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US: Nancy Pelosi criticised for Democrats’ ‘no-mask, no social distancing’ fundraiser event at Napa

OpIndia Staff
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US: Nancy Pelosi criticised for Democrats’ ‘no-mask, no social distancing’ fundraiser event at Napa

On Sunday (August 22), Democratic leader and the Speaker of House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi came under fierce criticism for partaking in a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) fundraiser in Napa Valley. The participants at the DCCC retreat were mostly white, who neither wore masks nor adhered to social distancing guidelines.

The video of the event was posted on Twitter by New York Times (NYT) reporter Kenneth P Vogel. He tweeted, “NANCY PELOSI is scheduled to be in Napa this weekend for a @DCCC event benefiting vulnerable House Democrats. Donations start at $100/ticket & go through $29k to chair.” Nancy Pelosi, who is the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, was seen interacting with the donors with no qualms about diversity or Coronavirus protocols.

Netizens were quick to slam the Democratic party leader. The high profile guests at the elite event were seen not wearing masks and not following any social distancing protocols. Only the catering staff was seen wearing masks, drawing the attention of social media users to the sharp class divide. Twitter user (@RubberCitySpeed) mocked, “Diverse crowd” while highlighting that the crowd comprised of only white people.

Another user, Kent Graham, pointed out, “I see the only diversity is amongst the wait staff”

Other Twitter user criticised Nancy Pelosi for flouting social distancing guidelines. One user wrote, “This lack of social distancing at a big gathering outdoors sends a very bad message and is irresponsible. Also big money should not be part of politics.”

Another user emphasised, “Two classes of people. Masked and unmasked.”

Another user pointed out how the rules varied for common people and the ruling class.

Twitter user (@AaronK510) wrote, “Guess they forgot there is a covid outbreak going on. and As Americans are dying and being left stranded they sip wine and have a dance party crazy!! And they wonder why people are pissed off”

Nancy Pelosi was also criticised for her insensitivity and inability to comprehend the Taliban crisis in Afghanistan. At a time when 1000s of American citizens are stranded in Afghanistan and assaulted by the Talibs, the Speaker of the US House of Representatives was busy raising funds for her party.

Senate Majority Leader spotted dancing as US citizens remain trapped in Afghnaistan

On Saturday (August 21), the United States Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer sparked a controversy after he was seen dancing backstage with late-night show host Stephen Colbert in New York City (NYC). Schumer was attending the ‘We Love NYC’ concert at a time when thousands of US citizens are stranded in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. The video of the United States Senate Majority leader, breaking into a dance, was shared by Bill Neidhart, who serves as the press secretary of NYC Mayor de Blasio. “Backstage antics,” he tweeted

Chinese state media mocks America after Taliban takes over Afghanistan

OpIndia Staff
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Chinese state media mocks America after Taliban takes over Afghanistan

Chinese state media Xinhua News on Sunday mocked United States of America after Taliban took over Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul to Islamist group.

In a three-minute video shared on social media, Xinhua News, in a mockery of US occupation of Taliban, said that if one feels that their life is not going anywhere, one can always think about Afghanistan and America as after 20 years and four Presidents who spent over two trillion dollars and lost lives of 2,300 soldiers, the regime in Afghanistan has gone from Taliban back to Taliban.

A smiling, chirpy sounding Chinese journalist points out how US President Joe Biden famously said ‘America is back’ after having own elections last year and how it has now come true with US pulling out of Afghanistan after twenty years. She juxtaposes Taliban taking over Presidential palace with guns and rocket launchers long with scenes from the Capitol Hill riots earlier this year.

Chinese state media then compares Capitol Hill rioters to Taliban and claims how the former were ‘angry civilians’ while the Taliban were demonised and US spent twenty years ‘eliminating them’. She then gleefully says how all this attack against Taliban was done at the cost of USD 2 trillion and lives of 2,400 troops. The video then shows the US Air Force flight taking off with Afghans clinging on to the windows and doors in a bid to escape.

