Fifteen flights were diverted, and several were delayed at the Delhi airport on Friday due to dust storms and gusty winds, as per the Airport sources.
Delhi experienced dust storms on Friday evening. Several parts of Delhi were impacted due to the change in weather that also provided relief from scorching heat.
Air India issued a travel advisory for their passengers after the sudden change of weather in Delhi and northern areas. According to the advisory, heavy thunderstorms and gusty winds, have affected flight operations across parts of Northern India, due to which some of the Air India flights from Delhi have either been diverted or are delayed.
The officials are closely monitoring the situation and are doing the best possible to minimalise the disruptions.
“Poor weather, caused by heavy thunderstorms and gusty winds, has affected flight operations across parts of Northern India. Some of our flights to and from Delhi are being delayed or diverted, which is likely to impact our overall flight schedule. We are closely monitoring the situation and are doing our best to minimise the disruption. We advise our guests to check the latest status of their flights at https://airindia.com/in/en/manage/flight-status.html before heading to the airport”, the travel advisory said.
Several parts of Delhi witnessed a dust storm on Friday evening that led to trees falling in some areas and residents shutting windows to prevent dust from entering their houses.
Traffic was also disrupted as trees or their branches fell. Flight operations were also impacted in parts of northern India. Delhi had witnessed a dust storm on Thursday also.
Earlier, the India Meteorological Department had issued an Orange Alert for thunderstorms, lightning, and hailstorms in four districts of Himachal Pradesh, while Yellow Alerts have been issued for four other districts.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
In a major political move, the Modi government has finally delivered on its years-old promise by passing the Waqf Bill across the country and implementing the Waqf Act. While this development has been welcomed by many, it hasn’t gone down well with certain hardline Muslim groups and several opposition parties, many of whom are still grappling with the new reality.
Tensions flared in Ahmedabad’s Rakhial area, where a group of Muslims took to the streets in protest. According to a video shared by Sagar Patoliya on X, the crowd gathered near the Kalandari Mosque and blocked a major road, even beginning to offer Namaz in the middle of the street—an apparent attempt to spark disruption under the guise of religious observance.
But the Ahmedabad police were quick to act. Anticipating the situation before it could spiral out of control, they detained the protestors early on, maintaining calm and order in the area.
Order restored swiftly
The crowd had reportedly planned to stage a demonstration right after the Friday prayers. However, thanks to the vigilance and timely response of law enforcement, the situation was brought under control without major incident. At present, all those involved have been detained, and peace has been restored in the area.
“Modi will take our Mosques”: The Old Narrative Resurfaces
Meanwhile, a video from the scene has gone viral, showing a man allegedly trying to incite unrest by peddling inflammatory claims. In the clip, the individual is seen accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah of planning to seize Muslim mosques and graveyards—an allegation that has been repeatedly used to stoke fear and division.
The man can be heard shouting, “Who are Modi and Amit Shah? Is this their father’s country? This land doesn’t belong to anyone’s father!”
‘Sharbat Jihad,’ this newly coined term, has triggered the Islamist cheerleaders, also known as the left-liberal gang, into mindlessly promoting the sugar-loaded drink Rooh Afza. This comes after Yoga Guru and Patanjali Ayurved’s co-founder Baba Ramdev introduced the term ‘Sharbat Jihad’ while promoting his company’s new rose-flavored summer drink.
In a promotional video posted on Patanjali Products’ Facebook page on 3rd April 2025, Baba Ramdev criticized soft drinks, equating them to ‘toilet cleaners’ consumed under the guise of quenching thirst in summer. Without naming any specific company, Baba Ramdev asserted that this company, although it sells ‘sharbat’, the revenue earned from its sales goes towards the construction of mosques, madarsas and other Islamic institutions.
The inference here, however, appears to be Hamdard Laboratories (India), which makes the popular summer drink Rooh Afza. Contrasting this with Patanjali’s Rose Sharbat, Baba Ramdev claimed that its profits fund Gurukuls, Acharyakulam, Patanjali University, and the Bhartiya Shiksha Board. He further warned that just as there is love jihad and vote jihad, there is also sharbat jihad going on and that people, especially Hindus, need to protect themselves from sharbat jihad. Notably, even though the Yoga Guru warned people against the alleged sharbat jihad, he did not essentially oppose the ‘unnamed’ sharbat-maker’s practice of funding or running Islamic institutions.
“In the name of quenching thirst during summers, people drink cold beverages that are basically toilet cleaners. On one side, there’s the attack of toilet-cleaner-like poison, and on the other, there’s a company selling sharbat, which uses the money earned from it to build mosques and madrasas. That’s fine, it’s their religion…Protect your family and innocent children from the poison of toilet cleaner being sold under the name of ‘sharbat jihad’ and cold drinks. Bring home only Patanjali sharbat and juices,” Ramdev said.
Liberals get triggered over Baba Ramdev’s ‘sharbat jihad’ claim, start promoting unhealthy RoohAfza
The Indian left-liberal cabal has a knack for whitewashing or justifying Islamic terrorism, violence, Jihadist rhetoric, institutionalised Muslim hegemony and exclusionary Islamic practices. Be it whitewashing the Muslim mob violence in Nagpur by blaming Hindus and film Chhaava, opposing the Waqf Act 2023 so as to allow the continuation of Waqf Board’s encroachment of Hindu properties and government lands, villainising Hindus for waving saffron flags on a structure named after Salar Ghazi Masud, an Islamic jihadi plunderer who destroyed Hindu temples and killed Hindus to the general opposition to Hindu efforts at reclaiming their temples, liberals shrewdly deflect attention from the crux of issues to blame the victim and whitewash the perpetrator.
Although, there is no essential victim-perpetrator scenario in the ‘sharbat jihad’ controversy on the face of it, the liberal ecosystem has jumped in to defend and promote Hamdard’s flavoured sugar-syrup Rooh Afza because how dare a Hindu guru claimed that a company which is essentially a Waqf or simply an Islamic charitable endowment, is selling its product to people especially Hindus, while its profits fund construction and operations of mosques, madarsas, Islamic universities etc.
In this vein, pro-Congress propagandist and YouTuber Ajit Anjum alleged that ‘businessman’ Baba Ramdev has resorted to cheap theatrics to sell his sharbat and somehow found religion in sharbat as well. In his unbearable histrionic style, Anjum claimed that Baba Ramdev targeted Hamdard and its flagship product Rooh Afza because that company is owned by a Muslim. Amusingly, after wholeheartedly promoting Hamdard’s sugar syrup, Anjum said that it may appear that he is promoting Rooh Afza.
