Wednesday, April 1, 2026
Home Blog Page 3383

Tamil Nadu: DMK minister PK Sekar Babu’s daughter seeks police protection from her father after inter-caste marriage

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Tamil Nadu: DMK minister PK Sekar Babu’s daughter seeks police protection from her father after inter-caste marriage

On Monday, Jaikalyani, daughter of Tamil Nadu state Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Minister PK Sekar Babu wrote to the Bengaluru Police Commissioner Kamal Pant seeking protection from her father. Jaikalyani said that she and her husband, Satish Kumar are receiving death threats from her father.

According to the reports, PK Sekar Babu is a close aide of CM MK Stalin and has been opposing the relationship of his daughter with Satish Kumar. Jaikalyani, in the memorandum submitted to the Commissioner stated that her father had arrested Satish Kumar and took him into custody for two months after they both had attempted to marry each other earlier. Reports mention that Satish Kumar belongs to the Dalit community and is a driver by profession.

In September last year, the couple had first tried to get married. Satish Kumar also had released a video where he had said that he and Jayakalyani were in a relationship for six years. “PK Sekar Babu got to know about us in January, 2021. We didn’t speak for a while. But later, we started talking again and in August, we ran away together from Chennai. I’m scared now. There are threats to my family from Sekar Babu,” he had said.

“I suspect the role of my father behind this. I am an adult. We both love each other and have got married,” Jayakalyani was quoted. She added that she and her husband are receiving threats that if they return to Tamil Nadu they might have to give up their lives. She also stated that she ran away from her home as PK Sekar Babu had forced her to get married to some other person whom she did not like.

It is important to note that the DMK government has always encouraged inter caste marriages. The government had last year thought of reintroducing the Anjugam Ammal Memorial Intercaste Marriage Assistance scheme. The original scheme was introduced in 1967 to encourage inter caste marriages and later renamed after Anjugam Ammaiyar, the mother of the late DMK supremo, M Karunanidhi.

The DMK govt had also offered monetary aid to those from the Adi Dravidar or Scheduled Tribe communities marrying outside their castes. The scheme didn’t exclude Christians or Muslims either.

Jaikalyani and Satish Kumar got married as per the Hindu traditions. Reports mention that a Hindu organisation helped them in the process after they were approached by the couple on social media. The couple has requested the Bengaluru Police to provide security to the couple, the Hindu organisation said.

Taliban extends greetings to Afghan women on International Women’s Day, promise facilities in ‘light of Islam and accepted tradition’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Taliban extends greetings to Afghan women on International Women’s Day, promise facilities in ‘light of Islam and accepted tradition’

The Taliban government in Afghanistan have issued a statement on International Women’s Day, claiming they are committed to addressing the plight of Afghan women. In the statement that is being widely shared on Twitter, the Taliban in Afghanistan, who are known for institutionalising large-scale gender-based discrimination and violence against women, wished all the Afghan women on International women’s day.

Abdul Qahar Balkhi, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Tweeted on International Women’s Day (IWD), which is celebrated globally on March 8 every year. “May the #8thMarch #InternationalWomensDay be auspicious for all women,” Tweeted MoFA spokesperson, IEA.

Wishing that this day “be auspicious for all women”, the statement read, “Protracted war in Afghanistan has been extremely detrimental for women. IEA (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) is committed to addressing the plight of Afghan women and providing facilities for an honourable and beneficial life in the light of the noble religion of Islam and our accepted traditions”.

The statement issued by the Taliban on the occasion of International women’s day

Given the Taliban’s long history of gynophobic misogyny, the statement is quite ironic. When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, they were infamous for violating women’s rights. As a result, when the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan on August 15 of last year, Afghan women’s rights activists were suspicious that the new rulers would be any different than the Taliban who had previously ruled the country, despite their promises to uphold women’s rights.

Since the hardline Islamist group took over the country on August 15, the Taliban had been under pressure from the international community, which has generally halted assistance for Afghanistan, to commit to safeguarding women’s rights.

As a part of its broader campaign to provide a more moderate face and seek global legitimacy, the Taliban had also announced that they have relaxed their stance on women and would respect their rights in accordance with the Islamic Sharia.

However, seven months after the Taliban took control, Afghan women’s long-held worries have become a terrible daily reality. The Taliban, in its 7 months of ruling, has closed most girls’ secondary schools, created barriers to women and girls pursuing higher education, banned co-education terming it as the ‘root of all evils in society’, banned music and the employment of female employees in the local radio stations, banned women from most paid employment, abolished the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, restricted women’s movement, including preventing them from leaving the country alone, dismantled Afghanistan’s system that provided protection from gender-based violence, and created barriers to women and girls accessing health care.

Earlier, there were reports that the Taliban gangs are targeting children as young as 12 during their hunt for sex slaves since they took over Afghanistan. Women and girls are among the most at-risk Afghanis under the new Islamist regime after the Jihadist organisation launched a door-to-door search for sex slaves.

