Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his Australian visit in Sydney by meeting executives of top multinational companies in the country.
On Tuesday PM Modi met Paul Schroder, Chief Executive Officer of AustralianSuper, a superannuation fund headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria. Prime Minister highlighted India’s credentials as one of the most preferred major economies for foreign investments in the world and invited AustralianSuper to partner with India.
Schroder is responsible for the leadership and strategic development of the fund and the provision of advice to the board. After his meeting with PM Modi, Schroder said, “Ours was the most impressive meeting. The Prime Minister is the most impressive person who understands business and who is very encouraging as well.”
“The Prime Minister talked about his dreams about India and is really ethic which is a very powerful message,” he said, adding, “AustralianSuper does invest in India of course and in particular in the Indian infrastructure fund and we have had a very good experience investing in India.”
Prime Minister Modi highlighted India’s credentials as one of the most preferred major economies for foreign investments in the world and invited AustralianSuper to partner with India, according to a statement from the ministry of external affairs.
Prime Minister Modi is on a three-day visit to the country to attend a bilateral meeting with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese. Modi arrived in Sydney on Monday and was welcomed by Australian High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farrell and other officials. He was greeted by the members of the Indian diaspora who chanted “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and “Vande Mataram”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday also met the executive chairman of Fortescue Future Industries, an Australia-based green energy and technology firm. John Andrew Henry Forrest AO, nicknamed Twiggy, is best known as the former CEO (and current non-executive chairman) of Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) and has other interests in the mining industry and in cattle stations.
Prime Minister Modi also interacted with Gina Rinehart, Executive Chairman of Hancock Prospecting. Georgina Hope Rinehart AO is an Australian billionaire mining magnate and businesswoman. Rinehart is the Executive Chairman of Hancock Prospecting, a privately owned mineral exploration and extraction company founded by her father, Lang Hancock.
Meanwhile, at the bilateral meeting to be held between PM Modi and Australian PM Anthony Albanese later this afternoon, the leaders will discuss trade and investment, including efforts to boost trade between the two countries through a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement and work to strengthen people-to-people links, renewable energy, and defence and security cooperation, said the official statement released by the Australian government.
PM Modi arrived in Sydney on Monday and was welcomed by Australian High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farrell and other officials. He was greeted by the members of the Indian diaspora who chanted “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and “Vande Mataram.”
In an exclusive interview with ‘The Australian’ newspaper, PM Modi said that he wants to elevate relations with Australia to the “next level,” which would entail deeper defence ties to support the creation of an “open and free” Indo-Pacific. “The Indo-Pacific faces a number of challenges such as climate change, natural disasters, terrorism, security of the sea lanes of communication, piracy, illegal fishing among others,” PM Modi told Cameron Stewart in an exclusive interview.
Calling his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese a “dear friend,” Prime Minister Modi said that the bilateral relationship between New Delhi and Canberra was being nourished by the fast-growing Indian diaspora residing there.
“Our people-to-people contacts remain a strong pillar of our partnership. The Indian diaspora in Australia has increased over the past years,” PM Modi said. “We have progressed significantly in the areas of defence, security. investment, education, water, climate change and renewable energy, sports, science, health, culture, among others” Prime Minister Modi told ‘The Australian’ newspaper.
Last year, on December 29, India and Australia implemented an economic cooperation and trade agreement (ECTA).
Notably, India-Australia bilateral trade exceeded USD 31 billion last financial year. Before emplaning for Australia, PM Modi visited Papua New Guinea where he co-chaired the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) jointly with his counterpart James Marape.
Earlier, he visited Japan where he attended the summit of the G7 advanced economies and held bilateral meetings with several world leaders. The Quad Summit was also held on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a three-day visit to Australia on Tuesday met the Executive Chairman of Fortescue Future Industries, an Australia-based Green energy and technology firm.
John Andrew Henry Forrest AO, nicknamed Twiggy, is an Australian businessman. He is best known as the former CEO (and current non-executive chairman) of Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) and has other interests in the mining industry and in cattle stations. According to the Financial Review, Forrest was the richest person in Australia in 2008.
The Prime Minister also met Paul Schroder, CEO of Australian Super, in Sydney. He was appointed Chief Executive of Australian Super on October 1, 2021, and is responsible for the leadership and strategic development of the fund as well as the provision of advice to the board.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Sydney as part of the third and final leg of his three-nation visit after concluding his visit to Papua New Guinea. PM Modi was received by Australian High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farrell and other officials upon his arrival in Sydney.
During his visit, PM Modi will hold a bilateral meeting with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese.
At their bilateral meeting, the leaders will discuss trade and investment, including efforts to boost trade between the two countries through a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement and work to strengthen people-to-people links, renewable energy, and defence and security cooperation, said the official statement released by the Australian government.
