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Alt News cofounder Md Zubair sent to 14-day judicial custody by Hathras court in two cases against him

OpIndia Staff
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Alt News cofounder Md Zubair sent to 14-day judicial custody by Hathras court in two cases against him

There seems to no end of trouble for Alt News co-founder Mohammad Zubair, as today a court in Hathras in Uttar Pradesh remanded him to judicial custody for 14 days. Zubair was produced at the court in Hathras, and after the hearing the court sent him to judicial custody till July 27.

As many as seven cases have been registered against Zubair in Uttar Pradesh, out of which two are in Hathras. One of the cased is related to his social media posts defaming Hindu Gods and Hinduism. He has been charged under section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion, race, etc.), 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage reli­gious feelings of any class), 298 (Uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person) of Indian Penal Code and section 67 (publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form) of Information Technology Act.

The FIR filed on July 4 at the Kotwali police station had said that Zubair used to make a “mockery of Hindu deities” on social media. Hathras authorities had produced a warrant at the Sitapur jail, where he is currently lodged, to produce him in Hathras for the hearling.

Last month Zubair had deleted his Facebook page and removed several tweets after netizens had pointed out Hinduphobic messages he was posting on social media. His anti-Hindu posts on Twitter and Facebook had come under scrutiny after he had triggered the nationwide protests and violence against Nupur Sharma for her comments on Prophet Mohammad.

The second FIR againat Zubair in Hathras was registered over riots in Purdil Nagar on June 10 after Friday prayers. Zubair is accused of inciting the riots against Nupur Sharma. He has been charged under IPC sections 153 A (promoting enmity), 353 (criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), and 120 B (criminal conspiracy) in this FIR.

Zubair was arrested by Delhi police after an FIR was registered against him accusing him of hurting religious sentiments by a 2018 tweet. Subsequently, more FIRs were filed against him in Uttar Pradesh, and police started taking action on FIRs that were already filed against him earlier.

Apart from the 2 FIRs in Hathras, FIRs have been filed against him in Ghaziabad, Muzzafarnagar, Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri and Chandauli. All of these FIRs were registered almost a year ago in 2021. While he has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court in the Sitapur case, he has not been granted relief in the Delhi case.

It is notable that given the volume of allegations against Md Zubair, the Uttar Pradesh Police have formed an SIT to probe the cases against him.

Haryana: BJP and Congress MLAs receive threatening calls from a Dubai number, probe underway

OpIndia Staff
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Haryana: BJP and Congress MLAs receive threatening calls from a Dubai number, probe underway

On July 13, the Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar, held a meeting with senior police officers to discuss the matter of threatening calls received by the Haryana MLAs from a Dubai number. Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said as the call was made from a number outside India, the Special Task Force is in contact with the National Agencies.

In a statement, CM Khattar assured safety to all residents of Haryana. In a tweet, he said, “No one will be allowed to disturb the law and order in the state and those who do so will be dealt with strictly.”

ANI quoted Vij as saying, “This is a case of another country as the calls that have come are from Dubai and are from the same number as well. For this, our Special Task Force is maintaining contact with our National Agencies. We are trying to find out more details soon.”

As per reports, Gian Chand Gupta, speaker of the Haryana Legislative Assembly, had said on July 11 that 5-6 MLAs have received death threats from a Dubai number. He further added that the matter was taken seriously by the authorities, and it was discussed with the Chief Minister and Director General of Police (DGP). The security of the MLAs who received threads was increased.

Reports suggest that the calls were related to extortion. The matter was handed over to the Special Task Force on Sunday, and the State Home Minister is monitoring the case regularly. HM Vij said that the STF has made some progress in the case, but considering the sensitivity of the matter, details are not being discussed in public.

One of the MLAs who received the threat calls was from BJP, while the remaining were from Congress. In June this year, BJP MLA Sanjay Singh alleged that he had received an extortion call on Whatsapp on June 25. The caller had identified himself as an associate of the Neeraj Bawana gang and demanded Rs 5 lakh from the MLA.

Congress MLAs  Subhash Gangoli,  Surender Panwar, Kuldeep Vats, and others too received similar calls. In his complaint, Kuldeep Vats alleged that five men had entered his Pataudi House and thrashed his cook. They threatened to “treat the MLA like Sidhu Moosewala.”

