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NCPCR pulls up Maharashtra govt for not filing FIR against Netflix series Bombay Begums makers, children were shown snorting drugs in the show

OpIndia Staff
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NCPCR pulls up Maharashtra govt for not filing FIR against Netflix series Bombay Begums makers, children were shown snorting drugs in the show

On Wednesday, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights wrote a scathing letter to Maharashtra Home Secretary and Mumbai Police Commissioner accusing them of deliberately delaying action against the makers of the controversial Netflix series “Bombay Begums” and asked them to register an FIR in the case immediately.

In separate letters to Maharashtra Home Secretary and Mumbai Police, the NCPCR mentioned that they had received a complaint against the controversial Netflix series “Bombay Begums” in March this year, accusing the makers of showing objectionable contents. The NCPCR said that the complainants have accused the makers of showing children to be indulging in snorting drugs and taking indecent pictures and selfies in the classroom.

As portraying and glorifying these acts by children and publishing the same in the country went against the spirit of laws made for the protection and welfare of children and therefore any act of aforesaid nature, the NCPCR had deemed the contents of the show as objectionable and had asked the streaming service to stop such publication.

In March this year, the Commission had also asked Netflix to submit an action taken report within 24 hours, failing which it said it would be constrained to initiate appropriate legal action. However, as per NCPCR, Netflix did not act on the Commission’s complaint but merely gave a justification for all objectionable scenes from the series highlighted by the commission.

Mumbai Police fails to initiate action against makers of “Bombay Begums”

In its letter to the Maharashtra government, the Commission said that the makers had violated Section 77 of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, and the Commission then had asked the Mumbai Commissioner of Police to investigate the matter, ensuring that no child labour laws any other relevant laws or “Guidelines to Regulate Child Participation in TV Serials, Reality Shows and Advertisements” is violated.

The Commission said they had requested DCP Enforcement, Mumbai on April 12, requesting him to register an FIR against the Series “Bombay Begums” streaming on Netflix for violating various provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 and POCSO.

However, despite instructions from the Commission, the Mumbai Police has not registered any complaint against the makers of the controversial series, saying that they require “permission from higher authorities” as this matter falls in the grey area and without the approval of higher officers, they can’t lodge an FIR in the matter.

“The Commission fails to understand that how a cognizable offense U/sec. 77 of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 falls in the grey area and why Mumbai Police is not willing to register an FIR, despite this being cognizable offence,” NCPCR said in its letter to Manu Kumar Shrivastva, Additional Chief Secretary.

In a scathing letter, the NCPCR accused the Mumbai Police of delaying registration of FIR against the makers of “Bombay Begums” and even not giving any attention to the Commission’s written request.

“Since, this is a serious issue where police is not following the laid procedure of the land, hence, you are requested to look into this matter and ensure that no further child rights and law of land is violated in this matter,” the NCPCR chief wrote to Maharashtra government.

The NCPCR has also requested that an action taken report may be furnished to the Commission within the next three days.

Bombay Begum portrays children objectionably, normalise casual sex by minors

In March, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights took cognizance of online outrage after several Twitter users called out the OTT platform for its latest web series “Bombay Begums” for wrongfully depicting children. The apex child rights body had asked Netflix to stop streaming the recently released web series “Bombay Begums” citing an inappropriate portrayal of children in the web series.

The notice issued by the Commission said that “from normalizing casual sex by minors, web series are now normalizing the use of drugs among children.”

The notice was issued following complaints received by the Commission from two Twitter handles.

A Twitter user who goes by the handle @DeepikaBhardwaj took strong objection to the depiction of children in Netflix’s Bombay Begum web series. The user protested against the normalization of minors snorting drugs.

Another popular Twitter user @GemsOfBollywood, known for exposing the Hindi film industry for Hinduphobic and other problematic content, shared a snippet from the web series where girls are shown taking pictures of their “developed body parts” and send them to a classmate.

In a shameful perversion of Hindu religious scriptures, a Tilakdhari politician was seen reading Bhagwad Geeta to conclude that the paramount dharma of a woman is to satisfy a man’s lust.

Taking cognisance of the abominable content under Section 13(1)(j) of CPCR Act, 2005, the Commission had noted that “it is of the view that series with this kind of content will not only pollute the young minds of the children, and may also lead to abuse and exploitation of children in the hands of perpetrators/ offenders(sic)”.

However, neither Maharashtra government has not action has been taken against the makers of the series, nor Netflix has removed the objectionable contents.

Mumbai terror attacks, anti-Naxal operations to RAW: New CBI chief Subodh Jaiswal has rich experience

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai terror attacks, anti-Naxal operations to RAW: New CBI chief Subodh Jaiswal has rich experience

The Union government has appointed the 1985-batch IPS officer Subodh Kumar Jaiswal as the Chief of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for two years on Tuesday.

According to the reports, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister, appointed IPS officer Jaiswal as the next CBI chief. Jaiswal will head the country’s premier investigating agency for a period of two years from the date of assumption of charge of the office.

Earlier, his name was recommended by a selection committee comprised of Prime Minister Modi, Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. As per reports, SSB DG Kumar Rajesh Chandra and VSK Kaumudi, Special Secretary at the Home Ministry were the other two names considered for the post.

Before his appointment as the CBI chief, Jaiswal was serving as the Director-General of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).

Jaiswal has rich experience in handling high-profile, terror cases

A 1985-batch Indian Police Service officer of the Maharashtra cadre, Jaiswal has rich experience in dealing with some of the biggest criminal and terror investigations in Mumbai. Subodh Jaiswal was a part of the investigation that unearthed the Telgi stamp paper scam case before it was transferred to the CBI.

From the terror attacks in 2006 to the November 26, 2008, Mumbai attacks, the senior IPS officer has rich experience in handling terror investigations and intelligence gathering both at the state and central levels.

During the Mumbai terror attacks, Jaiswal was in command of the Maharashtra State Intelligence Bureau and coordinated with US intelligence agencies after the deadly attacks. In his earlier stints, Jaiswal has also served in Pune as an Additional Police Commissioner and been part of the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) too. The new Chief CBI chief has also worked in the Intelligence Bureau and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) for more than 10 years.

