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Kerala: Woman goes to meet her ‘online friend’, gets gang-raped, four including main accused Ajnaz arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Kerala: Woman goes to meet her ‘online friend’, gets gang-raped, four including main accused Ajnaz arrested

32-year-old woman from Kollam, Kerala, who travelled 300 kms to meet her ‘online friend’ Ajnaz, whom she befriended on video streaming platform TikTok in Kerala’s Kozhikode, was allegedly gang-raped by him and his three other friends, Fahadh, Nijaz and Suhaib. As per reports, all four of the accused are now arrested.

The woman was also assaulted after intoxicating her by giving her drugs and alcohol a few days back. 26-year-old Ajnaz and 36 year old Fahadh were arrested on Friday and remanded into police custody. Nijaz and Suhaib, natives of Atholi, were taken into police custody on Saturday.

The woman came in contact with the assailant through online video sharing platform TikTok two years back. On pretext of love, Ajnaz invited her to Kozhikode to meet him. Once she reached there on Thursday, Ajnaz and Fahadh took her to a hotel on the outskirts of the city. First Ajnaz raped her and then invited Fahadh into the room. They allegedly forced her to drink alcohol and consume other drugs and raped her. They also filmed it on their phones.

The police said that two days back, Ajnaz brought her to the flat and by 11 PM, his two other friends who had booked another room in same hotel, too, raped her. The four also raped her on the terrace after drugging her, the police said. After the brutal assault, fearing that she may die, they dropped her at a private hospital and fled.

As per police, one of the accused as criminal antecedents. Chevayur police registered cases under section 376D of IPC and IT Act.

If Talibans are terrorist then Gandhi, Nehru were terrorists too, Darul Uloom Deoband’s Arshad Madani says

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If Talibans are terrorist then Gandhi, Nehru were terrorists too, Darul Uloom Deoband’s Arshad Madani says

Arshad Madani, the principal of Darul Uloom Deoband who is also president of Jamait Ulema-e-Hind doesn’t believe the Taliban as a terror outfit, and, he adorns Taliban and Talibanis as freedom fighters.

In an exclusive interview given to the Dainik Bhaskar, Madani said that if fighting against subjugation is terrorism then by this logic Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Maulana Hazrat Shekhuddin were also terrorists. It must be noted that the Taliban is believed to have drawn inspiration from the Deobandi movement which originated in Uttar Pradesh’s Deoband.

As Taliban has come to conquer Afghanistan a large number of Muslim scholars, politicians and leftist media are trying for the makeover the image of Taliban as ‘Good Taliban.’

“Anybody fighting against subjugation we don’t consider them as terrorist. We clap if Talibanis are fighting for independence because everybody has right to independence. If this is terrorism then Gandhi, Nehru and Shekhuddin were also terrorists, all those who fought against British government were terrorists,” Dainik Bhaskar quoted Madani saying this.

Taliban and Darul Uloom follow Deobandi brand of Islam that adheres to orthodox Islamism. Deoband in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh is the center of Darul Uloom where the Yogi Adityanath government has now planned to set-up elite commando unit of the Anti-Terrorist Squad.

Madani declined any connection between Taliban and Darul Uloom stating people like Shekhuddin had played a key role in freedom struggle of India by forming the ‘Azad Hind’ government in Afghanistan in 1915 to oppose Britishers. He said that Deobandi madarsa in Afghanistan were set-up that time only. However, he praises Taliban as an ideology that opposes slavery stating that Taliban has fought against Russia and America and broke shackles of slavery. He claimed that their ancestors also fought for ‘freedom’ (like Taliban). But denied having any association with Taliban.

But in the grand design of the expansion and return of the Islamic rule across the world; the physical contact doesn’t matter. What matters is how tactfully the ideological support base and perception of Good Taliban is created.

The allegedly fundamentalist Urdu poet Munawwar Rana,  the Congress MLA from Jharkhand Irfan Ansari , Samajwadi Party MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq, National Congress Chief Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party (JKPDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti are some of the examples.

