One woman was killed and 12 other persons were injured in a shooting incident at a club in West Point in Mississippi in the US on Sunday (local time), CNN reported citing law enforcement officials.
Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott said that the shooting incident happened early Sunday inside Club Oasis. After the deputies reached the site, they found a 20-year-old woman dead, according to Scott.
The other gunshot victims have injuries from minor to serious, with one person shot in the face. Scott said, “What we do know is that a party was advertised, and all these individuals came from other counties into our county.”
He added, “About 90 per cent of the partygoers were from other counties,” CNN reported. Scott said the club had security and investigators do not know how a weapon was brought inside the club.
Speaking to CNN, the sheriff said one security guard called chasing the suspected shooter believed to be holding some type of rifle as they ran across the parking lot and a four-lane highway before disappearing in the woods.
Scott said “several hundred” people were estimated to have been inside the club at the time of the shooting. Officials have been working to confirm the numbers and checking whether there is video footage from inside the club at the time of shooting.
Scott said, “Per our ordinance, the club is supposed to have security cameras, but for some reason or another, last night, the club owner said his weren’t working. He said no arrests have been made so far and the probe is being conducted into the shooting.
Eddie Scott said, “Last night was so hectic trying to get actual good, solid information.” He further said, “It was very difficult with the number of victims and the chaos we had going on,” according to CNN reported.
So far this year, there have been 66 mass shooting incidents in the US, according to the Gun Violence Archive, according to CNN report. The Gun Violence Archive considers a mass shooting as one in which at least four people are shot, excluding the shooter. (ANI)
(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 few days ago, the social media accounts of Sweden’s Uppsala University professor Ashok Swain were hacked. A hacking group named Crypto DAwg hacked his Twitter and Instagram accounts, posted several messages. Later the group changed the name and display picture of the account. After that, the accounts were deactivated, and have not been restored till now.
Initially, it was speculated by some social media users that Askhok Swain’s social media accounts were hacked by Pakistani hackers because while allegedly he was working for ISI, he recently switched sides and started supporting Imran Khan. It was claimed that an ISI hacking group was behind it. However, the hackers proved it wrong and indicated that it was a pro-India, pro-Israel group.
#ashokswain Ashok swain an Indian born Swedish professor at upsala University who was working for ISI but recently switched sides with imran Khan
The hacker posted several messages justifying the Indian govt cancelling Ashok Swain’s OCI card, criticising radical Muslims, supporting Israel, and many other subjects with views contrary to the known stand of the professor.
However, the most controversial content published by Crypto DAwg is direct messages of Ashok Swain with a woman working under him. The messages exchanged on Instagram reveal that the professor probably had a romantic relationship with the young woman, and his family is aware of it.
Ashok Swain and the Research Assistant at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research, headed by Swain, had very regular chats through direct messages on Instagram, the leaked chats show. The hacker published their chats from 10th February to 26th February, and it shows that they talked about almost everything, professional, political and personal topics.
The conversations ranged from serious discussions on politics to using AI to create content to casual chit-chats. For example, on 12 February, he said that he deleted a tweet on some demonstration because he was being heavily trolled, and the woman said it was a wise decision. He also said that Indian media had gone crazy over Indian govt’s comment on cancelling his OCI card.
On the same day, Ashok Swain told the woman that Rektor (vice chancellor) of the university has got a number of complaints against him. In another chat later, he said that while he is generally criticised in India or Ethiopia, he is now also criticised in Sweden now, and this has become an issue.
He was visiting Dubai during this time, and he sent updates on his visit along with photographs to her regularly. On 14th February, Ashok Swain sent a Valentine’s Day message to the woman, wishing her love, happiness and fulfilment in her life.
The professor and the woman discussed a lot on the topic of the hosts of his event in Dubai not releasing the video of the event. He also said that the Gulf News editor told him that the newspaper faces problems with the Indian Embassy and business houses for his writings. Ashok Swain claimed that the Editor in Chief apologised to him for ‘restricting his writings’, adding that he understood the editor’s position.
