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Amritsar Tragedy: Video shows event organisers boasted about people standing on tracks to Navjot Kaur

OpIndia Staff
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Amritsar Tragedy: Video shows event organisers boasted about people standing on tracks to Navjot Kaur

Dussehra this year was marred by a tragic accident in Amritsar where dozens of people were slaughtered in a calamity which appears to have been totally avoidable. As per reports, people were watching the Dussehra celebrations standing on the railway tracks when they were run over by a speeding train.

Now, a video has emerged which indicates that the organizers of the event, who are, as per reports, the family of a local Congress councillor, were completely aware of people standing on tracks and yet did nothing to caution them. Even more, they appeared to be encouraging them to stand there. Even more shockingly, Navjot Kaur Sidhu, wife of Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, appeared complicit in the negligence that led to the deaths of so many people.


“Madam, look here. These people don’t care about standing on tracks,” the event organizer can be heard saying in the video. “Even if 500 trains pass by, over 5000 people will be standing on the tracks for you,” he said, apparently addressing the wife of the Congress politician.

Soon after the incident, when media reports claimed that Navjot Kaur had fled from the scene after the incident, she had denied the reports and has stated that she has left 15 minutes prior and had even stated that the organisers and herself cannot be blamed because neither had they made the people sit on tracks nor had they made the train mow them down. Navjot Kaur had also indirectly blamed the railways saying that the train did now slow down.

The video completely demolishes Navjot Singh Sidhu’s argument that the whole incident was ‘Parmatma ka Prakop’ (wrath of the almighty). It is quite evident that the whole accident reflects the monumental failure of authorities at several levels and reflects criminal negligence. From the organizers of the event which was conducted without prior permission from concerned authorities to the chief guest who did not take any initiative to ensure the safety of attendees even though it appears that everyone was well aware of people standing on railway tracks.

Termed by many as ‘Yogi of the South’, Swami Paripoornananda joins BJP

OpIndia Staff
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Termed by many as ‘Yogi of the South’, Swami Paripoornananda joins BJP

After several reports and speculations, Swami Paripoornananda, head of the Kakinada Sri Peetham finally joined BJP. BJP President Amit Shah in presence of General secretary Ram Madhav termed induction of Paripoornananda as an infusion of new energy to BJP and its election prospects.


After joining the BJP, Paripoornananda reportedly said, ‘’I have joined the party as a Karamyogi’’.

Swami Paripoornananda had met Chief Amit Shah and MLA NVSS Prabhakar, earlier this month to have ‘detailed deliberations’ over future plans. However, commenting upon earlier rumours of projection of Paripoornananda as CM face of BJP, NVSS Prabhakar said that decision is not taken yet.

Swami Paripoornananda had courted controversy after he launched a protest against film critic Kathi Mahesh’s adverse comments on Hindu Gods. Paripoornananda was externed from entering Hyderabad, however High court had lifted the ban subsequently on September 4 this year. He was welcomed with grandeur, by thousands of his supporters in a huge public rally along the Vijayawada-Hyderabad national highway.

Paripoornananda’s image is seen as akin to Yogi Adityanath, and has earlier written a book on PM Narendra Modi named ‘Third Eye’ and also has launched a TV channel Bhaarat Today, which telecasts news from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. There have been also speculations that the spiritual guru might lead the BJP’s poll campaign in Telangana.

Reports also suggest Paripoornananda can contest from Greater Hyderabad assembly seat which is considered a bastion of Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM.

BJP has decided to go solo in elections in Telangana. It currently has five seats out of 119. It previously was in coalition with Chandrababu Naidu TDP.

Dates of polls have been announced and Telangana is to go for elections on December 7.

#MeToo: JNU student alleges ‘Hero of Kathua protests’ raped her brutally

OpIndia Staff
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#MeToo: JNU student alleges ‘Hero of Kathua protests’ raped her brutally

A student of JNU has accused a prominent ‘activist from Jammu’ who was at the forefront of the protests over the Kathua rape and murder case, of brutally raping her in Delhi on 27th April this year.

