The Delhi High Court recently justified child marriage by upholding the legality of a 15-year-old minor girl’s marriage, stating that she is of ‘Marriageable Age’ under Islamic Sharia Law.
The court held that a Muslim girl who is less than 18 years old but has attained puberty is free to marry anyone as per the Muslim Personal Law. The court observed that the minor Muslim girl can not only marry without the consent of her parents but can also reside with her husband even when she is less than 18 years of age.
Delhi HC’s single bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh made the observation while granting protection to a Muslim couple who married in March 2022 according to Islamic rites and rituals. The couple moved the court seeking directions to ensure that no one separates them.
The couple had filed a plea in court after the parents of the minor girl opposed the marriage and registered an FIR under IPC Section 363 against the husband. Subsequently, Section 376 and Section 6 POCSO were invoked in the case.
The girl reportedly told the court that she was beaten on a regular basis by her parents and had eloped and married of her own volition.
Meanwhile, as per the status report filed by the respondent, the girl was born on August 2, 2006, making her only 15 years old at the time of the marriage.
The status report further mentioned that the girl was brought back from the custody of her husband and handed over to her parents in the month of April. A medical examination was conducted on her at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital (DDU), Delhi. The medical test revealed that the couple has had sexual intercourse and that the 15-year-old was then pregnant.
Granting protection to the couple, the Court observed: “It is thus clear that as per Mohammedan Law girl who had attained the age of puberty could marry without the consent of her parents and had the right to reside with her husband even when she was less than 18 years of age and thus otherwise minor girl.”
The court also ruled that the POCSO Act cannot be applied in the aforementioned case because it is not a case of sexual exploitation, but rather one in which the couple fell in love, married according to Muslim laws, and then had physical relationships.
Punjab and Haryana HC cites Sharia to justify child marriage
Interestingly, this is not the first case where a court has held the marriage of a minor Muslim girl legal. Recently, Punjab And Haryana High Court also justified child marriage by grantingprotection to a 16-year-old Muslim Girl who married a 21-year-old Muslim boy while noting that she is of Marriageable Age under Muslim Personal Law.
Last year too, the same verdict was passed by Justice Alka Sarin of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. While hearing the plea filed by a 36-year-old man and a 17-year-old girl, she gave the verdict relying on various court rulings and article 195 in ‘Principles of Mohammedan Law’, an authoritative textbook by Muslim personal law jurist Sir Dinshah Fardunji Mulla, that states: “Every Muslim with a mature mind who has attained puberty can contract marriage. Minors who have not attained puberty can be validly contracted in marriage by their parents.”
It is noteworthy that the Parliament had earlier introduced the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021 to increase the marriageable age of girls to 21, equal to that of boys. Furthermore, while introducing the bill, the government said that it would be applicable to every girl irrespective of religion.
On August 21, a Hindu Sadhu identified as Jawahar Giri was brutally assaulted by Islamists after he accidentally reached their area to seek donations for Janmashtmi. As per reports, he was held in a room and beaten up. The accused also snatched around Rs 35,000 that he had collected for the Janmashtmi celebrations that have been happening in Karsa Village in Sitapur.
Hindi Daily Aaj noted in a report that on Sunday morning, Jawahar Giri went to collect donations for the Janmashtmi celebrations. He unknowingly entered the Muslim-dominated area. When the local Muslim residents saw a Hindu saint roaming in the area, they grabbed him and started beating him. Reports suggest there were around 30-50 people who assaulted the saint.
Speaking to OpIndia, Bajrang Dal District Head Sandeep Awasthi said the local Hindus came to know about the incident and rushed to help the saint. They somehow managed to bring the saint from the Muslim-dominating area. Baba Jawahar Giri reached back to Parma Kuti Ashram and informed his Guru Sitaram Mitrasen Naga Baba about the incident. Meanwhile, Bajrang Dal was also informed about the incident, after which its members rushed to the village.
The Police were informed about the incident, following which Station in-charge Om Prakash Tiwari reached the spot with the heavy police force. The additional force was called from Thangaon, Tambore, Sadarpur, and Biswan Police Stations. By the time the Police reached Tyagi Baba, members of the Bajrang Dal sat in protest. The Police convinced them to take the saint to the hospital at Rausa, from where he was referred to Sitapur Hospital owing to internal injuries.
Though the reports suggest Baba Jawahar Giri was in critical condition, Bajrang Dal’s district chief Sandeep Awasthi said, “Fortunately, Baba did not sustain life-threatening injuries. He was kept in the hospital for a while and was discharged after getting the required treatment. He has reached his ashram safely and will rest further till he fully recovers from the injuries.”
Awasthi mentioned that as the saint was not from the region, he did not know that where he was going was a dominating Muslim area. When Muslims saw him in Bhagwa clothes, they got angry and grabbed him on the pretext that he was there to “pick up children.” He said, “They brutally assaulted him and threw him in a room. He sustained several injuries on his head.”
Awasthi further added that initially, Police did not take any action against the accused, but after they sat in protest, the Police started arresting the accused. BJP leader Gyan Tiwari also intervened.
— Mohit Mishra ! मोहित मिश्रा (@mohitmishra1987) August 22, 2022
As per Aaj’s report, the main accused in the case, identified as Lakhati s/o Asgar, was arrested by the Police. Awasthi said around 6-7 accused were arrested by the Police whose names were in the FIR. However, there were several unnamed accused in the FIR who were roaming freely.
