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YouTuber Rahul Vohra’s wife shares video recorded before his death, alleges medical negligence at Rajiv Gandhi Hospital

OpIndia Staff
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YouTuber Rahul Vohra’s wife shares video recorded before his death, alleges medical negligence at Rajiv Gandhi Hospital

On Sunday (May 9), popular YouTuber and content creator Rahul Vohra passed away after succumbing to Covid-19 related complications. Now, his wife has shared a video on Instagram, presumably of Rahul’s final moments, depicting a crestfallen Rahul Vohra appealing for medical attention. She blamed the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital, the hospital where Rahul was admitted, for Rahul’s death and sought ‘justice’.

The Instagram post read, “Justice for every Rahul. Mera Rahul chala gaya ye sabko pata hai par kaise gaya ye kisi ko nahi pata (Everyone knows that my Rahul left us but no one knows how he died). Rajeev Gandhi super speciality hospital Tahirpur Delhi. Is tarah se ilaaj kia jata h vahan. Ummeed karti hun mere pati ko insaaf milega. Ek aur Rahul is duniya se nhi Jana chahiye (This is the kind of treatment he got. I hope my husband will get justice. Another Rahul should not die in this manner) #justiceforirahulvohra.”

In the video, Rahul could be seen with an oxygen mask saying, “Iski bohot keemat hai aaj ke time pe. Bina iske mareez na chhatpata jaata hai. Kuch nahi aata isme, kuch bhi nahi aa raha (This is very valuable in today’s time. Without this, patients suffer. But nothing is coming through this one, nothing at all).” He added that whenever he called an attendant for assistance with something, they would tell him that they will come back in a minute, and then disappear.

The hospital that Rahul was admitted to, the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital in Tahirpur, was inaugurated by Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in October 2019 along with Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain. It is a government-run hospital under the Delhi Government.

In a Facebook post on May 4, Rahul Vohra had informed his followers that he was Coronavirus positive. He said that he had been admitted to a hospital but showed no recovery signs, even after 4 days. “Is there any hospital, where oxygen beds are available? My oxygen levels are decreasing gradually. There is none to look after me? I am posting this in a very helpless state. My family members are unable to handle the situation,” he had lamented.

A day prior to his death, Rahul Vohra wrote his last message. “If I had received proper treatment, then, I possibly would have survived.” For the last time, he had shared his name, age, hospital name, bed, and floor number in hopes of a last-minute miracle. “I will be reborn again and do great work. I have lost all courage now,” he had concluded his message.

Reliance Group among the top donors in India Inc’s COVID relief response: Read the details

OpIndia Staff
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Reliance Group among the top donors in India Inc’s COVID relief response: Read the details

While Congress, specifically its former president Rahul Gandhi, have a habit of vilifying the Ambanis, Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Reliance Foundation has emerged as one of the largest donors as India Inc expands its relief efforts in blunting the second wave of the coronavirus outbreak.

A report published by the IANS says that Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Reliance Foundation are at the forefront of the efforts taken by India Inc to tackle the resurgent wave of the coronavirus outbreak. RIL has so far set up 1,875 hospital beds for free treatment of COVID-19 patients in Jamnagar and Mumbai. India’s first dedicated COVID treatment facility with 100-beds was set up in April 2020 at Seven Hills by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance group.

Besides, RIL has also set up various quarantine and isolation facilities across Mumbai, Surat, Lodhivali and other places. The Reliance Foundation also established an exclusive 10-bed dialysis centre at the Hindu Hriday Samrat Balasaheb Thackeray Trauma Care Hospital, Mumbai.

In addition, RIL is also manufacturing and providing over 1,000 MT of oxygen free of cost, and catering to nearly 11 per cent of India’s medical oxygen needs. Nearly one in 10 ICU patients in India are getting oxygen from Reliance.

RIL has also transformed its facilities at Alok Inds to manufacture 1 lakh affordable PPE kits and masks per day to reduce dependence on imports.

The organisation has so far donated Rs 556 crores to the PM Cares Fund and other funds in the fight against the pandemic.

