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Dwarka accident: Woman who mowed down an elderly couple claims she was ‘thinking about something’ and was ‘distracted’

OpIndia Staff
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Dwarka accident: Woman who mowed down an elderly couple claims she was ‘thinking about something’ and was ‘distracted’

On April 4, an elderly couple was mowed down by a woman at Sector-11, Dwarka, in southwest Delhi. The incident took place at around 6:30 PM. The whole incident was captured in a CCTV camera installed at a mosque across the road.

As per reports, the accused, identified as 28-year-old Deepakshi Choudhary, had crushed 79-year-old Shanti Swaroop Arora and his 62-year-old wife Anjana Arora with her grey Baleno car. Both accused and victims were residing in Appu Enclave in Sector-11, Dwarka. Arora was a retired government official, and his wife was a homemaker. The couple was living here alone, and their children are settled in the US.

Accused Deepakshi Choudhary was arrested by the Police and booked for rash driving or riding in a public way and causing death by negligence. A case was filed under Sections 304A (causing death by negligence) and 279 (rash driving) against Choudhary. She was later released from the police station on bail. Her car was impounded by the Police. As per reports, she was not under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident and works at a multi-national company.

Santosh Kumar Meena, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka), said that she told Police that she was thinking about something and ‘got distracted’, which resulted in the accident. She did not flee the scene and accompanied the couple to the hospital. By the time police reached the hospital after learning about the incident, Choudhary was still there.

How did the accident happen?

A video was posted on social media platforms in which the whole incident was clearly visible. The couple was seen walking on ‘Masjid Wali Road’, and two more men were visible in the frame. After crossing the building of the Mosque, the couple took a u-turn and went on the left side of the road. Suddenly, Choudhary’s car appeared in the frame, moving at a slow speed in the middle of the road. In a matter of seconds, it started moving towards the couple and hit them. The couple fell on the road, but Choudhary did not push the breaks and ran over them.

The elderly man was pinned down under the car while his wife was stuck under the back of the car. Witnesses at the scene rushed to the rescue of the couple. This was the time when Deepshika came out of the car and went to see the elderly lady who was trapped at the back. Choudhary was seen dialling someone’s number on her mobile phone and frantically talking to someone.

Within few moments, more people rushed towards the accident site. They pushed the car to rescue the woman. Once she was taken aside, some people tried to lift the front portion of the car to take the elderly man out, but they failed. They tried to lift the car from different sides but did not succeed. Somehow he was pulled out from under the car and rushed to the hospital. During the time, the elderly man was still conscious. He was taken to the hospital by one Sheikh Abdullah who was in the Mosque to perform evening prayers.

Abdullah said it was a horrible sight. While going to the hospital, the elderly man was conscious. He was talking to him and told him that he suffered a fracture in his left hand. He also enquired about his wife and requested him to stop the car, so he could see her. She was being taken in Deepshikha’s car to the hospital in an unconscious state.

Deepshikha was allegedly on the phone during accident

As per some reports, Deepshikha was allegedly talking on the phone or checking her phone while driving the car at the time when the accident happened. An officer investigating the case said that though Choudhary claimed she was thinking something and lost control, it is yet to be ascertained if she was using her cell phone while driving.

The victim’s family raised doubts over who was driving the car

A senior police officer was quoted saying that though Deepshikha claimed she was driving the car, the family of the victims believe that her sister was behind the wheels. “Hence, the facts have to be verified,” the officer added.

The false claims of COVID-19 vaccine shortage and the propaganda for American vaccines: A detailed analysis

Raju Das
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The false claims of COVID-19 vaccine shortage and the propaganda for American vaccines: A detailed analysis

Ever since the country has fresh wave of COVID-19 cases in the case, especially in states like Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Kerala etc, all ruled by non-NDA parties, the governments and ruling parties in those states have started to blame the BJP government at the centre for this surge. They are starting to claim that centre is not supplying enough vaccines to them, implying that lack of vaccines is the cause of the surge in cases.

Some of them have tried to create panic among public by claiming that their vaccine stock is running out soon. While they claim there is shortage of vaccine, they are also making a contradictory demand, that the age limit for eligibility for vaccine should be lowered, so that more people can be vaccinated.