In fact, in the month of August last year, OpIndia reported how an Afghan woman was reportedly set on fire by Talibanis for “bad cooking”, and many others are being forced into sex slavery.

In the same month, Khatera, 33, who had fled to India last October after being shot 8 times by the Taliban that eventually rendered her blind, made harrowing revelations about the terror outfit that has now suddenly pivoted on its stance on women, promising to respect the rights of women, although with a caveat that they should conform to the Islamic Sharia Law.

In her interview with News 18, Khatera said the Taliban not only tortured and killed women but even fed their dead corpses to dogs.

CMIE’s Ajay Shah, a close aide of Congress leader P Chidambaram, under CBI scanner in NSE co-location and algo trading scam: Details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
CMIE’s Ajay Shah, a close aide of Congress leader P Chidambaram, under CBI scanner in NSE co-location and algo trading scam: Details

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has examined Ajay Narottam Shah, a close aide of former Finance Minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram in 2018 co-location and algorithm scam. Currently, Shah is serving as a research professor. He was named in a May 2018 FIR in the co-location and algorithm scam. During UPA’s tenure, Shah had served as a consultant to the Ministry of Finance, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy, and the Indira Gandhi Institute for Development Research.

In its investigation, the investigating agency has found the former National Stock Exchange (NSE) MD and CEO Chitra Ramakrishna had provided confidential data to Ajay Shah and Infotech Financial Services while being fully informed that the firm was providing software to the brokers. Notably, Sunitha Thomas, sister-in-law of Ajay Shah, is the director of Infotech Financial Services. Thomas is the wife of Suprabhat Lal, who was then-senior vice president of NSE.

Back in 2009-10, NSE had contracted Infotech Financial Services to develop software. Shah provided assistance in developing the software ‘Chanakya’, which was used by the brokers. These brokers had access to a secondary server from where they got data before the other brokers in a co-location facility. In 2018, CBI mentioned that Shah had collected NSE trade data during 2005-06 under the pretext of doing research. He played a vital role in exploiting NSE TBT architecture and provided support in developing the algo software using his research data which was illegal.

When the scam was exposed in 2015, SEBI, in its investigation, had found that Shah was in an official contract on data sharing with NSE after 2012. Earlier, he and his wife collected the data presenting themselves as researchers. Chitra Ramkrishna and other NSE officially categorically denied sharing any data with Shah. However, Shah had informed SEBI, and he and his wife were signatories to a data-sharing agreement with NSE. The then-Chief Technology Officer of NSE, Ravi Apte, had also told SEBI that he had facilitated data transfer to Shah based on the agreement. He also claimed Ravi Narain, former MD of NSE and Ramkrishna, had requested the data transfer to Shah.

CMIE and its links to Congress

Ajay Shah is one of the directors at the Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy or CMIE. Its surveys and data are often used by Congress and opposition parties to target the central government. In 2019, CMIE had come up with pessimistic estimates of “jobs” in India even though the country was seeing a steady 7% growth and reports had suggested in 4 years, 18 million jobs were created in the transport and professional sector alone.

The co-location scam – what we know so far

Since 2018, CBI has been probing the co-location scam against a stockbroker based out of Delhi. First of all, it is essential to understand what are co-location facilities. These are dedicated spaces with pre-installed infrastructure, including bandwidth, power supply etc., that a third party can take on lease to carry out high-frequency and also trading. These are often used by traders to either set up their system or trade in the stock market.

In 2009, NSE started providing co-location services. Notably, NSE was charging a hefty amount for these services, making it possible only for a handful of traders to opt for co-locations. Because of their close proximity to the stock exchange servers, the traders got quick access to the price feed, i.e. the buy and sell quotes resulting in quicker trade and high profits.

In the co-location scam, it was alleged that some brokers who were in contact with the insiders took advantage of NSE’s data delivered a ‘first come, first serve basis to make profits. Known as the ‘tick-by-tick’ data feed that would provide the brokers connected to NSE server that has the least load would get quicker information about buy/sell order, order modification, order cancellation etc., compared to other traders who would connect to the server later. In the stock market, the difference of milliseconds in obtaining the data and reacting on it means a huge difference in the profit share.

Due to the fact that brokers connected to the server via co-location facilities were getting information earlier than the other brokers, unlike the broadcast where everyone gets information at the same time, they made huge profits going against the market regulations. The whistleblower who informed the agencies about the alleged scam said that a trader agency named OPG Securities was able to spot the server with the least load with the help of insiders at NSE’s IT department and got connected to NSE servers before other brokers. It was alleged multiple IPs were addressed to a single server to access the first two to three connections making the stream crowded for the other traders.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) initiated a probe in the matter in 2015. SEBI first set up a cross-functional team to investigate the case. The Technical Advisory Committee at SEBI recommended bringing in an expert committee. A report was submitted to SEBI in 2016, and it was revealed NSE violated the norms and benefitted a handful of brokers.

