Home Blog Page 4965

Watch: West Bengal police pull off the turban of an on-duty Sikh security official while assaulting him

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Watch: West Bengal police pull off the turban of an on-duty Sikh security official while assaulting him

In an incident that could spell trouble for the Mamata Banerjee government, a West Bengal police officer was caught on camera pulling down the turban of an on-duty Sikh security official while dragging, assaulting him. Balwinder Singh, the security guard of BJP leader Priyangu Pandey was attacked when the West Bengal Police on Thursday mercilessly beat up people on the streets of Kolkata and unleashed large-scale lathi-charge and violence against BJYM and BJP workers for protesting against the political murders in the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal.

Condemning the disgraceful conduct by the West Bengal police, Akali Dal leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa said that disgracing a Sikh’s Dastar (headgear) is an insult of the entire Sikh community and their religion. Sharing the video of the incident, the Akali Dal leader demanded strict action against the police officer.

Sikh security official’s turban ripped off in pull public view

According to reports, Balwinder Singh was arrested from the Howrah Maidan by the WB police, as the on-duty Sikh security official was carrying a loaded gun. Speaking to the media from inside a police vehicle, BJP leader Priyangu Pandey said that Balwinder Singh, an ex-army officer, held a proper licence for the gun he carried.

The WB police had argued that Singh’s licence was valid only in Rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir as it was issued there. However, the BJP leader asserted that Balwinder Singh’s arms licence has a stamp of an all India permit and can be used anywhere across the country.

The BJP leader said that after working in Assam and Guwahati, Balwinder Singh had joined him in Kolkata. Pandey said that despite having an all India Arms licence, the way WB police snatched the gun from Singh’s hand, the way they assaulted the ex-army officer was disgraceful. In strong words, the BJP leader condemned the way WB police insulted the entire Sikh community by knocking off a Sikh’s pagdi (turban), which he said is the greatest insult a Sikh can be subjected to.

Balwinder Singh speaking to the media also confirmed that his arms licence had been issued from Rajouri but had an all India permit. He said that he was just standing in one corner when the police officer suddenly attacked him. He was dragged and his turban was ripped off in full public view.

The BJP leader has demanded that stringent action should be taken against the West Bengal police who displayed their high-handedness and resorted to such barbarism against BJP karyakarta’s who were peacefully holding the ‘Nabanno Chalo’ rally.

BJYM national president Tejasvi Surya to move a breach of privilege motion against the West Bengal police officials

Earlier in the day, BJYM national president Tejasvi Surya had accused the WB police of working as mere puppets and said that he would be moving a breach of privilege motion against the West Bengal police officials after they allegedly manhandled the BJP leaders who had gone to the Jorasanko police station to file an FIR against police for the unprovoked attack during a march to the state headquarters Nabanna yesterday. “Police station have become TMC party offices in Mamata’s Bengal. Police have two choices: Either file FIR in accordance with law or Remove uniform and hold TMC party flag”, he Tweeted.

WB police unleash brutality on BJYM and BJP workers, TMC goons join in 

The West Bengal Police on Thursday mercilessly beat up people on the streets of Kolkata and unleashed large-scale lathi-charge and violence against BJYM and BJP workers for protesting against the political murders in the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal. Disturbing visuals had emerged from the ‘Nabanno Chalo’ rally organised by the BJYM at Kolkata as BJP karyakartas on Thursday.

West Bengal Police in the behest of the Mamata Banerjee government came down heavily on the BJP karyakartas by raining lathis and using tear gas at them. Trinamool party workers too joined the violence against the BJP workers. The goons allegedly associated with the TMC attempted to disrupt the peaceful rally and attacked the BJP workers. Crude bombs were hurled and the protesting karyakartas were subjected to ‘chemical liquid attacks’ as well.

OpIndia had also accessed pictures of the WB government’s excesses on the BJP and BJYM karyakartas. As per sources OpIndia spoke to, 450 karyakartas of the BJP had been arrested and over a thousand were injured during the crackdown on the ‘Nabanno Chalo’ protest by the BJYM.

