On Wednesday, September 6, Mohammad Khalid, a person accused of involvement in the murder of Head Constable Ratan Lal during the anti-Hindu Delhi Riots of 2020 was granted bail by the court of Additional Sessions Judge Pulatsya Pramachala. While granting bail to the accused Mohammad Khalid, the court directed him to furnish a bond of Rs 15,000.
ASJ Pramachala stated that he does not find the role attributed to accused Mohammad Khalid worse than those of other co-accused persons. He added that the “other accused persons with similar kind of allegations being part of that mob without further specific role attributed to them have been granted bail in this case.”
The court also stated that even those persons who were accused of a specific role, such as damaging CCTV cameras, were given bail by the Delhi High Court.
Khalid had been living in Dehradun since December 2018, according to the accused’s lawyer, Mohammad Hasan. He further stated that Khalid’s bank transactions show that he was present at a gas station in Dehradun on the date of the said incident.
It is notable that Mohammad Khalid who was arrested in July this year is the brother of Mohammad Ayaz, one of the main conspirators of the murder of Head Constable Ratan Lal. Ayaz was arrested by the Delhi Police’s Special Cell on June 21 this year.
Earlier, it was reported that during questioning, accused Khalid had admitted that he took part in the Chand Bagh anti-CAA/NRC rally in 2020 with his older brother Mohammad Ayaz and several friends. At a private meeting held at his home, it was resolved by everybody present to bring sticks and iron rods to block the roads.
Ratan Lal Murder
A crazed Muslim mob had brutally lynched Head Constable Ratan Lal of Delhi Police while he was trying to perform his duty on the main Wazirabad Road, Chand Bagh, during a violent riot. The 42-year-old police officer lived with his family in Amrit Vihar, Burari, Delhi.
Lal belonged to Fathepur Tihwali village in Rajasthan’s Sikar district. His wife and three children survive Lal. The Sikar resident had joined the Delhi Police as a constable in 1998. He married a Jaipur resident in 2004. Ratan Lal was posted at Gokulpuri Police Station. He lived with his family in a house in Delhi’s Burari area.
A mob attacked police officers stationed in Maujpur, Delhi’s North-East area, on February 24, 2020. Ratan Lal died from a bullet wound, according to the autopsy report. A video surfaced in March 2020 where a violent mob of rioters can be seen attacking the Delhi Police officers with stones and sticks.
If the opposition parties boycott the special session of Parliament, the BJP will take a one-sided decision, said Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Thursday, adding that “there should be a discussion in Parliament about important issues, and we will put them forward”.
Ramesh’s statement comes as leaders from the opposition parties are demanding to know the motive behind calling a Special Session in Parliament.
On Wednesday, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding to discuss and debate several issues, including the Manipur violence, the economic situation of the country, the MSP, and other demands of farmers, among other issues.
In the letter, the former Congress chief also mentioned that the session is being held without any consultation with other political parties, and none of them had any idea of the agenda for the session.
“You have convened a special five-day session of the Parliament beginning September 18, 2023. I must point out that this special session has been convened without any consultation with other political parties. None of us have any idea of its agenda,” she said in her letter.
“All we have communicated is that all five days have been allocated for government business. We most certainly want to participate in the special session because it will give us an opportunity to raise matters of public concern and importance,” Sonia Gandhi said.
Responding sharply to Sonia Gandhi’s letter, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi said, “You are politicising the work of our Parliament, and when there is no controversy, you are unnecessarily raking it up.”
Reacting to the Congress leader’s claim that the agenda of the special session wasn’t shared, Prahlad Joshi, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, said, “Never before, even when other governments were at the Center, the agenda was circulated in advance. Unnecessarily, they (Congress) are politicising the issue, and that’s really unfortunate.”
Meanwhile, other leaders from the opposition bloc have also raised a similar concern.
Rashtriya Janta Dal MP Manoj Jha said on Thursday that when special sessions were called before, their agenda was shared with the public, but now only two people know PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, and no one knows why this special session has been called.
“It’s not a common session; it’s a special session. Before this, every time a special session was called, people had an idea why it was called. … This is the new transparency in India. Now only two people know PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah and no one knows why this special session has been called.”
Speaking to ANI, Chhattisgarh Deputy CM TS Singh Deo repeated his party’s stance on the special session of Parliament. He demanded to know the agenda of the upcoming session. “The agenda of the special session of Parliament should be told… If a special session is called, it is for a special reason, and that should be stated,” he added.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
On Monday, 14th August 2023, organizers of the Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago, Illinois, abruptly informed Nivedita Raghuram Bhide from Swami Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari, India, that her scheduled plenary session speech on August 16, 2023, had been cancelled. Bhide’s exclusion from the Parliament’s plenary session stemmed from a targeted campaign. The collaboration between left-wing media, academia, and Islamist groups worked to stifle authentic Hindu representation at the event.
Who is Nivedita Bhide?
Nivedita Bhide, a Padmashree awardee of 2017, is a ‘Jeevanvrati‘ of Vivekananda Kedra Kanyakumari – an organisation she has been working for since 1977. ‘Jeevanvrati’ is a lifetime devoted worker in the work of the organisation, where Nivedita Bhide is currently working as the vice president. Nivedita Bhide boasts an impressive literary record with more than 15 published books to her name. She conducts regular yoga teachings and spiritual retreats worldwide, imparting her wisdom.
Additionally, she has delivered numerous papers at both national and international conferences and has lectured at prestigious educational institutions across the globe. As a trustee of the Vivekananda International Foundation since its establishment, she has been actively involved in promoting cultural relations and has been a member of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations since July 2020.
What is Vivekananda Kendra?
Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari, often simply referred to as Vivekananda Kendra, is a well-known spiritual and cultural organisation in India. It was founded in 1972 in Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, in honour of the great Indian philosopher and spiritual leader Swami Vivekananda. The organisation takes its inspiration from Swami Vivekananda’s teachings and aims to promote his vision of a spiritually awakened and culturally vibrant India.
Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari was founded by Eknath Ranade in 1972. Eknath Ranade (1914-1982) joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) while still in school. He became an important organiser and leader for the organisation, rising through its ranks to serve as its general secretary from 1956–62. Eknath Ranade was a dedicated social worker, spiritual leader, and follower of Swami Vivekananda’s teachings. He played a pivotal role in establishing and nurturing the Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari, which continues to promote Swami Vivekananda’s ideals and values to this day. His birth centenary year was celebrated by the organisation in 2014-2015 and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present as the chief guest.
Key features and activities of Vivekananda Kendra include Yoga and Meditation, Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari, cultural and educational activities at various places in India, rural development, Vivekananda Kendra Vidyalayas (schools), publication of various literature related to the life and works of Swami Vivekananda and the organisation, youth empowerment, and spiritual retreat.
What is the Parliament of the World’s Religions?
The Parliament of the World’s Religions is an international gathering that brings together individuals, organisations, and leaders from various religious and spiritual traditions to promote interfaith dialogue, cooperation, and understanding. It is supposed to serve as a platform for discussing and addressing global issues, fostering peace, and promoting social justice.
The Parliament of the World’s Religions was first held in 1893 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was organized as part of the World’s Columbian Exposition, a world’s fair celebrating the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the Americas. The 1893 Parliament is considered a landmark event because it marked one of the earliest attempts at interfaith dialogue on a global scale. It featured representatives from various religious traditions, including Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, and more.
The Parliament of the World’s Religions typically includes a wide range of activities and events, such as plenary sessions, workshops and panel discussions, interfaith dialogues, cultural performances, exhibitions and displays, youth programs, community services, etc.
The Parliament of the World’s Religions 2023
Since its inception, the Parliament of the World’s Religions has been held at irregular intervals, with subsequent gatherings taking place in different cities around the world. In 2023, it was held in Chicago from 14th August to 18th August. The theme of this year’s gathering was ‘ A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom and Human Rights’. Unfortunately, the organisers of this conference surrendered before the leftists and Islamists and denied the freedom and human rights of one of the invitees to speak in the plenary session. The organisers cancelled a talk by Nivedita Bhide scheduled for 16th August 2023.
How Nivedita Bhide was demonised by leftists and Islamists?
The rise of intellectual intolerance is a notable trend in both the United States and other Western countries. Academic institutions, think tanks, and even corporations are becoming more accepting of practices such as cancel culture, censorship, de-platforming, disciplinary measures, financial penalties, and in some cases, legal actions as their preferred means of addressing dissenting voices and a variety of viewpoints.
Prior to her departure for Chicago, Bhide came across a social media post by Audrey Truschke, a leftist Islamist faculty member at Rutgers University. In this tweet, Truschke labelled Bhide as a “Hindu nationalist.” She said, “Bhide has personally engaged in spreading disinformation that demonises Indian Muslims in recent years, during which anti-Muslim violence has risen precipitously in India, under Hindu nationalist leadership. Bhide has deep connections with far-right political organisations that support Hindu nationalism, a deeply Islamophobic political ideology.”
This Audrey Truschke is on the advisory board of the Students Against Hindutva Ideology (SAHI), an activist body in the United States of America with close ties to the Democratic party establishment. The activist body is most famous for organising the Hinduphobic ‘Holi Against Hindutva’ campaign in 2020 when it was simply called ‘Students Against Hindutva’.
A fellow member of the advisory board of SAHI is Ajit Sahi, advocacy director of the Indian American Muslim Council. Ajit Sahi is the former executive director of the disgraced Tehelka magazine. He has appeared on prominent platforms in the USA on several occasions to spread propaganda against India.
The Indian American Muslim Organisation (IAMC), one of the event’s sponsors, also took active steps to remove Bhide from the platform. They disseminated pamphlets containing propaganda in the guise of criticism of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The Indian American Muslim Council is a radical Islamist group that has alleged links with banned terror organizations such as the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and has a long history of lobbying against India.
Rasheed Ahmed, the executive director of the Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) said, “Participants in the Parliament of World Religion must vocally oppose the inclusion of Hindu nationalist Nivedita Bhide in the ‘A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom & Human Rights’ conference. As the leader of the Vivekananda Kendra, an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) organization, Bhide is helping to advance a fundamentally exclusionary vision of India – the very opposite of ‘defending freedom and human rights’.”
The IAMC is a Jamat-e-Islami-backed lobbyist organisation claiming to be a rights advocacy group. In the past, it had reportedly collaborated with and had even paid money to various groups in the USA to get India blacklisted by the USCIRF (United States Commission on International Religious Freedom). A detailed report by Disinfo Lab has exposed its links with the terror outfit Jamat-e-Islami.
On 7th August 2023, the Middle East Eye published an article titled, ‘Activists raise alarm over Hindu nationalist presence at Parliament of World Religions’. This article was written by Islamist propagandist Azad Essa. He wrote, “Nivedita Bhide has routinely shared the rhetoric of right-wing Hindu nationalists who demonise prominent Indian activists. Targets have included Afreen Fatima, a researcher and activist; Washington Post columnist Rana Ayyub; and the late Christian Priest, Father Stan Swamy.”
Azad Essa, posing as a journalist, spearheads the campaign against Nivedita Bhide. Under the guise of addressing Islamophobia, he employs his writing and collaborates with similar voices to portray Muslims as victims and others as aggressors. Audrey Trushke is one of the links in this narrative. Azad Essa has quoted her remarks about Nivedita Bhide to bolster his argument. The other culprits he utilised at his convenience are figures like Rasheed Ahmed from IAMC, who received support from Azad Essa, a self-styled journalist with a controversial background, previously associated with Al Jazeera English, a network linked to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Azad Essa works for Middle East Eye (MEE), which is owned by Jamal Awn Jamal Bessasso, a former official associated with Al Jazeera in Qatar and the Hamas-affiliated al-Quds TV in Lebanon. Hamas is the Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist terror organisation. Hamas has a long history of violating human rights. Hamas is designated as a terrorist organisation by several countries including The European Union, the United States, Canada, Israel, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom etc.
