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Lies of Mumbai Police Commissioner exposed, the FIR filed in the TRP scam case names India Today, not Republic TV

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Lies of Mumbai Police Commissioner exposed, the FIR filed in the TRP scam case names India Today, not Republic TV

After India Today lost its mental balance following Mumbai police accusing Republic TV of indulging in manipulating viewership data, it has been revealed that the complained filed by BARC had actually named India Today TV for the crime, not Republic TV. The FIR filed in the case has been accessed by Republic TV, which shows that India Today was named in the FIR, not Republic TV as alleged by Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh. The FIR names India Today several times, but the police commissioner chose to allege that Republic TV has been named, which is not true.

The FIR alleging manipulation of Bar-o-meters installed by BARC was filed by Hansa Research Group Private Limited, the company responsible for installing and maintaining the Bar-O-Meter of the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC). Following the complaint, Relationship Manager of the company Vishal Bhandari was arrested by Mumbai police. During the investigation, revealed that India Today and other channels instigated him and offered money to households with the meters to keep their TV tuned to those channels.

The FIR filed in the TRP scam case

Moreover, he revealed that a person named Vinay asked Bhandari in November 2019 to approach 5 homes and ask them to watch India Today daily for 2 hours. The FIR filed in the case reads “Today on 6lh October 2020, Assistant Police Inspector, Mr. Kazi, has informed me that, Basis on the secret information received, they arrested Vishal Ved Bhandari, House no.6, Kashinath Khandu Bhandari Chawl, BMC Quarters, Chincholi, N B Road, Malad (W), Mumbai 400097, During the inquiry, he informed that he is working with Hansa Research Group Private Limited as a Relationship Manager, he also informed that to increase the TRP of India Today and several other channels, he used to instigate and offer money to panel homes, where BAR-o-Meter installed with the help of other several people. They asked me to visit their office for more understanding.”

The FIR filed in the TRP scam case

The FIR further states in November 2019, Vishal had received a call from an unknown person named Mr Vinay. Vinay asked him to approach 5 panel homes in Mumbai to ask them to watch the India Today channel daily for 2 hours. Later Vinay met Vishal and gave him Rs 1000 to distribute among the 5 panel homes, and also game Rs 5000 as a commission for the act. Accordingly, Vishal did the malpractice for 7 months from November 2019 to May 2020. He approached the 5 panel homes, asked them to watch the channel for 2 hours daily.

The FIR filed in the TRP scam case

According the statement given by Vishal Bhandari, the audit team had visited one of the panel homes, and the household had confirmed that they were paid to watch the India Today for minimum 2 hours per day.

After the press conference by Param Bir Singh, Republic TV had said that the complaint didn’t name them, and had said that will file a defamation case against the Mumbai Police Commissioner for taking the channel’s name. Now this FIR in the case supports the stand of Republic TV, implying that the police commissioner was lying in the press conference.

IFCN signatory fact-checker spreads fake news after netizens call for boycotting Mirzapur 2 over Ali Fazal’s comment on anti-CAA riots

OpIndia Staff
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IFCN signatory fact-checker spreads fake news after netizens call for boycotting Mirzapur 2 over Ali Fazal’s comment on anti-CAA riots

On Thursday, IFCN signatory news and fact-checking sire Newschecker.in posted a tweet saying that the call for boycotting the second season of TV Mirzapur was based on false information. While netizens have decided to boycott Mirzapur 2 on Prime Video over the show’s actor Ali Fazal’s comments celebrating anti-CAA violence, the so-called fact-checking site claimed that the actor’s comments were not linked with the riots.

In a video posted on Twitter, the Newschecker.in also mentioned an OnIndia report on the call to boycotts, saying it is misleading. The site claimed although Ali Fazal supported the anti-CAA protests, he didn’t support the violence that accompanied the protests. Supporting Fazal’s claim that his tweet on 20 December last year was misinterpreted, the side claimed that the tweet was edited to claim that he was supporting violence.

As a proof of this claim, the IFCN signatory site said that the tweet by Ali Fazal was posted in December 2019, while the riots in Delhi took place in February 2020, therefore, he was not talking about the Delhi riots.

The claim by Newschecker.in is hilarious, because nobody claimed that Fazal was celebrating the February riots in his December tweet. In an attempt to shield the actor, the site conveniently forgot that the February riots were not the only riots during the anti-CAA protests in the country from October 2019 to February 2020, several incidents of riots and violence across the country.

