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Afghans march through Kabul with hundreds of meters long national flag to protest against Taliban, Islamic outfit opens fire

On the occasion of Afghanistan’s Independence Day on August 19, scores of citizens of the war-torn state took to the streets of the capital city, Kabul. They marched across the city carrying hundreds of meter long Afghanistan flag, to protest against the Taliban’s takeover of the war-ravaged country. Videos of the protest are now being widely shared on social media platforms.

According to reports, soon after the Islamist outfit officially declared Afghanistan as an ‘Islamic Emirate’ on the country’s 102nd Independence Day from British control in 1919, Afghan nationals, comprising of men, women and children hit the streets of Kabul. Amidst loud cheers of Long Live Afghanistan’ and ‘Our flag, our identity’, these protestors have been marching through the city with the national flag.

Besides Kabul, the Afghans showed their dissent against the now ruling Talibanis by hoisting their national flag in various other places in the country. In videos of Abdul Haq Square flooding the social media space, two men are seen climbing twin flagpoles to unfurl the national flag. Below, people are seen cheering as they wave tiny, plastic replicas of the Afghan flag.

However, such acts of defiance by Afghani nationals have attracted retaliation from the Talibanis. As per eyewitnesses, such processions have been fired upon in the eastern city of Jalalabad in Nangarhar province in which three people lost their lives.

Today also, the Taliban opened fire on an Independence Day rally in Konar province’s Asadabad, in which several people were killed.

According to Guardian, hundreds of protesters, including women, gathered in Kabul brandishing the national flag and shouting “our flag, our identity”. The Islamist fundamentals surrounded these protesters, shouting and firing rounds into the air in an attempt to disperse the crowds. This triggered panic followed by a stampede in the area. A witness Mohammed Salim said: “Several people were killed and injured in the stampede and firing by the Taliban.”

According to media reports, after retaking the country on Sunday, August 15, the Taliban intends to replace the Afghan national flag with their white banner bearing the Shahada “La ilah ila Allah, Mohammad rasoul Allah” (There is no god but God and Muhammad is God’s messenger). This attempt has irked the Afghanis who have taken to the streets to protest against the radical Islamist outfit.

Deoband Mufti hails Taliban for ‘defeating’ a superpower like America, had earlier issued a fatwa against worshipping Lord Ram: Details

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After Samajwadi Party leader Safiqur Rahman Burke and All India Muslim Personal Law Board cleric Maulana Umrain Mahfuz Rahmani, Maulana Mufti Arshad Farooqi, the Mufti of Darul-Uloom Deoband and the chairman of Online Fatwa Department, glorified the radical Islamic outfit Taliban for its alleged victory against the USA in Afghanistan.

In a video that has gone viral on the internet now, Maulana Mufti Arshad Farooqi was heard praising the Taliban for their ‘victory’ against the ‘super power’ United States. Hailing the Taliban for ousting the United States of America from Afghanistan, the Deoband-based Maulana said there is something special about the Taliban that even a superpower like America cannot emerge victorious against them.

“Even after severe oppression and subjugation for over 20 years, the United States of America faced severe losses in Afghanistan. They desperately achieved peace in Qatar and withdrew their forces quietly from Afghanistan. Even superpowers like America is accepting defeat at the hands of the Taliban. The 3.5 lakh strong Afghan forces, trained by the US Forces, surrendered in front of the Taliban, which proves that there is something special about them,” said Maulana Mufti Arshad Farooqi.

It is worth noting that the Taliban, which has recently risen in prominence in Afghanistan and effectively controls the country, draws its inspiration from the Deobandi movement. The Taliban’s association with the UP town of Deoband was also highlighted in an article published in the New York Times in 2002. The article titled “Indian town’s seed grew into the Taliban code” has discussed how the ideology of radical Islamism that germinated in a town in Uttar Pradesh went on to influence the jihadist movement on the other side of the Durand Line, the line that separates Afghanistan and Pakistan.

This is not the first time that Maulana Farooqi is making such controversial remarks. In 2017, Maulana Arshad Farooqi had issued a fatwa against a group of Muslim women for performing the aarti of Lord Ram at an event on Diwali in Varanasi.

The Deoband cleric had said the women could not be “Muslim Ulema” for worshipping multiple gods. The fatwa from Maulana Farooqi had come after Muslim Mahila Foundation, and Vishal Bharat Sansthan had worshipped Lord Ram during a Diwali event in Varanasi.

Maulana Farooqi’s praise for the Taliban comes just as several other Muslim leaders, including those from the Samajwadi Party, have openly praised the Taliban. Besides, a large section of Indian Leftist media was even seen hailing the Taliban for their propaganda of “changed” principles with regards to women’s rights and “holding a press conference”.

