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Bharat Bandh: BJP-ruled states remain mostly unaffected, vandalism cases in Bengal, Rahul Gandhi claims 25 crore people supporting

OpIndia Staff
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Bharat Bandh: BJP-ruled states remain mostly unaffected, vandalism cases in Bengal, Rahul Gandhi claims 25 crore people supporting

Central trade unions, except the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-affiliated Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), have called for a nationwide strike today, citing dissatisfaction with the government’s “policy and action” towards workers.

Reportedly, the Wednesday’s Bharat Bandh is the fourth nationwide strike called by 10 central trade unions since the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government came to power in 2014.

Banking services at public sector banks, transports and other services across the country are hit on Wednesday due to a nationwide strike called by 10 central trade unions.

Various bank employee associations, including AIBEA, All India Bank Officers’ Association (AIBOA), BEFI, INBEF, INBOC and Bank Karmachari Sena Mahasangh (BKSM), have expressed their support to the strike. However, services at private sector banks have not impacted.

The unions have demanded the reversal of “anti-working class, anti-people and the anti-national policies” allegedly implemented by this government. The unions in the joint statement have also accused the labour ministry of doing little to assure the workers of their demand.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has supported the Bharat Bandh 2020 call given by a total of 10 biggest trade unions in the country against policies of the government. Rahul Gandhi slammed the Modi-Shah government for “anti-people, anti-labour policies”, which he says, have created “catastrophic unemployment and are weakening our PSUs to justify their sale to Modi’s crony capitalist friends”.

“Today, over 25 crore workers have called for Bharat Bandh 2020 in protest. I salute them,” he added.

In West Bengal, protesters have blocked railway track in Howrah to support the ten trade unions have called for Bharat Bandh. Similarly, protesters also blocked railway track in Kanchrapara, North 24 Parganas district.

Several parts of West Bengal saw protests and marches in support of the Bandh.


In Mumbai, the employees of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) protest against the Modi government’s decision of strategic disinvestment of Bharat Petroleum. The government has been planning to divest its 53 per cent stake in Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) at the earliest to bridge the fiscal deficit and meet the disinvestment target.


In Chennai, people gathered at Mount road to protest against the policies of the Narendra Modi government. Even Puducherry saw a shutdown in wake of Bharat Bandh. Transport services have been stopped and inter-state buses are hit. Markets remain closed in the Puducherry.

Few left-wing leaders have also been arrested in Andhra Pradesh. The protestors had tried to stop state-owned buses and blocked roads across Vijayawada, Guntur, Ongole, Visakhapatnam, Kadapa and among other towns. However, apart from a few instances, life seems to be normal in Hyderabad.

Maharashtra PWD Minister Ashok Chavan also stated that the state government supported today’s Bharat Bandh call of different trade unions.

Reportedly, nearly 2000 app-based cab drivers also participated in the national trade union strike at Hyderabad airport.

In Odisha, the ruling BJD had declared that it will not support the Bharat Bandh called by Congress and the left parties. Though government offices remain open, schools and colleges have been closed as a precaution. However, train services have been hit at several stations due to ongoing protests by Congress and leftist groups.

Apart from few states ruled by Opposition parties, the ‘Bharat Bandh’ called by trade unions on Wednesday has received a lukewarm response in Lucknow as life was normal during morning hours. The usual traffic was seen on the main roads the state capital and shops and business establishments opened at their usual time. Most of the schools, colleges and other educational institutions, offices reported normal attendance.

In addition to UP, the nationwide strike has no effect on the normal life in the various cities in the Karnataka, with most of the vehicles including government buses providing service on Wednesday. As usual, train services remained unaffected.

Schools, colleges and business establishments have remained open. However, some miscreants had pelted a Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation bus with stones in Madikeri town in Kodagu district this morning.