The victim, who has shared her ordeal in an exclusive article in Firstpost.com, has chosen to remain anonymous and has stated that ‘the activist’ had not only caused her lasting bodily harm but also a great mental trauma.

The victim has further written that she did not speak up earlier due to apprehensions that such shocking revelations about a ‘hero’ could jeopardise the Kathua child rape-and-murder case.

In the article, the victim has stated that ‘the activist’ was being frequently invited to speak at events organised by institutes like JNU as he had risen to prominence as an ‘anti-rape crusader’. She also mentions that this ‘activist’ was being invited to speak at students’ union events in JNU, AMU and MANUU even before the charge sheet in the Kathua case was filed. As per the victim, ‘the activist’ spoke not just about the Kathua rape and murder case of the child, but also on the problems that the Gujjar-Bhakerwal community faced in the state.

As per the Firstpost article, ‘the activist’ was invited to speak in JNU on March 27, 2018, and afterwards, he maintained a regular contact with the students who had invited him, the victim being one of them. The victim further narrates that after he was attacked in Udhampur on April 13, the students were cautious about his safety. On 27 April, ‘the activist’ reportedly arrived at JNU and insisted the victim should meet him. The victim narrates that it was the day there were altercations in the campus between student groups over the screening of ‘In The Name of Love’, a movie made on love jihad cases of Kerala, and many students, including the victim, were at the police station filing complaints against ABVP members.

The victim states that ‘the activist’ insisted on the victim coming to meet him and when she did, (after 40 phone calls), took her to an apartment in the Batla house area where he raped her brutally, despite her repeated attempts to fight him off. She narrates that ‘the activist’, all the while when he was forcing himself on her, was saying that he will do ‘Nikaah’ with her.

The victim does not divulge the identity of her rapist, only mentions that he is actively promoted by media and has a strong support behind him. She also states that ‘the activist’ was jailed recently on charges of raping a female relative and his own wife has also complained of domestic abuse and dowry harassment by ‘the activist’. She writes that her rapist has recently been released on bail. She mentions that had it not been for the recent campaign named ‘Decolonial Feminist Statement on MeToo in Kashmir‘ she would not have been able to come forward and shared her ordeal because there is an ongoing attempt in Kashmir to gag female voices speaking against sexual harassment. In a shocking revelation, the victim also claims that she later got to know that she was not the only person assaulted by ‘the activist’.

The first person account of the victim’s ordeal and her suffering after the harrowing incident can be read in the Firstpost article.

Wrong to blame Railways for Amritsar tragedy, people should not trespass on tracks, says chairman Ashwani Lohani

OpIndia Staff
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Wrong to blame Railways for Amritsar tragedy, people should not trespass on tracks, says chairman Ashwani Lohani

The Amritsar train tragedy absorbed the life of more than 60 people yesterday as the Jalandhar-Amritsar DMU ran over people gathered to watch Ravan Dahan near the Jora Phatak area in Amritsar last evening.

As the mishap leaves families of the deceased mourning, a series of accusations and counter-accusations have emerged. While the chief guest to the event and wife of Congress leader, Navjot Singh Sindhu, former lawmaker Navjot Kaur Sidhu blamed railway authorities for not issuing directions regarding movement of trains near the tracks, the Indian Railways have countered the allegations and insisted that it will not be giving any compensation to victims of the Amritsar mishap as they are not including it in the list of train accidents.

Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha, stating that people should restrain from organising such events near railway tracks has already said that there was no need for Railways to hold an enquiry into the mishap.


After the news of the mishap spread yesterday, several prominent media names had blamed it on the railways and even held the railway minister accountable. But as the details of the case emerged, it was later cleared that the organisers of the event, the family of a  local Congress councillor, had not sought the necessary permissions from the municipal body, neither had they informed the railways about it.


Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani had said in a statement that the Railways was not intimated about a Dussehra event along the tracks. He said that the accident occurred at a stretch between two stations, Amritsar and Manawala, and not at a level crossing. He added that if the driver had applied emergency breaks, there could have been a bigger tragedy.

However, Punjab police have registered an FIR against unknown persons under section 304, 304A, 337 and 338 of the IPC at the GRP Police Station on Saturday.

Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh on Friday ordered an enquiry into the tragic Amritsar train accident and declared one-day mourning in the state.

ED files cases of money laundering against Air India deals signed during the Congress regime

Jinit Jain
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ED files cases of money laundering against Air India deals signed during the Congress regime

The Directorate of Enforcement is a law enforcement agency and economic intelligence agency responsible for enforcing economic laws and fighting economic crime in India. Investigating foreign exchange violations, the ED on Friday launched a probe in 4 Air India deals signed during the UPA tenure under money laundering act. The ED has lodged multiple criminal cases to investigate allegations of financial irregularities and money laundering in 4 deals signed during the UPA rule, including the suspicious merger of Air India and Indian Airlines.

The ED equivalent of FIR, Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR), are registered in at least 4 cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. These ED cases are based on the 4 CBI FIRs. Last year, in May 2017, CBI had filed 3 FIR and a preliminary inquiry to probe alleged irregularities in Indian Airlines-Air India merger and purchase of 111 aircraft, leasing of planes without due consideration of route or pricing strategy, giving up of profit-making routes by Air India to national and international private players causing huge loss to the state-run carrier and an alleged malpractice in the procurement of software for the airline.

The cases relate to decisions taken by the ministry during the tenure of the UPA causing an alleged loss of “tens of thousands of crore” of rupees to the exchequer as per the CBI. The CBI had registered cases against unidentified officials, Ministry of Civil Aviation and others for charges of corruption, cheating and criminal conspiracy.

The allegations related to the decision of buying 111 aeroplanes, for about Rs 70,000 crore, for Air India to benefit foreign manufacturers. According to the CBI, such a purchase caused an alleged financial loss to already stressed national carriers. The CAG in 2011 had already questioned the government’s reasoning behind the decision to procure aeroplanes for Rs 70,000 in 2006. The auditor said the deal should have caused raised alarm in different quarters of Aviation Ministry and the Planning Commission.

It is now anticipated that ED will issue summons to the concerned authorities involved and ask them to appear before it.

Showing no mercy, the ED has come down really hard against the money launderers. Last month, ED filed a money laundering case against Karnataka Congress leader D. K. Shivakumar. As ED tightens its noose in the money laundering cases pertaining to the gross irregularities in UPA rule, it will be interesting to see how the Congress malfeasants respond to the ECIRs. It appears that money laundering has become synonymous to the Congress.

20 convicted in Britain for a ‘campaign of rape and abuse’ of children in Huddersfield, Britain

OpIndia Staff
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20 convicted in Britain for a ‘campaign of rape and abuse’ of children in Huddersfield, Britain

Leeds Crown Court has convicted 20 men of being part of a grooming gang that raped and abused girls as young as 11 in Huddersfield, Britain. The men were found guilty of more than 120 offences against 15 girls. The victims were lured with drugs and alcohol after which they were “used and abused at will” in a seven-year “campaign of rape and abuse” between 2004 and 2011. The case was reported for the first time on Friday after a blanket ban that was imposed on the coverage of the case was lifted.

Judge Geoffrey Marson QC told the gang: “The extent and gravity of your offending far exceed anything which I have previously encountered. It was a very significant campaign of rape and other sexual abuse. Children’s lives have been ruined and families profoundly affected by seeing their children, over months and years, out of control, having been groomed by you and other members of your gang.”

Describing the activities of the grooming gang, the prosecutor said, “The way children like these were groomed by men like the defendants is very simple. They identify a vulnerable child who is socially isolated and not well supported by friends and family. Then they befriend that child and make them feel special – whether that be by simply appearing as someone who wants to spend time with them, or by flattery, or by plying them with drink and drugs.”

