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Panicked Kerala woman rams car into electric pole after receiving corona positive report while driving

OpIndia Staff
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Panicked Kerala woman rams car into electric pole after receiving corona positive report while driving

A 40-year old woman in Kerala lost control of her car and rammed into an electric pole after receiving a corona positive message while driving. As per an India Today report, the lady panicked after she got to know her result and eventually lost control of the vehicle. The woman escaped with minor injuries on her face.

The incident took place at around 10 am on Monday at Kadakkal in Kollam district of Kerala. The impact of the crash overturned her vehicle which shattered her car completely. The injured and corona-positive woman was on the road for over an hour as she received no help and no ambulances were ready to take her to the hospital.

A fire department rushed to the spot to clear the scene and handed a PPE kit to the woman but refused to ply her to the hospital citing lack of permission to to use a fire ambulance to transport a Covid-19 patient.

After being on the road for an hour and receiving no help, the woman was taken home in a private car by her relative.

The woman was returning from a private laboratory in Kollam’s Anchal area and fortunately had left her two children, aged 11 and 8, at a relative’s house.

Surge in Covid-19 cases in Kerala

On Tuesday, Kerala recorded 7,515 new coronavirus cases taking the total number of active cases to 52,132 in the state.

In view of this, the Kerala government has imposed new restrictions which include functioning of all shops only till 9 pm, allowing hotels and cinemas to function at 50% capacity and urged the public to ‘avoid’ Iftar parties in the ongoing month of Ramzan.

Transport buses have also been asked to not carry passenger beyond the seating capacity.

UP government converts 15000 primary and upper primary schools into English medium

OpIndia Staff
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UP government converts 15000 primary and upper primary schools into English medium

The Yogi Adityanath government in UP has converted approximately 15,000 primary and upper primary schools in the state into English medium schools.

As per a Swarajya report, the decision was taken to modernize the current education system and enhance the English speaking skills of children studying in government schools.

The change can already be seen as informed by the Director of basic education department, Sarvendra Vikram Singh. Talking about this achievement, he said that the children from government schools are already competing with students from private schools. The hard work and dedication of teachers to equip students with English speaking skills have made them competitive.

While the private schools boast of smart class, beautiful rooms and the ability to converse in English, the UP government has been providing free books, uniforms, bags, shoes and socks as well as sweaters in winter for students to encourage them to attend school and bring them at par. The state government has been investing to develop better infrastructure in government schools to bring them on par with private schools.

The state government has also renovated 1.39 lakh schools under ‘Operation Kayakalp‘ (an initiative of the UP government to improve education in primary and upper primary schools) to offer better academic facilities to the students.

Vandana Srivastava, the teacher in-charge of Primary School located in Hirapur, Barabanki, was proud to share that her school now features among the top schools of the block. The school has also been awarded by the government for its achievements, she informed.

Making government schools competitive

With nearly 1.83 crore children studying in more than 1.5 lakh primary and upper primary schools in the state, the government in Lucknow alone has converted 60 primary and upper primary schools into English medium.

Every block, has two to three schools which have been developed like the private and other English medium schools.

Educational initiatives by the UP government

The UP government has been very serious about improving the conditions of government school and making them competitive. Quality education has been the primary objective of this government which can be validated through various schemes initiated by CM Yogi Adityanath.

The UP government at an event held in January, launched the “Abhyudaya Coaching” program- an initiative to provide a statewide free coaching facility for students to help them prepare for various competitive exams like JEE, NEET and UPSC.

Through ‘Operation Kayakalp’, basic facilities were provided in nearly 1.35 lakh state-run schools. The facelift of the government schools resulted in the enrollment of about 4.80 crore students in government schools in four years.

Besides, during the four-year tenure of the Yogi Government, over 190 inter-colleges became operational with 56 new inter-colleges being sanctioned.

To encourage girl child education, the government also opened 30 girls hostels.

With over 1 lakh active cases, Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh is currently the worst affected state after Maharashtra

Anurag
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With over 1 lakh active cases, Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh is currently the worst affected state after Maharashtra

India is facing the second wave of Covid-19, and Maharashtra is leading the charts in terms of new cases. On April 13, out of 1,85,294 cases recorded across India, Maharashtra had contributed 60,212 new cases. Another runner in the race who is pacing up quickly is Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh. The state recorded 15,121 new cases on Tuesday, and currently, there are over one lakh active cases in the state.

