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India administers 100 crore coronavirus vaccine doses in less than 10 months: Here is how ‘Sarve Santu Niramaya’ manifested itself

Jinit Jain
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India administers 100 crore coronavirus vaccine doses in less than 10 months: Here is how ‘Sarve Santu Niramaya’ manifested itself

India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage on October 21 crossed an important milestone of the 100 crore mark. With this, India has become the second country after China to have administered over 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine to its population. 

As per CoWin platform, India administered over 14 lakh doses of vaccines on Thursday, October 20, crossing the 100 crore mark (Till 9:50 AM). The total doses of vaccines administered so far stands at 1,00,00,30,500 (at 9:50 AM). 

The milestone is significantly momentous, given that it took less than 10 months for the country to dispense over 100 crore doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. But reaching this milestone was not easy as it seems. It was fraught with unexpected difficulties and daunting challenges. Indeed, India’s vaccination campaign had hit several roadblocks during its course, often weakening the pace of vaccination but not the resolve of the central government to inoculate its people against an intractable contagion that is prone to chronic mutations. 

As India administers 100 crore vaccine doses, here is how India kickstarted it vaccination campaign on January 16, 2021

India kickstarted its vaccination campaign with much fanfare on January 16, 2021, after the Drugs General Controller of India gave its emergency use authorisation to two indigenously made vaccines—Covaxin and Covishield. 

“We are launching the world’s biggest vaccination drive and it shows the world our capability,” Modi said at the launch of India’s vaccination campaign. He implored citizens to keep their guard up and not to believe any “rumors about the safety of the vaccines.”

The rollout of Covid-19 vaccines in India starting January 16 prioritised the healthcare workers and the frontline workers who were estimated to be around 3 crore, followed by those above 50 years of age and the under-50 population groups with co-morbidities numbering around 27 crore.

The start of the inoculation drive was expectedly cautious and progressive, given that the government had the Herculean task of disabusing people out of their skepticism towards the side-effects of the vaccines as well as expanding the vaccine production capacity of the country. 

India launches “Vaccine Maitri” initiative to help countries stave off COVID-19

With the pandemic raging uncontrollably across the globe, PM Modi was also conscious of India’s responsibility towards the world. India is known for being the pharmacy of the world and as COVID-19 flared up in almost every country around the world looked up to India for help. PM Modi did not disappoint them and vowed to fortify them in their fight against COVID-19 with Indian-made vaccines. 

The Indian government launched “Vaccine Maitri” initiative, a humanitarian initiative to provide COVID-19 vaccines to countries around the world. Through this initiative, the government had delivered around 66.3 million doses of vaccines to 95 countries till May 9, 2021, when it had to halt the initiative owing to a ravaging second wave of coronavirus back home. 

Initial hiccups faced in the vaccination campaign, compounded by the opposition’s penchant for promoting vaccine hesitancy

The Centre’s endeavour to persuade people into joining the vaccination drive was compounded by vaccine hesitancy promoted by several opposition leaders and conspiracy theorists, who alleged that vaccines were hastily manufactured and not thoroughly tested before being administered to the population. 

Congress leaders, in particular, spearheaded the campaign to discredit the vaccines made in India. Many of them raised questions on the authenticity of the trial data of the vaccines while others alleged that the vaccines were not rigorously tested before being given the emergency approval. Congress supporters and leaders are also partook in this misinformation campaign, raising doubts over the ingredients of the vaccines and fuelling apprehension among gullible people.

These unwarranted insinuations and allegations naturally sowed seeds of doubts among people regarding the safety of vaccines and served as a setback for the country’s fledgling vaccination campaign.

Despite opposition’s attempt at sabotage, India’s vaccination campaign gathered momentum

However, the authorities remained undaunted by the snags encountered on their way to tackle the scourge of COVID-19, and buckled down on the task of educating people and dispelling unfounded notions of vaccine hesitancy among people. It launched various campaigns to allay fears and inform people about the benefits of taking vaccines.

On March 1, 2021, India begun inoculating its elderly citizens against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in the second phase of the world’s largest vaccination drive. In this phase, people above the age of 60 years and those above 45 years who were in the high-risk category were administered the jab.