Samajwadi Party MP Shafiqur Rehman Burq had extended his support to the Jihadist organisation by saying that their conquest was akin to India’s freedom movement against British Empire. Samajwadi Party MP Shafiqur Rehman Burq had attempted to legitimise the radical Islamist outfit after he had claimed that the Taliban have only recaptured the land that originally belonged to them. Drawing an equivalence between the radical Islamist outfit and India’s freedom fighters, the Samajwadi Party leader had said that as our countrymen fought for freedom from the British, the Taliban also wants to free their country and run it.

Besides, Shafiqur Rahman Barq, a senior cleric of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), also extended his support to the terror group. Maulana Umrain Mahfuz Rahmani, the Secretary of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), had praised the Taliban’s offensive against the Afghan government to capture the war-torn country by force.

‘Bengal police ignored complaints of victims, no FIR in 60% cases’: Calcutta HC orders court-monitored CBI probe in post-poll violence cases

In a huge setback to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the Calcutta High Court on Thursday ordered a court-monitored probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) into the heinous cases of murder, rape and crime against women and other human rights violations that happened in West Bengal in May 2021 after TMC returned to power.

According to the reports, a five-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court comprising Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal, Justice IP Mukerji, Justice Harish Tandon, Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Subrata Talukdar on Thursday pronounced the judgement in a batch of petitions alleging Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government’s inaction over the brutal acts of violence unleashed by members of ruling Trinamool Congress in the aftermath of assembly elections.

In its scathing order, the Calcutta High Court ordered that the High Court will monitor the CBI investigation into the post-poll violence in the state. 

“The Committee, NHRC, any other Commission or Authority, and the State shall immediately hand over entire record of the cases entrusted to the CBI for investigation. It is made clear that it shall be a Court-monitored investigation. Any obstruction in the course of investigation by anyone shall be viewed seriously”, the Calcutta High Court observed.

Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal delivered the lead judgment, whereas Justices IP Mukerji, Harish Tandon and Soumen Sen delivered separate but concurring judgments.

High Court constitutes SIT to look into other criminal cases related to post-poll violence

The High Court has directed that a Special Investigation Team, under the monitoring of the Court, should investigate the other criminal cases related to post-poll violence. IPS officers Suman Bala Sahoo, Soumen Mitra and Ranbir Kumar of the West Bengal cadre have been made the members of the SIT. The working of SIT will be monitored by a retired judge of the Supreme Court, the High Court said.

The court noted that in over 60% of the cases, no FIR was filed by the police.

The Court has also ordered the West Bengal government to grant compensation for the victims of the post-poll violence immediately. In a major embarrassment to Mamata Banerjee-led government, the High Court rejected the allegations of bias against the National Human Rights Commission, a team of which had submitted a fact-finding report to the court as per its directions.

“The allegation of bias against the Committee is not material because this court has considered not only the report of the Committee but other materials as well and arguments of learned Counsel based thereon”, Justice IP Mukerji observed in his judgment.

The Court has also directed the state government to hand over the autopsy report of Avijit Sarkar, a BJP worker who got killed in the post-poll violence and other sealed cover documents to the CBI. The Calcutta High Court has asked the CBI and the SIT to submit status reports to the court within six weeks. A division bench will again consider the matter on October 24.

High Court directs for independent investigation in the post-poll violence cases

In his lead judgment, Justice Bindal observed that the fact-finding report of the NHRC committee had exposed the police inaction, and hence the matter required independent investigation.

The High Court noted that the registration of cases and investigation against the workers of the ruling TMC was slow, and in a number of cases, FIRs were registered only after the committee pointed out those.

“There are some FIRs registered against the supporters/workers of political parties who are not in power. These are claimed by them as false cross cases. Even they will not be able to allege bias against the State if the investigation of their cases is also held by an independent agency or monitored by SIT,” the Calcutta High Court Acting Chief Justice noted.

Further, Justice Bindal’s judgment stated, “It should and will inspire the confidence of the people in the rule of law. The allegation is of police inaction. The report submitted by the Committee throws some light on this, and the police have not properly responded to all the issues raised and trying to downplay the same, it certainly needs investigation by an independent agency. Even comparison of data pertaining to the crime during the previous corresponding period will also not come to the rescue of the State as the pattern of the crime can change and the period thereof. Further, there are definite and proven allegations that complaints filed by the victims of post-poll violence were not registered. Such types of incidents, even if isolated, are not good for a healthy democracy”.  

On August 3, the Calcutta High Court had reserved judgment on a batch of petitions pertaining to the post-poll violence in West Bengal unleashed by the TMC cadre against the BJP workers.

Post poll violence in West Bengal

Post-poll violence has become a leitmotif of news emerging out of Bengal following the declaration of results. Umpteen number of violence against political opponents have been reported from the state. In an overwhelming number of such incidents, the victims have been BJP supporters and workers, while the accused were said to be the supporters of the TMC party. More than a dozen BJP workers have lost their lives in the post-poll violence that ensued following the victory of the TMC party in the assembly elections.

