Home Blog Page 5041

‘My uncle was slaughtered, we deserve to know who did this heinous act’: Suresh Raina appeals to Capt Amarinder Singh after attack leaves his family members dead

OpIndia Staff
-
0
‘My uncle was slaughtered, we deserve to know who did this heinous act’: Suresh Raina appeals to Capt Amarinder Singh after attack leaves his family members dead

A day after his cousin who was battling for life after the brutal attack by unknown miscreants passed away, cricketer Suresh Raina appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and Punjab Police to look into the attack so that the culprits are brought to book.

On Tuesday, cricketer Suresh Raina took to Twitter to demand justice for his deceased uncle and other family members. He wrote, “What happened to my family is Punjab was beyond horrible. My uncle was slaughtered to death, my bua & both my cousins had severe injuries. Unfortunately, my cousin also passed away last night after battling for life for days. My bua is still very very critical & is on life support.”

Expressing helpless over the unfortunate death of his uncle and cousin, the ace cricketer tweeted, “Till date we don’t know what exactly had happened that night & who did this. I request Punjab Police to look into this matter. We at east deserve to know who did this heinous act to them. Those criminals should not be spared to commit more crimes.” He had also tagged the Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh in his tweet.

Suresh Raina’s family members attacked

Days after announcing retirement from international cricket, a tragedy has befallen the family of Suresh Raina.

On the intervening night of August 19-20, a group of alleged robbers barged into the house of Raina’s 58-year-old uncle, Ashok Kumar, in Thariyal village near Madhopur in Pathankot district of Punjab. The Punjab police had informed that the robbery and murder were executed by 3-4 members of the infamous ‘Kale Kachhewala’ gang. Kumar, a government contractor by profession, succumbed to his head injuries while the remaining four members of his family sustained grave injuries.

Reportedly, Kumar and his family were sleeping on the terrace at the time of the incident. The police have informed that the robbers took away gold and cash from the house. The deceased’s 80-year-old mother Satya Devi have been discharged from the hospital. However, his wife Asha Devi is still in a critical condition. The two cousins of Suresh Raina, Apin and Kuashal, had also sustained grave injuries.

It’s a clear case of murder, says son-in-law

Earlier, the Deputy SP (Dhar Kalan) Ravinder Singh stated that no arrest had been made and that a few suspects had been interrogated. “A case under Sections 458, 459, 460 of the Indian Penal Code has been registered,” he had said. Speaking on the murder of his father-in-law, Harpreet Singh Saggu conceded that it was a ‘clear case of murder’ and that the robbery was a staged event to deflect the attention from the murder angle. He had also demanded a government job for the victim’s family and the State to bear the medical expenditure.

Jaaved Jaaferi justifies Sweden riots where Islamists unleashed violence after a Quran was burnt

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Jaaved Jaaferi justifies Sweden riots where Islamists unleashed violence after a Quran was burnt

Bollywood actor Jaaved Jaaferi has justified the riots in Sweden by Muslim mobs. He offered the justification while responding to a user on Twitter. The user was taking a snide jibe at Naseeruddin Shah, Aamir Khan and Jaaved Jaaferi who have made extremely controversial comments in the past. However, entertainer ended up demonstrating why the jibe was so deserved.

Jaaved Jaaferi said although all violence was worthy of condemnation, the reason for the riots in Sweden should have been mentioned by the user. He also said that he was thinking of taking US citizenship after watching pictures of BLM and Antifa riots in Democrat controlled cities. The news report linked in his tweet is a Scroll report on the matter that files the riots by Islamic extremists under ‘Rising Islamophobia’.

Riots broke out in the city of Malmo, Sweden after a copy of the Quran was set on fire by ‘Stram Kurs’, a far-right group in the country. The rioters burnt tyres and pelted stones at the police. Sentiments against the country’s ‘Refugees Welcome’ migration policy has been growing following a rise of crimes in the country.

The Radical Muslims unleashed chaos in the streets. Judging from his comments, it appears that Jaaved Jaaferi believes violence in response to insulting the Quran is justifiable, even though he claims violence should be condemned.

YouTuber Heer Khan received videos from Pakistan, was connected to several extremist groups

OpIndia Staff
-
0
YouTuber Heer Khan received videos from Pakistan, was connected to several extremist groups

Investigation in YouTuber ‘Heer Khan’ case have revealed more Pakistani connections. According to Prayagraj Police, she was connected to several extremist groups and often received videos from Pakistan. She claimed that she used to get provoked by those videos and started making their own videos. During interrogation, Heer Khan named a friend from Kanpur who used to upload her videos on YouTube. She only recorded the videos and used to send them to her friend. Intelligence agencies are tracking the said friend.

