Amit Shah, the Union Home Minister, paid a visit to Kairana and campaigned door-to-door in the constituency. Shah campaigned in Uttar Pradesh for the BJP in the first and second phases of the state assembly elections. A strong majority of BJP supporters were also present during the campaign. The atmosphere was charged with slogans of “Jai Shri Ram” and “Yogi-Modi Zindabad” as soon as Home Minister Shah began the door-to-door program with party activists.
Before the campaign began, Home Minister Amit Shah tweeted that he would stay in Western Uttar Pradesh, where he would first conduct a door-to-door campaign for the BJP’s connectivity campaign in Kairana, then meet with Baghpat and Shamli district workers, and finally address a special public meeting in Meerut.
आज पश्चिम उत्तर प्रदेश के प्रवास पर रहूँगा। जहां सबसे पहले कैराना में @BJP4UP के संपर्क अभियान में घर-घर संपर्क करूँगा उसके पश्चात शामली में बागपत और शामली जिले के कार्यकर्ताओं से संवाद करूँगा, फिर मेरठ में विशिष्ट जन बैठक को संबोधित करूँगा। https://t.co/xcZtlYcnLB
On Saturday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah began campaigning for the BJP by going door-to-door in Kairana, Uttar Pradesh. Home Minister Amit Shah sought votes for Mriganka Singh, the daughter of BJP leader Hukum Singh from Kairana. Late Hukum Singh won the Kairana seat several times while contesting on a BJP ticket. The BJP has fielded his daughter this time.
All schemes by Modi ji has been implemented by CM Yogi Adityanath till grassroot level. It’s the very same Kairana from where people were migrating earlier. Today when I’m here they said that CM Yogi improved law & order situation & people who made them migrate, have migrated: HM pic.twitter.com/YsJXEpknKi
“I’ve come to Kairana for the first time after Jan 2014. After 2014, PM Modi took the axle of UP’s development in his hands. In 2017, after BJP govt was formed here, Yogi Adityanath became CM & further sped up the development” ANI quoted Amit Shah saying. “All schemes by Modi ji has been implemented by CM Yogi Adityanath till grassroot level. It’s the very same Kairana from where people were migrating earlier. Today when I’m here they said that CM Yogi improved law & order situation & people who made them migrate, have migrated” he added.
The BJP announced its candidate list for Phases 1 and 2 of the high-stakes Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections on Sunday. The forthcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh will be held in seven phases: February 10, February 14, February 20, February 23, February 27, March 3, and March 7. The ballots will be counted on March 10th.
Ahead of the celebration of 73rd Republic Day, the Defence Ministry has decided to drop the Christian hymn ‘Abide by Me’ to be played at the Beating Retreat Ceremony on January 29. The official list of 26 tunes made public by the military band does not include hymn by Scottish poet Henry Francis Lyte ‘Abide by Me’, the tune of Eventide by William Henry Monk.
According to the reports, the hymn had been played every year during the Beating Retreat Ceremony since 1950 but was dropped in the year 2020. However, it was reinstated in the year 2021 after its exclusion created a huge outcry. The hymn is also said to be MK Gandhi’s favourite and used to be played at the ceremony on January 29, also the eve of Gandhi’s death anniversary.
In the year 2020, in an emphasis to add more Indian tunes to the ceremony, the Indian Defence Ministry had dropped ‘Abide by Me’ and replaced it with ‘Vande Mataram’. “Both ‘Abide by me’ and ‘Vande Mataram’ songs were favourites of MK Gandhi. However, ‘Vande Mataram’ has only been added to the ceremony tunes this year”, the official had said back then.
The Beating Retreat ceremony marks the formal culmination of week-long Republic Day celebrations. The grand ceremony that is held at Raisina Hills sees performances by bands of three wings of the armed forces- Army, Navy and Air Force.
This year the ceremony at Vijay Chowk will be graced by the participation of 44 Buglers, 16 Trumpeters and 75 drummers. It is reported that the Central Armed Police Forces bands will play three tunes, followed by four tunes by the Air Force Band. The Air Force Band will also include a special Ladakoo tune, by Flight Lt L S Rupachandra after which the Navy Band will play four tunes.
In an unusual occurrence, author Taslima Nasreen was declared “dead” by Facebook for the second time in two days, in what appears to be a concerted cyberattack. The social media giant is reported to have allegedly made the error after the author wrote, “I want the news of my death to be published everywhere,” in an enigmatic post.
