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Jharkhand joins the list of non-BJP ruled states to block CBI from probing cases in the state, withdraws general consent

OpIndia Staff
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Jharkhand joins the list of non-BJP ruled states to block CBI from probing cases in the state, withdraws general consent

The Hemant Soren government in Jharkhand has become the latest state to revoke the general consent given to CBI to probe cases in the state. After the revocation of the general consent by the JMM-Congress-RJD alliance government, the central agency will require the state govt’s consent before conducting any investigation inside the state.

An order issued by the Jharkhand government says, “In exercise of the powers conferred by section 6 of the Delhi Police Establishment Act 1946 (25 of 1946) the Government of Jharkhand hereby withdraws the consent accorded to the Members of Delhi Special Police Establishment vide Govt order Memo No J/Vlvidh-6019/96 Dated 19.02 1996 as also by any other Instruments issued by the Government of Jharkhand, from time to time, to exercise the powers and jurisdiction under the said Act In the State of Jharkhand”.

Jharkhand has joined the list of non-BJP ruled states to have withdrawn the blanket consent given to CBI, signifying the opposition parties rallying together against the central govt. In a similar move, Left Democratic Front (LDF) ruled Kerala had withdrawn the consent on Wednesday.

Earlier, other non-BJP ruled states West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra had issued similar orders under the Delhi Police Establishment Act to require CBI obtain their consent to start any probe in the respective states. Andhra Pradesh had also withdrawn the consent in November 2018 by Chandrababu Naidu govt, but it was restored by the Jagan Mohan Reddy govt in June 2019.

West Bengal had also withdrawn the consent to CBI in 2018 immediately after Andhra Pradesh. Congress-led Chhattisgarh government had done the same in January 2019. Congress-ruled Rajasthan government had revoked the general consent in July 2020. More recently, the Shiv Sena-Congress-NCP govt had followed suit in October this year, after the CBI had taken over the Sushant Singh Rajput case and UP govt had recommended transferring the TRP manipulation case to CBI.

CBI comes under the DSPE Act and it requires states to give the agency a consent to act against central government employees within a state as public order and police come under the state governments. To avoid issuing separate consents for each case, states generally issue a blanket consent to the CBI, which is routinely renewed. But after withdrawal of the general consent, the agency will have to seek permission for each cases it wants to probe in the states, and the states may refuse to grant such permission.

Eight key things Amit Shah said in an interview to AajTak about upcoming West Bengal assembly elections

OpIndia Staff
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Eight key things Amit Shah said in an interview to AajTak about upcoming West Bengal assembly elections

Home Minister Amit Shah is in West Bengal for a two-day tour, a first for the state before it goes to polls in 6 months. Speaking to AajTak, the Home Minister stated that the euphoria in the crowd, which appeared in large numbers to greet him when he landed in Bengal, hypothesised the change in the environment and the temperamental shift in the people of Bengal. He said that this time he sensed massive public anger against Mamata Banerjee and the ruling Trinamool Congress.

People of Bengal want change

The environmental change indicates that more than the political parties, the people of Bengal are excited about the 2021 elections as they are keen to see how, this time, BJP makes way for itself after defeating the incumbent TMC government in the upcoming Legislative Assembly.

There is a ray of hope that Modi govt would improve the worsening conditions of West Bengal

The way people are coming out on the roads in huge number clearly marks the surging rage against the Mamata Banerjee led government in West Bengal. Along with this, they also see a ray of hope that the Modi government would improve the worsening conditions of the state under the current leadership.

At least 100 BJP karyakartas have fallen prey to Mamata’s animosity: Amit Shah

Talking about the political violence in the state of Bengal, Amit Shah said that it would not be appropriate for a Home Minister to comment but as a BJP leader he can say that since the time BJP has gained footholds in the state, the TMC goons have not left a single opportunity to unleash utmost atrocities on the BJP karyakartas in the state. More than 100 BJP workers have fallen prey to Mamata Banerjee’s animosity. Amongst these, in at least 75 cases, no arrests have ever been made.

Political murders in WB are biggest example of Mamata Banerjee’s failure: Amit Shah

Amit Shah furthered that when he met the family of a deceased BJP worker he learnt that the post-mortem of the deceased was not yet conducted. Now, it will be done on November 5. “I have never seen such a law and order collapse in any other state as its here”, remarked the HM calling it the biggest example of Mamata Banerjee’s autocracy and her failure as the ruling government of the state.