The real story of Chhapaak: When 32-year-old Naeem threw acid on 15-year-old Laxmi’s face because she refused his marriage proposal

OpIndia Staff
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The real story of Chhapaak: When 32-year-old Naeem threw acid on 15-year-old Laxmi’s face because she refused his marriage proposal

Deepika Padukone starrer Chhapaak, a story inspired from Laxmi Agarwal, an acid attack survivor, will be released on Friday, January 10, 2020.

Who is Laxmi Agarwal?

Born on 1st June, 1990, in Delhi, Laxmi was a regular girl from middle-class family, with dreams and hopes in her eyes to become a singer. Her life came crashing down in 2005, at the age of 15 when 32-year-old Naeem Khan, an acquaintance, approached her for marriage. Laxmi’s rejection to marry him angered him and he continued to stalk her. Despite Laxmi’s multiple refusals, Khan did not back off.

One day in 2005, when she was in Delhi’s Khan Market, Naeem threw acid on her face. She lay on the ground, crying, in pain till a kind taxi driver stopped by and took her to Safdarjung hospital.

She was in hospital for months and underwent multiple surgeries.

The face that once was

Laxmi did not see her face after the attack for months. There were no mirrors. In her words, when she saw her face for the first time after the bandages were off, she was devastated. “I had no face to speak of,” she had told a media outlet.

Read: Deepika Padukone’s PR stunt at JNU gets endorsement from Pakistan. Here is how it unfolded

Laxmi faced social boycott where people would taunt her and speak ill of her and her family. She was blamed for the acid attack on her, especially by women. At 16, that was all too much. Traumatised, she even contemplated suicide.

The fight

Tough times never last, tough people do. In 2006, she filed a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court of India seeking total ban on sale of acid. In 2013, the Supreme Court ruled in her favour and imposed restrictions on sale of acid. She has been one of the crusaders who has been fighting to end acid attacks in India. While a lot has been done to bring awareness about acid attacks, especially on women, there is still a lot more that needs to be done.

Awards and recognition

At 28 now, Laxmi has received a 2014 International Women of Courage award by the then US First Lady Michelle Obama. In 2013, Laxmi became a part of the acid attack movement after activists Alok Dixit and Ashish Shukla started the ‘Stop Acid Attacks’ campaign. It has now developed into Chhanv Foundation through which Laxmi has reached out to thousands of victims of acid attack and assisted them int treatment and legal aid. Acid attack survivors are now given legal rights under the Rights of Persons with Disability Act, 2016.

Watch: Ukrainian International Airlines plane catches fire midair before crashing with 180 ppl onboard in Iran

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: Ukrainian International Airlines plane catches fire midair before crashing with 180 ppl onboard in Iran

A civilian aircraft carrying 180 people to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv has crashed a few minutes after taking off from the international airport of Tehran, Iran.

According to the reports, the Boeing 737-800 belonging to Ukrainian International Airlines took off from Imam Khomeini international airport at 6.12 AM Tehran time and went down about eight minutes later, according to flight-tracking websites.

Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran’s Emergency Medical Services said most passengers on board the Ukraine International Airlines flight have died due to the crash.

A video purportedly of the crash circulated by news portals showed the aircraft burning as it fell from the sky.


Aviation giant Boeing has confirmed the crash. The plane, a 4-year-old Boeing 737-800 operates on a different software system than the 737 Max 8 aircraft from the company that were grounded due to safety concerns earlier last year.

Early indications suggested the crash did not appear to have links to the missile strikes by Iran on US bases in Iraq. Though conspiracy theories suggesting links with US-Iran tensions, nuclear tests and a targeted attack are doing rounds on social media.

Interestingly, a 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck Iran near the Bushehr nuclear plant on Wednesday raising suspicion on Iran conducting a nuclear test amidst the tensions in the middle east following Iranian missile strikes on Iraqi bases housing US troops.

