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Day after Arvind Kejriwal ‘inspected’ water treatment plant, toxic foam floats on Yamuna river: How empty promises have been made since 2015

OpIndia Staff
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Day after Arvind Kejriwal ‘inspected’ water treatment plant, toxic foam floats on Yamuna river: How empty promises have been made since 2015

On June 2, toxic foam was seen floating on the Yamuna river in Delhi. As per news agency ANI, the foam was visible from ITO Delhi.

The visuals, which are now going viral on social media, appear a day after Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal announced he had visited Coronation Sewage Treatment Plant. In a tweet, he said, “We are committed to cleaning the Yamuna. Inspected coronation plant today. Country’s largest plant – 70 MGD. Fully automatic. It is a wonderful plant.”

In an earlier tweet, he had said that his government is “committed to the clear Yamuna by 2025”, and the work in this regard was going at war footing. Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal has promised multiple times that his government would clean the Yamuna river and gave different deadlines. However, the situation did not change much since he became Chief Minister of Delhi.

Netizens react to announcement to clean Yamuna by Arvind Kejriwal

Several netizens reacted to the announcement made by Arvind Kejriwal that his government would clean the Yamuna by 2025. They shared his old promises where he had given different deadlines for the same.

BJP Delhi Spokesperson Sarika A Jain said, “You have promised to clean the Yamuna in 2014. Your promises have been going on since 2014, and now they have reached 2025, but they never get fulfilled. So keep making a fool out of the public as this is your job. Have some shame.”

Twitter user Manish Soni shared a video compilation of Kejriwal where he promised to provide tap water to every household by 2019. Notably, countless reports have been published about water scarcity and dirty water supply in Delhi, but the Delhi Jal Board has failed to rectify the problems faced by the public. He said, “We know Kejriwal speaks only truth. Here is an example.”

Another Twitter user Anil Kumar said, “70MGD was planned by the previous Gov, and it was delayed by you. The plant is small compared to the level of pollution in the Yamuna, and do you know Delhi people are drinking unhealthy treated sewage water diluted with raw water.”

Netizen Munish Dogra said, “It is an awesome stunt. For the last seven years, you have been trying to clean the Yamuna, and every year, you renew the promise. Everything is in front of the public.”

Arvind Kejriwal keep extending the deadline to clear the Yamuna river

Since the beginning of his political career, Arvind Kejriwal has promised to clean the Yamuna river. Since then, he has renewed the promise with new deadlines multiple times.

The series of issuing dates after dates for cleaning the Yamuna by the Delhi government has been going on since the year 2015. Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in 2015 had promised to clean the Yamuna river within five years (by 2020). In the same year, he said, “After five years, we will bring every resident of Delhi to the Yamuna so that they can feel proud of the clean river.”

In November 2019, he said his government has planned to clean the Yamuna in the next four to five years, and people would be able to take a dip in it. In December same year, he promised the people attending his rally that by the next elections (scheduled in 2025), he would take the whole village for a dip in the Yamuna.

In January 2020, he again promised to get it cleaned in five years. He had promised to take a dip in the Yamuna himself.

Interestingly, toxic foam keeps appearing in the Yamuna river despite the promises made by the Delhi government. In November 2021, a bizarre visual made it to social media after the Delhi government tried to control toxic foam in the river with a hedge made out of bamboo sticks. Delhi Jal Board employees were seen sprinkling water on toxic foam to “clean the river”.

Chhattisgarh: Muslim man fills urine in a plastic bag, throws it at Hindu women observing Vat Savitri Puja, protests at Jashpurnagar

OpIndia Staff
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Chhattisgarh: Muslim man fills urine in a plastic bag, throws it at Hindu women observing Vat Savitri Puja, protests at Jashpurnagar

In Chhattisgarh’s Jashpurnagar, a Muslim man named Naseer attacked a group of Hindu women observing the rituals of the traditional Vat Savitri Puja on May 30, Monday. The Muslim man had reportedly filled a plastic bag with his urine and thrown it at the women gathered to observe rituals of the Vat Savitri Puja near the Rani Bagicha area near the city.

As per reports, a large number of Hindu women gathered on roads to protest against this despicable act of sexual harassment and hate crime. A bandh was observed in Jashpurnagar over the incident on Wednesday because despite complaints the local police had not arrested the accused Muslim man.

