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Veteran Bollywood actor Dalip Tahil sent to 2 months in jail in 5-year-old hit-and-run case

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Veteran Bollywood actor Dalip Tahil sent to 2 months in jail in 5-year-old hit-and-run case

On 21st October, a magistrate court in Mumbai sentenced veteran Bollywood actor Dalip Tahil to two months in prison in a 5-year-old hit-and-run case. As per the reports, Tahil has been sent to prison for driving a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and causing an accident resulting in injuries to the passengers of an autorickshaw. The said incident took place in September 2018.

Reports suggest that Dalip Tahil tried to flee the scene following the accident but got caught in a traffic jam during Ganeshotsav. He was subsequently arrested and granted bail. Photographs of him sitting in the police station were shared in media during that time.

The accident occurred on 25th September 2018 at around 9 PM in Khar. His car hit an autorickshaw, injuring two passengers, 21-year-old Jenita Gandhi and 22-year-old Gaurav Chugh. Reports suggest that the impact resulted in a severe jolt to Gandhi and Chugh’s back. They got off the autorickshaw and saw Tahil’s car fleeing towards Santacruz. He was caught by the public and got into a fight while trying to get away.

After Tahil failed to flee the scene, he was taken to the police station, where he was booked for causing injury due to rash driving and negligent driving. He was booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Motor Vehicle Act for driving under the influence. At the Khar Police Station, Dalip Tahil reportedly refused to give a blood sample for an alcohol test and was later let go on bail due to lack of evidence.

While sentencing the actor for two months, the magistrate relied on the medical officer’s statement, who checked Tahil after the accident. In his report, the medical officer noted that there was the smell of alcohol, an unsteady gait, dilated pupils and incoherent speech.

MahuaGate: Faced coercion, concerned over safety; Jai Anant Dehadrai writes letter to Police Commissioner

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MahuaGate: Faced coercion, concerned over safety; Jai Anant Dehadrai writes letter to Police Commissioner

On 21st October, it came to light that Supreme Court lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai had voiced concerns about his safety in a letter to Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora. In his letter, he expressed his apprehensions over his safety following the allegations he levelled against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra.

In his letter to the Police Commissioner, Dehadrai said he faced several attempts to coerce him into withdrawing his complaint on 19th October. He further stated there were threats to his reputation if he did not comply with the demands of taking back the complaint. Emphasising the sensitivity of the evidence and materials related to the case, Dehadrai expressed concerns that the other party might attempt to obtain or destroy the material through threats of bodily harm. He further requested the Delhi Police Commissioner to assess the threats and provide him with appropriate protection.

Initially, Dehadrai accused Moitra of taking expensive gifts and cash from businessman Darshan Hiranandani in exchange for asking favourable questions in Lok Sabha. In response to his allegations, Moitra has denied the bribery charges and sent a legal notice to Dehadrai and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey, who sided with Dehadrai and demanded a Parliamentary inquiry against Moitra.

In his complaint, Dehadrai pointed towards strange occurrences, including deleted messages and unknown phone calls, leading to his belief that his life could be in danger. The lawyer also alleged that an attempt to barge into his private residence escalated his concerns.

Dehadrai accused Moitra of using her political influence to intimidate the opponents. He said that she attempted to take away his pet dog, Henry (Rottweiler), from him by filing false police complaints and pressurising the Station House Officer to force him to give up his pet. The battle over the dog’s custody has turned into legal disputes and complaints against each other. Moitra has described Dehadrai as a “jilted ex” with a vendetta against her.

In his complaint to the commissioner, Dehadrai said, “Based on these two fake complaints, she pressurised Mahavir Singh, SHO of the Barakhamba Road Police Station, who then acted under her direct pressure to somehow or the other browbeat me into giving up the lawful ownership of Henry over to Moitra.” He added that Singh pressured him with eight phone calls and threatened that he had to give up Henry or face prosecution in the complaints filed by Moitra.

He added, “I refused. It is crucial to mention that acting under Moitra’s pressure, he (SHO) deliberately ignored the evidence I provided to him which unequivocally established my legitimate claim over my pet Henry and instead, he forwarded me Moitra’s one-sided agreement.” Furthermore, he said the Barakhamba Road Police Station SHO knows the truth and he must come clean on his role in the matter.