On 20 December 2019, Ali Fazal had tweeted “Protests: Suru Majboori mein kiye they, ab maja aa raha hai!!” (started in compulsion, now enjoying it). The tweet that he had deleted later, it is evident that he was referring the violent protests against the CAA that had taken place just days ago in several areas in Delhi. Although the February riots were the most violent riots during the anti-CAA protests, riots had also taken placed in Delhi in December also, which the so-called factcheker seems to be denying now.

In the week before Fazal’s tweet on 20th December, violence during anti-CAA protests had erupted in Seelampur, Trilokpuri, Jamia Nagar, Jamia Millia Islamia University and several other places. The rioters had clashed with police, and had destroyed a large number of public and private properties. Buses and other vehicles burnt by the anti-CAA rioters had gone viral on social media. Riots were still going on in several states even after 20th December, including Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal etc. In fact, the largest number of riots took place across the country during this period in the name of anti-CAA protests.

Therefore, those who are boycotting Mirzapur 2 are associating Ali Fazal’s comments with the anti-CAA riots in December, they are not linking the same with February riots as Newschecker.in is claiming. Therefore, the IFCN signatory ‘fact-checker’ is actually spreading fake news by making the false allegation.

‘Why are you giving us this treatment’: Watch India Today journalist losing his mental balance trying to heckle Arnab Goswami

OpIndia Staff
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‘Why are you giving us this treatment’: Watch India Today journalist losing his mental balance trying to heckle Arnab Goswami

Competitors of Republic TV were seen in a celebratory mood on social media after the Mumbai Police accused the channel of manipulating its TRP. They were jubilant and quick to offer sermons and lectures as they saw an opportunity to target Arnab Goswami after failing spectacularly in denting his viewership. However, now that the Editor-in-Chief does not appear particularly distressed, at least some of them are losing control of their mental faculties.

Mustafa Shaikh of India Today could be seen on TV huffing and puffing and labouring profoundly while trying to elicit some response from Arnab Goswami on the ‘fake TRP scandal’. The Republic Editor, meanwhile, appeared amused with the whole situation and had two fingers up in a gesture indicating victory.

Mustafa Shaikh was clearly not amused with the whole situation. There he was running around trying to get an answer from Arnab Goswami and all he received in return were smiles and a symbol of victory. Before long, his patience ran out and in an act of sheer desperation, he ripped his heart of his chest (metaphorically, of course) and laid his feelings bare for the whole world to see.

“A simple question, Arnab… A simple question, Arnab… the question we are asking is that Mumbai Police has registered a case against you… what do you have to say? What do you have say…? Mumbai Police has registered a case against you, Arnab..,” wailed Mustafa Shaikh. It was then that Mustafa realised that in order to have the faintest chance of victory, he had to gamble everything he had. It was now or never.

It was then that Mustafa said, “Arnab, the question we are asking is…. It’s a simple question, if you have not done anything wrong, you are innocent… WHY ARE YOU GIVING US THIS TREATMENT? WHY ARE WE BEING FORCED… IF YOU SAY IT’S YOUR VICTORY, WHY DON’T YOU ANSWER THE QUESTIONS, ARNAB?” But in a heartbreaking moment, Arnab Goswami just drove off without even acknowledging his existence.

Now, out of breath and his will crushed, Mustafa Shaikh had no choice but to admit defeat. Humiliated and panting for breath, he finally declared, “Arnab Goswami of Republic TV just now left from his house without answering a single question from us (more huffing and puffing)… with (unintelligible) and Mustafa Shaikh (more huffing and puffing)… for India Today.”

It is unclear whether the whole spectacle was more uncomfortable for Mustafa Shaikh or the India Today anchor in the studio or the viewer who was forced to endure the horror-show. With news coverage such as this, it is not entirely surprising that India Today has extremely low ratings. It was another instance where Arnab Goswami spectacularly defeated India Today, but this time, without even being aware of the journalist’s stellar efforts at trying to corner him.

For those unaware, earlier today, Mumbai police made some sensational claims against some TV channels saying that they were manipulating TRP ratings. In a press conference, Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh had accused three TV channels, including Republic TV, of being involved in manipulating viewership data of BARC by paying those households where Bar-o-meters, the devices that track TV viewership, are installed.

Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan passes away days after undergoing heart surgery

OpIndia Staff
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Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan passes away days after undergoing heart surgery

Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan passed away today evening after battling health issues. His son Chirag Paswan took to Twitter to share the news.