The United States Geological Survey has also confirmed that the earthquake struck 10 km southeast of Borazjan, Iran. The locations of the earthquake’s epicentre are close to the city of Bushehr, near which the nuclear plant is located. However, reports say the earthquake was most likely natural.

The earthquake has occurred few hours after Iranian carried out missile strikes on Iraqi bases housing US-led coalition personnel. The Iranian offensive was retaliation for a US drone strike that killed Iran’s second most powerful figure, the Quds Force commander Major General Qasem Soleimani.

Congress recruitment drive in Goa fails to get support, manages only 2,600 new members in two months

OpIndia Staff
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Congress recruitment drive in Goa fails to get support, manages only 2,600 new members in two months

Troubles mount for Congress in Goa as after four of its leaders quit the party last week, it has now been reported that the membership drive in Goa for Congress has very few takers. As per a report by ThePrint, only 2,600 new members were registered as against the goal of at least 2 lakh member recruitment by 15th January.

The membership drive is currently being carried out in Goa through an app which takes details of the person including voter ID card. This seems like an upgradation from the dubious ‘Shakti App‘ created by Congress data analytics head Praveen Chakravarty ahead of 2019 general elections which gave highly inflated numbers of the supporters and seats Congress will win. However, the new and improved membership drive app also seems to be inflating numbers. A Congress source apparently told ThePrint that while they are officially putting the membership figure at 6,000 to 7,000 members, in reality, has about 2,600 members.

Read: Congress shields the clown prince, Praveen Chakravarty becomes the scapegoat for Rahul Gandhi’s electoral disaster

Amidst all this, four Congress leaders also quit the party recently as they supported Citizenship Amendment Act. Three out of these four have now joined the BJP.

Madhya Pradesh: Jain community seeks permission to hold a procession for Acharya Vidyasagar, permission letter says it has to be anti-CAA

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh: Jain community seeks permission to hold a procession for Acharya Vidyasagar, permission letter says it has to be anti-CAA

The Jain community in Indore had sought permission to take a procession to welcome their leader Acharya Vidyasagar. However, according to a report in Indian  Express, the authorities in the Madhya Pradesh told them they can take out the procession only if the rally is against the new citizenship law.

A massive controversy has erupted in Congress-ruled Madhya Pradesh after the government authorities told the Jain community that they could take out a procession only if the rally was against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

The condition laid has angered the Jain community, which had sought permission for the procession to welcome a spiritual leader Acharya Vidyasagar.

While granting conditional permission in a letter dated 4 January, the SDM had put up 17 points before the Jain community. The 15th point referred to the citizenship law. The rest were concerning the “dos and don’ts” for the organisers as Section 144 was in force.

The Collector of Indore Lokesh Jatav said that an explanation had been sought from the SDM who issued the letter. However, Jatav termed it a “human error” because the administration issued similar letters to organisers who wanted to take out rallies to oppose the citizenship law.

Senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya has also tweeted condemning the incident and asking if the state administration is working under pressure of Congress party.


Vinay Bakliwal, the city chief of Digambar Jain Samaj and also the president of the ruling Congress’s Indore unit, said it was an error that was corrected. He said the rally was taken out without any problem and no political slogans were raised.

“Will be honoured to be in audience at RSS event”: TVS Capital Funds Chairman Gopal Srinivasan marks his presence after Zoho chief is bullied by ‘liberals’

OpIndia Staff
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“Will be honoured to be in audience at RSS event”: TVS Capital Funds Chairman Gopal Srinivasan marks his presence after Zoho chief is bullied by ‘liberals’

TVS Capital Funds Chairman Gopal Srinivasan on Tuesday took to Twitter to stand up for what he believes in and said that he would be honoured to be in the audience at the RSS event where Zoho chief Sridhar Vembu is Chief Guest next month.


Srinivasan’s support to Vembu comes after Founder and CEO of Indian software development company Zoho, Sridhar Vembu and Accenture MD and Head of Operations Chennai Rama Ramachandran were bullied on social media for being the chief guest and guest of honour at an RSS event which will be held in Chennai in February.