After this report, India Today may allege that Republic TV pays YouTube Rs 500-700 to boost its viewership: Read details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
After this report, India Today may allege that Republic TV pays YouTube Rs 500-700 to boost its viewership: Read details

Recently, the channel was at the centre of a furore when the Mumbai Police Commissioner yesterday asserted that Republic TV paid households Rs 400 to Rs 500 as a part of its efforts to manipulate TRP in its favour. Mumbai Police Commissioner Prambir Singh had alleged in his press conference yesterday that some people were visiting households on behalf of the news channel and were paying them money every month. He added that Republic TV, along with other vernacular news outlets, was under the scanner for manipulating TRP ratings.

Soon after Mumbai Police Commissioner’s allegations, India Today lost its mental balance falling over itself to accuse Republic TV of indulging in manipulating viewership data. It was later revealed that complaint filed by BARC had actually named India Today TV for the crime, not Republic TV.

India Today trotted out the same allegations as levelled by Mumbai Police Commissioner, alleging Republic TV of bribing households to watch their channel. However, a cursory glance at the YouTube channels of the two news channels—Republic TV and India Today—clears out the confusion swirling around the TRP manipulation.

YouTube views of Republic TV outnumbers India Today by several thousand

At an instance during the Republic TV’s program from 12 PM to 1 PM today, about 4,300 people were watching the live feed of the news channel on YouTube. The Republic TV was running a program exposing the nexus behind smearing its name for covering uncomfortable incidents and asking protruding questions of the state government on Sushant Singh Rajput’s death, Lynching of Hindu Sadhus in Palghar and the Hathras incident.

Live TV feed of Republic TV on YouTube

Comparing this to India’s Today live feed on YouTube during the same time period, a paltry 597 people were watching it live. Of course, the viewership fluctuates during the show, but the vast difference between the number of people of watching Republic TV live on YouTube and those watching India Today live is a reliable barometer of the popularity of the channel, at least on the online video-sharing platform.

Live TV feed of India Today on YouTube

Perhaps, it will be interestingly to see if India Today will allege that Republic TV pays Rs 400-500 to even those who watch them on YouTube and other digital platforms.

If this is not enough, one can take a brief look at the views other Republic TV videos get on YouTube as compared to videos uploaded by India Today. Most of the recent videos uploaded by India Today has views in hundreds, with some of them racking up a few thousand views.

YouTube videos uploaded by the official account of India Today

On the other hand, Republic TV uploaded videos on YouTube has an average of 20,000-30,000 views on each video, with the highest views of 195,000 on a video in which Arnab Goswami called out India Today’s treachery by exposing the FIR which had India Today’s name as a suspect in manipulating the TRP and not of Republic TV.

YouTube videos uploaded on official account of Republic TV

Republic TV under attack for its relentless pursuit to cover uncomfortable stories

Ever since Republic TV arrived on the Indian media landscape, it has been under relentless attack by its detractors for its loud brand of journalism and unceasing pursuit to cover uncomfortable stories. The channel has also been criticised because it is founded by Arnab Goswami, a journalist who has consistently called out the Lutyens’ Media and other politicians for their excessive deference to the Gandhi family.

A few weeks ago, a legal attack was unleashed against the channel when Arnab Goswami called out Sonia Gandhi with her maiden name for her silence on the lynching of Hindu Sadhus in Palghar. Hundreds of FIRs were filed against the channel and Editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami was put through the wringer by the Mumbai Police for several hours for simply calling Sonia Gandhi as “Antonio Maino” on his primetime show.

More recently, Republic TV was at loggerheads with the Maharashtra government, over the arbitrarily arrested by the Mumbai Police for carrying out an investigative assignment in Raigad, a district neighbouring Mumbai. Journalist Anuj Kumar, along with video journalist Yashpaljit Singh and Ola cab driver Pradeep Dilip Dhanavade were illegally taken into police custody by the Maharashtra police in September 2020, following which Arnab Goswami launched a scathing attack against the Maharashtra government, including Chief Minister Udhhav Thackeray, had demanded their release.

Hansa research confirms filing of FIR that names India Today in TRP scam: Read full details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Hansa research confirms filing of FIR that names India Today in TRP scam: Read full details

Hansa Research Group Private Limited, The company that manages the Bar-O-meters of BARC, has confirmed that they had filed a complaint with the Mumbai police alleging malpractices oh TV viewership records. The company released its first statement after the issue snowballed into a major controversy when the Mumbai police commissioner said that Republic TV was named in the FIR, while actually, the FIR had named India Today severe times and Republic TV was not named at all.