In June 2018, Jaiswal was appointed as the Mumbai Police Commissioner by then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Later in 2019, he became the Maharashtra Director General of Police before taking up the post of Director-General CISF.

Subodh Kumar Jaiswal led operations against left-wing terror

Interestingly, during his tenure in Maharashtra, Jaiswal has led several operations to unearth the left-wing terror network in the country. The Maharashtra cadre officer investigated the Elgar Parishad and Bhima Koregaon violence cases that led to the arrest of ‘Urban Naxals’ like Sudha Bhardwaj, Stan Swamy, Gautam Navlakha, Varvara Rao, among others, in connection with the plot to kill the Prime Minister.

Before taking over as the Director-General of Maharashtra Police, Jaiswal had also unearthed high-profile corruption cases in his home cadre. Recently, his role in exposing corruption in Maharashtra came to the fore when BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis made public a letter written by Jaiswal to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray recommending a CID probe into the alleged transfer scam in the state.

Rana Ayyub, Barkha Dutt and the funeral pyre of journalism: How western media has attacked Modi Sarkar in 7 years of its rule

Jinit Jain
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Rana Ayyub, Barkha Dutt and the funeral pyre of journalism: How western media has attacked Modi Sarkar in 7 years of its rule

26 May 2021 marks the seventh anniversary of the Modi government in power. This day, exactly seven years ago, Narendra Modi won a landslide victory in the 2014 General Assembly elections and was sworn in as the 15th prime minister of the world’s largest democracy, in a spectacular ceremony held in Delhi.

Modi’s election to the Centre was particularly momentous, given that it was for the first time in 3 decades that a single party won the majority seats to form the government at the Centre. BJP racked up a stunning 282 seats on its own. This was the highest number of seats won by any party on its own since the 1984 Lok Sabha elections when the Congress, led by then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi won a decisive victory.

Technically, it was the fourth time that the BJP had managed to win power at the Centre (3 times before Atal Bihari Vajpayee was in power), but by far the most potent one. Armed with a thumping majority and PM Modi’s nationalist credentials, the government set about to banish the state of sluggishness that had become a hallmark of the UPA-II years.

By contrast, PM Modi’s administration infused new energy in governance, policy-making and its implementation. India saw a decisive leadership at its helm that did not flinch from taking tough but necessary measures to redirect the country’s trajectory towards growth and development.

Key initiatives such as Swachh Bharat Mission, Demonetisation, Make in India, FDI, Startup India & Mudra Yojna, Digital India, Ayushmaan Bharat, Expansion of electricity and road and many others demonstrated the government’s willingness and resolve to usher the country in the era of development.

Even on the nationalist front, the Modi government displayed that the government would no longer tolerate the terror attacks that had their roots in neighbouring countries. While the UPA-II exhibited shocking pusillanimity in refraining from attacking Pakistan after the dastardly Mumbai 26/11 attacks, PM Modi authorised an audacious surgical strikes against the terror launchpads responsible for sending terrorists that carried out Uri terror attack.

Before striking on India’s western borders, the Indian Armed Forces carried out a similar surgical strikes to eliminate the terrorists hiding in the thick forests of Myanmar. Years later, in 2019, the Modi government sanctioned an unprecedented airstrike in Balakot, deep inside Pakistan, to annihilate a terror camp operated by Jaish-e-Muhammad in response to the Pulwama terror attack.

Additionally, the Modi administration was unapologetic about its Hindutva moorings. It took great pride in its cultural identity and historical traditions, something that the previous UPA regimes and the Congress party had always scorned and despised. The Modi government also stopped the minority appeasement and called out the threat posed by the menace of Islamic radicalism.

The departure of Congress from the centre and the old prejudices fuels Western media’s propaganda blitz against the Modi government

The Modi government’s bold governance moves, radical defence measures, and growing assertiveness about its socio-cultural identity ran counter to the beliefs held by the Congress party, and by extension their allies in the western media. For the first time in a decade, there was a government at the centre that kept the country’s interest above its political self-preservation. The fact that Modi won with a clear majority only served to embolden his government’s resolve to pursue national interests.

Modi showed little regard for the worn-out policies followed by the Congress governments for decades since India’s independence. Neither did he seek validation for the decisions he took from the all but powerful western media, which had grown accustomed to the subservience of the Congress party. Instead, he stripped the media organisations, both Indian and the Western, of the privilege they had come to enjoy under the Congress government.

The relationship between the western media and PM Modi has long been vitiated by old prejudices. Since the days he was the chief minister of Gujarat in 2002, when the horrifying train burning incident took place, resulting in the widespread Hindu-Muslim riots in its wake, the western media, and the Congress stooges working in those organisations, have meticulously painted a grim picture of Narendra Modi.

He was constantly criticised in the western media for his alleged role in inciting the riots, even though the Supreme Court of India had given him a clean chit. Later, when he assumed the Prime Minister Office in May 2014, the Western media criticism of India and PM Modi only grew sharper.

Ever since Modi came to power in 2014, a concerted attempt was made by the western media outlets to weaken his government and make a case for Congress’ return to power, for PM Modi had made it amply clear that he would not be meek, docile and gullible as the previous UPA regimes. A vicious campaign was run against him to stop his government from pursuing their policies.

The western media constantly subjected him to relentless attacks, in a bid to cast him as a pariah in their respective countries and to sully his reputation back in India. The attacks against PM Modi would then be cited by Congress and other opposition parties to highlight how the Modi government was being criticised globally.

In a sense, there was a symbiotic relationship between the Congress party and the western media outlets. This anti-Modi crusade in the western media was led by journalists and academicians who were Congress sympathisers and harboured pathological hatred towards PM Modi. They desperately yearned for a Congress government at the centre, which was more amenable to their propaganda than the Modi government.