The violence unleashed against them forced hundreds of BJP party workers and supporters to flee their villages along with their families. They had crossed over to Assam, where they had been provided temporary shelter under the supervision of minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. However, it is not just the BJP but even CPI(M), which has accused the TMC of killing its workers. Reports of attacks on BSF jawans have also emerged in the media.

On June 2, 2021, a month after Mamata Banerjee came back to power, the BJP said 37 of its workers were killed in the post-poll violence that convulsed the state. In addition, some reports said women in West Bengal were raped, assaulted and, in some cases, even killed just because they adhered to a different political ideology.

Recently, a victim raped by the TMC goons in front of her father had shared her harrowing ordeal with OpIndia. She narrated how she was attacked and sexually assaulted by her perpetrators associated with the TMC party.

In the aftermath of the assembly election results, TMC goons wreaked havoc, attacking and plundering the houses of their opponents. In one such attack, TMC goons had lynched BJP worker Avijit Sarkar to death.

Antima Singh goes against her family to convert and marry Imran who mercilessly stabs her in full public view in Rajasthan: Full story

A gruesome incident has been reported from Kota, Rajasthan, where a Muslim youth mercilessly stabbed his wife Antima Singh alias Rizwana (27) in full public view. The accused slit his wife’s throat with a sharp weapon in the middle of the road in broad daylight and fled from the spot leaving his gravely injured wife in a pool of blood. The locals rushed the injured woman to the hospital for treatment, but doctors declared her brought dead.

According to reports, the victim, married Imran 11 years ago against her parents’ wish and changed her name to Rizwana after accepting Islam. She lived with her husband in the Vigyan Nagar area with their three children. A few years after the marriage, the couple started regularly having fights. Fed up of the daily squabbles, the duo separated two years ago. Antima Singh alias Rizwana started living at her sister’s place in the Balakund area in Kota, Rajasthan.

Following the separation, Imran gave triple talaq to Antima Singh alias Rizwana. Rizwana, in turn, filed a police complaint against her husband accusing him of harassment and physical assault.

Irked by the police complaint, Imran visited Rizwana’s sister’s house on Wednesday. He met Rizwana in a grocery shop located near the house where he stabbed her Rizwana on her neck in broad daylight and fled from the spot. According to reports, Rizwana’s 12-year-old niece was also injured in the assault, when she tried to intervene. Locals who gathered there, hearing Rizwana scream in pain rushed her to the hospital, where she was declared dead.

As soon as the police received the information they reached the spot and started investigating the case.

Imran had sold off the victim from Kota, Rajasthan to someone in Goa

Anita Chauhan, the sister of the deceased confirmed that Imran was an alcoholic, who had married her sister when she was 16-years-old, against the wishes of their family. After marriage, he started indulging in regular fights with Rizwana.

In the later few years of their marriage, Imran had started abusing and physically assaulting her sister also, said Anita, alleging that Imran had sold off his wife to someone in Goa. Rizwana luckily managed to flee Goa. After coming back, Rizwana decided to forgive Imran and went back to living with him, lamented Anita.

The aggrieved Anita added that Imran has three children with her sister, whom he used to also beat up. Sick of the atrocities, Rizwana, two years, ago broke all her ties with Imran and started living with her, informed Anita Chauhan.

Meanwhile, the Dadabari police have, at present, kept Rizwana’s body in the mortuary of MBS Hospital and launched a manhunt to find Imran.

India and Armenia share a common threat and the two countries should collaborate

Armenia and India have had civilizational, cultural, socio-political and economic ties for millennia. It is needless to underscore the paramount importance of even closer and strategic ties between Armenia and India in this ongoing capricious political climate. The 2020’s 44-day aggression of Turkey and Azerbaijan against Armenia and the spread of jihadism in the South Caucasus, the fall of Afghanistan into Talibs’ hands and the intensifying political romance of the belligerent triangle – Pakistan, Turkey and Azerbaijan have made it clear that India and Armenia have no other way out of the aforementioned geopolitical morass than maximizing the cooperation between the 2 oldest civilizations on all levels, including out-of government relationships. 

First and foremost, India and Armenia have those common geopolitical and military adversaries – Turkey, Pakistan, Azerbaijan. Every adult person in Armenia and in the Armenian diaspora knows that Pakistan fought alongside Turks and Azeris against the Armenians in Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) last autumn. Also, Pakistan has always been championing anti-Armenian policy globally: few know that they have not yet recognized Armenia as a sovereign state. On the other hand Turkey with its bellicose politics of Erdoganocracy has already openly announced its plans to advance further into Afghanistan, increase military cooperation with Pakistan and unify the Turkish nations in the Middle Asia and beyond. All this makes Turkey and Azerbaijan passionate supporters of Pakistan’s anti-Indian policy and thus harms the very interests of India.  

