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Samuel Paty’s beheading based on a lie? 13 year old girl confesses she lied to avoid father’s anger, had triggered the hate campaign

OpIndia Staff
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Samuel Paty’s beheading based on a lie? 13 year old girl confesses she lied to avoid father’s anger, had triggered the hate campaign

In a tragic revelation, a 13-year-old French girl has admitted to cooking up a story that led to her teacher being decapitated by a teenage Jihadi terrorist. Samuel Paty was killed in October 2020 in a Paris suburb for allegedly showing students caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad.

On Sunday, March 7, it was reported that the girl had admitted that she had wrongly accused Mr Paty. The French newspaper Le Parisien mentioned that she had confided to an anti-terrorist judge that she had lied and that she was not even present in the class where Mr Paty had displayed students controversial cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad.

The counsel representing the teenage girl said she lied because she felt trapped in a spiral because her classmates had asked her to be a spokesperson. The Parisian newspaper reported that the girl had lied because she did not want to anger her father.

Teenage girl weaves a fictitious story to prevent her father from knowing about her suspension

Like many school truants, the 13-year-old girl was determined to not let her father know that she had been suspended from school for missing classes. As a result, she weaved a story featuring her teacher Samuel Paty. The girl told her father that Mr Paty had asked Muslim students to leave the classroom while he showed the cartoons from satirical newspaper Charlier Hebdo during a lesson on free speech and blasphemy.

Though it might seem like a benign lie devised by a child to prevent her father from knowing the truth, it precipitated a chain of events that eventually led to the horrifying killing of Samuel Paty.

Soon after the girl narrated the fictitious tale, her father took to social media to launch a campaign, identifying Mr Paty and the school in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine. He also called Mr Paty a “thug” and demanded he was sacked. The claims made by the girl’s father triggered global outrage and led to death threats against Mr Paty. 10 days later, the teacher was dead—decapitated by an Islamist terrorist.

It was later reported that the girl’s father was in touch with Paty’s killer, Abdoullakh Anzorov. Prosecutor even claimed that there was “direct casual link” between the online campaign and Mr Paty’s brutal murder. According to sources quoted by Reuters, the murderer had also a sent text message to the girl’s father before he beheaded Mr Paty with a kitchen knife.

The incident devastated Paty’s family, traumatised the country, and the girl and her father are now facing criminal charges. Two other teenagers, who were reportedly bribed by jihadi Anzorov, are under investigation. The killing also triggered a moment of reckoning for the French society, with President Emmanuel Macron vowing to take a hard stance against the rampant Islamism plaguing the country.

Classmates confirm Mr Paty did not ask Muslim students to leave as alleged by the girl

While teaching the class on the subject of “dilemmas”, Mr Paty had posed a question “to be or not to be Charlie?”, referring to the #JeSuisCharlie hashtag used to express solidarity for the newspaper that came under attack in January 2015, leading to the death of 12 people.

The girl had earlier claimed the teacher had warned students that he was about to show a depiction of Muhammad and had asked Muslim pupils to leave the room. When she objected, she was suspended from the school, she said. However, as per the Parisian newspaper, the girl was suspended the day before the class was given, because of her repeated absence from school.

The girl repeatedly remained firm on her false testimony until the police informed her about conflicting accounts given by several of her classmates. They had even confirmed that the girl was not present for the lesson and that Paty had not asked Muslim students to leave the class as she had claimed.

Richard Gere, Disney and censorship: How Hollywood is kneeling before China’s financial might

OpIndia Staff
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Richard Gere, Disney and censorship: How Hollywood is kneeling before China’s financial might

China has been using its market to influence businesses abroad and shape narratives around how the world perceives them. It is widely known that China has managed to built an extensive propaganda machine to construct a rather mythical image of itself around the world. However, a little known story is how industries such as Hollywood are themselves kneeling before China in order to access its huge market.

In recent times, Hollywood has been extremely careful to not offend the sensibilities of the tyrannical Communist regime in China in order to secure its business interests. While the American movie industry has been extremely vocal regarding former president Donald Trump, it has given Communist China a free pass over its atrocious treatment of its minorities, especially Uyghur Muslims.