On Tuesday, the Telangana Police arrested Raja Singh, BJP MLA from Goshamahal for his alleged blasphemous remarks against Prophet Muhammad. This came hours after the Police booked the leader for allegedly hurting the religious sentiments of the Islamist community.
According to the reports, severe protests broke out in Hyderabad last night at South Zone DCP office where protesters demanded immediate action against Singh. Singh on Monday had posted a video in which he, according to the Islamists, used abusive language towards the Prophet Muhammad.
BREAKING: BJP MLA Raja Singh arrested for Prophet comments under 3 sections of IPC pic.twitter.com/2MIAVsPfGN
Several people then gathered at the South Zone DCP office in Hyderabad and staged a protest against the BJP MLA. Hundreds of them shouted Islamists slogans like, “Allah-hu-Akbar”, “Gustakh E Rasool ki ek he saza sar tan sejuda, sar tan se juda” and demanded the arrest of Raja Singh. They also yelled slogans like, “Raja Singh Murdabad, Murdabad” and reiterated that the BJP MLA had allegedly insulted the Muslim community and their God.
#BreakingNews Communal Tension in Hyderabad: Syed Abdahu Kashaf takes up the protest with slogan “Gustak E Rasool saw ki ek he saza sar tan sejuda.. “ against BJP MLA at Hyderabad City Police commisoner. We demand immediate arrest of BJP MLA Raja Singh. pic.twitter.com/MQTcRY6xby
The protests were reportedly led by Syed Abdahu Kashaf who calls himself a political strategist and Social and Civil Rights Activist. After Singh’s arrest on August 23, he posted a video congratulating all the Islamists of the city and said, “we made it a national issue and it happened”. He also thanked the Hyderabad Police for taking swift action against the BJP MLA who is accused of passing blasphemous remarks against Prophet Muhammad.
Syed Abdahu Kashaf is a Jawaharlal Nehru University pass out and works as a Digital Content Creator at Crimson Media Company. He seems to be associated with the AIMIM party and its supremo Asaduddin Owaisi as he has worked as Social media Head of the party from 2012 to 2019.
Screenshot of the Google profile created by Syed Abdahu Kashaf
Earlier today, the Police booked the BJP MLA under IPC section 153A (Promoting enmity between two groups) and similar sections at the Dabeerpura police station. DCP South Zone, P Sai Chaitanya confirmed the action and said that the Police has begun the investigation into the case.
To note, the arrest comes a day after Syed Abdahu Kashaf instigated the Islamists to gather around the South Zone DCP office and protest against the BJP leader. On Monday night, he posted a video saying that he had received calls from many Islamist people who complained about the remarks made by Singh. He said that the Islamists would go on indefinite hunger strike if Singh is not arrested. “We want him to get arrested by today. He should be charged under various sections of 153, 153-A, 188, 295-A, 298, 505 (1) (B) (C), 505 (2), and 506 of IPC”, he said on August 22.
Dear @CPHydCity Sir If Raja Singh is not arrested till today we will call for Indefinite Hunger-Strike. We want him to get arrested by today. He should be charged under various sections of 153, 153-A, 188, 295-A, 298, 505 (1) (B) (C), 505 (2) and 506 of IPC. Cc : @hydcitypolicepic.twitter.com/IrZ8wFHHnj
In another video, he could be seen raising ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ slogans and instigating hundreds of Islamists to continue protests outside the South Zone DCP office. Speaking to India Today on Tuesday, he further said that he had no regret in using the ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ slogan to protest against the alleged blasphemous remarks. “Hyderabad is controlled by us”, he added.
“Hyderabad is controlled by us,” says @syedKashaf95, an influencer leading the ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ protests in Hyderabad. Tells @Akshita_N he has no remorse/regret in using the slogan to protest against prophet comments. pic.twitter.com/5RwHxsoqs3
Reports mention that the Islamists who protested outside the South Zone DCP office also offered Namaz in the area and continued to protest till Tuesday morning. The Hyderabad Police has reportedly detained hundreds for disturbing the peace and harmony in the area. Meanwhile, now arrested BJP MLA Raja Singh clarified that his statements are being misinterpreted and that he did not mean what he said. He added that he did not take anyone’s name in the video and that the Islamists were protesting based on what they assumed the video could be.
“I will soon release one more video. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Why has an FIR been filed against me? Are our Hindu Gods not important to us? Multiple FIRs have been filed against me and I don’t know why”, he said.
Six persons faced the wrath of ‘sar tan se juda’ ideology
To note, a similar incident happened in India when former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma uttered allegedly blasphemous remarks against Prophet Muhammad creating worldwide outrage. The outrage escalated after Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair shared an edited clip of Sharma on social media and instigated the Islamists to take action against the lady. The Islamists initially in India and then all over the world raised ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ slogans and demanded the immediate elimination of Sharma.
This growing radicalized outcry had overtaken the streets of the country, with people found in support of Nupur Sharma’s statement getting condemned brutally. Six people to date, including Amravati’s Umesh Kolhe, Rajasthan’s Kanhaiya Lal, Madhya Pradesh’s Nishank Rathore, etc have faced the wrath of the ‘sar tan se juda’ ideology.
