Three Independent MLAs sat on a day-long protest outside the assembly premises in Shimla on Saturday, demanding that the Speaker accept their resignations.
MLAs Hoshiyar Singh from Dehra, Ashish Sharma from Hamirpur and KL Thakur from Nalagarah submitted their resignations to the Speaker on March 22.
All three MLAs were seen holding placards outside the library of the assembly. The placards read, “We have given our resignation from the membership of the Assembly voluntarily, without any pressure, in person to the Speaker of the Assembly. Please accept our resignation as soon as possible.”
Hamirpur MLA Sharma said that they are now planning to move court.
“Today all three of us are sitting in protest. Unfortunately, democracy is being crushed here. The entire Himachal and country are watching it. We submitted our resignation on March 22 and it has not been accepted so far. We had given our resignation to the Speaker by email as well and we want them to accept it as soon as possible. We shall approach the court; if our resignations are not accepted, we shall move the court. Constitutionally, they have to accept the resignation immediately. The speaker is playing the role of the Congress party; he wants to delay the elections; that is the only reason we are protesting,” Sharma said.
Nalagarh MLA Thakur said that they’ll either go to the High Court or the Supreme Court.
“It is very unusual and unfortunate that we have to protest to accept our resignation in a democratic setting. They were alleging that we are under pressure, and we want to show them through this that we don’t have any pressure. We want the speaker to immediately accept our case. The speaker is not here; if he does not accept it, we shall approach the court. We shall consult it with the senior advocates and will decide whether to approach the Supreme Court or the High Court,” Thakur said.
Dehra MLA Singh said that they have decided to contest elections on the ticket of the BJP.
“This is the first time we are protesting to accept our resignation. I don’t know why they are delaying; I don’t know what the fear is. We have given our resignation willingly and we have done it after humiliation. This is the death of democracy; they are not accepting our resignation,” Singh said.
“They have been alleging horse trading, all of us are well to do; they have humiliated the MLAs; and the work of legislators has been stopped in all sectors. They don’t have any right to accept our resignation, we have decided to contest elections on the ticket of the BJP. If the party doesn’t give us a ticket, we shall serve the people as workers,” he added.
This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
The Department of Telecom has asked telecom operators to deactivate USSD-based call forwarding with effect from April 15, and provide the service using alternative methods. USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) service allows users to activate various services by just dialling an active code on their phones. For example, the service is often used for checking IMEI numbers and prepaid phone balances. However, after 15 April, USSD can’t be used to activate call forwarding.
As per the govt, this order has been issued to check frauds and online crimes that are operated through mobile phones. In an order issued on March 28, the DoT said that it has come to its notice that USSD based call forwarding facility, the *401# services for unconditional call forwarding services, is being misused for some unwarranted activities.
“In this regard, it has been decided by the competent authority that all licensees shall discontinue the existing USSD-based call forwarding services with effect from April 15, 2024, till further notice,” the notification said.
The users who have activated call forwarding using USSD will have to re-activate the service using alternate methods after 15 April. The order stated, “All existing subscribers who have activated USSD-based call forwarding service may be asked to reactivate call forwarding services through alternative methods to ensure that such services are not activated without their notice.”
Recently, a rise in cybercrimes using USSD-based call forwarding has been noticed, prompting the govt to stop the service. The criminals call people pretending to be customer service representatives or technical support staff from their telecom service provider. They claim that there is a problem with the SIM of the user or other similar issues related to the telecom network, and ask the telecom subscriber to dial the code *401# followed by a mobile number to ‘resolve the issue’.
By doing so, the victim unknowingly activates unconditional call forwarding on the phone number. This means all incoming calls are forwarded to the number of the fraudster. This can be used to intercept various sensitive information, like voice call based OTP.
Earlier in January this year, the Department of Telecommunications advised users to beware of receiving malicious incoming calls asking them to dial *401# followed by an unknown mobile number.
The union govt in recent times has issued several such advisories cautioning people about cybercrime. On 29 March, the Ministry of Communications issued an advisory against calls impersonating DoT, where the fraudsters threaten people to disconnect their mobile numbers. The DoT also issued an advisory about WhatsApp calls from foreign-origin mobile numbers (like +92-xxxxxxxxxx) impersonating government officials and duping the people.
