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Pakistan: School textbooks showing Malala Yousafzai as ‘important personality’ seized, documentary to ‘expose’ her among youth

OpIndia Staff
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Pakistan: School textbooks showing Malala Yousafzai as ‘important personality’ seized, documentary to ‘expose’ her among youth

Authorities in Pakistan have seized textbooks that listed Malala Yousafzai as an ‘important personality’, apparently for her ‘controversial views’ on Islam. The school textbooks were confiscated in Punjab province.

The Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board (PCTB) confiscated the school textbooks meant for grade 7 students, published by the Oxford University Press (OUP). The textbook contained a photograph of Malala Yousafzai along with that of military officer Maj Aziz Bhatti, killed in the 1965 war against India.

Along with the activist, page 33 of the book included included Pakistan’s founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah, poet Allama Iqbal, educationist Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, first prime minister Liaqat Ali Khan and philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi in its list of important personalities. Apparently, the board has earlier denied it permission for publishing.

Meanwhile, the All-Pakistan Private Schools Federation has decided to launch a documentary on the Nobel prize winner to ‘expose’ her before the youth. The president of the organisation, Kashif Mirza, said, “Through this documentary film ‘I am not Malala’, we will tell 20 million students in 200,000 private schools across the country about her controversial views on Islam, marriage, pursuing of Western agenda.”

“The idea behind this is we want to expose Malala among the youth so they do not get impressed by her so-called story of struggle for women rights,” he said at a press conference.

“Malala has attacked the institution of marriage and family structure by advocating that people should live in sin. No one can justify Muslims living together without marriage as it is strongly condemned in Islam,” he added.

“This book is written at the behest of western forces that used Malala for their ulterior motives. Malala has declared Islam and Pakistan’s army as ‘militant’ in her controversial book. She also criticised Quranic verses about two women’s testimony being equal to that of a man and also about the four witnesses in a rape case,” he said of her autobiography ‘I am Malala’.

Malala Yousafzai, in the past, has been criticised by Indians as well for mouthing off platitudes regarding Kashmir following the abrogation of Article 370, where she subtly toed the Pakistani narrative on the matter. She has also been criticised for maintaining a stoic silence over the forced conversion of Hindu girls in Pakistan.

‘It was an honour and absolute pleasure’: Indian athletes bound for Olympics thank PM Modi for boosting their morale

Jhankar Mohta
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‘It was an honour and absolute pleasure’: Indian athletes bound for Olympics thank PM Modi for boosting their morale

On Tuesday (July 13), PM Narendra Modi virtually interacted with Indian athletes who will participate in the Tokyo Olympics starting from July 23. Many athletes have, in turn, thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his encouraging words to cheer India’s Olympic-bound contingent.

World champion badminton player PV Sindhu was quoted by ANI as saying: “It was an honour & absolute pleasure speaking to PM Modi with the rest of the Indian contingent. I’d like to thank him & entire nation for continuous support & we hope to make you proud at Olympics”.

Manpreet Singh, the Indian Hockey team’s captain shared how “fantastic” his experience was to interact with PM Narendra Modi ahead of Tokyo Olympics. He thanked the PM for always encouraging the players with his “motivational words”, which he said always encourages them to perform to the best of their abilities.

Boxing champion Ashish Kumar Chaudhary also called it a “proud moment”.

Likewise, many other players from India’s Olympic-bound contingent thanked PM Narendra Modi for boosting their morale before the huge international multi-sport event.

Besides athletes, many netizens also praised PM Modi’s interaction with the athletes who would be heading to the Tokyo Olympics to make the country proud. They opined that the Prime Minister’s encouraging and inspirational words would surely boost up the confidence of players.

Netizens couldn’t stop lauding PM Modi for speaking and encouraging each and every Olympian personally.

“This quality of Modiji is just amazing”, opined another social media user.

Another user commented how PM Modi not only encouraged the athletes but spoke to them on diverse topics like the basics of participation, sportsman spirit and importance of health.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday interacted personally with all 126 Tokyo-bound athletes and said he is looking forward to their competition and efforts for the upcoming Games.

“Let us all #Cheer4India. Interacting with our Tokyo Olympics contingent”, Tweeted PM Modi while sharing his interaction with the athletes on his official Twitter handle.