Members of the Indian diaspora also welcomed PM Modi as they chanted slogans of “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and “Vande Mataram”.
During the visit, the Prime Ministers will attend a community event in Sydney to celebrate Australia’s dynamic and diverse Indian diaspora, a core part of our multicultural community,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, Australian PM Albanese said he looks forward to visiting India in September in New Delhi for the G20 Leaders’ Summit, the world’s premier forum for economic cooperation.
Describing the relationship between India and Australia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the high degree of mutual trust between the two nations has naturally translated into greater cooperation over time, especially on defence and security matters.
In an exclusive interview with ‘The Australian’ newspaper, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he wants to elevate relations with Australia to the “next level,” which would entail deeper defence ties to support the creation of an “open and free” Indo-Pacific.
“India believes that these challenges can be addressed only through shared efforts,” he said, adding that he wanted India and Australia to press forward to realise the “true potential” of closer defence and security ties.
(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 May 22, the Jabalpur Bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed the second Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed to stop Bageshwar Dham’s religious event in the state. The event is scheduled for May 23 and May 24 at Rani Durgavati Mahavidyalay Ground, village Linga in Paraswada of district Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh.
हमारे सरकार कहते है प्रभु श्री राम जी वन गए तो बन गए…उसी वन के हृदय बनवासी भाई-बहनो के निमित पूज्य सरकार दो दिवसीय श्रीराम कथा सुनाने बालाघाट पहुँच रहे है….23-24 मई पूज्य सरकार के मुख़ारविन्द से राम के वन की संपूर्ण गाथा सुनिए सिर्फ़ बागेश्वर धाम सरकार के यूट्यूब/फ़ेसबुक पर…. pic.twitter.com/EfpfS2QCSA
— Bageshwar Dham Sarkar (Official) (@bageshwardham) May 22, 2023
During the hearing, Justice Vivek Agarwal warned the advocate of contempt of court if he continued to argue with the bench inappropriately. The advocate appearing for the “Tribal” organisation claimed that organising such an event would hurt the religious sentiments of the tribals. When Justice Vivek Agarwal asked him to explain the traditions of the ‘Bada Dev Bhagwan Sthal’ (Religious place of Tribals) of the area and how tribals’ sentiments would be hurt. The advocate read a paragraph from the petition that was vague with no detailed information on the local traditions.
Justice Vivek interrupted the advocate and explained his question in Hindi and English so that the counsel could understand. Confused by the question, the advocate could not provide any detail of the primitive traditions and said they do not have a problem if the event was held at another place. Justice Vivek said, “You are not answering my question. Who are you to decide where the event will take place and where it cannot take place?”
The advocate got agitated and said, “I am trying to explain it through Constitution but you are not listening to me.” Justice Vivek warned him to talk properly. Advocate said, “You are not listening to me. ‘Kuch bhi bole ja rahe hain’ (You are saying whatever you want)” to the judge.
Justice Vivek did not take the advocate’s tone lightly and asked to issue a contempt notice against him. The advocate continued to speak inappropriately and said, “I am trying to mention the provisions under Article 51 but you are not ready to listen.” He further asked the judge to listen to his argument first.
Justice Vivek again warned him of contempt if he continued to speak to the bench in an appropriate manner after which the advocate apologised. The advocate’s associate came and asked him to calm down. Justice Vivek, who was visibly angry at the way the advocate behaved, said, “First answer my questions then we will read the constitution. Don’t try to be over-smart. If you try to argue inappropriately, I will send you directly to jail from here.
Your practice will be finished.” He added, “You think that by behaving inappropriately (in the court) you will gain TRP). But you forget the day we send you to jail, your practice will be over”. “You are trained to behave inappropriately,” he added.
Interestingly, the advocate who submitted the PIL did not read the previous judgment that was given by Justice Vivek Agarwal on May 18 where he had dismissed a similar plea. When the advocate failed to explain the judgment, Justice Vivek pointed out it looked like a “sponsored PIL”. The PIL was dismissed on the ground that the advocate was not fully prepared. The advocate tried to argue that the event was scheduled for May 23 and May 24 to which the judge replied that he should have thought this before.
‘No need to take permission from Gram Sabha for events’
Earlier, on May 18, Justice Vivek Agarwal-led Jabalpur Bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed a PIL filed on behalf of Adivasi Vikas Parishad’s Dinesh Kumar Dhruve by Advocate Prahlad Choudhary. In the PIL, the petitioner argued that as the area was tribal, such events would affect them.
Justice Vivek asked to explain how it would affect the tribals, the counsel cited PESA Act and claimed permission of Gram Sabha was necessary for such events. He also argued that all the tribals in the area were against the event.
