German Ambassador to China and former foreign policy advisor to Angela Merkel, Jan Hecker passed away suddenly only days after he took the office. The reason behind the death not yet confirmed.
Germany’s Foreign Ministry website in its statement said, “It is with deep sadness and dismay that we learned of the sudden death of the German ambassador to China.”
According to reports, Ambassador Hecker had appeared happy and alright during an event at Beijing with German artist Joseph Beuys last friday, a guest at the event had said.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin responded saying, “We are shocked to learn about the sudden death of Ambassador Hecker, who had been working actively to promote China-Germany relations since assuming his post.” He also said that the Chinese government would help Hecker’s family. According to the Chinese Embassy, Hecker joined his office on August 24.
Jan Hecker, 54, was a confidant of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and member of the team coordinating refugee policy in the migrant crisis of 2015 and played a crucial role in Angela Merkel’s mission of resettling the refugees.
Angela Merkel expressed grief in a statement that she made on Monday. “I am profoundly shaken by Jan Hecker’s death,” she said adding, “I mourn for a highly valued, longstanding adviser of deep humanity and outstanding expertise.” The statement further added “I think with gratitude of our work together and am happy to have been so closely tied to him for years. My deepest sympathy goes out to his wife, his children and his other loved ones in their immeasurable grief.”
Germany and European Union flags at the Germany embassy in Beijing flew at half mast on Monday.
In February 2021, OpIndia reported an alleged iPhone scam in which a person identified as Neel Patel, alias Hitesh Patel was involved. It was reported that Patel had created an influential status on social media platforms and formed connections with some high profile and influential people. He allegedly used the influence to dupe hundreds of people who bought both iPhones and Android phones, hoping they will get the device at cheaper rates.
At that time, there was little information available about his other ventures like Squeakcoins and eGyaan that was added in the report. Recently, OpIndia was approached by some of the victims of various alleged scams ran by Patel. These victims not only shared their stories and explained how Patel operated for months conning several hundred people but also shared several documents including FIRs, recordings and chat screenshots as proof of their side of the story.
How Hitesh Patel created a positive image on social media?
Patel started actively posting on Twitter around the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. As he had a verified Twitter account that was later found to be allegedly bought from a hacker, people thought of him as a genuine person. He actively provided support to NGOs and individuals who were in need of funds during the Covid-19 pandemic. In the meantime, he also showcased his lavish lifestyle in the United States and claimed that he was a well-established investor and trader.
The beginning of the scams
He kept building a positive image on Twitter till October 2020, when he first announced the iPhone scheme around Diwali. As he already had established himself as a trustworthy person and was in contact with several social media celebrities, people trusted him and ordered “cheap” iPhones, Android smartphones, laptops and tablets from him. In the meantime, he also offered coupons to some celebrities and those who were selflessly helping people during the Covid-19 period.
OpIndia had reported in February that several buyers did not get their smartphones and other devices despite waiting for months. Though Patel claimed the devices were only delayed, and there was no scam, in reality, several people who had invested their money in the scheme are still waiting for either device or refund.
The online trading course
In November 2020, Patel announced a trading course by the name “eGyaan Market Makers Course – With Job”. It was supposed to be a course on financial independence and stock market investment. Patel offered two options for the potential students. The first option was to just learn the course for Rs.499, and the second was for Rs.44,999, in which he would not only teach but also offer a job after completion of the course.
Screenshot of the course+job offered by Neel Patel
Devendra Sorout, one of the victims of the alleged scams, also joined the course by paying Rs.45,000 and thought he would get a job at the end of the course. He said, “Neel promised us that once we complete the course, we will be well versed in trading. He also promised to give us a license which was required in case we want to manage someone else’s trading account. We trusted him.”
Another victim Srikant Kaushik said, “I took the Rs. 44,999 course which had forex/stock training for three months, $1000 credit for trading and a free tablet and job guarantee for two years with a salary between 50k and 1 lac.”
Patel had promised that he would pay Rs.50,000 for the first three months and Rs.1 lakh for the next 21 months. He also promised to provide a Tablet from Samsung or another similar company that would be worth Rs.25,000 to Rs.30,000. Apart from these, he also offered free recharge on one sim card for five years and a license from the third party that would make his students certified traders so that they can manage clients’ trading accounts in future.
Reportedly, around 230 people opted for Rs.45,000 course, and another 200+ opted for just learning sessions without the job guarantee. The course was started on December 26, 2020.