This contradiction was seen in the comments on Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope yesterday, when he claimed that the state is facing acute shortages of the coronavirus vaccine, adding that the state now has just 14 lakh doses which would last for only three days. While requesting additional 40 lakh doses per day from the centre, he also demanded that COVID-19 vaccines should be made available for everyone aged 18 and above.

Similar comments and demands have been made by others, such as Shiv Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi in a letter to the union health minister.

Chhattisgarh and Odisha had also made similar claims, alleging inadequacy in vaccine supply.

However, these allegations received a strong rebuttal from union health minister Harsh Vardhan, who denied the claims of vaccine shortage, and showed that these states have not vaccinated their eligible population completely yet, but still asking to make more people eligible. The minister made scathing remarks for Maharashtra in particular, saying that the state government has been incompetent in managing the pandemic.

Giving vaccination data for the states demanding to open up vaccination for everyone above 18 years of age, Harsh Vardhan informed that Maharashtra has vaccinated 86% healthcare workers, 73% frontline workers, and only 25% senior citizens, the eligible groups. The corresponding numbers for Delhi and Punjab are, 72% and 64%, 71% and 65%,  and 22% and 20%. The numbers for the second dose in these categories are much lower. This means, there is a substantial number of eligible people still not vaccinated in these states.

The health minister said that the latest claims by these state governments are attempts to divert attention from their poor vaccination efforts by just continuously shifting the goalposts. Saying that the comments by leaders from Maharashtra are nothing but an attempt to divert attention from the Maharashtra government’s repeated failures to control the spread of the pandemic, he added, “the inability of Maharashtra government to act responsibly is beyond comprehension. To spread panic among the people is to compound the folly further. Vaccine supplies are being monitored on a real-time basis, and State governments are being apprised regularly about it. Allegations of vaccine shortage are utterly baseless.”

Saying that Maharashtra has bogged down the entire country’s efforts to fight the virus, Harsh Vardhan said, “I have been a witness to the misgovernance and utter casual approach of Maharashtra Government in battling the virus.”

The minister also pulled up Chhattisgarh for their flawed testing policy of depending heavily on rapid antigen tests, and refusing to use Covaxin developed by Bharat Biotech, despite cleared by the Drug Controller General of India.

It is also interesting to note that while Maharashtra govt is claiming shortage of vaccine, they top the list in the number of vaccinations. So, the question arises, if there is shortage of vaccines in Maharashtra, how it is topping the list of vaccinations, with almost 90 lakh doses administered so far. This shows that the state is getting enough supply of vaccines.

Clamour for foreign vaccines with false claims

While non-NDA ruled states are trying to spread misinformation on vaccine availability, the ecosystem sympathetic to them is busy spreading another misinformation campaign on social media. For last few weeks, left-liberal journalists and activists have been demanding that India should ‘allow’ people to get vaccines made by Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson etc. They are alleging that Indian government is not allowing those companies to sell their vaccines in India, and demanding that they should be allowed, even if they are priced high, as those who are willing to pay should be allowed to buy them.

Activist journalist Pritish Nandy yesterday claimed that Govt of India is no allowing Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines in the country which the world is using.

Similar claims were made by several other journalists and activists, asking the govt to allow these vaccines in India. They alleged that govt has not allowed these foreign vaccines, while Covaxin was approved even before completion of trials.

Some of them also demanded that govt of India should approve these vaccines in Indian without any trial in the country, as they had already undergone trial in other countries, and are already being administered to people, including Indians in those countries.

However, both the claim and demand, that the Indian govt has not approved these vaccines and govt should approve them suo-moto are completely incorrect. The Drug Controller General of India has not rejected any of these vaccines. And it is wrong to demand that India should approve them directly. Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are RNA vaccines, which is a completely new technology in vaccine development. The J&J vaccine is a single dose traditional viral vector vaccine, which has been approved in EU and USA only recently.

Most countries require that trials for health products are conducted in those countries, or at least data from trials done in other counties are shared before they can be approved. According to Indian rules, local studies for these vaccines are required before they can be administered to Indians. Moreover, the companies behind these vaccines need to be willing to market them in India, and they need to approach the regulator for approval. Let us examine the status of these processes for each of the vaccines in India.

