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WHO slams hoarding of vaccines by rich nations amid ‘not so mild’ Omicron threat, says 70% people in every country should be jabbed by mid-2022

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WHO slams hoarding of vaccines by rich nations amid ‘not so mild’ Omicron threat, says 70% people in every country should be jabbed by mid-2022

Amid the rising number of Omicron variant Covid-19 cases across the globe, the World Health Organisation has declared the variant as a ‘concern’ and said that ‘it is very unlikely that Omicron would be the last variant of concern before the pandemic is over’. “The Omicron variant of COVID-19 is killing people and should not be dismissed as mild”, the WHO noted on Thursday.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a media briefing blamed the low vaccination rates for inflated Alpha, Beta, Delta, Gamma and Omicron cases. “Vaccine inequity is a killer of people and jobs and it undermines a global economic recovery”, he said.

This is a week after 9.5 million, the highest number of COVID19 cases were reported to WHO so far in the pandemic. The WHO chief also affirmed that Omicron cannot be categorised as mild, even though it appears less severe as compared to the Delta variant. “Just like previous variants; Omicron is hospitalising people and it is killing. In fact, the tsunami of cases is so huge and quick, that it is overwhelming health systems around the world”, Dr Tedros said.

He meanwhile used the stage to slam the way rich nations had monopolized available vaccine doses last year saying that it had created the perfect breeding ground for the emergence of Coronavirus variants. He also urged the world to share out vaccine doses more fairly in 2022, to end the death and destruction of COVID-19.

“While some countries have had enough personal protective equipment, tests & vaccines to stockpile throughout this pandemic, many countries do not have enough to meet basic baseline needs or modest targets, which no rich country would have been satisfied with,” he said. Dr Tedros further said that “Vaccine inequity is a killer of people and jobs and it undermines a global economic recovery.”

The WHO has stated to continue to invest in vaccine manufacturing hubs and work with any and all manufacturers who are willing to share know-how, technology and licenses.

Tedros said that the WHO wants 70 per cent of the population jabbed in every country by mid-2022. “Booster after booster in a small number of countries will not end a pandemic while billions remain completely unprotected”, he added. It is worth noting here that 90 per cent of the Indians have been administered with the first dose of vaccine and 70 per cent with the second dose. A total of 1.5 Billion vaccine doses have been administered in India.

The WHO’s COVID technical lead Maria Van Kerkhove insisted people to continue to step up the measures they were already taking to protect themselves against the virus.

‘Response doesn’t appear like an apology’: NCW summons Jawed Habib to appear before it regarding ‘Thook haircut video’

OpIndia Staff
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‘Response doesn’t appear like an apology’: NCW summons Jawed Habib to appear before it regarding ‘Thook haircut video’

National Commission for Women (NCW) has asked popular hairstylist Jawed Habib to appear before it on 11th January regarding the viral video that showed him spitting on a woman’s hair during a seminar held in Muzzafarnagar in Uttar Pradesh. 

In a tweet, NCW asked Jawed Habib to appear before the commission in person on January 11 at 12:30 pm for deposition of his statement.

Republic TV has quoted news agency ANI as saying that NCW chief Rekha Sharma has claimed that she wants to know “why did he do this.” She reportedly went on to opine that the hairstylist’s response to the incident ‘did not appear to be an apology.’

Jawed Habib caught spitting on woman’s hair during a haircut, NCW takes note

After the video of the act went viral, the National Commission for Women had taken cognizance of the incident and written to Delhi Commissioner of Police Rakesh Asthana demanding an immediate investigation into the case.

“Have written to the Director-General of Police Uttar Pradesh to investigate the veracity of this viral video and take appropriate action. The action taken must be apprised to the Commission at the earliest”, the National Commission for Women had said.

The Muzaffarnagar police had immediately responded to NCW’s Tweet and said that based on the complaint filed by the plaintiff an FIR under relevant sections had been filed against the hairstylist.