The authorities came up with the latest version of the Co-Win application, which forms the backbone of India’s immunisation campaign, and threw it open for people to register themselves for vaccination. Citizens were able to register and book an appointment for getting the vaccine, anytime and anywhere, using the Co-Win 2.0 portal or through other IT applications such as Arogya Setu, etc. For those who were not tech savvy, they could get themselves registered through rudimentary means or simply by walking in at vaccination centres to get themselves inoculated. 

As more and more people became eligible to take vaccines, there was enormous pressure on the vaccine manufacturers to expand their capacities in a swift manner to cater to the growing demand of vaccines. 

Vaccination drive hits snags amidst opposition’s stubbornness to wrest control of procurement and devastation caused by the second wave of coronavirus outbreak

Even as India was facing supply constraints of COVID-19 vaccines, the opposition leaders, most notably Congress politicians, continued raising aspersions on the efficacy of the vaccines and nitpicking over the vaccine procurement mechanism. They asked for “greater say” in vaccine procurement and asked the Centre to decentralise the vaccination drive. 

The Centre obliged and allowed states to procure vaccines from the international market on their own. During this time, India’s vaccination campaign took a nosedive as states prepared tenders to bid for vaccines from abroad. Incidentally, around the same time, somewhere between April and May 2021, a devastating second wave of coronavirus outbreak swept the country. 

Hospitals in many parts of the country were filled to capacity, with the healthcare workers stretched thin and COVID-19 medicines and oxygen supplies running short. As the deadly wave of COVID-19 outbreak hurtled through the country, the administration shifted their focus on tackling the task at hand—to equip hospitals with necessary equipment and medicines needed to ward off COVID-19. 

Simultaneously, the state governments were dealt with a rude awakening that their individual efforts to procure vaccines were not eliciting the desired result. Vaccine manufacturers across the world turned them down saying that they only dealt with federal governments, and not with state governments. As a consequence, they grudgingly asked the Centre to once again take control of the vaccination campaign. 

India’s inoculation resumes in earnest as Centre takes back control of country’s vaccination

In the first week of June 2021, PM Modi busted opposition propaganda around vaccine announced taking back control of vaccination from states and free vaccines for everyone above the age of 18 starting June 21. 

“The Centre is taking back total control of vaccination now. It will take over the 25 per cent doses assigned to states and this will be implemented in the next two weeks. From June 21 (International Day of Yoga), the Centre will provide free vaccines to states,” PM Modi announced in an address to the nation. 

With Centre in charge of country’s vaccination, the inoculation campaign resumed in earnest. By this time, Serum Institute of India and Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech had sufficiently expanded their vaccine production capacity, thereby enabling them to largely bridge the demand-supply disparity. The Centre also sought supplies of Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine to augment the availability of COVID-19 vaccines.

On August 6, 2021, India crossed the 50 crore mark for cumulative vaccinations. The fact that India’s vaccination campaign was undergoing at a breakneck pace could be gauged by the fact that it took just 20 days for India to reach from 40 crore doses administered to 50 crores. India achieved the 10 crore doses milestone within 85 days, went from 10 crore to 20 crore in 45 days, from 20 crore to 30 crore in 29 days and from 30 crore to 40 crore in 24 days. 

19 days after crossing the 50 crore mark, India’s vaccination campaign touched the milestone of 60 crore vaccine doses. The reducing number of days to achieve the 10-crore vaccine dose milestone demonstrates that India’s inoculation drive was on the right path to vaccinate its gargantuan population and suppress the subsequent waves of coronavirus outbreak.

In the same month, on August 27, India created a record by jabbing more than 1 crore doses in a single day. Then on August 31, India bettered her previous record by administering more than 1.4 crore vaccine doses. A couple of weeks later, India stunned the world with an unprecedented milestone— jabbing over 2 crore vaccines doses in a single day, the highest so far and shattering all previous records of single-day vaccinations. 

The achievement came on the occasion of the 71st birthday of Prime Minister Modi. Just before midnight, September 17, India managed to jab 2.5 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines in a single day. Since then, the vaccinations are taking at a brisk pace, rapidly moving towards PM Modi and the government’s stated goal of completing the inoculation of the entire country by December 31. 

