Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, 8th December 2023, said that every penny looted from the public will be recovered. He was referring to the reports of Income Tax raids on Congress MP Dhiraj Sahu, in which cash worth over Rs 300 crores has been seized.
Posting an image of Hindi daily Dainik Jagaran’s first page with the report and images of the piles of cash, PM Modi urged people to look at the images and then listen to the speeches of opposition leaders. Tweeting in Hindi, he wrote, “The countrymen should look at the pile of these notes and then listen to the honest ‘speeches’ of their leaders…”
देशवासी इन नोटों के ढेर को देखें और फिर इनके नेताओं के ईमानदारी के 'भाषणों' को सुनें… ???
जनता से जो लूटा है, उसकी पाई-पाई लौटानी पड़ेगी, यह मोदी की गारंटी है।
He then added promised that all the money looted from the public will be recovered by his government. ‘Whatever has been looted from the public, every penny will have to be returned, this is Modi’s guarantee,’ he added.
PM Modi also added several emojis in the tweet, which has been his recent practice after the assembly election results.
It is notable that on Thursday (December 7), the Income Tax Department conducted raids at Boudh Distilleries Private Limited (BDPL) in Odisha and Jharkhand. This firm is reportedly connected to Jharkhand Congress MP Dhiraj Sahu. The raid is still going on as the officials recovered huge cash which is taking time for counting. According to reports, cash worth over Rs 300 crores has been seized in this raid.
Simultaneous raids at the MP’s premises in Ranchi, Lohardaga and Odisha have led to the recovery of so much cash that trucks were needed to carry it to the bank.
The IT sleuths raided the house of Dheeraj Sahu, Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, who is said to be linked to several liquor companies. Almirahs full of cash were reportedly seized at the premises linked to the MP in Lohardaga and Ranchi. Raids were also carried out simultaneously at Sambalpur, Bolangir, Titilagarh, Boudh, Sundargarh, Rourkela and Bhubaneswar.
Detaled reports on the I-T raids on the Congress MP Dhiraj Sahu and liquor companies linked with him can be read here and here.
The Ethics Committee report probing ‘Unethical Conduct’ of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra in the “cash for query” case that was tabled in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday recommended that Moitra “may be expelled” from the Lok Sabha and called for an “intense, legal, institutional inquiry” by the central government in a “time-bound manner”.
“The serious misdemeanours on the part of Mahua Moitra calls for severe punishment. The Committee, therefore, recommend that Mahua Moitra, MP may be expelled from the Membership of the Seventeenth Lok Sabha,” the report read.
Calling for a government enquiry it said, “In view of highly objectionable, unethical, heinous and criminal conduct of Mahua Moitra, the Committee recommends for an intense, legal, institutional inquiry by the Government of India in a time-bound manner.”
The Committee also recommended an investigation by the government into the ‘money trail’ of cash transactions between Mahua Moitra and Darshan Hiranandani as a part of ‘quid pro quo’.
“The ‘money trail’ of cash transaction between Smt Mahua Moitra and Shri Darshan Hiranandani as a part of ‘quid pro quo’ should be investigated by the Government of India in a legal, institutional and time-bound manner,” the report said.
On unruly conduct and rumours spread by Bahujan Samaj Party MP Kunwar Danish Ali, the committee recommended that he be ‘admonished’ for twisting or moulding the intent of question put forth by the Ethics Committee Chairperson to Moitra on November 2.
“Kunwar Danish Ali, MP and Member of the Committee on Ethics should be ‘admonished’ for twisting/moulding the intent of question put forth by the Chairperson, Committee on Ethics to Smt Mahua Moitra during her deposition on 2 November, 2023 with the objective of fomenting the sentiments of public, at large, as well as, disparaging the self-esteem of Chairperson and other Members as well as breaching Rule 275(2) contained in the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha,” the recommendation read.
The Ethics Committee report was submitted amid a ruckus created by TMC MPs raising slogans like “haye, haye…”
The Ethics Committee, which investigated the allegations made by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, adopted its 500-page report on November 9 recommending Moitra’s expulsion from the 17th Lok Sabha in view of her “highly objectionable, unethical, heinous and criminal conduct.”
The draft report was adopted by a 6:4 majority in the panel last month. The report on Moitra’s cash-for-questions case reveals that she visited the UAE four times from 2019 to 2023 while her login was accessed several times.
Six members of the panel voted in favour of the report, including Congress MP Preneet Kaur who had earlier been suspended from the party. Four members of the panel belonging to opposition parties submitted dissent notes.
The opposition members termed the report a “fixed match” and said the complaint filed by Dubey, which the panel reviewed, was not supported by a “shred of evidence”.
Moitra can be expelled only if the House votes in favour of the panel’s recommendation. The TMC has demanded that Moitra be given a chance to put forth her defence.
Moitra had appeared before the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee on November 2 over the cash-for-query allegations against her. Along with opposition members of the panel, she had “walked out” of the meeting.
