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As videos showing journalist tutoring Haldwani encroachers emerge, time to recall how it’s not new for ‘liberal media’ to tutor and twist for setting agenda

Anurag
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As videos showing journalist tutoring Haldwani encroachers emerge, time to recall how it’s not new for ‘liberal media’ to tutor and twist for setting agenda

On December 4, OpIndia’s ground team at Haldwani had an encounter with a freelance journalist who was inspired by the likes of The Wire. He tutored the encroachers to speak on camera and address Supreme Court in their statements. This was not the first time the left-wing media geared up to set an agenda using “emotional” messages from the locals.

From time to time, OpIndia has reported such cases where reporters and activists were seen tutoring protesters and even supporters of an ideology or a political party to build up the news reports. Some were even caught planting bytes and statements multiple times per their agenda.

Teesta Setalvad tutored Gujarat Riots victims and Shaheen Bagh Protesters

The infamous activist Teesta Setalvad who was arrested last year for conspiring against then-Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi in the Gujarat Riots of 2002, was caught on at least two occasions tutoring witnesses and protesters to plant her agenda. Even the Supreme Court had said that Teesta Setalvad was involved in fabricating evidence and tutoring witnesses to frame PM Modi in false cases.

The Shaheen Bagh case

In February 2020, OpIndia reported how Teesta Setalvad was caught on camera tutoring the Shaheen Bagh protesters demonstrating against Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register for Citizens (NRC). Bharatiya Janata Party’s IT Cell chief Amit Malviya published a video on Twitter on February 19, 2020, where Setalvad could be seen tutoring the protesters. Notably, Setalvad has also been accused of embezzling money she collected for Gujarat Riots victims for personal expenses.

In the 2-minutes long video, a lady can be heard reading out a list of questions the women could ask the interlocutors appointed by the Supreme Court to mediate and convince the Shaheen Bagh protestors to relocate to an alternative place. Teesta Setalvad could be spotted right behind her overseeing the tutoring.

Teesta also asked the ‘protestors’ if they were satisfied with the questions. The woman in pink then explained how one of them would sit with women in groups of 25-30 and explain in detail. Later Teesta explained what exactly change in elements of protests means.

The Gujarat Riots case

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of India gave a clean chit to the then-Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, in the Gujarat Riots of 2002. In the judgment, the apex court noted that Teesta Setalvad tutored the witnesses and submitted statements without checking with them. Notably, witnesses were unaware of the statements submitted in their names.

On Page 118 of the judgment, the court observed that Zakia Jafri, the main petitioner in the case, had admitted to concealing the fact that she had known Teesta for some time. She admitted during her cross-examination that Teesta Setalvad tutored the statement she gave to Nanavati-Shah Commission. Interestingly, during cross-examination, Zakia admitted she never read the copy of her statement to the Commission.

The court further observed, “She fabricated the documents by persons who were to be prospective witnesses of the complainant. It is not only a case of fabrication of documents but also of influencing and tutoring the witnesses and making them depose on pre-typed affidavit, as noted in the High Court judgment dated 11.7.2011 in Criminal Miscellaneous Application No. 1692/2011.”

Journalist Mausami Singh of India Today was caught tutoring Congress workers.

In January 2019, when India was gearing up for the Lok Sabha elections, India Today journalist Mausami Singh was caught on camera tutoring Congress workers to look “excited” for Priyanka Gandhi’s visit. On an eventful day, she was present at Anand Bhavan to record the celebratory events of Congress workers to welcome the joining of Priyanka Gandhi as the UP East in charge. However, in a video that has gone viral now, it can be seen that the journalist was orchestrating the event all along to create a narrative of excitement.

In a series of videos, a Twitter user recounted the scenes at an event that was purposefully staged so that it could be broadcasted in the media to sustain a narrative. The social media user who was at the spot claimed that a few supporters of the Congress party were chanting “Priyanka Gandhi Zindabad” after it was announced that she would be joining politics ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

In the video, it can be seen that Mausami Singh was indeed instructing those Congress workers to make certain statements to the media. The social media user further added that Mausami Singh had successfully managed to bring in some more crowd, especially women, to the spot, who claimed to be Congress party workers.

Two journalists were found tutoring local women villagers about giving statements against Bajrang Dal.