However, Zoho chief Sridhar Vembu was unperturbed by this onslaught of ‘liberal’ bullies.


After he took the stand, many people came out in his support even as the ‘liberals’ continued to bully him.


The bullying was also called out by many.


Meanwhile, the ‘liberals’ continue to bully even those who stand by Vembu’s free will to attend any event he wishes to. They also brought in the ‘Brahmin’ angle.


The bullying cycle continues.

Tension escalates: Iran fires 15 ballistic missiles at US bases in Iraq, says will back off if US keeps silent

OpIndia Staff
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Tension escalates: Iran fires 15 ballistic missiles at US bases in Iraq, says will back off if US keeps silent

Five days after US airstrikes killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, Iran has launched missile strikes against two Iraqi military bases housing US forces in retaliation. More than twelve ballistic missiles were launched by Iran to target the Al Asad and Erbil military bases, the Pentagon said on Tuesday.

According to the reports, a total of 15 missiles were fired by Iran, ten striking Al-Assad airbase, west of Baghdad and at least two missiles in Erbil. One missile landed inside the perimeter of Erbil International Airport without exploding, while the second missile hit an area 33 kilometres west of the city of Erbil without causing casualties.


Iran’s state TV boasted about the operation, which was named ‘Martyr Soleimani’, in the memory of the Revolutionary Guard leader killed in a US drone strike. The launch was done to seek revenge for the killing of leading general Qasem Soleimani.

Reportedly, the missile attacks on US targets in Iraq is the first step and Tehran will not spare American troops, stated a senior Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) commander.

“The missile attacks today were just the first step. US President Donald Trump should think about withdrawing its troops from the region and not to leave them within our reach,” Iranian state TV quoted the commander as saying, without naming him.

The statement advised the United States to withdraw its troops from the region to prevent more deaths, state TV said.

Following the attacks, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that Iran took what it considered to be proportionate measures and does not seek an escalation of the war.

“Iran took & concluded proportionate measures in self-defence under Article 51 of UN Charter targeting base from which cowardly armed attack against our citizens & senior officials were launched. We do not seek escalation, or war, but will defend ourselves against any aggression,” Zarif tweeted.

As per reports, Iranian media is reporting that Iran will not launch any more attacks if the US keeps silent after this.

Ain al-Asad airbase was first used by American forces after the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, and later saw American troops stationed there amid the fight against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria. It houses about 1,500 U.S. and coalition forces. The base was already on high-alert and recently paused their operation against ISIS fearing a revenge attack by Iran.

Meanwhile, President Trump has tweeted that he will be making a statement on Wednesday morning following the missile attack at two Iraqi bases that house US troops.

“All is well! Missiles launched from Iran at two military bases located in Iraq. Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good!” he said.


General Qasem Suleimani, the most powerful military commander of Iran, was killed by US forces is a drone strike near Baghdad. Following his death, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had vowed to take “severe revenge” against the US for killing Suleimani.

Also, Iran had unfurled a red flag on top of the iconic The Holy Dome of Jamkaran Mosque in Qom, which is an old Shi’ite tradition symbolising bloody revenge.

Deepika Padukone’s PR stunt at JNU gets endorsement from Pakistan. Here is how it unfolded

OpIndia Staff
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Deepika Padukone’s PR stunt at JNU gets endorsement from Pakistan. Here is how it unfolded

India is a democracy and Bollywood entertainers have equal right to have a political opinion and ideological leaning. They too have a lot at stake when a film is releasing and hence, lead actors do a lot of PR stunts to increase curiosity about their films. Shah Rukh Khan once took August Kranti Express train from Mumbai to Delhi for promotion of his film Raees which glorified underworld don Abdul Latif who reigned terror in Gujarat in the 80s and 90s.