With its Mission Anna Seva, Reliance Group has provided over 5.5 crore meals—which include cooked meals, ready-to-eat food packets, food coupons, dry ration kits—across 80 districts, 18 states and one UT, and is slated to supply an additional 2 crore plus meals in May/June 2021.

RIL has also donated more than 81 lakh masks to frontline workers and communities across 19 states and two UTs. In addition to this, small multilingual booklets were published and distributed to create awareness about the pandemic and measures that need to be taken to stave off the infection.

About 5.5 lakh+ litres of free fuel was provided by the Reliance Foundation to over 14,000 notified ambulances and vehicles registered in COVID-19 services across 249 districts in 18 states. The Foundation operates nine MMUs in Shahdol, Nagothane, Dahanu, Jhajjar and Ghazipur providing medical services.

Other corporate groups join in to support India’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic

Besides Reliance, other organisations have also stepped up efforts to support India’s battle against the coronavirus outbreak. Wipro and Azim Premji Foundation committed Rs 1,125 crore, converted an IT Facility in Pune into a 450-bed intermediary care Covid Hospital and have provided food support to 32 crores so far.

IT behemoth Infosys announced Rs 200 crores, 2.4 million meals to around 1 million people, mostly the poor and the migrant labourers and distributed millions of masks, sanitisers for police, medical professionals and other frontline workers.

Vedanta donated Rs 201 crore, with Rs 101 crore to PM Cares Fund, and remaining for the welfare of frontline workers, daily wage earners, and employees of business partners. They launched the ‘Meals for All’ scheme, distributing free meals to lakhs of daily wage workers, while dry ration kits were given to thousands of daily wage workers, marginalised poor.

Pharma company Cipla committed Rs 25 crore, including Rs 9 crore to PM Cares Fund, supplied essentials, ration kits and meals to migrant workers. They served 1,44,000 meals to migrant workers and 1,32,700 masks, gloves etc distributed to more than 10,000 doctors and thousands of paramedical staff.

SC puts Prashant Kishor’s appointment as advisor to Punjab CM under the scanner, seeks response from Congress-ruled state govt

OpIndia Staff
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SC puts Prashant Kishor’s appointment as advisor to Punjab CM under the scanner, seeks response from Congress-ruled state govt

The Supreme Court has sought a response from the State Congress government in Punjab in connection with a petition challenging the appointment of poll strategist Prashant Kishor as principal adviser (cabinet rank) to chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh. 

The two-judge bench of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hemant Gupta on Thursday directed the matter to be listed after summer vacations. The bench was hearing the plea filed by Labh Singh, a retired boxing coach and Satinder Singh, a Chandigarh-based advocate.

Labh Singh had filed an appeal in the apex court challenging the Punjab & Haryana High Court order, dismissing his and another petitioner’s petition in which they submitted that the appointment of Kishor as Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister, that too in the rank and status of a Cabinet minister at the cost of public money, is not permissible.

Capt Amarinder had appointed Prashant Kishor as his principal adviser in March this year.

Advocate Baltej Singh Sidhu, representing Labh Singh, a retired boxing coach and the other petitioner, Satinder Singh, an advocate, contended before the top court that government may have any advisor with any particular expertise for governance purposes and questioned the validity of the order by the state government.

The petitioners submitted that Kishor’s appointment in the rank and status of a cabinet minister was a clear violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution. Advocate Baltej Singh Sidhu alleged that in Kishor’s appointment, no advertisement was issued, no interviews were conducted and no criteria was adopted.

“Kishor will be enjoying pay, perks and all facilities from the state exchequer. His appointment is contrary to the provisions in the Constitution,” the petitioners said.

“Had proper procedure been followed, more qualified and suitable persons could have been available. The appointment has been made in a clandestine and cloistered manner causing loss to millions of aspirants,” the petitioner added, furthering that article 16(1) of the Constitution provides that there shall be equal opportunity to all citizens in employment or appointment to any office under the state.

After hearing the argument, the SC two-judge bench ordered: “Issue notice returnable after the summer recess”.