Cybercriminals through such calls try to threaten/steal personal information to carry out cyber-crime/financial frauds. The DoT has advised citizens to report such fraud communications at the ‘Chakshu-Report Suspected Fraud Communications’ facility of the Sanchar Saathi portal. Such proactive reporting helps DoT in the prevention of misuse of telecom resources for cybercrime, financial frauds, etc.
The DoT has also advised citizens to report at the cybercrime helpline number 1930 or the cybercrime website in case of already a victim of cyber-crime or financial fraud.
On Saturday (30th March), AAP Minister Atishi Marlena held a press conference after another AAP Minister Kailash Gehlot was summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Delhi Liquor Policy scam case. Claiming victimhood, she alleged that the ED could call her next for questioning or arrest her, pre-empting ED’s possible actions in the case to cast aspersions.
However, reports suggest that legal troubles could be mounting for the AAP leader as she was the party’s In-charge for the Goa elections 2022. As per ED, ‘proceeds of crime’ worth Rs 45 crores generated from the Liquor policy scam were used during the state polls.
Atishi's letter to the EC accessed:
– 'Atishi was Goa in charge during Goa polls'
– ED: Liquorgate money allegedly used in Goa poll campaigning.
– ED: AAP major beneficiary of the Delhi Liquor Scam.
According to the Times Now report, Atishi Marlena was the party’s in-charge when the Liquorgate money was used in Goa poll campaigning, as claimed by ED. On 13th February 2022, Atishi Marlena addressed a letter to the Election Commission where she addressed herself as the party’s In-charge for the Goa polls, as per the letter accessed by Times Now. The elections ended on 14th February 2022 in the state which means that the onus is also on Atishi Marlena. If Arvind Kejriwal can be arrested for allegedly misusing and taking bribe amounts from the South Indian liquor lobby then certainly trouble is mounting for Atishi Marlena, the Times Now journalist Priyank Tripathi added.
The report pointed out that ED revealed before the court that AAP was the major beneficiary of the Delhi Liquor Scam and the ‘proceeds of crime’ generated from the Liquor scam worth over Rs 45 crore in cash were used in the Goa election campaign.
Notably, earlier this week, AAP Goa State President Amit Palekar and three others were also questioned by the ED at its office in Panaji for allegedly receiving ‘proceeds of crime’ for campaigning in the 2022 state polls. According to the Times Now journalist Tripathi, AAP had circulated the message that he was questioned by the ED because he was the state head of the party.
Tripathi further added that ND Gupta, AAP MP, and Kejriwal’s Personal secretary, has submitted a statement before the court that the National Convenor (Arvind Kejriwal) and state head of the party which was Atishi Marlena were aware of the financial transaction, Rs 45 crore, the alleged proceeds of crime which were used during the Aam Aadmi Party’s election campaign in Goa.
Earlier, Additional Solicitor General Raju said that Aam Aadmi Party is not a party but a “company” adding that every person responsible for the conduct of the company should be held guilty.
“Apart from personal liability, Kejriwal is also liable to be punished for vicarious liability. He is also responsible for the affairs of the AAP. He is responsible for the conduct of the party. He is the national convenor and responsible for the party at the national level. He is the brain behind the party and controls its major activities,” ASG said.
Under the legal doctrine of vicarious liability, Atishi Marlena who was reportedly the AAP’s Goa In-charge in 2022 could soon be facing troubles in this matter.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has prohibited former Indian cricket player Yusuf Pathan, the All India Trinamool Congress candidate from Baharampur in West Bengal, from displaying photographs of the national flag and the Indian cricket team’s 2011 World Cup-winning moments during his Lok Sabha election campaign.
The action was taken a few days after Congress party filed a complaint against him, saying that he has broken the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by using images of Sachin Tendulkar and other celebrities for campaign purposes in Baharampur. The complaint was filed on 26th March (Tuesday).
According to sources within West Bengal’s chief electoral officer (CEO) office, the poll panel thoroughly examined the allegation and determined that it possessed merit. The Election Commission of India (ECI) ordered, on 29th March (Friday), that Yusuf Pathan should take down all of these images and posters that were exhibited in the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency. Additionally, he was asked by the ECI not to fly the national flag while running for office.
The election commission further stated that no political party should take advantage of the pride that every Indian felt in their country’s success in the 2011 World Cup in order to attract voters. Yusuf Pathan argued, however, that as he was a member of the victorious squad, he had every right to use photographs connected to the World Cup.