Home Secretary Sajid Javid said: “These horrific crimes are sickening and, first and foremost, I commend the bravery of those who’ve suffered abuse in coming forward. I thank both the police and the Crown Prosecution Service for their dedication and I am glad to see these offenders face justice. I’ve made a personal commitment to tackling child sexual abuse in all its forms and the significant investment we have provided to transform law enforcement’s response is beginning to take effect. I am prepared to ask difficult questions about these types of offenders and I will not stop until we have done everything possible to protect vulnerable children.”

Barry Sheerman, Labour MP for Huddersfield, said: “Let’s be honest: no-one, local authority leadership, police, many of the people that should have been taking this more seriously earlier did not. But also, what happened in Rotherham and the publicity of Rotherham galvanised the action.”

The ringleader is a Sikh, Amere Singh Dhaliwal, who converted to Sikhism five years ago, 2 years after the ‘campaign’ reportedly ended. He was sentenced to a life in prison with a minimum of 18 years in jail. Other members have been jailed between 5 and 18 years and are mostly of Pakistani heritage. The names of the other rapist pedophiles are Irfan Ahmed, Zahid Hassan, Mohammed Kammer, Mohammed Rizwan Aslam, Abdul Rehman, Raj Singh Barsran, Nahman Mohammed, Mansoor Akhtar, Wiqas Mahmud, Nasarat Hussain, Sajid Hussain, Mohammed Irfraz, Faisal Nadeem, Mohammed Azeem, Manzoor Hassan, Mohammed Akram, Niaz Ahmed, Asif Bashir and Mohammed Imran Ibrar.

It is only in the past few years that the extent to which Muslim grooming gangs have been raping children with impunity, an overwhelming majority of which are of other faiths, has come to light. According to recent discoveries, Muslim grooming gangs have been operating in Britain for decades and authorities were unwilling to confront the harsh realities of the communal nature of the demography of the gangs due to fear of being branded a racist. There’s enough evidence which indicates that the entire liberal establishment, the media and the political parties, along with the state machinery engaged in an active cover-up of the rapes of children and continued to sacrifice children because they were too afraid to be called racist.

Sabarimala, abode of Lord Ayyappa: Of ‘equality’, the misinformation and what we stand to lose

Bangodesh Editor
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Sabarimala, abode of Lord Ayyappa: Of ‘equality’, the misinformation and what we stand to lose

The entry of women aged 10 to 50 was prohibited in the Sabarimala Temple. In 2006, a Public Interest Litigation was filed in Supreme Court against this religious ritual on the ground of gender discrimination by Indian Young Lawyer’s Association (President), Bhakti Pasrija Sethi (General Secretary of the Indian Young Lawyers Association), Laxmi Shastri, Prerna Kumari, Alka Sharma, and Sudha Pal.

At the time of long legal battle, three of the five petitioners — Prerna Kumari, Alka Sharma, and Sudha Pal—withdrew their objection. Prema explained that she was unaware of the cultural context of the ritual. In sum, the supporters of the Sabarimala Temple tradition could convince a majority of the individual petitioners.

On 30 September 2018, the Supreme Court ordered to open the Sabarimala Temple on the ground of equal rights of women for women of all ages. The sole woman judge in that five-judge bench, Justice Indu Malhotra, dissented to this decision. She said that the court has no jurisdiction on religious matters. Moreover, none of the petitioners hailed from the state of Kerala and is no way familiar with the cultural background.

Scores of Thousands of women in Kerala has come out open in the streets to protest against this judgement of the court in each and every urban agglomeration of Kerala. They demand the preservation of Hindu tradition. Do they all hail from the Upper Caste background. Never. The majority hails from so-called backward communities such as the scheduled tribes.

In the light of this protest, it is natural to ask if the prohibitions on the entry of women of reproductive age between 10 & 50 were discriminatory and an infringement of women’s rights, why have women across Kerala taken to streets to protest the removal of the prohibitions.

