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UK Sikh MP calls Golden Temple lynching victim a ‘Hindu terrorist’, deletes Tweet after outrage

OpIndia Staff
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UK Sikh MP calls Golden Temple lynching victim a ‘Hindu terrorist’, deletes Tweet after outrage

A British Sikh MP, Preet Kaur Gill, had shared a tweet in which she referred the man who was lynched to death at Golden Temple after an alleged ‘sacrilege’ attempt as a ‘Hindu Terrorist’. Her tweet angered the Hindu community not only in the UK but across the globe. Her tweet also got noticed by the Indian high commission in London.

The commission said in a statement that it is “constrained to unequivocally repudiate” the comment made by the MP before Indian security agencies could investigate and release a statement on the probe.

After the uproar, the MP deleted the tweet and replaced it with another tweet saying, “No place of worship or community should be targeted in this way. Awful scenes from Harmandir Sahib.”

Contents of now-deleted MP Gill’s tweet

After the reports of alleged sacrilege, and the brutal lynching afterwards came out in International media, Preet Kaur Gill published a tweet on Saturday (local time) saying, “Hindu terrorist prevented from an act of violence at the Sikh holy shrine of Harmandir Sahib against Sikhs.”

Her tweet did not go well with the Indian diaspora resulting in sharp criticism. The MP later deleted the tweet and published another tweet condemning the incident. Notably, she did not mention anything about the lynching that had happened following the alleged incident, where the man was brutally beaten to death. In the tweet she said, “No place of worship or community should be targeted in this way. Awful scenes from Harmandir Sahib.”

Later on Monday (local time), Gill published another tweet in which she finally condemned the lynching. She said, “Beadbi incidents are unacceptable, but the lynching of another person is also unacceptable, and no one should take matters into their own hands. We need a full inquiry into these matters.”

Times of India quoted Gill saying, “I have posted my tweets, but if people want to focus on a deleted tweet clearly, they have another agenda which is to incite hate and division.” She tried to play the victim by saying that she was being trolled by “rightwing Hindu groups” and had reported it to the Police.

Gill was not the only one to call the deceased a ‘Hindu terrorist.’

MP Gill was not the only one who called the deceased a “Hindu terrorist”. Several others made similar remarks. One of them was Harjap Bhangal, an immigration lawyer from the UK. In a series of tweets, He said, “Let me correct the headline… Hindu Terrorist who grabbed a sword in an attempt to attack innocent praying people, including women and children, is prevented from slaughtering them by Sikhs… Much better….” It is noteworthy that Bhangal was quoted by MP Gill in her second tweet on the incident.

Source: Twitter

Reaction from Indian high commission and Indian Diaspora

Her now-deleted tweet has been making rounds on social media platforms and messaging apps like WhatsApp. The Indian high commission in London issued a statement. Vishwesh Negi, minister (press and information) at the Indian high commission, said, “The High Commission of India is constrained to unequivocally repudiate the public comment by a member of the British Parliament regarding a crime that occurred in India even before the Indian law enforcement authority could investigate or comment or declare their finding.”

He further added the Indian mission was concerned about the effects such statements by a foreign MP could have on the British Indian community.

Hindu Forum of Britain’s Trupti Patel demanded an apology from Gill. Trupti added she would report Gill to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. She said, “The Hindu community is shocked to see this tweet by the chair of the APPG for British Sikhs. Without checking facts, she believed the gossip of others and tweeted spreading anti-Hindu fake news when she knows very well that Hindus only act in self-defence and never attack anyone.”

Golden Temple lynching incident

On December 18, a youth was lynched to death in the Golden Temple, Amritsar, over allegations of sacrilege inside Akal Takht. The youth allegedly jumped the railing and picked up a sword that was lying down next to Guru Granth Sahib. He was nabbed by the devotees, and SGPC members present inside Akal Takht. Later, he was brutally lynched to death.

Notably, instead of condemning the lynching and murder, all politicians, irrespective of the party line, only condemned the alleged sacrilege. The deceased has not been identified yet. Congress Party leader Navjot Singh Sidhu even openly called for a Taliban-style public execution for anyone who desecrates scriptures belonging to any religion.

“Sarkar ki Dalali mat kijiye”: Rahul Gandhi rebukes media after being questioned about accountability of Punjab lynching incidents

OpIndia Staff
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“Sarkar ki Dalali mat kijiye”: Rahul Gandhi rebukes media after being questioned about accountability of Punjab lynching incidents

A day after Rahul Gandhi slammed a journalist by asking him whether he works for the government after being questioned over disruption caused by the opposition in the parliament, the senior Congress leader lost his cool yet again, lashing out at the media today for asking him about the accountability of the Punjab lynching incidents.

