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Majid Freeman, the BBC and Guardian’s ‘good samaritan’ had claimed the 2005 London bombings were false flag ops by the Brit govt

OpIndia Staff
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Majid Freeman, the BBC and Guardian’s ‘good samaritan’ had claimed the 2005 London bombings were false flag ops by the Brit govt

Majid Freeman has become a topic of discussion since he openly came out to support the Islamists attacking Hindus in the United Kingdom. He spread fake news about the anti-Hindu clashes in Leicester and instigated Muslim youth against the Hindu community.

Since OpIndia and netizens exposed him, old tweets of his have surfaced where he used his social media presence to propagate misinformation and spread his propaganda to support Islamists. Interestingly, BBC and Guardian quoted Freeman as a “Good Samaritan”, whitewashing his wrongdoings.

In one such attempt, Freeman called the 7/7 London Bombings of 2005 “false flag ops by the British government”. The screenshot of his tweet was shared widely on social media. In the tweet, he said, “R.I.P all the innocent victims sacrificed by the government in the False Flag 7/7 operation”. Notably, after the tweet went viral, Freeman deleted it.

Source: SHHAN/Twitter

One of the most prominent accounts that shared his problematic tweets’ screenshots was ‘Stop Hindu Hate Advocacy Network’ or SHHAN.

If we look at the one-month stats of his tweets, it is notable that Freeman deleted 22 tweets on September 26 and 5 on September 27. OpIndia cannot confirm if he had deleted those tweets during the two days or not.

The screenshots were shared by SHHAN on September 19. Before them, several other netizens pointed out hateful tweets as well. Interestingly, during the period Majid was spreading misinformation and fake news about anti-Hindu attacks in Leicester, he gained over 6,000 followers in just three days from September 18 to September 20.

Freeman deleted 27 tweets within days after screenshots of his tweets blaming the British govt for the 7/7 attacks went viral. Source: Social Blade.

This was not the only attack that was deemed ‘false’ by Freeman. He also blamed the United States government for the 9/11 attack, where hijacked planes plunged into Twin Towers in New York City, killing thousands. Those tweets also stand deleted.

Source: SHHAN/Twitter

However, several other tweets claiming Islamic terrorists were not behind the attack and that it was an “inside job” are still available on his account.

Source: Twitter
Source: Twitter

The London Bombings of 2005

The ‘London Bombings of 2005’, also known as ‘7/7 attacks’ or ‘July 7 attacks’, were coordinated suicide bomb attacks that took place on the London transit system on the morning of July 7, 2005. As per reports, three bombs exploded in three trains on the London Underground, resulting in the death of 39 people. One hour after the first attack, another bomb was detonated on the upper deck of a bus in Tavistock Square, resulting in the death of 13 people. Furthermore, over 700 people were reportedly injured in the four attacks.

The bombers used inexpensive, readily available materials to make the bombs. Thus, the advance detection of the plot was highly unlikely. As a result of the attack, a series of changes were brought to the British Counterterrorism Policy.

During the investigation, it was revealed that three of the bombers travelled from the site in Leeds, where they made the bombs, to Luton. The fourth bomber joined them in Luton. They carried the bombs in their backpacks and boarded a train to King’s Cross station, London. At around 8:30 AM, they entered the station and boarded different trains to east and west on the Circle Line and south on the Piccadilly Line. After 20 minutes of boarding the trains, they carried out the attacks.

The attack in Russell Square killed 26 and injured over 340. The attack in Aldgate killed seven and injured over 170. The attack at Edgware Road killed six and injured over 160.

An hour later, the fourth bomber attacked a crowded bus en route to Hackney. In that attack, 13 people were killed, and over 100 were injured. An extensive investigation was carried out, and by July 16, police released the names of all four bombers who were killed in the attacks. There were theories of a ‘fifth bomber’ or a ‘foreign mastermind’, but the investigation agencies ruled them out.

Later in September 2005, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the deputy leader of the terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda, claimed partial responsibility for the attack. In April 2007, the investigation agencies charged three British Muslims for assisting in the planning of the attack. However, in 2009 they were cleared of the charges.