Similarly, three days prior to release of her film Chhapaak, Deepika Padukone decided to show ‘solidarity’ with students who were on the receiving end of violence by masked goons on JNU campus. The leftist goons had attacked students who were registering for winter semester and took over the server room and made it dysfunctional. JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh, who was found leading a mob on Sunday, 5th January, is named in an FIR for vandalism by JNU administration.

Padukone, to show her solidarity with the students, chose to meet Ghosh and her friends while the ones who were the victims during the registration process were ignored. Which is fine, as everyone is a hypocrite at the end of it.

Except, Padukone’s visit to JNU as show of solidarity was anything but organic. It was a PR stunt for her film promotion. And no, this is not something people are saying out of spite for Padukone. Deepika’s pictures from JNU were shared to various media houses by a PR firm ‘Spice PR’.

BBC Punjabi crediting Spice PR for the picture

While most media houses skipped giving credit to Spice PR for the image, BBC inadvertently ended up sharing it. Deepika Padukone is a Spice PR client since 2010. She is also a co-producer of her new film Chhapaak, which is inspired from life of Lakshmi, a victim of acid attack. As soon as the pictures were out, Padukone was hailed as ‘woman of steel’.


Deepika Padukone even got endorsement from former JNU student turned politician Kanhaiya Kumar, who allegedly mourned the death of 2001 Parliament Attack terrorist Afzal Guru on JNU campus in February 2016.


We could ignore the fact that the film may be highly problematic appropriated story of a disabled woman if this ‘organic’ solidarity towards the JNU students was actually that and not a PR stunt which eventually finds resonance in Pakistan.

Deepika’s PR stunt gets endorsement from Pakistan

Pakistan’s Army spokesperson, Asif Ghafoor, tweeted last night and called her brave person in ‘difficult environment’. Then, for reasons best known to Ghafoor, he deleted the endorsement. Perhaps Spice PR realised the stunt may have gone too far and even the bravest don’t like getting endorsement from the terror state of Pakistan.

To sum it up, no, Deepika’s JNU ‘solidarity’ was not organic or a ‘brave move’, it was a PR stunt. The stunt was in coordination with JNUSU. Pakistan army endorses this stunt of Deepika and called her a ‘brave person’.

Kapil Sibal proves Muslim appeasement and Soft Islamism is driving the anti-CAA campaign, calls for “iftar” in protest

OpIndia Staff
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Kapil Sibal proves Muslim appeasement and Soft Islamism is driving the anti-CAA campaign, calls for “iftar” in protest

Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal has proved once and for all that the protests underway in the country have nothing to do with secularism or communal harmony or preserving constitutional values. The protests are solely about pacifying the sentiments of Islamic extremists who feel entitled to privileges in the country. The Congress party has called for a ‘Community Iftar’ this Friday, which they say is a ‘fast for equality’ to protest against the NRC, CAA and the NPR.


From the very onset of the protests over the Citizenship Amendment Act, it has been clear that they are fueled by Islamic Extremism and deep-seated anti-Hindu bigotry. Yet, the party maintained a studious silence over the violence and the bigotry in these protests. Now, the anti-Hindu bigotry and radical Islamic symbolism of the protests have received the endorsement of the Congress party.

It is clear now that the Congress party truly believes that minority appeasement is the only true version of secularism and unless the most extremist sections of the Muslim community are appeased, secularism will continue to be under threat in this country.

The Congress party’s declaration of an Iftar is a declaration of the fact that in their vision of India, only Muslim sentiments need to be respected and the sentiments of the majority community does not matter. Even when the party brought in the deeply anti-Hindu Communal Violence Bill or propagated the condemnable saffron terror myth, they were not so brazen in their minority appeasement or in their hatred of Hinduism. However, now, they have abandoned all pretence.

