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Kolkata: Employees of Karim’s restaurant attack customers with knives and rods following arguments over cold food and extra onion

OpIndia Staff
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Kolkata: Employees of Karim’s restaurant attack customers with knives and rods following arguments over cold food and extra onion

An incident has come to light from Kolkata where the employees of a restaurant attacked the customers with sharp knives and rods during a spat. Jenifer Kirti Desai, sister of one of the victims, posted details of the incident on her Instagram account with photos and videos of injured victims.

According to her post, the incident took place on the night of December 26. Her 23-year-old brother Nand Desai, his 23-year-old friend Navneet Soni, Vinayak Choubey and one of Nand’s relatives had visited Karim’s restaurant located at Aurobindo Sarani for dinner at around 11:15 PM. As it was closing time, the restaurant staff demanded full payment before serving the food, which they did. The food that was served to them was cold. When they complained to the waiter, he allegedly said that they could only serve the food like that post-closing time.

While eating the food, they requested the waiter to bring some extra onions that was denied by the waiter. Nand and his friends requested the waiter that they do not mind paying extra with the tip. Speaking to OpIndia, Jenifer said, “When they said they do not mind paying extra, the waiter got irked and started abusing. He told them he did not care for money and could feed them for free. Nand did not like the way he was talking and told the waiter that they were not eating food for free.”

Meanwhile, the relative approached the manager and questioned why the employee was misbehaving. The relative got quite angry and left the premises. From the outside, he called up Nand’s father and told him the whole ordeal that had happened till he left the premises.

She added, in the restaurant, the spat between her brother and employees got uglier. “During the argument, the waiter got very close to them. My brother pushed him a little and told him not to come too close. That was the point when my brother turned and told Navneet that they should leave the premises as things were getting out of hand. At this moment, someone from behind the waiter came and hit my brother with a sharp knife. Navneet, who saw Nand falling down, tried to save him and pushed the waiter and other employees. During that time, he was hit as well with a sharp knife and iron rods.”

Jenifer said that by that time, Nand tried to get up and got hit again. “They were in a half-conscious state when the employees of Karim’s grabbed them from their collars and threw them out of the restaurant. There are three stairs outside Karim’s from where they both fell down.” She added, Nand somehow managed to get up and brought Navneet home. Nand’s family rushed them to the nearest hospital, where they got the first aid. From there, they were taken to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital as the cuts were deep and needed a specialist surgeon to get the stitches done. During that time, Nand’s bleeding did not stop.

“The doctor at the hospital tried to stop the bleeding, but an artery was ruptured, causing continuous bleeding. A surgeon was called immediately, and it took him an hour to stop the bleeding and close the wound. My brother got 13 stitches. Navneet also got multiple injuries and two cuts on the head,” she added.

‘Police did not cooperate at first’

Jenifer claimed that initially, Police did not cooperate, and they had to run from pillar to post to get the FIR registered. “After getting them treated, we went to Burtolla Police Station to file the complaint. By the time we reached, the Police were already contacted by Karim’s. The Police officer told us that they got the whole story from Karim’s, and it was my brother and his friends who initiated the fight. He also alleged that my brother and his friends were drinking.”

When Jenifer argued with the Police officer, he did not pay heed to what she was saying and asked her to take care of her brother. “It was only the next day [December 28] that the FIR was registered. I don’t know if the Police will investigate the case properly or not.”

Details of FIR

According to the copy of FIR accessed by OpIndia, Jawed Akhtar, Asif Karim Siddique, Pradip Dey, Paritosh Kumar Mondal, Sudip Pant and others have been named as accused. The FIR has been registered under Sections 326 (Voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 114 (Abettor present when offence is committed) of the Indian Penal Code. Notably, offences under Section 326 are cognizable and non-bailable.

FIR copy.

The FIR does not contain the details of the incident but only mention that the accused caused grievous injuries to the complainant and his friend.

Jenifer, who recently lost her mother, broke down while talking to OpIndia. She said, “I am not denying that my brother used foul language or fought back in retaliation. But it is not fair to attack someone over a petty argument.” 

The restaurant has also shared some CCTV videos and shared in an Instagram story that the customers had behaved very rudely with their staff members. They have also claimed that the said customers were drinking from their own water bottles that ‘contained alcohol’ and they were ‘surreptitiously drinking from those bottles’. The restaurant, however, has not shared any footage of the violent altercations which left the customers injured.

