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Ministry of Home Affairs recommends CBI probe against Oxfam India over FCRA violations

OpIndia Staff
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Ministry of Home Affairs recommends CBI probe against Oxfam India over FCRA violations

Union Ministry of Home Affairs has recommended a CBI probe against Oxfam India over alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. The Income Tax Authorities had earlier conducted a survey at Oxfam’s Delhi headquarters in September 2022 on possible economic irregularities. A survey was also done by the department at the CPR (Centre for Policy Research) think tank in Delhi. Authorities reportedly suspect that Oxfam India might have sent money in the form of a commission to the Centre for Policy Research.

According to reports, a source in the Ministry of Home Affairs said, “Oxfam India continued to transfer Foreign Contributions to various entities even after coming into force of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Act, 2020 which prohibits such transfers. The amendment came into force on September 29, 2020. Oxfam India transferred funds to other NGOs, violating provisions of the FCRA, 2010.”

The source further said, “From emails, found during an IT survey by the Central Board of Direct Taxes, it is revealed that Oxfam India was planning to circumvent the provision of the FCRA, 2010 by routing funds to other FCRA registered associations or through the for-profit consultancy route.”

“Oxfam India, which is registered to carry out social activities, routed funds to the Centre for Policy Research (CPR) through its associates and employees in the form of commission,” the sources said. The same is also reflected in the TDS data of Oxfam India which shows a payment of Rs 12,71,188 to the CPR in the Financial Year 2019-20 under section 1943.

“Oxfam India received foreign contribution amounting to Rs 1.50 crore (approx) directly into its FC utilization account instead of receiving foreign contribution in designated FCRA account,” added the sources.

Oxfam India was registered under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act 2010 (FCRA, 2010) for undertaking social activities and its registration certificate was valid up to December 31, 2021. The organisation’s FCRA license ceased on January 1, 2022, after it failed to apply for renewal.

Dear Rahul Gandhi, there is a difference between the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China, here is what CCP did not tell you

Raju Das
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Dear Rahul Gandhi, there is a difference between the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China, here is what CCP did not tell you

Continuing with targeting the Modi government alleging undue benefits to Adani group, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday alleged that a Chinese company was given contacts to build critical infrastructure projects. Quoting a report by an anti-Adani propaganda portal named Adani Watch, the disqualified Lok Sabha member asked, “Why are India’s critical ports, airstrips, railway tracks and electricity lines being built & controlled by a Chinese company?”

Referring to an Adani group company PMC projects mentioned in the report, he said, “PMC Projects – ‘Pradhan Mantri Chinese’ Projects?”

The report by Adani Watch published today claims that while the company PMC Projects (India) Private Limited operates from premises owned by Adani Enterprises, it is owned by a Chinese national named Chang Chien-Ting (also known as Morris Chang). It says that Chang Chien-Ting son of Chang Chung-Ling, who has been a director of many Adani companies over the years.

Claiming that Chang Chien-Ting is a Chinese national, the portal wrote, “The involvement of a Chinese-owned company in the establishment of critical infrastructure in India raises questions about national security.” It says that PMC Projects has been developing seaports, container terminals, airstrips, electricity transmission lines and railway tracks, and other public utilities in India.

But the claim by Adani Watch and Rahul Gandhi that PMC Projects is owned by a Chinese national is completely false, because, Chang Chien-Ting is actually a Taiwanese national. Taiwan has friendly relations with India, and therefore, there is nothing wrong if a Taiwanese national on a valid visa works for an Indian company.

Interestingly, the Hindenburg report, which is the source of the Adani Watch article, mentions that Chang is Taiwanese, but they still called him Chinese. The Hindenburg report quotes an official filing showing that Chang Chien-Ting was named as a significant beneficial owner of PMC Projects, following amendments made to the Companies (Significant Beneficial Owners) Rules, 2018.

In this document, the nationality of Chang Chien-Ting is listed as the Republic of China. Presumably, Adani Watch and Rahul Gandhi deduced that he is Chinese from this. But the fact is, the Republic of China is not mainland China, it is the official name of Taiwan. On the other hand, mainland China’s official name is the People’s Republic of China.

