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Watch: Muslim mob gathers at Dargah Bazar Ajmer after Friday prayers, demand arrest of Yati Narsinghanand, law against insult to Islam

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: Muslim mob gathers at Dargah Bazar Ajmer after Friday prayers, demand arrest of Yati Narsinghanand, law against insult to Islam

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’. In another such incident, Muslims gathered in huge numbers in Ajmer’s Dargah Bazaar after the Friday prayers, demanding the arrest of the Hindu priest.

The protestors shouted slogans with banners in their hands. The protest continued for an hour. According to a report by TOI, the protest was staged under the leadership of gaddi nasheen khadim (priest) Syed Sarwar Chisty.

Chisty in his address stated that the Dasna’s priest’s comment was designed to disturb the communal peace in the country at the behest of the “fascist forces known to all”. He demanded the immediate arrest of Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati.

Muslims gathered at the Nizam Gate of Dargah lamented that though an FIR had already been registered in the Dargah police station regarding the matter, no action had been yet taken by the police. They threatened massive protest if nothing is done in this matter. The crowd was also heard demanding a law against any insult to Islam.

Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati has been in the line of fire ever since he made remarks allegedly against Prophet Muhammad.

Enraged by the Islamic fanatics openly calling for the murder of Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, Hindus from various corners of the country are now coming together in large numbers to voice their support for the Hindu priest.

‘Terrorists would have fired into your heart’: Cop in Kashmir arrested under UAPA for glorifying terrorism, resisting search and turning violent

OpIndia Staff
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‘Terrorists would have fired into your heart’: Cop in Kashmir arrested under UAPA for glorifying terrorism, resisting search and turning violent

On Friday (April 16), the Jammu and Kashmir police arrested a Special Police Officer (SPO) under the stringent anti-terror law in Frisal village in Kulgam of South Kashmir.

As per reports, the SPO has been identified as one Saima Akhter. She was charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for glorifying terrorism and obstructing government officials in their duty. Akhter was also terminated from her job. Her arrest came at the backdrop of a verbal confrontation between the ex-SPO and the army, during which she threatened violence against them.

The armed personnel had received specific intelligence about the presence of terrorists in Frisal village. As such, they conducted a search operation in the area on Wednesday (April 14). However, the operation came to a halt when Saima Akhter resisted and even turned violent. She reportedly issued threats glorifying violence against the Army and captured the video of the confrontation on her personal cell phone. The police informed that she later uploaded the video on social media in a bid to disrupt the search operation.

Saima Akhter threatens violence against the Army

In the contentious video, Saima Akhter could be heard objecting to the presence of the Army in the village. “Why do you come again and again? Go to the houses where militants are. You don’t even allow us to have our sehri … If you have to search our house, first remove your shoes.” She warned that if anything happened to her mother, she would not spare them.

Furthermore, the ex-SPO warned, “Shut your mouth. We are not going to be scared. This is our Kashmir. You have come from outside. Do whatever you want to do.” she further said, “If they (terrorists) had been here, they would have pumped a burst of fire into your heart.”

FIR registered at the Yaripora Police Station against the accused: Statement by the police

A police spokesman in a statement: “On 14 April 2021, after receiving specific input regarding the presence of militants in Karewa Mohallah of village Frisal, a search operation was launched there. During the course of the search, the search party was obstructed by a woman identified as Saima Akther, daughter of Ghulam Nabi Rah of Frisal. The woman resisted the search party and turned violent, and uttered statements glorifying violent actions of militancy. She captured a video through her personal phone and forwarded it on social media platforms with the aim of disrupting the search. Taking cognizance of the matter, the woman has been arrested and subsequently terminated from service. A case under FIR number 19/2021 under section 353 IPC, 13 UAP Act stands registered in Police Station Yaripora and investigation of the case is in progress.”

Scores of people, mostly migrant workers, caught on camera running out of Buxar railway station in Bihar to avoid COVID-19 test

OpIndia Staff
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Scores of people, mostly migrant workers, caught on camera running out of Buxar railway station in Bihar to avoid COVID-19 test

A video has emerged where scores of people, mostly migrant workers returning to the state, are seen running out of a railway station. The visuals have been captured from outside Bihar’s Buxar railway station. According to reports, the passengers, including women and young children, were trying to escape the mandatory COVID-19 test being conducted at the Bihar railway station, as the state witnesses a sudden influx of returning migrant workers amid the rising coronavirus scourge in the country.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar recently announced that random COVID testing will be conducted at all the railway stations in the state which has been witnessing a steep rise in coronavirus cases.

