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Maldives lifts health emergency declared during COVID-19, President Solih thanks India for providing vaccines and monetary assistance

OpIndia Staff
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Maldives lifts health emergency declared during COVID-19, President Solih thanks India for providing vaccines and monetary assistance

On Tuesday, Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih hailed the Indian government for generously helping the country to overcome the impact of the pandemic posed during the COVID-19 spread.

“India has generously aided us on many occasions. We received a lot of equipment from India essential to provide health services,” he said as he lifted the health emergency and mandatory mask rule in the Maldives. He added that India had provided the maximum number of vaccines and had also eased up access for Maldivians needing urgent health care, further allowing them to travel to the country.

“India purchased financial bonds worth $250 million to help recover our economy. A travel corridor was enacted between our countries to ensure continued tourist arrivals. India also allowed urgent health care service”, the Maldives President said on March 15.

This is a day after the Maldives lifted the health emergency and mandatory mask rule declared at the beginning of the year 2020. The country reported wide vaccine coverage and a low positivity rate and said that it had also decided to relax the mandatory mask policy. According to the reports, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih also announced that the country had suffered a huge loss amounting to $4 billion due to the pandemic. “Wearing masks is now optional, except in hospitals and health care centres, and should the COVID-19 positivity rate go above 20% in any island”, he was quoted.

He thanked India for playing an important role in helping the country overcome the pandemic’s impact. It is important to note that India had announced a $250 million package to the Maldives during the pandemic. Maldives Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid had then thanked India and said, “Even in such distressing times, India has proved to be our great friend”.

India had also provided the Maldives with 1 lakh doses of Serum Institute made Covishield vaccine in January 2021 to boost their fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Further, additional 1 lakh doses were sent in February 2021. Earlier in February 2020, a special Air India flight had evacuated 323 Indians and 7 Maldives citizens from the Wuhan province in China. Foreign Minister of Maldives, Abdulla Shahid expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi and External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar for rescuing Maldivians from Coronavirus hit Wuhan province of China.

‘India First’ Campaign launched by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih

This also comes amid President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih launching the ‘India first’ campaign and denying the presence of the Indian military in the country. The opposition party led by the Former President of Maldives, Abdullah Yameen is spreading the false narrative in the Maldives about the agreement between India and Maldives, saying that it is to allow India to station its forces in the island country.

Yameen had further alleged that the bilateral agreement allowed Indian ships to enter the waters of Maldives without any clearance. According to the reports, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih criticized Yameen and his supporters and said that there was no presence of the Indian troops in the country. The Maldives Defence Ministry released a statement saying that all the statements about Uthuru Thilafalhu being a foreign base were false. “Foreign military vessels that arrive in the Maldives do not need a diplomatic clearance, and does not require a permit from the National Defense Force to enter this port, is untrue”, the statement added.

Reportedly, a bilateral agreement was signed between India and Maldives last year in February according to which the Indian government had promised to develop the harbour of the Maldives National Defence Force Coast Guard at Sifvaru-Uthuru Thilafalhu. The opposition party led by Yameen then had registered protests against India’s presence in the country and called for the ‘Indian military out’.

This triggered the current Maldivian government to reiterate its ‘India First’ stance. In recent years, the Maldives has gained international interest as part of India’s and China’s rising rivalry. Former President Abdulla Yameen is widely regarded as being dangerously close to China. Reports mention that Yameen’s close affiliation with the Chinese government is the reason behind him launching the ‘India Out’ campaign.

Shah Rukh Khan announces his own OTT platform, here is what we know

OpIndia Staff
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Shah Rukh Khan announces his own OTT platform, here is what we know

Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan on Tuesday announced his OTT platform, SRK+. He did the same by taking to social media accounts.

While he has not given any details, Shah Rukh Khan hinted that it is coming soon.

In September 2021, it was widely speculated that Khan was to make his OTT debut on Disney Hotstar.

But the same was put on hold after Aryan was involved in drugs case.

Now it seems, Khan himself will launch an OTT platform. On the big screen, Shah Rukh Khan will be seen with Deepika Padukone and John Abraham in Pathaan which is set to be released on 26th January 2023.

