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CBI moves to prosecute former CAG and Defence Secretary Shashikant Sharma, four others in Congress-era AgustaWestland chopper scam

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CBI moves to prosecute former CAG and Defence Secretary Shashikant Sharma, four others in Congress-era AgustaWestland chopper scam

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has sought prosecution sanction from the Union government against former defence secretary and Comptroller and Auditor General of India Shashikant Sharma, former Air-Vice Marshal Jasbir Singh Panesar, and three other Indian Air Force (IAF) officers in connection with the UPA-era AgustaWestland chopper scam.

According to the reports, the CBI officials have approached the Defence Ministry seeking permission to prosecute Shashikant Sharma, Panesar, three others for their alleged involvement in the multi-crore chopper scam.

According to Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, it is mandatory for CBI to seek a prosecution sanction from the concerned department before filing a charge sheet against a government official.

Shashikant Sharma was Joint Secretary (Air) in the Ministry of Defence when the contract was under consideration. Sharma had reportedly finalised the operational requirements (OR) for the deal. 

Sharma later became India’s defence secretary, between July 2011 and May 2013, and went on to become CAG till 2017. The alleged violations and kickbacks in the UPA era scam was one of the biggest controversies during the Manmohan Singh government.

Reportedly, the CBI has stated that the five officers had taken “key decisions” and were actively involved in the procurement process of VVIP chopper deal which took place during UPA-II.

The words “JS Air” – an alleged reference to the designation Joint Secretary (Air) had appeared in Italian court judgments in connection with AgustaWestland scam, as revealed by British middleman Christian Michel.

A second CBI officer speaking to Hindustan Times said that Panesar and the three IAF officers had played an important role in the purchase and testing of the AW-101 helicopters. The three other officers – Deputy chief test pilot SA Kunte, Wing Commander Thomas Mathew, and Group Captain N Santosh.

The CBI officer also added there have prepared a supplementary charge sheet against Shashikant Sharma, Panesar, Kunte, Mathew and Santosh, which now needs a prior government sanction. The charge sheet will also detail the role of about other officials and individuals that amount to conspiracy and violation under the prevention of corruption act, the officer added.

UPA era AgustaWestland Scam

India had signed a deal in 2010 under the UPA regime to buy 12 AgustaWestland AW101 helicopters for the service of the Prime Minister, the President and other VVIPs. It is alleged that some politicians and public servants had abused their official positions to reduce the service ceiling of the VVIPs helicopter from 6000 metres to 4500 metres to make AgustaWestland eligible for the contract and had awarded the contract for an amount of Euro 556.262 million in 2010. The deal was cancelled in 2013 after the scam was revealed.

The AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam has been nothing less of a blistering drama ever since middleman Christian Michel was extradited to India from Dubai.

Several revelations came to light, from the names of “Italian Lady”, to “Italian Lady’s son R“. From how Christian Michel was lobbying for the Eurofighter and against the Rafale deal, to how he had unbridled access to the PMO under Congress regime, the CCS and even the investigative agencies.

Covfefe moment for Big B? Not really, this is what Amitabh Bachchan meant by “Ef Coky”

OpIndia Staff
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Covfefe moment for Big B? Not really, this is what Amitabh Bachchan meant by “Ef Coky”

Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan causes quite a confusion on Twitter today, when he referred to someone as Ef Coky. As this is not a name of any known person, many people wondered if it was a typo by the meticulous actor. Many people also wondered if it was a “Covfefe” moment for Bachchan, an infamous misspelling in a tweet posted by US President Donald Trump in 2017.

Amitabh Bachchan has used the name while issuing a correction for the numbering for his tweets. The megastar is known for his discipline, he has been praised by his directors, costars and other colleagues for his punctuality. This quality of him can be observed in his Twitter account, where he meticulously numbers his tweets serially, which he had started with his first tweet. His tweet begins with a number with the prefix T, implying Tweet number.