The reason for this confusing name of the two countries is that both claims to be the official Republic of China. The Republic of China was a sovereign state located in mainland China from 1912 to 1949. Following the Chinese Civil War, the Chinese Communist Party and its People’s Liberation Army defeated the nationalist government and established the People’s Republic of China in 1949. After the defeat, the leadership of the Republic of China retreated to Taiwan island, along with a large number of people opposed to the Communist Revolution.

While they lost the mainland, they retained Taiwan and some of its nearby islands and established the Republic of China government there. Both ROC and PROC claim to be official China.

Therefore, Chang Chien-Ting is from Republic of China which is Taiwan. In fact, the same document lists his address as Xianfu Road, Taoyuan district, Taoyuan city, Taiwan. The Hindenburg report also clearly states that Chang is Taiwanese. It said, “Chinese media also referred to Chang Chien-Ting as Adani Group’s Taiwan representative,” citing a Chinese video report.

Despite this, Adani Watch and Rahul Gandhi wrongly claimed that Chang is a Chinese person.

Notably, calling a Taiwanese person Chinese is a sensitive issue, because China considers Taiwan to be part of it, and claims that people living in Taiwan are Chinese citizens. By this claim, Rahul Gandhi is furthering the CCP propaganda that Taiwan is part of China.

Rahul Gandhi also ignored other claims regarding PMC Project mentioned in the Hindenburg report while attacking PM Modi. The report basically claims that PMC Project is an entity of the Adani group. It claims that it was used to route money out of Adani’s listed companies. While Rahul Gandhi claims PMC Project has built India’s critical infrastructure like ports, airstrips, railway tracks and electricity lines, Hindenburg Research says the company does nothing, and it is just a dummy company of Adani, and most of its revenue comes from other Adani Group companies.

The Hindenburg report says that there are no signs that “PMC Projects does anything separate and apart from functioning as an arm of the Adani Group”. It further mentions that according to a 2014 DRI investigation, PMC Projects was a “dummy firm” used by the Adani Group in a coal/power equipment over-invoicing scandal.

Therefore, Adani has been accused of using PMC Projects as a dummy firm to route money. Nowhere in the report, Hindenburg claimed that PMC was working on critical infrastructure projects as Rahul Gandhi is claiming.

It is also notable that while DRI had alleged that PMC was dummy company used in an over-invoicing scam, the  Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESAT) had quashed the charges. While DRI had moved Supreme Court against this order, the Supreme Court had also ruled in favour of the company, ruling out any irregularities.

Ministry of External Affairs condemns vandalisation of Hindu Temple in Canada, demands action against perpetrators

ANI
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Ministry of External Affairs condemns vandalisation of Hindu Temple in Canada, demands action against perpetrators

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi on Thursday condemned the vandalisation of a Hindu temple in Canada’s Windsor yesterday and said that the MEA is in touch with the Indian consulate.

While speaking to the reporters on Thursday, the MEA spokesperson said, “We will continue to insist that action is taken against the perpetrators. They are identified and persecuted. Also, as important as measures to prevent such occurrences.” “We want these incidents not to happen, we want action and ensure that the Indian community’s places of worship are protected,” Arindam Bagchi added.

“This issue has been taken up with the Canadian authorities to catch the perpetrator and ensure this doesn’t happen again,” he added.

Clearing India’s stand on recent incidents of vandalisation at Indian consulates and High Commission, Arindam Bagchi said, “It (Vandalisation) has happened in a couple of places. We have made it pretty clear to our host governments what actions we expect from the host government in terms of what they need to do. We are in contact with the host governments. We had conveyed our expectations about the security of our premises and the safety of our personnel.”

“What is important is action to be taken rather than assurances,” he added.

A Hindu temple was vandalised with anti-India graffiti in Windsor in Canada’s Ontario, Windsor police said in a statement.

The Windsor Police Service started an investigation into the vandalism as a “hate-motivated incident” and two suspects are wanted in the incident.

According to the statement, police personnel were sent to the Hindu temple on April 5 after a report of hate-motivated vandalism.

“On April 5, 2023, officers were dispatched to a Hindu temple in the 1700 block of Northway Avenue following a report of hate-motivated vandalism. Officers discovered anti-Hindu and anti-India graffiti sprayed in black on an exterior wall of the building,” Windsor Police said in the statement.

