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Delhi High Court refuses 2006 Mumbai train blast convict’s plea to disclose probe report on the case, says it will compromise national security

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Delhi High Court refuses 2006 Mumbai train blast convict’s plea to disclose probe report on the case, says it will compromise national security

Delhi High court on Friday dismissed the appeal of Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddiqui, a death row convict in the 2006 Mumbai Train blast case against the Central Information Commission’s order.

Siddiqui sought the report/dossier prepared by the Maharashtra Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) and Andhra Pradesh Government in relation to the investigation of the bomb blast. While dismissing the petition, the High Court said that reports and dossiers by intelligence authorities, cannot be disclosed under RTI Act, especially if they compromise the sovereignty and integrity of the country.

The information was denied in view of exemption under section 8(1)A and section 24 of the RTI Act. Maharashtra government had declared a security organisation under section 24 of the Act.

Justice Prathiba M Singh said that in view of sections 8(1)A and 24 of the RTI Act, the order of CIC can not be faulted.

Justice Singh said, “The major public interest is in protecting the safety and security of the public and not in disclosing such reports.

The bench noted the submission of advocate Rahul Sharma who opposed the petition. He submitted that the petitioner has been convicted in a terror case in which 200 people died and hundreds were injured.

It is not a case of simple crime. It is a case in which 15-20 people are running away and yet to be arrested. Some of them are foreign nationals. The investigation is going on, Rahul Sharma submitted.

He also submitted that the petitioner sought the report and dossiers which also contained information regarding other accused. This information can’t be placed in the public domain.

The information sought was exempted under sections 8(1)A and 24 of the RTI Act. The information related to the investigation conducted by the ATS Maharashtra can’t be disclosed as it is a protected organization under section 24 of the Act.

On the other hand, it was submitted by the petitioner’s counsel that the petitioner was falsely implicated and convicted in the case. His death reference is pending before the Bombay High court.

Petitioner’s counsel Arpit Bhargava also submitted that the information sought is required for the purpose of what evidence was collected against the petitioner.

The dissemination of this information is also in the larger public interest, Bhargav argued.

His application was rejected by the CPIO of the Ministry of Home affairs. The order was upheld by the appellate authority. The appeal was also dismissed by the CIC.

However, the High Court has directed the superintendent of Nagpur central jail to provide the petitioner with books he has sought under the RTI within four weeks either online or hard copy.

He submitted that he is a person below the poverty line ( BPL) being a death row convict. He is in jail for a long time.

Earlier, the predecessor bench of justice Yashwant Varma in September 2022 dismissed the petition seeking information related to a 2007 notification empowering the Secretaries of States government to sanction prosecution for offences under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). The information was declined being exempted under RTI Act.

The petitioner was arrested in July 2006 in connection with the 7/11 Mumbai Train Blast case by Maharashtra Anti Terrorist Squad Mumbai. He was charge-sheeted on November 30, 2006, for various offences under sections 10 and 13 of UAPA.

On June 23, 2017, his RTI application was rejected under Section 8 (1)(a) of the RTI Act stating that the information sought by the applicant relates to the subject of Unlawful association which relates to the security, sovereignty and integrity of India and disclosure of the sought information may prejudicially affect the sovereignty, integrity and security of the State. 

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

‘Don’t beg, go with an atom bomb in one hand and Quran in other’: Islamist leader tells Pakistan Govt to threaten countries with nuclear bomb to demand money

OpIndia Staff
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‘Don’t beg, go with an atom bomb in one hand and Quran in other’: Islamist leader tells Pakistan Govt to threaten countries with nuclear bomb to demand money

A video has been doing round on social media wherein Saad Rizvi, the leader of the hardline Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party, advises the Pakistan government to stop ‘begging’ in front of other countries and instead threaten them with a nuclear bomb and demand money.

