In a case of a divorce settlement, the London court has ordered the Dubai ruler to pay a record amount of around £550 million ($730 million) to his former wife and children. The settlement amount of around half a billion is set to become the highest award given by a UK court.
As per reports, the court ordered Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum to pay Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, his former wife and also a half-sister of Jordan’s King Abdullah II, a lump sum of amount £251.5 million along with a bank guarantee of £290 million for covering children’s maintenance and security as adults.
Sheikh Maktoum was also accused by the High Court in October of using spying software and hacking his ex-wife’s phone and the judge had said that the Sheikh had harassed and intimidated his wife Princess Haya both before and after her departure to England. In its written judgement settling the divorce case, Justice Philip Moor stated that the main threat to Princess Haya and her children came from Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the prime minister of the United Arab Emirate and a close Gulf ally of Britain. The court further stated in its ruling that Sheikh Mohammed had “accepted that his wealth was sufficient to meet any reasonable order”.
In its order, the court said, “I am entirely satisfied that this means that, although HRH (her royal highness Haya) and the children would require security provision in any event, given their status and the general threats of terrorism and kidnap faced in such circumstances, they are particularly vulnerable and need water-tight security to ensure their continued safety and security in this country.” adding “Most importantly in this regard, and absolutely uniquely, the main threat they face is from HH (his highness the sheikh) himself not from outside sources. This is compounded by the full weight of the state that he has available to him as seen by his ability to make use of the Pegasus software, which is only available to governments.”
Notably, the Sheikh had earlier planned the kidnapping of two of his children, Princess Latifa and Princess Shamsa and forced them to remain in Dubai. Latifa alleged that she was held hostage by the Sheikh.
Also, the High Court ruling in 2020 stated that the Dubai ruler had subjected Princess Haya to a state of fear and intimidation forcing her to flee to London.
Princess Haya now lives with two of her other children in a house near Kensington Palace located west of London which she inherited from the late King Hussein of Jordan. Princess Haya married Sheikh in 2004 which was his second official marriage. As per the court judgment, Sheikh had divorced Princess Haya under Sharia law in 2019 without her knowledge.
The Chair of the Rajya Sabha, on Tuesday, December 21, suspended TMC MP Derek O’Brien for the remaining duration of the ongoing winter session of the Parliament for “unruly behaviour” in the House. The decision came after the Trinamool Congress MP reportedly threw the Rajya Sabha Rule Book towards the Chair when the Upper House was discussing the Election Laws (Amendment Bill) 2021 on Tuesday.
TMC MP Derek O’Brien (file pic) suspended from Rajya Sabha for the remaining part of the current Session for ‘unruly behaviour’ in the House
He had allegedly thrown the Rajya Sabha Rule Book towards the Chair on Dec 21 during the discussion on Election Laws (Amendment Bill) 2021 pic.twitter.com/iSpL4oeEhJ
Showing no remorse for his despicable conduct, the TMC MP took to Twitter to inform about his suspension. “The last time I got suspended from RS was when govt. was BULLDOZING #FarmLaws. We all know what happened after that. Today, suspended while protesting against BJP making a mockery of #Parliament and BULLDOZING #ElectionLawsBill2021. Hope this Bill too will be repealed soon, the Trinamool leader said in a tweet.”
The last time I got suspended from RS was when govt. was BULLDOZING #FarmLaws
— Derek O’Brien | ডেরেক ও’ব্রায়েন (@derekobrienmp) December 21, 2021
It may be recalled that Derek O’Brien was amongst the eight RS MPs whom Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, the chairman of Rajya Sabha, suspended in September last year, for unruly behaviour with the chair. Then these suspended Rajya Sabha members had gone to the well of the House and physically threatened the Deputy Chairman. Video clips of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh assaulting a Marshal on duty had gone viral yesterday. VP Naidu had called the incident unfortunate and condemnable. He had urged the MPs to do some introspection.
However, the TMC MP has not learnt anything from the past incident it seems. O’Brien threw the Rule Book at the reporters’ desk after the Chair did not allow voting for passage of a bill to change election laws, citing disorder in the House. The Opposition walked out of the House while the govt condemned the behaviour of the TMC MP.