The opposition members who were part of the Ethics Committee raised questions over the line of questioning and alleged that “personal questions” were posed to the Trinamool Congress MP.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
In an update to the anti-nuclear protests from the year 2012 that were led by church groups who allegedly received illegal foreign funds for the purpose in Kudankulam, Tamil Nadu, the MP of Narasapuram Lok Sabha Constituency, Raghu Ramakrishna Raju has written to the Home Ministry seeking action against large scale violation of FCRA rules and misuse of foreign funds by the Christian organizations.
The letter dated 7th December demanded an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate into the matter of receipt of foreign funds by the organizations named ‘the Tuticorin Diocesan Association’ (FCRA No: 076030031) and ‘the Tuticorin Multipurpose Social Service Society’ (FCRA No: 76030038). The complaint stated that these organizations continue to receive overseas ‘donations’ despite cancelling their FCRA registrations and freezing bank accounts by the Government of India in 2015.
In the year 2015, the then Minister of State for the Ministry of Home Affairs, Kiren Rijiju suspended the FCRA registration of the Tuticorin Diocesan, Association and 2 other NGOs based on the adverse reports received from the intelligence agencies. The government then froze the bank accounts of the said NGOs and stated that the organizations were using foreign funds for anti-national activities.
In a most significant move, the Hon'ble MP of Narasapuram Lok Sabha Constituency Sri Raghu Ramakrishna Raju wrote to Sri Amit Shah and Home Secretary for action against large scale violation of FCRA rules & misuse of foreign funds by Tuticorin Diocesan Association & its ally NGO pic.twitter.com/wy8gJbXFAV
However, Raghu Ramakrishna Raju revealed in the complaint to the Home Ministry on 7th December that the NGOs continue to receive foreign funds in their respective FCRA-designated bank accounts which were said to have been frozen by the government. As per the complaint the Tuticorin Diocesan Association is said to have received Rs. 4,45,07,214 in its Bank of Baroda account designated to receive foreign funds.
The said funds were received by the NGO from the financial year 2015-16 to 2017-18 in the name of the Welfare of Children, maintenance and construction of Orphanages. Some transactions were also made in the name of ‘Mass Intention’ which has no specific description.
Document exclusively obtained by OpIndia
“A large amount of foreign funds received by the Tuticorin Diocesan Association to its ‘Frozen’ bank accounts were transferred to the individual accounts of its office bearers. The NGO also transferred the illegal money to another account with Syndicate Bank at the Tuticorin Branch. In addition, Rs. 1,25,00,000 out of the foreign funds were transferred to a few construction companies from the frozen bank account of the Tuticorin Diocesan Association post cancellation of its FCRA license. The reasons for such a transfer of amount are to be investigated,” the complaint read.
Notably, it has also come to the fore that a large portion of foreign funds, around Rs 1.6 crores, received by the Tuticorin Diocesan Association after the suspension if its FCRA license has come from Apostolic Nunciature India, a diplomatic entity of the Vatican government having its office in New Delhi. The amount transferred by Apostolic Nunciature India from 2016 to 2018 was shown as a foreign contribution by the NGO in question.
As per the letter copy, the Tuticorin Multipurpose Social Service Society which claims to be a sub-entity or social wing of the Tuticorin Diocesan Association (FCRA: 076030038) also received Rs 34,81,691 as foreign funds in its account after it’s FCRA license had been suspended.
Documents exclusively obtained by OpIndia
“The intention of the diplomatic organization to fund the NGO which has lost its FCRA license and its bank accounts were frozen by the Government of India by declaring its activities as ‘Anti-National’ should be investigated,” the MP noted in the complaint.
The bank accounts of the NGO which were frozen by the government are operational even after the government action and most of the foreign funds are being obtained in the name of Child welfare activities. “This raises concerns. We request you take the necessary action by referring the matter to the Enforcement Directorate to immediately register a case in this matter and to conduct a detailed investigation of the activities of the Tuticorin Diocesan Association and Tuticorin Multipurpose Social Service Society,” the complaint read.
It is important to note that these NGOs had a major role to play in organizing and leading the protest against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, which was developed in collaboration with Russia in the year 2011-12. The NGOs were associated with Bishop Yvon Ambroise, the Tuticorin church leader, who had been active in mobilizing popular support for the protests at Kudankulam back then.
Church-backed activism fueled the Kudankulam protest in Tamil Nadu
In the year 2011, the Church-sponsored rabble-rousers and hooligans delayed the critical Kudankulam power plant, hitting the country at a time when energy requirements were rapidly increasing. The majority of those who took part in the Nagercoil protest marches were from various Catholic churches. Several churches and NGOs including the Tuticorin Diocese Association (TDA) and the Tuticorin Multipurpose Social Service Society (TMSSS) drew fear among the people against the nuclear facility and advised people to participate in the protests against the Kudankulam project.
The Kudankulam Nuclear Power situated in the state of Tamil Nadu was conceptualized as the largest Nuclear Power plant in India with a total capacity of 6000 MW. The construction of the plant began way back in 2002 but it was marred by constant protests.
This protest reached a boiling point in 2011 when the villagers reportedly feared that a Fukushima-type disaster might befall the Nuclear plant. As reported earlier, one of the prominent leaders of the anti-Kudankulam movement was the then SP Udayakumar, who led the People’s Movement against Nuclear Energy.