In December 2018, during a ground report in Bulandshehr, OpIndia reported how two make journalists led a group of women to give statements that they witnessed members of Bajrang Dal gather for a meeting on December 2 night. “We men were at Itjima, and only women and old people were present when the announcement was made. Hours later, the carcass was found,” a local villager told OpIndia. It was strange to witness a closed-door meeting between the witnesses and journalists. Those journalists were from a video platform which had partnered with a data analysis website which was called out for misreporting on ‘hate crimes’.

OpIndia’s encounter with a propaganda ‘journalist’ in Haldwani

The leftist media has geared up to make the Haldwani protests by the illegal encroachers their new propaganda tool. That the illegal encroachers are mostly Muslims, and state administration is getting the encroachment removed on a High Court order (now stayed by Supreme Court) the leftists have things served on a platter to make a communal issue out of it and cry ‘Muslims under attack by Hindu nationalist party’ on international platforms.

Appeals are made in the name of ‘humanity’, and requests for facilities are made so that eventually, the illegal structures can be regularised and government land is usurped illegally. It had all the elements to become yet another ‘Shaheen Bagh’ like movement where a law was opposed over fabricated allegations and ‘Muslims under attack’ was peddled. This is when Citizenship Amendment Act does not affect Indians, Muslims or otherwise, in any case. Propagandists cried ‘kagaz nahin dikhayenge’ in defiance over laws that did not affect them – no one wanted to see their papers if they were Indian citizens. However, those protests and ‘chakkajams’ eventually led to anti-Hindu riots in the national capital.

The OpIndia team went to Haldwani to verify what was going on in Haldwani. On January 4, OpIndia’s team was in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, to take stock of the situation amidst a notice issued to clear the encroachment of the Indian Railways land. Social media has been flooded with viral videos claiming that the court-ordered removal of illegal encroachers is a ‘conspiracy’ against Muslims. Most of the illegal encroachers on the railway land are Muslims.

During our time at the location, we spotted a man who identified himself as a journalist talking to the encroachers and tutoring them on what to say. Notably, he clearly asked them not to speak in Urdu but speak in Hindi and how it will come on channels such as the leftist propaganda outlet The Wire. He specifically asked one of the encroachers to address the Supreme Court, where the case was scheduled for hearing on January 5.

Urdu teacher Dilshad takes Maulvi Wasim from Panipat to Kairana, beats him to death, and buries him in an under-construction house

OpIndia Staff
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Urdu teacher Dilshad takes Maulvi Wasim from Panipat to Kairana, beats him to death, and buries him in an under-construction house

A shocking case has come to light from the Panipat district of Haryana. The case is reminiscent of the Bollywood film ‘Drishyam’, just as the body of a young man was buried in an under-construction police station after killing him in the film, the accused in film’s style, buried the dead body in an under-construction house. The accused Dilshad first took Wasim to Kairana from Panipat and then killed him there.

The police have arrested the 65-year-old cleric. The deceased has been identified as Maulvi Wasim. He had been missing since December 31, 2022. Wasim was reportedly married and left behind two children.

Panipat police recovered Wasim’s body from an under-construction house in Reta Wala Mohalla in Kairana on Tuesday, January 3, 2023, in the presence of duty magistrate Tahsildar. The body was handed over to the family after a post-mortem examination on Wednesday, January 4, 2023. Police said the accused was an Urdu teacher and a cleric, and the deceased was his fellow Maulvi.

A WhatsApp message was sent to Wasim’s brother

According to reports, 28-year-old Maulvi Wasim was a resident of Imam Sahib Mohalla, Jatal Road in Panipat. He had been missing for 4 days. According to the deceased’s elder brother Kallan, his younger brother left for work around 8 AM on December 31, 2022, after which he did not return home.

He said, “At 6.12 pm on January 1, 2023, I received a message on WhatsApp with a photo of Wasim’s body. It was written in that message that we are speaking from Jind. Your brother did wrong to our girl. That’s why we killed him. Waseem had also taken Rs 7.35 lakh from the girl. Before dying, Wasim has given his brother’s number. Now this money will be recovered from his brother.”

Dilshad confessed to the murder

In some media reports, Wasim is being called Wasin. Investigating officer Mahipal Singh, who is investigating the case, said, “The victim’s family had initially lodged a missing person’s report. After this, the story of Wasim’s murder came to light when his brother received a message, in which the girl and the money were mentioned.”

He added, “During the investigation of the case, family, friends, neighbors, and others were questioned. Wasim was also a cleric. He had made 65-year-old cleric Dilshad his master. When Dilshad was strictly interrogated in this case, he confessed to killing his disciple.”