Her verified Facebook profile initially stated she died on Tuesday (January 18), since she was being “memorialized” at the time. The issue was resolved within hours, allowing the account to be accessed again later that evening. However, on Thursday morning, Taslima Nasreen discovered again that her Facebook account claimed she was dead and her account was memorialised. A visit to her Facebook account showed the message “Remembering Taslima Nasrin. We hope people who love Taslima will find comfort in visiting her profile to remember and celebrate her life.”
Following Facebook’s attempts to turn her account into a memorial page, Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen took to her official Twitter account to call attention to the social media giant’s error. She also asked for the issue to be fixed and her account to be restored to her.
“@Meta @fbsecurity @facebookapp @MetaNewsroom @Facebook I am very much alive. But you memorialized my Facebook account. What a sad news! How could you do that? Please give me back my account.” the 59-year-old author tweeted on Tuesday after she was declared dead for the first time. After that, her account was restored by Facebook, but she was again declared dead.
After her Facebook account again showed her dead, she took to Twitter and wrote, “Facebook @Facebook @facebookapp @fbsecurity @Meta again buried me alive today. Jihadis make my fake death certificates, inform fb, fb then memorialises my account. It seems Jihadis exploit fb. I need my account back, & need protection, so that jihadis won’t be able to vanish my fb.” However, now the account has been restored again.
Facebook @Facebook@facebookapp@fbsecurity@Meta again buried me alive today. Jihadis make my fake death certificates, inform fb, fb then memorialises my account. It seems Jihadis exploit fb. I need my account back,& need protection,so that jihadis won’t be able to vanish my fb. pic.twitter.com/BR5gmJZSik
The incident happened after Taslima remarked in a Facebook post on her page, “I want the news of my death to be published everywhere. Let it be known that I donated my body to hospital for scientific research. Let there be some lives saved through organ transplants. Let someone regain vision. Let it be known so that some others become inspired to donate their body too. I have always wanted to live my life meaningfully. I wish my death to be meaningful as well.”
The Facebook post by Taslima Nasreen
Taslima Nasreen was compelled to leave Bangladesh 27 years ago due to threats from Islamist extremists. She has been residing in New Delhi since 2007 when the West Bengal government was pushed by Islamist fundamentalists to push her to leave Kolkata.
Reportedly, several other Bangladeshi personalities also faced the same incident, where their Facebook accounts were memorialised, indicating that a massive cyber attack had targeted Bangladeshi activists.
Rajasthan BJP ex-state spokesperson Laxmikant Bhardwaj has shared a video through his official Twitter handle with claims that the Congress government in Rajasthan has erased evidence from the spot where the specially-abled minor girl was found abandoned at Tijara flyover in Alwar, Rajasthan.
अलवर में 15 साल की बच्ची से दरिंदगी के घटना स्थल से सबूत मिटाती राजस्थान की कांग्रेस सरकार ….
In the muted footage, some labourers are seen sweeping the sidewalk of what appears like a flyover. The BJP leader has claimed that the area which is being cleaned is the spot where the specially-abled minor girl was found and the Congress is trying to destroy all the evidence before CBI reaches the crime scene.
In response to the BJP leader’s video, NCW Chairperson Rekha Sharma suggested that an FIR be filed against the Rajasthan government for tampering with evidence in a heinous crime against the Alwar minor girl.
An FIR should be lodged against Rajasthan state government for tempering the evidence in a gruesome crime against a minor girl. https://t.co/RvmsruSK91
Specially abled minor gang-raped left bleeding on Rajasthan flyover
It may be recalled that on January 12, a specially-abled minor girl was found abandoned at Tijara flyover in Alwar, Rajasthan. She was bleeding from her private parts and was admitted to the hospital. According to a report in Patrika, a few men came in a car on January 11, Tuesday night at the flyover and left the minor girl covered in blood there.
The incident caused widespread outrage. Protestors had hit the streets to question the deafening silence of the senior Congress party leaders over the horrific rape of the specially-abled girl at the Tijara flyover in Alwar, Rajasthan. Several videos had emerged in which protestors are seen demanding justice for the victim from Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the Congress general secretary and UP in charge.
A video had surfaced where several protesters reached outside the hotel in Rajasthan where Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi was staying for her birthday and raised slogans including ‘stop the torture against women’ and ‘who is against women- Congress party’ in Hindi.