According to a report by Times Now, these passengers who were caught rushing out of the station as healthcare workers stop them for the COVID-19 test, are mostly migrant workers. They have been coming back to their native state from cities like Mumbai, Pune and Delhi that have been reporting a surge in COVID cases and also imposed strict restrictions, including night curfew and weekend lockdown.

The return of migrant workers has continued to push Bihar’s Covid-19 graph upwards. Owing to this, the Bihar government, in a high-level meeting on Friday, decided on conducting random COVID-19 tests at railway stations.

Speaking about the incident, an railway official said: “This has become an everyday ritual.”

“When we stopped them from leaving, they started to argue. There were no policemen at the station during the incident. Later, one policewoman came and said she was helpless as she was alone,” said Jai Tiwari, a local civic councillor in Buxar.

Indianapolis mass shooting that killed 8, including 4 Sikhs: Attacker was a former employee at FedEx, was previously arrested twice

OpIndia Staff
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Indianapolis mass shooting that killed 8, including 4 Sikhs: Attacker was a former employee at FedEx, was previously arrested twice

A day after a gunman killed at least eight people at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis, it has now come to light that the attacker was a former employee of the company. The mass shooting took place at the FedEx Ground Plainfield Operations Center late Thursday.

As per reports, the attacker has been identified as a 19-year-old boy named Brandon Scott Hole. After Hole’s killing spree, four victims were found dead inside the FedEx facility while four others were discovered dead outside the building. The attacker then shot himself, just minutes before the police arrived at the crime scene. He was employed by the American delivery services company in 2020.

Attacker had a criminal history, was arrested in 2013 and 2020

Brandon Scott Hole was interrogated by the police last year after his mother complained that he might try to commit ‘suicide by cop’ by provoking law enforcement authorities. The gunman was arrested on March 3, 2020, when police recovered a shotgun from him. He was then sent to a behavioural health unit. According to Special Agent (FBI) Paul Keenan, federal agents questioned him after discovering ‘some items’ in his bedroom during a search operation.

Reportedly, law enforcement authorities found no evidence against him and he was released. However, they did not return his shotgun. The federal agents also found that the 19-year-old attacker did not talk about ‘racially motivated ideology.’ It must be mentioned that he was also arrested in 2013 but the reason remains unknown.

Law enforcement authorities probing the motive behind the mass shooting

When asked about the motive behind the crime, Deputy Chief Craig McCartt sighed, “I wish we can answer that.” He further added, “This suspect came to the facility and when he came there, he got out of his car and pretty quickly started some random shooting outside the facility…No confrontation or argument, he just appeared to randomly start shooting. When officers arrived they found a very chaotic and active crime scene.” Police Chief Randal Taylor said, “We’ll never really know all the ins and outs of why this occurred, but we’ll try our best.”

4 Sikhs among 8 dead in the deadly attack

On Friday morning, federal agents reached Hole’s residence and seized a large box and his computer equipment. Indianapolis Police Chief Randal Taylor informed that a large number of employees at FedEx are members of the Sikh community. Given that 4 Sikh employees were killed, the law enforcement authorities are trying to determine whether the mass shooting was racially motivated. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has ordered the US flag to be flown at half-mast and called the incident a ‘national embarrassment.’

The Indianapolis mass shooting

Police officers received information about an active shooter at the FedEx centre near the airport at around 11 pm night. Journalist Matthew keys reported that about 60 people were injured, with more than 20 victims sustaining gunshot wounds. Citing sources in law enforcement, he informed that about 10 people suffered critical injuries while 20 victims sustained serious injuries. Around 30 people were walking wounded, in the aftermath of the mass shooting.

One Timothy Boillat and his friend Jeremiah Miller, who worked at the FedEx facility were eyewitnesses to the incident. “By the time we sat down at the smoke lounge and started eating, we heard two gunshots. We thought it was a car. We ignored. We then heard three shots and began thinking that it was an engine problem. Then, we heard around 6-10 shots,” Jeremiah Miller recounted.

He added, “This made me stand up and look out through the window. I saw a man with a sub-machine gun/automatic rifle of some sort and he started firing in the open. I immediately ducked down and got scared. My friend’s mother came in and told us to get inside the car. We are currently telling our co-workers to not go to work and told them about the incident that just happened.”

An hour into the 5th phase of 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections and reports of violence begin to pour in: Crude bombs hurled

OpIndia Staff
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An hour into the 5th phase of 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections and reports of violence begin to pour in: Crude bombs hurled

The fifth phase of the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections is currently underway. It’s been only two hours since the voting for the 45 seats has started and reports of violence have started pouring in from the state.