‘Bageshwar Dham events in view of upcoming elections’
Advocate Choudhary also argued that Madhya Pradesh Assembly Elections are scheduled in late 2023 and Bharatiya Janata Party is using Bageshwar Dham events to lure voters. He claimed that there has been a spike in invitations to Pandit Dhirendra Shastri Bageshwar Dham Maharaj to hold ‘Katha’ events across the state by BJP leaders. Furthermore, he claimed that such events cost crores that only political parties such as BJP can afford. Justice Vivek categorically asked him not to make political comments and pointed out that the article he was referring to was not listed in the documents.
Advocate Chaudhary launched an attack on Bageshwar Dham events claiming it promotes Hindutva and thus affects the social structure of the region. He claimed the leaders were using the stage for propagating religious disharmony.
Justice Vivek called out the advocate for filing a “sponsored” PIL. He said if such permissions were required, Gram Sabha should have approached the court, not some organisation. He added that there was no valid argument on how the event would affect the tribals.
Advocate Jahnvi Pandit argued for the state. She said that in PESA Act, the permission of Gram Sabha was not required. Furthermore, she pointed out the PIL looked sponsored. The state and local administration permitted looking into the law and order situation.
Series of attacks on Pandit Dhirendra Shastri Bageshwar Dham Maharaj
In the last few months, videos of Pandit Dhirendra Shastri Bageshwar Dham Maharaj have gone viral on social media, particularly for the reason of him being a firebrand Kathavachak promoting Hinduism. Lakhs of devotees attend his ‘Katha’ events. Recently, attempts were made to stop an event in Bihar by the state government. Reacting to the series of attacks against him, Pandit Dhirendra Shastri gave the example that when the elephant goes out on a round in the village, people feed it bananas, puris and various other dishes. Children worship the elephant as Ganesha. At the same time, stray dogs start barking at the elephant. In such a situation, if the elephant starts responding to the dogs, then people will call the elephant crazy. Therefore, the elephant keeps moving forward on its way ignoring those dogs.
Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has busted an active cell of the militant organisation ‘Al-Qaeda’ with the arrest of four Bangladeshi nationals, the officials said on Monday.
The accused have been identified as Mohammed Sojibmiya, Munna Khalid Ansari, Azarul Islam Ansari and Abdul Latif. “Based on the intel received, four illegal Bangladeshi immigrants working to recruit for ‘Al-Qaeda’ were arrested,” Gujarat ATS DIG Deepan Bhadran said.
According to the ATS, the accused attempted to radicalize people in Gujarat and sent money to Bangladesh as well.
“Gujarat, ATS got information that four Bangladeshi nationals were living illegally in Ahmedabad’s Odhav and Narol area on duplicate IDs. They are associated with Al-Qaeda and are motivating the muslim people of the city to join the militant organisation and are collecting funds as well for Al-Qaeda,” the official statement said.
Fake documents and incriminating literature were recovered from their home.
“The ATS during search operation got hold of duplicate Aadhaar card and PAN card from the accused as well as documents printed by the Al-Qaeda Media wing,” it said.
A case has been registered against the four under Sections 38, 39 and 40 of IPC,” the statement added further.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
In his recent confession in front of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), infamous gangster Lawrence Bishnoi has revealed his top 10 murder targets. Bollywood megastar Salman Khan is at the top of the gangster’s hit list. Bishnoi is presently serving his time in jail. The manager of the late Punjabi musician Sidhu Moose Wala is also on the list. Bishnoi also acknowledged using extortion funds received from businessmen to operate his criminal organisation.
Lawrence Bishnoi revealed extensive information to the NIA regarding his criminal endeavours and the numerous murders he has orchestrated. He said that when incarcerated in Bharatpur, Faridkot, and other prisons, he extracted a significant amount of cash from Rajasthani businessmen, amounting to crores of rupees in total.
Bishnoi also acknowledged extorting cash from 10 club owners in Chandigarh, mall owners in Ambala, liquor industry executives, and sporadic bookmakers in Delhi and Punjab.
The murder of Youth Akali leader Vikramjit, also known as Vicky Middukhera, was allegedly planned, according to Lawrence Bishnoi, who also named criminals Amit Dagar and Kaushal Chowdhary as participants.
The central investigation agency NIA was there when incarcerated criminal Lawrence Bishnoi confessed to his crimes and revealed his top 10 murder victims in December 2022. Their names are as follows-
Salman Khan, a Hindi film superstar
Shagunpreet, Manager of Sidhu Moose Wala
Mandeep Dhaliwal, Lucky Patial’s henchman
Kaushal Chowdhary, gangster
Amit Dagar, a gangster
Sukhpreet Singh Buddha, head of the Bambiha gang
Lucky Patial, a gangster
Rummy Masana, a henchman of Gounder gang
Gurpreet Sekhon, leader of the Gounder gang
Bholu shooter, Sunny Lefty, and Anil Lath, the murderers of Vicky Middukhera.