Ramanand Sagar’s Sita, Dipika Chikhlia, slams Adipurush teaser, says Ravan should look like someone from Sri Lanka, not like Mughals

OpIndia Staff
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Ramanand Sagar’s Sita, Dipika Chikhlia, slams Adipurush teaser, says Ravan should look like someone from Sri Lanka, not like Mughals

Actress Dipika Chikhlia, who essayed the role of Maa Sita in Ramanand Sagar’s ‘Ramayan’ has taken a dig at the recently released teaser for the Adipurush movie. Dipika said that Ravan should look like someone from Sri Lanka, not like Mughals

On October 2, the teaser of the much-awaited movie Adipurush starring Prabhas, Kriti Sanon, and Saif Ali Khan was released at an event in Ayodhya. The film is a retelling of the Ramayana. The teaser sparked a lot of discussions and even trends like ‘Disappointing Adipurush’. Apart from the poor VFX, Saif Ali Khan who plays the character of Ravan in the film drew flak over his Mughal-like look.  Amidst the debate, actress Dipika Chikhlia, who portrayed the role of Maa Sita in the Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan which aired between 1987 and 1988 on Doordarshan, also commented on it.

In an exclusive conversation with India Today, Dipika Chikhlia said, “I have seen the teaser of Adipurush. Ramayan is a true story with which the emotions and beliefs of millions of people are associated. Since Ramayan is an important part of people’s faith, it is important to be careful about how its characters, simplicity, and emotions are depicted. I know times have changed and that VFX has become an essential part of movie-making but VFX is good only till it does not hurt people’s sentiments. However, it is only a teaser and may not do justice to the film.”

When asked about Saif Ali Khan’s character being compared with Islamic invaders like Aurangzeb and Allauddin Khilji, the actress said, “I think the character should appeal to the audience and should look authentic. If Ravan is from Sri Lanka he should not look like a Mughal.”

On the backlash over Kriti Sanon’s appearance as Maa Sita, Dipika Chikhlia said, “The backlash is obvious, Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan has set a benchmark. The audiences want the onscreen Ramayan character to be similar to the ones in the popular serial.”

When asked that with Lord Hanuman allegedly shown wearing a leather outfit, if too much liberty has been taken, Chikhlia asserted, “Yes, I think people do take the liberty, even the Hindus. Nude pictures of Hindu deities are made. This needs to stop. Our gods are our heritage and should not be subjected to ridicule. Just as the country is governed by a constitution, Ramayan is the constitution of Bhakti, it should not be defamed.”

Notably, netizens have pointed out that the 1 minute 46 seconds teaser of Adipurush is nothing more than a blend of unpleasant scenes, hard-to-connect characters, and copies of scenes from Hollywood shows and movies. 

Strangely, Ravan appears to have a legion of skeletal, rotten demons that resemble a cross between the Game of Thrones wights and the Game of Potter dementors. 

Amidst the criticism and trolling, film Adipurush’s director Om Raut has come out to defend the film. “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,” Raut told PTI.

Indian Navy to induct ‘Varuna’, a drone capable of carrying passengers developed by Pune-based start-up

OpIndia Staff
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Indian Navy to induct ‘Varuna’, a drone capable of carrying passengers developed by Pune-based start-up

The Indian Navy will soon induct the country’s first passenger-carrying drone, the ‘Varuna’, manufactured by the Pune-based Indian firm Sagar Defence Engineering Private Limited. A demonstration of this personal air vehicle, an autonomous multi-copter drone powerful enough to transport a passenger, was displayed at the summit meeting of this year’s Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Seminar in July. The drone has been designed in collaboration with the Navy and it can land and take off from moving warships.

According to the reports, ‘Varuna’ has been developed and constructed by Chakan-based Sagar Defence Engineering Private Limited. The manufacturers say that this drone can transport products also including liquids, equipment, and humans using a conventional payload attachment.

The passenger drone, which can be remotely piloted or flown autonomously along predefined routes, can carry a variety of payloads between its landing gear. It can carry weights of up to 130 kg and travel 25 to 30 kilometres in half an hour. “In case of malfunction, it has a ballistic parachute that can come up. We are working towards urban air mobility”, one of the founders of Sagar Defence Engineering confirmed.

Capt. Nikunj Parashar, co-founder of Sagar Defence Engineering alongside Babbar and Lakshay Dang have developed the ‘Varuna’ drone for the Indian Navy. The main goal of this drone is to produce indigenous technology that can be nurtured and deployed to protect forefront fighters on the battlefields while also strengthening national surveillance and security.