As India administers 100-crore vaccine doses, it sets her eyes on achieving 100 per cent inoculation of her population

On October 21, India crossed the monumental milestone of 100 crore-mark for cumulative vaccination. For a country that took over 32 years to be completely vaccinated against Polio, this accomplishment holds special significance. In less than 10 months since the start of the vaccination programme, India has managed to vaccinate over 72 per cent of her population with at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Another feather in the cap is the fact that an overwhelming percentage of vaccinations have been done with made in India vaccines. 

A day before the start of India’s ambitious vaccination drive, on January 15, as PM Modi kicked off the vaccine roll-out with a click of a button, a video message played the Sanskrit chant – Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah, Sarve Santu Niramaya – (All be happy, All be free of illness). In just under 10 months, this message has manifested itself in all its glory as India completes the administration of 100 crore vaccine doses and sets her eyes on attaining the next milestone— 100 per cent vaccination of her population against the Chinese coronavirus.

Chhattisgarh: Durgesh Devangan arrested in Kawardha violence case, had objected to removal of Saffron flag

OpIndia Staff
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Chhattisgarh: Durgesh Devangan arrested in Kawardha violence case, had objected to removal of Saffron flag

On October 19, Chhattisgarh Police arrested Durgesh Devangan and Prahlad Sahu in a Kawardha violence case from Mana, district Raipur. They have been brought to Kawardha. Mohit Garg, Superintendent of Police, Kawardha, said that Devangan and Sahu were involved in the violence that took place in the district between October 3 and October 5.

Reportedly, the violence between two groups was ignited after a Muslim mob allegedly uprooted the Saffron flag and tore it apart. The flag was hoisted by a Hindu group in the area. Soon after the mob uprooted the flag, the situation got violent, and two groups clashed with each other.

Several teams were formed to find the duo

SP Garg further said that several teams of Kabirdham police station were engaged in searching for the accused. Several raids were conducted based on the information collected from the informants and technical evidence. The Police learnt about their presence in Raipur and conducted searches at different locations in the district. They were later arrested from Shehnai Market Hall Sadani Darbar that comes under Sejbahar Police Station, Raipur.

The Kawardha Violence

On October 3, a Muslim mob uprooted a Saffron flag and tore it apart. It led to stone-pelting and clashes between the two groups. The incident occurred at Maa Karma Chowk. Section 144 of CrPc (Criminal Code Procedure) was imposed later to bring the situation under control. Ajay Thakur, Shoyab Adri, and Durgesh Devangan from the two groups had sustained injuries.

On October 5, the Hindu groups reinstalled the Saffron flag at the same spot where the Muslim mob had ripped it off. They also protested against the Congress government. Hindu groups claimed that the Muslim mob had attacked them, but the Police, instead of cracking down on the perpetrators of violence, chose to thrash them instead. Based on the video evidence, Police had registered case against 59 people.

As per reports, Durgesh was one of the very first people who had objected to the removal of the Saffron flag. He was also attacked by a mob of Muslims during the violence. It is notable here that there were some allegations that local MLA and Chhattisgarh minister Md Akbar has been ‘protecting’ some particular people involved in the violence.

Vishwa Hindu Parishad had taken a rally demanding action against the people who indulged in violence on October 5. The local police administration had blamed VHP for spreading disharmony.

BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde writes to CEAT Tyres to make ad showcasing nuisance of namaz on roads, loudspeakers in mosques: Full text of letter

OpIndia Staff
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BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde writes to CEAT Tyres to make ad showcasing nuisance of namaz on roads, loudspeakers in mosques: Full text of letter

Uttara Kannada MP and Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) leader Anantkumar Hegde shot a letter to CEAT Tyres MD and CEO, Anant Vardhan Goenka urging the company to release yet another advertisement showcasing nuisance faced due to road blockages by namaz. 

The letter was written in response to a CEAT Tyres ‘awareness campaign’ ad released a few weeks ago, showcasing Bollywood actor Aamir Khan schooling children on how bursting crackers on the road causes inconvenience. 

The actor in the TVC says, “Roads are to drive vehicles and not burst crackers.” Though the advertisement features ‘celebration of winning a cricket match,’ it was released just ahead of major Hindu festivals of Dussehra and Diwali.

Highlighting this ‘public message,’ Hegde in his letter to CEAT Tyres CEO said, “Your concern to public issues need applause. In this regard, I request you to address one more problem faced by people on roads, i.e., blocking roads in the name of namaz on Friday and other important festive days by Muslims.” 