Lawrence informed the NIA that he intended to assassinate Rummy Masana, a sniper for his rival Gounder gang, in order to get revenge for the murder of his cousin Amandeep. After fugitive Harjinder Bhullar, also known by his alias Vicky Gounder, was slain by the Punjab Police in an encounter in January 2018, the Gounder gang was established. “Gurpreet is the current leader of the Gounder gang and he had provided weapons to Rummy Masana to kill my cousin”, Bishnoi said.
Bishnoi also revealed the specifics of his plot to assassinate the late Punjabi musician Sidhu Moose Wala, who was brutally murdered by gunmen in May of last year in Punjab’s Mansa region. Lawrence Bishnoi claimed to have sent Shahrukh, Danny, and Aman, three shooters to Moose Wala’s village in September and October of 2021. They were aided by Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and Mona Sarpanch to stay in the area. The strategy was later expanded, though, to accommodate additional shooters.
Lawrence purchased 25 firearms from arms dealers Kurban Chowdhary alias Shahzad for roughly Rs 2 crores between 2018 and 2022 with the aid of his close friend Rohit Chowdhary from Khurja in Uttar Pradesh. A 9 MM handgun and an AK 47 were among them. He said that Sidhu Moose Wala was murdered using these weapons.
On May 22, Karnataka’s newly appointed cabinet minister and Congress leader Priyank Kharge said that the education department suspended the school teacher for ‘breaking service standards’ after he criticised new state Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. He added that the newly formed state government has nothing to do with the suspension.
Congress responds to the controversy surrounding the teacher's suspension. Congress leader Priyank Kharge said that it's the education department that has taken action and not the government.@KeypadGuerilla shares more details with @kritsween. pic.twitter.com/tTf2fhBJ8Y
Speaking to the media, Kharge said, “I am not aware of the details of the post. We need to underline what kind of critical judgment has been posted on it. But if there is some malicious intent or there was some other way he wanted to communicate we will investigate it. If it is against the service rules, the department has to take action. It is nothing that the government initiated the action. The department has done so.”
Notably, the education department in Karnataka is not an autonomous body. It comes directly under the state government. Saying that the education department initiated the action and the government has nothing to do with it, seems a little strange in that scenario.
School teacher suspended allegedly for criticising Siddaramaiah-led Congress govt
On May 20, a primary school teacher identified as Shanthamurthy MG from the Hosadurga region of Chitradurga district was suspended after he shared a message on social media platforms criticising CM Siddaramaiah and his new government in the state of Karnataka.
In his post on Facebook, Shanthamurthy talked about the burden the state would face due to the freebies announced by the government. Soon after publishing the post, Field Education Officer L Jayappa sent him suspension orders. Additionally, a departmental investigation of Santhamurthy’s actions has been initiated.
Arbaaz Khan was arrested on Saturday, May 21, for inciting a riot in the Akola district of Maharashtra in which one person was killed and 10 others were injured. The Maharashtra Police revealed that Khan was the mastermind behind the violence in the city. It was also established that the accused edited the controversial Instagram chat and made a selective portion of it viral, which incited the Muslim mob who went on a rampage in the Old City police station area in the Akola district of Maharashtra.
An enraged Muslim mob had gathered at the police station and raised ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ slogans. The riots led to a huge loss of public and private property in incidents of vandalism and arson. As a result of the violence one person, identified as Vilas Gaikwad, lost his life and several were injured.
Arbaaz Khan’s arrest has come as a massive punch in the face of the left media, Islamists, and liberals who were busy spreading fake news and blaming Hindus for the Islamist rampage in Akola, Maharashtra.
It is worth noting that it took the Maharashtra police a week to gather tangible proof, only after which it named Arbaaz Khan as the mastermind behind the May 13 clash. In contrast, the Islamists, the usual coterie of leftist liberals, and their friendly media delivered a verdict pronouncing Hindus to be the aggressors almost as soon as the incident took place, despite having no proof to back their claims.
Two days after the clash, the ultra-leftist news portal The Wire, on May 15, published a report on the incident, in which it projected as if a Hindu mob was behind the unfortunate death of Vilas Gaikwad.
In its report, The Wire claimed that Gaikwad was an auto-rickshaw driver who belonged to the Dalit community. He had “KGN” written on his auto which stands for Khwaja Gharib Nawaz aka Khawaja Moinuddin Chisti. Quoting an unnamed eyewitness, The Wire claimed that Vilas repeatedly told the mob he was not Muslim but they were not convinced and attacked him. The lethal attack by Hindus, as alluded to by The Wire, left Vilas Gaikwad dead.
Several liberals on Twitter used this article by The Wire to spread the same lie, pinning the blame for the riot on Hindus. Twitter handle Muslim Spaces, shared the report by The Wire tagging Sukanya Shantha, a senior assistant editor at The Wire.
