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MNS leader launches an attack on Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik, asks him to condemn MVA leaders for hoarding Remdesivir

OpIndia Staff
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MNS leader launches an attack on Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik, asks him to condemn MVA leaders for hoarding Remdesivir

The political leadership in Maharashtra is making sincere efforts to fight each other rather than the crisis at hand. With Maharashtra clocking more than 60,000 new corona cases, the blame game in the state has just intensified. After the MVA vs BJP faceoff over Remdesivir, Raj Thackeray-led MNS is now pointing fingers at the Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders for hoarding Remdesivir- the critical drug prescribed to treat Covid-19. 

MNS leader and Vice President of MNS’s youth wing, Akhil Chitre has alleged that the MVA leaders have also stocked Remdesivir but NCP leader Nawab Malik chooses to remain silent on the same. He also advised the MVA government to stop politicizing a pandemic and save people’s lives.

In the same tweet, Chitre revealed that the Congress MLA and General Secretary Mumbai Youth Congress Zeeshan Siddique has confessed to distributing Remdesivir for free in a video uploaded by him on social media.

In the video, Zeeshan can be heard saying that he and his team have distributed Remdesivir and other life-saving drugs for free to the needy and also made arrangements for beds and ventilators as and when possible.

The Aam Aadmi Party did not miss the chance to take a dig at its opponents. Preeti Sharma, a national executive member of the AAP from Mumbai, timing her entry in this fiasco demanded action against the leader of opposition Devendra Fadnavis for allegedly hoarding Remdesivir in Maharashtra. 

The demand was made after the Maharashtra unit of BJP had ordered Remdesivir from a company named Bruck Pharma for distribution through the state government channels. However, after the company readied the product for delivery, the police detained the company’s director accusing them of hoarding the drug.

It is imperative to note that the political parties cannot buy and distribute critical drugs for ‘charity’ or indiscriminate use and need to route the supply through appropriate channels for distribution.

Last week BJP Gujarat’s state president CR Patil was pulled up for procuring 5000 vials of Ramdesivir and distributing it for free to the needy in Surat’s party office.

Karnataka: Police arrest Syed Nasir for burning library with 3000 copies of Bhagavad Gita, was drunk when he lit matchstick for beedi

OpIndia Staff
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Karnataka: Police arrest Syed Nasir for burning library with 3000 copies of Bhagavad Gita, was drunk when he lit matchstick for beedi

A library was burnt to ashes in Mysuru, Karnataka on Friday, the 9th of April. The library with over 11,000 books and nearly 3000 copies of the Bhagavad Gita belonged to a daily wage labourer called Syed Isaac. There was an outpouring of empathy for the person who had taken the initiative to provide people with easy access to books.

An arrest has now been made in connection with the incident. The Mysuru City Police has arrested a man for carelessly throwing a matchstick which led to the fire, The Hindu has reported. The 35 year old accused had apparently lit the matchstick to light a beedi and then proceeded to throw it away without caution.

City Police Commissioner Chandragupta said at a press conference that the accused, Syed Nasir, returned home late at night in a drunken state. He had a fight with his mother and sisters and then got out of his house. He pruchased beedis and matchsticks and threw the matchstick at furniture and cushions kept outside a repair shop in the open.

A few minutes after he left the spot, a small fire had broken out. Two locals had spotted the same and doused it but unfortunately, it had not been doused completely. The fire then kept growing and soon, it enveloped the books in the adjacent library and destroyed them.

The Police learnt the details through visuals of the night captured by a CCTV camera. The Police said that there is no recorded enmity between Syed Nasir and Syed Isaac even though the latter had alleged that miscreants had set the library on fire due to enmity towards the Kannada language. However, further investigations are underway to determine whether the incident was deliberate or otherwise.

West Bengal: Dead body of BJP worker recovered after he went missing, party accuses TMC workers of murder

OpIndia Staff
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West Bengal: Dead body of BJP worker recovered after he went missing, party accuses TMC workers of murder

On Sunday (April 18), the body of a BJP worker was recovered from outside his residence in Mandal Para in Roaowari village in the Nadia district of West Bengal. The area falls under the Chakdaha Vidhan Sabha constituency, which went to polls during the 5th phase of Vidhan Sabha elections in the State.

As per reports, the victim has been identified as one Dilip Kirtaniya. He was an active BJP worker, who was seen managing booth-level party work on Saturday. Reportedly, Kirtaniya was threatened during the day by some unidentified miscreants. Later, at around 11 pm, he was summoned by an unidentified individual and he left his home. He did not return home the whole night.

