Punjab’s newly elected chief minister Bhagwant Mann became the focal point of social media discussions on 31st March 2022 after a video of him making extraordinary claims went viral on the internet.
In the video, Mann is seen claiming that he built a bridge in Punjab for just Rs 6 lakhs as against a quotation of Rs 1.80 crores he had received from a deputy commissioner. The video is from February 2022, when Mann was on the hustings campaigning for the Punjab assembly elections. However, it went viral this week owing to seemingly outlandish claims made by Mann in the video.
In this video, Bhagwant Mann said, “In Dirba village of the Sangrur district, there was a place where it was necessary to make a bridge to pass over the waterway. I asked the deputy commissioner for an estimate. He gave an estimate of Rs 1.80 crores to build a bridge at that place. I was shocked. I thought I get an annual fund of mere Rs 5 crore to spend. How am I to spend almost two crore rupees out of that for such a small thing.”
He further said, “There is an engineer friend of mine whom I asked for the estimate of the same bridge. He quoted me a number – six lakh rupees. See the difference. We made the bridge in just six lakh rupees.”
Certifying his commitment to the work in his own words, he said, “I utilize every penny of the public money as if it is my own. If I spend my money I will think and bargain for a better deal every time.”
However, when the people visited the actual site they found no such bridge existed there. Instead, there were two concrete beams which are often used as poles for electric lines, being laid over the waters. As per a report published by PTC News, locals were outraged at what Mann touted as a bridge. Unhappy with erroneous assertions made by him, people accused Mann of lying and making sensational claims to extract political brownie points. They were also angry with the local AAP MLA Harpal Cheema, who currently holds the office of the finance ministry in the cabinet of the Punjab state government led by Bhagwant Mann.
Netizens slam Bhagwant Mann for making fallacious claims about the ‘Rs 6 lakh bridge’
Netizens shared and reacted to this video and mocked the way this so-called bridge is made in just six lakh rupees. Supreme Court lawyer Shashank Shekhar Jha tweeted, “So Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann in an interview before the elections claimed that their engineer can construct the bridge at only ₹6 Lakh while the official bid is of 1.8 Crores. Now you have the bridge ready at ₹6 Lakhs. Must visit to see this!!!”
So @ArvindKejriwal & @BhagwantMann in an interview before the elections claimed that their engineer can construct the bridge at only ₹6 Lakh while the official bid is of 1.8 Crores.
Now you’ve the bridge ready at ₹6 Lakhs. Must visit to see this!!!
Niranjan Chelur tweeted, “Cost of a 9 Mtr Electric pole of Best Quality is about 8000 Rs. Even if U make longer-Wider ones at the site it shall not be more than 25000/Pole.2 poles-50000 Rs. Add Labor Transport 50000 Rs=I Lac. Baaki 5 lac Kahan Gaya? NOT to talk of Safety! If that’s a Bridge-Pegwant is Einstein.”
Cost of a 9 Mtr Electric pole of Best Quality is about 8000 Rs.Even if U make longer-Wider ones at site it shall not be more than 25000/Pole.2 poles-50000 Rs.Add Labor Transport 50000 Rs=I Lac. Baaki 5 lac Kahan Gaya? NOT to talk of Safety! If thats a Bridge-Pegwant is Einstein.
Bhagwant Mann, a former stand-up comedian turned politician, was elected as Punjab chief minister after AAP swept the state in the assembly elections held earlier this year. Days after his swearing-in ceremony as the Punjab CM, Mann sought Rs 50,000 crore per year for two years from the Centre as financial aid claiming the financial health of the state is very poor, which led many to wonder if it was an attempt at preparing the ground to blame Centre for non-fulfilment of AAP’s freebie promises.
On March 28, a video surfaced on YouTube in which a group of pro-Khalistani Sikhs accused the Craigieburn Gurudwara committee members of calling the Police on them. As per reports, the committee members had called the Police as they felt threatened by the behaviour of the pro-Khalistani group that was scheduled to hold a function inside Gurudwara premises.
Australian Hindu Media (AHM), the media wing of the Australian Hindu Association, identified a few of the people in the video as Gurbax Singh Bains, Charanjit Singh, Kuldip Singh and Gurvinder Singh Randhawa. A man armed with a sword accused the committee members of committing sacrilege against the Gurus and weapons of Sikhism.
The man dressed as Nihang said they were scheduled to organize a pro-Khalistan event in the Gurudwara, and similar events were organized in other Gurudwaras in Australia earlier. However, this time they were stopped by the Gurudwara Committee. He asked a Sikh woman present in the group to explain what had happened.
The woman said they came to the Gurudwara peacefully, but the committee members allegedly got scared by the Nihang Sikh, who was carrying a large sword. They did not allow them to hold the event and asked them to keep quiet as Kirtan was going on on the premises. While the Kirtan was going on, the committee members called the Police, that on arrival, informed them that they had to leave as the committee members felt threatened.
She also alleged that the Police officers were stopped by them as they were about to enter the premises while wearing shoes. She said, “Police were guided by three committee members to walk upstairs to the Darbar Sahib of the Gurudwara. The Police were wearing shoes.” She claimed one of her group members stopped the Police and informed them it was against their faith to enter Darbar Sahib wearing shoes.
