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Congress will lose Rae Bareli in 2024 just like they lost Amethi, challenges Union Minister Smriti Irani

A day before senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took off for a vacation to Milan, Union Minister Smriti Irani who emerged as a giant slayer, defeating the Gandhi scion from the Amethi Lok Sabha seat in 2019 General Assembly elections, warned of a similar fate awaiting another Congress pocket borough, Rae Bareli, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Smriti Irani on Saturday accused the former Amethi MP Rahul Gandhi of using foul language against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and resorting to spreading lies and deceit to sow confusion. “At this rate, Congress will end up losing Rae Bareli’s Lok Sabha seat too, a seat currently held by the interim Congress President Sonia Gandhi, in 2024 elections,” Irani said.

The Union Minister was on a three-day visit to her parliamentary constituency starting Friday. She also made a quick visit to nearby Rae Bareli, the parliamentary constituency held by Sonia Gandhi since 2004. The cabinet minister has also visited Lucknow to meet with Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath before travelling back to her constituency.

Stepping up attack against the Gandhi family, Irani dared Rahul Gandhi for a debate on the farmers’ issue and described Priyanka Gandhi’s proposed Kisan Yatra in Uttar Pradesh as a publicity stunt.

The Union Minister also quoted a tweet posted by BJP President JP Nadda to question Rahul Gandhi’s opposition to the newly introduced Farm Bills, stating that the Amethi’s farmers were fed up with the Congress party and therefore voted him out of power in the last Lok Sabha polls.

During her visit to Amethi, Irani also spoke of projects rolled out for her parliamentary constituency since she became the MP in 2019. Other BJP leaders also highlighted how the Yogi Adityanath government had passed several projects for Rae Bareli too. Besides AIIMS-Rae Bareli, the Ganga Expressway, which would connect Meerut to Prayagraj, and pass through Rae Bareli, pacts with private investors for fabricators and feeder factory for rail coach, a spice park for research on mint have also been authorised for the only remaining Congress enclave in the state, party leaders said.

Rahul Gandhi flies to Milan amidst rumblings within the Congress party

Smriti Irani’s biting remarks came a day before Rahul Gandhi left for vacation to Milan. According to reports, the Wayanad MP left for Milan, Italy early Sunday morning on a Qatar Airlines flight. His vacation to Milan comes a day before Congress’ foundation day where there was the party had decided to take up the nationalism pitch.

Gandhi’s vacation also comes amidst rumblings within the Congress party of making sweeping operational and leadership changes in the party, in a bid to arrest their declining political fortunes. In August this year, 23 dissident Congress leaders, including 5 former Chief Ministers, many Congress Working Committee members, incumbent MPs, and several former Union Ministers, wrote a letter to interim Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi, calling for a complete overhaul of the party, from top to bottom.

The appalling performance in Bihar Assembly elections last month led to a fresh flare-up within the party, with the senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal publicly commenting that the time for introspection is over. Following Congress’ disappointing performance in Bihar, 23 senior Congress leaders had reportedly written a letter to interim Congress President Sonia Gandhi demanding that an immediate CWC meeting be called to discuss the poll debacle in Bihar. They have reportedly also demanded organisational elections for the party president’s post be held at the earliest in the view of the electoral drubbing. They had also raised questions on the vacation by Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra.

Man booked for posing as member of ‘right-wing’ group and collecting money in Ram Mandir’s name

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A man has been booked in Uttar Pradesh for posing as a member of a right-wing outfit and collecting money as donations for the construction of the Bhavya Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. He has been booked under forgery and provisions of the Information Technology (IT) Act.

A complaint was filed by BJP’s Moradabad district chief Rajpal Singh Chauhan and on the basis of it, an FIR has been registered at the Majhola Police Station on Sarturday. Chauhan told reporters, “As soon as I came to know a man who was collecting funds for the Ram Mandir by posing as the president of a new outfit, I immediately informed the police and lodged an FIR against him. We want to alert the public that they should not donate money to anybody without verification. We demanded immediate arrest of the accused and his aides and strict action against them.”

