Sunday, April 5, 2026
Home Blog Page 181

Protests break out against the mismanagement in SSC examination, applicants demand immediate reforms in the exam, cite rampant tech issues

Aditi
-
0
Protests break out against the mismanagement in SSC examination, applicants demand immediate reforms in the exam, cite rampant tech issues

Thousands of applicants and teachers are protesting against the mismanagement in the ongoing Staff Selection Committee Commission (SSC) examination. On Thursday (31st July), the protestors gave a ‘Delhi Chalo’ call and gathered at Jantar Mantar seeking reforms in the examination, which receives lakhs of applications.

Thousands of students and educators gathered near the the Department of Personnel & Training (DOPT) office in New Delhi to meet to Minister of State for Personnel, Jitendra Singh to present their demands. However, the protestors alleged that the police used physical force to disperse them, even detaining many students and teachers for hours despite the protests being peaceful.

Why are the applicants outraged?

Phase 13 of the SSC exam began on July 24 and was to be concluded on August 1st, 2025. The protests stemmed from the rampant complaints of poor management of the examination, involving technical and logistical issues. The applicants have stated that at many exam centres, servers crashed, systems were unresponsive, and the equipment malfunctioned.

In some cases, the exam centres were reportedly allotted as far as 500 km away from the candidates’ homes or misallocated. This was made worse by last-minute exam cancellations, leaving the applicants who reached at the faraway centres bearing travel expenses, distraught.

“Even if we manage to reach the centre after spending thousands, we are told the exam is cancelled. There’s no clarity on rescheduling. Our time, money, and most importantly, crucial years of preparation are being wasted. Who is answerable for that?” a protesting applicant reportedly said. Several applicants stated that when they raised concerns of mismanagement at the exam centres, they were manhandled or mistreated by staff and security personnel.

“Aspirants are being sent to far-flung centres, only to discover that the exam is cancelled. At some venues, cattle heads were kept on the ground floor while students were giving exams upstairs. Bouncers have been deployed to silence students who raise concerns. The mouse doesn’t work, and systems hang. This is what we’re facing,” a protesting teacher was told PTI.

Applicants told the media that there were rampant technical issues in the exams. Somewhere, the systems crashed, or the mouse stopped working. Some applicants were notified that their exam had been ‘cancelled’ just hours before, after reaching a faraway exam centre. Some said their exam was stopped midway, and nothing happened after complaining. Some applicants stated that the exams were delayed.

Applicants demand inquiry into mismanagement of the exam and immediate reforms

The teachers further claimed that during a meeting, the SSC director and officials admitted that they received 55,000 complaints related to the exam, which underscores the gravity of the problem. “If there are 3 lakh students and 55,000 have registered issues, that alone speaks volumes. SSC-CGL, with 30 lakh aspirants, is scheduled to start from August 13. How will SSC manage that with these broken systems?” the teacher reportedly said.

The protests found widespread support on social media with hashtags like #SSCVendorFailure, #SSCMisManagement, and #JusticeForAspirants trending on X. Many students shared their stories of lost opportunities, financial hardship, and emotional stress caused by these repeated administrative failures.

Several applicants and teachers have alleged that the police administration used physical force on them as they were protesting at Jantar Mantar and the CGO Complex. Several videos of a teacher being detained and taken away in police vehicles are doing the rounds on social media.

Protesting candidates and teachers at the Najafgarh Police Station after detention. (Image via X/India News)

As per reports, the tender to organise the SSC examination was given to a company with a dubious track record. Applicants are demanding immediate government intervention and reform in the examination, on which lakhs of young aspirants coming from the lower middle class and middle class pin their hopes.

Tender for the SSC exam was given to a company, which was once blacklisted

This year, the tender to conduct the SSC examination was reportedly given to a Bengaluru-based firm called Eduquity Career Technologies. The firm was previously blacklisted by the Directorate General of Training (DGT). However, subsequently, it was given the tender for conducting the MP Patwari recruitment examination in 2023. The firm is said to have organised several national and state-level examinations. But the track record of the company has been marred by mismanagement and paper leaks. The company was accused of mishandling the MP Patwari examination, paper leaks in teacher eligibility tests, and subcontracting duties by taking commissions. It firm has faced multiple allegations of technical issues and paper leaks in several other examinations conducted for the National Testing Agency and the Common Entrance Test Cell, Maharashtra.

Students have alleged that the company was given the tender despite its poor track record to cut the examination cost. As per reports, Eduquity was given the tender as it quoted a rate of ₹220 per student compared to the rate of ₹350 per student quoted by the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). The authorities’ sole focus on lowering the cost of conducting these examinations has cost the applicants their time and future, apart from the added cost of holding a re-examination, the protesters lament.

Chhattisgarh: ED raids 18 locations linked to ₹650 crore “medical supply scam” under Congress-rule, premises of jailed CGMSCL official searched- Read details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Chhattisgarh: ED raids 18 locations linked to ₹650 crore “medical supply scam” under Congress-rule, premises of jailed CGMSCL official searched- Read details

On 30th July, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) carried out raids at 18 locations around Chhattisgarh in relation to a medical supply scam worth over ₹550 (650 per some reports) crore.

Senior officials from the Directorate of Health Services (DHS) and Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation Limited (CGMSCL) were involved in the money laundering scam, along with Mokshit Corporation which transpired during the Congress government of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.

