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Farook Bhana, convicted in the Godhra carnage case where 59 Hindus were burnt to death gets bail from SC bench, led by CJI Chandrachud

OpIndia Staff
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Farook Bhana, convicted in the Godhra carnage case where 59 Hindus were burnt to death gets bail from SC bench, led by CJI Chandrachud

On 15th December 2022, the Supreme Court of India granted bail to Farook Bhana who is sentenced to life in the Godhra carnage case. It is notable that Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud headed the bench that passed this order.

The carnage had taken place when scores of ‘Kar Sevaks’, who were returning in Sabarmati Express from Ayodhya after attending a religious ceremony, were burnt in a train near Godhra. On 27th February 2002, coach number S-6 of the Sabarmati Express was set on fire near the Godhra railway station in Gujarat. The victims were mostly Hindu and official figure reports that 59 people had died in this incident.

While announcing this verdict, the Supreme Court considered that the convict has undergone 17 years sentence. The apex court also noted that his role was stone-pelting at the train. Solicitor general Tushar Mehta appeared in the court on behalf of the Gujarat government. He strongly opposed this and said, “It’s the most heinous crime. people were locked in a bogey and burned alive.”

Farook was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in 2018

It is pertinent to note that the appeal against the conviction of the culprit is pending in the Supreme Court since 2018. On 27th August 2018, a special trial court sentenced Farook Bhana and Imran alias Sheru Batuk, to life imprisonment in relation to the case of burning the Sabarmati Express train in 2002 at Godhra railway station that led to communal riots in Gujarat. Three more accused, Hussain Suleman Mohan, Kasam Bhamedi, and Farook Dhantiya who were arrested by different agencies in 2015 and 2016 were acquitted.

Special judge H C Vora awarded the life sentence to Farook Bhana and Imran Sheru after the prosecution proved their role in the burning of the two coaches. Another accused Sabir Abdul Gani Pataliya died during the pendency of the trial.

Interestingly, one of the convicted Farook Bhana, was the sitting corporator of the Polan-Bazar area of the Godhra municipality in February 2002 when the train was set on fire, killing 59 Hindu devotees. It is reported that on the eve of the incident, Farook Bhana held a meeting at the Aman Guest House to incite people to burn down the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express.

The other convict, Sheru Batuk has been awarded life imprisonment, was part of the conspiracy to burn down the Sabarmati Express. Special Additional Public Prosecutor N N Prajapati said, “While Bhana was the mastermind of the attack, Batuk was actually leading the mob”. Judge Vora, in 2018, awarded the sentence after considering the statements of 37 witnesses and other evidence provided by the Supreme Court-appointed SIT.

Haryana: ‘Pir’ Babulal drugs and rapes a Hindu girl under the guise of exorcism, marries her, and forces her to convert to Islam

OpIndia Staff
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Haryana: ‘Pir’ Babulal drugs and rapes a Hindu girl under the guise of exorcism, marries her, and forces her to convert to Islam

A woman has accused a ‘Pir’ (Muslim saint) of kidnapping, rape, and forced conversion in Haryana’s Sonipat district. The accused has been identified as one Babulal. As per a report by Surya Samachar, the girl’s family used to visit Sonipat where they came into contact with the ‘Pir’.

According to the girl’s statement, she is a resident of Delhi. She often frequented the accused ‘Pir’ with her relatives on Gannaur’s Badshahi road, where he ran his fake ‘healing’ business. The accused convinced the victim’s family that she was possessed and needed exorcism. On December 7, Babulal went to Delhi to visit the victim and gave her water mixed with some drugs, and asked her to visit him at night. He asked her to bring money and jewellery from her house along with her.

The victim further said that Babulal and some of his aides raped her repeatedly in the name of exorcism. Despite being married, Babulal married the victim in court and then started pressurising her to convert to Islam.

On Tuesday, December 13, Babulal and his friend Sahil were taking her in an auto from Ganaur GT Road towards Sonipat, when the girl’s relatives from Ganaur saw her and caught hold of them. Babulal was able to flee amid the scuffle, but Sahil, his accomplice, was apprehended. When the Hindu groups learned about this, they also rushed to the scene and, after hearing the girl’s side of the story, they took Sahil to the Ganaur police station.