Also recently, the ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ slogans were raised by Islamists in a Muharram procession in Madhya Pradesh’s Khandwa district. The incident happened on August 10 when the participants in the procession began yelling offensive chants. While one person could be heard shouting the Islamist war cry ‘gustakh-e-Rasool ki Ek hi saza, sar tan se juda sar tan se juda’, some others shouted, ‘gustakh-e-nabi ka sir chahiye’ (We want the head of the one who insulted the Prophet).
मध्य प्रदेश के खंडवा में मोहर्रम के जुलूस के दौरान कथित तौर से ‘सर तन से जुदा’ का विवादित नारा लगाया गया। वीडियो वायरल होने पर अब पुलिस ने कार्रवाई की बात कही है।#MadhyaPradeshpic.twitter.com/SKKIAZhbSh
Celebrity Islamists do not condemn ‘Sar tan se juda’
Pertinently, even Islamist celebrities, like financial fraud accused Washington Post columnist Rana Ayyub, The Wire’s Arfa Khanum Sherwani, Radio Mirchi RJ Sayema or even Alt News’ Mohammad Zubair for that matter – none have said it in as many words that so-called blasphemy should not be punishable with death.
In fact, they all ‘condemn’ alleged blasphemous statements and call it bigotry but never ask their coreligionists to not kill over them. Recently, when Salman Rushdie, author of allegedly blasphemous book The Satanic Verses, was stabbed in New York, Rana Ayyub tweeted wishing for his recovery, but deleted the wish hours later after Islamists cancelled her Muslim card for wishing well upon a ‘blasphemer’. While she claimed it was not because of Islamists, but she never again wished full recovery for Rushdie, and has not even said how he should not have been attacked for ‘blasphemy’.
AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan calling for beheading of Swami Yati
In April 2021, Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan had also called for the beheading of Dasna Devi Temple head priest Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati for his alleged critical remarks on Prophet Muhammad. “We can not tolerate such impertinence for our beloved Prophet Muhammad. This hateful insect should be awarded the most severe punishment by slitting his tongue and neck. But the law of the land does not permit us to do this, we have faith in the Indian constitution, and I want Delhi Police to take note of this,” Amanatullah Khan had tweeted along with the video of Narsinghanand Saraswati where he criticized the Islamic prophet.
Later, several videos surfaced on social media showing scores of children calling for the beheading of Swami Yati. The children, who did not look a year older than 7 or 8, a carried poster of Swami Yati garlanded with footwear and raised slogans- “Gustakh-e-Nabi ki ek saza, sar tan se juda, sar tan se juda”.
All that led to Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder is happening all over again. Makes me sick pic.twitter.com/C76T7uFG1G
Reports mention that the slogan ‘Gustakh-e-Rasool Ki Ek Hi Saza, Sar Tan Se Juda, Sar Tan Se Juda’ was first raised in Pakistan in the year 2011 when the governor of the Punjab province of Pakistan, Salman Taseer was murdered by his guard Mumtaz Qadri who disagreed with Taseer’s opposition to Pakistan’s blasphemy law.
However, it was first used in India 5 years ago when Kamlesh Tiwari of Lucknow gave a statement about Prohpet Muhammad. As reported earlier, Tiwari was murdered by the Islamists who stabbed him 15 times and left him with two deep cut marks on the neck, reflecting attempts to slit his throat.
In the current case, an FIR has been registered against Raja Singh, BJP MLA from Goshamahal for his alleged blasphemous remarks against Prophet Muhammad. The Police have also arrested the BJP leader and are investigating the case amid severe protests in the city.
On Monday, August 22, the 42-year-old BJP leader and TikTok star Sonali Phogat died of a heart attack. The BJP leader was in Goa at the time of her untimely death.
Haryana BJP leader and content creator Sonali Phogat passes away in Goa, confirms Goa DGP Jaspal Singh
According to reports, Sonali Phogat who was in Goa with some of her employees had complained of uneasiness to her staff on Monday after which she was rushed to the hospital, where she was declared dead.
Currently, the post-mortem is being conducted and the local police are on their way to the hospital.
The actor-politician had posted images and videos on Instagram shortly before her death. She was seen wearing a bright pink safa (turban) on her head in the photo.
Many TV actors and celebrities have taken to social media to mourn Phogat’s untimely demise. Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar expressed grief in a Twitter post.
भाजपा नेत्री श्रीमती सोनाली फोगाट जी के आकस्मिक निधन का बेहद दु:खद समाचार प्राप्त हुआ।
ईश्वर दिवंगत आत्मा को अपने श्री चरणों में स्थान दें एवं शोकाकुल परिजनों को यह असीम दु:ख सहन करने की क्षमता प्रदान करें।
Sonali Phogat was most recently seen on the 14th season of the popular reality show Bigg Boss. She had entered as a wildcard contestant and quickly rose to prominence. Sonal Phogat made her acting debut in 2016 with the television series ‘Amma: Ek Maa Jo Laakhon Ke Liye Bani Amma. She later starred in the Haryanvi film Chhoriyan Chhoron S Kam Nahi Hoti. She has appeared in a number of Punjabi and Haryanvi music videos. She was most recently seen in the web series The Story Of Badmashgarh (2019). Sonali Phogat, was quite a star on TikTok. She went by the username ‘@sonaliphogat’. Her videos on TikTok are quite popular.