Letter by Uttara Kannada BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde. Image Source: Facebook

Hegde further stated that how even emergency vehicles such as ambulances and firetrucks are left hapless on being stuck in traffic caused by such blockades, putting several lives at risk. 

Since the brand is on a ‘public awareness’ spree, the BJP MP also urged the brand to highlight the noise pollution caused due to loudspeakers installed at mosques emanating loud sounds every day sometimes exceeding the permissible decibel limit. 

“As you are very keen and sensitive towards the problems faced by the general public and you also belong to the Hindu community, I am sure you can feel the discrimination done to Hindus for centuries,” said Hegde further. 

Taking a dig at Aamir Khan, Hegde also mentioned that it has become a norm for some anti-Hindu actors to point out everything wrong about the Hindu community while ignoring the ills of their own. 

Requesting the MD and CEO of CEAT Tyres to take cognizance of the matter, Hegde concluded the letter by wishing a ‘Very Happy Deepavali.’ 

Full text of the letter by MP Anantkumar Hegde to CEAT CEO and MD

Dear Shri Goenka, Your company’s recent advertisement in which Amir Khan advising people not to fire crackers on the streets is giving a very good message. Your concern for public issues needs applause.

In this regard, I request you to address one more problem faced by people on roads, i. e., blocking roads in the name of Namaz on Fridays and other important festive days by Muslims. It is a very common scene in many Indian cities where Muslims block busy roads and perform Namaz. At that time, vehicles like ambulances and firefighters vehicles are also struck in traffic causing grave losses.

I also request you to highlight the issue of noise pollution in your ads. Every day, loud noise is emitted from mikes arranged on the top of mosques in our country when Azan is given. That sound is beyond the permissible limits. On Fridays, it is prolonged for some more time. It is causing great inconvenience to people suffering from different ailments and taking rest, people working in different establishments and teachers teaching in classrooms. Actually, this list of sufferers is very long and only a few are mentioned here.

As you are very keen and sensitive towards the problems faced by the general public and you also belong to the Hindu community, I am sure you can feel the discrimination done to the Hindus since centuries. Nowadays, a group of Anti-Hindu actors always hurt the Hindu sentiments whereas they never try to expose the wrong doings of their community.

Therefore, I kindly request you to take a cognizance of this particular incident where your company’s advertisement has created an unrest among the Hindus. I hope in future your organization will respect the Hindu sentiment and will not hurt it directly or indirectly by any means.

Thank you and Happy Deepavali!

‘Fabindia faces the heat’

Recently, yet another Indian brand faced the heat for cultural appropriation after it named its Diwali collection ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz.’ 

Fabindia on October 01 launched its ‘festive season’ collection and released multiple digital ads promoting the same. However, the collection meant for ‘festival of lights’ (Diwali) carried an Urdu name and sported models with no bindis, thereby, drawing flak from the netizens. 

Fabindia’s ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ ad campaign

Several took objection to the brand taking a little too much creative liberty for a Hindu festival and called for a boycott. The brand was forced to take down its posts and digital ad campaign. It also quietly renamed the collection to ‘Jhilmil si Diwali’ and claimed that ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’ was not intended to denote Diwali. 

The bogus justification led to further outrage by the netizens with #boycottfabindia trending on Twitter. 

Bangladesh: Man who triggered communal violence against Hindus by placing Quran at Durga Puja venue identified as Iqbal Hossain

OpIndia Staff
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Bangladesh: Man who triggered communal violence against Hindus by placing Quran at Durga Puja venue identified as Iqbal Hossain

After radical Islamists had launched an attack on Hindus in Bangladesh alleging insult of the Quran, police investigation has revealed that a Muslim man was behind the alleged ‘blasphemous’ act. Police have identified the culprit behind the weeklong communal attacks on Hindus in the country as Iqbal Hossain.

35-years-old Iqbal Hossain, son of Nur Ahmed Alam from Sujanagar area of Comilla, had placed the Quran at a Durga Puja mandap at Nanua Dighir Par in Comilla on October 13th, which had triggered a series of communal violence against minority Hindus in the country. The police identified Iqbal after analysing video footage at the puja venue, informed Comilla Superintendent of Police (SP) Farooq Ahmed. However, he is yet to be arrested as he is on the run, and a manhunt is on to nab him.