Punjab was rocked with two incidents of mob lynchings linked to sacrilege last week. Two persons lost their lives in the two separate cases after angry mobs ruthlessly thrashed them to their deaths on the suspicion of committing sacrilege. Punjab is currently under the rule of the Congress government, headed by chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi.

Earlier today, Gandhi posted a tweet saying lynching was completely unheard of before 2014. During his press conference, when a reporter asked Rahul Gandhi about his tweet and drew his attention towards the tragic deaths caused in the lynching incidents in Punjab, a visibly irate Gandhi scion tried to fend off the uncomfortable questions by accusing the journalist of doing the Centre’s bidding. “Sarkar ki dalali mat kijiye(Stop doing Centre’s bidding), don’t distract from the issue,” Rahul said when asked about the inaction over lynching incidents that took place in Punjab over the last few days.

Rahul Gandhi asks journalists ‘do you work for govt’ when asked about opposition disrupting parliament

Earlier yesterday, when Gandhi was questioned over the stalemate in parliament over the Lakhimpur issue, he lambasted the journalist asking him whether he works for the government. In a snippet being widely shared on Twitter, Rahul Gandhi, while addressing the media outside the Parliament, asked a journalist in the loop “kya aap sarkar ke liye kaam karte hain?” (do you work for the government).

The Gandhi scion poses the question to the journalist when the latter asks him why the opposition has been disrupting the Parliament proceedings.

He is also heard telling the journalist that the onus to keep the house on order, lies on the government and not on the opposition parties.

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.

Two days before Golden Temple lynching, SFJ’s Gurparwant Pannu sought Imran Khan’s help for Khalistan Referendum and ‘Fall of Delhi’

OpIndia Staff
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Two days before Golden Temple lynching, SFJ’s Gurparwant Pannu sought Imran Khan’s help for Khalistan Referendum and ‘Fall of Delhi’

Two days before the Golden Temple lynching on December 18, chief of Khalistani terrorist organisation Sikhs for Justice, Gurparwant Singh Pannu wrote to Pakistan PM Imran Khan seeking his intervention in Referendum and ‘Fall of Delhi’. The letter was written on December 16, 2021, the 50th year anniversary of formation of Bangladesh after the 1971 war which led to Pakistan’s humiliating defeat.

Pannu had written to Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, to support SFJ to “Free Punjab” and form “Khalistan”. In the letter addressed to Khan on December 16, terrorist organization SFJ called itself a “human rights advocacy group”. The letter read, “SFJ is conducting its first-ever global non-governmental Khalistan Referendum on the question ‘should Indian governed Punjab be an Independent country”?” and sought his support in the referendum.

Pannu’s letter to Imran Khan, Prime Minister Pakistan.

He alleged that 30,000 Sikhs have already participated in voting that was held in London, UK. In Switzerland, he alleged that around 6,000 Sikhs participated in the voting. He said, “While ‘fall of Dhaka’ is the past, ‘Fall of Delhi’ is inevitable. At this important juncture of history, we request the government and people of Pakistan to voice support at international forums for the Sikh peoples’ right to have a referendum on the question of liberation of Punjab from Indian occupation under the principle of the right to self-determination.” He asked for support on the lines of ‘Pakistan’s active involvement on the issue of Kashmir’.

Interestingly, Pannu asked for support from Pakistan, where Sikhs, who are in the minority, often face atrocities at the hands of the majority population. What is even more interesting is that when Pannu released the proposed map of Khalistan, he conveniently skipped adding Parts of Punjab that are in Pakistan, where many major shrines of the Sikh religion are located.

Pannu urges Sikh youth to fight for ‘freedom’

On December 20, a video of Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, chief of Khalistani terrorist organization Sikhs for Justice, issued a statement on the recent case of alleged sacrilege at Golden Temple in Amritsar in which the youth accused of sacrilege was lynched by the angry mob.

In his statement, Pannu, who is a designated terrorist under UAPA, said that the incidents of sacrilege have been happening since the previous government under Akali Dal’s ex-CM Prakash Singh Badal. “Today, they are again playing politics for voted. It was important to find out who was the person who did sacrilege at Golden Temple. Who sent him, and what was the aim behind such act.” He further added that Badal was involved in the Army operation at Golden Temple in 1984. “Whenever Sikhs face backstabbing, Badal is involved directly or indirectly,” he said.

Screenshot from the video statement of Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, chief, terrorist organization Sikhs For Justice. Source: Youtube.