Incidentally, this whole protest had come under suspicion way back in 2012 when there were reports about the protest being allegedly backed by the Church and various foreign parties emerged. In 2014 there were further allegations after an alleged IB report had claimed that Udayakumar had been working on the behest of various American and German entities to subvert the development of India.
The then-Union Minister V Narayanasamy asserted that Bishop Yavon Ambroise of Tuticorin had received Rs 54 crore and was the driving force behind the demonstrations. Many Christian organizations, such as People’s Education for Action and Liberation and Good Vision, were identified as troublemakers by the Home Ministry. The list also included the Tuticorin Diocese Association (TDA) and the Tuticorin Multipurpose Social Service Society (TMSSS).
The Union Home Secretary said in 2012 that four non-governmental organizations’ bank accounts including the Tuticorin Diocese Association (TDA) and the Tuticorin Multipurpose Social Service Society (TMSSS) had been seized after it was determined that they had been utilizing money from foreign sources to fund anti-nuclear protests. The CBI filed two cases, while the Tamil Nadu police Crime Branch filed two.
Moreover, in 2017, Republic TV came up with a sting operation on Udyakumar and various members of the Tamil Nadu Church, which seemed to further corroborate the “foreign-funded protest theory”.
The reporters then followed the Church-backed protest angle and zeroed in on a Church in Idinthakarai which according to them was a hub of anti-nuclear protests. They reportedly stung a Parish priest named Jayakumar who managed the money used in the protest. He had selected 70 people who were set up as a front while he and the Diocese controlled things from behind the curtains. Apparently, he took care of all the protests in Idinthakarai and there were 13 other Fathers who similarly managed 13 other villages.
The report also claimed that this whole church involvement was orchestrated by a Bishop who had suggested that Jayakumar operates from the background. The Bishop was incidentally the person who was withstanding all the external ‘pressure’ like the cancellation of their FCRA license.
The reporters also interviewed a villager who claimed that all the NGOs were run by Bishops who paid money to Christian people if they took part in the protests. Through these sting operations, it appeared that the main motivation for the whole protest was not an aversion to Nuclear Power but a desire to earn money.
LRPF confirms NGO’s anti-national activities to OpIndia
The Legal Rights Protection Forum while talking to OpIndia confirmed that “the bank accounts of these NGOs were frozen by the government in the year 2015. Their FCRA license had also been canceled. However, they continue to receive foreign funding under the name of child care or ‘mass intention’ which nobody knows what it means. These NGOs undertake anti-national activities and the same was noted by the government. Strict action against such NGOs is a must,” LRPF said.
On Thursday (December 7), the Income Tax Department conducted raids at Boudh Distilleries Private Limited (BDPL) in Odisha and Jharkhand. This firm is reportedly connected to Congress MP Dhiraj Sahu. The raid is still going on as the officials recovered huge cash which is taking time for counting. According to reports, cash worth over Rs 300 crores has been seized in this raid.
The Income Tax department seized a huge amount of cash during raids at premises linked to Congress Rajya Sabha MP Dhiraj Sahu from Jharkhand. Simultaneous raids at the MP’s premises in Ranchi, Lohardaga and Odisha have led to the recovery of so much cash that trucks were needed to carry it to the bank.
It has been reported that the cash counting machines stopped working on the first day of the raid due to overload. According to reports, about Rs 150 crore cash has been counted and about half of the cash is yet to be counted. Gold ornaments and biscuits have been recovered too, which are yet to be counted. As per reports the seized cash alone is worth over 300 crores.
The raids at various locations
These raids are going on at various places in Jharkhand and Odisha. These places are directly or indirectly related to the Congress MP. Since Wednesday, authorities have conducted searches at more than half a dozen companies, including S Shiw Ganga and Company, Boudh Distillery Pvt Ltd (BDPL), and Ranisati Paddy Processing Private Limited, all on suspicion of tax evasion. Additionally, raids were carried out at the residences of two prominent liquor entrepreneurs, Deepak Sahu and Sanjay Sahu, in Titilagarh, Odisha.
In Bolangir, the liquor making units (bhattis) of Baldeo Sahu & Group of Companies and their offices were raided by dozens of I-T sleuths with CISF personnel. Hundreds of bags and sacks full of cash were brought to the SBI branch in the city where they are being counted since morning of 7th December.
The IT sleuths raided the house of Dheeraj Sahu, Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand whos is said to be linked to all the liquor companies mentioned above. Almirahs full of cash were reportedly seized at the premises linked to the MP in Lohardaga and Ranchi. Raids were also carried out simultaneously at Sambalpur, Bolangir, Titilagarh, Boudh, Sundargarh, Rourkela and Bhubaneswar.
On Wednesday, the Income Tax team raided the premises of Boudh Distilleries Private Limited and its associated premises. Baldeo Sahu & Group of Companies is a partnership firm of Boudh Distillery Private Limited. The group has several businesses including Kwality Bottlers Private Limited (IMFL Botting), Kishore Prasad Vijay Prasad Beverages Private Limited (which deals in sales and marketing of IMFL Company), Baldev Sahu Infra Private Limited etc.