Situation in WB cannot be likened to that in Uttar Pradesh

Answering to Mamata Banerjee’s accusations that BJP always tries to malign West Bengal, but remains mute on the deteriorating law and order situation in its own ruled state of Uttar Pradesh. The HM explained that whenever such situations need to be analysed it ought to be comparative. One needs to understand and compare today’s situation with the past situation to know where the State stands. Speaking of Uttar Pradesh, Amit Shah said that under Yogi Adityanath’s leadership, UP has seen a major improvement in law and order as compared to the past, which he opined is in stark contrast to the situation in West Bengal. With Mamata Banerjee at the helm of affairs, West Bengal’s condition has only worsened.

Cattle trafficking being executed at the behest of state authorities

“Be it the law and order situation in West Bengal or industrialisation or employment. Be it the persistent issue of cow smuggling through the porous riverine borders in West Bengal or the issue of illegal infiltration, Bengal has been witnessing a complete downfall.

The AajTak anchor here questions that since the border security is the responsibility of the central government, the state government should not be held accountable for the increase of cattle smuggling on the Indo-Bangladesh border. Aanwering to her question, Amit Shah explains why the role of state administration is important. He says that the Indo-Bangla border is a very difficult border due to the presence of many rivers, creeks, low and high mountains, tough tarrains and dense jungles. In such a situation, until the district magistrate and the district SP does not cooperate, it become difficult for the BSF to single-handedly control the illegal activities in the border area as their means and powers are limited.

The HM opined that cattle traffickers work as a big nexus along the international borders. There is an international conspiracy in force and BSF does not have the powers to act against this force. It’s only the state unit which can curb this racket. In fact, so many times BSF personnel have issued warnings, but the state unit have turned a deaf ear, said Amit Shah, furthering that this, however, does not surprise him knowing that they are working at the behest of WB government. “Inko upar se sangrakshan prapt hain” (they are protected from above), said Amit Shah.

Mamata indulging in a balancing act: Home Minister Amit Shah

Responding to allegations that BJP is misusing central forces to target TMC in Bengal, Amit Shah called it Mamata Banerjee’s balancing act. He said that the entire state of Bengal, the media, everyone around are aware how BJP workers are being targetted in the state. They are the ones who are paying the price for Mamata’s rage against BJP. Even Mamata Banerjee knows this. Now, she is trying to balance the situation by putting such baseless allegations against the Bharatiya Janata Party. “I would urge Mamata didi to cite atleast one example to justify these frivilous accusations”, said Amit Shah.

The interviewer here questions Shah about the rise in the demand of President’s Rule in Bengal by the Governor who recently met Amit Shah at his residence in Delhi before going on a month-long tour to Darjeeling, Amit Shah refused to comment saying it would be inappropriate to talk about, close-door discussions on Public forum.

BJP winning Bengal with 2/3rd majority claims Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah furthered that he could sense massive public anger against Mamata Banerjee in Bengal. Hitting out at Banerjee and her government for denying the people of Bengal access to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s welfare schemes, Shah predicted a two-third majority for the BJP in state elections scheduled for next year. “Mamata didi isko rok nahi sakti” (Mamata cannot stop this), said the Union Home Minister, insinuating that Mamata Banerjee’s doom was near.

Last year in the Lok Sabha elections, BJP had made history in Bengal. Despite Mamata Banerjee and her goons trying everything possible to stop BJP making inroads in Bengal, BJP had won 18 seats, touching an impressive double figure in Bengal for the first time.

This time too, BJP appears as the biggest threat to Mamata Banerjee’s incumbent government as it is quite likely to give a tough fight to the Trinamool Congress party in the upcoming Legislative Assembly elections which are scheduled to be held in 2021.

Home Minister Amit Shah’s interview can be watched here:

Amit Shah’s interview with AajTak

Ranchi: Protests erupt after Shivling inside a Shiva temple demolished by unidentified elements

OpIndia Staff
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Ranchi: Protests erupt after Shivling inside a Shiva temple demolished by unidentified elements

In a highly condemnable incident that happened in Ranchi in Jharkhand today, a Shivling in Shiva temple located in Rangrej Gali in Upper Bazar of the town was reportedly desecrated by some unidentified miscreants. The incident has angered the locals due to which heavy police force has been deployed in the area. According to reports, the temple priest left after performing the morning prayer, thereafter, someone saw the Shivling demolished around 8 am in the morning.