“Let it be Badal, Navjot, AAP or Channi. They all are playing politics for votes. They are playing with your sentiments. Therefore, the only way out is freedom. The Sikh pride was hurt when Golden Temple was attacked in 1984. One lakh Sikhs gave their lives for Khalistan. But these people like Captain, AAP, Channi etc., who are loyal to Tiranga, these people are doing politics are taking Punjab away from freedom,” he added.

Pannu claimed Referendum 2020 would happen in Punjab alongside Assembly elections. He said, “In the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections, Referendum voting will happen side-by-side. Before a new government gets formed in Punjab, we will ensure every house in Punjab knows about the referendum. There is only one way out, Azad Punjab.”

Pannu has been making provocative statements to lure the youth of Punjab towards the Khalistan movement. He has been organizing voting for the referendum in the UK and other countries. According to his statements released in the past, SFJ would hold a referendum in Punjab at the time when Assembly elections would be taking place in 2022.

Odisha: Spurned bride is adamant to live at in-law’s house, husband wants divorce, section 144 imposed

OpIndia Staff
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Odisha: Spurned bride is adamant to live at in-law’s house, husband wants divorce, section 144 imposed

In Odisha, a bizarre marital drama has been grabbing headlines for weeks now. We had earlier reported how a young woman in Odisha’s Berhampur city had sat in a Dharna outside the house of her in-laws after the ‘groom’ did not show up on their wedding day. A lot has happened in the case since then.

On December 20, dozens of women came out in support of the bride, broke down the locked gate of the house of her in-laws and barged inside.

The ‘bride’ Tapaswini is legally married to the ‘groom’ Dr Sumit. The couple had been in a relationship for years and had registered their wedding with the local authorities. However, some problems popped up and the woman had filed a case of domestic violence against her husband and inlaws. She has been accusing her father-in-law, a wealthy businessman of threatening her and forcefully keeping her husband away from her.

Social worker groups got involved. The man’s family reportedly convinced the woman to withdraw her court case against them and promised that since the duo was not married as per Hindu traditions and was only married on papers, a traditional wedding would be held.

However, they reneged on their promise and on the wedding day, while Tapaswini was ready as a bride, the groom never showed up. The bride started a dharna outside the inlaws house at Berhampur’s Bramanagar area.

Demanding justice, Tapaswini has been insisting that the only thing she wants, is to live with her husband in a normal marital relationship. Giving its verdict on Tapaswini’s petition, the local SDJM court had ordered her husband Dr Sumit to live with Tapaswini for a certain period of time before deciding on cohabitation or divorce.

The local police were ordered to provide suitable accommodation to the couple. Under police protection, the couple was ordered to live for 7 days at a govt bungalow. During the period, no family members were allowed to meet the couple.

After the mandatory week of cohabitation, the husband, who is a government doctor, went to report at his workplace and went incommunicado.

Tapaswini had alleged again that her inlaws are preventing her husband from living with her. Meanwhile, the husband had shared an audio file, saying that he is suffering from severe physical and mental stress and hence he cannot live with Tapaswini.

Both parties had confirmed that during the 1 week, no proximity was developed between them.

Along with social worker Pramila Tripathi, Tapaswini had resumed her Dharna before her inlaws’ house at Brahmanagar.

On December 20, dozens of women from various social worker groups and women organisations gathered near the house in support of Tapaswini. The women even tried to enter into the house forcefully, declaring that Tapaswini has the right to live in that house as she is the legally wedded wife of Dr Sumit.

The women managed to break the gates open on Monday, December 20.

Dr Sumit is seeking a divorce from Tapaswini. But while the matters are sub-judice, the case and Tapaswini’s Dharna outside her inlaws house has been grabbing a lot of public attention. As of the latest reports, Sumit has moved to the Odisha High Court against the SDJM court order asking the couple to live together.

The Berhampur police have imposed Section 144 around the house of the inlaws in the Brahmanagar area to prevent any law and order situation.

Another video that has gone viral on social media shows the woman and her husband (not visible in the video) having an argument where he is accusing her of being in contact with another man. The woman then says that she will agree to the divorce only after he pays her Rs 8 lakhs.

Tapaswini has stated after the viral video that Dr Sumit has taken money from her father for his studies and she wants it back.

The case has captivated the attention of the public. The family drama where the woman is proclaiming her undying love for her husband, and declaring that she will not leave her husband at any cost while camping out in bitter winter cold outside the family home of her inlaws, is now the dominant news in the state.