Baldeo Sahu Group of Companies belong to the Sahu family. The company has a 40-year-old liquor manufacturing business in Odisha. It is named after MP Dhiraj Sahu’s father Baldeo Sahu. His other family members are among the directors of the companies in this group, as per a Live Hindustan report.
BJP MLA Kusum Tete says liquor empire is linked to BJD leaders too
Meanwhile, Sundargarh’s BJP MLA Kusum Tete has leveled serious allegations against former MLA Jogesh Singh of the BJD. She has stated that the liquor manufacturing unis were earlier registered in the name of Singh’s mother. Tete stated that she has raised the issue several times in the assembly but the government took no action.
I-T raids in #Sundargarh | MLA Kusum Tete brings serious allegations against former legislator Jogesh Singh; says, "The liquor manufacturing unit was registered in the name of Singh's mother. The name might have changed now. I have raised the issue in the Assembly on several… pic.twitter.com/yrhMvezp1O
Major cash recovery took place in Bolangir in Odisha. Nine shelves stuffed with currency notes were found in the offices of Baldeo Sahu Group of Companies. As reported by Odia media, 157 bags and sacks full of cash were brought to the SBI branch in Bolangir. When the bags fell short, this cash was filled in sacks. The cash was then loaded into trucks and taken to the bank. Even the machines engaged in counting this cash were damaged due to overload. The cash counting is still going on. According to reports, the total cash can be more than Rs 300 crores half of which is yet to be counted.
Besides, the IT officials also recovered gold jewelry and ornaments in these raids. These recoveries are yet to be valued, local media in Odisha has reported. The valuation will further increase the net worth of the recoveries in these raids.
Unaccounted sales of country liquor prompted the action
According to reports, the decision to take action was prompted by information suggesting that the company, through its outlets across the state, was selling country liquor without keeping records of bills/vouchers. This resulted in a significant amount of cash sales going unaccounted for in the firm’s regular books of accounts.
Officials noticed the company’s fluctuating and disproportionately low net profits from 2019 to 2021, as well as inflated expenses related to the acquisition of Mahua and other items, along with questionable entries for other payables in the balance sheet. Then the raids were carried out.
As per reports, senior officials of the Income Tax department have arrived in Odisha to supervise the ongoing raids and operations. The factory and office premises of the companies under raid have been sealed and CISF personnel have been deployed to maintain security.
Congress MP Dhiraj Sahu is a close ally of Rahul Gandhi. He was seen actively involved in the Bharat Jodo Yatra. Even hours before this raid, he was posting about the Bharat Jodo Yatra of the Congress scion. However, he was not reachable when contacted by the media after these raids.
On 6th December, at around 12.30 am, around seven supporters of Congress MLA Arif Masood reportedly attacked Bharatiya Janata Party Jhuggi Jhopdi unit district secretary Devendra Thakur with swords and other sharp-edged weapons near the Habibganj police station. The accused were identified as Farukh, Shahrukh, Aslam, Billu, Bilaal, Akbar, and Amir and were immediately arrested by the authorities.
Swords and other sharp weapons were wielded by the attackers during the assault. The victim suffered injuries to his back, stomach and middle section of his right palm which was slashed more than half. His allies intervened swiftly to drive the perpetrators away and he was immediately taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Manish Raj Singh Bhadoria, house officer of the Habibganj police station, disclosed that Devendra Thakur came across the culprits when he was in the Arera Colony at the time of the occurrence. They swore at him making references to the freshly concluded assembly elections in the state. Following his objection, they used knives, swords and other sharp objects to initiate a violent attack which worsened the situation. He sustained wounds in an effort to defend himself. All of the accused ran away as his aides arrived.
The matter was reported to the police on the morning of 6th December and by the afternoon all seven of the offenders had been apprehended. Dhruv Narayan Singh, the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party responded to the crime and stated that the party would carry through on its electoral pledge to hold those responsible for violent crimes accountable.
In a similar instance, four members of the family of one Vakil Pathan were arrested by the Madhya Pradesh Police on charges of attacking BJP workers and hurling boiling water at them during a victory procession. BJP workers were celebrating the victory of their candidate Mahendra Hardia on the night of 3rd December as they passed through Vakil Pathan’s home when he argued with them and protested the procession.
Afterwards, he insulted and attacked them. Sheru, his son grabbed a knife to assault the BJP members during the confrontation. In addition, he asked that Shabnam his wife pour boiling water over them from his home’s roof. Notably, the party won the Madhya Pradesh assembly elections with 163 out of 230 seats.
On Tuesday (5th December), the Prayagraj police registered a case against 5 men including three brothers regarding the forcible conversion of a Hindu family. The victim woman claimed that Maulvi Mushtaq Ali had lured her and her father to visit a Mazar where he forced both of them to embrace Islam. The victim woman also accused Maulvi Mushtaq Ali of raping one of her daughters. She also alleged that after the death of Maulvi Mushtaq Ali, his sons continued to torture her and pressurised her to bring her other daughter to the tomb.
The woman finally lodged a case in the matter, after which the police arrested Akram, Junaid, and Faizan, all sons of Mushtaq Ali. Additionally, two more persons have been booked in the case. The case has been registered in the Colonelganj police station of Prayagraj under sections 147 (rioting), 323 (causing hurt), 504 (intentional insult), 506 (criminal intimidation), 342 (wrongful confinement), 354(A) (sexual harassment) of the IPC and sections 3 and 5(A) of the Uttar Pradesh Prevention of Illegal Religious Conversion Act 2021.