Days after Punjab was rocked with lynchings linked to sacrilege of Sikh texts and symbols, another incident of sacrilege has been reported in the state. This time around, Hindu religious texts and scriptures have suffered sacrilege. In Ludhiana, torn parts of Hindu religious texts were found in front of the Police Commissioner’s office on Tuesday. No lynchings have been reported in the case thus far.
The fragmented copies of Hindu religious texts were handed over to the police by Shiv Sena Punjab national president Rajiv Tandon, and others present with him. It is worth noting Shiv Sena Punjab is an altogether different organisation and is not linked to Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena.
OpIndia spoke to Shiv Sena Punjab national president Rajiv Tandon to know more about the case. He said as soon as they were informed about torn Hindu religious scriptures strewn under a Banyan tree located near a Dhaba and outside the Police Commissioner’s office, they rushed to the place, picked up the desecrated texts, and called up police commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar to inform him about the incident.
According to Tandon, they recovered torn pages of Shri Garuda Purana, Shrimad Bhagwad Geeta and other Hindu religious texts from the aforementioned place. The police, he said, has registered a complaint in the case. They have launched a preliminary investigation and nearby CCTV footage is being checked to identify the miscreants responsible for the sacrilege of Hindu religious texts.
Hindu temples vandalised, Hindu rituals insulted in Punjab
It is noteworthy to mention that this is not the first time that Hindu scriptures or Hindu temples are vandalised in Punjab. Earlier in July 2021, a Shivling was desecrated in Punjab’s Ahmedgarh, sparking anger among the Hindu community. The case pertained to an ancient temple in village Sangrur. One morning, Paramjit Kumar, who looked after the temple, found the ancient Shivling damaged and lying outside the temple. Tensions had gripped the town then as Hindu organisations launched protests to oppose the vandalisation of the temple and its presiding deity.
There have also been reports about Hindus and Hindu rituals being insulted in Punjab. In August this year, Congress councillor Sukhraj Aulakh had allegedly insulted Hindu traditions and ceremonies in one of his social media posts. He was also accused of making insulting statements about Hindu women, which had enraged members of numerous Hindu organisations.
A major controversy had then erupted over Punjab Congress councillor Sukhraj Aulakh’s alleged remarks against Hindu women and rituals. Disgruntled by the Congress leader’s derogatory remarks against Hinduism, many Hindus held a protest march against Sukhraj Aulakh in Bathinda on the occasion of Sri Krishna Janmashtami on Monday, August 30.
Following the outrage, the Congress leader rendered an apology. However, Hindus refused to accept the apology and demanded strict action against the Congress leader. They made it clear that they would go to any length to punish the Congress councillor for demonising Hinduism and Hindus, even if they have to go to court.
Punjab lynching incidents
India was recently convulsed with two horrifying cases of mob lynching that took place in Punjab over allegations of sacrilege. Angry mobs took law into their own hands and lynched two individuals to death on the suspicion of sacrilege, underscoring the abject state of law and order situation in Punjab.
The first incident of mob lynching linked to sacrilege took place inside the sanctum sanctorum of Darbar Sahib on Saturday evening when regular prayers were going on. CCTV footage showed that suddenly a man entered the sanctum sanctorum and hit the holy Granth Sahib with a Kirpan. Reportedly, he had picked up the golden Kirpan from the sanctum sanctorum of the Gurudwara itself, which was placed near the holy Sikh Scripture. Soon after the incident, he was surrounded by people present at the temple, and later his dead body was placed near the SGPC main gate, which suggests that he was beaten to death by the staff in the office.
And within 24 hours, another man in Punjab was killed over allegations of sacrilege. The incident pertained to a Gurdwara in Nizampur village in the Kapurthala district of Punjab. A man was caught at the Gurudwara for allegedly committing sacrilege. As per reports, the crowd at the Gurudwara where the youth was caught did not let the Police detain the accused. Later it was reported that the youth was lynched to death by the crowd.
While the politicians in Punjab were swift to condemn the alleged sacrilege incidents, none of them bothered denouncing the mob lynching of the two individuals who were beaten to death on suspicion of sacrilege. Initially, the police said there was no sign of sacrilege in Punjab’s Kapurthala Gurudwara. However, later the police slapped charges of ‘hurting religious sentiments’ (IPC 295) on both the men killed in Amritsar and Kapurthala. No case is yet filed on those responsible for their deaths.