Rahul Gandhi hadn’t heard of ‘lynching’ before 2014, here is a ready reckoner of India’s bloodied history featuring his family members

Nirwa Mehta
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Rahul Gandhi hadn’t heard of ‘lynching’ before 2014, here is a ready reckoner of India’s bloodied history featuring his family members

Senior Congress leader and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi today took to Twitter to sarcastically thank PM Modi after two mobs in two separate incidents lynched two men over allegations of sacrilege in Congress-ruled Punjab.

Rahul Gandhi’s tweet on lynching shows how to cleverly whitewash a crime in which you are a complicit. Entire Punjab Congress leadership has not said a word on it and focussed only on sacrilege. Rahul Gandhi is smart, he knows how to use the ecosystem when you are losing the narrative war. He killed two birds with one stone here: earn brownie points that at least Rahul Gandhi spoke on lynchings and to trigger BJP into reacting and bringing in lynchings prior to 2014 and thereby diluting the gravity of the heinousness of what is happening in Punjab.

Punjab Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu wants Taliban-esque public hanging of those accused of sacrilege. The ones who are now dead because the mob lynched them inside the holy temples. But instead of condemning such brutality where your leader calls for public hanging of a person for stealing chapatis which one assumed to be sacrilege, Rahul Gandhi has put the onus on PM Modi.

What is unfortunate is that the killings, especially lynchings, have been a part of our history.

On 16th August 1946, Mohammed Ali Jinnah gave a call for nationwide protests demanding the creation of Pakistan. It led to the 1946 Calcutta Killings and the genocide of the Bengali Hindu community. Soon, it spread to the rest of the country and culminated with the Partition and the terrible partition riots. The Direct Action Day culminated with the greatest migration of population in modern history.

In October 1946, riots engulfed Noakhali and Tipperah Districts of Bengal (now Bangladesh) where the Hindu community was targeted. Murders, rapes and lynching (Rahul Gandhi, pay attention, please), were rampant. Mahatma Gandhi then suggested women to either self immolate or drink poison to save their honour. An article published by fact-checking website fact-hunt mentions a book named 1946: The Great Calcutta Killings and Noakhali genocide written by Dr Dinesh Chandra Singha. In the book Gandhi was quoted giving the suggestion when Dr B C Roy contacted him to apprise him of the situation in Bengal.

Shockingly, after the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, which concluded with horrifying tales of murders and rapes of BJP workers in Bengal after TMC swept the polls, Mamata Banerjee decided to declare 16th August as ‘Khela Hobe Diwas’.

And then everyone knows of the horrors of partition, also presided over by Rahul Gandhi’s great grandfather Jawharlal Nehru. The terrifying tales of rapes, lynching, murders, looting and being displaced from your place called home because some people decided to divide the country on basis of religion.

But here’s the thing. Rahul Gandhi does not even need to go that far back in history. I’m sure he would not have forgotten that his father not only presided over the worst ever mob lynching in history of independent India but even justified it.

Here is a shot clip from 30 years back where the then Prime Minister and Rahul Gandhi’s father Rajiv Gandhi justified anti-Sikh riots.

Rajiv Gandhi stood in front of a crowd on a stage and said that one must remember Indira Gandhi. “We must remember why she was killed. We have to remember who all could have been behind her. When she was killed then there were some riots. We know that people of India were angry and for some days people thought that India has shaken. But whenever a big tree falls, the ground shakes a little,” he said to an applauding crowd.

Rajiv Gandhi was speaking about the anti-Sikh riots that erupted across India following the assassination of his mother and the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards on 31st October 1984. She was assassinated as a revenge for Operation Blue Star that was carried out by her in the Golden Temple, Amritsar (one of the sites where recent lynching took place on December 18) to snuff out Khalistani separatists Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and others.

In the anti-Sikh riots that followed her assassination, many Congress leaders have been accused of roaming around on streets of Delhi with voter ID list and identifying and targeting Sikhs. There have been numerous tales of how Sikhs were targeted and killed.

In fact, Congress leader Sajjan Kumar has been convicted of murder and rioting during the 1984 riots. The ex-Congress MP has been charged for the murder of a man and his son in west Delhi’s Saraswati Vihar. On November 1, 1984, a thousand-strong mob had allegedly burned alive a father and son duo (Jaswant Singh and Tarun Deep Singh) in Raj Nagar, West Delhi. The prosecution had stated that the crowd burned alive the two men, as well as damaged, destroyed, looted, arson and inflicted severe injuries on their family members and relations, on Kumar’s incitement and abetment.

