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Islamists in India trend #Quds_हमारा_है to proclaim Jerusalem belongs only to Muslims

OpIndia Staff
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Islamists in India trend #Quds_हमारा_है to proclaim Jerusalem belongs only to Muslims

As Israel is defending its land and people against the unprovoked attacks by terrorist group Hamas, there is a certain section of Islamists in India who are posting provocative messages proclaiming ‘Quds’ as a site belonging to ‘them’. Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem, which is the holy site for Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Indian Islamists are trending a hashtag Quds_हमारा_है on the social media platforms. Interestingly, several Islamists political parties have also jumped in to earn brownie points using the trend.

One Tipu Sultan Party tweeted, “The biggest mistake of Arab was to give Jews a place to live in Palestine.”

It must be noted that Jerusalem is currently in Israel and Palestine has also laid claims on it.

One Md Zahid had quoted AAP leader Amanatullah Khan and wrote, “We will cut off every nefarious hand that rises towards Masjid-e-Aqsa, remembering that Masjid-e-Aqsa is not a building, it is our heartbeat.” It has to be noted while Aam Aadmi Party’s leader had not used the hashtag, his tweet that was quoted by Zahid was inflammatory. He wrote, “We are against the persecution on Palestine, the way Israel is destroying innocent lives by bombing the people of Palestine. It is intolerable. These anti-Islam forces will be destroyed one day.”

While Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem, Al Aqsa mosque is also known as Al Quds. The mosque is located very close to the holy sites for Jews and Christians. The site with historical significance has often been the flashpoint in the Israel Palestine conflict including the latest one.

Another user quoted Mufti Ismail Qasmi, AIMIM MLA from Malegaon, and used the hashtag. Qasmi had posted a tweet from his unverified Twitter handle in which he urged UNO (which is now known as UN) to declare Israel a terrorist state on behalf of Demand of Darul Uloom Deoband.

There are thousands of such tweets making rounds on Social media platforms.

One Twitter user Arman Pathan with Indian and Palestinian flag in his profile wished death upon Israel and supporters of Israel. “Spit on you, you are just 11 or 12# of the world, you are not humans, you are devils,” he said calling them all ‘ugly horrible form of humans’.

Some even appeared to be threatening to the Jews in India.

Essentially, with ‘Quds is ours’ chant, the Islamists in India are calling upon the Ummah to take over Jerusalem and rid it of Jews and Christians, who also consider the place holy.

Jerusalem

This religious divide between the Israeli Jewish people and the Palestinian Muslims stems from the fact that Jerusalem, one of the holiest sites in both Judaism and Islam remains the bone of contention behind the conflict. The Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism where Jews turn towards during prayer is in the Old City of Jerusalem. The Temple Mount complex is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, the Western Wall, the holiest place where Jews are allowed to worship, and the Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine that is instantly recognizable because of its gold-plated dome.

Before the construction of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, there was a grand Jewish temple on the same location on the Temple Mount. This Jewish Holy Temple, called the Second Temple, was the holiest Jewish site of worship until it was destroyed by the Roman Empire in the 70 A.D. as punishment for a Jewish revolt. It was constructed in 516 BCE after the First Temple or Solomon’s temple was destroyed by the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 586 BCE. The Foundation Stone, the holiest site for the Jews at present, is located on the floor of the Dome of the Rock. It has to be noted that the Jews are not allowed to visit it as it located inside the Islamic shrine.

The Western Wall, which is now the holiest site Jews are allowed to worship due to the restrictions on entry to Temple Mount, is a remnant of the retaining wall erected by King Herod as part of the expansion of the Second Jewish Temple. There is extensive physical evidence confirming the existence of the Second Temple on Temple Mount. More about Al Aqsa can be read here.

Congress toolkit: The uncanny resemblances between the actions of Congress supporters and instructions in the AICC document are hard to miss

OpIndia Staff
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Congress toolkit: The uncanny resemblances between the actions of Congress supporters and instructions in the AICC document are hard to miss

Earlier yesterday, the expose of a toolkit, allegedly linked to the Congress party, sent shockwaves across the political spectrum. The toolkit entailed a plan of action for the Congress leaders and supporters to exploit the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in the country to target the Modi government and revive its own moribund political fortunes.

The instructions issued in the Congress toolkit are all-encompassing and extensive to mount a formidable attack against the Modi government when they are engrossed in defeating the raging pandemic. From maligning the Kumbh Mela as ‘super spreader’ event to unwarranted attacks against PM Modi for the Central Vista project, to collaborating with ‘friendly’ journalists and international media to defame the Modi government, the toolkit prepared by AICC Research Department had detailed instructions to the Congress leaders and supporters to milk the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and mount an anti-Modi propaganda blitz.

The Congress party found itself in the eye of the storm kicked up by the revelations made in the toolkit. It predictably distanced itself from the toolkit, calling it “fake” and blustering about taking legal action against the BJP for defaming the party.