The chats also reveal that Uppsala University and the department get a lot of angry letters from pro-Israel people in Sweden for Ashok Swain’s views. Talking about the BAPS temple inaugurated by PM Modi in Abu Dhabi, the professor said that it is just business, not secularism. The woman replied by saying that while she read reports on the Indian PM inaugurating the Hindu temple, the reports didn’t say ‘how hypocritical it is’.
Before arriving in Sweden from the Middle East, Ashok Swain messaged the woman on 17 February saying that he would come to the university on 19th if she was there. He also advised her to take the bus instead of biking, because the ‘break’ does not work.
After boarding the flight back to Sweden on 19 February, Ashok Swain sent a message urging the woman to be completely mask-free while interacting with him. He said, “There is no doubt in my mind that I have never liked a person as much as I like you,” indicating the romantic nature of the relationship between the two. He added, “You will always remain the same person for me”.
After a few days, he sent her an AI-generated poem in appreciation of her. He often messages her that he is free after a meeting, and can meet her.
Amid conversations on weather, travel, photos, his OCI card status and others, Ashok Swain asked the woman to use his credit card for a booking. While she refused, he insisted. He sent her a copy of the card along with the CVV code, saying that he really wants her to use it.
After some talks about problems in their personal lives and determination to ‘fight it out together’, the woman told him that his son wrote to her, and she would have to end the conversation. To this, Ashok Swain replied, “I am really sorry. I am ashamed that I raised a kid like him giving up all my life.”
He then told her that he sent a stern message to his son over the issue. He wrote, “I am dead for you from now on. I had not raised a son giving my whole life to be like this. This is what I have messaged him after the mail.”
From the conversation, it can be guessed that Ashok Swain’s son was not happy with the woman, probably because of her relationship with his father, and therefore he wrote to her.
The hackers also announced that many of the leaked messages were deleted, but they managed to recover a lot from them.
Around the time the accounts were hacked, messages ‘expressing regret’ for his behaviour appeared on his social media accounts. One tweet read, “I have done some self reflection. I abandoned my family emotionally for another person. Wasted my entire life. Hurt my family. I am nothing anymore.”
A similar message was posted on Instagram, which said, ” I have disrespected my family. I have disappointed my son, my daughter, and my wife. I am not what you all think I am.” It is not sure whether the messages were posted by the hacker, or Ashok Swain posted them before the accounts were hacked.
OpIndia wrote to Ashok Swain to confirm whether the leaked DMs are genuine, and asking for his comments on the issue. While he responded to the email, he didn’t comment on the content of the messages. However, he said that not just Twitter and Instagram, but his Google and Amazon accounts, and his computer and phone were also hacked. Notably, he didn’t deny the authenticity of the leaked DMs.
He wrote, “My computer, telephone, google, Amazon accounts and social media accounts have been hacked since 27 February 2024.”
His Twitter account remains hacked, and his Instagram account remains deactivated after it was hacked. He has reportedly filed a complaint with the police over the hacking of his devices and accounts.
As per sources, the woman left the university after the chats were leaked. Her Instagram and LinkedIn profiles are also no longer accessible. While the nationality of the woman is not known, during the chats with Ashok Swain she said that her grandfather owns the rights of a waterbody in Sweden.
Weeks after Google faced massive outrage after its newly launched Gemini AI refused to acknowledge the existence of white people, the company’s co-founder Sergey Brin has admitted that the company messed up in the matter. Addressing the Gemini Hackathon at AGI House in San Francisco on 3 March, Sergey Brin said that the AI platform was premature and it was released without proper testing.
Brin said, “We definitely messed up on the image generation, and it was mostly due to not thorough testing.”
Sergey Brin along with Larry Page had founded Google, and he is now a controlling shareholder at Alphabet, Google’s parent company.
Google launched Gemini AI in December 2023, calling it the company’s “largest and most capable AI model”. However, last month a large number of people noticed a huge issue with the image generation function of the platform, it simply refused to generate images of white people. The AI model imposed ‘diversity’ into everything, including founding fathers of USA, the Vikings, Pope, Nazis etc.