Rajasthan police concluded Alwar victim who was found bleeding profusely was not abducted or raped
Following the massive protests, the state police had rushed to conclude that the minor was not raped or abducted but reached the Tijara Bridge on her own. Police claimed that while CCTV footage from numerous sites showed her strolling in many areas of the city and on the bridge, no camera detected her in a disturbed state on the bridge.
While the Rajasthan police had said that there is little possibility of rape, Dr Pramila Sharma, a surgeon at the Jaipur hospital where the girl is admitted, said the wound at the perineum “was a very extensive wound”. Not to forget that the minor was bleeding from her private parts when she was rescued from the flyover.
However, as public outrage grew, the Congress government in Rajasthan turned the issue over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). IThe decision in this regard was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot on January 16 (Sunday).
On Thursday (January 20), the Congress party took potshots at the ruling BJP by sharing a clipped video of MP Pragya Thakur and alleged that she endorsed the consumption of alcohol by people in the State of Madhya Pradesh. The development comes 2 days after the BJP government slashed retail prices of liquor in the State by 20%.
In a tweet, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) spokesperson Narendra Saluja tweeted, “BJP MP Pragya Thakur is saying that alcohol works as a medicine but can harm if taken in large quantities. As per the Parliamentarian, everyone should understand that limited consumption of alcohol is not harmful.”
The Congress leader went on to conclude that Pragya Thakur was not against alcohol consumption but against the quantity of alcohol consumed by an individual. To substantiate his claims, Saluja cropped out a 23-second clip from a 48-second video byte of the Parliamentarian.
लगता है पूरी भाजपा प्रदेश को शराब में डुबाने में लगी हुई है।
शराब सस्ती की जा रही है , घर- घर शराब , माल , सुपर बाज़ार , एयरपोर्ट सभी जगह शराब…
He further alleged that the BJP wanted the residents of Madhya Pradesh to remain in an intoxicated mood. “Alcohol is being made cheaper and available at homes, malls, supermarkets and airports,” Saluja added. The PCC spokesperson claimed that the saffron party wants everyone to remain intoxicated so that they ‘forget’ to question the State government on its election promises.
Similar claims were made by Telangana State Mineral Development Corporation (TSMDC) Chairperson Krishan K. He uploaded only 11 seconds of the video byte and alleged, “Defending BJP Government reducing Liquor Prices, this BJP MP says Alcohol cheap or costly, its a Medicine. Do you have anything to say?”
Defending BJP Government reducing Liquor Prices, this BJP MP says Alcohol cheap or costly, its a Medicine
As per a report in Mid Day, Lok Sabha MP Pragya Thakur had come out in support of former Union Minister Uma Bharati in her ‘crusade’ to ban alcohol consumption in the State of Madhya Pradesh.
“See, there must be a prohibition on the consumption of alcohol. Drinking alcohol leads to clashes at home, which are unbearable most of the time. Many people commit suicide due to this, especially women who don’t even drink alcohol. They have to put up with alcoholic husbands. So, there must be a ban on the consumption of alcohol in the State (of Madhya Pradesh),” Pragya Thakur told reporters in a 48-second video byte.
#WATCH Supporting BJP leader Uma Bharti’s demand for liquor ban in Madhya Pradesh, party MP Pragya Singh Thakur says, “As per Ayurveda, liquor works as a medicine if consumed in a limited quantity but as poison, if consumed in unlimited quantities. Everyone must understand this.” pic.twitter.com/x03zu9G8PG
On being asked whether the reduction of prices of alcohol will lead to its increased consumption, the BJP MP pointed out, “Alcohol, in limited quantity, is used as a medicine in Ayurveda. When used in limited quantity, it can act as medicine. But, alcohol can become ‘poison’ for the body if consumed in excess. Everyone must understand the harm caused due to excess intake of alcohol and stop its consumption.”
What is the Truth behind the claims?
PCC spokesperson Narendra Saluja had suggested that Pragya Thakur was only against the excess consumption of alcohol. This is despite the fact that in her byte to reporters, Thakur made it clear at the very onset that she favoured a State-wide ban. The BJP Parliamentarian, while calling for total prohibition, also pointed out the significance of alcohol in Ayurveda. This was not an endorsement to drink alcohol in low limits. Her comment was specifically directed towards the use of alcohol for medicinal use and not recreational purposes.