As reported by Republic TC, the statement issued by Praveen Nijhara, CEO, Hansa Research Group said that as a result of an investigation conducted by the Hansa Research and the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) into the matter of TRP manipulation, an FIR was filed by the former against an ex-employee of theirs who was engaged in some kind of wrongdoing. The statement further said that Hansa Research has been vigilant in informing BARC and other law enforcement agencies about such issues and that they would continue to cooperate with BARC and other authorities.

The statement reads, “This is with reference to the media reports regarding TRP ratings manipulated. Hansa Research and BARC conducted an investigation into the matter over the last few weeks, the conclusion of which resulted in Hansa Research filing an FIR against an ex-employee who was engaged in some wrongdoing. Hansa Research has always been vigilant about these issues and has been proactive in informing BARC and the law enforcement agencies as and when called upon to do so”.

Background

The company installs and maintains the Bar-O-Meter of BARC. The Bar-O-Meter or the BARC meter measures viewership of channels through digital set-top boxes by tracking audio tracks embedded in al the channels. As revealed by Hansa Research’s Relationship Manager, Vishal Bhandari, who has been arrested by the Mumbai police, India Today and other channels had instigated him and had also offered money to panel homes where Bar-O-Meter is installed.

Nitin Deokar, the Deputy Manager of Hansa Research who had filed an FIR against Bhandari explained that some people try to increase the ratings by making panel homes watch certain channels in exchange for money. Deokar said that Bhandari was approached by a person named Vinay in November 2019, who had asked Bhandari to approach five homes and ask them to watch India Today for two hours every day.

Bhandari had confessed to the BARC Vigilance team that Vinay paid him Rs 5000 as commission got distributing Rs 1000 among five panel homes. His claim was confirmed by an audit inquiry conducted by BARC that five households were paid money to watch India Today everyday for a minimum period of 2 hours from November 2019 to May 2020.

Arnab Goswami’s Statement

In response to the allegations leveled by the Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh against Republic TV in the fake TRP Scam, the Editor-in-Chief of Republic TV Arnab Goswami has issued a statement. In his statement, Goswami said that the Mumbai Police Commissioner stands exposed as the FIR mentions the name of India Today multiple times. Also, the main witness in the case has named India Today on record. He questioned how the Commissioner closed the investigation against India Today within 16 hours of filing the FIR and went on to hold a press conference against Republic TV. Goswami asked him to quit in the interest of morality.

Goswami’s statement can be read here:

“The Mumbai Police Commissioner has been completely and totally exposed. A copy of the FIR in the TRP case mentions India Today as the channel to be investigated. In fact, India Today has been mentioned multiple times in the FIR. There is not a single mention of Republic TV. Now, the main witness in the case has also gone on record and named India Today as the English channel for which financial compensation was allegedly provided to gain viewership. The complaint against India Today was made on October 6. Param Bir Singh closes the investigation against India Today within 16 hours and does a press conference against Republic TV. Now, that the FIR is out and the critical witness is on record, and the Mumbai Police Commissioner has been caught red-handed. He must, in the interest of morality, quit”.

No ‘witty’ headline on first page: Scared of Mamata Banerjee, Telegraph ignores police brutality on BJP workers during protests

OpIndia Staff
-
0
No ‘witty’ headline on first page: Scared of Mamata Banerjee, Telegraph ignores police brutality on BJP workers during protests

On a day when the goons allegedly associated with the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, joining hands with the West Bengal Police unleashed violence and mercilessly beat up people on the streets of Kolkata, the neutral media ‘Telegraph’ chose to remain a mute spectator against atrocities perpetrated by the West Bengal government.

The far-left ‘newspaper’ Telegraph, which now and then exhibits its craving for publishing hit-job articles against nationalists with repugnant headlines, on Friday decided to ignore the violence unleashed against BJP workers during the ‘Nabanna Chalo’ rally.

The West Bengal Police on Thursday mercilessly beat up people on the streets of Kolkata and unleashed large-scale lathi-charge and violence against BJYM and BJP workers for protesting against the political murders in the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal. Acting on the behest of Mamata Banerjee-led government, the West Bengal Police had come down heavily on the BJP karyakartas by raining lathis and using tear gas at them.

