In a second warning to the French government, a group of presently serving French soldiers have published an open letter in a conservative magazine warning the French President Macron of a brewing ‘civil war.’
The letter raised concerns over the ‘survival’ of France, warning the President against the ‘concessions’ he made to Islamism despite being aware of the potential threat.
The letter published in the conservative Valeurs Actuelles magazine on Sunday opened for signatories after a similar letter was published last month echoing the threat looming over France.
It stated that France for some religions means “nothing but an object of sarcasm, contempt or even hatred.” The writers also accused the anti-racism groups of creating “hatred between communities” and cautioned that “lax” government policies could spark chaos forcing the military to get into action to “protect our civilizational values”.
As per reports, the previous letter signed by some officials and 20 odd semi-retired generals had sparked an uproar in France with the prime minister terming it as an unacceptable interference and France’s general vowing that those responsible behind it will be punished.
Responding to the threat of legal action, the second letter was an all-out attack on the French government accusing it of “trampling” on veterans’ honor and “sullying” their reputation “when their only fault is to love their country and mourn its visible decline”.
Claiming that if a civil war breaks out, the military will go all out to maintain the law and order on “its own soil” the letter revealed that the government is well aware of the conspiracy yet inactive.
Reacting to the letter, the armed forces minister, Florence Parly, said: “The armies are not there to campaign but to defend France.” Interior minister Gerald Darmanin called it a ‘crude manoeuvre’ and said the anonymous signatories are ‘lacking courage’.
The letter received 76,461 anonymous signatures till Monday morning.
These letters come just ahead of the 2022 polls where Macron’s main opposition is said to be a far right leader Marine Le Pen.
The first letter signed by 18 soldiers also warned of the risk of “civil war” in France and the need to fight the “perils” of “Islamism” and “anti-racism” creating a bitter row between the government and the far-right.
An interactive poll conducted last week observed that 58% of French people agreed with the sentiments in the letter.
Professional protestor Yogendra Yadav who is currently protesting on behalf of ‘farmers’, on Monday admitted how he knew about the sexual harassment faced by the woman as well as her possible kidnapping by the culprits. He made these revelations in a press conference.
Explaining the chronology of events, Yadav said that Sanyukt Kisan Morcha gave a call to defeat the BJP in Bengal elections and under that call, many teams reached West Bengal to hold ‘farmer protest’ and try to change the mood against the BJP. He claimed that one team, ‘Kisan Social Army’ consisting of 6 members also reached West Bengal on 1st April. Yadav then put up a disclaimer that he was not aware of such a team.
He claimed that the woman ‘activist’ decided to go to Delhi to participate in the protests. She left with the members of ‘Kisan Social Army’ from West Bengal to Delhi. Yadav claimed that only 5 out of the 6 people were returning to Delhi.
Yadav adds that the woman had said that she was harassed on the train journey to Delhi. On 12th April she reached Delhi where she was again sexually assaulted. He claimed the ‘leadership’ was unaware of the same. Around 18th-19th April, she fell unwell and was given medicines. Since her symptoms were like COVID, she was taken to hospital. Her health deteriorated till 22nd-23rd April. Yadav claims that he got to know of her on 24th April when the woman’s father approached him for her COVID treatment.
Yadav admits that he made his wife, who speaks Bangla, to talk to the girl to assure her of help. The woman had at that time hinted about harassment, ‘but she did not specify,’ Yadav claims. He then adds that on 25th April when he tried to contact the woman, she was not at the hospital. The father of the girl informed him that she was being taken elsewhere. At that time, he finally called her and spoke to her.
On 25th April, Yadav admits that he felt their conversation was being overheard. “Since I speak some Bangla, I asked her if the people taking her away are they nice people, she said no. I got suspicious. I asked her to make me talk to them. When I spoke with them, Anil and Anup were in the car. I asked them where are they taking her. They informed me they are taking her to Bengal to her father,” Yadav said.
Yadav further added that the duo claimed they had crossed Agra and were on their way to Kolkata. Yadav got further suspicious and asked the girl to send him her location on WhatsApp. But the location she sent was from Haryana and not Agra as claimed by the duo. He called the woman again and told the men who had taken her away that ‘if you do not take us seriously, we will have to take strict action. Bring the car back to Delhi,’ he instructed.
On 25th April night they returned to the Tikri border and arranged for her treatment. On 29th April her father came to Delhi but on 30th April, she succumbed to COVID.
