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Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who had praised Hijab protests in Karnataka, blasted to death by US drones in Afghanistan

OpIndia Staff
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Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who had praised Hijab protests in Karnataka, blasted to death by US drones in Afghanistan

On August 1 (local time), United States President Joe Biden announced that terrorist organization Al-Qaeda’s leader Ayman al-Zawahiri had been killed in airstrikes. In his statement, Biden said, “I authorized a precision strike that would remove him from the battlefield, once and for all.”

71-years-old Zawahiri used to be a close aide and personal physician of Al-Qaeda founder and chief Osama Bin Laden. Since Laden was neutralized 11 years ago by the US, Zawahiri had become a prominent face of the terrorist organization.

As per reports, he was hiding in downtown Kabul with the aim of reuniting with his family. As per reports, he was killed in “a precisely tailored airstrike”. The US armed forces used drones to fire two Hellfire missiles for the kill at around 9:48 PM ET on July 31. The authorization for the military action to eliminate Zawahiri was given after several meetings with the US cabinet and the key advisers. At the time of the strike, no American personnel was present in Kabul.

Furthermore, Taliban officials were not informed about the strike. The reason behind it was explained as the Taliban was aware of his presence in Kabul but chose not to inform the US officials, which was a clear violation of the Doha agreement. As per reports, the Taliban’s senior leaders allegedly took precautionary steps to conceal the presence of wanted terrorists in the area and relocated his family members rapidly. Notably, the US officials said the family of Zawahiri was intentionally not targeted during the strike.

Reaction from Taliban

Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid took on Twitter to inform about the air strike. He said in Pashto, “An air strike was carried out on a residential house in Sherpur area of Kabul city on July 31.” The statement added that the nature of the incident was not revealed at first, but the later investigation found that it was done by American drones.

He said, “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns this attack on any pretext and calls it a clear violation of international principles and the Doha Agreement. Such actions are a repetition of the failed experiences of the past 20 years and are against the interests of the United States of America, Afghanistan and the region. Repeating such actions will damage the available opportunities.” (Translated using Google Translate)

Biden called it ‘justice served’

Calling it ‘justice delivered’, Biden said Zawahiri was deeply involved in the planning of the 9/11 attack. He added, “One of the most responsible for the attacks that murdered 2,977 people on American soil. For decades, he was the mastermind of attacks against Americans.”

Biden said, “Now, justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more. People around the world no longer need to fear the vicious and determined killer,” he continued. “The United States continues to demonstrate our resolve and our capacity to defend the American people against those who seek to do us harm. We make it clear again tonight that no matter how long it takes, no matter where you hide if you are a threat to our people, the United States will find you and take you out.”

Speaking about the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, Biden said, “[I] made the decision that after 20 years of war, the United States no longer needed thousands of boots on the ground in Afghanistan to protect America from terrorists who seek to do us harm, and I made a promise to the American people, that we continue to conduct effective counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan and beyond. We’ve done just that.”

Zawahiri was a close ally of Laden

Hailing from Egypt, Zawahiri belonged to a distinguished family. He was one of the top leaders of Al-Qaeda who planned the terrorist attack of 9/11. In April 2002, a videotape was released in which he said, “Those 19 brothers who went out and gave their souls to Allah almighty, God almighty has granted them this victory we are enjoying now.” Later, after the killing of Bin Laden by the US Armed Forces in 2011, he became the Al-Qaeda leader.

Zawahiri’s first appearance as a terrorist happened back in 1981 after his involvement in the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. In May 1998, he announced his association with Bin Laden. He said, “We are working with brother bin Laden.” With the announcement, he merged his terror organization Egyptian Islamic Jihad with al Qaeda. They signed a ‘fatwa’ “The judgment for killing and fighting Americans and their allies, whether civilians or military, is an obligation for every Muslim.”

Since the 9/11 attack, he regularly appeared in videos and audiotapes and urged Muslims to join the Jihad against the US and its friendly nations. His calls were turned into terrorist attacks on several instances, including a suicide bombing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that killed 23 people, including nine Americans. The US State Department had announced a $25 million bounty for anyone who would provide information that would lead to his arrest.