After she explained the alleged incident, the Nihang Sikh ranted against the Hindu Media reporter. He was furious as the news portal deemed Deep Sidhu a terror accused and called pro-Khalistani groups ‘Sikh terrorists’. He further claimed that his group was going to celebrate Khalistan Day on April 30.
According to Hindu Media, Gurbax Singh Bains deemed Deep Sidhu as right and alleged there was a threat to the existence of the Sikh community. Kuldip Singh Bassi alleged that the Gurudwara committee was trying to suppress their voice. He said, “This has happened to us in India, and we have lost our people.” He further claimed they were fighting for azaadi (freedom), and they would attain it. He was possibly referring to the demand for a separate nation of Khalistan for Sikhs.
Australian Gurudwaras helped to organize pro-Khalistani events
On February 28, it was reported that four Victorian Gurudwaras had jointly planned a pro-Khalistani, anti-India and anti-Hindu event that took place on February 20, 2022, in Australia in the memory of Khalistani supporter Deep Sidhu. Sidhu, a Punjabi actor and one of the accused in the 2021 Republic Day riots, had recently died in a road accident.
On February 20 2022, a Sikh Gurudwara in Australia showcased an Anti-India/Hindu poster blatantly in between two so-called Khalistan flags. The poster had hate-filled slogans like ‘End Hindu Fascism’ and ‘India kills Sikhs’ printed on it. It also bore the image of the deceased Punjabi actor Deep Sidhu, one of the accused in the 2021 Republic Day riots. The poster was found hanging at the entrance of the Craigieburn Sikh Gurudwara in Australia.
Australian pro-Khalistani had fought with pro-India groups
There have been several reports of a clash between pro-Khalistani and pro-India groups in Australia. An Indian identified as Vishal Jood was sent to Jail for standing against pro-Khalistani elements in Australia last year. He had pleaded guilty to three minor charges of altercations that happened between September 16, 2020, and February 14, 2021. During the final hearing, Vishal’s lawyer presented video evidence to prove that Jood was provoked by a group of Khalistanis that led to the altercation. For the charges he pleaded guilty to, Jood was sentenced to six months in Jail starting from the day of his arrest, April 16, 2021. OpIndia’s conversation with Jood can be checked here.
On March 30, while promoting his upcoming movie Dasvi, Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan praised filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri’s latest film, The Kashmir Files. Junior Bachchan stated on Times Now Navbharat that, while he has not seen the film, the fact that it is doing well indicates that it is well made, otherwise, the film would not work.
When asked if a movie can be an answer to any political issue, Abhishek Bachchan responded that it may but it totally depends on how an individual interprets it. He added that as long as the intention behind making the movie is correct it is bound to do well.
Indirectly slamming those who have been politicising The Kashmir Files, Abhishek said, “It’s like does art reflects life or life reflects art”, only if the movie is nice will it be watched. Take for instance The Kashmir Files. The genesis of it is what? For the last two-three days, we were discussing this only. Whatever you do, whether you politicise it, you want to communalise it, that is your freedom of speech…your opinion…very good. But, if the film was not good it would not have done good business. There is no other reason why it’s working. We can add a lot of other meanings and ripple effects, but the genesis…the foundation is to be a good film”, said Abhishek.
He added that it’s not his place to comment as he hasn’t watched the movie but he has not met a single individual yet who has said that The Kashmir Film is a bad movie.
Actress Yami Gautam, who was with Abhishek Bachchan, promoting their upcoming film Dasvi also praised the film The Kashmir Files. She stated that the film has given the families of the victims the courage to express their grief, which they had previously suppressed.
Interestingly, shortly after the release of Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files, Bollywood superstar and Abhishek Bachchan’s father Amitabh Bachchan had taken to Twitter to post a cryptic Tweet. He Tweeted, “We know now, what we never knew then”, he tweeted leaving the netizens to speculate the purpose behind his words.
While some speculated that the tweet was posted specifically to praise the movie that has done wonders in the cinema industry, some criticised Big B by sharing snippets from his old movie where the actor is heard glorifying the Islamic invaders and giving them the credit for the good places in India.
The Kashmir Files
Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files is based on the exodus of the Kashmiri Pandits from the valley in the 1990s. The film has been a major success at the box office. Several states have made it tax-free. From Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Home Minister Amit Shah and UP, CM Yogi Adityanath has praised the film.
Though the film has been received with open hearts by the majority of the viewers, a section of society, especially the liberals and Islamists, have opposed the film, claiming it hurts the sentiments of the minority. A full-fledged agenda to discredit the film has been running since before the launch of the film in the theatres. So much so, NDTV had deemed it a propaganda film even before its release. The word ‘propaganda’ was removed from the description after the uproar.
On Wednesday, an ancient three-headed sculpture of Lord Vishnu was recovered by some laborers during sand extraction from the river Jhelum in the Kakapora area of Pulwama district in South Kashmir. The sculpture was taken under possession by Pulwama Police and was later handed over to the Directorate of Archives, Archaeology, and Museums of Jammu and Kashmir.