A video has been doing the rounds in which a young man is seen brutally stabbing a girl in broad daylight. On December 19, Sunday, in the Pratappur village of Manjhagarh police station area in Gopalganj district of Bihar, a stalker named Gulshan(name changed), son of one Asraf Ali, brutally stabbed a schoolgirl multiple times for opposing his molestation bid.
गोपालगंज: छेड़खानी का विरोध करने पर आठवीं की स्कूली छात्रा को असरफ अली पुत्र गुड्डा ने दिन-दहाड़े चाकुओं से छलनी किया, 13 सेकेंड में 8 बार चाकू से वार किया, गिरफ़्तार pic.twitter.com/k0pyxA2tDx
The girl, a student of class eight, was attacked by the stalker while she was walking back home from her school. Reports suggest that the victim was stabbed 8 times in the span of 13 seconds. The brutal act was captured on the CCTV camera, based on which the Bihar police arrested the accused.
The girl was rushed to the Sadar hospital, in Gopalganj, Bihar in an extremely critical condition from where she has been referred to Patna Medical College. Police are investigating the matter based on the CCTV footage.
As can be seen in the video shared online, the victim was walking on the road with two other girls. Gulshan, who was in a black jacket, can be seen standing in one corner of the thoroughfare amidst some other boys. As soon as the victim moved away from the other girls, Gulshan approached her and started stabbing her.
Another youth tried to pull Gulshan away but, the latter in his fit of rage continued to stab the girl mercilessly. At this point, the other youth managed to pull Gulshan away but he again freed himself and went back to attacking the girl.
Some pedestrians walking past started to accumulate at this point. A bike passing by also stopped near the spot where Gulshan was assaulting the girl. The locals rush to rescue the victim. Another man from the crowd forcefully separated Gulshan from the victim. The boy fled from the spot when he witnessed the crowd swelling.
The girl’s family members informed that the victim studied in Maktab school located in Pratappur village, where the accused resided. Every day, she travelled from her village to Pratappur to attend her school. Gudda use to regularly stop her on the way and harass her. Many times the family members of the victim had complained about this to the accused’s family but to no avail.
On Sunday too, Gulshan accosted the victim when she was on her way to school and molested her. When she resisted, Gulshan let her go but kept waiting for her to return from school. When she was coming back from school, he assaulted her brutally with the knife, reported Dainik Bhaskar.
The Mamata Banerjee-led-Trinamool Congress clean swept the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) elections with the party winning 134 out of 144 seats.
The BJP won 3 seats, Left 2, Congress 2 while others won 3 seats each. In 2015, TMC had 114 seats, BJP had 7, Left parties had 15 while Congress and others had 5 and 3 seats respectively. While BJP sought young candidates like lawyers and professors, TMC gave many tickets to relatives of ministers.
Earlier, when the initial trends showed a landslide victory of the TMC, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said that this was a clear message of people having accepted their work.
It’s a landmark victory, it has sent a clear message that people have accepted our work. BJP, Left & Congress are nowhere: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee
Several TMC candidates such as former Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, Debasish Kumar, Tarak Singh, and Mala Roy were declared as winners. The elections were held on Sunday (December 18) during which 63% of the total electorates cast their vote. Videos of TMC workers, flouting Coronavirus protocols, and celebrating outside the residence of CM was shared by news agency ANI.
#WATCH | Kolkata: TMC workers and supporters celebrate outside the residence of CM and party chief Mamata Banerjee as official trends show the party leading in #KolkataMunicipalElection2021
While speaking about his victory, Hakim said, “We have never achieved such a massive victory before. Even in terms of state Assembly polls, our vote share has increased. We are delighted to get people’s support and blessings. We sincerely thank them.”
Heartiest congratulations to all candidates for your victory in the KMC elections. Remember to serve people with utmost diligence and gratitude!
I wholeheartedly thank every single resident of KMC for putting their faith on us, once again.
In a tweet, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee congratulated the party on its clean sweep. She wrote, “Heartiest congratulations to all candidates for your victory in the KMC elections. Remember to serve people with utmost diligence and gratitude! I wholeheartedly thank every single resident of KMC for putting their faith on us, once again.”
