PM Modi has stated that India will extend all possible help to Turkey in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake that struck the Southern parts of the country on the early hours of February 6.
Anguished by the loss of lives and damage of property due to the Earthquake in Turkey. Condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover soon. India stands in solidarity with the people of Turkey and is ready to offer all possible assistance to cope with this tragedy. https://t.co/vYYJWiEjDQ
The PM’s office has announced in a press release that 2 NDRF teams with 50 personnel each with trained dog squads for rescue operations, relief materials and necessary equipment will be immediately despatched to Turkey. In addition, medical teams with trained doctors, paramedics and essential medicines will be sent too.
Image via PIB
In accordance with the government of Turkey, medicines, and relief materials will also be sent to the tragedy struck area.
Earlier today, an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 on the Richter Scale hit Southern Turkey’s Nurdagi region. Parts of Northern Syria have been hit heavily too. The earthquake was so strong that the shockwaves were felt in Lebanon, Israel, and Iraq too.
Videos emerging on social media show extensive damage to buildings and human lives. Though the official death toll so far is in the hundreds, several thousand people are expected to have fallen victim to the tragedy.
On February 1, 2023, Finance Minister of India Nirmala Sitharaman presented the annual budget of India in Parliament. This was the last full budget of this government before the general elections in 2024 but even then, the government resisted the temptation to go for populist measures.
Balanced Budget with a focus on Grassroots level Infrastructure Development
This is the first budget of “Amrit Kaal” which completely sets the vision of the Prime Minister, at a time when the world is facing a difficult time in terms of economy, this budget can be termed as a balanced budget.
FM emphasised on seven focus areas during her speech, which she termed “Saptarishi”
These Saptarishi priority areas are:
1. Inclusive development
2. Reaching the last mile
3. Infrastructure and investment
4. Unleashing the potential
5. Green growth
6. Youth power
7. Financial sector
Further, the budget estimates economic growth of 7% for India, which is the highest among all major economies.
The budget also cut the fiscal deficit from 6.4% to 5.9% of GDP and project a further fall of 0.7% per year for the next two years.
The FM also states how efficient implementation of many schemes resulted in inclusive development such as:-
i. 11.7 crore household toilets under Swachh Bharat Mission,
ii. 9.6 crore LPG connections under Ujjawala,
iii. 220 crore Covid vaccination of 102 crore persons,
iv. 47.8 crore PM Jan Dhan bank accounts,
v. Insurance cover for 44.6 crore persons under PM Suraksha Bima and PM Jeevan Jyoti Yojana
vi. Cash transfer of ₹ 2.2 lakh crore to over 11.4 crore farmers under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi.
FM also proposed launching of new scheme PM Matsya Sampada Yojana with a targeted investment of ₹ 6,000 crore to further enable activities of fishermen, fish vendors, and micro & small enterprises,
The outlay for PM Awas Yojana is being enhanced by 66 percent to over ₹ 79,000 cr.
The increase of capital expenditure by 33 % to 10 Lakhs Crore, which is 3.3 % of GDP, is a move that will surely create a huge number of job opportunities.
Further capital outlay of 2.4 Lakh Crore has been provided for the railway, which will enhance the railway network and facility in the country.
Now being a Chartered Accountant, I come to my favourite segment, which is Direct Tax.
For the Personal Income Tax at present, there are two schemes, first is the Old Income Tax regime and the second is New Income Tax regime.
In the old Income Tax regime, there are benefits of all the deductions, such as a Standard Deduction of ₹ 50000, home loan interest, HRA, insurance premium, specified investment, PF deduction etc.
In Old Scheme at present, income up to Rupees 5 Lakh is exempt from tax. If income is more than 5 lakhs, then the exemption limit is 2.50 Lakhs.
Present Slab of Old Income Tax Regime
Net Income Range
Rate of Income tax
0-Rs 2.50 lakh:
Nil
Rs 2.50 -5 lakh:
5% of Income Tax
Rs 5 -10 lakh:
20% of Income Tax
Above 10 lakh
30% of Income Tax
Present Slab Rate of New income tax regime
Net Income Range
Rate of Income Tax
0-Rs 2.50 lakh:
Nil
Rs 2.50 -5 lakh:
5% of income tax
Rs 5-7.50 lakh:
10% of income tax
Rs 7.50 -10 lakh:
15% of income tax
Rs 10-12.50 lakh:
20% of income tax
Rs 12.50-15 lakh:
25% of income tax
Above 15 lakh
30% of income tax
Proposed changes in the budget (From 1 April 2023)
Old Income Tax Regime
There is no change in the old income tax regime.