The BJP worker’s body was recovered on Sunday morning from the bushes in his home’s backyard. Eyewitnesses recounted that Dilip Kirtaniya was bleeding from his nose, ears and mouth. On seeing his condition, he was immediately rushed to the Chakdaha State General Hospital. The BJP worker was declared dead on arrival.

When the news of his death was communicated to the family members, they staged a protest outside the hospital. They alleged that the victim was brutally thrashed and succumbed to his injuries. The family members of Dilip Kirtaniya demanded appropriate action against the culprits. In a bid to pacify the situation, a large team of police officials reached the hospital premises and sent the dead body for post-mortem examination.

Political reactions to the incident

Meanwhile, BJP workers and party leaders created a road blockade and demanded justice for the deceased Dilip Kirtaniya. They also stopped incoming trains at the Palapara police station. The BJP has accused the ruling Trinamool Congress goons of murdering their party worker.

While speaking on the matter, BJP leader Jayprakash Majumdar said, “This is the culture of the Trinamool Congress. They have summoned the BJP’s polling agent and murdered him. Supporting the BJP is a crime in the eyes of the TMC. They have been directed by their party high command to commit such crimes against the Opposition parties. That’s why the low-level workers are acting upon their diktats. We want punishment for the ones guilty.”

Trinamool Congress leader and former Minister Tapas Roy has rejected the accusations. He alleged, “The politicis of murder has been imported by the BJP in the State after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. They derive happiness by stooping to such low levels in politics. How can they conclude that it is murder without investigation? How can they accuse the TMC? Let the probe begin. The truth will be out.”

BJP polling agent brutally assaulted by Trinamool Congress goons

In another incident on Saturday, a BJP polling agent named Ajit Dhar was reportedly assaulted by a TMC worker as he went to cast his vote in the Haroa constituency in the North 24 Parganas district. According to a report by Republic TV, the Trinamool Congress goons allegedly grabbed the BJP leader’s shirt and threatened him against voting for BJP. BJP alleged that the party agent suffered a fracture on his head due to the assault. According to them, Ajit Dhar was attacked with sticks by TMC workers, causing injury to the head.

The BJP worker has been admitted to the Bardhaman Medical College for treatment. The TMC worker asked the BJP agent where he was going and demanded to know why he ‘took money from the Trinamool government during Cyclone Amphan. This led to a heated exchange of words between the BJP polling agent and the TMC goons. According to another BJP polling agent Subrata Ghosh said that he witnessed the assault on Dhar by TMC workers, and after the incident, he could not enter the polling station.

Canadian businessman Bakshish Sidhu ‘shocked’ to learn he is ‘most wanted’ in the US since 2015 for laundering cash for drug cartels

OpIndia Staff
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Canadian businessman Bakshish Sidhu ‘shocked’ to learn he is ‘most wanted’ in the US since 2015 for laundering cash for drug cartels

Bakshish Sidhu, the owner of Basant Forex Ltd., a money exchange company in Canada, has been accused of laundering money in the US for international drug traffickers, including the notorious Sinaloa cartel.

Sidhu is currently featured on the Most Wanted List of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

However, a lawyer representing Sidhu informed that his client learned of the charges against him only a week ago, while the indictment naming Sidhu was filed in California in the year 2015. 

The 36-page indictment named 22 other people who were involved in a “hawala” scam in 2012. Several have been convicted in recent years, including the mastermind of the conspiracy, Gurkaran Singh Isshpunani who was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment. 

Bakshish Sidhu charged in the U.S. for money laundering for the Sinaloa cartel and other drug trafficking organizations

A court’s order stated, “Drug traffickers in Canada would generate drug proceeds from multi-kilogram and multi-pound sales and distributions of drugs provided by Mexican cartels, including the Sinaloa Cartel. The Canadian-based hawaladars, once in possession of the drug traffickers’ bulk Canadian currency, would contact U.S.-based hawaladars and authorize the release of the equivalent amounts of U.S. currency to the couriers operating in the Los Angeles area.”

The modus operandi

Sidhu is allegedly linked to large transfers of cash allegedly made in 2012. He arranged for the transfer of $522,000 on March 20 of that year.

