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Congress social media head posts morphed image of PM Modi, Twitter doesn’t mark it ‘manipulated media’, fact-checkers let it go

OpIndia Staff
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Congress social media head posts morphed image of PM Modi, Twitter doesn’t mark it ‘manipulated media’, fact-checkers let it go

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after coming back from his 3-day trip to the USA for bilateral meetings and for the UNGA summit, went straight to monitor the construction of the new Central Vista. In an attempt to mock PM Modi, Congress took to Twitter to post morphed images of him walking the construction site of Central Vista.

Rohan Gupta, ‘Chairman’ of the Social Media Department of Congress posted a morphed image where he showed that a cameraman was lying down on the floor and clicking a picture of PM Modi walking across the construction site of Central Vista. The image was clearly morphed, made to show that PM Modi was taking an update on the Central Vista project as a publicity stunt.

Rohan Gupta posted this image with the caption, “Photographer of the Month”.

Interestingly, this clearly morphed image was not marked as ‘manipulated media’ by social media giant Twitter. If one recalls, On 19 May 2021, Congress shot off an email to Twitter, asking the social media behemoth to permanently suspend Twitter accounts of BJP leaders JP Nadda, Sambit Patra, Smriti Irani, BL Santosh and many other functionaries for sharing a toolkit, which they claimed was prepared by the Congress party to sully the reputation of the Modi government amidst the raging COVID-19 outbreak. 

The email was sent a day after the BJP leaders had exposed a toolkit that entailed point-by-point instructions for the Congress workers for attacking the Modi government. From maligning the Kumbh Mela and describing it as ‘super spreader’ to using international media and ‘friendly’ journalists to defame PM Modi, to blocking beds and hoarding other essential supplies for favourable social media PR, the content of the toolkit included a range of directives for the loyal Congress leaders and supporters to be followed to paint PM Modi and his government’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak in a bad light.

Twitter, within a day, had marked the Toolkit images as ‘manipulated media’ clearly telling people that they thought the image of the toolkit was fake. It is pertinent to note that Twitter had no proof to allege that the toolkit was fake, except the word of Congress itself.

While Twitter was more than happy to oblige Congress and become a part of their Toolkit, the social media giant has failed to take action against Congress functionaries sharing patently morphed images, like the one shared by Rohan Gupta.

Further, not only has Twitter not bothered to mark the fake image as ‘manipulated media’, but the usual “fact-checkers” who claim that they uphold the truth, have conveniently missed taking action against this post. BoomLive and AltNews, the self-proclaimed fact-checkers who often give covering fire to Islamists focussed on “fact-checking” a different fake image instead of the one shared by Congress.

BoomLive, while ignoring this fake image by Congress, “fact-checked” a clearly fake post where it was claimed that the New York Times praised PM Modi after his visit to the USA.

Fact-checking the image, BoomLive came to the conclusion that the New York Times post was created as a satire.

Fact Check by BoomLive

AltNews, on the other hand, focus on “fact-checking” random videos of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, which were authentic, but according to them, were used to “show he was disrespected”. Essentially, AltNews wrote a cock-and-bull “fact check” in an attempt to prove that Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were respectful of Manmohan Singh and disprove the video evidence to the contrary that has been available for years.

The fact-check was done by Mohammad Zubair, the AltNews co-founder who is being investigated under POCSO for bullying and doxxing a minor girl.

Fact-check by AltNews

While BoomLive focussed on proving that an image praising PM Modi was satire, AltNews focussed on proving that Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi never disrespected former PM Manmohan Singh. In doing so, they clearly did not bother “fact-checking” an obvious morphed image posted by Congress itself because their fact-checking is meant to serve the purpose either of Islamists or political parties that oppose BJP, PM Modi, or those elements who work against the cause of India itself.

In fact, even Shekhar Gupta’s The Print attempted to ‘fact-check’ the New York Times satire by claiming that the image was ‘viral’, when it actually was not.

