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Siddharth Varadarajan of The Wire spreads fake news a day after The Logical Indian apologised for the same: Read details

OpIndia Staff
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Siddharth Varadarajan of The Wire spreads fake news a day after The Logical Indian apologised for the same: Read details

The Kumbh Mela has become a matter of concern for several people who had defended the Tablighi Jamaat when they had deliberately spread the virus by hiding in mosques, spit in places, pelted stones at police personnel and even defecated in hospitals. Almost determined to undermine Hindus and obfuscate facts, the propaganda has been at its highest. In the midst of this, Siddharth Varadarajan has resorted to spreading fake news again. In fact, the same fake news that the Logical Indians had apologised for just a day ago.

Siddharth Varadarajan took to Twitter to tweet The Wire article, with a comment why “godi media warriors” were not “demanding he be arrested under the IPC and NDMA and Epidemic Diseases Act?”, referring to the BJP leader Sunil Bharala.

Tweet by Siddarth Varadarajan

The headline that was visible in the tweet preview of the article he plugged read, “BJP MLA Says He Visited Kumbh Mela and Was COVID-19 Positive”. The preview headline clearly insinuates that Bharala was actually COVID-19 positive at the time he visited the Kumbh Mela.

This, however, is not accurate. Logical Indian, that had first reported this, had just a day ago taken to Twitter to a apologise for spreading fake news.

In their statement, The Logical Indian said, “The Logical Indian earlier reported that Uttar Pradesh BJP leader Sunil Bharala tested positive for COVID-19 and still attended the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar. However, in an interview with NDTV, the leader said that he attended the event and later added that he is currently COVID positive.”

“We wish to acknowledge that we inadvertently misrepresented the facts. The Logical Indian apologizes for the incorrect statement that claimed he attended the event while he was infected with the virus,” he added.

In the fake news post, TLI attributed a fake quote to Sunil Bharala. The fake quote said, “I’m COVID positive myself. I still went to Kumbh. Dharma is above Corona guidelines.” The news post further claimed that Kumbh Mela has become a ‘Covid hotspot’.

Interestingly, even after The Logical Indian apologised for spreading fake news, Siddharth Varadarajan took to Twitter to spread the same fake news and even demand that other media houses join in.

The article that The Wire wrote itself seems to have been updated since it does acknowledge that the Logical Indian apologised for spreading this news, however, Siddharth Varadarajan craftily took to Twitter to spread the fake news further and refused to delete it despite several people pointing out his error to him.

One Twitter user pointed out that if the Uttar Pradesh Government books him for deliberately spreading fake news, Varadarajan would cry FOE (like he had done before).

Another simply plugged the apology statement by The Logical Indian and assumed that Varadarajan had the IQ to understand that he was spreading fake news.

Another demanded that the Uttar Pradesh police arrest him for spreading fake news.

However, despite several such tweets, Varadarajan has refused to delete his post till the time this article was written.

Siddharth Varadarajan, fake news and his previous run-ins with the Uttar Pradesh government

In April 2020, two FIRs had been registered against The Wire Founder-Editor Siddharth Varadarajan for spreading fake news against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Varadarajan, in a bid to whitewash the deeds of Tablighi Jamaat. At that time, he had wrongly attributed a fake quote to the UP CM. 

Mrityunjay Kumar, the media advisor to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, had informed that despite the warning from the state government, Varadarajan neither deleted the false article and nor apologised for the same. Therefore, an FIR had been registered against him.

In January 2021 as well, a complaint was registered in Uttar Pradesh against The Wire Editor Siddharth Varadarajan for publishing and circulating false propaganda with intent to cause violence after he had tweeted an article void of any facts pertaining to the death of a rioter during the tractor rally.

The complaint was registered against Varadarajan under Section 153B and  505 of the IPC in Rampur police station for trying to instigate the crowd by peddling false information about the death of a rioter named Navreet Singh, who had died during the tractor rally after his tractor turtled.

In fact, after the FIR was filed against Siddharth Varadarajan for spreading fake news in a bid to shield the Tablighi Jamaat, several ‘liberals’ had come out to cry Freedom of Expression and even threatened the Yogi Adityanath government with USA pressure to ensure that the case against Varadarajan was withdrawn.

It is clear that Siddharth Varadarajan has a habit of spreading fake news against Uttar Pradesh, its Chief Minister and its ministers and when the government takes action, he and his coterie cry freedom of expression to shield themselves. If under the current situation, the Uttar Pradesh government decides to act against him, it is almost a certainty that he and his cohorts will cry about how media freedom is under threat while refusing to delete the blatantly fake news that he has clearly chosen to spread.

