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‘If I want to burn my tractor, what problem do you have’: Punjab CM Amarinder Singh defends Youth Congress workers

OpIndia Staff
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‘If I want to burn my tractor, what problem do you have’: Punjab CM Amarinder Singh defends Youth Congress workers

Hours after a tractor was burnt near India Gate in New Delhi by the Youth Congress cadres as a mark of protests against the recent agriculture sector laws, the Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh has come out in defence of these workers who engaged in the act. Responding to a question on the incident, the Punjab CM asked what problem existed if he wanted to burn his own tractor? 

Opposing the agricultural reforms of the Narendra Modi government, Singh also said that the state will approach the Supreme Court regarding the matter. It is pertinent to note that the Punjab CM has been holding a sit-in protest against the three bills relating to the agriculture sector passed in the just concluded Parliament session.

Ever since the Modi government passed the bills in the Parliament, the Congress party has been opposing and spreading lies and misinformation to score political goals.

Congress Youth Congress opposes the Farm Bills

Earlier in the day, as a part of this protest, Punjab Youth Congress workers brought a tractor on a truck and set it on fire shouting Bhagat Singh slogans near India Gate in New Delhi. Prior to this, Congress had gone on to support the nationwide strike called by the Bharatiya Kisan Union and several other organisations on July 25.

Most of the protests were seen in Punjab, where the ruling Congress government is joining the protests. Although the bills bring much-needed changes to the farm laws that are extremely beneficial for the farmers, which were proposed by the Congress party also when they were in power, now they are opposing the bills for political purposes.

Going by its penchant the Congress party has also been using the social media to spread canards against the Narendra Modi government.

You can read more about the recent agriculture Bills passed by the Parliament which got President’s assent here.

Clashes erupt between Azerbaijan and Armenia over breakaway region Nagorno-Karabakh, world leaders concerned

OpIndia Staff
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Clashes erupt between Azerbaijan and Armenia over breakaway region Nagorno-Karabakh, world leaders concerned

Deadly clashes erupted on Sunday between two former Soviet Republics—Azerbaijan and Armenia, over a longstanding territorial dispute for the turbulent Nagorno-Karabakh region, a strife-torn region that lies within the jurisdiction of Azerbaijan but is governed by ethnic Armenians. 

The recent flare-ups, worst since 2016, have raised the spectre of a fresh war between the two arch-enemies that have overlapping claims over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. At least 23, including 16 military personnel, were killed in the clashes that took place on Sunday, rekindling concerns of stability in South Caucasus, a corridor for pipelines carrying oil and gas to the world markets.

Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia have declared martial law after Azerbaijan launched an aerial and artillery attack on Sunday, killing several of the military servicemen and injuring hundreds of others. 

Azerbaijan, on the other hand, has also imposed martial law, claiming its attack was in retaliation to shelling by Armenia that had reportedly killed five members of a single family.

Azerbaijan also claimed that it has taken control of seven villages of Nagorno-Karabakh. This initially denied but later Nagorno-Karabakh admitted of having lost “some positions” and acknowledged the loss of civilian lives, without delving into the details. 

Map of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region with respect to surrounding nations, image via Caucasus Business Week

The violent confrontation between Muslim-majority Azerbaijan and Christian-majority Armenia threatened to draw in regional players—Turkey and Russia—increasing the possibility of snowballing a regional conflict into a global one. According to reports, Turkey has already deployed Syrian fighters in Azerbaijan to fight against Armenia.

International leaders and global organisations call for a truce between Azerbaijan and Armenia 

This likelihood of a zonal conflict devolving into a full-scale war was acknowledged by several international leaders, prompting them to call for an immediate ceasefire between the two countries. 

US President Donald Trump recognised the precarious nature of conflict and said in a Sunday evening press briefing that the United States is looking strongly at the situation and a lot of good relationships in the region to de-escalate the mounting tensions. 

US Senator Bob Menendez condemned the attack on Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan, stating that it is another act of aggression supported by Turkey and asked the Trump administration to terminate security assistance granted to Azerbaijan. 

The United Nations Chief Antonio Guterres said that he was concerned about the fresh resumption of hostilities between the two countries. Amidst the intensifying clashes, the UN Chief asked the two nations to “immediately de-escalate” and get into “meaningful negotiations”.