In the New Income Tax regime now Standard Deduction of 50,000 will be allowed for a salaried person which was earlier in the old income tax regime only.
No tax for income upto ₹ 7 Lakhs per annum.
Net Income Range
Rate of Income Tax
0-Rs 3 lakh:
Nil
Rs 3-6 lakh:
5% Income tax
Rs 6-9 lakh:
10% Income tax
Rs 9-12 lakh:
15% Income tax
Rs 12-15 lakh:
20% Income tax
Above Rs 15 lakh:
30%
As per FM, now the new income tax regime is the default income tax regime, however, a person can opt for the old tax regime.
So now we can say that the government’s intention is very clear they want individuals to opt for the new income tax regime, and also discourage investment in tax-saving schemes.
The major impact will be on those claiming higher tax deductions such as HRA or Home Loan Interest, as they will not find any benefit in the new tax regime.
I am presenting a few examples of the impact of taxes in both the old and new regimes.
₹ 7 Lakh
Old Regime
New Regime
Taxable Income
₹ 7,00,000
₹ 7,00,000
Standard Deduction
₹ 50,000
₹ 50,000
Deduction Claimed
₹ 1,50,000
0
Net taxable Income
₹ 5,00,000
Tax
–
–
At the income of ₹ 7 Lakh, considering a deduction of ₹ 1,50,000, both schemes have nil tax.
₹ 9 Lakh
Old Regime
New Regime
Taxable Income
₹ 9,00,000
₹ 9,00,000
Standard Deduction
₹ 50,000
₹ 50,000
Deduction Claimed
₹ 2,50,000
0
Net taxable Income
₹ 6,00,000
₹ 8,50,000
Tax
34,600.00
32,100.00
At an income of ₹ 9 Lakh, considering a deduction of ₹ 2, 50,000, the new scheme is beneficial.
₹ 15 Lakh
Old Regime
New Regime
Taxable Income
₹ 15,00,000
₹ 15,00,000
Standard Deduction
₹ 50,000
₹ 50,000
Deduction Claimed
₹ 4,50,000
0
Net taxable Income
₹ 10,00,000
₹ 14,50,000
Tax
₹ 1,17,000.00
₹ 1,45,600.00
At an income of ₹ 15 Lakh, considering a deduction of ₹ 4,50,000, old scheme is beneficial.
₹30 Lakh
Old Regime
New Regime
Taxable Income
₹ 30,00,000
₹ 30,00,000
Standard Deduction
₹ 50,000
₹ 50,000
Deduction Claimed
₹ 5,50,000
0
Net taxable Income
₹ 24,00,000
₹ 29,50,000
Tax
₹ 5,29,000.00
₹ 6,08,400.00
At an income of ₹ 30 Lakh, considering a deduction of ₹ 5,50,000, the old scheme is beneficial.
The old scheme is more beneficial for the person who claims deductions such as HRA, home loan etc.
One more change in direct taxes is that the threshold limit of the presumption scheme of taxation for specified professionals used to be ₹ 50 lakhs, but has been increased to ₹ 75 Lakhs.
Further, the reduction in basic customs duty on the import of components of mobile phones, and TV Sets, will make these items cheaper.
Conclusion of the budget
My conclusion is that overall it is a balanced budget, keeping in mind the current scenario of world economy.
The budget is focused on rural development and grassroots-level development.
(The author of this article is Rajan Kumar Jha. Mr Jha is a Chartered Accountant by profession and works with DS group)
Former Pakistani cricketer Javed Miandad has lashed out at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for not sending the Indian men’s cricket team to the 2023 Asia Cup. Miandad stated that Pakistan does not require India to survive nor does India govern cricket. He demanded that the ICC take action against India.
“India can go to hell if they don’t want to come to Pakistan to play cricket,” the 65-year-old said at a recent public event. “I’ve always backed Pakistan. And you know that I don’t spare India whenever an issue arises. But the thing is we need to look at our part. And we should fight for it. We don’t care because we are getting to host our cricket. This is ICC’s job. If ICC can’t control this there’s no use of the governing body. They need to implement similar rules for every team. If teams like these don’t come, they should be debarred. India hoga, apne liye hoga. Hmare liye nahi hai,” said the Pakistani ex-cricketer.
Despite the fact that Pakistan has lost 12 of the 13 previous World Cup matches and innumerable other matches against India, the Pakistani cricketer amusingly labelled India as being scared to confront Pakistan due to the fear of defeat.
“Why is India afraid to play against Pakistan? They know if they lose to Pakistan, their public will not spare them. Narendra Modi will disappear, their public won’t leave him.”
