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Anti-Hindu riots: 1100 rioters identified using facial recognition tech, 300 came from UP, HM Amit Shah informs Parliament

OpIndia Staff
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Anti-Hindu riots: 1100 rioters identified using facial recognition tech, 300 came from UP, HM Amit Shah informs Parliament

On Wednesday, Home Minister Amit Shah informed Lok Sabha that at least 1100 people, who were involved in Delhi riots, have been identified using the face identification technology.

Speaking at the Lok Sabha during the ongoing debate on the Delhi riots, Home Minister Amit Shah said, “We are using face-recognition software to identify people behind the violence. We have also fed voter IDs, driving license data into this software. The software has identified 1100 people, 300 of these people came from UP to carry out violence.”

Amit Shah said that the facial identification technique does not discriminate between communities and religions, “We entered Voter ID data, Driving license data and other information available with the government to identify people who were involved in the riots.”

The Home Minister also added that 40 teams of Delhi Police have been formed to track these 1100 people. “The arrest will be made only in cases where is hard evidence against a person,” Amit Shah said.

Giving details of the probe into the Delhi riots, the Home Minister said that Delhi Police has recovered over 100 arms from northeast Delhi and 49 cases have been registered under Arms Act. “The spread of riots on such a big scale in such a short time is not possible without a conspiracy. We have registered a case of conspiracy to probe this angle. Three people have been arrested for financing the violence in northeast Delhi,” he said.

“From 27 February till today, around 700 FIRs have been registered,” Amit Shah informed Lok Sabha. He also said that no incident of violence has taken place since February 27 11 pm.

Responding to allegations on Delhi Police’s failure to contain riots in the national capital, Home Minister Amit Shah said that Delhi Police managed to control riots within 36 hours. “These riots were taking place in a place which has a population of 20 lakh. They did a great job in controlling the riots from spreading any further,” Home Minister Amit Shah said in Lok Sabha.

Following the anti-Hindu riots that gripped several parts of North East Delhi in the last week of February, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday spoke for the first time about the ghastly violence that killed about 50 people and left several hundred injured.

Paying homage and expressing his condolences for the victims of the Delhi riots, Home Minister Amit Shah had said that no riots took place after February 25 and that attempts were being made to politicise the riots.

Defending the Delhi Police for its actions during the anti-Hindu riots, Home Minister Amit Shah said Delhi Police are closely scrutinising about 60 social media accounts which were created on February 22 and closed down on February 26, 2020. HM Shah stated that the violence in Delhi was fanned by inflammatory posts on social media by nefarious elements, adding that a thorough investigation by Delhi Police is underway to determine the culprits behind the incident.

Home Minister Shah also contended that the riots on such a massive scale in a short span of time is impossible without the possibility of a conspiracy. He stated that a case of conspiracy has been lodged to investigate the angle and the police have made 3 arrests on the charges of financing the violence in North East Delhi.

Anti-Hindu riots: AAP MP Sanjay Singh, Congress leader Udit Raj’s name emerge as ED interrogates radical Islamist outfit PFI members

OpIndia Staff
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Anti-Hindu riots: AAP MP Sanjay Singh, Congress leader Udit Raj’s name emerge as ED interrogates radical Islamist outfit PFI members

On Thursday, Delhi Police Special Cell arrested Popular Front of India (PFI) Delhi unit President Parvez Ahmed and Secretary Illiyas, in connection with their role in orchestrating anti-India protests at Shaheen Bagh, reports ANI.

This development comes after the Enforcement Directorate had registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act against notorious radical Islamic organisation Popular Front of India (PFI) for instigating and funding anti-Hindu Delhi riots in Delhi. The two office bearers of radical Islamic organisation PFI, president Parvez and secretary Ilyas, were on Thursday arrested for questioning by the Delhi Police. The two members of the PFI were reportedly taken into custody on charges of hatching a conspiracy to incite riots in northeast Delhi.

Interestingly, the ED has also seized a tab from PFI’s Delhi unit president Parvez Ahmed which it claimed has records of a chain of conversations between him and AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh. Mohammad Parwez Ahmed was reportedly also in regular touch with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh and several Congress leaders including Udit Raj.

The investigations had revealed that the senior PFI functionaries have admitted to certain transactions linking the outfit to the funding of anti-CAA protests in the capital and some other places. The agency had also questioned several people connected with PFI at its Delhi headquarters and found evidence of collection of Rs 120 crore, at least Rs 50 crore of which came as cash donations for which the source was not disclosed. The PFI is headquartered at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi.