According to Vishva Hindu Parishad Ganaur block minister Narendra Panchal, who described the incident as a typical case of love jihad, the accused admitted to being a member of a syndicate that has been running this racket for a while. Allegedly he also said that they have thus far converted many such vulnerable non-Muslim girls to Islam.

The police, meanwhile, have recovered drugs and several materials used for exorcism from the victim. The arrested individual and the victim are both being interrogated by the police. Members of VHP and Bajrang Dal, have, meanwhile, launched a protest, demanding prompt action in the case.

‘Sharia law is the real expression of the Prophet’: Kerala Govt all set to vouch for legal and Constitutional validity of Islamic law, report suggests

OpIndia Staff
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‘Sharia law is the real expression of the Prophet’: Kerala Govt all set to vouch for legal and Constitutional validity of Islamic law, report suggests

The Kerala Government is all set to vouch for the legal and Constitutional validity of the Sharia law. Reportedly, the Government has stated that Islamic law is the “real expression of the Prophet”. Furthermore, as per the Kerala Government, Sharia Law upholds the significance in every aspect of Muslim Personal Law, especially regarding the law of inheritance.

According to The Hindu, the state government will file an affidavit in the Supreme Court that all the branches of the law linked to the Muslim Personal, including the law of inheritance that are part of the Sharia law, are in accordance with the provisions given in the Constitution of India.

As per reports, the Khuran Sunnath Society and others have recently filed a Special Leave Petition in the apex court to challenge an order passed by the Kerala High Court where it rejected the plea to declare practice followed by Muslims regarding the inheritance of Muslim women was violative to the principles of the Constitution.

The petitioners argued that the Muslim Personal Law discriminated against women. They further added that it violated the rights given to women by the Constitution of India in terms of equality, prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste and sex and freedom of speech and expression.

As per the Hindu’s report, their legal source informed the media house that the Kerala High Court rejected the plea and left the matter to the legislature for consideration and framing of the law as per the regulations. The State government then chaired a high-level meeting of the stakeholders, including the religious leaders and decided not to legislate the matter and urged the parties to continue following existing procedures and practices.

In another report by The Hindu, it was mentioned that VP Zuhra, President of NISA, a Kozhikode-based progressive Muslim women’s forum approached the Supreme Court and demanded equal rights for women, including the right to offer prayers in all mosques in the country. She further demanded that women should be allowed to become Imams. Notably, Zuhra was one of the petitioners in the triple talaq judgment. Two more petitions were filed by Zuhra in the apex court demanding equal property rights for Muslim women and a revision of the Muslim marriage laws. 

The Kerala Government has planned to argue that those who belong to the Muslim community cannot complain about discrimination based on the principles recognised in Islam. Furthermore, the state would argue that as it is bound by the principles of the classic Muslim law, even if the petitioners feel the Sharia law discriminates, they cannot approach the court to enforce regulations against Islamic laws.

Also, the Government would argue that the belief that Islam discriminates against women in terms of inheritance is incorrect and unsustainable.

What does the Muslim law say about inheritance?

The Sharia law does not distinguish between ancestral and self-acquired property. As per the law, a Muslim woman is entitled to 1/8th of the share of the husband’s property if the couple has kids. If there were no children, she would get 1/4th of the share. In case the parents of a Muslim woman die and she becomes a legal heir, a Muslim woman is entitled to half of the inheritance compared to the male child. It is said that as a Muslim woman gets Mehr, which includes dower, which is payment for nikah documents and maintenance from the husband, it is justified to give her a lesser share. On the other hand, a Muslim man has only ancestral property for inheritance. Compared to Muslim women, Hindu women get an equal share in ancestral property as per the law.

Former PFI Chairperson Abubacker seeks interim bail on health grounds, NIA tells he is ‘perfectly fine’ and getting treatment

OpIndia Staff
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Former PFI Chairperson Abubacker seeks interim bail on health grounds, NIA tells he is ‘perfectly fine’ and getting treatment

The National Investigation Agency informed the Delhi High Court on Wednesday that E Abubacker, the former leader of the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI), is perfectly alright and is receiving treatment.

