Bihar Assembly elections are underway and all major political parties of Bihar are busy wooing voters. Amidst all this, a video has surfaced, which has attracted a meme galore on Twitter. Netizens cannot stop guffawing over the ‘perfect timing’ of the fall of the Congress candidate in Bihar while he addresses a crowd.
Congress leader Mashkoor Ahmad Usmani was addressing a crowd in Bihar’s Darbhanga. He is contesting elections from Jale Assembly seat.
BJP leader Tajinder Bagga shared a small snippet of an undated video where a Congress leader is addressing a crowd. Ironically, just when the Congress candidate says “loktantra mein log jaante hain kisko uttana hain aur kisko girana hain” (in a democracy people know which party or candidate should be uplifted and who should be thrown out), the make shift stage on which he was standing and delivering his speech collapses and he falls.
Considering how the Congress has a peculiar habit of blaming PM Modi for anything and everything wrong that happens under the deep blue sky, one wonered if it was PM Narendra Modi’s plan.
The first phase of voting for the Bihar Assembly elections was concluded on October 28. The second and third phase of the polls will be held on November 3 and 7, respectively. The election results will be declared on November 10.
The Election Commission on Thursday ordered immediate removal of Munger Superintendent of Police and District Magistrate after the police brutality on Durga idol visarjan procession left one dead and several injured.
Election Commission of India (ECI) orders immediate removal of SP & DM of Munger. An inquiry has been ordered into the incident by Asangba Chuba Ao, Divisional Commissioner, Magadh that has to be completed with the next seven days. New DM & SP to be posted in Munger today itself. https://t.co/hQicA6zArM
As per reports, a new DM and SP will be posted in Munger today itself. Earlier today, unidentified persons had caused arson at the office of the SDO and SP in Munger. Several vehicles as well as the office were damaged.
They were protesting against the police brutality from October 26 where in the firing by cops on the Durga idol visarjan procession left one dead and several injured.
India has come out strongly in support of France which has been receiving severe backlash from Muslim countries after President Emmanuel Macron declared war against radical Islamic terrorism following the beheading of a teacher by a Muslim immigrant terrorist two weeks ago.
In an official statement on Wednesday, the Ministry of External Affairs said that it “strongly deplores the personal attacks in unacceptable language on President Emmanuel Macron in violation of the most basic standards of international discourse”.
Press Statement on personal attacks in unacceptable language on French President Emmanuel Macron
Communiqué de presse sur les attaques personnelles dans un langage inacceptable contre le président français Emmanuel Macron
The Ministry of External Affairs, also condemned “the brutal terrorist attack that took the life of a French teacher in a gruesome manner that has shocked the world”.
The Modi government also offered its condolences to the family of the deceased and the people of France. “There is no justification for terrorism for any reason or under any circumstance,” the MEA statement added.
The controversy erupted over the beheading of a school teacher Samuel Paty in a suburb of Paris by Islamic terrorist after he had shown caricatures of Prophet Mohammad. The 47-year-old Paty was beheaded by an 18-year-old Chechen Muslim.
Following the terror attack on French teacher in Paris last week and the subsequent actions of the French residents to publicly display ‘blasphemous’ Charlie Hebdo cartoons, French President had reacted strongly against the Islamic terror attack and had also vowed that France would stick to its secular traditions and laws guaranteeing freedom of speech which allow publications such as the virulently anti-religion Charlie Hebdo to produce cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.
Islamic countries attack France, calls for boycott
However, the historic speech by Macron and his pronouncements to tackle Islamic terror has infuriated many Islamic countries, with many Islamic countries, especially Turkey and Pakistan took the lead to denounce the French President.
Lashing out at Macron for saying that Islam is in crisis all over the world, Turkish President had started a war of words with French President and had stated, “What is the problem of this person called Macron with Muslims and Islam? Macron needs treatment on a mental level…”.
After Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hit out at French President Emmanuel Macron for his alleged Islamophobic comments, Islamists around the world had come forward to boycott French products.
