Saudi Arabia may host a summit on August 5 and 6 to find ways to negotiate between Russia and Ukraine amidst the ongoing war between the two countries. As per Wall Street Journal report, diplomats from around 30 countries may participate in the event including India.
An official of the Saudi Arabia government has said in a statement that Saudi Arabia plans to host a Ukraine-organised peace summit in early August. The summit will be aimed at starting negotiations over the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. The official said on the condition of anonymity that Ukraine, Brazil, India, South Africa and several other countries may participate in the summit.
The official said no one is authorised to discuss the summit in public as of now. There is a possibility that a high-level official from US President Joe Biden’s administration will also join the summit. The reports of the summit came at a time when US national security advisor Jake Sullivan recently completed his visit to the Kingdom. As the event will be overseen by Kyiv, Russia’s attendance is not expected.
An official spoke to Associate Press on the matter and said the summit would be a follow-up step to the talks that took place in Copenhagen in June this year. Notably, in May 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attended an Arab League summit in Jeddah to talk to the nations attending the summit to back Ukraine in the ongoing war. So far, Arab nations have largely maintained a neutral stand on the matter as they have military and economic ties with Moscow.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman may look towards raising his profile on the international platform by hosting such peace talks. In the past, he has sought to reach a détente with Iran and pushed for peace between the Kingdom and Yemen.
Saudi Arabia and Russia have close relationships as they are part of the OPEC group. Notably, Biden and American lawmakers have expressed their displeasure over OPEC’s decision to cut oil production amidst a price rise due to the Russia-Ukraine war. Furthermore, there have been differences between the Kingdom and the West in the dismemberment of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul that US intelligence agencies claimed took place on the orders of Prince Mohammed.
Russia Ukraine war
In February 2022, Russia launched a military action against Ukraine. Since then, Western countries have supported Ukraine in the war. Ukraine, which wants to join NATO countries, has approached several countries, including India, seeking support. However, India and several other countries have maintained a neutral stand. On the contrary, Western countries imposed heavy sanctions on Russia, resulting in a spike in energy prices in the international market.
Interestingly, India is among the top beneficiaries in all this mess as it found a silver lining and increased crude oil purchases from Russia. Recent reports suggested that India has saved around USD 7 billion in foreign exchange in 14 months by buying crude oil from Russia at a discounted price.
Days after more than a year-old tweet thread of the popular Twitter account “True Indology” caused a storm in Maharashtra with both opposition and ruling parties demanding punishment for allegedly disrespecting Savitribai Phule, True Indology has clarified that the contents of the original Twitter thread were misinterpreted.
Posting through Twitter account @BharadwajSpeaks, he sought an apology from all the Maharashtrian politicians and said that he will close the Twitter account for good and will not express his political opinions on social media.
The posts by True Indology came after senior BJP leader and Maharashtra Deputy CM split the online supporters of BJP in the middle by commenting that he would like to see True Indology hanged for his comments on Phule, but action will be taken as per law.
क्रांतिज्योती सावित्रीबाई फुले यांच्याबाबत आक्षेपार्ह लेखन करणाऱ्या आरोपींवर कारवाई करण्यासाठी ट्विटरकडून माहिती मागण्यात आली आहे. तीन वेळा आतापर्यंत पत्र लिहिण्यात आली आहेत. हे आरोपी शोधून कोणत्याही परिस्थितीत त्यांच्यावर कठोर कारवाई करण्यात येईल. विरोधी पक्ष अशा विषयात राजकारण… pic.twitter.com/baXM9BTNYs
Many in RW see True Indology as an icon who successfully countered fake history peddled by the left. The account used quotes from historical books to counter the left, which was admired by people on the right.
However, he was not popular among all the right wing supporters for various reasons, and with Devendra Fadnavis joining that group, the split became most prominent.
In his statement, True Indology states that the entire controversy erupted because his Twitter thread posted more than a year ago was published by two portals Indic Tales and Hindu Post selectively, leaving out crucial details. He says that Tweets where he acknowledged the contributions of Savitribai Phule, his assurance that he respects Phule and his intention was not to dishonour or insult social figures revered by society etc were left out by the portals.
Calling it a misunderstanding caused by selective reporting of his comments, True Indology said, “I hope people see that I don’t deserve to be lynched for a misunderstanding.”
He explains that his intention was to point out that the British colonialists of 1850 were worse than the British soldiers of 1930, as the colonialists indulged in large-scale sexual exploitation of girls. He says that he only questioned why British would respect Savitribai Phule when they had no respect for Indian women, and he didn’t make any explicit claim.