Babbar stated that when the program started, the organization’s initial concerns were the requisite approvals and financial backing for this project; however, the organisation was fortunate to receive assistance and guidance from the Navy, iDEX team, and Ministry of Defence, who linked the manufacturers’ team with Mazgaon Dockyard Limited for funding.

Earlier talking about the development o the drone, Capt. Nikunj Parashar had said that this drone has been made specifically for use by the Indian Navy. He said, “Varuna has been developed in two parts. One being the technology which helps it to land and take off from moving warships and the second being the platform itself. The landing and taking off technology has been developed in tandem with Indian Navy DSR and the Varuna is currently being developed along with NTDAC (Naval Technology Development acceleration cell).”

As Varuna is capable of carrying out autonomous take-off and landing even when the ships are moving, it can be used for inter-ship transfer of material and personnel. The passenger drone has several other advantages, such as casualty evacuation in the event of a road accident, usage as an air ambulance in distant communities, use as an air taxi in metro areas, emergency evacuations, disaster relief, and medical crises, and so on. The induction of a drone like this will also help the Indian Navy to strengthen national surveillance and security.

Vijayadashami 2022: RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat asks Swayamsevaks to stay firm on Sanatan Dharma, empower women and society

Siddhi Somani
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Vijayadashami 2022: RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat asks Swayamsevaks to stay firm on Sanatan Dharma, empower women and society

On Wednesday, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) conducted a rally in the Nagpur district of Maharashtra on the occasion of Vijayadashami. The rally was organised in the Resham Bagh area of the city where all the RSS workers gathered to celebrate the Hindu festival of Dusshera together.

The rally was headed RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat who addressed the RSS workers at the organisational headquarters. He stated that women must be treated with equality and given the ability to make their own judgments. “No society can advance without women. We must empower our women”, he said.

Bhagwat’s remarks came in presence of mountaineer Santosh Yadav who was invited as the chief guest for the 2022 Dussehra celebrations. Yadav is the first woman to climb Mount Everest and she was honoured as the prime guest at the event on October 5. “In Sangh, there is an old tradition of welcoming intellectual and accomplished women guests in its programmes. The Shakha methodology of ‘Vyakti Nirman’ is being operated separately by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Rashtra Sevika Samiti”, Bhagwat noted.

He also praised Yadav and said that a woman represented Shakti (power) which needed to be empowered in a country like Bharat. “Women need empowerment. They have been locked in their homes and this is due to the foreign invasions that happened in the country in the past. Even today they have less freedom. Women are more capable than men and it’s high time for society to understand this”, he said.

Bhagwat meanwhile also talked about Sanatan Dharma and said that one must firmly follow the Sanatan Dharma. “Our country is progressing, socially and economically. Post-COVID, India has managed to get back to normalcy and world economists are predicting that the country will grow further. Change is the rule of the world, but one should be firm on Sanatan Dharma”, he was quoted.

He said that people who are against Bharat’s unity and progress are creating huge obstacles to hinder the Sanatan Dharma. “They spread Fake Narratives, encourage anarchy, engage in criminal acts, and foment terror, conflict and social unrest”, he said. He also added that while people agree with the concept of ‘Hindu Rashtra’, they oppose the usage of the word ‘Hindu’ and prefer to use a different word instead. “We don’t have any issue with that. For the clarity of concept – we will keep emphasizing the word Hindu for ourselves”, he stated.

Bhagwat further pointed out the problem of religion-based population imbalance faced by the country at present. He condemned activities of forced conversions carried out by Islamists and Christians and stated that conversions by force, lure or greed and infiltration were the biggest reasons for religion-based population imbalance. “Religion-based population imbalance is an important subject not to be ignored. Population imbalances lead to changes in geographical boundaries”, he said.

He also said that the minority communities in the country were being deliberately made to believe RSS was dangerous. Recently, the Central Government banned the extremist terrorist organisation named Popular Front of India (PFI) which had aimed at making India the Islamic Republic by the year 2047 by creating a rift between the RSS and the minority communities in India. The PFI had planned a strategy to project RSS as a ‘casteist’ organisation and form close alliances with the SC/ST/OBC community. This would help PFI in attaining their goal at ease.

RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat however said that RSS has always respected people belonging to minority communities. “Scare-mongering by some is being done that there is a danger to minorities because of us. This is neither the nature of Sangh nor of Hindus. Sangh resolves to stand on the side of brotherhood, amity and peace. Temple, water, and cremation ground should be common for all. We should not fight over pity things”, he said.