As the Taliban regime has enforced the Sharia law in Afghanistan asking women to stay behind the veil and strictly forbidding the co-education Madani jumped to defend the Taliban stating that in Indian there are several colleges and universities that don’t allow co-education. Madani has been fundamentally opposed to co education for girls and he has displayed his mindset on several occasions.

While the return of Taliban is seen as the return of orthodoxy, male patriarchy and the barbaric laws; Afghani women are the prime casualty of this Islamic fundamentalism.     

Follow their strict rules or face; is the only option left for them in Afghanistan. However, Madani says the same thing different way. Can the women dare to protest? Here is the rulebook of protest for women as prescribed by Madani. “Behind the veil women can hold demonstration. Burqa means a loose dress that doesn’t reveal curves of their body and their beauty. Don’t apply lipstick and cream. Keep your body and gesture in control,” he said.

Madani doesn’t comment on the media reports of atrocities by Taliban stating that he is an academic person who neither read newspapers nor operates Whatsapp. “I do not involve myself in the matters concerning women,” he said.

While the world has become aware that the return of Taliban is the return of catastrophe; for Madni it is too early to comment. “They (Taliban) have not even started ruling properly. Let them operate with freedom first. Let them start ruling first,” he said.

Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, peaceful development of the Indo-Pacific region: Read what MEA S Jaishankar said at India Australia 2+2 dialogue

OpIndia Staff
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Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, peaceful development of the Indo-Pacific region: Read what MEA S Jaishankar said at India Australia 2+2 dialogue

Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar addressed the media at the first India Australia 2+2 ministerial dialogue held in New Delhi. He spoke about Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, democratic polities and market economies, peaceful development of the Indo-Pacific region among other things. The minister said that the 2+2 Dialogue reflects the comfort that the two countries have attained in the bilateral relationship, especially in strategic and security spheres, based on the growing convergence with Australia on security issues and India’s shared commitment for a free, open, prosperous and rules-based Indo-Pacific region.

S Jaishankar highlighted the India Australia engagement under the umbrella of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and mentioned discussing a range of bilateral, regional, and international issues with Australian Foreign Minister Payne. He said, “We have just concluded the first India Australia 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue. This format is reflective of our growing engagement under the umbrella of our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Before our meeting today, I met Minister Payne in the morning to discuss a range of bilateral, regional and international issues.”

MEA S Jaishankar then talked about democratic polities, market economies and pluralistic societies and the natural bonding that both the countries shared. He said, “As democratic polities, market economies and pluralistic societies, we have a natural bonding that has assumed contemporary relevance in a changing world. It was during the First India-Australia Virtual Leaders’ Summit held on 4th June, 2020 that our Prime Ministers agreed to elevate our relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This 2+2 format is a direct outcome of that Leaders’ Summit and is pursuant to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.”

S Jai Shankar then acknowledged the collaboration between India and Australia during these challenging times of Covid and mentioned the importance of decentralized globalization, strategic autonomy and a sharper sense of national security. He said, “Today, as the four Ministers came together for the first time, we discussed our experiences and further collaboration in responding to the COVID 19 challenges. Decentralized globalization, strategic autonomy, sharper sense of national security are some of the relevant outcomes. We also underlined our commitments to creating secure and resilient global supply chains. We welcomed the renewed vigour with which both sides are now engaging on trade issues to fully expedite the complementarities between us.

The peaceful development of the Indo-Pacific region has been a focus of our relationship. Our two countries believe that it should be shaped in a participative and collaborative manner. We reiterated our commitment to continue to work together for peace, stability and prosperity of all countries in the region. This would include a rules-based international order, freedom of navigation in international waters, promoting connectivity as well as respecting territorial integrity and sovereignty of all States.”

MEA S Jaishankar then accepted that Afghanistan was a major subject of discussion and agreed that the International Community must remain united in its approach, guided by the UNSC Resolution 2593. “During the 2+2 Dialogue, we also exchanged views on developments in our neighbouring regions. Afghanistan was understandably, a major subject of discussion. We agreed that the international community must united in its approach, guided by UNSC Resolution 2593.”