“We have filed a status report along with the report of AIIMS,” said special public prosecutor Akshai Malik, arguing for the agency before a division bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Talwant Singh.” He is absolutely fine… and under treatment. As and when required he is taken there (to the hospital)”, Malik added. 

Meanwhile, Adit Pujari, Abubacker’s attorney, requested time to obtain directions on the NIA’s status report. The High Court listed the matter for hearing on December 19 and aid, “The counsel for the appellant prays for and is granted time to obtain instructions qua the further prosecution of the present appeal.”

On the previous trial, the court had passed an order to the NIA on Abubacker’s plea for interim bail on health grounds and had requested the agency to file a status report integrating “the medical opinion of specialist authored by AIIMS hospital qua the ailment and treatment advised therefore…in terms of the directions issued by a special judge of NIA”.

Pujari previously admitted that his client underwent adenocarcinoma (cancer) surgery in 2019, in addition to undergoing multiple cycles of chemotherapy and that he also had Parkinson’s disease. He contended that his client is 70 years old and that his medical test has been planned for January 2023.

The Court earlier stated that Abubacker was seriously ill. When briefed about Abubacker’s brain MRI scan, it stated, “What is their diagnosis, and what is the treatment recommended? Surely he can’t wait for a scan till 2024. It is completely unacceptable. He is incarcerated for an offence, that is a different matter but doesn’t mean we will wait till 2024, that too for an examination.”

The high court ordered Malik to submit a status report on the case. Malik said that Abubacker is a member of the PFI, a prohibited organization. The court stated that it was not the NIA’s argument that he was not entitled to treatment, to which Malik responded that the hospitalization/treatment could take place while he is in jail. In response to the court’s question, Malik stated that the chargesheet had not yet been filed.

The NIA apprehended Abubacker on September 22 as part of a national operation to crack down against the now-banned organization. The agency charged him with violating the provisions of the Indian Penal Code Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The FIR in the case was registered under sections 120B and 153A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and section 17, 18, 18B, 20, 22B 38 and 39 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967

Delhi acid attack: Accused purchased acid from Flipkart, wanted to take ‘revenge’ after girl ended their friendship

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi acid attack: Accused purchased acid from Flipkart, wanted to take ‘revenge’ after girl ended their friendship

Within 24 hours of the Dwarka acid attack incident wherein a 17-year-old girl was attacked with acid by two bike-borne persons on her way to school, the Delhi Police arrested the three accused in the case. Police has also revealed the motive behind the dastardly attack. 

According to the police, the motive behind the attack was ‘revenge’ as the main accused Sachin Arora (20) wanted to take revenge from the minor girl for calling off their friendship a few months ago. After she ended her friendship with him, the victim showed no interest in talking to Sachin. Subsequently, the accused Sachin, along with his friends Virendra Singh (22) and Harshit Agarwal (19), planned to throw acid at her. 

As seen in the CCTV footage of the incident, the person riding the bike was Harshit and the one who threw the acid at the girl was Sachin. Later on, Virendra took Sachin’s mobile phone and scooty so that the police cannot trace Sachin’s location.

In a shocking revelation, Special Commissioner of Police, Sagar Preet Hooda informed that the acid used in the attack was bought from the e-commerce platform Flipkart. Flipkart is yet to respond on the matter.

In order to verify if acid is actually available on Flipkart, OpIndia did a simple google search. In our search, we used various keywords related to acid available on Flipkart, upon searching Nitric Acid, which may have possibly been used in the attack, a page showed up saying “Something’s not right,”

Screengrab of Flipkart page showing results for Nitric acid.

The acid and mobile phones of the three accused have been sent to a forensic lab for testing. All three accused will be presented in the court on Thursday. 

The victim is currently undergoing treatment at Safdarjung Hospital. 

It is 2022, but Bollywood still thinks it can lure audience by making women gyrate their semi-naked bodies before older men

Amit Kelkar
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It is 2022, but Bollywood still thinks it can lure audience by making women gyrate their semi-naked bodies before older men

Recently, the first song of the upcoming Shahrukh Khan film ‘Pathaan’ was released, titled ‘Besharam Rang’. The song attracted a lot of derision and mockery over the way the film’s makers tried to use Deepika Padukone’s body to promote the latest Bollywood film.