According to the reports, the sculpture dates back to the ninth century. On March 30, some laborers were extracting sand from the river Jhelum in Lelhara village of Kakapora area when they found the Vishnu murti shaded in black and green in the river. They contacted the local police, who reached the spot and took the sculpture into their possession.
A Chaturvyuha Vishnu murti was recovered by some labourers during sand extraction from river Vitasta (Jhelum). The sculpture was taken under possession by Pulwama Police & later handed over to Directorate of Archives, Archaeology & Museums of J&K: Pulwama Police.@LostTemple7pic.twitter.com/8kuoC51Aao
— Monidipa Bose – Dey (মণিদীপা) (@monidipadey) March 31, 2022
Mushtaq Ahmad, the Deputy Director of the Department of Archives, Archaeology, and Museums of Jammu and Kashmir said that the sculpture is a unique three-headed Vaishno of the ninth century. “It is a green stone sculpture which is very rare and its art is highly decorated. However, a few parts of the sculpture are missing,” Mushtaq added.
The recovered sculpture is a unique three-headed idol of Lord Vishnu and represents him as the supreme being. Reportedly, the frontal human face is that of ‘Vasudeva’, the right face is of a lion and is called ‘Samkarsana’, the left one boar is north facing and of ‘Aniruddha’. The small idol on Vishnu’s left is that of ‘Chakrapurusha’ which personifies his battle mace.
Ancients will rise again ?
Ancient Murti of Bhagwan Vishnu found in Vitasta river near Kakapora village in Kashmir. pic.twitter.com/FzyZH6lTmD
The sculpture is now housed in SPS Museum, Srinagar, for further studies, officials said.
It is pertinent to note that several ancient, Indian old sculptures have been recovered from various places in recent times. Last year in September 1200-year-old sculpture of Goddess Durga was found in Jammu and Kashmir by the local police. The sculpture was found from the Jhelum river in Budgam district’s Khan Sahib area as some laborers were mining sand from the river bed.
Also, in January this year, the 10th century goat-headed Yogini idol was recovered from a garden of a private residence in London and was handed over to the Archaeological Survey of India. The ancient idol had gone missing from a temple in Uttar Pradesh’s Lokhari village 40 years ago.
Samsung has decided to remove the letter ‘Z’ from its latest league of foldable smartphones, at least in the Baltic countries for now, after the symbol emerged as an icon for Russian aggression in Ukraine. Apparently, ‘Z’ will be removed from Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 series in Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia of Northern Europe, where regional connotations related to “Z” have changed after the Russian-Ukraine war.
In Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia Samsung has removed the Z branding from their foldables pic.twitter.com/0zbHYeMYyD
The South Korean Tech Giant has entered the league by sidelining Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. While Samsung has issued no official statement regarding the rebranding of its Fold series and the dropping of Z, the local Samsung store websites have started referring to their smartphone series simply as Galaxy Fold 3 and Flip 3. Samsung has already stopped the supply of its products to Russia as part of its personal sanctions. While Samsung’s decision of dropping ‘Z’ in the three Baltic Countries that border Russia has been observed, it is yet to materialise in war-torn Ukraine itself.
Germany outlaws the use of the symbol ‘Z’ in opposition to Russian aggression in Ukraine
Last week, two German states said they have outlawed public displays of the “Z” symbol used by the Russian army in their invasion of Ukraine.
Anyone who uses the symbol at demonstrations or paints it on cars or buildings in a show of support for Russia’s war could risk up to three years in jail or a fine in Lower Saxony or Bavaria.
It is being reported that Germany is mulling over criminalising the use of the letter “Z” in the entire country, with authorities asserting that the use of the letter in some cases could constitute an endorsement of Russian aggression in Ukraine.
‘Z’ in the Ukraine-Russia Crisis
The letter “Z” has become a symbol of Russia’s war after it was found painted on military vehicles taking part in the invasion of Ukraine. Its meaning is not clear; some believe it represents a military zone, others suggest it refers to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Russian defence ministry has indicated it stands for “za pobedu,” meaning “for victory.”
“Z” is a letter that Russian Military are putting on their vehicles departing to Ukraine. Some interpret “Z” as “Za pobedy” (for victory). Others – as “Zapad” (West). Anyway, this symbol invented just a few days ago became a symbol of new Russian ideology and national identity pic.twitter.com/iWuBPhhdEb
There have been multiple theories over what ‘Z’ symbolizes after the letter found its way on Russian tanks entering Ukraine. Russian nationalists have upheld it as an icon of brotherhood, while it could also be seen painted on major buildings in Russia as graffiti. Z could be seen engraved on Russian lawmakers’ coats. At the same time, Russian activists have used it in their demonstrations as well. Some theories suggest that ‘Z’ symbolizes Russia’s current enemy – Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian President while others say it stands for ‘Zapad’ – meaning ‘The West’ in Russian.
Arvind Kejriwal, the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, has sparked outrage for his recent comments in the legislative assembly in which he mocked ‘The Kashmir Files’ and implied that the Kashmiri Hindu genocide was ‘fake’ by calling the movie a “Jhoothi film“ (full of lies).