Karim’s have stated in the post that they have lodged an FIR against the said customers for violently attacking their staff and injuring them.

Ever Given: The most famous ship of 2021, and why we love it

OpIndia Staff
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Ever Given: The most famous ship of 2021, and why we love it

Ships are not usually discussed much, unless they sink. For thousands of years, ships have been the drivers of human migrations, economy, trade, and culture but we do not pay much attention to them. They just go about their business silently, running the world.

March 2021 was an exception. It was a time when almost the whole world took notice because a ship got stuck. And what a place it was to get stuck indeed.

Ever Given, one of the largest container ships in the world, got stuck in the Suez Canal on March 23, 2021, and since the Suez Canal is so narrow, the stuck ship blocked the Canal. That was it, a ship got stuck and a significant chunk of global trade came to a halt. That was when the world took notice.

It was not exactly the poor giant’s fault. There was a sandstorm just when it was crossing the Canal and in a nasty gust of wind, the ship ran aground to a sandbank.

Suez Canal drives 12% of global trade, so that is a very, very wrong place to get stuck. Estimates said, the block was holding up goods worth 9.6 billion dollars a day, that is 400 million dollars an hour.

The ship, while stuck, became the world’s favourite news, and favourite meme material of the year. After all, it is not the well behaved, disciplined ships that make history.

Image via Twitter

It took every single tugboat around that part of the world, a lot of ocean salvage specialists, and a lot of efforts to free the 200,000-ton cargo ship. But before the ship was freed, a little excavator also became famous.

The little guy, trying its best to dig up sand to refloat the Goliath ship looming before it will be the image of hope and determination and efforts for a long time to come.

Little excavator trying to refloat Ever Given, image via Twitter

The ship inspired some of the best, most creative memes this year.

People were coming up with ideas to refloat the ship or deblock the Canal.

Image via MS Ever Given on Twitter

A Canadian woman won a Halloween costume contest by becoming ‘Ever Stuck’.

There is a website that allows you to make poor Ever Given get stuck anywhere you’d want it to get stuck. The creatively named website, ‘Ever Given Ever Ywhere’ allows you to stuck Ever Given anywhere, because, why should the Suez Canal have all the fun.

Image from the home page of Ever Given Ever Ywhere

Ever Given was finally freed after nearly a week. Egyptian authorities had declared a state of emergency while the Canal was blocked. They had even sued the ship owners for a billion dollars. While the legal battle lingered, Ever Given was stuck, not physically, but legally, in the Great Bitter Lake, for months after being refloated.

Finally freed, the ship completed its voyage in July and in August this year, it crossed the Canal again, thankfully not getting stuck. The world-famous ship has since crossed the canal a couple of times safely and is currently in the North Sea, after arriving at the UK’s Felixstowe port on December 27. It is currently en route to Germany’s Hamburg.

The Suez Canal, roughly 120 miles long, is the shortest shipping route between the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean. It links the Persian Gulf with the Mediterranean and is very important, because, if the Canal were not there, ships would have to circulate around the entire landmass of the African continent before arriving in the Indian Ocean, as they did till 1869.

By getting stuck, Ever Given provided us with some much-needed respite from the Ever-gloom that the Covid pandemic has been. For a change, we were not discussing death, viruses, pathogens and hospitals. In a way, the ship symbolised how the world needs to keep running, the pandemic is just a sandbank. It can halt us, but not stop us.

Let us all hope that global trade continues uninterrupted in 2022, and no ship gets stuck anywhere.

Bet Dwarka Waqf Board controversy: MP Poonam Maadan says ownership claims made for Shiyal Bet in Amreli not for the holy site

OpIndia Staff
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Bet Dwarka Waqf Board controversy: MP Poonam Maadan says ownership claims made for Shiyal Bet in Amreli not for the holy site

BJP MP from Jamnagar, Poonamben Maadan, has issued clarification that the Waqf Board has staked claim on Shiyal Bet in Amreli and not the two islands in Bet (or Beyt) Dwarka as reported earlier. Shiyal Bet is an island off Amreli coast in Gujarat which is accessible only through boat. Shiyal Bet has a population of little over 5,000 people. Only in 2016 did the village get electricity connection, 70 years after India’s independence.