“It’s India’s old habit to run away from Pakistan. This isn’t something new, I’ve known them from my playing days.”
“India ran away from Sharjah when we started winning there, they didn’t want to play us. Their public used to set the players’ houses on fire when they lost to us. Their players, including Gavaskar, had some much trouble after losing to us.”
Miandad was reacting to the controversy that has erupted over the venue for the 2023 Asia Cup in recent months.
Controversy over the hosting right of the 2023 Asia Cup previously held by Pakistan
The Asia Cup 2023 was slated to be held in Pakistan, and there were uncertainties over whether the Indian cricket team would travel there to participate. While there were rumours that the Men in Blue were planning to travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, Asian Cricket Council President and BCCI Secretary Jay Shah had in October last year clarified that India will not be visiting its neighbouring country for the Asia Cup next year. Instead, Jay Shah indicated that the Asia Cup 2023 will most likely take place at a neutral location.
“We will have Asia Cup 2023 at a neutral venue. It’s the government which decides over the permission of the team visiting Pakistan so we won’t comment on that but for the 2023 Asia Cup it’s decided that the tournament will be held at some neutral venue,” Jay Shah told reporters after the 91st Annual General Meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was held on October 18th, 2022, in Mumbai.
“The venue for the 2025 Championship trophy is still to be decided, we will comment on that when it is decided. We are getting good earnings from our Media rights. Our motive is domestic players should get more benefits as our earnings are increasing,” he added.
In December 2022, ACC chairman Jay Shah released the itinerary of the continental body and the venue of the Asia Cup wasn’t mentioned.
This led to PCB chief Najam Sethi accusing Shah of takinga “unilateral decision”, an allegation that ACC officially refuted stating that repeated emails to PCB seeking recommendations on the itinerary went unanswered.
Lashing out at Jay Shah’s decision, PCB chief Sethi recently threatened BCCI that Pakistan will pull out of the 2023 World Cup if Asia Cup is played at a neutral venue. PCB had asked for an emergency meeting to discuss Asia Cup hosting rights.
To put an end to the tussle, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) held an emergency meeting to discuss Asia Cup hosting right in Bahrain on February 4, 2023, where Shah reiterated that there is no chance of the Asia Cup being held in Pakistan in September. BCCI has said that India can’t participate in the Asia Cup in Pakistan as the government of India has not permitted the Indian team to travel to Pakistan. Instead, UAE and Sri Lanka are two potential alternatives. A final decision on the venue will be taken in March.
Notably, Pakistan was isolated from hosting international tournaments since the attack on Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore in 2009. For the last three years, Pakistan has started hosting international tournaments but India is yet to visit the hostile neighbour. Over the years consistent terrorist activities from the other side of the border have been strictly dealt with by the Indian government by strategically isolating Pakistan on multiple fronts.
Cricket tournaments between the two countries have been limited to ICC and ACC events. Notably, India’s cricket team has not played any match in Pakistan since 2008. Pakistani team visited India for the last time for T20 World Cup 2016.
Three of the four-member Dhadhi Jatha (Ballad singers) have disappeared in Canada. They were in Canada on a six-month sponsored tour to perform at Gurudwaras. The trio has been identified as 39-year-old Bhai Harpal Singh, 30-year-old Bhai Ranjit Singh Rana and 36-year-old Bhai Ranjesh Singh Mahay. Group head and noted singer Jaswinder Singh Shant said in a statement that they might seek asylum in Canada using fraudulent means. Notably, photographs of the missing persons with Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) President and MP Siranjit Singh Mann have surfaced on social media.
In the past few years, multiple reports of Punjab band members disappearing abroad have come to light. Times of India quoted Shant saying that such incidents bring a bad name to Sikhism, Punjab and India. He informed the media house that before leaving for Canada, Harpal and Ranjit got their photographs clicked with Simranjit Singh Mann. Initially, he did not know the intentions behind getting those photographs clicked. Mann is the President of Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) and has openly supported the separatist Khalistani movement.
Mann had quit the police service due to Operation Blue Star, which was launched by the Government of India in 1984 to eliminate Khalistani terrorists ensconced in Amritsar’s Harmandir Sahib. According to reports, Mann’s party workers raised pro-Khalistan shouts at the Golden Temple on the anniversary of Operation Blue Star in 2022. Simranjit Singh Mann has openly demanded Khalistan and often spoke about a separate state for Sikhs. Reports suggest he has been arrested over 30 times including over charges of sedition but never got convicted.