But sometimes he makes a mistake in the serial numbering, where he either repeats or skips a number. But this mistake does not escape his scrutiny, and often he issues a correction tweet, rectifying the numbers. His correction tweets also get their own serial number. Although many people think that Bachchan is too much concerned about a trivial thing like a serial number of his tweets, it shows how he takes everything that he does seriously.

In such a correction tweet numbered T3656 today, Bachchan pointed out that he had repeated the Tweet number T3654, and asked his followers to read his tweets with the rectified numbers. Along with this, he also thanked the mysterious Ef Coky, possibly a Twitter user who had pointed out his mistake.

Although people wondered if Bachchan made a typo in the name, that is unlikely, as he is meticulous about what he tweets. Moreover, if it was a mistake, he would have promptly issued a correction tweet, like he does for numberings.

We did a search for the mysterious name, and found a Twitter with the username Coky Amitabh EF, who describes herself as “Crazy Egyptian Fan of The Legend @SrBachchan” in the bio of the Twitter account. From the tweets, it is apparent that the user is a big fan of Bachchan. Although there is no tweet visible on the user’s timeline, Bachchan was perhaps informed about the mistake via Direct Message. It is notable that Bachchan follows the user on Twitter.

It is important to note that Amitabh Bachchan refers to his fans as Ef, which is the short form of Extended Family. He himself had explained this years ago. Therefore, the Ef in the username of Coky Ef refers to this extended family of Bachchan.

Last year in March, Amitabh Bachchan had posted a few videos from Vimeo made by this same Coky Ef, referring to the user as “My dedicated Ef”. He had informed that Coky Ef from Egypt had put together the videos celebrating 50 Years of Amitabh Bachchan.

Amitabh Bachchan has also wished the user on her birthday multiple times. In April 2016, he had posted a birthday wish for his Egyptian fan Ef Caroline Moheb, referring to her as Coky on his official blog. This year on 4th April too, Bachchan had posted birthday wish for EF Caroline ‘Coky’ Moheb.

Birthday wish of Bachchan for Ef Coky

Therefore, it can be concluded that Ef Coky was not a Covfefe moment for Amitabh Bachchan. He was actually referring to his dedicated fan from Egypt named Caroline Moheb, who goes by the nickname Ef Coky.

Republic TV approaches NHRC to demand the release of journalists detained by Maharashtra Police

OpIndia Staff
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Republic TV approaches NHRC to demand the release of journalists detained by Maharashtra Police

On Friday, Republic TV moved to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) seeking the immediate release of two journalists associated with the channel.

As per reports by Republic TV reporter Anuj Kumar, video journalist Yashpaljit Singh and Ola cab driver Pradeep Dilip Dhanavade, who were out on an investigative assignment, were illegally detained and detained by the Maharashtra police. For three days now, they have been languishing behind bars, allegedly without access to their legal counsel.

The journalists were held by Maharashtra Police under the charges of ‘trespassing’ after they made some inquiry with a security guard at a certain residential building in Karjat, reportedly owned by Uddhav Thackeray.

The channel stated that they will also approach the Bombay High Court as the Maharashtra police have attempted to interrogate Anuj and coerced him into revealing his sources.

Arnab Goswami demands immediate release of Republic TV reporters

Arnab Goswami, the chief of the Republic TV network, on Friday demanded the immediate release of the reporters who were picked from Raigad for carrying out an investigative assignment. “Uddhav Thackeray, release my journalists. You have broken the law and we will not allow this illegality. You did not write the constitution and you have no right to turn it upside down,” said Arnab Goswami in a blistering attacking against Maharashtra Chief Minister.

The Republic TV Editor-in-Chief said that if Uddhav Thackeray fails to release the journalists, he will be fighting him in both the courts of public opinion and our country’s highest courts.