Shockingly, Trinamool party workers too had joined the violence against the BJP workers and had even hurled bombs at BJP MP and Yuva Morcha chief Tejasvi Surya during the peaceful protest in Kolkata.

No front page reporting, ‘witty’ headline by Telegraph

Instead of displaying its usual bravado, the Telegraph not only chickened out from publishing reports questioning the actions of Mamata Banerjee-led government but instead published articles that disregarded the ‘Nabanna Chalo’ rally itself.

Here is the front page of the Friday edition of Kolkata based far-left newspaper. Fearing a strong response from Mamata Banerjee, the Telegraph perhaps that it was better not to provoke the Trinamool Congress-led government in West Bengal and decided to back down from publishing reports on the bomb attacks against the BJP workers during the Thursday rally.

The front page of Friday edition of the Telegraph

The spiteful headlines published by the Telegraph, which it refers to as ‘witty’ was missing from its front pages on Friday. Interestingly, the Telegraph even feared to published its report on the first page of its Friday’s edition. Instead it chose to print a story explaining its readers regarding how a cotton sari mattered more than the costliest silk.

Telegraph hails West Bengal police, discredits BJP’s rally

Ironically, the Telegraph, which positions itself to be the only ‘neutral’ media to speak truth to power, has come in defence of the Mamata Banerjee-led government by toning down the attacks on the BJP workers. In the sixth page of today’s edition, the Telegraph has published three reports pertaining to the incident. However, not one of them has depicted the truth or highlighted the police excesses on the peaceful protestors.

In one report, the Telegraph has gone to an extent of hailing West Bengal police for showing restraint on the protestors. According to Telegraph, the West Bengal cops showed exemplary restraint against the BJP workers even as bombs and stones were hurled during the protest.

Hailing the West Bengal police for not even firing a single bullet during the protest, the Telegraph noted that the police used some sort of ‘dye-mixed with water’ to disperse the ‘unruly supporters of the BJP’ at Howrah maidan.

Image Source: Telegraph/Page 6

It is pertinent to note that several BJP workers, who had participated in the protests, were hospitalised after they were subjected to an alleged chemical attack by the members of TMC and West Bengal police. The ‘chemical attacks’, as alleged by the BJP workers, is now being pushed as dry-mix water spray the Telegraph to tone down the violence that erupted on the streets of Kolkata on Saturday.

The lack of professional integrity and journalist ethics of far-left rag Telegraph was yet again exposed when it published another report claiming that the impact of BJP Yuva Morcha rally did not match its hype. Taking a dig at BJP, Telegraph mocked at the alleged low-turnout of the BJP supporters in the rally as they raised doubts on the impact of the BJP’s ferocious Thursday rally in Kolkata.

Image Source: Telegraph

May be, the Telegraph, which takes so much pride in its headlines except, has no courage at all to hold West Bengal government or Mamata Banerjee into account or report on things that are happening in its own backyard in West Bengal.

India Today was held guilty of viewership malpractice after show-cause notice, was asked to pay Rs 5,00,000 fine to BARC: Exclusive details

Nupur J Sharma
-
0
India Today was held guilty of viewership malpractice after show-cause notice, was asked to pay Rs 5,00,000 fine to BARC: Exclusive details

The TRP ‘scam’ issue took an interesting turn yesterday when, after the Mumbai Police Commissioner alleged that Republic TV was involved in the TRP scam, the FIR which mentioned not Republic TV but India Today surfaced. Thereafter, a conversation between a Republic TV journalist and one of the prime witnesses in the case surfaced where the witness had admitted that her son was asked to watch India Today to illegally increase their TRP.

India Today went on overdrive trying to shield itself after they had made a fool of themselves and gone hammer and tongs against Republic TV and Arnab Goswami following the press conference by Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh. They lied and twisted the statement of the very witness who had indicted India Today to exonerate themselves and implicate Republic TV. However, their lies were summarily exposed by OpIndia.

Now, our sources have informed us that India Today was asked to pay a fine of Rs 5,00,000 after their explanation did not satisfactorily explain the increase in India Today viewership by the BARC Disciplinary Council.

A show-cause notice was sent to TV Today Network Ltd and BARC regarding viewership malpractice on 27th April 2020, according to our sources. The response by TV Today Network Limited, who is a subscriber of BARC, was not found satisfactory by the BARC Disciplinary Council and the BDC had ruled that the response by India Today “does not satisfactorily explain the buoyancy of India Today channel, in particular, geographies (Mumbai and Bangalore)”.

