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Ghaziabad: Habitual thieves Arif, Monis and Sameer steal mobile phones to ‘celebrate Eid’, arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Ghaziabad: Habitual thieves Arif, Monis and Sameer steal mobile phones to ‘celebrate Eid’, arrested

On May 2, Kaushambi Police and Bike Squad, Ghaziabad, arrested three youth, Aarif, Monis and Sameer for attempting to snatch mobile phones. Reports suggest they did not have enough money to celebrate Eid. The trio chose to snatch mobile phones for quick cash for the festival.

Inspector Abhay Kumar Mishra told Hindi daily Jagran they had received information that three bike-borne robbers had tried to snatch a mobile phone under the UP Gate flyover. They were seen escaping towards Kaushambi. The Kaushambi Police Station and Bike Squad came into action to apprehend the culprits.

Aarif, Monis and Sameer were caught by the Police near Wave Cinema cut. Aarif and Monis are residents of Noorani Masjid Wali Gali, Khoda, while Sameer is from Adarsh Nagar, Khoda. During questioning, Police found that they were repeat offenders and often robbed people in NCR.

They told Police that they did not have enough money for Eid, so they had decided to loot people in the area. Police recovered three knives and a bike from the trio. Mishra said they used the knives to scare the victims. The Police are checking their criminal history.

Mobile snatchers active in Ghaziabad

A similar arrest was made by Ghaziabad Police on the same day at Gagan Colony in Sahibabad, Indirapuram. Mishra said they had arrested Betaab in the case. His associate Asif was on the run. They had snatched a mobile in Indrapuram and stole a bike in Kavinagar. Both were recovered by the Police. They have 15 cases registered against them.

Jai Bhawani, Jai Shivaji: Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed gets schooled as she tried to dogwhistle about PM Modi’s Germany visit

OpIndia Staff
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Jai Bhawani, Jai Shivaji: Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed gets schooled as she tried to dogwhistle about PM Modi’s Germany visit

Congress spokesperson Dr Shama Mohamed on Monday tried to dog whistle about the flag displayed by Indians in Germany while welcoming PM Modi to Brandenburg Gate.

In the video, one can see the Indian diaspora in Germany dancing traditional Maharashtrian dance steps while waving the saffron swallowtail with a V-shape flag. The ceremonial Maratha flag is Bhagwa (saffron) and has a golden jaripatta (border). Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had founded the Maratha empire and coined the term Hindavi Swarajya, the independence from the Mughal and Islamic sultanates.

Seeing the saffron flag being unfurled in Germany seemed to have set Congress leaders in panic as their spokesperson Dr Shama Mohamed questioned her followers “whose flag is that?” At a time when the foreign-funded forces are trying to create an atmosphere of “Muslims under attack in Hindu Rashtra’ on international platforms, it appeared Dr Mohamed was trying to dog whistle the usual propagandists. However, while doing so, she ended up displaying her own lack of knowledge about the proud history of India and the brave warriors.

Netizens slam Dr Shama Mohamed for dog-whistling about PM Modi’s visit to Germany over the saffron flag associated with Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

Netizens were quick to remind her of the proud history of one of India’s bravest warrior kings.

At its peak, the Maratha empire covered almost entire present-day India except for part of Kerala and northeast India.

Some shared older videos where the same flag was being waved with immense pride.

Some netizens were also quite helpful and patiently explained whose flag it was. They also said how it was laughable that a spokesperson of a national party like Congress did not know anything about India’s culture.

Congress is currently an alliance partner in the ruling dispensation of Maharashtra along with Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party.

And sometimes, a picture speaks a thousand words.

When informed that the flag represented Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Dr Shama Mohamed tried to defend herself by claiming that outside India, the country is represented by the Tricolour.

Responding to Aditya Raj Kaul who tweeted that the saffron flag is representative of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Dr Shama Mohamed tweeted, “Huge Respect for the flag representing Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj but I thought outside India we are all one & represented by the Tricolor.”

Nevertheless, the saffron flag waved in Germany is a symbol of the Hindu renaissance brought about by the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The flag served as an important catalyst to awaken the Hindu consciousness in medieval times, which ultimately led to the dominance of the Maratha Empire, stretching from Peshawar in the west to West Bengal in the east, and to Tamil Nadu in the south.

A year on, Suvendu Adhikari shares how West Bengal plunged into violence when Mamata Banerjee returned to power

OpIndia Staff
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A year on, Suvendu Adhikari shares how West Bengal plunged into violence when Mamata Banerjee returned to power

On May 2nd last year, Mamata Banerjee-led-Trinamool Congress (TMC) returned to power in West Bengal by winning 215 of the total 294 Vidhan Sabha seats. Following TMC’s thumping victory, Bengal saw an orgy of violence in the State as the main opposition party BJP’s workers were brutally targeted across the state.

More than a dozen BJP workers lost their lives in the post-poll violence that ensued in the state following the victory of the TMC party in the assembly elections. On the first anniversary of TMC’s return to power, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari shared disturbing visuals of TMC workers attacking the saffron party members to mark the occasion.

“Today marks the 1st year of unabated violence unleashed on @BJP4Bengal Karyakartas & their families as the Bidhan Sabha results were announced. Poor innocent Sanatanis across WB were targeted. Women raped & molested. Homes burnt. People killed. Lakhs fled to save themselves,” he tweeted.