Rhetorics aside, it is difficult to tell whether the so-called ‘toolkit’ is authentic or not. However, if events that preceded the toolkit expose are considered, it can be inferred with reasonable certitude that there was an uncanny symmetry between the past incidents and the plan of action suggested in the toolkit. The Congress party’s own behaviour, the responses of the leaders and the ecosystem in general dovetailed perfectly with the set of instructions issued in the toolkit. Here are some examples that demonstrate how Congress supporters had been earnestly following the toolkit long before it was exposed:-

The vilification of Kumbh Mela and its characterisation as a ‘super spreader’ event

The document titled ‘Cornering Narendra Modi & Covid Mismanagement’ in the toolkit highlight how the ‘Kumbh mela’ is to be used to malign the Hindu festival and the ruling party. The “toolkit” suggests politicizing the congregation by repeatedly labeling it as a ‘super spreader’ to hint at BJP’s Hindu politics. 

The pointed instruction guide then recommends using international media reports to validate the point and warns to not comment on ‘Eid’ gatherings as it might be used as a trap.

The document specifically instructs Congress workers stating, “Non-party office bearers and supporters can be encouraged to use social media posts to highlight, by carefully using pictures, that Kumbh is a show of political power in the name of religion while Eid gatherings are happy social gatherings of families and communities.”

Now, long before the Congress toolkit was exposed, a host of Congress supporters and sympathisers had taken to social media to malign the Kumbh Mela. Social media posts were replete with posts that tied the recent spike in the caseloads to the Kumbh Mela. The propaganda that Kumbh Mela was to be held responsible for the resurgent wave of the coronavirus outbreak was trumpeted ad nauseam by Congress supporters and their lackeys on every forum possible. Incidentally, these same set of people who blamed Kumbh Mela for India’s COVID-19 crisis maintained a stoic silence on the ‘farmers’ protests that have been happening for months along Delhi’s borders and that have seen huge congregations in defiance to coronavirus protocols.

Even though analysts and epidemiologists claimed that the new surge of the COVID-19 cases in India could be attributed to the UK strain, which they claimed could have spread because of the protests carried out by the so-called farmers, the Congress supporters continued blaming the Kumbh Mela for the rapid spread of the virus. This, when preventive measures were put in place to stop the spread of the virus during the Kumbh Mela.

Days later, when Eid gatherings were seen in several parts of the country, witnessing participation of people in huge numbers, in brazen disregard of the coronavirus restrictions, there was a deafening silence from the Congress supporters and their online warriors. Such processions were not condemned, nor were they branded as ‘super spreader’ events. The silence on Eid gatherings was in compliance with the instructions issued in the toolkit: To describe Eid celebrations as happy social gatherings of families and communities.

Additionally, the toolkit also mentioned making the use of the international media in vilifying the Kumbh Mela as the super spreader. A raft of articles published in the western media outlets slyly insinuated that the Kumbh Mela gathering was responsible for the recent spurt in the coronavirus cases in the country. However, hardly a few articles ascribed the ongoing ‘farmers’ protests as one of the reasons that may have contributed towards the devastating spread of the virus in Delhi and the adjoining areas.

The prioritisation of SoS calls raised by journalists, influencers to gain favourable media coverage

Another damning indictment that inextricably links the Congress party with the toolkit is the conformity of actions undertaken by Congress leader Srinivas BV during the COVID crisis with the content of the document released yesterday.

With regards to the charity work by Congress frontal organisations, the alleged toolkit says, “Collaborate in advance with friendly journalists on social media to immediately amplify these messages.” It also says, “Calls for help from journalists, media professionals and other influencers must get priority.”

Well, Srinivas B V’s actions betrayed that he had prioritised acting on the requests coming from journalists and other influencers. Consequently, it was hard to miss how Srinivas B V had become a toast of the media firmament after he exhibited eager alacrity in addressing SOS calls raised by prominent journalists and social media influencers. From journalists such as Rubika Liyaquat to filmmaker Ashoke Pandit to cricketer Hanuma Vihari, Srinivas B V was prompt in responding to them, even when he was not tagged in the requests.

Then there was the New Zealand embassy fiasco where the embassy had approached an INC youth leader for medical oxygen instead of the Government of India. The embassy faced a huge backlash, prompting even EAM S Jaishankar to question the Youth Congress’ dubious eagerness to supply oxygen cylinders to the New Zealand and Philippines embassies with zero Covid cases while patients in Delhi were facing an acute shortage. These incidents, taken into context of the revelations made by the toolkit, reinforces the narrative that Congress was acting according to an organised plan.

