Home Blog Page 4986

Woman constables injured as Congress workers got into a scuffle, FIR against Rahul, Priyanka and 200 others for their Hathras stunt

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Woman constables injured as Congress workers got into a scuffle, FIR against Rahul, Priyanka and 200 others for their Hathras stunt

As the Hathras incident becomes fodder for political mud-slinging, many parties have tried to stir protests and caste-based violence in UP over the case. The Congress party had resorted to the politicisation of the sensitive case on Thursday with party leaders Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi and 200-odd party workers, leading a march on Greater Noida expressways en route the village of the victim’s family.

Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and their party supporters were stopped in the expressway, near Pari Chowk, leading to a brief confrontation with the police, following which they were detained and taken away in UP Police vehicles.

The Congress leaders had been proceeded to Hathras with a large group of supporters and media personnel, despite being aware that section 144 has been imposed in the area.

UP Police FIR

The Gautam Buddh Nagar police in Uttar Pradesh had registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and 200 party workers. In a statement, the Gautam Buddh Nagar police informed, “Some party members have also been booked for indulging in a scuffle during which some women constables were hurt while the uniform of a lady sub-inspector got torn”

The Congress leaders and workers were booked under Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act and Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 188 (disobedience to order by a public servant), 269 (negligent spread of dangerous infection), and 270 (malignant spread of dangerous infection). Earlier, their convoy was stopped at Patel Chowk. The Congress leaders and their supporters were also detained by the police but eventually set free on a personal bond.

The Hathras incident

A 19-year-old girl had succumbed to her injuries on the morning of 29 September, two weeks after she was brutally attacked and strangulated by a group of men in Hathras. The police had stated that the victim had bitten her tongue, and had suffered injuries on her spine because of the brutal strangulation. The victim had later stated to the police that she was gang raped. However, the UP Police have stated that the post mortem report did not mention any injuries that may have indicated rape or sexual assault.

Yesterday, ADG Prashant Kumar had stated that the forensic lab report of the samples collected from the victim’s body have ruled out rape or sexual assault.

The UP government has constituted a 3-member SIT to look into the case. The government has also promised that action will be taken against police officials who were accused of negligence. The Yogi government has provided a monetary compensation of Rs 25 lakhs for the victim’s family.

Haryana: 35 members of 6 families do ‘Ghar Wapsi’, come back to Hindu fold

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Haryana: 35 members of 6 families do ‘Ghar Wapsi’, come back to Hindu fold

Members of 6 Muslim families in Haryana, 35 persons in total have decided to come back to the Hindu fold. In an act popularly called ‘Ghar Wapsi’, 35 persons in Haryana’s Dhamtan Shaib village participated in Hindu rituals and marked their return to the faith of their ancestors.

As per a report in Amar Ujala, these villagers have stated that their ancestors were Hindus. They were forced to convert into Islam before some generations due to various regions. However, their lifestyle, rituals and practices had been mostly Hindu. Finally, these families had decided to come back to the Hindu fold. Some months back, in a similar ‘Ghar Wapsi’, Muslim villagers in Dhanoda village in Haryana had also marked their return to the Hindu fold.

The existing Hindu families have welcomed the step and have supported the former Muslims in their ‘Ghar Wapsi’. To mark the Ghar Wapsi, a ‘Yagna’ and ‘Havan’ was organised in the village. In this Havan, five families of one Nazeer and another family belonging to Janga embraced the Hindu faith. All 35 villagers participated in the Yagna rituals and wore ‘Janeu’, the Hindu sacred thread.

Families were already following Hindu traditions and festivals

Daljeet, Rajesh, Sadik, Janga, Satveer and many others stated that they had decided to come back to the Hindu fold voluntarily and without any pressure. The villagers informed that their families had been following many Hindu traditions and festivals and even names of their children are Hindu names.

The families informed that since they were originally Hindus up to some generations ago, many family traditions are Hindu, with some Muslim lifestyle mix-up. They had been celebrating Hindu festivals like Holi, Diwali and Navaratra. The most significant ‘Muslim’ aspect of these families was that they used to bury their dead.