The European Union also called upon the two countries to immediately end hostilities and return to negotiating tables. Similar sentiments were also raised by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Pope Francis urged both sides to strike an armistice and resolve the matter through talks. 

History of violent conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over volatile Nagorno-Karabakh region

The dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh dates back to several decades when the then Soviet Republic merged the predominantly ethnic Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh with Azerbaijan in 1921.

However, the collapse of Soviet Union in 1991 provided an opportunity to the Armenian separatists to wage a war for seeking liberation from Azerbaijan. The ensuing war resulted in the deaths of 30,000 people and left thousands of others homeless.

Though a ceasefire was reached in 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia were locked in the territorial dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh region, frequently accusing each other of mounting attacks along their tense border. 

Recently, in April 2016, a violent confrontation between the two countries caused the deaths of 200 people. Azerbaijan has promised of reintegrating the territory back into its country while Armenia has pledged of doing all it could to defend the area. 

MP Special DG caught beating his wife in viral video says what he did was ‘not a crime’, gets relieved of duties: Read the details

OpIndia Staff
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MP Special DG caught beating his wife in viral video says what he did was ‘not a crime’, gets relieved of duties: Read the details

Additional Director General (ADG), Madhya Pradesh, Purshottam Sharma has been relieved of his duties after a video of him beating his wife went viral on social media on Monday. The order to that effect was issued by the State Home Department.

Home Department order [Source: ANI]

Purshottam Sharma has come out, defended himself and blamed his wife instead. “We have been married for 32 years, in 2008 she had complained against me. But the point is, since 2008 she has been living in my house, enjoying all facilities and travelling abroad on my expenses,” he said commenting on the video. Then he went to accuse his wife of stalking.

“If my nature is abusive, then she should have complained earlier. This is a family dispute, not a crime. I am neither a violent person nor a criminal. It is unfortunate that I have to go through this. My wife stalks me and has put cameras in the house,” said Purshottam Sharma.

The incident took place on Sunday when Sharma’s wife reportedly caught him in a compromising position with another woman. This led to a heated argument between the two. Moments later, Purshottam Sharma began assaulting his wife.

In the said video footage, Sharma can be seen beating his wife after putting her down on the floor. While there were two other men in the house, none of them did anything significant to stop the assault. The Special DG was heard yelling at his wife while she cried for help. The accused’s son has filed a complaint with the DGP and has sent a copy of the assault video. He has demanded strict action against Sharma for assaulting his mother.

“Have no regrets”, Balika Vadhu director takes on his father’s business of selling vegetables as upcoming film projects get stalled

OpIndia Staff
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“Have no regrets”, Balika Vadhu director takes on his father’s business of selling vegetables as upcoming film projects get stalled

Coronavirus pandemic has changed the lives of many individuals. One such case is that of the director of the TV serial Balika Vadhu. Director Ram Vriksha Gaur has been selling vegetables in his hometown of Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh.

While speaking to the media, he stated that he had come to the district for a film recce. He was supposed to work on a Bhojpuri film, followed by a Hindi cinema, prior to the pandemic. Following the lockdown that was imposed in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, it was not possible for the director to return back to Mumbai. He said, “The project we were working on was stopped and the producer said it would take another year or more to get back to work.”

Balika Vadhu director expresses no regrets in selling vegetables

As such, he took on his father’s business of selling vegetables on a handcart. “I am familiar with the business and have no regrets,” he was quoted as saying. Expressing hope that he will one day return back to Mumbai, he said, “I have my own house in Mumbai and I am confident that I will return one day. Till then, I am here doing what I can.”

Balika Vadhu director hails from a humble background

Ram Vriksha Gaur comes from a humble background. He travelled to Mumbai to began his career on the small screen with the help of writer Shahnawaz Khan. He informed, “I worked in the light department and then in the production department of TV serials. I became an assistant director in the production of many serials first, then worked as the episode director and unit director for Balika Vadhu.”

Reportedly, Ram Vriksha Gaur has also worked as an assistant director in several films featuring actors such as Randeep Hooda, Sunil Shetty, Yashpal Sharma, and Rajpal Yadav.

