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Karnataka Waqf Board orders a ban on the use of loudspeakers in Mosques and dargahs between 10 pm and 6 am

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In a significant decision, the Karnataka State Waqf Board has issued an order banning the use of loudspeakers during Azaan between 10 pm and 6 am in mosques and dargahs across the state.

In the circular issued last week, the board said, “With the objective of maintaining the ambient standards of noise, The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 are in force. Loudspeakers shall not be used in the night time, which shall mean from 10:00 pm to 6:00 am.”

The Waqf board observed that increasing ambient noise level around many masjids and dargahs due to generator sets, loudspeakers and public address systems have deleterious effects on human health and the psychological well-being of the people.

Further, the circular said any violation near the “silence zones” will be liable for a penalty. However, the Waqf Board has also made it clear that there is no ban on Azaan, but it has only barred loudspeakers during the specified time to prevent noise pollution.

“Whoever uses sound amplifier or burst sound-emitting firecrackers, uses a loudspeaker or public address system in a silence zone is liable for penalty under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act-1986,” the circular read.

Loudspeakers should be used only for Azaan, important announcements

The order further said, “Noise-governing apparatus may be installed in the institution in consultation with the local environment officers. The management of the institutions shall train the muezzin (the person who gives the call to prayer at a mosque) to operate the amplifier within the prescribed limit”.

The orders further said that loudspeakers used during the day should be as per the ambient air quality standards, and they should not make unnecessary noise. “Loudspeakers shall be used only for Azaan and important announcements such as death, the timing of burial, the sighting of the moon etc.,” the order said.

The Waqf Board has classified areas comprising not less than 100 metres around hospitals, educational institutions and courts as silence zones. No sound-emitting firecrackers shall be burnt in or around the masjid and dargahs at any occasion, the Waqf board has ordered.

The Waqf board said that the management should use the open spaces of the masjid and dargahs for the plantation of fruit-bearing shady trees and ornamental plants. “A clean and hygienic atmosphere shall be maintained. Discourage beggary in religious premises, instead, counselling and philanthropic measures may be taken at the institution level,” the order read.

The Waqf board took these significant decisions during its 327th meeting held on December 19, 2020. The body decided to strictly adhere to the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 in Karnataka and “it unanimously resolved to create awareness amongst the managements of Masjids and Dargahs”.

Islamists attack Waqf board, says they have no right

Meanwhile, the order has not gone down well with the Islamic organisations in the state. Radical Islamic organisation SDPI has attacked the Waqf board for overstepping its jurisdiction.

Abdul Hannan, SDPI state president, said the board has no right to take decisions on Quran, Namaaz and the Azaan. He said the board should be dealing with Waqf properties that are allegedly encroached on by the government, private sector and politicians.

The Islamic clerics and Imams have accused the Waqf board of taking such a decision out of pressure from the BJP government in Karnataka.

It is important to note that a similar circular was issued during the Siddaramaiah headed the Congress government on July 10, 2017.

Pakistan Supreme Court reprimands Imran Khan government, asks whether the government is incapable of running the country

The Supreme Court of Pakistan slammed the Imran Khan government on Monday over the delay in convening a meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) for the last two months. A two-member bench of the Pakistan Supreme Court comprising of Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Sardar Tariq reportedly said that either the government of Pakistan is not capable of running the country, or it is unable to make decisions.

The Supreme Court reprimanded the Imran Khan government for passing an ordinance delimitation of constituencies in Punjab

According to reports, the Supreme Court of Pakistan expressed disappointment over the issuance of a fresh ordinance on delimitation of constituencies by the Punjab Governor and referred the matter to the Chief Justice. Quoting the Election Commission, Justice Isa said that the ordinance had created complications. He said that the Punjab government did not want the local elections to be held. The court remarked, “The entire Punjab Assembly was bypassed on the request of one individual, even as the Punjab government does not intend to conduct the local body elections”.