Initially, NSE dismissed the allegations and did not take any step to find out if there was a possible scam. Later, SEBI instructed the NSE board to initiate an investigation by an external agency. NSE was further instructed to the revenues from co-location services and from fibre connectivity in an escrow account. Since the revelation was made into the scam, SEBI has tightened the regulations and addressed concerns linked to algo trading and co-location facilities.

SEBI fined Chitra Ramakrishna Rs 3 crore, NSE, Anand Subramanian, former Group Operating Officer (GOO) and Rabi Narain (former MD and CEO) were fined Rs 2 crore each and V R Narasimhan, CRO and compliance officer, was fined Rs 6 lakh. SEBI restricted Ramkrishna and Subramanian from associating with any market for three years. Narain was restricted for two years from associating with any market. Further restrictions were imposed on NSE to ensure such scams do not happen in future.

A few weeks ago, CBI had arrested Subramanian, and on March 6, Chita Ramkrishna was arrested in the scam case. Ramkrishna was sent to CBI custody for seven days for interrogation.

The case of mysterious ‘yogi’

During the investigation, CBI came to know about a mysterious Himalayan “yogi” who was in touch with Ramkrishna. She had shared classified information with the so-called Yogi, and he was providing personal and professional guidance to her, allegedly including the NSE’s matters. Initially, it was believed Subramanian was the Yogi, but later SEBI, in its final report, rejected the claim. Chitra used to say the alleged Yogi had supernatural powers and he could appear at any place at will. It was also alleged Chitra had appointed Subramanian on Yogi’s recommendation and later promoted him to the board of directors.

Russia declines to attend the hearing at the International Court of Justice on its invasion of Ukraine

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Russia declines to attend the hearing at the International Court of Justice on its invasion of Ukraine

On Monday, The International Court of Justice was hearing the plea by Ukraine on the allegations of genocide against Russia under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948. However, the hearing saw no representative from the Russian side after seats from the Russian delegation were seen empty.

On February 24 while declaring war on Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in his televised address, “The purpose of this operation is to protect people who, for eight years now, have been facing humiliation and genocide perpetrated by the Kyiv regime,” Contesting this claim, Ukraine filed an application with the International Court of Justice accusing Russia of “planning acts of genocide in Ukraine” on February 27, 2022.

In a hearing to Ukraine’s application that followed yesterday, the Russian side refused to appear to the top UN court in Hague. Russian ambassador to the Netherlands (where ICJ is located) informed the court that his country will not be participating in the due hearing. What followed was Ukraine contending its application by ’emphatically denying’ the claims by Russia of Kyiv targeting the regions of Luhansk and Donetsk and accused Russia back of perpetrating a ‘genocide’ by targeting Ukrainian nationals in its act of invasion.

The Permanent Ukrainian representative Anton Korynevich said, “the Russian Federation has falsely claimed that acts of genocide have occurred in the Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts of Ukraine, and on that basis recognized the so-called ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ and ‘Luhansk People’s Republic’, and then declared and implemented a ‘special military operation’ against Ukraine,”

He went further to accuse Russia of the same by saying, “Russia is intentionally killing and inflicting serious injury on members of the Ukrainian nationality, the actus reus of genocide under Article II of the [Genocide] Convention.” With the application, Ukraine also filed a request for the indication of provisional measures against Russia.

ICJ expresses regret over Russia’s boycott

Joan Donoghue, President of the ICJ expressed concerns over Russia’s absence from the proceedings. Donoghue stated that the Federation of Russia was sent certified copies of the application by Ukraine and its request for the indication of temporary measures. She remarked that according to Article 74 Paragraph 1 of the rules of court, a request for the indication of provisional measures shall have priority over all other cases.

Russia has however dismissed the grievances of the court by not turning up at the ICJ hearing. Amidst the undergoing geopolitical crisis, fate has loomed over the possibility of Russia complying with any orders issued by the International Court of Justice.

What is the Genocide convention in the ICJ?

In a move to counter Russia, the Ukrainian side has referred to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948 in its case in the ICJ. Signed by both Ukraine and Russia, the Article IX of the Genocide Convention gives rights to the International Court of Justice in Hague to resolve disputes between contracting Parties concerning the interpretation, application, or implementation of the Convention. It is an international treaty signed by over 152 countries till date, that criminalizes genocide perpetrated by state actors and obligates state parties to enforce its prohibition.