The families informed that from now onwards, the dead among them will be cremated, as per Hindu traditions. ADM Narvana Sanjay Bishnoi has stated to Amar Ujala that the incident had not been brought under his attention. However, he asserted that the families are free to choose any religion they want, provided they are doing it out of their own volition and not due to any pressure.

After top advisor Hope Hicks, US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump test positive for Coronavirus

OpIndia Staff
-
0
After top advisor Hope Hicks, US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump test positive for Coronavirus

The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, took to Twitter to announce that he and the First Lady of the USA Melania Trump have tested positive for the Wuhan Coronavirus.

“Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!”, he said.

Only a couple of hours ago, Trump had tweeted, “Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process!”.

Hope Hicks, a top adviser to President Donald Trump, has tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing symptoms, a source familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Hicks travels regularly with the president on Air Force One and accompanied him to Cleveland for the presidential debate earlier this week along with other senior aides.

The White House said in a statement that Trump “takes the health and safety of himself and everyone who works in support of him and the American people very seriously” and that it followed guidelines for limiting COVID-19 exposure to the greatest extent possible.

Shekhar Gupta’s The Print pulls down article attacking journalist after being called out, then pulls down apology tweet, apologises again: Here is what happened

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Shekhar Gupta’s The Print pulls down article attacking journalist after being called out, then pulls down apology tweet, apologises again: Here is what happened

The Print, run by the Editors Guild chief Shekhar Gupta has often been caught spreading fake news and motivated, malicious propaganda. After they got caught in yet another lie by Swarajya Magazine journalist Swati Goel Sharma, The Print decided to pull down its article quietly, then, it decided to issue an apology, then, it deleted the apology and tweeted an apology again.

In a strange attack, on the 1st of October, Shekhar Gupta run The Print published an opinion piece in which, it berated Swati Goel Sharma for overlooking the caste angle in the Hathras murder case. They further attacked her for “running a campaign” about Love Jihad on Twitter where she saw “Jihad” in “love”.

A lot of debate and political mudslinging has been happening around the Hathras case since the victim succumbed to her injuries in Delhi’s Safdarjung hospital on Tuesday morning. She was allegedly raped two weeks ago. The case attracted nationwide outrage when some reports claimed Hathras Police forcefully cremated the girl on Tuesday night without consent of the family members. The police had later stated that the victim’s father was present during the cremation.

Speaking to ANI, ADG Prashant Kumar had informed that the forensic reports that were awaited have also been received. ADG stated that the FSL report found no evidence of ‘rape’. He asserted that it was concluded that there was no sexual assault, and the cause of death was strangulation and injury to the spine.

The Print article was headlined, “You can’t talk of Hathras rape without listing other rapes – thanks to IT cell whataboutery”.

The Print article

It went on to attack Sharma saying that while she could see “Jihad” in “love”, she could not see the “caste angle” after “4 upper caste men raped a Dalit woman”.

Here is what The Print wrote, based on the screenshots shared by the journalist on Twitter.

What The Print wrote about journalist Swati Goel Sharma
What The Print wrote about journalist Swati Goel Sharma
What The Print wrote about journalist Swati Goel Sharma
What The Print wrote about journalist Swati Goel Sharma

Swati Goel Sharma took to Twitter to call out the lies against her. She said, “Do your ill-informed writers have a habit of accusing people of denying caste and even being anti-dalit without checking their work? You did the same to Vashi Sharma of IIT-Kanpur and apologised for it when confronted. Your ill-read writer must provide proof of where I denied caste angle in Hathras or apologise, @ShekharGupta. Unless you approve of such hit-jobs yourself. I am not even going to other points yet”.

Interestingly, The Print failed to do its basic fact-check before publishing this article, which seems to be a recurring theme by the portal. Swati Goel Sharma is a ground reporter who has done several cases about the rights of Dalits and the crimes against them. She even runs an NGO alongside Dalit activist Sanjeev Newar or Agniveer.

After Swati Goel Sharma called out the lies, The Print quietly pulled down their article. The screenshot of the article being pulled down was tweeted by Sharma.

Realising that the cat was out of the bag, The Print took to Twitter, quoting Swati Goel Sharma and apologising for their mistake.

However, just like their article, they pulled down this tweet as well.