Police have increased security around the city of Nagpur and have deployed around 4,000 officers amid the Vijayadashami celebrations at RSS headquarters. Along with RSS Chief and mountaineer Santosh Yadav, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, and Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis also attended the event. Bhagwat, accompanied by other RSS leaders also paid homage at the Samadhi Sthal of RSS founder Dr Hedgewar.

Delhi government’s power subsidy scheme under the scanner, LG orders probe. Here is everything you need to know about the alleged ‘scam’

Dibakar Dutta
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Delhi government’s power subsidy scheme under the scanner, LG orders probe. Here is everything you need to know about the alleged ‘scam’

Months after recommending a CBI probe into the new excise policy of the Arvind Kejriwal-led-Delhi government, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has now sought a report from the Delhi Chief Secretary about irregularities in the power subsidy scheme.

As per reports, LG Saxena has questioned the non-implementation of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) order of February 19, 2018, which directed the Delhi government to transfer electricity subsidies to consumers directly.

The Delhi Governor informed that he received a complaint against the Delhi Dialogue Commission Chairperson, Jasmine Shah, and AAP leader ND Gupta’s son Naveen Gupta over impropriety and discrepancy in the power subsidy scheme.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led-Delhi government holds 49% shares in private DISCOMs including that of Anil Ambani’s BSES Yamuna Power Ltd. (BYPL) and BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd. (BRPL). It is accused of appointing directors of these private DISCOMs.

Based on the complaint of a group of eminent jurists, lawyers and law professionals, the LG has now sought a report from the Delhi Chief Secretary within a period of 7 days.

Under the electricity subsidy scheme, households that use less than 200 units every month are not billed at the end of the cycle. Those consumers who use up to 400 units per month can avail upto 50% of the subsidy (up to ₹800) on the total bill. Initially, the rule applied to all but was later tweaked to include only those Delhiites, who voluntarily opt-in for the service.

Allegations of scam in the electricity subsidy scheme

According to BJP leader Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, private DISCOMs BRPL and BYPL owe ₹21, 250 to the Delhi government but no efforts were made to recover the sum of money.

“AAP allowed these companies to settle outstanding dues against future payments to be made to them by the Delhi government itself, resulting in the companies receiving an undue benefit of Rs 11,550 crore,” he accused the AAP government of impropriety.

Vishnu Vardhan Reddy further alleged that while BRPL and BYPL charged an 18% late payment surcharge to the consumers, only 12% of the surcharge was paid to the power generation companies. He stated that the government suffered a further loss of ₹8,500 in this process.

The BJP accused the Arvind Kejriwal government of removing top government officials from the Board and replacing them with party leaders such as Jasmine Shah and Naveen Gupta.

“The AAP government even blocked the audit of these companies and prevented direct subsidy transfers to the people’s bank accounts violating its own orders of 2015-16 and 2018,” Vishnu Vardhan Reddy further pointed out.

Allegations of corruption in the Delhi Excise Policy

The Delhi Excise Policy of 2021-2022, the scrapped liquor policy, was originally proposed in 2020. After coming into effect in November 2021, it changed the manner in which alcohol was sold in Delhi.

Until then, only government-owned liquor vendors were permitted to sell alcohol. The Delhi Excise Policy 2021-2022 introduced private players in the market. The National Capital was divided into 32 zones and a total of 27 private vendors were to ply in each zone.

Every municipal ward had 2-3 liquor vendors operating in the area. The private liquor shops were allowed to attract crowds by offering discounts on the Maximum Retail Price (MRP). They could deliver liquor at home, and even keep shops open till 3 am in the morning.

The drastic policy change resulted in a 27% increase in government revenue to ₹8900 crores. At the same time, it marked the complete exit of the Delhi government from the liquor business.

While the objective of Excise Policy 2021-2022 was to end black marketing and the liquor mafia, the AAP government soon came under fire over allegations of corruption. Naresh Kumar, who was appointed the Chief Secretary of Delhi in April 2022, found irregularities and procedural lapses in the new liquor policy. 

The Chief Secretary prepared a report and sought the response of Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, the head of the Excise Department. The report blamed the Deputy CM for making changes to the excise policy without the authorisation of the Lieutenant Governor and providing ‘undue benefits’ to the liquor vendors.