In a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), he said, “A well-wisher has told me that Henry is being kept deliberately locked up inside the Telegraph Lane residence to deter CBI from entering. Henry is a large Rottweiler, and although gentle, but he does possess a strong protective instinct. I am now truly fearful for HIS safety.”

Trinamool Congress stays away from the controversy

Mahua Moitra, who is the firebrand face of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), is facing another challenge as the party has categorically refused to comment on the matter. Distancing from the controversy, a TMC spokesperson said the parties involved were the right persons to comment on the matter.

MahuaGate

On 14th October, the Indian political scene experienced a major tremor as BJP MP Nishkant Dubey wrote to the ethics committee seeking an inquiry against TMC MP Mahua Moitra in the ‘Cash for Query’ matter. He based his complaint on the letter written by Supreme Court lawyer Anant Dehadrai, who alleged that most of the questions asked by the TMC MP in Lok Sabha directly or indirectly benefit businessman Darshan Hiranandani.

Moitra filed a case against Dubey and Dehadrai but never denied accepting gifts. Interestingly, she has also been accused of sharing her Lok Sabha credentials with Hiranandani so he can post questions independently. Hiranandani has reportedly turned approver in the case and submitted an affidavit suggesting the allegations against Moitra are true. Dehadrai and Dubey were called to submit evidence of Moitra’s alleged wrongdoings in front of the ethics committee on 26th October.

Sweden: Activist Salwan Momika, who had earlier burnt Quran, now steps on Quran and waves Israeli flag in front of Islamists

OpIndia Staff
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Sweden: Activist Salwan Momika, who had earlier burnt Quran, now steps on Quran and waves Israeli flag in front of Islamists

Amidst the ongoing war between the State of Israel and Hamas, activist Salwan Momika expressed his solidarity with the Jewish nation by stepping on the Quran and waving the Israeli flag.

The incident took place in the Swedish capital of Stockholm on Saturday (21st October). Salwan Momika, an Iraqi refugee living in Sweden, was also seen kissing the Israeli flag and trampling a copy of the Quran with his foot.

A video of the incident has now gone viral on social media.

A day earlier on Friday (20th October), Salwan Momika announced, “Tomorrow I will raise the Israeli flag, declare my solidarity with Israel and burn the Quran and the Palestinian flag in Stockholm.”

On June 28 this year, the Swedish Police gave the Iraqi refugee permission to burn the Quran at a demonstration outside the largest mosque in Stockholm. The development came ahead of Eid-al-Adha after a Swedish court struck down the police’s ban on Quran-burning demonstrations.

As a result, the Houthi movement in Yemen banned imports from Sweden. Houthi-run TV channel Al Masirah quoted the trade Minister as saying, “Yemen is the first Islamic country to ban imports of Swedish goods after its violations and desecration of Muslims’ holiest.”

He called upon other Islamic nations to ban imports from the Scandinavian country. The Houthi trade Minister also said that imports from Sweden were limited and that the ban had a symbolic value. He also said that it was the least thing that they could do to protest against the burning of the Quran.

Earlier in January 2023, Danish politician Rasmus Paludan burnt a copy of the Quran next to the Turkish embassy in the country’s capital prompting Turkey to halt discussions with Sweden about its NATO membership.

Israel hits West Bank, destroys terror compound inside Al-Ansar Mosque in Jenin

OpIndia Staff
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Israel hits West Bank, destroys terror compound inside Al-Ansar Mosque in Jenin

On Sunday (21st October), Israel struck a terror compound under the Al-Ansar Mosque in Jenin in the West Bank. The Israel Defense Forces informed that the Mosque was used as a “command center to plan and execute terrorist attacks against civilians.”

The aerial strike was a joint operation of the IDF and the Israel Securities Authority (ISA). Following the strikes, Israeli forces issued a statement explaining the operation.

“In a joint IDF and ISA activity, the IDF conducted an aerial strike on an underground terror compound in the Al-Ansar mosque in Jenin; The mosque contained a terror cell of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror operatives who were organising an imminent terror attack,” the statement issued by IDF & ISA read.