Jamal Bessasso operates MEE through M.E.E. Ltd. In the past, he has worked as the director of planning and human resources for Al Jazeera and the director of Human Resources for the Samalink Television Production Company in Lebanon, which serves as the registered agent for Al Quds TV’s website. It was MEE and other leftists and Islamists that launched a severe attack on Nivedita Bhide, leading to the cancellation of her address at the Parliament of World’s Religions’ plenary session.
Karma is cyclic in its operation.
On Friday, 18th August 2023, ‘historian’ Audrey Truschke, known for her history of anti-Hindu narratives, faced an unexpected turn of events during her scheduled talk at the Parliament of World’s Religions in Chicago. She was slated to discuss topics like ‘censorship,’ ‘free speech,’ ‘disinformation,’ and alleged ‘threats and harassment from right-wing groups,’ alongside fellow anti-India proponents Sunita Vishwanath and Rasheed Ahmed. Despite the event, titled ‘The Importance of Freedom of Speech to Defend Human Rights,’ being conducted virtually, Truschke found herself addressing empty chairs and vacant halls.
The cold reception faced by those advocating for Nivedita Bhide’s exclusion from the religious conference serves as a reflection of the Karma principle, which finds various interpretations in Hindu scriptures. The essence of this principle is that one ultimately experiences the consequences of their actions. Audrey Truschke aimed to prevent Nivedita Bhide from addressing the conference to suppress her views, but ironically, she found herself addressing an audience of empty chairs during her own turn at the same event.
Parliament of World’s Religions and Swami Vivekananda
It is notable that the first Parliament of World’s Religions held in Chicago in 1893 is remembered for the distinguished presence and speech of Hindu monk Swami Vivekananda – a Dharmik figure inspiring the Vivekananda Kendra in Kanyakumari. Swami Vivekananda made his iconic address at the Parliament’s gathering in 1893, addressing the issues of sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendants, which have filled the earth with violence, destroyed civilisations, and sent whole nations to despair. He also highlighted a faith that has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance – that is Hinduism. One hundred thirty years later, Nivedita Bhide, a devoted follower of Swami Vivekananda, was denied the opportunity to speak at the Parliament of the World’s Religions.
DMK leaders continue to abuse Hinduism after Udhayanidhi Stalin compared it with diseases like Dengue, Malaria, and Covid, and called for its annihilation while participating in the ‘Annihilation of Sanatana’ conference on September 2. On 6th September, DMK MP A Raja added fuel to the controversy by saying that Udayanidhi was soft while commenting on Sanatan Dharma and added it should have been compared to HIV and social stigmas.
In his derogatory remarks, A Raja said Udhayanidhi only compared Sanatan Dharma to diseases like Malaria and dengue as he had a soft approach. “Sanatan Dharma should be compared to diseases with social stigma like HIV and leprosy,” he added.
Raja said, “I am prepared to give answers for all cabinet ministers if the Prime Minister convenes the meeting and let them permit me. I will explain which one is ‘Sanatana Dharma’ thereafter you decide…”
#WATCH | Chennai: DMK's A Raja says, "I am prepared to give answers for all cabinet ministers if the Prime Minister convenes the meeting and let them permit me. I will explain which one is 'Sanatana Dharma' thereafter you decide…" pic.twitter.com/N30R2VPbWl
Earlier, in a public meeting in Puducherry on 5th September, Raja challenged Home Minister Amit Shah and any other BJP leader to participate in a debate on Sanatan Dharma. He claimed Sanatan Dharma promoted inequalities among people, curbed women’s rights and advocated Sati. He said, “Do we want to revive such practices? We have fought all odds (in eradicating such practices). If we accept this Sanatana Dharma, we are against the principles advocated by Periyar (late social activist and Dravida Kazhagam founder E V Ramasamy), Anna (former Tamil Nadu chief minister C N Annadurai) and Kalaignar (Karunanidhi). Accepting this dharma will make us an enemy of fellow human beings. I am not a human if I accept this dharma.”
Udhayanidhi wants to ‘eradicate’ Sanatan Dharma
On 2nd September, the Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development of Tamil Nadu, Udhayanidhi Stalin, went on a tirade against Sanatan Dharma on social media. The development came hours after he courted controversy for comparing the Hindu civilisational, religious philosophy with ‘malaria’ and ‘dengue.’ While talking to X (formerly Twitter), Udhayanidhi Stalin wrote, “Sanatan Dharma is a principle that divides people in the name of caste and religion.”
“Uprooting Sanatan Dharma is upholding humanity and human equality…I spoke on behalf of the oppressed & marginalised who suffer from the Sanatan Dharma. I spoke on behalf of the oppressed & marginalised, who suffer due to the Sanatan Dharma,” he said.
“Let me reiterate the crucial aspect of my speech: I believe, like the spread of diseases like COVID-19, Dengue, and Malaria by mosquitoes, that Sanatan Dharma is responsible for many social evils,” he further emphasised.
However, he today issued another statement claiming that BJP is distorting his statement, alleging that BJP is saying that his statement is incitement for genocide. He also claimed that BJP is demanding action against him based on fake news.
On Wednesday, September 6, Madhu Devi, the mother of YouTuber Manish Kashyap wrote a letter to President Droupadi Murmu raising questions over the National Security Act (NSA) invoked against her son by the Tamil Nadu police for allegedly fueling tensions between two states while no such action taken against DMK leader and state minister Udhaynidhi Stalin who called for the “eradication of Sanatan Dharma”, posing an even greater threat to national security.
In a letter dated September 6, 2023, Manish Kashyap’s mother Madhu Devi stated that her son had raised the issue of alleged mistreatment faced by some Bihari laborers in Tamil Nadu through his YouTube video, however, Tamil Nadu police found it false and filed six different FIRs in addition to slapping the stringent NSA against her son.