Zawahiri had praised Hijab protests in Karnataka and called Muskan Khan a ‘noble woman’

The now deceased Al Qaeda chief had supported the Muslim girls in a college in Karnataka where they have been demanding to wear the Islamic attire burqa to college, in violation of the uniform dress code. Making a rare video appearance, Zawahiri had penned a poem and had praised Muskan Khan, the burqa-clad woman whose video of raising ‘Allahu Akbar’ slogans had gone viral.

In a nine-minute video released by Al-Qaeda’s official Shabab media, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of terror outfit Al-Qaeda, praised Muskan Khan. In the video titled “The Noble Woman of India”, which carried an infographic depicting Muskan Zainab Khan, Zawahiri recited and dedicated a poem he had composed to praise Khan.

The terrorist also attempted to incite Indian Muslims saying they needed to react to the “oppression” carried out against them by the Indian state. Zawahiri also attacked countries that have banned the hijab, along with Pakistan and Bangladesh, whom he accused of being “allies of the West”.

NDTV, in service of Congress: How the rag tried to downplay scathing observations made by HC in Smriti Irani case, against Congress leaders

OpIndia Staff
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NDTV, in service of Congress: How the rag tried to downplay scathing observations made by HC in Smriti Irani case, against Congress leaders

Despite all the Congress propaganda stating otherwise, Delhi High Court has noted that neither Smriti Irani nor her teenage daughter Zoish Irani was ever issued a license in connection with a restaurant named Silly Souls Cafe and Bar located in Goa. 

Justice Mini Pushkarna made these observations while issuing summons to Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh, Pawan Khera, and Netta D’Souza in a civil defamation suit filed by Union Minister Smriti Irani against them seeking damages of Rupees 2 Crores for their libellous statements.

The court made several scathing observations, including the fact that Smriti Irani or her daughter did not own the Goa restaurant and bar. This order by the High Court, was by all accounts, a scathing indictment of how the Congress tried to peddle absolute lies against Smriti Irani, her teenage daughter and the BJP in order to malign her reputation, perhaps because Smriti Irani had defeated Rahul Gandhi in Amethi, and had regularly held press conferences questioning the Gandhis about their rampant corruption (for which they are being interrogated by ED).

With the massive embarrassment for Congress, friendly channels like NDTV jumped to their rescue. In a tweet that the channel shared, they tried to water down the observation made by the High Court in favour of Smriti Irani and against the Congress party.

On August 1st, NDTV shared a news card, the text of which said, “Smriti Irani, daughter, don’t seem to own Goa restaurant and bar: High Court Order”.

NDTV appears to have inserted the word “seem” in the statement attributed to the High Court order with an intention to downplay the scathing remarks by the high court. While NDTV reported that the HC order said, “Smriti Irani, daughter don’t SEEM to own Goa restaurant and bar”, the order by the High Court actually did not even contain the word “seem”.

Here is the relevant portion of the court order that NDTV was quoting:

Court order in Smriti Irani case
Court order in Smriti Irani case

In the order copy, the court says, “Neither the restaurant nor the land on which the restaurant exists is owned by the plaintiff or her daughter”.

In the original court order, there is no “seem” in the sentence being quoted by NDTV. Therefore, it is safe to assume that NDTV, from the goodness of his heart, added the word “seem” to dilute the words of the High Court.

When the media adds words like “seem” in a statement, they are essentially saying that the High Court did not give a definitive statement indicting Congress and affirming the position of Smriti Irani. However, that is not true if one peruses the Court order.

NDTV pandered to Congress while diluting the position taken by the High Court, by giving them a line of survival, claiming that the court did not give a sweeping judgement against Congress.

What else did the High Court say, slamming Congress, exonerating the position of Smriti Irani

The High Court said that prima facie, the court was convinced that the statements against Smriti Irani were libellous and slanderous and done with malicious intent.

Court order in Smriti Irani case
Court order in Smriti Irani case

The court also said that the Congress party did not verify facts before making the allegations. Further, the court said that there was malicious intent was proven by the fact that the accused did not even respond to the legal notice furnished by Smriti Irani.