“I have a lot of followers who can put up my photographs of winning the World Cup anywhere. They have the right to do so. I have not gone anywhere to put up my posters. Now the legal team will see whether there is any violation. But I had won the World Cup through hard work,” the cricketer claimed on 28th March while talking to the media.
TMC workers began taking down the posters on Friday night, as instructed by the election panel. Yusuf Pathan played for the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Indian squad that won the 2011 One Day International World Cup in India.
During the 2011 World Cup, Yusuf Pathan played in 6 matches, scoring 74 runs in the tournament at an average of 14.8, and took 1 wicket at a bowling average of 167.
The West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee sought a severe penalty against Yusuf Pathan in a letter to the West Bengal CEO. They claimed that using banners and posters of the 2011 cricket World Cup winning team was a flagrant breach of the MCC. “This is to inform you that Yusuf Pathan has started using banners, posters and photos in different places in the said constituency. It clearly depicts the ICC Cricket World Cup (2011) winning moments and high profile cricket celebrities including the likes of Bharat Ratna Sachin Tendulkar and others,” the party charged.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the president of the West Bengal Congress and the party’s candidate for Baharampur, said that Yusuf Pathan was exploiting such images to portray the victory of the national cricket team as his personal achievement. The fourth of the seven polling phases for the Lok Sabha elections of 2024 is scheduled to take place in Baharampur on 13th May. 4th June is when the results will be announced.
As thousands of Muslims flocked to the streets in the Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh, broke barricades and created a ruckus to give a grand farewell to the dreaded gangster Mukhtar Ansari, recalling how cruel and brutal their ‘hero’ was, has become crucial.
Mukhtar Ansari, a convicted criminal in a murder and extortion case, and an under trial accused in several other criminal matters, died after a heart attack in the Banda jail on Thursday, 28 March. On 29th April 2023, the MP-MLA court of Ghazipur sentenced mafia Mukhtar Ansari to 10 years in prison in connection with the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai. Ansari was already lodged in Banda jail when he was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for the brutal murder of the BJP MLA.
BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai was murdered in cold blood on the instructions of none other than Mukhtar Ansari on the fateful day of 29 November 2005. Owing to the sheer brutality of the murder, this day is still referred to as the ‘Black Day’ by Ghazipur residents. The spine-chilling murder of the BJP MLA was one of the most sensational murders in the history of Uttar Pradesh.
A volley of gunfire from AK-47 assault rifles killed Rai and six other individuals in Ghazipur. Reports suggest that as many as 500 bullets were fired from six AK-47s. This was the first time that AK 47 rifles had been used for murder in India, which until now had only been the weapon of choice for terrorists and the military around the world.
The police had recovered more than 400 bullet shells from the spot while 21 bullets were recovered from Rai’s body alone.
400 bullet shells recovered by police from the crime scene (Source: Hindustan Times)
Ansari plotted and executed Krishnanand Rai’s murder from jail, asked aides to chop off BJP MLA’s braid as ‘trophy’ and evidence of murder
It is said that Mukhtar Ansari not only got Rai killed, but also had his braid chopped off as a ‘trophy’ and evidence of the crime.
The task of chopping off the braid was given to criminal Rakesh Pandey. That was revealed after a voice call between Mukhtar and Don Abhay Singh emerged in 2020.
Importantly, Ansari was behind bars when BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai was murdered, which means that he planned and executed the murder from within the confines of jail. This itself speaks volumes about Ansari’s political connections and clout even when he was in jail.
Mukhtar Ansari and his brother Afzal Ansari were named as the primary conspirators in the FIR filed in the case. The police investigation also revealed the involvement of gangster Prem Prakash Singh alias Munna Bajrangi, a close associate of the Ansari brothers. It is said that Prem Prakash Singh alias Munna Bajrangi had led the attack on the BJP MLA.
Mukhtar and Afzal Ansari were found guilty of the murder by the trial court. The duo, however, approached the Allahabad High Court, which, in turn, ordered a CBI investigation into the case on May 23, 2006.
Later, the court trial was shifted outside Uttar Pradesh on Alka Rai’s plea on April 25, 2013.
One after another, every witness either turned hostile or turned up dead.
Due to a lack of evidence, the CBI court in 2019 released both Mukhtar and Afzal Ansari in the Krishnanand Rai murder case. Rai’s son took up the legal battle and approached the high court.