On receiving the information, police reached the spot and examined the CCTV footage of the nearby shop and saw a man entering the Shiva temple between 6:30 am and 7 am and throwing stones. The man reportedly appeared drunk or mentally unstable. Member of Parliament from Ranchi Sanjay Seth and Member of Legislative Assembly CP Singh also took stock of the situation.

Hindu Organisations and locals protested

Several Hindu organisations held protests against the incidents. While some locals themselves closed their shops in protest rest of the shops were forcefully shut down by angered locals. MP Sanjay Seth said that the anti-social elements who want to disturb the social harmony would not be allowed to succeed in their intentions. Seth demanded the administration to examine the CCTV footage to identify the culprits and arrest them without delay.

Sanjay Poddar, President of Shri Mahavir Mandal Doranda Central Committee, condemned the incident and said that this was an attempt to hurt the religious sentiments which would not be tolerated at any cost. He demanded the government and the administration to take cognisance of the incident. Poddar hinted that Hindu sentiments are being targeted as part of a conspiracy and said that this was not good for social harmony. On behalf of Shri Mahavir Mandal Doranda Central Committee, he urged the administration to identify and arrest the culprits within 24 hours.

Attack on Hindu temples

Attacks on Hindu temples have become a routine affair across the country. In September this year, several incidents of desecration of Hindu temples were reported from Andhra Pradesh. On September 17, 2020, a portion of the Nandi idol kept inside the historic 12th century Kasi Visweswara Swamy temple was damaged by some miscreants. This was preceded by and attack in Narasimha Swamy temple at Antarvedi area in Sakhinetipalli Mandal in East Godavari district in which a century-old wooden chariot of the Lakshmi was gutted to ashes.

In February this year, a 50 feet tall ancient chariot of Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple at Bhogolu village of Bitragunta Mandal in Nellore district was set ablaze by unidentified miscreants.

Hansa Research says Mumbai police is harassing them to issue false statement against Republic TV, asks Bombay HC to transfer the TRP case to CBI

OpIndia Staff
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Hansa Research says Mumbai police is harassing them to issue false statement against Republic TV, asks Bombay HC to transfer the TRP case to CBI

In a very significant development in the TRP manipulation case, Hansa Research Group has said that it is being harassed by the Mumbai Police forcing them to make false statements against Republic Media Network. The company which operates the Bar-O-Meters of BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council), has moved the Bombay High Court seeking transfer of the probe into the case from Mumbai Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), reports Bar and Bench.

In the petition filed with Bombay High Court, Hansa Research has alleged that the Police have been adopting pressure tactics to coerce its employees to issue a statement that a document published as Hansa Report by Republic TV is a fake document. The report by Hansa Research based on which the FIR in the TRP case was registered, names India Today as the channel which had bribed households with the bar-o-meters to watch the channel, and it does not name Republic TV as alleged by Mumbai police. The FIR also names India Today and Republic TV finds no mention in the FIR too.

The petition says that “the petitioners are continuously held at the Crime Branch for long hours and threatened with arrest and repeatedly pressed to make false statements.”

The petition has been moved by Hansa group Director Narasimhan K Swamy, CEO Praveen Omprakash and Nitin Kashinath Deokar. It says that it has already explained to the police that it is in position to adjudge whether the document shown by Republic is genuine or not. They have said that Republic never applied to them for a copy of the report, and the channel has shown only extracts of the document.

The petition filed by Hansa also says that their officials are being questioned without written notice, and they are given no time to produce documents. “This method of demand for information, lack of time given for response and pressure place on the officers of Petitioner No 1 continues till the time of the writing of this writ,” the plea adds.

Mumbai police Commissioner of Police Param Bir Singh, Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze and ACP Shashank Sanbhlor have been named as respondents in the petition. The company has informed that since October 12 onwards, Hansa Research employees have been repeatedly called to the Crime Branch office and made to wait for hours.

The company says that its employees have been harassed by Mumbai Police because they declined to give a false statement against Republic TV by saying that the channel had displayed a fake document.

Hansa Research has also pointed out at that it was the complainant in the TRP manipulation case, and now they are being harassed by the police. It said, “This is a unique situation where the First informant in a crime is being harassed by the investigating agency and treated like accused only for a false statement which is enacted from them. This is completely against law and procedure laid down by law. This is against the fundamental rights of a person and calls for immediate intervention by this Hon’ble High Court.”