Srikant said that the course continued for three months, and Neel taught his students the basics of trading three days a week in one-hour per day classes. However, he never fulfilled his promise to provide a tablet.
The victims have alleged that the promised jobs were not provided by Hitesh on the pretext that the clients were not paying.
Hitesh Patel denied these allegations and blamed the students for missing deadlines. He also said that he wants ‘time’ to provide refunds.
The Ethereum scam
After three days of starting the classes, Neel came up with an opportunity for the students during the Webex meeting. He claimed that it was the right time to buy a crypto-currency ETHEREUM (ETH) that, according to him, had the potential to grow multi-fold in the coming months. He urged the students to invest in ETH through his Squeaks website, where he allegedly sold ETH coins that no other site was authorized to do.
At that time, 1 ETH was sold between the price range of Rs.46,000 to Rs.80,000 depending on when people invested in the scheme that ran from December 28, 2020, to January 7, 2021. Reportedly, over 200 ETH coins were bought during that period. Patel allegedly promised the students that whoever invests in ETH via his platform would get returns up to three times under his auto trading platform “Coingenius”.
Screenshots of eGyaan chat group where Patel was urging students to invest in ETH
While Sorout had invested around Rs.2.2 lakh, Kaushik invested around Rs.18,000 in ETH. He also urged everyone to encourage their relatives to invest in ETH. When someone questioned if they had to sell ETH, he said, “You do not have to sell but only tell others what would they get by keeping Rs.1 lakh in the bank.”
To lure more investors, he reportedly claimed that whoever would invest in his Coingenius platform would add 25% from his pocket. The investors were told that there was a locking period of three months, and they would not be able to withdraw any funds from ETH investment during that time. Later in March, when ETH rose to Rs.1,55,000 in the market, people started to ask Patel to provide 3-times with the investment. Patel then claimed that he was only using the platform to lure more customers, and it was a fake. The victims claimed that he also denied the additional 25% that he promised on investing in his platform.
When investors asked him for the ETH without the profits he promised, he said they could withdraw it in April 2021. During that period, the iPhone scam came to light. To make sure his investors believe him, he did clear payments of some small investors but did not clear the pending withdrawals of large investors and the majority of the investors are still waiting for their money.
The Bullrun scam
The last scam that he allegedly played on the eGyaan students was Bullrun which turned out to be a dummy forex trading platform. He claimed that if someone invests $100 on the platform, the company will give that person $1000 for trading. Devendra said, “Patel was expecting everyone to lose money on the trading platform. However, on the contrary, people made profits. When they finally started withdrawing the money, Patel took back the credit for many students.” He also deducted money from other investments for those who lost money in forex trading on a dummy platform.
One of the victims approached a forex trading expert and a trader to know if Bullrun was a genuine platform. At first glance, the expert claimed that it was not a genuine platform as it did not contain the information that every trading platform is legally bound to show on its homepage.
The expert claimed Bullrun was a dummy platform
The Bitcoin plan
After getting investors for ETH, he also urged his students to invest in BTC (Bitcoin) BLOCK trading scheme. He alleged that if someone invested a minimum of Rs.10 lakh in BTC via him, the investor would make crores in Bitcoins within a few months as “block trading is done on a bigger scale”. He further alleged that it was an easy way to multiply money and claimed to have invested a large amount himself in the scheme.
Screenshot of the group chat where Neel Patel urged his students to invest in Bitcoin
The victims claimed that he took around Rs.2 crore under the said scheme from them. The eGyaan members who later became the investors and turned into a victim of his allegedly well-spun con are still waiting for any amount from the scheme. They are not bothered about the profits and want only the principal amount back that they had invested.
Denying these allegations, Neel Patel has cried vendetta and said that some people are claiming such things because they have ‘vested interests’ against him.
Neel used the investors as a troll army
The victims we talked to claimed that Neel Patel had used his students who had invested large amounts in his schemes were used as a troll army on social media platforms. He would ask his students to counter each and everyone who raises questions over any of the schemes introduced by Neel, including those who bought phones at a lower price from him and were waiting for the devices. As a result, anyone who wanted to call Patel out on social media was bombarded with hate messages.
They further claimed that one of the admins in the eGyaan group (Alkesh) to run Patel’s propaganda not to allow anyone to question him on social media or in eGyaan groups. “If dared to question him in the group, the person would be called a traitor and thrown out with their payments or with the basic amount,” said the victim.
