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BJP wins 4 out of 7 assembly seats in the byelections held in 6 states: Read detailed results

OpIndia Staff
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BJP wins 4 out of 7 assembly seats in the byelections held in 6 states: Read detailed results

The results of the byelections held in 6 states for a total of 7 assembly seats have been declared. By-polls were held in two seats in Bihar and one seat each in Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh. Achieving a remarkable victory, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 4 out of these 7 seats.

Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) secured one seat each. While BJP won a seat each in Bihar, Haryana, Odisha, and Uttar Pradesh, RJD won in Bihar, Shiv Sena won in Maharashtra, and TRS won the byelection in Telangana. Earlier, out of these 7 seats, 3 were held by BJP, 2 by Congress, and one seat each by RJD and Uddhav Thackeray faction’s Shiv Sena.

Here is the state-wise results of the by-elections in detail.

RJD candidate Neelam Devi has won the Mokama seat in Bihar. At the same time, the BJP candidate Kusum Devi won from Gopalganj. In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP candidate has won the Gola Gokarnanath seat once again. BJP candidate Bhavya Bishnoi has won from Adampur seat in Haryana. BJP candidate Suryabanshi Suraj has won Odisha’s Dhamnagar seat.

Maharashtra

Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena’s Rutuja Latke secured an easy victory on the Andheri East seat in Maharashtra. BJP had withdrawn their candidate from this seat, and there was no strong candidate against the Shiv Sena (UT) candidate. Rutuja Latke is the wife of deceased Shiv Sena leader Ramesh Latke who was the MLA from this seat.

Results of Andheri East bypoll

This was the first electoral battle in Maharashtra between Uddhav’s Shiv Sena and the BJP after the biggest split in the Shiv Sena. However, the BJP had withdrawn its candidate at the last minute, and MNS also refrained from contesting the polls. Due to this, the election became easier for Uddhav’s Shiv Sena candidate Rituja Latke. MNS chief Raj Thackeray had requested BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis not to field any candidate from BJP on this seat. He later congratulated BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis for not fielding their candidate against Rutuja Latke.

In absence of any substantial opposition, Rutuja Latke secured 76.9% votes. But what was more surprising than this was the vote share of NOTA (none of the above). 14.79% of voters opted for NOTA in Andheri East.

While the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena won an election which had effectively no opposition, Uddhav Thackeray said that they won the election despite conspiracies against them.

Bihar

In Mokama of Bihar, the RJD candidate Neelam Devi, wife of local influential leader Anant Singh, defeated BJP’s Sonam Devi by 16,707 votes. The RJD got 79,646 votes and the BJP 62,939 votes. The margin of victory has reduced this time.

On the other hand, Gopalganj saw a very close contest, where BJP’s Kusum Devi defeated RJD’s Mohan Gupta by 1,794 votes. BJP received 70,053 votes against 68,259 secured by RJD candidate Mohan Prasad Gupta. This is a significant defeat for the ruling alliance as the JD(U)-RJD alliance had campaigned aggressively for the elections. However, it seems some of the alliance votes went to Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM and Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), benefiting BJP. The AIMIM candidate got 122,14 votes while the BSP candidate secured 8,854 votes, both much more than the winning margin.

Uttar Pradesh

BJP candidate Aman Giri has won the by-election to the Gola Gokarnanath seat in Lakhimpur Kheri. He defeated Samajwadi Party candidate Vinay Tiwari by a margin of 34,298 votes. In the margin, he has also broken the record of his father Arvind Giri. In 2022, Arvind Giri defeated Vinay Tiwari of SP by a margin of 29,294 votes.

Notably, Congress and BSP didn’t contest the Gola Gokarnanath by-poll, resulting in a straight fight between BJP and SP. Mayawati had said that her party decided against contesting as there was palpably significant support for Aman Giri, as he was expected to receive all the sympathy and support after the death of his father and sitting MLA Arvind Giri. On the other hand, the Congress party didn’t want to cut SP votes by contesting the polls.