At the eastern end of Shiyal Bet, there is a rocky island called Savai Bet, which is detached during high tide. There is a tomb of a Pir (Muslim saint) called Savai Pir on that island. The petition was for the Savai Pir Dargah. Further, local media reports suggest that the application in high court was not filed by Waqf Board but a private Sunni trust that had filed the petition.

Shiyal Bet near Amreli

Shiyal Bet is part of Amreli district while Bet Dwarka is part of Devbhoomi Dwarka district.

Speaking to Gujarati news channel GSTV, Maadan said that she spoke to the law minister regarding the case and added that prima facie it appears the confusion was created over the usage of ‘Krishnanagari’ by the bench in Gujarat High Court in response to the application to stake claim of the island. She said that because of the reference to ‘Krishnanagari’, people might have wrongly assumed it to be Bet Dwarka, but there is still confusion. “However, as long as we are concerned, we are watchful of the developing situation. I assure you that we will not anyone stake claim on the island at Bet Dwarka which belongs to Shri Krishna and his devotees,” she said.

Bet Dwarka (left), Shiyal Bet (right)

Earlier, Gujarati newspaper Divya Bhaskar had reported that Waqf Board had written an application to Gujarat High Court staking claim on the ownership of two islands in Bet Dwarka in Devbhoomi Dwarka. The report stated that the Waqf committee in its application claimed that the ownership of two islands on Bet Dwarka island belongs to the Waqf Board. On hearing this, the Gujarat High Court expressed disproval and hit out, “Are you aware of what you are saying? How can Waqf Board claim ownership of land in Krishnanagari?” and refused to hear the application.

Subsequently, outrage poured in on social media and Jamnagar MP Poonamben Maadan has now issued clarification that the application was for Shiyal Bet in Amreli and not Bet Dwarka in Devbhoomi Dwarka.

Bharuch mass conversion case: Arrest warrant issued against five of the main accused including NRI Haji Abdullah Fefdawala, read details

Nirwa Mehta
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Bharuch mass conversion case: Arrest warrant issued against five of the main accused including NRI Haji Abdullah Fefdawala, read details

Bharuch Police has obtained arrest warrant from a district court against five of the main accused in the Bharuch mass conversion case. An arrest warrant under CrPC section 70 has been issued against Abdulsamad Mohammad alias Dawood Suleiman Patel (Bakerywala), Shabbir Mohammad Patel (Bakerywala), Hasan Isha Patel (Hasan Titli), Ismail Yakub alias Ismail Achhodwala (maulvi), all residents of Amod as well as Abdullah Aadam Fefdawala from Nabipur, Bharuch, who is currently residing in London, UK.

Subsequently, the police can now issue summons, look out circulars as well as take possession of property as per the provisions of the law against the accused. A case had been registered against the accused on November 15, 2021 in Amod Police station in Bharuch against nine accused on complaint of one Pravin Vasava where it was alleged that they had indulged in religious conversion of 37 tribal families to Islam by luring them with money, jobs and marriage amongst other things.

Subsequently, six people have been arrested in the case while four, residents of Bharuch have not been arrested. The fifth accused, Abdullah Fefdawala, originally the resident of Nabipur in Bharuch, but currently residing in London, UK, is also absconding. The arrest warrant issued against these five of accused which will now expedite the arrest procedure against them, said a source on condition of anonymity.

On issuance of the arrest warrant under section 70 of the CrPC, the police can take help of police from across the state as well as outside of state to arrest the accused. The police can also issue notices in newspapers in a bid to arrest them. Even after issuance of the arrest warrant if the accused are not arrested, they can be declared absconding by the police under section 82 of the CrPC. Under this, the police have the authority to even forfeit their properties.

Bharuch mass conversion case

On 15th November 2021, a case was registered at Amod Police Station Part A under Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act under section 4, 5, 4-G along with Indian Penal Code section 120 (B), 153 (B) (C), 506(2), 153A (1), 295 (K), 466, 467, 468, 471, Atrocities Act section 3 (2) (5-a), 3 (2)(5) and Information Technology Act, 2000 section 84-C against nine accused. The nine accused were: Shabbir Bakerywala (Amod), Samaj Bakerywala (Amod), Abdul Aziz Patel (Kankaria, Amod), Yusuf Patel (Kankaria, Amod), Ayub Barkat Patel (Kankaria, Amod), Hasan Tisli (Achhod, Amod), Fefdawala Haji Abdullah (Nabipur, currently, London, UK), Ismail Achhodwala alias Delawala (maulvi) (Achhod, Amod) and Ibrahim Patel (Kankaria, Amod).