“They are sending the prime minister (Shehbaz Sharif), his entire cabinet and chief of army staff to other countries to beg for economic aid… I ask why are they doing this? They said the Pakistani economy is in danger… Instead, I advise them to take Quran in one hand and the atom bomb suitcase in the other, and take the cabinet to Sweden, and say that we have come for the security of Quran. If this entire universe does not fall under your feet, then you can change my name,” Rizvi said in the viral video.

He stated in his address that there was no need for the government to undertake talks with nations because Pakistan could coerce them through threats.

During his speech, the TLP chief further lambasted the Pakistani government for going soft on the incident in which anti-immigrant politician Rasmus Paludan burned a copy of the Quran in Stockholm, Sweden on January 21, 2023. Rizvi tore into the Pakistani government for failing to teach those who burnt the holy book a lesson.

According to media reports, the radical group’s leader made the controversial statement during a rally that was taken out by the TLP members in Lahore on January 27, 2023, to denounce the burning of a copy of the Quran in Sweden.

OpIndia had reported how amid a severe economic crisis, the TLP members had opted to take to the streets to protest the desecration of the religious Islamic text in Sweden. The video of the rally, which went viral on social media, showed several people perched atop a large trailer while hundreds more were on foot. Huge speakers were mounted on the truck, through which chants of ‘Al Jihad’ could be heard. A large police contingent was also seen forming a human chain to protect the protestors.

In his statement to the demonstrators on Friday (January 27), TLP leader Saad Rizvi urged the government to lodge a strong protest with Sweden and the Netherlands to ensure that such occurrences are not repeated again.

Tehreek-e-Labbaik, the once-banned Islamic extremist political party in Pakistan

Notably, the Islamic extremist political party in Pakistan named Tehreek-e-Labbaik has been involved in various violent protests in the recent past. In fact, last year, the Pakistani radical organization had made plans to kill former BJP leader Nupur Sharma for making ‘derogatory’ statements about Prophet Muhammad.

The Islamic organisation had in 2021, organised violent protests in France and elsewhere around the world in response to cartoons of Prophet Mohammad published by the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. The outfit had then demanded the expulsion of France’s ambassador and the release of their leader. While protesting against the Charlie Hebdo cartoon in Lahore, the members of TLP opened fire on the cops leaving at least four Pakistani policemen dead.

This particular radical outfit was banned until November 2021, when former Prime Minister Imran Khan succumbed to the pressure of radical Islamists and gave his permission to lift the ban on the extremist group Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). As a result, the organization was withdrawn from the Fourth Schedule which is the official terrorist watch list of Pakistan.

Notably, the TTP has now established itself as an indisputable power in Pakistan’s political scene. The extremist organisation even formed a parallel government in the country earlier this month.

Kanjhawala hit and run case: Anjali Singh’s viscera report suggests she was heavily drunk at the time of the incident

OpIndia Staff
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Kanjhawala hit and run case: Anjali Singh’s viscera report suggests she was heavily drunk at the time of the incident

The Delhi police probing the Kanjhawala hit-and-run case has received the viscera report of 20-year-old Anjali Singh, who met a painful end after being dragged by a car for several kilometres on the outskirts of the national capital in the early hours of January 1. As per the report, Anjali Singh was heavily drunk at the time of the incident.

Notably, a viscera report is prepared to determine the cause of death under suspicious circumstances where autopsies are unconvincing. This report is mandatory if the death has been caused by poisoning or in homicidal death from mechanical injury.

According to Special Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Sagar Preet Hooda, Anjali’s viscera report was prepared on 24 January 2023 by the Forensic Science Laboratory, Rohini, Delhi.

“The result of the report is part of the ongoing investigation. Further probe in the matter is in progress,” the Special CP said.

The viscera report attests to the testimony given by deceased Anjali’s friend Nidhi, who was in the pillion seat at the time of the incident. It may be recalled, that Nidhi had said last month that Anjali was in an inebriated state but still insisted on driving the two-wheeler. 