Phogat’s political career
Sonali Phogat was a BJP leader as well. In the 2019 Haryana elections, she ran for assembly from Adampur on a BJP ticket. She had run against Kuldeep Bishnoi, who had recently switched from the Congress to the BJP. Sonali was the National Vice President of the BJP’s Mahila Morcha and was in charge of the Haryana, New Delhi, and Chandigarh Scheduled Tribe wings. She was also a member of the National Executive Committee of the BJP. She was known for her work in Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh’s tribal areas.
In December 2016, Sonali Phogat’s husband Sanjay Phogat had been found dead at their farmhouse under mysterious circumstances. She is survived by her daughter Yashodhara Phogat.
On Monday (August 22) evening, ‘activists’ from the Student Federation of India (SFI) locked up the principal of the Karyavattom Government college in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala.
The principal’s only mistake was that he refused re-admission to an SFI leader in the same course, after the completion of his degree in the previous year. It must be mentioned that the SFI is the student wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
Reportedly, the student activists demanded that their leader be enrolled on the same course as he had some papers to clear. However, the principal of the Karyavattom Government college refused to entertain their request.
#Breaking#SFI students lock up principal in office, create ruckus: #CPIM student-wing students also tried to prevent police officials from entering college campus, demanded readmission of their leader to a course he had completed.
Miffed by the decision, the SFI activists locked the Principal in his cabin for over an hour. They also raised slogans demanding the re-admission of their leader. The student activists also accused the Principal of acting out of political interests.
On being informed about the matter, the police rushed to the college. The student activists tried to forcibly stop them from entering the college campus, thereby leading to a scuffle. The police had to resort to lathi charge to pacify the situation.
Reportedly, 4 cops including Kazhakootam Assistant Commissioner were injured during the chaos that broke out in the college. Nonetheless, the police were able to rescue the Principal and escort him to safety. They also arrested the student activists, who were responsible for the illegal confinement of the college Principal.
A large contingent of police personnel were deployed at the Karyavattom Government college to keep the situation under control.
On August 22, Bharatiya Janata Party’s Lok Sabha MP from East Delhi constituency and former cricketer Gautam Gambhir debunked claims made by Aam Aadmi Party that Manish Sisodia got an offer from BJP to join the party. In an interview with Aaj Tak, Gambhir systematically broke down the reasons why AAP is “panicking” and making “weird” statements like BJP wants to take away Sisodia from AAP.
Aaj Tak journalist Anjana Om Kashyap asked Gambhir if there was any truth in the claims made by AAP that BJP was trying to break the party and had initiated “Operation Lotus.” Gambhir said, “The person who won the last Assembly elections with 1,100-1,200 votes should not make such comments. I dare him [Manish Sisodia] to fight election from Patparganj in 2025, and then we will see what happens.” Sisodia is MLA from Patparganj, an East Delhi constituency, since 2013. Gambhir further added, “No one will ever believe that BJP gave him an offer to make him Chief Minister.
During the interview, Gambhir pointed out that one of AAP’s ministers from Delhi is already in jail. The second minister is on his way to jail. One of their Ministers from Punjab has been jailed. He said, “You opened 600 wine shops in Delhi but could not open a single school. Delhi does not need a CM, it needs a son, a true son. Delhi does not have an advertisement minister, Delhi needs someone who can do the groundwork. The fight is to save Delhi otherwise, it will not be a livable place after ten years. We will keep exposing them as it is essential to save Delhi.”
‘We do not need certificate from NYT like them’
Kashyap then asked about the claims made by AAP that the ED raids against its leaders have been happening because of three reasons that, include the article praising AAP in the New York Times, the BJP wants to topple the AAP government in Delhi and PM Modi is scared of AAP for upcoming Gujarat elections. To the question, Gambhir said BJP does not seek any validation or certificate from NYT as AAP does.
It should be noted here that NYTimes has had racist attitude towards India and made its anti-Hindu and anti-Modi bias quite evident in its opinions as well as news reportage. Even during the coronavirus pandemic, NYTimes regularly indulged in spreading anti-India propaganda.
Gambhir further said, “They are making such claims to avoid two questions by BJP.” Repeating the questions, Gambhir added, “I would like to ask them how many schools, colleges, and hospitals have they opened and how many DTC buses they have added in the last seven years. Why was liquor policy taken back?”
Gambhir said if the questions are baseless, Aaj Tak can debunk BJP with data. He said, “If our questions are wrong, you would have exposed us with the figures by now.” Alleging AAP used money collected using the liquor policy for Punjab elections, Gambhir said, “Liquor policy was brought as they wanted to win Punjab elections with that money. They won the election with that money and support from Khalistani elements. This is not a fight between BJP and AAP. It is for the future of Delhi. It is for the future generations of Delhi. It is to save Delhi. If our questions are wrong, expose us. I will come and apologize in public.”
‘They do not even have one MP in Lok Sabha’
Speaking about PM Modi vs. Kejriwal, he said, “They do not even have one MP in Lok Sabha and dreaming about fighting Lok Sabha elections. It is the media that has created this narrative. I am unable to understand why media is creating such a narrative and diverting attention.”
‘If you haven’t done anything wrong, there is nothing to fear’
When asked about the allegations that BJP wanted to arrest Kejriwal and Sisodia, Gautam Gambhir said, “I have full faith in Indian judiciary and investigation agencies. If I have not done anything wrong, if any person in the country has not done anything wrong, he will not get arrested. If you have done anything wrong, you will be scared of everyone, not just agencies. You can send the investigating agencies to my home or anyone’s home who has not done anything wrong. They will answer without any fear if they live their life in black and white. Those who have crystal clear history need not be feared.”