Columnist Sudheendra Kulkarni who used Jaswant Singh’s death to target Modi, had once insulted and left Singh in tears, senior journalist reveals

OpIndia Staff
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Columnist Sudheendra Kulkarni who used Jaswant Singh’s death to target Modi, had once insulted and left Singh in tears, senior journalist reveals

Ex-union minister Jaswant Singh passed away on Sunday at 6:55 AM after a cardiac arrest at Delhi’s Army Hospital (Research & Referral) where he was admitted in June. A close aide of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Jaswant Singh had served as India’s foreign minister, defence minister and finance minister in the former NDA government. Shortly after his death, several antagonists started using the parliamentarian’s death to target the Narendra Modi government. One such was the speech writer for former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee- Sudheendra Kulkarni.

In an article for the Indian Express, Kulkarni targeted the present BJP government by claiming that had Jaswant Singh recovered from the coma he would have “found the party he served for 4 decades, unrecognisable”, insinuating that under PM Modi, BJP has become depraved and corrupt. In his article, Kulkarni wrote that under Vajpayee’s leadership the party even respected people like Jaswant Singh, who frequently voiced his dissenting views in party forums, a virtue which is unthinkable in the new BJP under Modi and Shah.

Article written by Sudheendra Kulkarni

Soon, senior journalist Kanchan Gupta, who was also an official in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) when the NDA came to power, took to Twitter to call out the double standards of his colleague. Kanchan Gupta reminded how Sudheerna Kulkarni who has in his article heaped praises for Jaswant Singh, was the same person who had once spared no effort to humiliate the parliamentarian.

Kanchan Gupta recalled that in 2009 when the BJP leaders had gathered to finalise the election manifesto, Kulkarni abused Singh and called him a ‘fool who cannot count’. This left Singh humiliated and teary eyed. Eventually, the BJP lost the 2009 elections.

Sudheendra Kulkarni and his dubiouness

Sudheendra Kulkarni, who had extended support to Rahul Gandhi ahead of 2019 elections has been a very vocal Modi critic and Pakistan sympathiser. Recently, during the Ladakh standoff with China, Kulkarni had downplayed Chinese aggression and referred to the call to boycott Chinese products as ‘stupid’. In 2015 he was attacked by Shiv Sena activists for organising Ex-Pak minister’s book launch. Prior to that, in an article in 2013 Kulkarni had dubbed Modi, the then Gujarat chief minister as an “autocrat” who cares “two hoots” for the party. He had also called BJP’s then-president Rajnath Singh “foxy”. Kulkarni had also opposed the name of Narendra Modi as the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate.

PM Modi’s call for UN reforms should be the beginning of our resurgent foreign policy

Santanu Chakraborty
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PM Modi’s call for UN reforms should be the beginning of our resurgent foreign policy

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday exhorted the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to reform itself and include India in its decision-making body. This is a great beginning for our country, but it cannot stop there.

It was the Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who muttered after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbour by forces of Imperial Japan — “I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” The Pangong standoff may have similarly unwittingly awakened a sleeping giant – Bharat. India now has the economic and military might to stand up to any nation and its foreign policy should reflect that.

India needs to formulate and implement a new paradigm of foreign relations and international diplomacy that will secure its territory, give confidence to her friends and reinstate its ethos of Vasudhaiva Kutambakkam as a guiding philosophy.

India needs to revamp its foreign policy approach by junking its non-alignment strategy and embrace a bolder approach to achieve its long term vision of strategic peace and spirituality.India needs to implement a seven point agenda.

United Nations reforms

The structure of the present day United Nations is such that it will be very difficult to get rid of its inherent bias and a rigid power structure solidified in favour of victors of the World War II. To that extent, it will be difficult for the United Nations to reform itself.

By seeking a veto power in the United Nations Security Council, India may have to play into the same biases and discrimination that have been propagated since 1945. The UN is fast becoming irrelevant without the stabilizing voice of sanity while favouring rogue states with veto power.

New Bretton Woods deal

India needs new security and trade structures with allied democracies which will prioritize its strategic interests and will try to isolate countries that have been long been working against India. India needs to negotiate a new Bretton Woods deal to end discrimination and restore respect to the world’s most ancient culture.

The only path to a recovery in the global economy is a new Bretton Woods agreement. 85% of the world’s population lives in Asia, Africa and Latin America and is younger and able. The developed world cannot produce any further growth and prosperity in the world, foreign exchange and interest rates need to adjust to global demographics.