Meet Asiya Andrabi – a Pakistani agent who sought to free Kashmir from Hindus

Shashank Bharadwaj
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Meet Asiya Andrabi – a Pakistani agent who sought to free Kashmir from Hindus

The Kashmir Files – a movie directed by the national-award-winning director Vivek Agnihotri which depicts a brutally honest account of the Kashmiri Pandit genocide, has turned out to be a national sensation with people flocking to theatres to witness the story that has never been told before.

The audience, most of whom are unaware of the atrocities committed against the innocent Hindus of Kashmir, are coming out of the theatres with a deep sense of shock and disbelief on how someone could carry out atrocities against fellow humans, neighbours and friends.

One of the significant impacts of the movie – The Kashmir Files is that Indians are now discovering the uncomfortable truths that were hidden from them by the country’s ‘liberal-secular’ establishment. More people are unearthing details of the terror that was unleashed upon the innocent Hindus and discovering the truth of the radical Islamic terrorists operating in the valley for decades.

One such name is Asiya Andrabi, one of the prominent names among the secessionist anti-India forces that had been active in the Kashmir valley for decades.

Asiya Andrabi, the chief of banned secessionist organisation Dukhtaran-e-Millat, is a pro-Pakistan separatist who has been dreaming for years now to free Kashmir from India. Dukhtaran-e-Millat is Kashmir’s biggest network of ‘women jihadis’, as claimed by Andrabi herself.

According to reports, in the early 1980s, Asiya was associated with running a madrasa for women – “Talimul Quran”, a precursor to Dukhtaran-e-Millat, where she invited women to read, understand and practice their faith. She is considered to be the one who radicalised the Muslim women in the valley and mobilised them against India.

Asiya Andrabi – a Pakistan-sponsored secessionist involved in stoking violence in valley

Asiya Andrabi is alleged to be the backbone behind the stone-pelting apparatus in Kashmir. She had supported Pakistani separatist Masarat Alam in the series of stone-pelting rallies across Kashmir by using her village network of Dukhtaran-e-Millat operatives. She has several cases against her for instigating terror in the valley.

Andrabi, known for her hateful anti-India activities, is also a member of the All-Party Hurriyat Conference and has been arrested on several occasions for her involvement in separatist movements. During the peak of ‘Jihadi’ terrorism in the valley in the 1990s, she was arrested for her anti-national activities was later released in 1994. Following her release, she went underground until 2004.

She was again arrested in 2010 for waging war against India and for inciting violence against the Kashmiri Hindus. However, she was released later, only to be picked up again in 2015 in connection with other terror-related cases. Asiya Andrabi was also sent to NIA custody in 2018 for allegedly “waging war against India” and other unlawful activities.

The NIA had revealed that Asiya Andrabi had received funds from abroad to stoke terror in the valley, however, she utilised them for personal gains, including the funding of educational expenses of her son in Malaysia from 2011 onwards. In 2020, Asiya Andrabi and her two associates were charged for allegedly waging war against India, sedition and conspiracy to commit acts of terror in the country.

During the investigation, Asiya Andrabi had revealed that she came in close contact with Lashkar-e-Taiba kingpin Hafeez Saaed through a serving Pakistan Army officer. It is important to note that Andrabi’s nephew is a captain rank officer in the Pakistan Army. She also has close relatives having links with Pakistan Army and its intelligence agency ISI.

Andrabi is also believed to have relatives and fundraisers in the middle east, who funds her organisation regularly to carry out subversive activities against India. As per NIA, Andrabi has direct links with that Saeed, who funds her for instigating terror in the valley. The money was used to mobilise stone-pelters and supporters of Hurriyat who organised violent protests against the government in Srinagar and other parts of the valley.

Asiya’s husband, Ashiq Hussain Faktoo, a founding member of terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen, is currently serving a life term in Srinagar Jail. In 2003, Faktoo was sentenced for the murder of a noted human rights activist and a Kashmiri Pandit Hriday Nath Wanchoo in 1992.

Hoisted Pakistan flag, sang national anthem in Kashmir

In addition to instigating terror in the valley, Asiya Andrabi’s anti-national activities include hoisting the Pakistani flag and singing Pakistan’s national anthem at an event in Srinagar.

Defending her action of hoisting the Pakistani flag, the pro-Pakistan separatist had claimed that there was nothing wrong in hoisting the Pakistani flag and singing the national anthem of Pakistan.

“It is not a new thing in Kashmir. Whenever people get a chance to come on the roads, the people of Kashmir will raise slogans against the illegal occupation of Kashmir by India and in favour of Pakistan,” she had noted in an interview in 2015.