The group of women who were attacked with urine by Naseer had left the Puja and gone home after the incident on Monday. Later in the evening, they had reached the local police station to lodge a complaint against Naseer.

However, as no action was taken against the culprit, a large number of Hindu women came to the streets to protest. The police then arrested the accused Naseer and sent him to jail. Raigarh MP Gomati Rai had joined the protests and had submitted a letter to District Magistrate requesting swift action and steps to prevent such incidents of religious hate crime and harassment.

Speaking to OpIndia, the Jashpurnagar police have informed that the culprit has been arrested and sent to custody under charges as per IPC sections 295, 295A, 153A and 505(2). They have added that the protesting groups were peacefully handled and the law and order situation remains normal in the area.

Arrested accused Naseer, image: OpIndia

Local Hindu groups also took a bike rally in support of the protesting women. The women have stated that the act of throwing urine on the Vrat observants during the Puja ritual was a planned crime to disrupt the Puja and hurt the religious sentiments of the women.

BJP Chattisgarh secretary Prabal Pratap Judev has shared the complaint letter to the police submitted by the women, informing that the Muslim man had first come to the Puja spot and tried to urinate there before the women. The women have stated that the accused first said he wanted to “mix some Gangajal in the rituals”. After the women asked him to go away, he had come with a plastic bag filled with urine and thrown at the women, saying that this is because he doesn’t want to see Hindus doing Puja on the road. The complainants have stated that they were not blocking the road but were gathered near a tree some distance away from the road.

MP Gomatai Rai demands strict action, lambasts local Congress MLAs

BJP MP Gomati Rai joined to support the protesting women. She questioned the police laxity and condemned the silence of local Congress MLAs. Gomati Rai stated that if the religions of the victim and culprit were reversed, the Congress MLAs would have started widespread protests by now. She added that this is a heinous crime to sexually harass, and humiliate Hindu women while attacking their faith.

It is notable here that Vat Savitri is a Hindu festival where women observe a day-long fast and worship Savitri Devi and the Banyan tree, praying for a long life for their husbands. It is a community event and women usually gather near a Banyan tree to perform the rituals. They tie sacred threads to the tree and offer water together.

Hindus seek survey of ‘Teele Wali Masjid’ in Lucknow, District court orders litigants to approach lower court, where 2013 suit is being considered

OpIndia Staff
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Hindus seek survey of ‘Teele Wali Masjid’ in Lucknow, District court orders litigants to approach lower court, where 2013 suit is being considered

The applicants seeking the formation of a commission to assess Lucknow’s Teele Wali Masjid were told by the Lucknow District Court on Tuesday to return to the lower court where the Original Suit filed in 2013 is being considered.

The case was filed on the grounds that historic temples devoted to Shesh Nageshatileshwar and other deities on the disputed mosque complex site are being damaged in order to alter its religious character.

The lower court proceedings in the 2013 dispute were challenged in this revision petition filed in District Sessions Court. The Teele Wali Masjid is actually Laxman Tila, according to the petition, and it should be restored to Hindus.

According to advocate Harishankar Jain, who is also involved in the cases of the Gyanvapi complex and the Mathura mosque, the whole complex is the site of Sheshnagestha Tileshwar Mahadev, which was destroyed during Islamic tyrant Aurangzeb’s reign. During the hearing, the Hindu applicants also claimed that, while the Original Suit is still pending before the Lower Court, on May 28, Maulana S. Shah Fajalurrehman (party in opposition) made a statement that on his appeal, roads in Lucknow could be blocked.

According to the applicants, these actions are nothing more than an attempt to disrupt the city’s law and order situation and must be stopped in order to ensure tranquillity throughout the proceedings of the lawsuit. Taking both parties’ arguments into consideration, Additional District Judge Smt. Kalpana noted that because the original matter from 2013 is still pending in the lower court, the survey commission request should be filed there as well.

The court order.

In 2013, Lord Sheshnagesth Tileshwar Mahadev Virajman, Laxman Tila Sheshnag Teerth Bhoomi, and others filed a civil claim in a lower civil court, alleging that a Hindu sacred edifice was demolished to make place for a mosque during the era of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. The Hindu petitioners claimed that a portion of the property where the mosque stood was theirs and should be given to them.