Suvendu Adhikari manhandled by police, was forced to protest at SEC office
On Sunday (December 19) evening, Suvendu Adhikari held a meeting with other party MLAs at his house. Citing a rule by the Election Commission that non-residents cannot enter Kolkata on polling day, the Bidhannagar police cordoned off the area outside Adhikari’s house and reportedly physically stopped him from meeting the Governor at Raj Bhavan.
“We cannot allow you to proceed to Kolkata as polling is being held and you are not residents of the metropolis,” a high-ranking police official reportedly told Suvendu Adhikari. Adhikari also alleged he was manhandled by a junior police officer, and that the gates of the MLA hostel in Kolkata were locked till 5 pm, preventing eight BJP legislators from attending a legislature party meeting. Later, he met the Governor and asked him to declare the poll as null and void.
BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari also held a sit-in protest within the office premises of the State Election Commissioner Office to protest against widespread rigging that took place during the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) polls. Adhikari led a delegation of BJP leaders into the State Election Commissioner Office and demanded repolling in the civic body polls. The BJP leader informed that only 20% of electorates could cast their votes and that over 100 incidents of poll irregularities had taken place.
Note: The report has been updated with latest information.
The Kerala HC on Tuesday rejected a plea seeking removal of PM Modi’s picture from the COVID-19 vaccine certificate, stating that citizens are duty-bound to respect the country’s Prime Minister.
The court also came down hard against the petitioner, imposing a penalty of Rs 1 lakh for filing a frivolous petition.
“The people elect the eligible persons among them and send them to the Parliament and the majority party will select their leader and he will be our Honourable Prime Minister for five years,” Justice P.V Kunhikrishnan said, adding, “till the next general election, he will be the Prime Minister of India…Therefore, according to me, it is the duty of the citizens to respect the Prime Minister of India, and of course, they can differ on the policies of the Government and even the political stand of the Prime Minister.”
The matter pertained to a petition filed by a senior citizen and an RTI activist who was unhappy with his vaccination certificate carrying the photograph of the country’s Prime Minister. The petitioner, in his plea, argued that the photograph of PM Modi on his COVID-19 vaccination certificate was an infringement of his fundamental rights.
However, the court rejected his contention, making scathing observations in its response. Slamming the petitioner, the court said, “What a fantastic argument! Is he not living in this country? The Prime Minister of India is not a person who entered the parliament house by breaking the roof of the parliament building. He came to power because of the mandate of the people. The Indian democracy is being praised by the world. The Prime Minister is elected because he has got people’s mandate.”
The court further noted that once the elections are over and the people of the country have given their mandate, the person ceases to be the leader of a political party and becomes the Prime Minister of the country. The court dismissed his petition and imposed a hefty fine of Rs 1 lakh on him.
Kerala HC dismisses petition seeking removal of PM Modi’s image from the COVID-19 vaccination certificate
It is notable to mention that this is not the first case heard by the Kerala HC over a petition seeking removal of PM Modi’s picture from the COVID-19 vaccination certificate. Listening to a similar petition filed earlier this month, the Kerala HC said other countries don’t have their Prime Minister’s picture on vaccine certificate because they are not proud of their Prime Minister like Indians are after a petitioner filed a plea seeking removal of Narendra Modi’s photograph from Covid vaccine certificates.
The acerbic remarks were made by the court after the petitioner contended that vaccination certificates issued in other countries do not contain the photographs of their respective leaders.
“They are not proud of their PM, we are proud of ours. He became PM because of the mandate of the people. We have different political opinions but he is still our prime minister,” the judge said.
In another case of destruction of Hindu temples in Islamic Pakistan, a Durga temple has been attacked and Goddess Durga idols vandalized in the Narayan Pura area of Karachi, Pakistan. As per reports, this is the 9th attack on Hindu Temples by Pakistani Islamists in 22 months.
Another Hindu Temple attacked in Islamic state of Pakistan.
Attack on Narian Pora Hindu Temple in Karachi. This is 9th attack on Hindu Temple in 22 months.
Video of the attack circulating on social media shows that a head of a Durga idol was severed while another idol of the Hindu Goddess was badly damaged. Reportedly the torso of a Durga idol was also broken during the attack and the temple was completely destroyed.