‘None of the previous governments spent so much money on ads’
He further added, “They were the ones who blamed Sheila Dikshit and claimed she was corrupt. Now when they are being accused of being corrupt, they are panicking. Did any of their MLA give any figures about the work done in the past seven years? Have you ever seen such a large amount of money being spent on advertisements? There have been many CMs from both BJP and Congress. They did work as per their capacity. Did they spend such large amounts of money on advertisements? They have not built a single school or hospital and talked about education and health. Tell me, are Mohalla Clinics world-class? Can you or I send our family members to Mohalla Clinics?”
When asked about the demand made by Kejriwal to give Bharat Ratna to Sisodia, Gambhir said, “When you are panicked, then you make such statements. You can seek Bharat Ratna but at least answer what you have done in the past seven years. Did you make Delhi world-class? You were making Delhi equivalent to London, Paris, and New York. You promised to give clean drinking water. But Delhi is the most polluted city. We do not talk about that. Did you clean the Yamuna? You promised to give oxygen cylinders to every house. You promised to make Delhi world-class and spend money on infrastructure. The truth is you have spent crores of taxpayers’ money on advertisements. This NYT thing is just another PR activity.”
He added, “If we want to save Delhi in the future, we have to save it from two things. The first thing is media-created Arvind Kejriwal, and the second is the victim card. You cannot keep playing the victim card forever. Delhi does not need your innocent face. Delhi wants work to be done. Ask me what has been done in East Delhi. I will tell you. Send a reporter and verify if the work has been done or not.”
Trouble for arrested Trinamool Congress leader Anubrata Mondal appears to be mounting, as the CBI Monday conducted a raid at a rice mill owned by one of his close relatives. Notably, the CBI had arrested the heavyweight leader of the TMC from his house in Bolpur, West Bengal, on August 11 in connection with the multi-crore cattle smuggling case.
Mondal is currently in CBI custody after a special CBI court in Asansol rejected the Trinamool Congress leader’s bail plea in the alleged cattle smuggling scam on August 20, 2022, and extended his custody with the central agency for four days till August 24.
According to reports, the rice mill in the Badhagora area in Birbhum, which was raided by a joint team of the CBI and Food Corporation of India (FCI) belonged to Mondal’s nephew, who is also a local Trinamool Congress leader. The central agency officials allegedly seized a few documents from the mill during the raid.
“Though the rice mill is defunct, we believe links with it and the cattle scam can be found during the investigation process. We are trying to find out whether this mill was run on the money gotten from cattle smuggling,” the CBI official said.
Notably, along with the aforementioned rice mill, the CBI sleuths had also raided a flat belonging to Mondal’s arrested bodyguard Saigal Hossain and even questioned his relatives.
There are at least 10-11 rice mills allegedly owned by Mondal that are being investigated by the CBI. Earlier on Friday, August 19, the CBI raided another rice mill named Bhole Bom Rice Mill allegedly owned by Mondal in connection with the cattle smuggling.
“So, the question is, with the production process being suspended over a long time, what was the actual purpose of keeping these mills open,” said a central agency official.
Interestingly, during the 5-hour-long extensive raid, CBI agents found five high-end cars parked inside the rice mill, one of which bore a West Bengal government sticker.
Car dealer reveals how he was forced to bribe the TMC leader Anubrata Mondal in return for a tender
Further investigation revealed that none of the vehicles was registered in the name of the TMC leader. One of the five vehicles was discovered to be owned by Probir Mondal, a car dealer from Birbhum who, despite his initial reluctance, told News18 how Anubrata Mondal asked him for a bribe of Rs 5 crore and a car to get him a contract for work on the Tilpara Dam.
Despite being paid, the TMC leader quickly increased his demand and threatened to implicate the businessman in a bogus case when the deal fell through, said Probir Mondal.
TMC leader’s custody extended till August 24
Meanwhile, Anubrata Mondal will remain in CBI custody until August 24. This development came after a special CBI court at Bengal’s Asansol on Saturday rejected Trinamool Congress leader Anubrata Mondal’s bail plea in the alleged cattle smuggling scam and extended his custody with the central agency for four days till August 24.
While appealing for an extension of the TMC leader’s custody the CBI told the court that since Mondal is a “very powerful and highly influential person” he could “influence witnesses and tamper or manipulate evidence if granted bail”.
The CBI lawyer said that Mondal has been “non-cooperative from the very beginning” despite being issued summons 10 times. The counsel also claimed that Mondal had “pressurised” a doctor to prescribe “complete rest”. “Mr. Mondal has good contact with the state government. He has used his bodyguard Saigal Hossain as a mediator. He used to take money from Enamul Haque. This entire business does not belong to a single man, but it is a chain. There is a conspiracy behind it. Anubrata Mondal has an important role. So he should be in CBI custody,” the CBI lawyer said in the court, after which the court extended his custody with the central agency for four days till August 24.
Incidentally, on Wednesday, 17th August 2022, CBI traced FDs worth approximately Rs 16.97 crores in the name of TMC leader Anubrata Mondal and his family which are now frozen by them.