While framing the charges, the court said that there was sufficient evidence on record to form a prima facie opinion that Sajjan Kumar was not only “a participant of the riotous mob but had also led it”. Guess it was not ‘lynching’ enough because after the riots and subsequent allegations, Sajjan Kumar was given a ticket by Congress in 1991 to contest elections which were subsequently won by him. He also won 2004 general elections on congress ticket from Outer Delhi seat with highest ever votes at 8,55,543 votes. A Sanjay Gandhi loyalist, he served as Member, Committee on Urban Development and Committee on Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme in 2005.

Congress not only shielded those who carried out lynching but also rewarded them.

Sajjan Kumar was not the only loyalist of Nehru-Gandhi family and Congress who was accused of leading mob and running a riot. One such Congress leader was Jagdish Tytler. The Nanavati Commission recorded the testimony of a witness namely, Jasbir Singh who stated that on 3rd November, 1984, he was passing by the TB hospital gate after taking dinner at the house of one Sucha Singh situated at Outram lane when he had seen Jagdish Tytler coming there in a car.

Singh furthered that he heard Tytler “rebuked” the persons who were standing because his instructions were not faithfully carried out and therefore his position was greatly compromised and lowered in the eyes of the central leaders. He has alleged to have further stated that there was only nominal killing in his constituency compared to East Delhi, Outer Delhi, Cant. etc. and it would be difficult for him to stake a claim in future as he has promised large-scale killing of Sikhs. He had complained to those persons that they had betrayed him and let him down.

Jagdish Tytler was given subsequent tickets to contest election by the Indian National Congress and also made Union Minister of Civil Aviation first and then labour department. He had contested 2004 elections and won as well. He was dropped in 2009 polls.

Another such high profile Congress leader who has been accused of leading a mob (and subsequent lynching – saying it louder for Rahul Gandhi to hear it) has been Kamal Nath.

Monish Sanjay Suri, witness No. 17, testified before the Nanavati Commission against the Congress leader said how Nath turned a blind eye to a rioting mob. “He (Suri) stated that Kamal Nath tried to control the crowd and the crowd was looking at him for directions. He did not hear Kamal Nath giving any direction to the mob. He merely saw him speaking to different persons who were in the mob. He reiterated before the Commission that Kamal Nath did not make any attempt to control the situation near the Gurudwara,” the report noted. 

Witness No. 2 Mukhtiar Singh, who lived in the Gurdwara quarters, deposed that at around 4 pm, he saw a huge crowd of 4000 people led by Congress leader Kamal Nath. The Commission however said that Singh was standing quite a distance away from the Congress leader and that it wasn’t possible for him to overhear the conversation between Nath and the mob. As such, the report said that Singh’s inference was based on gestures made by Kamal Nath and thus not ‘conclusive’ evidence. Kamal Nath was never tried in court for his questionable role in the 1984 Sikh genocide.

Maybe now is the good time for Rahul Gandhi to revisit history, especially that of his party and his family, and learn a bit about some of the biggest ever mob lynchings that took place in history of India which is now a part of his dual legacy.

Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar ditches ‘friend’ Umar Khalid, ‘liberals’ and Islamists call it a lesson for Muslims

OpIndia Staff
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Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar ditches ‘friend’ Umar Khalid, ‘liberals’ and Islamists call it a lesson for Muslims

Former JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, who had an unremarkable stint at the CPI before joining the Congress party, recently distanced himself from Umar Khalid after a journalist asked him to comment on his ‘friend’, one of the accused in the anti-Hindu riots that swept Delhi in February 2020.

“Who told you?” came a cutting response from Kanhaiya Kumar when a journalist asked him if Umar Khalid is his friend or not. When Kumar further inquires who told the journalist that he was friends with Umar Khalid, the scribe responds back saying he saw it in a video. However, Kumar asks him further in which video he saw him calling Umar his friend. The video of Kumar’s interaction with the journalist has now gone viral on the internet.

And predictably, Kumar’s repudiation of having a friendship with Umar Khalid has not gone down well with ‘Liberals’ and Islamists, who could not hide their contempt and disdain for the former JNUSU president.

Kanhaiya Kumar distances himself from Umar Khalid, Islamists and liberals say it is a lesson for Muslims

Irena Akbar, a self-proclaimed liberal but is known for engaging in hateful rhetorics online, took to Twitter to insinuate that Kanhaiya Kumar was a backstabber who betrayed Umar Khalid. “A friend who abandons you in your tough times is no less than a backstabber. He’s worse than an upfront enemy. Kanhaiya Kumar, the selfish, opportunistic coward didn’t deserve Umar Khalid’s friendship. Good riddance for Umar. And a lesson learnt for Muslims. We are in this alone,” she said.