According to reports, an FIR was lodged at the Mansurpur police station in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar on a complaint filed by Pooja Gupta. Sections 355 (assault), 504 (insult) of IPC and relevant sections of the Epidemic Act have been invoked against Jawed Habib.

The controversy

Celebrity hairstylist had found himself in the middle of a controversy after a video went gone viral on the internet on January 6, that showed him spitting in a woman’s hair while doing her hair and boasting, “Thook mein jaan hain” (There’s life in this spit).

The lady who was spat on by Habib has been identified as Pooja Gupta from Badod. Pooja had attended a seminar in Muzzafarnagar, Uttar Pradesh in which she was called up on the stage by Habib for a haircut demonstration. “Sir called me on the stage and misbehaved with me. He spat in my hair in front of hundreds who laughed and enjoyed his act. He was teaching the attendees to make use of saliva when there’s less water available for a haircut”, she stated in the video.

Jawed Habib tenders ‘apology’ after backlash, says he spat to make seminar humorous

After facing widespread criticism for his reprehensible act, Habib had tendered an ‘apology’ claiming he spat on the woman’s hair to make the seminar humorous.

“Some people are hurt over some actions that took place during one of my seminars. I have only one thing to say. Those who come to the seminar are professional hairstylists. Our seminars are usually long and so we have to make it humorous,” Habib claimed in an Instagram video.

He added, “What do I say now? I want to say this straight from my heart – If you are hurt by my actions, then, forgive me. Saying ‘sorry’ from the bottom of my heart.”

Hate speech case: Kalicharan Maharaj granted bail by Pune court, says his physical custody no longer needed

OpIndia Staff
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Hate speech case: Kalicharan Maharaj granted bail by Pune court, says his physical custody no longer needed

The court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Pune on Friday (December 8) granted bail to seer Kalicharan Maharaj in connection with a hate speech case he alleged to have delivered during an event in Pune in December last year.

Earlier Pune police had questioned him on one-day police remand after he was sent to jail in the judicial custody.

Kalicharan Maharaj had moved the bail application through his lawyer Amol Dange. The prosecution lawyer had opposed the bail plea and had stated that Kalicharan was arrested for a serious crime and was booked under non-bailable sections of IPC. The prosecution further contended that Kalicharanr once released on bail may try to incite disturbances. Besides, Kalicharan not being a local resident, he may also flee, the prosecution had contended.

Dange on this said that the allegations were ill-motivated and the FIR was lodged after a delay of seven days creating a possibility of false implications. He said that the maximum punishment for the offence was 3 years. Dange also said that Kalicharan’s arrest was illegal as the due process of law was not followed. Kalicharan was not served any notice under Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

After hearing the argument of defence and the prosecution and perusing case papers, the Chief Judicial Magistrate MA Shaikh said that physical custody of Kalicharan was no longer required as police have nothing to recover from Kalicharan. The court said that the investigation will take time to complete, hence the accused Kalicharan can’t be kept in jail. “The accused can be released on bail by putting some conditions,” the court said.

The court directed Kalicharan to furnish a bail bond of Rs 25,000. Besides, he was asked to co-operate with the investigation and visit the concerned police station once a month till the charge sheet was filed.

A case was lodged against Kalicharan, Milind Ekbote, Nandakishor Ekbote, Mohanrao Shete, Dipak Nagpure, Captain (retired) Digendra Kumar and others at Khadak police station in Pune On December 28. They were booked under sections 295 A (outraging religious feelings), 298 (deliberate intention of wounding religious feelings), and 505 (2) (false statement, rumour made in place of worship, etc, with intent to create enmity).

They were accused of making inflammatory speeches and hurting religious sentiments of Muslims and Christians during the ‘Shiv Pratap Din’ programme organised by Ekbote-led Hindu Aghadi outfit on December 19, last year to celebrate the killing of Adilshahi commander Afzal Khan by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 1659.