Haryana

BJP candidate Bhavya Bishnoi won the by-election to the Adampur Assembly seat in Haryana’s Hisar district by over 15,000 votes. With this victory, Bhavya Bishnoi, the third generation politician from former chief minister Chaudhary Bhajan Lal’s family, is registering a successful entry into politics. Bhavya Bishnoi contested on a BJP ticket this time and also managed to win it. With his victory, the BJP has also managed to win in Adampur for the first time. Bhavya Bishnoi maintained victory in all 13 rounds of counting and secured a total of 67492 votes. Congress candidate Jai Prakash stood second in this electoral battle with 51752 votes. After the counting of votes was completed, Jai Prakash said he would again contest the 2024 elections from Adampur.

There were a total of 22 candidates in the election. Indian Lok Dal received 5241 votes, while Aam Aadmi Party candidate Satinder Singh came fourth with 3420 votes, which was 2.6% of the total votes polls.

Telangana

The Munugodu by-poll in Telangana saw the highest number of 47 candidates in these by-elections. TRS candidate Kusukuntala Prabhakar Reddy defeated BJP’s Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy in this poll. TRS got 97006 votes while BJP got 86697. Congress came a distant third with around 23906 votes, and the BSP candidate secured 4146 votes. There were 33 independent candidates in Munugodu, and several smaller parties.

Odisha

In a significant victory, BJP’s Suryavanshi Suraj won the Dhamnagar assembly seat in Odisha by a margin of 9,881 votes. BJD’s Abanti Das lost the elections by securing 70470 votes, while the BJP candidate got 80351. The by-election was necessitated by the BJP MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi, and BJP had fielded Sethi’s son Suryavanshi Suraj. Congress candidate Baba Harekrushna Sethy received just 3561 votes, less than independent candidate Rajendra Kumar Das.

When an Indian journalist had asked Tulsi Gabbard if she plans to ‘stay with’ Hinduism as a religion

OpIndia Staff
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When an Indian journalist had asked Tulsi Gabbard if she plans to ‘stay with’ Hinduism as a religion

Participation of Hindus in the politics of western countries is not a new thing now. Be it Rushi Sunak in the UK or Tulsi Gabbard in the US, them being a practising Hindu has always been an integral part of any discussion with or about these leaders. However, left-liberals always have problem with this, and they believe that Hindus should not occupy higher positions of power.

One such video of Tulsi Gabbard recently went viral on the internet in which an Indian journalist had asked the American politician if she plans to ‘stay with’ Hinduism as a religion.

The video from 2014 that went viral is a clipping from Tulsi Gabbard’s interview with Barkha Dutt who then worked for NDTV. She had interviewed Gabbard just before Narendra Modi’s address to Indians in America at the Maddison Square Garden in New York. In this interview, Barkha Dutt asked Tulsi Gabbard how she became a practising Hindu. In her answer, Tulsi Gabbard said that it was her parents who gave all their 5 children a Hindu name. She also told that, among Hindu teachings, she follows Bhakti Yoga and Karma Yoga the most.

After this, Barkha Dutt went on to ask Tulsi Gabbard if she plans to ‘stay with’ Hinduism as a religion. Barkha Dutt essentially meant if Tulsi Gabbard finds Hinduism worth practising for the rest of her life or if it is just a whim for some time and she plans to convert to other faiths later on. By asking this, she essentially tried to put a question mark before both Tulsi Gabbard’s faith in Hinduism and Hinduism as a way of life itself. Tulsi Gabbard, however, gave a clever and clear answer. She said, “This is the motivation for my life and all that I do. And it is the only way of life for me.”

In fact, this video is making rounds after India Today’s conclave in Mumbai in which Union Minister Piyush Goyal took a jibe at Rajdeep Sardesai without naming him. While answering a question, Piyush Goyal said, “We believe that if all the states and union territories in the country compete with each other over development, it will only help the country to prosper. More competition between the states to invite investors in order to promote Indian businesses and industries will be better for us.”

He added, “And if at all we talk about narrative, then let me tell you Rahul and Salil, India Today has other anchors for that task who try very hard to make an anti-Modi narrative. They work day and night for the same. They even reach Maddison Square in America and try to make people say something bad about Modi Ji. But, it is their ill fortune that the country has made the narrative in favor of Modi Ji. The nation trusts Modi Ji. These anchors need to sharpen their efforts to make the narrative they want.”