Another liberal ‘journalist’, Sakshi Joshi, also published her picture with a glass of Rooh Afza and called it “Mohabbat ka Sharbat”.
One Habeeb wrote, “Love jihaad, land jihaad, news channel jihad, government job jihaad ke baad ab market mein aaya “Sharbat Jihaad” Baba Ramdev’s attempt to promote Patanjali’s sharbat by calling Rooh Afza “Sharbat Jihaad” is not only disrespectful but dangerous. Using religion to push his own product is a blatant attempt to divide communities for commercial gain.”
Love jihaad, land jihaad, news channel jihad, government job jihaad ke baad ab market mein aaya "Sharbat Jihaad"
Baba Ramdev's attempt to promote Patanjali's sharbat by calling Rooh Afza "Sharbat Jihaad" is not only disrespectful but dangerous. Using religion to push his own… pic.twitter.com/Ozex1kTvyU
— Habeeb Masood Al-Aidroos (@habeeb_masood) April 9, 2025
Meanwhile, AltNews’s Mohammed Zubair, who earned notoriety by dog-whistling Islamists against ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma and passing off ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans raised by his co-religionists as ‘Nasir Sahab Zindabad’, called Baba Ramdev as ‘Lala Ramdev’ and claimed that the latter is playing Hindu-Muslim card. He further asserted that Patanjali Ayurved obtained Halal certification for some of its products meant to be sold in Gulf countries.
“Sharbat Jihad? Lala Ramdev is now selling his low quality Patanjali Sharbat by playing the Hindu-Muslim Card. He knows that’s the only way to fool Indians. The same Ramdev sold his Patanjali products in the Middle East by obtaining Halal Certification for some of its products, particularly those intended for export to Gulf countries,” Zubair posted on X.
Sharbat Jihad? Lala Ramdev is now selling his low quality Patanjali Sharbat by playing the Hindu-Muslim Card. He knows that's the only way to fool Indians. The same Ramdev sold his Patanjali products in the Middle East by obtaining Halal Certification for some of its products,… pic.twitter.com/R6sP3y5H86
It is pertinent to note that just like Mohammed Zubair, several others of his ilk are using the ‘Lala Ramdev’ term for Baba Ramdev to discredit his spiritual credentials and paint him as a full-time businessman masquerading as a Hindu saint. For Islamo-leftists, a Hindu saint doing business is outright communal for simply saying that a company is using its profits for Islamic purposes; however, an Islamic Waqf business earning profits from non-Muslims and then using those funds for running Islamic institutions is secular by default.
One anti-BJP troll, “Punster”, invoked ‘Islamophobia’ and claimed that Baba Ramdev is using it as a legit marketing strategy. “If you drink that sharbat (Roohafza), madarsa’s will be built. If you drink Patanjali Gulab sharbat, gurukuls will be built.” – Lala Ramdev, who is using islamophobia as a legit marketing strategy to build a business empire.”
"If you drink that sharbat (Roohafza), madarsa's will be built. If you drink Patanjali Gulab sharbat, gurukuls will be built."
– Lala Ramdev, who is using islamophobia as a legit marketing strategy to build a business empire. pic.twitter.com/uwipUge4kt
Hamdard: The 115-year-old Unani pharmaceutical and food company, its transition into a Waqf and its many controversies
‘Hamdard’ is an Unani pharmaceutical and food company established in undivided India in 1906 by Hakeem Hafiz Abdul Majeed. Following India’s bloodied partition on religious lines and the creation of Pakistan, Hamdard was transformed into a ‘Waqf’, an Islamic irrevocable trust with its profits meant to be utilized for Islamic religious, charitable and educational purposes. As India was partitioned, the Humdard family also split, with one branch establishing Humdard Pakistan.
Humdard Laboratories India continues to divert 85% of its profits to the Humdard National Foundation (HNF). Founded in 1964, the HNF runs many healthcare and educational institutions, including Jamia Humdard University, and provides courses in Islamic studies, etc. It runs a Ghalib Academy to promote Urdu literature. HNF also runs Jamia Hamdard Rabea Girls School, which has a reservation policy wherein 50% seats are reserved for Indian Muslims while the rest are open for non-Muslim students.
Notably, while Hamdard’s Waqf status implies that its revenue supports initiatives aligned with Islamic charitable principles, as per the company’s website, HNF’s institutions are open to non-Muslims as well.
While Rooh Afza is a cultural staple for many in India, especially for Muslims in Ramzan, over the years, Humdard has been embroiled in several controversies as well. In 2024, Humdard Laboratories India was accused of cheating millions of customers in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and the Middle East through false claims.
In February last year, it was reported that Humdard promoted Rooh Afza as a “nutritional drink” that “maintains as well as adjusts the body’s water level, has 13 herbal ingredients and 36 types of fresh fruit juices and fresh flower extracts”. However, the Dhaka South City Corporation had said that the ingredients mentioned in the cooling drink do not exist. Moreover, reports have cited health experts saying that Rooh Afza may cause serious health issues to a large number of people, particularly those suffering from diabetes. The findings were revealed from data collected from the market under the initiative by DSCC. A Bangladeshi civic official had alleged back then that Hamdard had been doing immoral things since the beginning.
Back in 2022, a major outrage erupted in Haryana after demands rose for 50% reservation for Hindus in jobs at Humdard. A Mahapanchayat was held in July 2022, which announced that in case the demand is not met, the Manesar-based company will be forced to shut down. In this panchayat, the Hamdard company was accused of discriminating against Hindus.
A former sarpanch of Manesar had claimed that Hamdard’s factory is built on the lands of local Hindu farmers. Being registered as a trust, it gets a lot of leeway and a free hand to operate in the way it wants. Although these allegations triggered massive outrage, Humdard’s Chief of Operations, Shailesh Tiwari, had denied this.
Halal-certified Rooh Afza is secular, but calling out Halal and Waqf’s exclusionary nature is communal: The ‘liberal’ hypocrisy
While left-leaning ‘journalists’ and commentators, ever-ready to selectively champion Muslims’ causes, are highlighting Rooh Afza’s supposed cultural significance, boasting it as a nostalgic summer drink, however, Humdard’s waqf status and its explicit alignment with Islamic charitable goals cannot be overlooked. While there is no verified evidence that Humdard funds construction or operation of mosques and madarsas as claimed by Baba Ramdev, since Waqf trusts often support ‘community’ welfare, it may include religious institutions like madarsas and mosques. Due to Humdard India’s Waqf nature, there is comparatively less transparency in these matters.