Dilshad killed Wasim for Rs 7.5 lakhs

The accused Dilshad told the police that he had taken the deceased Wasim to Kairana on the pretext of getting him a job. He asked Wasim to sit in an under-construction house. Dilshad hit Wasim on the head with a stick, due to which he died on the spot. He then brought a mattress cover and placed Wasim’s body inside it. He then buried his body in the under-construction house.

The accused Dilshad is a resident of Kandhla in UP. He had known Wasim for about 7 years. Dilshad also often visited Wasim’s house. During this time, he came to know that Wasim was friends with a woman teacher from Jind. The teacher had recently given about Rs 7.5 lakh to Wasim and Dilshad had his eye on it. For this money, he killed Wasim under a well-planned conspiracy.

Zakir flashes his private part at a woman passenger in DTC bus in Delhi, pretends to cry when caught by marshal: Watch

Jhankar Mohta
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Zakir flashes his private part at a woman passenger in DTC bus in Delhi, pretends to cry when caught by marshal: Watch

On Thursday, January 5, a video went viral wherein a man named Zakir, a resident of Bihar, was caught by Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) marshal after he allegedly flashed his private part at a female passenger on a bus in Delhi.

Popular Twitter user named Ashwini Shrivastava was the first to highlight the matter on social media as he posted a video of the incident on his Twitter and YouTube accounts.

In the video, which has now gone viral, the DTC marshal can be heard confronting the accused after the woman passenger narrates her ordeal. The accused, who pretends to cry after being caught, identifies himself as Zakir, a resident of Bihar. He reveals that he currently stays in Rajouri Garden and works in the Vijay Vihar area in the national capital.

The DTC marshal then introduces himself and gives out the details of the incident. He also says in the video that he called the police and appropriate action will be taken by them.

This is not the first time such a disgusting incident has come to light. Last month, a man was arrested for allegedly flashing his private parts inside the Vishweshwar Mahadev temple in Prakash Nagar in Indore city of Madhya Pradesh.

The accused was identified as Wasim. The incident of the man doing obscene acts in the temple was recorded in the CCTV footage. Wasim was arrested after police checked the CCTV footage after receiving a complaint about the obscene act. He has been booked under the National Security Act (NSA).

Kanjhawala Death Case: Delhi police deny the possibility of murder charges, 7 accused identified so far

OpIndia Staff
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Kanjhawala Death Case: Delhi police deny the possibility of murder charges, 7 accused identified so far

On January 1, a girl named Anjali died in a horrific road accident that took place early in the morning in Kanjhawala, Delhi. The police have arrested five accused in the case. On Thursday, 5th January 2023, the Delhi Police shared important updates related to the case. The police have denied the possibility of any murder charges on the accused in this case. Police have also revealed that there are 7 accused in the case, and not just 5.

On 5th January 2023, Delhi Police officer Sagar P Hooda said that so far, based on the investigation, they can not apply charges of murder on the accused. He also informed that 18 teams of Delhi Police are working on this case.

Sagar Hooda said that five accused are in custody and the clues found on the basis of their statements are being investigated. He said that many discrepancies have been found in the statements of the five accused. Based on the CCTV and CDR, it has been found that there were two more persons involved, the official said.

Delhi Police said accused Deepak identified himself as the driver, but another accused Amit was driving the vehicle. There were two more people. They were the associates of the five prime accused and they have also been made accused in the case. “Our team is investigating the matter seriously and the final post-mortem report is awaited”, Delhi police said.

The Delhi Police has also shared the exact time of the accident. Hooda said that the incident took place between 2.04 AM and 2.06 AM. He said that the road where the accident took place leads to Haryana and continues for almost 10-12 km. However, how far the body was dragged is not known at the moment.

“There is nothing that indicates sexual harassment,” the official also said.

Sagar Hooda further added, “We will present the accused to take their custody again. At the same time, there are two more accused who are being arrested. Their names are Ashutosh and Ankush Khanna. A charge sheet will be filed in the case soon.”

“Nidhi is a key witness in the case and we have recorded her statement. As to why she did not report to the police, it is also on our minds. We have also done counseling. There could be some trauma. All aspects are being investigated. She told her mother. So we will investigate that too,” he added.

According to a report by ABP News, Nidhi’s mother Sudeshi has now come up with a new revelation. She said that the accused deliberately ran the car over Anjali to and fro several times. According to her, Nidhi told her that Anjali has been murdered by the accused. Anjali’s friend Nidhi was with her when her scooty was struck by the accused’s vehicle, and it is claimed that she left the scene of the accident.