Fact-check by The Print

While the satire image of New York Times was clearly not viral, the ‘satire’ image posted by Rohan Gupta was shared by several anti-Modi, anti-India elements to mock the Prime Minister, and yet, BoomLive and The Print chose to “fact-check” the NYT image instead of this one, while POCSO accused Mohammad Zubair chose to eulogise Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Rohan Gupta, the habitual offender

Earlier in 2017, Rohan Gupta had posted a fake ‘survey’ predicting poll results, which showed Congress set to sweep the assembly elections that were underway in Gujarat at the time.

Parindu Bhagat, in charge of Gujarat election legal cell, on behalf of BJP leaders had filed a complaint about Rohit Gupta, tweeting an exit poll for the Gujarat Assembly Elections. This ‘exit poll’ showed Congress getting 65+ seats out of a total of 89 constituencies, in the first phase of the Gujarat election. BJP was pegged to get 22 seats while others were pitted to get 2 seats.

Rohan Gupta’s act of posting an exit poll violated the Election Commission’s notification which banned the publishing of exit polls till the second phase of voting concluded. Not to mention, that the survey was entirely fake. Rohan Gupta had been booked for the same by the Crime Branch on the instructions of the Election Commission, according to Times of India. That case still appears to be pending.

It is pertinent to note that the IT cell head Rohan Gupta is the son of Congress leader Rajkumar Gupta.

Viral video: UP IAS officer Md Iftikharuddin seen promoting conversions, hailing ‘spreading Islam all over the world’

OpIndia Staff
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Viral video: UP IAS officer Md Iftikharuddin seen promoting conversions, hailing ‘spreading Islam all over the world’

An undated video has emerged on social media platforms in which senior IAS officer Mohammad Iftikharuddin was seen holding sermons, telling people that Islam needs to be spread all over the world. Bhupesh Awasthi, National Vice President of Math Mandir Coordination Committee, levelled the allegations against the IAS officer and said that Iftikharuddin holds meetings at his official residence to fan Islamist sentiments and promote conversions.

A probe has been initiated by Kanpur Police in the case.

Notably, Mohammad Iftikharuddin is currently serving as the Chairman of Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation. A series of three videos have gone viral on social media in which Iftikharuddin was seen telling people the benefits of converting to Islam.

The videos seem to have been recorded in a well-furnished house. Awasthi alleged that it was a government residence. Iftikharuddin could be seen sitting on a chair while addressing the people who were sitting on the floor. He added, “– declare to the people of the world that the sovereignty and authority of Allah are to be established in the whole world.”

In another video, Iftikharuddin was seen sitting on the floor with other listeners while the Maulvi was giving Islamic lessons. He said that Allah had given Uttar Pradesh as a centre to them from where they could spread their word in the whole country and the whole world. After that, he narrated a shocking and derogatory story.

He said, “Recently, a man from Punjab converted to Islam. When I asked him the reason behind conversion, he said the death of his sister. When I asked for details, he said that when his sister died, she was burnt. Her clothes burnt off and she was naked. People were seeing the naked dead body of my sister. I could not bear that and come out. I thought the same would happen to me. People would watch me naked. The thought of such a thing happening in future made me convert to Islam.”

Police initiated probe

Reports suggest that Somendra Meena, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Kanpur (East), would probe the case. In a tweet, Police Commissionerate Kanpur Nagar said, “The investigation of the viral video of IAS officer Mohd Iftikharuddin taken at Kanpur Commissioner’s residence has been entrusted to ADCP East, Police Commissionerate Kanpur Nagar. It is being investigated whether the video is authentic and if there is any crime in it,” tweeted Police Commissionerate Kanpur Nagar.

Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said in a statement that the matter is serious. He said, “This is a serious matter. If there is anything like this, it will be taken seriously.”

Bhupesh Awasthi’s statement

OpIndia reached out to Bhupesh Awasthi to learn more about the case. He said that he had received the video on September 25. “As the videos had derogatory comments against Hinduism and the IAS officer was propagating conversion to Islam, I have written to the Chief Minister to probe the case. I have requested him to investigate if the video is authentic, and in case if it is authentic, then strict action should be taken against the IAS officer,” he added. Awasthi said that Iftikharuddin is currently serving in Lucknow and has served in many important posts in the past; hence the videos should be probed.