Hollywood goes out of its way to pander to Chinese censorship in order to reap the financial rewards of it. Blockbusters from Captain America: Civil War to Disney movies, the movies incorporated Chinese cultural symbols and brands in order to endear themselves to the audience, and more significantly, the Chinese government.

One such instance that sparked a severe controversy centered around the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The Chinese poster of the movie minimized the presence of British-Nigerian actor John Boyega, who played a Stormtrooper in the movie, allegedly because Chinese are not too fond of people of his race.

Image Credit: Lucas Film

Apart from such gestures, there is significant collaboration on the horizon between Hollywood and Chinese studios as well. There are partnerships in place between Universal and Legendary, a subsidiary of Chinese conglomerate Wanda Media Group.

In 2015, Warner Bros Entertainment and China Media Capital (CMC) came together to form a joint venture, Flagship Entertainment Group Limited, in order to develop and produce Chinese films.

Warner Bros said in a statement, “The new entity will combine the expertise of Hollywood’s largest studio with China’s preeminent investment and operational platform dedicated to media and entertainment. Flagship Entertainment’s goal is to capitalize on the rapidly growing market for premium content globally, particularly in China, and the increasing demand for high-quality Chinese-language movies around the world.”

With growing financial influence of China, it is inevitable that it will affect Hollywood in other areas as well. Richard Gere, the hugely popular actor, blames China for his rejection by Hollywood. “There are definitely movies that I can’t be in because the Chinese will say, ‘Not with him,'” he told Hollywood Reporter in 2017.

“I recently had an episode where someone said they could not finance a film with me because it would upset the Chinese,” he added. Richard Gere has been very vocal regarding his support for Tibet and is renowned for his outspoken criticism of China’s human rights violations.

Richard Gere had condemned China’s “horrendous, horrendous human rights situation” at the Academy Awards in 1993. He also happens to be a long time friend of the Dalai Lama, a figure that the Communist Party of China has awarded top public enemy status, figuratively speaking.

“There was something I was going to do with a Chinese director, and two weeks before we were going to shoot, he called saying, ‘Sorry, I can’t do it,'” Gere recalled during the interview. “We had a secret phone call on a protected line. If I had worked with this director, he, his family would never have been allowed to leave the country ever again, and he would never work.”

He is not the only one to have suffered the wrath of the Chinese Government. Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Maroon 5, all were made to suffer punitive action due to frivolous reasons. Lady Gaga is banned from entering China because she met the Dalai Lama when the latter visited Indianapolis.

Katy Perry wore a sunflower dress during a concern in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan and was awarded with an indefinite ban on entering China because sunflowers are considered a symbol of Taiwanese independence and democracy. Maroon 5’s concern in China was cancelled because a member of the banned sent Dalai Lama a birthday greeting. Such examples abound. And all of this has only made Hollywood more eager to reach compromises with Chinese censorship.

Martha Bayles noted in her column for The Atlantic, “Beijing has a very clear idea of how a film industry should operate—namely, as an essential part of the effort to bring public opinion in alignment with the party’s ideological worldview. To that end, Beijing has been using Hollywood’s insatiable need for investment, and its vaulting ambition to reach a potential audience of 1.4 billion people, to draw it into China’s orbit.”

One guide to American movie producers, cited by Bayles in her column, said, “China and its one-party government currently lack a film law (though as Part 5 of this guide outlines, one is coming) that would set clear guidelines and standards. As such, it’s difficult to know whether or not a proposed project may fall afoul of the censors, whose whimsy seems to be determined in large part by the higher ranks of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)—an organization for which projecting the image of a stable society is considered paramount to preserving its hold on power.”

The effects of Chinese financial influence is more than evident from the fate reserved for the NBA. Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted in favour of the Hong Kong protesters following which the NBA had to rush in to disassociate itself from the comments.

The Chinese Basketball Association declared suspension of all cooperation with Houston Rockets while the team was urged by China’s Consulate General in Houston to “clarify and immediately correct the mistakes.”

CCTV 5, a top sports broadcaster, announced that the team’s events would be suspended on television. And Tencent (TCEHY) Sports stated that it would take similar action regarding live streaming of the games and reporting news about the team. Subsequently, Daryl Morey was forced to issue a groveling apology.