Pakistanis, who are perennially unemployed, took to Twitter to trend #boycottfranceproducts. Even Muslims in the Middle East and the Arab world have joined Pakistanis in their calls for boycotts of French products. Shops in Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and the Palestinian territories have started taking French products off their shelves.
Not just Muslims in the Arab world but even radical Islamic organisations in India such as Raza Academy had initiated a campaign demanding that Muslim countries issue a fatwa against French President Emmanuel Macron for displaying cartoons on Prophet Mohammed by Charlie Hebdo were projected onto government buildings.
India expresses solidarity with France
As France continued to get attacked by Islamic countries over its resolve to fight the radical Islamic terror, Indians stood in solidarity with France and its people earlier this week.
Several Indian social media users expressed their support to France and trended #IStandWithFrance. Several social media users tweeted with this hashtag people to convey their support to Macron’s strong decision to take a stand against extremism in France.
Overwhelmed by India’s support, French leaders thanked India and Indians for showing support against anti-French sentiments. French Nationalist leader Marine Le Pen took to Twitter thanking India and to its government for extending its support to France at a time when the country is facing intimidation to give up its values.
She shared a link to a report on how Indians came in support of France in response to the calls to boycott French products.
Samuel Paty, a school teacher, was publicly beheaded by a radical Islamist for showing a caricature of Prophet Muhammad to his students. He was beheaded by a Russian refugee Abdoullakh Abouyezidovitch who was inspired by an online campaign that was run against Paty for alleged blasphemy.
Former Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel passed away on Thursday at the age of 92. The former Chief Minister had tested positive for coronavirus last month and was admitted at a hospital in Ahmedabad
According to the reports, Patel was taken to the hospital after he complained of difficulty in breathing on Thursday morning. He passed away in the hospital. In early September, Patel had tested positive for coronavirus after one of his attendants had contracted the deadly Chinese virus.
Keshubhai Patel was born in Visavadar town of Junagadh district in 1928. He joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1945 as a ‘pracharak’. He started his political career as a worker for the Jan Sangh. He is a founding member of the Jan Sangh in the 1960s.
Keshubai Patel served as the Chief Minister of Gujarat in 1995 and later again from 1998 to 2001. In 2001, Patel was replaced as Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Later in 2012, Patel quit the BJP and launched his own political party – Gujarat Parivartan Party. He was a member of Gujarat Legislative Assembly six times.
In 2012, Patel unsuccessfully contested against the BJP in 2012. Later it was merged with the Mahagujarat Janata Party. However, Keshubhai Patel in 2014 dissolved his party and re-joined the BJP.
Prime Minister condoles Keshubhai Patel’s death
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was once a protege of Keshubhai Patel, expressed his condolences over the death of Keshubhai Patel.
Taking to Twitter, Prime Minister Modi said, “Our beloved and respected Keshubhai has passed away…I am deeply pained and saddened. He was an outstanding leader who cared for every section of society. His life was devoted towards the progress of Gujarat and the empowerment of every Gujarati”.
Keshubhai mentored and groomed many younger Karyakartas including me. Everyone loved his affable nature. His demise is an irreparable loss. We are all grieving today. My thoughts are with his family and well-wishers. Spoke to his son Bharat and expressed condolences. Om Shanti. pic.twitter.com/p9HF3D5b7y
“Keshubhai travelled across the length and breadth of Gujarat to strengthen the Jana Sangh and BJP. He resisted the Emergency tooth and nail. Issues of farmer welfare were closest to his heart. Be it as MLA, MP, Minister or CM, he ensured many farmer friendly measures were passed,” he said in another tweet.
“Keshubhai mentored and groomed many younger Karyakartas including me. Everyone loved his affable nature. His demise is an irreparable loss. We are all grieving today. My thoughts are with his family and well-wishers. Spoke to his son Bharat and expressed condolences. Om Shanti,” the Prime Minister tweeted.
On Thursday, Former Air Force Chief BS Dhanoa responded to the remarks made by Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) leader Ayaz Sadiq and said that India was ready to wipe out forward brigades of Pakistan. “Our military posture was very offensive,” he added.