On Thursday (7 December 2023), OpIndia reached the mazar in Chhota Baghda, Prayagraj, where the Hindu father and his daughter (victim woman complainant) were allegedly converted to Islam. The victim has accused that she was raped here and she was also forced to spit there and licking it. The Maulavi had further allegedly sexually assaulted her daughter at the place, and after some time that girl died.
This mazar is situated in the premises behind the Prayagraj railway station, accessible through narrow lanes. Two tombs were seen beneath a neem tree within the compound of a house, with the tree adorned in red clothes and garlands. A picture of Maulvi Mushtaq near the mazar was also seen there. The mazar premises and the room where the alleged rape occurred were both found to be locked. The video of the Mazar can be seen in the tweet below.
टीम @OpIndia_in पहुँची प्रयागराज की उस मजार पर जहाँ के मौलवी मुश्ताक (अब मरहूम) और उसके पूरे परिवार ने मिल कर करवाया एक हिन्दू परिवार का धर्मान्तरण।
Usually, there is a lot of crowd at the tomb on Thursdays. But since the case was registered, there has been silence here. The area where the Mazar is located has a majority population of Hindus. Students preparing for civil services examinations live in rented rooms in the surroundings. In the conversation with these students, it was found that outsiders keep visiting the Mazar.
On Thursday, a special program takes place, drawing a larger crowd. Nevertheless, when we visited the location after the registration of the case and the subsequent arrests, there was a stunning silence in this area.
A person living near the Mazar said on condition of anonymity, “When Maulvi Mushtaq was alive, his sons Akram, Junaid, and Faizan independently managed distinct businesses. Akram was involved in catering, while Junaid specialised in tailoring women’s clothing. While doing the tailoring business, Junaid ensnared women. He would suggest women customers visit the Mazar, citing his father and the shrine as a solution to their problems.”
As per the victim woman’s account, Maulvi Mushtaq previously summoned girls to his residence. However, when conflicts arose in his household as a result, he constructed a room within the Mazar premises. The victim further alleged that despite the usual Thursday gatherings at the Mazar, Maulvi Mushtaq would call women at any time on any given day.
According to the victim, her father owned a sweets shop in Prayagraj. Maulvi Mushtaq used to come to his shop. He called the father and daughter to the Mazar on the pretext of getting rid of troubles. Upon reaching the Mazar, Maulvi Mushtaq instilled a fear of death and compelled the father and daughter to embrace Islam. They were coerced into refraining from worshipping Hindu deities, constructing a structure resembling a Mazar within their house, and exclusively worshipping the Mazar itself.
The victim woman’s father has died. She has accused that Maulavi Mushtaq Ali had raped her younger daughter. That daughter has also died. Maulavi Mushtaq Ali is also dead.
The victim woman stated that following Maulvi Mushtaq’s demise, his sons persisted in tormenting her. They issued her death threats insisting she visit the Mazar. Upon her resistance, they violently seized her by the hair, subjected her to physical assault, and degradingly compelled her to spit and lick it back. Additionally, they callously intruded upon her private parts.
For detailed information about the victim’s allegations and this case click here
The Ethics Committee report on TMC MP Mahua Moitra was tabled in Lok Sabha on Friday by the panel’s chairperson and BJP MP Vijay Sonkar.
Rajendra Agarwal was chairing the session in the Lower House. The opposition led by members of the Trinamool Congress raised slogans against the Central government, shouting ‘Modi Sarkar Haye Haye’.
Amid the ruckus created by the opposition, the House was adjourned till 2 PM.
The report was mentioned in the agenda of the list of business of Lok Sabha for the opening day of the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament. However, it could not be taken up.
Earlier before the commencement of the session, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra said that now the people will see the battle of Mahabharata.
Speaking to the media, Mahua said “Mother Durga has arrived, we will see. These people who have started snatching clothes will now see the battle of Mahabharata.”
#WATCH | TMC MP Mahua Moitra says, "Maa Durga aa gayi hai, ab dekhenge…Jab naash manuj par chhata hai, pehle vivek mar jaata hai. They have started 'vastraharan' and now you will watch 'Mahabharat ka rann'."
Mahua Moitra is facing the heat of the “cash-for-query” allegations against her. The Lok Sabha Ethics Committee recently recommended her expulsion from the Lower House.
The draft report was adopted by a 6:4 majority in the panel last month.
As per the sources, the draft report on Mahua Moitra’s cash-for-questions case reveals that she visited the UAE four times from 2019 to 2023 while her login was accessed several times.”On 47 occasions, her member portal login credentials were accessed from Dubai,” sources said citing the draft report of the ethics committee.
Reacting to the oppositon demands to hold debates and discussions on the Ethics Panel report which is being tabled in Lok Sabha today, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Friday asked why the opposition has already decided on what action the Lok Sabha Speaker would take against TMC Mahua Moitra in the alleged “cash-for-query” case.