As per the FIR filed, the accused had promised job and money to Hindu Vasava tribal families in the area and got them to convert to Islam in 2018. The complainant has accused them of a nationwide racket of religious conversion and alleged that they were given death threats if they complaint against the religious conversion. The accused had threatened that they are well connected from Kashmir to Pakistan, the FIR states.

As part of investigation, of the nine named in FIR, four have been arrested till now. These are, Abdul Aziz Patel, Yusuf Patel, Ayub Barkat Patel and Ibrahim Patel. Over and above these four, the police have also arrested six more people, Yakub Ibrahim Shankar, Rizwan Mehboob Patel, Thakorbhai Girdharbhai Vasava, Sajidbhai Ahmedbhai Patel, Yusuf Wali Hasan Patel and Ayub Basirbhai Patel.

According to police, the accused arrested collected Rs 14 lakh funds through donation from foreign countries. Of this, Rs 7 lakh were collected by Rizwan Patel from on Ismail in Bahrain. Bharuch Deputy Superintendent of Police M P Bhojani said that during the investigation it was revealed that Yakub Shanker and Rizwan Patel collected Rs 14 lakh which was used to construct one Ibadatgah (prayer house) as well as to distribute amongst those who convert to Islam. No permission from Bharuch District Collector was taken for such conversion activity.

Bhojani further added that Thakorbhai Girdharbhai Vasava played an important role in the various conversion activities of the tribal families into Islam. This amount was used for further religious conversion activities. Abdul Bashir Patel of Jambusar is a member of Mohammedi mosque in village and would take newly converted tribals there to teach them about Islam.

Sajid and Yusuf are members of Baitulmaal Trust in Achhod village and Salauddin Sheikh had given them donation of Rs 3.71 lakh. In October this year, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Vadodara city police found that city-based American Federation of Muslims Of Indian Origin (AFMI) had routed hawala funds for activities including construction of 400 flats for ‘displaced’ Bangladeshi and Rohingya Muslims near Ghaziabad. It was also accused of funding maulvis near the Indo-Nepal border.

Sheikh is one of the trustees of AFMI. Sheikh started the trust after getting influenced by Islamic preacher Zakir Naik in Mumbai a few years back. His name had also surfaced in the Uttar Pradesh mass conversion racket where Umar Gautam is one of the prime suspects.

Haji Fefdawala, one of the accused who is currently believed to be in London, UK, is accused of giving a provocative speech in Vadodara in 2019 and had invoked the 2002 Gujarat riots which took place in aftermath of burning down of a train in Godhra where karsevaks returning from Ayodhya were burnt alive. He had said that in 2003, he set up the trust in UK where he contacted about 125 donors and started sending donation money to India. Fefdawala had said that the money was collected to strengthen the community so it can ‘defend itself against attacks from other religions’. For an hour, Fefdawala continued to speak about ‘strengthening community’ in Gujarat.

The said event was also attended by Salahuddin Sheikh and Umar Gautam, who were recently arrested for their involvement in hawala and religious conversion. It is believed Fefdawala has routed ‘donations’ of over Rs 150 crore in past 18 years to India.

‘Bachpan Ka Pyar’ fame Sahdev Dirdo is stable and out of danger, had suffered head injury in accident: Read what doctors said

OpIndia Staff
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‘Bachpan Ka Pyar’ fame Sahdev Dirdo is stable and out of danger, had suffered head injury in accident: Read what doctors said

Sahdev Dirdo, the young boy who became an internet sensation after his video singing ‘Bachpan Ka Pyar Mera Bhool Nahi Jana Re’ went viral all over the country, had been admitted to the hospital after he met with an accident.

As per the latest reports, the boy is now out of danger.

The Medical Superintendent from the Shaheed Mahendra Karma Memorial Hospital, where the boy was being treated, has shared in a statement that Sahdev is out of danger. His initial investigation reports are normal. Though he will be kept under observation, for now, he is talking with his parents and responding well.

The medical officer added further that Sahdev may be referred for a neurological examination as a precautionary measure, but as of now, he looks stable and healthy.

As per reports, Sahadev was riding pillion in a motorbike on the evening of Tuesday, December 28, when the accident happened. As per reports, Sahadev was riding pillion with his father and they were returning to their village in Sukma, Chhattisgarh when the accident occurred.