On being informed that no decision regarding the census was taken in the CCI, the Supreme Court lambasted the Pakistan government for failing to take any decision. “Is it not a priority of the government to release the census results”, Justice Isa asked highlighting that the last census was held in 2017. The judge asked the government why it failed to take a decision in the CCI despite the ruling party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) having government in three provinces along with its allies. “Despite the government in three provinces, the decision has been taken in the council. Isn’t it the responsibility of the Pakistan government to release the results of the census?”, asked the judge. Objecting to the postponement of the CCI meetings despite the order of the court, Justice Isa termed it an insult to the court and said there were no war conditions preventing the CCI meeting. He said that the meeting could be held online.

The court questioned the manner in which the country is being run

The Additional Attorney General informed the court that CCI is scheduled to take place on March 24. He said that it was a sensitive matter and that the government wanted to take a decision with consensus. To this Justice Isa responded by questioning the Imran Khan government for keeping the CCI report confidential. “Are good deeds being kept a secret? It raises questions”, said Justice Isa. The judge reprimanded the Pakistan government asking whether the country was going to be run in that manner. The court said that the people needed to know what the provinces and the Centre are doing.

Mamata Banerjee skips PM Modi’s all CM Covid-review and vaccination drive meeting

Amid rising concerns over increase in Chinese coronavirus cases, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has decided to skip an all CM meeting chaired by Prime Minister Modi. Citing pre-scheduled election meeting in Jhargram as the reason, Mamata Banerjee decided to remain absent for the virtual Covid review meeting which will also discuss the ongoing vaccination drive meeting. The meeting will be attended by Bengal Chief Secretary instead.

Chhattisgarh CM and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel, too, skipped the meeting.

The all CM meeting took place amidst growing concerns of a second Covid-19 wave as India recorded over 20,000 new coronavirus cases on 6th consecutive day. On the other hand, with 3 crore Covid shots administered, attempts are being made to strengthen and fasten the vaccination drive.

This is not the first time that Mamata Banerjee has given an all CM meeting a miss. She gave another all CM virtual meeting a miss in June 2020 after being visibly upset on 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’.

Women stop hanging underwear to dry after Meerut thieves Mohammad Romin and Mohammad Akkas reveal they stole them for sexual pleasure

Women in a Meerut locality have stopped putting their underwear out to dry after two thieves were caught on camera stealing them. The two accused arrested by Meerut police in the case relating to the theft of the undergarments of women hanging out for drying in Sadar Bazar area in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh have revealed the reason for the theft. The duo claimed to have done so for sexual pleasure. As per reports, they have stolen undergarments of at least ten women.

The two accused identified as Mohammand Romin and Mohammad Assak were arrested by the police on Tuesday. They are reportedly pursuing Bachelor of Arts (B.A.).

Accused admitted to having stolen undergarments of over 10 women for sexual pleasure

According to Jagran, Romin who is a resident of Sotiganj area of Meerut, told Station House Officer Sadar Bazar Vijendra Rana that he and other persons involved in the theft used to steal the undergarments of women for sexual pleasure. He admitted to having stolen the undergarments of more than 10 women so far. Police have recovered some undergarments from the him. Police are expecting the involvement of more persons in the matter. A search for the same will soon be conducted.

Merchants of Sadar Bazar alleged involvement of a gang targeting Hindu women

On Sunday, some merchants had protested at the Sadar Bazar police station alleging that a gang comprising of persons from a particular community has been stealing undergarments of women in Sadar Bazar area. According to the report, the culprits used to target Hindu colonies to steal the underwear of women from their houses. They had marked some posh colonies of the city for the theft and have been stealing the undergarments for about a month. The two arrested accused were captured in a CCTV camera stealing the undergarments of women hanging on a cloth stand outside a house in the area on March 14. From the CCTV recording the accused were identified as Romin and Akkas.