SHO Avadhesh Kumar said, “We have registered an FIR against Premveer Singh under Sections 419 (cheating by personation) of the Indian Penal Code and 66D (cheating by personation by using computer resource) of the IT Act.” “We have also learnt from Premveer Singh’s social media posts and donors’ receipts that he belongs to the Vishwa Hindu Mahashakti Sangh. He will be arrested soon,” he added.

Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust had earlier announced that a nationwide Mass Contact and Contribution Campaign will be launched in January and it has been insisted that the Ram Mandir will be built through donations collected from devotees. It appears that the man who has been booked was attempting to take advantage of the noble initiative to dupe people.

From ‘water metro’ to ‘lite metro’ PM Modi charts out future of public transport as he flags off India’s first-ever driverless metro in Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated via video-conferencing India’s first-ever driverless train operations on Delhi’s Magenta Line connecting Janakpuri West and Botanical Garden along with the fully operational National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) services on the Airport Express Line.

According to an official, the driver-less trains will be fully automated, eliminating the possibility of human error. On the other hand, the National Common Mobility Card, an inter-operable transport facility would allow users to pay for travel, toll duties, retail shopping, and withdraw money using one card.

Besides PM Modi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also attended the virtual event.

PM Modi virtually inaugurates the driverless operations of Delhi Metro’s Magenta Line

Speaking at the event, PM Modi asserted that the start of the driverless train operations in India is an important milestone that underscores how far the country had progressed in assimilating smart systems and new-age technology.

“The first metro in the country was started with the efforts of Atal Ji. When our govt was formed in 2014, only 5 cities had metro services and today 18 cities have metro rail service. By 2025, we will take this service in more than 25 cities,” the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister also asserted that the central government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative is extremely crucial to the development and expansion of metro services since it helps in reducing costs, saving foreign exchange and providing more employment to citizens of the country.

In a scathing attack against the former central governments, PM Modi said that the previous regimes paid no attention to the future and half-hearted work was done amidst persisting confusion. He added that unlike the past, the modern thinking says urbanisation should not be viewed as a challenge but as an opportunity, an opportunity in which country’s infrastructure can be built and ease of living be improved. This difference of thinking is seen in every dimension of urbanisation, said PM Modi.

In the last six years, the country’s metro rail scenario has seen a massive transformation. When PM Modi came to power, only 248 KM of metro lines were operational in five cities. Presently, 702 km are operational in 18 cities in India and plans are underway to have Metro rail connectivity in 27 cities across the country. By 2022, when the country celebrates its 75th Independence Day, India will have a combined metro network of over a thousand kilometre which will carry more than a crore passengers every day, the statement released by DMRC said.

Delhi Metro enters an elite league

With the induction of these new trains, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation would enter into the elite league of 7 per cent of the world’s Metro networks that can operate without drivers, the official statement said. A senior Delhi Metro official also informed that the commercial operation of these trains will begin later today, following the event.

“The driverless trains will be fully automated which will require minimum human intervention and will eliminate the possibilities of human errors. Delhi Metro has been a pioneer in introducing technology-driven solutions for passenger comfort and this is another step in the same direction,” the statement said. 

“The driverless trains, set to be a major technological feat, will herald a new era of traveling comfort and enhanced mobility for the residents of Delhi and other cities in the National Capital Region,” the official statement further added.

Following the start of the driverless services along the 37-km Magenta Line, another Delhi Metro corridor, the 57-km Pink Line(Majlis Park- Shiv Vihar) is expected to be soon upgraded for the driverless operations by mid-2021. After the driverless services are operationalised on the Pink Line too, the Delhi Metro will have a driverless network length of about 94 km, which will be roughly 9 per cent of the world’s total driverless metro network.

Driverless trains to be equipped with a ton of advanced features

The driverless trains having six coaches will be a touchstone of the modern mobility solution. Each coach would accommodate a maximum of 380 passengers, which means each train will carry 2,280 passengers.