For the uninitiated, on March 16 (Tuesday), the Punjab and Haryana High Court had dismissed a plea challenging Prashant Kishor’s appointment noting that it was for the public to decide if the former’s appointment was a burden to the exchequer.

Punjab CM appoints Prashant Kishor as Principal Advisor ahead of Punjab Assembly polls

The HC decision came after Punjab CM Amarinder Singh declared on March 1 that poll strategist Prashant Kishor had been appointed as his principal advisor.

The Chief Minister’s Office said the cabinet had cleared the appointment and Kishor had been designated in the rank and status of a cabinet minister, adding that he would be paid Rs 1 as token honorarium.

Sharing the information of the same the CMO had then Tweeted that Prashant Kishor will also be given free fully-furnished government residence and camp office as admissible to a cabinet minister.

Attaching a copy of the order, the CMO furthered that besides being provided staff, including one private secretary and a personal assistant, Kishor will be entitled to medical facilities and reimbursement of medical expenses as admissible to a cabinet minister. His term of appointment will be co-terminus with the tenure of the present Punjab chief minister, as per the terms and conditions of his appointment.

Kishor had handled the Congress poll campaign in the 2017 Punjab assembly election when the party had come to power by bagging 77 seats in the 117-member house.

Kishor announces he is quitting his career as political strategist

Recently, after Mamata Banerjee’s Assembly poll victory, Kishor, who had been working as TMC’s political and poll strategist, declared that he is quitting I-PAC, his political advocacy company for pursuing another career.

Following the announcement, reports emerged that Kishor had decided to fire more than 85% of the almost 900 employees who were part of their campaigning team in the recently held West Bengal assembly elections. The IPAC-led by election strategist Prashant Kishor had devised the election campaigning for the incumbent Trinamool Congress in West Bengal and led to the third successive poll victory for the Mamata Banerjee-led party.

In another related significant development, IPAC has already started the process of recruiting people for “campaign management” in Bihar. 

Though there was no clarity on his future endeavours, speculations are rife that Prashant Kishor is eyeing at restructuring his organisation to make a come back in Bihar.

Israel under attack from rockets fired from Gaza Strip, fires set using balloon-borne devices

OpIndia Staff
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Israel under attack from rockets fired from Gaza Strip, fires set using balloon-borne devices

Israel has been reeling under violence since a week due to constant clashes and confrontations with Palestinian protestors.

After a violent clash at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem that left around 200 injured, rockets from the Gaza Strip were launched towards the city of Ashkelon and surrounding communities of Israel on Saturday as well as Sunday night.

The Israel military in a report informed that one of the first pairs of rockets was successfully intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system while the second landed in an open, unpopulated area. No damage or injuries have been reported.

In a retaliatory response, the Israel Defense Forces on Monday said that its tanks had fired shells at a number of Hamas military posts in “a response to the rocket fire and arson balloons.”

The rockets were fired an hour after Israel announced the closure of the Gaza Strip’s fishing zone after it came under incessant attack of balloon-borne incendiary devices which caused dozens of fires and burned large areas of southern Israel, as well as a mortar attack on Sunday morning.

The incendiary balloon-attack

Gaza’s so-called “independent balloon unit” has been constantly attacking the Gaza border areas causing over a dozen fires with the message “this is just the beginning.” 

Another smaller unit associated with the Gaza-based Mujahideen Brigades terror group announced on Saturday morning that they had begun mobilizing their members to initiate balloon attacks.

The strategy of launching balloon-borne incendiary and explosive devices from the Gaza Strip toward Israel has been used inconsistently over the past two years.

Al Aqsa attack

Around 250 Palestinians and 17 Israeli police officers are said to be reportedly injured in a violent clash that erupted between the Israeli riot police and Palestinians on Friday at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque.

Stones, bottles and fireworks were hurled at Israeli police officers who fired rubber bullets at the crowds gathered at the Al-Aqsa mosque which is of prime importance for both sects. The clash erupted as police officers tried to restore order after reports of “rioting of thousands of worshippers” following the evening prayers were received. 

Sheikh Jarrah clashes

At the beginning of this year, a district court ruled four Palestinian homes in Sheikh Jarrah legally belong to Jewish families and should be handed over.

