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TOI quietly deletes “Veda Pathshala” from its ‘child trafficking at Madarsa’ story, no apology tendered

OpIndia Staff
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TOI quietly deletes “Veda Pathshala” from its ‘child trafficking at Madarsa’ story, no apology tendered

Earlier today, we had reported how a Times of India report had force-fitted ‘Veda Pathshala’ in the headline on the story on child trafficking in madarsa in Chennai. However, after being pointed out the by Twitter user Ethirajan Srinivasan that the report has no proof of any child trafficking from any ‘Veda Pathshala’ as mentioned in the headline, Times of India quietly changed the headline of the article, without really making any changes in the article.

Original headline
Changed headline

The news report in Times of India, written by a reported Ekatha Ann John, mentions the term Veda Pathshala only once in the report, “Since January, Railway Childline, Government Railway Police and the DCPU have rescued at least 25 children from Chennai who escaped from Madarsas and Veda Pathshalas located in the city and other districts.” But the article had no mention of specific cases or names of any Veda Pathshala. Interestingly, after change in headline, the story was not changed. Which means, the story still claims that Veda Pathshalas are also part of child trafficking network, albeit without any proof.

Since last week, media is rife with reports from Jharkhand where two nuns of Missionaries of Charity were held for allegedly selling babies. Since then many details have emerged about the alleged child selling, duping, forgery and trafficking racket operational with links to the charity organisation founded by Mother Teresa. At the wake of such incidents, though it is fair to call for transparency and strict rules for religious residential institutions, dragging the name of an institution without data is unfortunate.

Misleading headlines have often been used to paint a wrong picture or create an incorrect perception of a crime. Many times we see news headlines claiming a ‘tantrik’ or priest being involved in some crime with accompanying picture depicting Hindu symbols when the report is actually about perpetrators of other religions. Was this Veda Pathshala reference another such attempt?

Amusingly, after changing the headline, has neither issued clarification nor put up a disclaimer about the change in the story published.

Part of tent collapses during PM Modi’s speech, PM instructs SPG to help, meets the injured in hospital

OpIndia Staff
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Part of tent collapses during PM Modi’s speech, PM instructs SPG to help, meets the injured in hospital

Several people were reportedly injured when a part of the tent erected for the public at a rally being addressed by PM Narendra Modi collapsed today at Midnapore. According to reports, the PM, seeing the incident, instructed the SPG assigned to his security detail to intervene and help the people.


According to reports, the injured were taken to the Midnapore medical college and hospital. After his speech, PM Modi even visited the injured people in the hospital to check and inquire about injured people. He was seen talking to the patients and reassuring them. The tent reportedly gave away because of overcrowding at the venue. The PM was addressing a gathering of thousands of people in the Kisan Kalyan Rally in West Bengal’s Paschim Midnapore district.


courtesy: The Indian Express

At least 15 people are being reported injured. The PM’s gesture of instructing his SPG and visiting the injured in the medical college is being praised in the social media. PM Modi, who is known for his public outreach and popularity, is often seen breaking his security protocol.

In the videos of the PM’s hospital visit, he is seen patiently talking to the doctors and listening to the injured people individually holding their hands.


In another incident recently, it was reported that one of the Air Force guards had collapsed due to heat stroke during the welcome ceremony of Seychelles President at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. PM Modi, after receiving the visiting President, had returned to the ceremony ground and had inquired about the guard’s health.

Divided house in MP Congress? Poster war erupts between Jyotiraditya Scindia and Kamal Nath

OpIndia Staff
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Divided house in MP Congress? Poster war erupts between Jyotiraditya Scindia and Kamal Nath

The infighting within ‘Muslim party‘ Congress seems to be poised to go on for much longer. As per Times of India, a new poster war has erupted between Jyotiraditya Scindia, who recently threw away the prasad given to him from his car, and Kamal Nath, who had recently written a letter to Lord Shiva to help MP defeat BJP.

Ahead of the Madhya Pradesh state elections, despite Congress trying hard to project a united front against the incumbent BJP, it is reported that all is not well inside the party. The two factions are coming out in public with support for their respective leaders, to project them as the next chief ministerial candidate of the state.

The posters have come up out supporting Kamal Nath saying, “Rahul Bhaiyaa ka Sandesh, Kamal Nath Sambhalo Pradesh (Rahul Gandhi’s message: Kamal Nath take charge of Madhya Pradesh)”. Another Facebook page with the name “Kamal Nath Vichar Sadbhawna Manch-MP” has also posted similar posters with hashtags like ‘KamlnathNextMPCM’

The Scindia faction also seems to have been working hard to project him as the chief minister candidate. A Facebook page, ‘Srimant Scindia Fan Club’, has also posted similar poster which says, “Desh mein chalegi vikas ki aandhi, Pradesh mein Scindia, kendra mein Rahul Gandhi (There will be a storm of development in the country, led by Scindia in M.P. and Rahul Gandhi at the Centre).”