“On 1st May, after doing her last rites, her father came to us along with a witness Yogita. I was told this was not just COVID but also more,” he said. Yadav admits that on 1st May, the victim’s father told him in detail about the sexual abuse faced by his daughter. “That is when we realised this was more than harassment,” Yadav said.
Yadav claims on 3rd May the committee met at Tikri border and discussed the case and decided to stand by the victim. He claimed that they took the steps they could from their side, like ‘boycotting them, removing their tent and appeal for social boycott from the stage’ within 24 hours. He claimed that they waited for the father to take legal action as ‘family has first right’ and father was in a dilemma as the victim had asked for justice but also asked to not ‘defame Sanyukt Kisan Morcha’.
Eventually, the girl’s father decided to file a police complaint.
We reported earlier in the day that a woman from West Bengal was reportedly raped by two men, both members of the Aam Aadmi Party, when she was going to join the farmer protest site at the Tikri border, Delhi. The father of the woman had filed a complaint based on which an FIR was registered by the Police under Sections 120B, 342, 354, 365, 376D and 506. He said in his complaint that his daughter was forced on the train and in the tent at the protest site by accused Anil and Anup Singh.
Accused claims conspiracy to defame farmers’ protest
While the former AAP leader tries his best to distance himself from the incident, a report by Times Now has revealed that one of the accused has also refuted the allegations against him. Accused Anup Singh has claimed that a ploy has been hatched to defame the ongoing farmers’ protest. In a video message, the AAP leader said that there was an incident of “assault” on-board the train, but the accusations of “rape at the Tikri border” are “false”.
“Culprits should be punished. But rape accusations are wrong… I am still at the Tikri border site,” Singh claimed.
Victim’s father contends that Yogendra Yadav was aware of the brutalities meted out on his daughter
It is pertinent to note here, that the Hindi daily, Dainik Bhaskar in its report had cited the woman’s father to contend that Yadav was aware of the brutalities meted out on his daughter, and yet he turned a blind eye to it. The report says that Yadav was in touch with the woman since April 24, before her death, and was aware of her predicament. However, he did not inform the police about the incident, which raises the question of whether he wanted to hide the misdeeds of the accused.
Woman who died of COVID at Tikri border protest site was raped and blackmailed
The matter came to light after the father of the woman filed a complaint based on which an FIR was registered by the Police under Sections 120B, 342, 354, 365, 376D and 506. As per the police, they have formed a team to track down two of the accused in the case.
As per the complaint, on April 10, the woman, aged around 25 years, came to Tikri border protest site from West Bengal with a group to join the farmers’ protest against the recently enacted agriculture laws. On April 26, she was admitted to a hospital in the Jhajjar district after showing Covid symptoms. Vijay Kumar, Police Officer at Bahadurgarh Police Station, said, “She died on April 30. Her father has filed a case of rape against two men.”
On Monday, the West Bengal government told the Calcutta High Court that there was no post-poll violence in West Bengal after the recently conducted state elections which saw the Mamata Banerjee regime retaining power. The next hearing for all PILs regarding the WB post-poll violence in the Calcutta HC is scheduled for next Tuesday on May 18.
A five-judge Constitution bench comprising of Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justices IP Mukerji, Harish Tandon, Soumen Sen, and Subrata Talukdar was informed by WB Advocate General Kishor Datta that according to the state government, there were no instances of post-poll violence after May 9, 2021.
All of this comes in response to a petition in Calcutta HC which submits that post-poll violence led to the death of at least 11 persons, alleging serious dereliction of duty on the part of the police. Numerous PILs have been filed in the Calcutta HC in order to secure justice for people affected by post-election violence. All of these PILs will now be heard on May 18.
The WB Advocate General’s submission as to the lack of post-poll violence drew a sharp reaction from Additional Solicitor General (ASG) YJ Dastoor, who was representing the Central Government. Dastoor made it clear that multiple political parties had come out with statements in the media that their respective workers had suffered in the post-poll violence.
“There is no doubt of post poll violence (having occurred),” Dastoor submitted.
The ASG also informed the Court that the National Human Rights Commission, the State Human Rights Commission, State Commission for Women, and even the State Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes Commission had received complaints from people who could not approach the police stations or their complaints were not registered.
