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NDTV twists ‘pro-choice’ comment of boxer Nikhat Zareen to legitimise Karnataka hijab row, other media houses amplify misinformation

Dibakar Dutta
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NDTV twists ‘pro-choice’ comment of boxer Nikhat Zareen to legitimise Karnataka hijab row, other media houses amplify misinformation

Days after Nikhat Zareen brought accolades to India by winning gold at the Women’s Boxing World Championships, leftist media portal NDTV deliberately misquoted her to give credence to the Karnataka hijab row.

The ace boxer was invited as a guest during a program on NDTV to speak about her life after winning the gold medal in Istanbul. During the event, the interviewer zeroed in on her Muslim identity in the hopes of pushing a political narrative.

“Aaj kal bahut charcha chal rahi hai whether girls should wear hijab in public places or not? What is your opinion about wearing a hijab?” the NDTV anchor asked. Given that it was a general question about a woman’s right to wear a hijab, Nikhat Zareen emphasized that the decision must be left to women.

“It is totally their own choice. I can not comment on their choices. I have my own choice (referring to her sports gear). I like to wear such clothes. I do not mind wearing such clothes. My family does not mind me wearing such clothes. So, I do not care what people say about me,” remarked Nikhat Zareen.

She further added, “But if they want to wear hijab and follow their religion, it’s their personal choice. I don’t have any problem with them wearing hijabs. After all, it’s their own choice. I am okay with that.”

As can be seen from her response, nowhere did Nikhat Zareen speak about the ‘right to wear hijab in schools’ or to make exceptions for anyone when it comes to school uniforms. However, this did not stop NDTV from quoting her out of context and suggesting that she supports the right of the ‘hijabi girls’ of Karnataka to take classes in their religious attire.

Screengrab of the news report by NDTV

NDTV published an article on Monday (May 23) titled, ‘On Hijab Row, Boxing Champ Nikhat Zareen’s Pro-Choice Strike.’ Interestingly, the first line of the article itself misled the readers into believing that the ace boxer spoke about the Karnataka hijab row.

“Boxing world champion Nikhat Zareen on Monday weighed in on the smouldering controversy over Muslim girls wearing the hijab in schools and colleges, saying one’s attire was entirely the subject of their choice,” NDTV claimed in its article.

Screengrab of the news report by NDTV

The Quint, Times Now shares misinformation peddled by NDTV

The deliberate misinformation peddled by NDTV was then further amplified by other news portals such as The Quint and Times Now. Both news portals had cited NDTV as the source of their claims.

“World boxing champion Nikhat Zareen on Monday, 23 May, spoke on the controversy regarding Muslim girls wearing hijab in educational institutions, saying that a person’s attire was completely their choice”, The Quint had erroneously claimed.

Screengrab of the news report by The Quint

Times Now went a step further ahead and claimed, “She weighed in on the controversy surrounding Muslim girls wearing Hijab in schools and colleges that the Karnataka High Court ruled was a violation of institutional discipline which is above personal choice.”

Screengrab of the news report by Times Now

Karnataka Hijab row and the test of essentiality in religion

The Karnataka Hijab row started out in January this year at a Pre-University College in Udupi where a group of 6 Muslim girls insisted that they be allowed to take classes in their hijab.

Given that uniforms were in existence at the said PU college since 1985, the school administration refused to relent to their religious diktat. Thereafter, the girls refused to enter classrooms and began holding protests within the premises of the college.

With the backing of Islamist outfits such as PFI and Campus Front of India, the ‘hijab movement’ spread to other schools and colleges in Karnataka. Leftist propaganda media outlets hopped on the bandwagon of ‘Islamophobia’ to defame India at an international level.

They cast aspersions about a ‘blanket ban on hijab in India’ whereas the dispute was only limited to the wearing of religious attire (hijab) in secular educational institutions. The hijab row witnessed the mobilization of Islamists and counter-protests by Hindu students, demanding the concept of uniformity in schools.

When the matter reached the Karnataka High Court, it ruled that Hijab is not an essential practice in Islam and that uniform is a reasonable restriction on the ‘Right to Religion.’

In a typical move for the news channel, NDTV tried to use Nikhat Zareen’s general opinion, about women’s liberty to wear clothes of their choice, to legitimize the demands of Muslim students to wear hijab in schools even though Court has already settled the issue with their ruling.

Rahul Gandhi meets Jeremy Corbyn in London, the anti-India, anti-semitic, terror sympathising former leader of the British Labour party

OpIndia Staff
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Rahul Gandhi meets Jeremy Corbyn in London, the anti-India, anti-semitic, terror sympathising former leader of the British Labour party

Congress scion Rahul Gandhi is currently on a visit to England where he is attending an event at Cambridge University to discuss the future of India after 75 years of independence. From dismissing India’s existence as a nation to seeking western intervention in domestic Indian issues, Rahul is busy making one anti-India statement after another during this event. Continuing in the same anti-India spirit, Rahul Gandhi even met Jeremy Corbyn, the anti-India and pro-Pakistan anti-semite, who used to head the Labour Party in Britain.