Sabarimala and Equality

The discourse of equality and egalitarianism was developed in the west as a response to inequalities promoted by the Abrahamic religious culture prevalent there. Being a western solution to a western problem, the equality discourse is fully rooted in Abrahamism, and thus, deriving key assumptions and principles from Abrahamic religious worldview. When implemented on the ground, equality discourse seeks to destroy diversity and promote sameness, and hence, will prove disastrous when applied to non-Abrahamic religious traditions like Hinduism, whose worldview is rooted in harmony, diversity, and spirituality.

In the case of Sabarimala, this translates into a unique temple having unique characteristics, with unique criteria for admittance of devotees. In Kerala itself, there are temples and festivals, where women alone participate and men are prohibited. Moreover, the deity Ayyappa or Dharmashasta has other temples at Kulathupuzha, Aryankavu, and Achankovil, where he exists as a child, as a married person with a wife and as an ascetic, respectively, and none of these temples have any kind of prohibitions for the entry of women. Further, even in Sabarimala, there is no prohibition on entry of women before menarche or after menopause.

In short, there is no gender-based discrimination in Sabarimala, and the application of equality discourse into the issue is quite frankly misleading.

Sabarimala and Menstruation

One of the confusion that is prevalent in the current discourse about Sabarimala is that the prohibition is placed upon the women due to menstruation. The confusion has arisen because, the prohibition is placed upon women between menarche and menopause, i.e. on women of reproductive age. While in all Hindu temples, it is generally expected of women do not enter the temples during their monthly period owing to considerations of they being in a heightened Rajasic condition during the time, the blanket prohibition on all women in reproductive age is not because of menstruation as such.

A temple is not merely a place of congregation for prayers as in the case of a church or a mosque. A temple built according to Agamic stipulations is an energy centre, where a deity has been invoked and established. In other words, a temple is an abode of the deity, wherein the deity lives, with the whole place being enlivened with the specific kind of energy associated with that deity.

In the case of Sabarimala, the deity Ayyapan is present in the form of Naishtika Brahmachari, the one who eternally practices Brahmacharya (or celibacy). According to the rules of Naishtika Brahmacharya, the one who practices it must not only maintain celibacy, but, must maintain absolute restraint over all his senses, and hence, it is prescribed for him to maintain non-contact with women, especially of reproductive age. Since, in Sabarimala, it is the deity, who is practising Naishtika Brahmachari, women of reproductive age are prohibited from entering the temple so as to not violate the vow of Brahmacharya taken by the deity.

Further, since, the energy of the temple is the energy that promotes Brahmacharya, and the repeated and prolonged visits by women of reproductive age can cause an imbalance in their reproductive biology, the restrictions on their entry has been placed.

In short, the prohibition of entry of women of reproductive age in Sabarimala has nothing to do with menstruation. It is a practice which has been stipulated owing to the unique nature of the deity and the energy present in the temple, and to ensure that the vow of Brahmacharya of the deity is not violated.

What is at stake

Hinduism is an ecosystem built upon diversity of spiritual practices, each catering to different groups of people having different temperaments and competencies. Sabarimala is one such unique spiritual tradition, which is now under threat by the forces that want to destroy diversity and promote homogeneity. If the wishes of the deity is not respected, if the traditions of the temples are violated, then we would forever lose this tradition and the access to the deity of Ayyapan in the form of Naishtika Brahmacharya. It will be a great loss to Hindu civilization, and more importantly to the male and female devotees of Ayyapa Swami.

Despite these protest by lakhs and lakhs of women devotees, the Communist Party opened the gate of the temple for women aged 10 to 50 and used force to gain entry.