Blocking hospital beds and hoarding essential facilities and supplies to paint the Modi government as incompetent and inept

The Congress toolkit also suggested its followers collaborate with ‘friendly’ hospitals to ‘block beds’ and other essential facilities like ventilators, oxygen cylinders, to be released only on their request. “Liaise with local ground level political leaders in cities to keep some beds and other facilities blocked in friendly hospitals, to be released only on our request,” one of the subheadings under “Amplify work of frontal Congress organisations,” said.

The recommendation of blocking beds and key medicines perfectly squares with the allegations levelled by a petitioner, who had accused the Youth Congress president Srinivas B V of hoarding essential supplies during the pandemic.

Recently, the Delhi Police had interrogated Youth Congress leader Srinivas BV over the allegations of illegal procurement and distribution of Covid-19 drugs in an ongoing investigation ordered by the Delhi High Court. A petition was filed in the High Court seeking a CBI probe into an alleged “medical mafia-politician nexus” and illegal distribution of COVID medicines by politicians. The petitioners had mentioned Srinivas B V as one of the politicians who allegedly hoarded essential medicines.

Needless to say, Congress’ plan was to gain favourable publicity and PR, even if that meant depriving patients of hospital beds and endangering their lives. They asked their leaders to forge collaborations with friendly hospitals so that artificial scarcity of the beds could be projected, which could then be used to slam the Modi government for COVID mismanagement, and at the time portray Congress as a party that was working tirelessly to provide distraught patients access to hospital beds and other key facilities.

The use of International Media to tarnish PM Modi’s image, and by extension India’s reputation

One of the significant revelations made in the toolkit that is circulating on social media is the use of the international media and ‘friendly’ journalists to propagate anti-Modi propaganda. The document instructed the supporters to rope in the international media to criticise and amplify the perceived COVID-19 mismanagement by the Modi government.

“International media coverage by foreign correspondents in India can be tailored to exclusively focus on Modi and his mismanagement. Liaise with foreign journalists and Indian Oped writers in foreign publications and brief them on talking points,” the toolkit read.

The toolkit further implores the use of funeral pyre photographs to further dent India’s image. “Such journalists can be facilitated by our local cadre in various districts to get the right image and then their reporting may be magnified,” the alleged toolkit says.

This directive fits perfectly with various tragedy porn articles published in the western media with respect to India’s COVID-19 surge. As cases in India soared, western media outlets were replete with articles carrying the pictures of burning funeral pyres from various parts of the country to underscore the severity of the pandemic.

It disclosed the western media’s unhealthy fetish of linking India’s COVID-19 outbreak with funeral pyres. Several media organisations, be it Washington Post or Reuters, posted pictures of funeral pyres from various places in India to highlight the severity of the pandemic. One of the Washington Post journalists even described a cremation ground’s vertical shot as “stunning”.

However, viewed in the context of the toolkit that was exposed earlier yesterday, the coverage of the international media about India’s COVID-19 outbreak jibed very will with the instructions listed in the document. With the Western media’s inordinate and morbid focus on the funeral pyres, it cannot be discounted that they were acting in accordance with the Congress toolkit. After all, the toolkit did ask Congress supporters to use the international media outlets to paint a grim picture of India’s COVID-19 crisis.

Quite clearly, it appears that global media has been taking instructions from the Congress party. It is known that international media has never been friendly towards the current ruling dispensation. On top of it, it appears that they have been peddling propaganda on behalf of the Congress party and publishing the opposition’s talking points as neutral objective opinion.

In fact, this is not the first time that Congress have used international media to overturn their political fortunes. Unable to convince the Indian electorate to vote for them on their own, it appears they are relying on global forces, who do not have the best interests of India in their heart, to defeat Narendra Modi in elections.

The online harassment of celebrities who contributed towards PM Modi Cares Fund

Ever since the coronavirus cases in the country started rising again in March 2021, a coordinated campaign was run on social media websites by usual suspects, casting aspersions on the PM Cares Fund and urging people to donate to campaigns run by other NGOs and eminent celebrities.

As a part of the campaign, celebrities who supported or donated to the PM Modi Cares Fund were attacked and trolled online. For instance, liberals fumed when Australian cricketer Pat Cummins announced that he will be making a donation to the PM Cares Fund to support India’s fight against the pandemic. After being bullied by the ‘liberals’ online, Cummins relocated his contribution from PM CARES to UNICEF Australia.

Similarly, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama was targeted online by the left-leaning ‘liberals’ after he had pledged to donate to the PM Cares Fund from the Dalai Lama Trust. A barrage of online attack ensued shortly after Dalai Lama vowed to donate to the PM Cares Fund in the country’s battle against COVID-19.

Now, the toolkit which was in circulation on social media yesterday suggested that the denigration of PM Cares Fund was a part of a carefully crafted plan to tarnish the integrity of PM Modi and project him as corrupt. Not only this, according to the ‘defame PM Modi’ toolkit that has now gone viral, a strategy highlighted by the document bore an uncanny resemblance to the online backlash received by both cricketer Pat Cummins and Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama.