The song is basically about 36 years old Deepika Padukone trying to seduce a 57 years old Shah Rukh Khan, which suggests to the viewers that Pathan will be a suspense film, where we try to figure out why is this young woman going after this old man. In order to seduce him, Deepika Padukone is shown in various bikinis and swimwear, and beachwear, basically any type of clothes that can show maximum skin of her without getting banned by the censor board.

For those brave enough to tolerate cringe content, the video of the song can be seen below.

Item songs where the female actor is required to expose are not new in the Hindi film industry. They have used this trope for decades. Helen, who was not a bad actor at all when given a chance, was reduced to an ‘item dancer’ by the industry. The public also lapped it up, and Helen became so popular that it was almost mandatory to add one song featuring her in every movie.

The ‘item dancer’ continued to be a standard Bollywood formula even in the 80s when the likes of Bindu, Aruna Irani, and Jayshree T started doing the item songs that Helen alone was doing for the past 2 decades. At least till that time, they made an attempt, a very lame attempt, but an attempt nonetheless to integrate those item songs into the movie. However, things were soon about to change.

Starting in the 90s, and continuing to this day, Bollywood started adding random item songs where a random female will just come and show her skin, do a raunchy dance, and this is supposed to make the film a super hit. Sometimes, the budget is less, so they don’t ask any random female to appear for the skin show song and use the lead female actor like they seem to have done for Pathaan by asking Deepika Padukone to bare it all.

For at least the last 70 years, when these item songs first became a regular thing in Bollywood, they have not evolved a single bit, and still think a female actor’s tantalising dance is enough to get the audience to cinema halls. Everyone has the internet now, there are OTT platforms full of men and women being fully nude, why won’t they watch that if they are just looking for a skin show? And mind you, most of those OTT actors are much prettier than the Bollywood actors and they have much much much better storylines.

The success of movies like The Kashmir Files, RRR, KGF, Pushpa, Kantara, Drishyam 2, etc this year shows that people are still willing to go to the cinemas and spend money, but they need something more than just an awkward skin show by the female lead to do that. They need a good story, they need something interesting, they need an experience. More importantly, they need something more than lazy storytelling and dated tropes. What they don’t need is just random females baring their skins, because they can get plenty of that at home on their mobiles.

Kashi Vishwanath temple draws 7.35 million devotees within a year of the inauguration of a corridor by PM Narendra Modi

OpIndia Staff
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Kashi Vishwanath temple draws 7.35 million devotees within a year of the inauguration of a corridor by PM Narendra Modi

The newly constructed Kashi Vishwanath Corridor, also known as Kashi Vishwanath Dham, completed one year on Tuesday, December 13. Within a year of the inauguration of the Kashi Vishwanath Dham corridor connecting the temple with the Ganga river ghats, Varanasi’s iconic temple saw a record-breaking footfall and an almost five-fold increase in donations from devotees.

According to reports, since December 13, 2021, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the ambitious Kashi Vishwanath Dham in Uttar Pradesh, the temple has drawn 7.35 million pilgrims and collected donations totalling Rs 100 crore against the previous records of 30-40 lakh devotees.

As per the temple’s data, 4,842,716 pilgrims reached KV Dham in December 2021 while 7,459,471 visited in January, 6,856,142 in February, 7,171,163 in March, 6,587,264 in April, 6,290,511 in May, 6,916,981 in June, maximum 7,681,561 in July, 6,711,499 in August, 4,013,688 in September, 3,830,643 in October, 3,870,403 in November and 1,350,000 visited in the current month till Monday.

The Kashi Vishwanath Temple (KVT) administrators estimate that if the temple’s earnings continue to see this steady development, the Rs 900 crore invested in creating the KV Dham will be recovered in the next four to five years based on the trend of increasing pilgrim foot traffic as well as income.

“A many-fold increase in the numbers of both devotees and earnings has been recorded in a year after the opening of KV Dham,” said Divisional commissioner and chairman of Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham Special Area Development Board Kaushal Raj Sharma.