Sharing one of the videos of the violence against BJP workers, he added, “WB, from this very day became a happy hunting ground of @AITCofficial criminals & goons who led violent mobs to rob the houses of voters whom they suspected to be BJP voters. Their shops were looted & properties destroyed. Bengal had been scarred & the injuries are still fresh.”

In visuals shared by Adhikari, a mob of TMC workers could be seen ambushing a BJP booth worker. They were seen dragging BJP members out and brutally thrashing them. In another video, unidentified men could be seen hurling crude bombs from atop the roofs of their houses.

Videos shared by Adhikari exposed the grim reality of the violence that followed TMC’s return to power in the State of West Bengal.

In most such incidents, the victims were BJP supporters and workers while the accused were the supporters of the ruling Trinamool Congress. 

The use of strategic violence was one of the key strategies employed by the TMC, to intimidate the opposition ground-level party workers into silence, and it seems to have worked.

In March this year, the Calcutta High Court granted police protection to 303 victims of the West Bengal post-poll violence. The decision was made after petitioner Priyanka Tibrewal informed the court that the victims were being constantly threatened by local TMC goons and that the cops were reluctant to take action against the perpetrators.

OpIndia recently reached out to some of the victims of the violence and spoke to them about their horrific experiences, which they claim were overtly sponsored by West Bengal’s state machinery. Listening to their anguish, the amount of pain these people went through, and are currently going through in West Bengal was evident.

While speaking, all of the victims attributed the entire series of violence to Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress, stating that their only fault was that they were affiliated with the Bharatiya Janata Party. Throughout the talk, they all said unambiguously that being a BJP voter is a crime in Bengal and being a BJP Party Worker is an absolute sin. It is just by offering one’s life, that one is absolved of this sin in Bengal.

As ISMC pledges to invest $3 billion in chip-making unit in Karnataka, here is how ThePrint peddled propaganda to discredit Hindu concerns

OpIndia Staff
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As ISMC pledges to invest $3 billion in chip-making unit in Karnataka, here is how ThePrint peddled propaganda to discredit Hindu concerns

In the latest development, the International semiconductor consortium ISMC has announced to invest USD 3 billion (around Rs 23,000 crore) in Karnataka to set up a semiconductor chip-making plant. This comes after Shekhar Gupta’s ThePrint published a narrative piece claiming that IT firms reaching out to ‘investment-seeking Tamil Nadu’ amid alleged communal tensions in Karnataka.

ISMC Digital Fab which was one of the three applicants for the Union Government’s USD 10 billion incentives for semiconductor manufacturing, has signed an agreement with the Karnataka government for setting up India’s first and largest semiconductor fabrication unit.

ISMC has sought 150 acres of land in Kochanahalli Industrial Area of Mysuru District to set up its base. The Karnataka Government, already back in Septemeber 2020, had announced fresh incentives to boast the production of Electronic System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) sector in the state.

With the new investment, Karnataka’s holds upto 50% electronic product companies of the national share and 40% in electronic design. It is home to more than 300 units export oriented manufacturing units and the largest chip design hub in India with over 85 fabless chip design houses. 

Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai welcoming the move said, “This MoU is a significant agreement amid the competition among various states to attract semiconductor fabs. Karnataka understands that it’s not just the fiscal incentives that matter but availability of conducive ecosystem and overall ease in operations are also important.”

The Print propaganda against investment in Karnataka

Last month, ThePrint published a report stating IT companies in Karmataka are seeking to deviate to Tamil Nadu owing to the alleged communal tensions in the state. Earlier, the state saw widespread protest by Hindu students demanding unifrom standards for college uniforms in universities across Karnataka which led to ban on Hijabs and Burqas in certain colleges. ThePrint’s premise that IT companies were seaking to leave Karnataka was built on three things – Its interview with Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan (PTR), Business tycoon Kiran Mazumdar’s tweet urging CM Bommai to resolve the supposed “growing religious divide” in the state and other reports of Tamil Nadu becoimg a sought-after investment destination in the country.

Nowhere in its report could ThePrint establish that investors in Karnataka are unhappy with the envirnoment in the state. Had it been the case that new investors being paranoid over investing in Karnataka, ISMC would not have set its USD 3 billion partnership with the state. Furthermore, when Kiran Mazumdar Shaw was caught in the controversy for calling out rightful protests by Hindu groups ‘communal’, she replied to BJP leader Amit Malviya’s tweet saying she has full confidence in the the BJP-led Bommai Government.

How ThePrint article belittles local Hindu concerns and paints them as communal

Screengrab of a paragraph from the Print article

The report starts with a claim that the state of Karnataka has become the “epicentre of a number of campaigns that are fuelling communal tension, be it the hijab row, the controversy over ‘halal’ meat, the boycott of Muslims at Karnataka temple fairs and festivals, attacks on Christians, and Hindu vigilante groups assaulting inter-faith couples.” It looks like the media house deliberatly chose legitimate concerns by Hindus who were seeking answers for unjust practices – be them forceful penetration of Halal meet to admancy over wearing Hijab instead of school uniforms to tarnish Karnataka’s image.