True Indology said that his comments were misinterpreted to suggest that Savitribai Phule supplied girls to the British, which could only be the reading of a dirty mind. He said, “The bad intentions were only in the mind of the British and I very clearly said it. Savitribai Phule herself did not know this and might have been a victim of the British propaganda. She might not even have realised their actual motives. Yes, I did mention that Savitribai Phule praised British rule. My only criticism directed at her was that she did not fully understand the character of the British rule.”
Referring to the FIR against him which alleges that he insulted the OBC community as Phule was an OBC, he said that he never talked about any caste or community in the original thread. He added, “If I have unintentionally disrespected the OBC community, I render an unconditional apology to all of them. I am nobody to judge historical figures of the past and I also withdraw my comments against Phules. I render an apology to the Phule family as well.”
True Indology also said that the section 505(2) (creating ill will between communities) invoked against him also baseless, as his threat didn’t mention any community. He added that it is an irony that section 505(2) which was instituted by the British to prevent people talking about its atrocities has been invoked against him for his Twitter thread on British colonialsts.
“As our system still uses the same draconian colonial laws against its own people, I wonder whether my great country has really achieved freedom,” he added.
Saying that he wants to end the misunderstandings as his writings have been misunderstood and have offended a lot of people from various communities, True Indology reiterated that his thread was not about Phule or any community, but it was about the British.
“My threads did not imply that Phule was involved in British Sexual exploitation. Rather, they were also victims of the colonial project. However, such complex historical topics often run into misunderstandings. To end these misunderstandings, I intend to state that I would close this account for good and not express my political opinions on this platform,” implying that he will stop posting anything related to politics on Twitter.
True Indology added that he has an elderly mother with health issues and threats against him like threats to behead him and violently parade him have completely broken her. “Anything further and two lives will be destroyed.”
Therefore, he made personal requests to Devendra Fadnavis, Narendra Modi, BJP, Congress, NCP and all Maharashtra politicians to offer him clemency and give him back his life. “I apologise once again for unintentionally causing any hurt. It was never my intention,” True Indology wrote at last.
It is notable that an FIR was filed against Indic Tales, Hindu Post and True Indology in Mumbai in the first week of June, almost two months before the matter appeared in the assembly. After NCP leaders had protested against the portals and the Twitter account demanding action, chief minister Eknath Shinde had ordered an enquiry assuring that actions will be taken and any insults to public figures like Savitribai Phule would not be condoned.
The full statement of True Indology is reproduced below:
On May 31, an FIR has been registered against me for a twitter thread on Phule. Unfortunately, this thread was misquoted, misrepresented and misread. Everybody has judged my thread and my intentions based on its reproduction in two portals, Indic Tales and Hindu Post. I have not granted these portals any permission whatsoever to reproduce my thread. They posted my thread on their portals without my approval or consent. Unfortunately, they have partially quoted my views on the topic, leaving out my caveats and thus misrepresenting my own stand on the issue. A tweet where I acknowledged the contributions of Savitribai Phule has been left out. Another tweet where I had assured that I respect Savitribai Phule and my intention is not to insult or dishonour social figures revered by any section of society has also been left out. These statements were not made by me after issue became an outrage and FIR was filed. These statements were made long ago in the original threads itself when this issue was not even a political controversy. Therefore, disrespect towards revered icons like Savitribai Phule has never been my stand. I hope people see that I don’t deserve to be lynched for a misunderstanding.
It has been argued that my thread implied Savitribai Phule supplied girls to British. That is a complete misreading and misrepresentation of my argument.
The point of my thread was that British colonialists of 1850s were much worse than British Colonialists of 1930. In the thread, I posted scholarly citations to show that British soldiers of 1850s indulged in largescale sexual exploitation of hapless Indian Girls. This was known to and approved by top echelons of British Government. I raised a question as to why British would honour an Indian woman like Savitribai Phule when they had no concern for Indian women in the first place? Why would they be interested in education of Indian women if they were more than willing to sexually exploit Indian women?
This was the question of my thread. There was nothing else I explicitly said in the thread. This was misinterpreted to mean that I implied Savitribai Phule supplied girls to British. Such could only be the reading of a dirty mind. My – point was very far from it. The bad intentions were only in the mind of the British and I very clearly said it. Savitribai Phule herself did not know this and might have been a victim of the British propaganda. She might not even have realised their actual motives. Yes, I did mention that Savitribai Phule praised British rule. My only criticism directed at her was that she did not fully understand the character of the British rule.