The story of Squeakscoin
In January, Patel informed the students that he was launching his own crypto-currency and named it Squeaks Coin (SQU). He claimed that the coin was ready to be launched, and he would give SQU worth 5 lakh to every eGyaan member for free. It was claimed that there would be two formats of the coin.
One would derive its value from the market, and another would be gold-backed. He set the price of the coin at Rs.1,32,775. He promised to give one coin for free to anyone who buys a coin. Patel claimed the withdrawals of the amount against coins could be done after two months for the first and six months for the second coin. Reportedly, no one was paid after six months against the coins.
Another alleged scam called Naaradpay
In February 2020, he came up with another scheme by the name Naaradpay which was an e-Wallet like PayTm. He offered two schemes to the eGyaan students. Under the first scheme, one would invest Rs.9,999 and get Rs.1,000 for recharges for three years. The second scheme was for Rs.29,999, under which the investor would get Rs.5,000 in their NaaradPay account for three years.
In case someone sells the plan to family or friends, they would get SQU coins worth the amount of the plan(s) they sold. One of the victims, Brij Kaushik, who talked to OpIndia and told his ordeal, said that he had invested Rs.1,00,000 in the Naarad Pay scheme. Sorout had invested Rs.40,000 and on his recommendation, his three friends also invested. Patel paid everyone for two months, but in April 2021, he discontinued the service claiming his staff was not available due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Srikant said, “Notably, he had sold a maximum of his schemes during the pandemic period, but when the time came to pay back the investors, he made an excuse of Covid. Such irony…” Sorout echoed Srikant and said, “I had invested a lot of money in his schemes and urged my friends and family to invest as well. Everyone got scammed in the hands of a conman.”
To these allegations, Patel has again claimed that he will return the money but needs ‘time’.
The FDC scam
Even though people were getting scammed multiple times and questions were being raised against him, Patel managed to keep the majority of the investors, aka eGyaan students, with him. In March 2021, he told everyone about a new scheme in which he urged everyone to invest in a US company named FDC Tech INC. He claimed that he would get shares of the company at 30 cents against the actual price of 60 cents as he was buying shares worth Rs.2 crore directly from the CEO. He told anyone can join him by investing as low as Rs.25,000 and promised he would pay 14% dividends every month for six months.
The catch was that the investment would stay locked for six months. Several people invested, but no one got stocks or dividends as promised by him. Srikant said, “Notably, in the contract, he sold US company’s stock from his Indian company named SQUEAKS TECHNOLOGY (OPC) Pvt Ltd.” He allegedly collected Rs.50 lakh under the scheme and never paid anyone back.
How is Patel avoiding withdrawals?
During January and March, Neel informed the investors that ETH is blocked for three months. Some of the investors asked him for withdrawals during the lock period due to family emergencies and due to doubts raised against him. He did pay some of them but deducted 42% of the investment as charges for early withdrawal.
When people started withdrawing their investments after the three-month lock period, he said the withdrawal process would start on April 1, and the money would get transferred in the accounts within 7-8 days. On April 1, he made some excuse and asked everyone to initiate withdrawals on April 19. When the date came, he alleged that he would be sending money to India and payments will be made from his Indian account.
Then came the shocker. He said those who had lost money in Bullrun have to get the losses deducted from ETH withdrawals. Such condition was never mentioned in front of the investors before. The victims alleged that Patel gave wrong advice to the investors, due to which some of the people incurred heavy losses. Patel also blamed RBI for not releasing around $5,00,000 that he had transferred to India. He continued to stick on his claim until June end.
In May 2021, he came up with another option for withdrawals and asked the investors to create an account on Veem. In the days ahead, he only paid around $2000-$3000 to the small investors. After that, once people started to believe him against, he allegedly issued fake receipts and claimed he had processed the payments and it would take 3-4 days for the amount to show in their accounts.
Alleged fake receipt shared by Patel with investors
In June 2021, he claimed that he has opened a new business account in the US and would do batch wire transfers. He alleged everyone would get money by June 21 2021. However, nothing happened as such. He claimed to have sent money to four people during that period. Two of the payments were put on hold, and one was reversed as he had charged back on the payment. Only one payment got through.
Complaints against Neel Patel
Neel Patel, alias Hitesh Patel is now facing multiple complaints filed against him across the country. OpIndia accessed a few FIRs registered against Patel. In one of the FIRs, the complainant listed several investment schemes he had invested in. One of the victims had invested close to Rs.5,00,000 in different schemes at the behest of Patel, and now he is running from corner to corner to get his money back.