Connection with extremist groups in several countries

Police found out that she had connections with extremist groups in India and in other countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh. There is a possibility that her friend might be a sleeper cell of some terrorist organization. On Monday, ATS, IB, State Intelligence, and Police questioned her to understand the background of her videos and her connection to the extremists.

Police do not trust Heer’s mother

Heer Khan’s mother claimed in an interview to a news channel that Inzamam-ul-Haq is Heer’s uncle. She also claimed that Heer is a fan of Prime Minister and President. She believes in all religions. However, Police said that they do not trust any statement made by her mother as it seems she is saying all this in an attempt to save her. The security agencies will continue questioning Heer on Tuesday.

Heer Khan insults Hindu gods and goddesses

Earlier in August, Khan’s videos had gone viral wherein she was spewing hate on Hindu gods and goddesses by referring to Goddess Sita as ‘r*ndi’ (prostitute) and Ayodhya as a whorehouse. Later this video was taken down.

Live: Watch Nupur J Sharma talk to Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami in a tell-all interview

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Live: Watch Nupur J Sharma talk to Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami in a tell-all interview

OpIndia English Editor Nupur J Sharma talks to Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami in this tell-all interview. Watch it live here:

Gaza conflict: Hamas announces ceasefire deal with Israel, in return for cash from Qatar and fuel for its powerplants: Reports

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Gaza conflict: Hamas announces ceasefire deal with Israel, in return for cash from Qatar and fuel for its powerplants: Reports

With the Chinese coronavirus rampaging inexorably through the Gaza strip and weeks of conflict with the Israeli forces, the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas has struck an unusual accord with Israel, temporarily diffusing its long-standing tensions with Tel Aviv

As per reports, Hamas has agreed to this ceasefire deal in return for a cash infusion from Qatar and Israel’s agreement to let the fuel supplies reach Gaza’s power stations, apart from medicines and medical supplies.

The Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar announced on Monday that they had reached a Qatari-mediated deal with Israel, ending weeks of clashes, bombings and easing its 13-year-old blockade of Gaza in exchange for calm to prevail on the border.

“An understanding has been reached to stop the latest round of escalation and put a stop to Israeli aggression against our people,” said the office of the Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar after concluding discussions with Qatari envoy Mohammed al-Emadi.

Emadi had been travelling back and forth between Israel and Gaza for days now, trying to broker a peace between the two establishments and avoid a full blown-up military confrontation.

Qatar pledges $27 million cash infusion into Gaza strip

A major part of the truce reached between Hamas and Israel involves a massive cash infusion from Qatar. According to the reports, Qatar has promised to pour in $27 million into the Gaza strip, where the coronavirus pandemic is taking root and the public health system is in dire straits. Several Arab media outlets have also claimed that the Qatari-Hamas understanding also included a promise to carry out several infrastructure projects in the Hamas-ruled coastal strip.

As per a Hamas source quoted by the AFP, there had been “a total halt” to balloon and other attacks against Israel, in harmony with other groups in the coastal strip. The source reassured that the accord reached between the arch-enemies would ensure that the fuel supply lines are restored, and power stations are restarted from Tuesday.

The Hamas said that the new agreement with Israel includes “several projects that serve our people in the Gaza Strip” and would help them in combating the spread of the coronavirus. Besides, Gaza’s fishing zone that was closed until now is also opened, allowing the fishermen to ply waters of the Mediterranean sea for up to 15 nautical miles.

Israel had imposed bans on fuel delivery into Gaza after weeks of cross-border firings

Israel had imposed a punitive ban on fuel deliveries into Gaza starting August 13, reducing the electricity supplies to just four hours a day, supplied from an Israeli grid. It had also stopped the transfer of goods into Gaza through Shalom crossing from August 11. The move was in retaliation to the cross-border firings from Gaza that had persisted for weeks.

For days now, Gaza has released hundreds of balloons laden with inflammatory substances and explosives, along with rockets targeted towards southern Israel, triggering more than 400 blazes and devastating vast tracts of farmlands. Israel has responded fiercely and unsparingly against the continued provocation, with persistent airstrikes and tank fires on locations described by it as Gaza’s military infrastructure installations.

Hyderabad: Woman who claimed to have been raped by 139 men withdraws her statement, says she made allegations under duress

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Hyderabad: Woman who claimed to have been raped by 139 men withdraws her statement, says she made allegations under duress

Ten days after a 25-year-old woman in Hyderabad claimed to have been raped over 5,000 times by 139 men, the victim has now revealed that the allegations were ‘partially true’ and was made under duress.