S Jaishankar recognized the importance of plurilateralism in a multipolar and rebalanced world and emphasized on the on-going cooperation in multilateral arena for preserving the rules-based international order.

Finally, he spoke about the problems faced by Indian students in Australia and those wishing to go to Australia as well as the Indian origin community residing in Australia.

In the 2+2 talks, External affairs minister S Jaishankar and defence minister Rajnath Singh held closed-door talks with their Australian counterparts Marise Payne and Peter Dutton in New Delhi on Saturday. The dialogue is aimed at further ramping up the overall defence and strategic cooperation between the two countries, including in the Indo-Pacific amid China’s increasing military assertiveness in the region.

Rana Ayyub blames ‘hate and propaganda’ after FIR was registered against her fundraising campaign: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Rana Ayyub blames ‘hate and propaganda’ after FIR was registered against her fundraising campaign: Details

Rana Ayyub has issued a statement after an FIR was registered against her in Uttar Pradesh over allegations of fraud. In her statement, she has made attempts to defend herself while labeling the claims of fraud a consequence of ‘hate and propaganda’.

The ‘journalist’ said, “The Hindu IT Cell has lodged a malicious and baseless FIR against me in Uttar Pradesh, alleging that I have fraudulently taken donations on Ketto for Covid relief work. I have been defamed, trolled and abused online on the basis this allegation. For the record, I wish to inform everyone that the entire donation received through Ketto is accounted for, and not a single paisa has been misused. The receipt of donations did not violate any law.”

The statement by Rana Ayyub (Source: @RanaAyyub/Twitter)

“Further, I have paid a heavy amount of tax on the donations, as directed by the CBDT, although I believe the donations ought not to have been taxed so that more money could be used for relief work. Such donations are exempt from taxes as per the policy and law of the land, and I am taking necessary steps in that regard with the CBDT. My accounts and the donations have both been scrutinized by the IT Department, and a fair investigation will bring out the truth for all,” she added.

Rana Ayyub proceeded to add, “Any amount of hate and propaganda will not stop me from pursuing my profession honestly, nor will I allow bullying tactics to prevent me from doing relief work when it is most needed.”

While Ayyub has claimed that the donations did not violate any law, that is for law enforcement authorities to investigate. Furthermore, she received donations from abroad without any FCRA registration. Therefore, it potentially is in violation of the law. Also, she says that the donations should not have been taxed but that would have been true only if she had receive the money through the account of a registered NGO.

In this case, Rana Ayyub sought donations through her personal account. Therefore, as per law, tax exemptions do not apply. The FIR against Ayyub in connection to allegations against her fundraising campaign was filed on 7th September at Indrapuram police station in Ghaziabad in UP in response to a complaint filed by Vikas Sakrityayan of the Hindu IT cell.

The FIR against Rana Ayyub

The complaint accused her of Money Laundering, Cheating, Dishonest Misappropriation of Property, Criminal Breach of Trust by illegally acquiring money from the general public in the name of charity. It said that Rana Ayyub happens to be a journalist by profession and was receiving foreign money without any kind of approval certificate/registration from the government, which is required as per the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010. Hence, she liable is also liable for violating the provisions of FCRA, the complaint had stated.

Based on this complaint, the FIR was registered under sections 403, 406, 418, 420 or the Indian Penal Code (IPC), section 66D of the IT Act and section 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

4 cops including two sub-inspectors suspended for trying to protect a cow slaughter accused in Uttar Pradesh

OpIndia Staff
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4 cops including two sub-inspectors suspended for trying to protect a cow slaughter accused in Uttar Pradesh

Four UP policemen were suspended for protecting an accused named Haidar in connection to a cow slaughter case that supposedly took place near the Khakhareru police station area of the Fatehpur district, Uttar Pradesh on Thursday.

The four policemen, sub-inspectors Shami Ashraf and Aneesh Kumar Singh, head constable Manoj Kumar, constable Rajesh Tiwari were suspended after the allegations of protecting Haidar against them were found to be true. According to the Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar Singh, a complaint was lodged against them by the villagers and a circle officer. The investigation was led by the circle officer Sanjay Singh.