Further, the BARC Disciplinary Council had ruled that “the statistical data provided by BARC Measurement Science Team showed an abnormal and inexplicable ??increase in viewership”. Continuing in their order BDC said, “furthermore subscribers reply and/or representations do not provide satisfactorily explain the abnormal increase in the viewership”. Here, subscriber means India Today that had responded to the show-cause notice furnished to them and BARC by BARC Disciplinary Council.

What followed in the order was even more startling.

The order further said:

In view of the above, the Council is satisfied that the Subscriber has breached the provisions of Section 7 of the EULA and has committed Viewership Malpractice as more particularly alleged in the Show Cause Notice as well as the Report submitted by the BARC Vigilance team. Thus, as per clause 14(a) of CCRVM, this being the first offence of the Subscriber, therefore the Council is satisfied that in the present case, a warning be issued to the Subscriber and the Subscriber shall also pay a penalty of Rs. [5],00,000/- (Rupees [Five] Lakhs only) to BARC.

BARC had made their End User License Agreement extremely stringent for channels (subscribers) and any viewership malpractice is dealt with seriously.

According to the order passed, the BARC Disciplinary Council had held that TV Today Limited (India Today) had breached Section 7 of the End User License Agreement and committed viewership malpractice which was alleged in the show-cause notice as well as the report submitted by BARC Vigilence Team.

Since it was the first offence of India Today, they were left with a warning and their license was not cancelled, however, TV Today Network Limited was asked to pay Rs 5,00,000 penalty to BARC.

Interestingly, this order was issued was on the 31st of July, however, the fine of Rs 5,00,000 has not been paid yet by India Today. It is possible that India Today has appealed against the order, however, OpIndia could not confirm that details.

In light of this, it is obvious that India Today would not be oblivious about the fine that they themselves had paid for viewership malpractice and was held guilty of it by the BARC Disciplinary Council of a TRP scam. Knowing fully well that India Today itself was indicted for malpractice, it is inexplicable why India Today went after Republic TV after Mumbai Police was found falsely implicating Arnab Goswami. In fact, even the FIR that was filed, which surfaced later, had mentioned only India Today and had no mention of Republic TV.

It would appear that India Today’s dwindling TRP after Republic TV garnered the lion’s share of viewership has pushed the channel and its journalists like Rahul Kanwal, Rajdeep Sardesai etc to indulge in chicanery without realising that in the age of social media and digital platforms, the wings of lies are clipped rather efficiently.

OpIndia reached out to Rahul Kanwal to seek his comments on the show-cause notice and India Today’s indictment by BARC Disciplinary Council, however, we are yet to receive a response from him. If Mr Kanwal chooses to respond to our query, we will update this article with his response.

Man beheads wife on suspicion of infidelity, walks into police station with severed head

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Man beheads wife on suspicion of infidelity, walks into police station with severed head

In a bone-chilling incident in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda district, a man beheaded his wife and surrendered in the police station with her severed head. The man named Chinnar Yadav suspected his wife Vimla of infidelity. On Friday morning, the couple, who lived in the Netanagar locality, had allegedly had a heated argument.

According to Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mahendra Pratap Chauhan, in the heat of the moment , the accused attacked his wife with a sharp weapon and killed her. He carried his wife’s severed head to Baberu police station where he surrendered. The accused has been arrested and the weapon has been recovered by the police.

As informed by ASP Chauhan, the suspected his wife of having an affair with a neighbour. He has also attacked the neighbour. The body of the victim has been sent for post mortem. The investigation in the matter has been initiated.

Mumbai Police targets Republic TV yet again after their TRP scam lies fell flat, summons journalist Pradip Bhandari for questioning

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Mumbai Police targets Republic TV yet again after their TRP scam lies fell flat, summons journalist Pradip Bhandari for questioning

A day after Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh was left red-faced after he attempted to falsely implicate Republic TV and its editor-in-chief- Arnab Goswami in the “TRP scam” case, Mumbai police has upped its ante against the independent media network. In yet another brazen attempt to browbeat the news channel, the Mumbai police have now summoned its consulting editor and journalist Pradeep Bhandari for questioning.