Apart from a few “middlemen,” the action happened on sites connected to certain government officials, medical suppliers and agents in Raipur, Durg, Bhilai and the neighbouring regions.

The team also searched the residence of Kamalkant Patanwar, former deputy manager (equipment) of CGMSCL who is lodged in jail. The fraud entailed buying equipment and reagents without verifying their availability or necessity in state-run medical facilities.

The Enforcement Directorate acquired documents pertaining to Mokshit Corporation from the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) which uncovered evidence of money laundering after which the action was initiated.

The background of the scam

According to Chhattisgarh Anti Corruption Bureau and Economic Offences Wing, the CGMSCL conspired with Mokshit Corporation and its shell firm to make transactions of billions of rupees between January 2022 and 31st October 2023. An 18,000-page chargesheet against six individuals submitted in April is the basis for the ED investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The chargesheet accused them of purchasing medical equipment and reagent chemicals in a dubious manner, resulting in a loss of ₹550 crore for the state exchequer. EOW-ACB also executed a joint raid in this matter, six months prior.

On 22nd January, the ACB/EOW launched a complaint against representatives of the Directorate of Health Services department and the state-run Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation Ltd (CGMSCL) in Raipur. Four companies were also booked: Records and Medicare System HSIIDC (Panchkula, Haryana), Mokshit Corporation (Durg), CB Corporation (Durg) and Shri Sharda Industries (Raipur).

Shashank Chopda, director of Mokshit Corporation, Basant Kumar Kaushik, Chhirod Rautia, Kamalkant Patanwar, Dr. Anil Parsai and Deepak Kumar Bandhe were named in the chargesheet. They were working with the CGMSCL at the time.

An ACB/EOW official conveyed, “Kaushik was the in-charge general manager (equipment) and deputy manager (purchase and operations) of CGMSCL. Rautia and Bandhe were biomedical engineers. Patanwar was then deputy manager (equipment) and Parsai was then deputy director (stores).” According to the official, Chopda was taken into custody on 29th January and the others were detained in March.

The probe agency stated that in one case, it was discovered that the EDTA tube used to collect blood samples was bought from Mokshit Corporation for ₹2,352 per piece, whereas other institutions were able to buy the same material for a maximum of ₹8.50. According to the ACB/EOW, Mokshit Corporation gave the CBC machine which is offered on the open market for ₹5 lakh to CGMSC for ₹17 lakh.

The purchase process which takes several months was completed in just 26 days. The scam was also raised in the state assembly. The purpose of the current raids was to find proof of connections between public officials and private organisations in the state’s healthcare procurement system, financial irregularities and deceptive sourcing methods.

2008 Malegaon blast case: Special Court orders inquiry against ACP Shekhar Bagde of ATS for planting evidence to implicate the accused

OpIndia Staff
-
0
2008 Malegaon blast case: Special Court orders inquiry against ACP Shekhar Bagde of ATS for planting evidence to implicate the accused

On 31st July, a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Mumbai acquitted 7 accused including Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt. Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. An investigation into the potential planting of evidence by a Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officer was also recommended by special judge AK Lahoti.

According to the NIA inquiry, two Army officers observed Shekhar Bagde who is currently the assistant commissioner of police (ACP), visit the residence of the accused Sudhakar Chaturvedi on 3rd November 2008. The agency took over the probe regarding this case from the ATS in 2011.

In its chargesheet and court submissions, the NIA also disclosed that Bagde had unlawfully entered the residence of Sudhakar Chaturvedi, an individual implicated in the Malegaon blast and planted traces of RDX there. Chaturvedi served as a military informant and resided with Lt Col Purohit in the Deolali Cantonment region of Nashik.

Purohit was also apprehended in connection with this case, facing charges of conspiracy in addition to supplying RDX and manufacturing explosives. The judge acknowledged that the NIA referenced the statements of an army major and a subedar during its investigation. Both individuals reported that when Chaturvedi was away from home, Bagde quietly entered his residence and hid evidence of RDX there.

The two Army men also informed the court that Bagde instructed them not to report this to anyone, however, two days later, the ATS team conducted a raid on the house and used cotton swabs to find a substance resembling RDX, which they reported was used in the Malegaon blast.

The court remarked that the actions of Bagde arouse suspicion. Furthermore, the ATS failed to offer any clarification on this issue. Hence, it concluded that the entire case points to the likelihood of “evidence planting” (deliberate creation of false evidence).

The court also stated that certain medical certificates which documented the injuries of the purported victims were provided by non-accredited physicians at the request of ATS officials and refused to accept them. It discovered that some medical certificates had been intentionally altered and mandated an investigation into the bogus medical certificates.

The Supreme Court granted bail to Lt Col Purohit in 2017 and highlighted the dubious conduct of ATS official Bagde. It stated, “During scrutiny of the proceedings of the Court of Inquiry (CoI) carried out by the Army, a different story of assembling of IED in the House of Sudhakar Chaturvedi (A-11) came to light.”

“During re-examination of the witnesses by the NIA who deposed before the Court of Inquiry (CoI), it was revealed that they suspiciously found API Bagde of ATS in the house of A-11 when A-11 was not present in the house. On considering the facts narrated by the witnesses, the question arises here as to why API Bagde visited the house of A-11 in his absence,” it declared.

A copy of the ruling will be forwarded to the DGP (Director General of Police) Maharashtra, DG (Director General) ATS, and DG NIA. At the ATS’s request, the judge also asked authorities to look into the falsification of the medical records of 6 of the 101 bomb victims and those of unlicensed medical professionals.