Accompanied by Indian Overseas Congress President Sam Pitroda, Rahul Gandhi was pictured with the former Labour leader who led his party to 2 defeats in national elections, just like Rahul Gandhi.

So who is this Jeremy Corbyn and why his meeting with Rahul Gandhi is especially troubling for Indians. We take a look at his past record of Corbyn to understand why anyone trying to win an election in India should not even come close to him.

Attempts to interfere in the Indian territory of Jammu & Kashmir

Corbyn has always supported Kashmiri separatists and perpetuated Pakistan’s rhetoric on the subject of Kashmir. During his time as the head of the Labour Party, his party’s MPs tried to interfere in the Kashmir issue several times, repeating Pakistan’s talking points. The Labour Party even passed a resolution asking for international intervention in Kashmir and a call for a UN-led referendum during Corbyn’s tenure.

Corbyn himself directly tried to interfere in Kashmir through the Congress party when he met their representatives to discuss the issue of Kashmir, though neither Corbyn nor Congress was in power at that time.

After the meeting created a furore in India over Congress meeting a pro-Pakistan propagandist, Congress tried to backtrack by saying they met the Labour party leader only to condemn the resolution passed by them on the Indian territory of Jammu & Kashmir.

Not only that, Labour MP Liam Byrne was at the forefront of a March led by Pakistani mobs that vandalized the Indian High Commission in London. Byrne had previously vigorously supported the Pakistani stand on Kashmir, owing to his largely Muslim constituency.

Jeremy Corbyn: The terror sympathiser

Jeremy Corbyn has a long and chequered history of supporting terrorists and extremists everywhere. Whether they were from Ireland or Kashmir, Lebanon or Gaza, Corbyn has always found a soft spot for them.

In the past, Corbyn has referred to Hamas and Hezbollah, radical Islamic terrorists, as ‘friends’, a statement which he later said he regretted but vowed that he would not stop talking with them. In return, Corbyn received a ringing endorsement and a “salute” from Hamas. “We have received with great respect and appreciation the solidarity message sent by the British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn to the participants in the mass rally,” Hamas said in a statement.

Corbyn has also publicly backed the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in the past which committed a series of acts of terrorism in its pursuit of freeing Ireland from Britain. Corbyn was the general secretary of the editorial board of the far-left journal Labour Briefing that supported IRA violence and explicitly backed the Brighton Hotel Bombing, which killed 5 people and maimed 31 others.

In 2015, on BBC Radio Ulster, Corbyn refused five times to specifically condemn IRA violence and terrorism. He chose to hang up rather than answering the question. According to Leo McKinstry, a British historian and a journalist, writing for The Telegraph, Corbyn “is the man who sympathised with violent Irish Republicanism in the 1980s, invited IRA representatives to the Commons a fortnight after the Brighton bombing in 1984 and, at a Troops Out meeting in 1987, stood for a minute’s silence to “honour” eight IRA terrorists killed in a SAS ambush.”

Allegations of antisemitism against Corbyn

During Corbyn’s time as the leader of the Labour Party, there were widespread claims of antisemitism within the party. The blatant antisemitism left many Labour supporters disenchanted with the direction in which the party was heading under Corbyn. The human rights watchdog in the UK found Labour responsible for “unlawful” harassment and discrimination during Corbyn’s four-and-a-half years as the leader. Corbyn was eventually suspended from his party after the damning report when he refused to accept the scale of antisemitism on his watch and called the claims ‘overstated’.

Other ‘misdemeanours’

As per details shared by Jeremy Corbyn’s friends, he used to show off his then-girlfriend, and now British MP, Diane Abbott while she was naked in his bed to impress his Left-wing activist friends following the breakdown of his first marriage.

Jeremy Corbyn also received payments up to £20,000 (about $27,000) for appearances on the Iranian state broadcast network Press TV, a channel that participated in the filming of the tortured-forced confession of Iranian journalist Maziar Bahari. He appeared on the channel five times between 2009-12.

Corbyn has also lent his support to Raed Salah, a rabid Islamist with a morbid hatred for Jews. Salah once spread the ‘Blood Libel’ against Jews, the antisemitic slur that Jews use the blood of gentile children to make their bread. Not merely that, he was charged with inciting racial hatred and violence and claimed that Jews were behind 9/11. On several different occasions, Corbyn said of him: ‘Salah is a very honoured citizen’, ‘Salah’s is a voice that must be heard’, ‘Salah is far from a dangerous man, and ‘I look forward to giving you tea on the terrace because you deserve it!’.

Thus, we have the Congress scion Rahul Gandhi, meeting with a dangerous UK politician who has a history of supporting terrorists and extremists, has always backed Pakistan’s rhetoric on Kashmir, and even tried to interfere in Kashmir earlier. A politician whose antisemitism got too much even for his own party which he was leading and they had to suspend him. A politician who calls some of the most dreaded terrorists in the world his friends.