It is pertinent to mention that even if Humdard, being a Waqf entity, operated such Islamic religious-educational institutions, it would have been perfectly legal. However, most of Humdard’s products are Halal-certified. Even if we assume that Humdard does not use its revenue to run Masjids or madarsas, the Halal certification of its products like Rooh Afza itself is notable.
Both Waqf and Halal are mechanisms centred on Islamic principles and meant to promote the Islamic agenda. What could be called as corporate waqf, since Humdard, despite being a waqf entity, is a full-fledged business which complies with company laws, and is a commercial brand competing with conventional secular companies, its compliance with Halal certification contributes to the Halal economy.
Contrary to popular understanding, Halal certification is not confined to meat products alone. Pharmaceutical products, personal care products, cosmetics, and even flour, all come with halal certification now. With its ever-growing scope, it is creating the grounds for restricting the job prospects in these sectors to people from only one religion. Further, this parallel system of certification runs without any effective checks and balances from the government.
The term Halal is used for products, services, or systems that are considered lawful (Tayeib) or permissible under the Islamic Shariah law that do not consist of or contain any part that is considered unlawful (haram) according to Islamic law, and/or the actions permitted by Shariah law without punishment imposed on the doer.
In India, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (JUH)’s Jamiat Ulama-e-Hindu Halal Trust is one of the oldest halal certifying trusts. In January this year, the Uttar Pradesh government told the Supreme Court that numerous products other than meat were randomly labelled as ‘halal certified’, requiring the products to meet the specifications of the Islamic Law. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, while representing the Uttar Pradesh state government in the Supreme Court, stated that the state was shocked to see products other than meat, like cement, iron rods, water bottles, etc requiring halal certification. This revelation was made during the hearing on a plea challenging the UP government’s ban on Halal certification.
The UP govt said that the Halal certification is a parallel system, as the country has the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to determine the quality of foods, and that it violates the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, under which FSSAI was formed.
Notably, the Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind is one of the most influential and largest Islamic organisations, which has provided legal support to Muslims accused of terrorism cases for over a decade now. It has defended its actions, saying that they provide legal services to ‘innocent Muslims’. The legal cell, set up by JUH president Maulana Arshad Madani in 2007, takes up the cases and enlists lawyers to defend the terror accused in the courts. The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind has offered its services to around 700 accused. What is worrying about such interventions is that they have been able to get acquittals of at least 192 terror accused since 2007. Most of the acquittals did not take place owing to the proven innocence of the accused. Jamiat also hired a lawyer to fight the case of the anti-Hindu Nuh Violence accused Congress leader Mamman Khan.
Halal economy, despite its discriminatory and exclusionary nature, thrives with even Hindus and other non-Muslims, most of the time unknowingly contributing to it, and is not opposed. Interestingly, in 2022, Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved had also obtained a Halal certificate from JUHHT for some of its products. These certifications are renewed based on annual audits. Before this, in 2020, ‘Halal India’, the halal certification body in India, refused to certify Patanjali products, stating that animal urine is prohibited from being granted halal status and some of the Patanjali products have cow urine as one of their ingredients.
While OpIndia does not back Ramdev’s sweeping accusations against Humdard or any company making rose-flavoured sharbat and using its revenue to fund mosques and madarsas (since he did not name Humdard), obtaining Halal certification specifically for products meant to be sold in Gulf countries is not hypocritical. Rather, it is business pragmatism and respect towards the norms of those Islamic countries. However, India is not an Islamic country. India is a Hindu-majority secular country. Thus, either there should be a complete restriction on Halal certification and Halal economy in India, or there should be no issue if Hindus or other non-Muslim communities come with their own similar exclusionary framework.
The real hypocrisy is when liberals glorify a Waqf entity’s Halal-certified product as a symbol of ‘secularism’, ‘cultural unity’ and whatnot but criticise a Hindu religious figure and businessman promoting their company’s product by promising to work for similar exclusionary systems. Although Baba Ramdev’s ‘Sharbat Jihad’ remark comes across as more speculative than factual, the ‘liberal’ critique against him conveniently skipped to mention exclusionary Halal certification when glorifying Rooh Afza, but raked up the same when bashing Baba Ramdev. The ‘liberal’ hypocrisy begs the question: Are religious rights exclusive to Muslims or Muslim-owned companies in India?
Amidst the outrage and criticism, it must not be forgotten that Baba Ramdev did not oppose, the fact that companies like Hamdard (although he didn’t explicitly mention its name) are utilizing their revenue for supposedly backing Islamic institutions, he only asserted that just as that company, according to him, uses its revenue for Islamic purposes, Patanjali Ayurved would its revenue for supporting Hindu educational institutions like Gurukuls.
Rooh Afza, like soft drinks, is highly unhealthy for regulation consumption given its high sugar content, however, liberals can consume poison if tomorrow someone, especially someone donning saffron robes, claims that a Muslim-owned company’s poison is deadly. They would consume it to prove that the poison was a blend of pre-2014 vibrant ‘secular’ era and sweet Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb, although they would probably not survive. ‘Jihad’ or not, high-sugar flavoured drinks are bad for health, just as liberal hypocrisy of defending one side of the same coin while slandering the other is for our country.
With President Droupadi Murmu’s approval, the Waqf Amendment Bill, which was adopted by the Lok Sabha on 3rd April and the Rajya Sabha on 4th April, became the Waqf Amendment Act and went into effect on 8th April. However, during this period, some incidents took place, hinting at something more sinister.
A severed pig’s head was found inside Shahi Jama Masjid, located in the Mantola police station area of Agra in Uttar Pradesh. On 11th April morning, the head was found adjacent to the mosque’s water tank, inciting anger among the Muslim community. The mosque management committee labeled it as a calculated and intentional conspiracy. However, the police said that a man named Nazaruddin was behind this incident.
#Agra : जामा मस्जिद में जानवर का सिर रखने का मामला
शहर की फिजा बिगाड़ने वाले व्यक्ति को किया गया गिरफ्तार
पुलिस ने व्यक्ति को महज 4 घंटे में किया गिरफ्तार
पकड़े गए व्यक्ति का नाम नजरूद्दीन,पुलिस कर रही पूछताछ
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) City Sonam Kumar had promptly arrived at the location with personnel from multiple police stations to retrieve the head and commence an investigation. He stated that the police had been actively searching for the accused since morning and further mentioned that efforts are underway to determine his motive behind the action. The officer confirmed that he will be arrested and sent to jail as part of legal proceedings.