Video of accused stealing the undergarments from outside a house had gone viral

A video of two men stealing the undergarments hanging outside a house for drying while on their way to offer namaz had gone viral. In the video the two men, one of whom was wearing a skull cap, were seen arriving on a two wheeler. The person wearing the skull cap is seen getting off the two-wheeler and walking away to offer namaz while the other one steals the underwear and drives away with it.

A complaint was filed by a person named Sanjay Chaudhary at Sadar Bazar police station on March 14 claiming that he had recorded the video of two men stealing the underwear of his minor daughter. The police had filed a case under sections 379 (theft) and 509 (gesture made to outrage modesty of a woman).

VC of Allahabad Central University complains about disruption in sleep due to the sound of Azan played on mosque loudspeakers

Sangita Srivastava, Vice-Chancellor of Allahabad Central University, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, has written a letter to the District Magistrate, Commissioner, Inspector General, and other officers complaining about the Azaan played on loudspeakers at Mosque near her residence. The Vice-Chancellor has said that the sound of Azan played through loudspeakers from mosques is disrupting her sleep, which in turn is affecting her work.

Letter written by VC Srivastava (Image: Twitter/rahulrajnews)

In her complaint, she said, “Every morning at around 5:30 AM, the loud sound of the loudspeaker playing Azaan disrupts my sleep.” She further said that her life is getting disrupted as she could not sleep properly. She said during Ramzan, they announce Sahari at 4 AM in the morning that will aggravate the problem. She alleged that disturbance in sleep is causing headache that results in loss of working hours. “The constitution of India envisages a secular and peaceful co-existence of all communities which needs to be practiced in letter and spirit,” she added.

“Your freedom ends where my nose begins,” Srivastava wrote adding that she is not against any religion, caste or creed. She wrote, “I am not against any religion, caste or creed, they may perform the Azan without the mike so that others are not disturbed. Even before Eid, they announce Sehri on the mike at 4.00 am. This practice also creates disturbance to other people.”

She further mentioned the order passed by Allahabad High Court in 2020 that allows mosques to play Azaan but without microphones. VC Srivastava resides in Civil Lines, and there is a mosque close to her house. Her husband, Justice Vikram Nath, is Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court.

‘Saddam Hussein and Gaddafi won elections too’, claims Rahul Gandhi to undermine India’s democracy

Rahul Gandhi is his latest interview to Brown University professor, camouflaged his attack on the Bhartiya Janta Party by claiming Saddam Hussein and Gaddafi won elections too. Taking a jibe at the Centre, he added, both Saddam Hussein and Gaddafi did not need votes but used the electoral process to capture power.

This came after Professor Ashutosh Varshney of USA’s Brown University asked Rahul for his commentary on ‘decline in democracy’ in India as cited by V-Dem institutes independent report. However, it is interesting to note that Gaddafi came to power in Libya in September 1969 as the leader through a military coup which overthrew the British-backed King Idris and not through a democratic electoral process.

Further, Saddam Hussein was captured by the US forces in 2003 and after he was found guilty of crimes against humanity in 2006, was hanged to death. Essentially, by invoking these dictators, Rahul Gandhi is dogwhistling and implicitly nudging foreign intervention in Indian affairs.

Rahul then went on to attack the RSS when asked about the Idea of India juxtaposing it with the Idea of US. He claimed RSS and Shishu Mandir exist for breaking the idea of India and these institutions are used to siphon off public money. In another shocking statement, he claimed the ideology and strategy of RSS resembles to that of Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.

He supported his claim of ‘capture of power (by BJP) through electoral process’ by citing vague examples such as getting his mike switched off in a parliamentary session. He said the Centre has left no room for negotiations or to present new ideas especially in the parliament. Quite rich to come from him as his attendance in the parliament is at 53%.