Therefore, it is no surprise that Rahul Gandhi routinely begs for help from the west to dislodge the Modi government. His video conferences with the so-called intellectuals from the west is also another exercise to discredit the Modi government. However, it is a different thing that those conferences only end up exposing Rahul Gandhi and the so-called intellectuals.

Modi government subjected to unwarranted attacks by the International Media

The policy decisions taken by the Modi government is vigorously slammed in the western media outlets. Even measures taken to establish deterrence against terrorists witness scathing criticism. While the United States could bomb the hell out of the Middle East to pursue their pet project of ‘establishing democracy’ in the region, India is castigated for simply protecting its sovereignty and stopping terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

Countless articles were written terming the Surgical strikes carried out by India’s Armed Forces as figment of Indian government’s imagination. While they asked the Indian government to furnish the proof for the attacks, never did once the articles included evidence that could have proved that the surgical strikes never happened. When the Indian government did release the evidence, the journalists cried themselves hoarse claiming that the Modi government was using retaliatory attacks against terrorists to burnish its nationalistic credentials.

Propaganda peddled by Indian left-leaning liberals was instantly lapped up by the western liberal bastions such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian and several other news publications, which offered space to Modi criticism without critically evaluating the legitimacy of it. The liberals in India gave up the awards and recognition they had received in the past to oppose the “rising intolerance” under the Modi government. The western media followed the suit and accused the Centre of spawning intolerance across the country.

The reports cited dubious a ‘hate tracker’ that selectively included only hate crimes when the victim was a non-Hindu and the perpetrator a Hindu. In fact, the ‘hate tracker’ was so misleading that it excluded religiously motivated crimes committed against Hindus by non-Hindus but included even those cases that had no religious undertones but where the victim was a non-Hindu and the assailant was a Hindu.

These articles were published to tarnish the image of PM Modi, to paint him as a leader who allowed the Hindu nationalists across the country have free rein to act as per their whims and fancies. But the attempts fell flat as people saw through their treachery and the ‘hate tracker’ was finally pulled down.

As their credibility was taking a hit, the international media outlets pulled out another arrow from the quiver to target the Modi government. They identified chronic Modi haters in the Indian journalistic fraternity and provided them with their platform to peddle propaganda against the Indian government. The objective, perhaps, was to restore credibility by getting Indians residing in India to pillory the Indian government.

However, the western media outlets roped in disgraced Indian journalists for this endeavour. Perhaps, the west has always sought damsel in distress in the Oriental world to articulate fiction about the brown world’ sufferings. It was Arundhati Roy before, now it is Rana Ayyub, Barkha Dutt, and many others.

Washington Post elevates discredited journalist Rana Ayyub for its propaganda war against PM Modi

Journalist Rana Ayyub was long consigned to the fringes of India’s journalistic firmament for her dubious reporting practices. Ms Ayyub shot to fame for her ‘investigative journalism’ following the 2002 Gujarat riots. She tried to pass off a fictional story as an investigative story to implicate PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah in the riots case, but it was summarily rejected by her then-employer, Tehelka Magazine.

Discouraged by this, she published a book called ‘Gujarat Files’, which earned the distinction of being trashed by the Supreme Court as a book based upon surmises, conjectures, and suppositions with no evidentiary value.

But her dubious journalistic credentials did not stop the west from glorifying her. The New Yorker writer Dexter Filkins profiled her for an article dissing the Indian government’s move to abrogate Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. The Washington Post co-opted her in their campaign against the Modi government by enlisting her as a Global Opinions Writer. And instantly, Ayyub was elevated as the toast of the western world on all topics concerning India.

She continued assailing PM Modi and the central government in her columns that were replete with conjectures and suppositions rather than cold hard facts. She was even accused of plagiarism but that did not prevent a host of news channels and media organisations around the world to treat her as an authoritative source on all matters in India.

Washington Post co-opts Barkha Dutt for its anti-Modi coverage

The Washington Post also employed another disgraced journalist Barkha Dutt to continue with its anti-Modi propaganda. Dutt is known for her questionable coverage of the Kargil war and the Mumbai 26/11 attacks, and her involvement in the Radia tape scam when audio conversations of her brokering ministerial berths in the UPA-II regime with famous lobbyist Nira Radia were released in the public domain.

Dutt was eventually pushed to obscurity because of her highly condemnable journalistic practices. But despite her shallow journalistic credentials, Dutt was co-opted as a contributing writer by the Washington Post.

And since then, Dutt has not missed a single opportunity to mount a propaganda blitz against the Modi government. Not only did she write censorious articles against PM Modi and his government in the Washington Post, but she also criticised the government on other western media platforms. Recently, Dutt tried to milk her father’s death by indulging in tragedy porn and attacking the Modi government.

Dutt’s father was treated in one of the best hospitals in the country after he was down with COVID-19. He received all the facilities and key antiviral drug required to combat the infection. Yet, Barkha slammed the Indian government on international media channels for not being able to save his father’s life.

Dutt also resorted to theatrics during her coverage of the recent coronavirus outbreak in the country. From camping outside civil hospitals to crematoriums, Barkha shared her pictures where she sat on an upturned tin can and placed her laptop on upturned plastic dustbins to bring us a ground report. It was not lost on many that Barkha was trying to exaggerate the pandemic and paint a grim picture about India’s preparedness to deal with the contagion.

Business interests of Amazon at the centre of attacks against PM Modi by Jeff Bezos owned Washington Post?

It is worth noting that the Washington Post is owned by American business magnate Jeff Bezos, who is the founder and CEO of the multinational technology company Amazon. The business interests of Amazon in a thriving economy like India and which has a population of over 1.4 billion cannot be overstated.

Amazon faces stiff competition from the likes of Flipkart, Snapdeal and other online portals that have recently cropped up in India after the Centre’s push for digitisation. Therefore, it could not be considered beyond the realm of possibilities that Jeff Bezos was using his one business entity to shore up another business entity.

The use of Washington Post to relentlessly attack the Modi government might be an attempt by the American behemoth Amazon to force the Indian government to stack the deck in its favour. India has refrained from exhibiting any favour or disliking for foreign entities operating in the country. With the rising competition and the growth potential that India holds, the ceaseless attacks by the Washington Post against the Centre could be aimed at extracting a favourable deal to brighten Amazon’s business prospects in the country.