Such capitulation awaits Hollywood as well now that Chinese influence has entered the equation. In many ways, the capitulation has already begun to occur. But it’s only a matter of time when the capitulation turns into a walk of shame in front of its domestic audience.

‘Maybe coz I tweeted against Greta Thunberg and Disha Ravi’, says French journalist Francois Gautier after Twitter arbitrarily deletes his account

OpIndia Staff
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‘Maybe coz I tweeted against Greta Thunberg and Disha Ravi’, says French journalist Francois Gautier after Twitter arbitrarily deletes his account

The mysterious behaviour of Twitter which is often found censoring social media users for disagreeing with left-wing and ultra left-wing ideology has yet again come to the fore. Francois Gautier, a French journalist based in India who has written for media houses like The Indian Express and Pioneer has taken to Facebook and the Indian Twitter alternative- Koo, to share that his Twitter account has been suddenly deleted for a reason not known to him.

Begrudged by the fact that his Twitter account @fgautier26, where he had 71,000 followers, was suddenly deleted, without him being given any specific reason for the same, the author of many books and curator of the Facts Museum that exposes the truth about the Mughal tyrant Aurangzeb, opined that Twitter might have taken this arbitrary decision because he had tweeted against Child-activist Greta Thunberg and ‘climate activist’ Disha Ravi.

He French journalist took to the Koo app to inform the same.

Francois Gautier’s Koo post informing on how his Twitter account was suddenly deleted

For the unversed, the Swedish activist Greta Thunberg had shot into fame after she inadvertently leaked the ‘toolkit’ that exposed the nefarious designs against India. She had also herself landed her fellow activist Disha Ravi in trouble by sharing the ‘toolkit’ on the microblogging site. Disha Ravi was arrested from Bengaluru for her alleged role in creating the toolkit. The toolkit also exposed the Khalistani hands behind the global campaign against India. The role of Pieter Friedrich, a close associate of a Pakistani ISI operative and Khalistani terror group Sikhs for Justice has had also come to the fore.

Post the declaration by Francois Gautier, many prominant social media users took to Twitter to raise the issue and demanded that his account be restored immediately.

Interestingly, in the past too, the microblogging site has arbitrarily suspended accounts of many users who do not fall into line with the microblogging site’s leftist ideologies. Mostly, people with either right-wing ideology or those who are Modi supporters.

For example, the account of Twitter user ‘“टीपूडा” whose username is @PR1CELES5 was suspended by the micro-blogging site. Netizens had then taken to Twitter to express their outrage at the arbitrary suspension of @PR1CELES5 whose real name is Amol. Amol’s fault was that he had merely ‘corrected’ a cartoon of a biased cartoonist following which his account got suspended.

Earlier, a Twitter user who makes hilarious spoofs of Rahul Gandhi had also got his account permanently suspended by Twitter which made people wonder if it was due to his political ideology.

Women of colour use the N-word to abuse Uber driver Subhakar in San Francisco after being told to wear masks: Here is all that happened

OpIndia Staff
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Women of colour use the N-word to abuse Uber driver Subhakar in San Francisco after being told to wear masks: Here is all that happened

Dion Lim, reported with ABC7 news, shared a video on Tuesday where passengers on a ride on Uber could be seen behaving in an extremely offensive manner with the driver Subhakar. The video that has been shared widely since then shows three young women, including at least two women of colour, misbehaving with Subhakar.

The video shows one of the women coughing deliberately. The argument reportedly began after the passengers were asked to wear a mask. They could be seen abusing the driver in extremely offensive language.

One of the riders also sprayed pepper spray on his car. To clean the mess, Uber offered him only $20. Subhakar says that won’t be enough at all. He says that he tried cleaning it with carpet cleaner but the odour persisted.

He says that cleaning it off the odour and stain would require a minimum of $250. He was unable to work due to the foul odour and has sustained losses due to it.

A spokesperson with Uber has reacted to the incident and has said in a statement, “The behavior seen in the video is appalling. The rider no longer has access to Uber.” Uber Support said on social media, “This behavior is completely unacceptable and goes against our Community Guidelines. Our team has investigated this situation and removed the Rider’s access to the Uber platform.”