#WATCH “I told Abhinandan’s father we’ll definitely get him back…The way he (Pak MP) is saying is because our military posture was offensive… we were in position to wipe out their forward brigades. They know our capability: Former IAF Chief, Air Chief Marshal(Retd.) BS Dhanoa https://t.co/Cmv1eb5lSVpic.twitter.com/KOMEWPplwY
In a statement to ANI, he said, “Firstly me and Abhinandan’s father go back a very long time.” When Abhinandan was captured, the way his flight commander Ahuja in the Kargil war was captured and shot on the grounds was playing in his head. He added, “So I told him, I said Sir, I know we couldn’t get Ahuja back, but we will definitely get Abhinandan back. But now you see there are two parts to it. The main pressure on Pakistan was diplomatic and political, but there was also military posture.”
“The way he is saying that ‘pair kaamp rahe the’ something like that it is because military posture was very offensive.” He said all three armed services Army, Navy, and Air Force, were prepared for the action against Pakistan. “God forbid their misadventure on 27th had hit some of our military installation we were in a position to wipe out their forward brigades. They also know what our capability is,” Dhanoa further added.
Pakistan’s Ayaz Sadiq’s statement
In a recent statement in the National Assembly, Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) leader Ayaz Sadiq said that the Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said in a meeting that if Pakistan did not release Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, India would initiate an attack on Pakistan at 9 PM that night.
The former IAF chief said that after the Balakot strike, Jaish-e-Mohammad and its handlers in Pakistan were scared that India can hit in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) as well as in Pakistan. Though the Indian Military could not strike to secure Abhinandan’s release, it could do it to add pressure on the Pakistan military. He said, “But that decision is political. Whether we need to go to war. Suppose strike on 27th had been successful, then to what extent do we respond. Do we respond with a full-scale war or only hitting their forward brigades opposite us? This is a political decision.”
Wing Commander Varthaman’s capture
Wing Commander Varthaman had shot down a Pakistani aircraft F-16 that had entered into the Indian airspace during a dog fight between Indian and Pakistani air force on 27th February 2019. During the process, his aircraft crossed over to the Pakistani side and was shot down. He was returned to India on 1st March 2019 from Attari-Wagah border. He was awarded Vir Chakra on Independence Day by President Ram Nath Kovind for his exemplary bravery.
Home Box Office (HBO) India has on Thursday apologised for referring to Aghori Babas and Brahma Kumaris as ‘Indian cults’ which could send a ‘chill down one’s spine’.
We understand that one of our post may have offended you. Though unintentional, we apologise if it caused any hurt. We stand for entertainment and we commit to entertaining you always.
In a now deleted post, HBO India had tweeted, “From Aghori Babas to Brahma Kumaris, which Indian cult sends a chill down your spine?”
Now-deleted post by HBO India on Twitter
The post was meant for the promotion of the upcoming premiere of the 2019 film Doctor Sleep on the channel.
Criticism on social media
The posts received heavy criticism on social media platforms. ‘Doctor Sleep’ has nothing to do with India or Hinduism. Several users mentioned that it is an attempt to paint Hinduism in a bad light. BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra wrote a tweet in which he asked the channel if they are still in doubt after the beheading in France that “which cult sends the worst Chill down the spine.” He further added that the channel “lack the Spine to call out the “Jihadists”!!”
Dear HBO Ji, After the beheading in France are you still in Doubt ..which cult sends the worst Chill down the spine ..or is it that you lack the Spine to call out the “Jihadists”!! Or maybe since the Jihadists behead so the metaphor “No Spine So No Chill down the Spine” applies! pic.twitter.com/krYkM1lBzT
This depiction of a religious group is deliberate targeting. It violates violates freedom of religion enshrined in our Constitution. pic.twitter.com/ndIYmgDcme
A recent conversation with an industry insider had revealed how online streaming platforms thrive on the anger of Hindus on such Hinduphobic social media posts and content. Patal Lok, Aashram, etc. streamed by Alt Balaji, Netflix, Amazon Prime, MX Player and others have attracted harsh criticism for their Hinduphobic content. Last month, Netflix, in an attempt to ‘secularise’ Rabindranath Tagore’s classic ‘Kabuliwala’, distorted it to show a Hindu girl offering namaz. In Safdar Rahman’s ‘Chhipa’, netizens questioned Netflix for mocking Hindu god Lord Hanuman.