Another FIR mentioned victim’s name as Suresh Kumar Soni, who had invested Rs.2,34,874 in different schemes, and his friend(s) had invested Rs.1,89,875 on his recommendation making it a total of Rs.4,24,748.
In his complaint, Suresj provided information of the investment he had made.
There are several other complaints filed against Neel. These complaints have been registered under different sections, including Section 420, 467, 468, 471, 406 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 66D of the IT Act.
Allegations of money laundering
There are allegations of money laundering against Neel Patel. One of the victims alleged that he had transferred Rs.90 lakh that he had collected from the investors in his Indian company’s account to one Nobat Singh’s account, and they got it transferred to the United States. Though they had provided a screenshot of the statement of fund transfers that took place in December and January, OpIndia could not independently verify the claims.
Transfers made to the account of Nobat Singh worth 90 lakh
Neel Patel claimed, “I am telling you again, they paid me to buy Ethereum for them. How can I invest the money if I don’t get it in my account? Hence the transfers. There is no case of money laundering. If ED or any law enforcement agency look into my accounts, they would laugh over the allegations against me.”
Allegations against Patel’s father
The victims alleged that at first, Patel’s father seemed uninformed about what his son was doing. When some of the victims approached his father, he claimed to have no knowledge and promised them that he would help them in getting their money back. However, later he stopped picking up their calls and a few days back, Patel’s family in India has allegedly left their home and hiding somewhere else.
Allegations of threatening calls and messages
Some victims had alleged that Patel started to threaten them when they asked for their money. One of the victims, who is a married woman, was allegedly verbally abused by Patel over the call. We accessed an audio file where Patel was allegedly heard using curse words against the victim’s mother. OpIndia tried to reach out to the victim to verify the allegations but could not find more details. Similar threats were allegedly made by Patel towards other victims as well.
Navbharat Times, in a report in August, mentioned that Patel threatened the victims when they asked him to return their money.
Hitesh’s reply to the allegations
Hitesh claimed that all the recordings that were provided to OpIndia were edited. “In the audio that they claim I am abusing a lady, I can assure you that the conversation was not even with a lady. It was a man who was continuously abusing my wife”, he claimed. He said, “I cannot even show you what kind of derogatory and disturbing messages me and my family have received. If someone keeps abusing my family, how can they expect me not to abuse back?”
In the end, Hitesh said that he has no plans to run away and he is determined to refund the money but he needs time. “I will get it from the investors or the court, depending on their choice, not mine.” he also shared a link to a website where the details of pending refunds could be found. In the note on the website, he has promised to refund the amount in three months.
Statement on squeaksrefunds.com
Note: We have approached other victims as well and waiting for their response in the case. The story will be updated accordingly.
TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien on Monday took to Twitter to spread misinformation regarding the coronavirus vaccination drive undertaken by the government of India.
Derek O’Brien’s misleading tweet
O’Brien, who used to host a quiz show in the 1990s, when an entire generation grew up being in awe of the knowledge he displayed back then, claimed that of the total population in India, not even half the population has been given one dose.
However, the data he presented is misleading.
In India, only those who are above the age of 18 are eligible for getting the coronavirus vaccines. Most countries, for that matter, are administering vaccines to only those who have attained the age of 18 years. Hence, to put things in perspective, the population O’Brien should be using as base should have been eligible adult population of India and not the whole population of India, which stands at little over 130 crore.
As per 2011 census, 30% of Indians were under the age of 15 and about 19.8% people fell within the age group of 15-24. That means, one could say approximately 40% of Indian population is under the age of 18.
That means, out of say 130 crore people in India, which is around 78 crore. Now, considering population would have obviously increased over the years, these projections would not be accurate. So let us assume total adult Indian population is about 90 crore.
As per CoWIN dashboard (the same source which O’Brien claims to have used for his misleading infographic), almost 70 crore doses have been administered till now.
Vaccine doses administered as on 6th September, 2021
Of these, about 53 crore doses have been first doses and 16 crore have been second doses.
Coming back to O’Brien’s claims, if say adult population in India is approximately 90 crore, or say even 100 crore (because, let us be generous), if over 53 crore people have received one dose, that means it is more than half the total adult population.