Akola: “Vilas Repeatedly Kept Telling Mob That He Is Not A Muslim! But Nothing Would Convince The Angry Mob!”
However, The Wire was not the only media outlet to portray Hindus as aggressors and Muslims as victims in the May 13 incident. Aaj Tak selectively shared footage wherein a crowd was heard chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogans. It was evident that the media house was clearly trying to mislead viewers into believing that Hindus were the aggressors in the incidence of violence in Akola.
Video news by a mainstream media:.
Now check how they're misleading viewers to believe that Hindus were the aggressors in the riot on Akola, Maharashtra. pic.twitter.com/TG61uAohqb
The media outlet did not care to share videos that emerged showing a violent throng assembled at the police station and shouting Sar Tan Se Juda chants. It is important to note that several individuals have lately been murdered for supposedly insulting Islam. Kanhaiya Lal was just beheaded for supporting Nupur Sharma when Muslim mobs across the country voiced identical chants. Umesh Kohle suffered the same fate for his support of Nupur Sharma.
Obviously, the misleading propaganda portraying Hindus as aggressors did not cease here. Several Islamists and their apologists went on attribute the violence to the recently released film The Kerala Story, saying that the film fostered hatred against Muslims.
This analogy was exploited by ‘journalist’ Rana Ayyub to portray Hindus as the perpetrators. In a post on Instagram, Rana Ayyub combined two unrelated occurrences, the screening of Kerala Story in Rajasthan and riots in Akola, to claim that the film provoked Hindus to assault Muslims.
A lady who goes by the name Mini Nair, who claims to be an author, also used the same argument to portray Hindus as the aggressors, “This is exactly what they want . Chaos! Kerala /TN avoided this. The vilification of the Indian Mslm is necessary for the BJPRSS, alle?” she tweeted.
This is exactly what they want . Chaos! Kerala /TN avoided this.
The vilification of the Indian Mslm is necessary for the BJPRSS, alle? https://t.co/YngYVKjkPK
Incidentally, Mini Nair is the same ‘feminist’ who had in 2020, ganged up with Islamists to indulge in their usual antics of blatant Hinduphobia and bashing of the Hindu festival of Holi. She said that Holi was terrifying for her as she found the festival discomforting back home in Kerala. Calling men monsters, the ‘feminist’ Mini Nair claimed that men back in Kerala, who she refers to as ‘Monsters’ caused her discomfort by endless banging on the door.
The Wire journalist Alishan Jafri also followed suit. He, too, concluded that the Akola incident was the result of a violent reaction by Hindu moviegoers who were enraged with all members of the minority community after seeing the ‘anti-Muslim’ film The Kerala Story.
It's not limited to your Muslim husband's personal views. Watch the violent reaction of the viewers. What happened in Akola and GMC Jammu? They seem to have forgotten that it's fiction and that the filmmaker has backtracked on his claim of 32k converted women. It is 3 now. https://t.co/7yaGPbrNB9pic.twitter.com/8L6fAN24ej
While this motley crew of liberals and Islamists is busy concocting conspiracy theories to blame the May 13 clash in Akola on Hindus, they should be informed that the Maharashtra police confirmed that arrested Arbaaz Khan is the mastermind of the May 13 violence. Khan played a crucial role in spreading the violence in the city. Akola SP Sandeep Ghuge confirmed that the violence began and revolved around a controversial Instagram chat. The violence escalated in the entire city only after the controversial chat went viral.
The saga is said to have begun after Sameer Sonawane created an Instagram page regarding the recently released movie ‘The Kerala Story’, which shows how ISIS indoctrinates and traps innocent Hindu girls, converts them to Islam, and then turns them into ISIS terrorists and sex slaves. Accused Arbaaz saw the Instagram page, which merely supported the movie, and started chatting with the page admin. The conversation soon turned into an argument with the duo using objectionable words. Later, some controversial part of that chat was highlighted and made viral in his community by Arbaaz which led to the violence.
The violence escalated in the entire city only after the controversial chat was made viral by Arbaaz Khan and he incited a Muslim mob to go on a rampage against Hindus amidst chants of “Gustakh-e-Rasool ki ek hi saza, sar tan se juda”.
While the videos of the Muslim mob changing ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ were viral on the internet, Left media, Islamists, and liberals immediately started spreading fake news and blaming Hindus for the rampage.
On Monday, the Delhi High Court summoned the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in response to a defamation lawsuit lodged by an NGO that claimed that the BBC’s documentary, ‘India: The Modi Question’ defamed India, its judiciary, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In addition to serving notice on the BBC (UK), Justice Sachin Datta also requested a response from the BBC (India) about the lawsuit brought by the Gujarat-based NGO ‘Justice for Trial’. According to the complaint, BBC (India) is the local operating office, and BBC (UK) has published the two-part documentary “India: The Modi Question.”