India beats China to become the world’s third strongest air force in the Global Air Powers Ranking for 2022

OpIndia Staff
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India beats China to become the world’s third strongest air force in the Global Air Powers Ranking for 2022

According to the Global Air Powers Ranking of 2022 by the World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft (WDMMA), the Indian Air Force has emerged as the third strongest Air Force in the world after America and Russia. The Indian Air Force has not only overtaken the Chinese Air Force but also the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, the Israeli Air Force, and the French Air and Space Force in terms of strength, as per the report.

Indian Air Force
WDMMA ranking (Source: eurasiantimes.com)

Presently, the WDMMA tracks 98 countries, covering 124 air services and following a total of 47,840 aircraft. It assesses modern military aviation services around the world based on a variety of parameters and gives a complete report summarising their current strengths and inherent limitations. It gives users a visual, distinctive, and analytical look into a major feature of modern warfare and control of the skies through an in-depth resource.

The formula generates the ‘TrueValueRating’ (TvR), which helps WDMMA separate powers based on their overall strength and elements like modernization, calculating help, assault, and guard abilities.

The tactical air force of a country is broken down in this approach not just by the number of planes it has, but also by the quality and diversity of its stock.

The highest attainable TvR score is 242.9 held by the United States Air Force (USAF) followed by Russia, whose TvR score stands at 114.2, followed by the Indian Air Force with a TvR score of 69.4.

According to the report, the Indian Air Force (IAF) now has 1,645 active aircraft in its inventory. OpIndia had in 2018, detailed the evolution of India’s air power in global times. We reported how the future procurement of Dassault Rafale, one of the most lethal fourth-generation aircraft and the addition of Super Sukhois-the updated version of the Sukhoi-30 MKI, LCA Tejas and India’s decision to develop a fifth-generation medium multirole combat aircraft (AMCA), Indian Airforce will be one of the destructive airforces in the world, arguably after the United States and Russia.

Nigeria: Muslim mob burns shops and houses in anger after it fails to locate another Christian woman to lynch over blasphemy allegations

OpIndia Staff
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Nigeria: Muslim mob burns shops and houses in anger after it fails to locate another Christian woman to lynch over blasphemy allegations

On Monday, an enraged Islamist mob went on a rampage and set fire to over a dozen commercial and residential properties after they failed to nab a 40-year-old Christian lady whom they wanted to lynch over the charges of alleged blasphemy.

The incident was reported from a town in Warji, Bauchi where the violent mob was upset over a message that was posted by the Christian lady on social media. The message was deemed offensive to Islam and was declared as an act of ‘blasphemy’.

Last week, a staffer of the Medical Department of Warji council area named Rhoda Jatau used Whatsapp social media to post a video message that was allegedly critical of Islam. The video message that reportedly originated from Ghana was allegedly forwarded by Jatau in a 20 membered group, out of which 15 were Muslims. She was threatened by several Islamists to take down the video. Also, the deputy director of the Medical Department of Warji was forced to interfere in the matter.

Upon getting wind of the impending danger, the neighbours of the female medical worker made safety arrangements for her. Reports mention that the rampaging Muslims in the area created a ruckus and protested by blazing six houses, and seven shops and leaving several people injured after they could not nab Jatau. The police said the incident happened at about 5:45 pm on Friday, May 20. The authorities have since then deployed all tactical teams, mobile police force, and Rapid Response Squad (RRS) whose joint efforts brought the situation under control.

Blasphemy allegations and mob lynching in Islamic countries

As reported earlier, any sort of criticism of Islam draws a fierce pushback from Muslims around the world. In a similar case 10 days ago in Nigeria’s Sokoto, a Christian student named Deborah Samuel was beaten to death by an Islamic mob over an allegation of blasphemy. As per reports, the violent mob, comprised of Deborah’s fellow students in a WhatsApp group, was upset over some of her comments and had declared her a blasphemer.

In videos of the brutal mob lynching and burning that went viral, Deborah’s killers could be seen shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’, showing off the matchbox with which they burned her battered corpse and rejoicing in the violent deed. The Sokoto administration in Nigeria imposed a curfew in the northwestern Nigerian city after hundreds of protesters came out on the streets and demanded the release of culprits who had been arrested after the Christian student was brutally murdered over allegations of ‘blasphemy’.

Also in the year 2020, a Nigerian singer named Yahaya Sharif-Aminu was sentenced death penalty by the upper Sharia court in the Hausawa Filin Hockey area of Nigeria for blaspheming against the Prophet Muhammad. He was guilty of committing blasphemy for a song he circulated via WhatsApp in March. According to the reports, the singer had gone into hiding after he composed the song. Protesters had burnt down his family home and gathered outside the headquarters of the Islamic police, known as the Hisbah, demanding action against him.