Captain Kumar who retired from the Indian Army in 2005 is a Kargil war hero. He was awarded the Mahavir Chakra in 1999.

But Kalicharan will have to stay in jail as he was arrested by Raipur police in Chhattisgarh following a case lodged at Tikrapara police station for allegedly making derogatory comments about Mahatma Gandhi at Dharma Sansad in Raipur. Kalicharan was arrested from Khajurao, Madhya Pradesh by the Chhattisgarh police.

‘Bulli Bai’ app mastermind wanted to make his own identity, only intention was to get publicity, no links with any saffron group: Police

OpIndia Staff
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‘Bulli Bai’ app mastermind wanted to make his own identity, only intention was to get publicity, no links with any saffron group: Police

Following the arrest of the main conspirator of the ‘Bulli Bai’ app case, the Delhi police have revealed that Niraj Bishnoi’s intention behind developing the derogatory app that targeted Muslim women from Assam was purely to get publicity and make an identity of his own.

According to a report by The New Indian Express, the Delhi police have said that so far, no one else has been implicated in inspiring Niraj Bishnoi (21) to engage in such activities and his actions may be linked to the type of social media content he consumed.

‘Bulli Bai’ app mastermind not linked to any saffron outfit

Further, the Times Now senior journalist, Rahul Shivshankar revealed that Niraj Bishnoi has no links with any Hindu organisations. Rahul Shivshankar in his Tweet on January 6 quoted Mumbai police as saying that with the arrest of ‘mastermind’ from Jorhat, the case has been solved ‘completely’. The ‘mastermind’ has no links to saffron groups, confirmed the Times Now journalist.

Niraj Bishnoi was active during ‘Sulli Deals’ row, posed as reporter

The Delhi police have further said that there is a possibility about Niraj Bishnoi’s alleged involvement in the earlier ‘Sulli Deals’ case and that they are investigating the matter. “There is a possibility that his network is linked to Sulli Deals. The devices used by him are being scanned. Through him, we might also reach the culprits of Sulli Deals,” they said.

“During the Sulli Deal probe, he tried to mislead our team by calling them on WhatsApp by impersonating himself as a media person. He also tried to extract information about the developments in the probe. We found this through his phone records,” the police official said.

According to investigators, Bishnoi, the founder of the Bulli Bai app, had previously created a Twitter account where he made lewd remarks on a complainant’s photo and even talked about the person’s auction. When the Sulli Deals case was being investigated, one of these accounts surfaced. He tried to plant some information on the likely propagator/originator of the Sulli Deals app through this account, they said.

Delhi Police arrests main culprit of ‘Bulli Bai’ app case from Assam

Niraj Bishnoi, the alleged mastermind behind the controversial ‘Bulli app’ was arrested by the Delhi Police, IFSO special cell on January 6 from Jorhat in Assam. The accused, a 21-year-old engineering student, has confessed to his act, police said in a statement.

Three other suspects were previously apprehended by Mumbai police. Bishnoi had criticised the Mumbai police for arresting the other suspect whom he claimed were innocent. Bishnoi disclosed during his interrogation that he created the ‘Bulli Bai’ app on Github as well as the @bullibai_Twitter handle and others too, police said.

Bishnoi has admitted that he created Twitter handle @bullibai_ and other handles like @giyu44 which yesterday tweeted that the Mumbai Police had arrested the wrong suspects.

During interrogation, he stated that the GitHub application was established in November 2021 and updated a month later. “The Twitter account was set up on December 31st. Bishnoi further revealed that he created a second Twitter account, @Sage0x1, to tweet about BulliBai, but that he later deleted it,” DCP IFSO KPS Malhotra stated.

The matter had come to light after Ismat Ara, one of the female journalists at ‘The Wire’ became a ‘Bulli Bai’ target. The Delhi Police had taken cognizance of the matter and directed concerned officials to take appropriate actions. Ismat Ara had also filed a complaint against the app with the Cyber Cell of Delhi Police, demanding “immediate registration of FIR and consequent action against people behind the auctioning of Muslim women on social media.” 