After years of legal battle, finally, on 29th April 2023, the MP-MLA court of Ghazipur sentenced mafia Mukhtar Ansari to 10 years in prison in connection with the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai.
A detailed history of the mafia, his rise in crime and politics, and the eventual downfall under the Yogi Adityanath government can be read here.
Former DSP Shailendra Singh persecuted by Mulayam Singh Govt for recommending the arrest of mafia don turned politician Mukhtar Ansari under POTA
It is reported that Mukhtar attempted to obtain weapons capable of penetrating Rai’s bulletproof vehicle. It was a small machine gun he sought.
A phone conversation about a light machine gun (LMG) purchase from an Army deserter for Rs 1 crore was intercepted in January 2004.
Next, on January 25, 2004, the banned LMG (light machine gun) and 200 live cartridges were seized during a raid by DSP Shailendra Singh in Chaubepur, Varanasi. He charged Ansari under POTA with severe anti-terror offences.
DSP Singh ended up paying a high price for carrying out his duties, facing political persecution by the then Mulayam Singh-led Samajwadi Party regime.
Interestingly, a day after Mukhtar Ansari’s death, ex-DSP Shailendra Singh released a statement slamming the then Samajwadi Party government for shielding Ansari. Singh was threatened and implicated in a false case by the Mulayam Singh government for recommending the arrest of mafia don turned politician Mukhtar Ansari under POTA.
It was earlier reported that Singh had been slapped with dozens of fake charges by the then Samajwadi Party government for acting against the now-deceased mafia don Mukhtar Ansari. Singh recollected how his career was ruined and the trauma his family had to face after the then-ruling Samajwadi Party government implicated him in false cases.
Sailendra Singh kept fighting against the establishment to prove his innocence until the BJP government led by Yogi Adityanath came to power in the state and filed an application in the court to withdraw cases against Shailendra Singh.
Soon after Yogi Adityanath came to power, the UP government filed a petition in the court to withdraw cases against Singh in December 2017.
On March 6, 2021, the court finally approved the state government’s plea to withdraw cases against the former DSP.
Celebrations at BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai’s house after Mukhtar Ansari’s death
Reacting to Ansari’s death, deceased BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai’s son Piyush Rai said that Mukhtar Ansari’s death is truly Baba Gorakhnath’s blessing for his family, maybe even some kind of Allah’s justice in the month of Ramzan.
There were celebratory fireworks at Rai’s house as the news of Ansari’s death came out.
“I have come to know that he has died in Banda jail. As the media is saying he [Ansari] has died due to a heart attack. I believe this is the blessing of Baba Gorakhnath. Justice has been served. Somewhere I think it is Allah’s justice in the holy month of Ramzan that a dreaded criminal like Mukhtar Ansari has died…” Piyush Rai said.
Meanwhile, Krishnanand Rai’s nephew Anand Rai has said that “the family of Mukhtar Ansari will now feel the pain that his family went through at the time of his uncle’s murder.”
Indian veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin slammed fans for going too far in the “fan war” between Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Hardik Pandya and the franchise’s former five-time IPL-winning skipper Rohit Sharma.
Hardik Pandya moved to MI, a franchise that made him a star just last year. This came after spending two great years with the Gujarat Titans, a new franchise, during which he won them the title as a captain in its debut season back in 2022 and led them to the finals the next year. On his return to MI, he also replaced Rohit as its skipper.
While head coach Mark Boucher has clarified that the move is meant to help Rohit play with more freedom following some underwhelming seasons with the bat, many fans have expressed that MI and Pandya have betrayed Rohit. Ahead of the IPL season and while it is going on, fans of both players have engaged in online abuse against each other’s preferred players.
It has escalated to live action as well, with Pandya getting booed and abused during his side’s matches both online and on the field. In his YouTube channel, Ashwin said that both the franchise and the player have no role to play in this fan-war and the onus is on the fans to act responsibly. He questioned if there have been any instances of fan wars between players’ fanbases abroad and opined that the fan wars have gotten ugly.