Tensions rose at Agra’s Shahil Jama Masjid just before Friday prayers when a polythene bag with meat and decapitated pig head. The instance sparked unrest, prompting a large gathering of locals at the site. Police responded promptly to control the situation. The people claimed that it was a deliberate attempt to disturb communal peace. The authorities appealed for peace and advised against rumormongering.
The whole area had been transformed into a security zone. The authorities reassured the public that appropriate action would be taken. Religious leaders from the Muslim community were summoned to the location. CCTV footage from the mosque captured a young man with his face obscured, carrying a closed sack in his hand. The police seized the DVR from the CCTV cameras installed in the mosque. Sonam Kumar promised that the suspect would be apprehended shortly and stringent actions would ensue.
A warning has been issued regarding Friday prayers in the wake of the event. During afternoon services, police will be stationed outside mosques and social media activity is closely monitored. Several police teams were engaged in searching for the perpetrator by analyzing CCTV footage and other means. According to the authorities, Nazaruddin from Mantola was identified as the individual who discarded the animal’s head inside the mosque. He has been taken into custody and being questioned. The police sought assistance from local intelligence and residents to ascertain the identity of the perpetrator.
Nazeem detained for tearing pages of Quran
A few days earlier, on 3rd April, tensions flared in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur, following the discovery of torn pages from the Quran in the vicinity of the Jalalabad police station. In response, thousands of Muslims congregated on Tehsil Road, calling for action. Subsequent investigations revealed that a Muslim individual named Nazeem was responsible for the act. The incident transpired at around 9 pm when a young man was observed ripping pages from the Quran and scattering them near a local shop.
As news of the incident circulated, the Muslim community became increasingly incensed. Many people took to the streets and created a ruckus. Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajesh Dwivedi arrived with the police force after learning of the situation and pacified the mob. Cops were stationed there to maintain peace. The police then used CCTV footage to identify the offender, who turned out to Nazeem and he was apprehended immediately.
Superintendent of Police Rajesh Dwivedi conveyed, “I personally reached the scene with police personnel, and after ensuring that the crowd dispersed, we checked the CCTV footage. The video showed a man throwing torn pages of the ‘Quran’ into the air. The accused was later identified as Nazeem, a resident of Jalalabad.”
Islamists commit ‘blasphemy’ only to blame Hindus, inflict violence: A universal playbook
Notably, in addition to the rhetoric from opposition parties and Muslim leaders labeling the Waqf Amendment Bill as anti-Muslim and unconstitutional, Islamist groups are actively attempting to incite communal violence in the nation by framing Hindus. Interestingly, this method has been adopted to specifically target Hindus by the radicals by defiling their own religious texts and symbols. Furthermore, this troubling trend is not limited to the country, but it also extends to other nations including India’s neighbourhood such as Bangladesh, where anti-Hindu violence by Muslim mobs remains a serious issue.
A man named Shah Alam entered the Durga Puja Mandap at the Sri Sri Rakshakali Temple located in the Sompura region of Hathazari, Chittagong, carrying a bag filled with copies of the Quran, in 2023. He was nabbed by the Puja Celebration Committee and subsequently turned over to the cops. Nevertheless, the police released him without conducting an investigation, attributing their decision to his alleged mental instability.
“When the person entered the Mandap, his suspicious behaviour raised our concern. Around 8 pm, we detained him for questioning and searched his bag. We found three copies of the Quran Sharif and some jihadist books, among other items. We promptly handed him over to the Hathazari police sub-inspector Jasim, in accordance with the law,” disclosed General Secretary of the Puja Celebration Committee Gobinda Kantinath.
Jyotin Nandi, the Organisational Editor of the Committee, mentioned that he was dressed in white and seated among the devotees. Several members of the committee gathered around him, driven by suspicion. One member observed books that appeared to be the Quran in a bag next to his chair which prompted him to raise an alarm, leading to the man’s apprehension.
In 2021, extremists targeted Hindus in Bangladesh, claiming they had disrespected the Quran. However, an investigation by the police revealed that a Muslim individual was actually behind the alleged “blasphemous” actions. The authorities identified Iqbal Hossain, the son of Nur Ahmed Alam from the Sujanagar area of Comilla, as the individual responsible for the week-long communal violence against Hindus in the country. A slew of violent attacks against the nation’s minority Hindu population was sparked after he put the Quran at a Durga Puja mandap in Comilla’s Nanua Dighir Par.
That same year, local residents captured a Muslim man who attempted to take a copy of the Quran into the Sarbajanin Puja pavilion. This event unfolded in the Chowdhury Bazar area of Habibganj town, situated in Bangladesh’s Sylhet Division. A 25-year-old named Mizan from Luitapur village in the Begumganj region of Noakhali Division, was seen wandering nearby when he tried to access the puja pavilion through a rear entrance. When locals nabbed him, they found a copy of the Quran in his possession.
Considering that Muslim fanatics formerly executed anti-Hindu attacks by infiltrating the Islamic book into the puja pandal, the people swiftly reported him to the police. Officer-in-charge (OC) Dous Mohammad from the Habiganj Sardar Model police station conveyed, “Police are questioning him to know details of his motive.”
Conclusion
There is a persistent tendency among Islamists to target Hindus, often using blasphemy as a pretext for violence especially, in Islamic countries. On 6th April, a crowd of agitated Muslims attempted to lynch a 40-year-old Hindu man named Akhil Chandra Mondal, accusing him of ‘insulting’ Islam and ridiculing Prophet Muhammad. This incident took place in the Tangail district of Bangladesh. He bled from his head as police intervened to escort him away while the bloodthirsty people assaulted him with sticks and rods, in alarming videos that surfaced online.
This occurrence represents merely one of countless instances in which a violent Muslims groups are willing to attack, kill and devastate entire areas over what they deem blasphemous, without considering the validity of the accusations. Hence, Hindus are marked as target by such fake allegations of blasphemy by these individuals to provoke unrest and violence in the country.
Unsurpringly, radical Muslims in Pakistan also exploit false blasphemy accusations to further oppress marginalized minorities, particularly the Hindu community, and others they consider guilty, even in the absence of evidence. A vicious mob is perpetually prepared to respond to calls for murder at a moment’s notice in this highly radicalized nation. The brutal torture, murder and subsequent burning of Priyantha Diyawadana, a 49-year-old Sri Lankan national and general manager at Rajco Industries in Sialkot, Punjab, who faced accusations of blasphemy, amid slogans of “Nara e Takbeer” and “Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah” serves as yet another illustration of this disturbing pattern.