“If any celebrity donates to PM CARES, then aggressively question them. If they are on social media, then use Congress social media department to embarrass them,” reads Section II(b) of the toolkit. The online harassment faced by the celebrities only demonstrates that the directives mentioned in the toolkit were followed in earnest by the Congress supporters.

The relentless demonisation of PM Modi and India by normalising the use of India Strain and Modi Strain

In the toolkit, there was a section that specifically talked about tarnishing the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In that section, it was mentioned that the approval ratings of PM Modi are higher than the Congress party anticipated, irrespective of “crisis and mismanagement.” They urged Congress party members and volunteers to take the situation as “an opportunity to destroy his image and erode his popularity.”

Divided into five subsections, the section discussed how Congress supporters could tarnish the image of PM Modi by using the resources they have developed over time. The first point was to enable the accounts that look like PM Modi or BJP supporters and push the agenda against the government.

The second point discussed how foreign correspondents in India and Indian Oped writers who write for the foreign publications could be roped in to exclusively focus on the “mismanagement under PM Modi. The toolkit urged everyone to approach “friendly intellectuals and opinion-makers” to use demeaning phrases against PM Modi in the intellectual discourse. It was pointed out that the intellectuals and opinion-makers must have “greater acceptability when used politically”.

However, what was even more appalling is the specific instructions issued by the toolkit to sully the image of India and PM Modi by referring to the COVID-19 strain as the Indian Strain or Modi Strain. When searched about the usage of the word Modi Strain on social media, it was discovered that the phrase was in use since December 2020, when a variant was detected for the first time in India. However, its usage spiked up After April 20, 2021. The usage of the phrase was prominent in May 2021.

The hashtag #ModiStrain has been making rounds since April 22, 2021. A lot of social media users who appear to be Congress followers are using the hashtag. The hashtag and phrases “#IndiaStrain” and “India Strain” are more prominently used on social media. By the second half of April 2021, its usage increased exponentially on Twitter, and there was a wave of tweets with the mention of Indian Strain in them. Even Indian Media houses like NDTV played their part in furthering the use of the phrase and hashtag.

All this demonstrates that the toolkit was in effect at least from mid-April. It indicates that for almost a month now, the social media users and some ‘friendly’ media houses such as NDTV were sincerely abiding by the toolkit directives and meticulously normalising the use of the Indian Strain or Modi Strain to describe India’s COVID-19 outbreak.

Mangaluru: Doctor who refused to wear a mask inside supermarket booked under Epidemic Act

OpIndia Staff
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Mangaluru: Doctor who refused to wear a mask inside supermarket booked under Epidemic Act

A complaint has been registered against a top doctor from Mangaluru, Karnataka, for refusing to follow Covid-19 protocols inside a commercial establishment. The doctor was seen arguing with an executive at the shopping mart for asking him to wear a mask.

A video of Dr. Srinivas Kakkilaya, a renowned doctor and an expert on public health, has gone viral on the internet, in which he was seen arguing with the supermarket staff for asking him to follow Covid-19 protocols and wear a mask. The incident took place in Jimmy’s Super Mart in the Kadri area of Mangaluru.

The doctor can be seen claiming that he had already recovered from Covid-19, and hence there was no need for him to wear a mask. However, the store in charge can be seen asking the doctor to wear as the other customers had raised a complaint against the doctor for not following the Covid-19 protocols inside the store.

“I have been coming to this store for a long time,” says the doctor as he was confronted by the store in charge. As the store in charge says the doctor was putting the staff and his customers at risk, the doctor says that he was not putting anyone at risk as he was infected with the virus long back and has also recovered from it.

Continuing to argue, the doctor was heard saying, “Foolish rules can be made. Will you follow the foolish rules? I have spoken and written about it. I am following Science and I do not want to get fooled by such foolish government,” says Dr. Srinivas Kakkilaya as he was confronted by the staff of the supermarket in Mangaluru.

Complaint registered against Dr Srinivas Kakkilaya

A case has been registered against Dr. B Srinivas Kakkilaya under Epidemic Act at East (Kadri) police station following his refusal to wear a mask while he went shopping at a supermarket in the city on Wednesday May 19.

A complaint was filed by Ryan Rosario, a partner of Jimmy’s Super Mart Kadri at the Kadri police station. In the complaint, Ryan had stated that the customer, Dr. Kakkilaya, who came to the supermarket at around 8.45 am on May 18, refused to wear a mask when the staff in the supermarket asked him to do so.

Reportedly, the police have registered a complaint against the accused under sections of 4,5 and 9 of the Karnataka State Epidemic (Prevention) Act 2020.