The Jewish plaintiffs claimed that their families lost the land during the war that accompanied Israel’s creation in 1948 while the Sheikh Jarrah families have provided evidence that their homes were acquired from Jordanian authorities.

Hundreds of Palestinians carried out rallies on Friday in Jordan chanting, “We will die for Sheikh Jarrah.”

Global response

As the international observers urged calm, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Vennesland has expressed deep concerns over the clash and asked both parties to uphold the status quo. 

BMC chief explains why it is not the Modi govt but the states that need to be blamed for the oxygen crisis

OpIndia Staff
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BMC chief explains why it is not the Modi govt but the states that need to be blamed for the oxygen crisis

As India grapples with the second wave of the coronavirus outbreak, with the supply of oxygen proving to be crucial in the fight against the pandemic, the Mumbai BMC commissioner made no bones about who is to be held responsible for the oxygen scarcity witnessed in some parts of the country. In an interview with the Indian Express, BMC chief Iqbal Singh Chahal said the government of India can’t be held responsible for the oxygen crisis in the country. He said states are to be blamed for the inadequate allocation of oxygen to them.

“The Government of India should not be blamed at all. If anybody has to be blamed, it is the states,” said Chahal, adding, “many states of India were not even ready to admit how many cases they have. How does Centre allocate to them?”

Chahal argued that how could the centre allocate the same amount of oxygen to states with a vast difference in the number of COVID-19 cases reported. He averred that the Centre could not allocate the same amount of oxygen to a state with 6,000 daily cases vis-a-vis Maharashtra, which was reporting upwards of 60,000 daily new cases.

Essentially, he said that if the states tested properly, the number of COVID-19 cases would be much higher and therefore, the centre would allocate oxygen accordingly. But if they don’t test properly and report lower cases, then their oxygen allocation will be according to the number of cases they are reporting to the centre and therefore, they can’t blame the centre later if the oxygen allocation is less compared to what they actually need.

Chahal’s admission on states being responsible for the oxygen crisis comes in sharp contrast to protestations raised by Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, who had earlier last month railed against the central government over the oxygen scarcity in the state. Following his gimmicks on oxygen, union minister Piyush Goyal took to Twitter and posted a string of tweets exposing the Maharashtra government’s propaganda on the oxygen supply.

Hospitals being pressurised to increase bed capacity spawned the oxygen shortages in big cities: BMC chief

On being asked what could be the reason behind the sustained oxygen crisis in Delhi, Chahal pointed out that in many big cities, including Mumbai and Delhi, when the COVID caseloads increase, hospitals are pressurised to increase their bed capacity. However, what is ignored is that oxygen supply to the hospitals is limited and therefore many SOS calls emerge from such facilities where more beds are put up but oxygen supply and other key drugs are not commensurate, he said. In such a situation when cases are rising sharply, Chahal asserted, beds should be increased at jumbo COVID facility centres where the oxygen supply could be expanded and not at the hospitals.

BMC chief bats centre’s decision of not imposing a nationwide lockdown to combat the resurgent coronavirus outbreak

Chahal also seemed to agree with the central government’s decision of not imposing a blanket lockdown across the country. He contended why should a state with a significantly lower positivity rate bear the brunt of a nationwide lockdown. He also lauded the centre’s decision to decentralise and accord greater power to the local governments to tackle the resurgent wave of the coronavirus outbreak.

“I am a very firm believer of decentralisation… If Mumbai achieves a 6-7% positivity rate, then why should it suffer a national lockdown? Lockdown has to be left to states… A decentralised lockdown, varying from state to state, would be a better option,” he said.

BMC chief claims he is prepared for the third and fourth wave of the pandemic

Once bitten, twice shy, the BMC chief said that they are prepared for the third and the fourth wave of the pandemic after the second wave of the coronavirus outbreak took a devastating toll on the financial capital of the country, both in terms of the number of deaths and the economic hardships caused by the temporary lockdown.