In a bizarre turn of events, the woman addressed a press conference on Monday and stated that she was coerced into making the allegations by one businessman named Raja Sreekar Reddy aka Dollar Bhai. She alleged that the man sexually exploited her under the pretext of giving her a job in the film industry. The woman said that Reddy had blackmailed, tortured her using her ‘private pictures’, and coerced her to frame the 139 people including filmmakers, student leaders, anchors, and lawyers.

Woman claims that allegations were made by her under duress

The woman stated, “Only due to pressure I was forced to make rape allegation against 139 members. I was beaten badly to make a complaint against these persons. All the fake allegations which I made in the press were tutored by him.” Expressing guilt over the ‘fake charges’, she apologised to two film actors that she had initially named in her complaint.

Woman now claims that her statement was ‘partially true’

The woman also claimed that Reddy had threatened to murder her and her family members if she did not act upon his wishes. She however maintained that while not all 139 accused had raped her, some had sexually harassed her. “I told him that only those who exploited and misbehaved with me should be named in the complaint. But he threatened me and tortured me to implicate innocent people,” she emphasised.

Speaking on the new development, Central Crime Station (CCS) ACP K Sridevi informed, “We will record the statement of the complainant, and based on that we will proceed with further investigation.”

Woman had filed a 42-page complaint, claimed to have been raped 5000 times

Earlier, the woman had said that after she got married in June 2009, she became a victim of domestic violence. She had said that she had to face sexual harassment and physical assault by the family members of her husband. Later she got divorced but her ordeal did not end as she said multiple men at various places and times raped and gang-raped her. She had also alleged she was forced to abort pregnancy several times, drugged and forced to dance nude.

Dharmasthala baby elephant ‘Shivani’ playing with water on her naming ceremony wins the Internet: Watch video

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Dharmasthala baby elephant ‘Shivani’ playing with water on her naming ceremony wins the Internet: Watch video

In a heartwarming video that has gone viral on the social media platform, an elephant calf is seen gleefully playing in a tub of water. The two-month-old elephant is adorning an elaborate headgear and matching footwear. She has a bell tied around her neck. In the video, the female calf is seen splashing water as she goes in and out of the small plastic tub which keeps collapsing intermittently due to her weight. This video was shot after the naming ceremony of the baby elephant at a temple in Karnataka’s Dharmasthala.

The female calf which was born on July 1 at Sri Manjunatha Swamy Temple in Dharmasthala has been named Shivani. The temple authorities say that Shivani is healthy and loves to play in water. 

Shivani’s mother Lakshmi and her grandmother Latha were with her on the pious occasion. They were too decorated for the naming ceremony. 

Shivani was born under the care of the temple administration in Dharmasthala for the first time. On August 31, the Pattadhikari of Dharmasthala, D Veerendra Heggade initiated the ritual by giving the baby elephant Prasada and tying a bell around its neck. On this occasion, the temple authorities arranged for a feast of fruits, vegetables, and sugarcane for all the three elephants.

Heggade informed that Shivani’s mother Lakshmi was sent to Bannerghatta Biological Park two years ago for conceiving.

“Gaja seve” is practised in Dharmasthala during temple festivals and processions for many years now. Earlier, the temple had elephants Bharata, Shankara and Gange which were part of fairs and processions, D Veerendra Heggade added.

Scroll spreads fake news claiming central govt’s health cards will collect ‘sensitive information’. Here are the facts

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Scroll spreads fake news claiming central govt’s health cards will collect ‘sensitive information’. Here are the facts

Online portal Scroll.in on 28th August published a report claiming that the new unique Health ID which will be issued to citizens under a ‘One Nation One Health Card’ scheme will collect and store sensitive information such as medical history, finances, genetics and even sex life.

Scroll accuses government of storing personal and sensitive information

Moreover, the Scroll article claimed that in the absence of a ‘comprehensive data protection law’, the Government is aiming to collect ‘sensitive information’ from citizens. “Data points classed as “sensitive personal data” include an individual’s financial details, their physical and mental health, sex life, medical records, gender and sexuality, caste, religious and political beliefs as well as genetic and biometric records,” the report alleged.

Screengrab of the Scroll article

Casting aspersions about privacy and data security, Scroll claimed, “It claims ownership of personal data lies with the individual. However, anonymised data, in an aggregated form, may be made available for research, statistical analysis and policy formulation.” The article also raised questions about the need of Health ID, even when Aadhaar card has been made mandatory for citizens.