Another petition relating to WB post-poll violence, filed by Advocate Rishav Singh, seeks various reliefs from the Calcutta HC against the WB government. In this petition, the petitioner seeks the registration of FIRs against culprits who engaged in post-poll violence, asking the WB govt to show cause for not registering FIRs.
The petition also seeks to restore the rights of reportedly 80,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) who fled away from their homes into neighboring states like Assam in order to escape the post-poll violence. The petition also seeks monetary compensation for the families of persons who have lost their lives in the post-poll carnage.
This petition, along with other related PILs, will be heard in Calcutta HC on May 18, 2021.
Any Bollywood fan knows that Superstar Salman Khan is the highlight of every Eid in India. Salman had been releasing his movies during Eid for a long time now. Staying true to this tradition, the actor is gearing up for his Eid release of 2021, Radhe – Your Most Wanted Bhai.
To celebrate this big feat of Salman Khan’s big-budget film, ZEE5 has introduced a special Radhe Combo Offer, on its annual subscriptions, giving all the Bhai fans an exclusive opportunity to watch Radhe movie online
What is the Radhe Combo Offer?
The Radhe Combo Offer is a special offer introduced by ZEE5 in which for just Rs 499, subscribers get an exclusive pay-per-view ticket of Radhe movie along with a full year of ZEE5 Premium subscription. ZEE5 has not only slashed the subscription prices by half, it is not even charging for Radhe’s ZEEPLEX ticket.
The movie rental for Radhe on ZEEPLEX is around Rs 249, but if you opt for a Radhe combo offer, you’ll be able to watch Radhe along with a host of other projects available on ZEE5.
What makes the Radhe Combo Offer special for Bollywood lovers?
In the Radhe Combo Offer, a user not only gets to watch Salman Khan’s upcoming film Radhe but also gets unlimited access to a wide array of exceptional content available on the ZEE5 platform. ZEE5 is a host for numerous movies, web series and even TV shows across languages and genres.
It hosts many of Bhai’s evergreen movies such as Hum Saath Saath Hai, Maine Pyaar Kiya, Karan Arjun and more, along with a long list of other Bollywood movies from stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan and more. And since this offer is specially introduced around Eid, it is surely an Eidi from Salman Khan to not just his fans but to every other Bollywood fan out there.
Radhe releases on May 13, 2021. Besides Salman Khan, the film also has Disha Patani and Jackie Shroff in the pivotal roles and Randeep Hooda is playing the big baddie. The movie is helmed by Prabudeva.
Twitter, which has a history of arbitrarily suspending accounts of many users who do not fall into line with its leftist ideologies, has sent a notice to political cartoonist and satirist Vikaso, username @vikasopikaso, for his cartoon on the ‘best CM’, which according to the request to Twitter ‘violates the law(s) of India’.
The cartoonist took to Twitter to share the copy of the notice he received from the legal department of Twitter today. He captioned hi Tweet: “Finally, received my first notice for a cartoon on the best CM ;)”.
In an e-mail dated May 10, the legal department of Twitter has informed the cartoonist that they have received a “request from India regarding the Twitter account @vikasopikaso, that claims the following content violates the law(s) of India.”
The caricature in question was that which the cartoonist posted on April 3. The satirist, through his sketch, took a jibe at Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray. The political cartoon featured a ‘confused’ CM in an orange kurta, depicting Uddhav Thackeray. Two briefcases with ‘Lockdown’ written on one and ‘Vasooli’ written on the other lies in front of the CM, who looks flustered, as if having difficulty in choosing one of the two.
The microblogging site informed the Twitter user that they have not yet taken any action on the reported content. The mail read that it was Twitter’s policy to notify users if they receive any legal request from an authorised entity (such as law enforcement or a govt agency) to remove content from the account.
Saying so, Twitter said that meanwhile, the user has the option to explore his legal options. It read that the cartoonist was informed so that he might seek legal counsel and challenge the request in court or may voluntarily delete the content or may find some other resolution as deemed fit.
Twitter, while it did not remove the content in question, has a history of silecing non-Left accounts. In February 2020, the account of Twitter user ‘“टीपूडा” whose username is @PR1CELES5 was suspended by the micro-blogging site. The Twitter user, whose real name is Amol, had simply paid the price for exposing the bias of cartoonists through ‘corrected’ cartoons.