She had in the past had claimed that all Muslims in the Indian subcontinent were Pakistanis by default. She has been rooting for Kashmir to become part of Pakistan and has always proclaimed the same.

In 2015, the burqa-clad Asiya Andrabi was linked with the Islamic terrorist group ISIS as three youths arrested by Hyderabad Police on suspicion of joining the Islamic State (ISIS) had made shocking disclosures saying that they had sought help from Asiya Andrabi. The arrested radicalised Muslim youth had confessed that they were planning to move towards the caliphate of Iraq and Syria, through Afghanistan, Pakistan via Kashmir, and had claimed that they were in touch with Andrabi. 

In 2018, she was again found celebrating Pakistani National Day and giving provocative statements in Kashmir.

She can be heard saying, “We are Pakistanis, Pakistan is ours” in the video and instigating young women while saying they would stomp over all kinds of nationalism. Further, media reports have suggested she is regularly in touch with terrorists of Lashkar-e-Taiba.

In 2015, Andrabi had threatened to slaughter cow at Lal Chowk in Kashmir to protest against the beef ban.

Known for instigating local Muslim youth to pick up arms against the Indian state, Andrabi was also quoted as saying that people are either Muslims or Kafirs, and a Muslim country is Pakistan which was founded based on Islam and not based on nationality.

Interestingly, her son is studying in Malaysia on an Indian passport and not a Pakistani one despite their hearts bleeding for Pakistan. Interestingly, pro-Pakistan separatist leader Asiya Andrabi had also rejected her son’s love affair as the girl in question belonged to a “lower caste”. 

The younger son of the Dukhtaran-e-Milat chief reportedly had an affair with a girl from Srinagar. He was pretty adamant about marrying her. However, as the girl’s father is a tailor, Andrabi is unhappy with the match.

‘Ghar Wapsi’ in Pakistan: Islamists target Trans woman for reverting to Hinduism

OpIndia Staff
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‘Ghar Wapsi’ in Pakistan: Islamists target Trans woman for reverting to Hinduism

On March 14, a Pakistani national, Zakriya Hanif, who identifies as transgender, announced that she was leaving Islam and embracing Hinduism. In a tweet where she posted photographs of herself donning Tilak at a temple and the gate of the temple, she wrote, “Officially leaving muslimanity and joining Hinduism.” She also used the hashtag Ghar Wapsi, a term often used for people coming back to Hinduism.

While people from Hinduism, especially from India, welcomed Hanif to Hinduism with open arms, the Islamists had a mixed reaction. While they did not like him promoting Hinduism openly, some of them felt relieved that an open LGBT community member was out of Islam.

Islamists in Pakistan attack Trans woman for giving up Islam and embracing Hinduism

A Twitter user Hafsa mocked Hanif and said if it was related to some childhood experience, she should keep it to herself, and no one really cared if he left Islam.

Source: Twitter

Another Twitter user from Pakistan, Zabir Rizwan, expressed happiness on Hanif’s announcement to leave Islam.

Source: Twitter

Bint Umar, another Islamist, said no one cares about Hanif in the comments.

A Twitter user Eman said as a Muslim, she would not feel ashamed anymore.

Source: Twitter

A Twitter user said it was no loss for Islam as Hanif was a Rafidhi (Shia).

Sabrina, a Muslim Twitter user probably from the United Kingdom, mocked her and said Hanif had a chance to go to heaven, but she would now go to hell.

Who is Zakriya Hanif?

Zakriya Hanif, also known as Zaakra, is a transgender from Lahore, Pakistan. She has been vocal about the LGBT issues in the Islamic Republic on her social media accounts. She claims to have more friends from India compared to Pakistan on social media platforms.

Hanif has been accused of blasphemy multiple times for her statements. In August last year, in a now-deleted post, she had written, “Stop policing bodies of women in the name of religion!!! Nobody wants to hear what a man said 3000 years ago.”

Source: Twitter

Though she did not mention the name of the religion, the Islamists got irked, and she had to delete the post.

Source: Twitter
Source: Twitter

Even now, when she had announced leaving Islam, she was being targeted, claiming she had committed blasphemy. Calls are being made out to kill her.

Source: Twitter

Last month she had released a video in which she had detailed how the LGBT community in Lahore was transphobic and often called Transgenders sitting with them ‘Khusra’.