Moderna

American company Morderna has not yet applied for approval of its vaccine, therefore that the claim that its application has been rejected by Indian government is completely false and misleading. In January this year, there were reports that Tata Medical & Diagnostics was in talks with the company to launch the vaccine in India. The Tata group company was supposed to conduct clinical trial of the vaccine in the country in collaboration with Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). However, no development in that deal seems to have happened, as there is no news about the venture after that. Therefore, there is no proof that Moderna applied for their vaccine in India, and hence the claim that India rejected it is completely false.

Pfizer

Last year, Pfizer had applied emergency use approval for its vaccines developed in collaboration with BioNTech. However, a subject expert body (SEC) under Central Drugs and Standards Committee had asked the company to conduct a local bridge trial in India to generate safety and immunogenicity. SEC had said that safety and immunogenicity data from at least a 1,600-volunteer bridge trial in India is a must for the expert panel to recommend approval to any vaccine candidate.

The SEC had called the company thrice for discussions over the issue, but the company had missed all three meetings. As the company refused to conduct any local bridge trial in India and missed the meetings, the SEC didn’t recommend granting permission to the vaccine. The company had sought a waiver of this requirement, which was not agreed to. After this, Pfizer had withdrawn the application.

Last month Pfizer said that it is willing to manufacture the vaccine in India, if the company is granted faster regulatory approvals and freedom on pricing and export. At present, the Indian govt is controlling the pricing and export of Indian vaccines Covishield and Covaxin, but Pfizer does not want it. This means, after manufacturing at lower costs in India, the company would like to export to richer countries instead of supplying the domestic market, and will want to charge as much as they want for domestic sale.

Pfizer’s approach in other developing countries in regard to the vaccine also raises several questions. The company is accused of “bullying” several Latin American countries, where the company demanded that sovereign assets, including military bases and federal bank reserves, should be pledged as collateral for potential future legal costs for any adverse effect to its vaccine. The company had sought protection from any liability not just for side-effects of the vaccine, but also from its own negligence, fraud or malice.

In Argentina, they wanted a change in the law, exempting from any liability in case of any adverse effect of the vaccine. When the parliament rejected this, the company convinced the govt to buy an international insurance to cover any claim against the company. But the company came up with more demands, and said that the govt should pledge sovereign assets as collateral. Pfizer demanded that Argentina should put its bank reserves, military bases and embassy buildings at stake, to protect in case of any claim for any adverse effect. These demands were rejected by the government.

In Brazil, Pfizer demanded not only sovereign assets, but also said that the government should create a guarantee fund, and deposit money in a foreign bank, to cover any liabilities that the company may face for the vaccine. Brazilian government signed a deal with Pfizer for supply of the vaccine last month, although terms and conditions of the deal are not known.

Johnson and Johnson

Contrary to Pfizer and Moderna, the J&J vaccine will be available for Indians soon. Indian vaccine manufacturer Biological E Ltd is mass manufacturing the vaccine in India, with financing from the US government. This vaccine is part of the new vaccine partnership announced in the first Quad Summit held last month. According to the initiative, US govt will be funding Biological E for the production of vaccines developed in the US, including the J&J vaccine.

This means the J&J vaccine will be available in India under the Quad initiative of India, US, Australia and Japan. However, it is not known when the local trial for the vaccine will commence in India. At present Biological E is conducting trials for another COVID-19 vaccine in India, developed by Baylor College.

It is interesting to note that propaganda is being run on social media in support of only the USA-made vaccines.

Kashi Vishwanath Temple: Court allows ASI survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex, 5-member team to include 2 Muslims

OpIndia Staff
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Kashi Vishwanath Temple: Court allows ASI survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex, 5-member team to include 2 Muslims

In a huge step forward, the Varanasi district court has allowed the ASI to conduct an archaeological survey of the Gyanvapi Mosque complex. The mosque itself has been erected over the Kashi Vishwanath Temple.

A local lawyer, VS Rastogi had filed a suit in the district court demanding that the land on which the Gyanvapi Mosque stands be restored to Hindus since the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1664 had pulled down a portion of the 2000 year old Kashi Vishwanath Temple to build the Gyanvyapi Mosque there.

While the suit itself was contested by the Gyanvapi Mosque Committee, the Varanasi District Court has now allowed an ASI archaeological survey of the complex. According to reports, all expenses of the survey are to be paid by the Uttar Peradesh government.