In the investigation, police officers obtained a video that shows two suspects in the area just after 12 am (local time).

“In the video, one suspect appears to commit the vandalism on the wall of the building while the other keeps watch,” Windsor police said in the statement.

“At the time of the incident, one suspect wore a black sweater, black pants with a small white logo on the left leg, and black and white high-top running shoes. The second suspect wore black pants, a sweatshirt black shoes, and white socks,” the police further said.

The Windsor police have called on residents in the immediate vicinity of the temple to check their home surveillance between 11 pm – 1 am (local time) for evidence of the suspects. Police have urged people to call the Mortality Unit if they have any information regarding the incident.

Earlier in February, the Ram Mandir in Canada’s Mississauga was vandalised with anti-India graffiti. The Consulate General of India in Toronto condemned the defacing of the Mandir and requested Canadian authorities to investigate the incident and take prompt action against the perpetrators.

“We strongly condemn the defacing of Ram Mandir in Mississauga with anti-India graffiti. We have requested Canadian authorities to investigate the incident and take prompt action on perpetrators,” tweeted the Consulate General of India in Toronto.

In January, a Hindu temple in Brampton was defaced with anti-India graffiti triggering outrage among the Indian community. The Consulate General of India in Toronto condemned the vandalism at the Gauri Shankar Mandir stating that the act has deeply hurt the sentiments of the Indian community in Canada.

The consulate office in a statement said, “We strongly condemn the defacing of Gauri Shankar Mandir in Brampton, a symbol of Indian heritage, with anti-India graffiti. The hateful act of vandalism has deeply hurt the sentiments of the Indian community in Canada. We have raised our concerns on the matter with Canadian authorities.” Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown also condemned the vandalism of the temple. 

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

UK: Labour Party deselects 7 Indian-origin, all Hindu councillors in Leicester ahead of May local elections

OpIndia Staff
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UK: Labour Party deselects 7 Indian-origin, all Hindu councillors in Leicester ahead of May local elections

Ahead of the mayoral and ward elections in Leicester city in the United Kingdom, the Labour Party has de-selected 7 sitting Indian-origin councillors from contesting the polls on the party ticket.

As per a report by The Times of India, 6 of the de-selected councillors are from the Hindu community. The development comes a month before the scheduled local elections on May 4 this year.

They include Hemant Rae Bhatia (Beaumont Leys), Rashmikant Joshi (North Evington), Rita Patel (Rushey Mead), Nita Solanki (Belgrave), Padmini Chamund (Belgrave), and Mahendra Valand (Belgrave).

Reportedly, the Labour national executive committee (NEC) had decided to field candidates instead of allowing local Labour branches to oversee the process.

While speaking about the matter, councillor Hemant Rae Bhatia told The Times of India, “The way Labour took away the democratic right of branches to select their candidates does not match what Keir Starmer said at party conference, namely that branches are fundamental and democratic units of the party.”

He also lashed out at Leicester’s controversial Mayor Peter Soulsby, who met Islamist Majid Freeman during the anti-Hindu violence in the city. “Hindus and Muslims don’t have trust in Soulsby now. Anyone who challenges how he dealt with the unrest got deselected,” he emphasised.

Bhatia and councillor Rashmikant Joshi have now defected to the Conservative Party. The four other Indian-origin Hindu councillors have decided to contest independently from their respective wards.

Tension in Leicester due to Muslim enclaves and their majoritarianism: Report

The de-selection of the 7 Indian-origin (6 Hindus, 1 Christian) councillors in Leicester is significant in light of the recent revelations of the fact-finding report, presented by the Centre for Democracy, Pluralism and Human Rights (CDPHR) before the UK’s House of Commons.

The report, prepared by activist Rashmi Samant and political analyst Chris Blackburn, highlighted how the Leicester attack on the Hindu community was a direct assault on “democratic institutions and rule of law.”

It noted that the attack on Hindus was a direct fallout of territorial tensions and localised majoritarianism (of the Islamists in East Leicester). The report also found that a concerted attempt was made to defame the Hindu community as ‘Hindutva nationalists’ and nationwide mobilisation outside of Leicester.

“Symptoms of territorial ethnic cleansing were found through the analysis of the different slogans and speeches made by the majority community of East Leicester and the temporary displacement of Hindu community as a result of the unrest,” CDPHR said in its report.