High level probe ordered for accidental release of missile during inspection which fell in Pakistan, says Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh in Rajya Sabha

OpIndia Staff
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High level probe ordered for accidental release of missile during inspection which fell in Pakistan, says Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh in Rajya Sabha

On March 9, 2022, an Indian Missile was inadvertently fired during maintenance operations which found its way into Pakistan. Taking cognizance of the move the Ministry of Defence acknowledged the accidental firing as a technical malfunction.

While this led to no casualties on the Pakistan side, the Central government taking a serious view of the situation ordered a high-level enquiry of the malfunction. Clarifying Government’s stance on the issue Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh made a statement in the Rajya Sabha today. He said, “During the routine maintenance and instruction of the missile, unfortunately, one missile was released at around 7 in the evening. Later it was learnt that the missile found its way into Pakistan’s territory. This incident is regrettable,”

He added, “It is a sigh of relief that no casualties have resulted after the malfunction happened. I want to inform the house that we are taking this matter very seriously and orders have been given for an official high-level investigation,” Rajnath Singh informed that the reason behind the mistake will be clear only after the investigation. “We are also analysing our standard operating procedures (SOP) for operation, maintenance and instruction. The safety and security of our weapon systems are of primary concern to us and hence if a defect is detected we will rectify it immediately,” he added.

Concluding his statement Singh asserted, “We have a missile system which is secured and bankable with world-class safety procedures and protocols which are revived time to time. Our Armed forces are well-trained and disciplined and they have a good experience of handling such systems.”

Uttar Pradesh: FIR against one Amir Khan for posting derogatory picture of CM Yogi Adityanath and BSP chief Mayawati

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: FIR against one Amir Khan for posting derogatory picture of CM Yogi Adityanath and BSP chief Mayawati

On Tuesday, March 15, the Jewar police in Uttar Pradesh have registered an FIR against one Amir Khan. According to news agency ANI, the youth was charged for allegedly posting a morphed picture of Uttar Pradesh CM-designate Yogi Adityanath and BSP chief Mayawati on his Facebook account.

Amir Khan was booked under sections of IPC and The Information Technology Act, 2008.

Hindi daily Amar Ujala has reported that the matter was first brought to light after the morphed picture posted by Amir Khan on Facebook went viral. A complainant alerted the Uttar Pradesh police through his Twitter account. In turn, the police took notice and began an investigation. Soon after, an FIR was filed against Amir Khan.

According to the report, Amir Khan, who is a resident of Dayanatpur village of Jewar, had uploaded a photo on his Facebook account in which Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath and former CM Mayawati were shown as bride and groom. The morphed image also carried an offensive caption too.

The complainant shared the information on Twitter and urged Uttar Pradesh police to take appropriate action against the accused as swiftly as possible. An investigation was launched based on the Tweet, and after the police authenticated the information, they filed an FIR under the IT Act against Amir Khan.

In a similar incident that happened on February 20, 2020, the Uttar Pradesh police had arrested a Greater Noida trader, Chand Quraishi on charges of allegedly sharing an objectional post against Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Facebook. Quraishi has been booked under the Indian Penal Code section 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), among others. The arrest was made after a complaint was filed by local BJP leaders.

Similarly, in November last year, UP police officers apprehended Prashant Kanojia, a journalist and social media troll, after a case was filed against him at Hazratganj police station in Lucknow for posting derogatory tweets about Hindu gods and defamatory posts about UP CM Yogi Adityanath.

Prior to this, in June 2019, Peer Mohammad, a scrap dealer and Gola resident shared an “objectionable post” about Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on social media. After one Umesh Kumar Yadav filed a complaint about the post on his Twitter account, he was sent to the district jail. The same year, Ram Prasad, a nursing home manager from Shahpur, was imprisoned for allegedly posting “objectionable” social media posts.

Hijab not an essential practice of Islam, Karnataka HC dismisses all writ petitions filed by Muslim girl students

OpIndia Staff
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Hijab not an essential practice of Islam, Karnataka HC dismisses all writ petitions filed by Muslim girl students

The Karnataka High Court has pronounced its verdict in the hijab case filed by Muslim girl students. The court, as per its order, has stated that the hijab is not an essential practice of the Islamic faith, and therefore, all the petitions filed by Muslim girl students seeking permission to wear hijab in educational institutions stands dismissed.