On April 28, 2020, an activist named Mubarak Bala had posted a message on Facebook that was considered to be critical to Prophet Mohammed and Islam. The post reportedly caused outrage among Muslims in many parts of Northern Nigeria. Bala, the president of the Humanist Association of Nigeria then was arrested at his home in Kaduna State.

Blasphemy has even more severe roots spread in the country of Pakistan. In February 2022, a court in Pakistan sentenced Notan Lal, a Hindu teacher, to life imprisonment on the charges of blasphemy. Lal, owner, and principal of a private school was accused of ‘insulting’ Prophet Muhammad during an Urdu class as accused by a student named Muhammad Ihtisham who later said he had lied.

Earlier in 2021, a Sri Lankan man named Priyantha Kumara was burnt alive by a murderous mob in Pakistan’s Sialkot on allegations of blasphemy. Disturbing visuals of Kumara’s body burning even as the mob gathered around to take selfies and videos with the burning man had gone viral on social media. Prior to that, an American citizen named Tahir Ahmed was killed inside a courtroom in Pakistan. The murderer was then hailed as ‘Ghazi’ and a hero by the Muslim community of Pakistan.

‘Don’t you think your idea of India is flawed and destructive?”: Cambridge scholar questions Rahul Gandhi on his “India is a union of states” remark

OpIndia Staff
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‘Don’t you think your idea of India is flawed and destructive?”: Cambridge scholar questions Rahul Gandhi on his “India is a union of states” remark

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was caught flat-footed during his recent interaction with Cambridge students when one of the attendees questioned him over his repeated assertion that “India is not a nation but a union of states.”

Siddharth Verma, a Civil Servant with the IRTS Association and a scholar in public policy at Cambridge, accosted Rahul Gandhi over his constant refrain that India is not a nation but a union of states.

“You quoted Article 1 of the Constitution saying India, i.e Bharat, is a Union of States. If you turn the page back and read the preamble, it does mention India as a nation. Bharat itself is one of the oldest surviving civilisations in the world. And the term finds its origins in Vedas…even Chanakya described India as a nation to his students while teaching at Takshashila,” Verma said.

In a bid to counter Verma, Rahul pointedly asked if Chanakya had used the word “nation” while describing the idea of India to his students. To this, Verma responded saying Chanakya used the term “Rashtra”, a Sanskrit word for “nation” to characterise India. However, Rahul dug his heels in, insisting that “Rashtra” meant “Kingdom” and not “nation”.

“The term nation is a western concept,” said Gandhi, seemingly attempting to vindicate himself and prove that the concept of nation-states originated in the west and that India was just a union of states.

However, Verma countered him saying, “So when I talk about nation, I don’t just talk about political entities because we have had these experiments across the world. You had USSR, you had Yugoslavia, you had the United Arab Republic. So unless nations have a strong socio-cultural and emotional bonding and a composite culture, a Constitution cannot make a nation. Nations make constitutions,” Verma declaimed.

“My question to you is that, as a political leader, don’t you think your idea of India is not only flawed and incorrect but also destructive as it attempts to whitewash a history of thousands of years,” Verma asked.

Rahul Gandhi continues to question India’s national identity

For some time now, Rahul Gandhi has been constantly questioning the very idea of India. In February 2022, Rahul Gandhi said in the Indian parliament that India was just a “union of states” and not a nation.

“India is described in the Indian Constitution as a union of states and not a nation. One cannot rule over the people of a state in India. Different languages and cultures cannot be suppressed. It is a partnership, not a kingdom,” claimed Rahul Gandhi, who launched a tirade against the Modi government.

In his speech, Rahul Gandhi insisted that the power arrangement between the states and the centre is a “negotiation” and insinuated that India did not have a single national identity, instead, the idea of India rose from an agreement or a negotiation between the provincial units. The Gandhi-scion also brought the reference of Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, imagining them to be distinct entities and asserted that the ruling dispensation treated these constitutional units as its kingdom.

Since then, the Gandhi scion has been steadfast in his attempt to dismiss India’s national identity, routinely asserting that India is just a union of states and not a nation and peddling the left-liberal narrative of India’s non-existence as a nation before 1947.

The tale of two conclaves over the weekend: Ideas for India and India Ideas

S. Sudhir Kumar
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The tale of two conclaves over the weekend: Ideas for India and India Ideas

Towards dinner time on Friday, 20th of May, social media was abuzz with video clippings of Rahul Gandhi’s now-familiar ramblings. He was repeating these while speaking at an “Ideas for India” conclave in London. At around the same time on Friday, nearly 400 delegates had just finished listening to a few scintillating presentations at the “India Ideas Conclave” in Bengaluru. 

The “India Ideas Conclave” did not just stop there. It continued on Saturday 21st of May and Sunday 22nd of May. And after each presentation/discussion/session that was held on a variety of topics, I couldn’t help but continuously think about the stark contrast between the two conclaves – The “India Ideas Conclave” happening in India and the “Ideas for India Conclave” that happened in London. 