The duplicity of western media over India’s COVID crisis and its unhealthy fetish with burning funeral pyres

Never has been the duplicity of the western media more stark than in its coverage of India’s coronavirus outbreak. Even though India had successfully warded off the initial bout of the coronavirus outbreak, the west tried to portray that the government failed in controlling the infection. Towards the start of the pandemic in 2020, the western media faulted the Indian government for instituting one of the strictest lockdowns in the world.

It argued that the coronavirus-induced lockdown had brought unspeakable hardships to the people. Migrant labours streaming back to their villages, economic downturn, rising coronavirus cases were cited to assert that the Modi government had failed in handling the pandemic.

Now, when India was struck with the resurgent coronavirus outbreak, the western media pivoted and asked PM Modi to introduce strict lockdown. The western media outlets wasted no time in using the opportunity to rail against the Modi government. The COVID-19 pandemic disclosed the western media’s morbid obsession 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”.

Where there are deaths, there are obviously going to be funeral pyres. When the pandemic took its devastating toll on the US, Italy, Brazil and other western countries, there were hardly any media organisations that symbolised the outbreak with the images of burial grounds. However, this indignity of linking the COVID-19 outbreak with funeral pyres is reserved only for Indians, and it smacks of the west’s envy of India, which was remarkably successful in staving off the initial COVID-19 outbreak when the developed and richer countries of the world were finding it incredibly difficult to control it.

The vilification of Kumbh Mela as ‘super-spreader’ event of COVID-19

The western media outlets studiously blamed the Kumbh Mela gathering for the resurgent coronavirus outbreak, even though the farmers’ protests continued unabated. They held the Kumbh Mela responsible for the spread of the contagion while giving a free pass to the ‘farmers’ protests that have been happening for months along Delhi’s borders.

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 International media outlets 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.

There has been a litany of articles in the western media outlets where the Kumbh Mela gathering is held responsible for the recent spurt in the coronavirus cases in the country. However, hardly a few articles attribute the rise in coronavirus cases to the ongoing ‘farmers’ protests in Delhi and the adjoining areas.

It has been seven years since PM Modi came to power at the centre, two years since he retained the power in the 2019 General elections. Over the years, the international media has shown its unhealthy alacrity to mount a smear campaign against the Modi government, which has only intensified as the years progressed. It is still three years for the 2024 General assembly elections, But if history is anything to go by, the Modi government should prepare itself to fend off shriller attacks from the International Media.

Rajasthan: Police officer sacked reportedly for challaning Congress MLA aide Munshi Khan who travelled with two pillion riders

OpIndia Staff
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Rajasthan: Police officer sacked reportedly for challaning Congress MLA aide Munshi Khan who travelled with two pillion riders

A police officer has been reportedly sacked by the Rajasthan government for challaning the husband of the Taranagar Municipal chairperson, who travelled with two pillion riders. It is alleged that local Congress MLA Narendra Budania is involved in the dismissal of the police officer.

Earlier yesterday, a video of a brawl between the police officer and the local leader had surfaced on the internet. The police officer had challaned the political leader, the husband of Taranagar Municipal Council chairperson for riding without helmet and proper documents.

According to the reports, the husband and the father-in-law of Taranagar Municipal Council chairperson Priyanka Bano were travelling to participate in a program for the distribution of Kadha when they were caught by the police officer. The head constable Vijendra Singh challaned the duo for defying the coronavirus lockdown and seized their bike. A war of words erupted between public representative Munshi Khan and the head constable, the video of which went viral on social media websites.

Following the brawl, the public representative, along with his supporters met Congress MLA Narendra Budania and demanded action against the police officer and his associates. All the councillors reportedly threatened to resign en masse if no action was taken against the police officers. Following his demand, the Churu SP attached the head constable to police lines on Sunday evening.

Fifty Shades of ThePrint: 50 examples of how the leftist portal is running propaganda in the name of journalism

Alok Bhatt
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Fifty Shades of ThePrint: 50 examples of how the leftist portal is running propaganda in the name of journalism

ThePrint, run by veteran journalist Shekhar Gupta, has become notorious for running propaganda in the name of journalism. They have been spreading lies and misleading claims to target the Modi govt. Here are fifty examples of ThePrint’s mischievous and misleading journalism. These are in just the past few months – imagine how much would have piled up over the years.

Creating Confusion on Vaccine Trials, Encouraging Hesitation and Spreading Fake News

Wilfully misleading the public on what causes black fungus, ThePrint chose to cover itself in cow dung. This when AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria has been absolutely clear that over consumption of steroids is the factor behind it.

How do you create panic? By linking a famous personality’s death to a COVID vaccine. Never mind that the person may have had a heart problem.

What makes one angry is the fact that ThePrint chooses to run big bold headlines about Chhattisgarh Chief Minister’s claim of the Centre not warning them about the second wave.

This despite having carried a story on their website about the warning being given in January of 2021. At least cover your tracks properly, dear team of ThePrint.

Adverse reactions to a vaccine does not mean a vaccine can’t be safe. Despite no links, ThePrint deemed it necessary to report people dying after ‘taking the COVID vaccine’.

Vaccine hesitation efforts should be bolstered in the warped world view of ThePrint. Spread confusion to create hesitation, for reasons malevolent to say the least.

The shameless effort to muddy the waters on vaccination was going on for a while. Never mind vaccine hesitation being created in the process.

ThePrint also chose to carry op-eds that have caused much damage to the vaccine drive by saying Indians don’t need it, weakening India’s fight against COVID.

Full on efforts to create vaccine hesitation by spreading panic, an art that ThePrint has truly mastered. One could indeed take lessons in Goebbelesian propaganda from them.

ThePrint however thought that it could absolve itself of all sins by baptizing itself. It decided to run a story on 23 May 2021 after months of propaganda, that claimed anti-vaxxers were the cause for India’s vaccine hesitancy. As they say in Hindi – sau chuche khaake billi hajj ko chali.