Earlier, Congress leaders in a press conference had alleged that the restaurant ‘Silly Souls Cafe and Bar’ is run by Union Smriti Irani’s daughter in Goa, and it had got its excise license fraudulently. Following the allegations, Smriti Irani sent a legal notice to Congress and its senior leaders Pawan Khera, Jairam Ramesh, and Netta D’Souza over their malicious allegations against her daughter and asked them to tender a written unconditional apology.

The hit-job against Irani and her daughter didn’t stop with the fake allegations by the Congress leaders, fake menus of the restaurant were circulated with beef in the menu to try and demonise the BJP leader. Senior Trinamool Congress leaders like Kirti Azad even posted highly derogatory caricatures of Irani in the aftermath of the manufactured controversy.

Meanwhile, on Friday, July 29, owners of the restaurant Merlyn Anthony D’Gama and her son Dean D’Gama replied to a show cause notice issued by Excise Commissioner Narayan M Gad. In the reply, they stated that the property “is exclusively its business and involves no other person/ persons”.

However, once the case went to court, the High Court asked the Congress leaders involved to delete all allegations made by them in their press conference from all social media platforms.

Prelude to World War III? Amidst sabre-rattling from China, Pelosi to go ahead with Taiwan visit

OpIndia Staff
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Prelude to World War III? Amidst sabre-rattling from China, Pelosi to go ahead with Taiwan visit

Hours after China warned its military will not ‘sit idly’ if U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan, reports say she is going ahead with her visit to the island country off the south-eastern coast of China. 

According to reports, Nancy Pelosi would continue with her visit to Taiwan, despite warnings from the Biden administration, who are worried about the rising escalation with China that had already warned against Pelosi’s proposed visit to the island nation. Taiwanese and US officials have stated that Pelosi will visit Taiwan as a part of her Asia tour, and will stay in Taiwan overnight, though it is not clear when she would land in Taipei.

However, her visit has not been taken kindly by the Chinese state media, which has served to heighten the tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations over Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, an independent country that Beijing claims sovereignty over. Hu Xijin, a prominent Chinese commentator for state-run Global Times, warned of “military friction” over Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.

Responding to the reports that Nancy Pelosi will go ahead with her visit to Taiwan, Xijin tweeted, “Let her go to Taiwan. But pray before departure: wish herself a safe journey and wish herself not be defined by history as a sinner who starts a spiral of escalation process expanding military frictions to a large-scale war in the Taiwan Strait.”

Source: Twitter

If Pelosi visits Taiwan as in her tour of Asia, it would be the first visit of a US House speaker in a quarter of a century. China, which claims the island as its own province, has made it clear it would see such a move as an unacceptable provocation.

Earlier today, China ratcheted up its warning, saying that its military would “not sit idly by” if the visit happened.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that because of Pelosi’s status as the “No. 3 official of the U.S. government”, a visit to Taiwan, which China claims as its own, would “lead to egregious political impact”.

Lijian added that it would be “a gross interference in China’s internal affairs” if Pelosi visits Taiwan, and warned that it would lead to “very serious developments and consequences.”We would like to tell the United States once again that China is standing by, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army will never sit idly by, and China will take resolute responses and strong countermeasures to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Zhao said in a regular daily briefing.

Taiwan missing from Nancy Pelosi’s itinerary after Chinese commentator urged govt to shoot down her plane

Earlier yesterday, a high-octane drama ensued on Twitter over the upcoming visit of the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi to Asia. It all started after a report by CNN about Pelosi’s visit to Asia, where she was scheduled to make stops at various US allies in the region, including Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore. However, there were talks of her possible visit to Taiwan as well, but China had issued a strong warning against it.

Quoting CNN’s tweet about Pelosi’s visit, Chinese Propagandist Commentator with the state media, Global Times, Hu Xijin said, “If US fighter jets escort Pelosi’s plane into Taiwan, it is an invasion. The PLA has the right to forcibly dispel Pelosi’s plane and the US fighter jets, including firing warning shots and making the tactical movement of obstruction. If ineffective, then shoot them down,” on Twitter. The tweet was later deleted by Twitter, stating it was against its Terms of Services.