After the criticism of being too woke, Google removed the capability of the platform to generate images of people, saying they would relaunch it after fixing the issues. Since then, top officials of the company have been admitting that their AI model was wrong, and promising to fix it. CEO Sunder Pichai recently wrote to the company employees that the model is “biased and completely unacceptable”. He said that images made by the tool have caused offence among people.
Sergei Brin’s comments are latest in a series of comments by Google top officials admitting they messed up. However, when the video of the Brin’s comment was shared on social media, people noticed something else, which is completely bizarre.
— Yurii Filipchuk?? — e/acc (@yfilipch) March 2, 2024
It was the shirt of the person who asked the Gemini AI question. As seen at the beginning of the now viral video, the individual is wearing a full-sleeve shirt with a full body print of a naked woman, with the prints of breasts aligning with the chest of the wearer. When seen from a distance, a person in this t-shirt will look like a topless white woman.
People on X could not believe that the person was wearing such a shirt at the hackathon event. They expressed shock at replies to posts with the video on social media.
Sergey’s ludicrous answer aside, I think we are a failed civilization for letting someone dress like this in public.
On Sunday (3rd March), the Uttar Pradesh government removed Ajay Kumar Tiwari from his post of Controller of Examinations in the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC). Notably, UPPSC is the constitutional body responsible for conducting examinations for recruitment to various state civil services in Uttar Pradesh, India.
Uttar Pradesh | Ajay Kumar Tiwari, Controller of Examinations, Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission, was removed from his present post and sent to the Revenue Council: UP Govt
Following the UP government’s action, Ajay Kumar Tiwari has been shunted to the Revenue Council.
The development comes after the UP government cancelled the recruitment examination for the posts of Review Officer (RO) and Assistant Review Officer (ARO) amidst allegations of a paper leak.
Notably, the RO and ARO examinations were conducted by the UPPSC on 11th February 2024. Since then, scores of candidates alleged that the paper was leaked.
CM Yogi Adityanath assures stern action in the case, announces re-examination in 6 months
On Saturday (2nd March), CM Yogi Adityanath reviewed the RO and ARO Preliminary Examination-2023 held last month. There were complaints that some questions of these examinations allegedly went viral on social media. Following the allegations, the government had sought details about the paper leak allegations.
Consequently, CM Yogi gave instructions to cancel the preliminary examination held in both sessions and announced that the examination would be conducted again in the coming 6 months. The exact exam schedule, however, will be declared by the UPPSC on their official website at a later stage.
Taking to X, CM Yogi assured students that the culprits responsible for the paper leak would be given stern punishment that will set a precedence.
CM Yogi tweeted, “Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission has ordered to cancel the Review Officer/Assistant Review Officer (Preliminary) Examination, 2023 held on 11 February 2024 and to conduct it again in the next 6 months. Those who play with the sanctity of the examination will not be spared under any circumstances. The culprits of the youth will be given such punishment which will set an example.”
उत्तर प्रदेश लोक सेवा आयोग द्वारा 11 फरवरी 2024 को आयोजित समीक्षा अधिकारी/सहायक समीक्षा अधिकारी (प्रारम्भिक) परीक्षा, 2023 को निरस्त करने तथा आगामी 06 माह में इसे पुनः कराने के आदेश दिए हैं।
परीक्षा की शुचिता से खिलवाड़ करने वालों को किसी भी दशा में बख्शा नहीं जाएगा।
Additionally, he has also directed that the investigation of this matter should be handed over to STF. The STF is entrusted to identify the culprits involved in such criminal acts and take strict legal and punitive action against them. It has been directed to complete its investigation as soon as possible and following its probe strict action will be taken against all the responsible persons involved in this.
The Police recently arrested a 38-year-old autorickshaw driver in Bengaluru for allegedly raping and murdering an unidentified woman near an under-construction building in Shanthinagar in central Bengaluru. The Police have identified the accused as Mubarak Khan, a resident of Anjanappa Garden in Cottonpet.
However, Police are yet to recognise the identity of the victim who is believed to be aged between 25 and 30.
According to the police, the accused picked up a woman who was waiting for a cab in the early morning and took her to the first floor of a vacant building where he raped the victim and later pushed her from the building to kill her. The postmortem report revealed that the woman was raped before she was killed.