It is notable that Rajdeep Sardesai was seen reporting for Aaj Tak near Maddison Square Garden in New York where PM Narendra Modi addressed Indians in the US in 2014. While reporting, Rajdeep Sardesai called the Modi fans a ‘Modi Frenzy crowd’. Later he was also heckled by an angry mob for his remarks, after which he had physically attacked a man.

Hindu leaders under threat in Punjab, Ludhiana Police advise them to stay inside their homes after Sudhir Suri murder

OpIndia Staff
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Hindu leaders under threat in Punjab, Ludhiana Police advise them to stay inside their homes after Sudhir Suri murder

On November 5, Ludhiana police advised Hindu leaders Amit Arora (Shiv Sena Punjab), Yogesh Bakhshi and national joint coordinator of Kisan Congress (AICC) Gursimran Singh Mand to stay at home. The leaders were not allowed to travel to Amritsar where Shiv Sena Taksali President and popular Hindu leader Sudhir Suri was brutally murdered a day earlier. The police have also increased security outside the residences of Hindu leaders.

The restriction on the Hindu leaders’ movement came after a video of Pakistan-based pro-Khalistani leader Gopal Singh Chawla affiliated with Pakistan’s ISI emerged on social media. In the video, after congratulating the killers of Suri, he threatened to kill Amit Arora, Nishant Sharma (Shiv Sena Hind) and Gursimran Singh Mand.

Speaking to OpIndia, Arora said he has been the target of Khalistani terrorists for a long time. “I survived a terrorist attack in 2016. Later, in 2020 I survived another terrorist attack. The government is not paying any heed to the threats. Sudhir Kumar Suri was murdered in broad daylight. Everyone knows there is a threat to my life too. Can Hindu leaders not live in Punjab? Gopal Singh Chawla is issuing threats against two other leaders and me.”

He added, “I have received thousands of calls since yesterday. I am not picking up calls because of the threats. Still, the government is sleeping. The government needs to come clean if Hindus can live in Punjab or not.”

Speaking on the restrictions imposed on him and other leaders, he said, “I was not allowed to travel. Suri was my brother. Are we not allowed to attend the last rites of our fellow Hindu leader? We have lost a lion. Can’t we go to attend his last rites? Why is the administration restricting our movement? people like Amritpal are roaming freely. There is a clear-cut involvement of Amritpal in the matter. Still, the administration is not taking any steps.”

Amritpal Singh is a pro-Khalistan self-proclaimed preacher who has been named in the murder of Sudhir Suri by the Hindu leaders. Reportedly, the key accused in the matter Sandeep Singh Sunny had Amritpal’s organisation ‘Waris Punjab De’ sticker. Singh was put under precautionary house arrest by the police on Saturday to ensure law and order in the state. Singh, on the other hand, has denied the allegations. Waris Punjab De is an organisation formed by actor-turned-politician Deep Sidhu before his death.

As per reports, Arora wanted to visit Amritsar to attend the last rites of Suri but the joint commissioner of police (rural) Ravcharan Singh Brar advised him against travelling for security reasons.

Previous attacks on Arora

On February 3, 2016, Arora was at Samrala Chowk in Ludhiana when a shot was fired at him. The bullet brushed past his neck. On February 22, 2020, Arora was attacked in Sector 39, Ludhiana.

Security cover for Hindu leaders

While some Hindu outfit leaders already have security cover in the state, two more Hindu leaders Mukesh Khurana of Akhil Bhartiya Sanatan Dharam Raksha Akhara and Sandeep Verma of Shiv Sena Punjab have been provided security by the Police. Both of them are associates of Arora.

‘I am not afraid of threats’ said Nishant Sharma

Speaking to OpIndia, Shiv Sena Hind leader Nishant Sharma said, “The government should take the threats seriously. I have received many threat calls the next number is mine. However, I am not afraid of these hollow threats.”

The brutal murder of Sudhir Suri

On November 4, Sudhir Suri, President Shiv Sena Taksali, was shot dead in broad daylight in Amritsar, Punjab. The incident occurred outside a temple while Shiv Sena leaders (Taksali) were protesting against the temple’s authorities after some broken idols were found in the garbage outside the temple premises. There were several police personnel present at the scene when the attack happened. Suri was shot by a person in the crowd. Following this, two people were detained by police.