She requested the police to file an FIR under sections 153A, 153B, 354A, 506, 509 of the IPC and sections 66 and 67 of the IT Act.

‘Bulli Bai’ app created by self-proclaimed Khalistani supporters

It may be noted that the Twitter handle @bullibai_ that was promoting the content on ‘Bulli Bai’ was even promoting pro-Khalistan content. The people behind the Bulli Bai app had demanded the release of arrested Khalistani terrorists.

The app was hosted at the URL bullibai.github.io, however the same was taken down now after people started to point out the app on social media and some targets approached the authorities. 

Tibet Monks beaten, arrested for ‘leaking info’ after being forced to watch the demolition of giant Buddha by China in Draggo: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Tibet Monks beaten, arrested for ‘leaking info’ after being forced to watch the demolition of giant Buddha by China in Draggo: Details

The Chinese authorities in the Sichuan province destroyed a 99 foot tall Buddha statue and 45 prayer wheels in the Draggo county, Kham, Tibet. They also forced the monks from the Gaden Namgyal Ling monastery and the local Tibetans to witness the demolition of the sacred statue, which began on December 12 and continued for the next nine days.

Following official complaints that the monument had been constructed too high, the authorities in Sichuan province compelled Tibetan monks and other residents to watch the dismantling of the Buddha statue. The local Tibetians and monks who were forced to witness the demolition have said that they had all the legal documents for the construction of the giant Buddha statue and that the Chinese authorities demolished it six years after it was built. The Buddha statue was established in 2015 with the financial support of local Tibetans in Draggo County, Kham, Tibet to prevent famine, war, and catastrophes of fire, water, earth, and air.

Author Brahma Chellaney responding to the issue has pointed out on Twitter that China is was walking in the footsteps of the Taliban. The Taliban had destroyed countless religious artefacts in Afghanistan during their first reign before the U.S. invasion where their most notable targets were two massive Buddha statues built in the sixth century. Chellaney said China was on its way to wipe off the Tibetian culture and was walking in the footsteps of the Taliban.

“The wanton demolition was carried out to teach Tibetans a lesson. Xi-led China is working to annihilate Tibetan religion, culture and identity. Authorities have switched Tibetan-language schools to Chinese and cut Tibetans off from ancient traditions, like herding and farming”, he said.

The reports by Radio Free Asia (RFA) read that 11 monks from Drago’s Gaden Namgyal Ling monastery have now been arrested by the authorities on suspicion of sending news and photos of the statue’s destruction to outside Tibet. It is worth noting that the monks were barred from taking pictures or videos of the demolition and were threatened by the authorities to not inform the incident outside.

The locals have called the destruction of the sacred statue to be a part of China’s campaign to eradicate Tibet’s distinct national culture and religion. Before the demolition of Buddha, the Chinese had arrested the monks from the monastery in Drago saying they needed to be taught a lesson. The monks were brutally beaten and provided with no food in prison. Some of them were even made to stand naked in freezing cold for raising their voice against the planned demolition.

The local Tibetians are still under the threat and are not being allowed to hang prayer flags outside their homes. The police are also targeting local Tibetans on other unreasonable excuses. Earlier to the statue, the Chinese authorities had destroyed the Gaden Namgyal Monastic School of Draggo monastery that occupied more than one hundred students and fifty rooms. The monks who further showed unwillingness to destroy the statue were summoned to the police station and were severely interrogated.

According to the RFA, which is looked after by the US Agency for Global Media, the US state department has said that it has deep concerns for the Tibetians and has urged China authorities to respect the human rights of Tibetans. It says it stands for the preservation of Tibet’s environment as well as the unique cultural, linguistic, and religious identity of Tibetan traditions.