According to News18, crude bombs have been hurled at poll booth 114 in West Bengal’s Minakhan Assembly. The Trinamool Congress party has pinned the blame of the attack on the members of Peerzada Abbasuddin Siddique’s party Indian Secular Front. Besides, incidents of violence have also been reported from outside polling booth 115 in Minakhan Assembly.

In a separate incident, BJP and TMC workers clashed after the BJP polling agent was allegedly assaulted in West Bengal’s North Bardhaman district. The hunt is on for the accused. The situation in the area is currently under control.

Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress alleges that at least 35 “outsiders” and “BJP goons” are ‘threatening’ TMC voters who were on their way to the polling booth in Nadia’s Kalyani. An immense atmosphere of fear and panic has been created in the area.

The ruling TMC and the BJP are contesting on all the 45 assembly seats across five districts, namely, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Nadia, North 24 Parganas, and Purba Bardhaman in phase five of the West Bengal assembly elections.

Violence during previous phases of 2021 West Bengal Assembly Elections

Like this phase, the previous phases of the West Bengal state Assembly elections were also marred with violence. We had previously reported 5 major incidents of violence that took place during the fourth phase of polls in West Bengal.

Likewise, during the 3rd phase of West Bengal State Legislative polls on Tuesday (April 6), the BJP has alleged that people were stopped from casting their votes by hooligans associated with the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Then also the Trinamool Congress has accused Indian Secular Front (ISF) workers of hurling bombs at them in Ghumri in Canning Purba Vidhan Sabha constituency. 

The party has alleged that their workers were also physically assaulted by ISF. Following the incident, a large team of security personnel have been deployed the protect the polling booths to ensure free and fair elections.

We respect PM Modi’s call: PM Modi urges for snan at Kumbh to be kept symbolic due to COVID-19, Swami Avdheshanand responds

OpIndia Staff
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We respect PM Modi’s call: PM Modi urges for snan at Kumbh to be kept symbolic due to COVID-19, Swami Avdheshanand responds

The second wave of COVID-19 has hit several parts of India. Amidst the surging cases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today took to Twitter to inform that he spoke to the Juna Akhara Mahamandleshwar, Swami Avdheshanand and requested for the ‘Shahi Snan’ (Royal Bath) at the Kumbh Mela to be kept symbolic.

PM Modi said that he spoke to Swami Avsheshanand over the telephone and inquired about the health of all Sadhus attending the Kumbh Mela. He further informed that all saints were given the administration their full cooperation and PM Modi thanked them for this.

He further informed that while speaking to the Juna Akhara Mahamandleshwar, he urged that in the midst of rising COVID-19 cases, the royal bath at Kumbh Mela be kept symbolic this year.

The Juna Akhara Mahamandleshwar, Swami Avdheshanand responded to the call of Prime Minister Modi. Taking to Twitter, Swami Avdheshanand said Juna Akhara respects the call of the Prime Minister.

Urging Hindus, Swami Avdheshanand appealed to Hindus to keep the bath symbolic and not gather in large numbers at the Kumbh Mela for it. He further said that the protection of life amidst rising COVID-19 pandemic is of paramount concern.

On Thursday (April 15), the Panchayati Niranjani Akhada had announced that the Kumbh Mela will be concluded by April 17. The decision came at the backdrop of rising cases of Coronavirus in Haridwar.

While speaking to News 24, Ravindra Puri Maharaj of the Panchayati Niranjani Akhada informed, “This is the time of the pandemic. We have taken a decision and has asked the Sadhus from Gujarat, Maharashtra and other parts of India, who had come here, to return to their respective villages. The condition of Haridwar is worsening. Only a handful of Sadhus will take part in the April 27 snan. We have requested everyone to go back.”

He further added, “The decision has been taken due to the drastic rise of Coronavirus cases. We want all of us to be safe. This will help us to adhere to the social distancing guidelines.” On being asked whether this is a personal decision or fuelled by any external pressure, Ravindra Puri Maharaj clarified, “We are under no pressure. This is also not a personal matter. This is a societal issue, for the people at large. We have taken the decision for the well-being of people.” He however emphasised that about 50 sadhus, belonging to the Panchayati Niranjani Akhada, will participate in the April 27 snan”.

It must be mentioned that the itinerary of Kumbh Mela includes 4 ‘shahi snan’ and 9 ‘Ganga snan.’ The fourth ‘shahi snan’ will be conducted on April 27.