Speaking on the issue, police commissioner N Shashi Kumar said, “It has come to our notice that a video went viral on the social media, where Dr. Kakkilaya is seen violating Covid norms by not wearing a mask at a supermarket. When the shopkeeper requested him to wear a mask, Dr. Kakkilaya opposed. A complaint has been filed at East police station under Karnataka Epidemic Act 2020. The investigating officer has been directed to serve notice to the accused and probe the case”.

Kejriwal’s lies called out internationally, but AAP ministers continue to brazen it out

OpIndia Staff
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Kejriwal’s lies called out internationally, but AAP ministers continue to brazen it out

After being slammed by Singapore officials and the Ministry of External Affairs, the AAP government continues to further its claim of the Covid-19 ‘Singapore variant’ in India.

Coming out in support of his party leader, Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain said, “Wrong to say, there is no #COVID19 strain particular to Singapore. There are many strains in India, Will give clarification on the Singapore strain soon. But we assure you there is a new strain in India.”

Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia too has parroted the same narrative, counter-attacking the central government over ‘focusing on Singapore’. Deflecting from the topic, Sisodia attacked the BJP for not focusing enough on the issue, despite the fact that neither Kejriwal nor his ministers Jain and Sisodia, presented any factual evidence of the existence of a ‘Singapore strain’.

After unnecessarily creating confusion and dragging the name of a friendly neighbourhood nation over unverified claims, AAP leaders continue to play politics, using the narrative for political attacks on the BJP.

The undeterred reaction comes as a shocker after Singapore took strong objection to Delhi Chief Minister’s unscrupulous claims citing it as ‘very dangerous.’

Arvind Kejriwal had spread misinformation

On Tuesday, Kejriwal had taken to Twitter to claim that a new variant of Covid-19 was found in Singapore and appealed to Indian government to shut down flights to and from Singapore to not let the ‘new variant’ reach India.

Image Source: Twitter

Hours after Kejriwal put out unverified claims pertaining to the so-called Singapore strain, the Singapore government refuted all the claims made by Arvind Kejriwal and stressed that no new coronavirus strain had been detected in the city-state.

MEA said ‘Delhi CM does not speak for India’

The official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs revealed that the Singapore government had called the High Commission raising a strong objection to Kejriwal’s statement.

MEA had made it clear that Kejriwal has no authority to either pronounce Covid variants or decide India’s civil aviation policy.

Union Minister Dr S Jaishankar too responded sternly to Kejriwal’s unverifiable claims.

Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan too took to Twitter to suggest that politicians should stick to facts and slammed Kejriwal’s statement reiterating that there is “no Singapore variant.”

Kejriwal had spread multiple misinformations in tweet. Apart from claiming about the ‘Singapore strain’ he had also asked the government to cancel flights to the city-state. Civil Aviation minister Hardeep S Puri had clarified that there are no civilian flights operational between India and Singapore since March 2020.

Ex-NDTV journalist removed from his post of Media Advisor to Uttarakhand CM

OpIndia Staff
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Ex-NDTV journalist removed from his post of Media Advisor to Uttarakhand CM

Ex-NDTV journalist Dinesh Mansera’s appointment as media advisor to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Rawat was canceled today.

Letter announcing cancellation of Dinesh Manesar’s appointment

His appointment as media advisor to the CM on May 17 resulted in a social media outrage after which Mansera deleted his Twitter account. Netizens were quick to call out his previous Tweets slandering the Kumbh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

Dinesh Mansera’s Tweets

A temporary post was created for Mansera which was to be valid till February 28, 2022.

Dinesh Mansera’s appointment letter

However, Mansera has now issued his statement via a post on Facebook. 

Mansera in his post claimed that he was appointed because of his experience and expertise, however, it did not go down well with many. Citing that he has never been keen on holding a government position, he accepts the decision as the atmosphere created around him would deter him from giving his best.

Dinesh Mansera’s Facebook post

Mansera is a Haldwani based journalist, who was associated with NDTV in the recent past and worked with a number of print publications in Hindi for the past two decades.

How did the left-liberals, Congress and their friendly media media become successful in creating ‘vaccine hesitancy’ in India

Dibakar Dutta
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How did the left-liberals, Congress and their friendly media media become successful in creating ‘vaccine hesitancy’ in India

While India continues to struggle with the 2nd wave of the Coronavirus pandemic, vaccine hesitancy has been weakening the country’s fight against the Wuhan Coronavirus. Although a total of 18.58 crore doses have been administered so far, a growing population of the country is still hesitant to the idea of being jabbed against the deadly virus.

While speaking to ANI, an Ayush worker named Sadashiv Mandawar informed that residents of the Dhanora Tehsil villages in Gadchiroli in Maharashtra were hesitant to get inoculated. He said, “Only 40 people of the 45+ group took the vaccine. Others think they’ll die after inoculation. The elderly think vaccination for 18+ will make them infertile.”