The propaganda by the Mainstream media was that women devotees aspire to enter in Sabarimala and they are obstructed by the agitators. Exactly which women would like to enter Sabarimala. Take Reshma Nishanth (whose husband is a Marxist political worker) who suddenly became an Ayyappan devotee from being an atheist, after the SC ruling. Similar is the story about the others. Some want to open a condom shop in Sabarimala, some want to visit the temple while menstruating. They are coming from America, from Mumbai, only for entering the temple.

The devotees observe a 41-day observation on self-restraint before entering the temple such as not having onion, garlic or sex, walking on barefoot, sleeping on floor etc. Supreme Court ruled for entry of women aged 10 to 50, not relaxed the conditions of this self-restraint. This came only two weeks before the opening of the temple. Then, how did these so-called activist-cum-devotees observe this 41-day ritual?

The Role of Government

The role of government is to maintain law and order in society not to push people to agitation. The CPI(M) government of Kerala could have easily made the submission to the court to review the petition on account of considerable uneasiness in society. One octogenarian ascetic Guruswamy from Koilandy committed suicide to protest against this intrusion of Court in religious domain, On the other hand, Kerala Police beat up the protestors without provocation, left bleeding women on road after beating up, destroyed two-wheelers of devotees. The devotees are struggling to ensure the continuity of their own tradition.

The fight ended with Kerala Government accepting defeat to the Ayyappan devotees. The Kerala Police sent back the activists who were trying to force the entry with the police force. It is a victory, albeit a temporary one, by the Ayyappan devotees. The two activists who were sent back, include one Muslim (Rehana Fathima) and one Christian (Kavitha Jakkal). No comments are required on this.

We do not know how long will then devotees be able to continue their fight. When can we say empathetically that human beings are made to cater to constitutional morality, but the constitutional morality must take a cue from human understanding?

(The article was originally published on bangodesh.com)

#MeToo: Woman in Meghalaya accuses Catholic priests of sexually abusing her throughout her childhood

OpIndia Staff
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#MeToo: Woman in Meghalaya accuses Catholic priests of sexually abusing her throughout her childhood

A tribal Khasi woman in Meghalaya has accused two Catholic priests of sexually abusing her since she was 5-years-old. As per reports, the woman, now 40, has shared her ordeal on a Facebook Post on how she was assaulted by one Br Francis Gale of the Christian Brothers and Br Muscat of Don Bosco group from the age of 5 until she was 12, leading her to attempt suicide thrice in her life.

“He would call children to his side of the table and ask us to choose toffees from his drawers and while we did, he would slide his hands up our thighs,” she said. The victim also mentioned that she could never tell anyone about the sexual abuse she faced by Muscat due to the larger abuse she faced from Gale. “The #metoo movement has triggered a lot of distress, but it also brings me hope and belief that justice will come, that we, each of us who have suffered silently will finally be heard, we might not be believed by everybody but we will be believed by many, and that matters,” she said.

Referring to Gale, of the Christian Brothers congregation, she accused him of sexually abusing her for eight years. The woman has reportedly stated that Gale was a trusted friend of my family and was held in great esteem as a religious man. “I was sent to him for tuitions. I was 5 when he first showed me his XXXX and asked me to touch it,” she has added.

According to reports, the woman has added that she had tried to share her ordeal with a trusted family member but was slapped in return. She has added that her poor family background probably made her an easy target for the priests. She added that Francis Gale continued to harass her until she was 12-year-old. When she attained puberty, she finally mustered the courage to stop him because she was afraid she will get pregnant.

The accused Francis Gale is now reportedly posted in West Bengal while the other accused Br Muscat is based in Shillong.

The victim has also stated that she has spoken to her lawyers on the next steps to be taken, with the first one being #MeToo, that has finally provided her supportable platform to vent the frightening abuse that she faced. “All I want is to be heard and supported, while I do the same for others who have faced these issues”, she said.

Media reports have also mentioned that the Archdiocese was unavailable for a comment over the allegations. The Meghalaya woman’s allegations have come in the wake of Jalandhar’s Bishop Franco Mulakkal being accused of rape by a nun that was had gained widespread attention in the country. Bishop Franco was arrested more than two months after the allegations were made and has been recently granted bail.