TRS leader Krishan K had suggested that the medicine angle was projected to shield the BJP’s decision to cut down excise duties on alcohol. However, nothing can be further from the truth. Ayurvedic texts such as Charaka Samhita points out how alcohol can be used for therapeutic purposes, despite being a toxin.
A report in MAPI emphasised, “In the Charaka Samhita the chapter dealing with alcohol consumption and alcoholism begins with the warning that alcohol is considered a toxin. It provides a list of strict rules for the consumption of alcohol and states strongly that if alcohol is taken, strict rules apply, and only then should it be consumed. The ayurvedic texts declare that a medicine properly used becomes nectar and improperly used becomes poison.”
“According to Ayurveda, If consumed In moderation, alcohol could be good for us as It aids healthy digestion, relieves stress as well as gives us good sleep. In fact, Ayurveda prescribes alcohol as a co-drink vAth certain Ayurvedic medicines like Trayodashang Guggulu. Then there are also Anstham or herbalized wines which are a part of Ayurvedic treatment, But remember, alcohol is best avoided,” an article in Suayu pointed out.
While talks between India and China regarding disengagement in Ladakh are underway, the Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General Y K Joshi on Saturday affirmed that ‘Operation Snow Leopard’ is not over and that it was still on. He also said that Indian soldiers are vigilant in the ice-clad region and have retaliated in befitting replies to Chinese troops in numerous areas of East Ladakh.
Joshi was speaking at the Northern Command’s Investiture ceremony at its headquarters in Jammu and Kashmir today, where the units involved in the Ladakh operation were given major share of appreciation certificates.
While interacting with the CO’s of units deployed along LAC with China and part of Operation Snow Leopard, he said that it is Indian soldier’s valor, determination and courage that gives a clear, loud message to China. “Indian Army is alert and ready in all ways possible”, he was quoted.
Operation Snow Leopard was launched in the year 2020 by the Indian Army to strategically occupy important heights in the South bank of Pangong Tso in Ladakh along the Line of Actual Control. Further stating that year 2021 was ‘watershed’ year for India, he said that Indian troops have showcased immense courage against the aggressive designs of China.
Joshi also went on to mention that Indian troops have foiled several infiltration attempts by Pakistan. He said a year-long ceasefire with Pakistan has helped in improvising the local lives along the LoC. “People have boycotted terrorism and have shown no place for separatism”, he added. He also said that the strategic importance of Ladakh and J&K is known to all and the same is secured by the Indian Army.
According to the reports, Lt Gen YK Joshi at the event handed over Certificates of Appreciation to 26 units for their exemplary performance in Operation Meghdoot, Operation Rakshak, Operation Northern Borders, and other operations.
A 14-year-old girl of class 8th was raped in the Baghpat district of Uttar Pradesh. The victim’s father who was trying to resist the crime was also brutally assaulted by the accused. This crime took place in a village that falls under Chandinagar police station of Baghpat. The victim’s parents have filed a complaint in the SP office after which a case was registered.
The victim’s father has said that he was sleeping in a room along with his two daughters. He has alleged that the accused entered the house, dragged the elder daughter out of the house, and raped her. As the girl started to scream, her father rushed to the spot and tried to restrain the 45-year-old accused. In this fight, the accused assaulted the father of the girl. The accused hit him with the butt of a country-made pistol. The girl’s father got injured by this. The accused then threatened the father and managed to escape from that place.
A 14-year-old girl was allegedly raped in the Baghpat #UttarPradesh
Father brutally assaulted for resisting crime. Accused also hit the father with the butt of a country-made pistol
family did not file the complaint, fearing social stigma, but father registered complaint later.
The station house officer Omprakash has said that a case has been registered in this regard and efforts are being made to arrest the accused as soon as possible.
It is notable that the victim girl’s mother had died a few years back. The accused was stalking the girl for a long time. But the family did not file any case owing to social stigma. Now as the girl faced this unfortunate incident and her father is also assaulted, they had met with the SP, and then the case is registered.
There have been repeated rape incidents in the Baghpat area, especially in the last few months. It has rather become a matter of concern for the girls of minor age in this area. Earlier, similar incidents have happened and were reported here in November 2021 and in July 2021 before that. In some cases, the accused rapist had also forcefully converted the victim girl into Islam.
Under the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat health plan, the first free open-heart surgery was successfully performed in Tripura’s Agartala Government Medical College and GB Pant Hospital on Statehood Day on Friday (January 21).