While speaking to ANI, the eyewitness, said, “She was in a drunken state but insisted on driving the two-wheeler. After being hit by the car, she came under the car, and got dragged with it. I was scared and went away and returned home, didn’t tell anything to anyone.” 

“It is the fault of the girl who was driving in an inebriated state. I insisted to her so much that don’t drive, I am conscious, let me drive. She didn’t believe me and believed herself,” Nidhi added. 

Notably, last month, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) ordered the Delhi Police to press murder charges against the five persons involved in the horrific Kanjhawala death case. Besides, MHA has also directed the Delhi Police to take disciplinary action against the police personnel on duty on the night of the dreadful incident.

On the wee hours of January 1, 2023, Anjali was killed in the early hours of New Year after her scooty was hit by a car and she was reportedly dragged for several kilometres under the vehicle on the city’s roads. 

Saradha scam: ED attaches assets of ‘beneficiaries’, including P Chidambaram’s wife

ANI
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Saradha scam: ED attaches assets of ‘beneficiaries’, including P Chidambaram’s wife

The Directorate of Enforcement, Kolkata, on Friday said it attached movable assets worth Rs 3.30 crore and immovable assets with a value of over Rs 3 crore in its ongoing investigation into the matter of Saradha Group of Companies under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

These properties were owned by Saradha Group and others — Nalini Chidambaram, Debabrata Sarkar, former IPS and former MLA Communist Party of India (Marxist) Debendranath Biswas — and properties of Anubhuti Printers and Publications owned by late Anjan Dutta, former Minister in Assam. These were the beneficiaries of proceeds of crime generated by the Saradha Group of Companies, the probe agency said in a statement.

Saradha Group ran a chit-fund scam with operations spread over the states of West Bengal, Assam and Orissa, till 2013.

The quantum of total money mobilised by this group company is about Rs 2,459 crore of which nearly Rs 1,983 crore remains unpaid to the depositors to date excluding the interest amount, the agency said.

The probe agency had registered a case against Saradha Group of Companies in 2013 on the basis of first information reports (FIRs) by Kolkata Police and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

In the past, prior to the issue of this attachment order, ED-Kolkata had issued eight provisional attachment orders attaching assets or properties whose value is more than Rs 600 crore. The agency said further investigation is being undertaken.

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

Supreme Court allows next ‘Hindu Jan Akrosh’ rally in Mumbai, asks govt to video record the event over allegations of hate speech

OpIndia Staff
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Supreme Court allows next ‘Hindu Jan Akrosh’ rally in Mumbai, asks govt to video record the event over allegations of hate speech

On Friday, the Supreme Court rejected a petition seeking a ban on the proposed ‘Hindu Jan Akrosh Sabha’ in Mumbai on Monday, February 5. A petitioner named Shaheen Abdullah had approached the court seeking to ban the rally by Sakal Hindu Samaj, alleging that anti-Muslim hate speeches were made during the ‘Hindu Jan Aakrosh Morcha‘ in Mumbai on January 29.

A Supreme Court bench comprising Justices KM Joseph and JB Pardiwala refused to ban the rally, accepting the undertaking made by the State of Maharashtra that if approval is granted for Sakai Hindu Samaj for organizing its planned meeting on February 5, it will be subject to the condition that “nobody will make any hate speech and act in defiance of law or disturb the public order”. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta made this assurance before the bench on behalf of the Maharashtra government.

However, the Supreme Court ordered he videography of the event.

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioner, argued that the police should use Section 151 of the Code of Criminal Procedure which provides the police the authority to arrest people to prevent cognizable offences against the organizers in light of the previous meeting’s occurrences. SG Mehta objected to the petitioner’s claim.

“We also direct that the officers, in case permission is granted and in case the occasion arises for invoking power under Section 151, it shall be the duty of the officers concerned to invoke the mandate of Section 151,” the Court said in its order. 