It may be noted that Hansa Research had filed the case against one of its employee Vishal Bhandari, who had confessed to have received money to pay to BARC panel houses to watch India Today channel for 2 hours a day. However, in a controversial press conference by Param Bir Singh, he had said that Republic TV was named in the case, and didn’t mention the name of India Today. However, soon the original complaint of Hansa Research, and the FIR registered by Police in the case, had shown that India Today was named multiple times in the case, and Republic TV was not named.

Since then, Mumbai Police led by Param Bir Singh and Sachin Vaze have launched a series of attacks against Republic TV, trying to implicate in the case. Officials and journalists of the channel are daily summoned to the police station and questioned for hours, to know only one thing, the source of Hansa Research Repost which had exposed the lies of Param Bir Singh.

Now Hansa Research says that their employees are also facing the same treatment, as they overall they been detained for around 200 hours for no justifiable reason. The only object to call and detain the petitioners and other officer bearers is to pressurise and frustrate them so that they make a false statement according to the desire of Sachin Vaze for reasons best known to him, the petition says.

Hansa Research says that police and media are using them to attack each other, and they are suffering collateral damage in this fight.

The company says that it can’t say that Republic displayed a fake document without seeing the physical document, as it is difficult to determine its authenticity from what was shown on TV. But despite that the police is harassing them to declare that the document is fake.

Vaze and his team are not ready to take anything short of a statement by the petitioners disowning the said purported report shown on Republic TV and thus are pressurising, threatening and harassing petitioners with their arrest and indefinite detention and seizure of their mobile phones, which is illegal and condemnable, the company adds in the petition. They have said that Vaze and the Crime Branch officers have started a campaign of making media statements based on false and unverified facts.

Due to such harassment and pressure by Mumbai police, the company has petitioned the court to transfer the case to CBI, and to restrain the police from acting coercively against Hansa and its employees and to issue directions to restrain the police from issuing threats to them.

It may be noted that while Hansa has said they are unable to make a statement on the authenticity of the report published by Republic, they have already hinted that it is genuine. After Republic had flashed the report on TV, the company had filed a case against the channel trying to stop it from publishing it, saying that it was a confidential report. However, the court had refused to stop the channel from airing it in its defence.

Delhi HC fumes over AAP government, says city will soon become ‘Corona capital’ of the country

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi HC fumes over AAP government, says city will soon become ‘Corona capital’ of the country

The Delhi High Court Thursday rebuked the Arvind Kejriwal government over the rising cases of COVID-19 in the national capital and stated that the city could soon become ‘corona capital of the country’. Observing that the Delhi government has gone completely “haywire” on the pandemic, the two-judge bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad pulled up the AAP govt for taking the health of the citizens for a ride. It said that it would deal with this issue separately.

The high court said the Delhi government made many claims that they are topping charts in testing but the number of cases have overshot. “The city could soon become Corona capital of the country. Thanks to the number of cases shooting up,” the bench said and added, “We are going to take it very seriously.”

The Delhi court made these scathing remarks while hearing a bunch of petitions relating to non-payment of salaries to doctors, paramedical staff, healthcare workers, teachers and retired engineers and others, employed with North Delhi Municipal Corporation.

Arvind Kejriwal keener on helping people of Goa and Punjab amidst rising cases in Delhi

These observations by the Delhi HC might work as an eye-opener for the Delhi CM who was till recently busy spending lakhs on campaigns in COVID-19 advertising and ‘opinion surveys’ in Goa despite rising coronavirus cases in Delhi.

Not just Goa, the Aam Aadmi Party has also been eyeing a re-entry into the politics of Punjab amidst the coronavirus pandemic and had recently indulged in a similar political stunt.

On September 3, the month which saw a rebound in the number of coronavirus cases in the capital city, the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had hopped over to Punjab to offer help to fight the rising numbers of coronavirus cases in the state. In a video message, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the Aam Aadmi Party workers will go to every village, street and neighbourhood of Punjab to check people’s oxygen levels as state battles against a surge in coronavirus.

On November 3 (Tuesday), national capital Delhi logged its highest single-day count of Covid-19 cases, crossing 6,000 mark for the first time in the process. With 6,725 new cases, Delhi crossed the 400,000 mark that day.