If this was not enough, Mr. Gupta’s organization was more than keen to be voyeurs of death. In a piece that tried to undermine the Prime Minister, ThePrint claimed that the PM or the BJP did not help an RSS worker despite tweets appealing for the same, only to be busted by Twitter users. The family of the deceased had also rejected the claims by ThePrint, saying that theyt were misused by the media. It is as if ThePrint chose to be a synonym for vulture.

On the issue of Dr. Shahid Jameel’s resignation, it is pertinent to note that ThePrint attributed his resignation to a New York Times op-ed where he claimed that ‘Decision-making based on data is yet another casualty,’ on the issue of the government’s pandemic handling. This was the same man who had in 2020 predicted that the worst of the pandemic was behind us and consistently raised questions on vaccine efficacy in the name of ‘science’.

Shekhar Gupta, The Goebbels of Journalism

The less said about Mr. Gupta, the better. The flair with which untrue statements are dropped in with candour is an art few can muster like him.

On 15 May, Mr. Gupta either out of ignorance, but most probably due to malice condemned how bodies could be seen floating only in the Ganga and the Yamuna, but not in the Brahmaputra, Krishna, Cauvery, Godavari, Narmada and more. Never mind that there is a culture of not burning bodies during specific periods or that Nepal has been pushing in bodies in Ganga’s tributaries. Truth should not come in the way of good propaganda.

On 8 May, Mr. Gupta declared that ‘after seven years under Prime Minister Modi, India is an unprecedentedly dysfunctional, worse flailing state.’ However, it seems Mr. Gupta could not control a shade of the truth from blurting out from within, as he acknowledged how “the distribution of welfare benefits to the poorest and the building of hard infrastructure” showed Mr. Modi as an able administrator.

1 May was particularly interesting, as a gust of literal flourish got Mr. Gupta to shout ‘Mayday! Mayday!’ and proclaim India is a disaster. Casually, Mr. Gupta wants us to believe that Chinese President Xi Jinping is offering us generous assistance, whereas truth is that all such ‘offers’ are just commercial orders. Not to forget how it conveniently stopped cargo flights bringing medical supplies to India. This prompts one to ask Mr. Gupta a famous Hindi movie dialogue from 3 Idiots – kehna kya chahte ho!? (what do you want to say?)

“PM Modi cancelled the last leg of his campaign in West Bengal. That he waited till the last day means he was still hoping to be able to do it, but realised he was behind the curve on the pandemic,” waxed Mr. Gupta eloquent on 24 April. Of course, let us discount the fact that Mamata Banerjee continued her rallies even after the PM stopped, or that Congress’ Adhir Ranjan Choudhary did rallies despite Rahul Gandhi’s sanctimony.

17th April saw Mr. Gupta go on endlessly against Mr. Modi, with casual Hinduphobia. Alluding that the Kumbh Mela caused a spread, Mr. Gupta stated “That festivals, the Kumbh Mela and full-blooded election campaigns could now go on. The war with the virus was over and the good side, ‘us’, had won.” Clearly in the world view of Mr. Gupta, COVID is a fascist manifestation that spreads only in majoritarian gatherings like Kumbh. Neither does it spread in farmer protests, nor does it spread in protests against Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati’s comments across the country by agitated Muslims or in Christian priest gatherings. 

The Masters of Propaganda and Misinformation

Propaganda sounds good when the proverbial egg on the face situation does not arise. At least Mr. Gupta seems smart, unlike some of his co-workers and opinion writers that he surrounds himself with.

While Modi waxed eloquent on India-EU trade talks, European leaders were unhappy at US for supporting Delhi’s demand to waive Covid vaccine patents, Jyoti Malhotra decided to write on 11 May. Little did she realize that EU would actually adopt India’s stance in a few days. Such assurance in writing is a shoddy slip. 

Word soups that self-contradict are for the dumb to absorb. Big rhetoric is typical of Ms. Malhotra, as she proclaims how “India went back on its own stated policy of not accepting foreign aid, although there is a subtle difference this time around with the world offering material help.” 27 April was no bar from not being honest. A policy decision was taken by the Manmohan Singh government in December, 2004 in the aftermath of the Tsunami and that policy has been continued with for the last 14 years.

Institutional Hinduphobia certainly seems to be one of the key propaganda tools of Jyoti Malhotra. “India’s international reputation has already taken a hammer blow with politicians like BJP leader and former Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat saying things like, ‘Ma Ganga will not allow corona to spread,’” she writes. An attempt perhaps to distract from the so-called farmer protests being the real super spreaders in Delhi, Haryana Punjab, which even Congress party members are forced to admit now. 

Of course, he is joined by such illustrious people like Shivam Vij, who proclaimed without an iota of evidence the utterly unscientific narrative of herd immunity.

Not to be outdone are the likes of Nitin Pai, who dismissed vaccine by calling it a political jumla, caring two hoots about science. This incidentally is the same man who had famously predicted that ‘India will not have a second wave’.

Of course, chief snafu officer of India, Shobhaa De, who thinks that a man’s looks drive the economy, can also represent the voices of an animal called the crocodile to mock the Prime Minister. Such is the august company Shekhar Gupta maintains.

Then we seem to have such ‘brilliant’ opinion makers like Ruhi Tewari, who claim that ‘Health is not the primary focus’ of the Modi government. It seems that the 157 medical colleges and new AIIMS built over the years by the Modi government should be repurposed to teach some basics of journalism and reporting. Ms. Tewari also needs to learn that Delhi Police arrested people for property defacement under the Delhi Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, 2007, that strictly prohibits banners and posters.

What got attention of course is the blissful unawareness that former bureaucrats like Arvind Mayaram have willingly displayed, who have not let facts come in the way. While demanding an oxygen plant in every district hospital, he chose to ignore how states like Delhi squatted on proposals to build oxygen plants.