Pertinently, Pradeep Bhandari has been leading the reportage in demand for justice in Sushant Singh Rajput death case. Yesterday, Arnab Goswami had accused Param Bir Singh of targeting his channel for relentlessly pursuing the actor’s death case, the Palghar lynching case etc. He had said that the Mumbai PC is scared about facts coming out in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case

A complaint against Bhandari has been registered at the Khar police station under Articles 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of IPC and 37(1), 135 of the Bombay Police Act, and he has been asked to appear for the investigation of the said crime.

Pradeep Bhandari says Republic TV will fight back

The journalist took to Twitter to share the news, saying that Republic TV will keep putting up a fight against the police vendetta.

The ‘fake TRP scam’ exposed

The ‘fake TRP scam’ had taken a remarkable turn in less than 24 hours yesterday. Mumbai CP Param Bir Singh, in an explosive statement yesterday, accused Republic TV of ‘TRP manipulation’. In a no-holds-barred attack against Republic TV and Arnab Goswami, the Mumbai CP had claimed, that the channel had illegally paid some households to keep some channels on even if they were not at home to boost their TRP. However, by the end of the day, it was revealed that in the original FIR, Republic TV did not find a mention anywhere. In fact, it was India Today that had been named in the original FIR.

The Joint Commissioner had also admitted that it was indeed India Today that was named in the FIR.

Mumbai police shield India Today and target Republic TV

For the uninitiated, the FIR which was filed on the 6th of October 2020 had named India Today and not Republic TV. However, as soon as the FIR came into Mumbai police’s attention, without even conducting an investigation into India Today itself, they sent a notice to BARC to get the ratings of Republic TV on the 7th and on the 8th, they were convinced enough to hold a press conference implicating Republic TV.

Interestingly, in the entire 3-day span that the Mumbai Police had before going on national TV, there is no evidence of any letter to BARC to get India Today viewership details or investigate them. From the 6th of October to the 8th of October, while the FIR itself named India Today, it is Republic TV that is now mysteriously facing the ire of the Mumbai Police.

Yesterday it was sufficiently clear that Republic TV is being deviously targeted by Mumbai police. as Arnab Goswami also asserted that the police commissioner is targeting his channel because he is scared about facts coming out in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case.

West Bengal: ‘TMC activist’ arrested for harbouring killers of BJP leader Manish Shukla, CID recovers bikes, carbines and pistols

OpIndia Staff
-
0
West Bengal: ‘TMC activist’ arrested for harbouring killers of BJP leader Manish Shukla, CID recovers bikes, carbines and pistols

In a major development on Thursday, the West Bengal Crime Investigation Department (CID) arrested the third accused in the brutal murder of BJP councillor Manish Shukla at Purani Bazaar near Titagarh police station in Barrackpore area. The third accused, identified as one Subodh Yadav aka Subodh Rai, is reportedly a sharpshooter.

The murder had taken place on Sunday evening at around 8:30 pm after he stepped into the party office. Reportedly, bike-borne assailants shot Shukla from an extremely close range.

As per reports, Subodh Yadav was apprehended from his home in Khatal area of Barrackpore based on a tip-off from the other accused arrested earlier. Subodh has been remanded to 14 days in police custody by a local court. Reportedly, he is a TMC activist and a close aide of Uttam Das, who is the ex-chairman of Barrackpore Municipal Corporation. He has been booked for providing accommodation to the assassins of Manish Shukla and being a part of the larger conspiracy.

Conspiracy to kill Manish Shukla was hatched at Subodh’s house, reveals CID

The CID officials had informed that the plan to kill the BJP councillor was hatched at Subodh’s residence in Barrackpore. “The entire plan to eliminate Manish Shukla was hatched at the residence of Subodh. He provided shelter to the contract sharpshooters who were at least four in number and came to Barrackpore from outside a few days before the murder,” an official was quoted as saying. He further added, “Subodh had arranged the flat to lodge the hired shooters. Names of a few more persons suspected to be involved in the murder have also surfaced. Their roles are being examined.”

CID sleuths recover bikes, pistols and carbines

The Crime Investigation Department seized three motorcycles, three country-made pistols and a carbine from a glass factory near Sodepur railway bridge, based on the revelations of Subodh. The CID sleuths are now probing the source of the weapons. As per reports, the contract killers were housed in a flat in a multi-storied building on Dakshin Panchanantala Road in Ward 4 of Barrackpore. Citing CBI sources, ABP Ananda stated that the accused killers stayed in the said flat for several weeks, prior to executing the murder. However, the four assailants are still on the run from law enforcement.