A man identified as Muhammad Waleed Shabbir has reportedly been arrested as per Pakistani media. One Hindu man, Mukesh Kumar, who was in the temple with his wife, saw Muhammad damaging the statues with hammer. Eventually the police were alerted and an FIR was registered against him. The areap in which the temple stood is inhabited by poor and low income Hindu families who protested outside police station stating they were feeling unsafe and demanded security for Hindus.
Earlier this year, as a statement against the minorities in Pakistan, a mob of Pakistani fundamentalists had attacked a Ganesh temple in Pakistan’s Punjab. The violent mob then burnt down parts of the temple and desecrated the Idols. A ruling parliamentarian had stated that the mob carried sticks, stones and bricks and had smashed the deities while raising religious slogans.
Inaction of the Imran Khan’s government against the fundamentalists and its inability to protect the temples of the minorities cast serious doubts on the nature of law existing in Pakistan.
Last year on December, fundamentalists in Pakistan attacked the Krishna dwara Temple or Karak’s Temple located in Teri union council of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The temple was set on fire and then razed down with hammers and crude weapons. Local cleric and supporters of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party (Fazal ur Rehman group) were supposedly involved in the attack by the fanatics. It was also alleged that the temple was demolished in the presence of the district administration officials.
Notably, from the 365 Hindu temples in Pakistan, only 13 were being looked after by the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) in Pakistan and the responsibility of 65 temples were with the persecuted Hindu community while the remaining 287 were abandoned and practically given to the land mafias.
Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, unleashed a scathing attack on the opposition while speaking at the ‘Destination Uttar Pradesh’ conclave organised by the Times of India in the state’s capital city, Lucknow on Monday, December 20. Using the recent PM Modi’s endorsement saying: “UP + Yogi, bahut hai upyogi (Yogi is essential for UP)”, Yogi Adityanath jeered at the opposition saying that by the time his opponent ‘friends’ get up from their slumber he is done touring several districts in his state.
He slammed the opposition saying that those who are averse to development in the state find his work ‘unupyogi’ (useless). Those who foster riots find his government’s ‘zero-tolerance policy actions against criminals and mafia ‘unupyogi’. When bulldozer is run over mafia gangs and illegal encroachments, these ‘unupyogis’ who patronise such people, feel the pain. Those who have always cheated the poor and vulnerable and used them as mere vote banks will obviously find Uttar Pradesh’s leap in ease of living ranking ‘unupyogi’.
“Jo log UP ki vikas yatra ko unupyogi batate hain…unko UP ki janata pehle hi unupyogi bata chuki hain” (The people who consider UP’s ambitious plans towards development ‘unupyogi’, the citizens of the state have already repudiated them as ‘unupyogi’), stated the UP CM Yogi Adityanath adding that the state government is working with three objectives, that are nationalism, good governance and development.
‘Hum ghar ke andar aur bahar dono jagah ‘Bharat mata ki jai’ kehte hain, tika lagate hain: Yogi Adityanath
Taking a further dig at the hypocrisy of the opposition surrounding caste/religion issues, Yogi Adityanath said that, “We are not among those who wear tika in the house but remove it when they step out of their respective houses to engage in a particular kind of theatrics. We do not put up a facade. We are the same people inside and outside our houses”, said Yogi.
He added: “Yadi hum ghar ke andar ‘Bharat mata ki jai’ kehte hain toh hum chauhrahe par bhi shaan see ‘Bharat mata ki jai’ kehte hain…koi sankoch nahi rehta hain… kyon ki hum maante hain rashtriyata hi desh ki aatma hain.” (If we chant ‘Bharat mata ki jai’ in our houses we have no qualms doing the same on the streets…as we believe Nationalism is the soul of India and its citizens).
‘Pehle bijli aati nahi thi ab jaati nahi hain’: Yogi Adityanath takes a dig at the previous Samajwadi Party Govt
Speaking about the upcoming airports and metros in the state under the BJP regime, Yogi said until 2017 these were only “electoral issues”. In reality, the previous govt did not believe in development. Earlier, people believed that the border of Uttar Pradesh begins where potholes appear on the roadways and darkness descends on the streets as evening approaches. “Pehle bijli aati nahi thi ab jaati nahi hain” (earlier electricity never came now it never goes), Yogi Adityanath added as he proudly spoke about the glistening new blacktop expressways that are coming up, crisscrossing the entire state under his leadership.