TMC leader Anubrata Mondal arrested by CBI
Notably, the CBI, in a rather dramatic arrest, picked up the heavyweight leader of Trinamool Congress (TMC) from his house in Bolpur, West Bengal, at around 10 in the morning of August 11 in connection with the multi-crore cattle smuggling case. As per reports, a team of the CBI went to his residence with the CRPF being deployed outside and arrested Mamata Banerjee’s top aide. The CBI team was accompanied by a team of 100 CRPF personnel, who had surrounded the residence while the CBI officials entered the house and arrested the TMC leader.
Following an exchange of gunfire with Noida Police, two men were nabbed on Monday for kidnapping two individuals, including the son of a Janata Dal United (JDU) leader from Bihar. Mohammad Ayub and Rashid, who lived in Ecotech-III in Greater Noida, have been identified as the accused. Three other associates are presently on the run.
बिहार के एक नेता के बेटे की किडनैपिंग करने वाले आरोपित अय्यूब को पुलिस ने मुठभेड़ के बाद गिरफ्तार किया है। pic.twitter.com/RdaiJFgRS6
On Sunday, they abducted Dilbar Khan and Parvez Ansari, both inhabitants of Bihar’s Banka district. Dilbar Khan is the son of Minhaj Khan, a former Zila Adhyaksh of the JDU in Bihar and an existing party member in the state.
The accused Ayyub and Rashid, along with other accused, kidnapped Dilbar Khan from Greater Noida’s Pari Chowk on Sunday night, according to information acquired by Noida police. They demanded a ransom of Rs 5 lakhs from Dilbar Khan’s family.
Following the report of the kidnapping, Noida police assumed control and arrived at the Chuhadpur underpass on Monday with the dummy ransom payment, as requested by the kidnappers, and gave it over to free the captive men.
थाना बीटा-2 पुलिस व अपहरणकर्ता बदमाशों के बीच हुई मुठभेड़ में बदमाश अय्यूब पैर में गोली लगने से घायल/गिरफ्तार व बदमाश राशिद कॉम्बिंग के दौरान गिरफ्तार! 02 अपहर्ता बरामद। बदमाशों के कब्जे से घटना में प्रयुक्त कार व अवैध हथियार बरामद।@DCPGreaterNoida द्वारा दी गई बाइट। @Uppolicehttps://t.co/EDVm0Prr0npic.twitter.com/QTKib6mWNO
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GAUTAM BUDDH NAGAR (@noidapolice) August 22, 2022
When police attempted to apprehend the culprits, they opened fire on the policemen. Authorities responded in self-defence, and one of the accused, Ayub, was injured on his leg and sent to a government hospital for treatment. Ayub and Rashid were apprehended, while three others managed to flee the scene. The accused were found with a pistol, three live rounds, a knife, and an Ertiga car.
Two cases have been filed against the accused under IPC Sections 364A (Kidnapping for Ransom, etc.) and 307 (Attempt to Murder), and the hunt for other accused absconding is ongoing.
For over a week, many social media posts have been circulating making the claims that nearly half of the pregnant women who participated in the Pfizer vaccine trial lost their babies, that the fact has been revealed in company documents etc. The claims have now gone viral all over the world, with many versions of it, some posts even claiming that it was the vaccine that caused 44% of women to suffer miscarriages.
Tweet by US politician claiming 44% pregnant women lost babies in Pfizer vaccine trialUS-based website claiming that Pfizer trial caused miscarriages in nearly half the pregnant women A screenshot circulating on social media claims that 44% of pregnant women lost their babies after taking the Pfizer vaccine
After spending some time searching for the source of the claims, we found that it was first made by one Dr Naomi Wolf, who is reportedly the CEO of Dailyclout. Dr Wolf reportedly ran a crowdsourced project going through Pfizer documents released by FOIA request and found that nearly 44% of pregnant women who had participated in a Pfizer trial suffered miscarriages. There is a video where Dr Naomi Wolf is seen making the claims.
Yes you heard that correctly? *44% of pregnant women in the Pfizer trial miscarried!* pic.twitter.com/cyUR6a4G5K
Dailyclout is a blog run by one Dr Naomi Wolf. A post by her claimed, “chilling data showing 44 percent of pregnant women participating in Pfizer’s mRNA COVID vaccine trial suffered miscarriages.” The same claims has been taken up by several websites, blogs and thousands of social media posts all over the world.
The same Dailyclout has now updated its earlier post about the 44% claim, and have added that their claims were false. They added a footnote stating that two independent researchers have found that the 44% figure was inaccurate and the number of miscarriages reported were lower.
A footnote in Dailyclout.io ‘s post about the Pfizer vaccine
What is the actual story behind the 44% claim and how statistical data was misinterpreted?
Naomi Wolf’s blog post that has now been shared in thousands of screenshots and social media posts, had first cited that they accessed over 3600 pages of documents on Pfizer information submitted to the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research in March 2021. Those documents apparently showed 22 instances of pregnancy loss without outside intervention before 20th week.
Now, there are several reasons, sometimes unknown reasons why women suffer miscarriages. A data analysis by researcher Phil Kerpen stated that the figure of 44 was incorrect and there same instances of ‘adverse events’ were calculated twice by Naomi’s ‘volunteers’.
It is notable here that the blog post itself had stated that the documents contained information about 50 pregnancies that occurred after the women received their first dose of vaccine.
I like to check things for myself. The miscarriage rate in the Pfizer trial was not 44%.