KVT Chief Executive Officer Sunil Verma provided information about the massive rise in devotee traffic, saying, “On an average 30-40 lakh devotees used to throng the temple every year before the KV Dham had come into existence. Immediately after the opening of KV Dham, a footfall of 7.35 crore devotees has been recorded at this shrine area in the last year alone.”

Kashi Vishwanath Temple gets a golden makeover

It is pertinent to note that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, last year, expanded the Kashi Vishwanath Temple area from 2,700 sq ft to 5 lakh sq ft under the Kashi Vishwanath Dham Corridor project worth Rs 900 crores. The BJP-led government established direct connectivity between the Kashi Vishwanath Temple and River Ganga through Jalasen, Manikarnika, and Lalita ghats.

In June 2022, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple got a complete golden makeover as the gold plating of the lower portion of the temple Shikhara and the door frames. According to the reports, 23 kgs of gold was used to decorate the lower portion of the temple Shikhara.

Earlier in March this year, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple was decorated with 37 kgs of gold. The gold was used to decorate the inner walls of the sanctum of the temple. This is after an anonymous donor donated 60 kgs of gold to Kashi Vishwanath Temple out of which 37 kgs of gold was utilized for the purpose on March 1, 2022.

Delhi: Hindu refugees from Pakistan who have come to India almost a decade ago finally get electricity after HC order

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi: Hindu refugees from Pakistan who have come to India almost a decade ago finally get electricity after HC order

People who were forced to flee their homeland to save their lives from persecution by the Islamic regime in Pakistan came to India with hope and a sense of security. But upon reaching India, the Hindu refugees for a decade had to live in darkness in the national capital. This era of darkness, however, came to an end as the refugee camps near Majilis Park in northwest Delhi are finally getting an electricity supply.

As per a report in Times of India, around 900 people have been living in appalling conditions on an open large ground behind the Majlis Park metro station with almost no basic facilities. However, on November 10, 2022, the Delhi High Court ordered the city’s power distribution provider Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) to provide electricity supply to all the houses of the refugees within a month. During the hearing, the Delhi High Court bench comprising Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramanium Prasad had observed that “non-provision of electricity amounts to the denial of a basic need.” 

After the Ministry of Defence, which owns the land where the refugees reside gave a No Objection Certificate (NOC) the bench ordered TPDDL to provide electricity supply to the refugee camps. 

In 2013, a large number of Pakistani Hindus moved to India. Interestingly, the Indian tricolour, and saffron flags, as well as the flag of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), can be spotted at several houses of these refugees. For these refugees, Indian citizenship and voting rights remain a distant dream. However, with the electricity supply being provided to the refugee houses, there is a ray of hope that things will change for the better. 

Image credit: ThePrint

While speaking to the Times of India (TOI), Gulab Chand, a 47-year-old refugee who is originally from Sindh province in Pakistan said, “We are raising our demand in legitimate ways that is why this struggle will be long. A few years ago, solar panels were installed but those were not enough to even light up a room.”

Newly installed bulbs, tube lights, and switch boxes can be seen in the camp’s houses, and the installation process is underway in many others.

Pradhan Nehru Lal, another Pakistani Hindu refugee told TOI, “We came here in 2013, there are around 900 people living here and many of our relatives who are still in Pakistan want to move to India. Things will change gradually and maybe someday we will get Indian citizenship as well.”

While the Hindu refugees are happy about the gradual yet positive changes taking place, water supply, drainage, and condition of roads remain major issues in the area. Despite the hardships, the Pakistani Hindus take immense pride in calling India their home and this deep-rooted love gives them the strength to struggle for their basic rights.

FIFA 2022: Moroccon fans go on rampage as France celebrates victory in FIFA semi-finals, 14-year-old part of group attempting to bring down French flag dead

OpIndia Staff
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FIFA 2022: Moroccon fans go on rampage as France celebrates victory in FIFA semi-finals, 14-year-old part of group attempting to bring down French flag dead

On December 14, France defeated Morocco in the semi-finals 2-0 and booked its place in the finals against Argentina in FIFA 2022. Moroccan fans got irked by the defeat, and riots broke down in France and other European cities. Reports suggest that a 14-year-old boy was killed in the riots. He was part of the Moroccan group that attempted to take away a French flag from a car. The group also pounded on the car’s hood. Scared by the attack, the driver reversed the car a bit and took a sharp turn backwards crushing the boy. The injured boy was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

In a statement, the Prefect of Hérault Hugues Moutouh said, “A young boy was hit on Wednesday evening in Montpellier by a driver after the semi-final match of the FIFA World Cup. He was rushed to the hospital where he died shortly after his medical treatment started. My thoughts go out to his family and loved ones. The vehicle has been found by the police and the investigation is progressing rapidly as per the prosecution’s direction.