A new Bretton Woods system would involve a one-time revaluation of all non-reserve currencies against reserve currencies (ex-china since it doesn’t need QE). There is a market driven mechanism in place already, the revaluation of currencies can be in proportion to the rate spread.

Strengthen long standing ties

India needs to accord greater respect to her all-weather friendslike France, Russia and Germany who have always stood by us even during adversities. India needs to align its interests to the global pivots of power as we are entering a new world order with multipolar power structures.

Isolate China

India needs to isolate China and strengthen its alliance proactively. India is a democracy with a long cultural heritagelike the West unlike Chinese CCP which believes in suppression of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. With 2000 plus ethnic groups and every representative religion.

The Indian government have never been involved in overt or covert sponsored genocides as opposed to many developing countries including China after WWII. On the contrary, foreign state and non-state actors have either actively targeted ethnic genocide in India like Kashmir and Maoist guerrillas orengaged in subversive activities weakening the democracy.

China funded a $34 billion network of highways, railways, and pipelines called the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) across the length of Pakistan to transport oil and gas from the Pakistani port of Gwadar to Chinese city of Kashgar.The control over Malacca Straits is critical for Chinese efforts to connect the Pacific and Indian Oceans for oil and gas imports as well as its solidify its claims over the South China Sea.

Isolate Turkey

India need to isolate Turkey and call out the Khilafat brand of imperialism that may have disastrous consequences for the world.

Any non-secular Islamic country with pan-Islamic idea is dangerous for India. With increasing minority and history of partition India should confront Turkey’s global pan-Islamic movement for its own safety and trade through Mediterranean. India should remember after the capture of Constantinople, trade relations with the West got severely restricted which also hampered Indian knowledge of European invention of steam engine, industrial loom and use of gunpowder bringing catastrophe for centuries – first through Islamic barbarism and followed through by colonial loot.

Israel style soft power

India needs to implement an approach like Israel which has turned a hostile neighbourhood into a region of carefully crafted friends and strategic defence interests.

Israel has always supported India unilaterally, though India always stayed neutral much of the time in Judea and Samaria Area conflict but in the Jewish homeland was always there in India’s times of need. Be it earthquake, tsunami or cyclones they have always helped us with technology transfers and intelligence sharing. Now India should be there for Israel.

India needs to regain its maritime and naval supremacy

India used to be a global maritime superpower till about the first half the previous millennium. Naval power have always been strength of any great civilization be it for Greece, Rome, Vikings, Spanish, British or the USA. Without a sound Navy India will never be able to become a global power and maintain trade routes to feed its economy.

India is important for south East Asia and even north Asia, as it sits on the head of the Indian Ocean straddling the sea lanes of commerce from the choke points of the Straits of Hormuz till the Malacca Straits. Its airbase in Campbell Bay (Nicobar Islands) is just 240km from the mouth of the Malacca Straits. Even with CPEC corridor in place, a bulk of the minerals and other resources extracted by the Chinese would still have to traverse the Indian Ocean, Andaman Sea, and the Bay of Bengal right below India’s perch, providing it opportunity to counterbalance China’s claims over the South China Sea.

Note: Article co-authored by Saptorshee Kanto Chakraborty.

Madhya Pradesh: Special DG Purshottam Sharma brutally assaults his wife, video goes viral on social media

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh: Special DG Purshottam Sharma brutally assaults his wife, video goes viral on social media

In a viral video, the Special Director General of Police (Madhya Pradesh) Purushottam Sharma was seen thrashing his wife brutally at his home in Bhopal.

The incident took place on Sunday when Sharma’s wife reportedly caught him in a compromising position with another woman. This led to a heated argument between the two. Moments later, Purushottam Sharma began assaulting his wife. The video of the assault has now gone viral on social media.

Video of the assault goes viral

In the said video footage, Sharma can be seen beating his wife after putting her down on the floor. While there were two other men in the house, none of them did anything significant to stop the assault. The Special DG was heard yelling at his wife while she cried for help.

Son files complaint against father for domestic violence

The accused’s son has filed a complaint with the DGP and has sent a copy of the assault video. He has demanded strict action against Sharma for assaulting his mother.