Kangana Ranaut slams Karan Johar after Dharma Productions fires Kartik Aryan, tells them not to ‘force him to hang himself’ like SSR

OpIndia Staff
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Kangana Ranaut slams Karan Johar after Dharma Productions fires Kartik Aryan, tells them not to ‘force him to hang himself’ like SSR

Kangana Ranaut has hit out at Karan Johar and Dharma Productions after Kartik Aryan was fired from Dostana 2 over alleged ‘unprofessional conduct’. The Bollywood superstar has slammed ‘chindi nepos’ and said that they should leave Kartik Aryan alone and not force him to commit suicide like Sushant Singh Rajput.

DNA had quoted a source close to the production house saying, “Dharma has decided to replace Kartik Aaryan in ‘Dostana 2’. Kartik expressed creative differences over the script of Dostana 2 ​after one and a half years. However, he completed nearly 20 days of shoot in 2019 after reading the same script and agreeing to it.”

Kangana Ranaut said, “Kartik has come this far on his own, on his own he will continue to do so, only request to papa jo and his nepo gang club is please leave him alone like Shushant don’t go after him and force him to hang himself. Leave him alone you vultures, get lost chindi nepos…”

Kangana Ranaut on the Kartik Aryan situation

She also advised Kartik that there was no need to scared of these “chillars”. Kangana Ranaut also drew parallels with the manner in which stories of unprofessional behaviour and drug addiction were peddled regarding Sushant Singh Rajput.

Dostana 2 is a sequel to the 2008 blockbuster Dostana starring Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham and Priyanka Chopra, directed by Tarun Mansukhani. Dostana 2 is being directed by Collin D’Cunha, and it has Janhvi Kapoor and Lakshya Lalwani in leading roles, along with Kartik Aryan. But now the production house will need to find a different actor to replace of Kartik Aryan.

TMC’s Derek O’Brien opposes EC’s Covid campaign restrictions, says new rules very suitable to ‘Lutyens bungalow’ residents

OpIndia Staff
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TMC’s Derek O’Brien opposes EC’s Covid campaign restrictions, says new rules very suitable to ‘Lutyens bungalow’ residents

TMC leader Derek O’Brien criticized the Election Commission’s new Covid restrictions in a press conference today. “Today the umpire said 7 pm to 10 am no campaigning, this is very suitable to those living in Lutyens bungalows in Delhi,” said O’Brein, taking a jab at the Election Commission’s decision.

“They have breakfast in Delhi, fly down to Kolkata, do some meetings in heat & they will go back. This will expose people to COVID19”, O’Brien further added.

Earlier today, the Election Commission of India issued an order to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic during the remaining phases of the assembly elections. The Commission has extended the silence period for rallies, public meetings, street plays, nukkad sabhas, bike rallies or any gathering for campaigning purposes to 72 hours before the end of the polls for Phase 6, 7 and 8 in the state of West Bengal.

In its order, the Election Commission issued a stern admonition to the political parties for occasional violations of the COVID guidelines issued by the poll body during the announcement of the assembly elections for the states of Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and UT of Puducherry.

Taking cognisance of the prevailing unprecedented coronavirus crisis in the country, the Election Commission has asked candidates and political parties to ensure absolute adherence to COVID guidelines in letter and spirit. Violations, if any shall be sternly dealt with and action, including criminal action can be initiated as per the extant legal framework.

The new guidelines will be applicable for the last three phases of assembly elections in West Bengal on 22, 26 and 29 April. The next and fifth phase of polls will take place tomorrow, which means campaigning for it is already over as per existing rules. The elections in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry are already over by 6th April, waiting for the results on 2nd May.

The maximum number of electors per booth has been reduced to 1000 from 1500. Simultaneously, the facilities of casting the postal ballot has been extended to PWD electors, 80+ year old, and COVID-19 suspect/positive patients.

The poll body has mandated the use of masks, face shield, sanitizer, gloves by the polling authorities during the process. Likewise, voters have also been asked to mandatorily wear masks while casting their votes. Stock of reserve masks is kept at the booths for providing to default electors.

Thermal screenings of electors will be conducted by health workers at all polling centers. If anyone has temperature higher than normal temperature, he/she will need to come in the last hour of the poll fixed for COVID-19 patients.

Two days after daughter of Ajay Tandon took over father’s campaigning for by-elections as he had COVID-19, the Congress leader seen on the street

OpIndia Staff
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Two days after daughter of Ajay Tandon took over father’s campaigning for by-elections as he had COVID-19, the Congress leader seen on the street

Congress candidate from the Damoh assembly in Madhya Pradesh, Ajay Tandon, was seen making a public appearance despite being COVID-19 positive. The Congress leader had reportedly hit the streets of Damoh assembly in Madhya Pradesh, campaigning for the by-elections on 17th April for the Damoh assembly constituency. In a snippet shared by times Now the Congress leader is seen surrounded by his supporters. He is without a mask or any other safety gear.