“We share our experience with them that we’re healthy after taking the vaccine to encourage them. But they say frontline workers get different vaccines. We’re trying to create awareness with help of other departments in the village,” he concluded.

The motivated campaign of left-liberals, Congress and Opposition parties

Amidst the rising cases, we had witnessed how the left-liberals, Congress ecosystem, and other Opposition parties had tried to derail the ongoing vaccination drive. While some opposed vaccination programme to turn around their political fortunes, others targetted the vaccine manufacturers in a bid to demoralise them. One of the strategies employed by them was discrediting the indigenous Covaxin vaccine, developed by Bharat Biotech. The government had approved its emergency use in the month of January.

Using this as the primary tool for propaganda, Congress leaders such as Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, and Chhattisgarh health Minister TS Singh Deo trivialised the vaccination drive altogether. This is despite the fact that Covishield (developed by Oxford-Astrazeneca) and manufactured by Serum Institue of India (SII) was primarily used until Covaxin completed the third phase trials (with 81% efficacy). Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav had gone even a step further to claim that he could not trust ‘BJP’s vaccine’. He claimed that he would only get vaccinated when his government is formed after the next election.

Lawyer-turned-activist Prashant Bhushan had discouraged the Indian government in early February from procuring the Covershield vaccine from a private company, the Serum Institute of India (SII). He had blamed the government for supposedly splurging ₹35,000 crore funds for Coronavirus vaccines at a time when the pandemic is ‘naturally dying down’ in India.

Role of leftist media in creating vaccine hesitancy

One of the key roles played in the dissemination of ‘vaccine hesitancy’ has been the pivotal role played by a section of the media. The Print had been at the forefront of this campaign. Through its articles, it cast aspersions on the approval process for Covishield and Covaxin and propagated apprehensions about their safety and efficacy. It even insinuated that doctors were having doubts over the efficacy of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin

Leftist propaganda site The Wire too published articles that played a part in promoting vaccine hesitancy. Casting doubts over which the vaccines were approved, and by extension questioning the efficacy of the vaccines, The Wire published an article whose headline read: “India has gained two vaccines but its regulators have tarnished Indian Science”. The article argued that none of the two—Covishield and Covaxin—have presented the requisite data needed for approval and yet they were permitted for emergency usage by the Drugs Controller General of India.

They collectively led a nefarious online campaign to create panic and cast aspersions about the efficacy of the Coronavirus vaccine, the result of which now reflects in news stories as shared above. This has aggravated the situation, with many refusing to get jabbed against the Wuhan Coronavirus. The continued effort at creating this ‘vaccine hesitancy’ is now endangering the lives of countless people, who have fallen prey to their vicious propaganda.

After Congress toolkit labels Kumbh as a Covid ‘super spreader’, Swami Avdheshanand condemns its politicisation

OpIndia Staff
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After Congress toolkit labels Kumbh as a Covid ‘super spreader’, Swami Avdheshanand condemns its politicisation

A day after the stunning expose of ‘defame PM Modi’ toolkit allegedly created by the Congress party, Swami Avdheshanand Giri, the Acharya Mahamandleshwar of the Juna Akhara, has issued a strong statement denouncing the opposition party and its friendly media’s efforts to paint the Maha Kumbh festival as a ‘Covid superspreader’ to malign the Hindu festival and the ruling party. 

In a video message, Swami Avdheshanand admonishes those who tried to defame the festival through the well-crafted ‘toolkit’.

“A toolkit has been spreading propaganda that Kumbh was the reason behind the spread of COVID-19 cases across the country. The culture, rituals, faith and traditions of the nation are being tarnished in a well-planned manner. Politicising the Kumbh is not good. The saint-community highly condemns this,” he said.

Politicising the Kumbh is not good: Swami Avdheshanand slams Congress toolkit

He says that Kumbh is not only exclusive to Hindus but has also received recognition from UNESCO. By maligning the religious festival, vested interests are tarnishing India’s culture, rituals, faith and traditions, said Swami Avdheshanand.

In 2017, Kumbh Mela, the largest peaceful gathering of pilgrims on earth, had made it to UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. 

In the video message, Swami Avdheshanand urged people to not fall for the malicious propaganda, instead carefully look over the facts before drawing any conclusion. He says that at the time when the Kumbh festival was being held in Uttarakhand, the cases in other states were already on the rise while the situation was not severe in the state (Uttarakhand).”

The Hindu saint expresses his vexation over vested interests, for their well-coordinated efforts to malign India’s culture, heritage and values.

He said, “A toolkit has been spreading propaganda that Kumbh was the reason behind the spread of COVID-19 cases across the country. While the Kumbh was ongoing in Uttarakhand, the cases in other states were already on the rise while the situation was not severe in the state (Uttarakhand).”