Iqbal Hossain is a drifter by profession, and it is unknown whether he has any involvement with any political party. Cumilla SP Faruk Ahmed said more details will be revealed in a press briefing on Thursday.

Earlier, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal had informed said authorities had identified the person behind the Comilla incident. “I hope the prime suspect in the Comilla incident will be arrested soon. He has been changing locations frequently to avoid getting caught. We’ll be able to unfold the Comilla incident once he’s arrested,” the minister had said.

A video showing the Quran kept in the puja mandap was uploaded on social media which had gone viral soon. After that, a group of people had attacked the puja venue and vandalised it. The next day, two people were killed after Hindu temples, Durga puja mandaps, and businesses were attacked and vandalised in Noakhali’s Begumganj.

Violence continued for almost a week till October 17th, where at least seven people were killed and dozens were injured, apart from hundreds of houses and businesses of Hindus vandalised.

One Md Foyez Ahmed, who had posted the video of the Comilla puja mandap that triggered the violence, was arrested by the police on October 13th itself. Police have arrested around 450 people in connection with the subsequent violence, and have registered 72 cases so far.

Facebook Inc to rename the company to signify that it is no longer a one-app entity

OpIndia Staff
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Facebook Inc to rename the company to signify that it is no longer a one-app entity

Social media giant Facebook Inc, which owns popular apps like Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Oculus, is planning to change its name to reflect that it is no longer a one-app company. According to a report by The Verge, the company is planning to change its company name next week to reflect its focus on building the metaverse.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to talk about the change in the company’s annual Connect conference on October 28th. The rebranding of the company will help position the company as a parent company of several groups from social media to hardware development, as the company aims to project itself as a ‘metaverse’ company. In July, Mark Zuckerberg had told The Verge, “We will effectively transition from people seeing us as primarily being a social media company to being a metaverse company.”

Another benefit of this rebranding will be separating the CEO from the intense scrutiny that Facebook the social media app received on various issues, including politics. It is expected that after the app is separated from the company by name, Mark Zuckerberg will be able to concentrate on his future plans, instead of getting dragged to controversies related to policies of Facebook. He has already appeared before the Congress and the Senate to answer questions on the apparent bias of the app in favour of left-wing politics.

The new name that Facebook Inc is expected to adopt is not known, as at present it is a closely guarded secret. However, The Verge reports that the possible name could be related to Horizon. It is the name of a virtual reality online video gaming platform that the company is developing.

Another possible name is Meta, according to Samidh Chakrabarti, the company’s former civic integrity chief.

It is notable that the domain Meta.com is already owned by Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, while using the Horizon name may have trademark issues. At present, meta.com redirects to meta.org.

It is important to note that only the company Facebook Inc, which owns various group services like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram etc will be changed. The name of the social media platform Facebook, the flagship product of the company, will remain the same as it is not being changed. As the main purpose of the change is to show the difference between the Facebook platform and the company that owns it.

When Facebook Inc changes its name, it will be the second IT major to do so in recent years. In 2015, search giant Google had reorganised the company and formed the holding company as Alphabet Inc, which was Google Inc earlier. It was done to signal that Google was no longer an internet search company, but search was only one of the services that it offers along with many others.

Along with this, Sundar Pichai was made the CEO of Google, with founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin focusing on the holding company Alphabet Inc that has interests in diverse areas like internet services, smartphones, health, fitness wearables, fibre networks, robotics, self-driving vehicles, drones etc.

Facebook Inc also plans to follow the same route, where a holding company will own various services like Facebook, WhatsApp etc and any other future additions. However, it is not known whether Mark Zuckerberg will remain as CEO of the Facebook app or give the responsibility to someone else to focus only on the holding company, like Google Inc did when it transitioned to Alphabet Inc.

Hinduphobic Cow Urine jibes, ‘Jashn-e-‘ events and more: The world of FabIndia digital partner’s Managing Director

OpIndia Staff
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Hinduphobic Cow Urine jibes, ‘Jashn-e-‘ events and more: The world of FabIndia digital partner’s Managing Director

Since FabIndia decided to go all ‘Jashn-e-PairPeKulhari’ with the Diwali campaign ‘Jashn-e-Riwaaz’, netizens are digging the history and geography of the company to understand who is the mastermind behind the “Not so Sanatani” campaign for 100% Sanatani festival Diwali. Thanks to a Twitter user Harshil Mehta, one finger points towards the Zeno Group India, which was hired by FabIndia as Digital Partners back in 2019.