According to the statement, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists were behind many terror attacks in recent months and were planning a new, “imminent” attack. Both the terrorist groups were allegedly undertaking terror activities from this compound.

The Israeli armed forces released pictures purportedly showing an entry to a bunker beneath the mosque. It also issued a schematic diagram, illustrating where terrorists were stashing weaponry. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance service, one Palestinian was killed and three others were injured in the attack.

Images posted by IDF on X

Meanwhile, the IDF stated that it has identified over 550 failed Hamas rockets that have landed in Gaza since the Palestinian terrorist outfit launched an unprecedented attack on Israel on 7th October.

“Since Oct 7, the IDF has identified about 550 failed launches fired by Hamas that landed inside Gaza. The Hamas terrorist organization launches rockets from civilian infrastructure, areas and buildings in Gaza, injuring their own civilians,” the IDF posted on X.

UK: Metropolitan Police defends open calls for Jihad in Central London, says it was said in a different context

OpIndia Staff
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UK: Metropolitan Police defends open calls for Jihad in Central London, says it was said in a different context

Amidst the ongoing war between Hamas and the State of Israel, the Metropolitan Police in the United Kingdom downplayed open calls for jihad raised by Hamas supporters in Central London.

An X (formerly Twitter) user shared a video wherein members of a radical Islamist outfit named ‘Hizb ut-Tahrir’ were seen proclaiming ‘jihad’ against the State of Israel.

“What is the solution to liberate people from the concentration camp called Palestine?” an Islamist was heard saying in the viral video. The mob of Hamas supporters cheered in unison, “Jihad, Jihad, Jihad.”

Instead of taking cognisance of the matter, the UK’s Metropolitan Police came out in defence of the Islamists and said that calls for jihad against Israel had nothing to do with terrorism.

In a contentious tweet, it said, “The word jihad has a number of meanings but we know the public will most commonly associate it with terrorism. We have specialist counter-terrorism officers here in the operations room who have particular knowledge in this area.”

“They have assessed this video, filmed at the Hizb ut-Tahrir protest in central London today, and have not identified any offences arising from the specific clip,” the police downplayed the act of Hamas supporters.

“However, recognising the way language like this will be interpreted by the public and the divisive impact it will have, officers have identified the man involved and will be speaking to him shorty to discourage any repeat of similar chanting,” it added.

It must be mentioned that while Jihad means ‘struggle’ or ‘fight’ in Arabic, it implies spreading Islam through violent conquest in the religious context.

The Metropolitan police also attempted to give a clean chit to an Islamist, who was seen waving a jihadist flag in support of Hamas terrorists. It alleged, “The flags in this photo are not those of ISIS. They are the ‘shahada’ which is a declaration of faith in Islam.”

“ISIS flags may appear similar but are not the same. We have specialist officers with knowledge of flags working on this operation to assist with these assessments,” the cops claimed. It must be mentioned that the X user did not make any mention of ISIS and had merely pointed out about the vicious Islamist sloganeering.

The Metropolitan police went out of their way to claim that the flag raised at the pro-Hamas rally was not dangerous and that it did not belong to ISIS. Netizens were forced to add community notes to the response of the cops, which negated their attempt to downplay the waving of a jihadist flag.

“While the flag is not an ISIS flag, it is known as the jihadist flag used by Al-Qaeda and associated with holy war and a caliphate. In addition, the filmed person explicitly screams “Islamic State”, “Allah curse the Jews”, and “Allah curse the disbelievers” in Arabic,” the community notes read.

When Leicester Police endangered Hindu community

Just like the Uk’s Metropolitan Police, the Leicester police has been at the forefront of a misinformation campaign that endangered the lives of Hindus in the city, following the Asia Cup group stage match between India and Pakistan on August 28, 2022.

In a letter to the Leicester Council of Faiths on August 31 last year, Chief Inspector Paul Allen falsely claimed that a small group of people called for the death of Muslims and Pakistan.

He alleged that the provocative slogans were raised in Hindi, indicating that it must have been the handiwork of the Indian Hindu diaspora. “Unfortunately, a small minority of people began chanting in a racially offensive way, calling for (we believe) “death to Pakistan” and “Death to Muslims” In Hindi,” he had claimed initially.