Moreover, the letter mentioned that the video in question was being circulated since February 15 this year from Tamil Nadu only adding that the country’s print media published news articles about the same after 21st February. Subsequently, the electronic media also picked up the issue with the politicians commenting on the news eventually. Madhu Devi stated that the Tamil Nadu and Bihar governments conspired to frame Manish Kashyap even though his “contentious” video came out in March.
“My son also made a video on the news of Bihari migrant labourers, but in March, and questioned the Bihar government over why the Bihari labourers are subjected to such discrimination, but the Bihar government and Tamil Nadu government colluded to invoke the stringent NSA,” the letter reads.
Furthermore, YouTuber Manish Kashyap’s mother questioned that if her son’s video pertaining to the Bihari laborers created a situation of clashes between two states, “then how come, Udhaynidhi Stalin, has not been booked under the National Security Act or jailed since being a minister, his remarks against Sanatan Dharma could have sparked clashes across the country.”
Letter by YouTuber Manish Kashyap’s mother to President Droupadi Murmu (Image via Sach Tak News)
Manish Kashyap’s mother demanded that if the constitution is same for all then even Udhaynidhi Stalin should be booked under the NSA too. Moreover, she demanded that an independent committee formed by the Supreme Court should investigate the video of the migrant Bihari labourers.
Concluding the letter, Madhu Devi hoped that President Droupadi Murmu would ensure justice and that the son of the chief minister would also face the same punishment as any ordinary citizen faced for the violation of the law.
“I am not well educated but I am the wife of a soldier and mother of a brave son. I am hopeful that honorable President will do justice with my son and the chief minister’s son will face the same punishment decided by the court as faced by any other citizen of Bharat,” the letter added.
Meanwhile, Manish Kashyap’s brother Karan Kashyap has confirmed that the said letter has been sent to President Murmu. In a Sach Tak News report, he reiterated his mother Madhu Devi’s assertions and said that “it is the ordeal of a man who used to struggle for the youth of Bihar and their issues and how the NSA was invoked against him. It is the letter from a woman whose husband laid his life in the Kargil War and is the daughter-in-law of a soldier who made the supreme sacrifice in the war against China.”
Karan Kashyap said that he is hopeful to get to meet President Murmu soon. Manish Kashyap’s brother said that the law is different for the “big” people as Manish Kashyap is held under NSA over the allegations of an attempt at inciting clashes between Bihar and Tamil Nadu while Udhaynidhi Stalin’s slanderous remarks against Sanatan Dharma could also have caused clashes at national level.
“This is also the same situation, in both cases, there was possibility of clashes but the NSA was never invoked against Udhaynidhi Stalin. If no action is taken against him (Udhaynidhi) then that page in the law books that states that the law is the same for everyone should be torn apart. It cannot be the same if multiple FIRs are filed against one person (as in Manish Kashyap’s case) at different places in Tamil Nadu and in Bihar even when he was in custody. However, a minister who is also the son of a chief minister makes derogatory comments against the Sanatan Dharma, the sacred religion of the hundred crore population of the country. If something unfortunate would have happened, nobody would have been able to compensate that,” Karan Kashyap said.
Manish’s brother added that similar action should be taken against Udhaynidhi Stalin as was taken against Manish Kashyap saying that the court will decide right and wrong but the law should be the same for everyone.
Manish Kashyap’s arrest
Earlier this year, on 18 March, the Police arrested YouTuber Manish Kashyap aka Tripurari Kumar Tiwari from Bihar in connection with the alleged attacks on migrant workers in Tamil Nadu. A special team of the Tamil Nadu police brought him to the southern state on transit remand after the Madurai Crime Branch police registered a case against him.
Back then, it was reported that Kashyap had tweeted a ‘fake video’ of the attacks on migrant workers from Bihar in Tamil Nadu which went viral over social media. However, the video was created by the main accused Rakesh Ranjan Kumar, a native of Gopalganj district in rented accommodation in Patna. Later, the Tamil Nadu police slapped stringent NSA on Kashyap. He has been in jail since then despite moving bail petitions multiple times.
On Thursday, September 7, DMK leader and Tamil Nadu Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin claimed that BJP is twisting his remarks on Sanatan Dharma and using his statements to divert attention. The Tamil Nadu politician stated that he would face all legal implications associated with what he said. Udhayanidhi Stalin further claimed that the BJP is alleging that he called for the genocide of Hindus. This is days after Udhayanidhi Stalin generated a political storm earlier this week by comparing the Hindu civilizational religious philosophy with ‘malaria’ and ‘dengue’ and called for the annihilation of Sanatan Dharma.
“I believe, like the spread of diseases like COVID-19, Dengue, and Malaria by mosquitoes, that Sanatan Dharma is responsible for many social evils. I will say it today, tomorrow, and forever: Our resolve to stop Sanathana Dharma from the Dravidian land would not reduce even a bit,” he was quoted as saying.
He also opined that “Sanatan Dharma is a principle that divides people in the name of caste and religion.” However, releasing a statement on Twitter (X) on 7 September, the DMK leader blatantly attacked the Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing them of twisting his anti-Hindu remarks.
“For the last 9 years, all your (BJP) promises are empty promises. What have you exactly done for our welfare is a question currently being raised in unison by the entire country against an unarmed, fascist BJP government. It is in this background that the BJP leaders have twisted my speech at the TNPWAA conference as ‘inciting genocide’. They consider it a weapon to protect themselves,” he said.
“What is surprising is that those like Union Minister Amit Shah and Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states were demanding action against me based on fake news,” Udhayanidhi claimed.
Let us resolve to work for the victory of the ideologies of Periyar, Anna, Kalaignar and Perasiriyar. Let Social Justice flourish forever. pic.twitter.com/Eyc9pBcdaL
He further stated that he should be the one filing criminal and other judicial charges against BJP supporters and leaders for spreading defamation while occupying positions of respect. “But I am aware that this is their mode of survival. They don’t know how else to survive, so I decided not to do that,” he noted.