Prior to this, a Twitter user who mad hilarious spoofs of Rahul Gandhi also had his account permanently suspended by Twitter which made people wonder if it was due to his political ideology.
The Uddhav Thackeray government has also in the past display extreme intolerance towards its detractors. Last year, six Shiv Sena goons had assaulted a retired Navy officer for sharing Uddhav Thackeray cartoon. The WhatsApp forward was allegedly a satirical cartoon featuring Uddhav Thackeray and his allies Sharad Pawar and Sonia Gandhi.
The relentless attack on the Centre by the opposition for alleged mismanagement of the Covid-19 crisis occupied a large space in the media since the beginning of the second wave. While the common man grappled for hospital beds and medical oxygen, the states and opposition preferred indulging in a blame game rather than adopting a solution-oriented strategy. After the Centre being blamed for ‘dropping the ball on Covid preparedness,’ Union Minister Prakash Javadekar in an exclusive write-up at the Indian Express said the allegation is ‘far from the truth.’
Covid preparedness by the Centre
Narrating the Centre’s approach right from the beginning of 2021, Prakash Javadekar revealed that the Centre on January 06 had written to the Kerala state government urging to take immediate steps as the new cases had begun to surge. To follow it up with concrete actions, a high-level central team was sent to the state to support its efforts.
Refuting claims of the Centre adopting a dawdle approach to the upcoming second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, Javadekar straightened the record by informing that the central government had been proactive in Covid management with national-level coordination.
The Minister also highlighted that despite health being a state subject, the Union health ministry consistently monitored case trends, evaluated states’ preparedness, provided technical expertise, and oversaw the formulation of state and district-level response strategies.
Clarifying that the Centre did not restrict itself to just issuing guidelines, Prakash Javadekar informed that more than 75 high-level teams comprising central government bureaucrats and public health experts had been deployed across various states since September 2020.
What was the purpose of these teams? It was to ensure that their feedback reduced the information asymmetry between the Centre and states and help identify key gaps in states’ preparedness and response strategies.
Did the Centre ignore the warnings of the second wave?
When the sudden surge in new coronavirus cases took the nation by surprise, several state authorities chose to fire-fight the damage caused to their reputation rather than the crisis itself.
Prakash Javadekar said, “On February 21, when the daily case count was below 13,000, the Union health ministry noted sharp inter-state variations in trends. Immediately, a letter was sent to states like Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Maharashtra, which were witnessing a spike in cases. High-level central teams for monitoring and assisting state governments were announced on February 24 for the states and UT witnessing a surge — Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab, Karnataka Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Jammu and Kashmir.”
Saying that the states undermined the gravity of the situation, “Throughout March, the Centre actively monitored the spread of infections in these states, engaging with state governments, reviewing their response measures, and ensuring compliance with the reports prepared by central teams. If these states had taken the Centre’s early warnings and feedback more seriously, the current surge would not have been as fierce,” Javadekar added.
The states and the opposition not just tried hard to brush their mismanagement under the carpet, but also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly declaring ‘victory’ over the corona crisis.
Putting things into perspective, Javadekar reiterated Prime Minister Modi’s message to the Chief Ministers in a meeting chaired on March 17.
“Most of the Covid-affected countries in the world have suffered many waves. In our country also, there has been a sudden increase in cases in some states after decline… We have also noticed that the positivity rate in Maharashtra and MP is very high and there is a rise in the number of cases, also…This time, cases are rising in many areas and districts which were unaffected so far. In a way, they were safe zones, but now fresh cases are emerging. In the last few weeks, this increase is more than 150 per cent in 70 districts of the country. If we don’t stop the pandemic in its tracks, the situation can lead to a country-wide outbreak. We must immediately stop this emerging ‘second peak’. I think it is necessary now that difficulties in governance at the local level should be looked into, reviewed and resolved. Our confidence should not become over-confidence and our success should not turn into negligence,” was the Prime Minister’s message.
How prepared was the Centre for the second wave?
The Union Minister specified that the Centre had already anticipated the second wave and had deployed more than 50 teams in the worst-affected districts across the country, to assist state governments in containment and surveillance measures.
He added that the Centre reviewed action plans of almost 200 high-focus districts between March 27 and April 15. As new challenges emerged, the Minister informed that the Government of India deployed a multi-pronged strategy to deal with the ongoing crisis.