In the FIR filed against me for this thread, it was stated that I insulted the OBC community to which Phule belongs.
I wish to state that I never talked about any caste or community in my original thread. I have deep respect for the Maharashtra OBC community, and I spoke very highly of many revered figures of that community several times in the past. For instance, on Ahilyabai Holkar alone, I wrote around 10 threads which expressed nothing but deepest admiration for her. My tweets are there for all to see. If I have unintentionally disrespected the OBC community, I render an unconditional apology to all of them. I am nobody to judge historical figures of the past and I also withdraw my comments against Phules. I render an apology to the Phule family as well.
Section 505(2) (creating ill will between communities) has been invoked against me. I wish to humbly submit that this is extremely untrue. How have I created ill will between two communities? I have not even mentioned a single community in my thread, forget about mentioning two communities and creating hatred between them. In case of Ahmad Lal Biloo, the honourable Supreme Court ruled out that section 505(2) does not stand because ‘There should be involvement of at least such two groups or communities (Para-15). The provisions cannot be exhausted merely because the feelings of one community or group were incited’. Along the same lines, I wish to humbly submit that section 505(2) cannot be invoked against me for this thread.
There is great irony at play here. This section 505(2) of IPC was instituted by British colonialists. When British were indulging in atrocities, they did not want anyone to talk about it. They claimed talking about British atrocities would create a feeling of ill will towards British and endanger the lives of British colonialists living in India. This is why the section 505(2) was instituted and invoked against people like Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Ironically, section 505(2) has been imposed on me after my thread about the deeds of British colonialists. The more things change, the more they remain the same. As our system still uses the same draconian colonial laws against its own people, I wonder whether my great country has really achieved freedom.
I am not a criminal. It is just that my writings have been misunderstood and have offended a lot of people from various communities. I wish to end this misunderstanding now. I reiterate that my thread was not about Phule or any other community. It was about British colonialism. My threads did not imply that Phule was involved in British Sexual exploitation. Rather, they were also victims of the colonial project. However, such complex historical topics often run into misunderstandings. To end these misunderstandings, I intend to state that I would close this account for good and not express my political opinions on this platform. I have an elderly mother who is ailing from severe health issues and depends on me. If I wish to live today, it is only because of her. Already, the plans of violently parading me and beheading me have completely broken her. Anything further and two lives will be destroyed.
This is my personal request to Devendra Fadnavis, Narendra Modi and BJP. This is my personal request to Congress, NCP and all Maharashtra politicians. Please offer some clemency and give me back my life. I apologise once again for unintentionally causing any hurt. It was never my intention.
A 14-year-old girl named Priya was wounded by a sudden gunshot on the night of 29 July when she went to see a Muharram procession in the Gidarganj neighbourhood of the Darbhanga district of Bihar which comes under the Bahadurpur police station.
She was immediately admitted to Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital (DMCH). She underwent surgery and the bullet was taken out. She is presently out of danger. City Superintendent of Police Sagar Kumar reached the hospital after receiving the information where he met the relatives of the girl. He inquired about the incident and returned after that.
Her father, Devi Paswan, a resident of Kothia Basuari, revealed that he was at the Muharram procession at Gidarganj Water Bays Dam with his daughter and other family members when an unexpected sound like that of the bursting of a cracker was heard in the dark which led to an atmosphere of chaos.
Meanwhile, the minor reported that she was experiencing pain in the right rib cage. When he checked, blood was oozing out of the spot. Afterwards, she was quickly picked up and brought to the hospital.
Her X-ray showed that she was struck by a bullet following which she was taken to the operating theatre for further treatment. Her surgery was performed by Dr BK Mishra’s team.
However, it was unclear who shot the bullet and from where. There was a huge crowd and the area was relatively dark. It was earlier claimed that she was hit by an air gun, but after the operation, it was confirmed that it was indeed a bullet fired from a firearm.
SP Sagar Kumar stated that the matter is under inquiry. He said that action will be taken against the culprits after an investigation of the matter.
On 28th July 2023, Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya said that the Hindu holy site Badrinath was originally a Buddhist shrine. He made this statement while reacting to the proposed ASI survey of the disputed structure at the Gyanvapi complex in Varanasi.