According to a report in the Deccan Herald, a Police officer told them that the accused Mubarak Khan picked up the victim woman at midnight on 28th February near KR Market. However, according to a report in News Nine, the criminal incident is said to have taken place on 20th February.
An officer said, “He (The accused) didn’t know her and had no idea about her identity. He had picked her up in his auto with her consent but things changed after that.”
According to the officer, the accused Mubarak Khan took the victim to an under-construction building with her consent. After some time, the woman opposed his sexual advances, however, he kept assaulting her sexually and allegedly raped her.
As per reports, the accused panicked when the victim woman said that she would go to the police. He then allegedly pushed her from the first floor of the building at around 4 am. The passersby found the dead body of the victim at around 11 am.
Following the incident, Police reached the location and found that the victim had head injuries but it reportedly had no marks on her body.
Initially, the case was taken up as an Unnatural Death Report (UDR). However, the medical examination confirmed that the victim was raped which prompted the police to probe further.
The investigators analysed the CCTV cameras and gathered the network dump which led them to the accused Mubarak Khan. According to the Police officials, the accused had confessed to killing her. He allegedly chickened when she threatened to tell police and pushed her in the spur of the moment.
In this case, Sampangiram Nagar police have filed an FIR under IPC sections 376 (punishment for rape) and 302 (murder).
An event in Toronto where Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was scheduled to host his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, was cancelled on Saturday due to ‘security concerns’ after hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the venue, CBC News reported citing Trudeau’s office.
Neither Trudeau nor Meloni were able to enter the place as the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) went into lockdown following protests.
The protestors criticized the Canadian government’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war and alleged that “Trudeau was funding a genocide in Gaza.”
“Due to security concerns, the event was cancelled,” a spokesperson for the PMO said.
Police said that there were 200-300 protesters outside the gallery, but noted it was difficult to estimate the total size of the demonstration as protesters gathered outside several entrances.
Would-be attendees gathered outside were confronted by demonstrators, with their entry paths blocked. Some were later escorted to the building’s entrance by police.
International Development Minister, Ahmed Hussein tried to enter through the main entrance, but protesters blocked his path and followed him for two blocks as he tried to enter a more secure location while flanked by police, according to CBC News.
“You are complicit in the genocide. Your hands are red. You are complicit in the murder of my family members and my friends,” one demonstrator chanted at him.
Italian PM Meloni, was in Toronto to hold meetings with Trudeau. The two G7 leaders discussed a wide range of topics, including the crisis in the Middle East.
Hamas carried out a terror attack on Israel on October 7 killing over 1200 people and taking around 250 people as hostages.
Following this, Israel launched a massive counter-offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. But, the military operation has so far claimed more than 30,000 lives, according to Gaza health officials.
Canada considers Hamas a ‘terrorist group’ and has repeatedly said that “Israel has the right to defend itself”. Lately, Ottawa called for a ceasefire in the conflict due to the deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, CBC News reported.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
On Sunday (3rd March), Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with the Council of Ministers held an 8-hour-long meeting to brainstorm on the vision document ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’. The Council of Ministers also reportedly held deliberations on a detailed action plan for the next five years, news agency ANI reported citing sources. Notably, Council of Ministers include all Ministers including Cabinet Ministers, Ministers of state in concerned Ministries and Ministers of State Independent Charge.
(Image Source – ANI)
During the meeting, the Council of Ministers also worked on a 100-day agenda for quick implementation after the formation of the new government in May 2024 after the general elections.
Notably, the roadmap for Viksit Bharat is a result of more than 2 years of intensive preparation. According to sources, it involved a whole-government approach involving all ministries and wide-ranging consultations with State governments, academia, industry bodies, civil society, and scientific organisations, and the mobilisation of youth to seek their ideas, suggestions, and inputs. More than 2700 meetings, workshops, and seminars were held at various levels.
Council of ministers brainstorms on vision document for Viksit Bharat 2047 & detailed action plan for next 5 years.