Delhi CM had made the remark in response to the pleas to make Kashmir Files tax-free in Delhi. Criticising BJP for supporting the film, he had asked the filmmakers to put the film up on YouTube for free.
Taking offence at Kejriwal’s insensitivity towards Hindus by openly denying the Kashmiri genocide, several Kashmiri Hindus, on March 30, staged a protest outside Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s house in Delhi. Many protestors expressed their displeasure at Kejriwal’s remark and said that it only exposed his insensitive mindset.
Kejriwal’s anti-Hindu remark not only irked hundreds of Kashmiri Hindus but also drew flak from many BJP leaders who condemned Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party for always adopting anti-India and anti-Hindu policies.
While Tejasvi Surya, BJP Yuva Morcha president and MP from Bengaluru demanded an ‘unconditional apology’ from Delhi Chief Minister, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma urged Kejriwal to not be “anti-Hindu openly.
BJP national secretary and Delhi co in-charge Dr Alka Gurjar said Kejriwal has always attacked Sanatan dharma which is shameful. Former Union Health Minister and MP Dr Harshwardhan said the kind of language being used by Kejriwal for Hindus shows his mental bankruptcy.
As has been rightfully pointed out, while Arvind Kejriwal has spent the last few years touting his own and his party’s Hindu credentials, his past several deeds like opposing jobs for Kashmiri Hindus, opposing the CAA, raising questions on Ram Mandir, sheltering anti-Hindu Delhi riots kingpins Tahir Husain and Amanatullah Khan, his nexus with the Khalistanis, supporting the tukde tukde gang, demolishing old Hanuman temple in Chandni Chowk, to name a few, have gone on to openly display Kejriwal’s anti-Hindus mentality.
AAP govt tried to stop Kashmiri Hindus from getting jobs
Recently, the teachers’ association of Kashmiri Pandits busted Arvind Kejriwal’s lies that his Government gave permanent jobs to 233 Kashmiri Pandits who had been working on contracts in Delhi for decades. The association revealed how the Delhi government led by Arvind Kejriwal had fought years of a legal battle to oppose the regularisation of the Kashmiri Hindu teachers.
It becomes imperative to note here that in its press note, the Kashmiri Hindu migrants teachers association clearly wrote how it had first approached the court in 2010 after which a single bench delivered a judgment in favour of their regularisation, which was challenged by the government before a double bench. The association said this bench also directed that the teachers be regularised, which was challenged by the Kejriwal government in the Supreme Court, which dismissed its petition in 2018.
“In 2019, finally the government regularised Kashmiri migrant teachers, having no other option left. This indicates that the Delhi government was never interested in regularising the services of KMT. In fact, the Delhi government opposed the regularisation till the very end,” read the statement issued by the Government School Teachers Association (Migrant) on March 28.
Arvind Kejriwal insults Hindus and their beliefs
In 2020, Arvind Kejriwal, the chief of AAP had declared himself a devotee of Lord Hanuman. He had also claimed that since Lord Hanuman is a devotee of Lord Ram, by extension, even he is so. Kejriwal has announced that after the Ram Mandir is constructed in Ayodhya, he will take the elderly people from Delhi to Ayodhya for darshan.
Interestingly, it is this ‘Ram Bhakt’ who, not long ago, on several occasions, had questioned the need for a Ram Mandir.
In 2014, he had shamed the Hindus for trying to build a temple at the birthplace of Lord Ram saying his Nani (grandmother) would never have approved of it.
When Ayodhya Ram Mandir was a distant reality, Kejriwal mocked the intent and repeatedly said that the government should instead build schools, colleges and hospitals.
Not just the Delhi CM, his colleagues have also time and again opposed the construction of Ram Mandir. AAP leader Sanjay Singh, in an attempt to gain relevancy in politics, had run a misinformation campaign alleging funds misappropriations by the BJP and Ayodhya Ram Mandir Trust in June 2021.
Further insulting Lord Hanuman, of whom he claims to be a devout devotee, Kejriwal shared a cartoon depicting the Hindu god ‘setting fire’ to JNU as a distraction. This he did after Leftist students at JNU attacked ABVP students in January 2020 over a semester form at Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Kejriwal, who has always tried to portray himself as a devout Hindu, had another awkward encounter ahead of the 2020 Delhi elections when he grossly misquoted the Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita. Taking a sly dig at their ideological opponents-BJP, he said that it is written in Gita that a true Hindu is brave and never runs away from the field. The ‘devoted’ Hindu was unaware that throughout the 700 Sanskrit verses in Bhagavad Gita, the word “Hindu” has not been used anywhere.
Ahead of the 2019 general elections, Kejriwal had shared an image where a man with a broom can be seen hitting the Swastika symbol, a symbol holy to Hindus, Buddhists and Jains.