Taiwan is among the major flashpoints between the US and China. Following the threat issued by the Chinese President Xi Jinping over the call to President Biden, the National Security Officials had reportedly worked to convince Pelosi against her trip to Taiwan. However, latest reports say Pelosi might visit Taiwan, stoking further tensions between Beijing and Washington.

Aamir Khan, who once thought of moving out of India due to rising intolerance, says he ‘really loves’ India as ‘BoycottLaalSinghChaddha’ trends online

OpIndia Staff
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Aamir Khan, who once thought of moving out of India due to rising intolerance, says he ‘really loves’ India as ‘BoycottLaalSinghChaddha’ trends online

Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, who is eagerly awaiting the release of his upcoming movie- Lal Singh Chaddha, a copy of the Tom Hanks starrer Hollywood classic Forrest Gump, has reacted after hashtags like #BoycottLaalSinghChaddha started trending on Twitter. Urging people not to boycott his film, which he has also co-produced, the Bollywood actor, claimed that he loves India, contrary to the impression some people may have.

While some people want to boycott Laal Singh Chaddha because they fear that Aamir has ruined another Hollywood classic, most are boycotting it because of Aamir’s anti-Hindu stance in his movie PK and subsequent anti-India statements despite India making his film the highest ever grosser.

Speaking to PTI, the Bollywood actor said, “That Boycott Bollywood… Boycott Aamir Khan… Boycott Laal Singh Chaddha… I feel sad also because a lot of people who are saying this in their hearts believe I am someone who doesn’t like India… In their hearts, they believe that… And that’s quite untrue.”

The actor added, “I really love the country… That’s how I am. It is rather unfortunate if some people feel that way.” Asking his fans and the audience to give his film a fair chance, Aamir Khan further said, “I want to assure everyone that it’s not the case so please don’t boycott my films, please watch my films.”

Pertinently, the actor’s reaction came after some Twitter users dug up Aamir’s controversial 2015 “India’s growing intolerance” statement and made it viral. Back in 2015, Aamir Khan had said that he and his wife Kiran Rao (now ex-wife) were feeling petrified of the rising intolerance in the country and were seriously considering migrating to some other country.

It may be recalled that while speaking at an award function in 2015, Aamir Khan said, “When I chat with Kiran at home, she says ‘Should we move out of India?’ That’s a disastrous and big statement for Kiran to make. She fears for her child (son Azad). She fears what the atmosphere around us will be. She feels scared to open the newspapers every day.”

The Bollywood megastar further said, “That does indicate that there is this sense of growing disquiet, there is growing despondency apart from alarm. You feel why this is happening, you feel low. That sense does exist in me.”

Recalling Aamir Khan’s aforementioned 2015 statement, Netizens called for boycotting his upcoming movie. Soon #BoycottLaalSinghChaddha started trending on Twitter.

Meanwhile, amid #BoycottLaalSinghChaddha trend, an old video of Kareena Kapoor is also going viral on social media. In the video, Kareena can be seen talking about nepotism in an interview. In the video, she gets upset and says, “don’t watch out movies, nobody has forced you.” She then said, “aap aa rahe hon na movie dekhne, toh mat aao” (you are coming to watch the movie right, then don’t go).

Kareena Kapoor Khan and Mona Singh will be seen playing titular roles in Aamir Khan’s upcoming movie Laal Singh Chaddha.

Notably, this is not the first time that #BoycottLaalSinghChaddha is trending. Earlier too, the uproar began after the trailer of Khan’s movie was dropped in May 2022. Then too, Netizens had raked up Khan’s 2015 controversial statement and called him anti-Hindu and anti-India. 

Laal Singh Chaddha, an Indian copy of Tom Hanks’ Forrest Gump, is slated to release on August 11. It also stars Kareena Kapoor Khan, Mona Singh and Naga Chaitanya.

UP: Conversion attempt foiled in Azamgarh, six women arrested for luring villagers to convert to Christianity

OpIndia Staff
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UP: Conversion attempt foiled in Azamgarh, six women arrested for luring villagers to convert to Christianity

On Saturday, July 30, the Azamgarh police in Uttar Pradesh busted a conversion racket by arresting six women who were attempting to convert vulnerable villagers to Christianity. According to reports, the racket was being carried out under the guise of a birthday party.