He added that both the previous government and his present government have renamed several towns in the state but there is a stark difference. While the previous govt changed the names to suit their political leanings, his government has restored the original identity of the places which were renamed when Indians were taken as slaves by the Mughals. We renamed Allahabad as Prayagraj and Faizabad as Ayodhya, said Yogi.
‘Endangered Gangetic dolphins are returning to their habitats’, Yogi praises Govt’s effort to clean holy Ganga
Talking about how the BJP government has worked tirelessly to clean the Ganga and rejuvenate it, Yogi said he spoke to the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officials, who use the Ganga to regularly practice disaster relief technics. They said that earlier they use to get blisters on their entire face and body on spending only one week practising in river Ganga. This showed that the Ganga was so contaminated that bathing in it was also not an option, leave alone consuming its water. Today, the NDRF team said that we bathe in it for months, nothing happens. There has been an evident change, confirmed by the NDRF team, said Yogi, adding that the endangered Gangetic dolphins are returning to their habitats which symbolises that the cleanliness of the holy river has increased drastically.
Yogi hails PM Modi for integrating faith and compassion
Hailing PM Modi for his compassion and humanity, the Uttar Pradesh CM said that people can see the difference with their own eyes. Here is a Prime Minister who showered flower petals on workers who constructed the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor. Contrary to this, there was a time when the hands of the artisans who built the monument were severed.
“Didn’t this happen? Please try and remember. If I name someone today, tomorrow, it will be used against me. Some people will blow it out of proportion to castigate me”, said Yogi drawing a comparison between the old and today’s new India under the governance of PM Modi. He is integrating faith and compassion…this is the new India”, asserted the Uttar Pradesh CM at the ‘Destination Uttar Pradesh’ conclave organised by The Times of India.
On December 21, in a press release, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, announced that they had blocked two websites and twenty YouTube channels in a bid to dismantle Pakistan’s coordinated disinformation operation against India. Two separate orders were issued by the ministry, one to block the two websites and the second to block the twenty YouTube channels on Monday, December 20. In its order, the Ministry requested the Department of Telecom to direct the internet service providers to block the mentioned news channels and portals.
As per the press release, these channels and websites were linked to Pakistan and part of its disinformation network to spread fake news on sensitive subjects related to India. It read, “The channels were used to post divisive content in a coordinated manner on topics like Kashmir, Indian Army, minority communities in India, Ram Mandir, General Bipin Rawat etc.”
The press release specifically mentioned The Naya Pakistan Group (NPG) that is being operated from Pakistan. The network has YouTube channels that have a combined subscriber base of over 35 lakh and 55 crore views. Notably, some of these channels were operated by the news anchors of Pakistani news channels. Some of the websites in the blocked list were standalone channels.
The modus operandi of the anti-India disinformation campaign involved The Naya #Pakistan Group (NPG), operating from Pakistan, having a network of YouTube channels, and some other standalone YouTube channels not related to NPG.
These channels have published content on several issues linked to India, such as farmers’ protests, CAA-NRC protests and more. The press release noted that these channels were trying to incite the minorities against the Government of India. “It was also feared that these YouTube channels would be used to post content to undermine the democratic process of the upcoming elections in five states,” it read.
The portals and channels have been blocked under Rule 16 of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, to secure the information space in India. “The Ministry observed that Most of the content pertains to subjects sensitive from the perspective of national security and are factually incorrect, and are being mainly posted from Pakistan as a coordinated disinformation network (as in the case of Naya Pakistan Group) against India and thus deemed it fit for action under the provisions to block content in case of emergency,” the press release read.
.@MIB_India has acted to secure the information space in India, and utilized emergency powers under the Rule 16 of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
Four of the YouTube channels were concentrated specifically on Kashmir related content. These channels were The Punch Line, The Naked Truth, 48 News and Cover Story. Two of the channels concentrated on Khalistan related propaganda videos. These channels were InternationalWeb News and Khalsa TV. Two of the channels, News24 and Punjab Viral, were publishing both Khalistani and Kashmir related content.
Five YouTube channels were publishing general anti-India content. These channels were Fictional, Historical Facts, Naya Pakistan Global, Go Global and eCommerce. There were eight YouTube channels that were linked to news channel reporters, influencers and anchors from Pakistan. These channels were Junail Haleem Official, Tayyab Hanif, Zain Ali Official, Mohsin Rajput Official, Kaneez Fatima, Sadaf Durrani, Mian Imran Ahmad and Najam Ul Hassan Bajwa.