The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader and Rajya Sabha member had recently underwent heart surgery in a Delhi hospital. On October 4th Chirag Paswan had tweeted informing that his father was undergoing treatment in hospital. “For the last many days dad is getting treated in a hospital. Due to some sudden developments on Saturday evening, an operation of his heart had to be conducted in the late night. If the need arises, then possibly after a few weeks another operation might be conducted. Thanks to all for standing by me and my family in this hour of struggle,” he had tweeted.

Ram Vilas Paswan was born in 1946 in Bihar, and have been a veteran in Bihar and Indian politics. He was Lok Sabha MP for eight terms, and had held the world record for winning an election with highest margin. He started his political career as member of Samyukta Socialist Party and was elected to the Bihar Legislative Assembly in 1969. Later, Paswan joined Lok Dal upon its formation in 1974, and became its general secretary. He was arrested during emergency.

After the emergency, he joined Janata Party and won the Lok Sabha election in 1977 from Hajipur. After he won the elections in 1980, 1989, 1996 and 1998, 1999, 2004, and 2014. In 2000, he formed the Lok Janshakti Party, and later joined the UPA government and became an union minister. In 2009 he had left the UPA and formed the fourth alliance with RJD and SP, and lost the Lok Sabha election in that year.

In 2014, the LJP joined the NDA ahead of the general elections, and Paswan became the minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. He continued with the same portfolio in the second Modi government.

Congress screams ‘scam’ in Iron Ore Pellet export based on policies introduced during Congress government: Read details

OpIndia Staff
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Congress screams ‘scam’ in Iron Ore Pellet export based on policies introduced during Congress government: Read details

On Thursday, the Congress party made allegations against the Modi government claiming irregularities in iron ore pellet export. The party alleged that an iron ore scam worth Rs 40,000 crore took place in the six years during the rule of Modi government.

In a press conference addressed by Pawan Khera, the Congress party alleged that in 2014, the Narendra Modi government changed the export duty on iron ore pellets to zero, which was 30% earlier. He said that while the govt retained the export duty 30% on iron ore, they reduced it to zero on exports of Iron Ore Pellets. He also added that the govt allowed KIOCL (Kudremukh Iron Company Limited) to export iron ore to China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.

The Congress spokesperson added that earlier only KIOCL was allowed to export iron ore, but after the change in policy, several private companies started exporting ore in the form of pellets, and didn’t pay any export duty on it. The Congress spokesperson claimed that the private companies didn’t have any permission to export iron ore, and they not only exported pellets, but also evaded tax on it. He said that the quantum of the scam was Rs 40,000 crore, and the companies evaded Rs 12,000 crore in taxes.

But these claims by the Congress party are false and baseless. According to govt sources, these are unsubstantiated claims which reflect the party’s “sole motive to kill India’s exports and hurt our domestic industry.”

First, the Congress party alleged that export duty on Iron ore pellet was removed in 2014, but that is completely false, because it was the UPA government which had started the zero duty on pellets in 2011 itself. In the budget speech for 2011-12, the finance minister Pranab Mukherjee had announced, “Full exemption from export duty is being provided to iron ore pellets to encourage the value addition process for fines.” In the same budget, export duty for all other types of iron ore were changed to 20 per cent ad valorem.

The second claim that only Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited is allowed to export iron ore pellets is also totally wrong. Ministry of Law and Justice has not made any such rule as claimed by the Congress party. The fact is, Government of India has only referred the matter to Law and Justice for their opinion. The matter is further under consideration for the views of competent authority. No decision has been taken yet on barring other companies from exporting iron ore pallets.

Read: Indian economy shows signs of recovery as exports go up by 13% in the first week of September

The biggest lie by the Congress party on the matter was that KIOCL was the only company exporting iron ore pellets before 2014. Export of iron ore pellets were never an exclusive right of KIOCL, and it was always free, after the sector was opened up in 1992 during economic linearisation. There was, however, a restriction that only KIOCL could export pellets produced by it. This means, while others were allowed to export pellets freely, it was not the case for KIOCL. In fact, the company didn’t even export any pellet between August 2011 and August 2014, during the UPA rule.

In 2014, the Modi government changed the rule for KIOCL to export pellets manufactured by it. As per the amended rule, KIOCL was allowed to export its own manufactured iron ore pellets either by itself or through any entity authorized by them for the purpose. It didn’t mention anything about allowing private entities, which were already allowed. As can be seen in the notification, the earlier export policy for KIOCL was STE (State Trading Enterprise), which was changed to Free. This means, earlier KIOCL was allowed to export pellets only through PSUs, but now they are allowed to authorise any entity for this purpose. This rule is only about pellet made by KIOCL, this does not talk about any private company exporting pellets as the Congress is alleging.