PM Modi also shared snippets of his interaction with various athletes on his Twitter handle.

During his interaction, PM Modi asked the contingent to give their best and advised the athletes to not get overwhelmed by expectations. 

Anurag Thakur, Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports; Nisith Pramanik, MoS Youth Affairs, and Sports and Kiren Rijiju, Law Minister and former Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports were also a part of the interaction event.

A total of 126 athletes from 22 States will represent India in 18 different sporting events during the tournament. They will take part in a total of 64 cumulative events. This is the largest contingent ever sent by India. Boxer Mary Kom and Manpreet Singh will be the flag bearers of India during the opening session while Bajrang Punia will be India’s flag-bearer during the closing ceremony. Several athletes such as Bhavani Devi (fencing), Nethra Kumanan (sailing), Sajan Prakash, and Srihari Nataraj (swimming) will be representing India for the first time.

Sexual assault, cocaine snorting, ticketless fans run wild: Read what happened during crime spree in Wembley before Euro 2020 final

OpIndia Staff
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Sexual assault, cocaine snorting, ticketless fans run wild: Read what happened during crime spree in Wembley before Euro 2020 final

On July 11 (Sunday), there was mayhem outside the iconic Wembley Stadium before and after England lost to Italy in the UEFA Euro 2020 final via penalties. The agitated football fans from England ran amok, hitting and racially abusing their Italian counterparts, stomping, spitting and trying to burn down the Italian flag. Several videos and pictures of the England fans creating unnecessary ruckus inside and outside the stadium, both before and after the match were widely shared on various social media platforms.

Ticketless England fans breach security barriers, storm past disabled entrance door

OpIndia reported on July 12, how several fans from England tried to enter the stadium without tickets. Even two hours before the match began, the ticketless fans breached security barriers, tussled with stewards to forcefully enter the stadium. As per reports, as many as 40 frenzied England supporters stormed past a disabled entrance door (D11) when it opened. Many supporters who had bought tickets could not get to their seats, as they were already taken by these ticketless supporters.

England supporters trample on barricades outside Wembley Stadium

“While I was there, while we were queuing up, a disabled gate at Wembley was opened up for a disabled person to go in, and it got rushed by about 40 people trying to get into the stadium without a ticket”, Irish TV presenter Laura Woods, present there was quoted as saying.

Player’s families sit on Wembley stadium steps as ticketless fans occupy their seats

A witness reported that fans were fighting over seats and that some supporters without tickets had ended up in the area that houses the players’ families. In fact, Andrea Mancini, the son of the Italian coach Roberto Mancini had to sit on the steps to watch the game as his seat was also captured.

Wembley staff face sexual assault, threats and racial abuse as they try to control the frenzied crowd

There were reports that numerous stewards were injured in the chaos and many were subjected to racial abuse as they tried to control the crowd. The stewards were apparently instructed to flee to safe spots and end their shifts earlier than planned because it was considered dangerous for them to return to their posts. A volunteer, who did not want to be named said, “I was positioned outside the front of the stadium. We had to literally run for cover — we were told to go inside Wembley Arena and they said: ‘We don’t know if you’re going to go back’, then 20 minutes later they said: ‘No it’s going to get worse,’ and it obviously did.” 

The volunteer added that her team was rushed to a safe spot shortly afterwards as fans started throwing missiles of beer cans and bollards into the crowds”.

According to a report by Mirror, a steward was threatened with a knife, while a woman fan was seriously sexually assaulted in Wembly on July 11.

Fans openly snort cocaine outside Wembley stadium

Amidst all the havoc, allegations of the Three Lions’ fans openly snorting cocaine also surfaced. In an 11 second video, that was shared on Twitter, a fan could be seen climbing onto something and snorting coke while the crowd below cheers each sniff as if it’s a goal.

Riot Police descended on Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square after the match as hundreds of football fans were reportedly seen climbing onto street lamps and setting off flares. 

England players racially abused on social media

While England fans caused a riot-like situation and riot police had to step in to control them, the misbehaviour and irresponsible racial comments found their way on social media platforms as well.

Three English players Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka, who are of African descent and missed their penalties in the shootout, faced the wrath of the England fans as they suffered racial abuse on platforms like Instagram and Twitter.

