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‘The government has started to create havoc’: Mehul Choksi writes to his employees, plays victim

OpIndia Staff
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‘The government has started to create havoc’: Mehul Choksi writes to his employees, plays victim

In a letter released by Gitanjali Gems promoter Mehul Choksi to his employees, Choksi has asked them to look for jobs elsewhere as his company is not in a position to pay current and future dues as all assets are sealed by the investigating agencies.


As reported by Republic TV, in his letter released by his lawyer Sanjay Abbot, Choksi claims that the operations have come to a standstill as the government and investigating agencies have ‘started to create havoc’ and are ‘hell-bent’ on stopping operations’. He says a ‘situation of fear and injustice has been created against him and his organisation’. He claims innocence and says that while the investigation takes its course, the operations in his company have come to a standstill and it would make it difficult to pay the dues and salaries of employees currently as well as in future. Keeping that in view, he has requested the employees to look for other career opportunities. He also promised to pay the past dues of the employees, once things return to normalcy.

Diamond merchant Nirav Modi and his maternal uncle and business partner Mehul Choksi are accused in the multi-crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case. Recently, the Enforcement Directorate had seized several premium cars, including a Rolls Royce Ghost, Porsche Panamera, 2 Mercedes Benz among others, belonging to Nirav Modi and his companies.

The Enforcement Directorate had issued a summons for appearance to Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi, for their involvement in the Rs. 11,400 crore PNB fraud. The summons was issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Meanwhile, the ED has raided several offices and showrooms of Nirav Modi and Choksi and recovered Rs. 5100 crore in gems, jewellery and gold. The case was registered against them after the Punjab National Bank had registered complaints with Law Enforcement authorities alleging fraud.

On 31st January, CBI had booked Nirav Modi and others in a separate case of cheating worth Rs. 280 crore after a complaint by PNB. It is being probed whether the proceeds of the crime were converted into black money and used to create illegal assets. Mehul Choksi has been involved in shady dealings in the past. After an investigation by SEBI, Mehul Choksi and a set of firms were suspected of market manipulation and subsequently barred from trading for a period of six months.

Acting on the advice of the ED, the Ministry of External Affairs has suspended the passports of Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi for four weeks with immediate effect.

Scam ridden Chidambaram’s excuse: Right to privacy, right to live in dignity

OpIndia Staff
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Scam ridden Chidambaram’s excuse: Right to privacy, right to live in dignity

Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram, who is neck-deep in allegations of various corruption scams, has moved the Supreme Court and sought protection to his right to privacy and right to live in dignity.

As reported by Times of India, following a series of raids and summons to his son Karthi Chidambaram by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for alleged irregularities of obtaining FIPB (Foreign Investment Promotion Board) approvals for INX Media and Aircel-Maxis deal, Chidambaram has alleged ‘witch hunt’ by the CBI and the ED. The former union minister of finance has challenged the authorities to give shape to the real agenda of targeting him. He claims that neither he nor his son is named in the FIR lodged by the CBI.

In his petition to Supreme Court, Chidambaram introduces himself as senior advocate and member of Parliament and says, ‘The writ petition is being filed to defend and protect the petitioner’s fundamental rights under Article 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution and to defend his right to privacy and the right to live, along with members of his family, in dignity.’ However, as per reports, there seem to be procedural defects in the petition which could soon be notified to Chidambaram’s advocate on record Anupam Lal Das.

In the petition, Chidambaram told the SC that he lived alone in a house in posh Jor Bagh, jointly owned by his wife and son. Earlier in January, in a raid conducted at this house, classified CBI reports were reportedly seized from his house. The status report was reportedly submitted by the investigative agency to the Supreme Court in a sealed cover to the SC double bench of Justices GS Singhvi and K Radhakrishnan on August 1, 2013, when Chidambaram was a Union Minister in the UPA-2 cabinet. Such reports from investigative agencies are not meant to be made available for anyone else except the Supreme Court.