Sandalwood drug scandal: Congress MLA Zameer Ahmed files complaint against BJP after allegations of links with arrested actress Sanjjanaa Galrani

OpIndia Staff
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Sandalwood drug scandal: Congress MLA Zameer Ahmed files complaint against BJP after allegations of links with arrested actress Sanjjanaa Galrani

In a new development, Karnataka Congress MLA Zameer Ahmed has filed a complaint against the BJP and film distributor Prashant Sambhargi after being accused of having links with actress Sanjjanaa Galrani in the drugs case. The actress was earlier arrested by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) of Bengaluru police for being involved with the sensational Sandalwood drug scam.

Reportedly, film distributor Prashant Sambhargi had claimed that Galrani had sought help from the Congress MLA. He had alleged that Zameer Ahmed and Sanjjanaa Galrani had travelled together to Colombo in Sri Lanka and were spotted at a casino throwing huge sums of money at gambling. The Congress MLA had then filed a case against the film distributor for defamation.

Sanjjanaa and aide Fazal Shaikh hosted Zameer Ahmed in Colombo

The Sandalwood actress, accused of peddling drugs within the film fraternity, allegedly had connections with a man named Fazal Shaikh, an aide of Zameer Ahmed. She was allegedly seen with Fazal in bridal clothes and rumours were rife about their marriage, even though she had claimed to be unmarried. Sanjjanaa had also refused to take the ‘dope test’, citing her lack of faith in the Karnataka police.

Citing sources, Bangalore Mirror earlier reported that the duo had hosted the Congress lawmaker during his trip to Sri Lanka. They also organised parties where drugs were supplied. As per reports, BJP Minister CT Ravi and General Secretary N. Ravikumar informed that Zameer would be behind bars within a few days, in light of ‘incriminating’ evidence.

Congress MLA denies connections to actress, says open to probe

In his defence, the Congress MLA has dared the BJP to show ‘evidence’ of his involvement in the drug scandal case. “The police is under the BJP. If they can prove that Sanjjanaa went with me to Sri Lanka, then, I am ready to hand over all my properties in Karnataka to the government.” He had also filed a case against the BJP.

He further claimed, “I don’t even know how she looks. I have not watched any of her movies too. Maybe a section of media is linking this visit (June 8) to Sri Lanka with the present case.” On being asked about his photos with Fazal Shaikh, he justified, “Aren’t there photos of Ragini Dwivedi with Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and his sons or other BJP leaders?”

Sandalwood drug case

Amidst the raging debate in the country over the issue of narcotic influence in the movie industry, a massive drug scandal was unearthed by the Bengaluru police last week.

In a major crackdown against drug peddlers in the state, the Bengaluru police last week arrested some top actresses in the Kannada film industry over alleged involvement in drug trafficking.

The Crime Branch officials in Bengaluru have arrested Kannada actresses Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjanaa Galrani in connection with a Sandalwood drug case. Many more actresses, musicians, are under the police scanner for their alleged links to the massive drug racket.

So far, the police have booked more than 12 people in connection with the Sandalwood drug mafia case. The police have already arrested actor Ragini Dwivedi, her friend Ravishankar, realtor Rahul Shetty, actress Sanjjanaa Galrani and an event manager, Viren Khanna. All the accused have been booked them under Sections 21, 21C, 27A, 27B, and 29B of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. 

Madras High Court issues notice to music composer A R Rahman in a tax evasion case

OpIndia Staff
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Madras High Court issues notice to music composer A R Rahman in a tax evasion case

A notice has been issued by the Madras High Court to music composer A R Rahman on an appeal filed by Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Chennai. The appeal was filed against an order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal which was delivered in favour of Rahman. The notice was issued by a Division Bench of Justices TS Sivagnanam and Bhavani Subbaroyan.

It was alleged in the appeal that Rahman had evaded tax on an amount of Rs 3.47 crores which he had received as remuneration his services as music composer in 2010-11. He had reportedly composed ringtones for a UK-based music company. It was further contended that the Oscar-winning music composer had routed the said amount to his charitable foundation called A R Rahman Foundation which is exempted from tax under the Income Tax Act.