Nidhi’s mother said, “My sons have disowned Nidhi. I meet her without informing my sons. She told me that some people have run a car over her friend, and they tried to do the same with her but she ran away. The allegations the deceased’s mother is putting against my daughter are untrue.”

Questions are also being raised on the working style of the police in this whole case. Eyewitnesses of the case said that the police were informed on time, but no action was taken. On these questions, Sagar P. Hooda said that the police are conducting an internal investigation into the response of the police PCR. If there is a human error in it, then action will be taken against those who are at fault, he assured.

CPIM women’s wing AIDWA uses former Pakistani PM Benazir Bhutto’s face for its national conference

OpIndia Staff
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CPIM women’s wing AIDWA uses former Pakistani PM Benazir Bhutto’s face for its national conference

All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), the women’s wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), has used the picture of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as the cover photo for their upcoming national conference. AIDWA also labelled Palayam Martyr Mandap in Thiruvananthapuram as Benazir Bhutto Square. 

Big hoardings with the photo of the former Pakistan PM have been put up for the AIDWA conference. The text written next to Benazir Bhutto’s image reads, “Benazir Bhutto the first woman prime minister of Pakistan was also presented with the honorary doctorate by 9 universities including Harvard University.” At the bottom, Benazir Bhutto Square is mentioned.

As per a press statement, the conference is scheduled to be held from January 6 to 9 and will be inaugurated by Mallika Sarabhai, Chancellor of the Kerala Kala Mandalam Public Deemed University. The concluding meeting of this conference will be attended by CM Pinarayi Vijayan on January 9.

Sandeep Vachaspati, Spokesperson for the Kerala unit of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), took to Twitter to condemn the communist party for placing the picture of Benazir Bhutto on the hoarding of their conference. 

“The photograph of Former PM of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto, who declared 1000 years of war against India, now adorns the hording that was erected in connection with the national conference of @cpimspeak women association. Beware of the traitors and the threat within,” Vachaspati tweeted.

While the conference is to be held with the slogan ‘Struggle in Unity for Equality,’ the CPI(M) women’s wing is using the cover image of Benazir Bhutto who in her speech in Larkana in the year 1990 echoed the former Prime minister of Pakistan and founder of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s “1000 years war against India.”

It is pertinent to mention that in 1965, the then Foreign Minister of Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in a speech at the UN Security Council had said,  “We will wage a war for 1,000 years against India, a war of defence…Irrespective of our size and of our resources, we shall fight to the end.”

Excerpt from Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s speech at UNSC in 1965 (Image credit: bhutto.org)

This declaration of “1000 years war against India” was not a mere provocation or rhetoric which reflected in Pakistan’s policy towards India which came to be known as “Bleed India With a Thousand Cuts.”

In 1990, Benazir Bhutto delivered a speech that resulted in a surge in cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and led to the ethnic cleansing of the Kashmiri Hindus. 

The same Benazir Bhutto the CPI(M) identifies as a woman who received doctorates from 9 universities including Harvard also instigated the Kashmiri Muslims to take up arms and wage a Jihad against India. 

“That Jagmohan (Governor of Jammu and Kashmir in 1990) will be cut into Jag-Jag-Mo-Mo-Han-Han. Kashmiri Muslims do not fear because they are Muslims. Kashmiri Muslims have the blood of Mujahids and Ghazis in their veins. Kashmiris will take their freedom with bravery. From every town, village, and every mosque only one voice will echo, Azaadi,” Benazir said in her speech while addressing a large crowd.

Even though the targeted killing of Hindus in Kashmir began in 1989 with the murder of Tika Lal Taploo, Benazir Bhutto’s 1990 speech was among the many factors that led to the genocide of Hindus in Kashmir.

California: Indian-origin man drives his Tesla off 300-foot cliff in a suicide attempt, family of four survives crash

ANI
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California: Indian-origin man drives his Tesla off 300-foot cliff in a suicide attempt, family of four survives crash

An Indian-origin man, Dharmesh A Patel, has been arrested for attempted murder and child abuse after California Highway Patrol officials say he intentionally drove his car over a cliff with his wife and two children, reported ABC News.

The Southern California man faces multiple charges on suspicion of attempted murder and child endangerment, according to an arrest report. The highway patrol said that he will be formally booked into San Mateo County Jail after his hospital treatment.