In April, Muslim vendors and businessmen met with National Commission for Minorities, to lodge a complaint in the midst of a social media campaign warning a Hindu ice-cream shop owner in Mangaluru to remove the Halal certification from their products within a month or face a boycott. It was found that a Hindu organisation had started a nationwide agitation against Halal meat terming it inherently discriminatory against Hindu butchers. The Hindu Janajagruti Samiti called for a boycott of halal meat as it launched a nationwide campaign demanding a ban on Halal products.

The hijab controversy in Karnataka gained momentum since the first week of January after eight Muslim girls were denied entry to classes in a Udupi college because they were wearing hijab. The Muslim girls, adamant about wearing hijab, then filed a petition in High Court seeking permission to attend classes in hijab stating that wearing the same wwas their ‘fundamental right’. In the tensions that prevailed at some educational institutions in Udupi, Shivamogga, Bagalkote, A Hindutva activist Harsha was hacked to death by Islamists amidst the row.

To rest the onus of the communal cauldron singlehandedly upon Hindus was reflected in ThePrint’s report. The irony being the report was published at a time when Hindu processions on Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanti were being attacked in the country with instances of stone pelting including violence in Karnataka’s Hubli. Communal tensions also prevailed in Mulbagal town of Kolar district in Karnataka after a Sri Ram Shobha Yatra was attacked using stones. 

With Karnataka continuing its steady rise with its attractive investment potential, it is imperative that narratives of alleged communal disharmony grappling the state should be called out. ThePrint’s report did not hold much water when it came to facts and appeared like a blurred eulogy of Tamil Nadu’s investment potential.

Muslims hold a political veto in Bengal, they decide who will rule and who will not: Swapan Dasgupta

चंदन कुमार
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Muslims hold a political veto in Bengal, they decide who will rule and who will not: Swapan Dasgupta

Exactly a year ago in West Bengal, some were celebrating their victory while many were losing the battle of life. At some places, green gulal was flying, while at other places people were bleeding red. Some were celebrating the victory, while many were being robbed of the very basic human respect.

2nd May 2021 – Many people’s lives came to a standstill on this day. These people are from a state named West Bengal, one of the largest states in India, the world’s largest democracy. This is a state where people had to flee to another state to save their lives just because they exercised their right to vote. On that day when the rulers of democracy were winning, democracy itself lost. The real flag-bearers of democracy, the people, were being trampled upon because they dared to vote against the party that won.

People below the age of 40, who didn’t have any idea about the atrocities committed during the emergency, got a glimpse of it in Bengal last year. What was done in West Bengal after 2nd May 2021 was the Emergency of 21st century India. Mamata Banerjee’s government can give a million clarifications about it, but every excess by state-sponsored goons, every murder, every loot is recorded. Mamata Banerjee will not be allowed to forget this easily no matter how loudly her party’s leaders shout.

OpIndia had a long conversation with Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta regarding Bengal politics and the Bengali society today.

Question: BJP did not do anything for the workers of Bengal or did not do as much as it should have – this allegation is made even by the fans of BJP on Twitter and Facebook. Your reaction to this.

Answer: It’s true. This violence was unexpected. Nobody expected it. There is victory and defeat in elections, but the way violence started right from the counting centers has never been seen before. To date, this has not been seen anywhere in India. The BJP workers or even the organization were not prepared for this level of violence, this allegation is absolutely true.

There have been attacks on our workers. Close to 50,000 workers had to be homeless. Close to 20 people were murdered. During all this, our organization could not help its workers in the slightest. Even after trying a lot, we have not been able to send even 5-10 thousand rupees to our workers in many places. Politically we are failing on this front, I accept that.

Question: Violence after the West Bengal assembly elections – what do you think was its political meaning or message?

Answer: The violence that started on the afternoon of May 2, 2021, had only one objective – to break the backbone of the BJP organization. BJP got 38% votes, the Majority of the Hindu vote was in favor of the BJP, which means the support of a large percentage of voters was with us. Therefore, the aim was to create such an environment using violence that in the future, support for BJP should be eliminated, and the backbone of the organization should be broken. The fear should be such that the supporters of the BJP do not come out of the house and the same thing happened.

You could see that fear in the by-elections that were held after the 2021 assembly elections in West Bengal, the municipal elections that were held. In these elections, in many places, BJP members did not even go to file nominations. You can understand this with an example. Bolpur is a small town, adjacent to Shantiniketan. In the assembly elections, the BJP had a majority in the municipal area there. Now when municipal elections were held there, none of our candidates even filed their nominations.

These are all small examples. But the reality is that in many places where BJP had won, the organization can’t even manage a booth now. The morale of BJP workers is very low. Many of them also ask what the central government is doing since we have a government at the center. But the state has to see law and order, the central government cannot do anything in this regard even if it wants. If the High Court had not taken cognizance, nothing would have happened, no action would have been taken.

BJP as an organization has had a big impact in West Bengal. But it is also true that the atmosphere of violence that was created has had a definite reaction. BJP will have to work as an organization gradually from now on. Increasing the morale of the workers will be the biggest task for BJP, their morale is broken at this time. These workers need a capable leader and political will.

Question: From the country’s capital and center of trade, from the center of literature and revolution to the current state, how do you see Bengal’s decline, how much of it is political, and how much of it is social?