The boy did not have a helmet and suffered a serious head injury. He was first taken to Sukma District Hospital and was then referred to the Jagdalpur Medical College for treatment.

Sukma collector Vineet Bandanwar and SP Sunil Sharma had also reached the hospital for updates on the boy’s health condition.

SP Sharma stated that the accident took place in the Shabari Nagar area at around 6.30 pm on Tuesday. The bike rider got minor bruises but Sahadev has suffered a grievous head injury.

Rapper Badshah, who had made a popular music video with the boy, had tweeted that he is in touch with Sahadev’s family and friends. He had added that the boy is being taken to hospital and is unconscious.

Sahadev had shot to fame after his video singing ‘Bachpan Ka Pyar’ went viral. The video was shot by a teacher in his school. The boy later even met the CM and was praised by him. In August this year, rapper Badshah had made a music video featuring Sahadev.

AIIMS doctors call off strike after receiving assurance from Union Health Minister

OpIndia Staff
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AIIMS doctors call off strike after receiving assurance from Union Health Minister

AIIMS Delhi Resident Doctors’ Association (RDA) has called off the December 29 protests after receiving assurance from the Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya in a meeting that the counselling for NEET PG 2021 will be conducted at the earliest time, according to reports.

The official statement said, “Since our demands are met, accordingly the AIIMS, New Delhi RDA has decided to take back the decision of strike on 29th December 2021… All services to be continued as normal.,”. Further, the AIIMS Delhi RDA has stated that all services that were withdrawn will be brought back to normal.

Press note published by the AIIMS Delhi RDA read, “In a meeting with the Union Health Minister has met with the resident doctors and assured that the NEET PG 2021 counselling to be held at the earliest,”

AIIMS Delhi RDA Protests

Resident doctors from various government-run Delhi hospitals have been protesting against the delay of NEET PG 2021 counselling and were demanding that the counselling process be fast tracked. Besides Delhi, Doctors from several hospitals in Kolkata too joined in the protests and suspended all services.

Following the protests, a meeting took place between a 12-member team of representatives from the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) and the Union Health Ministry. Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya informed that the government was unable to conduct the counselling as the case was still heard by the Supreme Court.

Delay of the counselling

Notably, a petition was filed against the central government and the Medical Counselling Committee’s notice which said that it would give 27 per cent reservation to OBC and 10 per cent to EWS students in all India quota medical seats. The petition subsequently delayed the NEET UG counselling process.

On December 10, MCC told undergraduate medical aspirants about the petition filed in the Supreme Court of India and that the case was pending with the next hearing to take place on January 6.

NGO director lies about Christmas celebrations being banned in Uttarakhand to malign Hindutva, apologises after being called out

OpIndia Staff
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NGO director lies about Christmas celebrations being banned in Uttarakhand to malign Hindutva, apologises after being called out

The Uttarakhand police have taken to Twitter to refute allegations that Christmas celebrations were banned in the state. Taking to its official Twitter handle, the Uttarakhand police wrote in Hindi which roughly translated as: “Nowhere in the state was there a prohibition on the Christmas festival. This event has been enthusiastically celebrated by the Christian brethren throughout the state. It is an appeal to all of you not to pay heed to the rumours that are tainted by such religious malpractices. Here, in the state of Uttarakhand, as per the Constitution of India, all religions are respected equally.”

The Uttarakhand police were replying to Jo Chopra-McGowan, the co-founder and director of the Latika Roy Foundation (LRF), a voluntary organization based in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, who alleged in her now-deleted Tweet that the authorities had banned Christmas celebrations in Uttarakhand.

Jo Chopra lies about Christmas being banned in Uttarakhand, gets called out

In a classic example of how the left-liberal intelligentsia has always spread hatred maligning Hindutva, the NGO founder had Tweeted on December 25: “Shopping yesterday in Dehradun – this state where #Christmas has been banned. In every shop, every person I met greeted me with a smile and a “Merry Christmas, Ma’am”. Sorry, #Hindutva. You can’t win. Indians are too open, too kind, too cool for your silly agenda of hate.”

Screenshot of Jo Chopra’s now-deleted Tweet

As evident from her Tweet, she concocted the entire news on the Christmas ban in Uttarakhand so that she could accuse the Hindus of being intolerant towards people of other communities. Her shenanigans, however, did not go unnoticed. Soon after Jo Chopra took to Twitter to spew venom on Hinduism by spreading the fake news, several Twitter users called her out for defaming Hindus and asked her to immediately delete her Tweet and render an apology.