The driver of the car, Patel, of Pasadena, California, is being treated for his injuries and will be booked into San Mateo County Jail upon his release from the hospital, according to CHP.

All four occupants of the Tesla survived the crash Monday after the car plunged 250 to 300 feet into a rocky beach area known as Devil’s Slide, about 20 miles south of San Francisco, California Highway Patrol said.

California Highway Patrol spokesman, officer Mark Andrews said the car’s three passengers were the driver’s wife and two children.

According to Patel’s arrest report, the other occupants of the car were a 41-year-old female, a 7-year-old female and a 4-year-old male.

CHP received a call about a vehicle plunging over a cliff on Highway 1, south of the Tom Lantos tunnels, CHP said in a statement to ABC News.

CHP officers and additional emergency personnel arrived at the scene and saw a white Tesla about 250 to 300 feet down the cliff, according to CHP. According to CHP, emergency personnel rappelled down to the vehicle and found two adults and two children inside.

All four people were successfully rescued from the car and taken to the local hospital with serious injuries, according to CHP.

CHP officers interviewed witnesses and gathered evidence from the scene. Based on the evidence gathered, investigators developed probable cause to believe the accident was an intentional act, according to CHP. 

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

Cracks in houses, families relocated: Severe landslides continue to cause concern in Joshimath, Uttarakhand

OpIndia Staff
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Cracks in houses, families relocated: Severe landslides continue to cause concern in Joshimath, Uttarakhand

Joshimath, in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand is seeing severe landslides. Currently, all of the wards in the area have been affected by landslides. On Monday, 2nd January 2023, houses also began to develop cracks, which caused alarm throughout the city.

50 affected residents of JP Company Colony were relocated on Wednesday by the company, while 16 affected families from other wards were relocated to safer locations by the government. 11 affected individuals were relocated from the area earlier. The structures in the low-lying areas are also in danger as a result of the water leaking from the ground in the Marwari area. Cracks have also appeared in BSNL’s office and residential buildings in the town’s Singhdhar ward, posing a risk to the residents who live there.

On Monday night, there were major cracks in 50 residential buildings of JP Company in the Marwari ward of the town. In view of the threat, on Wednesday, JP Company evacuated all the houses and shifted the employees to safe places in different locations. Bharat Bisht, who lives in the company’s residential complex, said that along with the company’s buildings, there have been cracks in his house as well. Water leakage from the ground also continues unabated in parts of the JP Colony. Now the water has started leaking from the walls of many houses as well.

According to a report by Amar Ujala, water coming out of the ground is entering the cracks, which has increased the danger even more. Since Monday, cracks have occurred in some or the other house in all the nine wards of the city – Parsari, Ravigram, Sunil, Upper Bazar, Narsingh Mandir, Manohar Bagh, Singhdhar, Marwari and Gandhi Nagar wards. At the same time, the cracks are constantly increasing. From here, the administration has shifted about 16 affected people on Wednesday and five families on Tuesday. Earlier, six families were also shifted while many of the affected have left their homes.

Auli ropeway operation suspended

The operation of the Auli ropeway has also been suspended till the next orders. Ropeway manager Dinesh Bhatt said that these orders have been received from the administration, while the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN) Directorate has not yet ordered to stop the ropeway operations. There have also been cracks in the land around the ropeway tower in Joshimath. This decision has been taken keeping in mind the safety of the tourists.

Post office shifted

The post office operating on the premises of JP Company has been shifted to the head post office in Joshimath. Post office official N Lohani said that the post office operating in the premises was in danger due to leakage of water. Due to this, it has been transferred to the post office of Joshimath.

The building complex of Dharmic institutions also affected

The Jyotirmath complex has also been affected by the landslides. There have been major cracks around the buildings of the complex, the Lakshmi Narayan Temple. Brahmachari Mukundanand, in charge of Jyotirmath, said there were cracks at the entrance, Lakshmi Narayan temple, and in the auditorium.

Hotel Mount View in Singhdhar ward has also been damaged due to landslides. On Monday night, the family living behind the hotel was in a state of panic after hearing the sound of the walls of the hotel being broken. Hotel owner Sunder Lal Semwal said that the hotel has been completely evacuated.

Dr. Brijesh Sati, media in-charge of Jyotirmath, said that Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati of Jyotishpeeth has expressed his concern over the landslide. Shankaracharya has said that the government should work seriously on this issue. Brahmachari Mukundanand, in charge of Jyotirmath, said that soon the disaster service center room will be set up on behalf of the math.