The violent behaviour of the English fans got them labelled as the sour losers as netizens took screenshots of comments and tweets against the three players of colour and shamed the “fans” for throwing racial slurs and abuses. UK Prime Minister himself came out in support of the players of colour. He said, “This England team deserve to be lauded as heroes, not racially abused on social media. Those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves.”

53 people were arrested in Wembley

Metropolitan police confirmed on Monday that 53 people were arrested in Wembley on match night. A total of 19 officers received injuries. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said: “The unacceptable scenes we saw were a small number of people intent on using the football as an excuse to behave appallingly towards other members of the public and officers”.

“The reports of online hate crime abuse are utterly abhorrent and totally unacceptable. We have launched a post-event investigation and will actively pursue and investigate offenders and criminal offences”, he added.

Former cricketer Venkatesh Prasad shuts up Hinduphobic Twitter handle for targeting NASA intern over photo with Gods

OpIndia Staff
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Former cricketer Venkatesh Prasad shuts up Hinduphobic Twitter handle for targeting NASA intern over photo with Gods

Former Indian cricketer Venkatesh Prasad on Tuesday slammed the official Twitter account of Mission Ambedkar, a forum to spread Ambedkarism internationally, after it made a disapproving remark on a tweet posted by NASA where an Indian American girl was seen sitting on a desk wearing a sweater sporting NASA logo and with Hindu god sculptures and posters in the background. 

Prasad quoted the tweet posted by @MissionAmbedkar and shared a screenshot of a report published in TV9 Marathi, in which supporters of Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of Dr Ambedkar, were seen offering milk on a Shivalinga and praying for his recovery. He said Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar would be ashamed of the Twitter handle that was using his name and mocking the girl for wearing her religiosity on her sleeves and being an unabashed devotee.

Prasad was responding to a comment made by @MissionAmbedkar, which quoted the NASA tweet and said: “After seeing this we said; Science ka naash kar diya NASA ne.”

However, the comment did not sit well with former cricketer Venkatesh Prasad, who criticised the Twitter account for its Hinduphobic remark and bringing disgrace to Dr Ambedkar by using his name. Prasad has been one of the few celebrities who have not shied away from openly expressing their Hindu roots. He joined the platform on the 8th of April, 2021 and within a matter of three months, he has posted some interesting content on his Twitter page, affirming his Hindu credentials.

On International Yoga Day, Venkatesh Prasad demonstrated the Surya Namaskar for his followers, performed in deference to the Sun God. He had also wished people on the occasion of Ganga Dussehra on Sunday as well. Earlier last month, he also sang the Shri Rama Stuti and shared a video of the same on Twitter. He also translated the lyrics for the audience

Photo of NASA intern with Hindu Gods and Goddesses on her table triggers attack from Hinduphobic elements

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States of America created quite the flutter on social media recently after they shared photographs of individuals who had received an opportunity to pursue an internship and the space research agency.

While inviting applications for an internship, NASA shared the photograph of Pratima Roy, an Indian American, along with others and it is her image that has caused the flutter. The photograph showed Roy with Murthis of Hindu Goddesses on her table and the wall plastered with photographs of Hindu Gods and Goddesses.

However, such overt expression of Hindu piety irked quite a few self-professed ‘intellectuals’ who were not happy with the devotion that Roy bears towards her Gods. Such ‘intellectuals’ resorted to questioning her ‘scientific temperament’, which one would assume is more than competent since she earned the opportunity to intern at NASA.

PM Modi interacts with Olympic-bound athletes: Here is what he said

OpIndia Staff
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PM Modi interacts with Olympic-bound athletes: Here is what he said

On Tuesday (July 13), Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with Indian athletes who will participate in the Tokyo Olympic Games starting from July 23. The virtual conference, during which PM Modi interacted with athletes bound for Olympics, was also attended by Union Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Anurag Thakur, law Minister Kiren Rijiju and Minister of State Nisith Pramanik.

During his interaction, PM Modi advised the athletes to not get overwhelmed by expectations. “When you reach such a level at the big stage, expectations are obviously there from you. The country is confident that you will make the nation proud at the upcoming Games,” PM Modi said to archer Deepika Kumari. He also interacted with tennis player Sania Mirza, table tennis player Manika Batra, and sprinter Dutee Chand.