“The culture, rituals, faith and traditions of the nation are being tarnished in a well-planned manner. Politicising the Kumbh is not good. The saint-community highly condemns this,” he said.

Swami Giri reprimanded the propagandists who he believes exhibited their shallow mindset by politicising a religious festival like Kumbh to mint their political fortunes amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

He further pointed out that the Kumbh was ended just after Prime Minister Narendra Modi requested for symbolic Kumbh in the view of rising coronavirus infections. “Have faith in the values and traditions of the country you are born in. Politicising Kumbh is not right,” he added.

Congress toolkit paints Kumbh as Covid superspreader, projects Eid as ‘happy gathering’

On May 18, a 4-page Congress toolkit designed to destroy PM Modi’s popularity and image over the government’s handling of the Covid crisis laid exposed.

The document gave a detailed description of how to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi, defame Hindus, get ‘tailored’ articles attacking the Indian government in international media, and generally fan an anti-Modi hatred among the masses.

The document titled ‘Cornering Narendra Modi & Covid Mismanagement’ began by highlighting how the ‘Kumbh Mela is to be used to malign the Hindu festival and the ruling party. The “toolkit” suggested politicizing the congregation by repeatedly labelling it as a ‘super spreader’ to hint at BJP’s Hindu politics.

The viral “toolkit” purportedly asked Congress workers to use phrases such as “Indian strain” and “Modi strain” on social media and to “keep using the term super spreader Kumbh”. Besides, it encouraged non-party office bearers and supporters of the party to propagate Eid as a ‘happy gathering’.

Bengal: Day after dharna, CBI adds CM Mamata and WB Law Minister as parties in Narada scam hearing in HC

OpIndia Staff
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Bengal: Day after dharna, CBI adds CM Mamata and WB Law Minister as parties in Narada scam hearing in HC

A day after West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and her ministers sat on a dharna at CBI’s Kolkata office while her agitated party supporters besieged the premises, the central probe agency has named her and two of her loyalists as parties in Narada scam hearing in the Calcutta High Court scheduled to be held at 2 pm today.

According to Times Now, CBI named WB CM and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee and WB Law Minister Maloy Ghatak as parties, alleging that these respondents are very influential persons and they might influence or threaten the witnesses and the system.

Mamata Banerjee’s conduct an attempt to put pressure: SG Tushar Mehta in Calcutta HC

Opining that the aforementioned conduct of the WB CM and her ministers pose a threat to the CBI investigation into the Narada Scam in which the agency has arrested a few top TMC leaders, SC Tushar Mehta made Mamata Banerjee and her ministers parties in the hearing.

Yesterday, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued in HC that the incident of lawlessness carried out unabashedly by TMC supporters and minister outside and inside the CBI office premises was an attempt to put pressure on the system of administration of justice. He was referring to the 6-hour dharna staged by the WB CM outside the CBI office and the presence of Law Minister Moloy Ghatak in the trial court.

Maintaining that this reflects a total failure of rule of law, he sought the transfer of the trial of the case as per the provisions of Section 407 of the CrPC.

Calcutta High Court comes down heavily on the conduct of Mamata Banerjee

On May 18, the Calcutta High Court had taken serious exception to the conduct of the TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee where she herself sat on a dharna while organising a brute show of force by riotous mobs outside the Nizam Palace (which houses the CBI office) and the Raj Bhawan.

It took note of submissions made by Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, that while inside the CBI office, the Chief Minister demanded the ‘unconditional release’ of the four arrested.

The court also took exception to the fact that the West Bengal law minister Moloy Ghatak along with many Trinamool supporters, mobbed the lower court where the four arrested TMC leaders were to be produced. The law minister remained present in the court till the arguments by the counsels on behalf of the CBI and the arrested were heard.

The High Court concluded that any order passed by a court under such circumstances “will not have the faith and confidence of the people in the system of administration of justice”.

Saying so the bench comprising Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Arijit Banerjee stayed the bail and remanded Ministers Firhad Hakim and Subrata Mukherjee, TMC MLA Madan Mitra and ex-legislator Sovan Chatterjee to judicial custody till May 19.

Mamata Banerjee sits on dharna for accused TMC leaders in Narada scam

For the uninitiated, on May 17, hours after Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested Mamata Banerjee’s ministers Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee and Trinamool Congress MLA Madan Mitra in the Narada case, the West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee gheraoed the CBI office in Kolkata’s Nizam Palace.

While Mamata Banerjee staged a sit-in outside the 15th floor CBI office, a large number of TMC supporters who protested outside the CBI office over the arrest of its leaders reportedly pelted stones on security forces, tried to break barricades and attacked the media vehicles as well.

After the purported incident, the TMC leaders arrested by CBI in the five-year-old Narada sting operation case had been granted interim bail by the court of the Special CBI Judge (1) which was later stayed by the Calcutta High Court.