The petition further said, ‘The CBI and ED, as part of political vendetta, have made vexatious searches, issued repeated summons, unreasonably questioned persons for unconscionably long hours, unlawfully attached fixed deposits, maliciously leaked false information to the media and otherwise caused extreme harassment, anguish and humiliation to me and my son, and to other persons who are normal business and social friends of my son.’

This news emerges after a Supreme Court bench refused to stay the summons against Karti Chidambaram in the INX media case issued by the Enforcement Directorate.

The father-son duo has been under the scanner for alleged dubious foreign investment clearances given during the tenure of P Chidambaram as finance minister at the previous UPA dispensation. The case relates to the dubious Aircel-Maxis deal. In 2006, Aircel was sold to Maxis – a Malaysian company – in a deal that allegedly violated foreign investments protocol. The Enforcement Directorate is currently investigating various aspects of the FIPB approval given in the Aircel-Maxis deal case under anti-money laundering laws. The CBI has also registered a case regarding alleged irregularities in granting the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media in 2007 when Chidambaram was the Finance Minister. The agency has levelled the charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, taking gratification by corrupt or illegal means and criminal misconduct.

India on Global Corruption Index: The Lies vs The Facts

The True Picture
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India on Global Corruption Index: The Lies vs The Facts

As seen in the info-graphic below, India’s performance on the Global Corruption Perception Index (GCI) for 2017 has improved from pre-2014 days. Since 2013, India has improved both its score as well as ranking on the GCI. In 2013, India had a score of 36, today it has a score of 40. In 2013, India was ranked 94 out of 177 countries. In 2017, it has been ranked 81 out of 180 countries.

However, with the publication of Transparency International’s Global Corruption Index for 2017, sections of the media and political commentators wasted no time in offering their opinion. Much of this turned out to be fake propaganda distorting facts and spreading apparent lies. Below is journalist Sagarika Ghose who tweeted the following:

Some media outlets ran headlines too, claiming that India has slipped on the GCI:

In light of the facts presented above, we can see that these claims range from distortion of facts to outright factual inaccuracy. When we see the detailed facts about India’s score and ranking over the years, the fake propaganda being spread by sections of the media and the commentariat becomes even starker.

THE DETAILED FACTS

For the benefit of Sagarika Ghose and everybody else spinning the GCI rankings to argue that India has become worse in terms of corruption in 2017 than in 2016, below are the plain facts:

  • India’s rank in 2016 was 79 out of 176 countries
  • In 2017, India was ranked 81 out of 180 countries
  • So, in effect, India’s ranking has improved
  • Again, India’s score was 40 in 2016
  • This score has not changed in 2017. Therefore, India has not performed any worse in terms of corruption in 2017
  • Now, the 2016 score of 40 was better than the score of 38 in 2015
  • In 2014, out of 174 countries, India was ranked 85, with a score of 38
  • In 2012 and 2013, India’s score was 36 for each year
  • In 2013, India’s score was 36 and it was ranked 94
  • Therefore, not only has India improved its performance 2014 onwards but it is doing much better now
  • The two-notch dip in 2017 is because of one additional state above and one state moving up on the list
  • In sum, not only has India’s score improved from 36 in pre-2014 days to 40 now, but India’s rank has also improved from 94 in pre-2014 days to 81 now.

Let us see the GCI tables below:

Source: https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/corruption_perceptions_index_2017
Source: https://www.transparency.org/cpi2014/results
Source: https://www.transparency.org/cpi2015#results-table
Source: https://www.transparency.org/cpi2013/results

Therefore, much like the fake propaganda that sections of the media and commentariat spread immediately after the Global Hunger Index came out last year, the release of Transparency International’s Global Corruption Perception Index has also sent some of the same people rushing to spread the same kind of fake propaganda as seen in Ms Ghose’s tweet above.

