cheering at his despicable remarks.

However, instead of tendering an apology, the senior Congress leader has decided to brazen it out. He claimed that his comment was distorted to deviate public discourse from ‘main issues’ such as joblessness.

NCW takes cognisance, will send notice to Kamal Nath and Election Commission

Reacting strongly to the derogatory remarks made by the Congress leader, National Commission for Women (NCW) chief Rekha Sharma informed on Twitter that she would issue a notice to Kamal Nath and also write to the Election Commission.

Mayawati hits out at Kamal Nath

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Mayawati has lashed out at Kamal Nath and has demanded an apology, not just from the senior Congress leader but also the top leadership of the party. She said that the comments made by Kamal Nath exposed the mindset of the grand-old party towards the Dalit community.

BJP files complaint with Election Commission

The BJP has lodged a complaint with the Election Commission over the indecent comment made by Kamal Nath against Imarti Devi. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that Kamal Nath should withdraw his remarks and issue an apology over the same. BJP state general secretary Bhagwandas Sabnani stated, “We have lodged a complaint against Congress leader Kamal Nath referring `item’ word to Imarti Devi and insulting the women. We have demanded to put a ban on Nath’s political rallies and will also approach the National Women Commission and Nation Commission for Scheduled Castes to lodge a case and take appropriate action.”

Mumbai: Gau Rakshak attacked, assaulted by violent mob in Nalasopara in presence of police

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai: Gau Rakshak attacked, assaulted by violent mob in Nalasopara in presence of police

An incident of violent mob attack has come to light in Nala Sopara, Mumbai. On the night of 18th October, Gau Rakshak Rajesh Pal was allegedly attacked, and assaulted by a mob of dozens of people when he tried to stop cow smuggling near Burhan Chowk.

Local activist and BJP leader Manoj Barot has informed that Rajesh Pal, an animal welfare officer was attacked in presence of police personnel.

Pal got information about cow smuggling near Burhan Chowk, after which he filed a complaint at Nala Sopara West Police Station. Three constables accompanied him to the location so that they can stop the cow smugglers. When he tried to stop the smugglers, a mob of 150-200 people started assaulting him in front of the police. He was admitted to Alliance Hospital for treatment as he has suffered injuries. Several Gau Rakshaks and leaders reached the spot after learning about the incident. Activist Sunaina Holey has informed that the police personnel were injured in the mob attack too.

Angry Gau Rakshaks demand strict action against the perpetrators

Several Gau Rakshaks and leaders have demanded strict action from the state government. Manoj Barot, district vice president, BJP, has stated, “Rajesh Pal got information about a cow smuggling incident after which he filed a complaint. He had gone with three police constables to the area. When people at Burhan Chowk came to know that he came to stop cow smuggling operation, a group of 150-200 people gathered and attacked him.”

Rajesh has been attacked previously as well while attempting to save cows from smuggling. Barot said that he had discussed the situation with the DCP and ASP of the region. “Police has assured that such incidents will not happen again and we trust the administration that they will take strict action in the matter,” he added. 

Babua Gupta, Gau Rakshak, in a statement, said that the mob also attacked police personnel. Constable Narsule, who was accompanying Rajesh, sustained minor injuries during the incident. Rajesh sustained severe injuries including broken bones. He has blamed the local community at Burhan Chowk. Babua said there was another person named Ankit with Rajesh, but his whereabouts were unknown at the moment. “We demand Police should take strict action against the miscreants who attacked Gau Rakshak Rajesh Pal,” he added.

Gupta said that with the help of DCP, a bull and a calf had been rescued.

Yogi govt launches Mission Shakti, promises zero tolerance towards crimes against women

OpIndia Staff
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Yogi govt launches Mission Shakti, promises zero tolerance towards crimes against women

The Uttar Pradesh government on Sunday launched Mission Shakti on the second day of Navratri, the festival celebrating the divine feminine.

In a series of tweets, the Chief Minister’s office informed that in the first phase of Mission Shakti, programmes to create awareness will be conducted. In the second phase, action will be taken against the corrupt people involved in various departments associated with women empowerment and bringing justice to women.

The CM Office further stated that women and children should be made aware of helpline numbers like ‘1090’, ‘181’, ‘1076’ and ‘112’.