Snake on a plane: South African pilot lands plane safely after a venomous cobra appears in the cockpit

OpIndia Staff
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Snake on a plane: South African pilot lands plane safely after a venomous cobra appears in the cockpit

A South African pilot managed to safely make an emergency landing after a deadly cobra slithered past him and curled up under his seat in the cockpit during the flight.

Rudolph Erasmus, the pilot, was flying four passengers in a private plane when he said he felt a “cold sensation” crawling up his shirt. At that time, the plane was flying at 11,000 feet. Erasmus thought that his water bottle might have been leaking, however, when he looked down, he saw the highly venomous snake disappearing below his seat.

Erasmus then made an emergency landing after noticing the reptile. The private plane, a Beechcraft Baron 58, was carrying four passengers, along with an additional unwanted passenger.

Speaking to the website TimesLive, Erasmus said, “When we did the preflight (procedure) on Monday morning, the people at Worcester Airfield told us that they had seen a Cape cobra lying underneath the wing on Sunday afternoon. They tried to catch it themselves but unfortunately, it sought refuge inside the engine cowlings. The group opened the cowlings but the snake was not there so they assumed it had slithered away.”

After noticing the Cobra, Erasmus said that he had a moment of stunned silence. Even though he was not sure if he should tell the passengers because he didn’t want to cause a panic, he told them about the snake.

Recounting the moment, Erasmus said, “I just said, listen, there’s a problem. The snake is inside the aircraft. I’ve got a feeling it’s under my seat so we are going to have to get the plane on the ground as soon as possible.”

At that moment, the flight was close to the airport at Welkom, so Erasmus told the control tower in Johannesburg about his emergency situation.

After landing, Erasmus was the last one to come out of the plane and he said that he saw the cobra curled underneath his seat. Following the landing, engineers stripped parts of the plane in an attempt to find the snake but were unsuccessful by the time night fell.

During the night, they left some maize meals around the plane to try and lure the cobra out, but the maize was undisturbed even the next morning. Erasmus, and the others, are hoping that the snake got away while they were waiting for the engineers to appear and it is not still hanging around somewhere inside the plane.

UPA era Defence Minister AK Antony’s son Anil Antony joins BJP, says his duty is to serve the nation, not a family

OpIndia Staff
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UPA era Defence Minister AK Antony’s son Anil Antony joins BJP, says his duty is to serve the nation, not a family

Anil Antony, son of former Union minister and Congress veteran AK Antony, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on 6th April 2023 – the 44th foundation day of the BJP. He joined the BJP in presence of Union Minister Piyush Goyal.

“As an Indian youth, I feel it is my responsibility and duty to contribute to the Prime Minister’s vision of nation-building and national integration”, said Anil Antony after joining the party.

In a media interaction after joining the party, Anil Antony said, “Many leaders and workers in the Congress party believe that it is their duty to serve a family. But I think that it is my duty to serve the nation. Our respected Prime Minister has a clear vision about how to make India a developed nation in the upcoming 25 years. He also has a clear vision of ensuring social justice and economic dynamism for everyone in the country. He also has a very clear vision to place India in a very prominent role in the emerging multipolar world. In times like this, the central government and the BJP organization led by the honourable Prime Minister, Amit Shah Ji, and JP Nadda Ji are working tirelessly to take this vision and all these people-friendly policies to every nook and corner of this country.”

Anil Antony had questioned the Congress’ stand after the BBC documentary against PM Narendra Modi was released in January 2023. Anil wrote about this on social media, after which many Congress leaders criticized him.

Anil Antony had tweeted, “Despite large differences with BJP, I think those in placing views of BBC, a state-sponsored channel with a long history of prejudices, and of Jack Straw, the brain behind the Iraq war, over institutions is setting a dangerous precedence, will undermine our sovereignty.”

While speaking to ANI, he said, “I was speaking from my conscience. No matter whatever internal differences we may have, we should not let that be exploited by external agencies to create division in this country.”

“I felt that we were going towards that dangerous trajectory. hence, I made a certain tweet,” Anil K Antony added.