In Wednesday’s game, goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani made it impossible for Morocco to make a comeback. Now Morocco will defend the trophy at Lusial Stadium that they won in Russia four years ago.

As per reports, after France won the game, its supporters took to the streets to celebrate. However, Moroccans living in the area got irked, and both sides clashed. Notably, Frace is a former colonial ruler of Morocco. There is a large population of people of Moroccan origin living in the country. As per the statistics, around a million Moroccans live in France, concentrated across the Mediterranean coast and in Paris.

With such a substantial population, any riot-like situation involving Moroccans can become a serious issue for law enforcement agencies. This was exactly what happened following the semi-finals. As per reports and viral videos on social media platforms, Place de La Comedie saw violent clashes among the fans. In the videos shared by Midi Libre Montpellier on Twitter, groups of fans threw fireworks and flares at each other. The police intervened and used tear gas to disperse the crowd on both sides.

In Paris, the police reach Champs-Elysees to disperse the crowd. Reports and videos showed clashes between the fans from both sides. France deployed around 10,000 security personnel across the country, out of which 5,000 have been deployed in Paris itself. In a statement, the interior minister of France, Gerald Darmanin, said, “Our Moroccan friends, just like the French supporters, are welcome to organise a party, and our job is not to stop them from partying… but this will have to be done under good security conditions.”

Freelance journalist Sotiri Dimpinoudis shared a number of videos on Twitter. In a tweet, he reported that 2,500 police personnel were deployed at Champs-Elysees to control the situation.

There were clashes reported in Brussels, Belgium. The Belgian police clashed with Moroccan fans following the loss in the semi-finals. He shared a video from Champs-Elysees where the fans clashed.

As per the visuals available on social media, Moroccan fans pelted stones and fireworks at a flat with a French flag on the balcony. The resident of the flat had to remove the flag following the threats of vandalism.

As the French fans celebrated the victory, more Moroccan fans gathered on the streets to disrupt the celebrations.

Checkpoints have been established in different parts of the country to keep a check on the use of smoke bombs and flares. Notably, Moroccan fans created a riot-like situation on December 10 as well when the Moroccan team defeated Portugal and entered the semi-finals. The police set up checkpoints following the violent celebrations to ensure the safety of the residents; however, Moroccan fans did not take the defeat in the semi-finals with sportsman spirit and again created a ruckus.

Speaking to French CNews, Parisian district mayor Jeanne d’Hauteserre expressed concerns about Champs-Elysees turning into a battlefield. He said, “When you want to celebrate victory, you don’t come with mortars. But these people are really only coming to smash with iron bars. For Wednesday, everyone is afraid of a war, a guerrilla war, a civil war, and we do not want the Champs-Elysees to be transformed into a battlefield.”

The city of Nice also saw violent clashes. Similarly, Lyon faced a riot-like situation, and local media reported police had to use teargas to disperse the crowd that was pelting stones.

Rahul Singh Chaddha’s prolonged Yatra is pointless and clueless, just like the megaflop Amir Khan movie

Sanghamitra
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Rahul Singh Chaddha’s prolonged Yatra is pointless and clueless, just like the megaflop Amir Khan movie

Rahul Gandhi has been walking. For months now, people flicking through newspapers and scrolling through gadgets among the drama-loaded Indian political news have been noticing that Rahul Gandhi has been walking. The mainstream media and a certain section of social media have been going gaga over it, for some unknown reason. Everyone has been watching Rahul Gandhi has been walking. But ask why, and there will be no answer. Nobody knows why is he walking.