His email, the transcript of which has now gone viral on social media, was in reference to a minor scuffle that took place in Belgrave Road of Leicester. The grave assertion made by police chief Paul Allen gave a free licence to Islamists to unleash havoc on the Hindu community.

USA: Amid Israel-Hamas war, Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll stabbed to death outside her home

OpIndia Staff
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USA: Amid Israel-Hamas war, Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll stabbed to death outside her home

On Saturday (21st October), Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll (age 40) was found stabbed to death outside her home in the Detroit city’s Lafayette Park neighbourhood, east of downtown. The Detroit Police discovered several stab wounds and a blood trail leading to her residence, where the crime most likely occurred. The news of the murder has come as the war between the Jewish country Israel and the Islamist terrorist organisation Hamas rages on in the Middle East.

Woll was the head of the board of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue in Downtown Detroit, the synagogue said in a Facebook post. The Facebook post said, “We are shocked and saddened to learn of the unexpected death of Samantha Woll, our Board President. At this point, we do not have more information but will share more when it becomes available. May her memory be a blessing.”

Detroit Police Chief James White, in a statement released on Saturday evening, urged the public to remain patient and assured that an update regarding the investigation would be provided on Sunday. He said, “Over the last several hours, the DPD has mobilised many of its resources and has been leveraging every law enforcement and community resource it has to help further the investigation. Understandably, this crime leaves many unanswered questions.”

The Detroit police have not yet determined the motive behind the crime. They were informed about the unresponsive woman leader discovered lying on the ground at approximately 6:30 AM and pronounced her dead. Gabrielle Szlenkier, a spokesperson for the FBI’s Detroit field office, confirmed that the FBI is aware of the case and is providing assistance to the Detroit police as requested.

Notably, In 2017, Samantha Woll was chosen as one of the “36 under 36” achievers by The Detroit Jewish News. The publication highlighted her role as the co-chair of the American Jewish Committee’s ACCESS Detroit Young Leadership Program. Additionally, she was recognised as the founder of the Muslim-Jewish Forum of Detroit, a grassroots initiative focused on fostering connections among young adults of these two faiths.

Samantha Woll also headed the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue since 2022. Before this role, she was engaged with the Democratic Party, having served under Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and contributed to the re-election campaign of Attorney General Dana Nessel.

Canada helping China hunt ‘fugitives’ in the country for decades: Report

OpIndia Staff
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Canada helping China hunt ‘fugitives’ in the country for decades: Report

On 21st October, a report was published by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) saying the Canadian government has been helping China to hunt “fugitives” for decades. CBC, the public broadcaster for both Radio and Television in Canada, noted that the Chinese government assists Chinese law enforcement agencies in pursuing fugitive Chinese nationals outside China.

The report came to light at a time when India and Canada are experiencing a bitter relationship as Canada has over the years failed to extradite wanted Indian criminals living on Canadian soil, including the recently killed Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Notably, Canada has accused India of killing “Canadian citizen” Nijjar on Canadian soil, an allegation that India has categorically denied. The false accusations against India have worsened the relations between the two nations.

In its report, CBC pointed out that the revelations about Canada helping China came to the fore during an investigation by CBC’s The Fifth Estate.

Fugitives handed over in exchange for ‘trade negotiations’

During the investigation, former Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) operations officer in British Columbia, Calvin Chrustie, said he had received directives from the “highest level in Ottawa” to cooperate with the Chinese officials regarding a “high-profile fugitive in the Vancouver area.” Notably, Chrustie said he declined to facilitate a meeting request sent by the Chinese officials who wanted to interview the alleged fugitive. The aim was to persuade them to return to China “voluntarily” and face prosecution.

The investigation further found that the Chinese government rewarded Canadian cooperation with “trade negotiations”, support in combating illegal drugs and facilitating the release of Canadians detained by the Chinese government.

Questionable methods of gathering evidence by China

Critics argued that due to the cooperation between the two countries, Canada often turned a blind eye to the lack of an independent judiciary and the use of coercion, including torture, in China to gather evidence. As per the legal experts, the reliability of the evidence provided by the Chinese authorities was often questionable.