AG refuses permission for contempt proceedings against retired justice SN Dhingra and others for criticism of SC judges’ statements against Nupur Sharma

OpIndia Staff
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AG refuses permission for contempt proceedings against retired justice SN Dhingra and others for criticism of SC judges’ statements against Nupur Sharma

On Thursday, July 14, Attorney General KK Venugopal reportedly refused to grant permission to initiate contempt of court proceedings against former justice SN Dhingra, senior counsels Rama Kumar and Aman Lekhi for their comments on the statements made by an SC bench of Justice Pardiwala and Justice Surya Kant against ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.

The AG in his letter has stated that their statements are in the realm of “fair criticism” on a hearing conducted by the Supreme Court of India. Advocate Jaya Sukin had written to the AG for consent to initiate contempt for the comments by the Retired justice Dhingra, Aman Lekhi and Rama Kumar criticising the SC bench of Justice Pardiwala and Justice Surya Kant.

The trio had made scathing remarks on the disturbing statements issued by Justice Surya Kant and Justice JB Pardiwala over the recent beheading of Hindu tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur.

In a recent interaction with a news channel, retired justice SN Dhingra said that if a judge wants to deliver a speech, then, he should become a politician. SN Dhingra also asked why the Supreme Court did not include its oral comments in the written order.

“If the Supreme Court had guts, it would have given those comments as a part of the written order. The Supreme Court has only written in the order that the petition is dismissed as withdrawn. Why?” he had asked.

SN Dhingra further said, “This gives a terrible message in the country that the Supreme Court itself is high on power and nobody can stop the Supreme Court from saying anything at its own will.”

It is notable here that the Supreme Court judges Justice Surya Kant and Justice JB Pardiwala had held Nupur Sharma ‘single-handedly responsible’ for the Udaipur murder that was committed by Islamists for a mere social media post. They had stated that Sharma should have apologised to the ‘entire nation’ on TV and had added that the chaos and violence that have been unleashed across the country by Islamic organisations are because of Sharma.

The statements, however, did not make it to the official order that refused to grant Nupur Sharma permission to club all FIRs against her to Delhi.

It is notable here that TMC member Saket Gokhale had written a similar letter to AG KK Venugopal to initiate contempt proceedings against OpIndia for criticising the oral remarks made by the two judges against Nupur Sharma.

7th FIR against Alt News’ co-founder Mohammed Zubair surfaces in UP, was filed for spreading disharmony through fake news: Read details

OpIndia Staff
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7th FIR against Alt News’ co-founder Mohammed Zubair surfaces in UP, was filed for spreading disharmony through fake news: Read details

Days after the Yogi led-government formed a two-member SIT to investigate six cases that have been lodged against Mohammed Zubair, a new FIR against already arrested Alt News co-founder has surfaced in Chandauli district of Uttar Pradesh. The said FIR was lodged on August 27 last year under the relevant sections of the IT Act, 2000.

According to the reports, the FIR in Chandauli was registered by Prashant Singh who works as a news correspondent at Sudarshan News, Varanasi. In the complaint against Zubair, Singh stated that the Alt News co-founder had spread disharmony in the society by building false stories around the Uttar Pradesh government and Sudarshan news.

“We had received information from social media that Zubair had created graphics based on the graphic posted by Sudarshan News on Twitter. He had falsely claimed through the graphics posted on May 14, 2021, that the Mosque of Medina was ‘Nawabi’. He had also appealed to Muslims all over the world to oppose Sudarshan News. In our investigation, we found Zubair’s claim to be false”, he said in the complaint.

Singh also added that Sudarshan News had carried out a proper investigation to prove that the accused had made false claims based on graphics that were created by the media channel first. “Zubair has spread disharmony in the society during the pandemic. He has also been exposed many times in his conspiracies against the Uttar Pradesh government”, Singh reiterated.

Speaking exclusively to Opindia, complainant Prashant Singh said that the FIR was registered around a year ago. “Yesterday I called Police officer Ankur Agrawal and requested him to consider the case under the recently formed UP SIT. He has assured to look into the matter and also has assured that it will be considered in the SIT list. I want strict action to be taken against Zubair”, he said.

Earlier, it was reported that the UP SIT headed by IG Preetinder Singh, and also DIG Amit Kumar Verma has been made a part of the team. The SIT is to investigate six cases that have been lodged in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri, Ghaziabad, Hathras, and Muzaffarnagar.

Mohammed Zubair is held in Tihar jail after he was detained on June 27 by Delhi police in connection with an FIR filed against him for allegedly hurting religious sentiments through a tweet written in 2018. The recently discovered FIR has been registered at Chandauli Police Station against Mohammad Zubair under Section 67 of the IT Act 2000. The FIR has been registered against a post that was created and posted by Zubair on May 14, 2021.