In January 2020, Rekha Rao joined the company as Managing Director for India operations.

Source: LinkedIn

But why this information is important? To understand its relevance, first, it is essential to know what Zeno Group was supposed to do for FabIndia. According to a report published in Exchange4Media, Zeno Group was supposed to lead the brand strategy, content development and oversee the management and execution of digital media for FabIndia.

As there is no more information available if any other agency got a contract for managing the digital presence of FabIndia, it is safe to assume that Zeno Group is still managing it. Notably, in most such cases, large corporate like FabIndia has more than one ad agency, PR agencies or digital marketing agencies working for them. It might be the case for FabIndia as well, but so far, no other prominent names have popped up during a search over the internet.

Now coming back to Zeno Group’s Rekha Rao, she is also co-founder of Katha Kathan that promotes Urdu literature. Since its formation, Katha Kathan has organized several literally programs, including Jashn-e-Sahir, Jashn-e-Premchand, Jashn-e-Manto, Jashn-e-Ghalib and more. Anyway, there might be no connection at all between the Jashn-e-Riwaaz campaign and Rekha’s love for the word ‘Jashn-e-XYZ‘, but it’s a remarkable coincidence.

Moreover, Rekha Rao has shown some Hinduphobic tendencies in her tweets. She has used ‘cow urine’ jibe, which criticizes PM Modi.

She has also pointed fingers at gau rakshaks on multiple occasions. Interestingly, a series of sarcastic tweets against Hindus can be found on her timeline. Married to a Muslim, she had once alleged she was unable to find a flat because of his husband’s religion.

Source: Twitter

In his husband’s bio, he calls himself ‘ardent promoter of Urdu, ’ which is written in the English language.

The controversy around FabIndia’s Diwali campaign

Recently, FabIndia had launched a campaign to promote its collection named “Jashn-e-Riwaaz”. The idea was to promote the ‘festival of lights with the name of the campaign. After the backlash over the internet, FabIndia removed the campaign from all social media platforms. In a statement, the company claimed that it was not about Diwali and their Diwali campaign Jhilmil Si Diwali was yet to launch. However, in the campaign tweet, they had categorically used the phrase “festival of lights”, which is another name for the Hindu festival Diwali.

Punjab government forms SIT to probe the brutal murder of Lakhbir Singh at Singhu border farmer protest site

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab government forms SIT to probe the brutal murder of Lakhbir Singh at Singhu border farmer protest site

Punjab government headed by Charanjit Singh Channi on Wednesday formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the circumstances leading to the lynching of Dalit Sikh Lakhbir Singh at the Singhu-Kundli border. On October 15, Lakhbir Singh’s badly mutilated body, with his hand severed and legs cut, was found hanging from a police barricade as he was murdered by members of the Nihang Sikh community for allegedly committing blasphemy.   

It has been reported that SIT has been formed for expeditious enquiry into the matter. However, it could be a matter of legal debate about the extent of jurisdiction of Punjab police in the matter of investigation, as the case took place in Haryana. Notably, attempts are being made from the first day to divert investigation and create confusion.

Punjab Home Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said that the government had started investigating the case as Lakhbir Singh was a resident of Punjab. Moreover, the activities of Nihang leader Aman Singh has a direct bearing on Punjab. The minister said that there seemed a deep conspiracy behind the incidents involving the Nihang group at Singhu border.

As per the notification, Additional Director General of Police (Bureau of Investigation) Varinder Kumar will head the SIT, comprising two other members namely Ferozepur Range Deputy Inspector General Inderbir Singh and Tarn Taran SSP Harvinder Singh Virk.

The government said that SIT was constituted following a complaint of Raj Kaur who is the sister of Lakhbir Singh. The notification signed by the officiating Director General of Punjab Police Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota states that Raj Kaur, a resident of Cheema Kalan, “has alleged that her brother Lakhbir Singh, was allured by some unknown persons and taken to Singhu (New Delhi-Haryana Border) where he was murdered by some Nihang Singhs on 15.10.2021 on sacrilege charges”. Varinder Kumar has been authorized to co-opt any other police officer posted in Punjab for enquiry as per need and requirement.

