The ‘unofficial’ Kabaddi team that went to Pakistan to play World Kabaddi Championship is set to be quizzed on their return to India on Monday. The Indian team lost to Pakistan in the finals on Sunday by 41-43. A contingent of Indian players reached Lahore on Saturday (February 8) via the Attari border to participate in the championship in the neighbouring country.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan took to Twitter on Monday to congratulate the Pakistan team for defeating India’s “unofficial Kabaddi team”.
Congratulations to the Pakistan Kabbadi team for winning the Kabbadi World Cup after defeating India.
To participate in a sports event abroad, the national federation must write to the Sports Ministry which in turn needs to communicate with the Ministry of External Affairs (for political clearance) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (for security clearance). The Sports Ministry and Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI) had made it clear that India did not send any “official” team to Pakistan.
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju said, “Playing in the name of the country and using flag needs to be investigated. There is no permission for going to Pakistan. Anybody can go anywhere, but using India’s name is an issue.” The administrator of AKFI, Justice SP Garg (retd), warned that legal action would be taken against the defaulters.
Earlier, the Government extradited cricket bookie Sanjeev Chawla accused in 2000 match-fixing scandal, to India from the United Kingdom. The Delhi Police Crime Branch intercepted a conversation between blacklisted bookie Sanjeev Chawla and Hansie Cronje, in which it was learnt that the South African captain had accepted money to lose matches.
On Monday, social media was abuzz with reports that a Muslim child born in 2018 had his birthplace as ‘Pakistan’ instead of Ahmedabad. A video was shared by one Mohammad Asif Khan who claimed that a Muslim kid’s birth place is mentioned as Pakistan instead of Ahmedabad.
This is from Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
A Muslim kid’s birthplace is mentioned as Pakistan instead of Ahmedabad in his birth certificate.
This Muslim family is scared now, they are trying to get remove this discrepancy.
Both shared BBC Gujarati video wherein the mother of the child is saying that they are afraid with impending NRC, Pakistan in the birth certificate may send them to Pakistan for real.
There are multiple things wrong with the video.
Birth certificate screenshot from BBC video
As seen above, the address mentions birthplace as Ahmedabad only. ‘Pakistan Railway Crossing’ is a landmark for the locality. The railway crossing in Vatva, Ahmedabad, is informally known as ‘Pakistan railway crossing’ as it is near a Muslim dominated area. However, as seen in the above image, the address of the birth place of the child is Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
Secondly, as per February 13 report of Times of India, Amdavad Municipal Corporation has changed the birth certificate and updated their online records as well.
As per the report, the 18-month-old Mohammad Uzerkhan now has updated birth certificate which does not mention the landmark which was informally known as Pakistan railway crossing.
Thirdly, BBC video talks about the fears the family has because of applicability of Citizenship Amendment Act. CAA is not even applicable to Indian citizens. As seen above, the child’s birth certificate states Ahmedabad, Gujarat as birthplace. Shockingly, instead of explaining to the parents that the birthplace in the certificate really does not mention Pakistan as birthplace, BBC continued to spread fake news.
On Monday, a 2-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court comprising of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and KM Joseph directed senior advocates, Sadhana Ramachandran and Sanjay Hegde, to act as interlocutors and convince the Shaheen Bagh protestors to relocate to an alternative place, reported Bar and Bench. The Court granted permission to the two lawyers to choose a third interlocutor of their choice.
The order came at the backdrop of two petitions filed in the apex court, seeking clearance of Shaheen Bagh area and the Kalindi Kunj Road. The first petition had been filed by lawyer and activist, Amit Sahni while the other one had been filed by BJP leader Nand Kishore Garg.
The Bench has directed the two Senior Counsels to submit a report on the outcome of the mediation process by February 24, the day when the next hearing in the case is to be held. The Delhi police have also been asked to provide an alternative site to the protestors who have been demonstrating against the CAA for the past 2 months.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, however, pointed out that Sanjay Hedge is against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and that it was also the case with the Shaheen Bagh protestors.