The assassination of Mahashay Rajpal, the publisher of Rangeela Rasool: How secularism and freedom of expression died along with him

Bhagat Ram
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The assassination of Mahashay Rajpal, the publisher of Rangeela Rasool: How secularism and freedom of expression died along with him

Swargiya Mahashay Rajpal Malhotra was born in a Khatri family in Amritsar on the Panchmi tithi of Ashadh Samvat (AD 1885). Since childhood Mahashay Rajpal ji was very intelligent, hard working, perseverant and was a great student. His father, Swargiya Lala Ramdas Khatri, passed away when he was quite young.

In connection with his work, he met an Amritsar based, famous Aryasamaji Hakim Fatehchand, who was in need of an employee. He secured a job with Hakim ji on a monthly income of twelve rupees and with that, he earned a special place in Hakim ji’s heart with his qualities of duty, hard work, honesty and for being perseverant.

At the time, Hindi was not very prevalent in Punjab and there were hardly any Hindi publishers. Mahashay Rajpal ji in 1912 started “Rajpal and Sons” from Lahore. He would publish Hindi, English, Urdu and Punjabi books on social, political and religious topics. As a publisher he never shied away from controversial topics, such as publishing one of India’s first books on family planning titled “Santan Sankhya ka Seema Bandhan”.

Mahashay Rajpal
Mahashay Rajpal

In 1923, Muslims published two particularly offensive books to Hindus. “Krishna teri geeta jalani padegi” used derogatory and vulgar language against Shri Krishna and other Hindu deities and “Uniseevi sadi ka maharshi” which contained derogatory remarks on Arya Samaj founder Swami Dayanand Saraswati (incidentally written by an Ahmadi). This was the time before Sec 295A was introduced in the IPC.

To respond to this provocation, Pandit Chamupati Lal, a close friend of Mahashay Rajpal, wrote a short biography of the Islamic Prophet, Mohammed. Titled “Rangeela Rasool” this short pamphlet was a satirical take on the domestic life of Mohammed. Because of the sensitive nature of the pamphlet, Pandit Chamupati made Mahashay Rajpal promise that he would never reveal the name of the author.

The pamphlet was originally published anonymously under the name “doodh ka doodh aur panee ka panee”. On the surface, Rangeela Rasool had a laudatory tone of Mohammed’s life but at the same time pointing out uncomfortable truths about his domestic life.

Though historically accurate and written after due research of hadiths, this caused an outrage among the Muslims of Lahore. The first edition of the pamphlet sold out quickly, however a mere one month after the publication of the pamphlet, in June 1924 Mohandas Gandhi wrote in his weekly ‘Young India’ condemning the pamphlet indicating that it had already become a national issue as early as June 1924.

It is also worth pointing out that Mohandas completely ignored similar provocative articles written by Muslims to which this was a response. Before the second edition could be printed, the colonial government banned the pamphlet in late June 1924. This ban stands to this day (Although in the open internet era copies can be found easily. By July 1924, Muslims had filed a criminal case against Mahashay Rajpal under Sec 153A (promoting enmity between groups).

During the trial, he was offered to give up the name of the real author of Rangeela Rasool and go scot-free, but he declined it and upheld his promise. In legal proceedings that lasted close to three years, in May 1927 Mahashay Rajpal was acquitted of all charges. The judge contended that Sec. 153A does not prohibit historical analysis of ‘prophets’ of different religions and if it were to be so applied, works of serious historians could also be subject to it.

As soon as justice was delivered, Muslims all over the country went off into a frenzy holding large protests against the judgement. In several places, riots broke out after provocative speeches given by religious leaders. Al-Jamiat an official arm of the Jamiat-Ulaima-i-Hind warned in an article that “under sharia the punishment for insulting the prophet is death and it is legally permissible to kill those who insult the prophet”.

Maulana Mohammad Ali, once held up by Mohandas Gandhi as a great “ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity” in a provocative speech at the Jama Masjid in July 1927 warned that should the judgement not be reversed, Muslims would be compelled to take the law in their own hands. Even avowed secularists like Motilal Nehru remarked to his son that “the Musslmans of India have all gone mad”.