Madhabi Rani Das, 46, of Udaipur underwent open-heart surgery on January 21 at GBP hospital, according to reports. The whole operation was done free of cost as the patient is a beneficiary of the Ayushman Bharat scheme.
The medical college’s Cardio-Thoracic and Vascular Surgery and Interventional Radiology (CTVS and IR) facilities were installed two years ago, but there was no surgeon or competent surgery team, as said by Dr Sanjib Debbarma, Medical Superintendent of Agartala Govt Medical College (AGMC) and GBP Hospital.
Under Centre’s Ayushman Bharat health scheme, first open-heart surgery successfully performed free of cost at Tripura’s GB Pant Hospital
Dr Kanak Narayan Bhattacharjee, Consultant of the Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery (CTVS) department at the GB Pant Hospital, stated to ANI, “This is the first time such a surgery has been performed under my observation. In this complicated surgery, all of the technicians, anesthesiologists, and staff nurses performed a critical role.”
Manjushri Roy, the Principal of Agartala Medical College, addressed the reporters, “We are pleased to inform you that a complex operation like open-heart surgery was successfully performed at the GBP hospital in Agartala. This would allow people from all over the state to receive tertiary care right at their doorstep.”
When asked if more of these surgeries will be carried out in the future, Roy remarked, “These operations are extremely critical and need much planning on the part of both the patients and the surgeons. We can’t conduct two surgeries a day due to limited resources, but this is a continuous process.”
The successful operation took 5 gruelling hours. The patient is currently in a stable state. Dr Kanak Narayan Bhattacharjee, consultant and In-charge, CTVS & IR department, Dr Anindya Sundar Trivedi, and Dr Surjit Pal headed a team of 15 specialists that performed the operation.
On Friday, India recalled the dastardly terrorist attack on Mumbai in year 2011 and said that global threat of terrorism required unambiguous and collective response. India’s Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla at a conference on the ‘Potential for Indo-European/German cooperation in Indo-Pacific’ also condemned the recent terrorist attack in Texas and affirmed that the active international terror network has long-lasting implications.
Recent incident in Texas once again demonstrates that int’l network of terror, with its epicenter in India’s neighbourhood, is very much active & has long-lasting implications. This is a global threat that requires an unambiguous, undivided, effective & collective response: FS pic.twitter.com/jHSAm1YJGH
Welcoming the growing interest of European countries including Germany, to intensify their engagement in the Indo-Pacific region, Shringla said that the key area of cooperation between the strategic partners would be action on countering terrorism. “Failure to cooperate can only embolden terrorists towards more audacity”, he was quoted.
He recalled the horrific 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack in which Indians, Germans and many people of other nationalities had lost their lives and noted that the global threat of terrorism requires an undivided and effective response. The Foreign Secretary also drew the panel’s attention to the recent attack by British Islamists in Texas, United States. “It demonstrates the international network of terror, with its epicentre in Pakistan, is very much active and has long-lasting implications”, he said.
According to the official statement, Shringla reiterated India’s position by quoting EAM S Jaishankar who had said that there cannot be any exception or any justification for any act of terrorism, regardless of motivations behind such acts. Two days ago, India had condemned the terrorist attack in Texas act and had said, “any attack on innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure was completely unacceptable; would be in blatant violation of international law, and against all civilized norms”.
Deepening cooperation with Germany on matters of national security, Shringla appreciated its proposed strategies on the Indo-Pacific, particularly strengthening multilateralism, the rule of law and democracy, climate protection, trade and digitization and said that Germany’s interests closely match with that of India.
He also invited Germany to participate in the third ‘No Money for Terror’ Conference to be held in 2022.
The mother of M Lavanya, a student of standard 12th in Sacred Heart Higher Secondary School, Thirukattupali in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, who had committed suicide on January 20 has slammed the media for questioning the dying declaration of her daughter. In a video acquired by OpIndia, the deceased student’s mother has opened up about the torture perpetrated on her daughter by the missionary school authorities to convert to Christianity, that compelled her to take her life.
She is heard stating unequivocally that her daughter killed herself as a result of the treatment she was put to by the missionary school for refusing to convert to Christianity.
Miffed by the media trying to grill her over the ‘conversion angle’, the mother remarked angrily, “Do you want to say what she said in her dying declaration is false”. Her strong reaction came after the journalist told her that the police have maintained that the allegation that Lavanya was facing pressure to convert to Christianity from the school authorities was false.