Answer: This decline is political as well as social. This decline began in the 60s with the Naxalite movement and CPM politics. Whatever happened in the last 50-60 years, the effect of that is now clearly visible in front of us. The economic exodus from Bengal is evident for everyone to see. Bengal used to be the leader in industry and business earlier, back then Calcutta was like Bombay. Where have we reached now? Durga Puja, Holidays, Festivals, that is all. You can call every city of Bengal a ‘City of Festivals’ but you cannot call any city here a ‘City of Production’.

The decline of industry in Bengal will have an impact on the culture, and the creative potential of the people will be affected by this. It is not that the creative potential of the people living in Bengal is completely exhausted. But it is also true that even 50% of its potential is not utilized in such an environment. When there is an atmosphere of peace in the state, only then the development and expansion of art and culture are possible. All these good administrative points are lacking in Bengal.

What started at the political level in West Bengal in the 60s, now has impacted the entire social life here. The sad part is that if this kind of politics continues for a few more days, the rest of society will also crumble.

Question: How do you see the Hindu-Muslim equation due to the demographic change in Bengal or the hatred for Hindus in some areas?

Answer: It cannot be denied that this is happening in Bengal. 30% of the total population there are Muslims (some say 23%, some 25%, but 30% if the voting figures are to be considered). The border districts adjoining Bangladesh, such as Nadia, Dinajpur, Murshidabad, Malda, and a large part of South 24 Parganas, all have become completely Muslim dominated.

There are 2 reasons behind this: First reason is illegal infiltration from Bangladesh in the 1990s and 2000s due to the politics of the CPM. The second reason is that many Bengalis left West Bengal and migrated to other states in search of good work and good facilities. Today there are 12 lakh Bengalis in Bangalore, Delhi is also full of Bengalis. This is a small example. What is the reason for this? What is the reason that most of the Bengali Hindus have migrated from West Bengal?

Apart from these two reasons, there is also a third problem – Rohingyas. A large number of Rohingya infiltrators are also coming and settling in Bengal. Combining all this, the demography of West Bengal has changed and deteriorated to a great extent.

Why was West Bengal formed? Earlier it was United Bengal, then why did the partition happen? Think about it. In East Bengal, the population of Hindus was 30%, today we are not even 10% there. So where did this 20% Hindu population go? Most of them came to West Bengal. Why did they come? Because those people thought it was their homeland. Bengali Hindus should get land to live in, this was the reason why Shyama Prasad Mukherjee demanded the partition of Bengal. West Bengal was created on the basis of this thinking, but alas, this original idea of ​​’West Bengal, the home of Bengali Hindus’ is getting destroyed today. This is happening only because of the demographic change. How big a problem is a demographic change, can be understood from Assam. In the 80-and 90s, there was such a big movement about it there.

If we look at the political aspect of the demographic change in West Bengal, today there is a political veto of the Muslim community. This means that it is the Muslim community that decides who will rule, and how. This also means that Mamata Banerjee may be ruling, there may be 10 more Bengali Hindu ministers, but the one who will be driving them from the backroom will be the Muslim community. Understand this with a small example, in Kolkata, you can see Muslim boys riding bikes without helmets, but the police do not stop them. This politics has created a similar environment in the entire West Bengal.

Question: You yourself have been associated with the media. In such a situation, what should be the government’s initiatives regarding reduced coverage of crimes like rapes and murders? The Additional Solicitor General of the Calcutta High Court even asked the Times of India to apologize for its coverage of the Bengal violence. Your response to these media houses/journalists.

Answer: The media in Bengal today is not free media, even though there is no gun trained on the media there. These people do not hide the truth or news because of the fear of guns, but they hide it because of money. The government gives money to media houses, and according to the government, the news is reported. This practice has far-reaching consequences. Suppose a historian is collecting information about Bengal violence in the future, what will he find? When he looks at the current news and newspapers, he will think ‘nothing major happened, some minor incidents happened.’

Today in the Bengal media you will find that there is a competition over Mamata Banerjee, who is publishing her photo on the front page the most. Look at another example, it was decided by the center government to install the statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in front of India Gate. This is a big deal for the sentiment of Bengalis. But forget the front page of the biggest English newspaper of West Bengal, this news did not find a place even on the 10th page of the paper. This is because it was the decision of the Modi government. This is the state of the Bengali media. There is no free media, in fact, it is not even the media, they are just typists for the state government.

Question: This question is related to the media, truth, history, writing etc. When the liberal lobby attacked Vikram Sampath, you wrote an article in The Times of India. When the history of Bengal violence will be written, will the nationalist army of historians be ready by then or will they continue to bear the onslaught of the woke people because they are fewer in number?

Answer: The nationalists have progressed a lot today if we look through the political lens. It is true, however, that the intellectual consciousness or influence inspired by nationalist thinking is still lacking. This is a matter of concern and we should think about why this happened? Even today the Liberal/Left/woke etc. have control over the so-called intellectual institutions. In such a situation, it becomes our duty to recognize our shortcomings and prepare our people.

Why did the Liberals attack Vikram Sampath? It happened because he wrote such a history from a nationalist angle which cannot be denied. The liberals/leftists thought what will a nationalist, right-wing writer write, but Vikram Sampath wrote such a unique account that it could not be dismissed. If it had been written poorly, surely he would not have been paid so much attention and the left would have ridiculed it.