Reportedly, Haidar was involved in an incident of illegal cow slaughter on Thursday in Khakhreru police station area, and he was being protected by the four cops from being prosecuted for violating the law.

The Khakhareru area in the Fatehpur district is allegedly infamous for cow slaughter. Only last year, a huge quantity of dead remains of cattle were found at a site in a nearby forest. The remains were eventually buried by the police without any further investigation when the local Hindu leaders filed a complaint.

Recently, a newly elected Village Head named Rakmuddin was arrested on the charge of cow slaughter at Barwakhad village in Sonbhadra district. The accused was allegedly hosting a beef party late at night when the villagers informed about the cow slaughter to the police.

Earlier this year, Cow smugglers attacked the UP Police and dragged a female constable by the neck. The incident occurred at the Sathla village in the Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh. Several raids were then conducted by the police which led to 3 quintal meat being seized along with butcher knives, plastic bags, carts and three bikes.

26 out of 27 signatories of the Lancet letter dismissing lab-leak theory of COVID-19 origin are linked to Wuhan researchers: Report

OpIndia Staff
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26 out of 27 signatories of the Lancet letter dismissing lab-leak theory of COVID-19 origin are linked to Wuhan researchers: Report

A new probe carried out by the Telegraph has revealed that 26 out of 27 scientists who wrote a letter in the Lancet medical journal trashing the lab-leak theory of the COVID-19 outbreak have or had links to researchers from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Ever since the coronavirus outbreak flared up in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, the ground zero of the pandemic that later swept across the world, scientists have been debating about the origins of the contagion, with the virus being leaked from a lab being one of the most widely believed hypothesis. Many had suspected that the virus was leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China where researches on the virus are regularly conducted.

But the clamour surrounding the leak of the virus from Wuhan was quelled after 27 scientists in the Lancet rejected the theory as baseless and insisted that the virus originated through conventional means. A letter written by the 27 scientists published by The Lancet in February 2020 had said that they “strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin,” and had claimed that scientists from multiple countries “overwhelmingly conclude that this coronavirus originated in wildlife.”

Being published in a respected medical journal, this letter had effectively shut down any serious probe into the lab leak theory for the origin of the virus at that time. While the authors of the letter had not revealed any link with the Wuhan lab, soon it was revealed that the letter was orchestrated by British zoologist Peter Daszak, president of the US-based EcoHealth Alliance, which funded research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

In June last year, the journal was forced to issue a clarification regarding Peter Daszak’s link with the laboratory, admitting that vital information was not revealed earlier when the letter was published.

At the time of publishing the letter, Daszak had failed to disclose his conflict of interest when signing the letter. Daszak’s organization, the EcoHealth Alliance, funnelled $3.4 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health to the Wuhan Institute of Virology to study bat coronaviruses between 2014 and 2019.

Now, the investigation by the Telegraph reveals that not just Daszak, but baring one all the signatories to the letter published in The Lancet medical journal were associated with the Wuhan Institute of Virology, raising concerns over the possible prejudice in dishing out a clean chit to their Chinese counterparts.

According to emails made public through Freedom of Information requests, Daszak had reportedly admitted on February 8 that he composed the letter after being shown support by his collaborators in China.

Besides, other researchers who are tied to the Wuhan Institute of Virology include, Dr Jeremy Farrar, a Tropical medicine expert and SAGE adviser & The Wellcome Trust, London. A member of the UK’s Sage and the director of the Trust, Farrar had also been a part of Britain’s Wellcome Trust, and has in the past published work with George Gao, the head of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, whom he has described as ‘an old friend’. Gao reportedly has close links to Dr Shi Zhengli, the infamous Chinese scientist have known by her moniker ‘batwoman’ for her research into bat coronaviruses in Wuhan.