Unfortunately, even in the first world, false blasphemy charges can lead to deadly consequences as portrayed by the infamous beheading of 47-year-old geography teacher Samuel Paty in 2020. During a lesson on freedom of speech, he advised his students to look away if they were likely to be offended by a controversial image from Charlie Hebdo. His life was taken after a schoolgirl, who had not attended the class, informed her father that she had been reprimanded for voicing an objection.
It was alleged online that a few days earlier, he had ordered Muslim students to exit his class of 13-year-olds before revealing controversial images of the prophet Muhammad. The lies cost Paty his life, as he was murdered by Abdoullakh Anzorov, a Chechen-born murderer, outside his secondary school located in the Paris suburb of Conflans-Saint-Honorine. The assailant was shot and killed by police just moments later.
It is evident that the propagation of fabriated charges to invoke accusations of blasphemy is a pretext for the murder of non-Muslims, particularly Hindus and those labeled as offenders as well as unleash mayhem. The Islamists don’t care for legal proceedings, authorities or even law, instead, they act with a sense of entitlement, engaging in violent acts without guilt or remorse, often viewing such actions as a religious obligation. A striking example of the same was observed in Pakistan, where extremists were ready to attack a woman simply for wearing a dress with Arabic script, mistakenly assuming it for Quranic verses.
The false blasphemy allegations that led to widespread violence in Nagpur recently is yet another glaring instance of the same. Now, the passage of the Waqf Amendment Bill has undoubtedly led some vested interests to view it as a chance to create discord and undermine law and order in the country. Furthermore, the deceptive rhetoric from political parties focused on vote bank politics, as well as the remarks of Muslim leaders is only intensifying the issue. The two recent cases could potentially be indicative of a larger controversy to trigger chaos in the country, akin to the events that occurred during the anti-CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) protests.
Uttar Pradesh police busted a major Christian conversion racket going on inside a house in Arusha village of Ahiraula police station area in Azamgarh, on Thursday (10th April). More than 30 men and women had reportedly gathered in the house where the conversion activity was taking place. Police have arrested the owner of the house, Gulabchand and his wife, Bandeyi.
Conversion racket busted in UP’s Azamgarh
Women and men called in name of ‘prayers for the sick’, instead being taught Bible with claims that Yeshu heals all sick people by miracle
Soon, they will be told Dharmic symbols are shaitaan that interfere in miracle
Villagers have alleged that some outsiders are involved in the conversion activity. The locals were reportedly being lured with money and job offers to convert to Christianity. They were also being instructed not to worship Hindu deities. The conversion activity has reportedly been going on for a long time and was busted after a local named Happy Singh filed a complaint with the police. The police reached the house on the complaint and recovered a Bible along with some pamphlets. An FIR was registered against the couple, and the husband was taken for questioning.
आरोपी के विरुद्ध थाना अहरौला सुसंगत धाराओं में अभियोग पंजीकृत है, अभियोग से संबंधित एक आरोपी को पुलिस हिरासत में लिया गया है, अग्रिम कार्यवाही प्रचलित है।
Ahiraula SHO Anil Kumar Singh said that the police acted swiftly on the complaint of the villagers. An investigation has been going on in the matter. As per the FIR accessed by OpIndia, Happy Singh alleged that a religious function was going on in Gulabchand’s house on 10th April. He, along with his friend Abhishek, went to attend the religious function. However, on reaching there, they found out that around 20 men and women had gathered there and they were being instructed by Bandeyi to convert to Christianity. They were being lured through superstitious activities and money. When Happy Singh and his friend Abhishek opposed this, they were given death threats. They were also allegedly asked to convert to Christianity and were offered money to keep quiet. Thereafter, Happy Singh and Abhishek left the place and informed the police about it.
The FIR has been lodged under sections 3, 5(1) of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, and section 351(3) of the BNSS.
Earlier incidents of religious conversion in Azamgarh
This is not the first time that an incident of religious conversion has been reported from Azamgarh. Similar instances of religious conversion have come to light from the area in the past. In October last year, police raided a house in the Kandharapur area of Miria Redha village, Azamgarh, on the complaint filed by Bharatiya Janata Party District Vice President Harivansh Mishra. A mass conversion event was going on in the house. Police seized objectionable materials, including religious books, from the house. A case was filed by the police, and the accused, named Rajaram Yadav, was arrested.
A few weeks before this incident, another Christian conversion racket was busted by police in Kandharapur and Maharajganj. A conversion was being carried out in the name of healing. Three individuals were arrested by the police for persuading people to convert to Christianity by promising miraculous cures.
In a similar incident, the Azamgarh police in Uttar Pradesh busted a conversion racket on July 30, 2022, by arresting six women who were attempting to convert vulnerable villagers to Christianity. According to reports, the racket was being carried out under the guise of a birthday party.
China on Friday hit back at the latest US tariffs by imposing 125 per cent tariffs on imports of all US goods.
Chinese official Xinhua agency cited the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council to state that it will lift the additional tariffs on products imported from the US to 125 per cent from 84 per cent, effective from April 12.
China has also filed lawsuit with WTO following the latest US tariff hikes, the Chinese commerce ministry said as per a report in the official Xinhua Agency.
Also in his first public remarks on US-China trade war, Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday said, “There is no winner in a tariff war, and going against the world will only result in self-isolation”. He made the remarks during his meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Beijing today according to Xinhua.
Xi further called on China and the EU to fulfill their international responsibilities, work together to safeguard economic globalization and the international trading environment, and jointly resist unilateral bullying.
The Chinese Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council today said that given that there is no longer any possibility of market acceptance for US goods exported to China under the current tariff levels, if the US side subsequently continues to impose tariffs on Chinese goods exported to the US, the Chinese side will not respond to any further tariffs imposed by the United States.
“Even if the US imposes even higher tariffs, it would no longer make economic sense and ultimately go down as a joke in world economic history,” according to the commission as reported in the Chinese state media.
The current US tariffs on Chinese imports include a 145 per cent duty on all products imported from China, according to the White House.
China said that the “excessively high tariffs” imposed by US President Donald Trump “seriously violates international economic and trade rules, goes against basic economic laws and common sense, and is nothing but unilateral bullying and coercion.”
However, should the US persist in substantially undermining China’s interests, China will take firm countermeasures and fight to the end, the commission added.