The Secretary Home Ministry through the Union of India, the Lucknow Circle of the Archaeological Survey of India, the State of Uttar Pradesh Principal Secretary Home, District Magistrate Lucknow, Director General of Police UP, Senior Superintendent of Police Lucknow, Superintendent of Police West Lucknow, Inspector Chowk, CEO of Sunni Central Board, Chief Executive Officer through the Waqf, and Maulana Fajalurrehman have been named as respondents in the case.

Coke Studio’s Pakistani singer Shae Gill, who sang ‘Pasoori’, gets hate for praying for ‘non-Muslim’ Sidhu Moosewala, ‘I am Christian’, she hits back

OpIndia Staff
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Coke Studio’s Pakistani singer Shae Gill, who sang ‘Pasoori’, gets hate for praying for ‘non-Muslim’ Sidhu Moosewala, ‘I am Christian’, she hits back

Singer of the famed Coke Studio song Pasoori, Pakistani singer Shae Gill has been making headlines these days. Recently, Shae Gill spoke about the hatred she has received after praying for ‘non-Muslim’ Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala, who was murdered in Punjab.

Shae expressed her condolences on Instagram following the passing of Sidhu Moosewala. “Heartbroken. May his spirit rest in peace, and may his family and friends have the strength to bear this loss,” she wrote. Following her post, however, numerous social media users condemned her for praying for a non-Muslim.

She turned to Instagram to post screenshots of abusive remarks she has received in response to her condolences for Sidhu Moose Wala’s death. Someone messaged her that as a Muslim, she is not permitted to do dua for non-Muslims when they die.

The Instagram stories by Shae Gill. (Source: Jagran)

In a subsequent Instagram story, clarifying that she is not a Muslim, Shae wrote, “I’ve been getting a lot of such messages. Just wanted to inform everyone that I am not a Muslim. I am a Christian, belong to a Christian family and can make prayers for people from different religions.”

“If you send me messages like this, you are getting blocked,” she warned, adding that she sometimes checks her DMs to stay in touch with her followers. “I honestly wouldn’t have announced it like that,” she added, “but I just got sick of people believing they could police me by that standard,” she wrote.

Shae Gill is a Pakistani singer who rose to prominence after the release of her debut “Pasoori” in 2022. Pasoori is the latest episode of Coke Studio season 14, and it stars Shae Gill and Ali Sethi.

On Sunday, famous Punjabi artist and rapper Sidhu Moosewala was killed in an attack in Mansa, Punjab. The attack took place on Sunday, May 29, 2022, in the Mansa village of Jawaharke during the evening. Unidentified attackers opened fire on Moosewala and his two companions. He was carried to the hospital in critical condition, where he was pronounced dead.

Another mass shooting in the USA: Gunman enters Tulsa hospital and kills 4, later kills himself

OpIndia Staff
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Another mass shooting in the USA: Gunman enters Tulsa hospital and kills 4, later kills himself

On June 1 (local time), a gunman armed with a handgun and a rifle entered a medical building in Tulsa, Oklahoma and killed at least four people. Later, he fatally shot himself. The Police were informed about the active shooting incident on Wednesday at around 4:30 PM.

As per deputy police chief of Tulsa Eric Dalgleish, multiple shots were fired on the second floor of Natalie Building on the St. Francis Hospital campus. Notably, the incident happened on the day when Tulsa was observing the 101st anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre.

Within three minutes of the call, the Police reached the spot. The first respondents on the scene were able to hear the gunshots coming from the building. Within five minutes, first contact was made with the victims and the suspect, said Dalgleish. He added, “The scene is fairly limited to one section of that floor, on the second floor.”

When asked about the response time of the Police to such calls, he said, “I will say Tulsa revisits that topic regularly. I was very happy with what we know so far regarding the response of our officers.”

The said building has doctors’ offices, including an orthopaedic centre. The Police believe the shooter might be a patient or an employee. However, by the time this report was published, Police were still trying to determine the identity of the shooter. No details were made public about his motive behind the shooting. Reports suggest the shooter was aged between 35 and 40.

Gunman shot himself

After killing four people, the gunman reportedly shot himself. Several people were injured in the incident, but none of them received any life-threatening injury.