Lured by ‘sugarcane cultivation’ and ‘jaggery factory’, BKU President Naresh Tikait’s duplicity exposed in sting operation

OpIndia Staff
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Lured by ‘sugarcane cultivation’ and ‘jaggery factory’, BKU President Naresh Tikait’s duplicity exposed in sting operation

BKU National President and so called Farmer Leader Naresh Tikait, brother of Rakesh Tikait, was caught in a sting operation carried by Zee News in which he was found saying that he can get sugarcane at a price lower than the minimum selling price (MSP) if paid in cash.

At about 7 minutes 24 seconds into the video, Naresh Tikait could be seen discussing on a proposal of jaggery factory and sugarcane procurement to the same. A reporter, posing as someone proposing a business deal, can be seen talking to Naresh Tikait about opening a jaggery factory and when the conversation led to sugarcane prices Tikait could be heard saying, ‘Very good, we have large quantities of Sugarcane here, and you will get these sugarcanes at the right price, even mill cannot take this much of sugarcanes, just the payment should be made in cash, you will get the sugarcanes at a much lower price, even lower than the rate asked at the mill, that is, Rs 325 per quintal, that is what, crushers’ (kolhoo) price may be Rs 225, Rs 250 or 275..’

This comes at a time when the so-called farmer leaders like Naresh Tikait himself and his brother Rakesh Tikait have been leading an agitation against the farm laws claiming they are anti-farmers. While ‘farmer protestors’ have been demanding legalising MSP (minimum support price), Tikait offers the same sugarcane at less than the price offered by other mills, if the money is paid in cash and not direct bank transfer. Huge amount of unaccounted cash transactions could lead to the problem of black money.

As per Zee News, their team met Tikait in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district where a ‘mahapanchayat’ was held recently. The Tikaits hail from this district. Undercover Zee News team told Tikait about an agreement with a Singapore-based company to set up a jaggery factory in UP. At first Tikait didn’t show interest but when he got to know of foreign company investment, his interest piqued.

Amusingly, Tikait did not raise the points he and his brother often raise during the protests carried out by ‘farmer’ leaders. Example, he did not mention that the farmers do not give the land to industries, the way they have been claiming at various protests. Not only that, he even offered 12 bigha land to company at Rs 10,000 per bigha annually. During the recently held mahapanchayat in Muzaffarnagar, Tikait had ‘warned’ the farmers against giving their lands to industries as they may ‘grab’ their land. But when it came to his own land or deal with him, Naresh Tikait appeared more than willing to get into agreement with companies.

Uddhav govt sitting on Metro approvals, loans may dry up soon: How Mumbaikars are paying for Shiv Sena’s petty politics

OpIndia Staff
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Uddhav govt sitting on Metro approvals, loans may dry up soon: How Mumbaikars are paying for Shiv Sena’s petty politics

Mumbaikars are paying a hefty price for the tree-hugging Andolanjeevis and some petty politicians who have successfully derailed the Mumbai Metro Phase 03 project. As per a Times of India report, the loans for the Metro 3 rail corridor could dry up in the next few months owing to the escalation in costs.

‘JICA warns of cash crunch’

The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) which oversees the 33.5 km Metro 3 rail corridor is primarily being funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). 

As per the TOI report, the MMRC has already spent Rs 18,400 crore on the project. Additionally, the project with an initial estimation of Rs 23,136 crore, will now cost Rs 33,406 crore due to severe delay. It is imperative to note that the Brihamumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) budget for the city this year is Rs 39,000 crore.

JICA has now warned of a cash crunch as the state cabinet sits on a proposal to approve the cost escalation. The agency says, more funds can be released only after the state cabinet sanctions the revised cost.