The theme for the 7th India Ideas Conclave was “India 2.0 – Rebooting to Meta Era”. While Rahul Gandhi was busy plotting against his own nation (or “Union of States”) in London, a serious conclave was going on in Bengaluru on immense potential India has and what we all need to do to tap this and become a much greater nation. The conclave was spread across 3 days, with an illustrious list of speakers sharing their detailed thoughts on a varied set of fields – economy, industry, science, religion, politics, commerce, connectivity, history, spirituality – in which India has to focus to leapfrog into the Meta Era. 

We heard India’s Communications minister on a 20-year outlay to make India a preferred destination for semiconductor fabrication; how exactly we are invested in building full end to end stacks for 4G and 5G solutions; and to be on the forefront to create Ips for 6G! While on the topic of connectivity, India’s Civil Aviation minister, in another session, explained in great detail the pace with which airports are being enabled in our country. Another Cabinet minister, Hardeep Singh Puri spoke about how India is working very fast on energy efficiency towards achieving many of its goals (and in some cases, even beating the goals!). 

If you are thinking that this session was all about ministers and bureaucrats outlining government programs, then you are heavily mistaken. Some of the best discussions and presentations were in sessions such as Technology 2.0; Commerce and Industry 2.0; and Economics 2.0. Leaders from various leading companies in the countries such as TCS, Infosys, Facebook, BioCON, General Atomic Global etc gave us fascinating presentations laced with data on how they are all working towards leapfrogging India into the Meta Era. In fact, the company Meta (earlier called Facebook) literally demonstrated to the audience the “Meta” experience taking the audience by surprise! One of the keys to achieving everything that the leaders of the industry were outlining is to capacity building of our population. We heard from Hemang Jani, who is the secretary of the Capacity Building Commission, outline many great specifics on how we are building this capacity (with a focus on training, potential, teaching and the challenges associated with them). 

Climate Change is very intrinsic to the growth of our economy, and it was fascinating how these two topics were linked and explained to the audience. We heard from Jayant Sinha, first on the challenges of climate change and the great rapid strides India is making in enabling climate change. We had the commerce secretary also explain to us how aspects of climate change are the biggest challenge for us to leap into the 2.0 era. 

If you are now thinking that the conclave was all about Economy and Industry, you are again mistaken! I thought the “Politics 2.0” discussion will be about Modi, Rahul etc. However, I was pleasantly surprised when most of the panellists were delving into details on how the next era of politics should evolve into effectively using technology better and being more connected to people. The session on “Media 2.0” was not a ranting session on how biased today’s media is but was totally focused on how various social media platforms can be used for better education; meaningful discussions; encouraging different narratives and so on. The session on “The future of social activism” was not a ranting session on how screwed up we are but focused on what we can do to further the cause of various social issues. 

There was a poignant session by Vijay Kumar of the India Pride Project. His presentation showed us how our gods end up being smuggled and sold, and the relentless efforts they have done to bring back these back home. And when he showed to us pictures of how villages welcomed back their idols, the room simply erupted with Joy. 

I am sure I missed talking about many more speakers and topics that they spoke about. I am sure I missed mentioning the achievers in the audience themselves. Each of these sessions deserves a separate article – Not a single presentation was based on rhetoric or bordered on the peripheral.  Experts gave detailed presentations on what is being planned; how it is being implemented; and how we can overcome challenges to achieve greater heights for the nation. 

Rahul Gandhi’s repeated assertions that India is not a nation but a “negotiated peace of Union of States”; that India is just a spark away from blowing up (from the kerosene he is trying to pour!); that it is concerning for him that Indian officers are representing the Indian voice instead of foreigners voice (He got schooled by Dr. Jai Shankar and how!) ; that India is just doomed for the times to come – are all simply ramblings of a mind that is totally out of tune with an aspiring and a young nation. That he was accompanied by luminaries like Sitaram Yechury who represent the most outdated philosophy (the Communist philosophy!) in the world only reflects the paucity of ideas and friends he has. 

While the “Ideas for India Conclave” gave a platform to known doomsayers from India to spew their venom on foreign land, the “India Ideas Conclave” gave a platform for 100s of minds from across the country to ideate; implement and inspire. 

The India Ideas Conclave heavily focused on the challenges, solutions and outcomes for an aspiring and a young India. The Ideas for India Conclave refused to even accept that a young India has aspirations in the first place! During the same weekend, it was therefore no surprise that we had to wonder about the stark contrast between the futuristic India Ideas Conclave and the ramblings at the Ideas for India conclave.