“Whether it will be discussed or not, who will speak on it – all of this will be decided by the Speaker. That is what the rules say. So how will the Speaker act on this issue, why are we anticipating that? The Constitution is clear on this issue. Whatever will happen in the House is the prerogative of the Speaker. If the party nominates my name on the issue and the Speaker goes against this, then I won’t be able to speak. Let it be done first (tabling of report), I will answer all the questions after that,” Nishikant Dubey told reporters.
The Ethics Committee, which investigated the allegations made by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, adopted its 500-page report on November 9 recommending Moitra’s expulsion from the 17th Lok Sabha in view of her “highly objectionable, unethical, heinous and criminal conduct.”
Moitra had appeared before the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee on November 2 over the cash-for-query allegations against her. Along with opposition members of the panel, she had “walked out” of the meeting. The opposition members who were part of the Ethics Committee raised questions over the line of questioning and alleged that “personal questions” were posed to the Trinamool Congress MP.
Earlier on November 10, Trinamool Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra alleged that the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee which was probing her role in the ‘Cash for Query’ case was functioning like a ‘Kangaroo’ court.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
In a case of Love Jihad and forceful conversion that was reported from the Rahuri region of Ahmednagar district in August 2023, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has issued summons to the state government for taking no action against the accused persons. NCPCR Chairperson Priyank Kanoongo has asked the Additional Chief Secretary of the state Home Department to appear in person on 13th December and submit the relevant action taken report in the case.
The notice has been issued under sections 13 and 14 of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005. As per the official letter, the matter was first taken up with the Chief Secretary of the Government of Maharashtra in October 2023, who was supposed to submit the action taken report within 7 days. However, the case was transferred to the home department.
NCPCR’s summon to Additional Chief Secretary of the state Home Department
“Thereafter the matter is pending with the Home Department. The Commission in pursuance of the functions and powers under sections 13 and 14 of the CPCR Act 2005, directs you to appear in person before the Commission on 13th December along with the relevant documents,” the letter directed to the Additional Chief Secretary of the state Home Department read.
Earlier on 24th October the NCPCR had come up with its final fact-finding report in which the Commission mentioned that the investigation by the local police in the case had several gaps, lacunas, and anomalies. It had directed the CBI to take over the case to provide justice to the minor Hindu girls who were trapped by the Muslim boys and their tuition teacher named Heena Pathan who further wanted to convert the girls to Islam.
Heena Shaikh introduced the victim to her 'relative' Avej, besides allowing other boys from her community to sit in the class (even though they were not students).
Avej initially displayed 'respect for women' and quickly forged friendship with the minor Hindu girl.
Team OpIndia had exclusively covered this case in the month of July this year. It was reported that one of the minor girls had registered an FIR against 8 individuals for trapping her in a love affair and then forcing them to convert their religion to Islam.
The accused persons were identified as Avej Nisar Sheikh, Kaif Sheikh, Sohail Sheikh, Heena Pathan, Alisha Sheikh, Salim Pathan, Altaf Sheikh, and Shakir Sayyed. The Police had also arrested four of these identified accused including two women. The others meanwhile had been booked under sections 354, 354D, 109, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code and under sections 8 and 12 of the POCSO Act.
Police tampered evidence to favor accused: NCPCR
The NCPCR in its report stated that the Ahmednagar Police failed to gather pieces of evidence in the case after the complaints were lodged by the minor girls. The police also happened to tamper with the pieces of evidence provided by the victim girls and their respective families, NCPCR stated. “The police formatted the phone of the primary accused Avej and deleted all the photos of the victim girls,” the report mentioned.
Further, the NCPCR noted that the Ahmednagar Police used a tactic of lodging a counter-case on several members of the Hindu community who protested against the violations done by the accused boys.
“The role of police in the entire investigation is questionable. It is imperative and important that this matter requires a detailed and thorough probe by an external investigating agency such as the CBI,” the fact-finding report by the NCPCR noted.
Also, the commission recommended the immediate removal of the SP, Additional SP, and SHO from Ahmednagar Police until the completion of the CBI investigation in the case. The officers as per the NCPCR had conducted lax, improper, and misguided investigations.
What had happened in Rahuri in July?
Hindu minor girls in Ahmednagar’s Rahuri filed an FIR in the case saying that they were being harassed and forced to convert their religion by their tuition teacher Heena Pathan and her ‘relative’ Avej Sheikh.
The victim girl in the complaint copy said that she along with her friends who were studying in standard 10th had joined tuition classes at the accused Heena Pathan’s home. The girls had joined the tuition classes in the year 2021 and continued to attend the classes until the true face of the accused teacher was exposed.
The accused teacher allowed her ‘relatives’ Avej, Sohail, Kaif, and Nisar from her community to enter the tuition and also allowed them to gather around the classes in the presence of the Hindu girls. She used to ask the girls to be friends with them and speak in Hindi only. The local language spoken in Maharashtra is Marathi, people hardly prefer speaking Hindi. Heena however, forced the minor girls to speak Hindi saying that it was the culture and habit of Muslims.
The victim girl in the complaint said that the accused boys had nothing to do with the tuition but were allowed to sit with them given the permission of the accused Heena Pathan. The teacher also asked the girls to behave like Muslim girls and wear burqa. She also wanted the girls to stop wearing bangles and apply kumkum on their foreheads.