While speaking to javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, he said, “I have been told that you got injured, but still you created a new record. You don’t need to get bogged down by expectations, don’t take the burden of expectations, just focus on your goal.” Chopra responded, “After missing World C’ship & Asian C’ship, I focussed on Olympics. In 1st competition after recovery, I qualified for the Olympics. It got postponed but I continued preparations.”

A total of 126 athletes from 22 States will represent India in 18 different sporting events during the tournament. They will take part in a total of 64 cumulative events. This is the largest contingent ever sent by India. Boxer Mary Kom and Manpreet Singh will be the flag bearers of India during the opening session while Bajrang Punia will be India’s flag-bearer during the closing ceremony. Several athletes such as Bhavani Devi (fencing), Nethra Kumanan (sailing), Sajan Prakash, and Srihari Nataraj (swimming) will be representing India for the first time.

Delhi: Church built upon encroached land demolished, members claim action ‘illegal’

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi: Church built upon encroached land demolished, members claim action ‘illegal’

On July 12, civic authorities demolished a portion of the Syro-Malabar church in Chattarpur (South Delhi). The structure was reportedly built on encroached Gram Sabha land. Ankita Chakravarti, South Delhi District Magistrate, said in an official statement that the demolition exercise was carried out as per High Court orders of 2015.

The statement read, “A demolition drive was conducted today on pillar number 36 and 120 of Chattarpur. The land is an original gram sabha land for which the boundary work was done by Irrigation and Flood Control Department (I&FC). However, it was encroached on by some people by the instalment of religious structures. Over time the encroached area started increasing in the garb of the expansion of the religious structure. Therefore, the Block Development Office tried to undertake the demolition of the unauthorised structures.”

The south Delhi DM added that the Church authorities had approached the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC). The matter was later forwarded to the religious committee. On March 3, Home Police-II Department received a letter that directed to demolish the entire construction above the ground floor as well as the portions of the ground where idols were not placed without further delay.

The DM said, “Thereafter, a letter was received from the Home Police-II Department dated March 3, where they cited the High Court order of 2015 in WPC no 5234/2011 wherein it was directed to demolish the entire construction above the ground floor as well as portions of the ground where idols are not installed/placed without waiting for the decision of the religious committee,” the DM said. She further added that the notices were served to the encroachers, and the demolition was successfully carried out on Monday.

Notice was sent on July 7

On July 7, a notice was issued from the office of the block development officer (south) to the encroachers/unauthorised occupants. The notice directed them to remove the encroachment within three days. It read, “Now, therefore, all the encroachers/unauthorised occupants on the above said gaon sabha land are hereby directed to remove the encroachment themselves within three days from the date of issue of this notice failing which the action for removal of illegal encroachment upon the gram sabha land shall be initiated by this office, and the cost of demolition shall be recovered from the encroachers.”

South Delhi Church members cry foul

Father Jose, Parish priest of the Little Flower Church located in Andheria Modh of Chhattarpur’s Dr Ambedkar Colony, alleged that they did not get notice or any prior information regarding the demolition. He said, “This has been our church for the past 14 years. We have a congregation of 460 families here. Almost 500 students are studying here. They promised me that they would not demolish the church, and they wanted to demolish only the shed. I did not get any notice or prior information regarding the demolition.”

Pastor council member and lawyer John Thomas was quoted by Times of India saying, “Neither did we receive any notice nor were we given time to vacate the land. The officers came with 150 police personnel and three JCBs and demolished the entire structure against the high court’s order. We were not even allowed to retrieve our sacred things.” He called it an illegal and illicit act and said that the church would take legal action in the matter.

The land on which encroachment was done now belongs to the Forest Department based on the Special Task Force report that was submitted in the National Green Tribunal. It will be soon handed over to the department.

Economy, Covid and oppression: Why Cubans are taking to the streets in biggest anti-government protests in over 3 decades

OpIndia Staff
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Economy, Covid and oppression: Why Cubans are taking to the streets in biggest anti-government protests in over 3 decades

Cuba witnessed one of the biggest demonstrations seen in over three decades as thousands of protesters. They shouted “Freedom”, “Yes, we can” and other anti-government slogans as they took to the streets in cities in the small island nation on Sunday and protested against food and medical shortages, along with the bungled handling of the coronavirus outbreak by the country’s communist regime.