Then, it is always of utmost significance to stress the civilizational ties between Armenia and India, including the respective communities in both countries. The two old nations have had established ties for thousands of years including but not limited to religious, economic, political and cultural relationships. The Armenian presence and input in India got to its peak in the late middle ages when the Armenian merchants were competing with the famous British East India Company quite successfully. It was not accidental that the 18th-century writer and philosopher, notable figure in the Armenian liberation movement and a wealthy Armenian merchant Shahamir Shahamirian published and promoted the first modern Armenian constitution in India’s Madras (now Chennai) in the 1770s. Most recently, the two nations have achieved remarkable results in terms of science and high technologies, startups and chess which is another proof of ties on all levels and in all sectors. 

Last but not least, India has now got a unique chance of getting a very fresh expertise and knowledge of the 6th generation war strategies and tactics as the Armenian nation went through it last autumn. There are on-ground possibilities of establishing joint Armenia-India military centers including but not limited to military schools with joint curricula, military analytics group of high-ranking military personnel from India and Armenia as well as joint Indian-Armenian militia forces and even private military companies. The roadmap to achieve this high-level military cooperation can be discussed separately and by respective authorities and stakeholders. Both nations will maximize security and safety of their people if they delineate a clear strategy to fight jihadism and the belligerent triangle of Pakistan, Turkey and Azerbaijan. It is understandable that joint Indian-Armenian militia forces and private military companies can stage remarkable results against the jihadists and against the above-mentioned belligerent triangle. 

In the end it is vital to understand that Armenia is going through immense challenges which may make it difficult to run the aforementioned projects only through the G2G (government to government) medium. As the founder of the Armenian Network State, a pan-Armenian movement that unites the World Armenians, I have stressed a number of times the importance of establishing out-of-box ties between the two nations which should absolutely include government – movement ties, involving the World Armenians and the Indian Diaspora. I’ve already got some chances to present the out-of-box cooperation mechanisms with India (including venture investment opportunities and joint hi-tech projects) to respective Indian authorities and want to reach out to the broader public and respective decision-makers with the same idea as the time works against both of us – Indians and Armenians. 

To sum up, I want to recall one interesting story by the Armenian Network State citizen and a notable Armenian politician and statesman Hrant Khachatryan from his meeting with a high-ranking Indian officer at the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi in late 1990s. At the meeting, the officer made it clear to Mr Hrant Khachatryan that the Armenian river Araks which borders Turkey is of importance to India as well since India is interested in protecting Armenia’s border with Turkey which has made its expansionist politics, especially towards east, quite evident. Times have changed but that approach must not.  

About the author: Vahram Ayvazyan is the founder of the Armenian Network State. He is an International Relations and Genocide scholar, startup founder and a Climate Reality Leader, personally trained by former US vice president Al Gore. 

A door-to-door hunt for girls as young as 12: Taliban in Afghanistan looking for sex slaves, indicate reports

Reports have emerged that Taliban gangs are targeting children as young as 12 during their hunt for sex slaves since they took over Afghanistan. As per a report published in The Sun, women and girls are among the most at-risk Afghanis under the new Islamist regime. Notably, when the group ruled Afghanistan during the 90s, women and girls were often brutalised and oppressed under the regime. Public executions were common during that period.

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.

However, the Taliban officials have denied the enforced sexual slavery and claimed it is against the rule of Islam. The claims came to light despite the fact that it was only last month when the Taliban officials had published a notice ordering local leaders to provide lists of widows and young girls under the age of 45 in their areas.

The Sun quoted one Afghan national, Faiz Mohammed Noori, whose family left their home in Baghlan and sought refuge in Kabul. However, soon Kabul fell, and at that time, Noori told NBC, “Kabul is also not safe. If they take over Kabul, they’re taking your daughters, your wife, they don’t care.”

Taliban is conducting a door-to-door search for girls

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’.”

She further said that in some villages, Taliban members conducted door-to-door searches looking for young girls to forcibly marrying them and pushing them into a life of sex slaves. She added, “So determined are they that no virgin will escape their clutches that they check drawers, wardrobes and even suitcases in homes where desperate mothers deny they have young daughters to ensure they are telling the truth.”

Killing women in the name of Islam

Recently, reports emerged that they had killed a woman for wearing tight clothes. Another woman was killed for not wearing a burqa. Unverified reports suggest that a woman was stoned to death in Samangan.

The history of atrocities against women

When the Taliban was ruling Afghanistan in the 1990s, such reports of atrocities against women were common. Some of the widely covered reported included the beheading of a woman who went shopping alone. Another report that surrounded the death of a woman who was stoned to death in a shallow grave for having sex with her boyfriend had shaken the world. In 1999, a woman named Zarmina was executed in the middle of a football stadium in Kabul.

Earlier in 2021, an undated video showed an unnamed woman being whipped by the Taliban for talking to a man on the phone. These unforgettable atrocities have pushed the residents of Afghanistan to flee the country seeking refuge in other nations. Several countries, including the US, Canada, some European countries, India and Uganda, are among the countries that are accepting refugees as per their regulations.