The judgment regarding the Malegaon blast spans over 1000 pages and indicates that Maharashtra’s leading investigative body, the ATS, along with the central agency, the NIA were unable to uncover any substantial evidence to support the case against the accused persons.

How the probe was messed up by ATS

The judgment decisively dismantled the prosecution’s case. The court ruled that no cogent material was presented against any of the accused. Specifically, the court noted that the ATS failed to produce any evidence that the motorcycle used in the blast belonged to Pragya Thakur. The judge observed that she had become a Sadhvi at least two years prior to the blast and the prosecution failed to establish her link to the plot.

The court noted that “no material was brought on record” to show that explosives were ever stored at Col Purohit’s residence. It added that even basic investigative procedures were ignored: the sketch of the alleged storage room was never drawn, and the forensic samples were found to be contaminated. The court further rejected the ATS’s narrative around Abhinav Bharat, a right-wing organisation allegedly founded by Thakur and Purohit, saying there was no evidence that the group used its funds for terror activities.

Married woman drags underage boy to court, claims he had ‘raped’ her with promise of marriage, Uttarakhand High Court dismisses case

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Married woman drags underage boy to court, claims he had ‘raped’ her with promise of marriage, Uttarakhand High Court dismisses case

In a recent ruling, the Uttarakhand High Court has junked a rape case against a minor boy who was accused of raping an older married woman on the pretext of marriage. Married to another man, the complainant woman, who is also a mother, was in a relationship with the accused boy who was a minor at the time the allegations were made.

Justice Pankaj Purohit dismissed the criminal proceedings against the accused on the ground that it was a “consensual relationship”.

The woman had alleged that the accused raped her with the promise of marrying her, and also threatened to make her obscene videos viral on social media.

Based on the woman’s complaint, the accused youth was summoned by Kashipur Judicial Magistrate’s court under Indian Penal Code Sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) in 2022.

The judge asked that how can a 28-year-old mature woman, who is also mother of a 7-year-old son, could engage in sexual relations with the boy on the basis of a marriage promise. Judge Purohit also raised question over the legal validity of such a promise allegedly made by the accused since he was a minor at the time.

“It was a consensual relationship that deteriorated rather than a case of false promise. Cases like these are not only a burden on courts but also blot the identity of the individual accused of such a heinous crime,” the High Court noted.

The court also pointed out that the accused minor was not of legally marriageable age, the complainant on the contrary, was already married and was well aware of the marriage, adding that she even had a child from her marriage.

Moreover, the court stated that the proposal of marriage from the accused minor was not probable given the complainant was already married, the High Court quashed the complaint and the chargesheet against the accused minor and dismissed the criminal proceedings against him.

With the rise in cases of false rape cases being filed due to failed relationships or the breach of promise of marriage, the Indian courts are now exercising caution in entertaining such cases.

2008 Malegaon blast case: A timeline of the events orchestrated by Congress govt to frame Sadhvi Pragya, Lt. Colonel Purohit and others to propagate “Hindu terror” bogey

Rukma Rathore
-
0
2008 Malegaon blast case: A timeline of the events orchestrated by Congress govt to frame Sadhvi Pragya, Lt. Colonel Purohit and others to propagate “Hindu terror” bogey

On 31st July, Mumbai special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court acquitted all seven defendants in the explosion that tore through Bhikku Chowk in Malegaon in 2008. The incident resulted in the death of 6 individuals and injured 100 others.

The authorities under the Congress government accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Lt. Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit (who was serving at the time), Ramesh Upadhyay, Sameer Kulkarni, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi and Sudhakar Chaturvedi after the tragedy. However, the one of longest-running terror cases in the country eventually reached its logical conclusion.

It has also revealed the multitude of deception perpetrated by the Congress government which was desperate to sustain the narrative of “Hindu terror” and “saffron terror” while framing innocent Hindus to appease their minority voter base.

Timeline of the case

September 2008: A low-intensity bomb attached to a motorbike detonated close to Bhikku Chowk in Malegaon on the evening of 29th September 2008, causing panic and chaos in the area that is sensitive to communal tensions.

The tragedy transpired during the month of Ramadan and right before the sacred Navratri festival. On 30th September, a First Information Report (FIR) was submitted at Azad Nagar Police station in Malegaon.

The state’s ruling alliance was the Congress-NCP (Nationalist Congress Party, which subsequently split into two parts) while Congress-led UPA (United Progressive Alliance) was at the centre. Hence, the grand old party viewed it as an ideal opportunity to target the majority population and their religion in order to establish a misleading equivalence with Islamic terrorism and jihad.

October 2008: On 21st October 2008, Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) took over the probe arrested people connected to Hindu organisations, which gave rise to the divisive politics. This was the first time in India that the blast was attributed to members of Hindu outfits.

On 23rd October, Sadhvi Pragya Thakur whose motorbike was allegedly involved in the instance was taken into custody by the agnecy along with three others. It was by late Hemant Karkare who was killed during 26/11 attacks in Mumbai. According to investigators, she had given the vehicle to the accused and was actively involved in the planning.

Lt. Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit was arrested in November of the same year. He was detained on suspicion of being a major facilitator and ideologue. The ATS claimed that he organised meetings, recruited people and obtained the RDX used in the explosion through his affiliation with the organisation Abhinav Bharat. However, Thakur and Purohit were later given bail.