Then we saw more examples of Goebbelesian propaganda, when a Professor called Shareen Joshi decided to proclaim that the government has a “long-standing anti-science posture.” Funding research for four vaccines, raising drug production and supporting research for new drugs, and rapid development and deployment of testing kits be damned.

Not to be left behind were people like columnist Mihir Sharma, who ran an entire piece on ‘caste discrimination’ in America by ‘fascist Hindus’ while hiding the fact that the temple construction was given to a contractor in the first place, and questions should be asked of the contractor in the first place.

What was depressing to note, not the least angering, is the ‘fact’ that BJP is not able to digest its defeat in Bengal. I wonder how someone like D.K. Singh can sleep peacefully in the night after knowing that he is being convenient about BJP workers and supporters being killed in Bengal by the goons of TMC. But then, ThePrint seems to support such obfuscators.

50 Word Edit or 50 Words of Lies and Damn Lies?

The most blatant example of obfuscation comes in 50-word edits that the site specializes in.

So what if ordinary people die? Dance of death is kosher so long as BJP is at the ‘receiving end’.

Stalin deserves kudos for building consensus. Not for unleashing panic and chaos in the name of COVID curfews across Tamil Nadu.

There is no racism when COVID waves are attributed to the ‘Indian strain’. Everything else can be racist about the COVID pandemic of course.

  

India’s vaccine drive is an ‘embarrassment’, never mind the 20 crore people vaccinated so far, next only to China and US which started their programs much earlier.

The fact that the Disaster Management Act has helped to transport oxygen between states must not come in the way of propaganda that the Centre is to blame for everything.

From talking for opening up vaccine process for states to act on their own to blaming the Centre for vaccine shortage, the clever by half approach is a serious problem.

Again, the fact that there was no objective assessment apart from the ‘views’ of a few ‘experts’ does not come in the way of peddling propaganda.

Why so gracious on China, ThePrint? Why exactly should scrutiny of China stop with regards to the pandemic?

IT raids don’t pass the smell test. Never mind the fact that the allegations of tax evasion have hung around for years now.

EC did very well to get Narendra Modi’s image out of vaccine certificates. Of course, now that Bhupesh Baghel has inserted his own image in these certificates in Chhattisgarh instead, there is utter silence.

Disha Ravi’s 10 day custody was a ‘shame’ on our democracy but journalist Arnab Goswami’s 14 day jail only ‘exposed Right-wing hypocrisy on free speech and political vendetta’.

Indians especially Hindus must apologize for complaining about Hinduphobia veering on disgusting remarks, never mind the horrible remarks themselves that even made the Madhya Pradesh High Court reject his bail application.

Other Strange Mentions Worth Noting

Thanks to ThePrint, I also got to learn that caste could be found in algorithms of Instagram reels as well, and that dance too had caste associated with it.

Hinduphobia manifests in other forms too. Just look at the attempt of pinning the blame on deceased Rinku Sharma’s murder on Rinku Sharma. Ironically the same has never been rectified, let alone deleted, despite CCTV footage showing otherwise.

This Hinduphobia has recently also manifested in the manner in which Sharjeel Usmani’s distasteful comments on Hinduism were labelled ‘objectionable’. Even if it is a feed ThePrint could have corrected it. Clearly this shows where it stands.

This Hinduphobia also tries to show India as some exotic backward country by talking about ‘corona havan’ fumes as some bizarre unscientific practice. Never mind that their ideal utopia Kerala was engaging in Dhooma sandhya practice which literally does the same.

If embarrassing oneself in India was insufficient, ThePrint decided earlier in December 2020 to take the giant leap of ensuring international insult by being caught for lying by the Russian Embassy in India.

That month, ThePrint also chose to misquote an IIT Professor’s study, and even tried to amend it quietly without being caught. Unfortunately, the professor was smarter than their entire team of journalists.

ThePrint lets people call Central Vista wasteful, but quietly buries stories under mounds of news about Chhattisgarh building new Vidhan Sabha building despite COVID. But only the former can be wasteful expenditure.

From ‘not testing enough’ to ‘what is the point of testing’, ThePrint gives monkey balancing a whole new definition.

Punjab government’s lies on faulty PM-CARES funded ventilators was given space by ThePrint. What of course never made the cut was the fact that the Punjab state government did not even choose to install many of them in the first place despite so many deaths over the months.

Also, can you please make up your mind on whether deaths are being over reported or underreported?

And as I was about to finish compiling “50 shades of ThePrint”, popped up another gem from the House of Gupta, and this time it was about how Under Modi govt, civil servants have lost initiative and drive. India is paying the price. A little bit of background check of the man, he used as his henchman, would have saved him from some ignominy but wo kehtey hain na ki “sharm tum ko magar nahin aati”

How can one end this piece without quoting this tweet where he cunningly used “data” to further his agenda. Hundreds of ordinary Indians turned into his arithmetic teacher telling him to use data uniformly; but then as they say you can’t shame a shameless man, you can only remind him of the awesome shit he’s done!

Online test platform Gradeup blames center spreading riots in Bengal, apologizes after social media uproar

OpIndia Staff
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Online test platform Gradeup blames center spreading riots in Bengal, apologizes after social media uproar

Online study portal Gradeup was caught up in a fresh controversy after they resorted to peddling massive false propaganda against the BJP by claiming that the party has a history of spreading riots in West Bengal.

On Wednesday, social media user Anshul Saxena, who goes by the handle @Askanshul, posted a screenshot highlighting how Gradeup was peddling misinformation and false political narratives against the Union government in one of its online test modules.

According to the screenshot, in one of their recently held test modules, Gradeup had put out a multiple choice question declaring that the party that rules the center has a history of perpetrating riots in West Bengal.

Here is the questions put out by Gradeup in its the platform:

Principle: When the Central Government and a State government make a rule on the same issue, the rule made by the center shall prevail.

Facts: The state of Bengal makes a rule to provide food to Bangladeshi refugees. Whereas, the center, which is under another party which has been involved in sparking many riots in the state, makes a rule for providing shelter to the refugees. Which of the rules is valid?