Avej trapped a minor girl and forced her to run away with him, wear burqa
The incident had come to the fore after one of the victims dared to come forward and file a police complaint against Avej and the tuition teacher. The girl in the complaint mentioned that Avej trapped many girls from his tuition and forced them to marry him. He would approach the girls in different time periods and none of the girls knew that they were being persuaded by the accused until he was exposed after the police case.
The girl in the complaint mentioned that accused Avej would approach the girls tactfully, carefully grooming them with sweet talking and winning their confidence. He would then develop relations with the girls and propose they marry and run away with him. OpIndia had covered this case on the ground and had exclusively learned that the accused was provided support by other Muslim people from the village.
Accused Avej Shekh
The accused also sexually assaulted the minor girls and captured derogatory photos of them which he used to blackmail them to convert to Islam. He further threatened the girls and said that they would be murdered if they opened their mouths regarding the assault.
Avej’s friends, and sister interfered and helped him trap Hindu girls
As per the FIR, accused Avej asked his sister Alisha to interfere and convince one of the victim girls to accept his ‘love’ proposal. Accordingly, Alisha one day met the victim girl and told her that Avej was madly in love with her and that he wanted to marry her. Avej also used to message the victim on Instagram and blackmail her saying that he would viral her photographs if she refused to talk to him. He also asked the girl to convert her religion to Islam and marry him.
He said to the girl that Salim Pathan, Altaf Sheikh, and Shakir Sayyed (other accused booked in the case) from the village knew about their ‘relation’ and were ready to provide them with a home and some money post-conversion and wedding.
The girl got scared and informed Heena Pathan. But the accused tuition teacher would also favor the accused and praise Islam in front of her. She would say that Islam is the purest and oldest of all the religions. She would ask the victim to be with Avej and listen to what he would propose or suggest.
The victim girl also complained that she was forced to wear a burqa by Alisha and Avej and told to behave like Muslim girls by her tuition teacher Heena. As per the exclusive details that were obtained by OpIndia, around 3-4 girls from the same tuition had come forward and accused Avej of trapping them in love affairs separately and then forcing them to respond to his ‘proposal’ leading to forced conversion.
Heena would feed the victim with some powder giving the ‘strength of Islam’
OpIndia in August this year, traveled to Rahuri to obtain the ground details on this case. The team talked to one of the victims in the case who first filed the FIR against the accused. The motherless girl informed the team that she was assaulted and also harassed by the accused identified as Avej.
She said that given her mother’s loss, Heena would take benefit of her vulnerable emotions and offer her food after the tuitions sometimes. “She would tell me to have meals at her home daily but I refused. I stay with my brother and my father and I love being with them. However, Heena would pity me and give me milk and rice sometimes after tuition. I would not want to have it but she would force me to eat,” the girl said.
She further informed that the Heena would mix some power in the milk and say that it was to provide her with some strength. “It used to taste bitter. And I would also feel a bit dizzy after having it. But I never complained as I thought Heena teacher was genuinely doing this for me out of love. Heena teacher said that the powder mixed with the milk was to give her the strength of Islam,” the girl said.
Also, it had come to the fore that the accused tuition teacher Heena had helped the boys in attaining the photographs of the Hindu girls from the tuition.
Hindus protested but were falsely booked by accused Salim Pathan
The victim girls filed the police complaint but the police failed to take action in the case. This irked the Hindu community who launched protests in the area. The Hindu community members met the victim girls and their respective families to offer help in the case. However, one of the accused Salim Pathan filed an FIR against the Hindu community members falsely accusing them of damaging the Masjid.
In the FIR, accused Pathan mentioned that the members of the Hindu organization attacked his place of work and barged into a nearby Masjid further creating a ruckus on the premises. He also claimed that the Hindu members damaged the Masjid using rods and sticks. Accordingly, the police booked around 25 in the case and arrested 13 on July 27.
Team OpIndia visited Umbre village on August 3 to learn that the 13 Hindu persons from Rahuri who were arrested by the police and released on bail on August 1 were in no way involved in damaging the Masjid as claimed by accused Salim Pathan. They were not present in Umbre when the Masjid was damaged as claimed by accused Pathan.
It was later learned that the members of the Hindu community were specifically targeted for extending help to the minor victim girls who were trapped in a Love Jihad case. The entire incident of the false case was exposed by OpIndia after the team talked to one of the Hindu members who was arrested in the false case and also to the police. The detailed account of the case can be read here.
Police refused to comment on wrongful arrest
OpIndia had contacted Rahuri Police Inspector Dhananjay Jadhav in the case who had refused to comment on the wrongful arrest of the Hindu members. On asking whether the 13 Hindu persons were present in Umbre when the ruckus around the Masjid happened, the PI had said, “Nothing can be commented on that now. Whether they were part of the villager’s mob who created a ruckus around the Masjid or not will be decided in and by the Court. It’s all part of an ongoing investigation that cannot be revealed at present.”
Meanwhile, the victim girls confirmed to OpIndia that the Hindu members had met them to help them and were unnecessarily beaten by the Police. “The Hindu brothers had come to help us. They did nothing. But the Police charged them and arrested them,” one of the girls had said while exclusively talking to OpIndia.