In a video allegedly shared by one of the women on Instagram, they can be heard threatening the driver. “You don’t want me to know where I live,” Subhakar was told. They also used the N-Word to abuse him.

The San Francisco Police Department is reportedly investigating the matter.

Cash-strapped Pakistan ‘not interested’ in buying Coronavirus vaccines, happy with donated vaccines and supposed herd immunity

OpIndia Staff
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Cash-strapped Pakistan ‘not interested’ in buying Coronavirus vaccines, happy with donated vaccines and supposed herd immunity

In a major development, Pakistani authorities have informed that they have no plans to purchase Coronavirus vaccines, at least for the year 2021. The cash-strapped country is willing to rely upon herd immunity and donated vaccines from China and Gavi to contain the pandemic.

The matter came to light during the briefing of the Pakistani National Health Service (NHS) before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday (March 4). NHS Secretary Amir Ashraf Khawaja said that a Chinese company by the name of Sinopharm has promised to donate 1 million Coronavirus doses to Pakistan.

He informed that about 5 lac doses have already been handed over to the government and that a total of 2.75 lac people have been vaccinated. Although Pakistan has a population of 22.5 crores, it is planning to vaccinate only 7 crore people by the end of this year. The Imran Khan-led-government will also receive 16 million Made-in-India Coronavirus vaccines through the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (Gavi) programme.

Pakistan’s vaccination programme for the elderly delayed

On being asked by PAC whether the Pakistani government has been waiting for free vaccines, NHS Secretary Amir Ashraf Khawaja replied, “We wouldn’t need to purchase much.” He said that the Made-in-India Coronavirus vaccines will reach Pakistan, starting from March itself. Pakistan’s over-reliance on donated vaccines is proving costly as the inoculation programme for the elderly that was scheduled from March 5 has been kept on hold due to a delay in receiving the consignment of vaccines.

Private companies in Pakistan not interested in importing Coronavirus vaccines

Pakistan claimed that a survey, dating back to June last year, found that 15% of the population had ‘developed’ antibodies against the Coronavirus. As such, the authorities have decided to not vaccinate them. NHS, which is dependent on friendly nations such as China, informed that a Chinese company had completed the third phase of the trial for CanSino (Chinese vaccine) in Pakistan, with 85% efficacy.

NHS Secretary also informed that despite the offer made by the Pakistani government to private companies to buy the vaccine, no company has come forward so far. The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan has received the proposal of 3 companies to import vaccines from abroad. However, their proposals were cancelled due to a lack of details and specifications. As of March 9, Pakistan has reported 16,349 active cases and 54 new fatalities.

‘Chai wale ko jhel lo, kahi gaay wala aa gaya, toh tum se jhela nahi jaega’: 4 punchlines by Kapil Mishra during Digital Hindu Conclave

OpIndia Staff
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‘Chai wale ko jhel lo, kahi gaay wala aa gaya, toh tum se jhela nahi jaega’: 4 punchlines by Kapil Mishra during Digital Hindu Conclave

BJP leader Kapil Mishra recently attended the Digital Hindu Conclave in Hyderabad where he enthralled the audience with his candid views on a wide range of issues, including the resilience of the Hindu society, the leadership of PM Modi and Yogi Adityanath, extortion by the Shaheen Bagh protesters among other things.

Bharatniti, an initiative to encourage the objective study and in-depth analysis by citizens, policymakers, domain experts, researchers and commentators, on varied issues of national and international importance, had organised a Digital Hindu Conclave on Sunday, March 7, 2020. Besides Mishra, the conclave was also attended by a host of other dignitaries such as author Shefali Vaidya, psephologist and journalist Pradeep Bhandari, Major Surendra Poonia, ex-IPS Nageswara Rao and many others.

However, the highlight of the Conclave was a fiery speech made by BJP leader Kapil Mishra. Mishra, in his sharp and unapologetic demeanour minced no words to put his point across. The politician made searing remarks to attack the anti-India forces and those who are averse to PM Mod and Yogi Adityanath’s leadership.