Adipurush’s release likely to be delayed as makers to rework VFX after severe backlash: Reports

OpIndia Staff
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Adipurush’s release likely to be delayed as makers to rework VFX after severe backlash: Reports

Prabhas and Saif Ali Khan starrer film Adipurush, directed by Om Raut, is likely to be delayed as makers are reportedly reworking the VFX after the teaser received severe backlash on social media. The first trailer for the film, which was released on Dusshera in October, resulted in a massive meme fest on social media due to the animation-like visual effects and was trashed for its poor casting and weird retelling of Hindu epic Ramayana.

Adipurush was anticipated to hit the theatres on the occasion of Sankranti (January 12, 2023). However, now the reports suggest that the makers of the film are considering revamping certain sequences of the film which might result in the delay of the film’s release. 

Talking about the reworking of the film’s VFX and delay in release, trade analyst Girish Johar took to Twitter and wrote, “In another trade rumour / buzz … #Adipurush is being reworked.. especially the effects & CG work…so it may not also not release in Summer 2023 … additionally it may now cost ₹80~100crs more !!!!! #Prabhas.”

Although no official announcement has been made regarding Adipurush’s delay in release. According to reports, if everything goes as planned, the film will now be released in August 2023.

The film has Prabhas, Kriti Sanon, and Saif Ali Khan in the lead roles. Notably, the film’s teaser had received severe backlash from netizens who were quick to call out the video game-like VFX and Saif Ali who plays Ravan in the film giving the look and vibe of an Islamic invader, like the Mughals. In one of the scenes, Saif Ali Khan was seen riding a giant monster bat, which looked nothing more than a cheap copy of the Night King from the popular HBO series Game Of Thrones, where he rides a zombie dragon, as pointed out by the netizens. 

As demon king Ravan who had a golden palace in Lanka, the dark, dingy caves where Khan emerged from appeared quite out of place.

Notably, actress Dipika Chikhlia who portrayed the role of Mata Sita in the popular serial Ramayana also slammed the film’s teaser and pointed out that overdoing VFX is not good. She has also pointed out that Ravan should look like someone from Sri Lanka and not like Mughals as Saif Ali Khan looked in the teaser. 

Director Om Raut who had defended the film despite the criticism and trolling had said in a conversation with PTI, “I was disheartened but not surprised because the film is made for a larger medium. You can cut it down to some extent, but can’t bring it down to a mobile phone, that’s an environment I can’t control. If given the option, I would never have released it on YouTube, but it is necessary at this time. It must be put there in order to reach a wider audience.”

It will be interesting to see if Adipurush makers actually rework the VFX of the film and manage to gain the lost interest of the audiences in the film. 

Retired IB officer RN Kulkarni, who wrote a book exposing Jihad, murdered by unknown persons by hitting him with a car

OpIndia Staff
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Retired IB officer RN Kulkarni, who wrote a book exposing Jihad, murdered by unknown persons by hitting him with a car

On Friday 4th November 2022, 83-year-old RN Kulkarni – a retired assistant director of the central intelligence bureau – died after being hit by a car in the Manasa Gangotri area of Mysuru. He was hit by the car at around 5:30 pm when he was going for an evening walk. While it was initially thought to be a case of hit and run case, the investigations after his death have now revealed that he was deliberately crushed by an unidentified car.

CCTV footage from a nearby camera has shown how he was walking by the roadside and how the car turned towards him with the sole purpose of hitting the veteran ex-officer and running away as he fell down. Kulkarni was thrown into the air by the speeding car before hitting the ground. He was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to his injuries later. The following video of the incident contains graphic images, viewer discretion is advised.

At first, it was thought to be a hit-and-run event, however CCTV evidence retrieved from the area around the scene reveals that a car intentionally ran him over. The visuals also show that the car didn’t have its number plate. The police are now investigating this as a case of pre-planned murder and not just a hit-and-run case. So far, the reason for the murder is not clear. A case has been registered at the Jayalakshmi police station in this regard. It is notable that RK Kulkarni retired from the services in 2000.