President briefed about the incident

Reports suggest President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting. He has offered support to the state and local officials in this regard.

Governor thanked Police Department

In a series of Tweets, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt thanked Tulsa Police Department for the quick response and called the incident a “senseless act of violence and hatred”. He said, “What happened today in Tulsa is a senseless act of violence and hatred. Sarah and I are praying for the families of those who lost their lives and for those who were injured.”

He added, “I am grateful for the quick and brave actions of the Tulsa Police Department and other first responders who did their best to contain a terrible situation. I have offered Mayor G.T. Bynum any state resources that may be needed, and I ask all Oklahomans to come together in support of the Saint Francis Health System community and to grieve with those whose lives have been forever changed.”

Gun violence incidents are on the rise in the United States

Gun violence incidents are on the rise in the United States. Gun Violence Archive, an independent group that tracks incidents of gun violence in the United States noted 48 incidents of gun violence on the single day of June 1 across states.

So far, there have been 18,100 deaths related to gun violence in the US. Source: Gun Violence Archive

Nearly a dozen incidents of mass shootings have happened in the USA since the brutal massacre of school children in Texas’ Robb Elementary School on May 25.

Sourav Ganguly’s much anticipated big announcement: He is launching a worldwide educational app

OpIndia Staff
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Sourav Ganguly’s much anticipated big announcement: He is launching a worldwide educational app

Hours after sharing a cryptic post on Twitter that triggered speculations about his imminent entry into politics, the former team India cricket captain and current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly put paid to the rumours, clarifying that the much-anticipated big announcement he had hinted at in the evening was related to the launch of a worldwide educational app.

Speaking to reporters in the evening, he revealed that he is planning to launch an educational app and dispelled rumours pertaining to his resignation as BCCI president.

When a journalist asked ‘can we call it a googly by Maharaj, as Sourav Ganguly is fondly called, the BCCI president said he was shocked after hearing the speculations. “They pick up such small things and make them big. It was just a simple tweet, no resignation nothing,” he emphasised.

Sourav Ganguly triggers speculations over a cryptic tweet on the ‘new chapter’ of his life

BCCI President and former cricketer Sourav Ganguly on Wednesday took to Twitter to announce that he is starting a ‘new chapter’ in his life. He said that year 2022 marks 30 years of his life in cricket and thanked everyone for the support and love he has received.

“2022 marks the 30th year since the start of my journey with cricket in 1992. Since then, Cricket has given me a lot. Most importantly, it has given me the support of all of you. I want to thank every single person who has been a part of the journey, supported me, and helped me reach where I am today,” Ganguly wrote on Twitter. 

In a message, he said that he is planning to start something new and sought everyone’s support for the same.

The message triggered speculations on social media where many wondered if he is joining mainstream politics in India. Some media reports had even suggested he has resigned as the BCCI chief, but BCCI secretary Jay Shah denied the rumours.

Karnataka: VHP demands court-appointed survey of a mosque in Malali near Mangaluru after remains of Hindu temple appeared, court starts hearing the case

OpIndia Staff
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Karnataka: VHP demands court-appointed survey of a mosque in Malali near Mangaluru after remains of Hindu temple appeared, court starts hearing the case

A local court in Karnataka has begun hearing a petition filed by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad about the ‘discovery of a temple-like structure’ inside a mosque in Managaluru’s Malali on Tuesday 31st May 2022. Both Hindu and Muslim sides have submitted the documents to support their respective claims.

Assayed Abdullahil Madani Mosque administrative committee’s counsel appeared before the third additional civil court to oppose the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s (VHP) petition on Tuesday. The mosque committee’s counsel primarily relied on the Places of Worship Act 1991. The VHP resubmitted a plea in which it has sought a court-appointed commission to examine the ‘temple-like structure’.

According to a report by Hindustan Times, a Dakshina Kannada district administration official said that the mosque management, in its submission, claimed that the land belongs to the Wakf Board and under the Places of Worship Act, 1991, the petition filed by the VHP was not maintainable.

On the other hand, Chidananda Kedalaya, the lawyer appearing for the Hindu organizations said on Wednesday that he will file a fresh petition in the court. On Tuesday, Kedalaya said, “They (Muslim side) have claimed that under the Places of Worship Act the suit is not maintainable, but we believe it is. It is an ancient monument and there is an exception for such buildings under the provisions of law. So, we will be filing a detailed objection tomorrow (Wednesday).” Accordingly, he has filed the petition.