Karnataka: Police invoke UAPA charges against Kasif and 9 others accused in Harsha murder case, suspect a ‘larger conspiracy behind the murder’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Karnataka: Police invoke UAPA charges against Kasif and 9 others accused in Harsha murder case, suspect a ‘larger conspiracy behind the murder’

The Karnataka police have pressed charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 against the persons arrested in connection with the murder of Bajrang Dal activist Harsha. The 26-year-old Harsha was brutally hacked to death near Kamat Petrol Pump on NT Road in Shivamogga, Karnataka on February 20 over a Facebook post in connection to the hijab controversy.

UAPA is invoked in cases involving threats to national security and national integrity. Since the Karnataka police are “suspecting a larger conspiracy behind the murder” of Harsha it has decided to invoke UAPA against the accused namely, Mahammad Qasif (Kasif), Syed Nadeem, Rihan Sharief, Asif Ullah Khan, Abdul Afnan, Nihan, Faraz Pasha, Abdul Khadar Jilan, Abdul Roshan and Jafar Sadiq. 

Under the UAPA, police gain custody of a suspect for 30 days and have 180 days instead of 90 days to file a charge sheet. The law’s stipulations also make it difficult for an accused person to obtain bail.

Moreover, there are possibilities that once the local police investigation is completed, the government may turn the case over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The police said that after the investigation team completed its probe it handed over the accused to judicial custody. The police took the ten accused into their custody and interrogated them for 11 days until Monday, March 7.

Harsha was stabbed to death by a gang of Muslim youths on the night of February 20 near Kamat petrol bunk in the Shivamogaa district of Karnataka. He was a tailor by occupation and hailed from Seegehatti. Harsha was a member of the Hindu organisation Bajrang Dal, and was seen sporting saffron shawls to demand uniformity in the dress code of schools and colleges.

A friend of the Bajrang Dal activist claimed Harsha had been under surveillance for the past few weeks and that the murder was a “well-planned plot.” Harsha’s friend, who requested anonymity, said the Bajrang Dal activist had also received multiple calls from unknown numbers.

The cold-blooded murder of the Bajrang Dal activist had provoked a wave of protests across the area, forcing the district administration to impose a curfew and close educational institutions.

People on social media, too, had expressed their anger at the heinous murder of the Bajrang Dal activist. Hashtag #JusticeForHarsha trended on social media platforms as support for the murdered Harsha poured in. From actress Kangana Ranaut and Raveena Tondon to BJP leaders and prominent members of the society expressed their anger over the cold-blooded murder.

Did you know: Chalukya Queen Rani Naiki Devi had once defeated Islamic marauder Muhammad Ghori in the battle of Kayadara

Pallav
-
0
Did you know: Chalukya Queen Rani Naiki Devi had once defeated Islamic marauder Muhammad Ghori in the battle of Kayadara

We hear stories about the bravery of kings again and again. However, our queens and princesses have never shied away from displaying their heroism and gallantry in order to stand for our country. In search of India’s richness and splendour, several foreign countries ventured to gaze up to the land of India. Thousands of valiant sons and daughters of this land responded appropriately to all foreign powers’ invasion attempts.

However, the amount of information the laymen have about heroic men in India doesn’t match that of brave women. It is critical that we understand and appreciate the contributions of women to our country and society. Be it Queen Velu Nachiyar of the South, Queen Abbakka, or the queen of Jhansi, who fought against the British, we know much about them but there are many who still don’t find their place in history textbooks and movies or TV serials.

On this Women’s Day, we will explore the tale of a queen who not only displayed otherworldly bravely in forcing Islamic invader Mohammad Ghori to flee but also exhibited remarkable benevolence in sparing his life. Naiki Devi, a queen from Gujarat, not only oversaw the affairs of the empire but also ended up fighting against external invaders.

Who was Rani Naiki Devi?

Rani Naiki Devi was the daughter of Mahamandaleshwar Parmadi, the king of Kadamba. Naiki Devi possessed a wide range of abilities, including horse riding, archery, combat skills, and weapon-wielding. Raja Ajaypal, the Solanki ruler of Gujarat (also known as the Chalukyas), married her. Raja Ajay Pal’s reign was short-lived since he died only four years after ascending to the throne. Mulraj II, the son of Naiki Devi and King Ajay Pal, was installed on the throne, but Rani Naiki Devi remained to govern the empire as Raj Mata.

Aspirations of Muhammad Ghori

Muhammad Ghori invaded India between 1175 CE and 1206 CE, capturing Multan (1175), Punjab (1179), Peshawar (1180), Sialkot (1185), and finally Delhi (1192). After capturing Multan in 1175, Muhammad Ghori planned to strike India in search of wealth. Soon after, he led a major army march to Uch in Pakistan’s Punjab province’s southernmost district. From there, he was able to traverse the desert and begin his journey towards Anhilwara (capital of Chalukyan Kingdom). At the time, Gujarat and Rajasthan were part of the Chalukyan kingdom.

Ghori was obviously confident that the Chalukyas were susceptible to invasion since they lacked a monarch. Because he had a significantly greater army at his disposal, he considered the Hindu queen as weak and easily conquered.