Chhattisgarh’s performance in last one month

On March 14, the state was doing well and recorded only 475 new cases. However, within a few days, the situation started to get worse when the state suddenly recorded over 1,000 cases on March 18. From there, Chhattisgarh continuously saw a spike in the number. By March 24, the state was recording 2,000+ cases, and by March 27, it crossed the 3,000+ cases mark per day.

Chhattisgarh’s performance through March (Source: Covid19india.org)

On April 4, Chhattisgarh crossed the alarming number of 5,000 cases per day, and by April 7, that is, within just three days, it had crossed the 10,000 mark. Since that day, the state is recording 10,000+ cases, and yesterday it reached a new high with over 15,000 cases in a single day.

Chhattisgarh’s performance in April till date (Source: Covid19india.org)

The death rate is alarming in the state

While the nation’s death rate on April 13 was 0.55%, Chhattisgarh’s death rate was almost double at 1.03%. Comparing it with Uttar Pradesh, the largest state in terms of population, the death rate on the same day was 0.4%, which is below the national average. While Chhattisgarh saw 1,058 deaths in the last seven days, Uttar Pradesh lost 375 people to a novel coronavirus infection in the same period.

Deaths due to Covid-19 in India, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh (Source: Covid19india.org)

Chhattisgarh CM was busy campaigning in Assam

While the state was going through a tough time, the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Bhupesh Baghel was busy campaigning for Congress candidates in Assam for ongoing Assembly elections. He was missing from the state during the brutal attack by Naxals on CRPF officers during an encounter and had continued with his election rallies hours after the news broke in media.

CNN staffer reveals to Project Veritas spy how they ran pro-Biden propaganda to get Donald Trump out of office

OpIndia Staff
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CNN staffer reveals to Project Veritas spy how they ran pro-Biden propaganda to get Donald Trump out of office

In a major scoop, US-based journalist James O’Keefe of Project Veritas released secretly recorded various videos of CNN staffer describing how the media house ran a pro-Biden propaganda ahead of US 2020 elections to make sure Donald Trump is voted out of office.

CNN Technical Director Charlie Chester went on five Tinder dates with the Project Veritas spy where he ended up making the damning revelations.

In what is part one of the expose, Chester appears to be boasting how they (CNN) got him (Biden) through this term. “We would always show shots of him jogging, him in aviator shades, like you paint him (Biden) as a young geriatric,” he could be seen in one of the videos. In another clip of the video, he admits ‘creating’ story about Trump’s health and how it was a propaganda. “Look what we did. We got Trump out. I am a hundred percent going to say it,” he boasts that had it not been for CNN, Biden might not have won the elections.

Further in the video he says that the focus at CNN was to get Trump out of office without really being explicit about it. He reveals that the ‘next focus’ will be climate change awareness. He admits that ‘fear sells’ and hence will resort to fear-mongering regarding the climate change.

Explaining how they created a propaganda around Trump’s health, Chester said that Trump’s hand was shaking and hence CNN brought health experts to discuss the same to ‘tell a story’ which was based purely on speculation. CNN tried to create a narrative that Trump was neurologically damaged and that he was ‘losing it’ and he’s unfit to be president. “We were creating a story that we didn’t know anything about,” he admits oblivious to the fact the was on camera.

In another video he explains step-by-step on how propaganda machinery works at CNN. Answering to a query on how propaganda works, Chester gives example of Matt Gaetz, a Republican who is a ‘problem’ for the Democrats in passing laws since he is very conservative. Hence, Democrats need to get him out and hence CNN would keep running the stories that keep hurting him ‘so it can’t be buried’. “If we keep pushing it, it is helping us (CNN),” he explained.

Subsequent to the expose, Charlie Chester’s LinkedIn where he boasted about playing an integral part in 2020 Presidential elections, has been deleted.

When he was confronted with the evidence, Chester refused to answer the questions. Chester then just walked away as O’Keefe asked him about CNN helping a certain political candidate (Biden) for Presidential office.

As per reports, Chester was approached by Project Veritas through dating app Tinder by unidentified Project Veritas employee who claimed to be a nurse. The duo initially bonded over Chester’s health concerns.

Uttar Pradesh: CM Yogi Adityanath self-isolates after staff members test positive for Chinese coronavirus

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: CM Yogi Adityanath self-isolates after staff members test positive for Chinese coronavirus

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has self-isolated after some of his staff members who came in contact with him tested positive for Chinese coronavirus.