Arvind Kejriwal and his party have time and again insulted Hindus. In August 2020, the official Twitter handle of AAP had shared pictures of Kanchenjunga in Sikkim, held sacred by both Hindus and the Buddhists, Kamet Peak, and Nanda Devi hills in Uttarakhand, where lies a sacred temple of Nanda Devi, an incarnation of the Hindu Goddess Durga. It drew analogies between these sacred peaks and a humongous landfill at Ghazipur in Delhi. The contentious tweet was accompanied by the caption, “Highest Mountains of India.”
AAP Tweet
In 2016, the AAP faced widespread criticism, especially from the Sikh community after it published a picture of the Golden Temple and the party symbol ‘broom’ on the title page of its youth manifesto and then compared the same with holy scriptures of the Sikhs, Hindus, and Christians in a speech at its release.
Arvind Kejriwal, who has frequently made anti-Hindi Tweets and remarks, has clearly never objected to his party members engaging in similar misbehaviour. Last year, a controversy was sparked after several of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Virender Singh Kadian’s 2017 Hinduphobic tweets went viral on social media.
It must be mentioned that Kadian was handed the election ticket by Arvind-Kejriwal led AAP and he secured his seat from the Delhi Cantt constituency in South-west Delhi. In a vile Hinduphobic tweet, Virender Singh Kadian said, “All Godmen are ch*tiyas. The biggest ones are those who go to listen to their religious lectures. Mama’s boy, aren’t the fake 33 crore gods not enough?”
Along similar lines, in 2021, Aam Aadmi Party’s Gujarat head Gopal Italia’s old Tweets where he made disparaging remarks about the Hindu community and rituals had also gone viral. In this regard, an FIR was also filed against Italia in Assam by a member of the Hindu IT Cell, Santanu Saikia. In both cases, the party supremo Arvind Kejriwal refused to remark.
Delhi Hanuman Temple demolition
There was a significant blame game going on over the demolition of the 100-year-old Hanuman temple in Chandni Chowk in Delhi with VHP blaming the Aam Aadmi Government in the national capital for not protecting the Temple against demolition at the Delhi High Court.
The BJP had blamed the AAP for the demolition despite the fact that it was NDMC that demolished because it claimed the Delhi Government could have intervened in the matter but did not.
The BJP also claimed that the AAP saved two other structures but chose not to do so in the case of the Hanuman Temple.
Aam Aadmi Party’s involvement in anti-Hindu protests
Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party has always been at the forefront of providing tactical support to any type of protest or violence against Hindus. Though Kejriwal has never publicly endorsed such incidents but has never either held back his loyalists like Tahir Hussain and Amanatullah Khan who played a major role in the February 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy.
The anti-CAA protests in 2020, which ultimately culminated in the anti-Hindu Delhi riots in February 2020, was a clear manifestation of planned genocide against Hindus living in the Muslim-dominated areas.
In 2020, the AAP alleged that protests led by women at Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh neighbourhood against the Citizenship Amendment Act were “scripted and strategised” by the Bharatiya Janata Party for political gains. Not coming as a surprise, the assorted bunch of so-called liberals had also jumped on the bandwagon. They too had claimed that the Shaheen Bagh shooter, Kapil Gujjar, who open fire near the anti-CAA protest at Shaheen Bagh on February 1, was allegedly associated with the BJP and was inspired to pick up the gun after senior leaders like Anurag Thakur and Delhi MP Parvesh Singh Sahib had ‘instigated him with slogans’.
This conspiracy theory peddled by the AAP and the ‘liberal-secular’ media, however, fell flat when the Delhi Police revealed that the shooter who fired at the Shaheen Bagh protest site belonged to Aam Aadmi Party, exposing the dangerous nexus between the Arvind Kejriwal led AAP and the shooter to instigate large scale violence on the streets of the Delhi.
The Delhi Crime Branch has found certain pictures on the mobile phone of Kapil Gujjar. In these pictures, Kapil Gujjar can be seen with AAP leaders such as Atishi and Sanjay Singh. In the pictures, AAP Dy CM Manish Sisodia and AAP leaders such as Atishi and Sanjay Singh are seen felicitating Kapil Gujjar and his father.
In fact, it was also revealed that AAP leader Tahir Hussain was not only instrumental in orchestrating riots in Delhi but was equally involved in steering the Shaheen Bagh ‘protest’ which was actually a hub of Islamic supremacists and rabid anti-CAA demonstrators who harboured hatred against those who did not conform to their worldview about the citizenship law.
A Uber driver living in Tahir Hussain’s neighbourhood disclosed that prior to the Delhi riots, the AAP leader regularly gathered groups of people in his house who were then sent to the Shaheen Bagh site to participate in the ‘protest’.
AAP leader Tahir Hussain in his confession during the interrogation of Delhi Police said that Khalid Saifi, who is very close to him, planned the riots with him. He once told him that his political position and money should be used against Hindus and for the community. He promised Saifi that he will always be ready to take any step. After the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Ram Lalla Virajman and the Indian government passed Citizen Amendment Act tabled by Home Minister Amit Shah, Tahir and Khalid met and decided that this was time they have to act.
The charge sheet pertaining to FIR 114 states that Tahir played a vital role in burning several Hindu shops in the Khajuri Khas area along with his accomplices.