The verdict was pronounced by the Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court. The court stated that taking a holistic view of the entire matter, they formulated a few questions and answered accordingly to decide on the case. The questions were whether wearing a hijab is an essential religious practice in the Islamic faith protected under Article 25 and whether the prescription of a school uniform is violative of rights. The court further sought an answer to a question that whether the Government Order of February 5 apart from being incompetent and manifestly arbitrary violates Articles 14 and 15.

The court found that wearing of hijab is not the essential religious practice of the Islamic faith and the prescription of a uniform is a reasonable restriction on fundamental rights. The court further stated in the order that no case is made out for invalidating the Government Order of February 5.

The detailed order of the court is awaited

Karnataka hijab row

Some Muslim students at Karnataka’s Pre University College petitioned the High Court to be allowed to attend lectures while wearing the hijab. They were denied admission to courses because the hijab is not part of the college uniform and so cannot be worn in class, according to the college administration. The students have been demonstrating while wearing burqas since then.

After meeting with the Campus Front of India (CFI), the student branch of the Islamist organization Popular Front of India (PFI) in October 2021, Muslim students began wearing hijab and burqa to school and college in violation of uniform requirements in December 2021. The students confessed that they had spoken with the CFI.

‘If they still need ‘chintan shivir’ to find out what went wrong, they live in cuckoo land’, Kapil Sibal says Gandhis must go

OpIndia Staff
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‘If they still need ‘chintan shivir’ to find out what went wrong, they live in cuckoo land’, Kapil Sibal says Gandhis must go

Congress leadership has been facing a hard time since the Assembly election results for five states were announced on March 10. With the losing hope of revival, the senior leaders of the party are again coming out with a demand of giving control of the party to someone other than Gandhis. Former Union Minister Kapil Sibal, in an interview with the Indian Express, expressed his displeasure over the party leadership’s inability to reach out to the senior leaders or use them properly for reviving the party.

Negligible accountability, acceptability or accessibility

When asked if the results surprised him, Sibal said since 2014, the party has faced multiple defeats, and it has been losing state after state. Leaders close to leadership have been leaving the party, and it is getting more challenging to keep the party together. He said, “It is really interesting to note that since 2014 about 177 MPs and MLAs and 222 candidates have left the Congress.” He further added since the Lok Sabha defeat of 2014, the party has lacked accountability and acceptability. There have been negligible attempts to increase accessibility and reach out to the electorate.

‘The leadership is living in a cuckoo land’

Speaking about the CWC meeting that was held on Monday, Sibal said it had been eight years since the party lost the Lok Sabha elections. If the leadership still needed ‘Chintan shivir’ to find out what went wrong, they are living in cuckoo land. He said when the Congress was formed, the founder was not a Hindu. Everyone came under the umbrella, and power structures were organized. “The President used to change every year. It’s only recently that we have had this long tenure,” he said.

He further claimed prominent party leaders in CWC ‘genuinely’ feel the Congress would not survive without the Gandhis. However, he disagreed with the sentiment and said many leaders think the same. Sibal noted some of the leaders tried to convey to the leadership that the party needed reform in the processes as it would not survive in the current structure.

No more ‘Ghar ki Congress’

Sibal claimed many prominent leaders are not part of CWC. The members of CWC are nominees of the leadership. What they think about the current leadership is different from many non-CWC senior members. He added being a Congress member, but not part of CWC did not mean his or other non-CWC members’ views would not matter.

He said in his personal view he would want ‘sab ki Congress’ and not ‘Ghar ki Congress’. By ‘sab ki Congress’, he meant to bring old Congress members who left and formed their own parties together and fight against BJP. He added some of the Congress leaders and workers think the party would not survive without certain leaders, and it is a challenge.

He further questioned how Rahul Gandhi announced in Punjab that Charanjit Singh Channi would be the face of CM. He said, “Rahul Gandhi went to Punjab and made the announcement that Charanjit Singh Channi will be the Chief Minister. In what capacity did he do that? He is not the president of the party, but he takes all the decisions. He is already the de-facto president.”

‘Suddenly, people close to them become rich’

Sibal said there is no decentralization of the power in Congress. The leadership decides every appointment, including PCCs and DCCs, based on the names given to them. “They don’t have direct contact with them. In this power structure, therefore, the organization is bereft of any vision,” he said.