Professor Linda Saif, a Microbiology expert, is another signatory who was found to be associated with the Wuhan Institute of Virology and was one of the signatories in the Lancet letter. Saif had earlier participated in a workshop partly organised by the Wuhan Institute of Virology in 2017, along with Gao and Dr Shi.

The investigation also revealed that the signatories were interlinked and had a symbiotic relationship with each other. For instance, two other signatories in the Lancet letter were also a part of the Global Virome Project, whose treasurer is none other than Dr Peter Daszak. The Global Virome Project, an organisation whose goal is to detect and identify 99 per cent or more of potential zoonotic viral threats, was launched with the help of Dr Gao, and EcoHealth Alliance is listed as one of the partners.

Intriguingly, the Global Virome Project succeeded the Predict project, which founded more than 1,000 unique viruses in animals and humans. It was also revealed in the investigation by the Telegraph that the Predict Project had also partly funded the controversial work of Wuhan researchers on bat coronaviruses, who researched ways to infect humans with the viruses.

Another scientist who was found to have links to Wuhan researchers is Professor John Mackenzie. A Tropical infectious diseases expert from Curtin University in Perth, Australia, Mackenzie did not reveal that he was still listed as a committee member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases at the Wuhan institute while signing the letter disregarding the lab-leak theory.

In addition, several other scientists, including Professor Kanta Subbarao, Professor Prof Ralph Baric, Professor Peter Palese, Professor Charles Calisher, Professor Bernard Roizman, were found to have some or other link to the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

While The Lancet had published an addendum on the link of Peter Daszak with the Wuhan Institute of Virology, it has not published any clarification regarding the other authors of the letter.

Out of 27 researchers who signed the Lancet letter, only one – Dr Ronald Corley, a microbiology expert from Boston University – was found to have no links back to funders or researchers at the Wuhan Institute.

‘Shoot in my head’: Afghan pop star Aryana Sayeed had told her fiancé to kill her if she was captured by the Taliban before Kabul escape

OpIndia Staff
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‘Shoot in my head’: Afghan pop star Aryana Sayeed had told her fiancé to kill her if she was captured by the Taliban before Kabul escape

The 36 years old Afghanistan’s popular pop star, Aryana Sayeed, who escaped safely from Afghanistan after the Taliban took control of Kabul, has exposed the real face of the Taliban to the world.

“I hope the world realizes that this is not the changed or new Taliban,” she said, adding that this was the same Taliban that had ruled Afghanistan from 1996 till 2001 when the terror attacks led to the US-led invasion. She demanded the world community not to recognize the new Taliban regime because they don’t treat people especially women humanly.

She has expressed her gratitude towards the Indian government for extending support to the citizens of Afghanistan and blamed Pakistan for empowering the Taliban which has left Afghanistan ruined.

“I do blame Pakistan. Over the years, we have seen videos, seen evidence that Pakistan is behind empowering the Taliban. Every time our government touches the Taliban, the identification reveals him to be a Pakistani person. So it is very obvious that I (would) blame them and hope that they would back off and would not interfere in the politics of Afghanistan anymore,” Sayeed said.

The pop singer, having around 1.4 million Instagram followers, has often dared Islamic fundamentalists by raising the voice for women through music and otherwise, public singing and her figure-hugging clothes. She had launched her own fashion brand in Kabul even if the ghost of Taliban was showing signs of return.

She never wanted to leave her country but she felt like a prisoner and there was definitely no space for her in Afghanistan because the Taliban was thirsty for her blood.

She recollected that when she was trying to escape from Afghanistan there was absolute chaos at the Kabul airport. She was wearing an all-enveloping veil to hide her identity. She shivered if she is caught alive by Talibanis and then she requested her fiancé Hasib Sayed to shoot her in her head if she is about to be taken away alive.

She and her fiancé Hasib Sayed first attempted to escape from Afghanistan on August 15 as they had made reservations on a commercial flight. But the overloaded plane could not take off. She said that there was total chaos at the airport. People desperate to leave the country were pushing each other. Children, babies, women were fainting because of a lack of oxygen and space.