A 100-day agenda for immediate steps also worked upon for quick implementation after formation of the new Government in May, 2024
The sources further added that suggestions were received from more than 20 lakh youths. According to them, the roadmap for ‘Viksit Bharat’ has a comprehensive blueprint with a clearly articulated national vision, aspirations, goals, and action points.
They added that its goals include areas like economic growth, SDGs, ease of living, ease of doing business, infrastructure, social welfare, etc.
The meeting holds significance, as the BJP-led ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has expressed confidence in retaining power at the Centre for a third term. On several occasions, PM Modi has exuberated confidence reiterating that it is his guarantee, ‘Modi ki guarantee’, that India will become the 3rd largest economy in the world in his third term. He, however, added that he is not seeking a third term for himself but to do service for the nation.
In his rallies, PM Modi had stated that ‘Abki baar 400 par for NDA and over 370 seats for BJP’ is a slogan coined by the public. On 2nd March, the party’s central election committee announced candidates for 195 seats for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission is likely to announce the poll schedule in a couple of weeks as elections are held in April-May with the newly elected government assuming power in late May or June.
On Sunday (3rd January), Bihari actor and singer Pawan Singh took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce the withdrawal of his candidature from the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
In a tweet, he stated, “I express my heartfelt gratitude to the top leadership of Bharatiya Janata Party. The party trusted me and declared me the candidate from Asansol but due to some personal reason, I will not be able to contest the election from Asansol.”
भारतीय जनता पार्टी के शीर्ष नेतृत्व को दिल से आभार प्रकट करता हु। पार्टी ने मुझ पर विश्वास करके आसनसोल का उम्मीदवार घोषित किया लेकिन किसी कारण वश में आसनसोल से चुनाव नहीं लड़ पाऊंगा…@JPNadda
The development came less than 24 hours after Singh was declared the BJP candidate from the Asansol constituency in West Bengal.
Soon after his candidature was declared, the Trinamool Congress ecosystem labelled him ‘anti-Bengali’ for virtue of the lyrics of his music.
It must be mentioned that item numbers are common in the Bhojpuri film industry and Singh has been a part of several such projects. But this was almost the first time when a prospective candidate was shunted for the nature of his profession.
TMC leader Babul Supriyo claimed, “Have always said, that BJP is anti-Bengali – the fact that they didn’t give a cabinet seat to any Bengali in the 10 years they are in power is proof enough for that but now fielding Pawan Singh from Asansol shows their insensitivity against Bengali women.”
Have always said, that BJP is anti-Bengali – the fact that they didn't give a cabinet seat to any Bengali in the 10 years they are in power is proof enough for that but now fielding Pawan Singh frm Asansol shows their insensitivity against Bengali women•In terms of offending… https://t.co/KElTTnT3tF
TMC member Spandan Gain tweeted, “BJP’s LokSabha candidate from Asansol, Pawan Singh is a perfect example of their ‘Beti Bachao’. I would request Asansol people before casting vote, please check this video and picture where he is insulting Bengali women by using so many words like ‘Maal’ are really derogatory.”
“The whole Bengal should know that during Modi’s visit #BJPFirstList has been confirmed. So is this same BJP who was crying for #Sandeshkali women??”
BJP's #LokSabha candidate from Asansol, #PawanSingh is a perfect example of their 'Beti Bachao'. I would request #Asansol people before casting vote, please check this video and picture where he is insulting Bengali women by using so many words like 'Maal' are really derogatory.… pic.twitter.com/YqVdz2iLco
‘Journalist’ turned Rajya Sabha MP from Trinamool Congress said, “Hum hasina Bengal ki.” The @BJP4India Asansol candidate’s video depicts the women of Bengal as in below. Will such a person be sitting as a legislator in Parliament ?”
“Hum hasina Bengal ki.” The @BJP4India Asansol candidate’s video depicts the women of Bengal as in below ⬇️. Will such a person be sitting as a legislator in Parliament ? pic.twitter.com/7zR1ZEVyYf
Interestingly, the TMC MP from Asansol happens to be Shatrugan Sinha, who has acted in several rape scenes in Bollywood movies. This however did not stop the Mamata Banerjee-led party from issuing him a ticket.