TOI quoted Shant saying, “Now I understand that they intended to misuse those photos by claiming that they are related to Mann’s party and there is a threat to their life in India,” said Shant. “The visas of Harpal and Ranjit are valid till February 23 and they have already applied for an extension. But we have withdrawn their application.”
They were sponsored by the Gurudwara Committee of Victoria City, British Columbia. They were scheduled to perform at the Baisakhi festival. Following the disappearance, the Victoria police registered a case based on the Gurudwara Committee’s complaint.
As per Dainik Savera’s report, the family of one of the missing persons has blamed Shant for the incident. His wife said that it was Shant’s responsibility to take care of her husband.
In a statement, Bhai Harvinder Singh Nijhar, senior vice president of Gurudwara Dashmesh Culture Centre Calgary said that the group came to the Gurudwara on January 9 after staying in Victoria for a few days. Three of the four-member team were serving as Dewans in the Gurudwara. However, on January 22, they disappeared. He added that Shant was not informed by the trio about leaving the premises.
In first week of February, a terrifying video had gone viral on social media where a naked woman can be seen ringing doorbells of homes in the dead of the night. (Potentially sensitive content, viewers’ discretion advised.)
In the viral video, a naked woman was found randomly ringing the doorbell of the houses in the middle of the night and disappearing.
The incident allegedly occurred late at night on January 29 in Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur’s Milak village. A local citizen lodged a complaint with the police that a naked woman was reportedly ringing the doorbells of residents in Milak village and disappearing in the middle of the night.
Responding to videos shared online, the official Twitter handle of Rampur police informed on February 2 that it has taken cognisance and a team has been formed to investigate the matter.
किये गये टविट के सम्बन्ध में थाना मिलक रामपुर पुलिस द्वारा टीम गठित कर निगरानी की जा रही है
On February 3, a police official in a tweeted video urged the public to clothe the woman first and then alert the nearest station if they spotted the woman on the streets. He added that the footage was being inspected to identify the woman and initiate action in the matter.
After scanning the CCTV footage, the Rampur Police identified the woman.
On February 4, Saturday, the Rampur police in Uttar Pradesh issued a statement in response to a video that recently went viral in which a naked woman was seen going door to door and ringing the bells of houses in the dead of night. The police said that the woman was “mentally unstable and has been undergoing treatment for the last five years.”
In a statement issued in Hindi, the Rampur police said, “the mystery around a woman roaming around naked in Malik town has been solved. The father and mother of the woman, who was seen in the video, have told that their daughter’s mental condition is not stable and she has been undergoing medical treatment in Bareilly district for the past five years.”
Statement issued by Rampur police (Source: Rampur police Twitter handle)
Rampur Police further stated that the woman’s family has been instructed to keep a watchful eye on her. The police also urged residents not to share misleading information on social media groups that could cause fear or confusion among others, as well as not to share anything that would jeopardise the woman’s dignity.
YouTuber Armaan Malik, who has two official wives and one rumoured ex third wife, was recently in news because his two current wives, Payal and Kritika, were pregnant at the same time. Armaan and Payal already have one son Chirayu, about 7-8 years old. There are reports that Malik also has two children from his ex wife but there are no proofs regarding the same.
The trio shot to fame on TikTok while making short videos on social issues like domestic violence, women harassment and mental harassment. After TikTok was banned in India, they moved on to platforms such as Instagram and YouTube and garnered a huge following when the two women sat down and told their ‘love story’. How Payal and Armaan met when she was working in a bank and within 7 days of knowing him, she moved in with him. How she had a miscarriage once and had Chirayu next. After that at one of the parties, she met Kritika, invited her home to hang out and after Armaan offered to click pictures for Kritika, the two fell in love and eloped and got married. You can read in great detail about the Maliks here.
Soon after the news of both his wives being pregnant at same time went viral, many trolls had commented how Armaan might now get himself a third (or fourth if rumours of his first wife are true) wife.
Soon enough, amongst the other drama in their lives, like how their Fortuner car got stolen from the streets of Delhi, they brought in a ‘third wife’ too.
Four days back, Armaan Malik, on his own separate channel (they have one ‘Family Fitness’ and one ‘Chirayu Malik’ channels) put up a video on how he has brought in the ‘third wife’. In the beginning of the video, Armaan clarifies how everyone was telling him about the ‘third wife prank’ wherein he pranks his two pregnant wives by bringing in a ‘third wife’. Yes, problematic, very problematic.
Kid Chirayu part of ‘prank video’ of third wife
But as the Internet is full of cringe content, this, too, has its own separate fan base. Myself included.