Reportedly, the Court has directed the survey to be done by a 5-member committee comprising of 2 members from the Muslim community as well.

The Gyanvapi Mosque and Aurangzeb’s reign of terror

No matter how much of whitewashing is done by the likes of Audrey Truschke, we are well aware that Aurangzeb unleashed a reign of terror. Temple destruction was unabated and Jizya reintroduced in his territory. According to the book ‘The Great Big Book of Horrible Things‘, 4.6 million people were killed under Aurangzeb’s rule and the Gyanvapi mosque stands as a testimony to the stellar contribution of Aurangzeb to the ‘composite culture’ or ‘Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb‘ of India.

Gyanvapi Mosque was built by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb after destroying the Kashi Vishwanath temple. The remnants of the ancient Hindu temple can be seen on the walls of the Gyanvapi mosque now. The temple was an earlier restoration of the original Kashi Vishwanath temple, which was destroyed and rebuilt several times in history. The current Kashi Vishwanath was built on a site adjacent to the Mosque in 1780.

SC denies interim relief to illegal Rohingyas detained in Jammu, allows deportation if proper procedure is followed

OpIndia Staff
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SC denies interim relief to illegal Rohingyas detained in Jammu, allows deportation if proper procedure is followed

Today the Supreme Court denied interim relief for a petition filed by advocate Prashant Bhushan, challenging the detention of illegal Rohingya immigrants in Jammu and deporting the illegal immigrants back to their home country of Myanmar.

“It is not possible to grant the interim relief. However it is made clear that the Rohingyas in Jammu on whose behalf the application has been moved shall not be deported unless the procedure prescribed for such deportation is followed”, the Supreme Court said.

The Court did not order the release of illegal Rohingya immigrants detained in holding centers in Jammu and instead allowed their deportation back to their parent country of Myanmar, as per the procedure established by law.

A bench of Chief Justice SA Bobde, Justices AS Bopanna, and V Ramasubramaniam passed the order in an application moved by Mohammad Salimullah, who was represented by Prashant Bhushan, in a PIL filed for the sake of protecting illegal Rohingya immigrants from detention.

In a March 23 Supreme Court hearing, Prashant Bhushan placed reliance on the International Court of Justice decision regarding the Rohingya situation in Myanmar, despite the fact that ICJ decisions usually have no bearing on the Indian judicial system. Bhushan also argued about the principle of non-refoulment, which forbids the expulsion of any “refugee” if there is a clear and certain danger of life in the origin country.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that Rohingya deportation does not violate Article 21

The Solicitor General Tushar Mehta opposed the application on behalf of the Union Government, citing a similar case in Assam concerning illegal Rohingya immigrants which were dismissed in 2018. The Solicitor General (SG) also submitted that deportations are done in accordance with the procedure established by law, and therefore it cannot violate Article 21 of the Constitution.

The SG also disputed the term “refugees” used in the application to describe Rohingya, and instead called them “illegal migrants”

Senior Advocate Harish Salve also made an appearance in this case, on behalf of the Jammu and Kashmir government. He argued that the principle of non-refoulment does not apply and is non-binding as India is not a signatory to any international treaties mentioning this principle.

The CJI recognized that the danger illegal Rohingya immigrants face if deported back to their home country, but points out that it is not under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to manage that.

“Possibly that is the fear that if they go back to Myanmar they will be slaughtered. But we cannot control all that”, CJI said. “We are not called upon to condemn or condone genocide. We are certain that there should be no genocide in earth”, the CJI added.

Tyranny of big-tech: Twitter won’t allow the US National Archives to merely host Trump’s old tweets on the platform

OpIndia Staff
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Tyranny of big-tech: Twitter won’t allow the US National Archives to merely host Trump’s old tweets on the platform

Twitter will not permit the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, a federal agency responsible for preserving historically significant records, to make former U.S. President Donald Trump’s old tweets available on the social media platform. This is just the latest example of Big Tech exerting its power and influence over a government entity. In January, Twitter banned the then President of the United States, Donald Trump in the wake of the U.S. Capitol riot.