The eruption of discontent, among the most remarkable manifestation of dissent since the Cuban revolution of 1959, was an unusual sight in a country that has been under the ham-handed rule of the communist party for over 60 years.

Cuba witnesses biggest demonstrations in over three decades

In a country where oppressive measures by the communist government are par for the course, the unprecedented demonstrations were nothing short of astonishing. Experts who track Cuba closely said it is the first time since the so-called Maleconazo uprising in the summer of 1994 that Cubans have shunned their homes and come out to protest against the excesses meted out by the government.

Hundreds of protesters clashed with the police across the country, with dozens of them being detained participating in demonstrations that were fuelled by a foundering economy, regular power outages and a spiking coronavirus outbreak.

The protest rippled through across the country, from cities to rural counties, speaking to the power of social media, as well as the latent discontent that was brewing amidst the worsening coronavirus pandemic. The protests appeared to have started in the city of San Antonio de Los Baños and spread like wildfire across the country as demonstrators took to social media services like Twitter and Facebook Live to broadcast their protest against the Communist regime.

People take part in protests in the Cuban city of Havana(Image Courtesy: Al Jazeera)

The protests were so massive and extraordinary that it forced President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who succeeded Raúl Castro this year as the first secretary of the Communist Party, to make a clarion call to the “revolutionary” citizens of Cuba to take to the streets and salvage their country.

US president Joe Biden took note of the swelling demonstrations in neighbouring Cuba and expressed his solidarity with the protesting Cubans. He urged the communist regime in Cuba to heed their call for freedom and provide relief from the stifling grip of coronavirus outbreak and the decades of repression.

Why are Cubans protesting against the Communist regime?

Cuba is an authoritarian communist state for more than six decades. It has a population of about 11 million people who primarily speak Spanish and a GDP of $100 billion. Its per capita GDP is roughly $8,000, as per information compiled by the non-profit Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).

For some time now, Cubans have been feeling the heat of economic distress. The country’s economy was in shambles and the onset of the pandemic only precipitated the downturn. The recent protests have their roots in the acute economic crisis in Cuba, where the pandemic has wreaked havoc for the tourism sector, one of the most important sources of revenue that shores up the Cuban economy. In addition, public discontent is also at an all-time high because of the paucity of basic food items and medical supplies. The economic adversity was also compounded by coronavirus-induced lockdowns, because of which many Cubans could not keep their jobs as businesses were shuttered for months on end.

Crowds in Havana throng important centres in the city to mark their protest against the Communist government(Image Courtesy: AP)

Besides the concomitant hardships that the pandemic brought in its wake, the country also suffered from crippling economic sanctions imposed by the administration of former US President Donald Trump. Staggeringly, Cuba’s economy shrunk by 11 per cent in 2020, its worst performance in three decades, leading to severe shortages of some basic goods, including rice. Economy Minister Alejandro Gil admitted that it may take years for the country to fully recover from the sharp plunge.

People in Cuba were stoically enduring the hardship caused by the economic mismanagement of the communist regime. However, their financial woes exacerbated as the coronavirus pandemic swept the globe, necessitating strict lockdowns and a clampdown on economic activities. The protest gained momentum after several celebrities started tweeting with the hashtag #SOSCuba and holding President Miguel Díaz-Canel responsible for the current predicament.

The protests were seen just a few days after the Cuban government announced that its home-developed vaccine called Soberana was about 91 per cent effective against symptomatic patients of COVID-19. It is noteworthy to mention that Cuba has so far not imported any COVID vaccines and has instead administered its population with experimental vaccines, as a part of “intervention studies”, said a report published in Reuters. The report said about 1.5 million of the country’s 11.2 million people have been fully vaccinated thus far.

Madhya Pradesh: Three years after eloping with a man named Waseem against her family’s wishes, Jain girl commits suicide

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh: Three years after eloping with a man named Waseem against her family’s wishes, Jain girl commits suicide

On Tuesday (July 13), journalist Swati Goel Sharma took to Twitter to narrate the story of one young girl named Kirti Jain, who has reportedly committed suicide recently, three years after eloping with a man named Waseem Qureshi.

According to Sharma, Kirti Jain had eloped with Waseem Qureshi about 3 years ago. She hailed from a well-to-do family in Guna while the family of the man was poor. Nevertheless, Waseem began courting the girl while she was still a minor in school. Kirti eloped with the man soon after turning 18.