Sibal further added that at the time of the appointment, many say they would not take perks like official car, residents etc. but they act differently once elected. “They start building palatial houses. Suddenly people close to them become rich,” he added. Sibal said Congress is fighting a battle within and not against the Modi regime. “If you can’t even keep your house in order, how will you fight the Modi regime?” he said.

Leadership do not talk to anyone, says Sibal

Sibal said there was a time when senior members had a say in the selection of the president. In the current situation, one might not expect a Chief Minister to come and tell the leadership to step down, but it had happened in the past as there used to be an open discussion on the issues.

He said not only him, but the leadership had not communicated with stalwarts like Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma, Prithviraj Chavan, Bhupinder Hooda, Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, and Raj Babbar. He added, “If even those minimal reforms consistent with the provisions of the Congress constitution are not accepted, and there is no dialogue, forget about acceptance, then how do we fight the battle against Modi.”

‘Gavaskar, Sachin and Virat retired, so should the leadership’

Giving an example from Cricket, Sibal said Gavaskar, Sachin and Virat all had to retire one day. Their names would remain in golden letters in the cricketing history. “So if men of great excellence also, at some stage, think that it is time to go, then surely, after the debacles that we have seen, the leadership should leave this space for somebody else who will be elected and not nominated. Allow that person to perform,” he added.

Sibal disagreed that the party would not survive without Gandhis at the top. However, he saved himself from saying anything directly against Rahul Gandhi. He said it was ironic that those who believed in the party were not close to the leadership, and those who were close to them were there for personal gains.

Giving the example of Britain, Sibal said if someone loses an election in Western democracies, they do not come back. “Has a leader who has lost in the election ever come back? Name one person in the history of the British Parliament who has lost and has come back. Have they asked the question who after me? They never come back. The same in European democracies,” he said.

Party does not use senior leaders

He said the party has not been using its assets to revive Congress to past glory. “If the Congress party thinks like that, how can that Congress party ever hope to reclaim its past glory?” he questioned. Sibal said while the Gandhis are ‘courteous and nice’ and Sonia Gandhi played a crucial role in bringing the flock together when Sitaram Kesri left, things have not been working in the way they should have been since the party got re-elected to power in 2009 under her leadership.

He said instead of having ‘chintan shivir’, the leadership should reach out to everybody.

US journalist threatens India with sanctions for buying Russian oil, while all NATO countries continue paying Russia billions for energy and other products

OpIndia Staff
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US journalist threatens India with sanctions for buying Russian oil, while all NATO countries continue paying Russia billions for energy and other products

Yesterday, it was reported in many media outlets that Russia has offered India crude oil at a discounted price. A report in Reuters quoted an unnamed Indian government official saying that Russia is offering crude oil and other commodities at a discounted rate and India is considering to take the offer.

“Russia is offering oil and other commodities at a heavy discount. We will be happy to take that,” the quote mentioned. Another report in Mint quoted two unnamed officials stating that India is working on a currency arrangement for the trade, preferable a Rupee-Rouble trade.

US-European “experts” rattled, demand sanctions against India

As soon as the reports were shared, many US and European ‘experts’ started condemning India while saying that the US government should sanction India if India buys Russian crude oil. Some ‘experts’ even brought in sanctimonious dismissal, claiming that buying crude oil from Russia is immoral and against values.

‘Journalist’ Trish Regan’s tweet was worded as a threat, saying that if India buys Russian oil, there should be US sanctions against India. She even added that US sanctions will devastate the Indian economy.

Another ‘expert’ claimed that the UK gives a lot of ‘aid’ to India and if India buys Russian oil, that aid money should be stopped.

NATO countries continue to purchase Russian oil and gas, paying billions of dollars every day

These ‘experts’ have seemed to conveniently ignore that all NATO countries have continued to purchase billions of dollars worth of Russian oil and gas while using heavy words to denounce the Russian military operation in Ukraine. All major NATO nations have also supplied a lot of arms and weapons to Ukraine in the meanwhile, while they have continued to purchase Russian oil and gas. So basically, they are paying both sides to continue the war.

Not just oil and gas, but these nations are also importing Uranium, fertilizers and other products from Russia.

US threats of sanctions and their reality

The US and many European nations have brought in heavy sanctions against Russia and blocked payment systems, while mostly barring energy imports and energy transactions. We have discussed in detail why many NATO nations are dependent on Russia’s energy exports.