Recently, the US govt had also announced a new special coordinator for Tibetan issues to promote substantive dialogue between China and the Dalai Lama and push to protect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Tibetan people.

Malvani ISIS module: Terrorist recruiters Rizwan and Mohsin sentenced to 8 years imprisonment for ‘brainwashing’ Muslim youth to join ISIS

OpIndia Staff
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Malvani ISIS module: Terrorist recruiters Rizwan and Mohsin sentenced to 8 years imprisonment for ‘brainwashing’ Muslim youth to join ISIS

On Wednesday (January 5), an NIA special court in Mumbai convicted two ISIS terror recruiters namely Rizwan Ahmed and Mohsin Ibrahim Sayyed in connection to the Malwani Case of Maharashtra. The quantum of their sentence was pronounced later on Friday (January 7).

The Court sentenced the duo to 8 years of imprisonment under Section 20 (Punishment for being a member of a terrorist gang) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Besides, a fine of ₹10,000 was imposed on each of the convicts. “If the fine is not paid, their punishment will be extended by 3 months,” the court pointed out.

In a statement on Thursday (January 6), NIA informed, “Yesterday (05.01.2022) NIA Special Court, Mumbai convicted chargesheeted accused persons Rizwan Ahmed and Mohsin Ibrahim Sayyed… The case was registered against the two accused for trying to radicalise Muslim youth to join Islamic State (IS). They had further instigated these youth to travel abroad to become members of IS/ISIL/ISIS in order to wage war against allied nations of India.”

It further added, “The case was originally registered by the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), Police Station Kalachowki, Mumbai, Maharashtra on 30.12.2015 and NIA had re-registered the case as on 18.03.2016. After completing the investigation, NIA had filed a chargesheet on 18.07.2016. Investigation revealed that Rizwan Ahmed and Mohsin Ibrahim Sayyed had instigated, intimidated and influenced vulnerable Muslim youth from Malwani area, Malad (W), Mumbai and compelled them to become fidayeen fighters for the cause of Islam, and were instrumental in sending them for hijarat for joining ISIS.”

ISIS terror recruits wanted to plead guilty

In December last year, Rizwan Ahmed and Mohsin Ibrahim Sayyed informed the special NIA court of A T Wankhede in Mumbai that they want to plead guilty. The NIA court has directed them to file a written application in that regard during the next scheduled hearing on December 8. Their lawyers Wahab Khan and Sharif Shaikh said that they decided to plead guilty on their own against the advice of the counsels not to plead guilty.

Their lawyers also withdrew their vakalatnama. The legal cell of Jamiat Ulama E Maharashtra, which was providing legal aid to them has withdrawn its support. Once an accused pleads guilty, he forfeits his right to a trial and the court passes judgment based on their admission of the crime. The court had so far has examined 33 out of over 228 witnesses of the NIA.

Priyanka Gandhi fails to provide evidence to govt agencies after alleging that the govt hacked her children’s Instagram accounts: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Priyanka Gandhi fails to provide evidence to govt agencies after alleging that the govt hacked her children’s Instagram accounts: Details

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s office has failed to provide information about her children’s Instagram accounts to the government agencies, which were purportedly compromised a fortnight ago. According to Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) sources, her office has been approached several times and the data of her children’s social media handles have been sought, but no response has been received, reported India Today.

After Priyanka Gandhi Vadra claimed on December 21 that her children’s Instagram handles had been hacked, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeiTY) instructed the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) to look into the incident.

The government’s cyber security agency had also addressed Instagram, requesting information about the hacking of Vadra’s children’s handles.

According to sources that spoke to India Today, Instagram indicated that no such hack was confirmed and that no incident has been reported from her office in the case.

The allegation on BJP of attacking family and friends

Priyanka and her husband, Robert Vadra, claimed that the government hacked their children’s Instagram accounts in an attempt to spy on politicians and their families.