In a shocking case, an NGO named Mahila Suraksha Bal Vikas Adhikaran (Women Safety Child Development Tribunal) has duped a disable poor Dalit man, who has been bedridden for years, on the pretext of arranging money for his treatment. This NGO operates under the patronage of former actress and Congress leader Nagma Arvind Morarji. Columnist and Lawyer Divya Kumar Soti took to Twitter to share the details of the case.
#Thread: Horrifying case where Chairman of a Congress Party linked NGO which allegedly works on directions Priyanka Vadra and patron of which is Congress leader Nagma duped a disabled poor Dalit man who is bed ridden for years in the name of arranging money for his treatment C/- https://t.co/hgXeS3ojZlpic.twitter.com/DAU5PYYWOm
One Ankur Kumar, suffering from some disability, had tweeted to Congress leader Nagma, a few months back, asking for help. After some time he received a call from the Chairman of Mahila Suraksha Bal Vikas Adhikaran- Arun Tripathi who said he is calling on directions of the NGO’s patron and Congress leader Nagma.
Ankur Kumar had also tweeted that at the behest of the Congress leader, one Arun Tripathi, the chairman of Mahila Suraksha Bal Vikas Adhikaran had called him up three months ago. Tripathi had taken Ankur’s personal and bank details and assured help, but said that for that he will have to register with the NGO by paying a fee. Accordingly, Ankur Kumar had paid Rs 12,000 to the NGO for registration, but after that he received no financial assistance from the Congress linked NGO.
Ankur claims that he is in possession of all the call recordings of the conversation the two exchanged in the last three months. He also has the transaction slip of the amount he had transferred to Tripathi. He claims that it been three months, but he has not received any financial help which was promised to him by the NGO, which the Congress leader is a patron of, instead he was duped of Rs 12,000. Moreover, Nagma has also blocked him and he is now in a fix, claimed Ankur Kumar.
नगमा जी के कहने पर अरुण त्रिपाठी जी 3 महीने पहले मेरे पास कॉल किए और मेरी सारी डिटेल एक स्टीमेट और कुछ पैसे हम से लिए हैं इनका एक अकाउंट नंबर और कॉल रिकॉर्डिंग पिछले 3 महीने की पूरी है मेरे पास अभी यह मदद किए नहीं है 3 महीने से आजकल कर रहे हैं और नगमा जी ने हमें ब्लॉक कर दिया?? pic.twitter.com/2y5KmpQOdI
Soti has shared an audio recording where Arun Tripathi is heard extending help to Ankur Kumar. He assures the patient on the phone that he would arrange for a sum of twenty to twenty-five thousand from Nagma, but that might take him a week or ten days. The rest of the amount, he says, could be arranged through the NGO he is attached to. Tripathi is heard luring the patient that he could arrange for the amount in maybe 2 to 3 days but for that Ankur would need to give Rs 50,000 to the NGO.
After few days Arun Tripathi asked for ₹50000 from @ANKURKU97269665 for getting 2.5 lakhs monetary help arranged from an NGO. Full call recording as given to me by Ankur. https://t.co/IJuC2NONIp
After this conversation, Ankur Kumar, desperate for financial help, sent Rs 12,000 to Arun Tripathi on July 29 and 30. The amount was transferred to Arun Tripathi through two separate transactions.
The transaction slips
Ankur Kumar had allegedly arranged this money by pledging ornaments of his wife. However, until today the NGO-Mahila Suraksha Bal Vikas Adhikaran has not responded. They have not sent a single penny to Arun Kumar and moreover, have stopped responding to his calls.