Essentially, ‘majority’ of the India’s eligible population has been given at least one dose of coronavirus vaccines. But to play petty politics, Derek used the total population as base, even though children, that is approximately 40% of India’s population is not even eligible for vaccination.
The BJP MLAs in Jharkhand Monday embraced a unique way to oppose the Jharkhand government’s controversial decision to allow a separate Namaz room in the state Assembly. Before the session began for the day, the BJP MLAs on Monday sat on the stairs at the entrance of the Vidhan Sabha and protested against the decision by performing Bhajan Kirtan.
BJP Jharkhand took to its official Facebook page to share a snippet of a video where many BJP MLAs are seen performing Hari Kirtan and chanting Jai Shri Ram slogans as they dance to the tunes of traditional instruments like Dholak and Manjeera.
The BJP leaders also hold placards calling for the discriminatory order to be overturned and demanding prayer halls for other religions as well.
Terming the decision ‘unconstitutional’, BJP has also been demanding that a separate room should also be allotted to Hindus in the state Assembly to recite Hanuman Chalisa.
BJP leader Babu Lal Marandi said that the temple of democracy should stay as the temple of democracy only. He added that the allotment of a separate room at the assembly for Namaz is wrong.
Former speaker and BJP leader CP Singh has also made similar demands and said that a Hanuman Temple should be built in the Assembly premises.
Jharkhand Govt to allot a dedicated room to offer Namaz in state assembly
The controversy erupted after the ruling JMM-Congress government issued a notification dated September 2 and signed by Jharkhand Legislative Assembly Deputy Secretary Naveen Kumar by order of the speaker stating that a room will be allotted for offering namaz in the new assembly building. The order read, ” “Allotment of room number TW 348 as the Namaz Hall for offering Namaz in the new Assembly Building”. The foundation stone of the new Jharkhand Assembly was laid on June 12, 2015, after which it was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019. This building is the first paperless Assembly in the country.
Presently, the 81 member Jharkhand Legislative Assembly has four Muslim MLAs. Two MLAs are from the Congress party- Irfan Ansari and Alamgir Alam. The other two – Dr Sarfaraz Ahmad and Haji Hussain Ansari – belong to Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).
The decision of the Jharkhand Assembly Speaker to allot a dedicated space for Muslims inside a secular institution such as Vidhan Sabha has evoked a strong response across the state.
On September 5, farmer unions held a ‘Mahapanchayat’ in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, in which reportedly lakhs of farmer protestors participated to protest against the Government of India. The aim, as per the farmer leaders, was to force the central government to repeal the three agriculture laws that were enacted in September 2020.
The farmers have been protesting against these laws since November 2020 at the Delhi border. Interestingly, the farmer protestors who came to attend Muzaffarnagar Mahapanchayat mixed Agriculture laws with CAA and NRC for some unknown reason.
‘The three black laws are CAA, NRC and NPA’ claimed farmer protestors
Hindustan 9, an online News Channel, published a ground report of Mahapanchayat at Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. Rohit Sharma, the journalist from Hindustan 9, asked a few questions to the farmer protestors who were going to attend the Mahapanchayat. A person who identified himself as Mohammad Danish said that he came with a group of farmers from a nearby village.
Danish said, “We came with the aim to protest against the three black laws enacted by the Government of India. The protests under the leadership of Rakesh and Naresh Tikait have been happening at the Ghazipur border for the last nine months. The government should repeal these black laws that are against the interest of the farmers.”
Rohit questioned if he knows about the black laws, to which Danish said, “Yes, I know. One is NRC (National Register of Citizens), NPR (National Population Register), and there is one more that I forgot.” Rohit asked if he was talking about CAA (Citizen Amendment Act), to which Dinesh said, “Yes, Yes! That one.” Rohit confirmed, “So you are attending Mahapanchayat against these three laws?” and Danish said yes.
‘We will throw out these Gujarati Baniyas who sold the country’
Another farmer protestor who joined the conversation claimed that BJP was brought in power for progress, but they have done nothing. “All they do is Hindu and Muslim,” he alleged. “I am telling you these are foreign invaders. We will throw them out just like we threw out the British. These are Gujarati Baniyas. They are selling the country,” he said.
Another protestor who identified himself as Shaan Mohammad said that because of the government, they do not have anything to eat. While he was talking to the reporter, a group of men came and took all of them away. There was another protestor who was holding sugarcane in hand and said, “Our food has been locked in safes. We are going to reclaim our food. If we know how to make government, we can throw them out of power too.” A protestor named Deepak and said, “We will finish the roots of Modi.”