It is notable here that lawyer Sanjay Hegde has been caught spreading fake news several times. After Twitter suspended his account, he had even stated that he will take Twitter to the international court.
Justice Kaul noted, “One section of the society holds one point of view, its fine, they want to voice it in a form of like a social build-up, its acceptable but the limited question is the place which it can be done,”
Justice Joseph added, “We aren’t saying people don’t have the right to protest even after the law is under challenge before this court but road can’t be blocked.
On February 10, the apex court observed that there must be a designated site to carry out such protests and raised concerns about whether public inconvenience can be caused by blocking roads indefinitely. A Bench headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde also took suo motu cognisance over the death of a 4-month-old in Shaheen Bagh.
The former JNUSU president and CPI leader, Kanhaiya Kumar, known for all the wrong reasons to hog limelight, came under attack yet again while he was in Lakhisarai for ongoing ‘Jan Gan Man Yatra’ protest Bihar against the Citizenship Amendment Act, NRC and NPR.
Kumar was at the Gandhi Maidaan in Lakhisarai to address the gathering when one of the demonstrators flung slippers at the CPI leader. This was the ninth instance of articles being hurled at Kanhaiya. As per reports, there was a scene of bedlam when Kumar arrived at Gandhi Maidan for his meeting. Amidst the uproar and commotion, a young man hurled slippers at the podium, directed towards Kumar.
Soon after the man tossed his slippers at the stage, enraged Kanhaiya’s supporters got hold of him and started raining blows on him. The police present on the spot swiftly acted and took the accused youth into custody, rescuing him from the clutches of the furious mob bent on beating him. The injured man was subsequently taken to Sardar hospital for treatment.
Undeterred by the mob attack unleashed on him, the man who hurled slippers at Kanhaiya Kumar called the CPI leader a traitor who is desirous of inciting riots in the country. He also added that the ideology of the Left will never work and that Kumar will not be spared by them at any cost.
This is 9th such attack on Kanhaiya who is on a month-long protest march ‘Jan Gan Man Yatra’ across Bihar against CAA, NRC and NPR. The yatra started on January 30 from Bettiah, Bihar and is expected to end on February 29 in Patna. Earlier, Kanhaiya’s convoy was welcomed with shoes in Katihar while in Jamui, his convoy was greeted with engine oil and eggs. In Arrah, a few days back, protesters showed black flags and pelted stones at Kumar’s convoy.
At 1:30 AM on 16th February, a Twitter account by the name of ‘Jamia Coordination Committee’ (JCC) tweeted an ‘exclusive CCTV footage’ from the reading hall in Jamia Millia Islamia university.
As per the time stamp on the video, it was from 15th December, 2019, the day anti-CAA riots broke out in Jamia Nagar where Jamia Millia Islamia university is located. The anti-CAA protests had gone violent and the rioters resorted to violence including pelting stones on police. When the rioters rushed inside the campus to take refuge, Delhi Police cracked down and resorted to lathi charge on the rioters. The carefully edited video shared by JCC was soon used by anti-BJP ecosystem including journalists to claim police brutality. Interestingly, Jamia coordination committee, which has released the video on twitter is not even an officially elected body. It is formed after the December 15 riots and has been forefront at organising anti-CAA protests inside the university campus as well as at Shaheen Bagh, Khureji and other places.
A longer version of the video shows how the ‘students’ are sitting with closed books on the desks when police personnel are seen entering the library. The ‘student’ on the right suddenly puts up a handkerchief mask (20 seconds into the video) on his face just before the police enter the library. The ‘student’ on the top left corner is also wearing a handkerchief across his face while standing against a wall.