The patient tried to get in touch with Nagma to report about Arun Tripathi who duped him of Rs 12,000 and seek her help, but according to Soti, the Congress leader blocked Ankur Kumar.
After the lawyer flagged the issue on the microblogging site, the NGO has responded. They claim that the money was taken from Ankur Kumar in order to enrol him as a member of the NGO. The fee to become a member of this NGO is purportedly Rs 25,000. Tripathi said that he added Rs 13,000 from his side to enrol Ankur Kumar, but his membership was cancelled because he was lying, alleged Tripathi. He claimed that Ankur Kumar had already received a lot of financial aid for his treatment and that he was lying to mislead and extract more money from the NGO.
और ₹13000 मैं अपनी तरफ से मिला के ₹25000 इनकी मेंबरशिप स्थापित की लेकिन उनकी मेंबरशिप कैंसिल हो चुकी है क्योंकि यह झूठ बोल रहे थे और इनके साथ ऐसा कुछ भी नहीं है जो उनकी बीमारी है उसके इलाज के लिए काफी लोगों को मदद ऑलरेडी ले चुके हैं
— महिला सुरक्षा बाल बिकास अधिकरण (@mahilasuraksh) October 29, 2020
Here there are two things which seems questionable. Firstly in the audio recording, the NGO representative Arun Tripathi had told the patient that he would need to give the NGO a sum of Rs 50,000 at first in order to get financial assistance of Rs 2 lakhs. If the membership fee of the NGO was Rs 25,000 then why did Arun Tripathi ask for Rs 50,000 from Ankur? Secondly, if at all his membership has been cancelled then why wasn’t the deposited amount refunded to Ankur? Apart from this, the requirement of Rs 25,000 fee to get financial aid of Rs 2 lakh is extremely high.
To verify the particulars of the NGO- Mahila Suraksha Bal Vikas Adhikaran (Women Safety Child Development Tribunal), we visited its Facebook page. The NGO’s Facebook cover page displays Congress leader Nagma Arvind Morarji’s photo.
Facebook cover photo of the NGO Mahila Suraksha Bal Vikas Adhikaran (Women Safety Child Development Tribunal)
When one visits the NGO’s website, the first display picture is that of the Congress scion Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Display picture on the website of the NGO
This leaves one with no reason not to believe that this NGO indeed works on the directions of the Congress bigwig Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and that the patron of which is Congress leader Nagma Arvind Morarji.
Well, this kind of imprudent behaviour is not unexpected from Congress leader Nagma Arvind Morarji. She is one such Congress leader who has regularly indulged in lying and spreading fake news to discredit the BJP government at the centre and PM Narendra Modi. Recently she tweeted a video of a woman criticising the BJP government, claiming that she is the niece of late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. This video was extensively shared by many other Congress loyalists. Later Nagma’s lie was caught when the lady was identified as Atiya Alvi, who claims to be a social activist.
Tweeting from their official Twitter handle today, Samajwadi Party expressed displeasure over the colour of tiles used in public toilets at Gorakhpur Railway Hospital. The tweet had pictures of the the Railway Hospital toilets in which the colours of the tiles used were red and green which are the colours used in the flag of the party.
दूषित सोच रखने वाले सत्ताधीशों द्वारा राजनीतिक द्वेष के चलते गोरखपुर रेलवे अस्पताल में शौचालय की दीवारों को सपा के रंग में रंगना लोकतंत्र को कलंकित करने वाली शर्मनाक घटना! एक प्रमुख राजनीतिक पार्टी के ध्वज के रंगो का अपमान घोर निंदनीय। संज्ञान ले हो कार्रवाई, तत्काल बदला जाए रंग। pic.twitter.com/AE28tJ8Wvo
Samajwadi Party alleged that the government had deliberately used the colours on the tiles for toilet for disrespecting the party. “It is a very shameful incident in a democracy that the ill-willed ruling party has used the colours of Samajwadi Party flag on the walls of the toilets out of political malice. The disrespect of the colours of the flag of a major political party is highly condemnable. Congnisance should be take immediately and the colours should be changed,” the tweet read.