Udhayanidhi meanwhile also stated that the DMK supports all religions that teach that all lives have been created equal. “Everyone knows that we are not enemies of any religion,” he added.
“I would like to quote Anna’s comment on religions which remains relevant even today. If religion leads people toward equality and teaches them fraternity, then I too am a spiritualist. If a religion divides people in the name of castes, if it teaches them untouchability and slavery, I would be the first person to oppose religion,” he said quoting Annadurai.
Udhayanidhi meanwhile also stated that the DMK supports all religions that teach that all lives have been created equal. “Everyone knows that we are not enemies of any religion,” he added.
“But without an iota of understanding about any of these, Thiru Modi and Co are solely dependent on such slanders to face the Parliamentary elections. For the last 9 years, Modi has been doing nothing. Occasionally he demonetizes money, builds walls to hide huts, builds new Parliamentary buildings, erects a Sengol (sceptre) there, and plays around by changing the name of the country, standing at the border and making the white flag work,” the statement by Stalin read.
He alleged that PM Modi and the BJP workers were attempting to divert people’s attention from the clashes happening in Manipur. “Thiru Modi and co are using the Sanatan ploy to divert the attention from the facts including the killing of more than 250 people in the riots incited in Manipur and the Rs 7.5 lakh crore corruption,” he charged.
This comes as BJP leaders from Tamil Nadu met Governor RN Ravi on Thursday, September 7, and submitted a memorandum for his intervention in filing cases against Udhayanidhi Stalin for his alleged hate speech against Sanatan Dharma.
BJP leaders from Tamil Nadu met Governor RN Ravi & submitted a memorandum for his intervention in filing cases (in line with the Hon Supreme Court’s guidelines) against Udhayanidhi Stalin for his alleged hate speech at the 'Sanatana Eradication' conference and for the dismissal… pic.twitter.com/wuPUq8YceQ
The leaders also demanded the dismissal of Minister PK Sekar Babu for being a part of the ‘Sanatana Eradication’ conference. They said that the Minister had violated his oath to office by attending the conference.
On Saturday, September 2, the Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development of Tamil Nadu said, “Mosquitoes, dengue, flu, malaria, corona – we should not oppose these things. They’ve to be eradicated completely.”
Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Tamilnadu CM MK Stalin, and a minister in the DMK Govt, has linked Sanatana Dharma to malaria and dengue… He is of the opinion that it must be eradicated and not merely opposed. In short, he is calling for genocide of 80% population of Bharat, who… pic.twitter.com/4G8TmdheFo
“The same is the case with Santanam (Hinduism). Our first work should be to abolish/eradicate Sanatanam instead of opposing it. So, my appreciation to you all for giving an apt title to the meeting,” he further added.
Earlier in December 2022, Udhayanidhi Stalin announced that he and his wife belong to the Christian Faith. “I am proud to call myself a Christian, all the Sanghis today will be burning,” he was quoted as saying.
On Wednesday, September 6, massive tensions erupted in the Kargil region of Ladakh over a Muslim man named Manzoor Ahmed marrying a Buddhist girl and converting her to Islam. Locals led by the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) staged protests in the region and demanded the implementation of anti-conversion law in the Union Territory. The locals held posters and placards and also raised slogans saying, “Love Jihad Band Karo (Stop Love Jihad).”
According to the reports, all the businesses and commercial services also remained closed as the protesters conducted a rally in Kargil raising their voices against Love Jihad. The demonstrators also submitted a written memorandum to B D Mishra, Lieutenant governor of Ladakh demanding anti-conversion law in the UT.
According to the memorandum submitted by the demonstrators, an agreement was executed about 30 years ago between the Muslims of Leh and the Ladakh Buddhist Association pledging not to convert people, especially women, through monetary allurement, misrepresentation, and fraudulent tactics. This agreement specified stringent criteria requiring all communities to swiftly return converted women to their parents in order to promote community cohesion and fraternity.
“However, it has been seen that the vested interests with strong communal dispositions seek to violate the agreement at will,” read the memorandum.
The locals stated that incidents of forceful conversion can disturb the religious harmony and tranquillity of Ladakh. They have also demanded strict action against the Muslim man who lured the Buddhist girl for money and married her. The two are absconding at present.
The incident is said to have happened on July 20 this year. BJP’s Ladakh unit vice-president Nazir Ahmed’s (74) son Manzoor Ahmed (39) married a Buddhist woman and also is said to have converted her by luring her for money. Manzoor reportedly is already married and his first wife works in a private company in Delhi.
Following the incident, the BJP expelled Nazir Ahmed from his position in the party and stated that the party had approached Nazir Ahmed to lodge an FIR in the matter but he did not respond.
Ahmed said that he and his wife had gone on Haj pilgrimage for the last 40 days and they knew about their son’s marriage only after they reached Srinagar on July 20 on their way back to Leh. He said that his son had married a Buddhist woman without informing them. “My son went against us and married the girl. I didn’t do anything wrong,” Nazir was quoted as saying as he got expelled from the party.
Nazir Ahmed was expelled from BJP (Focus News)
He also said that he went to Srinagar and Delhi to look for his son but could not find him and the girl. “I had asked the party to give me some time. But I was expelled. I will always remain a BJP loyalist. I don’t support my son in his decision,” Ahmed said.
Meanwhile, the BJP stated that the decision to expel Nazir was made at a party executive meeting presided over by BJP’s Ladakh unit president Phunchok Stanzin. It stated that Nazir was given “ample time” and an opportunity to explain his involvement in a sensitive issue.
In the absence of a satisfactory response from him, the official statement stated that “a decision has been reached to promptly relieve Nazir Ahmed of his responsibilities as [BJP’s Ladakh unit] vice-president and revoke his primary membership [of the party] with immediate effect.”
Nazir was also summoned by the party on July 27 but he said that his son had gone untraceable with the woman. “I also contacted the travel agency where he worked (in Leh) but they expressed helplessness,” Nazir had said in his explanation to the party.