“I have no doubt in my mind that a third wave is going to hit us sometime in June and July, maybe later. We are already preparing for that. That’s why we started building four brand new jumbos in Mumbai 15 days ago. It will take our dashboard from 22,000 beds to more than 30,000 in a month’s time. Our ICU beds have been ramped up from 1,500 to almost 3,000. We are trying to bring that up to 4,000 by June,” he said.

Did the Modi govt approve Covaxin for 12-year-olds? Here is the truth

OpIndia Staff
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Did the Modi govt approve Covaxin for 12-year-olds? Here is the truth

Amidst the ongoing vaccination drive against the Coronavirus infection in India, several tweets and Whatsapp forwards have been doing rounds on the internet. One of the claims center around the supposed ‘approval’ of indigenous Covaxin vaccine for children above the age of 12 years. “Bharat Biotech’s (Made in India) Covaxin Approved for Children above 12 years,” read a Whatsapp message.

Screengrab of the Whatsapp message.

It must be mentioned that last month, the government gave a nod to the 3rd phase of the vaccination programme wherein individuals between the age of 18 and 44 became eligible to take jabs from May 1 onwards. In a tweet by the Press Information Bureau (PIB), it clarified, “This claim is #Fake. No such approval has been given by the Government of India. Currently, citizens above the age of 18 are eligible for COVID19Vaccination.”

As of now, children and pregnant women are not included in India’s vaccination drive as trial data is awaited for vaccines among those groups. The m-RNA vaccines in the US have been made open to children under 12. The same is yet to be permitted for vaccines that are being used in India, that is, Covaxin and Covishield.

Coronavirus vaccination drive in India

The vaccination programme kickstarted in India on January 16, after the government approved Covishield (developed by Oxford-Astrazeneca) and the emergency use of Covaxin. The vaccination drive was conducted in several phases, starting with the inoculation of Healthcare workers, frontline workers, people above the age of 60, individuals above 45 with co-morbidities, individuals above 45 without co-morbidities, and now individuals between 18 and 44 years. As of May 10, a total of 17,01,76,603 vaccine doses have administered according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

In a recent innovative move, the Civil Aviation Ministry has given a nod to the Telangana government to use drones for experimental delivery of vaccines using drone flights. “This exemption will remain valid for a period of one year from the date of approval of the said SOPs or until further orders, whichever is earlier,” said the letter of approval. In a press release from the office of Telangana IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao, the airspace in Vikarabad has been identified for the project and is currently being reviewed by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Delhi Police issue lookout notice for Navneet Kalra, last location was his Chattarpur farmhouse: All we know so far

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi Police issue lookout notice for Navneet Kalra, last location was his Chattarpur farmhouse: All we know so far

The Delhi police on Monday has issued a lookout notice for absconding Delhi restaurateur Navneet Kalra. Kalra, who is accused in the Khan market oxygen concentrators black-marketing racket, has been on the run ever since Delhi police raided his chain of upscale restaurants in posh localities of Delhi and farmhouse and recovered over 500 oxygen concentrators.

Navneet Kalra had switched off his mobile phone as soon as the raids on his Delhi restaurants were conducted. However, in order to get information about Navneet Kalra and track his location, the Delhi police have put his mobile number on surveillance.

According to the latest information, Navneet Kalra has filed an anticipatory bail plea at a Saket court in Delhi. As per the latest reports, the court has refused to grant any interim relief to Kalra.

Navneet Kalra fled his Chattarpur farmhouse before Delhi police reached there

Based on the information on his last location, Delhi police had raided Kalra’s Chattarpur farmhouse on Saturday night to nab him. But reports have it that the Delhi restaurateur left the farmhouse with family on Saturday night minutes before Delhi Police conducted the raid. The guard of the guesthouse was quoted by India Today as saying: “10 to 12 teams of Delhi Police had arrived, Sahab (Navneet Kalra) had left the farmhouse late night along with his family in his car, without the driver.”

As per reports, the police have searched for him in several areas of UP, and Uttarakhand, without success.