After arresting Arnab Goswami, Mumbai Police arrests its own police officer who probed the 2018 suicide case

OpIndia Staff
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After arresting Arnab Goswami, Mumbai Police arrests its own police officer who probed the 2018 suicide case

In a bizarre turn of events in the ongoing witch-hunt against Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami, the Mumbai Police has arrested one of its own police officers on the charges that he had filed a closure report in the 2018 suicide case, reports Hindustan Times.

According to the reports, a day after Arnab Goswami was arrested on the charges of abetting suicide in 2018, the Mumbai Police also arrested a cop for filing closure report citing no evidence to probe the case. The cop was the investigating officer in the 2018 Anvay Naik’s suicide case.

In May 2018, an FIR was filed against Arnab Goswami in an alleged abetment to suicide case. An Interior Designer had committed suicide in his bungalow in Alibaug. In a suicide note, Anvay Naik claimed Goswami and the other two persons—Feroz Shaikh and Niteish Sarda—owed him a total of Rs 5.4 crore. The Times of India had then reported Arnab Goswami had allegedly not paid Rs 83 lakh for a design project of a studio.

However, Goswami was investigated and case was closed by court after a closure report was filed by the Police. You could read about the case in detail here.

Shockingly, Mumbai Police have now gone to the extent of arresting one of its own cop in their attempt to carry out their vendetta against Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami.

The Naik suicide case and what Arnab Goswami says

Goswami has claimed in his petition that ARG Outlier Media Pvt Ltd, the firm that owns and operates Republic TV, had paid 90% of the dues to deceased Anvay Naik’s company Concorde Designs Pvt. Ltd. (CDPL) over two years ago. He further said that ARG Outlier media Pvt Ltd made several attempts for complete and final settlement of all claims but the absence of shareholders or directors in CDPL rendered the attempts unsuccessful. He said that the entire amount due to CDPL was transferred to CDPL’s bank account in July 2019 but it was reverted because the account was inoperative.

In his plea, Goswami denied having any direct involvement with the deceased interior designer and contended that his interaction with the deceased regarding the payments was strictly professional in nature. For the reasons provided in the plea, he further contended that a case of abetment of suicide under section 306 of the Indian Penal Code was not made out against him. 

“It is a settled principle of law that to attract ingredients of abetment, the intention of the accused to aid or instigate or abet the deceased to commit suicide is necessary. In the present case, by no stretch of imagination can it be said that there existed an intention to aid, instigate or abet the deceased to commit suicide on the part of the petitioner…”, the petition read. It was further contended in the petition, “Moreover, for the provisions of section 306 to be attached, the direct involvement of of the accused in the abetment or suicide is necessary. In the present case, the petitioner did not have any direct involvement with the abetment. Merely because a person has been named in the suicide note, one cannot jump to the conclusion that he is an offender under section 306 of the IPC”.

Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami arrested

Continuing their witch-hunt against Republic TV chief, the Mumbai Police on Wednesday arrested Arnab Goswami. The Mumbai Police reached Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami’s residence on Wednesday and physically manhandled him as they tried to detain him in a 2018 abetment to suicide case that was already closed.

A team of Mumbai Police arrested Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami after they physically assaulted and dragged him by grabbing his hair. In a shocking act, a large contingent of Mumbai Police was seen present at Goswami’s residence on Wednesday morning. In the below video, it can be seen how officials of the Mumbai Police were manhandling the Republic TV chief.

Mumbai Police carried AK-47 to arrest Arnab Goswami

In a shocking display of the might of the state, the Mumbai Police not only assaulted and dragged Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami before making the arrest but also physically assaulted his minor son and other family members.

Speaking to the media soon after the arrest, Arnab Goswami said that Mumbai Police assaulted his wife, minor son at his residence. Reportedly, Arnab Goswami’s elderly father-in-law and mother-in-law were also assaulted by the Mumbai Police.

According to Republic Media Network’s Niranjan Narayanaswamy, at least 10 Mumbai Police personnel armed with assault weapons such as AK-47 barged into Arnab Goswami’s residence on Wednesday to arrest him in a 2018 case which was closed after court’s order. He added that more than 30 Mumbai Police personnel armed with weapons arrested and dragged him to Raigad police station in connection with the case.