Aryana Sayeed and Hasib Sayed

Both left the airport and took shelter with their relatives in Kabul. The next day Sayeed again went to the airport, wearing a veil with her young cousin as if they are a family on outing. Somehow she crossed all five Taliban check-posts undetected and reached the U.S. military-controlled airport. Sayeed was recognized by an Afghan citizen working as a translator for the Americans who told U.S. officials to save her life.

The ordeal finally ended and the couple flew out on a U.S. military plane on August 17. The couple made their way to Doha, Kuwait and the US, eventually returning to the flat they had in Istanbul.

Taliban had ruled Afghanistan from 1996-2001 when this radical outfit had perpetrated atrocities in the name of Islamic law.

Sayeed said that the women of Afghanistan are not the same women they were 20 years ago and they are definitely not going to accept this fundamentalist Islam.

Nine cases of rape and assault reported in recent weeks from Maharashtra: Uddhav Thackeray administration under scanner

OpIndia Staff
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Nine cases of rape and assault reported in recent weeks from Maharashtra: Uddhav Thackeray administration under scanner

After the heinous Sakinaka rape case, questions are being raised on the misgovernance of the Shiv Sena led Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra. People are enraged by the state’s lawlessness, which has emboldened criminals to perpetrate such heinous atrocities without fear of being caught by the authorities.

However, the Sakinaka rape case is only one of the many such crimes that have been committed in the state of Maharashtra in recent few days. In fact, recently, there has been a spate of gruesome and horrific rape cases in the state and in most cases, the perpetrators are roaming scot-free.

Below is a list of at least nine such cases that have been reported in the last few days in Maharashtra.

Sakinaka rape case

A 30-year-old victim was brutally raped and brutalised in Mumbai’s Sakinaka area in Andheri East, Mumbai, late on Thursday night (September 9). The police have said that the arrested accused, Mohan Chauhan, had raped the deceased victim and beaten her up with a rod. He had inserted the rod in her private parts, leaving her critically injured. The police had found lying unconscious inside a stationary tempo at around 2:30 to 3:00 am at Khairani Road in the Sakinaka area, Mumbai. She had been bleeding profusely. 

After battling for life for almost 33 hours, the victim succumbed to her injuries today.

Minor girl who was raped in Amravati, Maharashtra commits suicide

People were still trying to come to grips with the cruelty perpetrated on the Sakanaki victim when reports of a similar crime came to the fore from the Amravati district in Maharashtra. According to reports, a minor who was allegedly raped committed suicide in Daryapur of Maharashtra’s Amravati.

According to local media, the accused had forced the 17-years-old victim to engage in sexual intercourse with him. When the girl learnt that she had become pregnant, she ended her life by hanging herself.

“We received a complaint that a man repeatedly raped her. She became pregnant and later hanged herself to death”, said the Police Sub-Inspector of the Yevda police station, Dilip Patil.

6-year-old kidnapped from Pune footpath and raped mercilessly

In a similar case, a 6-year-old minor was sleeping next to her parents on a footpath adjacent to the bus stand near Pune railway station, when she was allegedly abducted and raped by an auto-rickshaw driver. The incident was reported on September 10. After getting information from another auto-rickshaw driver who saw the suspect take the girl away in his rickshaw, the police rescued her.

16-year-old mentally challenged girl raped in Vasai, Maharashtra

In another horrific case of sexual abuse, a 16-year-old mentally challenged girl was raped in Vasai. The accused took her forcefully on his motorcycle to an unknown place, where she was sexually assaulted. The incident occurred on September 7 but came to the fore two days later after her kin lodged a complaint at the police station.

Minor girl gang-raped in Pune

A 14-year-old girl was abducted from the Pune railways station area and raped by at least 14 men multiple times in the city of Maharashtra. According to reports, the minor had left home on August 31 at 10.30 pm to meet a friend at the railway station. But her friend did not turn up. An auto driver, who spotted her crying at the railway station, offered her help. On the pretext of dropping her home, he took her to a lodge where he raped her.

Later, he called his friends, who took turns to rape the girl at various places before they left her on board the Pune-Jammu Tawi Jhelum express train at around 5.30 pm on September 2.