Uttar Pradesh Love Jihad: Aslam Khan becomes Sanjay to lure and marry a Hindu woman, victim discovers after two years

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh Love Jihad: Aslam Khan becomes Sanjay to lure and marry a Hindu woman, victim discovers after two years

Despite stringent laws that have been implemented against love jihad, the state of Uttar Pradesh sees no slump in such continuing incidents of love jihad. In one such case, a girl named Simran Patel was duped by one Aslam Khan who posed as Sanjay to marry her in the year 2020. Aslam Khan is a resident of Fatehpur while the belongs to Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh.

Simran and Sanjay (Khan) got married on the 25th of July, 2020 at Durga mandir and stayed together in a rented apartment in Jabalpur. The duo continued their job while they stayed together. Reportedly, after two years of marriage, Simran discovered that her husband was not Hindu and that he belonged to the Muslim community. Khan realized that Simran had discovered the truth. He then left Simran alone in Jabalpur and ran his way back to Fatehpur on June 30, 2022.

According to the reports, Aslam Khan in the year 2020 shifted to Jabalpur for employment. He had attained a job at a cement factory where Simran was already an employee. The duo met at the cement factory and Khan introduced himself as Sanjay to the victim. They fell in love and the duo decided to marry.

Behind Khan, the girl reached Fatehpur and decided to lodge a police complaint. She went to the Fatehpur Police station and shared her plight but the Police didn’t lodge the complaint. The girl alleged that the accused had duped and married her and had sexually exploited her for two years. Reports mention that the Police assured the girl to register the complaint but failed to report the case. The girl returned to her native place in Maharajpur, Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh.

Recent cases of Love Jihad in Uttar Pradesh-

This is not the first incident where a Hindu woman has been cheated and sexually exploited by a Muslim person. Earlier, on July 11, a case in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly was reported which said that a youth named Imran had concealed his religious identity to trap a Hindu woman. He had pressured her to convert to Islam and marry him. Imran also had raped her and clicked objectionable pictures of her. He thereafter used the pictures to blackmail her into eating beef forcefully against her will and offer Namaz.

Also, on June 3 this year, Waseem Ansari had become Ravi Sharma to lure a 21-year-old girl from Baradari area of Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. The girl was sexually assaulted by Ansari who had blackmailed the victim saying that he would upload all her private pictures on social media. The Izzatnagar Police then registered an FIR against the accused.

Recently, in April 2022, a minor girl was raped, blackmailed and exploited by a man named Kasim who had posed himself as Rahul. As per reports, the victim, a minor girl who is a student of higher secondary, was approached and lured by the accused into a relationship online. He belonged to the same neighborhood as the victim and had gradually gained her confidence, eventually raping her and making obscene video clips to blackmail her further. He was arrested by the Bareilly Police and was sent to jail.

Besides this, there are several similar cases of Love Jihad, where Muslim men have been accused of lying about their religious identity to trap non-Muslim women to sexually exploit, eventually, forcefully marry and convert to Islam. OpIndia has documented several such cases over the last few years. In the recent case, the Fatehpur Police has not yet registered FIR against accused Aslam Khan who posed himself as Sanjay to marry Simran Patel. Patel has submitted her complaint to the Police and demands justice in the case.

‘False allegations to shield Naxals’: SC dismisses 2009 case that accused security forces of killing tribals in Chhattisgarh, imposes Rs 5 lakh fine on petitioner

OpIndia Staff
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‘False allegations to shield Naxals’: SC dismisses 2009 case that accused security forces of killing tribals in Chhattisgarh, imposes Rs 5 lakh fine on petitioner

On July 14, the Supreme Court of India dismissed a writ petition filed by activist Himanshu Kumar seeking a CBI probe against Central Security Forces and Chhatisgarh Police for allegedly killing 17 tribals in Dantewada in 2009. The apex court found the allegations raised in the petition false and fabricated. The court imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on the petitioner while dismissing the case.

Furthermore, the apex court has given the central government liberty to book Kumar for conspiracy and forging evidence against the central security forces and state Police.

It has also given the central government liberty to register offences for conspiracy and forging evidence against all involved in making false accusations against security forces. Initially, the apex court has given liberty to the state government to take appropriate action against Kumar. However, the Solicitor General (SG) requested the court if the central agencies could be permitted to take action as the implications might be on more than one state.