Chinese state media then claims that in the 20 years America spent in Afghanistan on its ‘war on terror’, the terror groups in Afghanistan grew from single digit to about twenty and over a lakh civilians were either killed or wounded. She then puts up a video of US President Joe Biden answering to a question on reason behind the Afghan war, where he takes a long pause as he thinks of the two reasons for the war. “We know when a person is rapidly blinking that person is thinking really fast,” the Chinese host mocks Biden.

Taliban takes over Afghanistan

Earlier this month, Afghanistan capital Kabul fell to Islamist group Taliban after the President Ashraf Ghani and other top government officials fled the country. The country then spiralled into chaos as people tried to escape the Taliban rule since the Islamist group in the past has not shown any regard to human rights. Horrifying visuals of people falling off the sky as they hung on to the planes trying to escape Afghanistan went viral on social media. Along with that, videos with Taliban with rocket launchers on their back having a good time in amusement parks also went viral.

Afghan VP Amrullah Saleh has since declared himself caretaker President and is creating a resistance force against Taliban.

Govt of India’s Know India website hails Mughal rule as ‘greatest ever’, Ministry issues clarification

OpIndia Staff
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Govt of India’s Know India website hails Mughal rule as ‘greatest ever’, Ministry issues clarification

The hopeless love for the Mughal invaders seems to have no end in the minds of the Indian government’s officials. On August 23, author Ratan Sharda pointed out that the Know India website maintained by the government, (KnowIndia.gov.in) hails the Mughal period as “the greatest empire ever” in Indian history.

In the ‘culture and heritage’ section of the KnowIndia website, the Medieval History section sings the glory of the Mughal empire, with many distorted details and no mention of the atrocities inflicted by them.

It went ahead and claimed that during that period, “India became united under one rule, and had very prosperous cultural and political years during the Mughal rule.”

It also goes ahead and claims, “In India, there were many Muslim and Hindu kingdoms split all throughout India until the Mughals came.” Basically, the entire ‘Medieval History’ of India, as per the Ministry of Culture website was all about the Mughals and their glory.

The page titled The Mughal Empire under Medieval History talks about different Mughal rulers while painting them as secular, tolerant and good rulers. Interestingly, Rajput and Maratha rulers, or the Ahoms who fought for centuries with Mughals, and limited the spread of their empire have no mention in the said section of the website. The whitewash of the atrocities done by Mughal rulers is to the extent that there is no mention of Hindus killed by them, no mention of the destruction of Hindu temples and forced conversions. For Jehangir, It claims, “He strived to reform society and was tolerant towards Hindus, Christians and Jews.”

Screenshot from the website. Source: KnowIndia.gov.in

There is only one mention of the execution of Sikh Guru Arjan Dev Ji in a very vague manner, but that too has distorted the actual history. The website claims that Guru Arjan Dev (the website refers to him as Arjun Dev which is incorrect) was killed by Mughal emperor Jehangir because he provided aid and support to the Jehangir’s stranded son Khusrau. In reality, the fifth Guru was killed as he refused to pay a fine for preaching Sikhism and also refused to remove certain hymns from Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s Vaani, which Jehangir founded offensive. Guru Arjan Dev suffered five days before succumbing to the torture at the hands of the Mughal ruler.

Praising Aurangzeb

The site has no mention of Aurangzeb’s atrocities on Hindus, and the rampant destructions of the holiest of Hindu temples. The paragraph only laments that Aurangzeb could not fulfil his dream of bringing the entire subcontinent under his rule. But there is no mention that the Marathas had dealt him repeated defeats and his ‘rule’ are more or less confined to only Northern India. There is no mention of Ahoms who had, under Lachit Borphukan, stopped Mughal advances towards Assam.

Interestingly, the site claims that Aurangzeb’s ambition remained unfulfilled only because ‘he kept his five sons away from the royal court and hence they could not be trained properly, not because of the Marathas and Ahoms.

Image from the website

Sharp reaction from netizens

Netizens expressed displeasure over the distorted history of India. Many expressed displeasure over the lack of will to correct teaching of a whitewashed and pro-Mughal version of history that has been taught to students so far.