After about 10 minutes or so, The Print posted the apology again, however, this time, they ensured they did not quote the thread by Swati Goel Sharma. They perhaps realised that in doing so, they were bringing attention to their own shenanigans which might make it difficult to claim moral victory later for showing the “courage” to pull down the article ridden with lies.

The Print has a habit of peddling falsehoods in their articles, though one would expect a basic level of fact-checking by a portal that is run by the chief of the Editors Guild of India. However, that should come as no surprise since only in May, The Print had published an article that urged opposition parties to spread fake news to defeat PM Modi.

Watch: Telangana Congress workers, led by Feroz Khan assault ANI journalist

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Watch: Telangana Congress workers, led by Feroz Khan assault ANI journalist

In another despicable attack on journalists in India, Congress workers led by leader Feroz Khan brutally assaulted an ANI reporter, during a protest rally against Hathras rape case. The incident took place on Thursday at Tank Bund area in Hyderabad, Telangana.

Reportedly, several Congress workers and senior leaders had gathered near the Ambedkar statue. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief, Uttam Kumar Reddy, was also present during the demonstration. The rally began from Gandhi Bhavan but was interrupted by the police due to absence of a pre-requisite permission.

When ANI journalist Abdul Basheer approached Congress leaders for a sound byte, it led to a heated argument with a prominent leader named Feroz Khan. He was then mercilessly thrashed by Khan and over a dozen of his supporters. The reporter was rescued by the police and other journalists, who were present at the spot.

The video of the incident has gone viral on social media. In the video clip, Feroz Khan could be seen throwing blows at the journalist. He was soon joined by other Congress workers, who then kicked, punched, shoved and manhandled the ANI reporter. When the police officials tried to protect the victim, they were pushed around by the Congress goons.

Congress workers thrash journalist in Chattisgarh

This is not the first time that Congress party workers had resorted to hooliganism on streets. Recently, Kamal Shukla, editor Bhoomkal Samachar, a regional newspaper, was dragged on the street by Congress goons, beaten and attacked with a sharp weapon in Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh. The incident took place around 100 meters from Kanker police station in Bastar division, Chattisgarh, on Saturday morning. In his statement, Shukla said that a group of men circled him and waved a pistol at him. When he came out of the Police Station, they beat him and attacked with a sharp weapon.

Sexual assault case: Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap questioned by Mumbai Police for 8 hours

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Sexual assault case: Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap questioned by Mumbai Police for 8 hours

Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap who was accused by actress Payal Ghosh of sexual assault on her during a meeting at his house was issued a summon by the Mumbai police for questioning. He reached the Versova police station on October 1 and was questioned by the police for close to 8 hours.

As per reports, Kashyap reached the Versova police station at around 10 am and was allowed to go at around 6 pm. DCP Zone 9 Abhishek Trimukhe has been quoted in Hindustan Times as saying that Kashyap’s statement has been recorded and the investigation is on.

Payal Ghosh had accused Anurag Kashyap of rape

Ghosh has accused Kashyap of forcing himself on her in his house during a meeting. She said that she had met Kashyap on three occasions in 2013. It was during their third meeting that Kashyap allegedly raped her. “Around 7:30 pm I reached Anurag Kashyap’s house in my Honda city car. He was sitting inside and smoking. The house smelled really bad and when I asked him, he said he was smoking marijuana. He also offered me smoke but I refused. He took me to another room to show me his collection of films. While showing me the cassettes of his old films, he suddenly pushed me to the sofa, opened his pants and forced himself on me. I tried to shout a lot but he pressed my mouth and raped me”, she told the police in her statement.

According to Ghosh, Kashyap tried to play down his act by saying that physical relationships between filmmakers and actresses were common in the film industry. An FIR was filed by Ghosh against Kashyap. She said that she kept mum about the incident as she was advised by family and friends not to speak against such an influential director if she wanted to work in the industry.

Upon Ghosh’ complaint, an FIR has been registered against Anurag Kashyap under sections 376 (I) (rape), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with an intent to outrage her modesty,), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 342 (wrongful confinement) of the IPC.