After this, Anil Antony left all his posts. In a tweet, the son of former Union Minister AK Antony said, “I have resigned from my roles in Congress. Intolerant calls to retract a tweet, by those fighting for free speech. I refused. Facebook wall of hate/abuses by ones supporting a trek to promote love! Hypocrisy thy name is! Life goes on. Redacted resignation letter below.”

In his letter, Anil K Antony lashed out at Congress ‘sycophants’ and ‘chamchas’ and pointed out how such behaviour is the sole criterion of merit within the party. “Sadly, we do not have much common ground,” he emphasised.

‘India has now realised its power, let us be as tough as Lord Hanuman against evil’: PM Modi’s mantra to the BJP on its foundation day

OpIndia Staff
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‘India has now realised its power, let us be as tough as Lord Hanuman against evil’: PM Modi’s mantra to the BJP on its foundation day

On Thursday, 6th April 2023, the Bharatiya Janata Party celebrated its 44th foundation day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually addressed the foundation day ceremony and gave his message to the party members. Mentioning Lord Hanuman, PM Modi said that India has now realised its power and everyone should now be as tough as Lord Hanuman while acting against evil.

PM Modi said, “Hanuman Jayanti is being celebrated across the country. The life of Hanuman Ji acts as a source of inspiration for the development of India. Before 2014, the country did not realise its potential. Today, India has realised its strengths like Bajrang Bali.”

Narendra Modi added, “Hanuman Ji had brought the mountain for Laxman Ji in the time of crisis. The BJP is also trying to solve the problems of the people with the same inspiration.” The PM also talked about being as tough as Hanuman ji in the fight against evil.

PM Narendra Modi said, “Just as Hanuman Ji became tough while facing demons, the BJP becomes determined while dealing with corruption, law and order, and nepotism. In 2014, there was not only a change of power, but the people of India embarked on a new journey of the renaissance of the country. Coming out of more than 800 years of slavery, a nation has risen again to regain its lost glory.”

During his address, PM Modi further said, “In 1947, the British left India, but they left behind the mentality of keeping people enslaved. After independence, some people considered power as their innate right. People with a king-like mindset would consider the people of the country as their slaves. Gradually, such evils are weakening.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also targeted the Congress during his speech. He said, “The Congress and its like-minded parties celebrate small things and achieve even less, while the BJP’s political culture is to dream big and work hard to achieve even more. We have the courage to invest every bit of our body and time for this.”

The BJP was founded on April 6, 1980. BJP president JP Nadda hoisted the national flag at the party headquarters in Delhi and greeted the workers on the occasion of the foundation day. During his address, JP Nadda said, “Today we have to take a pledge that under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, we will take the party ahead.”

Read how a CPM govt had ordered deletion of all mentions of atrocities by Muslim rulers, as party MP complains about ‘deleting Mughals’ from textbooks

Ashish Dev Priy Ojha
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Read how a CPM govt had ordered deletion of all mentions of atrocities by Muslim rulers, as party MP complains about ‘deleting Mughals’ from textbooks

A Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament from the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Binoy Viswam, has written to the Modi government expressing concern about the “deletion of Mughals” from National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) textbooks.

In his letter, Viswam wrote that ‘drastic changes are being made to NCERT textbooks’ and it reeks of an attempt to ‘omit information about certain periods of Indian history. He accused the government of “trying to curtail critical analysis of our society, polity and history.” He added, “Removal and reduction of content pertaining to the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughal Empire and the works of literature and architecture of that period prima facie appears to be communally biased. References to social movements are also omitted to a great extent”.

The Communist leader further urged the Union government to ‘rectify’ the biases in the NCERT textbooks to “preserve the spirit of critical inquiry and scientific temper in future generations.”

It was fake news. chapters on Mughals have not been deleted

First of all the chapters on the Mughals haven’t been deleted. OpIndia did a story debunking the lies surrounding the NCERT coursebook controversy. Several media reports had widely speculated that the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has amended its publications, notably the 12th-class History book, and removed certain chapters on the Mughal empire. After the rumour gained traction, the director of NCERT Dinesh Prasad Saklani addressed the issue and refuted the claims that were being spread by various news outlets.

The NCERT director told ANI that the chapters on the Mughals had not been removed. He stated that only the overlapping chapters had been dropped, alleviating the additional strain on children’s shoulders.