Dehradun based popular social media user Alok Bhatt urged Uttarakhand police to take cognisance. “Dear @uttarakhandcops, @JoChopra shud be booked for spreading enmity amongst communities by spreading lies that Christmas is banned in Ukd. Please ask her to delete this tweet and apologise or else book her under 295A and 153B pls- Jo read this & retract ur tweet with lies,” wrote Bhatt.

Irked by her malicious attempt to spread communal discord, Alok Bhatt urged Dehradun police to call Jo Chopra for questioning. He asked the NGO founder to delete her malicious Tweet and apologise for the same.

Alok Bhatt went on to tag the Home Ministry urging it to take appropriate action against Jo Chopra’s NGO and investigate her citizenship records or visa terms.

Replying to Alok Bhatt’s Tweet, Twitter user Vijay Patel divulged some personal details about the NGO’s founder claiming that her and her husband’s NGOs are running illegally and receiving funds worth lakhs from certain suspicious foreign organisations. “This husband wife due has separate NGOs and both of them are receiving lakhs of rupees from foreign. Their son Anand is married into a Chinese family and has relatives in Beijing! I will write a detailed thread on this today,” Tweeted Vijay Patel.

In fact, replying to Alok Bhatt, Legal Rights Observatory (LRO) also Tweeted that it would be studying Chopra’s NGOs activities and subsequently lodge a complaint with the Home Ministry to cancel her license.

Subsequently, Uttarakhand police responded and confirmed that Jo Chopra had lied when she claimed that Christmas celebrations were banned in the state. The police, indeed, testified that the founder and director of Latika Roy Foundation had maliciously resorted to spreading false news with the sole intention to malign the Hindus.

Jo Chopra McGowan issues an apology but continues her propaganda against Hindutva

Spooked by the raging controversy, Jo Chopra issued an apology but continued with her efforts to malign Hindutva. She said that her tweet about Christmas being banned in Uttarakhand had been misunderstood. She added that she wanted to convey that Indians are not hateful and the Hindutva agenda is not widely shared.

“Many people have misunderstood my tweet about Christmas being banned in Uttarakhand. My intention was to say that Indians are NOT hateful and that the Hindutva agenda is not widely shared. As a Christian, I’ve always felt welcome + appreciated here. If I’ve hurt anyone, I’m sorry,” she tweeted.

Sikh man who broke into Windsor Castle claims he wanted to assassinate Queen Elizabeth for Jallianwala Bagh massacre: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Sikh man who broke into Windsor Castle claims he wanted to assassinate Queen Elizabeth for Jallianwala Bagh massacre: Details

A 19-year-old Indian origin man, Jaswant Singh Chail, who had allegedly attempted to assassinate Queen Elizabeth (95) on Christmas Day has been arrested and detained by the police under the Mental Health Act, according to reports. Jaswant Singh Chail reportedly wanted to kill the Queen and avenge the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre when 379 unarmed Indians were killed and 1100 wounded by British forces.

According to reports, the man scaled the walls of the Windsor Castle in Berkshire, south-east England, on Christmas Day dressed in black, donning a white mask and armed with a crossbow. The Queen was reportedly having breakfast when the 19-year-old man intruded on her premises and was later briefed about the illegal entry and break-in incident.

Reportedly, Jaswant Singh Chail was caught by armed police officers after his wall scaling attempt set off the alarms on Christmas morning. An alleged Snapchat video was also sent by the man to his Snapchat friends minutes before the break-in. In the video, a sinister hooded figure appeared with the crossbow speaking in a distorted voice while looking at the camera. The hooded figure said, “I will attempt to assassinate Elizabeth, Queen of the royal family. This is revenge for those who have died in the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre,” adding, “It is also revenge for those who have been killed, humiliated and discriminated on because of their race. I’m an Indian Sikh, a Sith. My name was Jaswant Singh Chail, my name is Darth Jones,”. Darth is a title assumed by Sith Lords who waged wars against the Jedi Knights in the popular Star Wars series.

A 19-year-old girl and former schoolmate of the suspect Chail said, “He was nerdy, but not in a way like, ‘I’m so clever’… he was pretty normal.” About Chail’s time in school, she said “he never had many views on anything to do with racism”, and added, “I don’t know if lockdowns are getting to him or something.” Jaswant Singh Chail reportedly lived in Southampton, Hants.