Here is where things get interesting. Jamia has provided footage to MHRD (Ministry of Human Resource Development), NHRC (National Human Rights Commission), Delhi Police, internal fact-finding team as well as Jamia’s Teachers’ Association. Sources in Jamia say that the CCTV footage was also given to certain individuals who had reportedly sustained injuries and wanted to take up legal proceedings. They were given footage on condition that they will use this footage for legal proceedings only.
Monday morning another video surfaced which was an ‘exclusive footage’ obtained by Maktoob Media. Maktoob Media claims it has an hour-long footage, but chose to release only about 5 minute clipped version. So, what is Maktoob Media?
Maktoob Media
Maktoob Media is a Kerala-based media startup founded in March 2014. As per Facebook it states it is based in Kerala, but on its website it mentions it is based in Delhi. It mentions “Shaheen Abdulla” as its Associate Creative Editor in its “About Us” section. Who is Shaheen Abdulla? Shaheen Abdulla is the same person who was ‘saved’ by the “Jamia Sheroes” who were hailed by controversial journalist Barkha Dutt. Husband of Aysha Renna, one of the “Sheroes”, Afsal Rahman, has also worked with Maktoob Media. He has currently deactivated his Facebook profile but as per his LinkedIn profile, he was associated with Maktoob till September 2019 and is currently associated with “Opera News”.
Shaheen, Ladeeda and Aysha – all three hail from Kerala where Maktoob Media is based out of. Ladeeda’s husband, Shiyas Perumathura, is Secretary of Students Islamic Organisation (SIO), Kerala. Mumbai chief of SIO, Salman Ahmed, was detained by Mumbai Police for making provocative statement during an anti-CAA gathering in Nanded, Maharashtra.
Students Islamic Organisation
The SIO was founded by Jamaat-e-Islami in 1982 after the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) broke away from it in 1981. A Livemint report from 2008 puts the relationship between the two organizations in this manner, “Blood brothers they may be, but the groups have charted conflicting courses, both in principle and actions. While SIMI is largely underground after the government crackdown, SIO is a gradually swelling student revolution in the making, taking Islam beyond the parodied stereotypes of fundamentalism and violence. Its mission: to prepare students, Muslims and non-Muslims, for reconstruction of a peaceful India on the basis of Islamic principles.”
Regardless of what the report may say, the people associated with SIO have clearly demonstrated that they have a tendency to gravitate towards violence as well. The mainstream media through its ignorance has given a pass to extremely toxic individuals. Due to their inherent ‘secular’ biases, journalists have taken dubious individuals at face value and have made no effort to throw hard questions at them. Even when their bigotry stood exposed, the media has attempted to provide them with an opportunity to clear their names. After all of this is said and done, the mainstream media will have to take a long and hard look at the manner in which it has conducted itself in these turbulent times and if they have a shred of shame, they will make a formal apology to the people of this country.
The Jamaat-e-Islami itself has an extremely turbulent past. After the partition of the country, the organization split itself into independent organizations in the newly created states. It has been described as having undergone an “ideological transformation” and said to have abandoned its goal of transforming India into an Islamic State. But given everything that has occurred in recent times, we will have to revisit this question.
Mehfil-e-Jamia
One of the first places the video of “Jamia Sheroes” ‘saving’ Abdulla from Delhi Police’s lathicharge was put up on a YouTube channel ‘Mehfil-e-Jamia’. The video was shared on 15th December 2019 and the images from the same were later widely circulated. In the video which starts abruptly, one can see Delhi Police personnel have reached one lane where Abdulla is being shielded by the women. The Police, it appears, had gone to that particular house in that particular lane while chasing Abdulla, since they seem to be specifically wanting to reach to him. While this video does not have ‘Mehfil-e-Jamia’ stamp, the February 16 video shared by JCC (which it claims was an exclusive footage) has the ‘Mehfil-e-Jamia’ stamp on the right side.
Unanswered questions
These ‘selectively’ leaked videos raise quite a few questions.