“It’s a lie, (Chapters on) the Mughals have not been dropped. There was a rationalisation process last year because due to COVID, there was pressure on students everywhere”, he said.

Calling the debate unnecessary, the NCERT director said the expert committee recommended that if the chapter was dropped, it will not affect the knowledge of the children and an unnecessary burden can be removed. “The debate is unnecessary. Those who don’t know can check the textbooks…”, Saklani added.

CPM govt had ordered the omission of atrocities by Muslim rulers on Hindus in West Bengal when in power

Ironically, it was the CPM government in West Bengal, which had ordered that there should be no mention of Muslim atrocities in textbooks during their tenure. In 1989, the WB government issued a circular and recommended the deletion of discussions about the medieval period because it was “too controversial.”

The circular explicitly read “Muslim rule should never attract any criticism. Destruction of temples by Muslim rulers and invaders should not be mentioned.”

Santosh C. Saha (Ed.), Fundamentalism
in the Contemporary World: Critical Social
and Political Issues, Lexington Books, Mary-
land, US, 2004, p. 273

Author Santosh C Saha in his book ‘Fundamentalism in the Contemporary World: Critical Social and Political Issues’.mentions how the communist government in West Bengal had, in 1989, brought a circular bt the Board of Secondary Education (dated April 28, 1989) that any mentions of atrocities by Muslim rulers in Medieval India (of which Bengal was one of the worst affected states) should be omitted from state syllabus.

The current CPM leaders seem to have conveniently forgotten their own ‘history’.

Such measures to delete or whitewash the atrocities perpetrated by Muslim rulers upon Hindus ensure that the typical Hindu youngster grows up thinking that everything in India was completely messed up before the Mughal and British arrived and that the latter, especially the Muslim rulers did nothing particularly bad that hadn’t previously occurred in India earlier.

In fact, historical accounts written by Muslims themselves document in detail how Hindus were slaughtered and forced to accept Islam by various Muslim rulers, many of whom are supposed to be moderate rulers. The religious conversions from Hinduism to Islam are argued to be voluntary and triggered because Hinduism is an unjust religion.

Not only such chapters from history have been whitewashed, but they have also been glorified, too. Medieval history is virtually only Mughal history, the way the school curriculum is designed, and it appears as if every great thing about India happened in that period only.

While the Mughals are often wrongly credited with promoting arts, architecture, and literature, as well as fostering religious tolerance to some extent, there are documented accounts of atrocities and violence committed by Mughal rulers against Hindus. These atrocities included forced conversion to Islam, destruction of Hindu temples, imposition of discriminatory taxes, and violence against non-Muslims, among others.

Hanuman Janmotsav or Hanuman Jayanti: Is the ‘Jayanti’ term really incorrect, here is the truth

Shraddha Pandey
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Hanuman Janmotsav or Hanuman Jayanti: Is the ‘Jayanti’ term really incorrect, here is the truth

Hanuman Jayanti or the occasion of the birth of Lord Hanuman is celebrated across the country with much religious fervour. Along with offering prayers to Lord Hanuman, people also greet each other on the auspicious occasion. However, in recent times it has been noticed that several people advocate that it should be called Hanuman Janmotsav, and not Hanuman Jayanti. 

The argument presented to support their claim is that Jayanti is a term applicable to a mortal being while Lord Hanuman is immortal or Chiranjeevi. While it is true that over time, the term Jayanti has been used for several prominent personalities of the country, however, it does not mean that the term is supposed to be explicitly used for mortal beings only. 

Jayanti in Sanskrit means holy birth anniversary, victory, and also a flag, while Janmotsav means the celebration of birth. Going by this logic, Jayanti is a term used for the ones who had a divya or holy birth while Janmotsav is a more generic term that simply is translated as a birthday celebration. Thus, we can Janmotsav for anyone but not Jayanti for everyone. 

Image via Learn Sanskrit

Besides, as pointed out in the Lokgatha video, even the Hindu scriptures mention the word Jayanti for the holy births of Hindu deities and not Janmotsav.  