Here are some of the striking remarks made by Mishra at the Conclave:-

“Tumko milti hogi kudrati biryani, hum toh mehnat karke khaate hain”

Mishra was particularly critical of the Shaheen Bagh brigade that had squatted on one of the busiest thoroughfares in Delhi as a mark of protest against the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act. At that time, when a journalist had asked a protestor at Shaheen Bagh where all the food for so many people was coming from and who was funding the sit-in for over 40 days, he shot back saying that it was due to the miracle of Allah.

”Humein nahi pata paise ka. Hamein to raat ko (khaana) rakha milta hai ek jagah. Hum usko uthate hain aur baat dete hain,” the protester said. (We don’t know about the money. We find all the food at one place every night. We just pick it up and distribute it among others.). “Kudrati mil raha hai,” he said.

In a stunning takedown of this spurious claim, Mishra at the Digital Hindu Conclave said, “Arre tumko milti hogi Kudrati biryani, hum toh mehnat karke khaate hai.” (You might be getting the food miraculously, but we work hard to earn money and feed ourselves)

Mishra slammed the Shaheen Bagh protesters for infringing upon the rights of other citizens. He even questioned if the individual rights and freedoms are only the preserve of the protesters and normal human beings, who go about their business and life without squatting on the roads or without infringing upon others rights, have any rights or not.

“Ye toh keval angdai hai. abhi toh humne sirf aakhein kholi hai. Abhi toh hum uthke khade nahi huye. Abhi toh humne chalna shuru nahi kiya”

Speaking on the resilience of the Hindu society, Mishra noted that the Indian society is the only civilisation in the world that has successfully warded off the threats from two evil powers, presumably the Islamic invasion and Christian evangelism.

Mishra also shed light on how our ancestors have played a key role in preserving history in its pristine form. “…There was not a single government in the country from the last 500 years that called Prayagraj with its real name, but still, our ancestors quietly conveyed the actual version of the history to their progenies, and therefore after 500 years, Allahabad could be renamed to Prayagraj,” Mishra said.

Mishra also asserted that Indian society is the only one in the world that has been successful in reclaiming the lost land to Islamic invasion. He said the land reclaimed in Ayodhya for the construction of Ram Temple and that in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 demonstrates how India has been able to recover land that was under occupation for centuries.

Emphasising that this is just the start of India’s cultural renaissance, Mishra said, “Ye toh keval angdai hai. abhi toh humne Sirf aakhein kholi hai. Abhi toh hum uthke khade nahi huye. Abhi toh humne chalna shuru nahi kiya.” (This is just the start. We have only woken up from our slumber. We are yet to get up on our feet and walk)

“Ye chai wale ko jhel lo, kahi vo gaya wala aa gaya, toh tum se jhela nahi jaega”

Kapil Mishra also took a swipe at a section of people who are finding it difficult to accept PM Modi as the Prime Minister of the country. He advised them to bear with PM Modi’s rule, noting that if Yogi came to power, they will find it even more difficult to come to tolerate his leadership.

Mishra quipped, “Ye chai wale ko jhel lo, kahi vo gaya (Cow) wala aa gaya, toh tum se jhela nahi jaega.”(Tolerate this chai wala(PM Modi) or else if the Gaya wala(Yogi) comes to power, you will find it even more difficult to tolerate his rule)

“Chaiwale ka kya bigad loge aur Yogwala aa gaya toh tum kuch ukhaad nahi paoge”

Referring to PM Modi as ‘chaiwala’ and Yogi Adityanath as ‘Yogwala’, Mishra took a dig at the detractors, saying that they can’t harm PM Modi because he has nothing to lose and, on the other hand, Yogi Adityanath won’t allow them to do anything.

“Chaiwale ka kya bigad loge aur Yog wala aa gaya toh tum kuch ukhaad nahi paoge,” Mishra said.

In essence, Mishra implied that left-leaning liberals yearning for a change in India are caught between a rock and a hard place and extrication from either side seems impossible.