Senior attorney Harish Salve, who is representing the NGO, stated that the BBC is being sued for defamation because of a program that ‘defamed’ India and its whole system, including the court. He argued that there are hints made against the prime minister in the documentary as well.
It is worth noting that recently, the Delhi court issued summons to BBC, Wikimedia Foundation, and Internet Archive after a defamation suit was filed by Jharkhand BJP leader Binay Kumar Singh over the BBC’s controversial documentary on PM Modi. Singh, who is also associated with RSS and VHP, had filed a defamation suit against the BBC, Wikimedia Foundation, and Internet Archive over the documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’ aired by BBC in January this year.
Binay Kumar Singh, who is also an author, researcher, and TV panelist, said in the suit that he had to suffer defamation due to the defamation caused to the organisations, the RSS, VHP, and BJP, with which he is associated, due to the documentary.
“The allegations made against the RSS and VHP are motivated by a malicious intent to defame the organisations and its millions of members/ volunteers. Such unfounded allegations are not only baseless but also have the potential to damage the reputation and image of the RSS, VHP, and its millions of members/ volunteers, who have committed themselves to upholding the cultural, social, and national values of India,” the suit read.
The plaintiff stated that the links to the banned BBC documentary were illegally uploaded on the Internet Archive platform, and the links to it were widely disseminated by Wikipedia. He said that the RSS and other organisations associated with it are prestigious and the documentary has damaged the reputation of these organisations by publishing unverified and fake claims.
Later, it was reported that the Internet Archive had taken down the illegal links. However, BBC argued that it is a foreign entity and that the Delhi court did not have the jurisdiction to deal with the defamation case filed against it.
The controversial documentary was banned by the government on January 24 this year. However, the jurisdiction of this ban is limited in India, and the two-part documentary is legally available outside India.
The Muslim side on Monday submitted its written objections before the Varanasi District Court in the matter of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) investigation of the entire Gyanvapi mosque premises.
The court has fixed July 7 for the next hearing in the case. A petition was filed in a court here last Tuesday seeking an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey of the entire premises of the Gyanvapi complex, and not only the “shivling” as ordered by the Allahabad High Court.
The court had also given time till May 19 to the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee to file objections to the fresh petition filed by the Hindu side. A copy of the application was also given to the Masjid Committee.
The petition was filed after the Allahabad High Court had ordered the ASI to conduct a scientific survey of the alleged shivling-like structure that was found in the Gyanvapi complex by the ASI last year.
Later, the Hindu side came up with a fresh demand of conducting a survey of the entire complex instead of restricting it to the ‘shivling’ alone.
Supreme Court lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, on behalf of six petitioners, has requested a survey of the entire area.
“We had filed an application that the whole premises of the alleged mosque should be surveyed using Ground Penetrating Radar. Today, District Court, Varanasi has directed Anjuman Intezamia, UP govt to file its objection in court by May 19, next hearing May 22,” Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain told the reporters.
The petition has been filed on behalf of Ram Prasad Singh, Mahant Shiv Prasad Pandey, Lakshmi Devi, Sita Sahu, Manju Vyas and Rekha Pathak
The Allahabad High Court on Friday, allowed the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct carbon dating of alleged ‘Shivling’, which was found during the survey in the Gyanvapi Mosque campus.
The ‘Wazu’ area of the Gyanvapi mosque is the centre of the Gyanvapi mosque-Kashi Vishwanath temple dispute between Hindus and Muslims since the Hindu parties claim that ‘Shivling’ has been found in that spot, however, the Muslim side disputed the same and said that it is only a water fountain.
On May 20, 2022, the Supreme Court ordered the transfer of the case related to worship at Gyanvapi mosque from the civil judge to the district judge, Varanasi. On May 17, 2022, in an interim order, the top court directed the authorities to protect the ‘Wazu’ area where the ‘Shivling’ was reportedly found and granted access to Muslims for namaz.
However, the Supreme Court on Friday deferred the “scientific survey”, including carbon dating, of a “Shivling” said to have been found at the Gyanvapi mosque complex in Varanasi during a videographic survey last year.
(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 May 20, police arrested 23-year-old Arbaaz Khan and Sameer Sonawane. While Khan is the mastermind of the violence the ‘godfather’ behind the violence was at large. Khan played a crucial role in spreading the violence in the city by making viral a selective, edited Instagram chat with Sonwane. Akola SP Sandeep Ghuge confirmed that the violence began and revolved around a controversial Instagram chat. The violence escalated in the entire city only after the controversial chat was made viral by Arbaaz Khan and he brainwashed a Muslim mob to go on a rampage against Hindus amidst chants of “Gustakh-e-Rasool ki ek hi saza, sar tan se juda”.