The Congress leader, in his defence, has claimed that he was tested COVID negative the previous day. He said that since his reports were negative, there was no question of flouting any Covid-19 norms.

This claim made by the Congress leaders seems to be quite baffling since only yesterday it was reported that Ajay Tandon has been tested positive for COVID-19.

Moreover, Ajay Tandon’s elder daughter, Parul Tandon had also confirmed that her father had tested positive for the contagion two days before the Damoh assembly by-election, scheduled to be held on April 17.

In her video message shared by another Twitter user on April 15, the Congress leader’s daughter was heard saying that since Ajay Tandon has been tested positive he has self quarantined himself in his house.

“We have quarantined him only so that he does not spread the infection amongst others”, said his daughter, appealing to people to support her father in this hour of distress and vote for him in the upcoming Damoh assembly by-election.

She also confirmed that since her father Ajay Makhan will be unable to campaign for the Damoh assembly by-election she will be taking up the responsilibity.

The video message was shared on the microblogging site on April 15, where the Congress leader’s daughter is clearly declaring that her father has been tested COVID-19 positive, and interestingly, the very next day, Ajay Tandon is seen on the streets of Damoh, without a mask, PPE suit or any other safety precautions, risking the lives of several people around him.

Facebook censors media reports of multi-million dollar real estate purchases by BLM co-founder, her group calls criticism ‘White Supremacy’

OpIndia Staff
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Facebook censors media reports of multi-million dollar real estate purchases by BLM co-founder, her group calls criticism ‘White Supremacy’

Facebook is now censoring articles from both the New York Post and the Daily Mail, which detail the controversial real estate buying-binge of BLM co-founder Patrisse Khan-Cullors. Khan-Cullors purchased a total of four luxury houses valued at $3.4 million in the U.S. Khan-Cullors, who is a self-described Marxist, came under fire recently for purchasing a property worth $1.4 million in a predominantly white neighborhood.

However, criticisms of her were censored on Twitter, with Twitter locking accounts of people who shared reports revealing Khan-Cullors’ exorbitant purchase. Now, an error message from Facebook greets any user who wishes to share either the New York Post article or the Daily Mail article, about Khan-Cullors’ multiple property purchases.

“Your post couldn’t be shared, because this link goes against our Community Standards,” the error message says when any attempt is made to post the article link on the social media platform.

“This content was removed for violating our privacy and personal information policy,” said Facebook in a statement to Tucker Carlson Tonight on Fox News.

The New York Post also reports on the criticism that Khan-Cullors’ received from fellow activists on the news of her property purchases going public. Hawk Newsome, the head of Black Lives Matter Greater New York City, which is not affiliated with Khan-Cullors’ Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF), called for “an independent investigation” to find out how the BLM global network spends the money it raises through donations.

“If you go around calling yourself a socialist, you have to ask how much of her own personal money is going to charitable causes,” he said. “It’s really sad because it makes people doubt the validity of the movement and overlook the fact that it’s the people that carry this movement.”

The BLMGNF has issued a statement clarifying that the funds Khan-Cullors used to purchase lavish real estate properties did not come from BLMGNF funds. The foundation also made the bizarre claim that articles reporting on Khan-Cullors’ spending spree were somehow contributing to “a tradition of terror by white supremacists”.

Khan-Cullors is a self-described Marxist, stating in a December 2020 video that she believes in Marxism.

“I do believe in Marxism. It’s a philosophy that I learned really early on in my organizing career. We were taught to learn about the systems that were criticizing capitalism. We were taught to understand why there were philosophies that were criticizing capitalism. I’m working on making sure that people don’t suffer. I’m working to make sure people don’t go hungry,” Khan-Cullors says in the video.

It is to be noted that a similar article detailing Khan-Cullors’ real estate purchases from Black Enterprise, a black-owned media company that covers black-owned businesses, was allowed to be shared by Facebook users. 

This new wave of censorship marks an escalation from Big Tech companies in their war against Free Speech and Expression. Just last month, Facebook censored Lara Trump interviewing her father-in-law and former U.S. Prez Donald Trump, drawing criticism from conservative voices.

In October 2020, Twitter censored the New York Post from reporting an accurate news story about Hunter Biden. Last month, Twitter CEO admitted that his platform made a “total mistake” by barring users from sharing The NY Post’s bombshell news report about Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden’s emails.

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