Devendra Fadnavis demands Sachin Vaze’s suspension and arrest in Mansukh Hiren death case. Here is why

OpIndia Staff
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Devendra Fadnavis demands Sachin Vaze’s suspension and arrest in Mansukh Hiren death case. Here is why

The suspicious death of Mansukh Hiren, the owner of the SUV that was found parked near Mukesh Ambani’s residence with gelatin sticks in it, has once again thrown the Maharashtra Government led by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray in the spotlight. It is being alleged that the Shiv Sena govt in Maharashtra has been putting hurdles in the path of the investigation into Mansukh Hiren’s death case by shielding ‘encounter specialist’ Sachin Vaze, named as the accused in the FIR filed by the deceased’s wife.

Seeking immediate arrest of police officer Sachin Vaze in Mansukh Hiren death case, Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said in the Maharashtra Assembly Monday: “Sachin Vaze is being defended as he was a member of a political party. If you don’t do anything about him, you’re giving him a chance to destroy evidence. He should be suspended immediately. If you defend him, doubt may be raised against you too”, said Fadnavis launching a scathing attack at the Udhhav Thackeray government for sheltering the cop.

Quoting the statement of Mansukh Hiren’s wife, Fadvanis said in the Assembly that Vaze (who was investigating officer in case of recovery of explosives near Mukesh Ambani’s house) was in possession of the suspected car (in which explosive were found) for 4 months. He asked the Maharashtra government why encounter cop Sahin Vaze was not being arrested under Section 201 of IPC (destroying evidence). “Who is defending him?” he questioned.

As per the police, Hiren’s vehicle was stolen from Airoli-Mulund Bridge on February 18.

‘My husband was killed by the encounter cop Sachin Vaze’: Wife of Mansukh Hiren

It is pertinent to note here that Mansukh Hiren’s wife had mentioned in her complaint that her husband was killed by the encounter cop Sachin Vaze. According to a report by India Today, Vimala Hiren, in the FIR, narrated the entire sequence of events until March 5, when her husband’s dead body was found in the creek with a piece of cloth stuffed in his mouth. 

Sahin Vaze has asked Mansukh Hiren to get himself arrested

In the FIR, Vimla mentioned that her husband had given the car to Vaze in November last year. She also mentioned that her husband was with Vaze on February 27, 28 and March 2. “On March 2, Hiren informed me that, as asked by Vaze, he submitted a complaint about harassment by police and media to the Chief Minister, Home Minister and Police Commissioner of Thane and Mumbai”, wrote Mansukh Hiren’s wife in her complaint.

Vimla also claimed that her husband told her that Vaze had asked him to get himself arrested in the wake of the Antilia bomb scare incident when his car was found at the spot, furthering that he (Sachin Vaze) would ensure his (Mansukh Hiren) bail in a few days. 

Vimala furthered she saw her husband for the last time on March 4 when he went to meet a police officer named Tawde from Kandivali crime branch for guidance.

On March 5, Hiren’s body was recovered from the Mumbra creek in Thane.

“My husband was a good swimmer and he cannot drown. His belongings like phone, gold chain, wallet were not found. Looking at the entire situation, I am sure he was murdered and I suspect that Vaze has killed him,” she said in her complaint.

Mansukh Hiren had written to Maharashtra CM and others alleging harassment by police and journalists

It may be recalled that on March 6, we reported that a day after the suspicious death of Mansukh Hiren, a letter by him and addressed to Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, Mumbai, and Thane Police Commissioner had surfaced. In the letter, Hiren has alleged mental harassment at the hands of policemen and journalists, and also sought intervention and protection for himself and his family.

Mansukh Hiren’s death case being probes by ATS, NIA takes over investigation of Antilia bomb scare

In is pertinent to note that Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh had entrusted ATS with the responsibility to probe the death case of Mansukh Hiren as well as the investigation into the case related to the gelatins found outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence in the last week of February.

However, hours after Maharashtra Home Department issued an order to transfer the case related to Hiren’s death to ATS, the National Investigation Agency has been called in Monday to handle the probe related to the recovery of explosives from a car parked near Mukesh Ambani’s residence in Mumbai.

The probe into Mansukh Hiren‘s death case, however, still remains with the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). 