Maybe that is the thing about Rahul Gandhi anyway. Nobody knows why he does what he does. Nobody knows why he keeps contesting elections despite losing again and again. The people of the country have made it very clear that they are not going to vote for Rahul. Whenever Congress does manage to win, it is because of the regional leaders and individual efforts by some dedicated MLAs who have been doing their party a huge favour by NOT antagonising the people of the country as their top leadership does.

Nobody knows why the so-called prince of the party goes away on vacations abroad after declaring major party campaigns. Nobody knows where he goes. Nobody knows why he kept screaming hoarse over non-existent scams and repeating the same dumb speeches like ‘Made in Jaunpur Pateela and Made in Chhatisgarh mobile phones‘ when everyone and their grandma knew they mean nothing, and are never going to bring votes for the party. Nobody knows anything about the point or purpose behind anything that Rahul Gandhi does.

Similarly, the Bharat Jodo Yatra has been another of the usual Rahul Gandhi ‘activity’. When the poor sincere leaders of Congress were desperately trying to salvage the fortunes of their party in Gujarat and running a spirited campaign in Himachal, because there were elections coming, the Prince was walking somewhere in the South, oblivious to all political ‘Moh Maaya’.

It is not that he is walking under great hardships. There are luxurious container vehicles fitted with every comfort imaginable that follow his entourage. He eats and sleeps well, and his comforts and clothing, security and health are very well taken care of, unlike the Laal Singh Chaddha he is trying to emulate. The beard is vanity because the container vehicles have toilets and everyone knows that he is not shaving only because he doesn’t want to.

Attached washroom and toilet inside the luxury containers that are being used for Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, image via Indian Express

Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha was made and released with a lot of pomp and ceremony. As we all know by now, the actor is particularly fond of preaching and absolutely loves to give sermons. He probably thought that since his insufferable sermons have seen commercial success in the past, nobody would remember Forrest Gump, especially the unwashed Indians, and he can just make a scene-by-scene copy, throw in some India-Pakistan, “Hindu Muslim Sikh Isai” type of primary school assembly hall level preachings and can laugh all the way to the banks.

Sadly, Indians didn’t fall for his sermons this time around. The remake was a resounding flop. Those who did watch it, kept wondering what exactly was the point of the prolonged movie. What exactly was Aamir khan trying to do by destroying a Hollywood classic with his ridiculous expressions and insufferable sermons? However, one person probably watched it very seriously. Since almost all methods of “launching” Rahul Gandhi into Indian politics have been tried, and retried, again and again, his ‘advisers’ probably thought what is the harm in trying once more? Indians have a weak spot for pilgrimages, Yatras and marches anyway.

So Rahul began his walk, and has been walking in the news space since September 7. Every day, some obscure starlet joins him and walks a few steps with him. There are photographers around him to take nice photos. Everyone and their grandma in this country know that as an MP and the son of a former PM, he gets Z+ level security paid by the taxpayers. The starlets and wannabe actors consider themselves especially blessed if Rahul holds their hands, for some unknown reason. Then they go their own way and Rahul is again seen walking with another person in the next photo. Sometimes he holds hands, kisses and hugs people.

It is indeed a lot like relatives and family friends lining up to get clicked with the bride and groom at wedding receptions, people coming, smiling, getting clicked and moving on like bags on airport baggage belts. Wannabe starlets, out-of-job actors, rejected professional protestors, seasonal politicians, economic soothsayers on extended leave from Chicago, abusive stand-up comedians, everyone gets to come, smile and pose with Rahul Gandhi in his walk, like our neighbourhood wedding reception.

While Rahul Gandhi walks, Congress got swept out in Gujarat and Himachal is already showing signs of faction war among the party leaders. We all saw what happened in Punjab and how Rajasthan has Gehlot and Pilot playing the role of ‘Naaraz phupha’ alternatively. But somehow, the party Prince is untouched, unbothered about all that. He has been clicked walking, for some unknown reason. And quite frankly, the Indians have now reached a stage where they have finally learned to accept the fact that Rahul Gandhi is here to stay. Governments will come and go, Congress presidents will come and go, and elections will come and go, but Rahul Gandhi will be there in media space perpetually, still being hailed as the ‘youth icon’, still learning and still being projected as the future PM of India by people who have been clicked with him, to prove their proximity to the family.

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