The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is seeking to create an online official archive of Trump’s tweets during his time serving as U.S. President, including the tweet Twitter permanently suspended him for. NARA already maintains the online archives of several Trump-era officials, which users can like, retweet and interact with.

Twitter’s decision has added more fuel to the fire of the Big Tech censorship debate in Washington D.C. Just a couple of days ago, Justice Clarence Thomas of the U.S. Supreme Court was critical of the Big Tech social media companies who “control of so much speech in the hands of a few private parties,” paving a legal path for the U.S. Congress to step in.

Twitter is dead set against any version of Donald Trump’s tweets reappearing on its platform, accusing Trump of glorifying violence in the wake of the U.S. Capitol riot.

“Given that we permanently suspended @realDonaldTrump, the content from the account will not appear on Twitter as it did previously or as archived administration accounts do currently, regardless of how NARA decides to display the data it has preserved,” a Twitter spokesperson wrote in an email statement.

NARA is proceeding with its role of archiving and preserving Trump’s tweets, “working to make the exported content available … as a download” on the Trump Presidential Library website. This means that Trump’s tweet will most probably be officially available in the form of a download file, not on Twitter where users can like, retweet or interact with them.

NARA spokesperson James Pritchett confirmed that NARA’s records will include all of @realDonaldTrump’s tweets, regardless of any actions that Twitter took against some of them.

“NARA intends to provide public access to all captured and preserved Presidential Record social media, including any blocked or deleted Tweets that have been transferred to us,” he said.

Twitter’s decision means that even an archived version of former U.S. President Trump will not be permitted on the platform. Just last week, Facebook removed a video of Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump interviewing the former President, citing the “voice of Donald Trump” as its reason.

Donald Trump’s de-platforming from virtually all social media sties has drawn harsh criticism from not only Republicans, but even Left wing Progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders who said he did not “feel particularly comfortable” about the Twitter’s ability to silence a former president.

However, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has defended the Trump ban, calling it the “right decision” for handling “an extraordinary and untenable” situation.

Aam Aadmi Party claims no FCI counters opened in Delhi for wheat procurement. Here is the truth

OpIndia Staff
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Aam Aadmi Party claims no FCI counters opened in Delhi for wheat procurement. Here is the truth

On April 8, the Food Corporation of India has rubbished Aam Aadmi Party’s claims that the corporation had not opened any counters in Delhi for wheat procurement. In a tweet, FCI said, “FCI Delhi region is fully prepared to procure wheat from farmers of Delhi at these centers, FSD Mayapuri, FSD Narela & APMC Najafgarh Mandi, which have been completely operational from April 1, 2021.” It further added that till April 8, 2021, FCI had procured 15.8 MT wheat in Delhi.

Aam Aadmi Party’s fake allegations against FCI

On April 7, Aam Aadmi Party’s Gopal Rai had held a press conference in which he alleged that the FCI is making false claims about the wheat procurement in Delhi. He further said that though FCI is saying they are procuring wheat since April 1, upon inquiry from the markets, AAP members found that wheat procurement had not started.

Rai urged the central government to ensure that procurement starts in Delhi at the earliest.  He added, “The Central Government is responsible for fixing MSP of crop and FCI is responsible for making purchases, but BJP is falsely accusing the Delhi Government of not buying wheat on MSP Rates. This is the absurd reality of the Prime Minister’s assurance to buy crops at MSP rates, MSP will sustain.” He also demanded that the legal guarantee of MSP should be given to the farmers.

After the press conference, the claims made by the Aam Aadmi Party started to make rounds on social media.

Reply from Ministry of Consumer Affairs

Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, which comes under union minister Piyush Goyal, said in a statement that the press release issued by AAP government in which it was stated that FCI had not opened any counter to procure foodgrains in Delhi, is fake. The ministry said that the contentions of the Delhi govt are not true.

It further added, “FCI Delhi region is fully prepared to procure wheat from farmers of Delhi at three centers – FSD Mayapuri, Narela & APMC Najafgarh Mandi – completely operated from April 1, 2021. To date, 158 quintals wheat at FSD Narela purchased by FCI Delhi region.”

FCI Delhi posted photos of procurement centers

Official Twitter handle of FCI, Delhi Region, posted some photos of procurement centers proving the claims made by AAP are baseless.