Another Twitter user slammed Kanhaiya Kumar, stating that someone who built his political career by exploiting Rohith Vemula’s tragic death is turning his back on Umar Khalid. “Shame to all savarna journalists and activists who have supported him over the Dalit and Muslim leadership,” the user tweeted.

M Reyaz, a self-declared journalist who has written for the leftist organisation The Wire, assailed Kanhaiya Kumar saying that many Muslims and liberals wanted Muslims to vote for him over the RJD candidate, but he would go to any lengths to distance himself from Umar Khalid and Meeran Haider.

Yet another Twitter user said Kanhaiya Kumar disowning Umar Khalid was the saddest thing she read today.

Toolkit deployed to garner sympathy for Khalid, who is languishing in jail for his alleged involvement in Delhi riots

As the video of Kanhaiya Kumar rejecting his association with Umar Khalid started doing the rounds on the internet, a set of liberals and Islamists started posting tweets in sympathy of the former JNU student who remains in jail over his alleged involvement in hatching a conspiracy to instigate Delhi riots.

Tweets declaring Umar Khalid as their friend, which appeared less of organic emotional outburst and more of a toolkit strategy aimed at engendering sympathy for the Delhi riots accused, were posted online by a host of accounts associating themselves with the liberal persuasion.

Aakar Patel, human rights ‘activist’ and former head of Amnesty India, who spends his time of late whining and caterwauling against the Centre, tweeted: “Umar Khalid is my friend i miss him and hope he’s out soon because he’s innocent and has been stitched up by Amit and Modi and a shameless and complicit police and judiciary @UmarKhalidJNU.”

Another self-described political activist Kawalpreet Kaur tweeted, “One should feel proud to call Umar Khalid his friend, for not many, would stand for justice and dignity like he did and is currently in jail on false charges. Umar Khalid is our leader and we are proud of him.”

Umar Khalid and his role in Delhi Riots

While the liberals and Islamists hail Khalid as their friend and their leader whom they are proud of, it is worth noting that the former JNU student was arrested by the police on September 14, 2020, for his alleged involvement in the horrific Northeast Delhi riots. In a charge sheet filed by the Delhi police and admitted by the court, it is alleged that Khalid had hatched the conspiracy of the anti-Hindu Delhi riots along with his friends during the visit of US President Trump to India. Khalid had also allegedly met the former AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain and another accused Khalid Saifi to assure logistical support during the riots through his contacts in the PFI.

Lakshadweep administration cancels Friday ‘jumma’ holiday in schools, local politicians object

OpIndia Staff
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Lakshadweep administration cancels Friday ‘jumma’ holiday in schools, local politicians object

In a major development, the Lakshadweep Education Department has released a new calendar for schools of the Union territory to end the decades-old tradition of ‘Jumma holidays’ on Friday.

As per reports, Friday has been a holiday for school students for 6 decades on ‘religious grounds’ while Saturday has been a working half-day. Lakshadweep has a Muslim population of 96.58% as per the 2011 Census data.

Mohammed Faizal, MP from Lakshadweep, has alleged that the decision to end the Jumma Holiday was taken without consulting district panchayat, local bodies or the people. He claimed, “Such a decision is not within the people’s mandate. It is a unilateral decision of the administration.” He said that changes in the local system must be brought after consulting the stakeholders (local people).

According to officials, the administrative decision was taken to ensure proper engagement of learners, optimum utilisation of resources and planning of the teaching-learning process. Lakshadqwwp District Panchayat Vice-President, PP Abbas, had written to the Advisor to Administrator Praful Khoda Patel, seeking revocation of the new calendar.

Abbas has cited ‘sentiments’ of parents and students to back his claim. He had emphasised that a majority of the people on the island were Muslims and that Friday Namaz is an ‘unavoidable religious practice.’ He has urged the Lakshadweep Education Department to hold a meeting with elected representatives and stakeholders.

Lakshadweep has been in the eye of a political storm after the Union Territory’s new administrator, Praful Khoda Patel, issued a set of orders and brought in new rules and regulations. The administrative reforms initiated by Lakshadweep administrator Praful Khoda has met with stiff resistance, especially by the opposition parties, claiming that the new rules will hurt the religious sentiments of the Muslim population living on the island.

The opposition parties, including Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal, have claimed that the new reforms are aimed at “destroying the unique culture and tradition” of the islands.

The reforms include measures to promote tourism and develop infrastructure at the Islands to bring tourists and improve job prospects for the inhabitants.