The government further said that each one of 1,535 thanas will have women’s help desk which will be handled by a woman constable. These police stations will also be equipped with restrooms for women and facility of drinking water will be made available. They will also be equipped with CCTV cameras. Same arrangements will also be made at about 350 tehsils.

Further, Yogi Adityanath directed that facility should be made that helpline numbers are also available in Bhojpuri and Bundelkhandi dialects as women might be more comfortable in communicating in regional dialects.

Mission Shakti

Mission Shakti initiative will conclude on Chaitra Navratri sometime in April 2021. The initiative will see the participation of 23 government departments including basic education, secondary education, higher education, MSME. Several non-government agencies will also be participating in the programmes. The special awareness drive is aimed at boosting the morale of women and children and empowering them by making them aware of their rights.

Heeng (Asafoetida) cultivation started for the first time in India with trial plantation in Himachal Pradesh

OpIndia Staff
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Heeng (Asafoetida) cultivation started for the first time in India with trial plantation in Himachal Pradesh

Heeng, or Asafoetida, an essential spice in many Indian dishes, was planted for the first time in India on October 18. The cultivation of heeng started in India by its first plantation at Lahaul and Spiti district in Himachal Pradesh, at an altitude of about 11 thousand feet above sea level. Dr. Sanjay Kumar, Director CSIR-IHBT, planted the first saplings of heeng.

Heeng is one of the widely used spices in Indian cuisine, and the country consumes around 50% of the total production in the world. Despite this, the spice was not being grown in India, and the entire demand was met from imports, mostly from Afghanistan. Although there is no cultivation in the country, it is processed in India using imported raw heeng.

CSIR Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (CSIR-IHBT) has introduced six accessions of heeng from Iran through the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi, and standardized its production protocols under Indian conditions. By bringing asafoetida seeds from abroad, the institute has developed a technique to grow the plant from it.

CSIR-IHBT has selected Lahaul-Spiti district for the first time in the country to produce asafoetida as a trial. As part of the trial, asafoetida plants have been provided to only 7 farmers in the valley at present for cultivation.

Currently, around 1200 tons of raw heeng worth around Rs 600 crore is imported annually from Afghanistan, Iran and Uzbekistan. With the domestic production starting, import of Asafoetida is expected to come down in the coming years. 90% of heeng imported by India comes from Afghanistan.

Heeng is a perennial plant and it produces oleo-gum resin from the roots after five years of plantation. It can be grown in unutilized sloppy land of cold desert regions. The spice is extracted from the stem and tap root of the plant. This plant is native to the deserts of Iran and mountains of Afghanistan where it is grown in a substantial amount.

Twitter suspends popular non-left account over tweet condemning Paris beheading for ‘hate speech’

OpIndia Staff
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Twitter suspends popular non-left account over tweet condemning Paris beheading for ‘hate speech’

Even as social media giants continue to face accusations of political bias against non-left accounts on their platform, Twitter continues to suspend popular accounts on the non-left spectrum of the political divide. The latest popular non-left account to be suspended is @effucktivehumor. He was suspended indefinitely for a tweet that condemned the Paris beheading.

The tweet that got the user suspended

Following the suspension, it was communicated to the user that his account was suspended for violating Twitter rules on Hateful conduct although it was not pointed out precisely how the tweet condemning a terror attack violated the social media giant’s policy towards hate speech. At the time of his suspension, @effucktivehumor had over twenty-thousand followers on the platform.

The email that the user was sent

The suspension appears to be the consequence of a targeted attack against the user as Twitter has communicated to him that other tweets were also reported but the social media platform did not find any violations with respect to those tweets.

Another email that the user received

OpIndia got in touch with the user who told us that he has filed an appeal against the suspension. In his appeal, he said that he was not sure why his account was suspended. “I never abused, threatened or spread hate against any person, community or any religion. I never use my account or multiple handles for any disruptive purpose. I have been attempting to grow my Twitter account within the boundaries of Twitter. I was careful of my content and made sure that my tweets do not hurt or spam anyone. However, my Twitter account has been suspended and I’m not sure what went wrong,” the appeal read.