Mysuru’s police commissioner Chandragupta said, “We got preliminary information that an accident took place on November 4 at 5.30 pm at Manasa Gangotri where an 83-year-old person was killed after being hit by a car.”

He added, “When we investigated it thoroughly we arrived at the conclusion that it was not an accident but a murder, and accordingly, we started our investigation. Three investigation teams led by the Assistant Commissioner of Police Narasimharaja jurisdiction have been constituted. We got suspicious after we found that there were no number plates on the vehicle. There are some leads that we cannot disclose now.”

RN Kulkarni penned a book exposing Jihad

RN Kulkarni authored three books after his retirement. One of them ‘…and yet God smiles’ is a fiction narrating the tale of a family over its five generations. His other two books, however, were more discussed than this one. He wrote a book titled ‘Sin of National Conscience’ in which he went on to describe a sizzling account of intelligence operations.

His third book is titled ‘Facets of Terrorism in India’. This book was launched in 2019 at the hands of Nirmala Sitharaman who was then Defence Minister. In the book launch ceremony, she said, “There are two types of terrorism in the country today — one is the Red Corridor and another Jihadi Terrorism. Both these types have taken deep roots here and if it has to be uprooted, then every citizen in the country must join hands with the Central Government.”

Cover of two books by RN Kulkarni, Sin of National Conscience and Facets of Terrorism in India

The book emphasizes the fact that the Islamic rule and its expansion by Muslims in India centered around the doctrine called Jihad fi Sabilillah – Jihad in the way of Allah. RN Kulkarni explained in this book how India experienced the Jihad throughout the Islamic Rule over 1000 years.

The blurb of the book reads, “The people of India are distortedly called Hindus due to historic reasons and by the invaders. It got stuck hard, through the ages. This caused a disconnect with their roots and hence they suffer from an identity crisis. Among the many invaders, it is only the Muslims who made India their home, through the process of religious turbulence. Hindus tried to co-exist with them sadly without ever trying to know either their religion or political thought of Islam. The creation of Pakistan in 1947 again set in motion the Jihad. Pakistan even now continues to be the epicenter of Jihad, where Kashmir is its live and brutal battlefield. This, the Western world and media have described it as Islamic terrorism.”

Cricketer Venkatesh Prasad gets abused after he jokes how ‘Bhagwa’ helped Pakistan reach semi-finals in T20 World Cup

OpIndia Staff
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Cricketer Venkatesh Prasad gets abused after he jokes how ‘Bhagwa’ helped Pakistan reach semi-finals in T20 World Cup

Venkatesh Prasad, a former Indian national team cricketer, is being chastised on Twitter for making a joke stating that ‘Bhagwa’ helped Pakistan reach the ICC T20 World Cup semi-finals. “So Bhagwa has helped Pakistan reach the semis,” Prasad posted on Twitter after Netherlands beat South Africa paving way for Pakistan to reach the semis. Netherlands cricket team uniform is in orange colour, which is why the ‘bhagwa’ (saffron) wordplay.

Responding to this tweet, several Twitter users slammed Prasad for making such remarks. Quoting the tweet, a user wrote, “This man wants to become next BCCI President or may be next Chief Minister of Karnataka.”

Another user wrote, “Bringing religion into sports @venkateshprasad & Waqar Younus are alike, pathetic creators”.

Bringing in the mention of year 2014, the year when Narendra Modi became Prime Minister for first time, a user wrote, “Post 2014, they keep getting exposed….. Many weren’t gentlemans of game but communal d0gs.”

Twitter user Arjun wrote, “Indian Ex Cricketers are cringe.”

Venkatesh Prasad made these remarks following the T20 World Cup match between South Africa and Netherlands. The Netherlands won the match by 13 runs, making it possible for Pakistan to reach the semi-finals of the tournament. Interestingly, the tweet by Prasad was a witty play of words as the jersey of the Netherlands cricket team is saffron in colour and bhagwa, is the Hindi term for saffron.

The Netherlands eliminated South Africa from the T20 World Cup with a surprising 13-run victory, as South Africa was ousted from yet another major ICC competition. It was the Dutch team’s first victory over South Africa in any format.