CBC quoted immigration lawyer Lorne Waldman, who expressed concerns over the same. The legal experts pointed out that the evidence provided by Chinese authorities was obtained by questionable means, including torture and successful challenges in Canadian courts.

Illegal Chinese police stations in Canada

When The Fifth Estate tried to interview Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc over the matter, he categorically denied issuing any statement. Notably, in early 2023, there were concerns about the presence of alleged Chinese police stations in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. OpIndia published a report on this in October 2022.

The report suggested that China was operating “police stations” in several countries, including Canada and Ireland. The informal police stations were set up by Fuzhou police and affiliated with China’s Public Security Bureau (PSB). Three such police stations were found to be operating in the Greater Toronto Area.

Reportedly, China has been aggressively pursuing the return of allegedly corrupt officials and economic criminals who found a haven in foreign countries. The operations, known as Sky Net and Fox Hunt, were started by the Chinese authorities in 2014, resulting in the alleged return of thousands of “fugitives” to China. The state television in China often boasts about such returns.

However, according to the critics, Canada has reportedly ignored the lack of an independent judiciary and the use of coercion to gather evidence to facilitate the Chinese government in its hunt. Some Canadian officials have interviewed fugitives wanted by China to assess the extent of harassment and threats they face from Chinese authorities.

Notably, there is no extradition treaty between China and Canada. The Canadian government often use the immigration and refugee system to remove the so-called fugitives from its soil. Canadian officials present evidence at Immigration and Refugee Board hearings, some of which they receive from Chinese authorities.

During the investigation, The Fifth Estate found that the Canada-China cooperation for the fugitive hunt in the past two decades has been tied to other matters significant to Canada. For example, former ambassador Guy Saint-Jacques stated that Canada was willing to cooperate on repatriations in exchange for Chinese government assistance in curtailing the flow of fentanyl into Canada.

Interestingly, it was revealed that there were concerns that Chinese officials violated agreed-upon conditions during their visits to Canada. In some cases, Chinese investigators were caught engaging in unauthorised activities. These breaches raised questions about the credibility of Chinese assurances.

Cooperation between Canada and China started in 1999

The Canada-China cooperation to hunt Chinese fugitives dates back to 1999 when Chinese national Lai Changxing sought refuge in Canada. He was tied to a smuggling and corruption case in the Fujian province of China. The matter led to tensions between Canada and China. Lai Changxing was eventually returned to China in 2011 after assurances were made that he would not face torture or execution. However, his prolonged Canadian refugee claim had strained diplomatic relations between the two countries and laid the foundation for ongoing law enforcement cooperation.

Other notable names that came up during the investigation included Tao Mi, who might have faced threats and retribution from Chinese authorities after providing statements. Tao Mi had retracted her statement against Lai Changxing. She was reportedly interrogated at the Canadian consulate in Shanghai in the presence of a Chinese security official. A Federal Court Judge deemed the interrogation inappropriate, according to the report.

‘Canada is a safe haven for terrorists, extremists and organised crimes’

In a statement in September 2023, India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, called Canada a “safe haven for terrorists, extremists and organised crimes”. India criticised Canada for its reputation as a safe haven for criminals and emphasised the need for Canada to address the reputational damage. India requested action against criminals and cooperation on extradition requests for over 20 individuals. The statement highlighted India’s concerns about Canada’s role in providing refuge to individuals facing terrorism charges.

‘No comments, have nothing to say’: Trinamool Congress maintains distance from ‘cash for query’ allegations against party MP Mahua Moitra

OpIndia Staff
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‘No comments, have nothing to say’: Trinamool Congress maintains distance from ‘cash for query’ allegations against party MP Mahua Moitra

As Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra’s ‘cash for query’ scam gets exposed more and more every day, her party has maintained a distance from the scandal. On 21st October (Saturday), the TMC declined to comment on the alleged scam involving of its Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra. Speaking to ANI, TMC State General Secretary Kunal Ghosh asserted that the party has nothing to say on the allegations levelled against Moitra. 

Speaking on behalf of the party, he maintained silence on the particular issue. Ghosh said, “..No comments on this particular issue. We have nothing to say on this issue. Regarding this issue, the All India Trinamool Congress will not say a single word. The related person may answer this, not the TMC party.”