Swami Prasad Maurya tweeted, “Are you missing the faith issue now? Is the faith of others, not a faith? That’s why we had said that no one’s faith should be hurt, so any dispute can be avoided by considering the status of any religious place on August 15, 1947. Otherwise one should be ready to accept the historical truth. Badrinath was a Buddhist monastery till the 8th century, after that, this Badrinath Dham was made a Hindu pilgrimage site, this is true.”
आखिर मिर्ची लगी न, अब आस्था याद आ रही है। क्या औरों की आस्था, आस्था नहीं है? इसलिए तो हमने कहा था किसी की आस्था पर चोट न पहुँचे इसलिए 15 अगस्त 1947 के दिन जिस भी धार्मिक स्थल की जो स्थिति थी, उसे यथास्थिति मानकर किसी भी विवाद से बचा जा सकता है। अन्यथा ऐतिहासिक सच स्वीकार करने के…
Swami Prasad Maurya also said, “If an inquiry is being conducted by the archaeology department, then all Hindu temples should also be investigated. Most of these temples have been built by demolishing Buddhist monasteries.”
This statement of Swami Prasad Maurya has been widely opposed in Uttarakhand. Uttarakhand’s chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami criticised his remarks. The Chardham Teerth Purohit Mahapanchayat strongly opposed the statement of SP General Secretary Swami Prasad Maurya regarding Badrinath Dham.
CM Dhami said, “The Samajwadi Party leader’s remarks on the Vaikuntha Dham on Earth, that is, Shri Badrinath Dham, a centre of faith for crores of devotees, are unfortunate. This statement made by a Samajwadi Party leader as a member of the ‘Mahathagbandhan’ reflects the anti-national and anti-religious mindset of the Congress and its allies. This thought also reveals the dominance of SIMI and PFI ideology prevailing within these parties.”
CM Dhami added, “It is natural for the alliance he is part of to make such statements. These people believe in appeasement. His name is Swami. At least he should think before making such a statement.”
Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati also criticised Swami Prasad Maurya for his statement about Badrinath. She tweeted, “Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya’s latest statement that many temples, including Badrinath, have been built by demolishing Buddhist monasteries and why the modern survey should be done of Gyanvapi Mosque alone but also of other major temples, is a purely political statement giving rise to new controversies.”
1. समाजवादी पार्टी के नेता श्री स्वामी प्रसाद मौर्य का ताजा बयान कि बद्रीनाथ सहित अनेकों मन्दिर बौद्ध मठों को तोड़कर बनाये गये हैं तथा आधुनिक सर्वे अकेले ज्ञानवापी मस्जिद का क्यों बल्कि अन्य प्रमुख मन्दिरों का भी होना चाहिए, नए विवादों को जन्म देने वाला यह विशुद्ध राजनीतिक बयान।
Ajendra Ajay, Chairman of Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee said, “Badrinath Dham is a symbol of the faith of crores of Hindus. Samajwadi Party’s character has always been anti-Hindu. They try to make the shrines of Hindus appear disputed. The SP leader’s statement is condemnable.”
The Chardham Teerth Purohit Mahapanchayat strongly opposed the statement of SP General Secretary Swami Prasad Maurya regarding Badrinath Dham. Mahapanchayat president Suresh Semwal and general secretary Dr Brijesh Sati said that Maurya should study first, and only then share his knowledge.
The Mahapanchayat said, “Swami Prasad Maurya is trying to shine his politics under the guise of religion. Badrinath is the main dham among the Char Dham, which is also called the Dham of Salvation. This Dham is famous from the time before Buddhism came into existence. Adi Guru Shankaracharya was in the fifth century. The Badrinath temple was renovated by him.”
On 29th July, Jammu and Kashmir Police said they had arrested a hybrid terrorist of the Al-Badr terrorist group. The terrorist arrested by the police has been identified as Arfat Yusuf, a resident of Rajpora Pulwama. Reportedly, he was planning terror activities in the valley. Police have also recovered arms and ammunition from Yusuf.
A hybrid terrorist of Al Badr namely Arfat Yusuf S/o Md Yusuf of Rajpora Pulwama arrested from Batmaloo with a Glock Pistol, 20 live rounds & 2 magazines. He had done terror acts in Pulwama & was in Srinagar for same. FIR 94/2023 U/s 13,23 of UAPA & 7/25 of IA Act at Batmaloo PS. pic.twitter.com/JzrgBq1Eks
An FIR under Sections 13 and 23 of UAPA and Sections 7 and 25 of the IA Act has been registered at Batmaloo Police Station. In a statement, a J&K police spokesperson said he was arrested from the Batamaloo area of the city based on specific intelligence. Police recovered incriminating material, including a pistol, 20 live rounds, and two magazines from his possession.