“Contrary to the misinformation, the central government was simultaneously dealing with all these aspects of pandemic management,” said Javadekar brushing off every claim of mismanagement and failure in handling the Covid-19 pandemic by the Centre.
From sending approval letters to states for enhancing medical oxygen capacities using PM Cares Fund in January to making available 9000 tonnes of oxygen a day within a month, it is imperative to analyze every step taken by the Centre as well as the states to form a formidable opinion on the handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Bollywood actor Farhan Akhtar on Saturday announced that he had received his first Covid-19 vaccine dose at the Andheri Sports Complex in Mumbai. He expressed his gratitude towards the Mumbai Police and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and even had advise for others. There is just one problem, however. He is apparently not eligible for the vaccine at the particular site.
According to reports, the vaccination at the Andheri Sports Complex is a drive in facility available only to those above the age of 60. Farhan Akhtar clearly is not above 60 years of age. Therefore, it is unclear how he received the vaccine at the particular site.
A report by the Indian Express states that civic officials claim the site is not yet under operation. Assistant Municipal Commissioner K-west (Andheri), Vishwas Mote, reportedly, did not respond to texts or calls.
The discrepancy has not escaped the attention of people online as well. Unless authorities issue a sound clarification over the matter, it appears that Farhan Akhtar secured a Covid-19 vaccine for himself using his class privilege.
The questionable justification by Farhan Akhtar
After he was called out by netizens over the matter, the Bollywood actor defended himself saying that the drive in facility was for those above 45 years of age. Even then, he responded with extraordinary meanness and arrogance.
The drive in is for 45 + .. now do something constructive for society with your time like losing your phone. https://t.co/zLgyhhtQIO
There was another tweet where the BMC did say that the drive in facility could be access by specially-abled people above the age of 45 as well.
Drive In Facility For 45+ specially-abled
.@mybmcWardGN has started a new vaccination centre at Kohinoor Parking Lot, JK Sawant Marg, Dadar(W), for 45+ citizens coming for their 2nd dose of #Covishield
Farhan Akhtar surely does not look like someone who falls under the specially-abled category.
The reality of Class Privilege
While it is unclear if Farhan Akhtar is eligible for the vaccine at the center, it is easy to understand why ordinary citizens are not pleased with the series of events.
It cannot be denied that there exists a distinct class privilege in every society. People in the upper echelons of society have greater excess to resources for themselves. It is a universal feature of human civilization. There is no country in the world where this principle does not hold true.
Even in the USA, no ordinary person expects Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden to be held accountable for violating laws. Even if they do violate, which is especially true in the case of Clinton, there always appears to be magical loopholes that appear out of the blue to their rescue.
The same exists in India as well, only that it is far more prominent. It is for this reason that Prashant Bhushan can get away with contempt of Court by paying a measly sum of 1 rupee while others can get slapped with significant fines for frivolous petitions.
It is for the same reason that someone like Yogendra Yadav can incite protests amidst the Covid-19 crisis without any repercussions while ordinary people can be harassed by the Police for not wearing a mask inside their own car.
It is for the same reason that the doors of the Court can be opened at midnight by liberals for terrorists but a petition related to Bengal violence has to wait much longer to have its day in Court.
Class privilege operates at all levels and is dependent on the circumstances in the concerned circumstances. The discussion around class privilege often sparks derision from people not the non-Left bent because Communism as a political philosophy is based on class solidarity but the existence of class privilege cannot be denied.
Often, the ones who use their class privilege to gain access to resources are the ones most vocal when it comes to preaching egalitarianism. Farhan Akhtar himself appears to be one such individual and so are many of his liberal comrades.
Farhan Akhtar: The quintessential hypocrite
For all his moral sermons, which are offered a dime a dozen, it appears that Akhtar did not even have to think twice to gain privileges access to the Covid-19 vaccine in the midst of a pandemic. All moral sermons go for a toss in the midst of a pandemic and understandably so.
Many hypocrites such as Farhan Akhtar are often the strongest proponents of Communism or left-oriented political parties. Such personalities will cheer for Aishe Ghosh by day and use their class privilege to subvert the law by night.
Farhan Akhtar was one of the most vocal entertainers to have spoken out against the Citizenship Amendment Act without any knowledge about the facts of the matter. It is understandable why he did so. It was important for him to virtue-signal on the matter so that the other million occasions on which he used his class privilege to gain unfair advantage does not receive adequate attention.