In what transpired, the main accused Indrakala, who was living in a rented house in the Vanchit Basti Vishnu Nagar ward of Maharajganj police station in Azamgarh with her husband, had gathered over 100 villagers from hers and the neighbouring villages under the pretext of celebrating her son’s birthday. The invitees, as per reports, were mainly the women of the villages.

During the program, Indrakala her aides started distributing sweets to the villagers, but before that, they handed over pamphlets to the villagers and forced them to read it and adopt Christianity before they could get to eat the sweets.

The accused evangelists also tried to lure the villagers by offering them money. They also assured them that turning to Christianity would assist them to be rid of the possession of ghosts and spirits.

While the program was being carried out, some villagers informed about the same to some Bajrang Dal members who in turn intimated the local police about the same. The Azamgarh police immediately reached the spot and stopped the so-called birthday celebration. While many fled seeing the police, the police managed to nab the main accused Indrakala and her five accomplices, identified as Subhagi Devi, Sadhna, Samta, Anita and Sunita. They also seized a lot of religious books and pamphlets from the spot.

Speaking about the alleged conversion program, Superintendent of Police Siddharth Kumar said, “Sub Inspector Kamlesh Yadav of the Maharajganj police station was in the vicinity with other staff when he learned that some women are pushing impoverished villagers to convert their religion. They were also being threatened with dire consequences in case they resented or protested against the same. After receiving information, police went to the Dalit basti of Ward No-1 of Maharajganj Nagar Panchayat, where people were being enticed to convert under the guise of a birthday party. Six ladies were arrested on the scene and sent to jail. The police have initiated a detailed investigation into the case, added SP Siddharth Kumar.

Bangladesh: CCTV footage shows how Islamists orchestrated attack on Hindus in Narail

OpIndia Staff
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Bangladesh: CCTV footage shows how Islamists orchestrated attack on Hindus in Narail

Days after Islamists ran riots under the pretext of blasphemy in the Narail district of Bangladesh, a newly released CCTV footage showed the systematic manner in which they orchestrated the attack on the Hindu community.

As per an exclusive report by Ekatoor TV, a mob of young Muslim men targeted the houses and shops of Hindu families, living in the Sahapara area of Narail, on July 15 this year.

The mob was led from the front by local religious and political leaders, who denied any complicity in the crime despite their faces being caught on the CCTV. According to locals, the attackers were not ‘unknown’ and were members of adjoining villages.

Half an hour before the attack, the Islamists were seen coming out of the local masjid and heading in the direction of Sahapara. Ekatoor TV reported that some of the attackers were passing information via phone to their handlers about the on-ground situation.

At around 6:13 pm on July 15, two elderly men were spotted in the CCTV footage directing the violent mob. The duo are leaders of the radical party, Islami Andolan Bangladesh (Islamic Movement of Bangladesh). While one is a leader in Patikbari, the other is a member of the party’s Nayagram unit.

8 minutes later, a local tea seller by the name of Manirul Zaman was seen attacking Hindu-owned shops along with other Muslim youth. Despite being caught red-handed in the act, Manirul refused involvement in the attack.

He claimed to have gone there at the request of 2 young boys from the masjid. “I went there after the violence was over,” he said in his defence. Meanwhile, the orgy of violence continued against the minority Hindu community.

At around 6:26 pm, Awami League leader Sheikh Masuduzzaman Masud was spotted among the attackers. He was also seen chatting with some of the Islamists, present at the site.

He claimed to have gone to Sahapara to pacify the frenzied mob and not participate in the targeted attacks. At around 7: 10 pm, a team of local leaders and police were seen marching towards Sahapara.

19 minutes later, the house of a Hindu man named Gobindo Saha was set on fire. There was a blackout in the area at that time, which helped the attackers to escape. At about 7:28 pm, some Muslim men who engineered the attack were seen rushing out of Sahapara and moving towards the local bazar.