Kirti’s family has told that the person Waseem never even tried to meet Kirti’s family and the family had no idea about Kirty’s love affair. The couple had eloped directly.

However, the girl’s parents were successful in tracing her. They tried to explain to her the dangers of ‘love jihad’, set up meetings with the Jain leaders but Kirti insisted that she was marrying him out of her free will. As she was legally an adult. There was nothing the family could do.

All counselling sessions to prevent Kirti from returning to Waseem had failed. According to the girl’s brother Kuldeep, Kirti insisted that none knew Waseem better than her. She claimed that the man had vowed to leave non-vegetarian food, in line with Jain customs. The girl claimed that Waseem had promised her that she would not need to change her name or lifestyle. Despite her family’s efforts, Kirti had eloped with Waseem again.

The family had initially approached the police in the matter. However, they stopped pursuing the case after Kirti told the Court that she had willingly gone with Waseem. According to journalist Swati Goel Sharma, the deceased girl had even uploaded a video on social media giving her consent for marriage with Waseem.

However, opposite to what Waseem had reportedly promised, the girl converted to Zainab and got married to Waseem. It was only after she started living with Waseem Kirti figured out that the man had no source of income and had nothing to feed his family. To Kirti’s surprise, Waseem’s family turned out to be extremely poor.

According to Sharma, the girl got pregnant in her first year of marriage with Waseem. Given that the man had no money, the girl’s family gave ₹2 lacs for her delivery and medical care.

Her family, still miffed over her marriage with Waseem, told Kirti to not visit them. Kuldeep conceded, “We told her if you want to leave Waseem and come back, we will help you.” However, Kirti chose to stay with Waseem. After her child’s delivery, she began dialling home more frequently for money. The girl was reportedly confused about how Waseem managed to show off fancy bikes and take her to different places on dates while they were courting.

Even after her delivery, Kirti reportedly kept asking her parental family for money.

During the Coronavirus pandemic, Kirti Jain remained out of touch with her paternal family. In the past week, her brother Kuldeep received a call from the police asking him to identify his sister’s body in the hospital. Kirti had committed suicide by consuming aluminium phosphide (available under the brand name of Celphos). By the time the family reached the hospital, she was already dead.

Her family claimed her body and cremated her as per Jain traditions on Sunday (July 11). Kirti’s husband was opposed to it and insisted that she should be buried under Islamic customs, as she was a Muslim. However, he failed to show any proof for the same to the police. As such, the body was handed over to her paternal family and not the in-laws.

A First Information Report (FIR) was registered against Waseem and his family under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 304B (dowry death) and 498A (dowry harassment). According to Kuldeep, all the accused have been arrested by the Guna police.

Swati Goel Sharma had also shared a video, which was shot before Kirti was declared dead. In her dying testimony, she claimed to have consumed the poison by mistake. Meanwhile, her brother Kuldeep claimed that Kirti might have been forced to take poison and coerced into giving a statement to absolve the accused Waseem’s family.

Amid Punjab power crisis, CM Yogi invites Ludhiana industrialists to set up their business in UP, promises 24-hour power, perks

OpIndia Staff
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Amid Punjab power crisis, CM Yogi invites Ludhiana industrialists to set up their business in UP, promises 24-hour power, perks

Punjab is currently facing a major power crisis resulting in the shutting down of large industries across the state. Amidst the crisis in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has reportedly offered 24-hour uninterrupted power at lower rates along with other perks to the industrialists of Punjab if they shift or set up new units in UP.

An invite was formally received by the industrialists in Ludhiana from the UP government to have a meeting with the CM. On Monday, a delegation flew to Lucknow and held a 3-hour meeting with the CM in his office.

TR Misra, businessman and chairman of Federation of Dyeing Factories Association, was quoted by Times of India saying, “On Sunday, I got a call from a senior officer of the UP government, who apprised me that UP CM Yogi Adityanath wanted to meet Ludhiana industrialists to discuss possibilities of setting up industrial units in UP. After giving our confirmation, we flew to Lucknow and held a long meeting with the CM, which lasted almost three hours.”