Clueless protestors and clueless leaders
Recently, Rubika Liyaquat of ABP News had questioned Rakesh Tikait during an interview and asked which portions of the law were problematic according to him. Tikait, who was confident a few minutes earlier, fumbled and asked her if she was on the government’s payroll. While he kept calling the laws “black laws”, Tikait ignored answering which parts of the farm laws are problematic to him and how. He kept diverting the questions and launching personal attacks on the anchor.
Farmer protests to CAA protests –everyone is just clueless
In November 2020, when the protests at the Delhi border were at their initial stage, a reporter had asked the protestors about the laws they were protesting against, to which one of them said, “I do not know. I came here for employment, let farmers & labourers see to it…” Another protestor revealed that he was not a farmer but a labourer. One protestor claimed that his father was a farmer, and he was attending the protests as “his company has been closed.” They were unclear about MSP as well. Interestingly, the Kisan Ekta Sangh leader was clueless about the laws but claimed he was there to throw the government out of power.
Similar clueless protestors were seen at anti-CAA protests. The so-called ‘liberals’ and many Leftist media outlets had publicised the false notion that the CAA will strip the Muslims of India of their citizenship and a lot of ‘protestors’ were led to believe that.
During the protests, a young woman at the Mumbai August Kranti Maidan had said she was there to make a strong point to the government and show her dissent no matter how much the government tried to ‘throttle’ her voice. As the reporter asked her regarding what the protest was really about, the lady protestor was perplexed and did not have an idea about why people were protesting.
Sadly, both the protests led to riots and violence in Delhi. Anti-CAA protests had led to anti-Hindu riots of February 2020. The farmer protests led to the Republic Day riots in 2021. Several cases have been filed in connection to the two instances of mob violence and investigations/trials are underway.
Women in Afghanistan have again taken to the streets to demand fundamental rights be guaranteed to them under Taliban rule. The protest on Monday comes days after a similar protest turned violent, with allegations made that the Jihadist outfit attacked the women with tear gas shells.
Visuals of the protests are circulating on the internet.
The Taliban is attempting to stop journalists from covering the protest.
Taliban terrorists stopping journalists from covering a protest by Afghan women for their rights. Taliban fears women the most in Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/33tuvEA5dv
The protesting women are demanding education, employment apart from a guarantee for their fundamental rights.
#Balkh: A number of women protested in Mazar-e-Sharif today. The women say they should be given a role in the next government and system. The women also demanded education, employment and protection of their rights.
Visuals from the protests show that there are not too many women present at the anti-Taliban protests, indicating that the sentiment may not be widespread.
A #Taliban police vehicle tries to disrupt women’s protest in #Mazar-e-Sharif city, Balkh province.
The protests have attracted a counter-demonstration from other women supporting the Taliban while chanting ‘Death to America’.
Religious conservative women in #Mazar-e-Sharif city marched today in support of my the Taliban chanting “Death to America and their servants!”pic.twitter.com/y7PToOVAwB
The protest and the counter-protest comes at a time when there are concerns for women’s rights in Afghanistan. Recently, it was reported that the Taliban shot dead a woman who was eight months pregnant in front of her husband and children. The woman was a police officer.
Former Congress President and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi took to Twitter today to share a picture to hail ‘farmers’ who had gathered in large number to agitate against the central government’s three farm laws. Using #FarmersProtest, the senior Congress leader captioned the post in Hindi which translates to ‘Bharat Bhagya Vidhata is standing here, fearless’.
Rahul Gandhi’s Tweet posted on September 6
However, this time too, Rahul Gandhi chose an old, unrelated image to peddle his ongoing propaganda to malign the Modi government. The image is actually that of a Kisan rally that was held at Shamli, Uttar Pradesh, from February this year.
In fact, the same image which Rahul Gandhi tried to pass off as that of recent farmers’ protest is a picture by news agency PTI which was used by multiple media outlets.
The report published by The Tribune on February 6, 2021
Here is Congress mouthpiece National Herald using same image for an article on Shamli from February 5 this year.
Shamli mahasabha
Back then, Shamli administration had imposed prohibitory orders under CrPC section 144. Despite that, the ‘farmers’ had gathered.
Congress orchestrating ‘farmer protests’
The initial so-called farmer protests started in Punjab with explicit support of Punjab Congress leaders including Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh. Then other self-appointed politician-leaders too joined in as ‘farmer leaders’ like Rakesh Tikait and former AAP leader Yogendra Yadav.