The scenes following the murder of Mahashay Rajpal
The scenes following the murder of Mahashay Rajpal

The primary organized opposition to the judgement was driven by the Khilafatists and the Ahmadis. Ahmadis printed posters in several cities urging a total economic boycott of Hindus in response to the perceived insult to their prophet. The then spiritual head of the Ahmadiya community, Mirza Bashir ud-din Ahmad, wrote to the British viceroy in support of an anti-blasphemy law where insult to the “prophet” should be clearly mentioned and made illegal.

In a cruel twist of karma, this is the same law that is used today in Pakistan to persecute the Ahmadiya community. The British introduced 295A, criminalizing future speech deemed insulting to religious groups, passed easily in parliament with widespread support. Lala Lajpat Rai, Hindu Mahasabha leader, called the legislation a “temporary measure” necessary to “satisfy some hyper sensitive folk”.

He also introduced an amendment to introduce a sunset clause of 1930 which was defeated. Few members objected to it on the grounds that it was a dangerous concession given to the Muslim community.

By this time Mahashay Rajpal was a marked man. In 1927, the same year he was acquitted, there were two unsuccessful attempts on his life — a wrestler named Khuda Baksh attacked him in September 1927 when he was sitting in his shop but Khatri Rajpal ji caught him and handed him over to the authorities. Khuda Baksh was convicted and sentenced to ten years in prison.

The next month, a Muslim man named Aziz Ahmed attacked Swami Satyanand ji mistaking him to Khatri Rajpal. Luckily, the attack was not fatal and Swami ji recovered after a couple of months. On April 6th, 1929 a 19 year old carpenter named Ilm ud din stabbed Mahashay Rajpal on his chest eight times while he was seated in the outer verandah of his shop. Mahashay Rajpal did not survive the attack and attained the lotus feet of Narayan on this day.

The real author of Rangeela Rasool on Mahashay Rajpal
The real author of Rangeela Rasool on Mahashay Rajpal

As word spread among the Hindus of Lahore, a crowd of thousands gathered. Fearing a law and order situation, the British authorities initially declined to give permission for a funeral procession but relented and gave permission for the next day. As the procession went across Lahore, people paid respects by flowering petals from their homes. In an editorial soon after his funeral, journalist and poet Nanak chand Naaz wrote of Mahashay Rajpal –

फ़ख से सर उनके ऊँ चे आसमान तक तक हो गए, हि दं ओु ने जब अर्थी उठाई राजपाल।
फू ल बरसाए शहीदों ने तेरी अर्थी पे खूब, देवताओंने तेरी जय जय बुलाई राजपाल।
हो हर इक हि न्दू को तेरी ही तरह दनिु निया नसीब जि स तरह तूने छुरी सि ने पै खाई राजपाल।
तेरे काति ल पर न क्यूँ इस्लाम भेजे लानतें, जब मुजम्मत कर रही हैं इक खुदाई राजपाल।
मैंने क्या देखा की लाखों राजपाल उठने लगे दोस्तों ने लाश तेरी जब जलाई राजपाल।

On the other hand, Mahashay Rajpal’s killer was represented in court by Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who argued for his innocence and at his funeral the poet Mohammad Iqbal, a favourite of Indian liberals today, eulogized the killer. Today his grave is a religious site in Pakistan and Pakistani textbooks eulogize him with the title of “Ghazi”.

After partition, Mahashay Rajpal’s family moved to Delhi from where “Rajpal and Sons” continues to operate today. Almost 70 years after his death, he was awarded the first “International Freedom to Publish Award” by then deputy PM LK Advani. Mahashay Rajpal inspired a generation and continues to inspire people today by his sacrifice.

References

Julia Stephens, The Politics of Muslim Rage: Secular Law and Religious
Sentiment in Late Colonial India, History Workshop Journal, Volume 77, Issue 1,
Spring 2014, Pages 45–64

Raj R. A Pamphlet and its (Dis)contents: A Case Study of Rangila Rasul and the
Controversy Surrounding it in Colonial Punjab, 1923–29. History and Sociology
of South Asia. 2015;9(2):146-162

Note: The article has been authored by @Vedic_Revival and @aryasanghi (Twitter usernames)

‘Maharashtra suffering from an inept and corrupt government’, Piyush Goyal slams Uddhav Thackeray for ‘gimmicks on oxygen’

OpIndia Staff
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‘Maharashtra suffering from an inept and corrupt government’, Piyush Goyal slams Uddhav Thackeray for ‘gimmicks on oxygen’

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Saturday slammed Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray for playing petty politics on the issue of depleting oxygen supply in the state. Goyal said that Maharashtra has so far received the highest quantity of oxygen in India and the Centre is in daily touch with State Governments to assess their needs and help them in the best possible manner.