Manish Sisodia waived off ₹144.36 crores on the license fee, to be paid by the private liquor vendors, under the garb of the Coronavirus pandemic. He also caused loss to the Excise Department and benefitted liquor licensees by waiving the import pass fee of ₹50 per beer case.

All these changes were made without the final approval of the Lieutenant Governor and thus considered illegal under the Delhi Excise Rules of 2010 and Transaction of Business Rules of 1993. The CBI had therefore registered a case against Vijay Nair and 14 others.

Shashi Tharoor spills the beans, says other party leaders had asked Rahul Gandhi to get him to withdraw from Congress President race

OpIndia Staff
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Shashi Tharoor spills the beans, says other party leaders had asked Rahul Gandhi to get him to withdraw from Congress President race

On Tuesday, senior leader and Congress president aspirant Shashi Tharoor claimed that several party leaders had asked Rahul Gandhi to make Tharoor withdraw his candidature. 

The Thiruvananthapuram MP who is in Kerala for the party election campaign told the media that Rahul Gandhi has assured that he will not ask Tharoor to withdraw as this election will benefit the party.

“He reminded me that he has been saying so for the past ten years that there must be a contest for the party chief’s post.

“He also told me that some people have asked him to ask me to withdraw my candidature. He assured me that he won’t. He advised me to remain in the race and run for office, Tharoor said.

Tharoor also stated that he never expected the big-wigs of the party to support him and even now he has no such expectations. 

In addition, Tharoor stated that he would not abandon his campaign for the election in order to appease people who had up until this point supported him.

“I was not expecting any support from the big leaders of the party and I am not expecting that now either. In fact, I met party workers at Nagpur, Wardha, and then Hyderabad. They are the ones who asked me to contest and not back away from it.

Tharoor asserted that his biggest plus point is the young party leaders and workers form the majority of his supporters while also stating that he needs support from everyone.

In addition, Tharoor stated that while he respects all senior party leaders, he has noticed some “partiality” on the part of certain of their top leaders and that their votes are equally as important as those of any other Congress members or employees.

“I have seen a partiality on the part of some top leaders of the party. I respect all senior leaders, but the vote of an office bearer, senior leader, or a Congress worker has the same weightage when it is being counted.”

Notably, this statement came after Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president K Sudhakaran publicly declared his support for veteran Mallikarjun Kharge for the party president’s post.

When asked if Sudhakaran’s public backing of Kharge was meant to deter others from supporting him, Tharoor responded, “Maybe. I’m not saying that, though. I don’t have to figure out what’s going on in other people’s minds. One thing I will say is that the ballot is secret, regardless of what is spoken publicly or secretly.”

The Thiruvananthapuram MP reacted to Sudhakaran’s statement by saying that the KPCC chairman likely voiced his personal opinion and that “there is nothing wrong with that.”

“He is unable to give instructions because it is crystal obvious from the party’s circular that office holders are not permitted to support candidates. However, don’t question me about it. It is up to the electoral authority to take action if they choose to,” he said.

The election circular issued by the Congress party on Monday stated that: “ AICC general secretaries/ in-charges, secretaries, joint secretaries, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) presidents, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leaders, heads of frontal organizations, chiefs of departments, cells, and all official spokespersons “shall not campaign for or against contesting candidates.”

“If the office bearers want to support any candidate and participate in the campaign process, they first need to resign from their organizational post,” the circular added.

Tharoor in Nagpur had said that Mallikarjun Kharge despite being among the top 3 leaders of the party cannot bring the change and will only carry forward the existing system.

“We aren’t enemies, it’s not war. It’s a poll for our party’s future. Kharge Ji comes in the top 3 leaders of the Congress party. Leaders like him can’t bring change and will continue the existing system. I’ll bring change as per expectations of party workers,” Tharoor said.

In response to Shashi Tharoor, Kharge claimed that although he had suggested a consensus candidate to his fellow candidate, the Lok Sabha MP pushed on a contest for the “sake of democracy.”

On October 17, voting will take place in the presidential election for Congress. On October 19, the vote-counting process will begin, and the results will be announced that same day. The poll will be attended by around 9,000 Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) representatives.