This is, however, not the first time when Purushottam Sharma has been in legal trouble. Earlier, his name had come up in a honey trap scandal while he was the Special DG of Cyber ​​Cell and STF. Sharma had accused the then DG VK Singh of maligning the image of the Police Department.

Delhi Police Special Cell comes to rescue of NDTV employee M Atharuddin for plasma therapy

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi Police Special Cell comes to rescue of NDTV employee M Atharuddin for plasma therapy

Delhi Police Special Cell on Monday came to rescue of NDTV employee M Atharuddin alias Munne Bharti who is currently undergoing treatment for Chinese coronavirus and needed plasma. Atharuddin had put out a tweet in the morning requesting urgent plasma donation.

Journalist Rahul Pandita amplified his tweet and appealed for donation. To that, Delhi Police Special Cell rose to the occasion and said that they have sent across someone from their unit as plasma donor.

Plasma therapy is a medical procedure where blood of a recovered patient is used to create antibodies in patients who are currently infected with the disease.

Arrested gangster Feroz Ali killed after UP Police car crashes on the way to Lucknow

OpIndia Staff
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Arrested gangster Feroz Ali killed after UP Police car crashes on the way to Lucknow

At around 6:30 AM on Sunday, a car overturned in Madhya Pradesh on its way to Lucknow. As per the reports, there were five passengers, one gangster, his brother-in-law and three police personnel in the car. The police personnel got injured while the arrested gangster died in the accident.

The accident took place on National Highway 26 in Guna district, Madhya Pradesh. The police had arrested wanted criminal Feroz Ali alias Shammi from Mumbai. The car that was being driven by one Sulabh Mishra overturned, killing the gangster.

Gangster was nabbed in Nala Sopara, Mumbai

Assistant sub-inspector Jagdish Prasad Pandey and constable Sanjeev Singh who got injured in the accident, are posted at Thakurganj Police Station, Lucknow. They had travelled to Mumbai in a private vehicle to apprehend Feroz Ali who was wanted for several crimes under the Gangster Act. On Saturday, Feroz was reportedly found in a slum in Nala Sopara area of Mumbai. After arresting him, they had left for Lucknow in a private Toyota car.

The reports suggest that Afzal, brother-in-law of Feroz, was also with the police at the accident. When the accident happened, constable Sanjeev, gangster Feroz, and Afzal were thrown out of the car. Feroz died on the spot while the three police officials and Afzal were injured.

As per reports, the car had swerved sharply to avoid collision with a cow. The impact was so strong that the car had flipped over the driving lane and had landed on another lane of a the busy highway.

Sub-inspector (SI) Rajesh Kumar Singh reached the spot to investigate the matter. ASI Pandey told the officers that Mishra tried to save a cow that appeared on the road suddenly. He lost control and the car overturned.

The incident has gained much attention in media because another car accident involving the UP Police and a gangster named Vikas Dubey had also resulted in the death of the gangster in July.

Another temple attacked in Andhra Pradesh, Nandi idol vandalized in Chittoor

OpIndia Staff
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Another temple attacked in Andhra Pradesh, Nandi idol vandalized in Chittoor

Another temple attack has happened in Andhra Pradesh. This time some unknown miscreants vandalized the Nandi idol in a Shiva temple in Agara Mangalam village in Gangadhara Nellore Mandal of Chittoor district. As per the report by ANI, Senthil Kumar, SP Chittoor, said that the Gangadhara Nellore police station received a call about the incident on Sunday morning.

“The police immediately rushed to the spot and started probing the matter. The Nandi idol was found broken into pieces nearby its pedestal. The police inquired from the local people about the incident,” he said. A case has been filed in the matter, and the investigation is underway.

Continuous attacks on Hindu temples in Andhra Pradesh

There has been a surge of attacks on Temples in Andhra Pradesh in recent weeks. The 12th century Kasi Visweswara Swamy temple was attacked a few days back in which some miscreants barged in the temple and damaged the Nandi idol.

The century-old wooden chariot of the Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple at Antarvedi area in Sakhinetipalli Mandal in East Godavari district was gutted to ashes earlier this month. A CBI probe had been ordered in the case.

In February, a 50 feet tall ancient chariot of Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple at Bhogolu village of Bitragunta Mandal in Nellore district was set on fire. Several Hindu god and goddess idols and flex banners in Pithapuram city in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh were desecrated by unknown miscreants in January this year.

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