Rahman had entered into a three-year collaboration agreement with the company and had received an amount of US $7,50,000 (Rs 3,47,77,200) as professional fees in his individual capacity as an artist. The IT Department had contended that this must be received by Rahman in his account and is liable to taxed. After deducting the income tax. it can be transferred to the charitable trust. Evidence were produced by the Assessing Officer of his Foundation to show that the said donationzs received by the Foundation were due to Rahman.

NIA to take over the investigation of Bengaluru riots, to probe possible terror links of the accused

OpIndia Staff
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NIA to take over the investigation of Bengaluru riots, to probe possible terror links of the accused

The Central government has decided to transfer the criminal cases related to the violent riots in Bengaluru to the National Investigation Agency. About 280 people in the case have been booked under the stringent UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act). The central agency will investigate if the accused persons had links with terror organisations.

Representing NIA, counsel P. Prasanna Kumar submitted before a Division Bench of Karnatana High Court comprising Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Ashok S. Kinagi that a decision to transfer the cases involving incidents of violence in DJ Halli and KG Halli localities of Bengaluru has been taken by the centre and orders in this regard are expected to be issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs. The submission was made during the hearing of PIL petitions seeking transfer of probe to NIA, payment of compensation for damage caused to properties during the violence, etc.

A man named Samiuddin was arrested by the Central Crime Branch, who is said to have links with Al-Hind organisation, a claim which is being probed.

Riots sparked off in Bengaluru over an allegedly derogatory post on Prophet Muhammad

Last month, the southern metropolis of Bengaluru was convulsed with violent riots when a rampaging Muslim mob unleashed extreme violence in Bengaluru over a Facebook post that was allegedly derogatory to Prophet Mohammad. As per the reports, the Muslim mob hit the streets near DJ Halli and KG Halli police station areas on August 11 evening and attacked a Congress MLA’s house after one of his relatives had allegedly made a derogatory Facebook post.

More than 60 police personnel were injured in the stone-pelting and the subsequent riots unleashed by the irate Muslim mobs. At least 10 vehicles, including Innovas of two DCPs, were damaged in front of the stations. The mob also set fire to the vehicles in front of the DJ Halli police station.

During the pre-planned attack, the Muslim mob, carrying petrol bombs and other weapons, also barged into the nearby police quarters and attacked the premises. The Muslim mob was seen raising Islamic slogans like ‘Allah-hu-Akbar’ and ‘Nara-e-Taqbeer’ outside the police station.

As many as 300 people, including Arun Pratap, the personal assistant of the former city mayor and local civic ward corporator Sampat Raj of the Congress, were accused of fanning the riots and indulging in vandalism.

Days after the violent riots swept the city, the Karnataka government had decided to invoke the stringent UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) law and the Goonda Act against those responsible for carrying out the violence. About 280 accused in the case were slapped with charges under UAPA Act.

Mumbai police go all the way to Kolkata to arrest an alleged Kangana Ranaut fan for ‘threatening’ Sanjay Raut

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai police go all the way to Kolkata to arrest an alleged Kangana Ranaut fan for ‘threatening’ Sanjay Raut

In yet another shocking addition to the Kanagna Ranaut- Shiv Sena episode, Mumbai police has arrested a man from Kolkata after he threatened Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut allegedly over a phone call. The Mumbai police traveled all the way to Kolkata to arrest the man.

The man identified as Palash was reportedly offended by the comments made by Raut against Kangana and had allegedly threatened him of dire consequences on the call. Palash is said to belong to Tollygunge. He was arrested by a team of Mumbai police in Kolkata and is set to be produced in Alipore court today for transit remand. Palash, who is said be to a gym instructor, had allegedly made two calls one each to Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut.

Palash was reportedly picked up by the Mumbai ATS.