The state Congress unit rubbished the reports of any internal conflicts between the supporters of Scindia and Kamal Nath and pinned the blame on the BJP. The party spokesperson Pankaj Chaturvedi said, “Who says they are Congress supporters? They could well be BJP men trying to create confusion in the media and among party cadres”, he said.

Meanwhile, amidst this, the former Chief Minister of the Madhya Pradesh, Digvijaya Singh has undertaken ‘Ekta Yatra’ to bridge the gap between the Congress leaders in the state. The yatra is aimed at bringing Congress workers and leaders together to fight the state elections, which is to be held in November.

Similarly, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has begun the BJP’s ‘Jan Ashirvad Yatra’ to reach the people of the state ahead of the state elections. Shivraj Singh Chouhan is fighting to become the chief minister of the state for a fourth successive term.

Babies sold by Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity have been rescued, confirms Police

Jhankar Mohta
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Babies sold by Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity have been rescued, confirms Police

The long drawn, extensive investigation carried on by the Jharkhand police has finally paid off as the SSP Ranchi police, Anish Gupta confirmed to ANI that all the four babies who were part of the baby-selling racket, involving the nuns of Missionaries of Charity, ‘Nirmal Hriday’– a shelter home for destitute women, a trust founded by Nobel laureate Mother Teresa, have been rescued.


Jharkhand police said that the fourth baby rescued, were given away by the shelter home for free, whereas the rest of the three were sold by the nuns working for ‘Nirmal Hriday’. The police statement came a day after the woman confessed to having sold three children and giving away the fourth for free to different persons.

Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI that the fourth child was traced in Ranchi today. He declined to give details, saying the matter was “highly confidential”.

Yesterday, Senior Superintendent of Police Anis Gupta said sister Konsalia of the charity has confessed to the crime and said she had “sold” the three kids to three persons.

As reported by the Ranchi police the first baby was rescued on the 3rd of July, and the second and third babies have subsequently been rescued on 8th and 11th July respectively.

Earlier this month reports that a shelter home for destitute women called ‘Nirmal Hriday’ in Ranchi, Jharkhand, aided by the Missionaries of charity was found to be involved in human trafficking, surfaced which took the entire nation by shock and disgust, except few who encash every event and situation to their advantage. The few were none other than our so-called liberals and politicians extending their trust and support to the missionary even after having all the evidence right in front of them, which they conveniently ignored.

AAP founder mocks BJP spokesperson for his disability, gets called out by netizens for insensitivity

OpIndia Staff
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AAP founder mocks BJP spokesperson for his disability, gets called out by netizens for insensitivity

The political discourse in the country seems to discover new lows each passing day. What is tragic is that the flag bearers of so-called clean politics seem to indulge in the worst discourse possible. An example of this was displayed today by Ravi Shrivastava, who is a founding member of Aam Aadmi Party and is also a Congress supporter.

With the criticism levelled against Rajiv Gandhi recently in the web series ‘Sacred Games’ and the subsequent attempts to censor by the Congress party, many Congress supporters have become extremely distressed. Ravi Shrivastava, in this context, took to Twitter today to hurl cruel words against BJP spokesperson Suresh Nakhua.

He tweeted that when he appeared for a debate on TimesNow, he said that “abusing” Rajiv Gandhi is futile. He then went on to say that if Nehru and Indira Gandhi had not “administered polio drops to Suresh Nakhua, he would not have been sitting here”.


This was seen as a clear insult hurled towards Suresh Nakhua’s disability. He rightly rhetorted that this was a sadistic comment by the AAP founder and it shows that he gains pleasure from others’ hardships.


The process of abuses didn’t just stop there. When someone said that they will continue to criticise Rajiv Gandhi because of his policies, his immediate response to the lady was to assert that she “must be a polio victim”.


Many on Twitter condemned the language used by the AAP leader and the manner in which he had mocked and humiliated Nakhua.


Some even wondered if Rahul Gandhi would condemn the use of such language by a fellow politician to defend his father.


One wonders if political parties would reign in official trolls like Shrivastava once and for all.