The propaganda videos had titles like “Kashmiri Mujahideen Targets Indian Army With Rockets”, “Pakistan Surprises to India on Rajasthan Border”, 50 Indian Spy Hang By Afghan Talebans To Send Big Message To Modi”, and more.
Channels like The Naked Truth, Historical Facts, Naya Pakistan Global and Zail Ali Official were among the top views channels with views in crores. While Naya Pakistan Global had over nine crore views, Najam Ul Hassan Bajwa had over 11 crore views.
Jaya Bachchan, the veteran Bollywood actress and senior Samajwadi Party MP made it to the headlines yesterday for her angry outburst in the Rajya Sabha. “You’re bad days will be here soon…I curse you,” Jaya Bachchan said in the Upper House of the Parliament while discussing the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Bill.
The Samajwadi Party leader was apparently triggered when someone amongst the RS members questioned her about the summon sent to her daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the Panama Papers leak case by the Enforcement Directorate.
She went on to call out the Chair for not listening to the opposition: “…aap gala ghont dijie ham sabka (you please strangulate us),” she exclaimed in the Rajya Sabha.
The Opposition ruckus that followed, compelled the Chair to adjourn the Rajya Sabha till 5 pm on Monday, December 20.
Jaya Bachchan’s yesterday’s behaviour is unbecoming for a seasoned politician and a woman of her prominence. However, those who know her or have read about her, are not unversed with her anger and belligerence. Many a time the veteran actress has made headlines for her angry responses in front of the media or any other public forum.
Some say that some BJP leader called her statements ‘nautani’ (dramatics) and that is what triggered the meltdown. Samajwadi Party leaders have accused that such usage of word for Bachchan, a woman politician, is unparliamentary and should not be tolerated. They justified her anger and the subsequent cursing saying that such kind of personal remarks on a woman MP are not nice. However, Jaya Bachchan herself has over the years stayed quiet on such personal, sexist and insulting remarks meted out to her colleagues, many times by her own party leaders.
Jaya Bachchan’s selective outrage
One remembers Jaya Bachchan breaking down during a silent march held for the Nirbhaya gang-rape victim and expressing her condolences to the victim`s family saying she “understood their pain.” But when it came to speaking against the founder-patron of her own party-Mulayam Singh Yadav’s outrageous comment during the Shakti Mills rape case where he said ‘ladke hai, ladko se galtiyan ho jaati hai’, Jaya Bachchan remained tight-lipped.
That’s not all. Jaya Bachchan chose to keep mum when her co-actor and fellow MP Jaya Prada was being badgered with sexist and misogynistic comments by her own party leader but did not even bat an eyelid when it came to rebuking BJP MP Ravi Kishan for raising the drug abuse issue which is quite prevalent in Bollywood.
In September last year, while speaking in Rajya Sabha, the SP MP tore into Ravi Kishan, also a Bhojpuri actor, damning him for criticising something that provides them with their livelihood. “Jis thaali mein khaate hai, usi mein chhed karte hai“, lambasted Jaya Bachchan in the upper house.
The legendary actor’s devotion to the film industry is heartwarming. Despite the fact that Ravi Kishan was not revealing anything new to the general public, as it is well-known that Bollywood has long been linked to the drug mafia, the enraged and annoyed Jaya Bachchan screamed at the BJP MP for only speaking facts.
Jaya Bachchan had received flak then for trying to cover up Bollywood’s drug issue.
Besides, Jaya Bachchan, who is otherwise so opinionated and ‘righteous’, did not say a word when her co-star and colleague Jaya Prada alleged that her morphed,lewd pictures were being circulated by another Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan.
She did not speak when Senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and MLA from Rampur constituency Azam Khan stooped even lower than his usual low self by making utterly outrageous “khaki underwear” remark against the then BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Rampur, Jaya Prada. Why wasn’t Jaya Bachchan seen standing shoulder to shoulder with Jaya Prada when she alleged that Azam Khan had attempted an acid attack on her?