Lynching at Kapurthala Gurudwara: Bihar woman says victim was her brother, viral video suggests he was probably mentally unwell

OpIndia Staff
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Lynching at Kapurthala Gurudwara: Bihar woman says victim was her brother, viral video suggests he was probably mentally unwell

A woman from Bihar has claimed that the man who was lynched to death at a Gurudwara in Kapurthala, Punjab was her brother. According to a report in India Today, she identified the man as Ankit Kumar, and his mother’s name is Geeta Devi. The woman told the Police over the phone that she would visit Kapurthala with her mother to identify the deceased.

The reports suggest that the woman sent some documents and pictures to the Police for verification. SSP Khak has confirmed that they have received the documents, and they are being examined.

Viral video matching the deceased raise more questions

A video is going viral on social media platforms in which a young man matching the victim could be seen. By the video, it appears that the man was probably mentally unwell and homeless. He is seen wearing assorted clothing, likely picked up from here and there, and behaves strangely.

The video was recorded by a woman in which the man was seen in the same attire as the victim who was lynched in Kapurthala Gurudwara. In the video, he could be seen wearing a red sweater-like t-shirt, grey coloured trousers and had a bag on his shoulder. He was also wearing anklet bells on his feet and had a gardening tool in his hand.

The woman asked the man, “Who are you dressed like? Krishna?” He nodded as yes. The video was shot outside a gym at Kanjali Road on the outskirts of Kapurthala. Harvinder Singh, the owner of the gym, verified the footage. Singh told Dainik Bhaskar that the man appeared to be mentally challenged, and he was roaming around the gym during morning hours.

The Police said that they would check CCTV outside the gym and would take the help of the woman who recorded the video. SSP added if the video turned out to be accurate, those who killed the young man would not be spared.

The man was at Gurudwara looking for food

Reports have suggested that the man was at Gurudwara hoping to find some food. He was spotted by a volunteer in the kitchen. The man tried to escape but was apprehended by the sewadars or volunteers. He was later beaten to death before police could take him away. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was declared brought dead.

Reports also say that he had deep cut marks on his body. Videos have emerged of the Gurudwara in charge where he is inciting people saying the man (victim) has committed blasphemy while admitting that he was caught taking Rotis at the kitchen. The victim is seen tied up, barely conscious in the video.

Kapurthala incident was the second such case in just 24 hours. On December 19, a man was lynched to death at Golden Temple, Amritsar, by the angry mob after he allegedly attempted ‘sacrilege’ at the Akal Takht. 

Bharatsinh Solanki’s wife alleges he has illicit relationships with multiple women, wants to destroy Congress, shoots letter to Sonia, Rahul, Priyanka

OpIndia Staff
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Bharatsinh Solanki’s wife alleges he has illicit relationships with multiple women, wants to destroy Congress, shoots letter to Sonia, Rahul, Priyanka

In a major political drama coming in from Gujarat, party leader Bharatsinh Solanki’s wife Reshma Solanki has written a letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, her son and former Congress President Rahul Gandhi and also her daughter and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra making explosive allegations against her husband. She has alleged that her husband is using his political clout to destroy the Congress party.

She has also alleged he is having illicit relationships with other women and to give tickets to these women to fight elections he has stopped other more competent women from getting ahead in politics. “My husband keeps chatting continuously with these women. He keeps saying what if he is old. He has relationships with women as young as 22 and even as old as he is. He spends most of his energies behind these women only,” she has alleged in her letter.

Letter part 1 (image courtesy: abplive)

In her letter she urged Sonia Gandhi that she will take cognisance of the letter and will uphold the dignity of Gujarat Congress. “24 years back I was made to marry him against my wishes and in all these years I never got the rights of a wife. My brother in law Amit Chavda (who is Solanki’s first cousin) knows all this but to advance the political career has kept mum on the issue,” she said in the letter.

Letter part 2 (image courtesy: abplive)

In the letter she alleged that in the night, Solanki goes in the bedroom and then locks himself up and sends obscene messages to 8/10 women of party. She urged Sonia Gandhi to teach these women a lesson and said she would give them a chance to course correct. She said that she is afraid of him and now lives in America with support of her friends and has no way to sustain her life there.

“If one cannot give justice to women of the house, how will they give justice to women of the state? My father in law Madhavsinh Solanki was also upset with his son. Bharatsinh’s name is there in politics only because of his father. For Bharatsinh, Congress is just a business and a way to hide his crimes,” his wife said.

Letter part 3 (image courtesy: abplive)

In the letter she further stated that Bharatsinh Solanki does not have good relationship with his brother and sister and that his sister has also filed a case against him. She further urged Sonia Gandhi to remove Bharatsinh Solanki from Congress.