Casteist Rajdeep Sardesai strikes again: Manages to link France’s victory to caste in Indian cricket

Nirwa Mehta
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Casteist Rajdeep Sardesai strikes again: Manages to link France’s victory to caste in Indian cricket

It is amusing how the crusaders against caste discrimination and champions of inclusivity are usually the ones to point out non-existent ‘discrimination’ at play. We had earlier reported how journalist Shekhar Gupta, most known for his coup story floated a conspiracy theory questioning caste dynamics in the fodder scam verdict where Lalu was convicted but an ‘upper caste’ Jagannath Mishra was acquitted. Amusingly, when Gupta became the chairperson of the Editors Guild of India, there was no Dalit or Muslim in it.

Following his footsteps, controversial journalist Rajdeep Sardesai also put out a casteist tweet which he later deleted after a major public backlash. But the ingrained casteism raised its hood again after France won the Football World Cup last night. While many in the liberal world were hailing how many of the players in the French team were immigrants and Muslims, closer home Sardesai, not to be left behind, woke up to a topic which would interest Indian ‘intellectuals’ more. Sardesai took to Twitter to remind how out only 4 Dalit cricketers have played for India since 1947.


As seen above, Rajdeep decided to insinuate that athletes belonging to lower caste don’t get representation in sport. He further argued that he meant to say that there should be greater access to sporting facilities for all Indians.


It is interesting he would talk about access to sporting facilities, which are many times limited owing to financial constraints, rather than caste. And Indian athletes from humble backgrounds have soared skies, despite the limitations they face. Most recently, Assam’s Hima Das, who won a gold in Finland in the IAAF World U20 Championship, used to train on a muddy football field because of the absence of a running track.

And interesting of Sardesai to specify only cricket, when so many other athletes, who once brought laurels to India, are now struggling to make their ends meet, irrespective of their case.

Coming back to Sardesai, many pointed out to him the flaw and glaring hypocrisy in his argument.


Some even reminded him how it is merit and ability which took them to the French team and not their religion or immigrant status.


Arjuna awardee and Indian national basketball team player Prashanti Singh also expressed her disbelief at Sardesai’s strange comparison.


He also got ‘coached’ by coach and former captain of Indian women basketball team.


It is interesting to see even the celebrity journalists being all ‘woke’ to casteism like the hipster millennials from South Delhi who have recently been introduced to Karl Marx. Because till a few years back, he was taking pride in the achievements of ‘upper caste’ athletes (read cricketers) without really feeling bad about the Dalits who missed out.


But that is how the ‘ecosystem’ works. As Rahul Roushan said, ‘establishment’ is not the government which comes in power for five years, but the people in media and academics that control the thoughts and build the narrative. Watch out this space as we inch closer to 2019 elections.

Bangladesh assures it won’t allow its soil to be used for terror activities against India

OpIndia Staff
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Bangladesh assures it won’t allow its soil to be used for terror activities against India

The Bangladesh’s Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan assured his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh on Friday that his nation would not allow its soil to be used for terror activities against India, Daily Pioneer has reported.

This statement was made during the sixth Indo-Bangla Home Minister talks talks, which took place during Rajnath Singh’s three day visit to the nation. Khan was quoted by reports as saying that they would not allow Bangladeshi soil to be used for terror activities – particularly against India, which was in line with their zero tolerance policy against terrorism.

He also commented on the matter of Rohingyas by claiming that India has committed to help to ensure their safe and speedy return to their native Myanmar.

This commitment to fight against terrorism also seems to have been echoed by Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, as the report claims that, following a meeting between her and Rajnath Singh, the latter thanked Hasina for cooperating in addressing India’s security concerns. It was also acknowledged that efforts to bilaterally combat terrorism have yielded special success.

As per a report by Dhaka Tribune, Indian Home Ministry issued a statement claiming that India extends all sorts of help to Bangladesh for combating terrorism, which includes exchange of information.

Overall the report claims that the meeting between the two Home Ministers focused on issues like border management, security and countering illegal activities.

Under border management a Daily Star report stated that India has assured help in securing their border which includes installing border outposts, surveillance equipment, sensors and constructing roads in remote border areas. The hope expressed is that such border securing measures would prevent cases of human and drug trafficking.

Read about the four stalwarts nominated to the Rajya Sabha by the President of India

OpIndia Staff
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Read about the four stalwarts nominated to the Rajya Sabha by the President of India

President of India Ramnath Kovind has nominated 4 people for the Rajya Sabha today. The stalwarts nominated are Sonal Mansingh, Rakesh Sinha, Ram Shakal and Raghunath Mohapatra. According to article 80 of the constitution of India, from the total 250 members of the Rajya Sabha, 12 are nominated by the President of India. The nominated persons are usually people who have made their mark in the fields of literature, science, art and social service.