When Rani Naiki Devi learned that Ghori planned to invade her by crossing the desert and landing in her capital city of Anhilwara, she appealed to nearly all neighboring Kingdoms for help in preventing the invasion and safeguarding the kingdom. She did get help from Chalukyan nobles including the leaders of the Naddula Chahamana, Jalor Chahamana, and Arbuda Paramara clans.

The Battle of Kayadara (1178): Ghori Vs Rani Naiki Devi

Naiki Devi realized that her preparations were insufficient to defeat Mohammad Ghori. So, she devised a battle strategy that would benefit her soldiers. She picked Gadarghatta, a rugged region in the slopes of present-day Mount Abu, as the battlefield. This was in the vicinity of Kasahrada village. This location is in the Sirohi district of modern-day Rajasthan.

She picked the terrains because she knew Ghori’s army was full of experienced warriors, including steppe nomads who were outstanding archers and superior armored cavalry. Ghori and his warriors, in addition to having a technological edge, were motivated by religious enthusiasm and were passionate about eliminating non-Muslims and transforming the entire territory into an Islamic land.

Ghori’s army was unfamiliar with the narrow hill passes of Gadaraghatta, giving Naiki Devi and her allies a significant advantage and balancing the odds in a superb maneuver. As a result, when Ghori and his army came, she rode into combat with her son on her lap, leading her troops.

The rest is all history now. The small Chalukyan army and its troop of war elephants routed the invading force, which had previously defeated Multan’s formidable sultans. The Rajput war elephants were armored and lined up like mountainside steel. They crushed the morale of Ghori’s seasoned armored cavalry.

Ghori’s performance in the battle was a colossal failure. He fled the battlefield with a few of his men to save his life.

His pride had been crushed, and he never attempted to conquer Gujarat again. Instead, he turned his attention to the more susceptible Punjab, intending to penetrate north India through the Khyber Pass.

A doctor refused to perform organ transplant because it was ‘haram’: French physician spills the beans on how Islamists are affecting the healthcare system

OpIndia Staff
-
0
A doctor refused to perform organ transplant because it was ‘haram’: French physician spills the beans on how Islamists are affecting the healthcare system

On Friday (March 4), French physician and former Charlie Hebdo columnist Patrick Pelloux revealed how Islamists, working in hospitals are systematically destroying the healthcare system. He made the remarks during an interview with the Paris-based news magazine, Marianne.

Pelloux had submitted a report about the same to the French government. While speaking to Marianne, he informed, “The first expression of these radicalizations among hospital staff, external staff or chaplains is sexism and homophobia, even before anti-Semitism, which is never very far behind.”

The French physician emphasised, “These kinds of problems lead doctors to refuse to treat or to use certain techniques, which fortunately is still a very marginal phenomenon. In particular, we had the case of a doctor who refused to perform an organ transplant because it was haram.”

Hospitals do not act against Islamists for fear of being called ‘racist’

Patrick Pelloux informed that Muslim staff members are also involved in active proselytism in hospitals. “During our hearings, a nurse in a hospital in the west of the country told us that one of her colleagues, a fundamentalist Muslim, was proselytizing and trying to convert his colleagues. Nobody knew what to do,” he stated.

The former Charlie Hebdo columnist said that the situation is further aggravated by inaction against Islamic fundamentalists by the hospital management, out of the fear of being labelled ‘racist’. He warned that lack of caution can lead to the recruitment of dangerous and highly radicalised people in hospitals.

In his report to the French government, Pelloux highlighted the example of one Saint Camille hospital which was occupied by a frenzied mob of 200-odd Muslims for Namaz after a nearby mosque was shut down by the Interior Ministry of the French government.

Hospitals are primary targets of Islamist groups: Patrick Pelloux

On being asked whether hospitals were targeted by ‘fundamentalist’ religious groups, Patrick Pelloux pointed out how the French government had to ban a Muslim charity organisation by the name of BarakaCity in 2020 due to its proximity to radical Islamists.

“Never forget that the main means of Daesh in Syria was access to free healthcare for the population. Free healthcare is not a trifle! Zineb El Rahzoui, who has translated political letters from the Muslim Brotherhood, has shown that their aim, especially in France, was to use the social system and conquer the hospital system….” the French physician concluded.

France shuts down mosque and Islamic school for harbouring ‘radical Islam’ 

Earlier in October last year, the France government ordered the closure of a mosque in Allonnes near Le Mans for harbouring ‘radical Islam’ and ‘legitimising terrorist attacks’. Interior minister Gerald Darmanin said that the managers and imams at the mosque allowed actions that run counter to the ‘values of the Republic’. 

The mosque was shut down for six months, Darmanin said, adding that the bank accounts of the mosque’s administrators were also seized. The charges against the mosque include inciting hatred towards France, Westerners, Christians, and Jews.