In yet another bizarre attack, he alleged Facebook India Head to be a BJP member. Suggesting controlling the election narrative through social media is unethical, it is funny to note that the Congress has recently hired 5 lakh IT Cell members. The interaction has yet again raised eyebrows as one can listen to plethora of controversial statements by Congress leader, Rahul Gandhi.

BJP MP Ram Swaroop Sharma found dead at Delhi residence, police suspect suicide

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On March 17, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Ram Swaroop Sharma was found dead at his residence on Delhi’s North Avenue. As per Delhi Police, he died by suicide. His body has been sent for post-mortem.

Born in 1958, Sharma hailed from Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, from where he was first elected as MP in 2014. He was relected from Mandi in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He was also a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External affairs. He is survived by his wife and three sons.

According to the staff, when they tried to open the door in the morning, it was locked from inside. They called Sharma several times but did not get any answer. They called up the police, who broke down the door and found the dead body of Sharma hanging on a noose. It is unclear why he allegedly committed suicide. Police is investigating the case.

As per reports, no suicide note was found.

Several leaders posted condolence messages on Twitter, including Home Minister Amit Shah, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Himachal CM Jairam Thakur and others.

After learning about Sharma’s death, BJP has cancelled its Parliamentary Party meeting scheduled for Wednesday morning.

Man in PPE kit seen in CCTV footage when explosive-laden car was parked near Antilia was Sachin Vaze, confirms Vaze’s staff to NIA

In a massive development in the Antilia bomb scare case, one of Sachin Vaze’s staff has confessed to the National Investigation Agency that it was Vaze who was seen wearing a PPE kit near Antilia a day before a bomb-laden car was parked outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence.

Reportedly, the staff has revealed to the investigating officers that Vaze was spotted near Antilia wearing a PPE kit on the eve of the bomb scare incident. The staff has also revealed that Vaze later destroyed the PPE kit. The National Investigating Agency officials have recovered a shirt from Sachin Vaze that was allegedly worn inside the PPE kit.

During the initial investigation, a suspicious person wearing a PPE kit was spotted outside the house, near the SUV, in the CCTV footage. However, the suspected person could not be identified as he had his face covered. The National Investigation Agency had launched a probe to find out if the suspect in CCTV footage in the Antilia bomb scare case is Mumbai Police officer Sachin Vaze or not.

Incidentally, the National Investigation Agency has also recovered a few clothes that Vaze wore inside the PPE from the Mercedes that was recovered from a parking lot in Mumbai’s Crawford market. In addition to the clothes, the NIA had recovered a fake number plate that was attached to the Scorpio car, unaccounted cash and a cash counting machine from the Mercedes car on Tuesday.

Mumbai Police seizes Mercedes car used by Sachin Vaze

Earlier on Tuesday, the National Investigation Agency seized a black Mercedes car used by the tainted Mumbai cop from the Crawford market. The NIA officials have recovered the fake number plate that was used on the suspicious Scorpio car that used to plant bombs outside Antilia from the Mercedes car.

The NIA officials had raided the controversial Mumbai cop, who has been suspended for his role in the Antilia bomb case and traced a suspicious Mercedes 4matic car linked to Sachin Vaze. The Mercedes was recovered from a car-parking near the Mumbai Crime Branch office close to the Crawford market.

The NIA has also carried out searches at the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) situated in Mumbai Police headquarters, where Vaze served until last week. They have recovered a laptop, an iPad, a phone, a DVR and CCTV footage of the Vaze’s residence in the Saket building in Thane. 

Sachin Vaze – an accused in the Antilia bomb scare case

Last week, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested ‘encounter specialist’ Sachin Vaze in connection with the Mansukh Hiren death case. The explosive-laden car found outside Antilia in February belonged to Hiren. It is alleged that Vaze is part of the group that planted the explosive-laden Scorpio on Carmichael Road (near Antilia) on February 25.

The top cop was also investigated for his alleged role in the death of Mansukh Hiren, the owner of the Scorpio found near the Ambani residence.