The writ petition filed by Himanshu Kumar

In its petition, Himanshu Kumar has alleged that the security forces killed 17 innocent tribals and tortured many others. Based on the alleged testimonies recorded by him in 2009, Kumar claimed to have been forced out of the Naxal-dominating regions of Jharkhand after he filed the petition. Kumar ran an NGO names Vanvasi Chetna Ashram.

In his petition, Kumar claimed he recorded testimonies of residents of three villages that were then in Dantewada district and now come under Sukma district. In the testimonies, the locals allegedly accused security forces of killing two villagers in Velpocha and Nalkathong and nine villagers in Gompad. Both incidents allegedly took place in October 2009. Another six were claimed to have been killed on September 17, 2009. Several others were allegedly injured by the security forces.

Reply from the central government

In its reply to the Supreme Court against the allegations by Kumar, the Union Home Ministry urged the apex court to hand over the matter to CBI or NIA to identify the individuals who file false cases against the security forces to protect Naxal extremists.

In its reply, the centre said that after examining the recordings and other evidence, it was found that the testimonies were false and fabricated. The Centre said, “After viewing the said recordings, the respondent has found shocking aberrations and fabrications in the statements of the petitioners that were examined by the district judge.

The recordings submitted before the apex court revealed that all the averments made by the petitioner were ex-facie false and fabricated.

It added, “It is now clear that all the said deceitful averments were made by the petitioner with malicious and audacious attempt to mislead this Hon’ble court.” The Centre also alleged that by using the petition, the petitioner intended to protect the Left Wing Extremists (Naxal).

The Centre said, “Individuals and organizations are conspiring, abetting and facilitating filing of petitions premised on false and fabricated evidence… with a motive to either deter the security agencies from acting against the Left Wing (Naxal) militia by imputing false charges on them or from screening off the Left Wing (Naxal) militia from being brought to justice by creating a false narrative of victimization before the Hon’ble Courts.”

The Centre also stated that the Naxals were the murders of the tribal people. It is notable that the statements taken in the matter in 2010 were only made available to the Centre in March 2022. The Centre said, “Though in the year 2010, it is possible that the said report may have been received by the counsel for the applicant… surprisingly, the said report was nowhere found in the official records of the applicant.”

The government said the majority of the villagers had run off into the jungles upon hearing the gunshots. Some of them said they saw the attackers come from the jungle. “None of the petitioners has even remotely made any accusation against police or other security personnel,” added the Centre.

It further added that such petitions were not only a threat to national security but also lowered the morale of the security forces.

Punjab police book 40-50 locals for protesting against erratic power supply and contaminated drinking water outside AAP MLA’s house

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab police book 40-50 locals for protesting against erratic power supply and contaminated drinking water outside AAP MLA’s house

The Ludhiana’s Sadar police Monday registered an FIR against 40 to 50 residents of ward 31 for staging a protest outside the residence of Rajinder Pal Kaur Chhina in Satjot Nagar on Sunday. Chinna is the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Ludhiana south constituency.

The locals were outraged by the area’s irregular electricity supply, lack of potable water, and poor water quality. According to reports, the residents had been facing these issues for the last 15 days. Despite filling repeated complaints with officials concerned, no action was taken. The angry residents Sunday sat on a Dharna outside the local AAP MLA’s house to protest against the same.

According to reports, the police booked the residents based on a complaint filed by assistant sub-inspector Subhash Chand. The ASI said that he had received a complaint from the AAP MLA where she said that the protestors had blocked the entrance of her house and were not allowing her to leave her residence. She also claimed that the protestors had obstructed the flow of traffic in the area.

The ASI further added that the residents have been booked under sections 342 (wrongful confinement) and 283 (danger or obstruction in public way or line of navigation) of IPC.

It may be recalled that last month a video had gone viral wherein the South Ludhiana’s Aam Aadmi Party MLA Rajinder Pal Kaur Chhina could be seen rebuking ADCP on duty for conducting a search in her constituency. The search, which was obstructed by the MLA, was being conducted to nab drug peddlers.

In a video, Chinna was heard questioning the lady officer for not taking her ‘permission’ before conducting a search in her area. Giving the clarification officer on duty said, “I came here on DCP’s order”.

Rajinder Pal Kaur Chhina is the first female legislator to represent any of Ludhiana’s six urban areas. She joined AAP in 2012 and overtook the stronghold of Simarjit Singh Bains, the leader of the Lok Insaaf Party (LIP), and two-time MLA Balwinder Bains. Chhina has served as the vice-president of AAP’s Mahila wing in Punjab. She was unable to contest the 2017 Assembly elections because LIP received the Ludhiana South seat as part of the seat-sharing agreement after AAP formed an alliance with them.