Accepting Sibal’s insistence that the meeting be videotaped and a report submitted to the Court, the bench issued a directive to the area’s police inspector to that effect. The video’s contents must be made available to the Court. The bench further asked the Solicitor General to seek directions from the State regarding the petitioner’s accusations concerning the organization’s meeting on January 29.

During the hearing, the Solicitor General resolutely opposed the petition by noting that the petitioner was selectively picking up causes while he is professing to be a public-spirited person. Mehta also questioned why a petitioner from Kerala was worried about a prospective event in Maharashtra.

“Now selective cases are being filed here. Can this august forum be abused like this?”, Mehta asked. “Now individuals are selectively choosing and coming to this court, saying ban this event in Uttarakhand, ban that event in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra. Can this Court be converted into an authority which grants permissions for meetings?”, he asked.

Kapil Sibal alleged that severe remarks were made by attendees at the meeting last Sunday, including an MP from the ruling party, and that these elements should be examined before allowing the next gathering. “The conduct of last Sunday must be considered before permission is granted”,  Sibal added. During the prior conference, the petitioner claims, appeals for a social and economic boycott of Muslims were raised.

According to the Solicitor General, the authorities would be unable to examine the intended speeches. “The petitioners are seeking not only pre-speech censorship but also pre-speech arrest”, SG said of Sibal’s reliance on Section 151.

If directives to use Section 151 CrPC are issued, the Court will pre-judge that hate speech will occur, Tushar Mehta said. Regarding the directive that police should capture video of the event, the SG did not disagree, but added “preferably the public-spirited individuals should record, who come selectively and misuse this Court’s authority”.

Notably around 30 ‘Hindu Jan Aakrosh Morcha’ rallies have been organised across Maharashtra till date. Thousands of Hindus gather at such rallies and demand the implementation of stringent laws against forceful religious conversion. Such rallies have been organised in over 20 districts, including Mumbai, Parbhani, Nanded, Ahmednagar, Kolhapur, Gadchiroli, Satara, Karad, Sangli, Solapur, Pune, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nagpur, Amravati, Hingoli, Buldhana, Kolhapur and Jalna.

The Morcha in Mumbai on Sunday saw the peaceful participation of 1 lakh people, which started from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Park in Dadar and ended at Prabhadevi’s Kamgar Maidan. Hindu organisations, Utsav Mandals and NGOs working for the welfare of citizens and Hindus participated in the march. Apart from leaders from RSS, Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad, several leaders and legislators of BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) had also attended the event.

Pune: Man fakes death to evade arrest over thefts, arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Pune: Man fakes death to evade arrest over thefts, arrested

A 32-year-old man from Satna, Madhya Pradesh, has been taken into custody by the Pune City Police. In an effort to avoid being arrested in connection with a few vehicle theft instances, reported to the Paud police in 2021 and the Kothrud police in 2022, the accused faked his own death, through his family, in a Madhya Pradesh newspaper. When the police inquiry revealed that the thief was still alive, he was apprehended in Madhya Pradesh.

Vivek Mishra, a citizen of Maihar in the Madhya Pradesh district of Satna, has been identified as the arrested thief. Mishra operated a tyre store in the Kothrud region. In 2021, he had stolen a bicycle from the Paud region. He returned to his hometown following the theft.

In October of last year, he was seen on a CCTV camera robbing an Ertiga car in Kothrud’s, Kishkindha Nagar. After verifying his identity and arriving at his Satna home, the Kothrud police team was surprised to learn of his demise from his family. They had even shown them his obituary from a regional newspaper.

However, the police refused to accept their explanation. Once they learned that the man had been spotted in Kothrud once more, thanks to an informant, they made headway with the case, and on January 29 managed to catch him after setting up a trap.

The detection team members Dahibate and Chaudhar, as well as police sub-inspector Mali, learned that Mishra arrived in Pune by changing a car’s license plate. After that, he was trapped and captured. The two stolen automobiles were also retrieved.

A police official, Hemant Patil stated, “Mishra returned to Pune in January, thinking that the car theft investigation had died down, but was spotted by one of our informers.”