Besides, there was a small message along with the Snapchat video that read, “I’m sorry to all of those who I have wronged or lied to.” adding, “If you have received this then my death is near. Please share this with whoever and if possible get it to the news if they’re interested.”

Chail’s father, Jasbir Singh Chail, told The Times, “Something’s gone horribly wrong with our son and we are trying to figure out what. We’ve not had a chance to speak to him but are trying to get him the help he needs,”. Jasbir Singh Chail further stated that the family was going through a difficult time, he said, “From our perspective, we are going through a difficult time. We are trying to resolve this issue and it’s not easy,”

Diplomatic pressure leads to the arrest of an SFJ terrorist in Germany. Can Canada and UK be next?

OpIndia Staff
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Diplomatic pressure leads to the arrest of an SFJ terrorist in Germany. Can Canada and UK be next?

The arrest of terrorist organization Sikhs For Justice’s (SFJ) Jaswinder Singh Multani came as a good sign for India’s fight against the radical Khalistani movement. Multani was arrested by the German Police after India used the highest levels of diplomatic relationships to convince the German authorities for the arrest. Now, the story behind the arrest is slowly coming to light, explaining how the arrest was the result of over 72 hours of hectic diplomacy by the Union Government under PM Modi.

Reports suggest that the Indian government had made it clear it would hold Germany accountable in case any bomb blast took place in Delhi or Mumbai, the cities that were under threat of an attack being arranged by Multani. A report in Hindustan Times stated that the Modi government presented actionable intelligence to the German embassy in India. The information provided by the Indian government was enough to convince the Federal Police in Berlin about the urgency of the matter.

The officials of the Indian embassy that had gone for the Christmas holidays were called back to the office by the Ministry of External Affairs. It showed the German authorities that the matter at hand was urgent and serious as there was a possibility of a terror attack on Mumbai. The GoI provided evidence to show Multani had sent explosives to Mumbai and was assembling a terror team to initiate the terror attack.

The German Police are currently interrogating the SJF terrorist. On the other hand, the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian Security Agencies, and officials are known to matter are not revealing any more details.

Can India’s success in Germany put pressure on UK and Canada?

Khalistani radicals and sympathizers, including those linked to SFJ, are a major national security issue that India is trying to address in several countries, including UK and Canada. There are several Khalistani sympathizers in Canada and UK that are being backed by Pakistan. India’s success in convincing German authorities to arrest SFJ terrorists is going to put pressure on UK and Canada to take action against the radicals.

It is noteworthy that both Canada and UK are strategic partners of India, and the Indian Security agencies have time-to-time alerted the two nations about the radicals who are trying to create unrest in India. However, the two nations have not taken are drastic steps against the radicals. It was only recently that Sikhs For Justice’s Hounslow based office was raided by UK security agencies where they recovered electronic devices and documents related to the ‘Punjab Referendum’.

The Police recovered documents that sought to inflate the number of voters in the so-called referendum. An individual with links to Pakistan was also detained in the process. According to sources quoted by News18, the outfit created fake identity cards using electronic devices.

Pro-Khalistani radicals linked to SFJ and other extremist organisations abroad are causing problems

There are many Khalistani terrorists and sympathizers living abroad who fled the country after the crackdown against them in India. Several pro-Khalistani organizations like Sikhs For Justice, Babbar Khalsa International, Khalistan Zindabad Force, and others are either openly active or working behind the curtains in these countries.

It is noteworthy that many pro-Khalistani leaders have made it to the top positions and become lawmakers in UK and Canada. The best examples of such leaders would be Jagmeet Singh ( MP Canada), his brother Gurratan Singh (MLA Ontario, Canada), Preet Kaur Gill (MP UK), and Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (MP UK). All these leaders have tried to use their position as lawmakers to influence the governments of their respective countries against India.

Recently in November, a special team of the National Investigation agency also visited Canada. The team provided information about Khalistani terrorist organizations, including Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) and Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), to the Canadian authorities.

The team reportedly pressed for the execution of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty to fast-track the information-sharing mechanism related to anti-India activities. The agency went equipped with funding sources routed from the US, the UK, France, Australia and Germany.