Detailing out the modus operandi, the indictment read that prior to the transaction, Sidhu spoke repeatedly to a contact in California named Ramesh Singh over a telephonic call in a coded language. The call was to make sure Singh “would have $500,000 available to distribute in Los Angeles to meet a pending order.”

Singh, who has since been convicted already, confirmed to him that the money would be available for delivery that Saturday night. Sidhu called back saying the drug trafficker and his organization had increased the order to $1 million and changed the delivery date.

“Singh responded by noting that he preferred to satisfy the order through two deliveries of $500,000 because a $1 million delivery would look ‘weird’.”

On the morning of the delivery, Singh loaded his car with two cardboard boxes — one marked “Bud Light” and the other “Diet Coke” — “that together contained $522,000 and departed for the scheduled meeting with the courier,” the order stated. 

The next day, Sidhu allegedly spoke to Singh again to discuss the transfer of another $600,000.

Sidhu’s side of the story

Sidhu who is said to be shocked after learning about his case has refused to make any comments and is routing all the queries to his lawyer Deepak Chodha.

His lawyer has informed that he is in the process of finding a U.S. lawyer for his client. “As far as Mr. Sidhu is concerned, he is not making any statement,” Chodha said. 

“(Sidhu) is an honourable man, and Mr. Sidhu will face whatever music he has to face and will deal with it,” he added. 

Mamata’s party is regularly doing big rallies in Bengal, but they don’t post on Twitter. Here could be the reason

OpIndia Staff
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Mamata’s party is regularly doing big rallies in Bengal, but they don’t post on Twitter. Here could be the reason

Amidst the rising cases of Coronavirus in the country, the political debate has now centred around large gatherings of party supporters at election rallies. Given that West Bengal is yet to conclude the remaining 3 phases of its Vidhan Sabha election, several political parties are desperately trying to assume ‘social responsibility’ in the light of Covid-19 crisis.

Earlier today, Congress scion Rahul Gandhi attributed election rallies to the rising Coronavirus cases in the country. This is despite the fact that he had addressed a large gathering in Goalpokhar in West Bengal ahead of the 5th phase of Vidhan Sabha polls just few days back. And the Congress party has been boasting about large crowds at his rallies, hoping to project it as the turn of the party’s political fortunes. After realising that election rallies won’t be of much help to the party’s prospects, Rahul Gandhi decided to call them off.

His tweets gave an opportunity to the left-liberal lobby to target the BJP for supposedly not assuming social responsibility in the face of the Covid-19 crisis. Given that the 2021 West Bengal Assembly election is a bi-party contest between the ruling party TMC and BJP, the vicious lobby is conveniently ignoring Mamata Banerjee’s rallies and her ‘social responsibility’ and instead targetting only the BJP. And a part of the success story of TMC to evade media and public scrutiny has been their shrewd social media strategy.

Understanding TMC’s social media story

On Sunday (April 18), Mamata Banerjee was accompanied by thousands of Trinamool Congress workers during her massive roadshow from Dhakuria Bridge to the Kalighat crossing. While the West Bengal CM remain seated in her wheelchair, her supporters followed her with complete disregard to social distancing guidelines. The visuals of her road show were streamed live on her official Facebook page.

Screengrab of the Facebook live video by Mamata Banerjee on Sunday

However, on cross-checking her Twitter account, we found that the last tweet was on April 15 wherein she asked the Election Commission to conduct the remaining phases in one go. There was no update about her election rallies or the road show conducted today.

Screengrab of the last three tweets by Mamata Banerjee

On visiting the official Twitter profile of All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), we found that the last tweet was a routine political jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Once again, there was no update about the road show or a live stream of the public event.

Screengrab of the tweet by All India Trinamool Congress

When we took a deep dive into the Twitter timeline of both Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress, we found no live streaming of any political rallies conducted by the party supremo in recent past. TMC’s official handle, however, has occasional short clips of dialogues and slogans raised by Mamata Banerjee.

Screengrab of a video clip posted by TMC

This, however, is not the case with the social networking site, Facebook. As pointed earlier, we found the live stream of Mamata Banerjee’s roadshow on Facebook. Similarly, her official FB page shared complete video footage of the election rally in Purba Bardhaman on Saturday. The case has been similar to that of her public meeting in Noapara in North 24 Parganas.

Screengrab of the live stream of her political rallies

We also found live streams of her election rallies, with large public gatherings, in Kolkata and Nadia that took place on April 15 and April 14 respectively.