The plan was in full swing as government-controlled agencies were laboring extra hours to formulate the unfathomable concept of “Hindu terror” in the country. The ATS morphed the meaning of terror investigations and portrayed Abhinav Bharat as an organised crime gang in its enormous 4,000-page chargesheet.

January 2009: Thakur and Purohit were among the 11 arrested suspects against whom ATS filed a charge sheet in a special court on 20th January 2009. They were booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Sandeep Dange and Ramji, also known as Ramchandra Kalsangra were listed as wanted accused.

According to the special court in July, the accused would be tried in a Nashik court and the MCOCA’s regulations were not applicable in this instance. The Maharashtra government approached the Bombay High Court to challege the order in August. The court affirmed the MCOCA charges and reversed the ruling in July 2010. Afterward, Thakur and Purohit petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn the verdict, amonth later.

Congress government was attempting to instill the theory of Hindu terror in the minds of the populace while the arrested individuals were subjected to stringent laws and forced to go to courts to protect themselves from state persecution.

On 20th July 2009, Rahul Gandhi even claimed that “radicalised Hindu groups were a bigger danger than Islamist terrorist groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT),” in a conversation with US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer, according to WikiLeaks.

Digvijaya Singh emerged as one of the initial Congress leaders to publicaly invoke the term “saffron terror” to attack Hindus. He is the same individual who accused the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) of being responsible for the 26/11 attacks, thereby exonerating Pakistan.

February 2011: On 1st February 2011, another man named Pravin Mutalik was nabbed by ATS Mumbai taking the number of total arrests to 12.

April 2011: The case was turned over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on 13th April 2011 which carried out additional research and re-registered the offence. Meanwhile, the agency also apprehended Lokesh Sharma and Dhan Singh Chaudhary in February and December of 2012, taking the total of arrested individuals to 14.

The phrase was also officially sanctioned by the government in 2010. Home Minister P Chidambaram informed intelligence officials in New Delhi in August of that year that “saffron terror” was a phenomena linked to many explosions. The actions outlined the government’s resolve to promote falsehoods intended to disparage the Hindu community.

April 2015: The Supreme Court again referred the matter to special court to consider the applicability of MCOCA.

February 2016: NIA informed the special court that it had obtained the Attorney General’s view regarding the applicability of MCOCA provisions in this particular case.

May 2016: On 13th May 2016, the NIA launched several chargesheets, a supplemental chargesheet and withdrew charges under the MCOCA. However, they maintained the crucial allegations against Thakur and Purohit under the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) and the Arms Act.

Citing a lack of prosecutable evidence, NIA cleared multiple accused listed by the ATS. The NIA highlighted that they were brutally tortured and assaulted to elicit confessional statements and exposed significant flaws including planting evidence, in the ATS investigation.

The case was taken over by the NIA which shifted its course and uncovered the shocking conduct of ATS. The revelations only further highlighted the malicious intent of the Congress government which clearly wanted to tarnish the reputation of Hindus and portray them in the same manner as dreaded jihadis, globally.

April 2017: On 25th April 2017, Thakur was granted bail by the Bombay High Court on health grounds but refused the same to Purohit who secured it from the Supreme Court on 21st September. All individuals were also released on bond by the end of the year.

On 27th September, Shivnarayan Kalsangra, Shyam Sahu and Praveen Mutalik Naik were discharged from the case by the special NIA court. The court also dismissed accusations of funding terrorist activities and being part of a terrorist group under the UAPA.

Furthermore, Thakur and six others were sentenced to stand trial under the UAPA, IPC and Explosive Substances Act but the MCOCA charges were withdrawn.

The accused were penalized for their Hindu identity, while the actual perpetrators evaded any legal proceedings for their offenses. The animosity towards the majority and the drive to appease the minority was so profound that even a sadhvi and army officials were not exempt from the party’s selfish political interests.

October 2018: On 30th October 2018, the trial began after the seven defendants were formally charged. They were tried for terrorist acts under the UAPA alogside murder as well as criminal conspiracy under the IPC.

The accused were Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Lt Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit, Major (Retd) Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sameer Kulkarni. On 3rd December, the first witness in the case was examined before the trial commenced.

Thakur, Purohit and others who were earlier framed under the Congress regime continued to suffer owing to the case which altered the trajectory of their lives forever.

September 2023: On 14th September 2023, the prosecution chose to close its evidence after questioning 323 witnesses, 37 of whom became hostile.

July 2024: On 23rd July 2024, the examination of defence witnesses (eight) was completed. Over 10,800 exhibits and a significant amount of evidence were submitted during the trial. During the inquiry, more than 400 objects were also confiscated.

On 12th August, section 313 of the Criminal Procedure Code allowed a special court to record an accused person’s final statements. The case was posted for the final arguments between prosecution and defence.

The exceedingly tedious case continued as the accused were not only defamed worldwide but also faced severe health crises such as cancer (Pragya Thakur) and other ailments due to the severe torture they endured at the hands of the ATS only to force them to confess to a crime they never committed.

Thakur and Purohit have consistently conveyed how they were repeatedly abused by the officials to obtain fabricated confessions from them.

April 2025: The prosecution and defence ended their concluding arguments after more than 16 years. The prosecution also included documentary evidence and legal citations with almost 1,300 pages of thorough written arguments. On 19th April 2025, the judgement was reserved.