Land seized from mafias will be used to build houses for the poor and Dalits: UP CM Yogi Adityanath

Speaking at the State Parliament while the supplementary budget for FY 2021-22 was being presented by his government on Thursday, August 19, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath announced that the state will build houses for Dalits and the poor on the lands freed from encroachment by gangsters and mafias.

Addressing the members of the assembly, the CM asserted that his government does not believe in carrying Mafias with them, instead, they believe in taking action against them, reports ANI.

Immediately after assuming power in the state, the Yogi government has been cracking down on the land mafia in the state. Many of the so-called land mafias have been political leaders themselves or connected to political parties. Hundreds of acres of land illegally occupied by the likes of MP Azam Khan in Rampur, mafia dons like Mukhtar Ansari, Vikas Dubey, several MLAs and self-proclaimed religious preachers have been taken back under government possession in the state.

On February 23, in his address to the Uttar Pradesh legislative council, CM Yogi Adityanath had informed that his government has freed up over 67,000 acres of government land from the clutches of land mafia in the state after it came to power in 2017.

Speaking on the occasion, Yogi Adityanath, without taking any names, also slammed the members of the opposition parties who have been sympathising with the Taliban. “Despite Talibanis inflicting cruelty on women and children in Afghanistan, some people are shamelessly supporting them. All these faces should be exposed”, asserted the CM.

For the uninitiated, merely, two days after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, Samajwadi Party MP from Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal, Shafiqur Rahman Barq, was seen extending his support to the Jihadist organisation. On Tuesday, August 17, the SP MP, who remains in news due to his controversial statements, tried to legitimise the radical Islamist outfit as he opined that the Talibanis have only recaptured the land that originally belonged to them. The next day, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh booked Shafiqur Rehman Burq on charges of sedition, promoting enmity and hurting religious sentiments for his open support to the Taliban. 

Yogi govt announces Rs 7,301.52 crore supplementary budget

Meanwhile, under provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, the state government has announced a Rs 7,301.52 crore supplementary budget to meet the state’s additional expenditures. Of this, Rs 3,000 crore has been earmarked to create job opportunities in the state.

Fund has also been arranged for the welfare of lawyers. While a sum of Rs 5.01 crore has been earmarked for the setting up of Uttar Pradesh National Law University, Prayagraj, funds have been allocated for the construction of a memorial and cultural centre in the name of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar as well.

The state government has increased the dearness allowance of govt employees to 28% (as per the Centre’s mandate) with the effect from July 2021. The government will enhance the honorarium to Anganwadi Workers/Anganwadi Helpers.

Besides, the UP government will be selecting one crore students under a scheme of Rs 3 thousand crores. The students will be provided tablets or smartphones for studies.

According to the state’s finance minister Suresh Khanna, the Uttar Pradesh government’s supplementary budget of ₹7301.52 crores is only 1.33% of the annual budget of ₹ 5.50 lakh crore. “The focus is on providing funds for public welfare schemes, ongoing projects along with creating job opportunities for the youths”, he said after presenting the budget on Thursday, August 19, 2021.

Shia procession attacked in Pakistan on Muharram, 3 killed and 59 injured in the bomb blast

An explosion in a procession being carried by Shia Muslims on the occasion of Muharram in the Punjab province of Pakistan on Thursday has killed at least three and left at least 59 people injured.

Shia leader Khawar Shafqat confirmed that the blast took place when the procession was passing through a congested neighborhood of Bahawalnagar located in the eastern Punjab province.

Matters worsened as the authorities had suspended mobile phone services across the country a day prior just ahead of the Ashura which hampered the communication.

Several videos of the attacker who hurled crackers on the procession are also doing the rounds on social media. (Graphic visuals)

The attacker has reportedly been arrested.

Meanwhile, the situation is said to be tensed in the area with the Shia leader demanding heightened security for other planned processions. 

Ashura marks the 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar followed by all Muslims. Prophet Muhammad used to fast on this day in Mecca, after which it became a common tradition and is followed by Sunni Muslims who fast voluntarily. 

For the Shia, however, it is a major religious event to commemorate the death of Husayn Ibn Ali al-Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, who died at the Battle of Karbala in 680 AD.

Twitter suspends account of Afghan caretaker President Amrullah Saleh’s office, allows Taliban to use its platform

On August 19, Twitter suspended all accounts associated with caretaker President Amrullah Saleh of Afghanistan. Afghan President’s official handle @Afghanpresident and his party Afghanistan Green Trend’s (AGT) handle @AfgGreenTrend were suspended by the micro-blogging site. Reportedly, Saleh is still mobilising forces to counter the takeover of Afghanistan. He is currently lodged in the Panjshir province that has not yet fallen into the hands of the Taliban.