Report by the SDC Foundation and UDAS

The SDC Foundation has released its third report on major natural disasters and accidents occurring in Uttarakhand. According to the Uttarakhand Disaster and Accident Synopsis (UDAS) report, 500 houses in Joshimath are not fit to live. The report has expressed concern over the continuous landslides in Joshimath.

The major part of the report is about the landslide in Joshimath this time. The report says that more than 500 houses in the city are uninhabitable. People alleged that the administration has not taken any action to deal with the situation, due to which they had to take to the streets on December 24. About 800 shops in the city remained closed on the day as a mark of protest. The reasons for Joshimath’s landslides have also been mentioned in the report.

Team of experts to survey Joshimath

The state government is keeping an eye on the entire matter. On the instructions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, a team of experts will leave for Joshimath on Thursday, 5th January 2023. The expert team includes Dr. Piyush Rautela from Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA), Dr. Shantanu Sarkar from Uttarakhand Landslide Mitigation and Management Centre (ULMMC), Prof. BK Maheshwari, Manoj Kastha from Geological Survey of India (GSI), Dr. Swapna Mitra Chaudhary from Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG), and Dr. Gopal Krishna from National Institute of Hydrology (NIH) Roorkee.

Earlier, this team of experts visited Joshimath between August 16 and 20, 2022, and submitted the first report to the government. This team will stay in Joshimath for the next few days and do the survey work. During this time, the team will report to the government regarding both long-term and immediate measures.

‘Muslim crowd, Arfa, religion… speak in Hindi, not Urdu’: Haldwani encroachers being trained by journalist claiming to be from The Wire

राहुल पाण्डेय
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‘Muslim crowd, Arfa, religion… speak in Hindi, not Urdu’: Haldwani encroachers being trained by journalist claiming to be from The Wire

The leftist media has geared up to make the Haldwani protests by the illegal encroachers as their new propaganda tool. That the illegal encroachers are mostly Muslims and state administration is getting the encroachment removed on High Court order (now stayed by Supreme Court) the leftists have things served on a platter to make a communal issue out of it and cry ‘Muslims under attack by Hindu nationalist party’ on international platforms.

Appeals are made in name of ‘humanity’ and requests for facilities are made so that eventually the illegal structures can be regularised and government land is usurped illegally. It had all the elements to become yet another ‘Shaheen Bagh’ like movement where a law was opposed over fabricated allegations and ‘Muslims under attack’ was peddled. This when Citizenship Amendment Act does not affect Indians, Muslims or otherwise, in any case. Propagandists cried ‘kagaz nahin dikhayenge’ in defiance over laws that did not affect them – no one wanted to see their papers if they were Indian citizens. However, those protests and ‘chakkajams’ eventually led to anti-Hindu riots in the national capital.

Hence, OpIndia team decided to verify what is going on in Haldwani. On January 4, OpIndia’s team was in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, to take stock of the situation amidst a notice issued to clear the encroachment of the Indian Railways land. Social media has been flooded with viral videos claiming that the court ordered removal of illegal encroachers is a ‘conspiracy’ against Muslims. Most of the illegal encroachers on the railway land are Muslims.

During our time at the location, we spotted a man who identified himself as a journalist who was talking to the encroachers and tutoring them on what to say. Notably, he clearly asked them not to speak in Urdu but speak in Hindi and how it will come on channels such as leftist propaganda outlet The Wire. He specifically asked one of the encroachers to address the Supreme Court, where the case is scheduled for hearing on January 5.

Part 1: Journalist trained encroachers to speak in Hindi

Our team spotted a man wearing woollen cap identifying himself as a journalist speak to a crowd of encroachers and he was showing something on his phone. In the first video, he was seen speaking to encroachers and showed them a video of Arfa Khanum Sherwani of The Wire. He said, “She is a Muslim. She is from your community. She speaks so well.” He said that the video would appear on likes of The Wire.

After this, we stopped recording the scene unfolding before us on camera, to protect safety of our reporter.

‘You’ve to speak to Supreme Court’: How the ‘journalist’ taught Muslim crowd to ‘speak in Hindi’

In second part, one can hear the said journalist teach the crowd how they have to speak on camera and ‘appeal’ to the Supreme Court and cry how they are the ‘citizens’ of India. Whether or not one is citizen of India, the law of the land should be respected by all and Indian citizenship does not bestow you protection for illegally encroaching upon government land.