Me after admitting I consume cringe content on Internet
But as Internet is Internet, instead of full video, only the snippet of the third wife has gone viral on social media platform without context of it being a prank.
While many felt that his was a prank or staged video, there were many who fell for it. Many genuinely believed Armaan got himself a third wife as surprise for his two pregnant wives and Internet exploded in all sort of reactions. Some were empathetic to women while some cursed Armaan while others wondered on the legality of it all.
And since then, the wives have also clarified a couple of times that the video of Armaan Malik’s third wife was a prank video.
And while all this is cringe and we may dismiss it, the content that is produced by the Maliks is quite problematic. For someone who has a huge audience base of over 10 million subscribers on one channel, over 2, 3 million on other channels, plus Instagram followers. A lot of their content is regressive and the child being involved in these problematic videos and exposed to the Internet where validation and hate from strangers could lead to severe emotional damage.
Chirayu in multiple videos is shown throwing a temper tantrum. He’s 7-8 years old and is given everything he wants and demands. There’s one employee of their’s some Nitin, who doubles up as Chirayu’s caretaker and he also eggs Chirayu to do ‘shaitani’ which is a watered down word for throwing a fit. Chirayu’s ‘shaitani’ involves bunking school, buying expensive things, throwing and breaking things. He also wears these clothes and ‘models’ where everyone in comments section shower praises on him and call him cute.
Except, it is entitlement. Chirayu is growing up believing life is easy. You hardly see any of his friends in frame. They only have ‘fans’ who come to meet them and ‘play with him’. He is never shown going out to play any sport of study. All he sees in his life is YouTube. Hell, he was even part of the ‘third wife’ prank. As a responsible parents, one would assume that they may want to at least protect the child from all the hateful and judgemental comments that might come their way. But no, everything for them is content.
Chirayu also has his own YouTube channel with over 2 million followers. And his account, too, posts similar problematic content like other two channels. One would think that a YouTube channel in name of child may have him doing his things, like some school science experiments or project or some art related things – you know, things normal kids do in normal school, but no.
Chirayu Malik’s channel
‘Chachu ko ghar se nikal diya’ is a prank video. Which has over 1.1 million view. Chiku then says how he doesn’t like to go to school. And all these ‘prank videos’ which involve extra marital affairs, random marriages, beating up others, slapping, mental and emotional abuse, Chiku is part of them. It is just very triggering.
They hoard clothes, clothes and more clothes. They have tonnes of clothes and their beds, cupboards everything are full of clothes. They keep getting things for promotion which they wear and hoard. They have a dog too. At one point Chiku had a pet lizard type reptile, but now that’s no longer around. I am not sure if it died, escaped or was returned to whoever gave it to them.
But this is content. And people (including me) are consuming it and hate-watching, too, and because of which likely they churn out more such videos. And with three kids coming their way (Payal is pregnant with twins), one can only imagine the plethora of content that is going to come our way.
On Sunday, February, 6, a young budding Indian badminton player Tanya Hemanth of Karnataka clinched the women’s singles title at the Iran Fajr International Challenge badminton tournament in Tehran. During the award ceremony, however, the 19-year-old player was pictured wearing a hijab. According to TOI, the organisers of the event had in Iran, reportedly forced the Indian player to wear a hijab before collecting her award.
Bengaluru shuttler Tanya Hemanth asked to wear headscarf for medal ceremony in Tehran
According to the TOI report, organisers directed players that hijabs were mandatory, despite the fact that no such requirement for the podium dress code was mentioned in the badminton tournament prospectus.
“The prospectus talked about the clothing rules in the Badminton World Federation’s competition regulations, which is mostly common in tournaments around the world. While we knew that headscarves were a must when women stepped out in Tehran, there was no particular mention about their use during the tournament,” TOI quoted a source as saying.
Interestingly, the report also stated that male spectators were not permitted during women’s games, regardless of whether the male member was the player’s father or coach.
In fact, a board with ‘no men allowed’ written was hung at the entrance.
The tournament, however, featured mixed doubles matches for the first time in its history. “The women’s schedule was in the morning and the men’s in the afternoon. Only female spectators were allowed to watch the women’s matches. Also, match officials were all women in women’s matches. Male parents who accompanied their daughters to this meet didn’t get to watch a single match. It was only during mixed doubles that men and women players were seen together on the court,” the source was further quoted as saying by TOI.
It is worth emphasising that women in Iran are forced to wear a hijab, which covers the head and neck and hides the hair, under Islamic law, which has been in place since the 1979 revolution. While Iranian women battle to be emancipated from the restrictions of headscarves, the hijab is used to further the Islamic agenda across the world.