Twitter account of Saleh’s office suspended

What is interesting is that while Twitter suspended accounts associated with Saleh, the Taliban’s spokesperson account is still active on the platform. In fact, accounts of several Taliban leaders are available on Twitter. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid who is actively updating his account with the latest updates, has over 300,000 followers. Spokesperson Suhail Shaheen also has over 300,000 followers, while Qari Yousaf Ahmadi has around 60,000 followers on Twitter.

Twitter accounts of Taliban leaders

While Facebook and YouTube swiftly started banning accounts associated with the Taliban and its followers, Twitter refrained itself from doing so. It said that the Taliban’s accounts are under constant monitoring, and they would take action against the Jihadi group if they “cross the line”.

Facebook, while announcing the ban on Taliban, stated that it had designated Taliban a terrorist organisation as per US laws and it would remove all accounts and content associated with Taliban from all its platforms, including Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram.

‘Dismantling Global Hindutva’ event: Nazi-esque propaganda to justify the genocide of Hindus

A 3-day conference cosponsored by 60+ Departments or Centers from 45+ Universities most from the USA is set to take place on the 10th, 11th and 12th of September. The event titled “Dismantling Global Hindutva” is set to see the participation of several Hindumisic elements like Audrey Truschke, Naxal sympathiser Anand Patwardhan and Nandini Sunder, Quint journalist Neha Dixit and many others.

While the Hindumisic elements globally have tried to equate Hindus to Nazis, the Nazi-esque propaganda to justify the impending genocide of Hindus, is hard to miss. It is evident that this declaration of war against the Hindus has gone from a few rants of deranged minds on Twitter, to an organised campaign with journalists, academics and career Hindumisic activists joining hands.

Nazi-esque propaganda and the dehumanisation of Hindus

The poster of the ‘Dismantling Global Hindutva’ event depicts an inverted hammer ‘uprooting’ brutally on what appears to be an RSS Swayamsevak, clad in saffron.

Poster of the event

The brutal, horrifying imagery has a subtle message to it, not unlike the ‘moderation’ that was peddled by the Nazis right after Röhm Putsch (The night of the long knives) where over 150 political opponents were murdered by the Nazi regime. The pseudo-moderation technique that was adopted by the Nazis essentially modelled the murderous purge as a ‘preventive measure’ to control violent people. One can see how the parallels play out in the poster of the event. In the poster, it is apparent that an RSS Swayamsevak, almost a representative image of all Hindus who are no longer ashamed of their culture, is uprooted by a hammer. However, to hide the blatant Hindumisia and the endorsement of genocide against Hindus, the poster craftily fashions the tip of the murderous hammer as a pencil.

The global propaganda against the Hindus have, especially in the past few years, focussed primarily on the dehumanisation of Hindus. One recalls the posters during the anti-CAA protests and the slogans that were raised for the murder of Hindus – the most prominent ones being the slogan of ‘Hinduon se Azadi’ – essentially meaning that Muslims wanted freedom from the Hindus – supplemented with the image of sacred OM being morphed as the Nazi symbol, a Hindu woman being made to wear the Hijab and songs that called for the religious symbols of Hindus being destroyed so only the name of Allah can remain – “When All Idols Will Be Removed… Only Allah’s Name Will Remain”.

The imagery in the poster also draws from the same concept of dehumanisation that has been followed against a persecuted lot since the Nazi regime. A man clad in saffron, with his roots in Bharat, being crushed by the revolution to save the country from ‘violent barbarians’. It is hard to miss the parallel to Der Stürmer (The Attacker), that printed cartoons that used antisemitic caricatures to depict Jews as not only ‘dangerous’ but also enemies of the nation – not unlike what the narrative of this poster or the Hindumisic elements have been throughout the past few years.

Propaganda 101: Select a few points and repeat them over and over again

“The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly – it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over”, said Joseph Goebbels one, the chief propagandist and faithful soldier of Adolf Hitler, right before he proceeded to murder millions of jews in one of the worst organised genocides that the world has seen.

The ‘Dismantling Global Hindutva’ event employs, effortlessly, the Goebbels technique of the demonisation of a people by proxy, to justify their eventual genocide.

When one reads the ‘eventbrite’ description of the event, the following points are reiterated to justify their campaign of hate:

  1. Militant Hindu groups exist and are growing exponentially
  2. Rampant violence against minorities
  3. Citizenship Amendment Act
  4. Crackdown on dissent
  5. Imprisonment of “activists” fighting for Tribals
  6. Equating Hindutva and racism – drawing a false parallel to white supremacy
  7. The demonisation of the diaspora
  8. Demonetisation and farm laws
  9. Overall erosion of democratic practices and freedoms in India

These are tropes that have been used by the propagandists at home far too often and the counter to each of these tropes have been discussed several times, at length. There really are no “Hindu militant groups” that exist in India. The ones being called the “nails” to be uprooted from India wade in knee-deep water to rescue those who need help, brave Islamist terror to save Hindus when they are being slaughtered as Muslims unleash their terror on the streets, rescue women being raped and forcefully converted to Islam, work relentlessly to offer humanitarian assistance at the times of pandemic and live lives stripped of the wine and dine luxuries that the ‘liberals’ decrying them enjoy. In fact, they trudge along their path of humanism even while their murders are whitewashed, given a political context and even celebrated.