These aforementioned instances are a few examples of Jaya Bachchan’s selective outrage. Now let’s revisit some other instances where the veteran actress has been caught blowing her gasket at the paparazzi, her fans and her political rivals.
Tameez seekho: Jaya Bachchan gets angry at her fan
Jaya Bachchan was leaving Hiroo Johar’s birthday event in March 2019 when an eager fan attempted to photograph her. She called him back right away to give him a piece of her mind. “Aap mobile pe kyun photo le rahe ho? Poocha mujhse aapne? Tameez seekho,” (why are you taking photos on your phone? Did you ask me? learn some manners), she said.
Jaya Bachchan slams paparazzi for addressing Aishwarya as ‘Aish’
During Subhash Ghai’s birthday bash in 2013, one of the photographers inadvertently referred to Aishwarya as Aish. Outraged by the paparazzi’s deliberation of addressing Aishwarya by her first name rather than respectfully as ‘Aishwarya ma’am,’ Jaya Bachchan, Aishwarya’s mother-in-law, lashed out at the photographers, saying: “Ye Aishwarya kya hota hain huh?, Tumhari class mein padhti thi kya?” (What is this Aishwarya? Did she study in your class?).
Whena BJP Youth leader declared a bounty on WB CM Mamata Banerjee’s head
“Gaayon ko aap bacha sakte hai par mahilaon pe atyachar ho raha hai. Kis tarah se aap log baat kar rahe hai?” (You’ll save cows but remain silent on the atrocities on women. How are you’ll talking?), the agitated Jaya Bachchan blasted when a youth leader from the Bharatiya Janata Party declared a bounty of Rs 11 lakh on Mamata Banerjee’s head in the year 2017.
‘Don’t do that, stupid’
When Jaya Bachchan was leaving Ganpati Darshan in 2017, a fan sought to grab a selfie with her. This irritated her, and she said angrily, “Don’t do that, stupid!”
Jaya Bachchan haughtly replies to papparazi: ‘I am not the spokesperson for the rest of my family’
Jaya Bachchan was asked a question about Amitabh Bachchan during a press conference. “Mera naam kya hai??,” the actress-wife retorted. Bachchan saab ko aap unse poochiye. Jaaiye press conference chal raha hai unka. Wahan jaaiye na, please poochiye. (What is my name? You can ask Bachchan sir about him. His press conference is going on elsewhere, you can go there and ask…please ask.) I am not the spokesperson for the rest of my family, she said arrogantly.
The SP MP calls the paparazzi ‘Jungli’… asks then not to ‘act smart’
In 2014 when the entire Bachchan family had stepped out to cast their votes. “Aise jungli ke tarah behave kar rahe hai! (How are you behaving like wild animals?)” she angrily remarked looking at the photographers. Her son, Abhishek Bachchan had then calmed her down.
The same year, during the launch party, she lashed out at a reporter when she was asked a question unrelated to her sister-in-law Ramola Bachchan’s store: “Aap bataiye, yeh jagah hai yeh sawaal poochne ka? Don’t act smart with me,” she said.
In 2017, at actor Esha Deol’s godh bharai ceremony, Jaya Bachchan chastised a priest for attempting to photograph celebrities. When someone from the pandit’s team was taking a selfie, she remarked curtly: “Aap puja mein dhyan dijiye.”
Reprimands students for clicking her
The actress-turned-MP was at Mumbai’s NM College for their annual fest in 2016 when she abruptly left one ‘discussion’ to reprimand students for photographing her. “Please stop taking pictures. I hate it because it’s right into my eyes. These are basic manners which we Indians have to learn. Just because you have a camera and a mobile, you have the freedom of take anyone’s picture anytime, without asking that person! These are basic educations that all colleges and schools and parents at home should teach their children. It’s very annoying. I have the freedom to say no from being photographed. I am trying to chat here. You are sitting right in front of me, clicking right into my eyes. I hate indiscipline,” Jaya snapped.
“Aap picture kheech lijiye phir main baat karungi,” (You click pictures after which I shall talk), she exclaimed as she became angry and dropped her mike in the middle of the discussion.
Jaya Bachchan yanks the microphone for being asked a unrelated question
At a function in 2011, Jaya Bachchan yanked the microphone away and screamed at a reporter who asked her about the Union Budget. The fact that the journalist was “asking a political question” at an unconnected event irritated her.