India a victim of Chinese aggression, US recognises Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory: Read what US State Department said

OpIndia Staff
-
0
India a victim of Chinese aggression, US recognises Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory: Read what US State Department said

On Friday, a senior US State Department official had dismissed the claims of the Chinese regime on India’s territory of Arunachal Pradesh. The development comes as a major breakthrough amidst the ongoing border standoff between India and China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

On being asked by a reporter about the diplomatic position of the United States with respect to the current Chinese aggression, the senior State Department official stated that they are closely monitoring the escalated situation at the border. While conceding that the discussion of the position of the ‘actual border’ is sensitive, he added, “Our position on some parts of the border for sure is explicitly clear. For nearly six decades the United States has recognized Arunachal Pradesh is Indian territory.”

US calls out China on its attempt to advance territorial claims

The senior State Department official also pointed out the unilateral attempts made by China to undermine India’s territorial integrity. He further emphasised, “We strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to advance territorial claims by incursions, by military or civilian incursions across the border or across the established line of actual control. And the disputed boundaries, all we can say is that we encourage India and China to use their existing bilateral channels to discuss those and not resort to military force.”

India has been a victim of Chinese hostility, concedes US State Department

Furthermore, the official stated that achieving peace in the Indo-Pacific region was the common objective of both India and the United States. “Well, the United States maintains a – has a vision and a commitment to a peaceful, open Indo-Pacific region and I’d say that stands in marked contrast to the activities of the People’s Republic of China,” he reiterated. 

While acknowledging India’s victimisation at the hands of aggressor China, the US State Department remarked, “You just have to open your internet browser to see all of the various areas where China has engaged in aggressive, hostile, or bullying behaviour against its neighbours or against its own citizens. Unfortunately, India has also been one of the victims of that. ” 

USA State Department takes a stand on Galwan Valley clash

Earlier, the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA) of the US State Department in its statement mentioned the recent stand-off at Galwan and called it the result of the expansionist policy of China. In the statement, USA said, “We see it in the East China Sea and around Taiwan, where Beijing has expanded its maritime provocations and threatening sorties. We see it in the Himalayas, where Beijing recently took aggressive action on its frontiers with India.”

It further added, “We see it along the Mekong River, where Beijing has used its massive cascade of dams to hold back water from downstream neighbours in Southeast Asia, contributing to the worst drought in the Mekong’s recorded history. I urge everyone to read the recent report from the Stimson Center, “New Evidence: How China Turned Off the Tap on the Mekong River.”

Clashes between India and China at the LAC

Clashes between the two countries have occurred along the Line of Actual Control raising fears of serious conflict breaking out between the two countries. Only recently, the Indian Army had made major breakthroughs and occupied six new heights along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh. This was after India had acted proactively to occupy heights in regions on the Southern Bank of the Pangong Tso lake and strengthened their positions. Talks between the two countries have been ongoing but without any major headway.

Mahatma Gandhi wanted the Union Jack on India’s national flag and said he would not salute it if Charkha was replaced by Ashoka Chakra

Jinit Jain
-
0
Mahatma Gandhi wanted the Union Jack on India’s national flag and said he would not salute it if Charkha was replaced by Ashoka Chakra

Today is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, a day when the nation pays its tribute to the ‘father of the nation’. Although Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi led India’s non-violent independence movement, he didn’t join the government even though he was a leader of the Congress party. And just like he kept a distance from the government, he had also maintained a distance from the symbol of newly independent India, the flag of the nation.

The design for the tricolour was unanimously accepted by the constituent assembly on July 22, 1947, days before India attained its Independence from the British, during a meeting held by the Constituent Assembly comprising of eminent personalities such as Rajendra Prasad and including Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Sarojini Naidu, C. Rajagopalachari, K. M. Munshi and B. R. Ambedkar.

The flag is based on the Swaraj flag, a flag of the Indian National Congress designed by Pingali Venkayya. The present Indian flag contains three equal strips of saffron, white and green, with a navy blue ‘Ashok Chakra’ with 24 spokes at the centre. The flag, presented by India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, in the constituent assembly on July 22, 1947, served as the national flag of the Dominion of India between 15 August 1947 and 26 January 1950 and has served as the flag of the Republic of India since then.