In a series of tweets, Phil Kerpen explained how the blog post’s conclusions were flawed and when properly examined, showed only 11 miscarriages. That too, when the subject IDs were compared, only 3 were found, indicating that 8 of the other women may have been pregnant before the dose, but the documents in question did not have that exact information.
Ctiting the documents that Wolf’s team had used to claim 44% of miscarriages, Kerpen concluded that the figure was wrong and only 3 instances of miscarriage can be seen in the documents showing 50 cases.
tweet by Phil Kerpen
In a statement to the Associated Press, Jeffrey Morris, director of the division of biostatistics at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine told that the methodology used by Naomi Wolf’s team is flawed and they have calculated same ‘adverse event’ multiple times. Also, the documents only listed the ‘adverse events’, and nowehere mention that they were ’caused by the vaccine’, rather, they were a listing of adverse events that occured after the trial participants received the first dose.
Furthermore, the document lists 50 pregnancies that occurred after the first dose, meaning, it does not list the details of all the women who were pregnant during the trial period.
It is notable here that about 10-20% of all pregnancies end in miscarriages and from the documents cited by Wolf’s team, there is no way to conclude that the instances of miscarriages “were caused by the vaccine”.
Conclusion: No, the claim that 44% of pregnant women lost their babies after receiving the Pfizer vaccine is not correct
While the vaccine may have some adverse effects, as all Covid vaccines were granted emergency usage permits, and we are still waiting for detailed reports on long-term clinical trials, the claim made by Naomi Wolf’s blog post, that 44% of pregnant women lost their babies after receiving the Pfizer vaccine, is wrong.
Pfizer’s vaccine and its big pharma lobbying have generated quite some discontent among the masses. There have been instances where the pharma giant has tried to silence critical voices and caused alarm over its efforts to save itself from legal liabilities. But valid criticism and false claims are two different things. The “44% pregnancies ended in miscarriages due to Pfizer” appears to be in the ‘false claim’ category.
Pfizer claims and facts
This is not the first time that misleading and false claims have been made about vaccines. In May this year, when Pfizer released documents about its vaccine, another false claim surfaced. Many had claimed that the actual vaccine efficacy of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine is 12%, not 95. However, this claim was found to be completely false and baseless.
Pfizer vaccine, and its lobbying for usage permission in India
It is notable here that Pfizer’s Covid vaccine was widely used in the USA, Europe and many other nations. But the Pfizer lobby’s efforts to market the vaccine in India had fallen flat due to a number of reasons. India is the world’s largest producer of vaccines and the Indian government had since the very beginning made it clear that Indians will be given ‘Made In India’ vaccines. The Indian government primarily procured Covishield manufactured by Serum Institute of India and Covaxin manufactured by Bharat Biotech and vaccinated almost the entire eligible population free of cost.
Pfizer had tried to negotiate with the government of India, but as per reports, their high cost, indemnity clauses, refusal to conduct local trials, and refusal to technology transfer made the government of India reject the vaccine. Some reports had mentioned that Pfizer wanted the government of India to grant them immunity from prosecution in case of lawsuits due to adverse effects.
Additionally, there was a considerable lobbying effort where many so-called Leftist ‘intellectuals’, and even powerful politicians had tried to generate negative sentiments about Indian vaccines, portraying Pfizer vaccines as ‘better vaccine’.
However, recurring Covid waves in USA and Europe, delays in ‘opening up’ and casualty figures eventually proved that the US vaccines were not as good as they were marketed to be.
As the nation celebrated 75 years of independence on the 15th of August 2022, social media woke up to a viral video where kids were seen stripping Bharat Mata of her Mukut (crown), tying a cloth on her head and making her do namaz. After substantial outrage, the Lucknow police ‘clarified’ that the video was actually one where all major religions were represented by the children, and it was an exercise that represented communal harmony. The teacher of the school said the same.
छोटे बच्चों द्वारा सांप्रदायिक सौहार्द हेतु प्रस्तुत नाटिका का सम्पूर्ण वीडियो,जिसको कुछ असामाजिक तत्वों द्वारा गलत ढंग से प्रचारित कर सांप्रदायिक द्वेष फैलाने का अपराधिक कृत्य किया गया है। ऐसे लोगों के विरुद्ध सख्त कानूनी कार्रवाई की जाएगी।@Uppolicehttps://t.co/eWBatkgnycpic.twitter.com/oKOmLGVszX
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE LUCKNOW (@lkopolice) August 15, 2022
The video posted by the Lucknow police of the skit first shows Hindus bowing their head to Bharat Mata and worshipping her. Then, as Namaz plays in the background, kids wearing the skull cap emerge and strip Bharat Mata of her crown. They make Bharat Mata bend, sit on her knees and perform Namaz. Bharat Mata continues to kneel as kids dressed as Sikhs emerge amid the sounds of Ek Onkar. Next, the Christians emerge, who make Bharat Mata stand, take the cloth tied to her head off, extend her arms and tilt her head in the Crucifixion pose amid Church bells.
This skit was presented by the school as a lesson in communal harmony – perhaps signifying that Bharat belongs to all religions – Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians. That Bharat was a land where all sections could co-exist harmoniously even though our methods of worshipping her may be completely different.