Clicked on April 8, 2021, trucks and wheat can be seen in the photographs.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee likely to skip the Covid-19 review meeting with PM Modi, yet again: Reports

OpIndia Staff
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West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee likely to skip the Covid-19 review meeting with PM Modi, yet again: Reports

Amidst the bitter battle being fought for the 2021 Bengal Assembly Elections, reports suggest that the TMC chief is unlikely to attend the meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today over the COVID-19 situation in the country and the ongoing vaccination drive. According to News agency ANI, State Chief Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay will be present at the meeting instead of the CM.

According to reports, Mamata Banerjee has cited her campaigning schedule for the ongoing West Bengal Assembly elections as an excuse to skip this PM-CM meet, which is being held to discuss the COVID-19 situation in the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be interacting with Chief Ministers of various states on the COVID-19 situation and vaccination-related issues today via video conferencing at 6:30 PM today.

Mamata Banerjee had skipped PM Modi’s CM Covid-review meet in the past too

PM Modi’s last interaction with chief ministers was on March 17 during which he had expressed concern over the rise in COVID-19 cases in parts of the country and called for “quick and decisive” steps to check the “emerging second peak”. Then too, the West Bengal CM had chosen to stay away from the meeting citing pre-scheduled election meeting in Jhargram as the reason.

Though this particular conduct does not suit Mamata Banerjee’s demeanour and stature, the West Bengal CM has many times in the past indulged in such frivolousness. She gave another all CM virtual meeting a miss in June 2020 after being visibly upset about not being invited as a speaker. TMC MP Kakoli Ghosh alleged in a tweet saying the Centre is against the people of Bengal.

Mamata Banerjee has also been skipping meetings held by Niti Aayog, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and termed it as a ‘futile exercise’.

Fresh COVID-19 cases hit an all-time high in India on Thursday, surpassing the 1.26 lakh mark in a single day.

‘Encounter cop’ Pradeep Sharma who contested assembly elections on a Shiv Sena ticket procured gelatin sticks planted at Antilia: Sachin Vaze

OpIndia Staff
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‘Encounter cop’ Pradeep Sharma who contested assembly elections on a Shiv Sena ticket procured gelatin sticks planted at Antilia: Sachin Vaze

The quandaries of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena Party are only increasing with every new revelation made in the Sachin Vaze case. Now, reports suggest that ex-cop Sachin Vaze has named the Shiv Sena leader and former policeman, ‘encounter specialist’ Pradeep Sharma in his confession.

As per a report by Republic TV, Vaze has confessed that Sharma had helped him procure the gelatin sticks that was planted in the SUV outside Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani’s residence. According to Republic TV, Sachin Vaze and Pradeep Sharma would be interrogated together face to face today.

Sachin Vaze has reportedly confessed to the central agency that he had met Pradeep Sharma on March 3rd and 4th.

Pradeep Sharma was with Vaze when he had met Mansukh Hiren: Report

The Republic TV report stated that Vaze has mentioned to NIA that when he had called Mansukh Hiren to meet him, Pradeep Sharma was also present. Vaze has further informed that Sharma had helped in the procurement of gelato sticks through one of his aides. Vaze has told NIA that Sharma was using SIM cards acquired from Gujarat. Sharma is also being interrogated by NIA

According to a report by Republic TV, Pradeep Sharma, who is believed to be Vaze’s mentor, had gone to the police headquarters on March 2 to meet Sachin Vaze. On March 4, Pradeep Sharma and Sachin Vaze allegedly met once again, sources have revealed. The NIA suspects that they met in western suburbs (Andheri – Marol – Chakala). There were other police officials who were also present during the meeting. The NIA had taken Sachin Vaze to these areas for recreation on April 3.

Pradeep Sharma is one of the five officers who were under the NIA’s scanner. Interestingly, Pradeep Sharma had contested the 2019 Assembly Elections on a Shiv Sena ticket from the Nalasopara constituency.

As per Times Now, Sharma is being questioned for his alleged connection with arrested-suspended Assistant Police Inspector (API) Sachin Vaze. He was questioned for more than 8 hours yesterday. The NIA is continuing to interrogate him today.

A source said that on the basis of CCTV footage found at the Mumbai Police headquarters, the NIA has come up with a list of people who met Sachin Vaze at his Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) office on days leading to the murder of Thane-based Mansukh Hiran.