Punjab government notification for SIT probe of Ainghu Kundli border murder

While the gruesome killing left the nation shocked, some even celebrated it. Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Committee leader Tarlochan Singh said that they are not sorry for what happened with Lakhbir Singh. However there is no proof that Lakhbir Singh had insulted Guru Granth Sahib. But Trilochan Singh said that they had no remorse for what happened with this man.

Madhya Pradesh: Six months on, Congress MLA’s rape accused son is still absconding. Here is all you need to know about the case

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh: Six months on, Congress MLA’s rape accused son is still absconding. Here is all you need to know about the case

The Madhya Pradesh Police has been on the lookout for Congress’ Badnagar MLA Murli Morwal’s son Karan Morwal for months now. Karan Morwal has been absconding for the past six months in an alleged rape case. 

In April this year, a functionary of Youth Congress from Indore had filed a police case against Karan Morwal accusing him of rape. The woman in her complaint revealed that Morwal on Valentine’s Day this year had taken her to Hotel Pride in Indore. Upon reaching the hotel, the Congress leader’s son allegedly raped her after lacing her drink with sedatives.

The victim in her complaint had further said that she became good friends with Karan after meeting him at a political function in Indore last year. The two then met on several occasions when Morwal visited Indore. 

He even met the victim’s siblings and promised to marry her. However, after the case surfaced in media, an audio call of an alleged conversation between the two went viral.

In this audio call which could not be verified by the media, Morwal was heard accusing the victim of blackmailing him while the victim accused him of physically assaulting her. 

‘The woman was pressurizing my son to marry’

Dismissing the allegations levelled against his son, MLA Morwal of Badnagar Assembly in Ujjain had said that he had already met Indore DIG Manish Kapooriya a few days ago to apprise him of the situation. He also claimed to have complained about the woman who, he said, was pressuring his son to marry her.

“My son was already apprehensive that she might file a false rape case against him. So my son had also made a written complaint to Indore Deputy Inspector General of Police about this on April 1,” Morwal said in April. 

Despite claiming that the woman had filed a false case, Morwal went into hiding leading the MP Police to launch a manhunt. 

‘Will attach properties if he does not surrender’

After failing to nab Morwal, the Madhya Pradesh police in September had issued an ultimatum to the accused to surrender. 

Mahila Police Station Inspector Jyoti Sharma in a statement to the media had said, “A local court has declared him (Karan Morwal) an absconder and has asked him to be present before it on September 28. We have gathered information about Karan’s properties and if he does not surrender on September 28, the process to attach his properties would begin.”

Additionally, the police had also announced a cash reward of Rs 5,000 for his arrest.

‘Will nab him before Diwali’

Sharma in another statement to the media in October said, “Many attempts have been made to arrest Karan Morwal who is an accused in the rape case of a woman worker of Congress party in Indore, but we could not find him.” 

Reportedly, the police have conducted raids at several places in search of the accused, including his residence, farmhouse and other places after receiving a tip-off, but Morwal could not be traced.

While the police have now brought his younger brother (Shivam) for interrogation, Madhya Pradesh’s Home Minister Narottam Mishra has assured that the accused will be nabbed before Diwali.

In a video statement, Mishra urged Murli Morwal to present his son before the police to avoid escalation of the matter. He also declared an increase in cash reward on his arrest from Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000. 

As per the report, the MLA has assured the officials that his son will present himself before the police soon.

Morwal has been booked under sections 376 (rape), 376(2)N (rape for more than one time), 376 (2) J, 506 (criminal intimidation) and 294 (obscene act at public places) of the Indian Penal Code. 

‘Priyanka Gandhi ducks question on Morwal’

Priyanka Gandhi in a press conference in Lucknow on Tuesday announced the Congress party’s decision to give 40% tickets to women in the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. 

“It is our promise that women would be a part of Uttar Pradesh politics,” Priyanka said talking about women empowerment.

However, when a journalist raised questions about the absconding Karan Morwal, he was asked to stick to the topic of the meeting and shunned. The journalist was left disappointed at a ‘women empowerment event’ on receiving no answer for the alleged rape of a young victim by a Congress leader’s son.