However, while India adopted tricolour with Ashok Chakra at the centre as its national flag, Mohandas Gandhiji was not pleased with the flag proposed by the Constituent Assembly. In one of the letters written by Gandhiji, which is published in “The collected works of Mahatma Gandhi”, the ‘Father of the Nation’ expressed his objection with the flag adopted by the Constituent Assembly. He was unhappy with the design due to two reasons, absence of the union jack, and replacing the charkha (spinning wheel) with the Ashoka Chakra.

Mahatma Gandhi supported the inclusion of Union Jack in the canton of the Indian tricolour

In his letter, Gandhiji conveyed his support for the flag proposed by the last British viceroy of India, Lord Mountbatten. The proposal of the flag presented by the Governor-General Louis Mountbatten in 1947 included the flag of the Congress but with a Union Jack in the canton. However, the flag was rejected by Jawaharlal Nehru, claiming that Congress’ nationalist members would see the inclusion of the Union Jack as being overly deferential to the British.

Indian Flag proposed by Lord Mountbatten

In his letter, Gandhiji defended the inclusion of the Union Jack canton in India’s national flag. Gandhiji contended that though British might have inflicted harm on the Indians, it was not done by their flag. Extolling the British for “voluntarily withdrawing from India” and urging Indians to take note of virtues of the British, he made the case for the adoption of the flag proposed by Lord Mountbatten.

Relevant sections from Mahatma Gandhi’s letter

“But what is wrong with having the Union Jack in a corner of our flag? If harm has been done to us by the British, it has not been done by their flag and we must also take note of the virtues of the British. They are voluntarily withdrawing from India, leaving power in our hands,” said Mahatma Gandhi lamenting over the rejection of the Union Jack in India’s national flag.

Gandhi lamented India could not show “generosity and friendship”

Gandhi further added, “We are having Lord Mountbatten as our chief gate-keeper. So long he has been the servant of the British King. Now, he is to be our servant. If while we employed him as our servant, we also had the Union Jack in a corner of our flag, there would be no betrayal of India in this.”

Relevant sections from Mahatma Gandhi’s letter

Gandhi further added in his letter that he was pained to see Congress leaders not extending the “generosity and friendship” to the British. “If I had the power that I once had, I would have taken people to task for it. After all, why should we give up our humanity,” said Gandhi while expressing her angst over Constituent Assembly’s dismissal of incorporating the symbol of Union Jack in India’s national flag.

Gandhi said he would not salute the flag without the Charkha

Mahatma Gandhi had prefered the flag that the Congress party had adopted in 1931, with the saffron, white and green stripes and the blue charkha in the middle on the white strip. He wanted the same flag to be adopted by independent India with the Union Jack. Therefore, when the proposals were made to replace the charkha with the Ashoka Chakra came, he was so unhappy that he had declared that he will refuse to salute the flag.

In a statement made in Lahore on 6 August 1947, Gandhi said, “I must say that, if the Flag of the Indian Union will not embody the emblem of the Charkha, I will refuse to salute that flag. You know the National Flag of India was first thought of by me, and I cannot conceive of India’s National Flag without the emblem of the Charkha”. 

This quote can be found in volume 96 of the Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi. Jawaharlal Nehru had tried to convince him saying that the design change is not significant, and the chakra in the new National Flag symbolizes the charkha also. Rejecting the argument that the chakra represents the Sudarshan Chakra also, Gandhiji has said, “Some describe the wheel-mark as Sudarshan Chakra, but I know what Sudarshan Chakra means.”

He had also written in Harijanbandhu, “Nothing would have lost if our councillors had never thought of interfering with the design of the original flag.” Rejecting the selection of the Chakra on artistic reasons, he wrote, “I will refuse to salute the flag that is modified on the above lines however artistic it may appear” (chapter 222 in volume 96 of the Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi).

Comments against Uddhav Thackeray and Aditya Thackeray: Bombay HC grants protection to Sameet Thakkar, extends protection of Sunaina Holey

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Comments against Uddhav Thackeray and Aditya Thackeray: Bombay HC grants protection to Sameet Thakkar, extends protection of Sunaina Holey

The Bombay High Court today granted protection from arrest to Sameet Thakkar who was booked for criticising Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray. The court granted him relief from arrest while hearing his petition seeking quashing an FIR filed against him at V P Marg police station on the allegations of obscenity and slander. A Division Bench of Justices SS Shinde and MS Karnik heard Thakkar’s petition through his counsel Dr Abhibnav Chandrachud.