Former Cricketer Venkatesh Prasad joined the platform on April 8, 2021, and has been quite active. Prasad has also been outspoken about his Hindu roots and has spoken out against injustices involving Hindus. He is one of the few celebrities who have been so open about their Hindu faith.

In June of this year, Venkatesh Prasad denounced the hanging of an effigy of ex-BJP spokeswoman Nupur Sharma outside a mosque in Belgavi, Karnataka, for her statements regarding Prophet Muhammad.

TMC’s Saket Gokhale claims he is using Twitter Blue, but the feature has not been launched in India yet

OpIndia Staff
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TMC’s Saket Gokhale claims he is using Twitter Blue, but the feature has not been launched in India yet

On October 6, Trinamool Congress leader Saket Gokhale claimed that he has Twitter Blue subscription for a while now. His statement came at the time when Twitter Blue services await launch in India. For those who are unaware, in June 2021, Twitter announced its first subscription services for users of two countries Canada and Australia which was later extended to the US and New Zealand. The paid subscription offered an array of additional features to the users.

Initially priced at $2.99 per month, the cost was raised to $4.99 in the USA, $6.49 in Canada and $6.99 in Australia and New Zealand. The service was not made available outside these countries, although Twitter was planning to launch it in other countries gradually and was conducting trials for the same.

Saket Gokhale claimed he has Twitter Blue feature that has not been launched in India yet. Source: Twitter

When Elon Musk took over Twitter, he announced that Twitter Blue services would soon become open to all users. He also announced that the verification of accounts will be made a feature of Twitter Blue, as he said anyone subscribed to Twitter Blue will get a verification badge. Those who already got verified accounts will also need to shift to Twitter Blue and pay up the price of $8 per month. However, Musk said that the price might vary country-to-country based on purchasing power. On October 6, the roll-out of revamped Twitter Blue began in five countries.

Saket Gokhale said he has a Twitter Blue subscription

Saket, in a Twitter thread, talked about how Twitter will become a product with Twitter Blue and the company will have to follow consumer laws in India. He claimed that earlier it was free so the consumer laws were not applicable. Amidst the tweets, he shared a screenshot claiming he has already subscribed to the paid services long ago.

He wrote, “For the record: I’ve been a Twitter Blue subscriber for months now. This is for Musk fanbois who are going on all about “oh yes we gonna make them liberals pay & that’s why they’re outraged”. I’m far from outraged, thanks.”

His statement raised several questions as the Blue service is yet to launch in India. Last year in December, 91 Mobiles revealed that they had spotted the Blue feature ahead of the official release in India. It was widely reported by the tech news portals. In its report, 91 Mobiles said that they noticed the Twitter Blue icon on a social media handle hinting the rollout would soon begin in India. However, no official word from Twitter ever came.

As of now, Elon Musk has suggested that Twitter Blue will be launched in India in less than a month while replying to a user from India.

The Twitter Blue link redirects to the home page

OpIndia tried searching for the Twitter Blue option in the settings. We found that no link to Twitter Blue was visible anywhere in the settings. However, if we search Twitter Blue in settings, the link does show up.

Twitter Blue link shows up on search but redirects to home page. Source: Twitter

However, when we clicked on the link, it redirected us to the home page. It clearly shows that the feature is not available for Indian users. If Gokhale is to be believed, it is unclear how he got his hands on the feature.

Twitter verification badges were sold for $15,000, claimed user

Notably, some users have claimed that Twitter employees were selling verification badges for hefty amounts. Is that possible that other premium features are also up for grab after paying the price? With thousands of Twitter employees losing jobs and “rumours” that verification badges were available for sale, it will be interesting to see if Musk initiates an internal investigation and make the outcome of the probe public. 

‘Influencers had spread false narrative’: Report by UK think tank says Hindutva or RSS extremism was not behind Leicester violence

OpIndia Staff
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‘Influencers had spread false narrative’: Report by UK think tank says Hindutva or RSS extremism was not behind Leicester violence

On 4th November 2022, the Henry Jackson Society – a UK-based think tank – released their research report on the anti-Hindu riots that took place in Leicester. The report is titled ‘Hindu-Muslim civil unrest in Leicester: “Hindutva” and the creation of a false narrative’. This report has denied any possible involvement of so-called Hindutva extremism or RSS extremism in the Leicester violence, which was alleged by Islamists and left-liberal media houses. After an Asia Cup cricket match between India and Pakistan on August 28, violence erupted in Leicester, UK. Up to 47 persons were detained for their involvement in the incident.