Distorted events in history with no proof

This is not the first time the Government of India has been called out for not correcting the history on the websites or in books. In January 2021, in reply to RTI, it was revealed that the claims about the construction of Qutub Minar, as mentioned in the NCERT books, has no documented proof whatsoever. In the reply, DESS said that they do not have any evidence to support the assertion made in the textbook. The names of those who proposed the content are mentioned in the book, and it was approved by the National Monitoring Committee, Chaired by Prof. Mrinal Miri.

Update

The Ministry of Culture has said that it has been brought to its notice that the website in question “misrepresents India’s history”.

“The Ministry of Culture does not run this website and is working with the concerned entities to accurately portray the events,” it said in a tweet.

UK: ‘Woke’ civil servants come together to blame ‘uneducated voters’ for ‘rising fascism’ at a ‘woke’ conference

OpIndia Staff
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UK: ‘Woke’ civil servants come together to blame ‘uneducated voters’ for ‘rising fascism’ at a ‘woke’ conference

A mob of about 300 ‘woke’ civil servants in UK came together at an event ‘UKGovcamp’ where they put the blame on ‘middle aged people’ to ‘jump on clickbait’ news stories. They also accused the general public at large for ‘lacking the education’ to ‘unpick fascist ideas’, the Mail on Sunday reported.

As per the report, left-wing staffers within the UK government were expressed discontent over the existing government and the ‘uneducated’ British public over ‘rising fascism’ in the country. Staff members from 16 government departments including Home Office, Cabinet Office, Foreign Office and the spy agency GCHQ as well as the BBC were part of the ‘woke’ conference.

The virtual event lasted for three days had the staffers patronisingly discuss how the general British public is not educated enough to ‘unpick’ fascist messages and ideas. They claimed that ‘middle-aged people who jump on clickbaits’ have more ‘polarised’ views and older people in authority with extreme views have a platform and are able to influence many more people like that.

As per the report, the event was led by civil servants, including Sarah Baskerville of the Department for Transport who was earlier under fire for criticising Government policy and MPs.

Referring to BBC providing platform to British politician Nigel Farage, one ‘woke’ civil servant felt that something ‘really ugly was normalised and amplified’. Other ‘woke’ worker was upset at the ‘rise’ of ‘far right’ and drew parallels with the Nazi Germany. Worker even suggested setting up a ‘secret chat room’ which could be hidden from official records for their discussions.

The UKGovcamp, however, has claimed that it is not affiliated with either the government or civil servants.

Afghanistan President Amrullah Saleh says Taliban have amassed forces near Panjshir after being sent away from Andarab, ‘see you’ he warns

OpIndia Staff
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Afghanistan President Amrullah Saleh says Taliban have amassed forces near Panjshir after being sent away from Andarab, ‘see you’ he warns

Days after the resistance forces led by the current acting President Amrullah Saleh attacked the Taliban on the outskirts of Panjshir valley, Saleh had openly challenged the radical Islamist group from amassing its forces in the valley. It must be mentioned that the Afghan forces had recently gained control over the Charikar area of the Parwan province from the radical Islamist group backed by the Pakistan military.

In a tweet on Monday (August 23), the acting Afghan President tweeted, “Talibs have massed forces near the entrance of Panjshir a day after they got trapped in ambush zones of neighbouring Andarab valley & hardly went out in one piece.”

He further cautioned, “Meanwhile Salang highway is closed by the forces of the Resistance. “There are terrains to be avoided”. See you.” Saleh, the former Vice President, had declared himself the President after Ashraf Ghani fled the country.

Screengrab of the tweet by Amrullah Saleh

His comments come at a time when social media reports have surfaced that show the Taliban dispatching forces to attack the Resistance forces in Panjshir. Reports from the country suggested that the Resistance defeated the radical Islamist outfit in Andarab valley after the Taliban moved to the Baglan Province from Kunduz city on Sunday (August 22). The chaos in Afghanistan caused following the US exit under President Joe Biden, drew criticism from several quarters.