‘CM did not reply to a letter by Japanese ambassador’

Japanese ambassador to India, Suzuki Satoshi in a letter dated February 17, 2021, wrote to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray expressing concern over the expected ‘cash crunch’ and ‘significant delay in project timelines.’ Satoshi in that letter had also urged the CM to approve the revised cost for the fourth tranche of the loan to enable JICA to release the money. 

“During JICA’s detailed fact-finding mission with MMRC, conducted from December 2020 to January 2021, it was recognized that there is a real possibility for MMRC to face fund shortage within the next fiscal year (FY2021) if an additional loan cannot be provided by end of fiscal (FY2020),” read the ambassador’s letter. 

“As a financer of this project, the government of Japan and JICA are strongly concerned that the project would potentially face serious difficulties such as significant delays or stagnation unless the loan is extended in a timely manner,” the letter read further. 

The letter, however, has not been responded to as yet. As per the report, a senior Mantralaya official has assured that the state cabinet will take up the cost revision proposal “soon.” 

Aarey protests and Shiv Sena’s politics have derailed Metro3 plans

The Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government, shortly after coming to power had scrapped the Metro 3 car shed at Aarey, trying to appease the ‘environmentalists’ whose concerns were already dismissed by the Supreme Court as invalid. The Chief Minister had then asked the Metro officials to explore the option of setting up the depot for Metro 3 and Metro 6 (Vikhroli to Lokhandwala) at Goregaon Pahadi in June this year. 

Interestingly, there is no progress on Goregaon Pahadi land selection process since the CM’s request. “There is a general sense of disappointment and disillusionment among the designers, engineers and contractors working on the project because there is no clarity from the government. There is serious uncertainty,” Mumbai Mirror reported quoting sources. 

Meanwhile, the MMRCL has started planting trees at Metro-3 stations. While the project approvals are still pending, the CM in 2020 had ordered the immediate withdrawal of cases registered against the ‘environmentalists’ who had opposed tree felling in Aarey in 2019, just ahead of the Maharashtra state elections. 

As per the deadline, the first phase of Metro 3 rail corridor extending from Aarey to BKC was supposed to be ready by December 2021. With no car shed, the delays are going to be indefinite.

In January 2020, a committee set up by Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in December had recommended lifting the stay on construction of the Mumbai Metro Line 3 car shed at Aarey Milk Colony. Reportedly, the committee has said that shifting the car shed site from Aarey would not be viable. The committee has cited issues such as increased costs, logistical issues and delays in the completion to rule out the option of shifting the project to another location.

It is notable here that despite all approvals by the concerned authorities and go-ahead by the courts, the Shiv Sena had fanned the protests against the Aarey Metro car shed project. Many Bollywood celebrities and ‘Andolanjeevis’ had joined the misinformed campaign, and Aaditya Thackerey had used the protests as a political launch pad before the elections.

No car shed, no Metro

After scrapping the Aarey car shed plans, Uddhav Thackerey had proposed land in Kanjurmarg as the site for the car shed. But that land is stuck under litigation, as per the Union Government, the land is owned by the Salt Commissionerate, which reports to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). Since the Goregaon Pahadi suggestion is yet to see any progress either, there is no car shed as of now.

Though 70% of the Metro project is complete and the car shed is just 2% of it, Metro cannot function without a car shed. Even if another site gets approved, getting a car shed commissioned will take a minimum of 3.5 to 4 years.

As per the TOI report, the MMRC had already ordered 31 rakes and had paid Rs 400 crores for it. But the rakes cannot be brought to Mumbai yet because there is no car shed and no trial track. The report further says that soon, contractors may start seeking compensation for damages because of delays to the project.

Mangeshkar family’s close ties with freedom fighter Veer Savarkar: Patriotism and love for arts form the bedrock of an everlasting relationship

Jinit Jain
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Mangeshkar family’s close ties with freedom fighter Veer Savarkar: Patriotism and love for arts form the bedrock of an everlasting relationship

Freedom fighter and among the earliest proponents of the Hindutva ideology, Veer Savarkar, remains one of the most vilified personalities in India’s history. For decades, Savarkar was treated with disdain and demonised by successive Indian governments, a majority of them headed by the Congress party. A conscious effort was undertaken to defame Veer Savarkar so as to discredit his beliefs and undermine his contribution to India’s freedom struggle.

But legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar and her family were among those who saw through this facade, carefully created by the Congress party and its loyalists, and held Savarkar for who he was—a staunch patriot dedicated to the cause of India’s freedom and an erudite man with a flair for poetry and writing.

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar or Veer Savarkar was an Indian freedom fighter, activist, politician, lawyer, and writer, who is regarded for articulating the political philosophy of Hindutva. He was born in Bhagalpur village near Nasik in Maharashtra.

Later, he joined the Hindu Mahasabha and advocated the term Hindutva which was previously formulated by Chandranath Basu. He was arrested in 1910 by the British administration over his association with the revolutionary group India House. Savarkar was sentenced to two life terms in the Cellular Jail in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 1911 after he made a failed attempt to escape while being transported from Marseilles. 

While serving his sentence, Savarkar wrote on a broad range of topics—from his yearning for the motherland to his understanding of the Hindutva, about its pride and defined all the people descended of Hindu culture as being part of Hindutva, including the Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs.

The close bond shared between freedom fighter Veer Savarkar and the Mangeshkar family

Lata Mangeshkar and her family shared close ties with Veer Savarkar, something which she has always been proud and unapologetic about. Every year on Savarkar’s birth and death anniversaries, which fall on May 28 and February 26 respectively, the award-winning singer does not shy away from publicly paying her tributes to the Hindutva ideologue and reiterating his invaluable contribution to India’s independence struggle against the British.

This year too, Lata Mangeshkar took to her social media pages to pay homage to the freedom fighter by remembering him and sharing his old pictures with her followers.

Lata Mangeshkar termed Savarkar as the ‘true son of Mother India’ and hailed him as a father-like figure. During his lifetime, Veer Savarkar was referred to as ‘Tatya’ by Lata Mangeshkar, which is a term used in deference for a father or elderly male relation.

Last year, the veteran singer reminisced about the freedom fighter, stating that his name was etched in the hearts of the Mangeshkar family. She had also tweeted that she was honouring the ‘great and multi-faceted personality’ on his ‘Jayanti.’

She had shared a video along with her tweet, which was audio of the song Shat Janma Shodhitana, which had been composed by Lata Mangeshkar’s father Deenanath Mangeshkar. This song was written by Veer Savarkar for her father’s play Sanyasta Khadag.

Earlier in 2019, the veteran singer had posted a tweet recalling her close bond between her family and freedom fighter Veer Savarkar. The legendary singer posted a tweet providing details of her family’s association with Veer Savarkar.

“Veer Savarkar ji aur hamare pariwar ke bahut ghanisht sambandh the, isiliye unhone mere pitaji ki natak company ke liye natak ‘Sanyasta Khadag’ likha tha. Is natak ka pehla prayog 18th Sep 1931 ko hua tha, is natak mein se ek geet bahut lokpriya hua (the families of Veer Savarkar ji and ours were very close, so he wrote the play “Sanyasta Khadag’ for my father’s theatre company. This play was first staged on September 18, 1931, and a song from the play became very popular),” Ms Mangeshkar had tweeted while sharing the link to the song Shat Janma Shoditana.

Lata Mangeshkar would have left singing if it were not for Veer Savarkar’s timely advice

It is a little-known fact that early in her career, Lata Mangeshkar had made her mind of giving up singing to devote her time and energies to social service and for the welfare of the poor. Author Yatindra Mishra in his book ‘Lata: Sur Gatha‘ reveals how it was Veer Savarkar who dissuaded Lata Mangeshkar from taking that decision and inspired her to continue pursuing singing.