Some of them returned again to continue the vandalism and arson attacks. Another team of police reached the spot to extinguish the fire. It remains unknown as to how the Islamists unleashed mayhem, despite the deployment of a sizeable police force in the area.

It was only around 9 pm on that fateful day that the fire brigade reached the spot to extinguish the fire that engulfed the shelter and livelihood of the Hindus of Sahapara.

Exodus and starting life afresh: The aftermath of the Narail attack in Bangladesh

The Islamists claimed that an 18-year-old Hindu college student named Akash Saha had hurt their religious sentiments through a Facebook post. Under the pretext of blasphemy, the vicious mob set out to destroy the livelihood of the 108 Hindu families.

According to an ex-member of Dighalia Union Parishad, Beauty Rani, a large number of Hindus have left the Sahapara village after the onslaught by Islamists.

”Almost all houses are locked. Only the elders of some families are home. They too are scared,” she informed. Rani lamented, “When we were being attacked, the police were there. They were watching from a distance and no one came to our rescue. The police can no longer be trusted and that is why people are leaving the village.”

One of the victims of the dastardly attack was 62-year-old Deepali Rani, whose house was burnt down in front of her eyes. “After one group looted all our valuables, another group came and found our door open. As there was nothing left to loot, they set our home on fire,” she told The Daily Star.

Deepali Rani is not related to Akash Saha in a way. Despite this, her shelter was not spared by the Islamist mob. “Only because the student is Hindu and I too am Hindu, my house was burnt down,” she emphasised.

The 62-year-old stated, “I don’t know how long this threat of violence will haunt us. Who will give us justice? Who will give us security? … If I were in the house while they set it on fire, I would have died. God saved me. But is this any way to survive? All I have now is the sari on my body.”

UP: School in Kanpur forces Non-Muslim students to recite ‘Kalma’ to promote ‘Sarva Dharma Samman’ ideology, switches to the national anthem after outrage

OpIndia Staff
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UP: School in Kanpur forces Non-Muslim students to recite ‘Kalma’ to promote ‘Sarva Dharma Samman’ ideology, switches to the national anthem after outrage

A private school in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, has landed itself in a controversy after news started floating on social media that it has been making students of all religions recite ‘Kalma’ during morning assembly. The school in question here is a privately owned school in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh named Florets International School. The incident came to light after a video of the same went viral on Sunday.

After the news went viral, many parents and members of various Hindu outfits reached the school and staged demonstrations. They raised complaints against the school authorities for forcing their children to recite the Kalma during morning prayers. The same was conveyed to the Kanpur police, who along with senior officials reached the school premises on Monday morning and filed a complaint against the private school for allegedly forcing Hindu students and other non-Muslim children to recite ‘Kalma’ every day.

Republic TV quoted Ankit Gupta, the parent of a child as saying, “One day my daughter said that she is unable to learn this (Kalma). We filed the complaint in school. They asked us to give a written complaint. In another branch, they sing Muslim prayers on speakers. We will put our child in a different school if this is the case.”

Many other parents also raised concerns about their children being forced to recite the Islamic prayer. “My son studies here. For the last few days, my son was reciting the Kalma at home. My wife raised concern about it. When we spoke to our son, he said that every day after prayer the school teaches it to them. My concern is why should my son read this. What if he disapproves of his own religion after some days,” exclaimed the enraged parent of another student studying at Kanpur’s Florets International School.

Taking cognizance of the incident, Nishank Sharma, ACP said that they came to know about Kalma being taught to students at the Florets International school through a tweet. He said that as soon as they learned about it, the local police and the District Magistrate were notified and a police team visited the school to investigate the matter.

He added that when the police reached the school they learned that this was a practice being carried out over the last 12/13 years. He said that the school diary also has prayers from all four religions, namely Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, and Christian. He added that the school authorities said that until now, no one has ever objected to this practice. An objection was raised about this from a parent’s side only four days ago.

He further informed that the school authorities reportedly told the police in its defense that prayers of all four religions were recited at the school during the morning assembly to boost the “Sarva Dharma Samman” ideology.