A war of words had been going on for a long time between Ranaut and Raut which even resulted in the demolition of the latter’s office by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The Bombay High Court in its stay order on the demolition had termed BMC’s action as mala fide.

Raut has earlier passed derogatory remarks on Kangana after she had questioned the misplaced priorities of the Mumbai Police. Another Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik had threatened to ‘break her mouth’ if she sets foot in Mumbai.

After Ayodhya seers, Akhara Parishad stands in solidarity with Kangana Ranaut, slams Maharashtra govt

OpIndia Staff
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After Ayodhya seers, Akhara Parishad stands in solidarity with Kangana Ranaut, slams Maharashtra govt

The Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) – the apex decision-making body of the 13 recognised Hindu monastic orders has come out in support of Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut against the Maharashtra government.

According to the reports, Mahant Narendra Giri, the Akhara Parishad president, expressing his solidarity with Kangana Ranaut hailed Kangana Ranaut as a ‘brave and courageous daughter’ of the nation who exposed the drug mafia and its links with Bollywood.

Mahant Narendra Giri said that the fearless voice of the actress against a particular community in Bollywood and drug mafia has caused ripples that have scared the drug mafia. He added that Kangana Ranaut’s action has threatened the Maharashtra government of being uprooted.

“This is the reason why the Uddhav Thackeray government has demolished Kangana Ranaut’s office to intimidate her,” Mahant stated.

The Mahant further said that the bravery with which Kangana Ranaut faced the drug and Bollywood mafia in the Sushant Singh murder case, has made many people angry, who are now targeting her.

Mahant Narendra Giri also expressed his gratitude towards Himachal Pradesh government and the Centre for providing a security cover to the actress. The actress was given Y-grade security by the central government after she was threatened and abused by senior leaders of the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance in Maharashtra.

“The law and order situation in Maharashtra is very bad. The Maharashtra government has not taken any action in the case of mob lynching of two saints in Palghar. The Akhara Parishad demanded a CBI inquiry in the Palghar case, but the state government has failed to act,” he added.

VHP, Ayodhya seers backs Kangana Ranaut

The support for Kangana Ranaut by the Akhada Parishad comes after Hindu seers of Ayodhya and Vishwa Hindu Parishad had backed the national-award-winning actress for her fight against the Maharashtra government.

Earlier in the day, Hindu seers of Ayodhya had slammed Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray for carrying out vendetta against the actress and had announced that the Shiv Sena chief was no more welcome in the holy town of Ayodhya.

Questioning the action of Maharashtra Chief Minister against the actress, Mahant Raju Das, priest of the Hanuman Garhi temple on Thursday had said that if Maharashtra Chief Minister visits Ayodhya, he will face stiff opposition from seers of Ayodhya.

Extending their support to the national award winning actress, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, said that the action against Kangana Ranaut is very clear that the Shiv Sena is deliberately targeting the actress because of her support to nationalist forces, who has raised her voice against drug mafia of Mumbai.

Muslim mob gather outside Sudarshan News headquarters to protest after channel receives clearance for ‘UPSC Jihad’ program, allegedly pelt stones

OpIndia Staff
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Muslim mob gather outside Sudarshan News headquarters to protest after channel receives clearance for ‘UPSC Jihad’ program, allegedly pelt stones

Susarshan News said on Friday that a group of Muslims gathered outside the headquarters of the news organisation and attempted to forcefully enter its premises. It was also claimed that stones were pelted at the headquarters of Sudarshan News. One of them said that the person is from Ghaziabad.

Noida Police apparently reached the spot after 20 minutes. Sudarshan News claimed that slogans were also raised for its Editor-in-Chief Suresh Chavhanke to get outside to, presumably, meet the protesters. Chavhanke said, “Fundamentalists have come to attack Sudarshan. Attack on security guards for preventing entry into the studio. Despite repeated requests to “Naved Khan”, head of the Sector 58 police station, Noida Police Has not installed a single policeman here.”