स्वच्छ भारत अभियान के अंतर्गत गोरखपुर रेलवे हॉस्पिटल के टॉयलेट में लगे यह टाइल्स वर्षो पुराने हैं।
इन टाइल्स को लगाने का उद्देश्य बेहतर साफ सफाई सुनिश्चित करना है। इसका किसी भी राजनीतिक दल से कोई भी सम्बन्ध नही है।
Responding to Samajwadi Party’s tweet, the North Eastern Railway clarified that the tiles had no connection with any political party and that they were fixed in the toilets years ago under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan to ensure cleanliness in the toilets. The organisation urged Samajwadi party to cooperate in maintaining cleanliness.
Akhilesh Yadav was accused of breaking tiles of government bungalow after he was asked to vacate it
Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav was accused of damaging the the government house he was living after he was as asked to vacate it following the Supreme Court order requiring former Chief Ministers to vacate the government residences allotted to them. Yadav reportedly broke the gym he had built in his government house, removed the plants, mirrors and marble tiles in the house and even the tiles in the swimming pool before shifting to a new villa worth crores. As per reports, he had even removed bathroom fittings from the government bungalow.
Yadav had later appealed to the journalists and offered Rs. 11 lakh for giving the names of the journalists who had taken pictures and videos of the damage he ad done in the government accommodation.
In what hardly comes as a surprise, workers of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) headed by Sharad Pawar have vandalised the office of a local cement company. The horrifying visuals where NCP workers were seen destroying furniture and vandalising the office in Dhule, Maharashtra, was reported by Times Now.
#Breaking | NCP leaders attack private office in Dhule. Office destroyed, police yet to make any arrest.
According to reports, NCP workers were seen damaging property and also threatening the owner of the private cement company to employ local workers in their company. Reportedly, NCP has claimed that they had been demanding that the company employs local people in their company, and when the company did not act on their demand, the party workers resorted to violence and vandalism.
A complaint regarding the incident has been filed by the local police, however, no arrests have been made yet.
Not the first time NCP has resorted to violence and hooliganism
This is not the first time that NCP has resorted to hooliganism in the state. On the 7th of January 2020, ABVP’s office in Pune was attacked. The attackers smeared ink on the name board outside ABVP Pune’s office. It was later revealed that the attackers were leaders of Nationalist Students’ Congress which is the student wing of Sharad Pawar’s NCP.
In a Facebook post, Vishal More who claims to be the City President of NSC and president of NCP Pune took responsibility for the attack. He in that post shared their photos attacking the ABVP office. In January, violence and vandalism was unleashed after JNU was in the news for all the wrong reasons earlier in the year for the violence that had broken out in the unuversity.
Recently, the allies of NCP, Shiv Sena had also resorted to unbridled violence when they had attacked a Navy veteran for criticising the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray.
A controversy had erupted on Wednesday after there were reports that National Informatics Centre (NIC), which designs government websites, had allegedly said that it had no information about the development of the Aarogya Setu app inviting sharp criticism from the Central Information Commission. But now it has revealed that all the information sought in the RTI query were already in the public domain, but for reason, officials had said they don’t have the information. The government is taking action against the erring officials in this regard.
Reportedly, the Chief Information Commission had pulled up the NIC, which comes under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) and had also issued a show-cause notice to NIC, MEITY and National E-Governance Division (NeGD), asking them why penalty should not be imposed on them for prima facie obstruction of information and providing an evasive reply on an RTI application related to Aarogya Setu App.
The CIC’s directions to the concerned authorities came as a response to a complaint filed by one Saurav Das, stating that the NIC, MeitY and NeGD had failed to provide information related to the process of creation of the Aarogya Setu app. The complainant had said that when he had filed an RTI with the NIC, he got a response saying that it does not have any information, which was surprising as NIC is the developer of the app.
MEITY clarifies on ownership of Aarogya Setu app
Amidst the controversy, the Ministry issued a clarification saying that the Aarogya Setu app was developed in the most transparent manner with public-private collaboration in record time to fight the coronavirus. It said that the Aarogya Setu app is a product of Government of India built in collaboration with the best of the minds of industry and academia.