AAP had promised round-the-clock free electricity supply to everyone in Punjab

Meanwhile, it may be recalled that to woo the voters, one of the major poll promises of AAP was freebies to the Punjab people. AAP chief and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had promised round-the-clock free electricity supply to everyone in Punjab. In April, however, the tariff for electricity for this year has been announced, and there is no sign so far that the government has any plans to fulfil the pre-poll promise.

AAP has been talking about free electricity in Punjab for a long time. It was one of the first promises it had made since the party started campaigning in Punjab. The promise can be traced back to June 29, 2021, when AAP’s national convener Arvind Kejriwal announced that not only the old domestic bills will be waived off, but the AAP government, if elected in Assembly elections, would provide 300 units free to every household without any discrimination.

To be noted, he had claimed his government was providing 24×7 uninterrupted power in the national capital as well. Interestingly, however, AAP’s Delhi Government was found selling electricity in the national market when there was an alleged shortage of coal, and AAP leaders were blaming the BJP-led central government for the possibility of a blackout in Delhi.

Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar now ‘cancelled’ by Left ‘Liberals’ after he receives honorary doctorate from RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat

OpIndia Staff
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Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar now ‘cancelled’ by Left ‘Liberals’ after he receives honorary doctorate from RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat

India’s legendary batsman Sunil Gavaskar has been ‘cancelled’ by ‘Liberals’. The reason: He was recently conferred with an honorary doctorate at the hands of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.

The honour was awarded at the First Convocation of Sri Sathya Sai University of Human Excellence at Muddenahalli, Karnataka. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat formally conferred the honorary doctorate upon Sunil Gavaskar.

The news of Sunil Gavaskar receiving the honourary doctorate by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has caused a sudden meltdown by ‘Liberals’ and now Gavaskar has been ‘cancelled’.

Screenshot via Twitter

One anon handle lamented, “I thought it was difficult to bowl out this man, but alas”. Another person replied that he had great respect for Gavaskar not because he was a legendary cricketer, but because he had apparently once saved a family during the 1992 riots.

Another handle named Eminem San who had earlier thought Gavaskar was worthy of his respect only because he had helped a ‘Muslim family’, now decided otherwise.

One handle named Himanshu indirectly held Gavaskar responsible for the fact that India is economically stable and not facing a dire economic crisis like Sri Lanka. Because the absolute chaos in Sri Lanka has made cricketers like Jayasuriya and Sangakara “stand with the people” to become ‘liberal heroes’ and the economically robust India that is basically keeping Sri Lanka afloat by sending food and fuel worth billions of dollars is the fascist regime where Gavaskar is greeted by Mohan Bhagwat.

Not so long ago, Gavaskar was hailed as a hero by Left Liberals after it was reported that he had once saved a neighbourhood family from a violent mob by using his identity during the aftermath of the 1993 blasts in Mumbai.

Many had tweeted in appreciation, hailing Gavaskar as a hero. The incident was narrated by Sunil’s son Rohan during an event organised by the Sports Journalists’ Association of Mumbai, where Sunil Gavaskar was honoured with the lifetime achievement award in 2016.

This is, however, not the first time Gavaskar has been ‘cancelled’. In early 2020, when anti-CAA protests were gathering storm across the country, Gavaskar had stated at an event that the youth of the country should focus on building a new India and lamented over the fact that some youngsters are wasting valuable years for the sake of activism while they should be focusing on building careers.

It is amusing to see the so-called ‘Liberals’ losing their mind and claiming that Gavaskar receiving an honorary doctorate from the hands of Mohan Bhagwat is an ‘offence’ severe enough to negate his achievements for the country. Moreover, the idea that Gavaskar’s status as an Indian cricket legend is dependent upon his leaning towards a particular type of political ideology is hilarious to see. Sadly, for the so-called ‘Left Liberals’, anyone who is even indulging in a civil social interaction with the people they don’t politically agree with is worthless and his or her achievements do not matter.