Arvind Kejriwal supports the ‘tukde tukde’ gang
Prior to this, the AAP supremo had tried his best to shield and protect members of the tukde tukde gang like Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya after they were arrested on charges of sedition for raising slogans, challenging the Indian State’s sovereignty and calling for its balkanization during the event organised in the JNU campus in February 2016. At the event, slogans like ‘Afzal hum sharminda hai, tere kaatil zinda hai” (Afzal we are ashamed that your killers are still alive), and ‘Bandook se lenge Azadi’ (We will snatch freedom from India by the gun) was captured in news reports.
The AAP government, on its part, kept procrastinating and delaying the process of grant of sanctions to prosecute former JNU Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar, radical Islamist Umar Khalid and others in a sedition case.
Shockingly, in 2019, the Arvind Kejriwal government had rejected Delhi Police’s request for sanction to prosecute former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) President Kanhaiya Kumar and others. The AAP govt led by Arvind Kejriwal was of the view that the accused had ‘no intention’ of inciting violence and did not raise such slogans during the march. In fact, the Delhi government had found the evidence provided by Delhi Police ‘flimsy’ and ‘riddled with gaps’.
According to reports, in the year 2020, the Delhi Police urged the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government to clear their pending request for prosecuting controversial ultra-left wing leader Kanhaiya Kumar and others in connection with the JNU sedition case.
The Delhi court had also asked the Delhi government to file a status report relating to the issue of pendency of sanction in the JNU sedition case to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar and others.
After years of delay, at last, in February 2020, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party in the national capital permitted the prosecution of Kanhaiya Kumar and others in a long-pending sedition case.
Arvind Kejriwal and his party’s dalliance with Khalistani separatists
Furthermore, Arvind Kejriwal and his party’s close nexus with Khalaistani separatists, who have advocated the secession of Punjab with the support of Pakistan, is yet another proof of the party’s anti-India and anti-Hindu mindset.
In fact, OpIndia extensively reported on how the Aam Aadmi Party, along with other opposition parties such as the Congress, supported the ‘farmers’ protest at the Singhu border against the Central government’s farm laws, which was hijacked by Khalistani elements.
Most notably, former AAP leader Kumar Vishwas recently made explosive allegations against Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party. Vishwas had said that Kejriwal and AAP party were consorting with separatists and terror sympathisers during the run-up to the Punjab assembly elections in 2017. He also insinuated that people sympathising with the Khalistani cause visited Kejriwal at his residence ahead of the 2017 assembly elections.
AAP even provided the protesters at Singhu Border with free WiFi. Thus, backing from opposition parties complicated the whole situation immensely.
The opposition parties also contributed to the mess by spreading fake news about the farm laws and creating a sense of hysteria among farmers in Haryana and Punjab. When the government warned that Khalistani elements were making attempts to hijack the protests, it was accused of maligning the farmers.
It was these Khalistani elements who stormed the national capital on Republic Day 2021 and eventually managed to breach the premises of the Red Fort where a Sikh Flag was unfurled. The events were reminiscent of some of the darkest moments of the Indian Republic and the visuals of the police personnel being attacked were disturbing indeed.
In fact, after the Aam Aadmi Party’s clean sweep in Punjab in the 2022 Assembly elections, the banned Khalistani organization SFJ had written a letter to the now, Punjab Chief Minister and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann requesting that the AAP allow a Khalistani referendum.
In a letter released by the SFJ, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the chief of the anti-India outfit, made a sensational allegation that the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP treacherously used Khalistan votes and funds to win Punjab.
Amidst the stand taken by the Hindu temple administrations in Karnataka not to allow non-Hindu traders to set up shops near temples on religious occasions, a group of Muslim traders met Pejavara Matt seer Shri Vishwaprasanna Teertha Swamiji at Udupi on Wednesday, requesting him to allow them to participate in the Hindu fairs.
According to the reports, the delegation led by non-Hindu traders, especially Muslims, complained to the Hindu seer that the traders who make a living by selling items during such annual fairs face a lot of problems. They pleaded with the Swamiji to allow them to open shops near the temples.
The Muslim traders, joined by Udupi Zilla Sauharda Samithi, led by Abubakar Atrady, met the Swamiji and submitted a plea to allow Muslim and Christian merchants to open shops at the temple fairs and festivals.
Responding to the plea, Shri Vishwaprasanna Teertha Swamiji reportedly acknowledged that peace and harmonious coexistence are very much necessary for a society to have a conducive atmosphere and that no one section of the society can achieve this objective.
“Hindu society has suffered pain and sorrow for a very long. Because of several bitter experiences, the Hindu society is going through agony. This issue cannot be resolved by mutual discussions between a few religious leaders. A lasting solution should be found at the grassroots level. When a section or group continuously faces injustice, its frustration and anger pour out. The frustrated Hindu society has been fed up with injustices. We have to sit on a dais and discuss the causes of this situation. There is the hope of harmony to be established again if no more unsavoury incidents happen in Hindu society. All the cows inside the cattle shed of a widow have been stolen, and the woman has been driven to the streets. Such and several more incidents have caused the pain to get crystallised among Hindus. It is impossible to establish peace and coexistence if we just mouth these words. However, there is no need for any mediation by the third person,” the Swamiji explained.