On April 10, Trump paused most of the tariffs for 90 days but for China the tariffs were hiked to 145 per cent.
Trump blamed Beijing’s retaliatory actions — including hiking the tariff rate to 84 per cent — and announced an immediate increase in US tariffs on Chinese imports to 125 per cent, on top of the 20 per cent rate the president had previously imposed on China — bringing the total tariff to 145 per cent.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
Hindus have been living in fear and under house arrest ever since frenzied Muslim mobs unleashed mayhem in Bantara village in Dinajpur Sadar upazila of Bangladesh under the pretext of ‘blasphemy.’
On 6th April this year, Muslims blocked the Dinajpur-Gobindaganj highway after accusing a Hindu man (identified as one Sobuj Das) of ‘insulting’ Prophet Muhammad. Radical outfits like Jammat-e-Islami and Hefazat-e-Islam also participated in the demonstrations.
They demanded the arrest and execution of the Hindu victim for supposedly committing ‘blasphemy’. The Muslim mobs unleashed carnage in the area in the presence of the police and the army.
#BreakingNews: Last night, Islamist-jihadist gang under the umbrella of "Towhidi Janata" has declared an indefinite closure of Hindu shops in Bantara area under Dinajpur district in Bangladesh, citing a Facebook post by a Hindu youth. They also have banned Hindus from driving… pic.twitter.com/deNKs2oCNa
— Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury (@salah_shoaib) April 4, 2025
Sobuj Das and his family had to flee the village, fearing for their safety and security. On the night of 3rd April, Muslims in Bantara village declared an indefinite closure of Hindu shops.
They also barred local Hindus from driving rickshaw vans. The extremists also threatened to vandalise and burn down Hindu properties if they dared to run their business in Bantar.
According to Bangladeshi journalist Shoaib Salahuddin Choudhury, the Muslim mobs also threatened to abduct Hindu women if they did not remain confined to their homes.
In the village of Bontara in Dinajpur, Hindus are being persecuted. It is claimed that Sabuj Das insulted the Prophet on Facebook, which supposedly hurt the feelings of Muslims. As a result, Hindus have been arrested. All Hindu-owned shops have been closed. pic.twitter.com/BnwXlz4zLm
Noted Bangladeshi author-in-exile, Taslima Nasreen, highlighted that Hindus were being arrested in Bantara village in Dinajpur Sadar upazila. A case in point is that of a Hindu teacher named Upendranath Roy.
Roy was attacked and held hostage in his own home by a mob of ‘Tawhidi Janata’ – vigilante Muslims, unleashing violence under the pretext of protecting the tenets of Islam. The victim was then handed over to the police.
His only mistake was that he raised his voice against the collective persecution of the Hindu community in Bantara village.
Due to continued threats and fear of attacks, the 16-hour-long ‘Harinam Sankirtan’ was abandoned. The situation was further exacerbated by hate speeches made by a mob of ‘Tawhidi Janata’.
They openly acknowledged vandalising the house of Sobuj Das based on ‘blasphemous comments’ made on Facebook.
In Bontara, Dinajpur, the local Touhidi group has ordered the indefinite closure of Hindu-owned shops and banned Hindu rickshaw pullers following a Facebook post by a Hindu youth. Those attempting to reopen their shops have been threatened with violence. #Bangladesh… pic.twitter.com/goTkqZzrZf
According to reports, more than 150 Hindu families had escaped from the area owing to immediate threats to their lives at the hands of the Muslim mobs.
After the news of the ill-treatment meted out to the Hindu community became viral, the same Muslims who threatened the Hindus for the past 7 days came forward to give out a message of ‘communal harmony.’
An announcement was also made from the microphone of the local mosque – “Hindu brothers, you open your shops or stay at home if you like. Do your work freely as per your occupation. There is nothing to fear or panic.”
Muslims gather for a Photo Op to showcase communal harmony in Dinajpur, image via Prothom Alo
Similar theatrics were witnessed during multiple religious conflicts in India (particularly in Delhi and Bengaluru)
The Bangladesh police swung into ‘damage control mode’ and claimed that reports of house arrest, persecution and illegal detention of Hindus in Bantara in Dinajpur Sadar Upazila are fake.
The cops made the claims via a Facebook post on Thursday (10th April).
Screengrab of the Facebook post by Bangladesh police
Muslims attack Hindu minorities in Bangladesh under pretext of blasphemy
This is not the first time that such an incident has come to light.
In February 2025, a Muslim mob comprising members of the radical ‘Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh’ and ‘Tawhidi Janata‘ hounded a Hindu man named Supta Saha Anik after accusing him of making ‘objectionable remarks’ about Islam.
The mob organised a protest rally in Kalmakanda upazila in the Netrakona district of Bangladesh after Jumma Namaz. They also demanded the immediate arrest of the Hindu man for supposedly insulting Prophet Muhammad and gave an ultimatum of 48 hours.
As expected, the violent Muslim mob raised genocidal slogans and vowed to make ‘ultimate sacrifie’ in order to avenge the supposed dishonour to Islam.
In January this year, a Hindu man named Pranta Talukder was abducted and tortured by a Muslim mob in the Chittagong city of Bangladesh. He was thrashed mercilessly and left severely injured over allegations of committing blasphemy.
In December 2024, Muslims carried out arson attack on 130 Hindu houses and 20 temples after accusing a young boy named Akash Das of making blasphemous comments on Facebook.
In October 2024, a frenzied Muslim mob laid siege to the Kadirdi Degree College in Boalmari in the Faridpur district of Bangladesh after accusing a Hindu boy named Hridoy Pal of ‘insulting’ Prophet Muhammad.
In September last year, a Hindu boy named Utsab Mandal was almost lynched by a Muslim mob on accusations of ‘blasphemy’ in the Sonadanga residential area of Khulna city.
Later that month, another frenzied Muslim mob laid siege to the Patiya police station in Chittagong district of Bangladesh, demanding that the cops hand over a Hindu boy accused of ‘insulting’ Prophet Muhammad.
The mob, comprising mostly local madrassa students, also attacked an army vehicle after seeing a young boy in civilian clothes and mistaking him for the Hindu victim. A 22-year-old Hindu youth named Partha Biswas Pintu was arrested on charges of committing ‘blasphemy’.
In May 2024, a Hindu student named Utsab Kumar Gian, studying at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University in Bangladesh, was thrashed by a Muslim mob on accusations of blasphemy.