Sudarshan News had become embroiled in a huge controversy after it decided to air a report on what it called ‘UPSC Jihad’. On Thursday, it finally received a nod from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to broadcast their programme. The broadcast of the programme was earlier stayed by an order of the Delhi High Court. The order was passed on the petition of some students of Jamia Millia Islamia University in which it was alleged that the programme could incite hatred against Muslims.

Defending the right of the free press, Suresh Chavhanke had written to the Ministry of I&B, “You have received lacs of fake complaints against us in last 15 years but none of them could prove us guilty… Those who file such frivolous complaints have a long history… Take strict action against them for wasting your time, our time and for trying to tarnish the image of a 15-year old reliable news media organisation (Sudarshan News).”

He had said, “You had asked us about our promos on social media but this does not fall in the domain of your Ministry. We don’t know what has been sent to you. We stand by our promo… There are no unconstitutional or objectionable words in that promo.”

BJP’s Nilesh Rane targets Aaditya Thackeray over alleged Instagram image from Cambodia street known for narcotics and underage prostitution

OpIndia Staff
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BJP’s Nilesh Rane targets Aaditya Thackeray over alleged Instagram image from Cambodia street known for narcotics and underage prostitution

Nilesh Rane, Maharashtra BJP leader and son of former CM Naraya Rane has shared some social media posts claiming that Aaditya Thackeray, the Maharashtra Environment Minister and son of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had visited a Cambodian street infamous for drugs and prostitution. 

The junior Rane claimed that Aaditya Thackeray had posted on his Instagram account an image from PUB street in Cambodia, the place infamous for narcotics and underage prostitution. 

“@AUThacks is a private Instagram account of Aaditya Thackeray and has been tagged by several celebrities and in several posts made by the official Twitter account of the ‘Yuva Sena’. Therefore, you can understand the reason behind penguin’s frustration by looking at what the PUB street of Cambodia is known for in the attached image,” the English translation of Nilesh’s tweet in Marathi read. 

Rane’s allegations were based on a social media user’s tweet, who had shared a screenshot of the Maharashtra CM’s son’s Instagram account, saying that the display image was from Cambodia’s infamous Pub Street. Rane then shared screenshots of tweets by the Twitter account of Yuva Sena in which Aaditya Thackeray’s Instagram account was tagged, in a bid to lend legitimacy to his claim that it was Aaditya and not an imposter, who had shared the controversial image. 

Screenshot of Aaditya Thackeray’s alleged private Instagram account(AUThacks) posted by Nilesh Rane

Bollywood celebrities follow Instagram account AUThacks

Though it is not confirmed whether the AUThacks account indeed belongs to the CM’s son, the Instagram account AUThacks is also followed by celebrities such as Riteish Deshmukh, Disha Patani, Jacqueline Fernandes, and Karan Johar. Rane had also shared pictures from Jacqueline’s Instagram account where the account AUThacks was tagged by the actress in a picture where she is seen with Aaditya Thackeray.

AUThacks followed by Bollywood celebrities on Instagram

Until the time of publishing this report, Aaditya Thackeray had not responded to the allegations levelled by Nilesh Rane. We will update the article, if and when the Maharashtra Environment Minister issues a clarification on the matter.

It is notable here that Aaditya Thackeray’s Instagram account @adityathackeray is a public, verified account and the said picture mentioned by Rane is not there.

Pub street, Siem Reap, Cambodia

The Pub Street, or street no 8 in Cambodia’s northwestern Siem Reap city, is a popular tourist destination for the party-loving crowd. Though frequented by tourists from around the world, many nations have travel advisories warning travellers about the crimes, rampant prostitution, sexual assault, robbery and drug spiking happening in Pub Street. Drug hauls and cases of street crime are rampant in this area. The Pub Street was popularised in the early 2000s, especially after actress Angelina Jolie visited a bar there during the shooting of her Lara Croft movie.

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