Nitin Gadkari clarifies his remarks on vaccine production, informs about govt’s efforts to ramp up manufacturing

OpIndia Staff
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Nitin Gadkari clarifies his remarks on vaccine production, informs about govt’s efforts to ramp up manufacturing

While addressing a virtual press conference yesterday, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had suggested that more pharmaceutical companies should be allowed to make the Covid-19 vaccines in the country to boost the inoculation drive.

“If the demand of vaccine is more than its supply then it creates a problem. So, instead of one company, 10 more companies should be allowed to make vaccines by paying 10 percent royalty to the original patent holder of the vaccine,” said Gadkari while speaking at a virtual conference organized by Swadesi Jagran Manch.

However, the Union Minister has now issued a clarification regarding his recommendation stating that he was unaware that the relevant Ministry has already taken efforts to ramp up the production to bridge the supply and demand gap.

Gadkari in a series of Tweet said, “I was unaware that before my speech Minister for Chemical & Fertilizers Shri @mansukhmandviya had explained government’s efforts to ramp up vaccine production. After conference, he also informed me that, GoI is already facilitating vaccine manufacturing by 12 different plants/companies and rapid ramp up of production is expected in near future as a result of these efforts.”

Congratulating the team for their timely efforts, Gadkari said that it was important for him to put the discussion on record. 

Vaccine availability and procurement

As per the latest press release by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, a total of 5 crore 86 lakh and 29 thousand doses will be provided free of cost by the Government of India to states/ UTs from May 01, 2021 to June 15, 2021.

Citing information received from the vaccine manufacturers, a total of 4 crore, 87 lakh and 55 thousand doses will be made available till the end of June 2021 for direct procurement by the states/UTs.

Moreover, in an attempt to provide a major boost to the vaccination drive, the Government of India’s procurement pipeline suggests that:

  • 75 crore doses of Covishield
  • 55 crore doses of Covaxin
  • 30 crore doses of Bio E Sub unit vaccine
  • 20 crore doses of SII Novavax 
  • 10 crore doses of BB Nasal vaccine
  • 06 crore doses of Gennova mRNA vaccine
  • 15 crore doses of Sputnik vaccine will be procured between August 2021 to December 2021

The Union Health Ministry has been providing advance information on the availability of Covid-19 vaccine doses to be supplied to the states/ UTs every fortnight.

Production by Bharat Biotech at Pune plant

The Bombay High Court permitted Biovet Private Limited, an associate company of Bharat Biotech, to take possession of a fully operational and ready-to-use vaccine manufacturing plant in Pune to produce Covaxin, the indigenous vaccine against Covid-19.

To support the largest vaccination drive being carried out by India, Bharat Biotech has ramped up the manufacturing capacity of Covaxin to 700 million doses per annum.

The manufacturing scale-up is happening in a step-wise manner across multiple facilities with newer ones being added to the list.

Toolkit controversy: Congress admits that one of the two ‘leaked’ documents was indeed created by them

OpIndia Staff
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Toolkit controversy: Congress admits that one of the two ‘leaked’ documents was indeed created by them

Congress leader Rajeev Gowda today took to Twitter to admit that one of the two ‘leaked’ documents of the ‘toolkit’ was indeed created by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) Research Department.

In a tweet, Gowda admitted that the AICC made a research note on Central Vista for the party and ‘it is genuine’ he said. He further claimed that he had yesterday rubbished the toolkit as ‘forged’ and ‘made up in BJP’. He claimed that the BJP is showing metadata/author of actual document and attributing to ‘fake’.

Earlier today, it was revealed that the creator of the document ‘Central Vista Vanity Project AICC Research’ is one Saumya Varma, a Rajeev Gowda aide.

Metadata of document

After the documents were ‘leaked’ Congress had claimed they are fake and threatened FIR. However, now Congress leader Rajeev Gowda has admitted that at least one of the documents is indeed genuine.

While OpIndia cannot comment on the authenticity of the documents, there indeed are similarities between both the ‘leaked’ documents.

Here is the header of the document Rajeev Gowda admitted to be authentic.

Central Vista project document

Here is the header of second document.

Corner Modi header

As one can see, the header formatting in both the documents is similar.

Similarly, here is the footer of the document Gowda admitted to being genuine.

Footer of AICC document

One can notice how the footnote carries the links of various news portals and tweets.

Here is the footer of another document.

Second footer

This document, too, has similar footnotes and formatting.

Congress toolkit

On Tuesday, two documents were ‘leaked’ on social media which gave point to point notes on how to question and discredit the Modi government on a few key points. The documents were allegedly created by the AICC research development. While Congress had refuted the documents as fake, there were some uncanny similarities between the instructions in the toolkit and how the narrative especially around the pandemic was built.

Congress has demanded an FIR and no official forensic analysis is available to prove or disprove the party’s claims.

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