The investigation into the gruesome Varanasi gangrape case involving a 19-year-old victim and 23 accused that sent shockwaves across the country has uncovered a vicious drug nexus and organised racket that exploited women sexually and blackmailed them. So far, the police have arrested 12 out of the 23 accused named in the FIR for drugging and brutalising the victim in different locations for 6 days.
PM Modi instructs authorities to take the strictest action against the accused
On his arrival in Varanasi today (11th April), Prime Minister Modi instructed the police to take the strictest possible action against the culprits in the case. As soon as PM Modi landed in Varanasi, he was briefed by the police commissioner, divisional commissioner and district magistrate on the investigation in the case.
The cafe owner, his gang and their modus operandi
One of the accused named Anmol Gupta, is said to be the mastermind of the drug and sex racket. According to police, Gupta used to sell noodles at a food stall in Sigra. However, within just 2 years, he became the owner of the Continental Cafe, the epicentre of all the criminal activities linked to the drug and sex racket run by him. Gupta had a gang of 15 men who used to trap young girls, sedate them with drugs, sexually exploit them and record their videos to further blackmail them so that the gang members and their customers could keep exploiting them.
Anmol Gupta had assigned specific roles to all the gang members. One gang member, Sohail, said to be a law student, operated as the right-hand man of Gupta. Another member, Raj Vishwakarma, who worked in a private job, was given the task of supplying drugs. Sajid used to trap girls, while Ayush used to lure school and college-going students to the cafe. Tanveer alias Sameer, who worked as a car mechanic, is himself a drug addict. He was given the task of bringing customers. Another gang member, Imran, studying in the 12th standard, used to record the videos of the sexual exploitation of the victims. Danish used to create hype for the Continental Cafe on social media. Around 18 videos of sexual victims were found on his phone, indicating that there may be multiple victims exploited and raped by the gang.
The victim was taken to multiple locations and raped by multiple people for days
According to the FIR, the victim was sedated and raped by multiple people in diiefferent locations including hotels, hookah bars, lodges and cafes. The brutality started on the night of March 29, 2025, when the victim, a resident of Lalpur Pandeypur police station area of Varanasi, met the accused Raj Vishwakarma when she was returning from a friend’s house. Vishwakarma knew her. He took her to his cafe located in the Lanka area of Varanasi. There he raped the victim all night. The next day, on 30th March, Sameer and Ayush Singh and a few others raped her by threatening to leak her videos. The next day, Sohail, Danish, Anmol, Sajid and Zaheer also joined them. They drugged the victim and took her to Continental Cafe. All of them raped the victim there who was in an unconscious state.
After this, on 1 April, Sajid, along with his friends, took her to a hotel named Girls’ Hostel. Three unknown persons were already present there. The victim was forced to massage the three people despite her refusal. During the massage, she was raped by one of them. From there, Imran forcibly took her to another hotel on a bike where he again drugged and raped her. Thereafter, Sajid, along with his friends, took the victim to a warehouse in Aurangabad. There she was raped by a man named Zaib who was already present there. The victim’s exploitation did not stop here. She was then taken to a room by Sajid, who was accompanied by Aman and one more person. Aman and the other person raped her in the room. After raping the victim, they abandoned her on a road. The victim spent the night near Sigra IP Mall.
On 2nd April, Raj Khan and his friend found her near the mall. They took her to a house in Hukulganj Bagwanala where they fed her noodles laced with sedatives and raped her. They dumped the victim in an unconscious state at Assi Ghat. The victim somehow managed to reach a friend’s house the next day. She left the friend’s house on the evening of 3rd April, but she met Danish. He took her to a room where Sohail, Shoaib and one more person were already present. All of them raped the victim had dumped her near Chowkghat in an unconscious state. Finally, on 4th April, the victim managed to reach her house. After reaching her house, the victim could not speak for 24 hours due to intoxication. She narrated the brutality to her family after gaining consciousness.
A case was registered by the police on 7th April based on the complaint filed by the victim’s mother. The police are on the lookout for the culprits who are on the run.
AIADMK National Spokesperson Kovai Sathyan criticised Tamil Nadu Minister K Ponmudy as a “disgrace” to the public and a “true representation” of DMK.
Condemning Ponmudy’s reported controversial remarks on women and Hinduism, the AIADMK leader said that they go to any extent to mock a religious belief and practices of a particular section, that too particularly with respect to Hindu religious beliefs.
“He is a disgrace to the public, and people like him are the true representation of DMK and their parent body DK. They go to any extent to mock a religious belief and mock the practices of a particular sect and that too particularly with respect to Hindu religious beliefs…We strongly condemn it…” Sathyan told ANI.
The AIADMK leader further called the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister a puppet CM.
He further said, “MK Stalin is a puppet leader and puppet CM. The AIADMK stands that we don’t need NEET in Tamil Nadu, and the BJP stands that they are in for the NEET.
Earlier, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) dismissed Tamil Nadu Forest Minister K Ponmudy from the position of Deputy General Secretary in the party, following his reported controversial remarks on Hinduism and women.
Ponmudy’s remarks drew sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party. CR Kesavan demanded his removal from the Ministerial post, stating that he has no “moral rights” to stay as Minister.
Moreover, Kesavan criticised the ruling DMK and accused them of indulging in “mere eyewash” by removing him from just the party’s position and not from the Tamil Nadu cabinet.
Taking to social media post on X, the BJP leader wrote, “When the State Emblem of Tamilnadu is a Sacred Temple Gopuram, Ponmudi, after his perverted statements deliberately attacking sacred Hindu symbols to crude sexual innuendos, he has no moral right to continue as Minister of TN Government. DMK is indulging in mere eyewash by removing him from just from the party position. This vile individual should at once be sacked as a Minister.”
DMK MP Kanizmozhi condemned Minister Ponmudy’s remarks, calling them “unacceptable.”
“Minister Ponmudy’s recent speech is unacceptable. Regardless of the reason for the speech, such vulgar remarks are condemnable,” Kanimozhi posted on X.
DMK Minister K Ponmudy had purportedly made a ‘joke’ on two different sects of Hinduism, Shaivism and Viashnavism, drawing criticism from multiple leaders.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
Muslim organizations in Kerala have asked both the Left government and opposition parties to adopt a unified resolution stating that the Waqf Amendment Act will not be enforced in the state. They want the state to follow the actions of Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. The Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a motion calling on the center to revoke the act before the parliament even passed it, while West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that she would not implement it in her state.