Sabarimala: HMO had warned Kerala govt about Left Wing Extremist groups instigating violence

Jhankar Mohta
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Sabarimala: HMO had warned Kerala govt about Left Wing Extremist groups instigating violence

Sabarimala temple in Kerala turned into a war zone as it opened its door for women aged between 10 and 50 years on October 17, following the controversial judgement of the Supreme Court allowing women of all ages to enter the temple.

As per several media reports, the Ministry of Home Affairs had issued a circular, dated October 16, addressed to Chief Secretaries and Director Generals of Police of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu warning the governments to make adequate security arrangements at the Sabarimala Temple.

The advisory was accessed on Friday, shortly after two women made it within metres of the Sabarimala Temple in the morning but were forced to return after an hours-long deliberation between multiple groups.

The circular clearly stated that there should be no breach of law and order on October 17 when Sabarimala Temple in Kerala opened its doors to women of all ages. The circular even cautioned the state’s about the presence of Left-wing extremist (LWE) groups campaigning in favour of women’s entry into Sabarimala temple.

The MHA writing to the top bureaucrats of all three state’s had also warned that many devotees of Lord Ayyappa had planned protests on October 17.

The circular read:

“As per the information received, comprehensive security arrangements would be required at the Sabarimala Shrine on the date of its opening for monthly rituals on 17.10.2018, in the backdrop of the State Government’s decision to implement the recent order of Hon’ble Supreme Court to allow women of all ages to visit the shrine and wide-spread protests against the same from various quarters. Certain civil/women’s rights activists, Left parties/fronts and pro-LWE groups have been campaigning in favour of women’s entry into the shrine and actively using women to do so on 17.10.2018. While opposing groups/activists have threatened that they would not allow entry of women inside the shrine on that day.”

The Home Ministry in its advisory furthered cautioned that some Hindu outfits might organise protests on October 17 and may organise state-wide protests: “Hindu outfits plan to organise protest programmes on 17.10.2018 against Hon’ble Court’s order at Nilackal village in Pathanamthitta district and Erumeli village in Kottayam districts. Separately, Ayyappa devotees, Hindu outfits and certain caste-based outfits have been organising a state-wide protest against the Hon’ble court’s order. Participation in these protests has ranged from 50-3,000, including participation of a sizeable number of women. Hindu outfits have also organised a few protest programme in neighbouring states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.”

Despite the MHA circular which was sent a day before the temple opened, Sabarimala temple turned into a war zone. Section 144 had to be imposed in parts of Pathanamthitta district where Sabarimala temple is located. This raises questions as to whether due cognisance was taken by the state governments of the warning given by the Home Ministry?

In fact, few people on Twitter could also sense the conspiracy contrived by the leftist cabal the MHA had warned three states about, which the state’s clearly ignored.


As the communist government lathicharged and pelted stones at the protesting devotees, questions were raised whether the Communist government of Kerala was more than happy to allow Hindu religious sentiments to be hurt.

Rubbing salt in the wound, the Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan had made a controversial statement that certain customs are meant to be violated, hinting at the beliefs of the devotees of Lord Ayyappa. What further heightened the contempt of Hindu sentiments was when Kerala’s Finance Minister and member of Communist Party of India (Marxist) Thomas Isaac took to Twitter to call all protesting devotees of Lord Ayyappa as terrorists.

Keeping up with the anti-Hindu stance the Communist government seems to be fostering, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechuri on Friday hit-out at RSS and said that the pattern of protest is similar to what was during Babri Masjid demolition. Stating that similar thing is being done here (Sabarimala), Yechury said, “It is an organized thing that the RSS is doing. RSS has lost the battle of not letting the gates of Sabarimala open, they even lost the battle that the temple shouldn’t open on time.”