The first petition filed by the Hindu side sought the verification of the religious character of the Malali mosque and permission to conduct a survey of the mosque by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The second petition is now asking for a court-appointed commission that will conduct a study on the temple with the help of ASI. It is notable that a similar survey was done on the disputed structure and the so-called mosque in the Gyanvapi complex of Varanasi.

In the last month, a part of the mosque was demolished for the purpose of renovation and at that time a ‘temple-like-structure’ was noticed at the site. Since then, the controversy has erupted and the matter reached court. According to the local police, the renovation work was initiated by the mosque committee and when they demolished the front part of the mosque, a “kalasha” (spire), “tomara” (pillar), and poles resembling a temple were found there. Photographs of the same were circulated on social media.

A senior police officer, without disclosing his name, said, “Some earthmovers were deployed at the mosque to bring down its front portion as part of the renovation process. During the process, an alleged temple-like structure came to some people’s notice. JCB workers deployed at the mosque might have clicked photographs of the structure and shared them online.”

Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner KV Rajendra on Friday had held a meeting of all concerned officials and stakeholders and sought a report on the issue. The meeting was attended by members of the gram panchayat, Wakf board, endowment, state archaeology, revenue, and senior police officials.

The VHP, on the other hand, performed Tambula Prashne rituals. This ritual is often performed to ascertain if any temple existed on the spot. Kerala-based astrologer GP Gopalakrishna Panicker was called to perform the rituals. The mosque committee has yet not given any reaction on this.

Rajasthan: Jodhpur Police use a garbage van to transport a dead body to the hospital

OpIndia Staff
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Rajasthan: Jodhpur Police use a garbage van to transport a dead body to the hospital

In a shockingly callous incident from Rajasthan’s Jodhpur, the body of a daily wager, who was crushed by a bus in a roadside accident was taken to the hospital by police in a garbage collection vehicle. The mishap took place outside the police station in the Barkatullah Khan Stadium area, after which the body of the slain man was hurriedly dumped in a garbage truck by the policemen and sent away to the hospital.

According to the report by Hindi news portal Jagran, the Jodhpur Police even made secretive attempts to suppress the matter. However, the incident was revealed when the CCTV footage from a camera placed in the hospital lobby caught the garbage vehicle that reached the hospital premises.

In the morning on Wednesday, a local daily wager was crushed under a bus parked near the ACP office, Pratapnagar, situated near Barkatullah Khan Stadium in Jodhpur. Reportedly, the person slept under the bus the previous night and instantly met a tragic death after the bus driver started the vehicle. The daily wager was crushed under the tyre of the bus and died on the spot. The deceased person has been identified as Devram Prajapat, a resident of Bilara.

Upon receiving the information, city police officials reached the accident spot and waited for a vehicle to arrive at the spot. While the vehicle to carry the dead body failed to arrive on time, the police shifted his body to the trauma centre of MDM hospital in a garbage van owned by the civic body.

The National Human Rights Commission took cognizance of the matter after the police apathy came to the fore. The commission has sought a report from the police department in the next 15 days. The matter that has unfolded in Jodhpur has triggered widespread anger and outrage on social media.

BJP MP from Jaipur Rural Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore lashed out at the Ashok Gehlot led Rajasthan administration on Twitter. Calling the incident an act of shame, he wrote, “Everyone is ashamed to see the exploits of the Congress Raj. In the home district of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, the youth who died in a road accident was taken to the hospital by the police in a garbage car. Living the life of a common man under the Gehlot government is hell, even after death, the insensitivity shown by the government makes it miserable.”

Immediately taking cognisance of the matter, Dev Nagar police station in Jodhpur rushed to the scene upon receiving the preliminary information. According to reports, SHO Jai Kishan Soni ordered officials to remove the body from the location, since people started gathering at the spot in large numbers. When Head Constable Rawat Singh tried to get a taxi, it did not arrive on time. Responding to the situation, the police officers had no option but to carry the body of the victim to the hospital in a garbage van owned by the civic body.

Currently, Jodhpur police commissioner Navjyoti Gogoi has ordered ACP West, Chakraborty Singh, to investigate the matter.