Shri Vishwaprasanna Teertha Swamiji also noted that the Hijab row has caused the economic boycott of Muslim merchants, and there is a need to address the root cause of the injustice suffered by the Hindus.
“Let the society punish those who have committed wrongs and let them protest against the erring members. Wrong things done by one affect the whole society. If the community does not support those who commit wrongs, the Hindu society does not suffer the pain. Peace cannot be the burden of one community,” he explained to the delegation.
Ever since the Muslim traders forced the Hindu traders to shut shops in protest against the Karnataka High Court’s order banning the wearing of hijab in educational institutions, the Hindu temple administrations have taken a strong exception to the participation of non-Hindus in the annual fairs.
In recent weeks, multiple temple committees in Karnataka had announced that they would not lease shops on their temple premises to non-Hindus after some Muslim shopkeepers had joined the protests against the hijab verdict of the Karnataka High Court and shut down shops in the political call for a strike.
In the last few days, multiple statements have been made by Aam Aadmi Party leaders against Dilip Bhan, a Kashmiri teacher, who had claimed that the Delhi Government delayed implementing the High Court’s ruling in favour of Kashmiri Migrant Teachers (KMT).
Bhan had claimed on behalf of the Government School Teachers Association (Migrant) Regd on March 28 that it was only after the judgement of the Supreme Court in their favour that the Delhi Government regularized their jobs as teachers.
Press Releases – Left by Dilip Bhan | Right by other members of KMT association claiming Bhan was not part of the association.
On March 29, another press release from the same organization was out stating they did not know who Dilip Bhan was and praised Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Government for supporting them throughout the case in High Court and Supreme Court. The contradictory statements from members of the Association raised several questions and, most importantly, on the existence of Dilip Bhan as he was categorically deemed as a “pawn of BJP” by AAP leaders.
Finding Dilip Bhan, does he exist?
Twitter user The Hawk Eye did some research and tried to find if the person was real or not. In a Twitter thread, he mentioned that AAP leader Atishi first claimed Dilip Bhan does not exist.
Where is this Dilip Bhan who released that first statement condemning AAP on behalf of KMT? The ‘real’ asso said they don’t know “if he exists”. Atishi said, “there is no Dilip Bhan”! Later Bharadwaj said he fabricated st. (who dont even exist!??)
The Association also mentioned in the March 29 press release that they condemned the allegedly fake press release on behalf of the Association by “some Dilip Bhan” and claimed they did not know any person by this name or any member of the Association by the name ‘Dilip Bhan’.
Interestingly, during a debate on Times Now, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed Dilip Bhan created a fabricated document. He said the Association that was contesting the case in the courts was Delhi Government Teachers Migrant Association, and Dilip Bhan was not part of the said Association. His statement was in contrast to Atishi’s statement, where she categorically denied the existence of Dilip Bhan.
The Hawk Eye further shared screenshots of three different documents from 2008, 2009 and 2019 where a teacher named Dilip Kumar Bhan with employment ID 19941202 was mentioned in the list of Kashmiri Migrant Teachers.
Another catch here is now Bhardwaj changed the name of asso itself & its not a mistake. Listen to this clip carefully. He recited the (new) name of asso. very distinguishing & added “Dilip Bhan doesn’t belong to this asso & member of this asso don’t even know him” 3/ pic.twitter.com/J6kDrhYSB7
OpIndia dug out more documents and available evidence with an aim to establish if Dilip Bhan exists or not, and here is what we found. During our investigation, we also came up with the documents of Kashmiri Migrant Teachers’ lists from 2019, 2008 and matched the school ID with the list available on Delhi Education Ministry’s website where his name was mentioned. The screenshots can be seen below.
Dilip Bhan’s name appeared 2008 list of Kashmiri Migrant Teacher’s list
His name appeared in the list of regularized Kashmiri Migrant Teachers
We also confirmed if Bhan was one of the petitioners in the case filed in the Supreme Court. As per the details available on Supreme Court’s website for case number 028452/2018, Dilip Bhan was respondent number 196 in the petition filed by the Government of NCT Delhi.
We also checked if Bhan is a registered voter in Delhi. As per the Election Commission’s website, 61-years-old Dilip Bhan is a registered voter in Delhi as per the Voter’s list updated on January 1, 2022. The name of Bhan’s father and address matches the information available on the Supreme Court’s website about the respondents’ list in the case between Kashmiri Migrant Teachers and the Government of Delhi.
Screenshot from Electoral Roll. Source: ECI
Dilip Bhan had a conversation with two channels, Times Now and Aaj Tak. On March 28, Bhan had talked to Times Now Group Editor Navika Kumar.
On March 29, he had a conversation with Aaj Tak’s senior special correspondent Sunil Bhat. Aaj Tak’s thumbnail of the video had a person’s photo, which they claimed to be Dilip Bhan.
In both the conversations, he slammed Delhi Govt led by Arvind Kejriwal, for making false claims.