“The sermons propagated in this mosque cultivating hatred toward France,” Darmanin wrote on Twitter, defending the closure. The administration said that apart from hatred and discrimination, the mosque also promoted “the establishment of sharia” in France. Along with the mosque, a Quranic school hosted by it was also closed, saying that “armed jihad” was promoted in the school.

Russia-Ukraine war: 21-year old student from Tamil Nadu joins Ukraine armed forces to fight Russia

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Russia-Ukraine war: 21-year old student from Tamil Nadu joins Ukraine armed forces to fight Russia

On Monday, a family in the state of Tamil Nadu was shocked to know that their elder son is a part of the Ukrainian Army and is fighting for the country against Russia. Amid the ongoing conflict between the two countries, the intelligence reports submitted to the Centre and State revealed that a 21-year-old boy from Tamil Nadu had joined the Army of Ukraine after he couldn’t make it to the Indian Army due to his short height.

According to the reports, Sainikhesh Ravichandran is an aerospace engineering student and a resident of Subramaniyampalayam in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. The intelligence officers visited his house two days ago to meet his parents to know the probable reason behind their son joining the Army in Ukraine.

The family members of Sainikhsesh said that they were themselves shocked to know that their son had taken up the arms for Ukraine. Sainikhesh had earlier tried to join the Indian Army twice but was rejected both the times due to his short height. He had also approached the US embassy in Chennai to know whether if he could be a part of the American Army. When he got to know he could not join the US Army either, he took up a professional course at National Aerospace University in Kharkiv in year 2018. He later informed his family to have attained a part time job in a video gaming development company.

His family friend told to the TOI that his family all the time kept on thinking that their son was having a normal life all these years, pursuing professional studies but were worried when they came to know about a media report that revealed that a boy from Tamil Nadu had joined the Ukrainian forces.

Sainikhesh had recently visited the India in 2021 and had stayed for about a month and a half. He would also stay in touch with the relatives and his family friends through phone calls but went out of reach for almost four days after the war between Russia and Ukraine broke out. The intelligence officers in the report mentioned that they found portraits of soldiers all over his room.

Sainikhesh had always wanted to join the Army and be a soldier. He, after completing his 12th made several attempts to join the Indian Army but couldn’t make it. After he went to Ukriane, his family had tried to convince him to come back to India and do something else here, but he refused. The family recently sent an email to the Indian Embassy in Ukraine to know about Sainikhesh. The Embassy connected them both where the Sainikhesh expressed his desire to continue to be a part of the paramilitary force.

According to the reports, Sainikhesh is currently a part of Georgian National Legion paramilitary unit comprising of volunteers. The family now plans to seek help from the officials in the state and Centre to get their son back.

The war between Russia and Ukraine broke out on February 24 after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced military aggression. The Indian government has undertaken a special evacuation operation named ‘Operation Ganga’ to get back all the Indian nationals who are stuck in Ukraine. Several special flights have been running from Poland, Romania, and Hungary to bring the students home. Air India, Air India Express, IndiGo, and SpiceJet have joined the Operation Ganga mission operating multiple flights from Ukraine’s neighboring countries to Delhi and Mumbai.

As per the latest information released by the Ministry of External Affairs, around 13,300 Indians have been brought back to India under Operation Ganga by 63 flights. Over 21,000 people have left Ukraine.

Kerala: Kannur Police arrests Afzal and his wife Balkis with MDMA and other drugs worth over Rs 1.5 crore

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Kerala: Kannur Police arrests Afzal and his wife Balkis with MDMA and other drugs worth over Rs 1.5 crore

In Kannur, Kerala, a couple has been nabbed in one of the state’s largest drug hauls. The accused had about 2 kg of MDMA (3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine), 7.5 grams of opium, and 7 grams of brown sugar in their possession. Afzal (33) and his wife Balkis (31) were apprehended from Muzhappilangad.

Following a tip from Kannur City Police Commissioner R Elango, Kannur Town Police Inspector Sreejith Koderi and his squad grabbed the two at the parcel office at Thekkibazar. The police stated that the drugs were worth over Rs 1.5 crore.

According to City Police Commissioner R Elango, the drugs were brought in on a bus from Bangalore. Afzal and Balkis went to the postal service office in Thekki Bazaar in the afternoon on March 6 to pick up the package that had come on the bus.

The city police commissioner stated that they were looking into their clientele as well. After a night of questioning led by the SP, their statement was recorded.

According to R. Krishnan, the Kannur City Police Commissioner, information has been obtained that the drugs are being smuggled into the Kannur region via parcels and couriers. They will be soon starting a detailed investigation into this.

In connection with the MDMA seizure, tourist bus drivers have been questioned. The city police commissioner, on the other hand, informed reporters that no evidence had been found suggesting they were involved in narcotics trafficking.