Such hypocrites feel such a sense of entitlement that they do not hesitate to arrogantly admonish ordinary citizens if they dare to question them. When a concerned Indian citizen had asked him to ask people of his camp to not go around destroying property, he had labeled the person a bigot.
Even in the midst of a pandemic, Akhtar would not hesitate to gain access to resources in the midst of a crisis. It is the sheer sense of entitlement that leads to a general disrespect for the law among the populace. When people recognise that others can flout the law and get away with it without any repercussions, why should they go out of their way to uphold basic human decency?
Such antics at a large scale inevitable leads to a moral degradation of a society. The age of the Royals may be over but Aristocracy is a feature of human existence that will last till eternity. No one really expects class privilege to go away and every reasonable person understands this. But when the aristocratic class of a society becomes parasitic and does not feel a sense of duty towards ordinary citizens, the consequences are always devastating.
In yet another incident of arbitrary suspension, social media giant Twitter had on Monday suspended the official account of Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha. The real reason behind the suspension was not clear, though several media reports claim the account was taken down for violating the platform’s rules.
The official Twitter account of the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, which goes by @OfficeOfLGJandK, now showed the message: “Account suspended”, along with an explanation of the possible reason for its suspension. “Twitter suspends accounts that violate the Twitter Rules,” the message reads.
Source: Twitter
The spokesman for the government of India had said that the account has been suspended because of some technical issues and the matter has been taken up with Twitter.
After the statement by the spokesperson, the account of the LG was restored.
Account restored
It is still unclear why the account was suspended. The social media behemoth, of late, has faced criticism for exercising its arbitrary suspension policies. It had recently taken down popular Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut’s account, accusing her of violating their platforms’ rules and regulations. However, the same scrutiny did not apply to Islamist Sharjeel Usmani, Farhan Khan Ali and sundry other leftists who have been wishing and celebrating the deaths of those who do not share their worldview.
Yogendra Yadav, darling of the liberal intelligentsia, was aware that a woman had been raped by AAP leaders at the Tikri border farmer protest site, according to a report by Bhaskar. In spite of that, he chose to remain silent about the matter.
No doubt, he chose to remain silent because he believed that if the crime attracts national attention, then it would undermine the legitimacy of the protests. She was blackmailed as well and has since then died of Covid-19. But those on the outside must ask ourselves this question.
If they are willing to sacrifice the life of a woman and silence a crime as devastating as rape for their protests, then what else are they willing to sacrifice? Unfortunately, it is not the first time that news of crimes against women have emerged from farmer protest sites.
The crimes against humanity at protest sites
An editor at India Today had revealed months earlier that women were being sexually harassed at the protest sites. And yet, it was summarily ignored by everyone in the liberal camp. As days passed, people even forgot about it. And now, we have a dead woman who was raped.
Deaths at such liberal protests have become extremely normalised in recent times. During the Shaheen Bagh protests, a baby had died due to the negligence of parents. The baby was exposed to the cold Delhi winter every night and eventually, the infant was unable to cope with the harsh weather.
Even the death of a baby was not enough to move conscience of our liberal intelligentsia. And expectedly so. The perverse mentality that has come to dominate such protests was captured perfectly by the parents of the dead infant. The parents said that they would be willing sacrifice their other child for the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act as well.
It is emblematic of the pathological attachment that liberals have towards politics. For them, politics transcends every aspect of human life. Politics dominates every aspect of the human experience for them. Personal relationships, entertainment, sports, every single facet of existence must conform with their vision of politics.
Liberalism is a Godless religion
It is mostly due to the fact that most liberals have substituted religion in their lives with politics. Liberals worship their political ideologies and ideologues with the same reverence that ordinary people reserve for their Gods. The vacuum that the absence of religious belief entails is occupied by piety towards their political ideology.
Liberals have their own Gods, their own priests, preachers, institutions for promoting their religious belief and their own versions of doomsday apocalypse prophecies. Protests against ‘fascism’ and ‘authoritarianism’ are their own version of festivities.
Consistently, the deaths and rapes at such protests is the liberal equivalent of the human sacrifice ritual that was widely widespread once upon a time. The human sacrifice ritual takes two forms in liberal circles and there are consequently, two varieties of responses to it.
First and foremost is the deaths due to natural causes which are used to galvanise the protests further by wrongly placing the blame on the authorities they are rebelling against. We saw the manner in which the blame for the deaths of protesters during the farmer protests were placed at the feet of the central government even though they had nothing to do with it.