In his book, Mishra says Lata, in her teens, had taken a vow of engaging in social service. For this, she was involved in discussions and consultation with revolutionary freedom fighter Veer Savarkar, deliberating on different ways through which she could fulfil her vow. At one point when Lata was thinking of relinquishing her singing career to devote time for social service, Savarkar had talked her out of the notion and reminded her of her father, Deenanath Mangeshkar, who was then one of the leading lights in the Indian classical music and art firmament.

Savarkar had explained to her that one can still engage in the service of society by devoting oneself to music and singing. This affirmation helped Lata Mangeshkar radically upend her notions about a career in music being incompatible with her pledge of indulging in social service. She heeded Savarkar’s advice and completely immersed herself in music, becoming a legendary singer in the process. If it were not for Savarkar’s seminal counsel to Lata Mangeshkar, the world would have been bereft of one of the most transcendent singers to have graced the earth.

The ceaseless vilification of Veer Savarkar by successive Congress-led governments

But history has not been kind to the freedom fighter. Through a concerted attempt, Savarkar was constantly made an object of scorn and contempt by successive governments after India attained freedom in 1947. He was also falsely implicated in the murder of Gandhi Ji but was later exonerated for the lack of evidence against him.

Author Vikram Sampath recently came up with his concluding volume on freedom fighter Veer Savarkar, Savarkar: A Contested Legacy, 1924-1966, which chronicled the final leg of the freedom fighter’s extraordinary life. The book was released on 26 July 2021 and it instantly rekindled the debate surrounding the vigorous attempts made by successive Congress governments and left-liberal intelligentsia to falsely vilify the freedom fighter and besmirch his reputation.

All India Radio under Congress govt sacked Lata Mangeshkar’s brother Pandit Hridaynath for his musical composition on Veer Savarkar’s poems

The Mangeshkar family, comprising of Lata Mangeshkar and Usha Mangeshkar, other sisters and their only brother, Hridaynath, had been composing tunes based on poems written by Veer Savarkar. However, this did not sit well with the Congress party, which had assiduously created a narrative that villainised the freedom fighter. As a result, the All India Radio under the Congress rule had sacked Hridaynath Mangeshkar in 1954 for his musical composition on Veer Savarkar’s poems.

Years later, in an interview with ABP Majha, Hridaynath Mangeshkar admitted how he was fired from All India Radio because he chose to compose a poem written by Veer Savarkar. Mangeshkar said he was canned from his job at the All India Radio, only because he had dared to create a musical rendition of Veer Savarkar’s iconic poem wherein he extolled the sea to take him back to the motherland.

“I was working in All India Radio at that time. I was 17 years old and my salary was Rs 500 per month. It may be peanuts today but Rs 500 was considered a big fat salary during that time…but I was summarily fired from the All India Radio because I chose to create a musical composition for Veer Savarkar’s famous poem ‘Ne majsi ne parat matrubhoomila, sagara pran talmalala‘,” Mangeshkar said in Marathi.

In 2009, 100 years since Savarkar penned the popular poem Ne majsi ne parat matrubhoomila, sagara pran talmalala, Lata Mangeshkar recalled how the poem aroused patriotic fervour and was inspirational to not just Maharashtrians, but to all Indians.

Lata Mangeshkar had then lamented that Veer Savarkar did not get the respect he deserved in independent India. “Savarkar sacrificed a lot for the country. But independent India did not honour him and give his due,” Lata had bemoaned.

Watch: Farmer protestors stop Army convoy during Bharat Bandh, say they have to ‘verify’ if personnel are from India or Pakistan

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: Farmer protestors stop Army convoy during Bharat Bandh, say they have to ‘verify’ if personnel are from India or Pakistan

The Bharat Bandh called by the anti-farm law protesters saw unprecedented scenes around the country. In Jalandhar, army vehicles were stopped by the protesters and prevented from moving.

The protesters could be heard telling the Jawans that if they are from the army, then they should stand with the protesters. They asked why should they allow the vehicles to move. In a viral video the so-called ‘farmer protestors’ were even seen doubting the credentials of the Army personnel.