It is notable that the western media broadly blamed the whole Hindu community in Leicester for this violence under the guise of using terms like Hindutva extremism or RSS extremism. Now, the think tank based in the UK itself has come up with the conclusion that no Hindutva extremism in any angle is found responsible for the riots. Not only this, but the report also mentions that a group of social media influencers, some with links to terrorism, peddled this fake narrative to stir up tensions and instigate violence.

Henry Jackson Society’s (HJS) Centre on Radicalisation and Terrorism carried out this research and published the report from their official Twitter handle. The 39-page report is written by Charlotte Littlewood. It mentions that influencers on social media spread a false narrative that “RSS terrorists” were to blame for the violence in order to persuade Muslims from all across the UK to participate in the demonstrations. In a video showing himself leading a group through Leicester, an influencer named Mohammad Hijab with over 800,000 followers urged Muslims to “protect themselves against Hindu fascism” and wrote, “Muslim patrol in Leicester.”

A similar influencer with 150,000 followers propagated false information about Hindus kidnapping a Muslim girl. He had previously bragged on social media about his involvement with Pakistan’s D Company and admired Dawood Ibrahim. Littlewood concluded that the rioting was caused by a “micro-community cohesiveness dispute” involving Muslim and Hindu youngsters in Leicester who “had prejudiced sentiments against one another” and that this dispute had been “falsely portrayed as a problem of organized Hindutva extremism and terrorism.”

This report also noted that another influential person who is regularly provided with a platform by UK media to spread the falsehood that Hindutva was involved in the events in Leicester had previously prayed for the Taliban and the brother of an ISIS member. The demonstrations against the Lady of Heaven movie’s screening were led by one of the main opponents of LGBT education in schools, and she was also instrumental in stirring up the mob that besieged the Hindu temple in Birmingham. Anjem Choudary, a convicted hate preacher, and Hizb ut-Tahrir, a banned organization that seeks to restore the Islamic Caliphate, has also expressly stated linkages between the upheaval in Leicester and Hindu nationalism.

Charlotte Littlewood said in her report, “Evidence of a Hindu nationalist presence in the UK is tenuous. Some organizations have been accused of links to RSS and RSS-linked individuals have visited the UK, this is problematic for community relations and requires further investigation.” She added, “Accusations of RSS terrorists lead to a number of Hindu youth temporarily relocating for their safety. There has never been a Hindu extremist terrorist attack in the UK and the youth in question had no affiliation to RSS.”

An attempt to draw attention to the ill effects of this false reporting was also seen in this report. According to Charlotte Littlewood, it is the Hindu community across the world that had to suffer this negative reporting in some or another way. The accusations of “Hindutva extremism” and “RSS terrorism” in the UK have led to internet hate speeches to violence and anti-Hindu hatred, damage to Hindu temples, reports of assaults against the Hindu community, and individuals who have expressed sympathy for the Hindu community, among other things, she said in the report.

In the concluding part, she also mentioned, “The methods employed have included projections including a false claim of a BJP organized bus, whilst car sharing of anti-Hindutva protestors were in fact taking place; claims of racists, terrorists, extremists, etc; misinformation regarding crimes being committed; attempts to have the uptake of their narrative by the mainstream press and collaborating with political leaders to gain sympathy for their narrative and potentially influence future policy. The successful spread of these claims has led to a security threat posed to the Hindu community and attacks on their places of worship.”

Commenting on how media relied on these Muslim social media influencers for reporting rather than going into the minor details of the incidents, Charlotte Littlewood noted, “The media has at times conflated the issue by regularly relying on influencers included in this report for comment and focusing on an issue of Hindutva extremism and India politics rather than providing nuanced and accurate analysis of the incidents.”

Underlining threats in front of the local community, she further said, “There is a real concern that Majid Freeman is regularly being provided a platform to express his views regarding the presence of Hindutva extremism in the UK and posing as a ‘community leader, meeting with the City of Leicester’s mayor and discussing the future of the upcoming independent review.”