Taking to Twitter, the government gave a detailed clarification stating that the names of all those associated with the development of the App and management of the App ecosystem at various stages were shared when the code was released in Public Domain and it was also shared widely in media.
Clarification issued on Aarogya Setu App. Aarogya Setu App is a product of Government of India built in collaboration with the best of the minds of Industry & Academia. Worlds largest contact tracing App, appreciated by WHO also. #SetuMeraBodyguard#IndiaFightsCoronapic.twitter.com/mbhQ4pTuZw
“The Aarogya Setu app was developed in a record time of around 21 days, to respond to the exigencies of the Pandemic with Lockdown restrictions only for the objective of building a Made in India Contact Tracing App with the best of Indian minds from Industry, Academia and Government, working round the clock to build a robust, scalable and secure app,” said the government.
The MEITY said that the app has been developed in the most transparent manner and all details and documents including Privacy Policy and Aarogya Setu Data Access and Knowledge Sharing Protocols issued on 11th May this year has been uploaded on the Aarogya Setu Portal.
Even as the government issued clarifications on the issue, opposition parties and its media ecosystem did not miss the opportunity to politicise the issue as they attacked the Modi government over its response to RTI query concerning the Aarogya Setu app. They alleged that the Modi government had no idea about who owned or managed the Aarogya Setu app and accused the government of breaching privacy and data security.
MEITY made information public about Aarogya Setu in April
Contrary to the observations made by RTI activist on Aarogya Setu, the information pertaining to the Aarogya Setu app, developed by NIC, in collaboration with other private players, was already in the public domain since April this year.
A press note released by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY), dated April 8, 2020, had put out information relating to the organisational chart for the functioning of Aarogya Setu app and its platform ecosystem. The letter released by MEITY had disclosed the information regarding the organisational setup and the individual responsibilities of concerned persons in tasks relating to the development, promotion and functioning of Aarogya Setu app and its platform ecosystem.
In its response in April, the Ministry had put out names of the individuals associated with the development and the management of the Aarogya Setu app.
Image Source: @Navrang
The letter names – Neeta Verma, DG NIC, RS Mani, DDG NIC, Lalitesh Katragadda – Chief Volunteer and Product Head, Amab Kumar – PD NITI Aayog, Vikalp Sahni and Rahul Goyal – Volunteers, Prof V Kamakoti – IIT Madras, as the members of the organisational structure responsible for the Aarogya Setu app.
These above-mentioned individuals, according to MEITY, are responsible for the architecture, key platform decisions and direction, security, privacy and legal areas of the Aarogya Setu app. The Ministry in its release had put out the complete organisational structure of the Aarogya Setu app just days after its initial release.
Later, on April 28, 2020, the MEITY had also included another member – Abhishek Singh, CEO of MyGov and NeGD, who was responsible for the content, promotion and enhancing the usage of the of Aarogya Setu app.
In fact, all the information pertaining to the ownership, management and also critical issues concerning privacy and data security related to Aarogya Setu was already in the public domain contrary to the claim made by RTI activist that NIC and MEITY were clueless about the creation of the application.
Fault in RTI reply
From the above facts it is clearly seen that this app was developed and managed by Government of India with voluntary support from some Indian tech companies, and the details of people involved in the project were made public by the ministry time to time. But for some reason, the same was not furnished as a reply to the RTI query, which instead said that the NIC and Ministry do not have any information on the same. The officials also sent the query to NeGD, which replied after two months that it is not associated with the Aarogya Setu Project. But actually, the CEO of NeGD was made part of the team.
Therefore, the RTI response was faulty, which created unnecessary confusion among the public. According to the sources in the ministry, not disclosing these facts in the reply to the RTI query was a lapse on part of the junior officers who were handling this. The source also told us that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology is going to take action against these incompetent officers for such a lapse which has caused a major embarrassment for the government. Instead of trying to locate the information, the officials took the easy way out to say that they don’t have the information, not thinking about the consequences.