Earlier this year, Reshma Solanki had accused her husband Bharatsinh Solanki of mentally torturing her and forcing her to divorce him. She had accused him of mistreating her after recovering from COVID-19. Her notice came after Bharatsinh Solanki put out a notice cautioning public at large to get into any transaction with his wife in his name. He had alleged that his estranged wife was not living with him since past four years.

Bharatsinh Solanki is son of former Gujarat CM Madhavsinh Solanki

Bharatsinh Solanki, former Gujarat Congress President, is son of former Gujarat Chief Minister Madhavsinh Solanki who had infamously propagated the ‘KHAM’ (Kshatriya, Harijan, Adivasi, Muslim) votebank theory for Congress in Gujarat. He was the chief minister of Gujarat when some of the worst communal riots. The first half of the 1980s saw some of the worst inter-caste riots in Gujarat, which quickly escalated to communal riots. There was rise of crime, including bootlegging and don-wars. Madhavsinh Solanki passed away earlier this year.

Kapurthala lynching victim was just hungry, looking for some food at Gurudwara: Reports

OpIndia Staff
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Kapurthala lynching victim was just hungry, looking for some food at Gurudwara: Reports

The Kapurthala ‘sacrilege’ case is taking a whole different turn compared to what the Granthi at Nizampur Gurudwara had claimed. According to multiple reports, the Police have mentioned that the deceased was spotted by one of the sewadar (volunteer) in the kitchen located on the ground floor eating chapatis. Notably, only the sewadar and Granthi live on the ground floor of the said Gurudwara, and Shri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is on the upper floor.

What happened in Kapurthala Gurudwara on December 19?

The reports suggest that when the sewadar spotted the man, he tried to escape and was eventually apprehended by the sewadars. The man, who was in his twenties, was kept in a room on Gurudwara premises. The Police were not allowed to take him. He was beaten to death by the angry crowd. It is noteworthy that Police also added that the deceased had eight deep cuts on his body that were made by a sharp weapon like a sword. The badly thrashed man was rushed to the hospital by the Police, where he was declared dead.

It is notable here that some policemen were also present when the victim was being beaten to death. During the presser, the police had confirmed that some policemen had attempted to rescue the victim but they were prevented from doing so by the mob and since it was a violent atmosphere, they showed ‘restraint’ and did not aggravate the situation further. Hindi daily Bhaskar had reported that some policemen had received injuries while trying to control the violent crowd.

Police could not find any evidence of sacrilege at the Gurudwara. During the press conference, the Police clearly mentioned that everything was found intact, including Nishan Sahib and Shri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Harkamalpreet Singh Khakh, Senior Superintendent of Police, had said the deceased went to Gurudwara with the intention of theft. Reportedly, a case under 295A was filed. Furthermore, the Police said that they are verifying all details.

Earlier, the Police had said they filed a murder case against unknown persons as well, but later they took a U-turn and said no case against those who beat him to death was registered. Inspector-General of Police Gurinder Singh Dhillon said they were questioning Granthi Amarjit Singh and, “After verifying all facts, an FIR will be registered.”

He wanted food

Some reports say that instead of alerting the police, the Gurudwara in charge started making live videos on social media, thus inciting a mob and alleging that the victim man had committed ‘beadbi’ or sacrilege. In one such video that is doing rounds on social media, the Gurudwara in charge is seen proclaiming to the audience that the victim was caught taking Rotis from the kitchen and was apprehended and beaten. He then says that the man also tried to touch Nishan Saheb.

However, the police have stated that the sacred book is kept on the upper floor and there was no sign of anyone touching or causing any damage.

The victim is seen tied up and thrown in a corner, looking barely conscious.

SSP Kapurthala HPS Khakh has told that the Gurudwara in charge doesn’t like the police and has been objecting to police presence around the area. He has also been frequently visiting Sikh shrines located in Pakistan.

As more details emerge, it is slowly becoming apparent that the victim who was brutally lynched to death by a violent mob was in all probability a poor, desperate man looking for some food to eat and had entered the Gurudwara to get some rotis.

Gurudwara and free langar

Gurudwaras, which literally means the house of the Gurus, are famous for the free langar that they serve to everyone irrespective of caste, race, and religion etc. many Gurudwaras serve langar 24×7, and anyone could just go there and seek food. Sikh Sangat or the group of Sikhs volunteers also served continuous langar at protest sites against CAA-NRC and during year-long farmer protests. Gurudwaras have also served langar during Covid time at many locations not only in India but across the world.

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