Taking to Twitter, Yogi Adityanath informed that some of the staff members at Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister’s office have tested positive for coronavirus. “These officers had come in contact with me and hence I have isolated myself. I have resumed all my work virtually,” he informed.

He further cautioned people against believing in rumours. “In illness, fire and floods, prevention is better than cure. The best cure for coronavirus is prevention and we must take all precautionary measures to save our citizens,” he said. He urged everyone to follow Indian government and UP state government guidelines and not to pay attention to rumours.

Popular media personality Neil deGrasse Tyson faces widespread mockery after American meat brand takes potshots at him

OpIndia Staff
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Popular media personality Neil deGrasse Tyson faces widespread mockery after American meat brand takes potshots at him

Famous TV personality and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson was subject to criticism and ridicule on social media today, for unflinchingly asserting that Science is “true, whether or not you believe in it”. The Twitter account of “Steak-ummm”, a company that sells meat steaks, was the ringleader of the criticism, asking Tyson to “log off bro”.

The Steak-ummm account further clarified, explaining the irony of Tyson’s proclamatory attitude towards Science, when it is meant to be a sober process of finding the truth. This attitude leads to more skepticism regarding science and presents the concept of “Science” as more of a dogma, according to the Steak-ummm account.

The Steak-ummm account did not pass up the opportunity to market their products in the wake of their deGrasse criticism going viral, reminding people that they are, “a brand selling products” so everything they do is “based in self-interest” in order to grow their business.

The account further criticized Tyson’s tweet, questioning the TV astrophysicist’s “respect for epistemology” i.e. the philosophical study of the nature, origin, and limits of human knowledge. The Steak-umm Twitter account also accused Tyson of posting “ridiculous sound bites” in order to gain “clout”.

This isn’t the first time the Steak-ummm Twitter account showcased its disagreement with Neil deGrasse Tyson. Back in 2018, in reply to a typical Neil Tyson tweet, the Steak-ummm account simply wrote, “who cares”.

Neil deGrasse Tyson : A History of Annoying Tweets

A major reason as to why criticism against a seemingly beloved TV personality like Tyson went so viral, is because Tyson has a notorious history of “annoying tweets” or pedantic tweets about everything under the sun. Sometimes, the tweets have cross certain boundaries, forcing Tyson himself to apologize.

This tweet from Tyson regarding deaths from gun violence in the United States led to his widespread condemnation, forcing Tyson to apologize.

Tyson has engaged in pedantic behavior on Twitter, often tweeting about the inane and trivial details behind popular expressions or idioms, or stuff in the popular culture like movies, music, TV etc.

Neil deGrasse Tyson, the ‘science communicator’, has often attracted mockery for his tweets on the platform. In this instance, his tweet served as the basis for the American brand’s brand recognition campaign.

Mayor Sadiq Khan vows to bring the Indian Premier League to London to boost his reelection chances: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Mayor Sadiq Khan vows to bring the Indian Premier League to London to boost his reelection chances: Details

The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has promised to bring the exciting Indian Premier League (IPL) to the British capital as he seeks to establish the city as the “undisputed sporting capital” of the world. Khan’s vow came ahead of his re-election bid for the post of London mayor next month.

The 14th edition of the IPL is going on behind closed doors in India, with 8 teams vying for the coveted trophy. Khan hopes future editions of the tournament could be conducted on London grounds such as Lord’s and the Oval, the headquarters of county side Surrey.

“The IPL is an incredible league. Though I’m desperate not just to see Kohli and others here when India come (to England) as they are this year but to see the likes of Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah come here on a regular basis,” Khan said at Kingstonian Cricket Club in south-west London on Friday.

London has organised many sports events, be it NFL, MLB or NBA fixtures in the past, with the support of Surrey. Khan aims to add the IPL to that list.

“I have iterated it many times before. I want to see London restore its place as the sporting capital of the world. I want this to be the undisputed sporting capital of the world,” Khan added.

“We have had major sporting events in our city. The Major League Basketball, NFL for 10 years, all happened here. You saw the impact of Joshua v Klitschko,” said Khan, adding that the benefits of organising sporting events rubs off on hotels, restaurants and bars as well.

Sadiq Khan also highlighted the investment done by India in London. He claimed India is a massive investor in the city and the number one city in Europe that India invests in.