Patil added, “He admitted during questioning that he stole the car and replaced its old number plate, besides the theft of the scooter, both for fast money. He also said he found it difficult to sell the vehicles due to want of documents.”

The action was carried out under the supervision of Additional Commissioner of Police (West region) Rajendra Dahale, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 3) Suhail Sharma, Assistant Commissioner of Police Rukmini Galande and Senior Police Inspector Hemant Patil.

The team included Police Inspector (Crime) Balasaheb Bade, Sub-Inspector Mali, and police personnel Chaudhar, Sul, Shirke, Rathod, Valmiki, Dahibate and Shelke.

United Kingdom: Islamist Shakeel Afsar threatens Hindu diaspora with a gun, calls them ‘target practice’

OpIndia Staff
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United Kingdom: Islamist Shakeel Afsar threatens Hindu diaspora with a gun, calls them ‘target practice’

A video of an Islamist named Shakeel Afsar intimidating, the Hindu diaspora in the United Kingdom, with a gun has gone viral on social media.

The video originally uploaded on his Instagram profile (@shak_afsar1) on Tuesday (February 2), called for violence against the Hindu community, residing in the United Kingdom.

In the disturbing video, Shakeel Afsar was seen hitting targets with an assault rifle at a gun range. The video was accompanied by the caption, “Target practice for the next BJP, RSS Hindutva event.”

It must be mentioned that Shakeel Afsar had intruded on a peaceful protest by the Hindu diaspora against the propaganda-laden documentary released by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

“These guys are terrorists. Guys, you can see these harami BJP men and women,” he claimed before going on a vitriolic, abusive tirade against the demonstrators outside the BBC office.

Given that the Islamist has a tendency to level ordinary Hindus as ‘RSS/ BJP supporters’, his threat to target them with a gun cannot be ignored. It has the potential to translate into a real-life act of terror against the Indian Hindu diaspora.

After his Instagram story labelling Hindus as ‘target practice’ went viral on social media, Shakeel Afsar claimed innocence. “We do not advocate any physical harm to any individual in the UK. We must use our words & remain within the parameters of the UK law always!”

Screengrab of the Instagram story of Shakeel Afsar

In a tweet, the Islamist confirmed that he was indeed the man who threatened the Hindu community with violence. In his defence, Shakeel Afsar claimed to ‘shoot down’ BJP/ Hindutva extremists with words and not guns.

The Islamist claims to be a real estate agent and a property developer in the United Kingdom. He boasts of over 10.6K followers on Instagram.

The United Kingdom has witnessed a recent spike in Islamist attacks against the Hindu community. Armed with fallible excuses, they have left no stone unturned to strike fear and terror in the hearts of common Hindus.

With the inherent ability of Islamists to quickly mobilise in the name of religion, the Hindu diaspora is left fending for themselves.

Ramcharitmanas row: SP supporters abuse party’s women leaders who criticised party MLC Swami Prasad Maurya for insulting the scripture

OpIndia Staff
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Ramcharitmanas row: SP supporters abuse party’s women leaders who criticised party MLC Swami Prasad Maurya for insulting the scripture

On Friday, Samajwadi Party (SP) leaders Dr. Roli Tiwari Mishra and Dr. Richa Singh were criticized by several SP supporters for raising their voices against party MLC Swami Prasad Maurya who instigated backward-class people and Dalits to burn the pages of Hindu scripture Shri Ramcharitmanas. Maurya also said that Shri Ramcharitmanas is not a religious book and that it creates a divide in society.

The netizens on Friday tried to shut the mouth of the women leaders in SP as they refused to support the opinion put up by Maurya. The two women leaders instead supported the Hindu scripture and criticized Maurya for targeting the Hindu scripture. Roli Tiwari Mishra posted a series of tweets on February 2 and 3 and said that Maurya was a mole and that he was planning a conspiracy against the Hindu religion. “Conspiracy against Sanatan Dharma by dividing Hindu castes. Is a situation like “civil war” being created in the country?” she asked.