The incidents of love jihad are massively increasing in the state of Maharashtra where vulnerable Hindu girls, many of them minors are targeted. In the given case, one of the victim girls also confirmed that she was targeted by the teacher as the latter knew that the girl was suffering from her mother’s loss and that her social and emotional condition was vulnerable.
In several cases, if the accused has connections with some influential personalities, the victim girls remain unheard. In this case, though the influential connections remain untraced, the accused appeared to have the support of the Muslim community members who offered him with home and money to convert the Hindu girls.
Notably, after the exclusive reporting by OpIndia and efforts taken by the local Hindu community members, the accused men and the tuition teacher were arrested by the police. Also, the 13 Hindus who were wrongly arrested by the Police based on a false case filed by one of the accused booked by the girls were released.
Detailed reports regarding this case can be read here,here, and here.
A total of 10 infants have died in the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) ward at the government-run Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital between 6th and 7th December this year.
The hospital is located in Behrampore city in Murshidabad district of West Bengal. As per reports, a total of 9 newborns and a 2-year-old infant have died within a span of 24 hours.
Three of the deceased infants were born in the Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital. Other infants, referred to the government-run hospital, were said to be in a critical condition.
Reportedly, the 2-year-old child who died at the hospital was being treated for neurological problems. Citing sources, Times Nowreported that the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) ward at Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital has a capacity of only 54 babies.
However, more than 100 newborns were admitted to the hospital. According to Times Now, this might have led to the possible spread of infections. As per a report by ABP Ananda, the deceased infants had extremely low birth weight and the mothers were malnourished.
Newborns referred to Murshidabad Hospital beyond its limit
“The children could not be saved as the golden hour had passed,” a hospital official told the news channel. Reportedly, renovation work is underway at the SNCU ward of the Jangipur Super Speciality Hospital for the past 6 weeks.
As such, the Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital was forced to admit newborns beyond its capacity. Moreover, the government-run hospital had to admit infants in critical conditions who were referred by the sub-divisional hospitals in Domkal and Lal Bagh
According to reports, a whopping 380 newborns were referred to the Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital in November this year. Following an upheaval over the incident, the hospital administration constituted a committee to investigate the death of newborns. A report has been sent to the State Health Department.
Poor medical infrastructure of Murshidabad Hospital exposed
While speaking about the tragic incident, the Medical superintendent of the hospital Amit Kumar told Times Now, “We have set an initial enquiry committee and we have got a preliminary report.”
“Based on that I am saying most of the children were malnourished. One child had a severe heart disease for which we don’t have the infrastructure to treat. And we didn’t even get the time.”
He pointed out “…We are trying our best but some children are dying. Most of them are malnourished and underweight. It is becoming very difficult for us to save those children as they weigh around 600 grams. Hence it has become a big challenge.”
“We are forced to keep more than one patient in a bed,” Amit Kumar conceded. Despite setting up a referral system in June this year, the plight of patients remains miserable. The death of 10 infants has brought the spotlight on the poor state of medical infrastructure in Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal.
In a shocking turn of events, Patna witnessed a brutal crime on Thursday (7th December) morning, as unidentified criminals fatally shot 42-year-old land businessman Satyendra Singh. The attack occurred in an area under the Beur police station while victim Satyendra Singh was en route to his morning walk. The victim died on the spot. He is survived by his wife, son, and daughter. Upon receiving the information, police authorities arrived at the scene, launching an investigation into the case.
Satyendra Singh left his house for a morning walk on Thursday morning. At this time, the assailants who came on a motorcycle gunned him down. The incident was also confirmed by the Beur police station in charge. The reason behind the incident is yet to be ascertained, he said.
Satyendra Singh was a resident of the Betaura village. Every day he would go out for a walk with his friends in the morning. On Thursday, Satyendra had gone out for a morning walk with his companions Pramod and Nepali. As soon as they went to some distance from the house, three criminals on bikes, who were already hiding nearby, started firing at them.
Satyendra, Pramod and Nepali started running away to save themselves. The criminals fired several bullets at Satyendra Singh one after the other. The shooters chased him for almost 100 meters. Satyendra Singh was shot three times in the firing by criminals, due to which he died on the spot.
After the incident, people took him to the hospital where doctors declared him dead. As soon as the news of the murder was received, the police of Beur police station reached the spot and started investigating. Police recovered the body and sent it for postmortem. During the investigation, two boxes and three live bullets were recovered by the police from the spot.
According to reports, Ramjanam Singh, uncle of the deceased, said that three criminals were already sitting on a motorcycle. The criminals had come from Betaura village and after committing the incident, fled towards Beur. Satyendra Singh’s family members have denied having any dispute with anyone.
The police are suspecting that some contract killers might have executed this murder. The investigation team has scanned the footage of all the CCTV cameras around the spot. Efforts are on to identify the murderers so that the police can easily reach the mastermind behind this plot. Phulwari Sharif DSP Abhijit Kumar Singh said that Satyendra Singh’s close friends are being questioned. The police are investigating all aspects and trying to arrest the criminals.