Screengrab of the live stream of her political rallies

By shrewdly avoiding live streaming of her political rallies on Twitter, Mamata Banerjee and the ruling Trinamool Congress dispensation has been able to successfully evade public scrutiny. Given that Twitter users in India are far more politically charged and alert than Facebook users, it has helped her evade uncomfortable questions including the doublespeak on the Coronavirus crisis.

While a ‘concerned’ Mamata Banerjee tweets to Election Commission about rising Coronavirus cases on Twitter, her Facebook timeline is filled with videos of election rallies violating social distancing guidelines. While Rahul Gandhi’s change of heart on election rallies have drawn the eyeballs towards BJP, Mamata Banerjee is going unabated about her way with virtually no criticism. This strategy also seems to be working as a quick scan of major mainstream media coverage will show how they have not been covering most of her rallies while they have been going hammer and tongs against the BJP rallies.

Kejriwal government files FIR against four airlines for not checking passengers flying from Maharashtra for negative RT-PCR report

OpIndia Staff
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Kejriwal government files FIR against four airlines for not checking passengers flying from Maharashtra for negative RT-PCR report

The Delhi government has lodged an FIR against four airlines under the DDMA Act (planning and implementation of disaster plans) for not checking the negative RT-PCR report of every passenger flying from Maharashtra. 

The four airlines against whom action has been taken by Arvind Kejriwal let AAP govt in Delhi are Indigo, Vistara, Spicejet and Air Asia. The decision was taken following the exponential rise in COVID-19 cases in the city.

Earlier this month the Delhi government had made it mandatory for air travellers from Maharashtra to carry a negative RT-PCR test report which should not be older than 72 hours. Without this report, the travellers are required to go for a mandatory quarantine of 14 days. Constitutional and Government functionaries and their staff members are exempted from these requirements, if they are asymptomatic.

A tweet by AAP also revealed that an FIR was filed against two private hospitals by the Delhi government for misinformation on the availability of beds.

None of the airlines have issued an official reply or clarification as yet.

Worrisome situation in Delhi and Maharashtra

Delhi and Maharashtra both have been reeling under the sharp surge of new coronavirus cases. While Maharashtra clocked more than 60,000 cases in the past 24 hours, Delhi recorded a little over 24,000 new Covid-19 cases on April 17.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal while addressing the media spoke on the shortage of medical facilities amidst the sharp rise and confessed, “The situation is very serious and worrisome. Cases have gone up really fast. That is why we are facing shortages even though everything seemed under control until a few days ago. But the speed at which this coronavirus is growing, no one knows where its peak will be.”

The cases in the national capital have been on an upward trajectory since April 11. 

Did Gen VK Singh have to resort to Twitter to ‘beg’ for bed for his brother suffering from COVID? Here are the facts

OpIndia Staff
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Did Gen VK Singh have to resort to Twitter to ‘beg’ for bed for his brother suffering from COVID? Here are the facts

Union Minister General VK Singh (R) on Sunday tried to help a fellow citizen in times of distress. A Twitter user had tagged him and requested him to help him get a bed for his brother who is suffering from Chinese coronavirus.

Tweet by Chandra Prakash Rai

At 1:20 PM, Rai tweeted to multiple people and requested a bed in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. Gen VK Singh is an MP from Ghaziabad.

Soon, he tweeted the same message and tagged the District Magistrate of Ghaziabad to help out Rai. Except, instead of quoting the tweet, Singh copied and pasted the message to the DM, Ghaziabad with request to look into it.

Gen VK Singh’s tweet

Soon, the usual suspects descended upon his timeline to attack him and the central government that the situation of COVID in India is so bad that a Union Minister has to ‘beg’ for bed on Twitter.

Vidya Krishnan and other ‘journalists’ claiming Gen VK Singh was begging for bed for his brother

Congress leaders also chimed in and used this opportunity to criticise the Modi government.

Congress leader’s tweet

Congress leader Srivatsa also demanded that the Army should be called in for managing Coronavirus situation.

NDTV Journalist and Congress leader spreading misinformation

This was further amplified by other Congress workers.

Hansraj Meena’s tweet

However, subsequently Gen VK Singh deleted his tweet and issued clarification that he had tweeted the same to draw attention of the DM so that help can reach the needy.

Gen VK Singh’s tweet

He even quote tweeted again to the DM, this time quote tweeting Rai correctly so that help could reach him.