The NIA court postponed its decision in May. According to special judge AK Lahoti, he required extra time because the case’s paperwork and evidence were extensive. “The next date, i.e., 31st July, I want all the accused to be present. If any accused remains absent, there will be legal action against them.” Afterward, he pronounced the judgement on the given date proving them innocent and closing the case after 17 years.

Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde even cried “Hindu terrorism” in the Parliament and then later denied using the term. He even took the names of Bharatiya Janata Party along with RSS for training and promoting the same before he was forced to express regret, amid strong protests by the saffron party. However, Congress leaders had supported his outrageous accusations.

The NIA court has now finally busted the fraudulent narrative of “Hindu terror” and “saffron terror,” despite every effort of the Congress-led ecosystem. Likewise, Union Home Minister Amit Shah also declared in the Parliament, “Today I proudly declare to the world and the people of the country that a Hindu can never be a terrorist. Hindus can never be terrorists.”

Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, who was at the forefront of the ‘Hindu terrorism’ campaign, now says terrorism shouldn’t be linked to any religion

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, who was at the forefront of the ‘Hindu terrorism’ campaign, now says terrorism shouldn’t be linked to any religion

Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Thursday claimed that terrorism should never be associated with any religion. His statement came after a special NIA court acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case.

Among those acquitted were BJP MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Prasad Purohit. The court concluded that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

“No religion, whether Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, or Christian, supports terrorism,” Singh said in an interview with at the Parliament complex. He claimed that he never alleged that RSS was behind the Mumbai blasts. He said, “I would like to repeat that RSS had no role in the Mumbai terror attack. The allegations made against me are false.”

Singh further said, “Hatred gives birth to terrorism. It’s not right to link religion with terrorism.”

Singh, who used to used the terms “saffron terror” and “Hindu terror” regularly in the past, denied having ever used the terms. He said, “It’s incorrect to claim that Congress coined the term ‘Hindu terror’,” adding that violence stems from individuals who twist religious teachings, not from the religions themselves.

While Digvijaya Singh is now claiming that he never accused RSS of the Mumbai terror attack, he was famously present at the inauguration of the book titled 26/11 RSS Ki Saazish?  (26/11, An RSS Conspiracy?) in 2010. In the book, author Aziz Burney pushed Congress party’s allegations against the RSS, and pinned the blame on RSS for the Mumbai Terror attacks that were carried by Pakistan-based Islamic terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba.

In the book, Burney had given a clean chit to terror-state of Pakistan by claiming that it was not the ISI or LeT that was behind the attack, but the RSS with covert support from Mossad and the CIA. Burney had also claimed that the ATS chief Hemant Karkare, who lost his life in the Mumbai terror attack, was killed by the Indian Army. 

To give credence to the book, Digvijaya Singh had himself inaugurated the book, not once but twice, once in Delhi and then in Mumbai.

During the book release, Singh had alleged that Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare had called him two hours before the 26/11 attack in Mumbai to say that his life was blighted by constant threats from those opposed to the ATS probe into the 2008 Malegaon blast in which ‘Hindu extremists’ were accused. Thus, Singh had exonerated Pakistan and had decided to push the blame of 26/11 attack on RSS and Hindu extremists.

His remarks drew widespread backlash, with Karkare’s widow, Kavita, accusing him of politicising her husband’s death in a statement to The Indian Express.

Later, Singh attempted to soften his earlier remarks, clarifying that he had, in fact, called Hemant Karkare, not the other way around,and that he never questioned that Karkare was killed by Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists. He even offered to present his call records but claimed that BSNL could not provide them as it did not retain data older than a year.

Speaking at the Islam Gymkhana in Mumbai during the local release of Burney’s book, Singh once again warned about the threat posed by radical Hindu groups. “Regarding the 26/11 attacks, I clearly stated that there should be no doubt they were carried out by Pakistani terrorists,” Singh said. “However, what is also certain is that Hemant Karkare was under immense pressure,” he had added.

‘Sanatan Dharma respects women’: Shifa in MP undertakes ‘ghar wapsi’ to become Shanvi, marries Rahul in a Shiva temple

OpIndia Staff
-
0
‘Sanatan Dharma respects women’: Shifa in MP undertakes ‘ghar wapsi’ to become Shanvi, marries Rahul in a Shiva temple

A Muslim girl from Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh has done “ghar wapsi” after being influenced by Sanatan Dharma. She stated that women are held in high regard in the religion and also married a Hindu man named Rahul Verma in a temple. She also changed her name from Shifa Rain to Shanvi. The event transpired on 30th July.

The wedding took place at the Mahadevgarh temple in Khandwa after she renounced Islam. She also performed “rudrabhishek” of Lord Shiva. According to media reports, she lives in Khandwa Chhatarpur. Her marriage was conducted by Pandit Ashwin Khede according to Hindu traditions. Hundreds of women in attendance sang Mangal (Hindu wedding ballads) songs during the ceremony.

Krishna Patel, who lives in Sirpur performed the auspicious “kanyadaan” (giving away of the bride) and gifted the newly married couple a copy of Shri Ramcharit Manas.

Shanvi expressed that she has been drawn to Hinduism since her childhood. She mentioned that from a young age, Hindu deities would bless her in her dreams, leading her to return to the fold of Hinduism. She emphasized that women are honored in Sanatan Dharma. Goddesses Sita and Durga are worshipped in the religion. The young woman added that she found joy in witnessing all of this.