This is the mindset of the Liberals/Left regarding nationalist thinking and the people associated with it. Vikram Sampath stumped them when he wrote this brilliantly refined book that was irrefutable, so he was attacked by these so-called intellectuals (liberals/leftists).

We should learn from this episode. If we really want to hurt the strongest of the Liberals/Leftists, we have to strengthen ourselves intellectually and control our so-called intellectual institutions.

Question: You talked about the reaction to the politics of violence and the atmosphere arising out of it in West Bengal. The people of Bengal want to change, this was said by a representative of the RSS. As a BJP leader or a Member of the Parliament, what will be the roadmap for this change, how will BJP come to power?

Answer: First of all you should know that BJP is a new party in Bengal. You can see the journey of the BJP across India since the days of Jan Sangh. But in Bengal, it cannot be called even 3-4 years old party. In the true sense, the impact that a party should have, the leadership that should be seen, BJP in Bengal has not yet reached that level. We have to create leadership in Bengal.

In the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, the BJP got overwhelming support in rural areas. But in urban areas, which Bengalis call Bhadralok, this support was lacking, absolutely zero. Kolkata and the surrounding areas, such as Kolkata, Howrah etc, there are 109 seats, which is called the old Presidency Division. Here BJP could get only 1-2 seats. This means that our impact on the so-called intelligentsia or on people who are opinion makers is negligible. Overall, BJP has not been able to take influential Bengalis under its influence.

This is a big project for BJP in West Bengal. Talking about the organizational level, we have a lot of support among people like OBC Bengalis, SC-ST etc but it is absent in urban areas. Muslims in West Bengal start with a 30% voting veto, so BJP will have to take everyone else along. Therefore, the project to connect the urban areas of Bengal, the influential Bengali, so-called intelligentsia, is of paramount importance to the BJP.

Imran Khan and his wife face shame for retaining, selling expensive gifts that belonged in Toshakhana: PM Modi had been auctioning his gifts for good causes

Dibakar Dutta
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Imran Khan and his wife face shame for retaining, selling expensive gifts that belonged in Toshakhana: PM Modi had been auctioning his gifts for good causes

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been mired in controversies ever since he was ’selected’ to the highest office of the land in Pakistan. The controversies surrounding him only intensified after his removal from office in a no-confidence vote on April 10 this year. He has been accused of retaining gifts, received by the Office of the Prime Minister from other countries, either for free or at throwaway prices.

As per a report published by The Express Tribune, Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi retained 112 valuables that were gifted to the PM’s Office between August 2018 and December 2021. The duo obtained 52 of the items worth PKR 800200 without ‘paying a single penny’.

The former Pakistani Prime Minister retained the remaining 60 valuables worth over PKR 141 million by paying a total of PKR 38.17 million. The Express Tribune reported that a PKR 85 million Graff wristwatch gifted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman was retained by Khan for a sum of PKR 20 million.

He also paid just PKR 754,000 for a Rolex watch valued at PKR 3.8 million. The details of all gifts received by Imran Khan, during his tenure as the Prime Minister, were maintained by a department of the Cabinet Division known as Toshakhana.

Secrecy, tax ‘fraud’ and allegations of illicit profiteering

In September 2021, the PTI government had expressed reluctance to reveal details of gifts received by the PM Office, claiming that such a disclosure might impact relations with other countries.

On April 20 last month, the Islamabad High Court held that the incumbent government could release details of gifts received by Imran Khan in the absence of no restraining order. In an exclusive report published by Fact Focus, it had come to light that Imran Khan earned more from Toshakhana gifts in 2 months than he did in the first 66 years of his life.

“The tax record establishes that he and his wife Bushra haven’t declared the value of all the Toshakhana gifts they retained…The total worth of all his properties and assets as declared by him in his latest tax return (FY 2021) is PKR 141 million. The total value of Tosha Khana gifts retained by him was PKR 142 million,” the report by Usman Manzoor in Fact Focus stated.

Besides the non-declaration of Toshakhana gifts in tax filings and the firm resolve to withhold information, Imran Khan has been accused of selling valuables that he received as Prime Minister.

Tax returns and earnings of Imran Khan, graphic via Fact Focus

“Imran Khan has sold the gifts he received from other countries…Caliph Hazrat Omar (companion of Prophet Muhammad) was accountable for his shirt and robe and you (Imran Khan), on the other hand, looted foreign gifts from Toshakhana and you are talking of setting up a state of Madina?”, the daughter of Nawaz Sharif had asked.

The incumbent Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has claimed that Imran Khan had sold Toshakhana gifts in Dubai. His party leaders Marriyum Aurangzeb, and Ahsan Iqbal had further alleged that Khan sold a watch, necklace, gold plated AK47 and a jeep.

PTI leader Fawad Chowdhury defended Imran Khan by claiming that “selling one’s own assets (after purchasing them from Toshakhana) was not a crime”. Marriyum Aurangzeb had accused the former Prime Minister of purchasing Toshakhana gifts at a 20% rate of their value and then increasing the retention rate to 50%.

She had alleged that Khan took away a PKR 150 million worth of BMW X5 car, equipped with protection from bombs and bullets. The car was reportedly meant to ferry foreign delegates but the ex-Prime Minister took it with him when he left Office.

“You are a thief, a cheat, a liar and a swindler but trying to pose yourself as a pious person only to hide the wrongdoings and corruption,”  Marriyum Aurangzeb said.