(the article was first published on www.thetruepicture.in)

Barsana painted Saffron ahead of CM Yogi Adityanath’s visit to celebrate Lathmar Holi

OpIndia Staff
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Barsana painted Saffron ahead of CM Yogi Adityanath’s visit to celebrate Lathmar Holi

Ahead of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s visit to the town of Barsana in Mathura district on Saturday, the region is receiving a coat of Saffron. Yogi is expected to participate at the Lathmar Holi program in Barsana from 12 to 5 PM on Saturday, following which he will address a public meeting.

Yogi is expected to reach Mathura on Friday evening and would then proceed to inaugurate the Holi celebrations at Barsana and Nandgaon. Here he is supposed to walk about 500 meters to the Rani Mahal where Gopis used to play Holi with Lord Krishna. He is also expected to participate in a Yamuna Aarti later in the day.

With Yogi also scheduled to participate in this event, the Nagar Panchayat has left no stones unturned and apart from cleaning the city has also embarked upon a “saffronisation” of the building and walls.

Apart from being given a coat of Saffron, Barsana has seen its Priya Kund (water tank) getting filled with water. The road from Priya Kund to Sriji temple has also been repaired.

Lathmar Holi is a age old tradition mainly followed in towns of Barsana and Nandgaon near Mathura based on the tale of Lord Krishna. It is said that Lord Krishna who hailed from Nandgaon, visited Radha who lived in Barsana. Here he is believed to have teased Radha and her friends who took offence and drove him out of Barsana.

Thus every year a few days before Holi, this scene is recreated with men from Nandgaon visiting Barsana, where women are ready with sticks waiting for them. They then proceed to hurl sticks on them and those unable to escape are forced to wear a dress and dance. The festival of Lathmar Holi goes on for 40 days.

As per local reports, the areas visible from Yogi’s meeting centre, the Rangili Gali and all those landmarks which will be visited by Yogi are being coated in saffron. It is the first time Barsana’s streets are witnessing a paint job ahead of Holi.

Here are some of the pictures shared by media websites:

Barsana painted Saffron ahead of CM Yogi's visit to celebrate Lathmar Holi
A house painted saffron. Via Patrika
Barsana painted Saffron ahead of CM Yogi's visit to celebrate Lathmar Holi
A wall painted Safforn. Via Patrika
Barsana painted Saffron ahead of CM Yogi's visit to celebrate Lathmar Holi
Buildings painted Saffron. Via News-18

Incidentally, such a saffronisation was also noticed in Lucknow, where the walls of state Haj office received an overnight coat saffron, which was then subsequently repainted. As a result of this, the Yogi government removed the incumbent Haj Committee secretary, following a notice over how were the walls painted saffron and why were they repainted.

How the latest FATF financial sanctions will hurt Pakistan

Nithesh S
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How the latest FATF financial sanctions will hurt Pakistan

Even as detractors continued to spread fake news , the Modi government pulled off a big diplomatic victory at the FATF (Financial Action Task Force) plenary in Paris. We had reported how Pakistan and anti-Modi figures had prematurely commented on the issue based on fake news. But, the outcome of the plenary came out only today.


A former White House and Pentagon official, Joushua White analysed the impact of these sanctions in a series of Tweets. In his first two tweets he said that the decision was part of wider American strategy to make Pakistan behave. He also hinted that these sanctions would make it difficult for Pakistan to raise money in international markets and exert pressure on its foreign reserves.


He went on to hint that USA can use its influence in global institutions to hurt Pakistan in future as well. This reflects well on Indian diplomatic efforts in convincing the Trump administration regarding terrorists activities in Pakistan.


The former US official also highlighted that USA was warning Pakistan ever since it was removed from grey list in 2015. But Pakistan had not been paying attention to these warning. He also highlighted the significance of USA and UK co-sponsoring the sanctions.