The three new agriculture laws aim to help farmers to sell their produce to whoever they wish to while giving them the safety net of MSP as per existing system. However, this step which removes the middlemen from the transaction seems to have irked a few ‘farmers’ who have taken to streets to protest against the same. These protests have also seen participation from pro-Khalistan elements. On several instances during the so-called farm protests, banners of Khalistani proponent Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale were raised.
With high octane Uttar Pradesh state assembly elections coming up in just few months’ time, the politicians masquerading as ‘farmers’ have again come out in full force to have a proxy political campaign on behalf of opposition leaders against the ruling BJP. And as one can see, opposition parties like Congress has full ‘support’ to these protests.
Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh, reacted strongly to the recent attacks on Panjshir, allegedly by Pakistan forces. Tehran Times quoted Khatibzadeh as saying, “We are currently examining (the) possibility of foreign intervention in #Panjshir attacks.”
As per Tehran Times, Iran has condemned the bombing on the last standing bastion of resistance forces in Afghanistan.
#BREAKING Iran FM spokesman @SKhatibzadeh: The “martyrdom” of the Panjshir commanders is utterly disappointing. Iran in the strongest way condemns last night’s attacks. pic.twitter.com/VvqGo6X9XA
Calling the resistance forces members who lost their lives in the standoff as ‘martyrs’, Khatibzadeh assured that Iran is examining the events in the war-torn country.
#BREAKING Iran FM Spokesman @SKhatibzadeh: “I strongly warn that all red lines and obligations under international law must be observed. Iran is closely following developments in Afghanistan.”
“Iran considers inter-Afghan talks as the only solution to Afghanistan problem,” said Khatibzadeh. “I strongly warn that all red lines and obligations under international law must be observed,” the spokesperson said.
Khatibzadeh further advised against any outside intervention. “Afghan history shows that direct and indirect intervention will only result in the defeat of the aggressors,” said the spokesperson.
#BREAKING Iran FM Spokesman @SKhatibzadeh: Afghan history shows that direct and indirect intervention will only result in the defeat of the aggressors.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian in a call on Saturday with his foreign counterparts from Pakistan and China had stressed on the need for an ‘ intra-Afghan dialogue’ to establish peace in the country. The foreign ministers of Iran and China agreed that there is a need to form an inclusive government in Afghanistan with the participation of all tribes and groups.
‘Afghanistan must have a government based on people’s vote’: Iran
Addressing the Afghanistan issue in a first live interview, Iranian President Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi on Saturday also suggested that Afghanistan must have a government based on people’s votes.
“The issue of Afghanistan has shown that the presence of the Americans not only does not create security anywhere, but also undermines security,” said the President snubbing the USA for its unwarranted interference.
Raisi further informed that Iran currently has offered a safe haven to more than 3 million Afghans displaced from their homes. “The solution to the issue in Afghanistan is the establishment of a government based on people’s vote. The Islamic Republic has always favored the establishment of peace in Afghanistan to stop the bloodshed and fratricide in Afghanistan,” reiterated Raisi.
Hoping that peace will prevail soon Raisi had specified that it treats Afghanistan’s security issue as its own. “Afghanistan’s security is Iran’s security and we consider not only Afghanistan but also the security and peace of all our neighboring countries as our own security and peace and strengthening relations with them is a central issue and priority of Iran’s foreign policy,” Raisi concluded.
He also warned foreign entities against infiltrating in a bid to gain control over Afghanistan. “Foreigners should not seek to infiltrate in Afghanistan and want to oppress the Afghan people again. Everyone must allow the people of Afghanistan to decide their own destiny,” he said.
An eight month pregnant police officer in Afghanistan was shot dead by the Taliban at the Ghor province in the country, Daily Mail has reported. According to the report, eyewitnesses have said that the woman was executed in front of her husband and children after door-to-door searches. The woman has been identified as one Banu Negar.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujaheed claimed that the Jihadist outfit was not involved in the murder. He said, ‘We are aware of the incident and I am confirming that the Taliban have not killed her, our investigation is ongoing.’ The spokesman blamed it on ‘personal enmity or something else’.
According to the report, Banu Negar was shot dead at her home in Firozkoh, the capital of the province. Three men searched the house after arriving at her home, tied up the family member before proceeding to execute her. The incident occurred on Saturday.