(Video Courtesy: ABP Ananda)

TMC leaders in the dock

The BJP had earlier accused the Trinamool Congress of engineering the murder. The father of the deceased had filed a complaint with the police against other TMC leaders such as Prashanta Chowdhury and Uttam Das for being involved in the murder. Chowdhury is the administrator of the Titagrah municipality. The FIR has named a total of 7 people in connection to the case.

Meanwhile, BJP leader Arjun Singh had claimed that the prime accused Mohammed Khurram, earlier nabbed by the CID, has links with TMC biggies such as Firhad Hakim, Nirmal Ghosh, Madan Mitra, Dinesh Trivedi, and Bratya Basu. The BJP also called for a 12-hour Bandh on Monday. On Thursday, BJP leader Tejasvi Surya met the victim’s family and assured to deliver justice to Manish Shukla.

CID nabs two more accused

On Monday, the CID has arrested two accused, namely, Mohammed Khurram and Gulab Shaikh, in connection to the case. While Khurram was arrested earlier in the day, Shaikh was nabbed on the intervening night of October 5 and October 6. The CID officials had interrogated the duo and informed that Mohammed Khurram had ‘personal enmity’ with the deceased BJP leader. As per reports, Khurram is the primary conspirator who hired the contract killers while Subodh facilitated the accommodation and weapons for the assailants.

BJP demands CBI investigation in the Manish Shukla case

On Monday, the West Bengal government had handed over the case to the Crime Inspection Department (CID) from the Barrackpore Commissionerate. The case was handed over to the CID after the police conducted the post-mortem of the body of the deceased. The state unit of the BJP has criticised the move, insinuating that they do not trust the police working under the TMC government. The BJP’s disapproval comes at the backdrop of several cases wherein the unnatural deaths of BJP workers were dubbed as ‘suicide’ or ‘inconclusive’ by the state police. They have demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the matter.

‘Horrible professor, avoid at all costs,’ pro-Aurangzeb historian Audrey Truschke receives harsh reviews from students on Rate My Professors

OpIndia Staff
-
0
‘Horrible professor, avoid at all costs,’ pro-Aurangzeb historian Audrey Truschke receives harsh reviews from students on Rate My Professors

Audrey Truschke, a ‘historian’, has garnered quite a bit of notoriety in India in recent years due to her fondness for the Mughal tyrant Aurangzeb. She has been the subject of abject criticism on social media for her penchant towards whitewashing the crimes of the barbarian. All this time she has brushed all such criticism under the carpet by claiming that she is a ‘historian’ and pretending that it somehow absolves her apologia for a genocidal maniac.

It now appears that its not only people on social media that are not too fond of her. Her students do not appear to like her too much either. She is a professor at the History Department of the Rutgers State University in New Jersey. She has a rating of 1.7 out of 5 at the Rate My Professors website where students can rate the professors they take classes of. Rate My Professors is a website that was founded in 1999 that allows college and university students to rate professors and campuses of American, Canadian and British institutions.

A rating Audrey Truschke received on Rate My Professors website

The description section of the website says, “Rate My Professors is the largest online destination for professor ratings. Users have added more than 19 million ratings, 1.7 million professors and over 7,500 schools to Rate My Professors. User-generated content makes Rate My Professors the highest trafficked site for quickly researching and rating professors, colleges and universities across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.”

It adds, “Rate My Professors is built for college students. Choosing the best courses and professors is a rite of passage for every student, and connecting with peers on the site has become a key way for millions of students to navigate this process. The site does what students have been doing forever – checking in with each other – their friends, their brothers, their sisters, their classmates – to figure out who’s a great professor and who’s one you might want to avoid.” The website has also won a Webby Award in the ratings category.

One of the ‘1’ rating Audrey Truschke received on the platform says, “She doesn’t know the material. She just gives you “busy work”. A very terrible teacher. She should rather have become an activist rather than a teacher. She made a fun subject into a miserable course. She doesn’t respect other points of view. TL:DR: If I had to take the class again, I would rather drop out of university.”