On 6th September, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot faced an awkward situation when he stopped his convoy near a group of youth at Bhilwara but got greeted with chants of Modi-Modi. As per reports, Gehlot reached Bhilwara at night to participate in Maharana Pratap Sabhagar of Municipality for Mission 2030 event. He was scheduled to meet business owners at the event.
राजस्थान: भीलवाड़ा में युवाओं को देखकर मुख्यमंत्री अशोक गहलोत ने रोका अपना काफिला, तो युवाओं ने मुख्यमंत्री के सामने ही लगा दिए मोदी-मोदी के नारे।
नारेबाज़ी के बीच गहलोत अपनी गाड़ी से निकलकर सभी का हाथ जोड़कर अभिवादन करते हुए मुस्कुराए और वापस गाड़ी में बैठ गए।#Rajasthan… pic.twitter.com/up5VyNxiq9
Following the meeting, CM Ashok Gehlot left for the circuit house for the night and noticed a group of people standing near Saraswati Circle. His convoy stopped right next to the group of youth, and he came out of the vehicle to wave at the group. However, the situation turned awkward for the CM as the youth started chanting Modi-Modi. Gehlot smiled and sat back in the vehicle immediately. As soon as the convoy started moving again, the youth started chanting Jai Shri Ram.
This is not the first time Gehlot has faced such a situation. In April this year, Gehlot attended an IPL match between Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giants in Jaipur. Upon seeing him on the ground, people started chanting Modi-Modi. A video of the incident went viral on social media.
Rajasthan Assembly Elections
The term of the Gehlot-led Congress government in Rajasthan is reaching its end. The assembly elections in the state are to be held around November 2023. The last assembly elections took place in December 2018. The term for the current government will end on 14th January 2024.
Recently, there has been a media buzz over the claims that the Modi government at the center is planning to ‘change’ the official name of the country ‘from’ India ‘to’ Bharat. A lot of politicians and intellectuals have come up with their opinions on the rights and wrongs and in-betweens of the idea.
Ministers in the government have already clarified that there is no ambiguity about the names and as the constitution clearly mentions, they mean one and the same. The usage of the word ‘Bharat’ in some ceremonial communications, like the dinner invite for G20 delegates from the Rastrapati Bhavan had triggered the buzz, and many political voices, mostly the Left and Congress, have jumped into the outrage.
In discussion with India Today’s Rahul Kanwal, ‘mythologist’ Devdutt Pattanaik made some bizarre claims about the origin of the country’s name. He tried to relate it to the Left favorite topics of casteism, Brahminism, and intolerance. Rahul Kanwal then asked economist and author Sanjeev Sanyal about Devdutt Pattanaik’s claims. Sanjeev Sanyal, who has written best-selling books, ‘The Incredible History of India’s Geography’, and ‘The Ocean of Churn’, dispelled the usual Leftist tropes and meaningless claims that Devdutt Pattanaik was trying to force into the discussion around the country’s name.
When Rahul Kanwal asked how Pattanaik responds to the claims that ‘Bharat’ is of Bharatiya origin and ‘India’ is ‘foreign’, Pattnaik claimed the idea of singularity is ‘Middle Eastern ideology’ while the concept of plurality is Indian. So when we promote ‘one name’, we are drifting towards the Middle East. Like our many gods with many names, Indians should celebrate diversity and encourage many names.
Rahul Kanwal then took the answer to Sanjeev Sanyal and asked him whether he agrees with the claim that picking one name means heading towards Middle Eastern sensibilities, and whether the names India and Bharat co-exist.
Sanjeev Sanyal said, “I don’t even understand what the debate is about. Bharat is a well-established name for India. It is right there in the Constitution. So is India. The Indian languages use ‘Bharat’ and we are all habituated to say India when communicating in English. There is nothing anywhere that says Bharat cannot be used. Using the word Bharat is not an ‘intrustion’ into the English language as some people are trying to claim.
The word ‘India’ has Indic origins, it is not ‘foreign’, says Pattanaik
Rahul Kanwal’s next question to Pattnaik was, “What is your understanding of the roots and origins of the name India?”
Pattanaik said, “The word India is not ‘foreign’ as some people are trying to claim. It comes from ‘Sindhu’, a river, that passes through India for several hundred kilometres. Arabs cannot pronounce ‘Sa’ so they started calling it ‘Hindhu’, Sapta Sindhu became Hapta Hindhu, Sindh Desha became Hindh, and 2500 years ago, a Persian king referred to India as ‘Hind’. The Greeks came to India, they could not say ‘Ha’ so they used ‘EE’, so instead of Hindu, they say Indu. Thus Sindh became Hindh, and then Ind-Indus.
Pattnaik even linked the word Indus to Indumati, Lord Ram’s grandmother. He claimed that the word originated from Sanskrit, from the Rigveda.
Rahul Kanwal then took the same question to Sanjeev Sanyal, asking him his opinion about the word India being ‘foreign’ and Bharat being ‘native’.
Sanjeev Sanyal cites the Battle of Ten Kings from Rigveda, the Bharata tribe, and their Ashwamedha Yagya
Sanyal, in his quintessential style, stuck to facts and evidence. Sanyal clarified that the word India is foreign with an Indian origin. The term Bharat, Sanyal explained has 2 origin stories. The older origin story is from the Rigveda where a tribe named Bharata lived in the Sapta Sindhu region.
In the early bronze age, a tribe named Bharata lived in the area that is now roughly Haryana, they used to call their homeland ‘Sapta Sindhu’. The Bharatas were attacked from the West, by a coalition of 10 other tribes. There was a great war on the banks of Ravi, then called Parushni. The Bharatas completely decimated the attacking tribes and emerged victorious. They also defeated another tribe named Bhedas around the banks of Yamuna. The Bharatas thus established the first ’empire’ in those times. Their chieftain, named Sudas, performed the first Ashwamedha Yagya to become the first Chakravartin Samrat of India. His symbol was the wheel. What we see in the later Mauryan symbol, the wheel in our flag, actually goes back to the early bronze age, to the Bharata tribe.