Lastly he highlighted how China did not come to protect Pakistan. China had initially objected to the sanctions, but withdrew its objection reportedly under intense pressure from the US. This is a huge development as China has been protecting Pakistan on Masood Azhar sanctions at UNSC for past few years.


All in all it seems like Modi government has achieved a comprehensive diplomatic victory at FATF against Pakistan.

Delhi Police explain discrepancy in timestamp on CCTV footage of Chief Secretary post his alleged assault

opindiastaff
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Delhi Police explain discrepancy in timestamp on CCTV footage of Chief Secretary post his alleged assault

Ever since Delhi’s Chief Secretary alleged that he was assaulted by AAP MLA’s at midnight, in the presence of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, AAP has been scrambling to put out various defences. AAP spokespersons called the entire issue unbelievable:


Other AAP supporters like Dhruv Rathee, played Sherlock Holmes and raised issues on the time stamp on the CCTV footage, which showed the Chief Secretary leaving the CM’s house. The timestamp showed 11.30 whereas the civil servant had claimed he was assaulted at midnight:

AAP supporters claiming Chief Secretary claim false

The Delhi police today seemed to have answered this issue. The police today entered the official residence of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal to examine the CCTV cameras installed in the building.  ADGP North Delhi stated that they had found that the CCTV cameras were running behind time by 40 minutes.


If this statement is to be believed, then the CCTV cameras were showing 11.30, when the actual time was 12.10. This would corroborate with the Chief Secretary’s statements that he was assaulted at midnight, soon after which he left the place.

Proving this “error” in the CCTV cameras settings before a judge may prove to be tougher task. AAP will very well claim that this is a convenient excuse. Further, cameras not showing correct time at the Delhi CM’s official address reflects badly on the authorities responsible for this.

Rajdeep Sardesai admits to misquoting the Army Chief, will others follow suit?

OpIndia Staff
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Rajdeep Sardesai admits to misquoting the Army Chief, will others follow suit?

Rajdeep Sardesai recently admitted having commented unnecessarily on the Army Chief’s speech at the DRDO conference on North East region. He had initially asked if the Army Chief was a politician in a Tweet.


Later he realised the Army Chief’s speech had much more than just the reference about AIUDF. And then twisted back to a conciliatory tone defending the Chief. He not only corrected himself but also sought to educate all those who had criticised the army chief


We had put out a detailed article carrying the contents of Army Chief’s ‘controversial’ speech earlier. He had said the following about amalgamation of all communities in Assam even though he had mentioned AIUDF and BJP. Bipin Rawat had said the following words :

I think that the government is looking at the northeast in correct perspective and if that happens time will not be far when we will be able to amalgamate the region, ensure development and with development, we will be able to control the people of the region who are residing in this area. [..]

We have got to appreciate living with all people who are living in our region irrespective of their caste, creed, religion or sex. I think if you understand that, we can live together happily, but the best part is amalgamate the kind of people that are living in the region and then start identifying people who are trying to create trouble. We will have more trouble in segregating people, identifying people, yes some people have to be identified who are creating trouble for us, who are illegal immigrants, but as was brought out, Muslim population started coming into Assam as early as 1218 to 1236. That was the first time that Muslims entered Assam. So we have to understand that they are not late arrivers, they were the early arrivers who came concurrently with the Ahoms. Both these people have claims to the state of Assam and therefore the North East region.

Rajdeep’s Twitter timeline suggests that he managed to jump the gun before delving into the contents of the speech. He questioned if the chief’s comments had been taken out of context, which is in a way a confession of his own earlier Tweet.

 

Rajdeep’s flip-flop in his stance regarding Army Chief Bipin Rawat’s speech

Now that Rajdeep has retracted his earlier comments on Army chief Bipin Rawat, will others follow suit? We will have to wait and watch.