Arguing on the charges of obscenity, Dr Chandrachud contended that obscenity under section 292 of the IPC meant only sexual obscenity or pornography and that mere abusive language did not amount to obscenity. “There are great works of literature that have abusive language within them”, he said. Quoting Justice V R Krishna Iyer’s words he said, “The dogs may bark but the caravan will pass”.

Responding to Dr Chandrachud’s contentions, Justice Karnik asked, “We ignore the harsh criticism that is often levelled against us, but what if others who are in power are not able to ignore it and are more sensitive?” To this Dr Chandrachud responded saying that those who occupy positions of power must develop a thick skin. Justice Shinde said, “What about the dignity of the post of the Chief Minister, that must be maintained”. Dr Chandrachud replied that the office of Chief Minister is such a high post that its dignity could not be reduced by a person on the streets or on Twitter who abuses the CM.

Additional Public Prosecutor SS Shinde told the court that the police has issued a notice to Thakkar under section 41-A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) for the recording his statement but he is yet to appear. Dr Chandrachud said that his client Thakkar did not appear to record the statement fearing arrest.

The court directed the Additional Public Prosecutor not to arrest Thakkar as the notice was issued under section 41-A of the CrPC that does not contemplate arrest. The court said that the petitioner should not be arrested until the next date of hearing even if the police wished to add any cognizable offence in addition to the bailable offences that are there in the FIR.

Sunaina Holey granted protection from arrest

The case of activist Sunaina Holey, who was also booked by the Mumbai police for criticising CM Thackeray, had also come up for hearing before the same Bench. Holey was also represented by Dr Chandrachud who told the court that Holey could not record her statement before the police as was directed by the Court in the previous hearing because the Investigation Officer (IO) at the Azad Maidan police station, where she was required to record her statement, was found COVID-19 positive.

The court directed the Additional Public Prosecutor that a fresh notice should be issued to Holey once the IO recovers. The order also said that no coercive steps should be taken against her already directed in the previous order in the case.

Hong Kong pro-democracy protester carries Indian flag during Chinese National Day protests because India is fighting China

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Hong Kong pro-democracy protester carries Indian flag during Chinese National Day protests because India is fighting China

Hong Kong is experiencing waves of protests against the Chinese government. Laurel Chor, Photographer, and Journalist shared a few photographs and videos of the latest protests in a Tweet thread. In the visuals, one man caught everyone’s eyes, as he was sporting an Indian flag. When he was asked why he was wearing an Indian flag, he said, “Because India is fighting China. So India is my friend!” Laurel mentioned in the tweet that the man was shouting “STAND WITH INDIA!” and the crowd was applauding him.

On China’s national day, many Hong Kong nationals came out on the roads to raise their voice against the Chinese government. The pro-democracy protesters have been on streets on and off since last year after China passed Hong Kong’s Extradition Bill to allow Hong Kong to detain and transfer people wanted in territories and countries that do not have formal agreements for extradition. It includes Taiwan and the Chinese mainland.

As thousands of people came onto the streets of Hong Kong, chanting slogans like “Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of our Times”, the police came forward to thwart the protests. Thousands of policemen arrived on the streets, stopping and searching people. According to reports, the police cordoned off dozens of people, lined them up against the wall, handcuffed them and marched them away.

The police said that slogans demanding to liberate Hong Kong was tantamount to inciting people to “commit secession”, and a possible breach of the national security law.

The Civil Human Rights Front, a pro-democracy group that organized million-person marches last year, had asked Hong Kong police for authorization to hold a rally on National Day. But its application was rejected, citing the Coronavirus pandemic and violence at previous rallies.

Last year, the Hong Kong police for the first time fired shot at a young protester. Several rounds of tear gas were also shot to disperse the crowd during the National Day protests.

1...4,9854,9864,987...7,646Page 4,986 of 7,646