West Bengal has been experiencing a surge of violence linked to the anti-Waqf Amendment Act over the last several days. On the other hand, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has approached the Supreme Court against the act. Thodiyur Muhammed Kunji Moulavi, General Secretary of the South Kerala Jamiatul Ulama, expressed, “Stalin has already made an announcement, and their assembly has passed a resolution against the implementation of the Wakf Amendment Act. We demand that the Kerala government should also pass such a resolution.”
The same demand has been made by multiple other Muslim outfits that organized a march to Kerala’s Raj Bhavan (Governor House) on 10th April in protest of the pivotal legislation. The amendment, according to Muslim leaders, is an attempt to “eradicate Muslims from the country” and steal all of their possessions, including Waqf assets, which Muslim households have donated for generations to help the nation’s impoverished.
Kadakkal Abdul Azeez Moulavi, President of the Kerala Muslim Jamaath Federation, threatened, “Until the death of the last Muslim in this country, we will not allow this anti-democratic law to be implemented. Our Raj Bhavan march is just the beginning, and we may even organise a massive protest rally to Parliament.” He declared that everyone who supported democracy and secularism would unite with the Muslims in the country to oppose the recently modified act.
The Muslim associations have promised to plan major rallies in the days ahead and have stated that they hope that the Supreme Court will take a democratic decision against the act by then. Former MP and CPI (Communist Party of India) national executive member Panniyan Raveendran, who also attended the event, stated that everyone opposed to the BJP/RSS’s religious polarization would stand with fellow Muslim citizens in the struggle against the alleged discrimination.
He accused, “We know how we live and the love we have for each other. The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) or RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) do not even deserve to utter the name of Hindu. This is an organised attempt to loot properties for their corporate friends. After targeting Muslims, they are now targeting Christians.” Interestingly, the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC) termed some parts of the Waqf Act “unconstitutional and unjust” and had urged Members of Parliament from the states to support the amendments.
After the bill was passed, fifty Christians of Munambam in the state joined the BJP. Waqf has been claiming their land. Munambam is at the center of the state’s Waqf land dispute. The majority of the locals are Christians. They have spent the last 175 days battling the Kerala Waqf Board over its ownership of 400 acres of property that the people have possessed for many generations. The Muslim organizations declared that they would pursue legal action against the imposition of an “anti-democratic law” in addition to continuing their non-violent demonstrations against the revisions.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, which was approved by the Lok Sabha on 3rd April and the Rajya Sabha on 4th April, officially became the Waqf (Amendment) Act and came into effect on 8th April after receiving the assent of President Droupadi Murmu. Despite their opposition to the bill’s passage in Parliament, the CPIM’s (Communist Party of India-Marxist) government is yet to declare that the law will not be followed in the state.
Can states refuse to impose laws passed by Parliament
Notably, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala and Punjab passed resolutions against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in their respective legislative assemblies in 2020. However, in 2021, the Supreme Court emphasized that resolutions passed by the legislative assemblies opposing central laws, such as the CAA or the farm laws, are only “opinions” of the majority members of the assembly and do not have legal authority.
The court was considering a Public Interest Litigation submitted by the Rajasthan-based NGO (Non-Governmental Organization), Samta Andolan Samiti, which argued that state assemblies can not pass resolutions opposing central laws that fall under the Union List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. “It is the opinion of the majority in the Kerala assembly. They have not told people to disobey the law, they have only told Parliament to abrogate the law. It is only an opinion and does not have the force of law,” Chief Justice Bobde had pronounced during the hearing.
The Constitution specifies that states cannot refuse to apply the CAA since the center, not the state, is in charge of citizenship. The legislative authority between Parliament and state legislatures is outlined in Article 246 of the Constitution. “States would have no other option but to implement the law passed by Parliament. In case of any grievances by the state, they can always approach the Supreme Court if they feel that there is any violation of the fundamental rights of its citizens in any way,” Former Secretary-General of Lok Sabha, PDT Achary pointed out in an interview with India Today.
Supreme Court lawyer Ashwani Dubey outlined, “There is a clear demarcation between the subjects which the Centre can make decisions on as well as on the State, and states do not have the power to override laws passed by the central government in these areas. Those states opposing the implementation of the CAA have no power as per the constitution to do so.” He explained that states will be violating the fundamental rights of citizens if they fail to execute the CAA. He added, “If needed, citizens of a particular state can approach the court seeking implementation of their fundamental rights.”
Another Supreme Court advocate, Anas Tanvir, stated, “Citizenship is completely the domain of the Central Government. But in federalism, there is a trend and tradition where states, too, have some role to play. However, it’s up to the Union to give them the power to make them a partner in this and give them power if they wish to.” While issues mentioned in the State List are at the authority of the state legislatures, subjects included in the Union List, including citizenship, are exclusively under the purview of Parliament.
“Any attempt by a state to refuse implementation of citizenship laws passed by the central government would be legally untenable. States are bound by the laws made by Parliament,” voiced senior Supreme Court attorney KV Dhananjay.
Similar playbook in action against Waqf Amendment Act
Similar to how the opposition incited the anti-CAA protests through false promises, inflammatory statements and unrealistic commitments, the current situation reveals that these leaders are employing the same tactics to attract and consolidate their Muslim votebank. The resolutions or declarations that seek to prevent the Waqf Amendment Act from being implemented in their respective states hold no legitimate authority and are simply a strategy to manipulate their outraged Muslim supporters who are already wreaking havoc on the streets, reminiscent of the events during the CAA protests.
Significantly, the anti-CAA demonstrations kicked off in West Bengal, marked by assaults on the Railways, which resulted in massive losses, stranded passengers, train cancellations, vandalism, arson and multiple injuries to railway employees. “It is not our responsibility to protect the railways, but we tried to help them as much as possible. They have their force, RPF, to protect trains and stations,” West Bengal Chief Minsiter Mamata Banerjee declared at the time.
The infamous Shaheen Bagh agitation, the anti-Hindu riots that ravaged Delhi in 2020, and several such incidents stemmed from the actions of the opposition, alongside Muslim leaders who relentlessly spread hatred and disinformation to further their agenda. Likewise, a similar campaign is underway, portraying the new legislation, akin to the CAA, as anti-Muslim and unconstitutional. The accusations are primarily based on a fabricated narrative designed to advance personal and political agendas rather than reflect any actual truth or being grounded in reality.
Their only purpose is to blindly oppose Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government’s policies while misleading their loyal voter base with lies to maintain their electoral advantages, even as the country faces serious law and order and security challenges.