Tweet to DM Ghaziabad

As per UP Govt official, the matter is being taken care of.

Bollywood and nepotism: Remnants of a Clubhouse rant

Sagar Dubey
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Bollywood and nepotism: Remnants of a Clubhouse rant

Friend of mine (who I met on Clubhouse) pings me into a room run by actors and film “enthusiasts”. These enthusiasts are a substantial chunk of the Indian population and the literacy level doesn’t really matter. Someone with a good score from an Institute of Good Repute with a Bachelors Degree in a Hard Science shares the same appreciation as a laborer from a mud house in the deepest recesses of Bihar. In that way, this art is indeed universal.

One of the problems of being alive in 2021 is that wherever you live, you live in America. The boundaries of your cultural consumption are defined by the latest fad coming out of the incredible marketing machine of the United States. It’s only a matter of to what quality and to what degree it is aped and modified. The modifications have produced incredible results, the aping not so much (spare me the point of one not existing without the other)

India insists on importing the worst quality ideas formulated in the worst way possible for some reason, I don’t know why. So the US has Roger Ebert and we have Rajeev Masand. Considering that Rajeev is the pinnacle of fame when it comes to Indian Cinema criticism, consider the quality of the average Bollywood movie. This consideration is easy because there is no quality worth mentioning.

None of this has anything to do with the hundreds of thousands of people who work very hard in the industry, trying to do their best to satisfy the demands of the market. Once you get past the immediate middle class knee-jerk reaction to copying, even the fact that all the nostalgic ideas your parents had about Bollywood songs from the 70’s to the 90’s were copied is easy to get used to. I just wish the liked of Burman et al. had done more public acknowledgment of their lifts from the Western classical and modern canon.

And sure, the industry is extremely incestuous and nepotistic but who said it’s not supposed to be this way? I notice that the majority of the people espousing such an opinion are, like me, surrounded by the trappings of the Professional Managerial Class. These folks are the ones living in an artificial world of meritocracy, meanwhile the real world has always been intensely nepotistic (consider monarchies across the world across history). Yes the industry is nepotistic and the usual characteristics associated with nepotistic environments emerge. The sons and daughters are, at best, intensely mediocre and meanwhile the film “enthusiasts” say things like “the audience will accept or reject but they still work hard” meanwhile there is a 50 year old assistant director with 8 movies to his name who can’t catch a break. It took an outsider, Priyanka Chopra, to make it all the way to the US and make a name for herself there. Good on her.

It’s a chicken and egg problem. Is the content really bad and people have learnt to love it? Or is the industry meeting the audience demand perfectly?

One thing is happening for sure, the old generation is dying and usually that’s a good thing. Indians are now wealthier, more educated and with more exposure to what’s available when it comes to movies and TV shows (thanks to Amazon & Netflix) and are making the same demands. Even though it might take Sonam Kapoor 5 attempts to break through to a role people actually talk about (and maybe it always will), there are simply more movies and TV shows for those whose last name isn’t Khan or Kapoor to express their talent.

That can only be a good thing and I’m looking forward to it.

Note: This article was originally published on personal blog of the author on Substack.

China: Communist regime pressurises Ant Group to ditch its founder Jack Ma and divest his stake in the company

OpIndia Staff
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China: Communist regime pressurises Ant Group to ditch its founder Jack Ma and divest his stake in the company

A month after the Communist regime in China cracked down on the media assets of Alibaba, it has now directed Alibaba’s affiliate company Ant Group to take away control from its founder Jack Ma, reported Reuters. The business tycoon had attracted the ire of the Chinese government in October last year after he went on a tirade against China’s current banking system, its financial regulatory structure and the challenges posed by it to Ant Group.

The Ant Group is is an affiliate company of the Alibaba Group, which operates China’s largest digital payment platform Alipay. The group has stakes in Indian companies Paytm and Zomato, apart from several companies across the world.

The Chinese regulators have directed the Ant Group to find options to sell Jack Ma’s stake in the company so as to seize control from him. They have hinted to the financial technology giant that doing so will improve their ties with the Communist regime and avoid the scrutiny of their businesses. Reuters reported that the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) had held meetings with Jack Ma and the Ant Group separately between January and March this year.

During the talks, the possibility of Jack Ma’s exit from the Ant Group was discussed. Earlier, Wall Street Journal reported that the business tycoon had offered parts of the company to the Chinese government in November last year. However, Ant Group has denied all such claims in a statement. It said, “Divestment of Mr. Ma’s stake in Ant Group has never been the subject of discussions with anyone.”