How did Shaheen Abdulla, Aysha Renna, Ladeeda Sakhaloon alias Ladeeda Farzana and others reach that very house in that very lane with Delhi Police trailing them? Now that videos with Mehfil-e-Jamia logo are being shared as exclusive ‘leaks’, it may be a good time to revisit the “Jamia Sheroes”.
How did media with wide lens cameras ready to capture the moment of ‘bravery’ of ‘sheroes’ reach there?
Why was Delhi Police trailing Shaheen Abdulla and others? Were they lured to that lane so as to capture the ‘brutality’?
Did Shaheen Abdulla manage to get the ‘footage’ from Jamia CCTV which was eventually heavily edited and released by Maktoob Media on Monday?
If yes, how?
How are ‘Mehfil-e-Jamia’ and Jamia JCC and Maktoob Media related?
What is the role of Students Islamic Organisation in this?
And last, but certainly not the least, who ‘leaked’ the videos?
The convicts on death row in the brutal Nirbhaya rape and murder case are yet to be hanged. Despite multiple death warrants, justice still evades the family of the young student who was raped and brutalised in an inhuman way in 2012.
Today, Delhi’s Patiala House Court has again issued a death warrant. The four convicts are to be hanged on March 3 at 6 am. As per law, a death warrant has to be issued at least 14 days prior, notifying the convicts of the date of their execution.
Asha Devi, Mother of 2012 Delhi gang-rape victim: I am not very happy as this is the third time that death warrant has been issued. We have struggled so much, so I am satisfied that death warrant has been issued finally. I hope they (convicts) will be executed on 3rd March. https://t.co/lUI3flqwzUpic.twitter.com/gkuYNnGocX
Asha Devi, the victim’s mother has stated that she is not happy as this is the third time a death warrant has been issued. The previous two warrants were stayed as the convicts have been exploiting all possible legal loopholes to evade the death penalty.
“We have struggled so much, so I am satisfied that a death warrant has been issued finally. I hope they (the convicts) will be executed on March 3”, said Asha Devi.
It is notable here that after the rejection of their mercy petitions by the President of India, the convicts had filed pleas in the Supreme Court seeking a review of the president’s decision.
The four convicts in 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case were sentenced to death by a trial court in September 2013, and the verdict was confirmed by the Delhi High Court in March 2014 and upheld by the Supreme Court in May 2017, which also dismissed their review petition in July 2018.
Debbie Abrahams, a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom from the Labour Party, has been denied entry to India by the government after her e-visa was cancelled. She chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Kashmir (AAPGK) and has been critical of India’s decision to abrogate Article 370 in August last year. Her aide, Harpreet Upal, told the Associated Press that her ‘valid Indian Visa’ was rejected. She had flown to the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi.
According to The Hindu, Debbie Abrahams was informed that her electronic visa-on-arrival had been cancelled prior to her arrival. According to the official, she was informed of the development before she flew to India. She represents the Oldham East & Saddleworth Constituency in the UK.
Abrahams said on Twitter, “I have Indian relatives who I was meant to be visiting with & have Indian members of staff accompanying me. The reason I got into politics is advance social justice & human rights FOR ALL. I will continue to challenge my own Government & others on these issues.” Her Visa apparently permitted her to “attend technical/business meetings,” and expired in October 2020.
Debbie Abrahams’ statement on the matter (Source: Nidhi Razdan/Twitter)
In a statement, she said, “I tried to establish why the visa had been revoked and if I could get a ‘visa on arrival’ but no one seemed to know. Even the person who seemed to be in charge said he didn’t know and was really sorry about what had happened. So now I am just waiting to be deported. Unless the Indian Government has a change of heart. I’m prepared to let the fact that I’ve been treated like a criminal go, and I hope they will let me visit my family and friends.”