In a series of tweets, Goyal criticised Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray for using the solemn issue of scarcity of oxygen supply in the state to attack the central government.

“We are currently producing 110% of Oxygen generating capacity and diverting all available Oxygen from industrial use to medical use,” Goyal tweeted, adding that PM Modi had asked in his review meeting that centre and the states should work in synergy to avert the crisis staring the country.

Mr Goyal said he is shocked and saddened to see petty politics played by Uddhav Thackeray, stating that he needs to stop his daily dose of shameless politics and take responsibility.

Alleging that Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra failed in handling the coronavirus outbreak, Goyal tweeted, “Maharashtra is suffering from an inept & corrupt government & the Centre is doing its best for the people. People of Maharashtra are following ‘Majha Kutumb, Majhi Javabadari’ dutifully. It is time the CM also follows his duties in the spirit of ‘Majha Rajya, Majhi Javabadari’.”

It is pertinent to note that the Indian Railways on Saturday moved to allow transportation of liquid medical oxygen in cryogenic tankers after the Maharashtra government’s request to meet the shortage of the gas used for Covid-19 patients in the state.

Goyal’s sharp remarks came on the heels of Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s repeated attempts to hold the centre responsible for not providing enough oxygen to Maharashtra to treat the rising number of critical coronavirus patients that need supplemental oxygen to tide over the COVID-19 infection. The chief minister’s office today claimed that Uddhav Thackeray called the Prime Minister office for an urgent supply of oxygen and Remdesivir, but was told that PM is in Bengal and will contact him when he is back.

As the coronavirus outbreak in the state turned grim, in what appears as an attempt to abdicate their duties and pin the blame on the Centre, Thackeray and his ministers have been lamenting that the Maharashtra government is not being provided with sufficient oxygen supplies to treat those in need of oxygen. However, the reality is starkly different from what they would have us believe.

Centre writes a letter to chief secretaries of states and UTs, dispels misinformation about the restrictions on inter-state movement of Medical Oxygen

The central government has also come down hard against the propaganda run by the Maharashtra government alleging that the centre is not helping the state in fulfilling its demand for supplemental oxygen. In a letter addressed to all state chief secretaries, the central government has enlisted the measures taken by them to ensure supplemental oxygen is made available to states and union territories who need it.

The letter said that no restriction on the movement of Medical Oxygen between States and Union Territories is imposed. It also added that the transport authorities will be instructed to accordingly allow free inter-state movement of oxygen carrying vehicles.

Besides, the centre also assured the states and union territories that no restrictions shall be imposed on oxygen manufacturers and suppliers to limit the oxygen supplies only to the states in which they are located. Additionally, the Centre communicated that there will be free movement of oxygen carrying vehicles into the cities, without any restriction of timing, while ensuring the inter-city supply without restrictions. The Centre has asked the States and Union Territories to strictly follow the guidelines.

The central government wrote a letter addressed to the Maharashtra chief secretary in which it enlisted the measures taken by the Centre to facilitate oxygen supply to states and union territories.

Food grain smuggling into Punjab to make money out of MSP continues, more than 25,000 bags of wheat smuggled from Bihar seized in Bhatinda

OpIndia Staff
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Food grain smuggling into Punjab to make money out of MSP continues, more than 25,000 bags of wheat smuggled from Bihar seized in Bhatinda

The Bhatinda district authorities in Punjab seized almost 25,000 bags of wheat, weighing 50kg each, on April 9, the day before wheat procurement started in Punjab. While almost 12,000 bags of wheat were recovered from three Bihar trucks that were impounded at the Bathinda grain market (mandi), almost 9000 gunny bags were found on the roadside.

Almost two dozen trucks laden with illegal wheat had reached Bathinda from other states on the night of April 9. While others managed to flee, three trucks were seized by the authorities. Moreover, 9000 bags of wheat were also recovered from the roadside.

Punjab Mandi Board deputy general manager, Ferozepur division, Kuldeep Singh Brar said the three trucks laden with wheat were impounded from the grain market, but a stock of wheat packed in more than 9,000 gunny bags was found on the roadside. He admitted that the drivers did not have a purchase document.

BJP leaders get input of illegal wheat trade in Bhatinda, alert officials

BJP leaders Sukhpal Sra and Sandeep Aggarwal were the first to get inputs about this unauthorised movement of wheat at the local mandi (grain market). On getting the information the BJP leaders reached Bathinda’s grain market where they realised how almost 25 trucks loaded with wheat parked in Dana Mandi had come from Bihar and other states. They reported the matter to the police, which in turn conducted the raid and seized the trucks.