Imran Khan defends decision to retain gifts received as Pakistani Prime Minister

Imran Khan has however defended his decision to retain valuables from Toshakhana by claiming “Mera Tohfa, Meri Marzi (My gifts, my choice).” He claimed that he had paid 50% of the value of the gifts. He further justified his decision by comparing the Toshakhana gifts to the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) flats allotted to the Pakistani army officers.

While addressing a public gathering, Khan conceded that he sold the Toshakhana valuables (which allegedly belonged to him) to repair the Bani Gala road (located next to his residence). He also claimed to have cost the exchequer the least during his tenure as the Prime Minister.

It must be mentioned that the Islamabad High Court had earlier noted that gifts received by the Office of the Prime Minister cannot be retained by him after vacating office. “Individuals come and go but the office of the Prime Minister of Pakistan is permanent…These gifts are not meant for taking home,” Justice Aurangzeb said adding that all such gifts must be recovered by the State if they have been retained.

The approach of PM Modi

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a radically different approach when it came to gifts received by his Office. During an event titled, ‘Bharat Ki Baat, Sabke Saath’ in April 2018, he revealed that he auctioned all valuables, received during his tenure as Gujarat’s Chief Minister, to fund girl child education.

“I used to put all the gifts in the government treasury (also called Toshakhana). I first found out their valuation and began auctioning them… I can say with pride that when I left my position as the Gujarat CM, I donated more than ₹100 crores, received from auctioning these gifts, to the government treasury for funding the education of girl children.”

All the gifts and mementoes received by PM Modi are maintained by the National Gallery of Modern Art, an undertaking of the Ministry of culture.

In September 2019, PM Modi announced that all gifts and mementoes received by him in the past 1 year would be auctioned both physically and online. “The proceeds from the auction will be devoted towards the Namami Gange Mission. It would contribute to a cleaner Ganga,” he had said.

In September 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi auctioned the special mementoes received from Olympic heroes for the Namami Ganga initiative. These gifts included the javelin of Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, gloves of boxer Lovlina Borgohain, and a stole with signatures of Tokyo Olympic players.

“Over time, I have received several gifts and mementoes which are being auctioned. This includes the special mementoes given by our Olympics heroes. Do take part in the auction. The proceeds would go to the Namami Gange initiative,” he had tweeted.

While India and Pakistan are just divided by a border, the conduct of the two Prime Ministers turned out to be quite distinct. Imran Khan is now facing corruption charges for selling gifts, received by the Office of the Prime Minister, for personal gains. On the other hand, PM Modi had auctioned gifts received by his Office to fund the government’s ‘Clean Ganga’ mission.

Imran Khan had been secretive about the gifts held by the Toshakhana. He also retained 112 valuables at a meagre price. On the other hand, all gifts received by PM Modi are available on the website (pmmementos.gov.in). The Indian government’s Toshakhana is easily accessible, contrary to that of his Pakistani counterpart.

Unlike Khan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi neither retained any gifts as a personal collection nor profited from the sale of such valuables. The difference in transparency and integrity between the two leaders becomes crystal clear for everyone to see.

Before you spread hatred, Mr Kejriwal, learn how Gujarat has had a history of Marathi leaders who contributed immensely to the state

Suyash
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Before you spread hatred, Mr Kejriwal, learn how Gujarat has had a history of Marathi leaders who contributed immensely to the state

They say you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. The promised ‘free’ omelette in Kejriwal’s case rather is not of welfare, but about running his personal political roost, with many a crack on the integrity of the nation. This was evident once again in the recent speech made by Arvind Kejriwal in Gujarat.

On the first of May, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal raised questions over Gujarat BJP state President C R Patil being born in Maharashtra. Kejriwal was speaking at a rally in Gujarat’s Bharuch on the day which marked the celebration of full statehood to Maharashtra and Gujarat in 1960.

Furthering his divisive agenda, Kejriwal questioned the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for making a Maharashtrian the head of its Gujarat state unit. Moreover, Kejriwal chose May 1, the day which also marks the separation of the two states fanned after brutal violence on linguistic lines in 1960. Kejriwal asked, “I am offended by one thing for long. Who is the president of BJP’s Gujarat state unit? CR Patil. Where does he hail from? He is from Maharashtra. So, among the 6.5 crore Gujaratis, the BJP leaders did not get a single person from the state to make the president of their state unit?” He claimed that this is a huge insult to the people of Gujarat.

However, Kejriwal did not stop here. He went a further ahead to say, “No party committed an insult bigger than this. Will these people rule Gujarat from Maharashtra? Will these people run Gujarat through a person from Maharashtra? The people of Gujarat will not tolerate this. Convert the upcoming election into a revolution. There won’t be any elections this year. Rather, we will lay the foundation of a new Gujarat.”

Perhaps, contesting new territories after Punjab would require Kejriwal a lesson in history where the people of Gujarat have not seen the sight of its Marathi-speaking leadership ‘insulting.’ Since the modern-day states were carved out of the same Bombay State Presidency after Independence, Gujarat has seen large numbers of Marathi-speakers living in the state till day and vice-versa. 

Even though language formed the basis of the division of the erstwhile state, a sense of shared history and cultural ties have forged a strong relationship between the people of the two states, which is unlikely to be weakened by Mr Kejriwal’s regional chauvinism. 