Mumbai police file FIR against Arnab Goswami’s wife, son and in-laws 

After lodging an FIR against Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami for allegedly assaulting a female Mumbai police cop at his residence when she along with 30-40 other cops barged into his house to arrest him, the Mumbai police had registered FIRs against his wife, son and two others for allegedly assaulting cops.

The Police has booked Arnab Goswami’s wife and his son for allegedly obstructing the Police officers from performing their duty, under Section 353 of IPC. The FIR also names two unknown persons, a man and a woman, for the same offences, but have not named them. 

The police also claim that Arnab Goswami’s wife had tore the intimation regarding Goswami’s arrest. It is pertinent to note that Goswami’s 20-year old son was manhandled by cops at his residence as they were dragging him out of his house.

The battle for West Bengal: As Amit Shah raises the issue of atrocities on BJP Karyakartas, Mamata threatens ‘ukhaad ke phaink denge’

OpIndia Staff
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The battle for West Bengal: As Amit Shah raises the issue of atrocities on BJP Karyakartas, Mamata threatens ‘ukhaad ke phaink denge’

Home Minister Amit Shah is in West Bengal to give a kickstart to political programs in connection to the upcoming assembly elections in 2021. While Shah has raised the issue of atrocities on BJP Karyakartas in the state, Mamata Banerjee took a jibe on him and threatened to uproot BJP from West Bengal.

Violence and political killings are common

During his address to the public, Home Minister Amit Shah stated that violence and political killings had become the hallmark of the Mamata regime. He said, “Jis prakar ka daman ka chakra visheshtar Bhartiya Janata Party ke karyakartaon ke upar Mamata sarkaar ne chalaya hai main nishchit roop se dekh raha hun Mamata sarkaar ka Mrtiyughanta baj chukka hai. Aane wale dino mein yahan Bhartiya Janata Party ki 2/3 bahutmat ki sarkaar banane ja rahi hai. (The way Mamata government had indulged in atrocities against the workers of Bhartiya Janata Party, I am sure the end of Mamata regime has begun. In coming days, Bhartiya Janata Party will form government in Bengal with 2/3 majority.)”

He further appealed to the people of Bengal that as Bengal is a border state, its internal security is directly associated with the security of the country. To ensure the nation remains secure, the youth get job opportunities, and the poor people of Bengal come out of poverty; it is important to uproot the Mamata government. He urged people to give BJP a chance in Bengal and promised that BJP would take essential steps to bring the glory of ‘Sonar Bangla’.

Mamata Banerjee took jibe at Amit Shah

As per Times Now’s report, Mamata Banerjee took a jibe on Amit Shah. She has given a direct threat to Amit Shah and said, “Ukhad ke Faink Denge.” She further asked BJP not to lose political decency in the state. Banerjee said that the opposition parties are taking out political activities, including political rallies, which violate the pandemic law.

She had alleged that such actions by the opposition parties are organizing such events to aggravate the situation of Covid-19 in the state deliberately. She said that there is a ‘Lakshman Rekha’ between the state and the centre. The state has its own jurisdiction, and the centre has its own jurisdiction. She added that the centre does not have the right to interfere in the states’ matters or make baseless allegations. She said if she threatens BJP that “Ukhad ke faink denge” how will BJP respond.

Watch: The quarantine building in which Arnab Goswami is lodged after being sent to Judicial custody

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: The quarantine building in which Arnab Goswami is lodged after being sent to Judicial custody

Yesterday, on the 4th of November, editor-in-chief of Republic TV, Arnab Goswami, was dragged, beaten and arrested by the Mumbai and Alibaug police. In the early hours of Wednesday morning, several police officers armed by assault rifles, led by encounter cop and erstwhile members of Shiv Sena, Sachin Vaze, barged into Arnab Goswami’s home and arrested him.

After that, he was taken to a police station in Alibaug and thereafter, produced in the Magistrate Court. The court, making scathing observations, sent Arnab Goswami to Judicial custody. This was seen as a victory by the lawyers since the Mumbai Police was asking for 14 days of police custody.

The observations made by the magistrate court are as follows:

  1. The 2018 suicide case was opened by the police without sanction from the court. 
  2. Chief Judicial Magistrate observed that there was no connection in the chain of suicide in the case in which Arnab was arrested, which was earlier closed in 2018 and now reopened, and Arnab Goswami’s role. 
  3. The CJM also observed that there is no ‘justifiable ground’ for the police custody sought as he pronounced the judgment. 