Posters could be found at protest sites with the names and photographs of those who had ‘attained martyrdom’ fighting against the ‘fascist regime’. Consequently, candles were lit in front of the protesters and the venue became some sort of a shrine.
The other category is the one that the unfortunate baby and the woman fall under. These are deaths due to negligence or crimes committed by the protesters themselves. The liberal response to such deaths is starkly different. Everyone pretends that it just did not happen despite everyone being aware of the monstrosity that has been committed.
There is a ritualistic response to such unfortunate events. Everyone just shuts their eyes to it and waits for the tide to blow over. No one dares report the crime to authorities because anyone who does so would be accused of betrayal of tribal loyalties and that person would be considered more wicked than the rapists themselves.
Politics above humanity
No one wants to suffer the collective wrath of the tribe. Therefore, the response invariably is denial of the entire series of events that led to it. Their hearts are so consumed by political tribal loyalties that they sincerely believe that such silence is justified.
It is not only the protesters themselves who harbour such mentality. Liberal media, intelligentsia, academia, liberals in all spheres resolutely hold the belief. That is why outlets like The Wire choose to remain silent regarding the matter.
It is for the same reason that the intense “Believe All Women” rule does not apply to the women who have accused US President Joe Biden and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct. Liberals genuinely believe that women and children on their side of politics are worth sacrificing to achieve larger political objectives.
The unfortunate woman at the farmer protests and the infant at Shaheen Bagh are merely pawns whose deaths must not be allowed to dent liberal politics.
While the US liberals have been cashing on the second wave of Coronavirus outbreak in India to tarnish the global image of the country, the United States has still not been able to dispose of the bodies of Covid-19 patients, who died last year.
On Friday (May 7), the New York Post (NYP) reported that the dead bodies of 750 Coronavirus patients are lying in a refrigerated morgue on the Brooklyn waterfront in New York for more than a year. The bodies were kept in the long-term storage facility that was built in April 2020, when the country was overwhelmed by the early outbreak of the pandemic.
Reportedly, refrigerated vehicles were used when hospitals, morgues and funeral homes in New York were overburdened by the high number of Covid-19 related fatalities. Dina Maniotis, the executive Deputy Commissioner to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, conceded that the storage facilities were meant to be temporary. She told the City Council’s Committee on Health that the family members of the deceased individuals would be notified and briefed about the next plan of action.
Refrigerated trucks were supposed to serve as ‘temporary storage’ space
Maniotis informed that many of them have asked the City Council to bury the deceased on Hard Island, which is New York’s potter’s field (place to bury the unknown). Some family members of the deceased are not in touch with the city council anymore. After learning about the state of mismanagement, Councilman Mark Gjonaj inquired as to why the bodies had not been buried yet. “Why are we delaying that any longer than we have to?” he asked.
Massive surge in ‘unknown’ burials last year during the peak of Covid Crisis in US
Reportedly, the unprecedented step to ‘store’ the dead in refrigerated vehicles had to be taken, keeping in mind the state of the city last year. Around 900 people were buried in the potter’s field in New York during the Coronavirus outbreak last year. Similarly, an emergency morgue set up last year on the 39th Street Pier in Sunset Park neighbourhood had stored more than 1300 dead bodies, including Coronavirus patients. Hart Island, which is the largest public cemetery, witnessed 2666 burials last year as compared to 1200 annually.
US Liberal media sell the story of India’s ‘tragedy porn’, shy away more showcasing its own apathy
Amidst a surging Coronavirus wave, India has become the centre of attention for media all around the world. This has led to wider coverage of India in the worldwide press, focusing on the imagery of the customary Hindu funeral pyre as a way to “shock” their non-Indian audience. After controversial journalist Barkha Dutt was seen reporting from crematoriums, now photographs of tragic funeral pyres, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, have now become valuable commodities, bought and sold in the Western press.
The British-American media company Getty Images now hosts multiple images depicting multiple Indian funeral pyres lit ablaze on their website. From here, any potential media group around the world can buy these images, in three different sizes, with the largest size priced at about Rs. 23,000. While the liberal media have been publishing such images to peddle its anti-India agenda, it has yet not dared to show pictures of 750 dead bodies of Covid-19 patients lying unattended in a morgue in New York.