Speaking on this illegal practice, BJP leader Sukhpal Sra said that traders procure consignments of wheat from Bihar at cheaper rates and sell it in Punjab as per MSP.

According to information, wheat is purchased at the rate of Rs 1,100 per quintal in Bihar and other states and sold in Punjab at around Rs 1,925 per quintal as MSP. Even transportation cost is around Rs 225 per quintal and in one truck around 400 quintals of wheat is transported. This means a trader is minting Rs 2 lakh per truck in this illegal business.

Inderjit Singh, a truck driver, said, “I have brought 41 tonnes (380 quintal) of wheat from Darbhanga in Bihar in my truck and I was told to leave it at a chemical factory in Bathinda but when I reached near Bathinda, I was told to reach grain market at Bathinda.”

After the news of the incident spread, the farmers under the banner of BKU Sidhupur had started a protest where wheat was lying dumped at the grain market. The protesters shouted slogans against the Congress government in Punjab. They alleged that the government along with traders is exploiting the farmers by doing this illegal business during the procurement.

SHO, Kotwali police station, Daljit Brar said, “We have received a complaint from market committee Bathinda, in which it was stated that one truck of M/s Babbu Ram Ashok Kumar firm, two trucks of Lakshmi oil chemicals and around 7000-8000 bags of wheat have been lying dumped in open at grain market, which has been brought from the other states so we have seized the stock and registered an FIR against both the firms.”

Farmer protests, MSP, and illegal trade

This wheat from Bihar arriving in Punjab ahead of the official procurement season once again exposes why the middlemen in Punjab are protesting against the farm laws. As the maximum government procurement of food grains like wheat and rice takes place in Punjab, the middlemen take benefit of the system to make quick money. They get food grains at much lower rates from other states, where the public procurement is not as robust as Punjab, and sell them in Mandis in Punjab at MSP, which is often more than the market rate.

This system works because the public procurement system is very weak in states like Bihar and UP. While almost 75% farmers sell their produce to APMCs under MSP, the number is just around 26% in Bihar, UP and Uttarakhand. This means, a large number of farmers are forced to sell their crop in open market, which often pays much less then MSP. As a result, many of them end up selling their food grains to middlemen in Punjab.

If the monopoly of mandis end as per the new farm laws, this practice will be hit badly, as the private players will be able to buy farm products from such states where public procurement is low at present. This will mean that farmers will not be willing to sell to the middlemen. If that happens, the illegal traders will lose a lucrative source of revenue.

Wheat procurement in Punjab

The wheat procurement in Punjab began on April 10. According to reports, procurement agencies and FCI are purchasing the crop at Rs 1,975 per quintal in the current rabi season. In view of the Covid-19 situation, the state had postponed wheat procurement from April 1 to 10. The procurement process will continue till May 31.

‘No difference between Islam and Islamic radicalism, its a danger to all religions’: What Yati Narsinghanand said in a recent interview

OpIndia Staff
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‘No difference between Islam and Islamic radicalism, its a danger to all religions’: What Yati Narsinghanand said in a recent interview

Hindu priest Yati Narsinghanand Saraswat has been facing the ire of Muslim hardliners for his remark on Prophet Mohammad. Innumerable threats have been issued to his life. Despite this, in an interview with GoaChronicle, the Hindu priest did not shy away from presenting his honest views on Islam.

Speaking on the show Truth Matters, Swami Yati, elucidated that Islam is synonymous with radicalism. There is nothing like soft Islam, said the Dasna priest. “There is no difference between Islam and Islamic radicalism. Islam is radical. There is no soft Islam. Islam is about Mohammed’s direction. Muslims must obey and follow Mohammed’s thoughts and teaching. Islam is a danger to all religions in this world. There has been no reformation in Islam for over 1400 years it has become more dangerous today”.

Saying so, Yati Narsinghanand asserted that people must accept this truth as we need to protect our women and children.

Dasna Devi Temple head priest furthered that as a follower of Sanatan Dharma, he was not against any religion per se. He concurred that every person has a right to worship according to his faith. However, what he said was unacceptable to him was being forcibly asked to worship and pay references to another faith that infringes his faith.

“That is why I am raising my voice so that I can protect our Hindu women and children. Our women and children have a right to live and any religion that thinks it can threaten our women and children, rape and sell them, then I will not tolerate it and will continue to raise my voice,” Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati added.