The quarantine centre in which Arnab Goswami is lodged after judicial custody

After the Magistrate Court in Alibaug granted Judicial custody of Arnab Goswami, he has been lodged in a quarantine centre in the area.

Building where Arnab Goswami is lodged

Lodged in a room, Arnab Goswami has been lodged here for 14 days, per the magistrate.

However, after the High Court refused to grant interim relief to Arnab Goswami today, the hearing has been postponed to tomorrow, where the court will hear the plea of Goswami’s lawyers to grant him relief and release him from custody.

Hounding of Republic TV by Mumbai Police

In an interview given to the Editor of OpIndia Hindi, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar had criticised the action of Mumbai police against Republic TV. “What Mumbai Police is doing, no one will endorse this”, the Minister said. Mumbai police had falsely implicated Republic TV in the TRP scam on the basis of an FIR naming India Today. The police had also reportedly coerced witnesses into naming Republic TV in the TRP scam. Mumbai police had also sought details of all financial transactions of the channel ever since its inception. Now, the Mumbai police has opened another front against Arnab Goswami, which is the 2018 suicide case which was closed back then.

Madhya Pradesh: Police book Congress MLA Arif Masood for hurting religious sentiments, Municipal Corporation demolishes his Illegal building

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh: Police book Congress MLA Arif Masood for hurting religious sentiments, Municipal Corporation demolishes his Illegal building

On Thursday, Talaiya Police, Bhopal, filed an FIR against Congress MLA Arif Masood and others under Section 153 (hurting religious sentiments) of IPC. The case was filed against him for allegedly hurting religious sentiments during a protest he had organized at Iqbal ground against French President Macron.

Complaint against Masood

The FIR was registered against Masood based on the complaint by Deepak Raghuvanshi of Dharma Sanskriti Samiti. During his protest rally, Masood had allegedly attacked the State and Centre governments and called them ‘Hinduwadi’ as the Centre has shown support to France in the fight against radical Islam. An effigy of the French President and the country’s flag was also burnt during that event.

Non-bailable warrants have been issued for Masood’s arrest. Inspector-General of Police (Bhopal Range) Upendra Jain said, “A non-bailable warrant has been issued against Congress MLA Masood and six others under Section 153A of IPC.”

Masood was arrested earlier

It is to be noted that he was arrested based on another complaint against him for staging the same protest. An FIR was registered against him and 2000 others for violating Covid-19 restrictions. He was released on bail on Saturday.

Illegal building of Masood demolished

As per the reports, the Municipal Corporation of Bhopal has demolished a college building belonging to Arif Masood on the bank of a pond. The corporation demolished around 12,000 square feet of unauthorised construction in the presence of a heavy police force. The High Court had stayed the construction of the main building in 2005. ANI quoted AK Sahani, Assistant Engineer, Building Permission Section, “The honourable district court had, in 2005, issued a stay on the main building here. The construction was done on 12,000 square feet without the permission of the municipal corporation.”

Masood claimed he has a constitutional right to protest

In a statement, Masood had claimed that he has the constitutional right to protest against anyone who speaks against his religion. Under his leadership, while raising chants of Islamic slogans such as ‘Naara-e-Takbeer’, Muslims in Bhopal protested against French President Emmanuel Macron for his alleged ‘Islamophobic’ act. Masood had said that thousands of Muslims had assembled at Iqbal Maidan on Thursday to protest against the French President for speaking ill against Prophet Muhammad.

French President Macron had supported Charlie Hebdo and criticized Islam for its regressive approach. Several protests and attacks had happened in France and other parts of the world against the said cartoons of Prophet Mohammad published by satire magazine Charlie Hebdo in France.

High Court adjourns the interim relief plea to tomorrow, journalist Arnab Goswami to spend another night in custody after being beaten and dragged

OpIndia Staff
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High Court adjourns the interim relief plea to tomorrow, journalist Arnab Goswami to spend another night in custody after being beaten and dragged

A division bench of Bombay High Court comprising Justices S S Shinde and M S Karnik on Thursday heard the habeas petition filed by Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami against his arrest and remand in 2018 abetment to suicide case. The court refused to grant interim protection to Goswami, saying that the same plea will be considered tomorrow.

Appearing on the behalf of Arnab Goswami, senior advocate Abad Ponda said the commencement of new investigation against Arnab Goswami and the reopening the case is contrary to well-settled principles of criminal law. Ponda submitted before the Bombay HC seeking interim relief for the journalist.