While there were 14 people involved in the crime, only eight persons, including six autorickshaw drivers and two employees of the Railways, had been arrested in connection with the crime.

The arrested included Meerawali Shaikh, Mahboob alias Gaus Shaikh, Asif Pathan, Shahjur alias Siraj Chhaparband, Sameer Shaikh, Firoz alias Shahrukh Shaikh. Akbar Amar Shaikh, Noib Naim Khan, Asif Feroz Pathan, Rafik Murtaja Shaikh, Mashak Abdulmajid Kanyal, Azharuddin Islamuddin Ansari, Prashan Samuel Gaikwad, and Rajkumar Ramangina Prasad.

Minor orphan raped in Palghar district in Maharashtra

It’s appalling how Maharashtra has lately become the epicentre of crime against women. In yet another case, police had arrested three men for allegedly gang-raping a 17-year-old orphan girl at Vasai in Maharashtra’s Palghar district on August 28. Police had registered an offence against the trio under IPC sections 363 (kidnapping), 376 (rape), 376 (D) (gang-rape) of the IPC and also section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).

Woman gang-raped in Pune

On August 27, Pune City Police had arrested four persons for allegedly raping a 25-year-old woman in Janta Vasahat.

The incident occurred when the woman went to the Swargate area, where she was taken to a room in Janta Vasahat by one of the accused. He then called three of his friends, who also took turns and raped her. Residents in the area heard the woman’s calls for help and called the cops.

Teenage girl mercilessly raped by 6 men twice in a span of few hours in Nagpur

In yet another shocker, a teenage girl was allegedly raped by six men, including four autorickshaw drivers, in two separate incidents within hours of each other here in Maharashtra. It was reported on August 1, how the teenager was sexually assaulted by four men on the night of July 29 in a room in the Timki area and later by two men in their autorickshaw near Mayo Hospital square. The main accused was identified as one Shahnawaz alias Sana Mohd Rashid (25).

According to the authorities, the girl had asked Shahnawaz for financial and housing assistance. Shahnawaz drove her in his autorickshaw to an illegal liquor shop under the guise of providing her with shelter, where he consumed alcohol and forced the girl to drink as well. He then brought her to a rented room in the Timki area, where she was allegedly raped by him, his friend Mohd Taushif Mohd Yusuf (26) and the two leaders who worked at the Nagpur train station.

Later, Shahnawaz drove the girl to Mayo hospital square in his three-wheeler and left her there. After the accused left the area, two other autorickshaw drivers approached the girl and forcibly took her in their three-wheeler, where they also raped her.

Teacher raped by a man claiming to be a retired assistant police commissioner

According to local media, a teacher was allegedly raped by a man claiming to be a retired assistant police commissioner in Pimpri. The accused sexually assaulted the teacher on the pretext of providing her financial assistance. The accused had called the teacher to his house to help him with money as she was going through some financial woes. When the teacher reached his house, he first made her sign on two blank cheques. He offered her a soft drink and then started misbehaving with her.

When the victim tried to resist, the accused used his position to intimidate her.

He took her nude pictures and threatened to defame the victim by making them public. He threatened the victim with dire consequences if she did not give in to his demands. The accused then took the victim on his two-wheeler and assaulted her sexually.

Myanmar: Militant groups launch attack on Army after launch of “resistance war” against Junta, civilians flee across the border towards Mizoram

OpIndia Staff
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Myanmar: Militant groups launch attack on Army after launch of “resistance war” against Junta, civilians flee across the border towards Mizoram

Chinland Defence Force (CDF) and the Chin National Army (CDA) launched an attack on the Myanmar Army base camp on Friday morning at the Lungler Village near the Indo-Burma border, opposite of the Thingsai village in Mizoram. Chin National Army is the armed wing of the Chin National Front, an insurgent group based in Myanmar, while Chinland Defence Force is another group fighting against the military rulers of the country.