‘Things getting complicated’: Harish Rawat to request Congress leadership to relive him from charge of Punjab so that he can focus on Uttarakhand

OpIndia Staff
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‘Things getting complicated’: Harish Rawat to request Congress leadership to relive him from charge of Punjab so that he can focus on Uttarakhand

Even as the Congress party in Punjab continues to face trouble with former senior leader Captain Amarinder Singh about to launch a new party, AICC in-charge of Punjab affairs Harish Rawat has expressed his desire to resign from the post. Rawat on Wednesday said that he will request central leadership of the party to relieve him from the responsibility of Punjab, so that he could focus on the assembly election in his home state Uttarakhand. In less than two months, this is for the second time when Harish Rawat expressed his desire to give up the responsibility.

It is likely that Harish Rawat’s departure from Punjab is just awaiting a formal announcement as the central leadership of the party is looking for his replacement. Rajasthan minister Harish Chaudhary may be picked up as in-charge of Punjab in place of Harish Rawat.

Harish Rawat announced his give-up intention in a longish Facebook post and the same he shared on his Twitter handle too.

Harish Rawat who served as chief minister of Uttarakhand said that he was caught between his Janmabhumi Uttrakhand and Karmabhumi Punjab and he was unable to serve any of them properly. Both the states will go for the poll next year.    

“Today I have just come out of a Catch-22 situation. On one hand I have my responsibility towards my Janmabhumi and on the other I have to serve my Karmabhumi Punjab. But things are getting complicated day by day. As the election period will come close I will have to devote full time to both the states. Yesterday an unseasonal rain brought destruction in Uttrakhand. I wanted to visit all the places to wipe every tear from every eye. But I could visit only a few places. But my duty expects something else from me. I can do justice with my Karmabhumi only if I do justice with my Janmabhumi. I am thankful to Punjab Congress and people for Punjab blessing and extending moral support to me. I have a deep and emotional attachment with Punjab, the land of saints and Gurus, Nanak Dev ji and Guru Govind Singh ji. I have decided to request central leadership to relieve me from the responsibility of Punjab so that I focus on Uttrakhand,” his post reads. 

Harish Rawat also met senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on Wednesday. He told the media that he met Rahul Gandhi to discuss the issues of Uttarakhand.

Harish Rawat wants to get rid of Punjab after he and the central leadership of the party messed up badly. In July the interim president of the Congress Sonia Gandhi had appointed Navjot Singh Sidhu as Punjab Congress president. And, within two months Captain Amarinder Singh was humiliated and forced to resign as Chief Minister of Punjab. Charanjit Singh Channi was appointed as chief minister. Sidhu, Channi and other senior leaders continued washing their dirty linen in public. Sidhu resigned from the post of president and took it back later on. Harish Rawat on one occasion was forced to ask Sidhu to discipline his advisors who had made irresponsible statements on a few occasions. These things have weakened the Congress party where the return to power looks difficult.    

Harish Rawat must have assessed that Punjab is a difficult case for the party and it will not be wise to invest much time and energy here. Hence, he wants to focus on Uttarakhand, his native state.

Gujarat: Aam Aadmi Party leader held in liquor case, one female bootlegger absconding

OpIndia Staff
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Gujarat: Aam Aadmi Party leader held in liquor case, one female bootlegger absconding

Aam Aadmi Party President of Jambughoda along with three others was held by Chhota Udepur police with bottles of liquor on them in Gujarat, reports DeshGujarat. Gujarat is a dry state where procurement, distribution, sale and consumption of alcohol without permit is prohibited.

As per reports, the local crime branch officials were passing by Nana Katva village of Uchapan in Bodeli taluka where they found four persons taking out liquor bottles from seat of a motorcycle in a farm. Of these, two were identified as Hardik Vakhatbhai Bariya (Panchmahal) and Sundar Keshabhai Rathava (Chhota Udepur). When police inquired, they found that a female bootlegger had ordered the alcohol.

A total of 83 bottles of foreign liquor including 45 bottles of London Prime Premium Whiskey of 180 ml and 38 bottles of Goa Spirit of Smoothness Whiskey were found. 3 mobile phones, one Pulsar motorcycle and another bike was also seized by police. While Hardik and Sundar were held by police, two others managed to escape. The female bootlegger has also been declared as fugitive.

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