The spokesperson said that Yusuf was involved in terror activities being carried out in South Kashmir Range. He had come to Srinagar intending to initiate attacks in the city as well but was arrested before he could execute them. Reportedly, he was involved in two grenade attacks on security forces. The first attack happened on a CRPF vehicle in Rajpora, and the second one happened at the CRPF/RR Camp at Hawal, Rajpira Pulwama. Several terror cases have already been registered against him.
Hybrid terrorists and why they pose a serious threat
‘Hybrid’ terrorists can be defined as unlisted radicalized persons who carry out terror strikes and often slip back into their routine life without leaving any trace. As per security agencies, these hybrid terrorists are not ultras. However, they are radicalised by the anti-national forces enough that they are willing to carry out a terror strike.
Security agencies define these terrorists as ‘boys next door’ who are kept on standby mode by terrorist organizations. In between two tasks, these hybrid terrorists live their normal life. As they live among the general population, it is hard for security agencies to track and trace them, making them a serious threat to national security.
After his arrest on Saturday, July 29, a Kunnam judicial magistrate court sent writer and publisher Badri Seshadri to 14 days in judicial custody at Trichy central prison for his recent comments on the Manipur violence. Seshadri was arrested after a complaint was lodged by an advocate P Kaviarasu from Kadoor in Perambalur district. Badri Seshadri has been remanded in judicial custody till August 11.
Notably, Badri Seshadri was booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 153 (provocation), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups) and 505 (public mischief).
Seshadri was arrested early Saturday from his Chennai home following his statements about the Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud in connection with the Manipur unrest. Seshadri was arrested and taken from his Mylapore residence to the Perambalur district, where he was brought before the Kunnam magistrate and put in judicial custody until August 11.
“Yesterday, the Supreme Court like a big…I don’t know what words to say. ‘If you can’t do it (contain the violence), we will get down and do it.’ We should give a gun in the hand of Chandrachud (Chief Justice of India) and ask him to go there and do what he can to restore peace. Simply, talking anything without relation,” he had reportedly said.
“Can you (judiciary) enter into the realm of governance? What fault did you find in what is being done [by the government] there [to restore normalcy]? Two groups are fighting. It is a hilly terrain. A complex land. In that, a few murders will happen. Why did they fight? Could we have prevented the reason for the two groups fighting? It can’t be done easily,” Seshadri was quoted as saying.
BJP Tamil Nadu chief K Annamalai had criticised the arrest by the Tamil Nadu police and said, “@BJP4TamilNadu Strongly condemns the arrest of renowned publisher and stage speaker Mr. @bseshadri by the Tamil Nadu Police early this morning.”
On Saturday, 29th July, at least 10 police personnel got injured as protesters pelted stones at them in Nashik, Maharashtra. The protesters were agitating against the viral video of two women during Manipur violence. Police detained around 30 protesters following the stone pelting.
The Eklavya Adivasi Sanghatana, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and other local organisations organised the protest in Nashik. Thousands of young men joined the protest without wearing a shirt and organised a march to mark the protest. When they reached the Tehsil office, some tried to do a sit-in agitation in front of the Satana police station.
Notably, police said they did not have permission for a sit-in protest. Furthermore, the police informed the protesters that MLA could not accept the memorandum as he was attending the Assembly session in Mumbai. A heated argument took place between the protesters and the police after they pelted stones at the police personnel and the vehicles that were crossing the area. Following the incident, shops and other commercial establishments downed their shutter as a precaution.
In the name of solidarity march for #Manipur, protestors were seen vandalising roadside shops & vehicles and stone-pelting on police!
The march was organised by Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi, a key MVA ally in #Maharashtra. The vandalism happened in Satana city, near Nashik! pic.twitter.com/lJme0UmksF
The police had to use mild lathi-charge to disperse the protesters. Superintendent of Police Shahaji told PTI, “Ten police personnel were injured in the incident, and we have taken 21 people who indulged in stone-pelting in custody. The incident took place after the protest march. The additional force was called in immediately. The situation is now peaceful.”
The investigation into the matter is underway.
Manipur viral video case
On 19th July, a video of two women being stripped and paraded naked in Manipur surfaced on social media. The incident occurred on May 4, a day after Manipur violence started. It was reported first on May 18. Two FIRs were registered in the matter, the second of which was registered on June 21 at Saikul Police Station.