She was inspired by Sanatan Dharma and chose to marry Rahul Verma of her own accord. “I had heard a great deal about Mahadevgarh through social media. Therefore, I had made a vow to marry only at the this temple. Bholenath granted my wish. Now, his blessings will be upon both of us,” the happy bride voiced.

Commerce minister Piyush Goyal reiterates Centre’s position on trade deals, says India will protect its interests amid Trump’s tariff blow

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Commerce minister Piyush Goyal reiterates Centre’s position on trade deals, says India will protect its interests amid Trump’s tariff blow

On 31st July 2025, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal informed the Lok Sabha that India will prioritise and protect its interests while negotiating any bilateral trade deal. He said that the government is analysing the implications of the recent 25% tariff announcement by US President Donald Trump.

“In March 2025, India and the US started talks for a just, balanced and mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). The goal of this was to finish the first stage of the Agreement by October-November 2025. On 2nd April 2025, the US President issued an executive order on reciprocal tariffs… 10% baseline duty in effect since 5th April 2025. With a 10% baseline tariff, a total of 26% tariff was announced for India. A full country-specific additional tariff was scheduled to come into effect on 9th April 2025. But on 10th April 2025 this was extended initially for 90 days and then extended till 1st August 2025,” Minister Goyal said.

Piyush Goyal told the Parliament that protecting the welfare of Indian farmers, labourers, entrepreneurs, industrialists, exporters, MSMEs and stakeholders of the industrial sector remains the top priority of the Central government.

“Government is examining the impact of the recent events. Ministry of Commerce and Industry is holding talks with exporters, industries and all stakeholders and gathering information on their assessment of this issue. Government gives utmost priority to the safeguarding of welfare of farmers, labourers, entrepreneurs, industrialists, exporters, MSMEs and stakeholders of the industrial sector. We will take all necessary steps to safeguard our national interest,” the minister said.

From fragile five to a bright spot in the global economy: Piyush Goyal hails India’s economic growth trajectory as Trump calls Indian economy ‘dead’

The minister highlighted that within the last decade, India became the fastest-growing economy in the world, uplifting itself from being one of the fragile 5 economy. Minister Goyal attributed India’s economic rise to the contributions of its farmers and MSMEs. He said that India, through reforms and MSME’s and industry’s efforts are currently the 4th largest economy and will soon become the third largest economy.

“Today, global institutions and economists see India as a bright spot in the global economy…” he said.

Piyush Goyal’s remarks in the Lok Sabha came hours after Trump called India and Russia ‘dead economies’ in a post on Truth Social.

The commerce minister also stated that India contributes to 16% of global growth and that the Modi government has taken transformative measures during the decade to promote India as the manufacturing hub if the world through Make in India.

India looking for to signing more constructive  and mutually beneficial FTAs

Besides, he pointed out that Indian exports have also increased during the last 11 years. In an increasingly protectionist world, India has signed mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreements with UAE, UK, Australia and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) nations, which include: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

“We are also committed to similar trade agreements with other countries. We are successfully working for the welfare of farmers and Indian agriculture to promote prosperity and ensure food security The government is confident we will continue our fast paced journey of inclusive growth and sustainable development towards the goal of Viksit Bharat 2047. Aatmanirbharta ki ore Bharat aatmavishwas se badh raha hai,” Goyal said.

Sadhvi Pragya spent nearly a decade in prison over allegations of owning the motorcycle used in Malegaon Blasts, now Court says there is no evidence of that at all

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Sadhvi Pragya spent nearly a decade in prison over allegations of owning the motorcycle used in Malegaon Blasts, now Court says there is no evidence of that at all

On Thursday, July 31, an NIA Court in Mumbai acquitted all accused in the Malegaon blast case, including Sadhvi Pragya and Lieutenant Colonel Purohit. In the verdict, the court said there is no evidence to establish that the bike, allegedly used in the 2008 Malegaon blast that claimed six lives, belongs to former BJP MP Pragya Thakur.

The judge noted that while the prosecution had proved that the blast happened but it failed to establish that the explosive was fitted on the LML Freedom motorcycle allegedly belonging to Ms Thakur. The court also ruled that prosecution could not prove that the motorcycle belonged to the Sadhvi. The court said what was known from the beginning, that Sadhvi Pragya and others accused in the case were framed by the then Congress government using fabricated evidence.

“The motorbike’s chassis number was wiped out, and the engine number is in doubt. There is no evidence to show Sadhvi Pragya Thakur is the owner and no evidence to show she had the vehicle,” the judge said, acquitting her after what has been one of the longest terror trials in the country.

The court observed that the blast site was not properly barricaded, leading to contamination of the crime scene, which undermined evidence collection.

Notably, the prosecution had alleged that the bomb was fitted on a gold-coloured LML Freedom motorcycle registered under Sadhvi Pragya’s name. A witness had identified the ruins of the vehicle and said he saw it at the blast site on the day of the blast. According to a chargesheet, Sadhvi Pragya had provided the motorbike for the blast to her close associate Ramji Kalsangra.

Interestingly, initial news reports immediately after the blast had said that the bomb was hidden under the seat of a Hero Honda Passion motorcycle. But when the chargesheet was filed, it somehow became an LML Freedom motorcycle allegedly owned by Sadhvi Pragya Thakur.

The recent verdict marks the end of a 17-year-long legal journey involving Pragya Thakur, the daughter of an Ayurvedic healer from Madhya Pradesh, who rose to national attention after being accused of involvement in terror attacks, allegedly as retaliation for earlier incidents like the 2006 Mumbai train bombings.