Notably, the Iranian authorities, in June 2022, detained several teenage girls and others for not donning hijabs at a skateboarding competition in Shiraz, a city in southern Iran.
Last year, Iran witnessed severe nationwide anti-hijab protests which were triggered by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of Tehran’s Morality Police.
Mahsa Amini, 22, was detained by the ‘morality police’ in Tehran for failing to comply with the country’s required hijab requirements. Amini, who was on a pleasure trip to Tehran, had not ‘properly covered’ her hair in the hijab. She was detained by police and then assaulted in the police vehicle while being driven to a detention centre for a “re-education class” for failing to wear the country’s mandated head covering.
Post her death, many women including schoolgirls, took to the streets and burnt their hijabs. Women everywhere chopped their hair in protest. Women posted images of themselves removing their hijabs to protest Islamic laws that forbid them from exposing their hair in public.
In retaliation, the so-called “morality police” arrested several women, with allegations that certain authorities have asked that public transportation personnel, as well as staff in government offices, and banks overlook so-called “bad-hijab” ladies. “Morality police” have been observing medical facilities and educational institutions in numerous Iranian cities to make sure women are covering their heads.
A day after the death of former Pakistani military dictator and President Pervez Musharraf, Indian politician, and former Member of Parliament Subramanian Swamy expressed his condolences on Twitter. Toeing the line of many other Indian liberals, Swamy was ‘sorrowful’ at the passing of the man he believed was ‘always anxious to find a way to peace with India’.
“The death of Fmr Pakistan President Gen. Musharraf is sorrowful for those like me who knew him personally. He came to power in Pakistan through a coup but was always anxious to find a way to peace with India. Of course bottom line is he was a Pakistani,” tweeted the former Rajya Sabha MP.
The death of Fmr Pakistan President Gen. Musharraf is sorrowful for those like me who knew him personally. He came to power in Pakistan through a coup but was always anxious to find a way to peace with India. Of course bottom line is he was a Pakistani.
Swamy’s display of sympathy for the man who masterminded the 1999 Kargil War, which claimed the lives of 500+ Indian soldiers, outraged several netizens. Several Indians descended on his timeline minutes after his tweet, reminding Swamy of Pervez Musharraf’s violent past and his role in escalating Pakistan’s terror operations and antagonism toward India.
U Nagaraja Rau, a Twitter user, expressed disbelief at Swamy’s eulogising remark, despite the fact that the entire world is aware how Musharraf was responsible for terror strikes on Indian soil and the deaths of hundreds of Indians. He asked Subramanian Swamy when did he have this inclination for peace, after or before the Kargil war.
“Was always anxious to find peace” Since when did he have this inclination, Swami Sir ? After or Before the Kargil war ?
As if extolling Pakistan’s tyrant wasn’t enough, Swamy shockingly went on to defend Musharraf’s atrocities in his reply to U Nagaraja Rau, claiming that he was only doing his duty during the Kargil conflict.
In Kargil War he was Commander In Chief of the Army.
Swamy’s proclamation of Musharraf as a ‘messiah of peace’ infuriated many other Twitter users, who chastised Swamy for glorifying the former Pakistani military dictator.
He has blood of Our army guys ! Pls don’t eulogies him !
“You’ve lost a lot indeed, deal with it while we rededicate ourselves in memory of those who laid their lives down in service to our nation. He will meet 73 of his own whom he denied a burial. Since both friends have souls, keep the connection going, spare us,” @NirmalBakshay sarcastically chided Subramanian Swamy for glorifying Pervez Musharraf, who orchestrated a war in which India lost hundreds of soldiers.
Another user opined that Swamy does such things only to remain in the limelight.
When one needs to make such tweets to stay in the limelight ??
H Singh, a Twitter user, expressed gratitude to Swamy for justifying his decision to unfollow him. “I had some residual doubts when I unfollowed you … now I am much clear . Thanks”, tweeted H Singh.
I had some residual doubts when I unfollowed you … now I am much clear . Thanks .
Subramanian Swamy is just one of many Indian ‘liberals’ who mourned and praised the former Pakistani military dictator after his death. Leading the pack of liberals was Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who said Musharraf was smart and clear in his strategic thinking. Others who ignored Pervez Musharraf’s bloody background and heaped admiration on him included Vikrant Gupta, the Managing Editor of Sports Tak, Sudheendra Kulkarni, who downplayed Chinese aggressiveness along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), and CNN-News18 sports writer Saikat Ghosh.