Further explaining her deceased daughter’s plight which compelled her to end her life, the aggrieved mother said that they have lost their daughter today due to the torture and pressure exerted on her to convert by the authorities of the govt-aided Christian missionary school. “She was compelled and tortured and now she is no more…We want Justice, lamented the mother, as she revealed that her daughter was being pressured and coerced to take up Christianity for the last two years.
“She was asked to wash bathrooms and do other chores and was tortured…”, said the mother as she demanded the arrest and capital punishment for the two school wardens, identified as Sahay Mary and Rocklyn Mary who she said were responsible for the death of her daughter.
“We have lost our daughter but we do not want the same to happen with anyone else’s child…she should be the first and last to go through this torture”, said the mother demanding strict action against the school.
‘If she becomes like us she will get the respect and stature she deserves’, mother reveals how the TN missionary school was after her to let her daughter convert
M Lavanya’s mother recalled how the school had directly asked her to let the child convert to Christianity. “How are you going to make your daughter study, let her become like us. If she becomes like us she will get the respect and stature she deserves,” they had said. She added that she had a fight with the wardens regarding this but to no avail. “They continued to harass my daughter. They used to tell her that she is a bright girl and even threatened her that if she revealed these things to us they will spread rumours about her character. Probably that’s the reason why she did not reveal anything to us”, revealed M Lavanya’s mother.
She further added that they asked the school for a Transfer Certificate (TC) but the school was shut due to Covid. “We were waiting for the school to reopen and give us the TC so that we could apply to some other school. We approached the school after the Pongal holidays and asked for the TC which they denied. Our daughter was an excellent student. She placed first in the class. We wanted her to continue her studies. If something like this can happen to a student who use to come first in class imagine what would happen to the lesser bright students of the school”, remarked the irked mother.
Mother refutes police claims of no conversion angle
When the journalist tried to badger her with the police claims of no conversion angle being present in the suicide case, she lambasted, “Do you want to say what she said in her dying declaration is false”.
Massive row erupts after a minor,who was allegedly forced to convert,dies by suicide. BJP demands action,holds protest in Tamil Nadu
Victim’s family, in an exclusive conversation with @AnchorAnandN says, ‘Our daughter was harassed, tortured.’
Notably, while speaking to News18, M Lavanya’s disgruntled mother reiterated their demands. “We demand that they be jailed and the school must be sealed immediately. We have three more children, we want them to study well. I hope that somebody helps us get justice for our daughter”.
Answering the same question posed to her regarding the police claims, she said, “we are ordinary daily labourers, so the police did not take our complaints seriously. Officials did not believe anything we said regarding the case.”
In an appeal to PM Narendra Modi, the aggrieved mother said: “We want to extend a request to PM Modi as well and say that please don’t let this happen to any other girl. All we want is justice for our daughter.”
Meanwhile, a massive row has erupted in Tamil Nadu following the death of the class 12 student. Many BJP leaders in Tamil Nadu has hit the streets demanding justice for the deceased class 12 student M Lavanya and her family and demanded stringent action against the missionary school which compelled the student to end her life.
Tamil Nadu police to probe suicide of student based on her dying declaration alleging ‘forced to convert’ by missionary school
It may be noted that only yesterday, the Tamil Nadu police had agreed to register the girl’s dying declaration in the case, where she alleged that the govt-aided Christian missionary school she went to had been pressuring her to convert to Christianity, and base the probe on it.
Prior to this, the initial FIR filed by the TN police had simply mentioned that the student was residing at the hostel and that on January 9, the warden reportedly compelled her to undertake household tasks. She apparently attempted suicide because she couldn’t stand the brutality any longer.
Speaking about this development, Thanjavur Superintendent of Police Ravali Priya Gandhapuneni had said that the girl’s parents’ initial statement was bereft of the conversion angle. She added that a new petition has been filed, in which the angle will be investigated as well.
It may be recalled that a video of Lavanya’s call for help was published on social media where she was seen talking about her torture. The video, originally in Tamil (translated by The Commune) says, “My name is Lavanya. They (school) had asked my parents in my presence if they can convert me to Christianity and help her for further studies. Since I didn’t accept, they kept scolding me.” She also named one Rachael Mary who had allegedly tortured her.