The Bharata tribe lived in the Sapta Sindhu. The Bharatas reached out to all the tribes around them and compiled the Vedas, adapting their gods, and their traditions, and assimilating their cultures, knowledge and belief systems in a grand ritual. All the gods and all the identities of the tribes were given a place in the form of the first 3 Vedas.
The very last chant of the Rigveda is a ‘contract’, the idea of assimilation and plurality that creates the idea of being ‘Bharatiya’. By the Iron Age, the whole landscape of the Indian subcontinent assimilated around a common identity, the idea of the Indian civilization. That last chant of the Rigveda, symbolic of our shared identity as a civilization, is commonly used even today.
It mentions the seven rivers, the tributaries of the ancient Saraswati. The southern rivers of Godavari and Kaveri, find a mention here too, Sanyal explained.
“The Sapta Sindhu becomes the land of the Bharatiyas. In Persian texts, there is a phonetic shift. Sa becomes Ha, like in modern Assamese. Sindhu does not mean the Indus river in isolation, it links to the ancient Sapta Sindhu, the 7 rivers around which the Rigvedic civilization was built. The Hindu eventually becomes India, as Devdutt explained. However, the random extrapolation of Indumati is unrelated to the word India”, Sanyal narrated.
Devdutt Pattnaik tries to bring in casteism, Brahminism, untouchability, etc. randomly into his statements
Rahul Kanwal asks Pattanaik if he sees the emergence of the word Bharat in the context of this being the native name of our country.
Pattnaik then gives the Rigvedic origin of the word Bharat. He then says that the word is again mentioned in Mahabharat, which happens in the northern parts of India, the Kuru Panchala region that is the modern Delhi, Mathura etc. The first instance of the word ‘Bharata Varsha’ carved in stone is seen in Odisha’s Hati Gumpha (elephant caves), 2500 years ago, referring to only the Gangetic region, northern India, not the entire India.
Devdutt Pattnaik claims that Bharat is a name given by ‘Brahmins’
Pattnaik says that Bharat is a name given by Brahmins, referring to some parts of Northern India. He then adds that even ideas like Bharat Varsha, Arya Desha, Bharat, etc. are very ‘North Indian, Brahminical words’. There is another Bharat, in Jain traditions, the son of Rishabhdev, a Jain Tirthankara. Pattnaik then claims that he actually believes that the word Bharat came from Jain traditions but “we don’t value Jain traditions”. Jainism was very powerful at one time, but it was driven out. In Karnataka and Tamil Nadu etc, Bharata Chakravathi is known in a big way, but it is not the North Indian Bharat. The South Indian Bharat comes from Jain traditions.
So after he gave the Rigvedic origin of the word Bharat, Devdutt Pattanaik claimed North Indian Brahmins obliterated the idea of South Indian Bharat in his very next statement.
Sanjeev Sanyal busts the myth and explains how the claim of Brahminical dominance is meaningless
Rahul Kanwal then asks Sanjeev Sanyal his opinions on the North Indian Bharat vs. South Indian Bharat and Pattanaik’s claim that the idea of Bharat is a ‘Brahminical creation’ by the Brahmins in the way they saw history.
Sanyal states in a matter-of-fact tone that though some of the things said by Devdutt are correct, his interpretation is completely garbled, and even incorrect in some instances. Citing examples, Sanyal explains that Pattnaik’s claim that the battle of ten Kings happened in the Kurukshetra is entirely wrong. It happened on the banks of Parushni, that is Ravi, Western Punjab. Though the claim of Pauranik and Jain traditions are right, and there indeed was a Jain King Bharat, who was a Chakravartin Samrat, a descendant of Jain king Rishabhdeva, the founder of Jain traditions.
Sanyal then explains that Rishabhdeva’s son Nabhi also was a great conqueror and the land of Jambudweepa was also known as Nabhi Varsha. Sanyal added that it is meaningless to claim that there is a North India vs. South India or Brahminical vs. Jain idea behind this. By the time the Pauranas were written, South India had been more than comfortably a part of the wider identity of Indic civilization, he adds.
The oldest Tamil text, Tolkaippyam, the Tamil Grammar, the first enunciation of Tamil identity, is mentioned as being based firmly on the 4 Vedas, Sanyal adds. “When the Tamils proclaim that they are the people living between the Venkata hills in the North and Kumari hills in the South, they agree that their identity is based on the Vedas”, he explains.
Bharat word is imposed by Brahmins, India is older: claims Devdutt Pattanaik
Devdutt Pattnaik disagrees with Rahul, claiming the outsider Vs indic narrative comes from Chanakya Neeti of divide and rule, like Sam, Dam, Dand, and Bheda. He added that the word India, though called so by Greeks and Persians, did not originate from them, it comes from an Indian river. “It is the Brahmins who controlled the literature of our land. The word Aryan comes from Brahmins, but the Jains and Buddhists look at Aryans very differently”, he claims next.
Pattanaik then makes a complete flip and reverses his timeline, claiming that it can be argued that the Brahmins appropriated the word Bharat from the Jains, but the word Sindhu is a Vedic word. Even the idea of ‘internal’ and ‘external’ is Brahminical, because Brahmins claim that what is internal is pure, what is external is ‘Mlechha’, or impure. He then went ahead and claimed that suggesting that the word India is foreign is a very ‘Casteist, Brahminical’ mindset like Sita became ‘impure’ when she crosses the Laksham Rekha.
Launching a totally random tirade about casteism and untouchability, Pattanaik then went ahead to claim that we should just ‘allow’ plurality and discard the ideas of inside and outside, native and foreign because technically, ‘we are all genetically African’.
He added that politicians are more powerful so they control the narrative.