Dilip Bhan made no statement after Association’s press release
After the Association released the statement and claimed Bhan was not a member, he stopped making any appearances on TV channels or making any statement to a media or news agency. It is unclear what had happened during that period and if he was asked not to make any statements. We tried to find contact information of Bhan to hear his side of the story, but so far, we could not connect with him.
In a horrifying incident, an 11-year-old girl was raped and mutilated by her cousin’s boyfriend, Shahar Ali Sadar in the Basirhat district of West Bengal.
According to the reports, the minor girl, a resident of Nehalpur, had visited her aunt’s house in Matia village. The cousin’s sister had introduced the minor to her boyfriend Shahar Ali Sadar. Later in the day, the 11-year-old girl went missing.
As the child did not return to the home at night, the family started a search and reported to the police the following morning. Half an hour later, the police found the minor girl near a fishery. The girl was dumped near a fishery in the Basirhat area.
According to the police, the minor girl was bleeding profusely and was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. The medical examination revealed that the accused had not only raped her but also shoved a stick in her private parts. As the condition of the girl deteriorated, she was then moved to the RGK Medical College in Kolkata, West Bengal, where a team of five doctors is treating her.
The doctors have operated on her private parts for over three hours on Friday night. So far, her condition remains unstable.
The accused, Shahar Ali, was arrested by the police on Friday. He is the boyfriend of the victim’s cousin and a resident of Howrah’s Domjur district. He has been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The accused has been sentenced to six days of police remand. The police have also arrested the victim’s relative, who assisted him in the crime. During his interrogation, the accused confessed to the police that he had promised his girlfriend, the victim’s cousin, some money and a new phone if she arranged to bring her to him and leave her with him overnight.
He said he lured the victim by promising her gifts and took her to a secluded area on his bike. The accused also acknowledged that he had assumed that the girl was dead, and hence he discarded her behind the fishery.
Weeks after being attacked in a village in Punjab’s Ferozepur, a Congress worker named Iqbal Singh breathed his last on Tuesday. Former Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu and other Congress leaders alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party is behind the murder. The Police have registered the case against the accused and have charged them with murder under section 302 of the IPC.
On March 12, exactly two days after the Punjab Assembly Poll results, Congress worker Singh was attacked by three people with bricks. Singh was grievously injured and was immediately shifted to the Guru Gobind Singh Medical College in Faridkot for treatment. His condition worsened on Monday and he breathed his last on Tuesday.
The Police had booked the three accused under the relevant sections of the IPC based on the complaint lodged by the family members of the victim. The Police have now newly added the charges of murder to the FIR. According to the reports, the Congress leaders believe that the accused persons belong to the Aam Aadmi Party and that the attack is an instance of ‘change’ the party had promised to create in Punjab.
Congress leader and former minister Pargat Singh condemned the incident and said that the victim has succumbed to his injuries and the accused are still roaming free. “Punjab has not voted for this change”, he said as he demanded the arrest of the three alleged AAP workers. In a series of tweets, he appealed to CM Bhagwant Mann to ensure strict action against the persons who led a murderous attack on Iqbal Singh.
The victim has succumbed to his injuries today and the accused are still roaming free.Punjab has not voted for this “change” (2/2) pic.twitter.com/JswrABa4eL
Earlier on March 20, another Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira had urged Mann to get the AAP workers arrested for the alleged attack on the party worker. In the series of tweets that continued on March 29, he added that he was saddened as the accused had not been arrested to date. “The accused AAP workers are being shielded by the newly elected MLA. I hope this isn’t the Badlav”, he said.
I’m saddened to say that congress worker Iqbal of V Kassoana (Zira) has succumbed to head injuries inflicted by @AamAadmiParty workers on 10th march.More saddened that culprits haven’t been arrested till date! I hope this isn’t the “Badlav”?-khaira https://t.co/bAKqZSNpaMpic.twitter.com/KFRdBUzcq3
Meanwhile, Congress’s Navjot Singh Sidhu visited Iqbal Singh’s residence on March 29 and demanded a government job for one of his family members. “Justice delayed is justice denied! Culprits (AAP Goons) should be booked and arrested immediately. Took up the matter with the administration. A victim’s family should be given a govt job,” he tweeted.
Justice delayed is justice denied ! Culprits (AAP Goons) should be booked and arrested immediately. pic.twitter.com/hUVgMorbNb
Congress worker brutally beaten to death in zira constituency…. Visited his home in village kasowana where his dead body was brought … took up the matter with the administration.. culprits should be arrested , victim s family should be given a govt job! pic.twitter.com/WSXq3m1wxb
Reportedly former Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu also alleged that his supporters were being beaten up in Mohali and false police cases were being registered against them. He said Mohali MLA Kulwant Singh and his supporters were creating an atmosphere of terror in the area. Singh, however, refuted the allegations and said that he never indulged in any such activity. He claimed that Sidhu was making false allegations against him after losing the Assembly poll.
The Legislative Assembly elections were held in Punjab on February 20 to elect the 117 members of the 16th Assembly of the Punjab Legislative Assembly. The vote counting on March 10 favoured the Aam Aadmi Party which gained a full majority by winning 92 out of 117 seats.