UP: Rae Bareli Police book BJP leader Ali Haider Naqvi for post supporting Nupur Sharma, ‘asked to delete the post by police’, he tells OpIndia

OpIndia Staff
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UP: Rae Bareli Police book BJP leader Ali Haider Naqvi for post supporting Nupur Sharma, ‘asked to delete the post by police’, he tells OpIndia

Rae Bareli Police has booked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) IT Cell member Ali Haider Naqvi for publishing a post supporting former BJP Spokesperson Nupur Sharma. As per reports, Naqvi has been booked under Section 153A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 66 of the IT Act. Nupur Sharma was suspended from the party after she made some innocuous remarks on Prophet Muhammad after the Muslim panelist on a TV debate had insulted the Shivling found at the disputed Gyanvapi premises.

The series of events

Speaking to OpIndia, Naqvi said he had published a post supporting Nupur Sharma on July 1. He said he did not mention any religion or add anything provocative in his post. However, the next day, he received a call from the Police station in his area, and the officer on the phone directed him to delete the post.

He said, “I immediately called my seniors and informed them what had happened. I only expressed my concerns towards my own organization and did not say anything about religion or hurt anyone. My seniors said if the Police have asked to delete the post, I should follow their instructions. For me, the matter was over that day.”

Naqvi further added, “It was only yesterday that I came to know about the FIR launched against me. I am unable to understand why I am facing Police action though I have removed the post. I know my organization will support me, but my family is worried about my safety. I have never done anything in my life to hurt anyone.”

Naqvi’s social media post

In the now-deleted post, Naqvi had said he openly supported Nupur Sharma. “I was not coming out openly in her support as I was afraid my party may dismiss me to satisfy the ‘peaceful.’ But, a learned person once told me if I want to live a proud life, I have to listen to my heart. Thus, it does not matter if I stay on this post or not, my support will always be with the lioness of the country Nupur Sharma. It is impossible to suppress the truth.”

Police took cognizance of the post

Reports suggest that after Naqvi’s post went viral, the Civil Line Outpost In-Charge took cognizance of the post, and the FIR was launched based on his complaint under serious sections. OpIndia tried to reach out to Police but could not connect.

India slams US for directly ‘suggesting’ a ban on Russian ships to Mumbai port, says ‘country has sovereign right to deal with global partners’: Details

OpIndia Staff
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India slams US for directly ‘suggesting’ a ban on Russian ships to Mumbai port, says ‘country has sovereign right to deal with global partners’: Details

On Wednesday, India sharply criticized the United States’ interference in the country’s stand to import crude oil and other goods from Russia after the Ukraine-Russia war. The US wrote to the Mumbai port asking it to ban Russian ships carrying goods from entering India due to the American sanctions against Russia. However, India asserted that it is New Delhi’s sovereign right to deal with global partners in the national interest.

According to the reports, the US Consulate in Mumbai directly wrote to the Mumbai port last month and asked it to block the Russian ships from entering the port. The US under the guise of ‘suggestion’, ordered the port to act in US’s favour due to the sanctions imposed by the States against Russia. The Mumbai port in turn wrote to the Directorate General of Shipping which asked the Ministry of External Affairs to look into the matter.

The MEA on Wednesday slammed the US for establishing direct communication with the Mumbai port and stated that it was India’s sovereign right to deal with the global partners in the national interest. It affirmed that the country will not deny permission to ships from any particular country from entering its ports. Meanwhile, the India-US bilateral ties watcher, Derek J Grossman from the RAND Corporation also criticized the US for attempting to discourage India from buying cheap crude oil and other goods from Russia.

He called the United State’s move silly and tweeted, “Seems Biden admin has shifted tactics when pressuring India. Instead of speaking directly to New Delhi, the US consulate in Mumbai writes a letter to Mumbai Port Authority to bar Russian ships. Of course, New Delhi found out”. According to the reports, the US later stated that the conversation with India was private, but Grossman rightly hinted that such diplomatic conversations never remain private.

Following the conflict in Ukraine, the United States and its allies put tough economic sanctions on Russia, yet this has not discouraged India from engaging with the ally nation. Russian cargo ships transporting crude oil and other goods continue to visit Indian ports. Russia has been giving significant discounts on its energy exports, prompting India to increase its purchases from the nation. According to Kpler statistics, Russian oil arrivals into India in May were 740,000 barrels per day, up from 284,000 barrels in April and 34,000 barrels a year earlier.

The west has been lecturing and pressurising India while remaining the largest importer of Russian Oil, far more than India. In barely three months after Russia invaded Ukraine, India, and China have purchased $24 billion in oil, gas, and coal from Russia. According to another Bloomberg article, India paid $5.1 billion for Russian oil, gas, and coal, more than five times the value a year earlier.

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