US President Biden continues to face criticism for the hasty and badly managed withdrawal from Afghanistan that effectively handed the country over to the Taliban on a platter. His recent statements and justification of the withdrawal were termed “shameful falsehood after shameful falsehood” by US Senator Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska). US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley called the Afghanistan fiasco an ’embarrassing failure’ for the USA. Congressman Adam Kinzinger expressed concerns about whether the USA is even capable of stopping the growth of terrorism after the ‘disastrous’ withdrawal.

Ahmad Massoud and the Resistance against Taliban in Panjshir Valley

Besides acting President Amarullah Saleh, one of the key leaders of the Resistance against the Talibs is Ahmad Massoud. Son of anti-Soviet resistance leader Ahmad Shah Massoud, he had been mounting a fight against the radical Islamist outfit in Panjshir Valley. While speaking to Al Arabiya TB station on Sunday (August 22), he emphasised the need for dialogue but added that the fight would continue until the Talibs refuse to talk.

He has vowed to not surrender territories, which are under his control, to the Islamist organisation. “Government forces came to Panjshir from several Afghan provinces…The Taliban will not last long if it continues on this path. We are ready to defend Afghanistan and we warn of bloodshed,” Massoud cautioned.

Uncertainty remains over future of Afghanistan as politicians demand inclusive govt from Taliban, national flag still flies over presidential palace

OpIndia Staff
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Uncertainty remains over future of Afghanistan as politicians demand inclusive govt from Taliban, national flag still flies over presidential palace

One week after the Taliban captured Afghanistan capital Kabul following the escape of former president Ashraf Ghani, there is still no clarity on the kind of government that the Islamist group will form in the war-torn country. The greatest symbol of this uncertain situation is the tricolour Afghan national flag, which still flies over the presidential palace. Even though the Taliban has captured the palace, and they are attempting to replace the national flag with their own one, the flag at the presidential flag has not been changed yet.

In fact, dismissing media reports that the Taliban flag was hoisted at the palace removing the Afghan national flag, Taliban leader Abdul Hameed Hamasi has said that they don’t have any problem with the flag.

Today a video was posted on social media showing Hamasi and other Taliban leaders standing inside the presidential palace, where the national flag can be seen flying in the sky behind them. The Taliban leader said that some people from the former government are spreading propaganda that the flag was changed. He alleged that those people don’t want peace to prevail in Afghanistan.

The Talibani leadership has conducted several meetings with the political parties in the country, but the political leaders say no serious discussions on the future political system was held in those meetings. The Afghan political leaders have called for an inclusive government, including representatives from all political parties.

They said that the meetings were held merely as consultations, and no serious discussions were held about future governance in Afghanistan. “There is a need for fundamental discussions, we hope that discussions are held on this issue as soon as possible, because the nation is waiting for the formation of a system,” said Zia-ul-Haq Amarkhel, the former governor of Nangarhar.

Reportedly, the Taliban has hinted that they will form an inclusive government, but there is no clarity on that yet.

Days after the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, former president Hamid Karzai, chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Dr Abdullah Abdullah and chief of Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin party Gulbuddin Hekmatyar had formed a coordination committee to ensure a smooth transition of power. Yesterday Karzai and Abdullah met with Taliban political office members to hold discussions on the issue.

Taliban political office members Maulawi Shahabuddin Delawari Delawar, Abdul Salam Hanafi, Khairullah Khairkhwa and Abdul Rahman Feda met them at Abdullah’s house in Kabul. After the meeting, Abdullah’s office said that Both sides exchanged views on the current security and political developments, and an inclusive political settlement for the future of the country.

Karzai and Abdullah also held a meeting with Abdul Rahman Mansour, the Taliban’s acting governor for Kabul, and discussed security of the citizens of the city. They reiterated that protecting the life, property and dignity of the citizens of the capital should be prioritized. The Taliban governor pledged that he would do everything possible for the security of the people of Kabul, according to Abdullah’s office.

Kabul has been witnessing massive chaos since the Taliban captured it as thousands of people gathered outside the Kabul Airport trying to get out of the country. Several people have already died in the stampede outside the Airport, which is guarded by the Taliban on the outside and by NATO forces in the inside.