So why have these organisations been termed as ‘militant’ by these Hindumisic forces?

These organisations epitomise three things, as their very foundation – self-defence, the reclamation of Hindu heritage in all its glory and the organisation and unity of Hindus – all of which poses a threat to the global hegemony of Islamists and leftists.

In reality, “uprooting the RSS” is mere symbology. Hindutva, that these elements define as a “political, authoritarian ideology” that has “nothing to do with Hinduism” is nothing but a dogwhistle used to target Hindus and everything Hinduism stands for, without really explicitly talking about their genocidal dreams of “Hinduon se Azadi”.

In an attempt to do so, every institution that has rallied Hindus to unite must be demonised and dehumanised. Apart from the RSS, it is also the Modi government that has been relentlessly targeted for being the political faction behind which Hindus have united in the 2014 and 2019 general elections in India.

Interestingly, the tropes they use gives us a peek into their nefarious designs. While the “Dismantling Global Hindutva” event aims to talk about the mythical “violence against minorities” trope (Let’s be clear here – my minorities, they mean only Muslims. Jains being attacked by Muslims only recently, for example, is a case of religious hatred that will not even be discussed), they have conveniently used Citizenship Amendment Act as a hammer with which to beat the Modi government.

This dichotomy itself explains their delirium – while they believe that Muslims in India need protection from the Hindu majority, their concern for ‘minorities’ starts and ends with Muslims – The Hindu minorities suffering in Islamic nations like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are those ‘heathens’ who perhaps deserve to be sacrificed to the Islamic demon, simply for daring to be pagans in an age where Islam and its barbarity are aided and abetted by self-proclaimed ‘liberals’.

Further, the fact that the event has even demonised the diaspora who refuse to submit to the ‘Liberal’ agenda and continue to be proud of their roots, is a classic case of trying to equate merely being proud of ones own religious and cultural heritage to the Muslim ‘Ummah’ and the global evangelist designs whose idea of a nation-state is based on the ‘brotherhood’ between their co-religionists and the eradication of ‘Kafirs’ or ‘non-believers’.

A trend has emerged over recent years to find an equivalent of monotheistic fundamentalism in the faith of polytheistic Hinduism. The saffron terror narrative of the Congress party might have collapsed but people of a particular political ideology haven’t deterred from their efforts to find in pagan Hinduism the most nefarious aspects of monotheistic faiths.

It is not just the ‘Dismantling Global Hindutva’ event that equates Hindus with the KKK, not so long ago, in an issue of Outlook magazine, an attempt was made to equate Hindutva with the vicious ideology of the Ku Klux Klan by having the cover of the issue portray a member of the white supremacist American outfit sporting a Tilak. Needless to say, there is no equivalent of the Ku Klux Klan in India just as there exists no saffron terror. Those who genuinely believe that Hindutva could be equated with an ideology that asserts the supremacy of a particular race fails spectacularly at grasping the core tenets of the Hindu faith.

Outlook magazine cover

Racial supremacy has never been a core tenet of polytheistic faiths in its entire history. Yes, the Greeks and the Romans did practice slavery, however, it was never the defining aspect of their culture or faith. In contrast to that, monotheistic faiths have continually harboured and encouraged sentiments of racial supremacy through their concept of the ‘chosen people. In this day and age, it can be most blatantly observed in Islam where the Arabs believe in the superiority of their race as a consequence of the ancestry of the Prophet of Islam. It has surely not escaped the notice of people that when a particular community converts to Islam en masse, they give up on their own heritage and adopt the traditions and customs of the Arabs so much that they could even be dubbed pirated Arabs. And if we look back at history, we can observe that white supremacy stems in part from Christian theology as well.

Thus, racial supremacy is so alien to the Hindu faith that only a fool or the ideologically blinded would equate the Ku Klux Klan with Hindutva. History stands testament to the fact that Hindus, by and large, have existed together without enmity to any serious degree for hundreds and thousands of years. Despite the atrocity literature spread by vested interests, Hindu society has never witnessed a race war or a caste war ever in its ancient history. Of course, liberals are working hard to change that fact by continuously fueling regionalist and casteist sentiments to divide Hindu society but despite various political leaders’ attempt at inciting violence along caste lines, they have failed spectacularly thus far and the riots and violence that did occur was more due to political motivations rather than any indication of a deep fissure within Hindu society.