Here are some details about these 4 people and their contribution to the Indian society:

Sonal Mansingh:


Born in 1944, Sonal Mansingh learned Manipuri and Bharatnatyam as a child. She went to Bangalore to learn Bharatnatyam when she was 18. Mansingh has degrees in Sanskrit and German literature. She learned Odissi from Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra and has been performing professionally since she was 18. She is one of the greatest names associated with Bharatnatyam and Odissi world-wide. She is the founder of the Centre for Indian and Classical Dances (CICD) in Delhi and has many honorary doctorates from renowned Indian Universities for her contribution to classical dance.

Sonal Mansingh was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1992 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2003, making her only the second Indian classical dancer after Balasaraswati to receive India’s second highest civilian honour. Known for her legendary ‘abhinaya’ (expression) style, Mansingh has experimented with several dance forms like Chhau, Kuchipudi etc. Her performances are inspired by mythology and Indian traditions. She is also an illustrated speaker and ardent admirer of Indic art forms.

Rakesh Sinha:

courtesy: Aaj Tak

Professor Rakesh Sinha is a renowned author and columnist. Born in rural Bihar in 1964, he is an alumnus of Delhi’s Hindu College. A professor at the Motilal Nehru college under Delhi University, he is the founder of the think tank India Policy Foundation and also a member of Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR). He is the author of the biography of RSS founder Dr Hedgewar and often writes for several newspapers and magazines. A renowned journalist and political analyst and speaker, Professor Sinha is the author of several highly acclaimed research papers on social and political issues and has received awards and recognition for his works.

He created ripples in the political circles after his research papers and speeches over the Sachar Committee report. He termed the Sachar Committee report objectionable and stated that it is unconstitutional and secessionist. A vocal critique of appeasement politics and anti-Hindu secularism practised by many Indian politicians, professor Sinha is a regular face in political debates and has a larger number of followers on social media.

Ram Shakal:

courtesy: Amar Ujala

55-year-old Ram Shakal is a Dalit leader and campaigner for farmer’s rights. He has represented the Robertsganj constituency 3 times as an MP in the Lok Sabha. He hails from the Baiswar community. The community has members in Madhya Pradesh too. He has been a popular leader who has fought for the rights and socio-economic growth of farmers, labourers and migrant workers. An alumnus of Gorakhpur University Ram Shakal has been associated with public work and social service for four decades.

Raghunath Mohapatra:

courtesy: Dsource.in

Sculptor Raghunath Mohapatra is a household name in Odisha. The 75-year-old artist learned ancient ‘Shilpa Shashtra’ from palm leaf scriptures and is known as one of the very few sculptors in the country with knowledge of traditional style stone carving in temple architecture. He is a direct descendant of the great architects who had carved the sun temple at Konark and Jagannath temple in Puri.

Shilpakar Mohapatra has been working since 1959 and has trained over 2000 students in the intricacies of the art. He has also worked on the renovation projects of the Jagannath temple and other ancient temples in Odisha. He was appointed as the President of the Odisha Lalit Kala Academy in 2016. He was awarded the Padmashree in 1975 and the Padma Bhushan in 2001. He was nominated by the Ministry of External Affairs as a member of the Indian Council of Cultural Research in 2000. He has been the senior instructor and superintendent in the handicraft training design centre run by the Government of Odisha.

India now stands 8th in the world for annual net gain in forest area and 10th for total area under green cover

Anubhav
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India now stands 8th in the world for annual net gain in forest area and 10th for total area under green cover

When the world’s forests are shrinking, It seems India has not only been able to turn the tide but also did so in a commendable way. India has been keeping a track of its forest cover since 1987. The report is aimed at “How much and where our forest cover is, irrespective of its origin, species, ownership, land use or legal status”. The India State of Forest Report is published by The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).

If one scours through the 36-page report, one would find India has done tremendously well in preserving and expanding its forest cover while forest cover around the world has been on the decline. India’s green cover now stands at 24.39%. India with this has achieved a rank of 10th in the world with regards to percentage of area under green cover. India is ranked 8th in the world for annual net gain in the forest area.

Percentage of forest cover illustrated in a pie chart.

India’s total forest cover as per report is around 7,08,273 sq km. which is roughly 21.04% of India’s geographical area. 98,158 sq km or 2.99% of forest cover is attributed to VDF (Very Dense Forest – Tree Canopy density more than 70%). MDF (Moderately Dense Forest – Tree Canopy density is more than 40% but less than 70%) cover is around 3,08,318 Sq Km or 9.38% of the forest cover. Whereas 9.18% or 3,01,797 Sq Km of the forest cover is attributed to OF (Open Forest – Tree Canopy density 10% or more but less than 40%).