Yesterday the Taliban had said that they will unveil a new governing framework in the next few weeks. “Legal, religious and foreign policy experts in the Taliban aim to present the new governing framework in the next few weeks,” a Taliban official told Reuters.

While the Taliban has been trying to present a ‘moderate’ image, they have made it clear that they will implement the Sharia law. Which means there will be severe restrictions on the citizens on the country, especially on woman.

Most countries in the world, including the EU Commission, has confirmed that they will not recognise a Taliban government in Afghanistan. Due to this, the group may form an ‘inclusive’ government by including some members from the political parties. But what form the government will take and how much authority non-Taliban members in the govt, if any, will have, will be unfolded in the coming weeks.

Australia: Dogs shot dead by rural council to prevent volunteers from traveling during Covid restrictions

OpIndia Staff
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Australia: Dogs shot dead by rural council to prevent volunteers from traveling during Covid restrictions

A rural council in New South Wales, Australia has shot dead dogs waiting to be rescued by a shelter in order to prevent volunteers from traveling during Covid-19 restrictions, the Sunday Morning Herald has reported. According to the Office of Local Government, the Bourke Shire Council killed the dogs to prevent volunteers from a Cobar-based animal shelter from traveling last week.

“OLG has been informed that the council decided to take this course of action to protect its employees and community, including vulnerable Aboriginal populations, from the risk of COVID-19 transmission,” the watchdog’s spokesperson said.

One of the dogs was a new mother and as per the report, the animal shelter had necessary precautions in place to transport the dogs safely. Moreover, Cobar has not seen any recent case of local transmission of Covid-19.

Animal rights campaigners have demanded an immediate investigation into the matter. Lisa Ryan, Animal Liberation’s regional campaign manager, said, “We are deeply distressed and completely appalled by this callous dog shooting and we totally reject council’s unacceptable justifications that this killing was apparently undertaken as part of a COVID- safe plan.”

She stated, “Council pounds are paid for by local communities, and it is clear that shooting lost and unclaimed dogs housed in these publicly-funded facilities falls far short of community expectations.”

A government probe has been launched into the matter. Meanwhile, massive protests have broken out in Australia over the imposition of lockdown by the government. The Police on Saturday employed harsh measures, including the use of rubber bullets and tear gas, to disperse crowds. Hundreds of protesters were detained and seven officers were hospitalised as a result of clashes.

Kerala Assembly Speaker compares genocidal Islamist responsible for Moplah Massacre to Bhagat Singh

OpIndia Staff
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Kerala Assembly Speaker compares genocidal Islamist responsible for Moplah Massacre to Bhagat Singh

Speaker of the Kerala Assembly, MB Rajesh, compared genocidal maniac Variyan Kunnathu Kunjahammed Haji, leader of the Moplah Massacre of Hindus, to Bhagat Singh. He made the comment during an event organised by the state library on the completion of 100 years of the massacre.

“I think his (Variyan Kunnath Kunjahammed Haji) place is at par with Bhagat Singh,” said MB Rajesh while inaugurating a function to mark the occasion at Thirurangadi in Malappuram.

C Krishnakumar, BJP’s general secretary in Kerala, has demanded that the Kerala Assembly Speaker be booked under the sedition law. He said, “Rajesh has insulted the freedom struggle by comparing Bhagat Singh to the aggressor Variyamkunnan who massacred the Hindus in Malabar. CPM secretary A Vijayaraghavan should clarify whether the CPM accepts the Speaker’s statement to make a rebel a freedom fighter to please the Muslim fundamentalists. The Malabar riots were the first organized terrorist attack in Kerala. In 1921, Variyamkunnan and his gang committed atrocities similar to those carried out by the Taliban.”

Anoop Kaippali of the BJP said that he will file a case against MB Rajesh along with Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga.

The Moplah Massacre led to an estimated death of 10,000 Hindus in Kerala. It is believed that as many a 100,000 Hindus were forced to leave Kerala in the wake of the massacre. The number of Hindu Temples that were destroyed in the genocide is speculated to be a hundred. Forcible conversion of Hindus was rampant and unspeakable atrocities were poured upon Hindus.