In a video, a farmer leader named Kashmira Singh was seen saying to a journalist, “We are verifying whether they are actually Army personnel, whether they even belong to Indian Army or have come from Pakistan. The entire country has been shut down due to our protest. We will allow the vehicle to go only after proper verification. We are verifying credentials, and taking pictures of number plates of each vehicle because the whole Punjab is sitting on the road blocking traffic, how else are we to verify. We are only allowing patients to pass through.”

In Bengaluru, one protester ran over the feet of the DCP with his car. The accused has been arrested by the police.

The 10-hour Bharat Bandh was called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha in their bid to pressurise the government into repealing the farm laws. The shutdown began at 6 am in the morning and will remain in force till 4 pm.

Protesters have sat on railway tracks to prevent the passage of trains and have also blocked highways to prevent the movement of people and goods. Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has thrown his support behind the protesters. Fellow dynast Priyanka Vadra Gandhi, too, has come out in support of the Bharat Bandh.

However, it has failed to make much of an impact as people have continued to go about their daily routine disregarding the call to bring the country to a halt.

Ahead of Diwali, UK’s Royal Mint launches first ever gold bar featuring Goddess Lakshmi

OpIndia Staff
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Ahead of Diwali, UK’s Royal Mint launches first ever gold bar featuring Goddess Lakshmi

On the occasion of Dhanteras, the Hindu community worldwide purchases gold bars, ornaments and coins. Gold is often associated with wealth and prosperity. Ahead of Diwali, the Royal Mint in the United Kingdom has prepared a gold bullion bar with the picture of Goddess Lakshmi engraved on it, reported The Times of India.

Designed by Emma Noble, it is the first-ever gold bar by the Royal Mint that bears the image of a Hindu deity. For the project, Noble collaborated with Shree Swaminarayan Temple in Cardiff in England and it helped to maintain cultural accuracy. The gold bullion bar contains 20g of 999.9 fine gold and cost about ₹1,00,000 (£1,080). Goddess Laxmi is shown standing on a lotus while the packaging contains the sacred ‘Om’ symbol.

It will be sold on the official website of Royal Mint at 9 am local time (1:30 pm IST) on Tuesday in the United Kingdom. It will be blessed by the Shree Swaminarayan Temple during Lakshmi Puja on November 4 this year. The event will be attended by the officials of the Royal Mint. Times of India reported that Royal Mint UK had launched a henna-inspired package of 1g and 5g regular gold bars in 2020.

While speaking about the matter, Andrew Dickey remarked, “With gold being a traditional and auspicious gift during the Diwali festival, we wanted to develop a product that incorporates both beauty and tradition, but with a modern twist.” Dickey is the Divisional Director for precious metals for the company.

The Royal Mint is government-owned mint that produces coins for the United Kingdom. It operates under legal name of The Royal Mint Limited and is wholly owned by Her Majesty’s Treasury. It has exclusive contract to supply all of nation’s coinage.

PM directs clearance of all pending grievances and assurances by October 31, govt set to clear old files

OpIndia Staff
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PM directs clearance of all pending grievances and assurances by October 31, govt set to clear old files

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has issued a directive to dispose of all pending public grievances and complaints by October 31. The Indian Government will also clear all pending assurances given to Parliament, MPs, state governments and conclude all inter-ministerial consultations.

As part of the exercise, all the unwanted, old files along with obsolete material will be disposed. As per instructions from Cabinet Secretariat, all ministries, departments and subordinate offices from September 13 had started preparing the material and identifying the scope of the work. 

Conveying the orders of the Prime Minister, Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba in his letter to all the ministries said, “…The existing processes may be reviewed with a view to reducing compliance burden and unnecessary paperwork done away with, wherever feasible.”

“It may be recalled that during his Independence Day address this year, the Prime Minister has emphasized the need to review existing rules and procedures on a continuing basis,” the letter read further. 

Additionally, the Cabinet Secretary has directed the ministries to review record retention rules before disposing of pending matters to ensure no records are prematurely destroyed or retained beyond a necessary time frame.