According to reports, 150 CNA militants were accompanied by 150 CDA men who attacked the Myanmar Army base at Lungler which is located just opposite of the Thingsai village in Mizoram. The militants launched a surprise attack on the junta soldiers when the soldiers were conducting inspections in the Thantlang town at around 1 pm. Two Myanmar army soldiers were killed in this attack.

“They would come to every house and inspect people’s phones and their household registration. We attacked them because they have been harassing the people,” a spokesperson for the CDF said.

The militants left the spot immediately after the attack, and the army responded by indiscriminately firing heavy artillery and guns into the town, the CDF spokesperson said. The military council of Myanmar which controls the Myanmar army dispatched helicopters and two jet fighters launching an airstrike in response.

The locals of the Thingsai village in Mizoram saw the assault in the sky and heard the explosions and the sounds of the gun battles. Reportedly 100 men fled to the Thingsai village. Also, a source of the CNA told TOI, “Fifteen people were on the other side of the Tiau river waiting to cross”.

Earlier on Thursday, at least 20 people died in clashes between militias and the military in Myin Thar village. Locals said that the military used heavy artillery, and burned down houses.

Fresh clashes with the military started after the shadow National Unity Government (NUG) announced the start of a “people’s resistance war” against the junta on September 7. In Chin State, fighting has since broken out in Hakha, Thantlang and Mindat regions.

The insurgent groups in Myanmar have utilized the difficult terrain of the 1800km of Indo-Burma border to protect themselves. The joint operations carried out by the Indian Army and the Myanmar Army, had been successful in suppressing the insurgents. Last year, Myanmar handed over 22 militants to India in a successful operation led by National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval. However, Myanmar descended into a political crisis following the coup and removal of the Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and the protests that ensued later along with the rise of rebel groups.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan blames IPL for cancellation of 5th test, Aakash Chopra reminds him of ECB calling off South Africa series

OpIndia Staff
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Former England captain Michael Vaughan blames IPL for cancellation of 5th test, Aakash Chopra reminds him of ECB calling off South Africa series

A day after the 5th Test Match between India and England in Manchester was called off, former England captain Michael Vaughan insinuated that the game was cancelled over the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL).

In a tweet on Saturday (September 11), Vaughan alleged, “IPL teams chartering planes… 6 days quarantining required in the UAE… 7 days till the tournament starts!!! Don’t tell me the Test was cancelled for any other reason but the IPL. Over the years, Michael Vaughan has earned a reputation for deliberately making contentious remarks against the Indian cricket team and its players.

Screengrab of the response by Akash Chopra

Following his tweet, cricket commentator Aakash Chopra pointed out to the ex-English captain how the England Cricket Board had prematurely cancelled their tour of South Africa over the Coronavirus scare. Chopra wrote, “England called off their tour to SA in similar circumstances i.e. Uneasiness over a Covid outbreak #Just saying.” When a Times reporter tried to draw a ‘distinction’ between the decision of the England team and that of India, Chopra emphasised that the timing was irrelevant in Covid-19 discussions.

“I’ve been a part of a bubble where a COVID case popped up…and I can tell you how uneasy it is to go back to your little ones till you aren’t a 100% sure. Also, timing is a slightly irrelevant conversation in COVID cases,” he added.

Screengrab of the response by Aakash Chopra

Michael Vaughan had himself accused ECB of letting South Africa down

A day earlier on Friday (September 10), Michael Vaughan had himself conceded that the England team had let the South African cricket down. He had said, “India have let English cricket down!!! But England did let South African cricket down!!!”

Screengrab of the earlier tweet by Michael Vaughan

Blame game by English fans and BCCI clarification

Yesterday, it was reported that the English fans blamed the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) for prioritising the Indian Premier League (IPL) over Test cricket. They also accused the Indian team of ‘unprofessionalism’ and breaching the bio-secure bubble by attending a book launch event. While speaking to ANI, BCCI Vice-President Rajiv Shukla clarified that the decision to call off the final Test match was taken following consultations with ECB Chairman, CEO, BCCI President, Secretary, Treasurer, Joint Secretary, captains and senior players.

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