“Indians love cricket, we love cricket, we love Indians. We want this to be a bridge between India and London and Surrey deserve huge credit in being pioneers and with their vision to get IPL here,” Khan said.

The London mayor also added that not just London, but he would like to take the game in other parts of the country as well, to Leeds and Birmingham. He said Surrey are beggining their conversation with the Indian cricket authorities (BCCI) to get the IPL in England.

“Surrey are speaking to teams in India and colleagues in the BCCI and IPL. The first step will be friendlies and exhibition matches. We want to get them going, maybe even this year if we make progress as we are doing with the pandemic. It has to be Covid-safe, of course. We have to bang the drum for our city, and sport is one way to do this,” Khan said.

However, there has been no indication from the BCCI that it intends to take the Indian Premier League out of India. Besides, in the post-COVID world, such a move could prove to be a logistical nightmare.

So far, the IPL has been conducted twice outside India—one in 2009 when it was staged in South Africa due to security issues and last year in the United Arab Emirates because of the coronavirus pandemic.

How Islamism is sinking the boat of Pakistan: The recent violence by TLP provides a good example

Dibakar Dutta
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How Islamism is sinking the boat of Pakistan: The recent violence by TLP provides a good example

On Monday (April 12), violent protests broke out in several cities of Pakistan after security forces arrested Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) leader Saad Hussain Rizvi. TLP is a radical Islamist party that was founded in 2015 to prevent any changes to the existing blasphemy law in the country. The founder of the hardline party was a radical Islamic cleric named Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi. Following his death in November 2020, his son Saad Hussain became the successor or the Ameer of TLP.

As per reports, the arrest of Saad Hussain came at the backdrop of the party’s ultimatum to the Imran Khan government to fulfil its four demands before the deadline of April 20. The demands were originally made in November last year, following the beheading of 46-year-old Samuel Paty by a teenage Jihadi terrorist in France and the subsequent criticism of Islamists by French President Emmanuel Macron. TLP also took offence to the display of caricatures of Prophet Muhammad in public in one city in France.

Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan was the frontrunner in mobilising an army of Islamists to protest against France in Karachi last year. The former Ameer Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi had even asked the Imran Khan government to launch a jihad against France. The federal government responded by placing blockades on roads to prevent TLP workers from entering Islamabad. About 181 people were detained by the security forces and 65 of them were sent to Adiala jail.

The background of the violence

Violence between TLP workers and police intensified on November 15 last year so much so that the government gave in to their demands the following day. In their charter of demands, TLP directed the ouster of the French ambassador within 3 months. They demanded the release of arrested members of the TLP and said that no further cases should be registered against the party’s workers.

TLP also demanded that Pakistan would not appoint its ambassador to France, else they would continue their sit-in protests. The Imran Khan government, through its Interior Ministry, issued a notification to release all TLP workers. On January 3 this year, the new successor of the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan Saad Hussain Rizvi threatened to launch countrywide protests if its demand of expelling the French ambassador is not met by February 17.

“If you have forgotten the promise, see our history… You have got time until Feb 17 to expel the French ambassador,” he had earlier warned. On February 11, the Imran Khan government reached a new agreement with TLP and assured that their demands will be tabled before the Parliament on April 20. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan had told TLP that no other PM had raised the issue of blasphemy on international platforms more than him. However, in his signature U-turn, Imran Khan failed to implement the agreement ahead of the April 20 deadline.

The arrest of TLP leader Saad Hussain Rizvi

In a video message on Sunday (April 11), TLP leader Saad Hussain Rizvi urged his followers to protest and hit the roads against the government if demands are not fulfilled. This call for a countrywide protest led to his arrest at around 2 pm on Wahdat Road in Lahore. Following his arrest, a large mob of his supporters blocked the Grand Trunk Road at several junctions. Major cities such as Islamabad, Lahore, Gujranwala, and Peshawar were cut off from the rest of the country. The Islamists had also blocked motorways, highways, train tracks and clashed with the police.

While speaking about the development, TLP leader Khalid Awan said, “We will not step back from our mission because of Saad Rizvi’s arrest.” A TLP spokesperson, Tayyab Rizvi, vowed, “They (Protests) will continue till the French ambassador is deported.” He added that a total of 12 members of the Islamist party were killed in police firing in cities such as Lahore, Karachi and Talagang. Keeping in mind the law and order situation, major intersections in Karachi and Islamabad were closed on Sunday (April 13).