Similarly, another senior TMC leader, on the condition of anonymity, told PTI that Trinamool Congress is unwilling to get into a controversy and thus “will be maintaining distance from it.” However, the TMC has not taken action against her or sacked her from the party either. 

Another vocal face of the TMC, Derek O’Brein, who has been active on social media and defends even fake news peddlers like party MP Saket Gokhale, has also maintained an eerie silence on this issue. Rather he has been speaking actively on the queer issues. 

It is important to note that in the past several years, Moitra had been the vocal face of TMC on the national stage but the party has maintained distance from her ever since the cash-for-query allegations were levelled against the TMC leader.

Following the development, BJP leader Rahul Sinha asserted that the TMC can’t shrug off its responsibility by distancing itself from Mahua Moitra. 

He said, “The TMC always tries to shrug off its responsibility whenever its leaders are either arrested or land into trouble. The TMC needs to explain whether it supports Mahua Moitra or not.” 

Meanwhile, TMC Lok Sabha MP from Krishnanagar, Mahua Moitra has been actively tweeting over the issue claiming innocence in the Mahuagate. In a series of tweets on 21st October, she expressed her frustration over the current allegations against her and made various claims in this regard.

However, she didn’t deny taking luxury gifts in exchange for asking questions in Lok Sabha, and also didn’t deny that billionaire businessman Darshan Hiranandani was using her Parliamentary portal account to post questions targeting Adani directly. 

Instead, she argued that every parliamentarian shares login IDs and passwords with staff, interns and others, asking the National Informatics Centre to disclose the details of the places from where the IDs of all the Members of Parliament were accessed.

It is notable that BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said in an X post that Mahua Moitra’s NIC ID was being accessed from Dubai. In an affidavit filed with the Parliamentary Ethics Committee, Hiranandani Group CEO Darshan Hiranandani acknowledged that the TMC MP provided him with her Parliamentary login credentials which he used to ask questions from the central government on her behalf. Darshan Hiranandani is based in Dubai, and his affidavit was also signed in Dubai and was notarised by the Consulate General of India in Dubai. He also said that he had given luxury gifts and other favours to Mahua Moitra.

Welfare Party of India may be an example of communist stupidity in supporting terror, but they didn’t use the Italy flag to support Palestine: Fact Check

OpIndia Staff
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Welfare Party of India may be an example of communist stupidity in supporting terror, but they didn’t use the Italy flag to support Palestine: Fact Check

As Israel continues its military action against Hamas in Gaza in retaliation to the horrific terror attack on Israel by Hamas, Islamists and leftists worldwide, who are traditionally anti-Israel, are protesting against Israel and in support of Hamas and Palestine. A similar protest march in support of Palestinians was taken out by the Kerala-based Welfare Party of India in Kerala on Friday, 20 October in Palakkad in Kerala.

However, when the photos and videos of the protest started appearing on social media, people started mocking the Welfare Party of India, saying that it was carrying the flag of Italy instead of the flag of Palestine. In the photos, the protestors were seen carrying a large number of flags which looked like the Italian flag.

As both the flags of Italy and Palestine contain the same colours, red, green and white, people assumed that the party mistakenly picked the wrong flag for the protest. The protestors were seen carrying a large banner saying ‘Free Palestine’, apart from the flag with green, white and red vertical bands.

“Socialist stupidity and Jew hatred are once again proven to be a package deal,” tweeted activist and radio talk show host Charlie Kirk.

Many other X users posted similar tweets, mocking the political party for carrying the Italian flag instead of the Palestinian flag.

However, actually it is the people mocking the Welfare Party of India are mistaken, and the party didn’t make any mistake in carrying the flag. This is because they were carrying neither the Italian flag nor the Palestinian flag, they were carrying the flag of their own party.

The flag of the Welfare Party of India has remarkable similarity with the Italian flag, as both the flags are made of vertical panels of green, white and red. However, there is a difference.

In the Italian flag, all three panels are blank, but in the WPI flag, there are design elements in the white part in the middle. It has the olive leaves symbol in yellow and the words ‘Welfare Party’ written vertically in black inside the white panel.