The Jayanti word even finds mention in Skandpuran, Tithyaditatva as this shloka reads, “Jayam Punyam Cha Kurute Jayantimiti Taam Vidu” (जयं पुण्यं च कुरुते जयन्तीमिति तां विदुः) which means that the one who provides victory (Jai) and punya (virtue) is called Jayanti. 

Regarding the birth of Lord Krishna, in the Bhavishya Purana there is a shloka outlining the importance of observing the Krishna Jayanti vrat.

“Jayantyam  Upavasasch Mahapatakanashnam, Sarvo Karya Mahabhaktya Poojaniyascha Keshavah“

The quoted shloka states that the fast or Upvas of Lord Shri Krishna’s Jayanti destroys the Mahapatak, thus a devotee should keep this fast and with utmost devotion pray to Keshav (another name for Lord Krishna). It is notable that the great sage Yagnavalkya has described 21 Mahapataks or great sins including Brahma-hatya or killing of Brahmana, consuming liquor, etc. 

Besides, in the Vishnudharmottara Purana which is a Upapurana and believed to be the second part of Vishnu Purana, there is shloka stating when the Ashtami tithi coincides with Rohini Nakshatra, it becomes Krishna Jayanti.

Rohini Sahitya Krishna Maase Cha Shravaneashtami

Ardharatrardadhschorghvam Kalayapi Yada Bhavet

Jayanti Naam Sa Prokta Sarva Paappranashini ||

In Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Shri Krishna also described his divine birth. In another instance, Lord Krishna told Arjuna that he is the supreme god that resides in the hearts of all living entities and that he is the beginning, the middle, and the end of all beings, as mentioned in Gita’s chapter 10, verse 20. 

aham ātmā guḍākeśha sarva-bhūtāśhaya-sthitaḥaham

ādiśh cha madhyaṁ cha bhūtānām anta eva cha ||

Just like Lord Krishna, Lord Hanuman also had a divya or divine birth as mentioned in this verse from the Valmiki Ramayana’s Kishkindha Kanda (chapter 66)

sa tvam kesariNaH putraH kShetrajo bhiima vikramaH ||

maarutasya aurasaH putraH tejasaa ca api tat samaH |

tvam hi vaayu suto vatsa plavane ca api tat samaH ||

Meaning: “Such as you are, you are Kesari’s son through his wife, oh, frightful pugilist, and you are the lineal son of Air-god, and even by your gusting you are selfsame to Air-god or Lord Vayu also known as Pawan, and even by your flying also you are his selfsame to Air-god, in all respects.”

Thus, it is clear that Lord Hanuman had a divine birth and since the term “Jayanti” is used to honour the birth of divine beings, the name “Hanuman Jayanti” is entirely appropriate and is not necessarily meant to be used for normal human beings bound by the cycle of birth and death. At the same time, calling it Hanuman Janmotsav is also not wrong, since it is a day of celebration of the birth of Lord Hanuman.

The constitution will perish if India’s demography is altered, Indian tradition and Dharma protect it: Madras HC judge

OpIndia Staff
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The constitution will perish if India’s demography is altered, Indian tradition and Dharma protect it: Madras HC judge

Madras High Court judge GR Swaminathan has stated that the Constitution of India will no longer be in effect if the ‘demographic profile’ of the country as it was at the time the constitution was created, changes. As per a report in Indian Express, he stated that the Constitution will endure as long as individuals ‘who are under the Indian tradition and dharma’ did not change their affiliation.

On Sunday, Judge Swaminathan remarked that the Constitution is ‘ultimate for everyone’ while speaking at a book launch event in Chennai and asserted, “The Constitution written by BR Ambedkar. But if the Constitution has to be the same forever, I know it is unfortunate to say this, the demographic profile at the time of Constitutional formation is also to be maintained the same.”

“If the demographic profile is altered, the Constitution ceases to exist. So if the Constitution has to be there forever means the demographic profile also should remain the same. If that is to happen, people who follow the Indian tradition and the Indian Dharma should remain in the same tradition. Then only it (the Constitution) will be protected,” he noted. He continued that as a judge, he is unable to speak any further on the subject and hoped that people understood him.

The judge also expressed caution before delivering his comments. He addressed the audience, “It (the speech) can turn out to be a slightly controversial view but I don’t mind that.” In addition, he observed that many people who extol love for Tamil ‘often possess limited knowledge of the language.’

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