Two cars – an Innova (white colour) and a Scorpio (green colour) were allegedly used to plant the bombs outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence in Mumbai on February 25. The police had traced the Scorpio to Mansukh Hiren, an auto part dealer in Thane.

A few days later, his dead body was found in a creek. While initially it was claimed to be suicide, further investigation revealed that it is possibly a murder. After Mansukh Hiren’s death, his wife, Vimla Hiren alleged that the vehicle was lent out to Sachin Vaze for four months till February 5. After that, it was reported stolen. She had accused Vaze of killing her husband.

Later, it was found out that Mumbai top cop Sachin Vaze had used the same explosive-laden Scorpio found outside Reliance Group’s chief Mukesh Ambani’s residence Antilia to escort Alibagh Police in Arnab case. 

On Saturday, the National Investigative Agency officials had also recovered the white Innova car from the Mumbai Police Commissionerate office. A white Innova was also suspected to be used, in addition to the Scorpio, to plant the bombs outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence in Mumbai on February 25.

No one killed infants in Kota: Rajasthan minister claims no one found guilty for the deaths of newborns in J K Lon Hospital

Rajasthan, and in particular Kota, has long been afflicted by the chronic problem of infant mortality. Every year, thousands of newborn deaths are reported from various hospitals across the state. The case came into the limelight in early 2020 when hundreds of deaths were reported from J K Lon Hospital in Kota. However, it seems like no one is responsible for these deaths as the Rajasthan minister recently declared that an inquiry found no one guilty for the death of infants in the Kota hospital in December 2019 and 2020.

On Tuesday, Medical and health minister Raghu Sharma was speaking in the Rajasthan state assembly when he claimed that no one is responsible for the deaths in J K Lon hospital in 2019 and 2020. Deaths of infants in Rajasthan has been reduced to mere statistics, with no willingness shown by the government to fix the accountability of the deaths. In fact, the Congress government in Rajasthan tried to brush aside the issue as Sharma claimed that infant deaths in the state are on the decline in the last few years.

Sharma told that 1,060 deaths were reported in Ajmer district in 2017, 1,276 in 2018, 1,200 in 2019, 939 deaths in 2020. In the Kota district, 852 infant deaths were reported in 2017, 881 in 2018, 837 in 2019 and 717 in 2020. Similar is the case districts like Jodhpur, Udaipur, Bikaner, he said. Sharma patted himself on the back, saying that the clear dip in the number of infant deaths in Rajasthan can be attributed to the state government’s efficient management.

Sharma said with the exceptions of Jaipur and Jhalawar, the number of infant deaths has decreased everywhere. For the surge in the number of deaths in Jaipur, Sharma blamed the higher number of referral cases. The minister said in the Budget 2021-22, it has been announced to provide a total of 58 ventilators, multi-monitor systems and ambulances with AC in 36 medical departments. He added that with this, the sick children will be immediately shifted to major hospitals and treated. This will also reduce the percentage of IMR, he said.

Sharma also claimed that the health ministry of the central government had lauded the work done by the state government for the health of children. Citing the neonatal intensive care unit(NICU) report of the central government, Rajasthan was not among the top-10 states in the statistics of child deaths. When the state government also released the data of this report, from the year 2020, the Centre stopped releasing the report, he alleged.

More than 100 infants had died in J K Lon hospital in Kota

The focus of Sharma’s speech was not on fixing the accountability of the infant deaths that have occurred in the state so far but on crowing about the declining number of deaths. A staggering 100+ deaths of infants in Kota’s J K Lon hospital in December 2019 brought to focus the rampancy of infant mortality in Rajasthan.

During that time, the hospital authorities had made a beeline to absolve themselves of any wrongdoing or negligence that may have played a part in the deaths. The hospital has given a clean chit to itself by forming a committee to investigate the deaths, which later ruled out any negligence saying resources and equipment were functioning properly.