Image Source: Anshul Saxena

The screenshot of the Gradeup test module has now gone viral on the internet evoking a strong response from the netizens, who have blamed them for peddling political propaganda that is exactly opposite to the reality.

Gradeup peddles false political propaganda, tries to whitewash crimes of the Mamata Banerjee-led state government

Through it is a mock test question, Gradeup tries to subtly propagate lies by claiming that the party ruling the center was inciting violence in West Bengal. Even though there are no direct references to any political parties in the test module, there are enough hints to see the false political propaganda pushed against the BJP by the Gradeup examiners under the guise of online test modules.

The question put out by the Gradeup has two parts to it. The first part, that is ‘the Problem’, discusses the relationship between the state government and the center, especially in a legislative domain. However, in the second part of the question, referred to as ‘Facts,’ the Gradeup examiners straightaway jump to peddle their inherent hatred against the BJP by bringing two aspects to it. One, Bangladeshi Refugees, and the other is the riots in the state of West Bengal.

Considering that the question was related to administration, the statement regarding a particular party allegedly sparking riots in the state was not needed at all.

Though not named, the party in the center in the question refers to the BJP, and the Mamata Banerjee-led government in West Bengal is referred to as a state of Bengal.

It is worth mentioning that the BJP and the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC have come to face-to-face several times on the two aspects – Bangladeshi ‘Refugees’ and the political violence in West Bengal. It is not an unknown fact that the BJP, which is in power at the center, has taken steps to stop the entry of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh to India.

It is also important to note that the BJP, which is gaining its foothold in Bengal, is one of the victims of state-sponsored violence in West Bengal. Dozens of its workers have been murdered in the state by TMC goons.

However, the Gradeup examiners, giving no credence to any facts, put out a factually incorrect and politically motivated assertion, saying that the center, ruled by a particular party, has sparked many riots in West Bengal. Interestingly, this particular question comes amidst the continuing political violence in the state of West Bengal perpetrated by the goons associated with the Trinamool Congress, thus raising questions on the intentions of the examiners.

Political violence and riots in West Bengal

Ever since Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress took the reigns of power in West Bengal, the political violence has increased in the state, especially against her political rivals. With BJP making inroads in the state, the ruling Trinamool Congress fears the saffron party’s presence and has used all sorts of intimidation tactics to keep BJP in check.

The BJP’s victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections set the tone of increased political violence in the state. Mamata Banerjee-led state government has given active support for the Trinamool cadres to carry out violence against political rivals in the state. The victory of the Trinamool Congress in the recently held West Bengal state elections has worsened the situation in the state as the followers of the TMC have perpetrated extreme violence against the BJP cadres in Bengal.

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 on May 2. The violence unleashed against them forced hundreds of BJP party workers and supporters to flee their villages along with their families.

However, the Gradeup examiners, ignoring the reality of the politics of West Bengal, try to not only whitewashes the crimes perpetrated by the goons associated with the West Bengal state government in its test module but also tries to pin the blame on the BJP supporters for the violence in the state.

Gradeup apologises, says they have removed the content

After the widespread outrage on social media over the false political propaganda, the online mock test platform put out a statement apologizing for putting out such factually incorrect questions. The education platform said that quiz questions containing a government-related issue have been taken down.

“We sincerely apologize that this content slipped through our rigorous screening process. We are conducting an internal investigation to find out the source so that such incidents never happen in the future. We assure you that strict action will be taken in line with our company policies. We are further strengthening our internal review process to avoid any errors in the future. We deeply regret any inconvenience caused,” Gradeup issued the statement.

The company further claimed that their faculties and students come from all states, religions, socio-economic backgrounds, and communities, and they are committed to delivering content that is unbiased and is neutral to any religion, state, community, or race.

Congress MLA says ‘unknown’ woman called and performed ‘obscene’ act, now blackmailing him

OpIndia Staff
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Congress MLA says ‘unknown’ woman called and performed ‘obscene’ act, now blackmailing him

Madhya Pradesh Congress MLA Neeraj Dixit has lodged a police complaint alleging that an unidentified woman made a video call to him and performed obscene acts. The woman later used the recorded clip to blackmail him, informed a police official. 

Deputy Superintendent of Police Shashank Jain informed the reporters on Tuesday that the police have registered a case under section 385 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and relevant provisions of the Information Technology Acton basis information received from the Chhatarpur MLA. 

Informing further about the incident, the police officer said, “MLA Neeraj Dixit has submitted an application at Garhi Malehara police station that an unidentified woman recently made a video call on his personal number. The woman allegedly performed obscene acts and recorded the video call. Later, she started blackmailing him on the basis of the video.”

Jain further informed that the MLA justified attending to the call assuming it might be someone from his constituency calling him for help. 

There is no clarity as to how the amount demanded by the woman as the case is still under investigation, however, the Congress MLA had received SMSes from the same number previously.  

As per the report, while the MLA could not be contacted for his statement, his representative Bali Chaurasia informed that the incident took place 4-5 days ago when the MLA was seated with his family. On seeing the woman perform obscene acts, the MLA immediately disconnected the call, Bali added. 

Sextortion frauds

The police officer investigating the case informed that such cyber crimes have become a common occurrence these days.

Cyber Cell Delhi too has issued a notice to warn people against the new scam taking place against both men and women. 

Describing the fraud, Cyber Cell says, “In a new variant of this Modus Operandi, a lot of people (mostly men) are being contacted on Instagram recently by women with attractive profiles, who immediately ask them for a sex chat or a nude video call. When the person agrees to it, they record the entire episode and start blackmailing/extorting the victim for money threatening to share the video with his relatives and friends.”

The Cyber Cell has also issued safety guidelines to prevent people from falling into this trap. 

Email porn scam

Another way to extort money is through emails with subjects claiming, “I know you did sexy/naughty/prurient thing X, pay me Y or I will tell Z.” The subject might also have your old password mentioned to make it believable.

The entire blackmail message will be in the form of an image with the claim to have infected your machine by planting a malware, thus scaring the receiver.

It is best to delete such email and change password for better security.