“Didn’t take a single penny”: Assam CM’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma rubbishes The Wire claim of receiving ‘illegal supply order’, informs PPE kits were donated

OpIndia Staff
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“Didn’t take a single penny”: Assam CM’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma rubbishes The Wire claim of receiving ‘illegal supply order’, informs PPE kits were donated

Leftist media portal The Wire continues to publish baseless allegations of corruption on Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and his wife. On Wednesday, the portal published a report alleging that a firm allegedly owned by Riniki Bhuyan Sarma was given an order to supply PPE kits and other Covid-19 essentials without following due procedure. The report claimed that when Himanta Biswa Sarma was the health minister in the previous Sarbananda Sonowal govt in Assam, a firm owned by his wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma was granted an urgent work order to supply 5,000 PPE kits, despite having  no history of supplying or producing medical equipment and safety gears.

However, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma has refuted the allegations made in the report by The Wire, and said she didn’t take even a penny for supply of the PPE kits. She said that she had donated the PPE kits to the National Health Mission under CSR, and no payment was taken for the same.

The Wire in collaboration with Guwahati-based news portal ‘The Cross Current’ had claimed through a series of Right to Information (RTI) replies that orders for emergency medical supply orders during Covid-19 were given to four considered firms without following a tendering process. The Wire report says that out of the four firms, three are linked to chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma and his family’s business associate.

The Wire claimed that an urgent work order to supply 5,000 PPE kits was given to JCB Industries, of which Sarma’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma is the owner. While the Guwahati-based firm is known to produce sanitary napkins, The National Health Mission (NHM), Assam granted the order to Sarma’s company with no history of producing any medical equipment, the report claimed. It further said that the order to JCB industries was given on March 18, 2020 when there was a sudden presence and rise of Covid-19 cases in India.

Through the RTI replies, The Wire also claimed that apart from JCB Industries, orders for PPE kits to two other firms – GRD Pharmaceuticals and Meditime Healthcare were given. As claimed by the portal, the companies are owned by Ghanshyam Dhanuka, Sarma’s business associate. As per the report, the later firms have supplied medical equipment to the state government since Congress was in power in Assam.

With the RTI application that was filed by The Cross Current, the media portal used the replies for its report. The primary accusation is that JCB Industries and Meditime Healthcare failed to meet the delivery of goods on the target date. Secondly, the Wire claimed that PPE kits at higher rate (Rs 990 per piece) were procured from the companies, on the same day it bought PPE kits at the rate of Rs 600 per piece from another Assam-based firm, NE Surgical Industries.

Riniki Bhuyan Sarma’s rebuttal

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma has rubbished the report by The Wire calling it a piece of propaganda. “At the risk of dignifying such malicious propaganda with a reply, The Wire has come out with an unfounded accusation once again,” she said in a statement.

Clarifying the matter of supplying PPE kits, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma said that when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in Assam, there was not a single PPE kit available in Assam, a medical safety unit mandatory for health workers treating Covid-19 patients. Therefore, she had arranged some PPE kits through a business acquaintance and delivered the same to the National Health Mission. However, when the NHM issued a work order against this, so that she can raise an invoice for the supply, she informed the authorities that it is a donation and she will not take payment for the same.

She informed that at a delicate time when PPE kits were available nowehere in Asaam, she stepped forward with the help of her company to help the government with the same. “In the first week of the pandemic, not a single PPE kit was available in Assam. Taking cognisance of the same, I reached out to a business acquaintance, and delivered around 1500 PPE kits to the NHM with a lot of effort. Later on, I wrote to the NHM to treat the same as a part of my CSR. A due acknowledgement enclosed” Sarma said in a statement issued today.

She further added, “I did not take a single penny out of this supply. I have always been transparent about my belief in giving back to the society, irrespective of my husband’s political standing. My organisation has also supported the NHM in the fight against COVID by donating to the Aarogya Nidhi.” It is notable that Aarogya Nidhi is state government’s Financial Assistance Scheme.