The trains would be equipped with several advanced features such as better regeneration of energy during braking, energy-efficient subsystems like LED lighting and air conditioning systems. They are designed for a maximum speed of 95 kmph and operational speed of 85 kmph, the Delhi Metro had said.

Initially, drivers will be deputed for operating the trains but they would be gradually withdrawn to move to Unattended Train Operation (UTO).

Future plans of metro in other cities

PM Modi said that RRTS metro system when operational will reduce the time of Delhi-Meerut commute by at least an hour. Similarly, Metro Lite is being implemented in cities with lighter metro-using population at just 40% cost of original metro development costs. Further, Metro Neo is being developed in cities with even fewer metro-using population and uses just 25% of the original cost. Cities with major waterbodies will also have water metro, the PM said.

Punjab: ‘Protesting farmers’ steal generator set from Jio tower and ‘donate’ it to Gurudwara. Watch video

Amidst the ongoing agitation against the historic farm laws, ‘protesting farmers’ in Punjab were seen stealing generators connected to Reliance Jio telecom towers, and ‘donating’ it to a Gurudwara.

In a video that has now gone viral on social media, protestors were seen dragging a generator set on a tractor to the gurdwara after dislodging it from the Jio Tower. The other protestors were seen following the tractor on its way to the Gurdwara. The video has now gone viral on social media.

(Video Courtesy: Youtube/Opindia)

The ‘protestors’ have been targeting Reliance Jio towers because Congress politicians have been spreading rumours and misinformation that “Ambani and Adani are about to exploit farmers”. Earlier, the protestors at Delhi border were seen urging people not to use Jio sim.

Captain Amarinder Singh appeals to protestors

While the Congress party has been a vocal supporter of the anti-farm law agitation and has remained a mute spectator to the inconvenience caused to the public over the last few months, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had a sudden ‘change of heart‘ on Friday. The Punjab government, realising the dangerous situation, appealed to the protestors to not disrupt connections or manhandle employees and technicians of telecom companies.

Protestors destroy 150 telecom towers

Despite Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s appeal, the ‘protesting farmers’ have destroyed 150 more telecom towers overnight on Saturday and Sunday alone. This takes the total number of telecom towers damaged to 1,388. News agency PTI citing sources said that site managers were slapped and abused for trying to stop the protestors from destroying the infrastructure.

Power lines are snapped and attempts to axe towers were undertaken by the ‘protesting farmers’. The attacks have impacted telecom services and operators who are struggling to maintain services in absence of action by the state police, the report said.

It is notable that at present, telecom operators do not own the towers where their antennas are placed. The towers are owned and operated by separate tower companies, and telecom companies place their antennas on the towers by paying rent for the same. Due to this arrangement, a single tower may contain antennas of several mobile phone companies. Therefore, although the protestors are targeting Jio, they may accidentally damage telecom operations of other companies also as they share resources on the towers.

France: Muslim man, the son of police officers, attacked and assaulted by Islamists for attending Christmas lunch

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A bunch of Islamist radicals attacked a fellow Muslim for posting photos online of a Christmas party he had attended. The incident occurred in the northeastern city of Belfort, France, where a 20-year-old man was assaulted by Islamists for participating in a Christmas party, a report published on RT.com said.

Soon after the victim uploaded photos of Christmas party he had attended, he was threatened by an acquaintance, an Islamist fundamentalist, who was reportedly angry about the man attending non-Muslim festivities. The 20-year-old victim is the son of law enforcement officers.

The acquaintance reportedly rebuked the 20-year-old victim as a “dirty son of a white, son of a snake, son of police” and vowed to show him what a “real Arab” should be. Even though the tone of the conversation was rather belligerent, the young man still agreed to meet his accuser in-person to sort out their differences.