Kejriwal’s insinuation on C R Patil comes from a place of ignorance at the least and malice at the worst. Patil secured a place in grassroots Gujarat politics as a heartthrob leader securing high electoral margins. In the Lok Sabha 2019 elections, he won his seat of Navsari with a record margin of over 689,668 votes. He is also said to have played a pivotal role in the development of Surat as a Textile and Diamond hub through Infrastructure development.

Born in 1955, Patil started in Jalgoan in Maharashtra before the separation of states and ended up in Surat to receive post-school technical training. A Maharashtrian by birth but a Gujarati by heart, Patil knows the nitty-gritty of Gujarat Politics way better than Kejriwal, which explains his frustration in targeting the prior for being an ‘outsider.’ 

But if the contemporary identity of Gujarat as a region is to be considered, then one wonders how the Marathi leadership has flourished in an expanse that now represents the modern-day state of Gujarat in more ways than one. 

Many a lesson for Kejriwal in History

If Maharashtra and Gujarat, were to find linkages that bound them, it would lead us to the exploration in the Maratha times when Pilaji Rao Gaekwad as lieutenant of the Maratha Army established his base in Gujarat long back in 1721. The Gaekwads administered the province of Gujarat with the title ‘Shamsher Bahadur’ given to the heirs of the family by Chhatrapati Shahu of Satara until the advent of the British.

But it was after 1871, when Sayajirao Gaekwad ascended the patriarchal throne after his adoption by dowager Jamnabai, that the modern, prosperous and equally progressive princely state of Baroda emerged under the suzerainty of the British Raj.

Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad with wife Maharani Chminbai Gaekwad. Courtesy: Royal Gaekwad Collection Baroda

Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad – III, along with his wife Maharani Chimnabai – II, ruled the region when social malaise such as casteism, lack of education among girls, and the enforcement of the purdah system, and the prevalence of the child marriage plagued the society.

Gaekwad, The Maratha ruler of Gujarat, was a great institution builder who set up a national grade University in Baroda, many fine-arts institutions, aided primary schools for girls, colleges that promoted religion as well as ideological education. Gaekwad, along with his wife Maharani Chimnabai, set up libraries across Gujarat – one of which played a pivotal role in shaping the childhood of incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Maharaja Sayajirao modernised Gujarat in more ways than one. He led economic development initiatives including the establishment of railroads across the state. In 1908, he founded the Bank of Baroda with numerous operations abroad in support of the Gujarati diaspora, which still finds its place today as a leading Nationalised bank. In a true sense, Baroda with the advent of the Marathi dynasty of Gaekwads stood as a fountainhead of the progress of Modern Gujarat.

Arvind Kejriwal Gujarat
Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad Baroda University. Courtesy: HistoryofVadodara.in

The Maratha Imperialism which brought with it a host of Marathi-speaking natives, intermingled with the Gujarati cultural ethos and became on with it. One such family was the Mavalankars, a hardworking family residing in Ahmedabad who had migrated from Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. Ganesh Vasudev Mavalankar was a first-generation migrant to the city, who had come to seek a B.A. degree in Science from Gujarat College in Ahmedabad. Mavalankar entered the legal profession in 1912, wherein he got an opportunity to interact with leaders like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi.

Arvind Kejriwal Gujarat
G V Mavalankar (Right) with Elanor Roosevelt and Jawaharlal Nehru in Parliament House, Delhi

G V Mavalankar was elected to the Ahmedabad Municipality for the first time in 1919 and was a member of the Ahmedabad Municipality until 1937. After his tenure as a Speaker of the Bombay Legislative Assembly from 1937 to 1946, he was elected as a speaker of the Central Legislative Assembly. After Independence, Mavalankar, a boy from a Marathi family who made a glorious political career in Gujarat, rose to become the first speaker of the Lok Sabha until his death in 1956.

The need to rise above regionalist politics

If the cards are to be reversed today, the Gujarati community in Maharashtra remains an underlined contributor to the progress of Maharashtra as well. While our states are divided on a linguistic basis pertaining to an erstwhile historical need, Gujarati leaders are not stopped from taking part in Maharashtrian Politics while the Marathi speaking population in Gujarat too enjoys a sound representation in the politics of Gujarat as well. With the advent of leaders like Kejriwal who are hopping from one state to another for power, one should be reminded that regionalist jingoism can transform into linguistic nationalism as a challenge for tomorrow.

Arvind Kejriwal, who himself hails from Haryana, enjoys the political support of Delhiites who have elected him twice, with thumping majorities. With no hopes to contest the assembly elections in Maharashtra, he has conveniently insulted Maharashtrians with his statement, with the hope to play a momentary Gujarati pride card – a stance that even the Gujaratis would not appreciate. Pressing the unwanted regionalist buttons would make Kejriwal win yet another election, with a high cost for the nation to bear in its internally challenged sovereignty.

Osmania University triggers controversy as it denies permission for Rahul Gandhi’s event, cites Court judgment as the reason

OpIndia Staff
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Osmania University triggers controversy as it denies permission for Rahul Gandhi’s event, cites Court judgment as the reason

Telangana’s Osmania University, which is one of the oldest universities in India, has denied permission for Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s allegedly non-political event at the campus. The event was to be held on May 7. As per the Indian Express report, the University has not officially informed the organizers about it.