Human beings, inherently, are a hopeful, dewy-eyed lot. We love to gaze at balls of hydrogen and helium, thinking about love and life. We gaze at large natural elevations of the earth and wonder about the futility of life, thinking of ourselves as small in front of the majesty of nature. We stand amid cloud bursts and think of all that is wonderful in life, while the clothes never dry and the air feels strangely moist.
We, naturally, look at people, and religions, and think about how worship, spirituality and religion are personal, sacred and just a part of a person’s existence that hardly defines them. But while we can afford to be dewy-eyed about rocks that have the capacity to crush humanity and rain that makes our clothes smell like rotten fish etc, can we truly afford to be dewy-eyed about Sarva Dharma Samabhava?
Sarva Dharma Samabhava is not a phrase that comes from Sanatan Dharma, as many would like us to believe. It was a creation by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi when the chasms between Hindus and Muslims started to get visible, given that the Muslims of the time were committing genocides against Hindus. MK Gandhi coined this phrase to essentially say that all religions are based on the same moral tenets, though they may take different paths to reach the same goal – the divine and therefore, all religions must be respected equally, that is, Islam, Christianity, Hinduism must all find equal respect.
This skit, in essence, preached exactly what Gandhi did – all religions are equal, all religions deserve equal respect and that each religion has its own way of expressing its patriotism of faith, does not mean that they don’t strive for the same universal truth.
However, upon scrutiny, the lofty dewy-eyed vision of Sarva Dharma Samabhava crumbles like a house of cards. If one watches the video without preset lenses, one sees that while Hindus worship Bharat Mata as she is, bowing their heads in veneration, all other religions change Bharat Mata according to their own faith, changing her civilisational and foundational character. The Muslims make her kneel to do Namaz, and the Christians crucify her. They make Bharat Mata bow to their Gods. The Muslims, to their Namaz that says there is no God but Allah, the Christians, to Jesus.
And that in itself busts the long-held myth that all religions perhaps aim to reach the same universal truth in different ways. The deification of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi unfortunately also led to the internalisation of several myopic views that he held. It is a fact, even if we bury our heads in the sand, that Abrahamic religions are out of congruence with Sanatan Dharma. While Sanatan Dharma in essence does believe that there can be several paths to reach the same truth, Abrahamic religions believe that all other paths and the truth they aspire to reach are false and must be annihilated for their truth to exist. Those who walk a different path are often denigrated as Kafirs or Heathens and the idols are called the manifestation of Satan himself.
One can quote scriptural references for Islam and Christianity that essentially talk about the destruction of everything Hinduism, a Polytheistic religion stands for. When two religions are considered the ultimate and only truth, where all other paths are to be destroyed, brutally so, and Hinduism alone is pluralistic and accepting of different paths, to say that all religions are based on the same tenets is patently incorrect.
Ram Swarup explained this dichotomy rather beautifully with a simplified example. He said that Hindus see their God through neighbours and their conduct while the Muslims see their neighbour through their Gods. Basically, when a Hindu sees his neighbour, who could be by all standards a good neighbour and a good person, he will think that his God must also be the same and his religion would teach tolerance and love. However, when a Muslim tries to evaluate his neighbour, regardless of the conduct of the said neighbour, it is his religion that determines what the Muslim will think of him. If he worships “false Gods”, he is an enemy. If he does not walk the same path, he is a Kafir. This essential difference between Abrahamic religions and Hinduism has to be underscored. All religions are not the same. All paths don’t lead to the same truth, therefore, all religions do not deserve the same or equal amount of respect. After all, how does one expect to get “equal respect” when the religion itself demands the annihilation of the one this respect is being demanded from?
In the skit, the fact that Muslims and Christians have to change the character of Bharat Mata and make her bow to their God instead of worshipping her in all her glory, turning her Islamic or Christian in order to accord her the respect she deserves, itself shows the futility of internalised tropes like Sarva Dharma Samabhava that MK Gandhi wanted us to internalise, so the people of a nation, Hindus, live with rose-tinted glasses forever.
The Liberals may just twist this entire argument to say that the skit only signifies how everyone sees Bharat Mata the way they want to picture her, but to make this argument, they should admit that the fundamental approach of how a Hindu sees Bharat and how Abrahamic religions see the nation are different – Hindu is willing to adopt her as goddess while others are to subsume her within a wider transnational concept, whether Ummah or a unified Christian world – But to admit that would tantamount to admitting that all religions are not the same when it comes to giving respect or even the assimilation needed for peaceful co-existence, and that honesty one can’t expect from liberals. They would never accept that it is this difference because of which Muslims don’t wish to chant Vande Mataram and Christians refused to salute the flag. While Hindus see India as a civilisational and cultural land of their ancestors, Muslims see it as Dar-Ul-Harb (to be turned into Dar-Ul-Islam) and Christians see it as a vast pool of sinners that deserve to be converted. With the truth too bitter to admit, the only thing that Liberals can possibly do is peddle hollow slogans like Sarva Dharma Samabhava.
The risks of these tropes become apparent when genocides of Hindus are committed in the name of Islam and icons like Gandhi tell Hindus to die with a smile on their face for the sake of the very ‘brotherhood’ that this trope was meant to promote. The cost of ignoring empirical evidence to live in a bubble that turns us blind to the truth is our blood colouring the pavements, as it did during the Direct Action Day, the Naokhali genocide or the Malabar Genocide of Hindus. It is Hindus who now need to decide if we wish to walk the path of Gandhi or Gopal Patha.