He further added, “CM Yogi has promised that, unlike Punjab, the industry will be given 24 hours of uninterrupted power supply, that too at cheaper rates. Besides, the UP government will also ensure proper safety and security of industrial units. We have been promised unmatchable incentives and option to set up industrial clusters at prime areas like near Yamuna Expressway near the upcoming Noida International Greenfield Airport, which would be India’s biggest airport.”

90% of labour in Ludhiana factories is from UP

The industrial associations and businessmen are discussing the proposals laid down by the UP government. A collective decision would be taken soon by them. Misra, while saying that the offers laid down by CM were lucrative, said, “the biggest advantage is that about 90% of the labour working in Ludhiana factories is from UP.”

Peaceful environment for the industry promised by CM Yogi

Gurmeet Singh Kular, head of the delegation that met the CM, said the meeting went quite well. He said, “The UP government has promised to provide support and fast track permissions for the industrial projects. CM Yogi also ensured a totally peaceful environment for the industry with law and order fully maintained.” As UP is part of the Eastern Corridor, it would provide cheap and easy movement of the goods.

Arvind Kumar, additional chief secretary, and other senior officials also met the delegation. Kular said that the government has promised to provide fully developed industrial areas to interested businessmen. The land price offered by the UP government was stated to be Rs.5,000 per square yard. Neena Sharma, secretary, infrastructure and industrial development, informed the delegation about the fiscal benefits available to the investors.

It has to be noted that the industrialists from Punjab had been planning to meet UP CM Yogi since March this year. However, due to Covid, the meeting got delayed. Misra said, “It is just a coincidence that it happened at a time when Punjab is reeling under power cuts.”

Navjot Singh Sidhu’s political saga: Is he shifting to AAP, again?

OpIndia Staff
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Navjot Singh Sidhu’s political saga: Is he shifting to AAP, again?

On July 13, while quoting a tweet by AAP Punjab, Congress Leader Navjot Singh Sidhu praised the opposition party and said that they had always recognised his vision and work for the state of Punjab. He said, “Our opposition AAP has always recognised my vision & work for Punjab. Be it Before 2017- Beadbi, Drugs, Farmers Issues, Corruption & Power Crisis faced by People of Punjab raised by me or today as I present “Punjab Model” It is clear they know – who is really fighting for Punjab.”

He also shared a video clip in which AAP leaders were inviting him to join AAP after he left BJP in 2016. He had joined Congress and won the 2017 election from Amritsar East which was represented by his wife with BJP seat till 2016. Notably, Arvind Kejriwal and other AAP leaders have been pursuing Sidhu for a long time. In 2020, it was reported that Delhi CM and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal had said Sidhu was welcome to join the party. Even in June 2021, there were reports that AAP has been trying to get Sidhu onboard.

AAP leader had urged Sidhu to talk about the electricity problem

Punjab has been facing a severe electricity crisis for the past few weeks. Aam Aadmi Party has alleged on July 12 that Congress has been collecting funds from private thermal plants and ignoring the electricity crisis. AAP leader Bhagwant Mann had urged Navjot Singh Sidhu to talk about the issue on his social media accounts as CM Capt Amarinder Singh is unable to take the necessary steps to revoke the contract from the under-performing private thermal plants.

Sidhu’s continuous attack on CM

Notably, Sidhu has been attacking Punjab CM Amarinder Singh for a long time. He had resigned from the Punjab Cabinet after he was removed from the local bodies portfolio in 2019. He had attacked CM over inaction in incidents of sacrilege in 2015 and police firing that followed the incident. CM Singh had called the continuous attack “total indiscipline” by the elected member of the assembly.

Netizens speculate Sidhu may join AAP

After his tweet, netizens have started speculating if the tweet means there is something cooking between Sidhu and Aam Aadmi Party. Interestingly, National Spokesperson, Congress, Jaiveer Shergill published a tweet with a couplet by Iqbal that reads, “Na rakh umeed-e-wafa kisi parinde se, jab par nikal aate hain to apne bhi aashiyana bhool jaate hain. (Do not expect loyalty from a bird, when feathers grow, they forget their own home.).”

Others speculated that he may shift to AAP soon as he is not getting enough importance in Congress.

One user went ahead and cited ‘sources’ and claimed he would make the shift soon.

It is still unclear if Sidhu would shift to AAP for the upcoming elections or not. However, going by his history of shifting his party during assembly elections, it is quite possible that he would try his hands while contesting from AAP.

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