Yati Narsinghanand admitted that he was aware that his life is in danger but he is working for the betterment of Indian society and would continue to do so.

It’s been a while since Muslim hardliners have been protesting against Dasna Devi Temple head priest Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati for his remarks on Prophet Muhammad. Endless calls for the beheading of the priest have been made by several Muslim groups and even mainstream political parties for his alleged ‘blasphemy’.

Republic Day violence: Hours after getting bail, Deep Sidhu gets arrested by Delhi Crime Branch

OpIndia Staff
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Republic Day violence: Hours after getting bail, Deep Sidhu gets arrested by Delhi Crime Branch

Only hours after Delhi Court granted bail to Deep Sidhu in the Republic Day violence case, Delhi Crime Branch has reportedly arrested him again.

Only hours ago, Deep Sidhu had been granted bail by a Delhi Court. Additional Sessions Judge Neelofer Abida Perveen ordered bail to Sidhu subject to his furnishing personal bond with two local sureties in the sum of Rs 30,000 each to the satisfaction of the court.

While granting him bail, the court has asked Deep Sidhu to surrender his passport to IO, mention the mobile number used by him while ensuring that the number is switched on mode throughout with location activated and shared with the IO at all times. 

Actor Deep Sidhu arrested for his role in ginning up riots in New Delhi in the wake of Tractor Rally

On February 9, the special cell of Delhi Police had arrested actor and Khalistani supporter Deep Sidhu for his role in instigating violence and the vandalisation at Red Fort on Republic Day during the farmers’ tractor rally. As per reports, Sidhu was traced by Delhi Police using advanced surveillance technology.

Earlier on February 3, Delhi Police had announced a cash reward of Rs 1 Lakh each for information leading to the arrest of Deep Sidhu, Jugraj Singh, Gurjot Singh and Gurjant Singh, who had gone into hiding following the violence that erupted in New Delhi in the wake of tractor rally on 26 January 2021. A cash reward of Rs 50,000 each for the arrest of Jajbir Singh, Buta Singh, Sukhdev Singh and Iqbal Singh was also announced.

Sidhu had gone into hiding since the day of the Red Fort violence and has been releasing social media videos to blame other ‘farmer leaders’ who have spoken against him. The Khalistani supporters had brutally attacked the security personnel and police officials stationed at Red Fort, they had disrespected India’s national flag by hoisting two other flags with Sikh symbols on the Red Fort. In a video, Khalistani rioters were seen pushing Delhi Police personnel from the top of a high wall, severely injuring hundreds of them.

TMC admits the audio of Mamata Banerjee promising rally of dead bodies is genuine, demands action on BJP for ‘illegal call recording’

OpIndia Staff
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TMC admits the audio of Mamata Banerjee promising rally of dead bodies is genuine, demands action on BJP for ‘illegal call recording’

A day after an audio recording of Mamata Banerjee’s conversation with a TMC had emerged, the party has admitted that the recording is genuine. Today the Trinamool Congress wrote to the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, alleging that BJP illegally recorded the call of the chief minister.

The letter signed by TMC leaders Yashwant Sinha, Derek O’Brian and Purnendu Basu says that BJP leaders Amit Malviya and Locket Chatterjee had held a press conference on 16th April, where the call recording was released and played. The TMC letter says that BJP illegally recorded the phone call of the CM with TMC worker Partha Pratim Ray, and played the recording out of context.

“The entre exercise by BJP is an illegal act and is a direct assault on legal rights, including the Right to Privacyof Smt. Mamata Banerjee and Partha Pratim Ray”, TMC says. The party claims that the act of recording the call violates the Constitution of India, Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, Information Technology Act, 2000, Indian Penal Code, 1860. However, the party didn’t mention which schedules or sections of the constitution and the mentioned laws are violated by BJP.

TMC said that as the audiotape was released during the elections, they are requesting the election commission to enquire into the matter and take necessary actions on it.

Interestingly, by alleging that BJP has ‘illegally’ recorded the phone call of CM Mamata Banerjee and released the same, TMC has admitted that the audio is genuine, and Mamata Banerjee did made the comments heard in the audio.

Earlier in the day, Mamata Banerjee had also said that she will find out about everyone involved in tapping her phone and order a CBI probe.

The audio came to light yesterday, where the CM was heard talking to TMC leader Partha Pratim Ray on the death of four TMC workers in firing by CISF during the 4th phase of polling in the state.  In the said clip, Mamata Banerjee could be heard threatening to jail central armed forces for gunning down four miscreants from the TMC, who had tried to snatch their weapons. Banerjee was heard telling Roy to organise a political rally with the dead bodies in a bid to stir public sympathy and secure votes amidst the ongoing polls.