A rating Audrey Truschke received on Rate My Professors website

“Horrible teacher ever, very annoying and unhelpful. Very unclear. Her ego gets hurt if u ask her a question she doesn’t know. Always ready to play women’s card Verdict : she sucks,” says another. One student went so far as to remark, “I didnt think a history class would be this bad. Avoid at all costs”.

Another student said that her attitude towards students is a “nightmare”. “She doesn’t answer questions or she says “we’ll get to that later” and then never gets to it. Avoid at all costs,” the student said. There was another student who commented along similar lines. “DO NOT TAKE HER CLASS. YOU DO NOT LEARN ANYTHING FROM HER. We asked her questions during class and every time she was saying “I’ll get back to you.” If that is the case, why do you pay you? Such a crappy professor.”

There were one or two who did appreciate her skills, of course. One such student remarked, “If you are looking to complete your history requirement take her because her by attending her lectures you will really learn something. Attendance and participation are mandatory because it worths 35% of your final grade. Throughout the semester we just got quizzes before exams. There are papers to write but not long only 1 or 2 pages. Easy grader.”

However, in the end, only 20% of the students said that they would take her classes again. There were 21 student ratings in total which gave her a score of 1.7 out of 5.

Actress Sana Khan, worried about after-life, leaves showbiz for Islam, to follow ‘rules of Allah’: Read what she said

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Actress Sana Khan, worried about after-life, leaves showbiz for Islam, to follow ‘rules of Allah’: Read what she said

Actress Sana Khan has decided to quit the entertainment industry after being enlightened by the ‘teachings of Islam’. The decision comes at the backdrop of her depression phase, following her ‘bitter breakup’ with dancer Melvis Louis. Khan has been a part of several reality TV shows such as Big Boss, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 7, Comedy Nights Bachao, Entertainment Ki Raat and Kitchen Champion. She has also featured in a few films, including, Jai Ho and Wajah Tum Ho.

Inspired by Islam, Sana Khan to ‘serve humanity’

In an Instagram post on Thursday, Sana Khan dubbed her decision to leave showbiz as the ‘happiest day’. While hoping that Allah will ‘guide her’ in her new journey, she asked her followers to pray for her. She wrote, “I am talking to you during one of the most significant turns in my life. I am in the film industry for several years and have received fame, respect and wealth from my ardent fans. I am grateful for that.”

Sana Khan continued, “But somehow, a thought has been persistent in my mind – What is the purpose of this life? Is it only to earn money and fame? Is it not our responsibility to spend our lives in service of the helpless and the abandoned? Should humans not think how death may come at any point and what would be their fate in the after-life? I am desperately searching for answers to these two questions, especially the second one. What would be my fate when I die?”

Purpose of this life is to make after-life better, claims actress

While invoking Islamic references of the ‘Judgement Day’, she hinted at how her Faith and her profession were at loggerheads with each other. Khan emphasised, “When I looked for the answer to the intriguing question in my religion, I found that the purpose of this life is to make after-life better. And the after-life will also be good if a person follows her life as per the rules of the Creator (Allah in this case). Don’t make fame and wealth the basis of your life. Move away from a sinful lifestyle to the one that serves humanity. Follow the rules of your creator.”

Sana Khan urges people to not approach her for film-related work

“Therefore, I announce that I will quit the film industry and will serve humanity. I will follow the rules as specified by my Creator. I request my fans to pray for me and hope that Allah will listen to my prayers,” she reiterated. Sana khan stated that she will continue to serve humanity and requested everyone to not approach her for any film-related work anymore.

Zaira Wasim too quit film industry for Islam

This is not the first time that a Muslim actress has left the film fraternity to serve ‘Islam’ and abide by the ‘modest’ rules of Allah. Last year, ‘Dangal’ and ‘Secret Superstar’ actress Zaira Wasim too announced her retirement from movies in a letter posted on Instagram. In the six-page letter, she said, “Bollywood took me away from Islam” and cites the interference on her religious practices as the reason for this decision.

She said that she wasn’t truly happy with her line of work despite her fame and success. It was only while trying to adjust to the new lifestyle did she realized that her career had impacted her relationship with religion. Talking about the difficulties that she had faced, Zaira Wasim says that she has found solace in Allah and Quran.

1...4,9644,9654,966...7,646Page 4,965 of 7,646