Debbie Abrahams’ statement on the matter (Source: Nidhi Razdan/Twitter)
Following the abrogation of Article 370, Debbie Abrahams had written to the Indian High Commission in the UK the same day to “express grave concerns regarding the Indian Government’s proposed removal of Article 370 from their constitution, which grants special status to ‘Indian-controlled #Kashmir’.” She had also welcomed the “opportunity to meet with you to discuss the position of the Indian Government on ‘Indian controlled Kashmir’, and particularly regarding the proposed removal of Article 370, at your earliest convenience.”
In the letter to the Indian High Commissioner in the UK, she had said that if the Indians had read her letters from the 22nd of February to the 20th of June last year, “you will know that the APPGK has repeatedly reiterated our commitment to support a process of peace and reconciliation in Kashmir, on both sides of the line of control. The unilateral decision made by the Indian Government to remove Article 370 betrays the trust of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, dating back to the accession of 1947, and threatens to escalate tensions in the region even further.”
Debbie Abrahams’ Letter to the Indian High Commissioner to the UK on the abrogation of Article 370
Debbie Abrahams had also proceeded to let the Indian High Commissioner know the contact details of her Head of Staff who could make all the diary arrangements. She had also said that she hoped to hear from the High Commissioner “by no later than 7th August”. We cannot confirm whether she received a reply “by no later than 7th August” or not but six months later, her Visa was cancelled by the Indian Government. She has also said that she has been trying to organize a visit to Kashmir with the Indian High Commission in London since October but has been unsuccessful.
The Indian Government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a hardline stance on foreign interference in the internal matters of India. Malaysia has had to pay the price for raking up the Kashmir issue at international forums. After threatening India with a trade war, the Malaysian Prime Minister said that his country is “too small” to take retaliatory action against India over the palm oil curbs. This was after the world’s largest buyer of edible oil, India, effectively stopped imports from its largest supplier and the world’s second-largest producer following Malaysian PM Mahathir’s deprecatory remarks against India regarding its internal policies pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir and the CAA.
Turkey, too, has had to suffer due to its comments against India on the Kashmir front. The Prime Minister had cancelled his proposed visit to Turkey following Erdogan’s comments on Kashmir. Earlier, India had also put a 2.3 billion naval deal with Turkey’s Andalou Shipyard on hold. The deal was for procuring five 45,000 tonne fleet support ships for the Indian Navy.
Debbie Abrahams belongs to the Labour Party which has made numerous incendiary remarks against India’s decision to abrogate Article 370. However, leading up to the UK General Elections, in which the Labour Party suffered a disastrous defeat, the Labour Party was forced to backtrack under pressure from the Indian diaspora and say that it was indeed a bilateral issue. Prominent Pakistan-origin people associated with the Labour Party and even several Labour party MPs in the UK were part of anti-India protests where Pakistanis attacked the Indian High Commission in the UK in September 2019 on abrogation of Article 370 in J&K.
After 14 years of separation, the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha(JVM) once again came into the fold of the Bhartiya Janata Party(BJP). Former Jharkhand CM Babulal Marandi made his party’s homecoming on Monday by merging JVM with the BJP in presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP President JP Nadda.
Jharkhand: Babulal Marandi, former Chief Minister and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) chief merges his party with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at an event in Ranchi, in the presence of Union Home Minister & BJP leader Amit Shah. pic.twitter.com/8EiDUHEZQI
In 2000, Babulal Marandi became the first chief minister of Jharkhand, shortly after the state was carved out of the then Bihar. He was then in the BJP. However, later in 2006 he broke away from the BJP to form his own party Jharkhand Vikas Morcha(JVM).
A few days back, Marandi had announced that his party JVM will merge into the BJP on February 17 in a function to be held at Prabhat Tara Maidan.
Welcoming Marandi back into BJP, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that it was not easy to get him back into the party. Shah also added that efforts were made since 2014 to get the former Jharkhand CM within the BJP.
“I have been trying to bring Babulal Marandi into BJP since I was made BJP chief in 2014. Someone rightly said that he is quite stubborn. We couldn’t persuade him easily. He has now joined BJP as per the wish of the people of Jharkhand,” Shah said.