It is notable that the western media portrayed Hindus as the main villains of this violence. Hindus in the UK protested outside the offices of these anti-Hindu media houses. Now that a UK-based research group has published its finding and underlined how Hindutva or RSS had nothing to do with the violence and how it was instigated by Islamist social media influencers, this has exposed the reality of the deliberate anti-Hindu reporting of the incident.

Bihar: Gold trader kidnapped, murdered, body recovered three days later, 3 arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Bihar: Gold trader kidnapped, murdered, body recovered three days later, 3 arrested

After a two-day search operation, the body of a gold trader kidnapped in Bihar’s Arrah was found on Wednesday, November 2. The gold trader identified as Hariji Gupta was murdered after being kidnapped, and his body decayed in water. Three people were arrested after the police launched an investigation.

“We discovered his body after a two-day search. After being kidnapped, he was murdered. Since the body decomposed in water, a post-mortem committee of doctors was formed,” Himanshu, the Assistant Superintendent of Police, stated on Saturday, November 5.

“An FIR has been filed in the case, three people have been arrested, and further investigation is underway,” he informed.

Earlier, after Hariji Gupta went missing on Wednesday, his family suspected kidnapping. The family members tried and failed to locate him and later filed a police complaint. Three suspects were detained by police.

According to family members, Gupta had gone to collect rent from his market. Gupta’s phone rang throughout the night before being turned off. According to the police, the phone’s last known location was in Behea.

Hariji Gupta was a resident of Bihar’s Arrah and owned three jewellery shops there. He also owned two shops in Patna. He also had a market on the Arrah bypass Road, where he ran several shops. Gupta was also a lawyer.

The police also retrieved his motorcycle from the suspected location. The police detained three people as part of the investigation.

According to the police, the businessman had an argument with one of his tenant in the markets. Subsequently, he had removed the tenant from the shop.

Apparently, jungle raj has returned in Bihar as in the last few months attacks and targeted killings of traders, local leaders and general lawlessness are at their peak. In September this year, BJP leader and contractor Bablu Singh was shot in broad daylight by two masked criminals in the Arrah city of Bihar. Singh was shot from a very close range while he was on his morning walk. He was immediately shifted to the local hospital where he is undergoing treatment.

TN BJP chief K Annamalai skips family event at Chennai home of Bengal Governor La Ganesan because Mamata Banerjee was present

OpIndia Staff
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TN BJP chief K Annamalai skips family event at Chennai home of Bengal Governor La Ganesan because Mamata Banerjee was present

Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal, was in Chennai on Thursday for a family event of West Bengal Governor La Ganesan, along with Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin. K Annamalai, the head of the Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party, was also invited to the event by La Ganesan but he chose not to attend.

Ganesan, the Governor of Manipur, is also the Governor of West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal, MK Stalin, Tamilisai, the governor of Telangana, Rajinikanth, and BJP officials were present. The CMs and other guests celebrated the 80th birthday of Ganesan’s brother Gopalan alongside superstar Rajinikanth.

Because L. Ganesan was a former BJP leader, there were many BJP politicians in attendance. Concerns were raised in the meanwhile by the absence of the Tamil Nadu BJP President Annamalai and Governor RN Ravi.

When reporters questioned Annamalai about this, he said that he didn’t attend the event because Mamata Banerjee was present. Annamalai said that he was cordially invited by Ganesan to participate in the function at his house. “I said I’d be there. They went to the temple and I planned to go to their home later that evening. But, because Mamata Banerjee was going to that occasion, there was also the thought of not going. Mamata Banerjee has mistreated BJP workers in West Bengal.”

“I’ll go to Mr Ganesan’s residence today or tomorrow to receive blessings. Mr Ganesan’s brother knows me personally” he went on to say. Annamalai implied that he did not attend the event because Mamata Banerjee was also present there and because she has ill-treated the party workers in West Bengal. The post-poll violence in West Bengal and brutal killings of BJP workers have been documented by OpIndia.

Mamata was sighted outside the venue delighting in the Chenda melam (traditional percussion instrument) performance and interacting with the artists on Wednesday after flying down from Kolkata and visiting Stalin at his home.

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