The data for the Iron Ore Pellet from 2004 to 2014 exposes the lies of Congress party. India exported 2.09 lakh MT of Iron Ore Pellet in 2011-12, 20 MT in the next year, and 17.13 lakh MT in 2013-14, in the years when KIOCL didn’t export any pellet.

Export of Iron Ore Pellets

This shows other entities were exporting pellets during UPA govt, and it was not something that started after Modi govt came to power. A total of 1.4 lakh crore tonnes of Iron-Ore Pellets were exported during Congress-led UPA Government, and from 2011 onwards, the export duty on the same was zero.

In fact, it is intriguing that in the same year when export duty on iron ore pellet was made zero, state owned KIOCL stopped export pellets. This means, only other entities benefited from the zero export duty regime during the UPA govt, not KICO. The company restarted export pellets in August 2014, 3 months after Modi govt came to power.

Therefore, the allegations made by the Congress party claiming a scam on iron ore pellets are completely baseless. Zero export duty on pellets were started during UPA govt, and entities other than KIOCL were exporting pellets during the Congress-led UPA govt.

Watch: West Bengal police beat up an elderly person for protesting against Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal govt

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: West Bengal police beat up an elderly person for protesting against Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal govt

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.

In a video tweeted by journalist Abhijit Majumder, the West Bengal police were seen beating up an elderly old man for protesting against the rising number of political murders in West Bengal.

In the video, it can be seen how the West Bengal police were repeatedly thrashing an old man for participating in a protest against Mamata Banerjee-led government. The elderly man, despite being attacked, tries to save others by wrapping his hands around them.

The peaceful protests ‘Nabanno Chalo’ were organized by BJYM over the deteriorating law and order situation and continued attack and murder of BJP leaders in the state.

The police had launched a crackdown on the protestors and BJP workers during the rally. Several videos and images are circulating on social media that reveal how West Bengal police displayed their high-handedness and attacked the BJP workers. The West Bengal police also lathi-charged, used tear gas at them.

Bombs hurled at BJP MP, party workers

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.

The most shocking act was when bombs were hurled at a rally led by BJP MP and Yuva Morcha chief Tejasvi Surya in Kolkata.

Tejasvi Surya posted a series of images on social media accusing the TMC party workers of hurling country-made bombs at them from rooftops. He added that the water cannons and lathi-charge were also used to disperse the peaceful crowd protesting on the streets of Kolkata.

Y Satya Kumar, national secretary of the BJP, said that the protesting karyakartas were subjected to ‘chemical liquid attacks’ as well. The BJP also said that the goons allegedly associated with the TMC used toxic chemicals against the BJP workers. The BJP workers are now hospitalised due to the alleged chemical attack.

After the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) announced a protest outside the state secretariat Nabanna today, the state government decided to shut down the secretariat for two days. The government had also cited the Supreme Court order yesterday on Shaheen Bagh protest justifying preventing the protest rally from taking place.

Loser channels and TV anchors thrashed by Republic TV join hands with Shiv Sena to target Arnab Goswami over ‘fake TRP scandal’

OpIndia Staff
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Loser channels and TV anchors thrashed by Republic TV join hands with Shiv Sena to target Arnab Goswami over ‘fake TRP scandal’

Hours after Mumbai police alleged today that Republic TV was involved in manipulating TV viewership data, the channel has strongly refuted the allegations. Calling the allegations false, Republic TV owner and editor Arnab Goswami said that they will file a criminal defamation case against Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has come out celebrating the actions of the Mumbai Police.

Competitors of Republic TV, which were struggling to attract the same levels of viewership, have joined Sanjay Raut in initiating festivities over the alleged ‘fake TRP scandal’. Sahil Murli Menghani, known to have shared extremely friendly relations with Shaheen Bagh protesters, already deemed Republic TV guilty and said it should not be considered a news channel.

Bhupendra Chaubey declared that it was an opportunity to ‘clean up the system’.

India Today anchor Rahul Kanwal, whose hostility towards Arnab Goswami has been well established, chose the occasion to sympathise with ‘poor uneducated people’ who paid money to keep English news channels. The tweet now appears to have been deleted.

Rahul Kanwal’s tweet

Arvind Gunasekar of NDTV, too, took the opportunity to trend a hashtag targeting Republic TV.