In her late 30s at the time, Thakur became a controversial figure associated with what came to be known as “Hindu terror,” a term that gained prominence following the 2008 Malegaon blasts. She was accused of recruiting individuals for the attack, while another accused, ex-Army officer Prasad Purohit, was alleged to have supplied the explosives. Both have now been acquitted, along with five others.

Present in court when the verdict was pronounced, Thakur addressed the judge, expressing that from the beginning, she had maintained that any investigation must be based on solid evidence. “I was summoned, arrested, and tortured. It destroyed my life. I was leading a spiritual life when I was wrongly accused. No one stood by us. I survived only because I am a Sanyasi,” she said, adding that there was a deliberate attempt to tarnish the image of saffron. “Today, saffron and Hindutva have triumphed, and those truly guilty will face divine justice,” she said.

Speaking to NDTV, Thakur’s sister Upma Singh said they always believed in the legal system and maintained Pragya’s innocence from the start.

The accusation and the Blast

The prosecution had alleged that the explosions on September 29, 2008, were caused using a bomb fitted onto a motorcycle. The Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) discovered that the LML Freedom bike involved had a fake registration number, and the chassis and engine numbers had been tampered with. Forensic analysis managed to restore the engine number, tracing the bike’s registration back to Pragya Thakur, leading to her arrest on October 23, 2008.

Thakur has long claimed she was tortured while in police custody. In 2014, the National Human Rights Commission launched an investigation into her allegations but concluded there was no evidence to support her claims.

In 2019, Thakur stirred controversy by suggesting that former Mumbai ATS chief Hemant Karkare, who was killed during the 26/11 terror attacks, died because of a “curse” she had placed on him. She claimed Karkare was determined to implicate her despite a lack of evidence. “I told him he would be destroyed, and a month later, he was killed by terrorists,” she had said. Following public outrage, she retracted her statement, acknowledged Karkare’s sacrifice, and referred to him as a martyr.

Malegaon blasts, and Mumbai train blasts: How did the Maharashtra ATS during the UPA govt mess up probes, resulting in both cases falling flat in court

Anurag
-
0
Malegaon blasts, and Mumbai train blasts: How did the Maharashtra ATS during the UPA govt mess up probes, resulting in both cases falling flat in court

On 31st July, an NIA Court acquitted all accused in the Malegaon blast case, including Sadhvi Pragya and Lieutenant Colonel Purohit. This marks the second case in less than two weeks where the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra Police’s investigation during the UPA era fell flat in court. Earlier, on 22nd July, all 12 accused in the 7/11 Mumbai Blast case were acquitted, raising serious doubts over the investigative capabilities of the then ATS teams.

In the 7/11 case, the accused walked free because the ATS failed to prove their guilt in the Mumbai High Court. Notably, 5 out of 12 were sentenced to death and the remainder were sentenced to life imprisonment in the case by the lower court. Despite the presence of evidence including material used to build bombs, jihadi literature, etc., the investigating agency heavily relied on confessions recorded under MCOCA, which were found to be insufficient by the High Court as there was no supporting evidence. Furthermore, important evidence such as CDRs was destroyed by the investigating agency citing procedure. Had it been preserved, the agencies could have established the movement of the accused at the place of the blasts.

In the Malegaon blast case, a “Hindu terrorism” narrative was built and Sadhvi Pragya, Col Purohit and others were made scapegoats. ATS, as well as the National Investigation Agency that took over the investigation in 2011, failed to provide any substantial evidence against the accused in court, leading to the acquittal. In this case, the real perpetrators are still unknown, as the narrative was attempted to be built around so-called “Hindu terrorism”.

Almost two decades of legal battles have fallen flat and the families of the victims continue to seek justice.

Mumbai train blasts 2006: What happened, and how ATS messed up the case

On 11th July 2006, Mumbai’s Western Line suburban train system was ravaged by seven near-simultaneous pressure cooker bomb explosions between 6:24 PM and 6:35 PM. A total of 187 people lost their lives and over 800 were injured during the evening rush hour. The initial investigation quickly attributed the attack to a conspiracy involving Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba and SIMI operatives.

The terrorists from Pakistan allegedly infiltrated India via Nepal and Bangladesh. Within weeks, the ATS arrested 13 men accused of orchestrating the terrorist attack. During the investigation, MCOCA provisions were imposed alongside IPC sections. In 2015, a special MCOCA court convicted 12 of those arrested. Five were sentenced to death and the rest received life imprisonment.

The verdict leaned heavily on confessional statements purportedly made by the accused. Eyewitness identifications were conducted months after the blasts and there was some unverifiable circumstantial testimony. The lack of a forensic trail, call-data records, travel logs and irrefutable material evidence connecting the accused to the bombs made the case weak in the High Court.

Despite loud assertions of dismantling a Pakistan-based terror ring, the ATS’s prosecution rested on shaky ground, constructing the narrative through associative inference rather than substantive proof. The court also raised serious doubts about the authenticity and voluntariness of these confessions by highlighting an unusual pattern.

Several confessions shared identical content, including the sequence of names and descriptions of events. The Bench noted it was “shocked” by the extent of similarity and even suggested that portions appeared to have been “copied”. The court observed that it was “beyond the realm of reasonable imagination” that such identical narration would occur naturally.