The incident was reported on May 13 when Islamists went on a rampage in the Old City police station area in the Akola district of Maharashtra. According to the police, stones were pelted and vehicles were damaged. One person, identified as Vilas Gaikwad, was reportedly brought dead to the Civil Hospital after the clash and eight others including two policemen were reported injured.
The Police booked 150 for the violence and had already arrested more than 100 persons in the case. However, the police nabbed the mastermind, Arbaaz Khan on Saturday and is still on the lookout for the ‘godfather’ behind the violence.
While the videos of the Muslim mob changing ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ were viral on the internet, Left media, Islamists and journalists who identify themselves as Muslims had already started spreading fake news and blaming Hindus for the Islamist rampage.
The first to do that was Leftist propaganda portal, The Wire, which is owned and run by US-citizen Siddharth Varadarajan.
How The Wire blamed Hindus for the Akola violence and the death of a Hindu man in that violence
On May 15, The Wire published a report on Akola violence that erupted on May 13. The violence was clearly initiated by the Muslim mob as videos of the mob chanting murderous slogans like Sar tan Se Juda were already viral. Here is one such video. Interestingly, this or any of the other videos where Muslim mobs were chanting for blood did not make it to The Wire report.
As a result of the violence unleashed by the Islamists, one person, identified as Vilas Gaikwad, lost his life and several were injured.
While all evidence even by the 15th pointed towards an Islamist mob going on a rampage, in its report, The Wire projected as if a Hindu mob was behind the death of Vilas.
In its report, The Wire claimed that Gaikwad was an auto-rickshaw driver who belonged to the Dalit community. He had “KGN” written on his auto which stands for Khwaja Gharib Nawaz aka Khawaja Moinuddin Chisti. Quoting an unnamed eyewitness, The Wire claimed that Vilas repeatedly told the mob he was not Muslim but they were not convinced.
However, there were several discrepancies in The Wire’s report. First of all, Vilas was not an auto-rickshaw driver but an electrician. He was in the profession for over 20 years. As per the Indian Express report, Vilas was the sole breadwinner of the family who worked as an electrician. On a fateful day, he was unaware of the violence and went out to repair an electric appliance in a nearby locality.
On the way back home, he was attacked by the mob with stones and a pipe. He was rushed to the hospital where Vilas was declared brought dead. Speaking to Times Now, eyewitnesses said a Muslim mob passed through their area and while returning, they pelted stones and damaged vehicles. They also pointed out several people were injured in the attack.
Violent clashes erupt between 2 groups in Maharashtra's Akola, section 144 imposed.
His family came to know about his death from the reports. Initially, Vilas’s family thought he was only injured and getting treated in the government hospital. Vilas is survived by his wife and three children who live in a 10×10 square feet room at Bhagat Singh Nagar. Police initially believed Gaikwad was part of the mob but later said he was attacked while returning home.
In a statement, inspector Sewanand Wankhade of Old City police station said, “He was unaware of the violence and while he was returning home, a group allegedly attacked him.” Other media outlets like Hindustan Times, Organiser, and The News Minutes etc. also identified Vilas as an electrician.
It is pertinent to note that in their report, The Wire had cited unnamed sources to claim that Gaikwad was an autorickshaw driver who begged a “Hindu mob” trying to convince them that he was not a Muslim. There is absolutely no evidence to support this. They flat-out seem to have lied about the entire incident they mentioned in their report given that he was not an autorickshaw driver at all (but an electrician). Therefore, it is safe to assume that there was no auto, there was no sign that supported Moinuddin Chisty Dargah and since the police have clarified that he was killed during the stone pelting by the Islamist mob, he did not beg the Hindus trying to convince them of his Hindu identity either.
The Wire’s lies did not stop there. The Wire claimed that the violence had erupted because one Karan Sahu had posted something on Instagram that insulted the Prophet of Islam. Further, The Wire ensured to tag this individual as a member of “radical right wing” group so as to blame the Hindus for violence that was committed by a Muslim mob – attested even by videos that had gone viral before The Wire published their report.
The Wire’s report about Akola violence by Islamist mobs
The Wire blamed a Hindu youth leader and social media influencer Karan Sahu for publishing the alleged objectionable post against the Prophet. However, the police revealed in the statement that the account was fake and they were looking for the person who created the account. Later, the police found out that Sonawane was the one who created the Instagram page. To make it look real, Khan and Sonawane hurled abuses at each other. The account in question shared two numbers, one of police constable Raj Giri and the other of Karan Sahu. An investigation officer said, “In the whole conversation, both of them were just abusing and instigating each other. And when the complainant demanded his number, the anonymous account holder shared two numbers, which later appeared to be of police constable Raj Giri and another of a police informer, Karan Sahu.” Speaking to Indian Express, Giri said he was unaware of the intentions behind sharing his number. Despite the Karan Sahu angle fell flat, The Wire did not clarify that Sahu was not involved in causing violence.