No pending assurances

As per parliamentary procedures, ministers while responding to questions in the House or during discussions on Bills, Resolutions or Motions give undertakings or promises to consider a matter, take action or furnish information later. This is known as assurance. 

Each assurance given by the ministers then becomes a separate file to be dealt with by the ministry. It is the right of Parliament to seek an explanation on assurances given to it. The exercise is expected to ensure that no assurance remains pending.

Exercise to commence on Gandhi Jayanti

Reportedly, the reviewing process is set to last till September 29 after which the disposal drive will be initiated. The exercise that commences on October 02 on Gandhi Jayanti is said to be part of the nationwide cleanliness campaign started by the NDA government.

Apart from the clearance exercise, the government this year also reduced the maximum time for the redressal of a complaint from 60 days to 45 days after observing that 87 per cent of the complaints get resolved within 45 days.

Hyderabad hate crime: Hindu boy beaten up by a mob for travelling with a Muslim girl

OpIndia Staff
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Hyderabad hate crime: Hindu boy beaten up by a mob for travelling with a Muslim girl

Telangana seems to be in the grips of vigilantism by unruly Muslim mobs who seemed to be policing the streets to prevent Muslim girls from travelling with Hindu boys. Another such incident has been reported from the state’s capital, Hyderabad, where a Hindu boy was allegedly thrashed by a group of people for riding with a Muslim girl on his two-wheeler.

The boy and the girl were stopped by a Muslim man and later few others also joined him to allegedly beat the boy, DCP West Zone was quoted as saying by the Times Now. The incident is apparently three days old but it came to the fore after a video of it went viral on social media websites.

As per the police, the accused has been arrested and a case has been registered against him under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. They further added that interrogation of the accused is underway to identify others who were involved in the incident.

Similar incidents were reported in Telangana

The hate crime against the Hindu boy came hot on the heels of several such incidents reported in Telangana where Muslim men stopped Muslim women who were riding with Hindu men. They were not only ridiculed in public but the Hindu men were also brutally beaten up.

In one case, a Hindu Dalit man was allegedly kidnapped by a group of Muslim men for riding with a Muslim woman and beaten up. He was released later when local RSS leaders intervened. It was only after his brother and local leaders supported him that he was able to file a case against the Muslim men who had kidnapped him.

Muslim mob in Bengaluru assaults Hindu man for riding with a Muslim woman

Recently, a similar incident of a Hindu boy being thrashed by a Muslim mob was also reported from the southern metropolis of Bengaluru after an undated video of the incident started making the rounds on the internet. In the video, a Muslim mob stopped a Hindu man who was riding a bike with a Muslim woman. The men in the mob were then seen threatening the Hindu man and asking him to not ride with a Mulsim woman again. The Muslim woman was forced to give out her family’s phone number and ridiculed for riding with a Hindu man.

Responding to the video being shared on Social Media, Karanataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai informed that two accused persons have been arrested in the case. He said that Bengaluru City Police acted swiftly in the case of assault on a bike rider travelling along with a woman of a different faith. He tweeted that a case has been registered and legal action has been initiated against the accused.

Prime Minister Modi to set-up digital archive to honour Central Vista construction workers

OpIndia Staff
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Prime Minister Modi to set-up digital archive to honour Central Vista construction workers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the setting-up of a digital archive for all construction workers engaged at the Central Vista construction site as a tribute to their efforts.

A tweet posted by the Prime Minister’s Office said, “PM @narendramodi stated that after the new Parliament is ready, a digital archive for all construction workers engaged at the site must be set-up, which should reflect their personal details including their name, place they belong to and picture as a tribute to their efforts.”

PM Narendra Modi also declared that certificates would be issued to all the workers involved at the construction site to honour them for their role and participation in the historic endeavor.

Last night, Prime Minister Modi also made a surprise visit to the Central Vista construction site only hours after arriving from the USA. There he inspected the ongoing work of the new Parliament building. The images of the PM spending time inspecting the construction site also went viral on social media.

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