The verdict has been challenged in the Supreme Court. Though the apex court has stayed the High Court judgment, it clearly stated that the accused do not need to surrender as they were already released following High Court verdict. The High Court judgment came 19 years after the blasts and it is unclear how many more years it would take for the apex court to give verdict in the case.

The Malegaon 2008 acquittals: From explosive allegations to evidentiary collapse

Nearly 17 years after the deadly blast that shook Malegaon, a special NIA court in Mumbai acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case. The explosion occurred on 29th September 2008 using an improvised explosive device strapped to a motorcycle, detonated near a mosque. Six people were killed and at least 100 were injured. Now, following the acquittal of the seven accused, the question is, who was really behind the bomb blast?

Among the accused were high-profile names such as former BJP MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, Major (retd) Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sameer Kulkarni. All of these seven walked free after years of incarceration and legal battle.

The judgment decisively dismantled the prosecution’s case. The court ruled that no cogent material was presented against any of the accused. Specifically, the court noted that the ATS failed to produce any evidence that the motorcycle used in the blast belonged to Pragya Thakur. The judge observed that she had become a Sadhvi at least two years prior to the blast and the prosecution failed to establish her link to the plot.

In a scathing rebuke of the case handling, the court remarked that “no material was brought on record” to show that explosives were ever stored at Col Purohit’s residence. It added that even basic investigative procedures were ignored: the sketch of the alleged storage room was never drawn, and the forensic samples were found to be contaminated. The court further rejected the ATS’s narrative around Abhinav Bharat, a right-wing organisation allegedly founded by Thakur and Purohit, saying there was no evidence that the group used its funds for terror activities.

The case has long been surrounded by political and procedural controversies. Initial investigations were conducted by the ATS under the late Hemant Karkare. A chargesheet was filed in January 2009 that claimed a broad conspiracy aimed at targeting the Muslim community. The ATS had invoked MCOCA against all 12 original accused and claimed that “conspiracy meetings” had taken place in Bhopal, Indore and other locations. It argued that Thakur had provided the motorcycle and Purohit had supplied RDX to avenge attacks on Hindus.

The case was handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2011. A supplementary chargesheet was filed by the NIA in 2016 in which the agency withdrew all charges against Sadhvi Pragya. The agency told the court that there was no crucial evidence linking her to the attack. Furthermore, the NIA accused the ATS of “torturing witnesses” into making statements against her.

Despite the clean chit by the NIA, the special court initially refused to discharge Pragya citing ATS-collected materials that could not be ignored. Special Public Prosecutor Rohini Salian accused the NIA of going soft on Thakur. Salian was later removed from the case.

The judgment acquitting all accused exposed the deep fissures within India’s counter-terror apparatus. From the ATS’s controversial investigation and the NIA’s contradictory findings to prosecutorial reshuffles and public allegations of bias, the Malegaon 2008 case became emblematic of what happens when terror investigations are compromised.

How Congress fuelled the ‘Saffron Terror’ narrative

The acuittals in Malegaon blast have once again cast a harsh light on the political invention of the “Saffron Terror” theory. It was an idea vigorously championed by Congress leaders during the UPA regime. One of the most prominent voiced behind this narrative was Digvijay Singh who repeatedly described the RSS as a “bomb-making factory”. He blamed RSS for spreading terrorism in the country.

In 2008 and the years that followed, he sought to link the RSS and affiliated Hindu organisations to series of blasts including Malegaon, Ajmer Sharif, and even the Samjhauta Express.

This narrative was more than political posturing. In 2010, Home Minister P Chidambaram formally referred to “saffron terror” in an address to intelligence officers, while in 2013, Sushilkumar Shinde escalated the rhetoric by alleging that the RSS and BJP were running “terror training camps.” These statements, made from high offices of power, triggered a political firestorm and deepened communal divisions.

The narrative went global when WikiLeaks revealed that Rahul Gandhi, in a 2009 conversation with then US Ambassador Timothy Roemer, described “radical Hindu groups” as a greater threat than Islamist outfits like Lashkar-e-Taiba. Former NSA MK Narayanan also reportedly discussed “Hindu extremist groups” with then FBI Director Robert Mueller the same year.

While the Congress party often tried to distance itself from such remarks, the damage was done. Years later, as courts acquit the very people accused under these theories, the so-called “saffron terror” campaign now appears to have been a politically motivated detour, one that derailed investigations, weakened national unity, and undermined faith in the justice system.

What was lost – National security and credibility

The collapse of the two cases has shattered public trust. While in one case the conviction was overturned due to lack of evidence, in the other case innocent Hindu leaders, Army officials and a Sadhvi were dragged into a cooked-up case.

With these two judgments, broader institutional damage has been pronounced. It is evident that the ATS’s methodology repeatedly failed judicial norms and forced the courts to stage interventions over planted evidence, confessions obtained under duress, and coerced witness statements.

The losses are multifaceted. Victims’ families will continue to wait for justice, as one case remains in legal limbo and in the other, the real culprits are walking free. Closure has been denied. Public faith in an agency once heralded for dismantling terror networks is now deeply eroded. The ATS, once a symbol of counter-terror effectiveness, now appears compromised by politics, communal framing, and procedural shortcuts.

1...180181182...7,564Page 181 of 7,564

Contact: infoopindia.com

About us

News and opinion website that brings you reports and narrative from a perspective often ignored or suppressed by the mainstream media of India.

Follow us

© OpIndia.com