So far, seven arrests have been made in the case. The matter took a political turn, with opposition leaders stalling parliament proceedings over the case. The Manipur viral video case has been handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Delhi High Court has passed a unique judgment in a case of enmity between two families by asking them to plant 200 trees each to combat negative energy. As per reports, the families had filed an application to withdraw the case as they reached a compromise in January 2023.
In the judgment, Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma ordered both parties to plant 200 trees each in their respective localities to ‘counter the negative energy’. Justice Sharma said, “However, I consider that the negative energy of the parties should be put to an end by directing them to contribute to society. Hence, the petitioners in both cases are directed to plant 200 trees each in their areas. The place shall be identified by the investigating officer (IO) after consultation with the horticulture department, and he shall inform the petitioners 15 days in advance.”
The court also asked the IO to explore the possibility of geo-tagging the saplings so that the appropriate authority could monitor their progress. The families have to take care of the trees for five years. A compliance report is to be submitted in November 2023.
As per the first complaint filed in the case, on 4th March 2017, three members of one of the families went to the house of the second family and asked for their IDs for the purpose of getting them blankets that a candidate of a political party was distributing. The second family informed them that they supported another political party leading to a verbal dispute that turned into a fight.
In the second complaint in the matter, it was alleged that the first family was collecting IDs for distributing blankers when the second family picked a fight and beat them up.
Subsequently, two criminal cases were registered for the alleged offences of voluntarily causing hurt, trespassing after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restrain, attempt to commit culpable homicide and criminal intimidation.
In January 2023, both parties settled the matter outside court and informed the same that they had voluntarily settled it without any fear, force or coercion.
On Friday, July 28, a minor girl was gang raped in the Forbesganj area of Araria district in Bihar. The 17-year-old victim had gone to see the Tazia procession on Muharram along with her mother. However, the girl soon went missing and was later found naked in a nearby jute farm field.
The two accused, who have been identified as Mohammad Ashfaq and Mohammad Mumtaz, were nabbed by the locals. Ashfaq is 22 years old, while Mumtaz is aged 23. Both had come to Forbesganj on the occasion of Muharram.
The Forbesganj police arrested the accused persons after registering a case under POCSO Act on the complaint lodged by the victim’s mother. Meanwhile, a medical examination of the victim has been conducted. Both the accused are residents of Moti Tappu ward no. 14 Pathraha Panchayat, under the Narpatganj police station precinct. Both the accused have been sent into judicial custody.
Reportedly, at around 9 PM on Friday, juggling with sticks was taking place in the neighbourhood in observance of Muharram. The victim was watching the Muharram procession there. Soon after, she went missing from the spot. After locals started searching for her, they found her in naked condition in a nearby jute field. The people managed to get hold of the two accused near the agriculture field
“We arrested the accused under the POCSO Act in response to the complaint by the victim’s mother. We have also conducted the medical examination of the victim,” Aftab Ahmed, SHO of Forbesganj Araria said.
On 29th July 2023, UP STF detained Vijay Mishra, lawyer of assassinated mafia don Atiq Ahmed, near Lucknow’s Hyatt Hotel in Gomtinagar. He was arrested for allegedly trying to extort a businessman in Prayagraj, and a case has been registered against him. A team of the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh Police carried out the operation.
Vijay Mishra has been charged with demanding Rs 3 crore as extortion money, and a case has been registered against him at Attarsuiya police station in Prayagraj. The case was filed against him earlier this year following the murder of gangster Atiq Ahmed. Mohammad Saeed, a plywood trader, approached the police station and informed them about Vijay Mishra’s extortion demands. He claimed that Mishra threatened him with severe consequences if he didn’t comply.
On 15th April 2023, three miscreants shot dead gangster Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf while both were brought to the civil hospital in Prayagraj for a routine medical check. After the murder, the three miscreants stayed at the scene instead of fleeing and were apprehended by the police. Gangster Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were the main suspects in the Umesh Pal murder case. Earlier, Atiq had been sentenced to life imprisonment in the Umesh Pal kidnapping case by the Prayagraj court.
Mafia-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed was booked in many cases of extortion, murder, kidnapping, and criminal intimidation. He ran a gang of around 100 to 150 criminals and operated across various districts of Uttar Pradesh. Ever since his murder, his wife Shaista Parveen and another accomplice Guddu Muslim are absconding. Shaista Parveen used to head the gang operations when Atiq Ahmed was lodged in jail for the last many years.