Muslim boy chants for death of Hindus at PFI rally: From Khilafat to ISIS, how Kerala has evolved as the fountainhead of Islamism in India

Suyash
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Muslim boy chants for death of Hindus at PFI rally: From Khilafat to ISIS, how Kerala has evolved as the fountainhead of Islamism in India

Over a century back, in 1921, local Muslims from Malabar in present-day Kerala rose in ‘rebellion’ to support the Caliphate in Turkey under the Khilafat movement. Mohandas Gandhi, the new firebrand leader in the Congress thought of them as ‘Nationalist Muslims’ fighting against the British Empire. He rallied for their legitimacy and the Khilafat Movement spread among Muslims all over the country.

While Gandhi thought that universal Islam could be an answer to British Colonialism, what conspired in Kerala was a brutal genocide of Hindus in the Malabar region. Fanned by Islamism, radical extremists who had taken up the cause of reinstating the Caliphate in Turkey, massacred their godless ‘Kafir’ brethren in the thousands. According to British records, over 10,000 Hindus were murdered by radical Moplah Muslims in the massacre that started in 1921. Even though the event has been whitewashed in Indian history books, it worked as the firm foundation of radical Islam in Kerala in modern history.

The Khilafat Movement – beyond its much-contested contributions to the Indian Freedom struggle, saw disintegrated Islamic Imperialism paving way for the radicalization of the masses through religious fundamentalism. The latter was the ideological successor of the former. The pattern had ground to become a paradigm in Kerala during the crumbling economy of the state due to the advent of Communism.

The stunted economic growth of Kerala with successive Communist Governments invariably affected the rate of unemployment in the state. This forced many in Kerala, including a large number of Muslims to move to the Gulf and middle-eastern countries in search of employment. In the Arabic countries, the Muslim diaspora from Kerala became vulnerable to the practices of Wahabi Islam – a puritanical interpretation of Islamic practices purging influence on the religion from other folds.

Wahabi Islam came to Kerala with the Muslim ex-pats and gradually cemented its ideological base in the political realm. This happened due to the increased economic influence of Keralites who came back home with wielded economic conditions. Today, funds aimed at redefining Islam according to Wahabi principles are released in Kerala from institutions in the Gulf.

Saudi Arabia has pledged 2.5 million Saudi Riyal (SR) to Islamic Mission Trust, Mallapuram in Kerala, which was registered with the MHA, ostensibly for constructing an arts and science college building. funding from the Gulf is immense – with India receiving Rs. 1,700 Crore funds from Saudi Arabia in 2015. Lately, Senior Malayalam journalist MP Basheer has revealed radical Islamic organisations such as the Popular Front of India and Jamaat-e-Islami were being given huge funds to promote Islamism in India.

As revealed by Bashir in the backdrop of the Hijab controversy in Karnataka, Jamaat-e-Islami requested the King Abdul Aziz University in Saudi Arabia to increase the financial grant to the radical Islamic organisations to promote the Islamic dress code in Kerala and India. The organisation also had funds from an Islamic university in Jeddah for the same. A convenient economic route for harbouring Islamism in India comes via Kerala, which has developed as a new epicentre of religious extremism in the country.

The Popular Front of India, which has its roots in Kerala is leading a wave of radicalisation in the country and is already touted as the resurrection of the banned outfit Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). Formed in UP’s Aligarh in 1977, SIMI was run by fundamentalist and extremist students, who worked on the ideas of establishing Sharia and governing the country based on the Quran and thus carrying out “Jihad” for the cause of Islam. 

In 2006 with an active base in the southern states, the PFI was instituted and its political outfit SDPI (Social Democratic Party of India) which came into the picture later, has been involved in several political killings and religious conversions, apart from radicalizing students. With resources in place, the PFI, SDPI and Jamaat-e-Islami are slowly executing their goal in promoting radical Islam with Kerala as their base.

According to the NIA, PFI has also been involved in influencing and mobilizing the youth to join ISIS and wage war in Afghanistan and the middle east for the Islamist cause. Kerala has a very high recruitment rate to ISIS as compared to other states in the country, with many having backgrounds in Science and engineering. In strategic information warfare, Islamic organizations spread their propaganda in local languages including Malayalam with a motive to attract new people to Jihad.

In September 2021, the NIA apprehended several persons in Kerala over terror-related charges with suspicions of the existence of Islamic State sleeper cells operating in the state. The agency has arrested two women, Mizha Siddeeque and Shifa Harris from Kannur for having connections with ISIS terrorist Mohammed Ameen and spreading ISIS terrorism using social media platforms. Ameen hails from Kerala’s Malappuram and visited Kashmir to spread terrorism with direct links of funding to ISIS.

Recently, a video of a PFI demonstration from Alappuzha, Kerala went viral in which a young boy was seen shouting, “Be ready for your death rituals if you won’t live in our land quietly. Be ready with rice flakes to fill your mouth, if you won’t live quietly (For Hindus). Be ready to burn amber in your home if you won’t live quietly (For Christians). Because we are coming, we are your death.” Joined by a thousand other PFI members who were cheering the chants, the boy went on to say, “We won’t go to Pakistan or Bangladesh, you have to live here as we say, or else we know how to make you live quietly, we will kill you even if we are attacked. We take pride in being a martyr, we salute them. If you won’t live quietly, we know how to ask for Azadi.”