‘Journalist’ Marya Shakil decided the time was ripe to subtly insinuate that Arnab Goswami was ‘spilling blood’ during his debates.

Rajdeep Sardesai, meanwhile, appears to have successfully prevented himself from breaking out into an impromptu jig on social media after hearing that Republic TV was involved in a ‘fake TRP scandal’. It is pertinent to note here that all the journalists celebrating the tyrannical attack against press freedom by Mumbai Police have battled Arnab Goswami over viewership and lost terribly.

Republic TV Editor Arnab Goswami, however, issued a video statement confirming that the channel will file a defamation case against Param Bir Singh. He said that the police commissioner is targeting the channel because he is scared about facts coming out in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case. He said that the Maharashtra govt and police can’t silence the channel, and they will fight the false allegations. Arnab Goswami said that BARC has not mentioned Republic in any statement, and the police commissioner threatened to close the channel in desperation.

Earlier today Mumbai police made some sensational claims against some TV channels saying that they were manipulating TRP ratings. In a press conference held today, Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh had said that three TV channels, including Republic TV, were involved in manipulating viewership data of BARC by paying those households where Bar-o-meters, the devices that track TV viewership, are installed.

Baghpat: Man arrested for issuing death threats to PM Modi and CM Yogi in RLD rally

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Baghpat: Man arrested for issuing death threats to PM Modi and CM Yogi in RLD rally

Baghpat Police have arrested a man for an offensive speech on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. During Rashtriya Lokdal Mahapanchayat in Baghpat on Thursday, a man announced that he would behead PM Modi and CM Yogi. His video went viral on social media, after which Bhgapat police took cognizance of the incident and arrested the man.

In the video, he was addressing the crowd and said, “Unite my brothers. Change my name if I do not bring the heads of Modi and Yogi.” The crowd cheered him for the statement. The Mahapanchayat was being held after the protests against the police’s baton charge on Jayant Chaudhary, RLD, when he was in Hathras to meet the victim’s family.

Protests were held in Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, and Bijnor. The members of RLD blocked traffic on Nauhil Bajna-Aligarh road near Mathura against the alleged baton charge by police. They also burnt effigies of PM Modi and CM Yogi.

Mrityunjaye Kumar, Media Advisor to CM Yogi Adityanath, shared the video on social media and tagged Bhagpat police, urging them to take immediate action. He wrote, “This is a video from Bhagpat where this man is openly talking about cutting heads of PM Modi and CM Yogi. It may look like a demonstration but I think it is an excuse to spread hooliganism and hate.”

The police later informed in a reply that the person who gave the speech was arrested, and they are moving ahead with the legal proceedings.

Hathras case

The Hathras case has become the ground for caste-politics and mudslinging in the state. As per the reports, there have been several attempts to cause communal and caste-based tension in the state by exploiting caste sentiments. Police has so far registered 21 cases in connection to such attempts.

A 19-year-old woman died on 29th September 2020 after fighting for her life for two weeks in the hospital. There were allegations that she was raped, but the forensic report had ruled it out. A Special Investigation Team formed by CM Yogi Adityanath is investigating the case. During a hearing in the case in Supreme Court, the UP government has favoured court-supervised CBI inquiry in the case. The accused and their family members are pleading innocence, claiming that they are ready for a narco test.

Swara Bhaskar again hijacks citizen movement as Times of India credits celebrities like her for help pouring for Baba ka Dhaba

OpIndia Staff
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Swara Bhaskar again hijacks citizen movement as Times of India credits celebrities like her for help pouring for Baba ka Dhaba

Delhi Times, part of the Times of India group, took to its official Twitter handle today to give all the credit to ‘celebrities’ like Swara Bhaskar for the help pouring in for this small eatery Baba Ka Dhaba situated in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar. It said: “After a video featuring the teary-eyed owners of #BabaKaDhaba in #MalviyaNagar went viral and was shared by the likes of @ReallySwara, & @TandonRaveena, the small eatery is seeing such large crowds that they sold out all their food in the morning itself”.

It is surprising that food blogger Gaurav Wasan who was the first to share the video of the plight of the owners of the dhaba or several Twitter users who raised the issue on the microblogging site and started a full-fledged campaign for the dhaba do not even find a mention in the Times of India’s Tweet. Delhi Times has instead given all the credit to ‘actors’ like Swara Bhaskar for resharing the video which was already garnering immense support from Netizens.