All you need to know about the Amritsar train tragedy: A saga of neglect and vulturism

OpIndia Staff
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All you need to know about the Amritsar train tragedy: A saga of neglect and vulturism

At least 60 people have been killed and many others have been injured when the Jalandhar-Amritsar DMU ran over people gathered to watch Ravan Dahan near the Jora Phatak area in Amritsar last evening. According to reports, a crowd of more than 500 hundred people had gathered near the tracks when the tragedy occurred at about 7 pm yesterday.

Here are some details about the tragedy that has stunned the state of Punjab on the holy occasion of Dussehra:

  • Hundreds of people had gathered to watch the Ravan Dahan being organised on a ground near the railway tracks in the Jora Phatak area. As the tracks were on higher ground than the area near the effigy, many had claimed up to have a better view.
  • Punjab Congress Minister and former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu’s wife, Dr Navjot Kaur was the chief guest of the ceremony. She was present during the tragedy and several reports state that she departed from the scene after the incident.
  • According to reports, about 300 people were gathered close to the railway tracks during the ceremony. As the effigy started burning and the firecrackers went off, more people suddenly started rushing towards the tracks which were already crowded.
  •  As scores of people from the grounds area rushed towards the tracks to escape from the heat or to have a better view, people had no time to hear or see the coming 74643 Jalandhar-Amritsar DMU that, according to reports was rushing at a speed of 100 KM per hour.
  • As per reports, the grounds, called locally as Dhobi ghat grounds, is barely a few kilometres away from the Amritsar station and there are manned crossings close by. Reports also say that within seconds of the 74643 DMU running over people, a second train, the Amritsar-Howrah mail rushed over the adjacent tracks and the people who had jumped the first set of tracks in a hurry were mowed down too.
  • Reports emerged later that the organisers of the event had not informed the railways about the event being organised in the area so close to the tracks.
  • The Punjab police have clarified that they had given permission for the event and several police officials were also deployed for providing security to the chief guest, Navjot Kaur, but the event organisers had not sought other necessary permissions like that from the municipal corporation or the fire department. Amritsar Police commissioner SS Srivastava has stated that the event was organised by a local named Mithu Madan’s family. Mithu’s mother is the local Congress councillor of the area.
  • The grounds where the event was held belongs to the municipal corporation, but the corporation has stated that no permission was sought from them to hold the event. The organisers had not even barricaded the area near the tracks to prevent people from going there.
  • The negligence in obtaining the necessary permissions, failure of the police to provide adequate security to the people and keeping them away from the tracks, the organisers not taking adequate measures to either barricade or light the tracks are some of the reasons being cited that resulted in the tragedy.
  • The railway authorities have issued helpline numbers for passengers. All train services have been suspended on the route. However, Railway board chairman Ashwani Lohani has stated that it is wrong to hold the railways responsible for the incident.


Minutes after the incident, there were misleading details and incorrect information being actively circulated on social media. Many prominent people from the media were found propagating wrong ideas and attempting to shift the blame.

 

There are also several reports claiming that the police personnel deployed at the site were all busy providing security to the chief guest and they neglected to take adequate measures to safeguard the people. Though the event was not organised for the first time and have been held for quite some years, the local administration is being accused of not taking adequate measures to avoid such an incident.

Navjot Kaur Sidhu, when asked about the incident, stated to the media the she has left the venue when the tragedy happened. She also tried to blame the railways stating that the train was not slowed down. When it was pointed out that the organisers of the event were being blamed , she stated that people should not do politics over it and stated that neither they (herself and the organisers) have put the people on the tracks nor they have run the train over them.


Punjab Congress minister Navjot Singh Sidhu has stated that even if there was negligence at the event, it was not intentional. Their statements are being criticised as insentitive on the social media.


Meanwhile, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh has announced a day of state-wide mourning and Rs 5 lakhs as compensation to the kin of each deceased person. PM Modi has also expressed his condolences over the incident and has announced Rs 2 lakh as compensation for the family of each of the deceased persons and Rs 50,000 each for the injured.

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