“The school authorities after the objection decided that only the national anthem will be recited during the assembly. They have stopped all the other prayers,” added the ACP. 

Meanwhile, BJP leader Geeta Nigam raised serious objections to the controversy and alleged that the prayers were being taught to students from the playgroup. 

“Why this is being taught to students? What does this prayer mean and why have you not written the meaning? The meaning of that statement is – ‘Only Allah is there’. We are not saying anything to any religion, but if you want to teach this, kindly teach it in a madarsa.”  She added that the Principal and teachers had permitted the reciting of Kalma and only took action when the matter was leaked outside. “This should not happen otherwise strict action will be taken,” she warned. 

Amidst the controversy, a video has gone viral wherein councilor Mahendra Shukla was seen sprinkling Gangajal in and around the school premises.

Strongly condemning the school’s arbitrary decision to teach the Islamic prayer to students of all religions, Shukla told the media, “Jana Gana Mana is not being recited here, instead, students are being encouraged to recite the Kalma. They surely have links with PFI. We will get the matter investigated. Gangajal has been sprinkled all over the school for purification.”

Islamification of Govt school’s in Jharkhand and Bihar

OpIndia earlier reported how several government schools in Jharkhand and Bihar have recently been in the headlines for their steady Islamification. Several state-run schools have reportedly been making modifications in response to the whims of the local Muslim population.

On July 26, OpIndia reported how for years, more than 500 government schools in Bihar’s Seemanchal area, which has a sizable Muslim population, have been observing Friday as their weekly off instead of Sunday, despite no official mandate to that effect. This practice has been followed by the schools located in the eastern part of Bihar which include districts of Kishanganj, Araria, Katihar, and Purnia.

On July 22, it was reported how 19 state-run schools in the Kishanganj district of Bihar have been taking Friday off instead of Sunday. As per the Education Department, because the region is predominantly Muslim, government schools have been shut on Fridays for a long time. This action is not mandated by any specific order by the government.

Friday is designated as a holiday in many schools due to the considerable proportion of Muslim students. Instead, students and teachers attend classes on Sundays. These schools include the city’s Line Urdu School, Upgraded Middle School Line Karbala, Upgraded Middle School Maheshbathna, Upgraded Middle School Halamala, Primary School Motihara West, and many others.

Prior to this, it was reported how Sharia and Islamic practices were being imposed on the students of a state-run school in Jharkhand’s Garhwa district, with children forbidden from praying with their hands folded. Then reports emerged on how state-run schools in areas like Jamtara and Dumka, which is the hometown of Chief Minister Hemant Soren, had their weekly offs changed from Sunday to Friday.

TMC MP Mahua Moitra seen hiding her Louis Vuitton bag worth Rs 1.6 lakh during price rise debate in parliament: Watch

OpIndia Staff
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TMC MP Mahua Moitra seen hiding her Louis Vuitton bag worth Rs 1.6 lakh during price rise debate in parliament: Watch

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra was caught on Monday hiding her Louis Vuitton bag worth upwards of Rs 1.6 lakhs while discussion of rising inflation was underway in the Lok Sabha.

As the camera panned toward Dr Kakoli Ghost Dastidar, a Member of Parliament from Trinamool Congress, who stood up to speak on the price rise, Mahua Moitra, sitting beside her, took her Louis Vuitton bag placed adjacent to her on the seat, moved it close to her legs where it was not visible to the Lok Sabha camera.

At the 15:15 time stamp in the above-embedded video, when Dr Kakoli of TMC stands up to speak on her turn, Mahua Moitra sitting next to her, picks up her bag, believed to be Louis Vuitton, and places it close to her feet, away from the cameras. 

The snippet instantly went viral as social media wondered how one of the representatives of the Trinamool Congress party, which has been targeting the Centre over inflation, was carrying an ultra-expensive handbag to the parliament. As per fashion blogs and websites, Moitra’s branded handbag is worth around Rs 1.6 Lakh.

Just like Mahua Moitra became a subject of online conversation for carrying an ultra-expensive bag to parliament, a similar incident took place in the past when Nairobi woman representative Esther Passaris courted controversy for carrying her Louis Vuitton handbag to the Parliament. 