Republic Bangla suspends journalist over allegations of impersonating central investigating officer and blackmailing

OpIndia Staff
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Republic Bangla suspends journalist over allegations of impersonating central investigating officer and blackmailing

Republic TV took to Twitter to announce the suspension of a reporter on probation period with its network channel Republic Bangla, after accusations against him of impersonating investigating agency officials were brought to light.

Detailing the incident, the channel informed that a reporter named Avikesh Sengupta has been suspended from service with immediate effect as he is allegedly said to be involved in not just a case of impersonation but even kidnapping.

Republic said that on Tuesday it was brought to their notice that Sengupta face serious charges of impersonation of a public servant, fabrication of identity and kidnapping amongst others. He was not a confirmed employee of Republic Bangla and he stands suspended with effect from 25th May 2021.

A Twitter user shared the copy of an FIR filed against Sengupta on Monday for allegedly kidnapping a businessman and demanded a ransom of Rs 1 crore.

Image Source: Twitter

Citing that the organization abides by the zero-tolerance policy towards such criminal acts, a probe has been initiated into the matter.

As per the channel, Sengupta has been absconding since yesterday and has been untraceable with every attempt to establish any connection with him failing. 

Sengupta was on his probation period and not a permanent employee of Republic Bangla. 

Republic Bangla, Bengali-language news channel, was launched by Arnab Goswami’s Republic Media Network on March 07 2021.

Yogi effect? 55 districts in UP now have fresh covid cases in 2 digits, active cases fall 78% from peak

OpIndia Staff
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Yogi effect? 55 districts in UP now have fresh covid cases in 2 digits, active cases fall 78% from peak

In the month of April, the number of active cases in UP was above 3 lakhs. After battling with an acute Covid crisis, oxygen scarcity and availability of hospital beds, India’s most populous state now seems to be on a path of recovery. As of May 24, the number of active cases in the state had reached to 76703.

While weeks back the state was seeing around 40,000 news cases daily, in the last few days the daily new cases have been below 4000. As per the latest reports, 11 of the 75 districts in the state have seen daily new positive cases only in single digits. 55 districts have daily new cases in double digits.

The Kaushambi district not seen a single new covid case in the last 2 days. 18 districts had registered zero covid deaths on May 24.

May 25, the number of active cases go below 70,000

On Tuesday, May 25, the number of active cases in UP went below 70,000. 3957 new cases and 10,441 recoveries were registered, as per the state government’s data. From the peak of 3.1 lakh cases on April 30, the state on Tuesday saw a 78% dip, with just 69,828 active cases.

Total Covid deaths so far in UP have been 19,519 while Tuesday saw 163 deaths.

Despite the drop in cases, the state has kept the number of tests up. It has been performing above 2.8 lakh covid tests every day for the last 25 days.

UP has performed the highest number of Covid tests in India. 4,73,62,430 Covid tests have been performed so far. Last week, UP had become the first state in India to perform 3.7 lakh tests on a single day.

Starting from May 21, UP’s TPR had dropped to just 2.4%.

CM Yogi has been relentlessly touring district after district, taking direct note of ground-level arrangements, meeting with officials, and visiting hospitals to take stock of the situation. After coming out from home-isolation due to covid infection, the CM has been constantly on the move, visiting Covid hospitals and monitoring preparations at the ground level all over the state. As a result, the state machinery is working on a war footing. The results of the relentless efforts are now seen in UP’s reduced covid numbers. CM Yogi had yesterday stated that Covid cases in the state are now completely under control.

Oxygen availability

Speaking on availability of medical oxygen, CM yogi told that he is grateful to the central government for availing medical oxygen through ‘oxygen expresses’. He stated that so far, 20,000 oxygen concentrators have been made available in the state and his government is aiming to make another 20,000 oxygen concentrators available in the coming days for benefit of patients.

As per reports, from the requirement of 1000 tons daily till last week, the demand for medical oxygen has now dropped to 700 tons a day. Upon request of two industry bodies, the CII and IIA, the UP government is now thinking of diverting some of the oxygen for industrial usage.

Black Day: Protesting farmers hoist black flags and burn effigies of PM Modi on the six months of the protests, wish death for the PM

OpIndia Staff
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Black Day: Protesting farmers hoist black flags and burn effigies of PM Modi on the six months of the protests, wish death for the PM

On the occasion of the completion of six months of the protests against the farm bills, the protesting farmer organisations observed ‘black day’ today. Samkyukt Kisan Morcha, the umbrella body of protesting unions,  had announced the ‘black day’, which had got the support of several non-NDA political parties including the Congress, TMC, SP, NCP, DMP and the left parties.

The protestors hoisted black flags at the protest sites on the borders of Delhi, and also across Punjab. As part of the protests, the farmer unions also bunt the effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and they were seen wishing the death of the PM.

At Singhu border, one of the major sites of the farmer protests, the protesters burnt an effigy of the PM, and they were heard chanting ‘Modi Mara, Modi Mara’ at the flames.

Large number of protestors assembled at various places, completely disregarding Covid-19 protocols. Barring a select few, most protesters were not wearing masks, and none of them followed social distancing norms while chanting slogans demanding to repeal the three farm laws.

The protestors out on the streets even as lockdowns are imposed in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi to contain the spread of Covid-19 pandemic. Demonstrations, sloganeering and burning of effigies took place at the protest sites at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur borders, where farmers from the neighbouring states are camping for the last six months. In Amritsar, farmers took out their tractors with black flags on the streets. Moreover, black flags were hoisted on the houses in Punjab.

Earlier, the farmer unions had planned a march to Delhi on the occasion of six months of the protests, which would have been a repeat of the Republic Day march. But later the unions decided against big gathering, and announced that black day will be observed at various existing protest sites and other places.

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait said, “We are also carrying the tricolour. It has been six months now but the government is not listening to us. So farmers are putting up black flags. It will be done peacefully.” He claimed that they are following Covid protocols, and the protestors are not moving from one place to another. He said that people are putting up flags wherever they are.

The Farmers have been protesting the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

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