Who is Pradeep Sharma who has been named by ex-cop Sachin Vaze

Former police officer Pradeep Sharma was a part of Mumbai Police’s encounter squad which Sachin Vaze and other officers were also a part of. The former encounter cop quit the Mumbai Police in 2019 after having served for over 30 years following which he joined the Shiv Sena. Sharma had contested and lost in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections from the Nalasopara constituency.

Previously suspended from service owing to corruption allegations, he was reinstated back into service in 2017 after he was cleared of all charges. At the time of contesting elections, Sharma in his affidavit had declared assets of Rs 36.21 crore in his and his wife’s name.

Besides, the former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh was also questioned by the NIA for around four hours in connection to its probe in the Mukesh Ambani house bomb scare case on Wednesday. The NIA is believed to have questioned Singh about some revelations made by Vaze so far.

United Kingdom cuts off Oxfam’s funding after new sexual exploitation allegations rock the international NGO

OpIndia Staff
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United Kingdom cuts off Oxfam’s funding after new sexual exploitation allegations rock the international NGO

Two workers from the International NGO collective Oxfam were suspended last week in the wake of sexual exploitation allegations against them. Now the UK government has suspended Oxfam from receiving any financial aid. These two workers were operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

This comes just after Oxfam became eligible again to apply for aid funds from the UK government in March. The NGO was banned for three years from receiving aid funding from the UK because of Oxfam’s cover-up of sexual exploitation coming to light in 2018.

UK’s Foreign and Development Office clarified that Oxfam will not be able to apply for UK aid money until it clears up these fresh allegations.

“All organizations bidding for UK aid must meet the high standards of safeguarding required to keep the people they work with safe,” the Foreign Office’s spokesperson said.

Recent reports “call into question” Oxfam’s ability to meet those high standards, he added.

Oxfam, on the other hand, tried the suspensions as positive, saying that suspensions show “our commitment to tackle abuses of power”.

Oxfam staff’s sexual exploitation in Haiti

In 2018, the uncovering of Oxfam staff’s sexual exploitation in Haiti, wherein the Haiti Oxfam chief solicited prostitutes in a villa which was paid and provided for by Oxfam, had exposed the dark underbelly of international charity organizations and NGOs in general.

Many promises of reform and change were made in the wake of the 2018 scandal, but these latest allegations coming out from the DRC clearly pose new questions on whether enough change has been made.

According to the UK Foreign Office, Oxfam is yet to meet the highest standards of safekeeping. After three years of being banned from receiving funds and just becoming eligible again, Oxfam is now once again shunned by the UK government.

In the wake of all these allegations, in combination with the fallout from the 2018 scandal, Oxfam’s reputation has suffered an almost irrecoverable blow.

Charges of sexual exploitation in DR Congo

Last week, Oxfam revealed that it had suspended two of its workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of an “external investigation” into the allegations. However, according to The Times, whistleblowers were “frustrated at the length of time taken to complete the investigation”

Former and current staff members of Oxfam made allegations of sexual exploitation, bullying, fraud, and nepotism against 11 people in a letter sent to the Oxfam leadership in February, the paper said.

After Oxfam’s Haiti sexual exploitation scandal came to light in 2018, the UK Charity Commission concluded that Oxfam had a “culture of poor behavior” and was issued with a warning over its “mismanagement”. In the wake of this scandal, thousands of people canceled their regular donations to Oxfam, causing Oxfam to make cuts worth 16 million British pounds.

It is to be noted that the CEO of Oxfam India, Amitabh Behar, wrote a fawning article on the Congress party. In the article, Behar offers numerous sermons to the Congress party and eulogizes its idea of India. Furthermore, a Board Member of Oxfam India was involved in the drafting of the deeply dangerous and anti-Hindu Communal Violence Bill.