The details of the murder remain murky as there is palpable fear of retribution among the people of Firozkoh. The BBC reported that relatives of the women had supplied gruesome images that showed a heavily disfigured body and a blood splattered wall.
The incident occurs on the backdrop of the Taliban attempting to portray itself as a moderate organisation. However, there have been multiple reports of the Jihadist group going door to door to hunt down those who collaborated with the American and NATO forces.
Only recently, the group had cracked down on women’s rights protesters in Kabul who had taken to the streets to demand greater participation for women in governance and other areas of public life. The protest had turned violent and the women had alleged that they were attacked with tear gas shells.
As per reports, the Taliban is believed to be holding at least six planes carrying Americans and Afghan refugees in a hostage-like situation at an airport in Afghanistan. The information was shared on September 5 by Rep. Michael McCaul, who is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. He said that the US State Department had cleared the flights, but “the Taliban will not let them leave the airport.”
New: CBS has learned multiple flights are being held on the ground at the Mazar-i-Sharif airport in Northern Afghanistan… by the Taliban. 1/
He further added, “In fact, we have six airplanes at Mazar-i-Sharif airport, six airplanes, with American citizens on them as I speak, also with these interpreters, and the Taliban is holding them hostage for demands right now.”
When host Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace asked him about the demands Talibs are making for the release, he said, “Well, they are not clearing airplanes to depart. They’ve sat at the airport for the last couple of days, these planes, and they’re not allowed to leave. We know the reason why is because the Taliban want something in exchange. This is really, Chris, turning into a hostage situation where they’re not going to allow American citizens to leave until they get full recognition from the United States of America.”
CBS News reported that the State Department told the members of Congress that planes are ready to evacuate American citizens and green card holders from Afghanistan to Qatar. However, the flights are currently being held at Mazar-i-Sharif by the Taliban.
A Congressional source informed CBS news that Talibs are holding the Americans hostages to “get more out of them”. There are around 600-1200 people on these flights, including 19 Americans waiting for OK from Talibs at a location outside the airport.
“The U.S. airfield in Qatar that has been standing by, ready to receive, is now beginning to pack up,” Marina LeGree, the executive director, told CBS News. “We hope visibility will add pressure to force a solution. Six days of talks are not encouraging.” 5/
The reports further suggested that the State Department, in an email, have asked the members of Congress to inform people who are trying to leave Afghanistan via Mazar-i-Sharif that the US government do not have air assets in the country and the airspace is no longer under US’ control. It further added that the State Department was offering guidance and assistance to private entities at the airport “with an emphasis on safety.”
An email from the State Department to members of congress — and viewed by CBS — acknowledged that charter flights are still on the ground at the Mazar-i-Sharif airstrip and have permission to land in Doha “if and when the Taliban agrees to takeoff. 2/
McCaul claimed that there are hundreds of Americans still waiting for the evacuation from Afghanistan. He further added that not even a single American had been evacuated since US troops left on August 31. He said, “I’ve been given the answer in the classified space, but it’s in the hundreds. We have hundreds of American citizens left behind enemy lines in Afghanistan as I speak. And also, very sadly, the interpreters who worked with our special forces, almost all of them were left behind and were not let in the gates at the airport at HKI [Hamid Karzai International Airport, Kabul] to get out.”
He added, “Obviously, we’re hopeful that, in the coming days, the Qataris will be able to resume air service out of Kabul. And, if they do, we’re obviously going to look to see if Americans can be part of those flights. We are going to find ways to get them — the ones that want to leave, to get them out of Afghanistan. This problem is going to get worse, not better, and it’s — we have left them behind. That’s the basic creed of the military.”
Ron Klain, Chief of Staff, White House, said that there are around a hundred Americans in the country and US Administration is trying to get them out. He said, “We are going to find ways to get them — the ones that want to leave — to get them out of Afghanistan. We know many of them to have family members, many of them want to stay, but the ones that want to leave, we’re going to get them out,” while talking to CNN.
He further added, “Obviously, we’re hopeful that, in the coming days, the Qataris will be able to resume air service out of Kabul. And, if they do, we’re obviously going to look to see if Americans can be part of those flights. We are going to find ways to get them — the ones that want to leave, to get them out of Afghanistan.”
President Joe Biden has faced flake from the lawmakers for completing the withdrawal of the US troops from Afghanistan though some Americans were still stuck in the war-hit country. Klain ‘hoped’ that in the coming days remaining Americans would get evacuated from Afghanistan.