On Sunday, people trended #MalabarIslamicState on social media to pay tribute to the victims of the massacre on its 100 year anniversary.

From banning music, co-education to barring female employees to join work, the Taliban is back to imposing restrictions on women

OpIndia Staff
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From banning music, co-education to barring female employees to join work, the Taliban is back to imposing restrictions on women

It’s only been a week now since the Taliban took over Afghanistan and the Jihadist organisation, known for its misogyny and violence against women are back to unleashing atrocities and imposing restrictions on the helpless women of the war-torn nation. The fundamentalists, who had assured the international community that there will be no discrimination against the Afghan women under their rule, have already started backtracking on their commitments.

Co-education banned in Afghanistan

The Islamic fundamentals have, according to reports, already banned co-education in Herat, the third-largest city of Afghanistan now under Taliban rule. They have reportedly described co-education as the ‘root of all evils in society’. This is, in fact, the first ‘fatwa’ issued by the Taliban after its takeover.

Further, it has been decided that women lecturers would be allowed to teach only female students and not male students.

It is being said that the decision was taken after a meeting was held between professors, owners of private institutions and Taliban leaders.

Music banned, female employees not allowed in the local radio stations in Afghanistan

The Taliban, which has their own interpretation of Sharia law, have also banned music and the employment of female employees in the local radio stations in Ghazni, the Afghan media reported. The diktat was passed by the Taliban’s information affairs in charge of the central Ghazni district.

It is pertinent to note here that music is ‘haram’ under Sharia law. During its previous rule, the Taliban use to punish those who played music or danced on songs at parties.

‘Unconducive security situation for women’, Afghan female civil servants sent back home by Taliban

Moreover, the Taliban asked civil servants in Kabul to get back to their offices, but when everyone showed up, they dismissed female workers- justifying it as an unconducive security situation for women.

It was reported how the Taliban, after gaining a quick takeover on Afghanistan, began going door to door, searching for absentee city workers. Hundreds of armed men set up checkpoints across the city. At the entrance to the regional hospital, a new notice appeared on the wall which read: “Employees must return to work or face punishment from the Taliban.”

However, when the civil servants started getting back to work, the jihadists singled out the women employees and sent them back home.

While the Taliban stated that women can continue to attend school and universities and that they will not be compelled to wear a full burqa adding that hijabs, however, will remain mandatory, the jihadist organisation’s public pronouncements are contradicted by reports of the rising burqa sales and prices in Afghanistan after its takeover, women being killed for not wearing burqas or being set on fire for ‘bad cooking’.

Earlier, there were reports that the Taliban gangs are targeting children as young as 12 during their hunt for sex slaves since they took over Afghanistan. Women and girls are among the most at-risk Afghanis under the new Islamist regime after the Jihadist organisation launched a door-to-door search for sex slaves.

From demanding lists of women and girls in different regions to forcing marriages on young girls, reports of the Taliban’s atrocities are making headlines. The unmarried and widowed women and girls between the ages of 12 to 45 are termed as “qhanimat” or spoils of the war by the Taliban. They are reportedly being divided among the members of the group.

According to Shukria Barakzai, Afghan politician and journalist, the stories of the Taliban’s atrocities against women and girls are horrifying. She wrote in The Daily Mail, “The gouging of a woman’s eyes in front of her terrified family; girls as young as 12 wrenched from the arms of their weeping mothers to become sex slaves for Taliban ‘warriors’; men punished or even killed for ‘offences’ as simple as listening to the ‘wrong’ music, or for daring to be ‘educated’.”

Gender activist group makes minor boy wear mangalsutra, bindi to ‘smash the patriarchy’: Its history of using minors for propaganda

Anurag
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Gender activist group makes minor boy wear mangalsutra, bindi to ‘smash the patriarchy’: Its history of using minors for propaganda

Gender activist group Equal Community Foundation published a video of a minor on Twitter on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan in which he was seen wearing a bindi and mangalsutra. In the tweet, the group wrote, “Shreyas, our #ActionForEqualilty participant, pledges not to pass comments at girls or make them uncomfortable in any way. P.S. – Notice the bindi and mangalsutra he is wearing to protest the need for women to “look married” or be the “property” of their husbands. #RakshaBandh”

Equal Community Foundation
Screenshot of the video by ECF showing a minor boy wearing Bindi and Managalsutra for a propaganda-driven video.