Scroll alleges ‘corporatisation’ of health sector by Union government

The article claimed, “The digital health mission has already raised ethical concerns, scepticism that collecting more data is not the answer to India’s health problems and suspicion that such a system is tailored for corporate interests rather than providing affordable healthcare.” Further, the report insinuated that the ‘narrow time frame’ of one-week did nor provide scope for public scrutiny and thereby paved the path for a ‘corporate entry.’

NHA debunks misinformation about Health ID cards

Three days after the insidious report was published by the Scroll, the National Health Authority (NHA) took to Twitter to debunk the misinformation peddled by the news portal. NHA tweeted, “Grossly misinterpreted and sensationalized…Govt has not asked and doesn’t intend to ask for any such personal information. Information like only name, year of birth, state & district is required while registering for Health ID.”

NHA has clarified that the scheme is voluntary and the Union Government is not planning to make the service mandatory. It further reiterated, “Information like only name, year of birth, state & district are required while registering for Health ID. Registration & sharing any information is voluntary for all, not mandatory.”

NHA debunks claims by scroll that the scheme is being rushed

In a statement released by the National Health Authority, it has clarified that the time given for public feedback was two weeks, contrary to claims made by the Scroll. It stated, “The draft Health Data Management Policy was uploaded on 20/08/2020 for seeking feedback for two weeks and not for one week as has been stated in the news report. However, considering the feedback received, the date of seeking feedback via public consultation before the first version of the policy is finalized has been extended by one more week i.e. till 10th September 2020.” All in all, a three-week window was provided by the government for public feedback instead of one.

NHA clarifies on Aadhaar and sensitive personal data

NHA has also made it clear that the use of Aadhar as an alternative to health card is not ‘legally permissible’. “It may be noted that it is legally not permissibile to make Aadhaar mandatory for creation of Health ID,” the statement read. Addressing concerns about storing ‘sensitive personal data’, NHA emphasised that the term has been used in accordance with Information Technology (Reasonable security practices and procedures and sensitive personal data or information) Rules, 2011 and Personal Data Protection (PDP) bill.

“By virtue of said definition, sensitive personal data includes personal data related to financial information, sexual orientation, political belief, etc. However, nowhere in the operative section of the draft policy it is laid down that the said information will be called for. Further the purpose of including said terms in the definition of “Sensitive personal data” is that the said types of information must be given highest level of privacy and security if ever encountered in the information ecosystem of NDHM. It is absolutely out of place to construe the same as intent for having said information in the NDHM system especially when there is nothing in the operative section of the policy to suggest so,” the NHA clarified.

One Nation One Health Card scheme

During his speech on the occasion of India’s 74th Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic. PM Modi informed that a unique Health ID will be issued to citizens under a ‘One Nation One Health Card’ scheme. However, it will be an optional service available to the public. For this purpose, a digital database will be created that will contain an individual’s medical history such as tests, diagnosis, and treatment.

Candidates arrive for JEE exams at various centres across India under strict social distancing and COVID-19 precautions

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Candidates arrive for JEE exams at various centres across India under strict social distancing and COVID-19 precautions

JEE Main exam is happening today, and the candidates are arriving at the examination centres across India. While there was uproar on the social media demanding the examinations should be canceled amid the coronavirus pandemic, the exam is happening as per the schedule.

A student from the Dharamshala block in Odisha said that it is good for the students’ future that the exam is happening. The Odisha government is providing transport facilities and accommodation to the students and their guardians free of cost. CM Naveen Patnaik had ordered to open hostels of engineering and IT colleges to accommodate students and their guardians as hotels are not functional in the state yet.

Madhya Pradesh government had also announced free transportation for students appearing for NEET-JEE exams. Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel had also announced that

ANI quoted a student from Delhi saying that she was carrying her own sanitizer and has undergone a full body checkup.

Images emerging from various centres in states like West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Chattisgarh, Bihar, and Goa, among others, show that social distancing and other Covid-19 precautions like sanitization and thermal check are being followed.

The students are made to discard their masks, and authorities are providing them fresh masks before they can enter the premises.

The authorities have installed banners with Covid-19 instructions that the students need to follow while giving the exam. Some students suggested that the number of students coming to the exam is lesser than they anticipated.

The Supreme Court of India on 17th August had allowed the NEET-JEE exam to be held in September.