Muslim men attempt to rape Dalit women and a minor, attack them with axes and firearms

OpIndia Staff
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Muslim men attempt to rape Dalit women and a minor, attack them with axes and firearms

In a heinous crime, men belonging to the Muslim community barged into the house of a Dalit family in Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh and attempted to rape two women and a minor. Failing in their attempt, they assaulted the women with axes and attacked them with firearms before fleeing the scene. The women are currently undergoing treatment at a hospital. Their situation is deemed to be critical. The Police are currently searching for the accused. The names of the accused are Sham Shakil, Shahid and Muhammad Ali.


In an unrelated incident in Rajasthan, a Muslim mob assaulted Dalit women on the 19th of February and beat them up because their procession was playing music as they passed by a mosque.


Thus far, harbingers of Dalit-Muslim unity like Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani and Shehla Rashid have maintained a stoic silence over the series of crimes committed against the Dalit community by Muslims.

Gharapuri island which houses famous Elephanta caves finally gets electricity 70 years after Independence

OpIndia Staff
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Gharapuri island which houses famous Elephanta caves finally gets electricity 70 years after Independence

The Elephanta or Gharapuri Island which houses the famous Elephanta caves finally received electricity about 70 years after independence, via a 7.5 KM long undersea cable. This project costing about 25 crores was completed in about 15 months. The project to electrify the island was spearheaded by Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co. Ltd (MSEDCL). The island is about 10 KM away from the Mumbai mainland.

As per the regional head of MSEDCL Satish Karape, the undersea cable is India’s longest and took about three months to lay. The three villages namely Raj Bander, Mora Bander and Shet Bander which were bereft of electricity had three transformers installed. Besides this, the electricity facilities included, six 13 metre tall streetlight towers equipped with powerful LED bulbs.

As a result of the electrification, individual power meters have been provided to about 200 domestic and some commercial consumers. The families mostly comprise of fishermen, farmers and those employed in the tourism sector.

The 22-KV undersea cable comprises of four lines, one for every transformer, which includes a standby one to ensure round the clock high-quality power and potential capacity of catering to the future demand for more than 30 years. The cable is designed to withstand choppy seas and underwater pressure.

This electrification comes as a massive relief for the villagers who barely managed to get a three hour power supply with the help generators provided by the state government. The electrification also brings the hope that the tourism industry might receive a further boost via possible overnight stays, installation of a lighthouse and if possible, the powering of the caves itself. It is also planned that a water filtration plant can now be set up for to provide clean water for the locals and tourists.

Such first times when it comes to electricity supply have recently been witnessed from various parts of the country:

  • In 2016, Shiyal Bet an island off the coast of Gujarat got its first taste of electricity. The 6000 strong population at the Arabian sea island till then were mainly dependant on Kerosene oil and battery lamps for the light in its lives.
  • Amdeli, a remote Maharashtra village in the Gadchiroli district of the state, received electricity in 2017. The state till a few years ago even didn’t have any transportation facilities.
  • A tribal village in Chhattisgarh too got electric connectivity only in December 2017, which resulted in villagers expressing happiness about their kids having a bright future.

Kamal Haasan’s party Makkal Needhi Maiam’s logo doesn’t seem too original

OpIndia Staff
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Kamal Haasan’s party Makkal Needhi Maiam’s logo doesn’t seem too original

Kamal Haasan launched his party Makkal Needhi Maiam with much fanfare on Wednesday. He had exhorted his supporter to build a party based on high values and unity. In his speech at the party launch, he had said the following about his party symbol.

It represents the six south Indian states working together for the benefit of all. The star in the Centre represents people. He says he does not want to fall in brackets of the left or right wing. “I’m centre.”

However, it has emerged that his party symbol is not an original one but a slightly modified version of an image available on a photo editing app/website called Shutterstock.


A Tamil portal has also pointed out that his party symbol is eerily similar to the logo of a European microfinance company named ACAF.

Makkal Needhi Maiam symbol is eerily similar to ACAF logo

It remains to be seen if Kamal Haasan clarifies his stand on these allegations of plagiarism seen on social media.

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