Elon Musk again offers to buy Twitter at the original $44 billion bid: Says it will be the first step to build ‘X’, the everything app

OpIndia Staff
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Elon Musk again offers to buy Twitter at the original $44 billion bid: Says it will be the first step to build ‘X’, the everything app

On October 4, Elon Musk took another u-turn and proposed to proceed with the original bid of $44 billion to buy Twitter Inc. The information was made available via security filings on Tuesday. The latest proposal called for an end to a lawsuit filed by the social media giant that could have forced Musk to pay irrespective of his desire to pay up or not.

There is a chance the lawsuit that is scheduled for a hearing on October 17 could damage not only Twitter’s brand reputation but also affect Musk’s reputation in the market for erratic behaviour. Notably, Musk had offered to buy Twitter in April and take it private. However, later he tried to back out owing to ‘improper disclosure of spam account or bot accounts on the social media platform’.

Reportedly, Musk sent a letter to Twitter on Monday expressing his intent to proceed with the original deal if the Delaware judge stayed the proceedings scheduled for October 17. Reuters quoted an unnamed source from the Twitter team saying that during a court hearing on October 4, the judge requested both sides to report by evening.

In a Tweet, Musk expressed his desire to move ahead with building the “everything app” called ‘X’. He said, “Buying Twitter is an accelerant to creating X, the everything app.” It is noteworthy that X.com was the first company he owned that was later renamed paypal.com, one of the most used payment apps across the world. 

BBC noted that a spokesperson for Twitter confirmed that the company received the proposal with the intention to close the transaction at $54.20 per share. The u-turn by Musk showed a positive sign for the Twitter shares’ price that has plunged drastically since Musk announced he was planning to step back from the deal.

Musk offered to buy Twitter in April

In April 2022, Elon Musk offered to buy Twitter at $44 billion and said he would like to take the company private. The deal was approved by the board of directors at Twitter. However, later Musk said that Twitter was allegedly holding back information about the spam accounts on the platform. Twitter, on the other hand, denied the allegations.

Musk announced that he was stepping back from the deal that led to a legal case filed by Twitter against him. Meanwhile, a whistleblower named Peiter ‘Mudge’ Zatko made shocking allegations against the social media platform and allegedly exposed the dark side of the company. He alleged that the Twitter employees have access to the personal information of all the users, and Twitter was not updating its outdated servers and computers, leading to a potential leak of information.

Notably, after a case was filed against Musk, he had said on a social media platform that via to court case, he would get the information about the spam accounts that Twitter was allegedly hiding all along.

From the attack on Gorakhpur temple to the murder of DGP, ‘mental instability’ being blamed for crimes by ‘Samuday Vishesh’ is a very old pattern

Jhankar Mohta
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From the attack on Gorakhpur temple to the murder of DGP, ‘mental instability’ being blamed for crimes by ‘Samuday Vishesh’ is a very old pattern

Jammu and Kashmir DGP (Prisons) Hemant Kumar Lohia was found dead under mysterious circumstances with throat slit and burn marks on his body on October 3, Monday. Terror group People’s Anti-Fascist Force (PAFF), an offshoot of Pakistan-headquartered terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba, has claimed responsibility for the murder.

Prima facie it had appeared to be a case of murder and his domestic help Yasir Lohar was believed to be the primary suspect. On Tuesday, October 4, Jammu and Kashmir police arrested the 23-year-old Yasir in connection with the DG’s murder.

It was reported that Yasir first suffocated the DG to death, then used a broken ketchup bottle to slit his throat, and later tried to set his body on fire before fleeing the crime scene.

Multiple media houses reported about the arrest but did not fail to mention how Yasir, who brutally killed the police officer was ‘mentally unstable.’ The reports extensively spoke about a so-called personal diary of the accused that revealed that he had a ‘depressed’ mind fixated on death.

Well, this is not the first case where this ‘mental instability’ trope has been used to downplay a crime where evidently the perpetrator belongs to a particular community. It is a time-tested formula that keeps resurfacing from time to time. Be it the attack on the Gorakhnath temple or the incident in Telangana where two Muslim women wearing burqa tried to damage temple and church idols, the corporate English media, the left-liberals, Islamists, and their apologists, have been unrelenting in their use of the ‘mental illness’ trope to justify Muslim-committed crimes.

It is almost like a new addition to their old strategy wherein they cherry-pick cases in which the victim-perpetrator equation suits their narratives. It is essentially tailor-made to show Muslims as overwhelmingly the victims and Hindus overwhelmingly as the perpetrators. Thus, creating a false perception among minorities that they are under attack from ‘fascist’ Hindus with active cooperation from the state machinery.