French authorities condemn the violence, speak against Islamist separatism

As per the RT report, the incensed man showed up with four other men, who beat up the 20-year-old man and threatened him with dire consequences if he reported the violence to the police. Despite the threat dished out to him, the young man lodged a complaint against his assaulters and his mother has promised to bring the culprits to book. “He walked right into an ambush”, she said as quoted by the local media.

With France already reeling from an extremist Islamism, the incident did not escape the notice of top French officials, prompting many to condemn the violence and reaffirm their commitment to continue fighting the Islamic “separatism”.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin confirmed that the attack had taken place and informed that a probe has been launched in this regard. He denounced the anti-police sentiments apparently exhibited by the suspects and called Islamist separatism unacceptable.

He also took to Twitter to condemn the violence meted out on the 20-year-old for merely attending a Christmas party and sharing pictures of the same on his social media. In Belfort, a young man was assaulted because he celebrated Christmas and was not a ‘good Arab’. ‘Aggravating’ circumstance: being the son of police officers,” the minister wrote on Twitter late on Saturday.

The victim, a 20-year-old man, is reportedly the son of a Muslim mother of Arab origin. His step-father is a non-Muslim man. Both his parents are law enforcement officers. The man had shared photographs of a Christmas lunch he had enjoyed with family members.

France continues to reel under a spate of Islamist terror attacks

France is recently grappling with a bout of terror attacks by Islamist radicals, including the gruesome beheading of the teacher outside Paris. Samuel Paty, the teacher who was decapitated by the rabid Islamists, had shown his class the infamous caricatures of Prophet Muhammad published by the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Following Paty’s beheading, another attack rocked France in which three people had died, of which at least two were reportedly beheaded in a terrorist attack at Notre Dame Church in Nice. As per local French media, the Islamic terrorists who carried out the attack frenziedly kept shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ while carrying out the attack.

In the aftermath of Samuel Paty’s beheading, French authorities launched a severe crackdown against extremist Islamists across the country, closing down mosques considered as centres of indoctrination and deporting individuals with suspicious credentials. French President Emmanuel Macron also took a hardline against the menace of Islamism bedevilling France and Europe which triggered outrage from several Muslim-majority nations.

Rahul Gandhi tweeted a poem to exploit farmers issue, kin of poet demands apology

A day after Congress scion Rahul Gandhi distorted the 7-decade-old iconic poem ‘Veer Tum Badhe Chalo’, written by Dwarika Prasad Maheshwari, for furthering his political agenda amidst the ongoing farmer protests, the kin of the poet has demanded an apology from him.

In his tweet on Sunday, Rahul Gandhi had changed three lines of the poem to suit the current political narrative surrounding the historic farm laws. “Be it water guns or a thousand jackals, farmers must go ahead (with the movement),” he distorted the poem.

Screengrab of the tweet by Rahul Gandhi with the distorted poem, via Twitter

As per reports, the family members of the celebrated poet criticised Rahul Gandhi for mocking the true spirit of the poem and demanded an apology. This included Dr Vinod Kumar Maheshwari, son of Dwarka Prasad Maheshwari and former principal of Agra College. He said that a generation of Indian citizens have been inspired by his father’s poem. “The distortion is an injustice to the soul of the late poet,” Dr Vinod said. He added, “Rahul Gandhi has made fun of such an iconic poem. It is highly condemnable and you must apologise for this.”

At the same time, Dr Pranjal Maheshwari, the grandson of Dwarka Prasad Maheshwari, also criticised Rahul Gandhi’s act and corrected him. He said, “It is high time that you learn the poem by heart. The lines you have added are not correct.”

The family members of the poet have stated that by sharing the distorted version to further his political goals, Rahul Gandhi has mocked and insulted the spirit of the poem.

Ujjain stone-pelting incident: Madhya Pradesh police books Ayaz, Wasim, Shadab and Altu under NSA

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Two days after a Muslim mob targetted Hindu groups and pelted stones at them in Begum Bagh area in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, the police have booked four people under the National Security Act (NSA). The attack took place on Friday when Hindus took out a Ramnidhi Sangrahan rally to collect donations for the Ram Mandir constructions at Ayodhya.