If doing some obscene scenes in movies makes Pawan Singh a bad person, this scene will make @ShatruganSinha sir a bad man as well? Will "seculars" call him a real life rap!st? pic.twitter.com/CqKVTgh0L5
— Mr Sinha (Modi's family) (@MrSinha_) March 3, 2024
TMC encashing on rising ‘anti-Bihari sentiment’ in West Bengal
The sudden and coordinated targeting of Pawan Singh by the Trinamool Congress ecosystem is not merely a coincidence. The Mamata Banerjee-led party is encashing on a rising ‘anti Bihari’ sentiment in the State.
Since 2019, the TMC supremo herself has blamed ‘outsiders’ for incidents of violence and unrest that took place in the State. The objective behind it was to evade responsibility for failing to provide safety and security to the residents of West Bengal.
It also served another purpose of creating a magnified sense of fear among the Bengali community that their culture, language and safety were somehow being usurped by migrants from other states.
The regionalism and eventual polarisation have yielded great results for the Mamata Banerjee government in the 2021 West Bengal elections.
Several Trinamool Congress leaders have since followed the footsteps of Mamata Banerjee. In 2021, BJP leader Nishikant Dubey accused former TMC MP Mahua Moitra of calling him a ‘Bihari gunda.’
In March 2022, another TMC leader Manoranjan Byapari had infamously said, “You will also have to say it out loud: Ek Bihari, 100 Beemarii (One Bihari is equal to 100 diseases). We don’t want diseases. Make Bengal disease-free.”
Mamata Banerjee and her prejudiced remarks against Biharis
On April 25, 2023, angry locals in the Kaliganj area in the Uttar Dinajpur district of West Bengal attacked the police over inaction in the alleged rape and murder case of a minor Dalit girl. They were furious at the cops for inappropriately handling the dead body of the victim.
During a press conference on the following day, Mamata Banerjee went on to slam the Bihari community for orchestrating the attack. “The manner in which the cops (including female personnel) were attacked and police station was set on fire by goons from Bihar is unpardonable…” the West Bengal CM claimed.
In the run-up to the 2021 West Bengal Vidhan Sabha polls, Mamata Banerjee used the ‘outsider’ jibe for political gains. She tried to consolidate the Bengali vote by first labelling the BJP as a party of ‘outsiders‘ (Bohiragoto).
While addressing an election rally in March 2021, she alleged, “They (BJP) have the plan to kill a woman from their party. As you know, they had brought goons from Uttar Pradesh (to Bengal). They will make those goons torture her, blame the State and divide the Hindus and Muslims. Remember this is the plan of the thugs from Bihar and Rajasthan.”
#WATCH | They (BJP) have another plan to kill a woman from their own party with goons they have brought from Bihar & UP and put the blame on Bengal. This is their plan: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee pic.twitter.com/KujcL52Xho
“Baira thaka goondara aisa bangla ke dhokhol kora nibe, Banglar sanskriti ke dhokhol kore nabe, banglar asthitya dhokhol kore nabe.(Goons from other States will come here and take over Bengal, destroy its culture and identity),” the incumbent West Bengal Chief Minister alleged during another election rally in Nandigram.
Conclusion
With the 2024 Lok Sabha elections just around the corner, the TMC is raking up the ‘Bengali Vs Bihari’ divide by painting Bhojpuri singer Pawan Singh as ‘anti-Bengali.’
The assertions are made not based on Singh’s real-life views about Bengalis but on the lyrics of songs used in the Bhojpuri film industry. The destruction of social cohesion for petty politics has previously led to casual discrimination and real-life attacks in West Bengal.
While being aware of the ‘rising social tension’ in the State over his candidature from Asansol Lok Sabha constituency, Pawan Singh has preemptively and respectfully bowed out of the political slugfest.
On Sunday (3rd March), Calcutta High Court Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay announced that he would resign from his judicial post on 5th March. However, he didn’t elaborate on the reasons for his resignation from the Judicial post adding that he will give reasons for his decision later. But in an interview with ABP Ananda earlier today, he said that he plans to join politics, and may join a party other than TMC.