Interestingly, further in The Wire report, they almost slyly admit that the violence was started by the Islamists. They mention some humbug about a Muslim man, who was a part of the mob, claiming that this mythical post was discussed after Namaz and that they were “Told” that Muslims would be targetted. They were also harbouring “hurt sentiments”.
After this, The Wire admits that the Muslim mob chanted slogans, however, deliberately leave out what those slogans were. While the videos of the Muslim mob baying for blood were already viral, The Wire chooses to not add to what the Muslim mob was chanting to ensure that they can be painted as a victim. In fact, The Wire admits that it was after the sloganeering that stone pelting started, admitting that it was the Muslim mob that initiated the stone pelting, however, keep it vague enough so the readers can assume by the general tone of their article that it was the Hindus who perhaps started the violence.
In the following paragraph of their report, they again tacitly admit that it was the Muslim mob which started the violence, however, keep it open-ended enough to confuse the readers.
In this paragraph, The Wire admits that “Hindus were informed of the stone pelting at the police station”, thereby admitting that it was not the Hindus who were pelting stones at the police station and that the violence was initiated by the Muslims. However, with their fantastical stories of how Gaikwad was killed and their stories about a member of a “radical right-wing Hindu organisation” posting something offensive, they ensure that the readers would blame the Hindus for the violence which was committed by Muslims. With the news of the mastermind being arrested emerging now, it becomes more than evident that The Wire was spreading fake news to shield Islamists and blame the victims – the Hindus.
Interestingly (but not surprisingly), even after the truth emerged in the public forum, The Wire has not bothered to amend its article or do a follow-up report to ensure that the truth is reported.
Here is an archived version of The Wire’s report as of 22nd May at 3:55 PM.
Statement by Akola Police ignored by The Wire
On May 20, five days after The Wire’s report, Akola Police issued a press release where they said that two main accused of the violence were arrested. It also provided details of the FIRs registered over the alleged objectionable post and against those who were involved in the violence. Furthermore, Police categorically said that members of the Muslim community gathered and conspired to indulge in violence in Hariharpeth, Pola Chowk, and other locations in the city. They pelted stones at the houses of Hindus and damaged public and private properties. They also attacked members of the Hindu community and police personnel. One person in the Hariharpeth area died during the violence. However, The Wire neither updated its report blaming Hindus nor published any update based on the police investigation.
— अकोला पोलीस – Akola Police (@AkolaPolice) May 20, 2023
OpIndia checked the Akola District and Sessions court documents and found that a person named Nadeem Ahmed has filed for bail in the matter linked to FIR 150/2023. The court will hear the matter on May 23.
The conspiracy behind the violence – what really happened
During the investigation, the police found that the complainant and one other member of the Muslim community chatted with each other and created fake screenshots. They broadcasted messages in social media groups linked to the Muslim community and called the Muslim community members to gather, which resulted in violence. First, a complaint was filed in the matter and then a mob came out on the street.
According to reports, police arrested 23-year-old Arbaaz Khan and Sameer Sonawane on May 20. While Khan is believed to be the mastermind of the violence the ‘godfather’ behind the violence was at large. Khan played a crucial role in spreading the violence in the city. Akola SP Sandeep Ghuge confirmed that the violence began and revolved around a controversial Instagram chat. The violence escalated in the entire city only after the controversial chat went viral.
The police stated that the Instagram account in question was in extended communication with the complainant and they hurled abuses and communal remarks at each other. Arbaaz Khan shared edited and selective screenshots of these conversations among the Muslim groups. In a statement, Superintendent of Akola Police Sandip Ghuge said, “We have written to Instagram seeking details on the account holder. We have also sought help from our cyber teams and are trying to find its IP address.” The account was deleted soon after the chat with the complainant ended.
Police said that 23-year-old Arbaaz Khan initiated the controversial chat. Then more people gathered in the vicinity of the police station making the chat viral. The same mob incited more people to commit violence in different parts of the city. Reports suggest that Sonawane created an Instagram page with the name ‘The Kerala Story’. Accused Arbaaz happened to notice the page and initiated a chat with the page. The conversation soon turned into an argument with the duo using objectionable words. Later, some controversial part of that chat was edited selectively, highlighted and made viral in his community by Arbaaz which led to the violence.
Slogans of Sar Tan Se Juda
Following Arbaaz Khan initiating a chat with the page praising The Kerala Story, instigating him (Sonawane) and making selective screenshots viral in Muslim groups, a violent crowd gathered at the police station and raised Sar Tan Se Juda slogans.
It is pertinent to remember that several individuals were murdered recently for allegedly insulting Islam. Kanhaiya Lal was merely beheaded for supporting Nupur Sharma after similar chants were raised by Muslim mobs across the country. Umesh Kohle had also met the same fate for extending support to Nupur Sharma.