Riniki Bhuyan Sarma also attacked an appreciation letter from National Health Mission in Assam, which makes it clear that she had donated the PPE kits, and didn’t accept any payment. The letter written by the NHM Assam Mission Director to JCB Industries says that he extends his heartfelt gratitude to her organisation for helping the govt with 1485 PPE kits. The subject of the letter says that it is an appreciation letter for providing PPE kits as Corporate Social Responsibility during Covid-19 pandemic.

Copy of letter written by NHM managing director, N. Lakhsmanan to the company for Sarma’s CSR initiative

The letter further says, “I appreciate your initiative to come forward and donate the above said item as a part of corporate social responsibility. Therefore, it is clear from the NHM’s letter that Riniki Bhuyan Sarma’s firm had donated 1485 PPE kits to the Assam govt when the healthcare system in the state needed it the most under CSR. The firm was not issued any ‘illegal order’ as alleged by The Wire, and no payment was made for this supply that the media portal tried to question.

It is a surprise that while The Wire could gather so many document through RTI, they could not locate this letter by NHM saying it was a donation. Moreover, they also claimed that while JCB Industries was issued an order to supply 5000 PPE kits, it was cancelled as only 1485 kits was supplied. Therefore, The Wire needs to answer what was scam if the order was cancelled, because no order means no payment.

Sarma lashed out at The Wire when Rinika Bhuyan Sarma said, “If only such propaganda websites were to do things beyond paying mere lip service in times of crisis, India would be in a better place. I will always stay firm in my belief to serve the country, irrespective of such sponsored hit jobs.”

The Wire report also makes some shocking claims, indicating that there was no need to issue urgent orders for PPE kits and other essential items to combat Covid-19 in March 2020. It is notable that during emergencies and urgent needs, governments can bypass the lengthy tendering process and issue urgent orders to procure items and services. It is a normal procedure used by all govts, not just the BJP as the article seems to suggests.

The report claims, “state health department had issued four ‘urgent’ work orders between March 18, 2020 and March 23, 2020 to procure PPE kits and hand sanitisers even prior to the “panicky” situation that had set in due to the national lockdown”, which is complete disregard of the fact of that time. The fact is, Assam had entered the “panicky” situation more than a week before PM Modi had announced national lockdown on March 24, 2020. Assam govt had announced a partial lockdown on 15th March itself, closing down schools and colleges, gyms, cinema halls etc. Such proactive measures by Assam govt in general and then health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had ensured that Assam was able to manage the pandemic well.

Assam govt had built temporary Covid-19 hospitals with thousands of beds even before a single Covid-19 case was detected in the state, and by logics of The Wire, that was a scam because there was “panicky situation”. It is very shocking that a media house The Wire claimed that issuing urgent orders for PPE kits before national lockdown was wrong, while nobody expects them to appreciate a BJP govt for taking proactive steps, especially when there was no PPE kits in the state, the leftist is actually portraying it as a scam.

Punjab: Gunshots fired, clashes erupt outside Amritsar’s Khalsa College leave two brothers injured, police call it a ‘routine crime’

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab: Gunshots fired, clashes erupt outside Amritsar’s Khalsa College leave two brothers injured, police call it a ‘routine crime’

On Wednesday, two brothers identified as Sudhir Malik and Ashish Malik were injured in a clash between two groups outside Khalsa College, Sector 26 in Amritsar, Punjab. The third-year Commerce graduate students were injured as guns were fired during the clash.

The Punjab Police confirmed that shots were fired during the clash between two groups outside the college but termed the incident as a routine crime and not a gang war. According to the reports, the duo victims were in a car with two other friends when they were blocked by two cars, one ahead and the other from behind.

The victims in their statement said that around 10 armed people got off the two cars and attacked them with sharp-edged weapons. The victims were going towards DT Mall in their car to watch a movie. They have now been admitted to a private GMSH-16 hospital with severe injuries to the stomach and arm.

Controversial singer and Congress leader Sidhu Moosewala shot dead in Punjab

Earlier, on May 29, popular Punjabi singer, rapper, and Congress leader Sidhu Moosewala was shot dead in an attack in Mansa, Punjab. Multiple rounds were fired at his vehicle resulting in his death. Goldy Brar of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang took responsibility for the murder, alleging Moosewala was involved in the murder of one of their gang member, but Police did not take any action against him.

In the current case, the Punjab Police has recorded the statement of the victims and have registered a case in the matter. Investigations in the case are underway.

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