Speaking with media persons, he said, “I will resign from the post of the Justice of Calcutta High Court on March 5 (Tuesday). I will send my resignation letter to the President of India and a copy of the letter to the Chief Justice of India and Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court. I do not want to say anything further on this today.”
VIDEO | Here’s what Calcutta High Court’s Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay said on quitting judiciary.
“I will resign from the post of the Justice of Calcutta High Court on March 5 (Tuesday). I will send my resignation letter to the President of India and a copy of the letter to… pic.twitter.com/dv3ws8JkVF
He dismissed speculations that he would be joining politics after resigning.
However, in the interview with Bengali news channel ABP Ananda, Justice Gangopadhyay congratulated the ruling party, Trinamool Congress (TMC) for forcing him to take this decision of resigning adding that he could make a foray into the larger arena, including joining politics.
Speaking with ABP Ananda, Justice Gangopadhyay emphasised that he would like to congratulate the ruling party TMC that whenever he went to do any justice, whenever they didn’t like it, TMC spokespersons made very insulting comments, sarcastic comments towards the judge, towards the court.
He added that he didn’t take them too seriously and took no action against them, although there was scope for action. He further stated that he didn’t mind their remarks because he knew what he was going to do, what he was doing, and whether it was legal or not.
Stressing that their wish should be fulfilled, Justice Gangopadhyay said, “I have been challenged to come and fight on the (political) field several times by the ruling party’s (TMC’s) leaders, so I thought why not.”
During the exclusive interview with ABP Ananda, Justice Gangopadhyay said that he would contest elections if he got a ticket, however, he did not mention which party he was interested in. However, he mentioned Congress, BJP, Left, and other smaller outfits as options among political parties.
However, speculations are rife that soon-going-to-be Retired Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay could join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Notably, the speculations gained strength as BJP senior leader and Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari recently stated that there will be big joinings on 7th March.
Notably, there are 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal, and in the first list of candidates announced yesterday, BJP announced candidates for 20 constituencies. Which means, candidates for the rest 22 seats in the state are yet to be decided, and there is the possibility of Gangopadhyay being fielded in the polls in case he joins BJP.
Meanwhile, the senior state leadership of both BJP and Congress stated that they would welcome Justice Gangopadhyay’s decision to join politics. Congress’ Adhir Rajan Chowdhary had once said that he would like Gangopadhyay to be the chief minister of West Bengal.
Who is Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay?
A High Court judge since May 2018, Justice Gangopadhyay had issued multiple directives to the central probing agencies – Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) asking them to investigate alleged irregularities in the recruitment of both teaching and non-teaching staff in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools.
Evidently, in 2022, Justice Gangopadhyay directed the CBI to probe an alleged recruitment scam.
Additionally, Justice Gangopadhyay had once accused Justice Soumen Sen of “acting for a political party in the State”. The development unfolded after Justice Sen, part of a Division Bench, stayed an order by Justice Gangopadhyay in which the latter had directed the West Bengal Police to hand over documents related to a case to the CBI.
Following Justice Sen’s stay, Justice Gangopadhyay then took up the matter again. Subsequently, he ordered the Advocate General to hand over the case papers to the CBI and insisted that he wasn’t informed of the stay order passed by the division bench.
Further in his order, Justice Gangopadhay had also accused Justice Sen of pressuring another Justice not to take a tough stance against TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee. According to the allegation, Justice Amrita Sinha was presiding over cases involving TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee. Justice Sen then summoned Justice Sinha to his chambers and advised her not to disturb Abhishek Banerjee, citing his political future.
A fact-finding team headed by former Patna High Court Chief Justice L Narasimha Reddy visited several villages on 3rd March in the conflict-ridden Sandeshkhali region to begin a first-hand probe. The team’s first-hand investigation concluded that the area has been prone to serious human rights abuses, reported Republic TV.
“There are major human rights violations in Sandeshkhali. After Shahjahan’s arrest, the police’s behaviour was complimentary towards him. He was seen walking like a king (following his arrest). There must be many like Shahjahan in Bengal,” informed Retired Inspector General Rajpal Singh, a member of the team after the visit.