From giving threats over Babri Masjid to characterising Hindus as ‘Sanghis’, the recent rally of PFI paints a grim picture of dystopian realities in Kerala. The video prompted us to get into the history and look at the Hinduphobic and anti-Christian chants in the context of the much-seeped Islamic fundamentalism among the masses in the state. The undercurrents have opened the floodgates now, and Islamic radical elements are unapologetic like never before. The dire attempts of turning Kerala into a hotbed of fanatic Islamism thus cannot go unchecked.

AAP minister sacked for taking bribes in ‘corruption-free Punjab’, Arvind Kejriwal gets teary-eyed with pride

OpIndia Staff
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AAP minister sacked for taking bribes in ‘corruption-free Punjab’, Arvind Kejriwal gets teary-eyed with pride

A senior minister in the newly elected Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab, Dr. Vijay Singla, has been sacked from his post and subsequently arrested after concrete proofs of corruption against him emerged. Dr. Singla, who was the health minister in the Bhagwant Mann cabinet is an MLA from Mansa, and is a dentist by profession.

As health minister, Dr Singla was apparently taking 1% commission in all tenders floated by the health & family welfare department. Having been elected just over 2 months back, a senior minister already getting caught taking kickbacks in every tender has come as a serious blow to the Bhagwant Mann-led government.

In a video message announcing the development, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said, “I am taking strict action against the minister. I am removing him from the Cabinet. We have found substantial proof of his involvement in a corruption case. I do not care if the opposition parties want to use this to hit out at us, saying a minister was removed on corruption charges within two months. The point is that we will not tolerate anyone indulging in such malpractices. Our party’s national convenor has made it clear that corruption will not be tolerated. He had himself removed a minister in Delhi in 2015 after corruption charges were leveled against the minister.”

The AAP MLA was subsequently arrested by the Anti-Corruption Bureau of Punjab Police for taking a commission on all tenders. Notably, Dr. Singla got the highest number of votes during the recently concluded assembly elections in Punjab and was the first minister from Mansa in the state after over 3 decades.

Following his arrest, CM Bhagwant Mann tweeted that they will not tolerate any corruption from anyone, whether it is one of their own or someone else.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal got teary-eyed with pride after hearing this news. Arvind Kejriwal, who had visited several states after the Punjab elections claiming that corruption has ended in Punjab after 10 days of AAP government, couldn’t stop his tears after hearing about the action taken by Bhagwant Mann about corrupt minister and leader of his own party.

The Delhi CM also said that the whole nation will be proud of AAP after the sacking and arrest of a corrupt AAP minister.

Young Muslim children are being taught ‘how to kill Hindus’: How radicalisation, hate and bigotry is ruining another generation

Anurag
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Young Muslim children are being taught ‘how to kill Hindus’: How radicalisation, hate and bigotry is ruining another generation

Recently, Kerala Police started a probe after a video of a child from Kerala went viral in which he was raising anti-Hindu and anti-Christian slogans, warning that Muslims are coming to kill them all. The video was from a march by the Popular Front of India (PFI).

In the video, the PFI members and the child could be heard saying, “Be ready for your death rituals if you won’t live in our land quietly. Be ready with rice flakes to fill your mouth if you won’t live quietly (For Hindus). Be ready to burn amber in your home if you won’t live quietly (For Christians). Because we are coming, we are your death. We won’t go to Pakistan or Bangladesh, you have to live here as we say, or else we know how to make you live quietly, we will kill you even if we are attacked. We take pride in being a martyr, we salute them. If you won’t live quietly, we know how to ask for ‘Azadi’. Be prepared for your death.”

It was not a random rant by a child. It was a song, a hateful verse that has been taught to the kid which he then sings and waits for people to join him in the sloganeering. The crowd around the kid seems familiar with the song because they know when to chant the appropriate slogans.

Radicalization of Muslim children and anti-Hindu propaganda

The video from Kerala shows how children of the Muslim community are being radicalized against Hindus and other communities. This is not the first incident where such videos filled with hate and propaganda have surfaced on social media.

In April 2022, an Instagram Live went viral on social media in which an Influencer Sabnam and her friend Nadeem spewed venom against Hindus. Nadeem said, “I have seen three Hindus being killed in front of my eyes. They die daily in our area. They should be killed openly. A few days ago, a cow was being killed. A Hindu approached and raised an objection. I told him to call Police and administration. They would not do anything.” While he was abusing Hindus and openly called to kill them, Sabnam kept giggling.

Nadeem challenged everyone and said, “If anyone wants to report me, go ahead. If I had an AK 47, I would have identified and killed them one by one. Hindus should be raped. I will do it. I have raped three Hindu women.” He kept using vile, absolutely filthy abuses for Hindus throughout the clip. Nadeem was later arrested by Assam Police.