Marandi too acknowledged that he was pursued since 2014 by the BJP for the merger. “This is not a sudden event. I was in touch with the BJP since 2014. Right after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and assembly elections, we were contacted by the BJP. Right from the start, the BJP wanted us to merge with them,” Marandi said.
While addressing the gathering, Babulal Marandi expressed his gratitude to the BJP for a warm reception. He added that he has not merged his party for the lure of a lucrative position in the BJP. Marandi asserted that he will accept whatever responsibility he is entrusted with.
”I will work as a common worker. If the party even gives me the job of sweeping, I will do it,” Marandi said.
PM Modi had inaugurated the Kashi Mahakal Express on February 15. In the train’s first run, a seat was reserved for Lord Shiva. The train connects the destinations for 3 of the 12 Jyotirlingas in India.
Varanasi: Seat number 64 of coach B5 in Kashi Mahakal Express (Varanasi-Indore) has been turned into a mini-temple of Lord Shiva. The train was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi via video conferencing yesterday. pic.twitter.com/X5rO4Ftbl6
Seat number 64 of the coach B5 has been turned into a mini-temple with decorative items, flowers and framed photos of Lord Shiva and Goddess Durga. Named as Kashi Mahakal Express, this is the third private train that is being hailed to provide services with only vegetarian meals onboard, two private security guards in each coach and light devotional songs. The fully 3-AC train will run thrice a week between Varanasi and Indore. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the train on Sunday, February 16, which will ply between Varanasi and Indore regularly from February 20.
The Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar claimed that it is for the first time that a seat has been reserved and left vacant for the deity Lord Shiva. “A temple has been arranged on the seat to make people aware that the seat is reserved for the Lord Mahakal,” Kumar said.
There were news reports stating that railway officials are contemplating keeping the berth as a permanent feature in the train. Following which there was a considerable buzz on social media.
Predictably, the feature of having a perpetual temple in the train has ruffled a few feathers. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi took to Twitter to express his disapproval with the seat being reserved for Lord Shiva.
Without saying anything, Owaisi quoted a tweet about the reservation of Seat 64 in B5 for Lord Shiva with the photo of the Preamble of India’s constitution and tagged Prime Minister’s office in it.
#IRCTC says a seat was reserved for Lord Shiva in Kashi Mahakal Express during inaugural run as ‘one-time affair’ to seek ‘blessings’ for success of the new project
However, IRCTC has today clarified that the reserved seat was a one-time affair, for seeking the blessings of Lord Shiva on the train’s maiden journey.
Oscar winning musician A R Rahman’s daughter Khatija continues to mock controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen over her burqa remark. Taking to Instagram, Khatija shared a picture with her sister Raheema Rahman and their father A R Rahman with a caption “Peaceful time with family away from “suffocation””
This post comes a day after Khatija replied to Nasreen’s comment on her wearing a burqa. Commenting on Khatija’s burqa, Nasreen had taken to microblogging platform Twitter to say that whenever she saw Rahman’s daughter in burqa, she felt ‘suffocated’.
I absolutely love A R Rahman’s music. But whenever i see his dear daughter, i feel suffocated. It is really depressing to learn that even educated women in a cultural family can get brainwashed very easily! pic.twitter.com/73WoX0Q0n9
Possibly triggered by Khatija and Raheema’s jibes, Nasreen took to Twitter to respond to her, albeit without mentioning Khatija.
You wanna follow Islam, then follow Islam properly. Islam forbids music, singing, dancing. Stop music, singing, dancing. Islam forbids drawing human images. Stop drawing,painting,photographing human images. Simple.
This is, however, not the first time Khatija Rahman’s attire has come under fire. A year ago, A R Rahman was questioned by social media users after Khatija had appeared at an event with him wearing a burqa. However, then the composer had explained that the women in his family are free to wear whatever they want.