Read- Officially anti-Hindu party: How Congress is trying to blame the Islamic concept of two nations on Hindus

At OpIndia, we have extensively documented the manner in which the Congress party has worked to instigate protests across universities and across the country. We have also documented the manner in which the entire campaign against CAA is being fueled by a coalition of Islamic fundamentalist organizations, foreign-funded NGOs, NGOs linked to ‘Urban Naxals’ and political parties. We have documented how these protests represent Khilafat 2.0. With the call for Iftar in protests, the Congress party appears to have declared its intention of leading this alliance.

It is also pertinent to mention here that the Congress party believes Narendra Modi is akin to Hitler because he once said, “Maa Ganga ne mujhe bulaya hai,” when he had arrived at Varanasi. Maa Ganga is one of the sacred rivers in the Hindu faith. To compare Narendra Modi to Hitler merely because he professed his love towards Maa Ganga is an insult towards the sentiments of the crores and crores of Hindus who revere the Holy River. Thus, once again, it is clear that while the Congress party does not care about the sentiments of Hindus, it takes great care to pacify the sentiments of Islamic extremists and walks the extra mile.

West Bengal: Teenaged girl gangraped, murdered and set to fire, body recovered after partially eaten by animals, 3 arrested

OpIndia Staff
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West Bengal: Teenaged girl gangraped, murdered and set to fire, body recovered after partially eaten by animals, 3 arrested

In an incident similar to the Hyderabad gangrape and murder case, the charred body of a teenaged girl has been recovered in Kumarganj in South Dinajpur in West Bengal. It is alleged that the 17-year-old girl was brutally killed after being gangraped before her body was burnt. The body was found on Monday morning under a culvert between Safanagar and Ashokgram.

The charred body was discovered by residents of Safanagar area when stray dogs were fighting for the flesh of the body. The residents saw blood on the culvert, and after that saw the body under it. According to locals, dogs and jackals had already eaten parts of the body, which has caused huge outrage among people.

The victim is a resident of Gangarampur, around 8 km from where her body was found. On Sunday evening at around 4 PM she had left her house saying that she is going to a market to buy some clothes. But after that she went missing, and her body was found on Monday morning. The body had injury marks by a sharp weapon. The family members allege that the girl was raped before being killed and set to fire, although the rape has not been confirmed by police yet.

Brother of the victim, who identified the body, said that few hours after she left house, her phone was switched off. The family members searched for her during the night but could not find her. When next day they heard that a burnt body of a girl has been found, they rushed to the police morgue and identified her.

She had appeared for secondary examinations last year, and as she had failed in the exams, she was preparing for appearing in it again. She belongs to a very poor family where her parents and elder brother work as labours.

The culvert where her body was found is near the Bangladesh border, and its an isolated place away from residential areas. Near the body, a bag, one footwear and some other evidences have been found by police, but the mobile phone of the girl was missing.

Police have already started investigating the case, and have made three arrests so far. They have been identified as Mahboor Mian, Pankaj Burman and Gautam Burman. Mahboor Mian has been identified as the mastermind of the crime by local media. All of them live in the same area where the girl’s family live, but work outside West Bengal. The victim was known to one of them and she was last seen with him on a two-wheeler. On the basis of that, they were arrested. The three suspects have been sent to 10 days of police custody.

Police have not confirmed whether the girl was raped, saying it can be confirmed after the post-mortem report is available. but according to reports, preliminary investigations show that she was gang-raped after they took her to an isolated place. When she threatened to reveal the same to villagers, they decided to kill her. They tied her hands and attacked her with a sharp weapon. When she was still breathing even after that, they poured petrol on her body and set her on fire before fleeing from the spot. Several parts of the body, including neck and hands, have injury marks of a sharp weapon.

The family members of the girl are members of BJP. Local BJP MP Sukanta Majumber condemned the incident, and declared that a major agitation will be started if the culprits are not caught quickly. Kumarganj Trinamool Congress MLA Toraf Hossain termed the incident as unfortunate and demanded an impartial probe.

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