After daring the government to jail her for inciting riots, Safoora Zargar claims victimhood

Editorial Desk
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After daring the government to jail her for inciting riots, Safoora Zargar claims victimhood

One of the enduring characteristics of the rabble-rousing left-leaning activists in the country is their tendency to claim victimhood when the law of the land catches up with their shenanigans. This has been the case with anti-CAA protester Safoora Zargar, the infamous woman who despite being fully conscious and acutely aware of her pregnancy, led a mob at Jaffrabad Metro station in Delhi that inevitably sparked a gruesome wave of violence and later feigned victimhood citing her pregnancy.

Zargar was incarcerated for her alleged role in inciting riots in Delhi. She was arrested on April 10. In days leading to the horrifying anti-Hindu Delhi riots in February 2020, Zargar was seen making provocative speeches and whipping up frenzy against the central government with respect to the Citizenship Amendment Bill. Months after her arrest, the Jamia student was granted bail by the Delhi High Court on humanitarian grounds.

Recently, Zargar gave an interview to The Quint wherein she recounted the ‘horrors’ of serving a jail term during her pregnancy. Whitewashing her role as an instigator who provoked people to take up arms against the government and pressurise them into revoking the CAA bill, Zargar latched on to the victimhood narrative to paint the state as oppressive and cruel.

“I did not expect this. Don’t think I was doing anything that I should have even been called for interrogation. I was doing nothing at all… As a Jamia student I was in solidarity with the protests, in fact, I never even spoke there,” Zargar said.

Explaining her experience when she first saw the jail, Safoora said, “The most difficult part of it was the isolation, the confinement. I was held in a separate cell… When I was taken to jail, I was kept in a separate ward, in a fag end of the jail that had huge walls and barbed wires…It was very scary…I thought this is the end.”

She further added that she had made up her mind about having a miscarriage. She said she dreaded going to the washroom in the jail and her heart never beat normally while she was in jail.

In the past videos, Safoora was seen daring the government to jail her

While Zargar now insists that she did not speak at the protests, there are videos doing the rounds in which Zargar could be seen making provocative speeches. Zargar’s assertions following her release are in sharp contrast to the bluster she had indulged in, in the days leading to the Delhi riots.

In one such video, Safoora was seen making inflammatory speech and inflaming the passions among people. In the video, Zargar blustered that she is ready to serve the jail if that is what it takes to get the CAA bill revoked.

“We, the people of India strip you of your Indian citizenship. Modi and Amit Shah, we will take away your citizenship. They are terrorists…and I will repeat this 100 times whether you fire bullets at me or pound lathis on me or put me in the jail,” Zargar said.

It is pertinent to note that Zargar was fully aware of her pregnancy when she willingly got involved in the protests. However, months later when the government jailed her for her inflammatory speeches, she suddenly feigned victimhood, raising questions of the government for incarcerating a pregnant woman and wash her hands of the violence that succeeded her speeches.

A few months inside the jail and all her audacity, bluster and daredevilry came crashing down as she was struck with a sobering realisation that the law of the land is supreme and it is equally applicable to all, whether pregnant or not.

When it dawned upon her that her motherhood wouldn’t be considered as a sanction to commit a felony without having to face the consequences, she resorted to playing victimhood. Her latest interview is another attempt to firm up her victimhood narrative while sweeping under the rug her possible culpability.

NDTV peddles fake news about Rajasthan running out of Coronavirus vaccines: Here is the truth

OpIndia Staff
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NDTV peddles fake news about Rajasthan running out of Coronavirus vaccines: Here is the truth

Hours after leftist media house NDTV claimed that the State of Rajasthan has urgently notified the Central government of its acute Coronavirus vaccine shortage, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) has debunked the false claim. On Tuesday, NDTV claimed on Twitter, “Rajasthan to Run out of Vaccines by Tomorrow”: State Sends SOS to Centre.”

Screengrab of the tweet by NDTV

Rajasthan has over 13.33 lac doses unused: PIB debunks fake news about Coronavirus vaccine shortage

In a statement, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) of the government of India has debunked the claim of Rajasthan running out of its vaccine supply by tomorrow. “The factual position is that there is no shortage of COVID19 vaccine with the State at present. Rajasthan has been supplied 37.61 lakh doses and has consumed only 24.28 lakh doses till yesterday night,” PIB clarified.