Sachin Vaze’s letter sends Thackeray Govt in a tizzy: Emotional pleas, swears on children and cries in the name of Balasaheb Thackeray

OpIndia Staff
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Sachin Vaze’s letter sends Thackeray Govt in a tizzy: Emotional pleas, swears on children and cries in the name of Balasaheb Thackeray

Sachin Vaze’s explosive handwritten letter to the NIA has opened yet another pandora’s box making us believe that there is much more to the Antilia bomb scare case than what meets the common eye. Hours after, Antilia bomb scare case prime accused, Sachin Vaze, made explosive revelations accusing Anil Deshmukh and Anil Parab of extortion, Shiv Sena ministers have rushed to safeguard themselves and the Uddhav Thackeray government. On expected lines, the Shiv Sena loyalists have taken recourse to pin the blame on the central government to wriggle out of the impasse.

Anil Parab calls letter a ‘BJP conspiracy’ to defame Uddhav Thackeray govt

On April 7 (Wednesday) evening, Anil Parab held a press conference to refute the claims made by Sachin Vaze in his letter. The Maharashtra cabinet minister and Shiv Sena loyalist, had in his desperation to absolve himself from the accusations, went on to swear on his two daughters. He alleged that the opposition BJP had hatched a conspiracy to defame CM Uddhav Thackeray.

“I am Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sainik…I take an oath in his name, who I treat as my god and swear on my two daughters and say that these allegations are false,” Anil Parab told media, adding: “This is part of a strategy by the BJP and Vaze allegations are part of all this…To defame the CM, one needs to defame people around the CM, so this is a conspiracy by BJP.”

‘Names are fabricated’, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut says Sachin Vaze’s letter is ‘character assassination’

Now, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut has also jumped onto the bandwagon. He has alleged that Sachin Waze’s letter against Maharashtra Ministers is ‘character assassination’.

“It is a political conspiracy. Those named in the letter are fabricated. This is character assassination. Those named in the letter will come clean,” Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said, news agency ANI quoted.

He added: “A new tactic has come to light wherein people who are in jail write letters. This is a political conspiracy I know Anil Parab, he can never indulge in such work. I can assure you, no Shiv Sainik can take a false oath in Bala Saheb Thackeray’s name.”

Interestingly, Raut’s today’s stand against Vaze is in contrast to his earlier stand in the Antilia bomb scare case, where he had praised the tainted cop as ‘honest’ and ‘capable’. We reported earlier, how when the case had come to the fore, Sanjay Raut had heaped praises for Mumbai Police, in particular, Sachin Vaze.

Sachin Vaze writes an explosive letter to the NIA

In the letter written by Sachin Vaze to the NIA, which has sent the Uddhav Thackeray government in a tizzy, the tainted cop claimed that he was told to pay former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh Rs 2 crores if he wants to be let back into the police force.

It is pertinent to note that Vaze was dismissed from the police force after he was accused in the custodial death of one Khwaja Younis. Thereafter, he had joined the Shiv Sena.

In his handwritten letter, Sachin Vaze has claimed that NCP chief Sharad Pawar was against his reinstatement into Mumbai Police in 2020 and wanted it to revoked. It was to this that Deshmukh had told him to cough up Rs 2 crores.

Besides naming Anil Deshmukh the letter also named Ajit Pawar and Shiv Sena’s Anil Parab.

In the second page of the letter, Sachin Vaze claims that in the month of July/August 2020 he was called to the official bungalow of Anil Parab. During the meeting, Parab told Vaze to look into the SBUT inquiry which was in its preliminary stage and had asked Vaze to bring the trustees of SBUT to him for a ‘negotiation’ on the inquiry.

Shockingly, Vaze claims that Parab told him to initiate talk about extorting Rs 50 crores from SBUT to end the inquiry. 

He further claimed that in the month of January 2021, he was again called by Anil Parab to his official bungalow to look into the fraudulent contractors listed with BMC. He was then allegedly asked to collect at least Rs 2 crores from 50 such contractors. He claims that the said inquiry to extort these contractors is ongoing currently under an ‘anonymous complaint’.

In the letter, he further claimed that again in the month of January 2021, Anil Deshmukh had called Sachin Vaze to his residence and told him that there are approximately 1650 bars and restaurants in the area. He was also told to then collect Rs 3 lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh from each of these for Anil Deshmukh himself.

From the letter, it seems evident that Sachin Vaze is trying to insinuate that he is being implicated in the Antilia bomb case as he allegedly refused to run extortion rackets for leaders from NCP and Shiv Sena.

The full text of the purported letter written by Sachin Vaze to the NIA can be read here.

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