Following the claim, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology decided to file an independent complaint to investigate the allegations. The government decided to investigate the matter proactively because Priyanka Gandhi Vadra or her children did not file a complaint about the alleged hacking of the Instagram accounts.

During her campaign in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, the Congress national secretary accused the BJP leadership of targeting the opposition with raids and wiretapping Opposition leaders’ phone calls. She also alleged that the government hacked into her children’s Instagram accounts.

“Let alone phone tapping they have hacked the Instagram accounts of my children. Do they not have any other work?” she said.

Her husband Robert Vadra claimed that the alleged hacking of the accounts is connected with the rising graph of the Congress Party and Priyanka Gandhi in Uttar Pradesh.

AAP leaders thrash each other, raise ‘Raghav Chadha chor hai’ slogans in Jalandhar, Punjab: Here is all you need to know

OpIndia Staff
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AAP leaders thrash each other, raise ‘Raghav Chadha chor hai’ slogans in Jalandhar, Punjab: Here is all you need to know

While the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has been making tall claims of a huge victory in the upcoming Punjab Legislative Assembly elections, its own party members were seen thrashing each other and raising slogans against its own party leader Raghav Chadha, during a press conference held in Jalandhar on Friday, January 7, 2022.

Reportedly, a ruckus broke out during the press conference conducted by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha in Jalandhar, Punjab. The AAP leaders were reportedly seen surrounding Raghav Chadha and pushing and beating each other at the Jalandhar Press Club. The AAP volunteers also showed black flags and raised ‘Raghav Chadha chor hai’ slogans against the Punjab AAP co-in charge, who was in the city to address a press conference and to induct former Congress councillor Dinesh Dhall into the party fold.

The brewing discontent over ticket distribution is said to be the reason behind the huge ruckus that continued for about 45 to 50 minutes on Friday evening in Jalandhar, following which Raghav Chadha had to leave the place from the back door.

In videos being widely shared on social media, the AAP party leaders can be seen pushing and thrashing each other at the Jalandhar Press Club.

In another video of the incident shared by BJP leader Laxmikant Bhardwaj, AAP party members were heard raising “Raghav Chadha chor hain” slogans against their own party leader.

According to reports, the ruckus started after the supporters of two-party ticket contenders- Dr Shiv Dyal Mali from Jalandhar West assembly segment and Dr Sanjeev Sharma from Jalandhar Central segment and the supporters of Raghav Chadha and Dinesh Dhall indulged in a scuffle and they manhandled each other.

The supporters of the two contenders alleged that Raghav Chadha brought some musclemen along with him when they were raising slogans against him. These musclemen manhandled them, the AAP workers said.

In what transpired, when Chadha was trying to enter the club on Friday evening around 4.30 pm, his own party workers started chanting ‘Raghav Chadha Chor hai’ and used unparliamentary language against him. They also accused him of making underhanded agreements to bring other corrupt individuals into the party fold.

Chadha then left and took a round in his car before returning again in a few minutes with a group of people, whom the protesting AAP volunteers dubbed as “musclemen”, and entered the press club.

Chadha then addressed the media, announcing the induction of Dinesh Dhall, a former Congress leader and two-term councillor into the party fold. The volunteers gathered around the entrance again as Chadha was going to leave the press club, but Chadha took the back door approach and sat in his vehicle. The volunteers recognised his vehicle and began bashing and running after it, but his driver accelerated the vehicle and sped away from the scene in a huff.

AAP chief promising freebies to woo voters ahead of Punjab Legislative Assembly elections

Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party has claimed a big victory in the upcoming Punjab Legislative Assembly elections. The party is constantly trying to find its land before the elections in Punjab. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal himself has held several rallies flouting all COVID norms for the promotion of the party in Punjab.

Arvind Kejriwal is roaming in the streets of Punjab promising 300 free units of electricity, a cancellation of overdue electricity bills, and uninterrupted round-the-clock electricity. In a bid to win the assembly elections at any cost, Kejriwal has announced various populist schemes.