As per reports, the accused who was booked under the NSA include Ayaz Mohammad, Wasim Aslam, Shadab Akram and Altu Aslam. At the same time, the cops had booked three people, including two women, for an attempt to murder, rioting, giving a false statement and voluntarily causing hurt. Inspector Arvind Singh Tomar of Mahakal police station stated that 11 people were injured during the stone-pelting while one individual sustained grievous injuries.

Ujjain SP Satyendra Kumar Shukla informed, “Begum Bagh area is communally sensitive and those booked under the NSA had criminal records. The police investigation is objective and FIR has been recorded from both sides.” He further added, “In the first FIR, seven people have been booked, the second FIR is against unidentified persons, while in the third FIR, a person from the rally has been identified.” He had also dismissed accusations of siding with the Hindu group, as alleged by Ujjain Seher-e-Kaazi Khaliqur Rehman.

Mob pelts stones at Ramnidhi Sangrahan rally

Several Hindus had taken out a Ramnidhi Sangrahan rally on Friday for collecting donations for the construction of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. The rally was scheduled to start from the tower area and stop at Bharat Mata Mandir in Mahakal area. However, when the rally reached the Muslim-dominated locality of Begum Bagh, a mob started attacking the rally with stones from rooftops. The people in the rally ran for safety and even left their vehicles behind in a hurry.

In the videos of the incident that went viral on social media, women and young children could be seen hurling stones at the people in the rally. Over 10 people got severely injured in the stone-pelting. The mob did not stop after the people ran away leaving their vehicles behind. The mob then came on the road and vandalised the vehicles in a display of absolute audacity and no fear of law.

Cops demolish house used for stone-pelting

On Saturday, the Ujjain police along with teams of municipal corporation demolished a house from where some women and children pelted stones at the people taking out the yatra. In a swift action, the house, which was reportedly an illegal construction, was pulled down by the authorities using a JCB extractor.

Congress trolls trying to shield Rahul Gandhi left red faced after party confirms Wayanad MP is on vacation

After media reports emerged that Rahul Gandhi had left for Milan, Italy, on an impromptu surprise vacation in middle of Punjab farmers vs Govt of India farm laws tussle, Congress trolls kept themselves busy trying to refute these as ‘fake news’. Rahul Gandhi loyalist Saket Gokhale cried himself hoarse claiming that Rahul Gandhi has not gone for vacation.

He tried hard. Quite hard. He was joined by other Congress supporters who did not want to believe Rahul Gandhi was vacationing. Suddenly everyone wanted to compare his vacation to PM Modi.

Some Congress workers, however, quite easily accepted he was vacationing.

Foul mouthed Twitter handle of IYC Punjab, too chimed in.

However, the trolls were left red faced after Congress accepted that Rahul Gandhi has indeed gone off on a ‘personal trip’. While the party did not disclose the destination of his vacation, they have not denied Milan in Italy as the destination either. Congress also celebrates its 136th foundation day today.

Confirmed: Rahul Gandhi leaves India on a personal trip, will not attend the party’s Foundation Day celebrations

On December 27, there were speculations that Rahul Gandhi, who is in the race of becoming party president once again, has left India on a personal trip and will not be attending Foundation Day celebrations of the Congress Party. The MP from Wayanwad has reportedly decided to go on a trip just a day before the grand old party’s 136th Foundation Day program. Randeep Surjewala, general secretary, Congress, said that “Rahul Gandhi is currently travelling on a short personal trip.”

Gandhi left India amidst farmers’ protest

In the last few days, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has spoken multiple times supporting the protesting farmers against the Agriculture Laws. He also led a delegation that met President Ram Nath Kovind on December 17 to submit the memorandum along with the signature of farmers against the Agriculture Laws that were recently enacted by the central government.