It can be recalled that Khalistani terrorists had bombed Canada bound Air India flight 182 Kanishka killing 329 people in June 1985. It is considered to be the deadliest mass murder in Canadian history. Despite such a history against Canada, pro-Khalistani elements have managed to find a safe haven in Canada.

Multani was planning terror attacks in Punjab

Recently, Multani came under security agencies’ radar as he had arranged consignments of weapons including explosives, pistols and hand grenades to the state using his Pakistani links and arms smugglers. Several arrests were made recently in Punjab that was linked to Multani.

On February 7, 2021, Punjab Police apprehended local radical Khalistani supporters from Tarn Taran, Ferozepur and Amristar districts. They recovered eight country-made pistols and ammunition from them. The pistols were procured from Sikligar Sikhs based out of Madhya Pradesh and other sources to carry out terror attacks in Punjab.

Later, the Punjab police also arrested Jeevan Singh from Mansa, who was directly linked to Multani. He had radicalized Jeevan on social media to target Balbir Singh Rajewal, a key farmer union leader. Multani had arranged funds for Jeevan to procure locally made weapons to target Rajewal. In August, one more arrest was made by the Punjab Police linked to Multani. Saroop Singh from Johal Dhaiwala, district Tarn Taran was apprehended by the Police. Two hand grenades were recovered from him.

It was revealed during the investigation that Singh was approached by Surrey on Facebook, who turned out to be Multani. He also contacted Singh on WhatsApp. Money was sent to Singh via Western Union, and grenades were delivered at Amritsar-Harike road via Pakistan. Multani had shared a photo of the location with Singh and instructed him to collect bombs from there.

Multani has been named in the recent Ludhiana court blast case as well. There are two FIRs registered against Multani in Amritsar and SAS Nagar. He is linked to all core members of Sikhs For Justice.

Former Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani runner up in ‘corrupt person of the year’ list topped by Belarus’ Lukashenko

OpIndia Staff
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Former Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani runner up in ‘corrupt person of the year’ list topped by Belarus’ Lukashenko

Former Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, who fled the country in the wake of the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul in August 2021, is runner-up for the annual Person of the Year award for Corruption in 2021. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko tops the list of the ‘corrupt person of the year’ prepared by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) in recognition of all he has done to propagate organised criminal activity and corruption, a statement said.

“Ghani certainly deserves an award, too. He was breathtaking in both corruption and gross incompetence. He deserted his people, leaving them to misery and death so he could live among the corrupt former state officials in the moral cesspool that is the UAE,” said OCCRP.

Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan amidst Talibani takeover of Kabul

Ghani attracted negative criticism from across the world after he fled from Afghanistan amidst an imminent takeover by the Taliban. He issued his first message after fleeing the country on 15th August after the Taliban captured the capital Kabul. In a video message issued on Facebook, Ghani alleged that he was forced to leave Afghanistan as the Taliban was planning to kill him, and denied reports of taking huge amounts of money with him.

The former Afghanistan President said that he wanted to transfer power to the Taliban peacefully. But he was evicted against his will, as he didn’t want to hang as the president of Afghanistan. He said that he was forced to leave Kabul as the Taliban was looking for him. He said that he decided to not cause bloodshed in the capital, and that’s why fled the country to avoid a huge disaster.

Lukashenko, the only worthy contender for being the most corrupt person of the year- OCCRP

Drew Sullivan, one of the co-founders of OCCRP and who appeared on the panel as a judge, said that it has been a banner year for corruption, but Lukashenko stood apart from the crowd.

Besides Ghani and Lukashenko, other finalists included Syrian dictator Bashar Hafez al-Assad, Turkish President Recip Tayyip Erdogan, and Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.

As per the OCCRP statement, Assad led Syria into a catastrophic civil war and robbed the country of millions of dollars while clinging to power.

Erdogan, on the other hand, was presiding over a corrupt government that laundered Chinese funds for Iranian oil using state-owned banks, the group said.

Kurz, the leader of the Austrian People’s Party(OVP), along with nine other politicians and media personalities, was embroiled in a case, with allegations of embezzlement and graft.

OCCRP said Lukashenko consolidated unlimited power at home and turned a blind eye to international criticism. Instead, he precipitated the refugee crisis in response to EU sanctions against his country, the statement said. The group further added that Lukashenko was indifferent to the sufferings of his own citizens and desperate migrants, including children, shivering, hungry and barred from settling in Belarus.

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