As the videos shared by the social media users are of low resolution, the yellow leaves symbol is mostly not visible against the white background. But parts of the words ‘Welfare Party’ in black are visible in some of the flags if the videos are observed carefully.

Moreover, in other images and videos of the protest posted by the party and others, it is clearly seen that it is the party flag, not the Italian flag.

In the video posted in the tweet below, which has better resolution, the yellow leaves symbol and black letters saying ‘Welfare Party’ are clearly seen in the flags carried in a pro-Palestine march by the party in Kozhikode.

Therefore, while the Welfare Party’s support for Palestinians is questionable given the horrific terror attack on Israel, the party didn’t make any mistake in picking the flag for the protest. People mocked them because their flag is almost similar to the Italian flag, assuming they were mistaking it for the Palestinian flag which has the same colours with the addition of a black panel.

Tamil Nadu: BJP leader and co-convenor of Annamalai’s En Mann En Makkal yatra arrested over protesting against the removal of a flagpole in Chennai

OpIndia Staff
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Tamil Nadu: BJP leader and co-convenor of Annamalai’s En Mann En Makkal yatra arrested over protesting against the removal of a flagpole in Chennai

On 21st October (Saturday), the Tambram Police in Tamil Nadu arrested BJP leader Amar Prasad Reddy who is also the co-convenor of En Mann En Makkal yatra (My Land, My People). The leader was arrested for opposing the removal of a flagpole outside Annamalai’s residence.

As per the Tamil Nadu BJP vice president Narayanan Thirupathy, the BJP leaders were brutally assaulted outside Annamalai’s residence in Chennai.

“There are thousands of flagpoles in the city. Are all of them with permission? No, but in this case, we have been seeking permission for the last four months. Why it was not given? And what is the necessity for the police to go there in mass and take that (flag pole) out in the wee hours? What is the need? The time and energy of the police force has been wasted,” Thirupathy said.

“Our BJP cadres have been brutally attacked and arrested. More than hundreds of BJP cadres including a lot of women have been detained. What makes you do that? This is vendetta politics. You want to threaten BJP workers, which is not possible,” he further added.

It is alleged that he tried to stop government officials from performing their duty and ‘damaged’ a JCB machine that was brought to remove an illegal flag pole in Chennai.

As per media reports, it is claimed that a flag pole was installed outside Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai’s Chennai residence without taking proper permission. But when officials and workers arrived at the spot to remove the flag pole, around 110 BJP workers staged a protest against it.

A police official said, “Despite repeated requests, they kept arguing with government officials. Subsequently, some of them were arrested and let off on bail.”

The Tambram Police said that no permission was taken from the Greater Chennai Corporation before the installation of a 45-ft flag pole outside the compound wall of Annamalai’s house on Friday evening.

According to the police, the flag pole was dangerously close to high-voltage power lines and was causing inconvenience to the public. They added that the corporation and the police later took the decision to remove the flagpole.

As per the police officials, apart from Reddy’s arrest, they have also registered a police case against six persons. Five of them have been remanded to judicial custody. Amar Prasad Reddy who also holds the post of state president of Tamil Nadu BJP’s sports and skill development wing, was among those arrested.

Following his arrest, BJP leader Kapil Mishra took to X to condemn the arrest and advocated for his release. He also pointed out that Reddy’s arrest underscores the importance of “safeguarding dissent in a democracy”.

A few users also shared the moments when the Tambram Police took BJP leader and co-convenor of En Mann En Makkal yatra into their custody.

His arrest comes in the wake of the success of the En Mann En Makkal yatra which was earlier flagged by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in July, this year. 

Regarding the Yatra, he said, “This Yatra is not only a political Yatra, the En Mann En Makkal Yatra is a Yatra to spread the Tamil language worldwide. It is to free Tamil Nadu from family dynastic politics, and corruption, and to improve the law & order situation in the state. It is a Yatra to end corruption & start development work.”

He added, “I want to tell the Congress party and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin that changing the name does nothing. As soon as you go in public, people remember the commonwealth scam, 2G scam, coal scam, choppers scam, submarine scam, ISRO scam and many more…”

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