Kalra ‘imported’ 7500 oxygen concentrators worth Rs 13 crores

The initial probe has revealed that Navneet Kalra and his aide from Matrix Cellular Services Ltd, which is one of the companies involved in the racket, had procured as many as 7500 oxygen concentrators worth Rs 13 crores, between April 17 and May 3, 2021.

A report by TOI says that around 5,200 units of the concentrators were apparently delivered by Kalra and his team whereas 1,858 units were sold in the first three-four days of May.

“We are still going through the documents, but most of these concentrators, it seems clear, were bought at a rate of Rs 14,000-18,000. There are three consignments that were bought for around Rs 23,000 to Rs 24,000 each, said a senior police officer to TOI. According to DCP (South) Anil Thakur the invoices recovered showed that the accused sold the concentrators at an exorbitant cost of Rs 70,000.

Navneet Kalra’s purported audio clip goes viral

On May 8 (Saturday), a day after Delhi Police carried out raids on three restaurants and recovered 524 oxygen concentrators, they accessed an audio clip where businessman Navneet Kalra, the owner of all three restaurants, could be allegedly heard marketing and discussing the allotment of the oxygen concentrators.

Delhi Police raids Navneet Kalra’s restaurant in Khan Market

It is pertinent to note that Delhi Police on May 7 (Friday), recovered 105 oxygen concentrators during the raids at two restaurants – Khan Chacha and Town Hall, situated in Delhi’s Khan Market. On May 6, Delhi Police had also recovered 419 oxygen concentrators from a restaurant-cum-bar in south Delhi’s Lodhi Colony area.

Navneet Kalra is the owner of all three restaurants. Following the raids, Kalra switched off his mobile phone and believed to have fled the city. It is important to note that Navneet Kalra was felicitated by the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government in 2020. He was among the 48 personalities honoured as ‘Delhi ke Nirmata’ by the AAP government after returning to power.

According to the police, Kalra took orders for oxygen concentrators via an online portal as well as through WhatsApp groups. The accused has been importing the oxygen concentrators since October last year. As demands for Oxygen concentrators increased in February this year, he imported more such machines and stored them at different restaurants.

Delhi police had also arrested four men, Gaurav Khanna, Satish Sethi, Vikrant and Hitesh for hoarding and black-marketing the equipment. Khanna is the CEO of Matrix Cellular Services Ltd which is one of the companies involved in importing the equipment.

Yogendra Yadav was aware of the rape of a woman by AAP leaders at the Tikri border ‘farmer’ protest site: Report

OpIndia Staff
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Yogendra Yadav was aware of the rape of a woman by AAP leaders at the Tikri border ‘farmer’ protest site: Report

A woman from West Bengal was allegedly raped by two AAP leaders when she was going to join the farmer protest site at the Tikri border, Delhi. Now, a report published in Dainik Bhaskar says that activist Yogendra Yadav, who currently doubles up as a ‘farmer leader’, and is also a member of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, knew about the incident.

Source: Dainik Bhaskar

The news daily cites 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 if 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.”

Kumar further added that the complaint filed by her father mentioned that she was raped by two men of the group that came to support the farmers’ protest. The whole story was narrated by the woman to her father over the phone as per the complaint. Kumar said, “She died during treatment. The hospital authorities have told us they treated her as a Covid patient. We have applied for documents, which are awaited and only after we get them can we confirm if her death was Covid-related.”

Complaint filed by victim’s father

In his complaint, the father named six persons identified as Anil Malik, Anup Singh Chanaut, Ankur Sangwan, Kavita Arya, Jagdish Brar and Yogita Suhag, who went to West Bengal on behalf of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha. All of them have been named in the FIR. As per the father’s complaint, and his daughter met them, and his daughter showed a desire to join the protests. She left with them on April 11 from Howrah Station.

Connection of the case with Aam Aadmi Party

As per reports, Anup Singh, one of the accused, was an active member of the Aam Aadmi Party from the Hisar region. AAP MLA Sushil Kumar has confirmed his involvement with the party. Another accused, Anil Malik is an AAP member in Delhi. However, Kumar claimed he did not have any information about him. These two were active at Farmer Protests from the beginning under the banner of the Kisan Social Army. Since the woman died in hospital, Anup has been missing from the protest site.