She also said that she would always choose and support Sanatan Dharma and not party politics. Further, she slammed Maurya for demeaning Shri Ramcharitmanas and demanded the National Security Act be imposed upon the leader for spreading religious frenzy and ethnic conflict in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Further, the leader also slammed the BJP for not commenting on the issue.

Addressing the ‘so-called’ Hindus and Maurya, Mishra said that Hindus must learn from Muslims who do not tolerate insults of their God or their religious book. “And here Hindus who pretend to fight for Hindutva are causing insult to the Hindu deities and Hindu scriptures. How can Hindus remain silent,” she tweeted.

The leader further said that Sanatan Dharma was much more important to her that the party and her position in the party. She also said that some of the SP leaders were demanding her removal from the party. “I will always choose Sanatan Dharma over politics,” she affirmed.

Dr. Richa Singh on the other hand criticized Maurya by saying that the Indian Constitution gives equal rights to all to believe in or not believe in one particular religion or its scriptures. “Disagreement with a statement cannot lead to questioning the existence of a scripture. If anyone does not want to believe in the religious scriptures, then he is free to not believe in them. But those who believe in the scripture also have the freedom to continue to believe in it. People’s sentiments should not be played with,” she tweeted.

Responding to the women leaders, SP MLC Swami Prasad Maurya had said earlier that they were making childish statements in the case and that it would be an insult to him to reply to these. “Na Piddi, Na Piddi Ka Shorba,” he said as he criticized the women. To this, Dr. Mishra said that Maurya has always disrespected and insulted women.

“Lord Shriram is the center of faith and India is the center of faith. Shri Ram is worshiped in every house and India is identified with Sanatan. Shri Ramcharitmanas was written 1500 years ago. Can you edit that? No. And beliefs and logic are always kept separate. Samajwadi Party is my family and if something wrong happens in the party then how can the daughter of the party remain silent,” Mishra was quoted as saying.

Several SP supporters and netizens also targeted SP women leaders for supporting the Sanatan Dharma and said that the duo was going against the party. One of the Twitter users stated that the women leaders might soon be removed from the party for supporting the Ramcharitmanas scripture. “A handful of Samajwadi leaders especially women are opposing the party stand. They might soon be removed from the party. Samajwadi will soon get good news,” he said.

Another one said that women should leave politics and become full-time activists. “Politics is not for people like you,” the user said while replying to one of the posts by SP leader Richa Singh.

One of the users also suggested the leaders stop tweeting and register an FIR in the matter if they were really concerned about the matter. He also indicated that the leaders were being issued support from some other political parties to escalate the matter. “Didi stop politics! When are you going to file an FIR yourself against the general secretary of Akhilesh Yadav’s party? Or if your party does not take action on this, then when will you resign from the party for the sake of Hindu society? We all know who’s behind this”, the tweet read.

Last week, Samajwadi Party MLC Swami Prasad Maurya and nine others were booked for instigating people to burn the pages of the Ramcharitmanas written by poet and saint Tulsidas in the Vrindavan Yojana of the PGI Kotwali area of Lucknow. The FIR was filed against Maurya and nine others by BJP leader Satnam Singh Lavi under various IPC sections, including 142 (unlawful assembly), 295 (defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion), 153-A (promoting enmity), 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings), 506 (criminal intimidation) among others.

It was earlier reported that on January 29, Akhil Bharatiya OBC Mahasabha burnt the copies of Ramcharitmanas written by poet and saint Tulsidas in the Vrindavan Yojana of the PGI Kotwali area of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The OBC Mahasabha members announced their support to Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya who stirred controversy by saying that the Ramcharitmanas should be banned.

Maurya, while speaking to a news channel on January 22 claimed that certain portions of the Ramcharitmanas “insult” a large section of society on the basis of caste and demanded that these be “banned”. He said that the book was written by Tulsidas for his own pleasure and that it promotes social discrimination and spread hatred.