According to the reports, the House had to halt the ongoing session to discuss and settle the issue of a high-priced bag brought inside the parliament. Many members asked her why she carried such an expensive bag to the official place. She later cited medical reasons for doing so. 

Congress propaganda busted. Smriti Irani, or her daughter, never applied or got any license for Goa restaurant, says Delhi High Court

OpIndia Staff
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Congress propaganda busted. Smriti Irani, or her daughter, never applied or got any license for Goa restaurant, says Delhi High Court

Despite all the Congress propaganda stating otherwise, Delhi High Court has noted that neither Smriti Irani nor her teenage daughter Zoish Irani was ever issued a license in connection with a restaurant named Silly Souls Cafe and Bar located in Goa.

Justice Mini Pushkarna made these observations while issuing summons to Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh, Pawan Khera, and Netta D’Souza in a civil defamation suit filed by Union Minister Smriti Irani against them seeking damages of Rupees 2 Crores for their libelous statements.

Earlier, Congress leaders in a press conference had alleged that the restaurant ‘Silly Souls Cafe and Bar’ is run by Union Smriti Irani’s daughter in Goa, and it had got its excise license fraudulently. Following the allegations, Smriti Irani sent a legal notice to Congress and its senior leaders Pawan Khera, Jairam Ramesh, and Netta D’Souza over their malicious allegations against her daughter and asked them to tender a written unconditional apology.

The hit-job against Irani and her daughter didn’t stop with the fake allegations by the Congress leaders, fake menus of the restaurant were circulated with beef in the menu to try and demonise the BJP leader. Senior Trinamool Congress leader like Kirti Azad even posted highly derogatory caricatures of Irani in the aftermath of the manufactured controversy.

Meanwhile, on Friday, July 29, owners of the restaurant Merlyn Anthony D’Gama and her son Dean D’Gama replied to a show cause notice issued by Excise Commissioner Narayan M Gad. In the reply, they stated that the property “is exclusively its business and involves no other person/ persons”.

However, once the case went to court, the High Court asked the Congress leaders involved to delete all allegations made by them in their press conference from all social media platforms.

Smriti Irani is further vindicated today, as the court noted, “Considering the documents on record it is clearly seen that there was no license which was ever issued in favour of the plaintiff or her daughter. The plaintiff or her daughter are not the owners of the restaurant. It has also been established by the plaintiff prima facie that the plaintiff or her daughter never applied for license.”

‘This is haram in Islam, Sharia does not allow this’: Deoband cleric slams Indian Idol singer Farmani Naaz for Shambhu Mahadeva song

OpIndia Staff
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‘This is haram in Islam, Sharia does not allow this’: Deoband cleric slams Indian Idol singer Farmani Naaz for Shambhu Mahadeva song

On August 1, a Deoband-based Muslim cleric (Ulema) criticised Muslim YouTube singer Farmani Naaz over her rendition of the popular song ‘Har Har Shambhu’. The song is in praise of Bhagwan Shiv. The original song has been making rounds on social media and streaming platforms since singer duo Abhilipsa Panda and Jeetu Sharma made it popular.

Farmani uploaded the devotional track on her YouTube channel around a week ago. Though she received appreciation for the song, a section of Islamic fundamentalists have alleged that it hurt the sentiments of Muslims. In a statement to news agency ANI, cleric Mufti Asad Qasmi said, “Singing or dancing is ‘Haram’ in Islam. Sharia does not allow this. This is Haram. She should seek forgiveness from Allah.”

Following the criticism, Farmani issued a statement requesting everyone to stop. She said, “Artists have no religion. I forget everything else when I sing. I even sing qawwali. Even Mohd Rafi and Master Saleem sang devotional songs. I’ve never received a threat. There’s a little controversy now, we came to know but nobody has come to our house to say anything.”

Farmani, a resident of Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, rose to fame after she participated in Indian Idol season 12. She has a considerable following of over 3.8 million on YouTube, and her singing is the main source of her income. It is noteworthy that months before the UP Assembly elections, Farmani had released a song praising CM Yogi Adityanath and PM Narendra Modi.

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