But Justice Shinde said there is also a petition by the original informant and they also need to be heard before passing an order.

However, Ponda said that Arnab Goswami was already behind bars and the investigation is completely illegal. Ponda pressed for interim bail and urges the bench to keep the matter at least tomorrow.

“The manner in which this is done is completely shocking to a prudent man. The investigation could not have taken place when the ‘A Summary’ is on record,” said Advocate Ponda.

Senior Supreme Court advocate Harish Salve also made submissions before the Bombay High Court on behalf of Arnab Goswami. Salve said this is an issue of liberty of a citizen and Arnab Goswami was a journalist. “Will heavens fall if he is given interim release? I don’t understand, with due respect,” he added.

“Please release this man as an ad-interim measure and hear the case in detail later,” Salve added.

Police re-opening investigation shows scant respect for the Magistrate, counsel representing Arnab Goswami

However, Justice Shinde said he will give reasons for not granting ad-interim relief and added that the bench will hear the petition on re-opening date.

Arnab’s counsel represented by Ponda said that the police re-opening investigation shows scant respect for the Magistrate. The police served only an intimation to the Magistrate on October 15, 2020, about reopening the case, Ponda submitted before the court saying that there was no permission to re-open the case.

The court has not granted them permission. It records “seen and filed” and there was no permission, added Ponda. “The question that arises does the “A” summery order remain today or not. If it remains, the case is dead, and the police cannot resurrect it,” said Ponda.

The counsel representing Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami said that the family of intervenor should have gone back to the Magistrate. “Before closure, you have to seek further investigation under Section 156(3). If after closure, they should seek further investigation under Section 173(8). Neither done in this case,” he added.

During his submissions, Ponda said that without a judicial order, further investigation could not be done and hence the arrest is illegal. He pointed out to the court that a stay of investigation can be ordered when it is illegal and affects liberty of a citizen.

After hearing the counsel, Justice Shinde asked if the informant is a necessary party to the petition. Ponda responded to it saying, “The limited relief I am seeking is only against the police and not against the informant”.

Senior counsel Harish Salve also responded to making the informant a party in the case and sought permission to add the informant orally.

Bombay High Court posted the petition for hearing tomorrow at 3 PM. The bench will consider the prayer for interim order for release.

Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami arrested, he files habeas corpus petition

After being manhandled at his residence by Raigad police cops who came to arrest him at his house yesterday in relation to a two-year-old closed case, Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami has filed a plea before the Bombay High Court challenging his arrest by the police. 

The plea in the Bombay High Court came after Mumbai Police had arbitrarily started re-investigation in the 2018 closed case of interior designer Anvay Naik’s suicide on the direction of Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh.

In the plea filed by him before the Bombay High Court, Goswami said that his arrest was conducted in blatant violation of his fundamental rights to life and personal liberty and his dignity guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. He had alleged that he was forced out of his residence by around 20 officials of Mumbai police and was dragged into the vehicle and his son was also assaulted.

In his plea, Goswami had sought an urgent interim stay on the re-investigation in the 2018 FIR lodged at Alibaug police station in which he was accused of abetment to suicide of Naik. He had asked the court to the issuance of a writ of Habeas Corpus directing Alibaug police to produce him in court claiming that his arrest and detention was illegal because the case was closed.

Earlier, Goswami was sent to a 14-day judicial custody by an Alibaug court, which had refused the Mumbai police plea seeking police custody of 14 days.

Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami arrested

Continuing their witch-hunt against Republic TV chief, the Mumbai Police on Wednesday arrested Arnab Goswami. The Mumbai Police reached Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami’s residence on Wednesday and physically manhandled him as they tried to detain him in a 2018 abetment to suicide case that was already closed.

A team of Mumbai Police arrested Republic TV chief Arnab Goswami after they physically assaulted and dragged him by grabbing his hair. In a shocking act, a large contingent of Mumbai Police was seen present at Goswami’s residence on Wednesday morning. In the below video, it can be seen how officials of the Mumbai Police were manhandling the Republic TV chief.

In May 2018, an FIR was filed against Arnab Goswami after an interior designer had committed suicide in Mumbai. In a suicide note, Anvay Naik claimed Goswami owed him a total of Rs 5.4 crore. However, Goswami was investigated and case was closed by court after a closure report was filed by the Police.

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