The hospital also tried to pin the blame of some of the deaths to terminal diseases suffered by the infants. It claimed that five newborns who died on December 23 and 24 were just a day old and breathed their last within few hours after they were admitted. The report said they were suffering from Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy, a condition in which the infant’s brain does not receive enough oxygen and septicemia.

Later in December 2020, the hospital had grabbed headlines once again when 9 infant deaths were reported in a matter of few hours. Rajasthan health minister Raghu Sharma had then ordered a probe to look into the causes of the death. However, now the probe finding says that no one was responsible for their deaths

‘Dasna temple belongs to our ancestors, we will remove the board saying Muslims not allowed’: BSP MLA Aslam Chaudhary

Recently, the Devi temple of Dasna, Ghaziabad has been under limelight after a teenage Muslim boy named Asif claimed that he was beaten for trying to drink some water inside the temple premises.

Several opposition leaders, including local MLA Aslam Chaudhary, former Delhi MLA Alka Lamba, Congress President Vijendra Yadav and others, have lined up to meet Asif. On March 15, 2021, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA from Dholana, Aslam Chaudhary, reached Asif’s house and talked to him. During his visit, Aslam claimed that irrespective of religion, everyone has the right to visit a religious place. He further said that the Devi temple is his ancestor’s legacy and called the temple priest a goon. He demanded action against those who indulge in such acts.

YouTube video of the MLA’s statement

Aslam said, “Dasna temple belongs to our ancestors. It was built by our ancestors. Some goons have taken over the temple. They came from outside and captured the temple. They are trying to spoil harmony with their activities. However, there is so much unity among Hindus and Muslims in this area that they did not let them spoil the atmosphere. I want to tell these goons that the temple is our heritage. I will go to drink water in the temple and take care of the temple. I will see who can stop me.”

Talking about the incident, Aslam said that the person who beat up Asif was in jail by the evening. He said he would ask the DM and SP to remove the board that says, “Muslims are not allowed to enter the temple.”

Using derogatory language against the temple priest, he said, “This baba is a mafia. He is spoiling the atmosphere in the area. If we had known about the incident, it would have been a serious situation. We will not allow his bail.”

Aslam Chaudhary’s son was also caught harassing girls inside the temple, says Mahant

Yanti Narasimhanand Saraswati, the Mahant of the temple, claimed that Shiv Shakti Dham has a tap near the main gate and another tap close-by. If someone wants to drink water, why would he go inside the premises? He further claimed that it is a conspiracy against the temple. He alleged that there had been incidents of robbery at least four times in the temple premises.

There had been incidents of molestation of women and girls visiting the temple. To stop anti-social elements of the particular community, the temple authorities have placed a board at the temple entrance where it is clearly written, “The entry of Muslims is forbidden here.” It is being claimed that the board was installed around 7-8 years ago. He said, “Last year, the son of MLA Aslam Chaudhary was caught teasing a girl in the temple. He was beaten up by the locals. He was also a minor at that time. The police intervened and pressurised us to withdraw the complaint.”

The temple priests have stated that local Muslims often target the temple to sexually harass female devotees and steal valuables. Mahant Yati Narasimhanand Saraswati also added that the area has 95% Muslim population and the lone Hindu temple has long been the target of local goons. He also added that the temple authorities were forced to deploy armed security guards after repeated incidents of attack.

“Why would he come to the temple? The temple was robbed four times in the past. The priests were beaten up. We are protecting our property from thieves. Lakhs and crores of the property had been stolen from the temple,” another priest had added.

Aslam Chaudhary’s background

BSP MLA Aslam Chaudhary from Dhaulana is a dominating leader in the region. He had been named in several cases in the past. A case was registered against him for assaulting a toll collection officer. Reports suggest that MLA and his goons beat the toll workers and severely injured them. Aslam and his sons were booked in a case of forgery and cheating as well. In another case, Aslam was booked for attempted murder.