Instead of #RakshaBandhan, the Equal Community Foundation used the hashtag #RakshaBandh to ‘smash the patriarchy’. The tweet and use of the minor boy in the video attract a lot of criticism on social media platforms. While some Twitter users tagged Minister of Women and Child Development Smriti Irani to look into the problematic tweet, others criticised the group and called the video absurd.

Smita Deshmukh wrote, “Why do boys have to wear a bindi and is it mangalsutra to ensure that they treat women equally? This is absurd. Stop this nonsense. Men need not be like women to understand them. Education and values are important. It looks like social media woke campaign.”

Another user questioned how they could use a young child for a propaganda video.

Raj said, “ECF India has gone crazy! Spreading your agenda through young boys! Shameful!”

Equal Community Foundation
Source: Twitter

One Twitter user called out Equal Community Foundation for demeaning Hindu festivals by creating the hashtag RakshaBandh. She wrote, “What nonsense. Demeaning our #Rakshabandan festival by creating a # RakshaBandh. Demeaning our sacred Mangalsutra, Bindi etc. Using an innocent boy for your bigotry.”

Tanmay questioned if the group is willing to question rituals of other religions and said, “Give children moral &cultural values, raise them as good humans but spare them from your agenda. And don’t use cultural symbols for your demean us. Bindi & Mangalsutra is a choice, it’s not like a woman is a property of some man. Can you say the same about wedding rings among Christians.”

Equal Community Foundation
Source: Twitter

Dextrocardiac1 said, “No need to make the child suffer from gender dysphoria just to make him understand how to respect women, it can be down in a way more respectful way than these cheap theatrics.”

Source: Twitter

Equal Community Foundation: History of using minor boys for propaganda

According to ECF’s website, the organisation was founded in 2009. In its organisational strategy, the group claims that out of 230 million boys in India that are under the age of 18, over 115 million are estimated to use physical violence and 60 million to be involved in sexual violence, including rape. The group believes that six crore boys in India are possible rapists of the future!

So, in order to “tackle the epidemic by raising every boy in India to be gender-equitable”, they created the organisation with a possible outcome to raise “Gender Equitable Boys”. The group states that they have “remarkable success” towards their mission. Interestingly, in its strategy document, the group referred to a link ecf.org/data, the screenshot of the page can be seen below.

Equal Community Foundation
Screenshot of Data section of ECf’s website.

When we tried to visit the linked research papers, none of the links worked. The UNICEF report was removed from their website, and the other research documents they referred to were nowhere to be found as the website they referred to (http://unwomen-asiapacific.org) no longer exisst. We did find “https://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en”, which is an UN-affiliated website, but we were unable to spot the studies they referred to on this website as well.

ECF’s strategy is based on now-deleted documents.
ECF’s strategy is based on now-deleted documents.

The claim “57% justify violence against women. 50% will or are likely to use physical violence, and 25% will or are likely to be involved in rape” on their website has no backing as of now. Yet, the group is actively running propaganda among minor children and making videos using them.

The video in question is not the only video that ECF has posted while trying to defame Raksha Bandhan. The #Rakshabandh campaign started in 2018, and initially, they used adult men and women for the campaign. Tweets by the group can be seen here. Later, in 2019, they started using children for the campaign and posted the first video with a child on August 8, 2019.

Tweets by ECF from 2019. Source: Twitter

In 2020, the campaign continued, and they started to include minor girls in the campaign too.

Equal Community Foundation
Tweets by ECF from 2020. Source: Twitter

This year, they started the campaign on August 14, and the first video with a minor boy was posted on August 16.

Tweets by ECF from 2021. Source: Twitter

After the initial tweet, multiple tweets with several minor boys and girls were posted by the group on social media platforms.

OpIndia has blurred the faces of minor children used in the videos by ECF to conceal their identity.

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