“Neither has any role to play. Neither the franchise nor the player has a role to play in this at all. I think the responsibility and the onus lie on the fans,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“Have you seen this happen in any other country? Have you seen Joe Root and Zak Crawley fans fight? Or have you seen Joe Root and Jos Buttler fans fight? It’s crazy. Have you seen Steve Smith and Pat Cummins fans fight in Australia? I have said this many times. This is cricket. This is a cinema culture. I know there are things like marketing, positioning and branding. I do not deny it. I do not believe in all this on my side but it is not wrong to indulge either. Fan wars should never go down this ugly route. One should remember which country these players represent–our country. So then what warrants a cricketer getting booed?” Ashwin added.
He questioned why a team should come with a clarification about a player and a captaincy saga when legendary cricketers like Saurav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble and MS Dhoni, etc. have played under youngsters or each other’s captaincy. over the years.
“I do not understand. If you don’t like a player and boo a player, why should a team come out to issue a clarification? We act like this has not happened before. (Sourav) Ganguly played under Sachin (Tendulkar) and vice versa. These two have both played under Rahul Dravid’s captaincy. These three have played under Anil Kumble and all of them have played under Dhoni. When they were under Dhoni, these players were cricket jambhavans (giants). Dhoni too played under Virat,” he said.
Ashwin said that the fans need to get their act together and enjoy their favourite players without putting the other player down.
“We need to get our act together. You know what the problem is? We are all happy to sit in our houses, look outside and have someone else to pick up the trash. We do not want to bother doing it ourselves. We should correct ourselves first. This is real-time sports. Real-time sports have real-time emotions. How we go beyond that, counter it and find a balance to play cricket is what this is all about,” said Ashwin.
“A real sport can never be compared to cinema. Heroes and hero-worships are great. I am all for it. Enjoy what you like about your favourites but not at the cost of putting another player down. This is one thing I would love to see disappear from the face of the earth in our country,” Ashwin concluded.
Meanwhile, MI have started their season with two losses in two games against the Gujarat Titans (GT) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Their next match is against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their home arena of Wankhede Stadium on April 1.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
A special POCSO court in Mehsana in Gujarat has sentenced Azam Khan Siddiqui to 20 years in jail for luring away a 17-year-old Hindu girl from Ladol in Vijapur and raping her in Pune. The court also ordered the accused to pay Rs 15,000 as compensation to the victim. The matter came to light in September 2023. Azam Khan has been lodged in jail since then.
The Ladol police had registered an FIR in this regard on 1st September 2023, under sections 363, 366, 376(2)(N) of the IPC and the POCSO Act. Subsequently, the charge sheet was filed in the court on 26th November 2023. Later, at a hearing in the POCSO court, a total of 13 witnesses were presented by the prosecution, including the medical officer who conducted the medical check-up of the minor victim girl and the PSI who filed the FIR. Apart from this, 49 documentary evidence were also given by the prosecution and the testimony of the victim and her parents was also recorded. A copy of the court order is available with OpIndia.
The victim, in her testimony, told the court that one day the accused Azam Khan messaged her at night and asked her to leave the house the next day in the morning. She said that despite opposing this message, Azam Khan continued the message and despite her refusal to go, the accused forced her to elope with him. She then left home at 5 a.m. and the accused met her at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. After reaching the railway station, they boarded a train and reached Pune. She informed the court that Azam Khan took her to a rented house there.
The victim said that the accused raped her three times at night. The next day at 6 a.m., the police came and caught them and brought them to Ladol police station. where her statement was recorded.
While delivering the verdict, the court said that in this case, if the victim has given consent because she is of minor age, then it is not to be taken into consideration as per the provisions under sections of the POCSO Act. Further, the victim said in her testimony that the accused took her to Pune and forcibly entered into physical relations.
The court convicted Azam Khan Siddiqui under sections 363, 366, 376, 376(2)(n) of the IPC and section 6 of the POCSO Act. While awarding the sentence, the court said that the accused committed the crime despite knowing that the victim was a minor. At a time when there is a significant increase in the number of such crimes in society day by day, it is also necessary to take into account the adverse impact on society, the court said.
The court sentenced Azam Khan to 20 years of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5,000 under the POCSO Act, a 2-year sentence and a fine of Rs 2,000 under IPC 363, as well as a five-year sentence and a fine of Rs 3,000 under IPC 366. He will have to serve all these punishments simultaneously.
The incident took place in Mehsana in September 2023. A 17-year-old Hindu girl from Vijapur was lured away by the accused Azam Khan Siddiqui who took her to Pune and raped the victim. On 1st September, after the minor’s family complained that their daughter was kidnapped by an unidentified person, the police took immediate action given the seriousness of the incident and arrested Azam Khan from Pune in Maharashtra within a few hours.