Sanyal debunks Pattanaik’s bizarre claims of Brahminical dominance
Responding to the tirade of Pattanaik, and claims of ‘Brahminical dominance’ asserting the word Bharat was appropriated from Jainism, Sanyal first pointed out to Rahul Kanwal that Pattnaik has just repeated the word Brahminical and Brahminism several times and has not answered the question at all.
The fact of the matter is the Vedic tradition predates that of Pauranic traditions and Jain traditions. The ideas of the Sapta Sindhu and Bharata tribes have been around since times older than these traditions. Coming to the Puranas, they say clearly that the people living south of the Himalayas and north of the ocean are called ‘Bharatiya’. “I don’t understand why this should be a garbled argument about Jains vs. Brahmins. All the Indic religions clearly understand and celebrate the fact that there is a civilization living between the Himalayas and the ocean that calls themselves Bharatiya.”
“The word India has origins in India agreed, but it is not an Indian word. By the time Sindhu became Hindu and it is started to be called India, it became a foreign word. It is not a bad word, everyone uses it, and I use it myself. Nowhere the government has said it cannot or should not be used”, Sanjeev Sanyal stated.
‘We change names when we change religion’: Pattanaik goes incoherent again
Pattnaik then claimed that we change names when we change religion or discard a belief system. “Changing names is a ‘conversion idea’. Politicians do it when they want to ‘convert’ from one identity to another”, he argued. Citing examples of China, Bhutan, Egypt, Germany etc, Pattanaik added that all great civilizations are called differently inside and outside and are comfortable with it. He then added that if Indians do not want to be called Indians (and rather call themselves Bharatiya), it means that they no longer want to be a great civilization and become monotheists. He then insinuated that choosing one name is a ‘Brahminical idea’. At the same time, Pattanaik claimed that this Brahminical idea is more like a Middle Eastern idea.
India is Bharat, and the constituent assembly agreed on this, The Constitution says it: Sanyal
Sanyal again asks what is the point of a debate when ‘India that is Bharat’ is accepted, enshrined, and acknowledged by the government and the people. “The Constitution of India begins by saying ‘India that is Bharat’, the Hindi version says ‘Bharat arthaat India’. So there is just no debate about one word being more important than the other. If everyone agrees that is alright to have multiple names, why is it that the usage of Bharat has rankled up the old elite. I think when the old elite was reading the constitution, they misread it as ‘India that WAS Bharat’. it is not so. The Constitution says ‘India that IS Bharat’, concludes Sanyal.
On September 7, in an exclusive interview with Tucker Carlson, an American commentator, author Larry Sinclair revealed that he had gay sex with former US President Barack Obama twice in the year 1999. He also claimed that Obama snorted cocaine with him and had no problem with engaging in gay sex.
“I was in Chicago looking for a party. I asked the driver and made him clear what exactly I was looking for. Then I was holed up in a bar outside. There was this guy who introduced himself as Barack Obama. The driver knew him well as he called Barack his friend. He dropped me and then I left. I gave Barack $250 to pay for coke and start putting a line on a CD tray, and just snort,” Sinclair said.
He also added that he did not know who Barack Obama was then and that he was not aware of his political background, if any. “The bar where we met was quiet and after some time when we headed to the car, I just started rubbing my hand along his thighs to see where it was going, and it went the direction I had intended it to go,” Larry added who has written a book on the incident named, ‘Barack Obama and Larry Sinclair: Cocaine, Sex, Lies and Murder’.
Ep. 22 Larry Sinclair says he had a night of crack cocaine-fueled sex with Barack Obama, and that Obama came back for more the next day. Assess for yourself. Here’s our interview. pic.twitter.com/R6CXwKv6gs
Larry reiterated that he had sex with the former US President that night and also indicated that Obama had been engaged in gay sex for quite a long before meeting him. “It was definitely not Barack’s first time,” said Sinclair, when Carlson asked him if the intercourse was transactional.
The driver then dropped Larry to his hotel and the next morning, Barack again arrived at Larry’s room with intentions to have more sex. “The same thing happened. He smoked crack and we picked up from where we left last night,” Sinclair indicated.
On asking how he felt after he learned that Obama had begun campaigning to become the US President in the year 2004, Sinclair laughed and said that he was shocked. “I hit the floor. I laughed hard and could not believe that this was the same person. I even told my friends that I had sex with Obama twice in the year 1999 and all were shocked,” Sinclair added.
Further during the interview, Sinclair claimed in considerable detail to have had sex with Obama twice, once in the back of a limo and once in a hotel room in Gurnee, Illinois.
Notably, Larry Sinclair had made similar statements in the year 2008 in a press conference at the National Press Club. He had stated that he had sex and snorted drugs with Barack Obama in the back of a limousine in 1999 while Obama was a state legislator.
The ‘claims’ were however rubbished by Obama and Sinclair was arrested after the press meeting at the National Press Club. However, reports mention that Sinclair never offered any proof of his ‘allegations’. Sinclair also holds an extensive criminal record that comprises charges of forgery, fraud, and larceny. He reportedly has also served time in an Arizona prison.
Obama’s personal life was never a secret. Earlier, DuJan, founder and editor of the Hillary Clinton-supporting website HillBuzz.org stated that Obama was a homosexual and used to visit several gay bars in Chicago. “Nobody who knew Obama in the gay bar scene thought he could possibly be president. Obama used to go to the gay bars during the week, most often on Wednesday, and they said he was very much into older white guys,” he was quoted as saying.
Also, Wayne Madsen, an investigative journalist who served as a Navy intelligence analyst for the National Security Agency from 1984 until 1988 stated that Obama was a member of the East Bank Club in Chicago, which is one of several locations described by the Chicago LGBT community as a “gay gym,” where gay persons gather and engage in sexual activities.
Meanwhile, Tucker Carlson asserted that the media withheld reporting on the charges put up by Sinclair in the past, out of fear of losing access to the top politician. “Nobody reported it not because they were squeamish about sex or drugs but because the Obama campaign said anyone who reports on this gets no access to the Obama campaign,” he said.