Twitter usually takes a day or two to reply to appeals against suspension of account. The user told us that the bias of the platform is quite sickening. Leftist accounts are permitted to stay on the platform and spread hatred while popular Twitter accounts that do not toe the Left line are suspended over harmless tweets, he said.

Bollywood-drug nexus case: NCB arrests brother of Arjun Rampal’s girlfriend on the charges of peddling drugs

OpIndia Staff
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Bollywood-drug nexus case: NCB arrests brother of Arjun Rampal’s girlfriend on the charges of peddling drugs

In the ongoing Bollywood-Drug nexus being probed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), today a foreign national was arrested by the agency. Agisilaos Demetriades, who happens to be the brother of Hindi film actor Arjun Rampal’s girlfriend Gabriella’s brother, was arrested by the NCB on Sunday.

Demetriades is from South Africa, and he is the first foreigner to be arrested in the case. NCB has said that he is part of the drug syndicate that supplies drugs, and was in touch with other accused arrested in the case. He has been arrested in the same case as Rhea Chakraborty, who got bail recently after staying in jail for several weeks.

Earlier on Saturday, the anti-narcotic agency had searched the Khar residence of the accused where 1 strip of Alprazolam tablets was recovered. After that, a room in a resort in Lonavala, where 30 years old Agisilaos Demetriades was staying with his fiancé, was also searched by NCB officials, where they recovered 0.8 grams of small round shaped black colour sticky substance purported to be charas.

Following the recoveries, Demetriades was summoned by NCB questioning, where he confessed that he consumes cannabis leaves sometimes. He revealed that a rickshaw driver had supplies him the drugs. NCB believes that Sandeep Gupta is the supplier, who is already arrested by the agency.

The agency also found from call records that Demetriades had contacts with Anuj Keswani and Dwayne, who have been arrested in the case. He also identified another arrested accused Kaizan Ibrahin as a drug peddler, and said that he had officered him Hashish and Ice several times.

Confirming the arrest, NCB Zonal director Sameer Wankhede told media, “The accused has been in touch with the drug peddlers from the Sushant-Rhea case. The accused has a direct connection to the case and therefore he has been arrested.” The NCB has got his custody for two days.

NCB told the court that electronic evidence revealed that he was dealing in variety of drugs which needs detailed investigation. “It is clear that Demetriades purchased contraband from accused Kaizan Ibrahim, Sandeep Gupta and hence he is part of the conspiracy for drug procurement”. The agency has also found links with Dipesh Sawant and Samuel Miranda who are linked with accused Showik Chakraborty, Rhea Chakraborty and late Rajput, the agency told court.

Kamal Nath refers to Dalit BJP leader Imarti Devi as ‘item’ at a rally as Congress supporting crowd cheers and hoots. Watch video

OpIndia Staff
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Kamal Nath refers to Dalit BJP leader Imarti Devi as ‘item’ at a rally as Congress supporting crowd cheers and hoots. Watch video

Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Kamal Nath on Sunday referred to Dalit leader from the BJP Imarti Devi as ‘item’ at a political rally. The Congress supporters present in the crowd were found hooting and cheering at the despicable remark from the close aide of Rahul Gandhi.

“Wo kya hai… main uska naam kyun lun… aapko mujhe starak karna chahiye tha kya item hai… (Who is she… what’s her name? You all should have warned me… what an item!),” Kamal Nath said as the crowd of Congress supporters yelled Imarti Devi’s name. The Dalit leader filed her nomination for the upcoming by-polls in Madhya Pradesh from the Dabra Assembly Constituency, which is reserved for the SC community.

The BJP has lodged a complaint with the Election Commission over the indecent comment made by Kamal Nath against Imarti Devi. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that Kamal Nath should withdraw his remarks and issue an apology over the same. “Kamal Nath! Imrati Devi is the name of the daughter of a poor farmer who started working as a public servant in the village and today she is supporting the nation building. The Congress called me ‘hungry-naked’ and for a woman using a word like ‘item’ has again exposed your feudalist mentality,” he said.

BJP state general secretary Bhagwandas Sabnani stated, “We have lodged a complaint against Congress leader Kamal Nath referring `item’ word to Imarti Devi and insulting the women. We have demanded to put a ban on Nath’s political rallies and will also approach the National Women Commission and Nation Commission for Scheduled Castes to lodge a case and take appropriate action.”

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