TLP Islamists unleash violence in Pakistan

Several videos have now surfaced online that highlights the grim law and order situation in Pakistan. In a video shared by Twitter user (@AbdulGJutt), Islamists brandishing skullcaps were seen brutally assaulting security personnel with sticks. Even after the victim bled from his face, the mob continued with the thrashing. Another security personnel could be heard pleading with the TLP supporters to stop assaulting the man.

Popular Pakistani atheist Harris Sultan shared a video of a mob vandalising a car with sticks, even when the occupants were inside the vehicle. They broke the window panes while the driver tried to desperately back off from the chaotic scene. Haris Sultan tweeted, “Somes lovers of the prophet peaceful letting it out on a blasphemous car.”

In another video, a frenzied mob can be seen gathering around a lone police official and mercilessly throwing blows at him.

In a heart-wrenching video, Islamists are seen pulling a bruised police official while he pleaded with them to spare him. “Are you a Muslim? You must be a Jewish (Yahoodi) agent.” Although the nameplate read ‘Umar’, the mob assumed that he was a Jew and hurled the choicest of expletives at him. In the end, the security personnel collapsed on the ground while the mob chanted, “Labaik Labaik.”

Despite the violence wrecked by the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan in the country, the Pakistani army personnel were seen raising Islamist slogans along with the party members. Journalist Shama Junejo tweeted, “This video gives a clear message to the world from our armed forces that where do they stand, who they are with, & what kind of social structure they will support in Pakistan. Yet we wonder about #FATF & being a high-risk country for the UK.”

Although the Karachi police dispersed the mob from a large part of the city, TLP leader continued with their violent protests in three areas namely Hub River Road, Korangi 2.5 and Orangi Town No. 5. While speaking about the violence in Hub River Road, ASI Farooq Ahmed said that TLP mob pelted stones at the law enforcement officials when they tried to clear the area.

Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid informed that the violent protestors had disrupted oxygen supplies for Coronavirus patients on Monday night. She requested, “Please do not block roads for ambulances and for visitors to the hospitals. Some ambulances are carrying oxygen cylinders, which are extremely essential for Covid patients.” The crisis of oxygen cylinders was stabilised on Tuesday after roads were cleared by law enforcement authorities.

TLP earlier regretted that the Pakistani government was fighting Naamazis and not Hindus

Last year, TLP Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan released videos where Muslims said that the ‘Badmash’ (naughty) Imran Khan government was instigating the ‘Kalma’ reading forces against the ‘Kalma’ reading Muslims of Rawalpindi when Muslims of Srinagar and Kashmir were hoping that these same forces would rescue them. They lamented the fact that the Pakistani forces were taking action against Namazis instead of “fighting Hindus”.

Tata Communications denies data leak claimed by hackers: Here is what we know so far

Anurag
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Tata Communications denies data leak claimed by hackers: Here is what we know so far

We reported on Monday that Tata Communications had suffered a data breach, and the hackers had claimed they had sold access to Tata’s servers to someone. A Tata Communications representative approached OpIndia over the report and denied any data leak. Since the last report was published, we further investigated the alleged data breach and discovered more information.

Hacker claimed it was not direct access to Tata Communications servers

We contacted the hacker on Telegram on the ID he had mentioned in the thread to get more information about the data he was selling on the hackers’ forum. During the conversation, when we questioned the authenticity of the data and if he actually has access to the Tata Communications servers, he sent a few server logs that can only be accessed if someone has partial or complete access to the server admin. The IP mentioned in the server log was, in fact, of Tata Communications. However, there is more to the story.

Server log allegedly obtained from Tata Communications’ server by the hacker. The image was shared with the covered lines in the bottom with red. We have hidden some more information on the file.

Server logs can be accessed by anyone who has access to the server root. It is not essential that the breach was from the main company, but it could have been via a contractor that manages the servers. In this case, according to the claims made by the hacker during the conversation, it was Route Mobile.

He said that he first got access to the Route Mobile servers after hacking into the subdomains of Route Mobile. He then allegedly installed Web Shell to gain continued access. He took the data dump from their servers and got access to employees emails. From those emails, he allegedly fetched login information to the Tata Communications servers and took a data dump from there.

It has to be noted that Route Mobile also denied the data breach, according to news agency IANS.

While the hacker still claims that the data dump belongs to Tata Communications and Route Mobile, both the companies are maintaining the stand that there was no breach at their ends. It is a matter of further investigation to confirm the hackers and the tech giants’ claims. OpIndia is keeping track of the story and will update it accordingly.