It further stated, “The Central government is regularly monitoring the availability of vaccine supply in all States and UTs, and providing the doses as per their requirement and consumption pattern.”

Screengrab of the PIB infographic

The myth of impending shortage of Coronavirus vaccine doses in the Congress-ruled Rajasthan was also debunked by DD News.

NDTV issues clarification and a tale of contradictions

After being caught off guard, NDTV issued a clarification regarding the matter. While replying to the tweet by PIB accusing the leftist portal of spreading misinformation, it said, “NDTV reported the Rajasthan Health Minister’s comment. He said, “We have vaccines for three days….we asked for 60 lakh vaccines needed in March alone to continue the drive as is. If we don’t get vaccines, the drive could stop mid-way…”. Video attached.””

The Congress-ruled state of Rajasthan has reported 1,883 active cases and 2,789 fatalities as of March 9, 2020. Contrary to the claims of the remaining 5.85 lac doses by the Rajasthan Health Minister Dr Raghu Sharma, PIB’s fact-check points out that the state has about 13.33 lac doses left. According to the NDTV report, the state is vaccinating 2.5 lac people each day. Given that a single dose is administered per person, even with the existing stock of 13.33 lac doses, Rajasthan can continue to vaccinate people at the same pace for over 5 days. Meanwhile, the Centre is monitoring the state closely and have already sent 85000 emergency Coronavirus doses.

After Suvendu Adhikari makes the ‘Kashmir’ jibe, Mamata Banerjee spends 10 minutes chanting Hindu mantras in Nandigram

OpIndia Staff
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After Suvendu Adhikari makes the ‘Kashmir’ jibe, Mamata Banerjee spends 10 minutes chanting Hindu mantras in Nandigram

Mamata Banerjee seems to be watching her empire disintegrate right before her eyes. Nandigram, the very place from where she launched her political uprise in 2007, could prove to be her Waterloo. As Mamata Banerjee decides to take on Suvendu Adhikari from Nandigram, the Chief Minister seems to have decided to prove her Hindu credentials just before filing nominations.

Addressing TMC workers in Nandigram, Mamata Banerjee recited several Hindu mantras, including the Chandipaath, for 10 minutes straight to counter the ‘Muslim appeasement’ charge mounted by the BJP. “I do Chandipath before stepping out every day,” said Mamata Banerjee adding, the BJP should not “play its Hindu card with me”, Mamata Banerjee said.

“I am a Hindu girl too. Don’t play the Hindu card with me. Tell me, do you know how to be a good Hindu”, she continued. Mamata Banerjee is likely to file her nomination from Nandigram on Wednesday.

It was Nandigram from where Mamata Banerjee had launched her crusade against the Left government with the indispensable help of Suvendu Adhikari. Mamata Banerjee then won the 2011 elections. Suvendu Adhikari has proved to be instrumental in her political rise as he holds sway over Nandigram and belongs to the powerful Adhikari family.

Interestingly, Suvendu Adhikari during his speech on the 7th of March, just before PM Modi addressed lakhs of people at Brigade Ground, had said that Mamata Banerjee had claimed that she will turn Kolkata into London, but the way she has governed, West Bengal would turn into Kashmir very soon if she is not discharged of her duties.

BJP itself has been accusing Mamata Banerjee of appeasing the Minority at the cost of Hindus. Mamata herself, who is chanting the Chandipaath today, has displayed extreme wrath at the mere chant of Jai Shree Ram. In 2019, a video had gone viral on social media where Mamata Banerjee could be seen getting down from her vehicle after hearing chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and confronting the people who shouted the slogan as her vehicle was passing by. Visibly irked Mamata claimed that abuses were hurled at her.

Recently, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was seen walking out of the stage refusing to address the public gathered at Kolkata’s Victoria Memorial for Netaji birth anniversary celebrations after being irked by a few individuals in the crowd chanting Jai Shree Ram.

Coupled with her deep aversion for chants of Jai Shree Ram, her silence over several communal clashes where Hindus were victimised in the state and her minority appeasing policies, BJP has repeatedly targeted Mamata Banerjee. While Mamata today chants the Chandipaath, it remains to be seen if her newfound love for Hinduism will help her garner votes against Suvendu Adhikari in Nandigram.

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