Later on January 27, he also called Hindu seers ‘Aatanki’, ‘Mahashaitan’, and ‘Jallad’. SP leader Lalji Patel also extended support to Maurya on February 1 and said that copies of Shri Ramcharitmanas should be burnt as it fosters discrimination in the society. “Ramcharitmanas is not a religious book. It is a book that creates a divide in society and insults backward caste people and Dalits. It should be burnt,” he said.

Notably, it is not only Maurya or Lalji Patel who have demanded that the copies of Ramcharitmanas be burnt. Recently, on January 11, Bihar’s Education Minister Chandrashekhar said that the Hindu scripture Ramcharitmanas should be burnt like Manusmruti because it spreads hatred in society. He also said that the thoughts of the former chief of RSS, Golwalkar Guruji are spreading hatred, creating discrimination in the society.

Jaish-e-Mohammad module busted in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam, six terrorists arrested, arms and ammunition seized

OpIndia Staff
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Jaish-e-Mohammad module busted in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam, six terrorists arrested, arms and ammunition seized

In a major breakthrough, the Jammu and Kashmir police Friday busted a Jaish-e-Mohammad module in Kashmir’s Kulgam district. Six dreaded Jaish terrorists have been arrested during the anti-terror operation conducted in the south Kashmir district.

Besides, a huge cache of arms and ammunition has also been recovered from them. The weapons recovered include eight magazines and 446 rounds of M4 rifles, a pistol, a pistol magazine and 18 pistol rounds and wireless sets amongst other things.

A hand grenade, four UBGL shells, 30 AK rounds, one magazine each of INSAS and AK rifles, two mortar shells, four walkie-talkie sets, and a wireless set were also recovered, according to officials.

Acting on specific information on subversive activities in the Mirhama and Damhal Hanji Pora areas, a joint team of police and the army arrested six terror associates, the Jammu and Kashmir police said.

According to a police spokesperson, a preliminary investigation revealed that the terrorists were in touch with their handlers across the border via several social media platforms.

“The arrested accused were hell-bent on vitiating the peaceful atmosphere in Kulgam district by carrying out grenade attacks, intimidating innocent civilians, standoff fire attacks on PRI (Panchayati Raj Institution) members, minority communities etc,” the spokesperson added. 

The arrest comes in the wake of earlier reports that suggested that Pakistan has prepared a new blueprint to spread terror in India. The ISI has elaborate plans to boost terror funding by the way of smuggling narcotics and embarking upon an ambitious disinformation campaign to target the Modi government. The intelligence agencies have said that narcotics is one of the biggest routes through which ISI wants to once again develop its stranglehold in Kashmir and inflame separatist sentiments in the Valley against the Indian government and the Indian Armed Forces.

It takes courage to think long term by focusing on capex in the last full-fledged budget before general elections

Ganesh R
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It takes courage to think long term by focusing on capex in the last full-fledged budget before general elections

Finance ministers come and go. Governments too are not forever. But India is forever. And our interests, regardless of who is in power, are about the same given our state of development. To be fair to all parties, they have understood this imperative – only came up with different prescriptions depending on their ideological moorings and vote bank politics. I will not go too much into that other than to remark that the results speak for themselves. You can pore over statistics or just take a walk around wherever you are. The conclusions are inescapable.

When it comes to analysing the Budget presented by FM Smt. N. Sitharaman, the first thing one must keep in mind is that this is the last full Budget of the current government before the nation goes to polls in April 2024. The next budget is likely a smaller interim one with no big bang. The temptation to play to galleries is strongest. The disincentive to think long-term and keep national interest above party interest is huge.

Thanks to fiscal prudence especially during the COVID pandemic, her options were wider. Remember those days, when corrupt media coolies of dynasties and NRI charlatan economists were comparing with rich Germany or USA telling us we are spending too little – obviously waiting to attack yet again when bills fall due. Modi and NS held firm. So she could have really gone to town and spent hugely on stuff that shows up in results before April 2024.