And in their continued effort to create deep fissures in The Hindu society and dehumanise those who refuse to submit to this agenda, the event that is set to take place in September, even extends support to the Urban Naxals who have been arrested for waging a war against the country and those protesting Khalistanis who orchestrated an attempted insurrection on the 26th of January, using the newly passed farm laws, that actually benefits the farmers, as an excuse.

When all else fails, decry democracy

The cries of “democracy being in danger” in India is a fallacious, empty, abstract fall-back argument that the “liberals” often mention, to decry the Hindus who dared to elect a government they thought would look after their interests. One recalls how India was classified as an “electoral autocracy” by the very “liberals” who are repeating these tropes with this event. Autocracy essentially means a country where power is concentrated in the hands of a few people. A democracy, on the other hand, is antithetical to an autocracy – meaning the people elect the government they want in the coutry. The ‘liberals’ craftily decry India as an ‘electoral autocracy’ to give the impression that the democracy in India is dysfunctional to an extent that while it may appear to have democracy, the power actually rests in the hand of a few authoritative individuals.

In reality, the only trope that they mean to cover in academic humbug is the fact that Hindus, perhaps for the first time in a long time, united to elect a government that they believed would look after their interest. Funnily enough, the Modi government itself has done paltry little to uphold the interests of Hindus exclusively. All of the policies of the Modi government has been aimed towards better governance of the nation as a whole. Even CAA, for example, that has become a thorn for these liberals, included the Sikh and Christian minorities under persecution in Islamic nations, much to the chagrin of Hindus.

Despite this, the mere fact that Hindus voted overwhelmingly for a government that would not actively work against the Hindus, like Congress peddling the ‘saffron terror’ narrative or attempting to introduce the ‘communal violence bill’, has spurned the narrative that power in India rests in the hands of a few. What they mean by this, in reality, is that Hindus united and decided the government they want in power by voting in one voice and the Muslims failed to thwart the democratic will of the people.

The aim of the ‘dismantling global Hindutva’ event and the solution

For decades now, Hindus have been massacred and their genocide has been whitewashed in the name of ‘secularism’, ‘brotherhood’ and ‘peacekeeping’. Not just that, over time, as we see now, Hindus have been painted as the perpetrator of violence against Muslims instead of the victims of Muslim violence. From the Moplah genocide where Hindus were raped and slaughtered, to the Direct Action Day, the Noakhali massacre, the en masse genocide of Chitpavan Brahmins to the current anti-Hindu Delhi Riots, the brutal attacks against RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal members while they collected money for Ram Mandir construction to the thousands of Hindu girls being trapped in the unending loop of Grooming Jihad, Hindus have been the victims of years of onslaught.

Instead of talking about the real barbarians, “liberals” whitewash Islamist crimes and paint Hindus as the perpetrators of violence. And once painted as the perpetrators of violence, they proceed to dehumanise the very existence of Hindus so when the barbaric hoards come to slaughter, the world simply looks away – because who cares about the pagan demons being slaughtered anyway?

While the ‘liberals’ have spent years creating atrocity literature to prove that Hindus are monsters who deserve to be eradicated, Hindus have just about begun to document the atrocities they have been subjected to. The solution to such events is to ensure that every crime against every Hindus is documented painstakingly and spoken about widely – without filters. To tell the world out story, repeatedly, loudly.

The more practical aspect is, of course, the involvement of the Indian government. US universities, many of which are funded directly by the United States government, are joining hands with Indian propagandists to demonise Hindus. These very universities have their offices in India and earn millions from Indian students.

As Sandeep Balakrishna writes:

“Most of the universities sponsoring this xenophobic event have their branch offices on Indian soil and they regularly recruit Indian students and therefore, a good chunk of their income comes directly from Indian taxpayers. Not to mention the fact that they use Indian resources for their operations. The question thus arises: are they recruiting Indian students to indoctrinate them in how to wage war against the native culture of their own country by using their own money in fees? This “conference” seems to prove exactly that. Two, India’s economic ties with the US and vice versa should not come at the expense of slaughtering the heart of Indian culture, which is Hindu Dharma. Three, and this message has to ring loudly in the US academia: it has to be sent from both the Indian Government and Indian businessmen and wealthy individuals–withdrawal of funding for expensive chairs and endowments. The right amount of pressure applied at all levels should hopefully do the trick”.

Much remains to be said about the event itself, the organisers, the money trail and the tentacles that are out to devour the nation whole – because India does not remain what it is without the Hindus who give her basic characteristics of pluralism, culture, tradition and grandiose.

However, it is time for the Indian Government to exert the right amount of pressure and for Hindus to stand up and be counted – not to cower and ask for sympathy from the devil, but to talk about the historic atrocities against Hindus, the cultural pushback that is our right and the propaganda against a people that will no longer be allowed to fester. India is the only land that has a Hindu majority. Hinduism, Sanatan, is engraved in its consciousness since before the political boundaries were drawn. Our stories, our heroes our legacy is attached to this land and no other. It is time for Hindus to preserve it – in action and words.