“Partha, cast your vote first and then we will sit and decide. I will get everyone arrested, including CRPF. Keep all the dead bodies. We will take out a rally with the corpses. Tomorrow, there will be a rally with the dead bodies. Tell their families that the dead bodies can’t be handed over to them. Everything will be fine. Cast your vote and keep calm. They are doing this so that you cannot cast your vote,” Mamata Banerjee said.

She then inquired about the political affiliation of those who were shot by the CRPF. On learning that the deceased are workers of her own party, Mamata Banerjee advised Partha Pratim Roy to lodge a First Information Report (FIR) with the help of lawyers. “File an FIR. Hire a lawyer and don’t do it yourself. I will tell the family members to file FIR after the election. Even police won’t take any statement of the family members now,” she added.

The TMC supremo also instructed the party worker to create fear by saying that the central forces are trying to implement NPR and build detention camps in the state

Former Indian Express journalist has an ‘Allah’s virus’ moment, thanks God for COVID-19, says pandemic saved Muslims from detention camps

OpIndia Staff
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Former Indian Express journalist has an ‘Allah’s virus’ moment, thanks God for COVID-19, says pandemic saved Muslims from detention camps

Irena Akbar, formerly with the Indian Express, has thanked God for Covid-19 and claimed that if not for the novel Coronavirus, Indian Muslims would have been in detention camps. The comments come a day after liberals online were debating fervently whether they should help a ‘Sanghi’ combat Covid-19.

Irena Akbar said, “If it weren’t for Covid, Indian Muslims would’ve been in detention camps. I’m NOT being grateful for the virus which killed my aunt, sent my dad to the ICU & is causing tragedies across homes. I’m stressing the fact that while fascists were making their plans, God was making His.”

Comments by Irena Akbar
Comments by Irena Akbar

“It’s between the devil & the deep blue sea for IMs. Either die/live in fear of Covid OR die/live in fear of anti-Muslim state violence. At least the former doesn’t specifically target us & the public will eventually question the state. But in latter, the public would rejoice it,” she added.

The tweets in question remind one of the comments made by Rahul Gandhi’s ally Abbas Siddiqui during the advent of the Coronavirus pandemic last year. Abbas Siddiqui had wished for a virus from Allah that killed 50 crore Indians.

There is not an ounce of truth in the comments made by Irena Akbar but they are, quite clearly, engineered towards fearmongering and inciting passions in a time of crisis. There are no detention camps planned to lock Indian Muslims in. Indian Muslims are not victims of an orchestrated campaign of state-sponsored violence. But the ‘journalist’ makes such claims anyway in what appears to be an effort to disguise her happiness at watching people lose their loved ones.

Irena Akbar is known to engage in hateful rhetoric online. In February 2020, she accused Dalits of gang raping and killing Muslims during the Gujarat riots. She has also advanced boycotts of business establishments run by Hindus. During the CAA controversy, she expressed disappointment with Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal for not speaking up for not speaking up for Jamia.

New York Times provides platform to Islamic bigotry, columnist claims onus to convert is on non-Muslims after Hindu boyfriend refuses to convert

K Bhattacharjee
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New York Times provides platform to Islamic bigotry, columnist claims onus to convert is on non-Muslims after Hindu boyfriend refuses to convert

The New York Times on Friday provided platform to Islamic bigotry in a blog where the author narrates her ‘tragic’ love story. It is the story of a son who refused to abandon his parents and and that of a daughter who could not convince her parents to accede to her wish.

The protagonists in the love story were a Hindu man of Indian origin and a Muslim woman with roots in Pakistan. As Ramsey Bolton would say, “If you thought this had a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.”

But to be young and feel the pangs of love, many a greater man and woman have fallen for such whims of the heart. And thus, while the world was ending outside amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, the two found love and joy in the confines of their home.

The love story on New York Times

Things were going well and the question of marriage came up. Both were eager to tie the knot and none of them believed it was too soon, which is a bit crazy since the elephant in the room had not been addressed but love is like that.

She told him on their fifth date, “If we decide to be together, you need to understand that the only way forward is for you to convert. It won’t make things easy, but it will make things possible.” The boy, apparently, replied that he was ‘game’.