The accused Azam Khan Siddiqui hails from Uttarakhand. He had come in contact with the minor victim girl five months before the incident took place. He befriended her with the help of a social media app. Then he brainwashed the minor, lured her, and called her to meet him at Kalupur railway station in Ahmedabad. He then took the victim to Pune where he forcibly committed rape three times. Now the court has sentenced him to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment.
Congressman and former president of Bodri Nagar Panchayat, Jagdish Kaushik, who had been fasting to death for the previous three days, ended his hunger strike on 29th March. He was protesting Bhilai Nagar MLA Devendra Yadav’s selection as the Lok Sabha candidate for the Bilaspur seat. Vijay Kesharwani, the president of the Congress district in Bilaspur, offered him water and juice to break his fast and promised to take his concerns into consideration on behalf of the senior Congress leadership.
Devendra Yadav’s candidacy was contested by the 40-year-old leader who referred to him as an “outsider.” On 27h March, Jagdish Kaushik started his hunger strike by refusing food and liquids in front of the Congress Bhawan. He did not agree when Congress leader and Kota lawmaker Atal Shrivastava and other Congress officials tried to pacify and convince him.
“Why I have not been given a ticket from the Bilaspur Lok Sabha seat? What was lacking in my penance? The party high command (State/Central) should address (it). Give justice. Till justice is meted out (the protest will be continued),” read pamphlets pasted by him on a wall of the party’s Bilaspur district office where he was protesting. He had declared that he would not stop his agitation until the party’s high command granted him justice.
Congress district president rushed to the Congress building after learning of the occurrence. Senior Congressmen, however, are reported to have guaranteed Jagdish Kaushik that his reservations would be taken into account and that he would be assigned a significant role inside the party.
President of the Bilaspur District Congress Committee (Rural), Vijay Kesharwani, mentioned that Jagdish Kaushik was the president of the Bodri Nagar Panchayat from 2009 to 2014 and is currently employed with the Congress party. He claimed that when Congress MLA Atal Srivastava and other party officials met with him, they persuaded him to break his fast, but he refused. He noted that attempts are being made to convince him to stop protesting.
The wife of Jagdish Kaushik and their two sons came to the Congress building on the morning of 28th March. She even threatened to fast with her kids as a sign of support for her spouse. They then all took a seat in front of the building. She highlighted that her husband deserved to be granted a ticket because of his persistent efforts on behalf of the Congress party. She vowed that she and her children would fast together until her husband’s demand was fulfilled and she would hold the Congress party accountable for any adverse outcomes.
Following news that Jagdish Kaushik had called off his hunger strike, Bhilai MLA and Lok Sabha candidate Devendra Yadav and his supporters also made their way to the Congress building. He gave Jagdish Kaushik some juice and had a conversation with him, asking for assistance in the 2024 Lok Sabha poll.
A day after the I.N.D.I. Alliance agreed on seat sharing in Bihar, Congress leader Pappu Yadav announced that he would file a Lok Sabha nomination from Purnia, which is allocated to the Rashtriya Janata Dal in the seat sharing. Notably, Pappu Yadav formally merged his political outfit Jan Adhikar Party (Loktantrik) in Congress on 20th March. He said that he was assured a ticket from Purnia by Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Pappu Yadav said, “I will contest the Purnea seat on Congress symbol and people will ensure Congress’s win. I will file the nomination. Let the party leadership’s response come. People of Purnia have said ‘Pappu is their son, he won’t go anywhere’. I will have to follow the order (of the people).”
On 29th March, Congress and RJD partnered INDI alliance sealed a seat-sharing agreement in Bihar, with the Congress party stated to contest on nine seats while the lion’s share of the seats, 26 to be precise, going to Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD. Five of the 40 Lok Sabha seats have been allotted between three left parties, namely CPI-ML, CPI, and CPM. RJD, Congress, and Left leaders held a joint press conference on Friday, 29th March, and announced seat allocation.
Congress will be fielding candidates on seats such as Kishanganj, Muzaffarpur, Patna Sahib, and Maharajganj, the RJD will be fighting on Purnea, Hazipur, Gaya, Aurangabad, Darbhanga, Siwan, and Patliputra besides others. CPI-ML will contest from Aarh, Karakat, and Nalanda, CPI from Begusarai, and CPM from Khagaria. RJD leader Bima Bharti, who is contesting from Purnia, dismissed this as a rumour and stated that Pappu Yadav would endorse her candidacy.