As per reports, the accused Balkis had another drug case at the Edakkad police station, according to district police commissioner Elango R. Both Afzal and Balkis used WhatsApp to track down drug users. After verifying the sale to the needy, they used to pack minor items and then dropped them by the side of the road at the location they were informed after which the client would pick them up.

Audrey Truschke: ‘Historian’ on an anti-India mission, links to Christian missionary organisation, Pakistan and rabid hatred for Hindus

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Audrey Truschke: ‘Historian’ on an anti-India mission, links to Christian missionary organisation, Pakistan and rabid hatred for Hindus

For many years, an alleged historian Audrey Truschke has been doing everything in her power to spread misinformation and hate against Hindus and India. So much so, she has not only praised the invaders like Aurangzeb and whitewashed his atrocities against the Hindus but also targeted historians, authors, students and netizens who either tried to correct her or published work that did not sync with her side.

In September 2021, a netizen who runs a Twitter hand, OSINTWa_com, published three threads exploring the possible reasons behind Audrey’s hate towards India and particularly Hindus, irrespective of their location. Audrey, who completed her PhD in Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies, is married to Thane Rehn, son of Nathan Rehn, a pastor from the United States who ran missionary activities in India for a long time. According to OSINTWa, Thane attended his father’s conversion workshops in India.

Nathan Rehn was the founder of Bless India Ministries that pumped millions of dollars to India via Christ the King of Kings Ministries, which was founded by Devdas Mekala. Interestingly, Mekala was also a founder member of Bless India Ministries. He was active in India from the late 2000s till 2016.

On Nathan’s Facebook profile, there is an album specific to one of his trips to India in 2011. In the album, there were photographs of a church built by FBCM.

Other photos showcased children studying in a school built by FBCM.

From 2008, a photograph of his son Thane Rehn from somewhere in India was there on his public profile with the caption ‘Thane teaching the word’.

Bless India Ministries

Rehn is currently the lead pastor of First Baptist Church of Monterey (FBCM), California.

The website of Bless India Ministries shows an open letter where they have accused Devdas Mekala of misappropriation of funds at Christ the King of Kings Ministries and claimed they had stopped its funding completely in 2012.

The 2012 archive of the website shows the list of board of directors that included Devdas Mekala, Nathan Rehn, Paul Caprera, Jessica Rotz, Sam Allen and Sudheer Mekala. According to the website, Devdas and Nathan had first come in contact in 1999 when Devdas was attempting to raise funds for a Christian orphanage in India. Though the website says funds to Mekala’s ministry was stopped in 2012, the documents accessed by OSINTWa tell a different story.

Between 2010 to 2017, Rehn had sent around Rs 6.86 crores to Mekala’s organization.

Also, Nathan in his public Facebook posts continued to talk about his visits to India on several occasions.

Apart from providing funds to Mekala, OSINTWa said in a tweet that he had sent funds to multiple NGOs to run conversion activities. However, his conversion business was shut when in 2017, the government of India tightened the rules of FCRA.

OSINTWa claimed after Nathan had to shut his shop in India, Truschke started attacking India and Hindus via propaganda. Audrey’s book on Aurangzeb came out in 2017. It was a coincidence or not that in the year when Nathan had to shut his shop, his daughter-in-law released a book praising a Mughal emperor that demolished temples and killed countless Hindus.

The Pakistan connection

In the second thread on Audrey, OSINTWa explored her Pakistani connection. She is a member of the American Institute of Pakistan Studies, or AIPS. As per its website, AIPS was established in 1973 with an aim to promote academic study of Pakistan in the US. It encourages “scholarly exchange between the US and Pakistan” by offering fellowships to American researchers, administering lectureships, and sponsoring academic conferences. OSINTWa and many netizens have pointed out that in 2012-13 Audrey, who is a member of AIPS, was offered a fellowship.

Though there are claims that Audrey denies association with AIPS, there are a couple of tweets where she said she is a member of the organization.

The grant she was chosen for by AIPS seems to have been denied by Audrey as mentioned in the tweet as there is no info on the final report by her on AIPS’s website from that year. However, her association with the organization continues to date.

Her current resume also mentions that she is a member of AIPS.

AIPS has promoted her book as well.

In general, no one should have a problem with what an American is doing in academics and with which country. However, in the case of AIPS, there should be concerns. The main reason is that AIPS, which is supposed to create a bridge between Pakistan and US scholars, is using the platform against India.

Even if, for a moment, we ignore how Audrey continuously targets India and Hindus living across the world, a quick look into AIPS’s history raise several questions. For example, AIPS had sponsored an event in 2018 that 80 people attended. Titled “The Disposable Pakistani Scholars at AAS-in Asia (Delhi, India): A Round Table Discussion”, the event in Madison, Wisconsin, discussed how The Wire had reported a ban on Pakistani scholars from attending an event in India.