Recently, the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) had agreed to nominate Aam Aadmi Party MP Bhagwant Mann as the party’s chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming Punjab assembly elections.

Aakar Patel seeks help from Lord Nazir for ‘human rights’ org Amnesty International, two days after he is convicted of sexually harassing children

OpIndia Staff
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Aakar Patel seeks help from Lord Nazir for ‘human rights’ org Amnesty International, two days after he is convicted of sexually harassing children

On Friday (January 7), former Head of Amnesty India, Aakar Patel, sought help from ex-UK Labour politician Lord Nazir Ahmed, two days after he was convicted of child sexual offences.

Journalist Sushant Singh had shared a news report by the Deccan Herald wherein it was stated that the recent crackdown, on foreign funding of NGOs by the Modi government, was discussed in the UK Parliament.

“UK govt had taken up the issue of Amnesty International directly but that it continues to “provide challenge”. However, because of our lobbying and representations, we welcomed the recent HC decision which allowed Amnesty to access some of its funds,” Singh had tweeted.

Screengrab of the tweet by Sushant Singh

While responding to the tweet, a miffed Aakar Patel lamented that the United Kingdom did not do its job when it came to pressurising the Indian government. The former Head of Amnesty India wrote, “UK ne ghanta kiya (the UK has done nothing concrete so far). We moved court here for relief and secured it partially. It’s been very disappointing what the UK has done which is basically nothing.”

He then sought help from Lord Nazir Ahmed, despite the fact that the former Labour Party leader was convicted a day earlier for attempting to rape a young girl and sexually assaulting a boy under the age of 11 In the 1970s. Patel tweeted, “Lord Nazir, do more and don’t claim credit what for what you haven’t done. Shake Dr S Jaishankar’s cage hard”

Screengrab of the tweet by Aakar Patel

It must be mentioned that Lord Nazir Ahmed was held guilty of child sexual offences on January 5 this year at a Sheffield Crown Court in the UK. Last year, he was forced to retire from the House of Lords after a woman accused him of attempting to gain sexual favours by abusing his position. He is the first Muslim MP to be appointed as a life member of the House of Lords, the British Parliament’s upper house.

Lord Nazir Ahmed has been in the vanguard of a nasty anti-India campaign, giving venomous remarks against India over the Kashmir conflict on numerous occasions. He has also been a vocal supporter of separatist Khalistani organisations. He also shares a close relationship with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan and ex UK PM Tony Blair.

Ironically, Amnesty International claims to lobby for the end of abuse and claims to uphold human rights. However, it is evident that when it comes to the anti-India campaign being run viciously by Amnesty International and other NGOs, a stooge like Aakar Patel is willing to even espouse the “help” of a convicted rapist who abused little children. Human rights abuse seems to be a rallying point only to browbeat nations while real victims and their interests are sacrificed at the altar of petty politics. Aakar Patel is essentially asking a rapist, who abused the human rights of children, to fight for a supposed human rights organisation.

Another aspect that becomes evident from Aakar Patel’s tweet is how vested interests are lobbying with foreign nations to interfere in the internal policies of the nation and doing so with impunity.

Shutdown of Amnesty India and arrest of Aakar Patel

Dubious NGO Amnesty International India had halted its operations in India on 29th September 2020. The organization blamed the Modi government for the witch hunt on “Human Rights” organizations. The development came after the Enforcement Directorate had frozen all bank accounts of the organisation. Amnesty has stated that it had to let all its 150 staff members go quit the company.

The organization said that more than four million people supported it, and over 100,000 people donated for “good work”. However, the government had stated that Amnesty International was never registered in India under the FCRA, which is needed for receiving foreign donations. Amnesty, however, had claimed that all the foreign fundings were their ‘legal fundraising efforts’, which was being termed as money laundering by the government because they had been critical of the government.