Below we list a few such cases where ‘mental instability’ has been blamed for crimes committed by people belonging to the Muslim community. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list, but rather an indicative one.

2 burqa-clad Muslim ‘mentally unstable’ women vandalised the idol of goddess Durga at a Navratri pandal in Hyderabad

Last week, two Muslim women were detained for reportedly vandalising the idol of goddess Durga at a Navratri pandal in Hyderabad. The ladies barged into a pandal in the city’s Khairatabad locality and smashed a portion of the Durga statue, according to Hyderabad Police. When a local tried to stop them, one of the ladies attacked him with a metallic tool. Prior to this, the ladies had also vandalised a statue of Mother Mary outside a nearby church.

Many news outlets covered the incident, although some, understandably, focused on how the two ladies were “mentally disturbed”. Media houses like Deccan Chronicle and TOI focused on how the accused’s brother Asimduddin claimed that his mother and sister were schizophrenic.

Essentially, the liberal media attempted to propagate the narrative that the two Muslim ladies who desecrated the Hindu statue did so because they were mentally ill. The point here is, if these offenders actually have a mental illness, how can they carry out such zealous hate-filled crimes against Hindus? Thanks to the leftist media, mental instability is becoming a well-planned alibi for such hate crimes.

Jharkhand’s Rameez Ahmed breaks into Hanuman temple, vandalises idol, Police claims accused is ‘mentally unstable’

Moving on, OpIndia reported how on the night of September 27, a man identified as Rameez Ahmed broke into Bhagwan Hanuman temple in the Hindpuri Police Station area of Ranchi, Jharkhand, and vandalised the idol there.

Ahmed was subsequently arrested by the police. Notably, the police had claimed that Ahmed is mentally unstable. The locals are reportedly not satisfied with the reasoning provided by the police.

Gorakhnath temple attack wherein media tried to portray that the accused Abbasi, an ISIS sympathiser, was actually not a terrorist but merely mentally unstable

As we delve further into this topic, the Gorakhnath Temple attack deserves a special mention, given how the corporate English media simply glossed over the seriousness of what the investigators were unearthing, almost on a daily basis.

Ahmed Murtaza Abbasi, on the 3rd of April 2022, screamed Allahu Akbar and tried to enter the Gorakhnath Temple. Wielding a knife that he intended to use, Abbasi injured two cops in the tussle that followed. Several revelations came to the fore after he was apprehended and an investigation was launched. The most important revelation was that Abbasi had taken an oath of allegiance to ISIS.

With an intent to execute terrorist activities, the accused used to read online articles and watch videos on the internet related to weapons like the AK-47 rifle, M4 Carbine, and missile technology. 

Since 2013, Abbasi was involved with ISIS, therefore, by all accounts, he was a hardened terrorist who was merely looking for the right opportunity to unleash Jihad on Kafirs.

But what was the narrative in the media? Firstly, the corporate English media hardly discussed this case with the seriousness it deserved. Those who did, tried their best to allege that Abbasi was actually not a terrorist but merely mentally unstable. His father asserted the same, rather vehemently. Later, a doctor confirmed that Abbasi was mentally fit and there was no sign that he was unstable.

Muslim youth held in Agra for vandalising Hindu idols to allegedly stoke communal tension, news agency claims he was ‘mentally challenged’

In 2018, a case of idol vandalism in a Hindu temple had been reported from the Shahganj region of Agra in Uttar Pradesh. It was reported how the accused had vandalised a Hanuman and Durga idol to instigate communal tensions. The devotees then caught hold of the individual reportedly trying to flee the temple premises, who when questioned identified himself as Sonu Khan. 

As per a tweet by ANI, the accused was assaulted by the locals after being tied to a tree, following which he was handed over to the police. The news agency claimed that the accused was “mentally challenged”.

‘Mentally unstable’ Yasir desecrates Hindu temple in Jammu

Similarly, in 2016, a youth from a particular community barged into the temple at Janipur in Jammu, threw stones at windowpanes, and tried to damage the idol. The miscreant was identified as Yasir, a resident of Doda town in Jammu. Several media outlets were ready to play the ‘mentally disturbed’ card in this case as well because the offender clearly belonged to their preferred community. The Hindu reported the incident with the headline: ‘Mentally unstable’ youth desecrates Jammu temple.