She said, “Some people are spreading rumours that he won’t support me and that he would oppose this, but that is not true. He is my guardian and will continue to be so. We share a family relationship and together we will win the Purnia seat with a majority.”
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the RJD failed to secure any seats, whereas the Congress only managed to win one. The seat sharing sealed in Bihar underscored the predicament of the Congress party, which had to meet the demands of a relatively younger political party, RJD, and reduce itself to a single-digit party in a state, epitomising its decline from the national political landscape. Now, this announcement by Pappu Yadav comes as another rift in the I.N.D.I. alliance which has already broken into a bunch of pieces as its constituent parties are opposing each other in multiple states.
A Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist confessed that he raped a ‘terrified’ Israeli woman and murdered civilians during the October 7th Hamas-led terror attack. The confession video of the captured PIJ terrorist was shared by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the early hours of Friday (29th March).
The PIJ terrorist identified as Manar Qassem was captured by the IDF earlier this month in Khan Younis. He told the investigator that he was a member of Islamic Jihad’s naval forces.
The Military Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 504 which specialises in HUMINT (Human Intelligence) carried out the interrogation. When asked what he did during the October 7th terror attack, Qassem (28) gave a detailed response including how he breached Israeli territory, raped and killed Israeli civilians.
Qassem revealed that he along with his accomplice, Mahmoud Al Khush, entered Israel through a border breach in the Gaza fence between the Khan Younis area towns of al-Fukhkhari and Khuza’a. He added that he was armed with a handgun and two grenades while another terrorist, Mahmoud Khush had an AK 47.
He further stated that when he got to the unnamed kibbutz in Southern Israel, he went into the nearest house where he found a woman who was startled and asking for help.
He recalled the details regarding what the victim looked like and what she was wearing, Qassem told the interrogators, “I took her and threw her on the couch.”
The PIJ terrorist added, “The devil took over me, I laid her down, started undressing her, and did what I did.”
When the interrogator further asked what he had done to her, Qassem responded by saying, “I slept with her.”
Pressed again by the interrogator, Qassem confessed, “I raped her.” He added, “She pushed me, it didn’t last long… Two minutes. Maybe a minute and a half.”
According to Qassem, by that time, two members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades terror group entered the home as well. They kept the victim together with her mother for a short while, before they took both of them out of the house.
Qassem claimed that he was left alone after which he decided to head back to the Gaza Strip. He also confessed to killing innocent Israeli civilians. He told the investigator that he heard gunshots and then shot one Israeli man near him before throwing one of his grenades and fleeing the kibbutz.
While the officials did not say anything about the fate of the woman, the latter comment suggested she did not survive, Times of Israel reported.
The IDF asserted that the footage is “further proof of the onslaught of murder and sexual violence by the terrorist organisations on October 7th, in an attempt to make the voices of those who can no longer be heard.”
Notably, the IDF released the video three weeks after the United Nations envoy on sex crimes during conflict submitted a report at the UN. The report pointed out that rape and gang rape likely occurred during the 7th October Hamas-led terrorist attack in Southern Israel.
The 24-page report was submitted after conducting meetings on the ground for more than two weeks. It stated there are “reasonable grounds” to believe that Hamas committed rape and sexual abuse during its murderous rampage on October 7 and that there is an even higher standard of evidence to indicate that hostages kidnapped by Hamas that day were subject to rape in captivity.
Additionally, in an interview published earlier this week in the New York Times, Freed hostage Amit Soussana said that she was sexually assaulted by a Hamas guard during her captivity in Gaza.
Israel Hamas war
On 7th October 2023, thousands of Hamas terrorists, through land, air, and sea invaded Southern Israel and killed over 1,200 people including babies, kidnapped over 253 Israeli and foreign nationals, and raped and paraded women. In retaliation, the IDF has claimed that it has killed over 13,000 terrorists in Gaza, in addition to some 1,000 who were killed inside Israel on and immediately following the 7th October terror attack.
Meanwhile, reports suggest that the US has authorised the transfer of 2,000 bombs and 25 F-35 jets worth billions of dollars to Israel amid speculations of a possible Israeli military offensive near Gaza’s Rafah border.