In 1984, in response to the Pakistan Army’s intrusions into Kargil, India launched ‘Operation Meghdoot’ and took control of Siachen and its tributary glaciers. Musharraf, who was heading those failed Siachen missions for Pakistan, vowed to occupy Kargil in response, and that personal ambition of Musharraf was the main trigger for Pakistan’s misadventure in Kargil in 1999.
Musharraf was the leading strategist behind the Kargil war, he ordered the infiltration of Indian territory as the Pakistani Army’s General. In fact, when the then-PM Nawaz Sharif ordered the retreat of Pakistan forces due to international pressure, everyone knew that a coup has become inevitable since General Musharraf disagreed with Sharif.
The personal ambition and ego of Musharraf led to the deaths of thousands, mostly Pakistanis, during the Kargil war but instead of reflecting on that, the megalomaniac engineered a coup to seize power for himself.
On February 5, author and political analyst Saurav Dutt informed on Twitter that his book Modi and Me: A Political Reawakening’ was removed by Amazon citing the reason as the book was a ‘Hindutva based literature’. In a tweet, Dutt said, “Ok so my book Modi & Me: A Political Reawakening has been taken off at Amazon and my account DELETED after complaints about its contents. This is ridiculous, a complete farce. Will share more details soon.”
Ok so my book Modi & Me: A Political Reawakening has been taken off @amazon and my account DELETED after complaints about its contents. This is absolutely ridiculous, a complete farce. Will share more details soon. ?
In a follow-up tweet, he shared a screenshot of the email he received from Amazon while creating a new account on KDP. He said, “This is the message received from Amazon/Amazon Kindle BANNING my book on Prime Minister of India because it’s viewed as ‘Hindutva themed literature’. This is no game, they’re out for us.”
The email read that during the review, Amazon found that his account was related to a KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) account that was previously terminated for selling the book “Modi and Me: A Political Reawakening”. Amazon further added that they had received complaints about the content for “allegedly spreading communal dissension”. It added that the content of the book triggered customers because of “Hindutva-themed literature”. Dutt will not be able to open a new account and no royalties pending from the sale of the books will be paid to him.
Netizens called out Amazon for removing the book from its platform
Soon after Dutt’s tweet, netizens came out in his support. Author Pandit Satish K Sharma said, “This is unbelievable. I’m genuinely speechless. Hindutva is indigenous people of India decolonising and resisting ethnocide at the hands of violent colonisers. To deny an indigenous voice chronicling this is everything wrong that with Amazon.”
This is unbelievable. I’m genuinely speechless. Hindutva is indigenous people of India decolonising and resisting ethnocide at the hands of violent colonisers. To deny an indigenous voice chronicling this is everything wrong thats with @amazon. @EHRCChairhttps://t.co/3Ys36ClFiV
— Pt Satish K Sharma MBCS FRSA (@thebritishhindu) February 5, 2023
Author Rajiv Malhotra said, “Ridiculous! Root cause & SNAKES behind this Breaking India conspiracy exposed in #SnakesintheGanga. SOLUTION: GOI must DE-PLATFORM AMAZON.”
Ridiculous! Root cause & SNAKES behind this Breaking India conspiracy exposed in #SnakesintheGanga. SOLUTION: GOI must DE-PLATFORM AMAZON. https://t.co/eeDV9oEY1H
Coalition of Hindus of North America said, “This is blatant #Hinduphobia, prejudice & gagging of free speech. Plenty of books from a variety of political/ideological/ religious/social perspectives on the platform that people strongly disagree with. Why the bias against a Hindu community member only?”
@AmazonKindle@amazon. This is blatant #Hinduphobia, prejudice & gagging of free speech. Plenty of books from a variety of political/ideological/ religious/social perspectives on the platform that people strongly disagree with. Why the bias against a Hindu community member only? https://t.co/ROcV7rH91F
— CoHNA (Coalition of Hindus of North America) (@CoHNAOfficial) February 5, 2023
Author and political activist Renee Lynn said, “Shame on you Amazon for stereotyping Hindutva as communal dissension. Hindutva is Hinduism. How disgusting saying this about Hindutva and shutting down free speech. Get your facts straight and reconsider instead of acting like Communist Dictators.”
Shame on you @amazon@AmazonKindle for stereotyping Hindutva as communal dissension. Hindutva is Hinduism. How disgusting saying this about Hindutva and shutting down free speech. Get your facts straight and reconsider instead of acting like Communist Dictators. https://t.co/U4HA6OeHeA
Conservative author Ryan T Anderson’s book ‘When Harry Became Sally: Responding To The Transgender Movement’ was also removed by Amazon from its platform in 2022. The book was released in 2018 and after selling it for three years, the book was removed. Anderson is a teaching fellow at the University of Dallas.