The report goes in depth and breaks down the numbers by Union Territories (UT) and states. According to the report, fifteen states and UTs have a forest cover of more than 33%. Seven out of these fifteen have a forest cover of more than 75% whereas the other eight have a total forest cover area between 33% – 75%.

15 states with the highest forest cover (as per percentage of their land mass).

Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, all have forest covers over 75%.

State wise distribution.

The report indicates an increase in the national forest cover. 6,778 Sq Km of forest cover has been added to the forest cover area of India. Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala are the three highest contributors to this growth.

Andhra Pradesh increased its forest cover by 2,141 Sq Km.

Karnataka increased its forest cover by 1,101 sq km.

Kerala increased its forest cover by 1,043 sq km.

If we are to look into the national aspect of it all, there has been an increase of 9,526 Sq Km of VDF (Very Dense Forest), which absorbs the most amount of carbon dioxide. There has also been an increase of 1,674 Sq Km in the OF (Open Forest). However, there has been a significant decrease in MDF (Moderately Dense Forest), the decrease is estimated at 4,421 sq km.

A cause of concern is the report’s indication of decreased forest cover in the greenwash’ areas in the North-East part of the country. The report cites development pressures as the reason for the decrease. Green Wash areas are areas marked as Green by Survey of India’s topographical sheets.

Interestingly, India also reiterated its diplomatic stance on Jammu & Kashmir in this report. While curating this report, India counted the forest areas outside the LoC in the Jammu and Kashmir region and added them to the national database treating those areas as Indian territory. The document states that those areas are under ‘illegal occupation of Pakistan and China’.

In a report about child trafficking in Madrasa, Times of India force-fits ‘Veda Pathshala’ in headline

OpIndia Staff
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In a report about child trafficking in Madrasa, Times of India force-fits ‘Veda Pathshala’ in headline

An 11-year-old boy rescued by Childline volunteers and child protection officials in Chennai last week has led them to a suspected child trafficking issue in a madrasa. According to a report in the Times of India, the boy was rescued by officials on Wednesday and was produced before the Child Welfare Committee on Saturday.

The boy was reportedly found near Avadi railway station and was only able to tell that he was living in a madrasa. Later, as per the report, the officials were led to madrasa Usman Bin Affan in Kodungaiyur through a paper in the child’s pocket. Upon inquiry, though the teachers at the madrasa admitted that the child lived there, they had no documentation or records to show his admission or parental contact. The report also states that none of the staff at the madrasa had any identity cards. The madrasa reportedly houses about 60 children from impoverished families in Bihar, Odisha, Assam and West Bengal.

As per the report, the child later provided information about his family in Deolia, Bihar and his family was contacted by the officials. The child was later handed over to his brother after due verification of documents.

Interesting thing is that though the headline of the article mentions Veda Pathshalas being suspected of child trafficking, the report has no details of any such incident. There are no cases mentioned where any Veda Pathshala was found involved in child trafficking or any child trafficking case being traced back to a Veda Pathshala.

One Twitter user Ethirajan Srinivasan pointed the fact out.


The news report in Times of India, written by a reported Ekatha Ann John, mentions the term Veda Pathshala only once in the report, “Since January, Railway Childline, Government Railway Police and the DCPU have rescued at least 25 children from Chennai who escaped from Madarsas and Veda Pathshalas located in the city and other districts.” But the article has no mention of specific cases or names of any Veda Pathshala.

It raises the question, in a report where a possibly trafficked child was traced back to a madrasa, was the term ‘Veda Pathshala’ force-fitted to balance things out? With no details of any children being trafficked in Veda Pathshalas or any case of trafficked children being traced to any such institution, was the headline just a deliberate balancing act?

Since last week, media is rife with reports from Jharkhand where two nuns of Missionaries of Charity were held for allegedly selling babies. Since then many details have emerged about the alleged child selling, duping, forgery and trafficking racket operational with links to the charity organisation founded by Mother Teresa. At the wake of such incidents, though it is fair to call for transparency and strict rules for religious residential institutions, dragging the name of an institution without data is unfortunate.

Misleading headlines have often been used to paint a wrong picture or create an incorrect perception of a crime. Many times we see news headlines claiming a ‘tantrik’ or priest being involved in some crime with accompanying picture depicting Hindu symbols when the report is actually about perpetrators of other religions. Was this Veda Pathshala reference another such attempt?

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