In 2020, it talked about an article published by one of its members Jennifer Dubrow on CAA.

A year earlier, she received a grant from AIPS and, unlike Audrey, used the grant for a project and spent some time in Pakistan as well.

There are multiple instances that can be registered on AIPS where instead of concentrating on Pakistan, they have meddled their way in Indian affairs.

Manan Ahmad Asif and his links to AIPS

OSINTWa claimed Audrey came in contact with two people in 2007. One was her now-husband Thane Rehn, and the second was Manan Ahmed Asif, a Pakistani scholar living in New York.

First, let’s talk about Asif. The Columbian University scholar goes by Sepoy on Twitter. The AIPS list of Board of Trustees mentions his name.

It was claimed in the thread that Audrey and Asif were all set to be launched as a historians in the Indian circle. A quick search of his Twitter profile with the word India, Hindu, Hindutva, Narendra Modi or Modi, and other similar words revealed a lot about his thought process.

He also supported the Hinduphobic conference “Dismantling Global Hindutva”.

Thane Rehn – Audrey’s husband’s Pakistani connections

Rehn, who was actively involved in the conversion business of his father in India, was a Summer intern at the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. OSINTWa claimed Rehn came in contact with Audrey in 2007 and later married her.

It is notable that in a tweet in 2020, Audrey herself admitted visiting Pakistan in 2007.

Thane also worked at Jindal Global Law School in Sonipat, Haryana.

This is the same law school whose professors were accused of anti-India rhetoric on multiple occasions. In 2021, OpIndia reported that its faculty Shruti Pandey courted controversy after she claimed that all Hindus practise untouchability and praised Islam and its ‘acceptability’ of widow remarriage. In 2022, it was reported that Arijeet Ghosh, the Assistant Professor who is a faculty at the Law school referred to Kashmir as a territory “occupied by India” during a class that reportedly took place on September 9, 2021.

Audrey and her connections with anti-India and anti-Hindu organizations

In December 2019, an organization named SAHI (Students Against Hindutva Ideology) was formed. Audrey is a board member of the organization. One of the very first campaigns that the organization ran was Holi Against Hindutva. Initially, the organization was named Students Against Hindutva, and they ran a standalone website for the said campaign. However, later, the name and the prospect of the group was widened.

SAHI was actively involved in anti-CAA protests and regularly made anti-India and anti-Hindu posts on its Facebook profile.

It also actively spoke against the Indian government during farmers protests.

The last active event that SAHI was part of was Dismantling Global Hindutva where Audrey was a speaker. After a couple of months of the SGH conference, the activities of the group went silent on social media platforms. While on Facebook, the last post was on March 2021, on Twitter, it went silent on November 11, 2021.

SAHI and its dubious board of advisors

Other than Audrey, there are three members on the board of advisors at SAHI. The first person mentioned on SAHI is Ajit Sahi, a member of the board of advisors. The former executive of Tehelka is known for his sympathetic attitude towards terrorist organization SIMI. In 2008, he had authored a report whitewashing the allegations against SIMI. On many occasions, he had tried to give a clean chit to the terrorist organization claiming the case against them did not stand in court.

SAHI is also the advocacy director at Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC). Though IAMC’s website does not have a list of officials working at the organization, it had mentioned him as advocacy director on multiple occasions, such as in a press release that IAMC issued when Sahi had won the Inaugural Swami Agnivesh Memorial Award From Hindus For Human Rights.

Ajit is also associated with the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which has made baseless allegations against the Modi-led Indian government of atrocities against minorities, especially Muslims. Notably, The Disinfo Lab had claimed IAMC had managed to influence USCIRF against India.

The next is of Aman Wadud. He has been vocal against Assam NRC. He also gave testimony at USCIRF against the Indian govt and Assam govt. In his statement at ISCIRF, he cunningly linked CAA to the proposed NRC in India and alleged it was a step against minorities in India. He conveniently ignored the fact that it was anti-CAA protesters who started the infamous anti-Hindu riots of Delhi in February 2020 and blamed Hindus for killing Muslims. Though he named a Muslim who was killed in riots, he failed to mention the brutal murder of Hindus, including Ratan Lal, Ankit Sharma and Dilbar Negi, among others.

The last name is Waris Husain, a former South Asia analyst at USCIRF. Husain is also linked to AIPS, where he had received a two-month fellowship in 2014-15. He also wrote for the Pakistani daily DAWN.

Audrey’s association with dubious organisations and history of derogatory comments does not stop here. In July 2021, OpIndia reported on controversial history of Audrey that can be read here.

1...3,3823,3833,384...7,563Page 3,383 of 7,563

Contact: infoopindia.com

About us

News and opinion website that brings you reports and narrative from a perspective often ignored or suppressed by the mainstream media of India.

Follow us

© OpIndia.com