However, the loose and whimsical threats of ‘sanctions’ have started to amuse and irritate many across the world now. Trish Regan’s tweet warning India of sanctions got a wide variety of responses from Indians. they reminded Regan that the US cannot keep threatening every country with sanctions, because sanctions, in the long run, are mostly unproductive and hurt both ways.

Some pointed out that Indian Oil has bought the Russian crude at a significant discount from Vitol, reportedly 3 million barrels for May delivery and it did not see a problem paying for it because oil, as a commodity, is not banned.

Twitter user Nandini Tandon reminded Regan that the USA continues to import 96% of its potassium fertiliser from Russia and its ‘ban’ on crude oil and gas accounted for only 8% of its imports.

Activist Raghav Awasthi reminded Regan that the actions after the 1998 nuclear tests ‘worked very well’ for India and ended up boosting the Indian economy.

It is notable here that after a lot of angry venting and ‘sanctions’ against India after the 1998 nuclear tests, the USA had quietly removed most of the civilian sanctions by the end of 1999 and by the end of 2001, all defence sanctions against India were abolished too. By 2008, the USA had recognised India as de-facto civilian and military nuclear power. Multiple US governments over the years, have proclaimed India as a “major strategic partner’.

India, as a rapidly growing economy with a population of over 1.3 billion people, is a big market and USA understands that it is not in their interests to go against India, not when they are looking for allies in the Indo-Pacific.

What the US government had said about India’s ties with Russia

After the Russian military operation in Ukraine began, the USA, UK, the UN and many global powers have tried to persuade India to openly condemn Russia and denounce Putin’s actions. India, however, has stood firm on its ground, abstaining from UN votes against Russia and calling for solutions at a diplomatic level in a peaceful manner.

The Biden administration has made it clear that they understand that India has a broad strategic partnership with India and they are okay with it.

White House on India-Russia relations

USA tries for support from Venezuela, UAE and Saudi

After years of harsh sanctions against Venezuela, the USA had sent a delegation to meet Venezuelan president Maduro recently, reportedly to restart oil imports. The leaders of UAE and Saudi Arabia have reportedly refused to talk to US president Joe Biden over their relationships with Russia and oil productions. Both leaders have, however, spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

There is a growing concern among many that in its rush to rally against Russia, the governments of the USA and other NATO nations are taking decisions that may hurt their own economies.

Rupee-Rouble trade is not new

Rupee-Rouble trade is nothing new. India and Russia had initiated it long ago, to reduce their dependency on the US dollar. Even the payment for the S-400 missile defence system was agreed to be on rupees. between 2014-2019 Rupee-Rouble trade had surged almost 5 times, from 6% to almost 30%, as per a TOI report.

Gujarat: Christian missionary school punishes students over Jai Shri Ram slogan, apologises after two days

OpIndia Staff
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Gujarat: Christian missionary school punishes students over Jai Shri Ram slogan, apologises after two days

Two Hindu students were punished by the administration of a Christian missionary school for greeting each other ‘Jai Shri Ram’ last week. The incident took place at St.Mary’s school in the Vapi district of Gujarat.

As per a report in Desh Gujarat, the two students of Class 9 chanted the Hindu slogan in the school corridor. They were then punished by the school authorities and were forced to apologise in writing. They were also threatened with suspension. However, two days later, the school took back the punishment and apologised if the religious feelings were hurt.

“This is in reference to the incident of shouting slogans “Jai Shree Ram” in the school corridor during the school hours on 11-03-2022. As a disciplinary action, the Discipline In-charge Sir Kalpesh Bhagat took an apology letter in writing,” the school said in a statement.

Screengrab of the statement issued by St. Mary’s school administration

Missionary school apologises after VHP, Bajrang Dal protest

Aggrieved by the conduct of the administration of St. Mary’s school, the parents of the two minor children reached out to the Vice-President of the Vapi unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) Narendra Payak.

The members of the VHP and Bajrang Dal reached the convent school and protested against the conduct of the convent school. Following that, St. Mary’s principal Savio Cathino and discipline Head Kalpesh Bhagat apologised to the parents of the two Hindu children.

“After reflection, we the management have realized that the above disciplinary action could have been taken in another way. If we have offended any of your religious sentiments by our action, we sincerely apologize,” the school apologised in a statement.

VHP leader Sushil Yadav informed that Christian missionary schools often harass Hindu students if they even wear a red thread on their hands during festivals.

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