In the above video, journalist claiming to be from The Wire told the illegal encroacher, “Bolna Padega… It will come first on Bolna Padega and second on The Wire. We want to request the Supreme Court to pass orders keeping humanity in mind. Where will the public go? On the one hand, the government is building night shelters and providing all types of facilities. On the other hand, we are being evicted. There are poor children here. Innocent women and pregnant women live here. Where will they go? Supreme Court must keep all this in mind while passing the order. Supreme Court should become a living example of humanity.”

‘Use Hindi words, not Urdu words,’ The Wire inspired journalist tutors encroachers

In the last part, he tutored the encroacher to change how he spoke. He asked the encroacher to address the Supreme Court and told him that the tagline of the report would be “The judgment will come tomorrow (January 5)”. He added, “I am putting words in your mouth. You have to say that. ‘I want to tell the Supreme Court. We are the citizens of India.

We are Hindu Muslims. We request you not to put us in a confused state.’ Don’t use Urdu words. Use Hindi words. ‘Please take cognizance of the injustice happening to us.'” He then asked them to speak to the camera and not look at him.

The Haldwani encroachment clearance orders and protests against it

Earlier this year, social media was flooded with viral videos of thousands of people sitting in biting cold pleading their ‘homes’ be not removed. Turns out, they were illegal encroachers and removal of encroachment was done after a High Court orders. The land that was encroached upon belonged to Indian Railways.

The protesters also claimed that the clearance of encroachments would affect a large number of women, children, and elderly persons residing in the area. Since then, speculations are rife that these are orchestrated protests and are being made to be yet another ‘Shaheen Bagh‘. And now it seems the tricks of leftist media have worked and Supreme Court has put a stay on demolition drive.

Supreme Court stays demolition drive to clear illegal encroachment from Railways land in Haldwani, says there has to be rehabilitation before eviction

OpIndia Staff
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Supreme Court stays demolition drive to clear illegal encroachment from Railways land in Haldwani, says there has to be rehabilitation before eviction

The Supreme Court Wednesday put a stay on the matter of the removal of encroachment from Indian Railways land in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, saying that a workable arrangement has to be devised. Staying the Uttarakhand High Court order to evict more than 4000 families who are illegally encroaching on railway land, the apex court bench comprising Justices SK Kaul and AS Oka also barred any new construction or development on the land till the matter is resolved.

The court was hearing a batch of petitions challenging the Uttarakhand High Court order which directed the clearance of illegal encroachments on railway land in Haldwani, Uttarakhand. The Supreme Court issued notices to the Uttarakhand government and the Railways in the matter, asking them to find a practical solution before going ahead with the eviction.

While the Supreme Court agreed that the land belongs to Indian Railways and is needed for the development and expansion of railway infrastructure, the court stated in its judgement that the government must give full rehabilitation to the eligible residents of the area. “In the meantime, there shall be a stay of the directions passed in the impugned order,” Supreme Court said, prohibiting any new construction or development on the land.

While putting a stay on the matter, the bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Abhay S Oka opined that 50,000 persons cannot be relocated in seven days. As Justice SK Kaul heard the case, he stated that there are numerous parts to the issue, that people have been living on the land for years, and that there are establishments.

The court noted that there are many people who claimed to have been living in the area for 60-70 years, and asked the authorities to identify illegal encroachers and legal residents. After that, the govt must rehabilitate the valid residents, and find a suitable solution for the illegal encroachers, the court ordered.

“What is troubling us is how do you deal with a situation where people bought in auction and took possession after 1947 and acquired title. You may acquire the land but what to do now. People lived for 60-70 years some rehabilitation has to be done. There must be a culmination to the issue and we do not encourage what is going on,” Justice Kaul said during the hearing. The justice said that even in cases of illegal encroachment, governments have often rehabilitated the encroachers. He said that there is a human angle to the issue.

The court also noted that the High Court issued the order to clear the encroachment within 7 days without hearing the affected people. The bench further said that a large number of people have been living in the area for a long period, and all of them can’t be painted with the same brush. There could be different categories, the bench said.

As the lawyers of the petitioners said that many people have been living there for decades and were granted leases of the land by the government and some claimed to have purchased land in auctions, the Supreme Court said that the state govt will have to find a practical solution. It is notable that the petitioners are not seeking rehabilitation as they claim to have ownership rights of the land.