In February 2021, a 2-minute video apparently from Pakistan went viral on social media where children were shown playing with wooden swords. When the person who was recording the video asked them what would they do with the swords, they replied, “Behead kafirs”. He further asked what would they get if they beheaded kafirs, and they replied, “Jannat (heaven)”.

In May 2020, many netizens shared videos from a TikTok (banned Chinese short video app) trend where Muslim boys act on lyrics of a song praising Haider, a Muslim warrior, for killing thousands of Hindus, referred to as ‘Kafir’. The lyrics say, “Ilaka Hil Raha Tha Vehdat Ke Naaron Se, Zara Si Der Mein Maidan Bhara Tha Kafir Ki Lashon Se, Jab Chali Haider Ki Talwar”.

In June 2019, another TikTok video went viral in which a Muslim boy said, “Abe Kafiron hamara Islam nahi sikhata kisi begunah ko saza dena, varna humse achcha Zibah karna kisko maloom. (Listen Kafirs, our Islam does not teach us to punish non-guilty otherwise, who else knows how to slaughter better than us).

A video of a Pakistani school has surfaced multiple times where schoolgirls were seen practising the act of beheading. As per reports, Anti-France protesters in Islamabad, Pakistan, beheaded an effigy of French President Emmanuel Macron to demonstrate their anger against him for defending the right of Charlie Hebdo magazine to draw cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. The effigy was beheaded by a female teacher at a Deobandi seminary in Islamabad in front of students, many of whom were children. In the background, the infamous song ‘Gustakh Nabi Ki Ek Saza, Sar Tan Se Juda’ was playing.

Another video went viral in 2019 in which the propaganda of converting India into Pakistan was propagated using children from Pakistan. It was part of the event ‘Ab Hind Banega Pakistan’. In the video, there’s a kid who says, “Kitna mazaa aayega jab hum Delhi gate pe gaay ke kebab khaayengey (How amazing it will be when we will eat beef kebab at Delhi gate!)”. RSS features in the video as well, one kid says, “Sun lo RSS ke dehshatgardo, ab har Musalman ke shahadat ka badla lengey kyunki ab Hind Banega Pakistan! (Listen, you RSS terrorists, we will now take revenge for the martyrdom of every Muslim because now India will become Pakistan!)”.

In 2020, the Islamabad administration had given permission to the Hindu community to build a temple. What followed was a vile, hate-filled campaign in the Pakistani society against the temple. In one of the dozens of videos that had surfaced, one stood out. A father was proudly announcing his young son’s ‘warning’ to Hindus. The child, barely 5 years old, was seen telling if the Hindus manage to build a Mandir in Islamabad, he will personally kill them all.

These videos are just the tip of the iceberg. There are thousands of videos on different social media platforms that propagate hate against Hindus and other communities.

Jammu & Kashmir: Sheikh Abdullah’s image on police gallantry medals to be replaced with the National Emblem

OpIndia Staff
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Jammu & Kashmir: Sheikh Abdullah’s image on police gallantry medals to be replaced with the National Emblem

The Jammu and Kashmir administration declared on Monday, in an official order, that the picture of National Conference founder and former chief minister of Kashmir Sheikh Abdullah will no longer be carried on the Jammu & Kashmir Police medals for bravery and distinguished service. Sheikh Abdullah’s image on the medals will now be replaced with the National Emblem.

The order issued by the Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, Raj Kumar Goyal reads, “It is hereby ordered that in modification to Para 4 of the Jammu & Kashmir Police Medal Scheme, the ‘Sher-i-Kashmir Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’ embossed on one side of the medal shall be replaced with ‘The National Emblem of Government of India’ and the other side inscribed with the J&K State Emblem shall be inscribed as ‘Jammu and Kashmir Police Medal for Gallantry’ and ‘Jammu and Kashmir Police Medal for Meritorious Service’ in case of Gallantry/Meritorious Medal, as the case may be.”

National Conference spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar has opposed the action, calling it an act of “erasing of history.” He said, “With due respect to National Emblem, these attempts to erase our history, identity and icon show nefariousness of those running the show. People of J&K have struggled on many fronts to be where they are now. They fought oppression, autocracy. No one can change that.”

Senior BJP politician and former Deputy Chief Minister Kavinder Gupta has however backed the idea, saying that all such emblems of subordination should be abolished.

Previously, the administration had dropped Sheikh Abdullah’s title of ‘Sher-i-Kashmir’ from police medals in 2020. According to the 2020 order, the terms ‘Sher-i-Kashmir Police Medal for Gallantry’ and ‘Sher-i-Kashmir Police Medal for Meritorious Service’ are now read as ‘Jammu and Kashmir Police Medal for Gallantry’ and ‘Jammu and Kashmir Police Medal for Meritorious Service.’

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