And that is revenue expenditure. Because that can be doled out as freebies in myriad ways to hit our bank accounts and pocketbooks sooner.

Capital expenditure (CAPEX) on the contrary, takes far longer to take effect. Just preparing and publishing tenders, reviewing bids, issuing work orders and starting work may take anywhere from 2 years to more – even assuming land issues are not there.

But it is a no-brainer that CAPEX prepares us for the challenges ahead. Growth needs jobs, and jobs need investments. Investments need infrastructure. Our East Asian rivals like Indonesia are ahead because they built infra when we built a corrupt inefficient socialist state. We kept eating half chapathi and voted same family. Their land is cheaper and easier to get. They don’t need permission from Rihanna or NYT Editorial Board to formulate policies. You don’t see Washington Post editorials attacking Jokowi of Indonesia for banning exports of certain minerals.

And infra needs money. Money that we invest today and see results in 5 to 10 years. Not before spring 2024.

And to spend on it in 2023 just before the general elections takes courage. And faith in Indian voters and confidence that you can trust their intelligence.

IMHO the best benchmark to compare 2023 budget is with 2013 budget of P Chidambaram. Because UPA too faced the exact same problem – looming general elections. Obviously many things are different this time, COVID for one, but this comparison is as good as any other. It is also relevant because Indian voters face the exact same choice in 2024 they faced in 2014. Few things have changed.

You can see the table and do your own maths.

Let me highlight a few observations.

At the outset let me clarify a couple of things.

  1. I am not an economist, statistician, or policy expert. I have taken figures from government websites and regret any error in the tabulation.
  2. The blue highlight on the finance row is to say I am not sure of the figures – the problem is the list of ministries and the way information is presented is very different across years. I am not using those numbers.
  3. I will be happy to stand corrected on facts. Always. Even if a 5-year-old points it out.

Obviously to be fair to PC, NS is working with a much larger economy thanks to ten years of nominal as well as real growth. So absolute comparisons are somewhat meaningless. Her total budget is about 2.7x higher. But one thing is clear – the percentage spent on capital is much higher – 22% vs 14%.

Second, please see the percentage on defence. 13% of spending vs 7.6%. I take this metric not the share in GDP because as FM there is only so much you can spend and you basically divide it among competing interests. GDP % is for analysts.

Again, whether revenue or capital, defence is something that gets a few claps during speech and everyone forgets – it doesn’t hit the voters’ pocketbook that much. My only concern is although total spending is 4.7x higher, revenue numbers are creeping up. That needs further research.

Road and railways get 9x the amount in total – CAPEX increases are even higher – 14x for road. Rail gets 9x capital increase. Yes, that is 9 times – or 9000%. Even allowing for a larger budget by 2.7x, that is a HUGE increase.

Communication too gets a huge bump – mainly spending on BSNL’s 4G/5G rollout. This again is a big investment in the future – when the rest of the developing world relies on Chinese equipment that comes with a huge strategic cost, India under Modi is charting a different course. Although I am against PSU dominance, in this case, it is good to keep a Plan B going in the public sector – it is too important to risk facing shutdowns if West holds back spares in future.

As I pointed out, all CAPEX by its very nature is an investment in the future. That is not to say revenue expenditure is bad. But the hands of most finance ministers are tied – pay, pension, and interest costs are huge and can’t be avoided. But it appears it is in control although regressed a bit – 2.9x or 24% of the total which is pretty close to the overall budget increase 2.7x and 22% under P Chidambaram. But it could be better. And we as citizens have to speak out if anyone wastes our tax rupees on vote bank politics like Old Pension Scheme.

Once again, these figures, looked at with perspective should give us the comfort that we have a team that thinks for India. And not for one family and its commercial interests. Yes, they can make mistakes and we point that out. But the niyat is good.

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