Another member revealed, “The fact-finding team covered three places in Sandeshkhali and interacted with locals of Majherpara who revealed their grievances. The general complaint was related to Shahjahan’s mafia and his aides Uttam Sardar and others over land grabbing incidents. Money sharks were also snatching money from people. Their contribution was being given to the TMC government.”
One of the members, Bhavna Bajaj talked about the alarming state of affairs in Sandeshkhali. She called the incident “heart-wrenching” and addressed how challenging it was to uncover the truth because of police and government meddling and shielding. She pointed out, “They don’t want the facts to come to light.”
She mentioned, “I met 20 women in the age group of 28-70 years. 70-year-old women were crying standing in the corner worried about their daughters and daughters-in-law. I went to meet one victim alone without any cameraperson to ensure confidentiality of the identity of the victim, she had bruises all over her face. Every night she takes her four-year-old daughter and goes into hiding to protect herself and her daughter from the accused. Her husband has been forced to leave the village.
She added, “Maximum women have named a man called Shibu Hazra. Whenever people visit their party office, they bring in women and keep one woman with them for the entire night for entertainment. They couldn’t use the word rape or sexual harassment but bruises and injury marks on their body spoke louder than them. The women say they cannot approach the police with their complaints because no one listens to them.”
#WATCH | West Bengal: On meeting with the victims of Sandeshkhali, Bhawna Bajaj, a member of the fact-finding committee says, "I met 20 women in the age group of 28-70 years. 70-year-old women were crying standing in the corner worried about their daughters and daughters-in-law.… pic.twitter.com/rvBPrKJFEl
“All I want to say is that we cannot ignore the steps taken by the CM. West Bengal is on state where steps are taken against the wrong. Even when the accusations had not been proven, steps were taken because people were in trouble. They should definitely go for fact-finding but no other fact should be established. There are no fact-finding missions in BJP-ruled states,” claimed TMC leader and West Bengal Minister Shashi Panja reacting on the development.
On 25th February, the fact-finding team attempted to travel to Sandeshkhali but was halted in their tracks by the state police, who attributed their actions to prohibitory orders issued under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Central fact-finding team was granted permission to visit Sandeshkhali on 28th February by Justice Kaushik Chanda’s single-judge bench, following the filing of a suit in the Calcutta High Court. The group was scheduled to visit Majher Para, Natun Para and the Naskar Para Ras Temple in Sandeshkhali on 3rd March as per the committee’s press release.
According to a press release from the committee, the team included senior journalist Sanjeev Nayak, advocate and former registrar of the National Human Rights Commission OP Vyas, advocate and former member of the National Commission for Women Charu Wali Khanna, retired IPS officer Raj Pal Singh and consultant to the NFRC and National Commission for Protection of Child Right (NCPCR) Bhavna Bajaj along with L Narasimha Reddy.
Shahjahan Sheikh, a Trinamool Congress strongman was taken into custody by the West Bengal Police on 28th of February night from the Bamanpukur area at Minakhan in North 24 Parganas. He was sent to 10 days in police custody by a court in connection with an assault on Enforcement Directorate officials on 5th January during the course of a raid. He managed to evade the authorities for fifty-five days after he was accused of sexual assault and land grab by hundreds of women on Sandeshkhali.
On 8th February this year, hundreds of women in Sandeshkhali took to the streets to protest against land grabbing, non-payment of wages and sexual violence committed by Trinamool Congress goon Sheikh Shahjahan and his two aides Shiba Prasad Hazra and Uttam Sardar. Popularly referred to as ‘Betaj Badshah‘ Shahjahan Sheikh is an influential person in West Bengal’s Sandeshkhali, an area that is adjacent to the Bangladesh border.
The Block Development Officer (BDO) has received more than 700 complaints against him in six days of excesses against villagers in the last six days. He was also the mastermind behind the assault on Enforcement Directorate officials who had reached to execute a raid on his residence as part of an investigation into the ration scam.
Meanwhile, 50 allegations of “sexual abuse and land grab” against the Trinamool leader and his accomplices have been filed by tribal families with the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. A total of 1,250 complaints, 400 of which had to do with land-related matters, were reported to the state government officials.