BBC Urdu documentary reveals how state-sanctioned Pakistani textbooks demonize Hindus

OpIndia Staff
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BBC Urdu documentary reveals how state-sanctioned Pakistani textbooks demonize Hindus

BBC Urdu published a video on YouTube on Monday highlighting the inherent prejudice against Hindus that textbooks in Pakistan advocate. The video features several Pakistani Hindus who point out the rampant anti-Hindu propaganda peddled by school textbooks in Pakistan and narrate the painful humiliation they had to endure at the hands of their friends, colleagues and classmates, simply for being Hindus.

The video also demonstrates the normalisation of anti-Hindu bigotry in school textbooks officially sanctioned by the Pakistani government. Children, early on from their tender age, are conditioned to hate Hindus as state-sanctioned textbooks demonise them, refer to them ‘kafirs’ (derogatory slang for non-believers), and hold them responsible for all the evils besetting Pakistan.

The Pakistani Hindus in the video quote various school textbooks to showcase how school textbooks endorse hate against Hindus and Hinduism. These youths belonging to varying fields chalked up the intolerance towards Hindus in Pakistan to the state textbooks that carry prejudicial content against Hindus and characterise them as the source of all evils. They cited excerpts from school textbooks of different standards that perpetuated anti-Hindu bias and relegated Hindus to second-class citizens.

One of them, who identified himself as Rajesh Kumar, cited a Pakistani school textbook that described Hindus as ‘Kafirs’, meaning idolaters or those who worship idols, and alleged that Hindus were misogynists who buried their newborns alive if they happened to be girls.

Kumar cites the 11th and 12th-grade books of the Sindh Text Book Board to highlight the use of epithets like “enemies of humanity” to describe Hindus and Sikhs. He further adds that the book claims that Hindus and Sikhs killed thousands of women, men, and children.

Like Rajesh, others interviewed by the BBC also felt that Pakistani textbooks portrayed their faith incorrectly. Dr Rajwanti Kumar, a Hindu girl in Pakistan, said she was often jeered at by her classmates because she was a Hindu. Some of her classmates even asked her to celebrate the independence day not on August 14 but on August 15, India’s independence day.

The books in Pakistan tend to push a narrative that Hindu minorities in the country are loyal to their neighbouring country and arch-nemesis India. In this way, perception is raised among the Muslim students that Hindus in their country are traitorous and have no patriotic feeling for Pakistan.

Dr Kumar cited the 9th and 10th-grade books to point out how Pakistani books characterise Hindus as treacherous and deceitful. She says the books claim that Muslims and Hindus joined hands to fight against the oppressive British regime. However, the association could not last long because of the perpetual hostility displayed by Hindus towards Muslims.

Others who were interviewed for the documentary also highlighted specific excerpts from Pakistani textbooks where Hindus and Hinduism were vilified.

Hindus villainised in textbooks to justify the decision of partitioning away from India: Pak Educationist

According to well-known Pakistani educationist AH Nayyar, hatred against Hindus is couched in a subtle way in Pakistani books. He explains when the history of Pakistan is taught, the battle between the Muslim league and Congress is portrayed as a fight between Muslims and Hindus.

In a sense, Nayyar says, Hindus are projected as villains in Pakistani textbooks, in a bid to justify the founding of Pakistan and the politics behind it.

He highlights another key problem in the Pakistani textbooks. He says while the history of Muslim rule is prominently presented in these books, there is no mention of Hindu history. The history of the subcontinent, for example, begins with the arrival of Muslims in the region. There is no mention of past Hindu rulers who preceded the Muslim rule in the region.

Hindus and minorities in Pakistan live under a constant threat of persecution

This unadulterated hatred against Pakistani Hindu ultimately manifests in the crimes carried out against Hindus in Pakistan. Minorities in Pakistan, especially Hindus, live in a perpetual fear of persecution. Hindus are implicated in fake cases of blasphemy. Their daughters are abducted, forcibly converted to Islam and married off to their captors.

Even the courts fail to do justice for Hindus in Pakistan. In fact, in some cases, the courts have actively participated in perpetuating injustice to the Hindu and Christian minorities. In June 2020, a district magistrate allowed a Muslim man to keep his Hindu wife even after the parents of the girl alleged that their daughter was kidnapped and forcibly married off to the man.

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