Reports suggest that following the decision by the University, the Congress party has accused the TRS-led Telangana government of pressurizing the University to deny the permission. Some students have even approached Telangana High Court and urged it to direct the University to allow the event.

The Congress Party had applied for permission for the event on April 23rd. They had mentioned that the event would be non-political. In reply, the university administration stated that the Executive Council has barred non-academic activities, including political meetings on campus since 2017. Furthermore, it was noted that in 2016, the High Court had directed the state government to deny permission for political and public meetings at Osmania University. The decision was taken after a petition was filed by the students stating that political activities are causing a constant disturbance.

A University official speaking to the Indian Express said, “A circular (in 2017) stated Osmania University (OU) was established for the purpose of imparting higher education and informed the teachers and students that non-academic activities such as political meetings would not be permitted on the campus. A resolution to this effect was also passed by the OU Executive Council.”

Youth Congress leaders and supporters are not happy with the decision and held a protest at the OU Arts College. A counter-protest was organized by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and students’ associations affiliated with the TRS. Venkat Balmoor, President NSUI Telangana, and others were arrested by the Police for protesting at University.

Sridhar Babu Duddilla, MLA-Manthani, Telangana, wrote, “Strongly condemn the arrest of NSUI president Venkat Balmoor and other leaders while they were protesting against the refusal to allow Sri Rahul Gandhi Ji’s interaction with students in the OU campus.”

Reports suggest that Rahul Gandhi is adamant to visit the University irrespective of the permission being denied. MLA Uttam Kumar Reddy said Rahul would visit the University and talk to the students about their problems at the campus.

‘Do not perform Maha Aarti on Akshaya Tritiya, let Muslims celebrate Eid’: Raj Thackeray to MNS workers

OpIndia Staff
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‘Do not perform Maha Aarti on Akshaya Tritiya, let Muslims celebrate Eid’: Raj Thackeray to MNS workers

MNS chief Raj Thackeray in his recent Tweet has appealed to his party workers not to perform the Maha Aarti on the occasion of Akshay Tritiya on May 3 as he doesn’t want to create any obstacle for Muslims during the Eid festival.

In the latest tweet, Raj Thackeray asked his party workers not to perform Aartis anywhere on account of Akshaya Tritiya and let Muslims celebrate Eid peacefully. He writes, “Tomorrow is Eid. As said by me in my Sambhajinagar speech yesterday, I feel Muslims should get to celebrate Eid happily. We do not want to hinder the celebrations of anyone.” Thackeray has reiterated his earlier statement that for him the issue of loudspeakers is not a religious one, but a social problem.

Thackeray has asked his party workers to maintain restraint. He has said that he will announce what needs to be done on this issue tomorrow, on Twitter.

On 1st May 2022, the foundation day of the Maharashtra state, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray addressed a public meeting at Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Raj Thackeray had declared this public meeting after he warned the government of Maharashtra to take down the loudspeakers on the mosques before 3rd May 2022, falling to which, he said that, his party workers would play Hanuman Chalisa on speakers in front of mosques with a volume double that of the Azaan.

“However, if the loudspeakers are not taken down by May 4, Hindus in Maharashtra should make sure that they play Hanuman Chalisa with the double voice in front of the mosques,” Raj Thackeray had asserted in his May 1st speech.

Andhra Pradesh: Three arrested including a juvenile for gang-raping a pregnant woman at Repalle railway station

OpIndia Staff
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Andhra Pradesh: Three arrested including a juvenile for gang-raping a pregnant woman at Repalle railway station

A pregnant woman was allegedly gang-raped by three people, including a juvenile after beating up her husband at the Repalle town train station in Bapatla district of Andhra Pradesh on Saturday.

The woman was traveling with her husband and three children to Nagayalanka in the Krishna district when she was brutally raped by the trio. The three suspects were apprehended on Sunday, according to Bapatla district Superintendent of Police Vakul Jindal.

The family arrived in Repalle at 11 PM on Saturday on the Guntur-Repalle local train and chose to take sanctuary in the premises of the railway station owing to a lack of transportation at the time. According to Bapatla SP Vakul Jindal, the couple who were both daily wagers, had gone to Guntur for work a few days before. They were from Yerragondapalem in the Prakasam district.

The culprits, who were drunk, woke the husband up and asked him for the time as they were sleeping on the platform, according to police. The husband did not respond since he did not have a watch. The perpetrators then beat him up and stole 750 Rupees from him. They then proceeded to punch the woman and sexually assault her after she tried to intervene. 

The man rushed from the station and proceeded to the nearest police station for assistance. The perpetrators escaped when the police reached the railway station after hearing the siren. The victim was sent to a local health center for treatment right away.

The suspects, who live in Repalle’s Netaji Nagar, have been charged under IPC sections 376D (gang rape), 394 (robbery), and 307 (attempt to murder).

YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, the Chief Minister, spoke with the SP and instructed the police to speed up the inquiry and assist the family. Vasireddy Padma, the chief of the Andhra Pradesh Mahila Commission, expressed her shock at the crime, stating that such an incident at a railway station must be treated seriously. She ordered a thorough investigation of the railway station’s security measures and instructed the in-charge railway personnel to provide a report.

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