Afghanistan: 2 days after bomb blasts that killed 68 people in Kabul, Taliban calls for ‘ceasefire’ ahead of Eid

OpIndia Staff
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Afghanistan: 2 days after bomb blasts that killed 68 people in Kabul, Taliban calls for ‘ceasefire’ ahead of Eid

On Monday (April 10), Islamic terrorist outfit Taliban announced that it would observe a 3-day ceasefire in Afghanistan ahead of Eid. The development comes a day after the terrorist organization distanced itself from the deadly bomb blasts that rocked the city of Kabul on Saturday.

While speaking about the decision, Taliban spokesperson Mohammad Naeem said, “In order that the Mujahideen again provide a peaceful and secure atmosphere to our compatriots during Eid-ul-Fitr so that they may celebrate this joyous occasion, all Mujahideen … are instructed to halt all offensive operations.” He added that all terrorists associated with the Taliban have been told to not target the Afghan government unless it’s a case of retaliation. Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated between May 12 and May 13, depending on the moon’s sighting.

The spokesperson of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, Fraidoon Khwazoon, had welcomed the decision of the Taliban to observe a ceasefire for 3 days. While President Ashraf Ghani did not comment about the announcement made by the Taliban, Kabul has reportedly been on high alert ever since the US decided to withdraw all its troops by September 11. The decision by the Biden administration has seen a surge in terror attacks by the Taliban.

Bomb blasts rock the city of Kabul, leave 63 dead

On Saturday (May 9) afternoon, multiple blasts took place outside a girl’s school in Kabul in Afghanistan, killing around 68 people and injuring around 150 victims. Reportedly, the attack took place in the Shia Muslim-dominated area of Dasht-e-Barchi, which was earlier been targetted by radical extremist outfit ISIS. The terror began with a car bomb explosion outside the premises of Sayed-ul-Shuhada High School, followed by two rocket attacks.

While speaking about the matter, the Interior Ministry of Afghanistan said that there were a total of 3 explosions, including a car bomb attack and 2 IED blasts. The incident occurred when the students were leaving home from school. Ibrahim, a teacher at the Sayed-ul-Shuhada High School informed that the majority of the victims of the terror attack were young girls. Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Ayan has expressed fears that the death toll might increase in the terror attack.

The incident was also condemned by the diplomatic mission in Kabul and the Afghanistan government. On Saturday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani blamed the terror attack on the Taliban extremists in Afghanistan. However, the radical Islamist group has instead ‘condemnded’ the attack on civilians in the country. Reportedly, the family members of the victims have pinned the blame on the Afghan government and Western powers.

Uttar Pradesh: Boeing to construct a 200-bed COVID hospital in Gorakhpur

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Boeing to construct a 200-bed COVID hospital in Gorakhpur

On May 9, the Uttar Pradesh government said that United States-based aircraft manufacturer Boeing proposed constructing a 200-bed ICU hospital in Gorakhpur. Based on its proposal, the district administration has started to look for a place which will likely be provided in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Earlier, Boeing had also announced it will set up a 200-bed COVID hospital at Yelahanka, Bengaluru in Karnataka.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is expected to visit AIIMS to inspect the site in this regard. As per the government Boeing has proposed that all the 200-beds will be ICU beds. Yogi Adityanath on Sunday also inspected the integrated Covid command centre that manages different tasks like sending Covid patients to hospitals, distributing medical kits and providing medical counselling to patients under home isolation. CM is in Gorakhpur since May 9 to take stalk of the Covid situation.

UP state government is rapidly working on expanding medical facilities in the state in collaboration with various corporate and multi-national companies while using all available government resources. CM Yogi has directed the officials to expedite the operationalization process of the Covid hospitals and make them functional at the earliest.

Covid situation in Uttar Pradesh

Since past few days, Uttar Pradesh has been seeing a consistent decline in the new cases as compared to recoveries in Chinese coronavirus cases. According to the data by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the state reported 23,175 new cases of Covid-19 on May 9 while there were 34,636 recoveries. As of now, there are 2,33,981 active cases in the state.

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