In September 2020, Aakar Patel was arrested and later released on bail earlier for posting offensive content against the Ghanchi community in Gujarat. “Was arrested and bailed yesterday for an FIR filed by BJP citing sections incl 153A (promoting enmity). Will fight it,” a tweet posted by the controversial ‘journalist’ and ‘activist’ said. His arrest came at the backdrop of a complaint filed by BJP MLA Purnesh Modi, who alleged that Patel made three objectionable tweets on June 24 and 27 against the community. The FIR was filed on July 7 this year.

Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan bays for Hindu blood in Bareilly, had allied with Congress in 2009 to strengthen ‘secularism’: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan bays for Hindu blood in Bareilly, had allied with Congress in 2009 to strengthen ‘secularism’: Details

Threats of violence, blatant calls for ‘jihad’ and Hindu genocide are becoming the new normal among Islamic leaders and clerics, despite the best efforts of left-leaning liberals and the so-called ‘secular’ intellectuals to turn a blind eye. In a video shared by TimesNow, Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan, a prominent Muslim cleric and chief of the Ittihad-e-Millat Council party (IMC) has once again been seen brazenly provoking Muslims against Hindus.

While addressing a crowd of 20 lakh Muslims in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, the radical Islamist brazenly threatens Hindus in India that the day Muslims rage flares, they would have nowhere to escape.

Tauqeer Raza Khan, once an ally of the Samajwadi Party and Congress, is heard flagrantly threatening Hindus, “If we rise, you can’t hide”.

“I see the anger within my Muslim youths and I am afraid that the day this anger bursts out, the day I lose control over them… I want to warn my Hindu brothers that I’m scared that the day my Muslim youths are forced to take the law into their hands, you will not find a place to hide anywhere in India”, said the Islamic leader, while displaying his extreme hate for the Hindus.

This brazen display of Hinduphobia by Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan isn’t new. In December last year, the radical Islamist had brazenly urged for a bloodbath in the country if CAA is not repealed. “We are Allah wale, what we say it happens, there will be blood bath Inshallah”, the Islamic leader had said while admonishing PM Modi for bringing in the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

Alliance with Congress and how Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan was once branded “secular”

In 2009, a desperate Congress had allied with Maulana Tauqeer Raza despite his habit of issuing threats to anyone he thought was insulting Islam. The party had in 2009 announced that the All India Ittihad-e-Millat Council has agreed to support Congress in the Lok Sabha elections, and in return the council would have a seat-sharing arrangement with the Congress in 2012 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. 

It was reported that the Maulana belongs to the Barelvi sect which is close to Congress.

At that time, this divisive Maulana had claimed that he was allying with Congress because he felt the need to strengthen the “secular forces” in the country.

While allying with Khan, Digvijay Singh, who was largely responsible for the fallacious “Hindu terror” bogey, had said, “Today, the situation is such that if the secular forces don’t fight together the communal forces will win. The Barelvi school has many disciples. Should we turn them away?”.

Interestingly, right before Congress had allied with Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan in 2009, he had announced a Rs 25 crore bounty, Re 1 dedicated to each of the 25 crore Muslims in India, for the head of US President George Bush. When asked, he had brazened it out saying that he was no longer in office.

Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan, however, is only one amidst the umpteen mainstream Islamic leaders and clerics, Islamist politicians in India who have openly called for mass genocide of Hindus. We have often seen the so-called ‘secular’ liberals, Islamists and their cheerleaders in the media going to great lengths to portray Muslims as the ‘dara hua people’ in Modi’s India, without any evidence or basis, while they frequently turn a blind eye to open calls for Jihad, the genocide of Hindus and Kafirs (non-Muslims) and the beheading of those who commit ‘blasphemy.’

Last year, OpIndia chronicled 15 such incidents where radical Islamic leaders and clerics, including politicians in India, have openly called for genocide and ‘Jihad’ against Hindus.

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