The report’s headline precisely matched the narrative that the media outlet intended to push, which was that the crime was obviously not intentional but committed because the accused, here too a Muslim youth, was mentally unstable.

Punjab: Divyang chess player Malika Handa vents anger on the AAP govt for not delivering on commitments made by the previous govt

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab: Divyang chess player Malika Handa vents anger on the AAP govt for not delivering on commitments made by the previous govt

Malika Handa, a 25-year-old Divyang chess player, vented her frustration and outrage on Twitter after the Punjab state government failed to follow through on a job commitment it made in January.

Malika tweeted, tagging Punjab’s Aam Aadmi Party and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, “On 4th Jan 2022 in CM office Official @CHARANJITCHANNI have approved & signed approval letter on 4th Jan, 2022 to give me the job of Coach Please tell Why i hav not being given appointment letter by Punjab sports office till now ?”

The erstwhile Congress government in Punjab promised Malika Handa, who has won gold and two silver medals at international level chess championships, a job and a monetary prize. She obtained a letter of approval from the outgoing CM Charanjit Singh Channi on January 4. However, the current Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi party government has similarly failed to fulfil the promises made by the previous government.

As reported by OpIndia, Malika had previously expressed her dissatisfaction with the state government’s inactivity. She tweeted in January of this year that she had not been contacted for the prize money and employment offer offered by the former sports minister. She said that the state government had duped her and that they did not care about the deaf player. She said that the district Congress members had also expressed their support, but that nothing had been done in the last five years.

She stated on Twitter in November of last year that she had been waiting for the Punjab government’s invitation for the job and financial awards for two months because she was now a graduate, but the state government was not responding to her demands.

As news portal Lallantop hires Nupoor Patel ahead of Gujarat assembly elections, activist exposes her links to AAP

OpIndia Staff
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As news portal Lallantop hires Nupoor Patel ahead of Gujarat assembly elections, activist exposes her links to AAP

As the much-anticipated assembly elections in Gujarat draw nearer, the hiring of one Nupoor Patel by news portal Lallantop has left netizens wondering if she is a journalist or an AAP worker after activist Ankur Singh exposed her links to the Aam Aadmi Party and pro-Kejriwal bias. 

A Twitter user and activist Ankur Singh shared a Twitter thread highlighting how India Today’s Lallantop seems to be working as the mainstream media wing of the AAP IT cell by hiring folks like Nupoor Patel, who had, in the past, had links with the Aam Aadmi Party and may continue to have a soft corner for the party.

Singh highlighted past tweets posted by Patel, where she made no bones about her support for the Aam Aadmi Party and her bias against the BJP. But soon after being exposed for having links to AAP, Patel went on a deleting spree, removing tweets from her profile that would expose her association with AAP.

From creating promotional videos for AAP to openly supporting Arvind Kejriwal and the party policies, Patel had been quite vocal about her political preferences on Twitter. Additionally, Patel has also not shied away from posting nasty tweets against political opponents. On one such occasion, she referred to BJP as a virus. 

While many of her tweets fawning over Kejriwal and other AAP leaders were deleted after she joined Lallantop, perhaps to erase her partisan antecedents, a recent video on the news portal extolling Kejriwal reaffirmed suspicions among social media users that she may well be continuing peddling AAP propaganda, this time working as a ‘neutral journalist’ working for Lallantop.

In one of the tweets that are now deleted, Nupoor Patel revealed that she had consumed beef in protest against the Modi government.

Source: Twitter

And not just on Twitter, but on YouTube and Facebook too, Nupoor has voiced her support for Kejriwal and AAP. 

And what’s worse? She also seems to be enthused by chronic fake news peddler and pro-AAP vlogger Dhruv Rathee, sharing videos and posts uploaded by him. 

After Singh exposed the blatant political links of a journalist hired by Lallantop, many social media users highlighted how it has become par for the course for political parties and media organisations to trade employees.

Many others criticised Lallantop Editor Saurabh Dwivedi for employing someone with a dubious track record.

Even as Lallantop comes under the firing line of social media users, it is notable to mention that the media organisation has long been accused of peddling propaganda under the pretext of reporting news. In June 2021, Lallantop played mischief over orphaned children, using information from two different data sets to cast aspersions on the Modi government.

Before that, in December 2020, Lallantop shared a video that shared misinformation on APMC mandis had shared fake news about APMC markets in Gujarat and new farm laws.

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