Netizens take it upon themselves to keep the small eatery afloat

Actually, an elderly couple in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar sells homely meals from their humble dhaba called Baba Ka Dhaba, for 30 years. Last night, a food blogger, Gaurav Wasan shared the video of this elderly couple tearfully sharing their story, wailing on how the pandemic had made their business slow. This video went viral and struck an emotional chord amongst the netizens who pledged to throng the place in large numbers to help the elderly couple through rough times.

Twitter users like Madhur took it upon themselves to get this elderly couple out of their hard times. He began an extensive campaign for Baba Ka Dhaba through his Twitter handle.

Along with loads of Netizens, a few Bollywood actors also extended their support by re-sharing the video. And while celebrities came out in support of the elderly couple, it was essentially a citizens’ initiative.

Swara Bhaskar accused of hogging limelight, called a ‘parasite’

This is not the first time Bollywood entertainer Swara Bhaskar has swooped in to hijack a people’s movement. Recently, the Bahujan support group on Facebook, “Revolutionary memes for Bahujan teens” which has over 32,000 likes, had accused Swara Bhaskar of trying to hog the limelight in the Hathras case by hijacking the Dalit-Bahujan space.

The Chandrashekhar Azad fanpage, referring to Bhaskar as ‘parasite’ said that she doesn’t seem to have read books and writings by Pierre Bourdieu, Antonio Gramsci, Jane Elliott, Peggy McIntosh, Malcolm X otherwise she wouldn’t have jumped at every opportunity to hog the limelight in the Dalit-Bahujan space.

The Bollywood entertainer exploits the unfortunate death of Sushant Singh Rajput

Prior to this, she had tried to exploit the unfortunate death of Sushant Singh Rajput by playing the ‘outsider’ card only to relaunch herself after her adult web series ‘Rasbhari’ tanked. She had also extended her support to other assorted ‘protests’ going on in the country in her attempt to appear relevant. However, now she seems to have graduated from ‘supporting protests’ to stealing limelight from causes and people’s movements.

‘Param Bir Singh is scared about truth coming out’: Republic TV to file defamation case against Mumbai police commissioner over ‘fake TRP racket’ allegations

OpIndia Staff
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‘Param Bir Singh is scared about truth coming out’: Republic TV to file defamation case against Mumbai police commissioner over ‘fake TRP racket’ allegations

Hours after Mumbai police alleged today that Republic TV was involved in manipulating TV viewership data, the channel has strongly refuted the allegations. Calling the allegations false, Republic TV owner and editor Arnab Goswami said that they will file a criminal defamation case against Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh. The channel said that BARC has not named Republic in any report of data manipulation, and Mumbai police commissioner is maligning the channel for exposing the police on various cases like Sushant Singh Rajput’s death case and Palghar lunching case.

A statement issued nu Republic TV said-

“Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh has made false allegations against republic tv because we have questioned him in the Sushant Singh Rajput case investigation. Republic tv will file a criminal defamation case against Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh. There is not a single BARC report that mentions Republic TV. The people of India know the truth. Mr. Param Bir Singh’s investigation in the Sushant Singh Rajput case is under a cloud and this is a desperate measure because of Republic TV’s reportage on Palghar, the Sushant Singh Rajput case or any other case. This kind of targeting only strengthens the resolve of everyone at Republic TV to push for the truth even harder. Param Bir Singh stands completely exposed today, since BARC has not mentioned Republic in any single complaint. He should issue an official apology and get ready to face us in court.”

Editor Arnab Goswami also issued a video statement confirming that the channel will file a defamation case against Param Bir Singh. He said that the police commissioner is targeting the channel because he is scared about facts coming out in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case. He said that the Maharashtra govt and police can’t silence the channel, and they will fight the false allegations. Arnab Goswami said that BARC has not mentioned Republic in any statement, and the police commissioner threatened to close the channel in desperation.

Today Mumbai police made some sensational claims against some TV channels saying that they were manipulating TRP ratings. In a press conference held today, Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh had said that three TV channels, including Republic TV, were involved in manipulating viewership data of BARC by paying those households where Bar-o-meters, the devices that track TV viewership, are installed.

Param Bir Singh had said that two persons have been arrested in connection with the ‘fraud’, one of them used to work for an agency that worked with BARC. He said that they had obtained data of households with the meters installed, and sold this data to the TV channels, who then used this data to influence the TV viewership of those households.

The Police commissioner said that the arrested persons had admitted that Republic TV and two other Marathi Channels were involved in the scam, and the owners of Fakt Marathi and Box Cinema channels have been arrested.

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