Just 2 per cent of dislikes on PM Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ from India, BJP alleges Congress of commissioning overseas bots to attack the Centre

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Just 2 per cent of dislikes on PM Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ from India, BJP alleges Congress of commissioning overseas bots to attack the Centre

The latest video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ show has collected over 7 lakh dislikes on the Bhartiya Janata Party’s YouTube channel. In less than 24 hours, the video where PM Modi addresses the nation has become one of the most disliked videos on BJP’s YouTube channel, where Congress and AAP loyalists were found peddling a narrative that the ‘dislikes’ are due to the government’s decision to go ahead with JEE and NEET exams.

YouTube video of the latest ‘Mann Ki Baat’ by PM Modi

In fact, on Sunday, a propaganda was spread that the PMO had disabled comments on the latest Mann Ki Baat YouTube video fearing ‘backlash’ from students who are ‘angry’. However, that is not the case. The comments have been disabled since the programme started. That is because these videos are marked as ‘made for kids’ – where YouTube policy is such that the comments are disabled.

When that didn’t work, a deliberate attempt was made by the anti-BJP detractors to smear PM Modi’s “Mann Ki Baat” campaign by claiming that ‘students’ are now ‘disliking’ PM Modi’s video. Except, that does not seem to be the case. BJP IT in-charge Amit Malviya on Monday took to Twitter to say that international bots were commissioned to ‘dislike’ through a coordinated campaign on YouTube. Taking to Twitter, he said that there has been a concerted attempt by the Congress party to dislike PM Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ video on YouTube.

The BJP leader added that a paltry 2 per cent of the total dislikes on the YouTube video of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ came from India. Rest, 98 per cent of the dislikes came from outside India, with social media bots from Turkey leading the social media smear campaign. The statistics and analytics page of YouTube allows the page admin to see various demography including where the ‘dislikes’ came from. Furthermore, many sources have confirmed to OpIndia that the planned online onslaught against PM Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ was carried out by international social media bots.

Malviya also added that on similar lines, Congress’ anti-JEE-NEET campaign on the social media websites has seen significant participation from overseas bots, most notably from users based out of Turkey. Interestingly, in November 2019, days after Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan supported Pakistan on the Kashmir issue, Congress had opened an office in Istanbul.

Social Media Bots from Turkey sharing posts on JEE-NEET examinations

Confirming Malviya’s claims, there has been a torrent of tweets being posted on Twitter against the centre’s decision of conducting the JEE-NEET examinations in September, seemingly from users with their locations declared as Turkey. Many newly created Twitter accounts, with limited reach and their proclaimed location as Turkey, have been tweeting propaganda that is in conformity with Congress’s stand on JEET-NEET examination.

Bot from Turkey retweeting stuff on JEE-NEET examinations

Overseas bots, putatively from Turkey, have posted and retweeted a large of tweets, expressing their disapproval against the Indian government’s decision of conducting the JEE-NEET examinations in September.

Social media user from Turkey posting on JEE-NEET examinations

Interestingly, the Twitter campaign against the Modi government by international bots is not just limited to JEE-NEET examinations, the overseas users have also targeted India-Sri Lanka ties with the recently concluded elections in Sri Lanka.

Twitter bot, claiming from Turkey, has shared a report from Swarajya Magazine about India-Sri Lanka relationship with hashtags such as #SriLankaElections2020, presumably to spur the Sri Lankan bots to launch an online attack against the Modi government.

Social media bot from Turkey commenting on India-Sri Lanka relationship

Another social media bot from Turkey feigned solidarity with those who had been asking the government to postpone the JEE-NEET examinations. The heightened interest of people belonging to Turkey, with no skin in the game, in India’s internal affairs, signifies that they had been hired to peddle anti-Modi propaganda on Twitter.

Another bot from Turkey commenting on JEE-NEET examinations

Congress’ long-association with international bots for social media dominance

This is not the first time that Congress has been accused of dallying with the international bots, especially from Turkey. With Congress failing to garner organic support from the social media users in India, it has often relied on overseas bots to either mount an attack against their opponents or catapult their leaders away from their flagging popularity. Earlier in 2017, it was alleged that Rahul Gandhi’s increased popularity on Twitter was attributed to overseas bots from Russia, Kazakh and Indonesia.

Gandhi’s Twitter activity had then registered a sharp spurt, belying a false impression that the Gandhi scion was enjoying an organic popularity on the microblogging website Twitter. However, on closer inspection, it was found that Rahul Gandhi’s tweets were retweeted by users with less 10 followers, who tweeted random subjects from around the world.

The similarity between the two cases cannot be overstated. Even in the lastest case, bots from Turkey and the rest of the world, who have tweeted on random subjects from around the world, have been retweeting tweets on Modi government’s decision on persevering with the scheduled JEE-NEET examinations and other policy decisions.

1...5,0405,0415,042...7,607Page 5,041 of 7,607