Disinvestment options offered to Jack Ma will be reviewed by the Chinese regime

Citing sources, Reuters reported that Jack Ma was told by Chinese regulators that he could only sell his stake to existing investors within the Ant group and not to any external party. Moreover, he was directed to not sell his stake to an individual/entity close to him. Jack Ma was also given the option to choose a Chinese investor affiliated with the Communist Party of China (CCP). Nevertheless, every such decision will be reviewed by the Chinese government.

Reuters emphasised that all three sources, who had highlighted the disinvestment of Jack Ma’s stakes, were consistent in ‘terms of the timeline’ of events. However, the Chinese government and its subsidiaries have refused to comment on the matter.

Influence held by Jack Ma over Ant Group

It must be mentioned that even though Jack Ma has exited from corporate positions in the company, he still holds significant control and influence over Ant Group and Alibaba. Despite holding a 10% stake in Ant Group, he controls the company through its related entities. Through Hangzhou Yunbo Investment Consulting Co., Ltd, Jack Ma has control over two other entities with a 50.5% stake in Ant Group. Interestingly, Yunbo can decide on matters pertaining to Ant Group and exercise the combined voting rights of 3 entities. Jack Ma holds about 34% equity interest in Hangzhou Yunbo Investment Consulting Co., Ltd.

China worried about Alibaba’s media clout as it threatens CCP propaganda

It is believed that Alibaba has used its influence in the media to ‘reshape’ government legislation to favour its businesses. In May 2020, several social media posts on Chinese micro-blogging platform Weibo, accusing Alibaba executive of an extra-marital affair was removed. In a probe by internet watchdog Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), it alleged that Alibaba used ‘capital to manipulate public opinion.’

Alibaba has contributed around $100 million in advertising revenue on Weibo in 2019. CAC had lashed out at the micro-blogging platform for interfering in online communication. Without naming Alibaba, the Communist Party of China leader Xu Lin said that China will “resolutely prohibit dilution of the party’s leadership in the name of (media) convergence, resolutely guard against risks of capital manipulating public opinion.”

Not just Alibaba, several Chinese tech giants such as Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Bytedance Ltd. hold significant assets in the media. However, the Chinese regime has not made it clear whether the other tech companies will face the same wrath like that of Alibaba. Experts believe that giving aways its media assets would not affect Alibaba in a negative manner but will instead improve ties with the Communist regime by dismissing its insecurities. It will also help them in deterring future crackdown by the CCP, as it continues to tighten the restrictions on media.

USA: Incest marriage supporters come out in support of parent and child who want to marry, compare it to gay marriage

OpIndia Staff
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USA: Incest marriage supporters come out in support of parent and child who want to marry, compare it to gay marriage

Proponents of ‘consensual incest’ have come out in support of a parent in the United States who wishes to marry their own child. Richard Morris from Australia, who is involved in attempts to change incest laws in about 60 countries, is of the opinion that incest “should not be criminalized.”

In a petition before the Manhattan Federal Court, the parents expressed a desire to remain anonymous as the request is “an action that a large segment of society views as morally, socially and biologically repugnant.”

“Through the enduring bond of marriage, two persons, whatever relationship they might otherwise have with one another, can find a greater level of expression, intimacy and spirituality,” the parents argued.

“The proposed spouses are adults,” the court filing says. “The proposed spouses are biological parent and child. The proposed spouses are unable to procreate together.” According to the law in New York, incest is a third-degree felony offense and can be punished with up to 4 years in jail.

The parent wants the law to be declared unconstitutional and unenforceable in their case, which he calls “PAACNP” or “Parent and Adult Child Non-Procreationable” couples. The unconventional couple has received support from Richard Morris who calls it a fight for “marriage equality”.

“It seems to be as unjust as the law that used to imprison gay people, and the law that used to stop people of different races marrying,” he said. He has filed petitions in other countries seeking to decriminalize incest, without much public support.

Keith Pullman, who runs the blog Full Marriage Equality, said, “It is absurd to say that an adult can’t consent to marry their parent. That same adult can be sent to war, take on six or seven figures of debt, operate heavy machinery, be sentenced to death by a federal court, and consent to sex with five strangers (and marriage with one of them) but can’t consent to marry someone they love?”

The court filing in the present case has very sparse details and does not mention the gender or age of the parent and child.

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