Gandhi missed the review meeting in Kerala

The Congress MP from Wayanad, Kerala, did not attend the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee meeting to review the party’s performance in the recent local body elections. Tariq Anwar, the state in-charge, is holding the review meeting on the issue, as reported by ANI.

Events including Tiranga Yatras planned for Foundation Day

The All India Congress Committee (AICC) has asked the state units to organize different campaigns, including Tiranga Yatras and ‘Selfie with Tiranga’ named social media program on Foundation Day. AICC said, “December 28 marks the 136th year of the foundation of Indian National Congress (INC). On this day, the PCCs are requested to observe the party foundation day in state and district headquarters and instruct office-bearers, MPs, MLAs/MLCs to participate in the functions.”

Rahul Gandhi’s trip raised suspicions among netizens

Usually, Rahul Gandhi has a habit of leaving India during crisis or important events. He has done it multiple times in the past, and him leaving the country at the time of farmers’ protests would not have raised eyebrows as everyone expect the same from him. However, he had left the country during the Wuhan Coronavirus pandemic that has raised some concerns.

Earlier, Rahul and his sister Priyanka had attracted the criticism for abandoning party workers during the Bihar elections and holidaying in Shimla.

After reports emerged that Rahul has left for Milan via a Qatar Airways flight, some social media users wondered how did he manage to obtain a permit to enter Italy. India is currently in the E-list countries as per Italy’s official website that means anyone from India can enter Italy only for work, health or study reasons. While people can only speculate, it is up to the grand old party of Rahul Gandhi himself to provide any clarification on the issue. Until he does so, which is highly unlikely, Congress workers can only wait for his return and hope he will spend time in isolation for 14 days on arrival as per the regulations.

Amitabh Bachchan apologises to poet Tisha Agarwal for sharing her poem ‘Chai’ without giving her due credit

Days after Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan was accused of plagiarism by poet Tisha Agarwal, the actor has apologised on Sunday night. The controversy originally began on Thursday after Amitabh Bachchan had shared a poem on his social media account.

A woman named Tisha Agarwal had tagged the actor, saying that the poem was originally written by her and the actor should have given her credit for it. Tisha’s post was shared by thousands of social media users, informing the actor to credit the writer.

On December 27, Amitabh Bachchan tweeted, “This tweet credit should go to Tisha Agarwal, I was not aware of its origin .. someone sent it to me, I thought it to be good and posted .. Apologies.” He had also quoted a few lines from the original poem, as a reference to his earlier tweet.

While responding to his apology, poet Tisha Agarwal expressed her gratitude to the actor for acknowledging her work. “Having my name on your Twitter wall is a matter of pride, fate, happiness and the highest acknowledgement of my work. This isn’t just credit but your compassion and my pride. If a small writer gets recognition from you, then what does she need more? This is something that I will remember forever.”

However, it must be mentioned that the original tweet, posted without credits, which was uploaded by the actor on December 23 was not deleted at the time of writing this article.

The plagiarism row involving Amitabh Bachchan

The Bollywood actor took to his Facebook and Twitter accounts on December 24 (Thursday) to share a few lines of a poem in Hindi along with a picture of himself. However, he missed out on sharing the name of the poet. The controversy, however, erupted after the woman who reportedly wrote that poem replied to the superstar’s posts. One Tisha Aggarwal, took to Facebook and Twitter to claim that the poem Big B had shared was actually written by her. “Sir, these lines are mine. At least give credit”, wrote Agarwal.

Agarwal had shared other screenshots where many people have been sharing her work without giving credit.

Agarwal also wrote: “When Amitabh Bachchan copies your post and does not even give credit, should you be sad or overjoyed?” She requested him to atleast give her the due credit. She said she would have been very happy had the actor given her credit for her work.

Tisha’s tweet had gone viral and many social media users had reminded Amitabh Bachchan of the time in 2017 when he had sent a legal notice to poet Kumar Vishwas for sharing a part of his father Dr Harivasnsh Rai Bachchan’s work.