While staying the eviction order, the court said that proceedings under the Public Premises Act can continue.

The case has now been listed for its next hearing on February 7.

The Haldwani encroachment clearance orders and protests against it

Thousands of Muslim residents in Haldwani staged a protest on December 28 against the clearance of illegal encroachments on railway land in accordance with a High Court ruling. The demonstrators claimed that removing the illegal encroachments would make them homeless.

The protesters also claimed that the clearance of encroachments would affect a large number of women, children, and elderly persons residing in the area. Obvious actors including Alt News’ Mohammed Zubair, Amnesty India and others have jumped to make Haldwani another Shaheen Bagh.

The Congress party too jumped in to exploit the situation for political brownie points. On January 4, former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Harish Rawat sat on an hour-long silent fast at his residence in Dehradun in support of the people of Banbhulpura of Haldwani. 

‘Hockey comes home’: As Odisha gears up to host Hockey World Cup, Birsa Munda Stadium, world’s largest, to be inaugurated today by CM Patnaik

OpIndia Staff
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‘Hockey comes home’: As Odisha gears up to host Hockey World Cup, Birsa Munda Stadium, world’s largest, to be inaugurated today by CM Patnaik

Hockey has a home in Odisha, in the Sundergarh district. In recent years, with active encouragement and funding by the state government under CM Naveen Patnaik, the players have found a home in Odisha too. Many of you may be aware that when the Indian national hockey teams, both Men’s and Women’s, were struggling to find a sponsor around 2018, CM Naveen Patnaik had come forward, and opened Odisha’s purse, and heart for hockey.

Since 2018, the Odisha government has taken a number of steps to promote hockey and its players. The results were for everyone to see when both the Men’s and Women’s teams made it to the Semifinals of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, after almost four decades. The Men’s team won the Bronze medal, ending a long hiatus since the Goldens days of Indian hockey.

The state is again going to host the Men’s Hockey World Cup this month from 13 to 29 January. The capital city of Bhubaneswar and steel city Rourkela have been decked up to host the event. To mark the state’s position in the world hockey map, the Odisha government has constructed the world’s largest hockey stadium in Rourkela, named after legendary freedom fighter Bhagwan Birsa Munda.

Hockey India today shared a proud video, of Indian players standing inside the grand stadium, declaring their intent for the FIH Odisha Men’s Hockey World Cup, “to bring it home”.

The FIH Odisha Hockey World Cup’s mascot is ‘Olly’, the endangered Olive Ridley sea turtle that travels thousands of miles across the oceans every year to make the coast of Odisha their nesting grounds.

Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium, Rourkela

The Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium has been built over 15 acres of land at the campus of the Biju Patnaik University of Technology in Rourkela. The facility has a seating capacity of 20,000. It houses a swimming pool, a state-of-the-art fitness centre and a tunnel connecting the dressing rooms to the playground.

20 of the 44 Hockey World Cup matches will be held at this stadium. The remaining ones, including the final, will be held at Bhubaneswar’s Kalinga Stadium, which was the venue of all Hockey World Cup matches in 2018. Belgium was the winner in 2018.

To test the newly laid turf ahead of the grand event, a 3-match series was organised at the stadium, between Korean junior and Indian junior teams recently.

Sundergarh district and hockey

The tribal-dominated Sundergarh district in Odisha has been living a breathing hockey for decades. Located in an area that was once the heartland of the Maoist Red-corridor, Sundergarh has become the ‘Cradle of Indian Hockey’. The resource-rich region has produced five national captains of the Indian hockey team and over 60 international players.

Some believe that the natural soil and rock in the limestone belt of Chotanagpur plateau, with its abundance in calcium percentage, strengthens the bones of the people in this area and makes them energetic, making them perfect for playing hockey.

The sport is now a cultural identity for various tribes such as Orams, the Kharia, the Munda and the Bhuniya communities. Even aged people in these tribal villages can be seen playing hockey. The game introduced by Christian missionaries centuries ago has now seeped into their culture.

Three players from Sundergarh – one women hockey player (Deep Grace Ekka) and two men players (Amit Rohidas and Birendra Lakra) made it to the Tokyo Olympics 2021.

The Odisha government has been organising a series of promotional events to encourage the public to watch and participate in the sport. The trophy of the World Cup arrived in Odisha on December 27, after touring 16 states. Since then it has been on a tour across schools and colleges, getting a rousing welcome from people of the state everywhere.

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