In its reason to remove the book, Amazon said that it was based on the “Content Guidelines for Books”. The guidelines were changed earlier to remove any content from the platform that would “frame LGBTQ+ identity as a mental illness”. Lawmakers had written to Amazon to explain its action to which the platform had said, “We provide our customers with access to a variety of viewpoints, including books that some customers may find objectionable.”
Update: Amazon has responded to Dutta’s tweet and claimed that the letter shared by him was fake and they never wrote him such a letter. Amazon has alleged that the letter is falsely attributed to them.
OpIndia has reached out to Saurav for comments and waiting for his reply.
On Sunday (February 5) night, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor took to Twitter to defend his ‘eulogising’ remarks, which he made following the death of former Pakistani military dictator Pervez Musharraf.
Tharoor shrewdly compared his previous comments about the mastermind of the 1999 Kargil war to Indian culture and its ethos. “I was raised in an India where you are expected to speak kindly of people when they die,” he emphasised.
While conceding the role of Pervez Musharraf in Kargil, the Congress MP lauded the ex-military dictator for being a beacon of peace. “Musharraf was an implacable enemy & was responsible for Kargil but he did work for peace w/India, in his own interest, 2002-7,” he added.
I was raised in an India where you are expected to speak kindly of people when they die. Musharraf was an implacable enemy &was responsible for Kargil but he did work for peace w/India, in his own interest, 2002-7. He was no friend but he saw strategic benefit in peace,as did we.
“He was no friend but he saw strategic benefit in peace, as did we,” Tharoor continued to justify his actions. In this process, the Congress MP glossed over the barbaric treatment of Indian soldiers who were killed in action during the 1999 Kargil War.
The Aftermath of the Kargil War
The Kargil war between India and Pakistan, which lasted from May 1999 to July 1999, resulted in the death of thousands.
While the numbers remain disputed, as per the figures given by the Nawaz Sharif government, nearly 4,000 Pakistanis died in the conflict while over 500 Indian soldiers lost their lives in the line of duty.
Captain Saurabh Kalia was one of the first casualties of the 1999 Kargil conflict in India. On May 15th, 1999, Captain Kalia and five soldiers went on a routine patrol of the Bajrang Post but were captured by Pakistani infiltrators who had infiltrated Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir.
Captain Kalia and his men were subjected to brutal torture for days before their mutilated bodies were returned to the Indian Army. The torture was so horrific that Captain Kalia’s body was returned with his eyes and eardrums pierced, genitals cut, chest burned, and other atrocities inflicted upon him.
The government presented his case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), labelling it as an exceptional circumstance.
The Pakistani Army, under General Pervez Musharraf, even refused to accept the bodies of their fallen soldiers during the Kargil war, who, unlike Captain Saurabh Kalia, were not tortured during the war and fell on the battlefield. In fact, the Indian Army performed their last rites and gave them a deserving burial.
In archival footage of Associated Press, an Indian Army officer was heard saying, “Today (July 15, 1999) we are carrying out the burial of 7 Pakistani soldiers, who have laid down their lives in combat here, as a mark of respect to the soldiers who have died.”
Two days later on July 17, 1999, the Indian Army buried 5 more bodies of Pakistani soldiers on Gun Hill, which is located at 16,500 feet above sea level. Thus for anyone to eulogise or remotely downplay the sins of Pervez Musharraf is a mockery of those killed in action during the 1999 Kargil War.
The Background of the Controversy around Musharraf
On Sunday (February 5), Indian liberals started praising Musharraf after the news of his death came to light.
Leading the pack of liberals was none other than Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who said that he found Musharraf smart and clear in his strategic thinking.
“Pervez Musharraf, Former Pakistani President, Dies of Rare Disease”: once an implacable foe of India, he became a real force for peace 2002-2007. I met him annually in those days at the @un &found him smart, engaging & clear in his strategic thinking. RIP https://t.co/1Pvqp8cvjE
He tweeted, “…Once an implacable foe of India, he became a real force for peace 2002-2007. I met him annually in those days at the @un & found him smart, engaging & clear in his strategic thinking. RIP”
It must be mentioned that Pervez Musharraf was the leading strategist behind the Kargil war, as he ordered the infiltration of Indian territory as the Pakistani Army’s General. For an Indian lawmaker to sing paeans about the orchestrator of the Kargil war which resulted in the death of hundreds of Indian soldiers, is quite unpalatable to most Indians.