She claims that he told her, “Sometimes, you are willing to change your whole future for one person.” That should have been the first red flag, the boy appears to have watched too many Karan Johar movies. But, again, love is like that. Things that appear monstrously cringe-worthy from the outside make perfect sense to those in on it.

The second part of the drama ensued after they went home for Thanksgiving. During that period, the author, Myra Farooqi, told her mom that she had met the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

Farooqi told her mom that the man was not Muslim, not Pakistani and could not speak either Urdu or Hindi. So, naturally, her mother burst into tears. However, Farooqi’s mother recovered from the shock when she told her that the he was willing to convert to Islam. Again, naturally.

The boy, apparently, was jubilant initially but soon turned anxious after realizing that her mother’s approval was predicated entirely on his conversion to Islam. One tends to guess he went to one of those schools where they teach religion does not matter and a world without borders would be utopia.

Ultimately, he found the spine to tell her, “I will never convert to Islam. Not nominally, not religiously.” “Then that’s it,” she replied. And that is where the two star-crossed lovers parted ways.

The son’s U-turn, as it turns out, was inspired by his parents, which once again demonstrates why parents are the greatest thing on this planet. Apparently, when he told his parents that he had decided to abandon his faith over a girl, they broke down into tears and begged him not to give up his identity. Again, naturally.

Farooqi says of the whole affair, “Many people will never understand the requirements of marrying a Muslim. For me, the rules about marriage are stubborn, and the onus of sacrifice lies with the non-Muslim whose family is presumably more open to the possibility of interfaith relationships.”

“Many will say it’s selfish and incongruous that a non-Muslim must convert for a Muslim. To them I would say I cannot defend the arbitrary limitations of Muslim love because I have been broken by them. I lost the man I thought I would love forever,” she adds.

The sense of entitlement here is quite astounding. The confidence with which she says that the onus of conversion lies with the non-Muslim half of the relationship is quite astounding. Even more bizarre is the fact that the New York Times actually published this garbage.

She assumes that non-Muslim families are more open to interfaith relationships. In her case, quite clearly, her boyfriend’s family was not. She does not appreciate once that her boyfriend and his family never insisted on her conversion to Hinduism. But she takes it for granted that the man should convert to Islam.

Quite clearly, in addition to being selfish and incongruous, Farooqi is also narcissistic. The only saving grace is that she makes no effort to defend the bigotry of her family. And being forced to give up on love is punishment enough.

Such incidents do not occur in the United States alone. They happen in India too. Only recently, a Hindu neighbourhood in Delhi was attacked by Islamists because a Muslim woman married a Hindu man out of her own volition.

Not too long ago, ‘JNU scholar’ Shehla Rashid was forced to delete her Facebook account after receiving rape threats from Islamists for saying that Muslim women should be able to marry Hindu men if they so desired. Her post was prompted by the murder of Ankit Saxena by the family of his girlfriend for their relationship.

Even on the face of such unparalleled bigotry, it is Hindus who are demonized for highlighing the issue of ‘Love Jihad’, which is a legitimate cause of concern as the women in such cases are duped by Muslim men faking a Hindu identity or forced to convert, often through physical violence.

Thus, the love story in question is quite astounding. Farooqi says that the onus to convert is on non-Muslims since their families are more open to interfaith relationships. And yet, at the same time, her coreligionists tell us that it is Hindus who are more intolerant of the same. It’s a ‘heads I win, tails you lose’ situation. And arguments are twisted to always favour one side. And that side is not of non-Muslims.

Actor Sonu Sood tests positive for COVID-19, releases statement on Twitter

OpIndia Staff
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Actor Sonu Sood tests positive for COVID-19, releases statement on Twitter

Actor Sonu Sood has tested positive for COVID-19. The actor took to social media websites to announce that he has been infected with the virus.

“COVID-Positive, Mood and Spirit-Super Positive. Hi Everyone, This is to inform you that I have tested positive this morning for COVID 19. As a part of the precautions, I have already quarantined my self & taking utmost care.. But Don’t Worry this gives me ample time to solve your problems. Remember I’m always there for you all,” Sonu Sood tweeted.

Sood has been latest in the list of actors infected with the coronavirus. In the last few days, Kartik Aaryan, Akshay Kumar, Alia Bhatt and others had tested positive for COVID-19.

The development comes days after the actor got vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccine. On April 7, Sood posted on social media websites that he took the vaccine for Covid-19 prevention at a hospital in Amritsar, Punjab. 

The actor had also launched “Sanjeevani: A Shot of Life”, an initiative to encourage people to get vaccinated and raise awareness.

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