The ED officials said that two-thirds of all the deposits are kept in cash at PFI’s headquarters in G-78, Shaheen Bagh, Delhi. Reportedly, the local handlers connected to the radical Islamic organisation collected cash from their respective areas all across the country and travelled to Delhi to deposit it at the organisation’s headquarters.

The ED has questioned office-bearers of PFI and another outfit linked to it, Rehab Foundation of India (RFI). The ED had interrogated Parvez Ahmed, RIF trustee Shahid Abookacker, PFI Delhi secretary Abdul Muqeet, RIF general secretary Remiz Muhammed, PFI national secretary Anis Ahmed, RIF secretary Afsel Chandrankandy and PFI’s national headquarters accountant KP Jaseer.

The central probe agency has also filed a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Tahir Hussain. His alleged links with the Popular Front of India (PFI) are also being investigated. The role of Aam Aadmi Party leader Tahir Hussain in the brutal murder of Intelligence Bureau (IB) employee Ankit Sharma and also inciting riots in the Delhi has now been under scanner.

Earlier, a report of UP State Intelligence has revealed the role of Bhim Army and PFI in orchestrating simultaneous violence in Aligarh and Delhi. Several PFI members have been arrested or booked for violence during anti-CAA protests, more than a hundred such arrests have been made in Uttar Pradesh alone. A couple of arrests have been made in Assam and Tamil Nadu, while several cases against the organisation’s activists have been registered in Kerala and Rajasthan.

Congress supporters get vindictive, after Wikipedia vandalism and veiled death threats, throw ink on Scindia’s poster

OpIndia Staff
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Congress supporters get vindictive, after Wikipedia vandalism and veiled death threats, throw ink on Scindia’s poster

Ex-Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the Grand Old Party on Monday and joined the BJP on Wednesday. This has scorned Congress leaders and supporters who could not digest that a prominent leader like Scindia left Congress. Ahead of his scheduled visit to Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, ink was thrown on a poster with Scindia’s face. The poster was put up near Polytechnic Chouraha in Bhopal. A part of the poster was also torn up.

This does not come as a surprise as soon after Scindia’s resignation, Congress supporters and leaders have gone all out to abuse him. From ‘traitor’ to all sort of name-calling, Scindia has been even subjected to veiled death threats by official Congress state unit Twitter account. So much that even his Wikipedia page was vandalised as soon as he made his resignation public. His profile was edited to call him a ‘donkey’ and ‘comedian’.

Read: “Rajmata would be elated, good to be on the same team” Jyotiraditya Scindia’s aunt Vasundhara Raje welcomes him to BJP

After spending 18 years in Congress, Scindia finally quit the party on Monday evening as he said he could not see himself being able to serve the people in the party. Scindia had been hugely sidelined as despite being a popular choice as Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister face after December 2018 elections, Kamal Nath was made the CM. Moreover, he was also passed over for the state unit chief post. Ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections, he was made in-charge of Uttar Pradesh (west) for Congress where the party has negligible presence.

When Scindia vocally supported abrogation of Article 370 in erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir which made it an integral part of India, he was attacked by ‘liberals’ for daring to go against the party.

Coronavirus high alert: India on lockdown till April 15, govt suspends all tourist visas for travellers

OpIndia Staff
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Coronavirus high alert: India on lockdown till April 15, govt suspends all tourist visas for travellers

As the World Health Organisation declares ‘COVID-19’ outbreak a pandemic, the Government of India has suspended all tourist visas and e-visas granted on or before March 11. All incoming visitors including Indian nationals are advised against non-essential travel because of the Coronavirus pandemic.

“All existing visas, except diplomatic, official, UN/international organizations, employment, project visas, stand suspended till 15th April 2020,” it has said in the statement. The order comes into effect from 1200 GMT on Friday, March 13.

Visas of all foreigners already in India remain valid and they may contact the nearest FRRO/FRO through the e-FRRO module for extension/conversion etc of their visa or grant of any consular service if they choose to do so. A notification to this effect is being issued by the Bureau of Immigration (BOI).

The Visa restrictions related to COVID-19 were issued by Bol in supersession of all earlier advisories issued in this regard. The decisions were a part of the second meeting of the group of ministers (GoM) held under the chairpersonship of Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan.

The recommendations of the Committee of Secretaries chaired by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba were placed before GoM. After detailed deliberations on preventive measures, actions are taken and preparedness for Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), the Group of Ministers took more major decisions.

“Visa-free travel facility granted to Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) cardholders shall be kept in abeyance till April 15, 2020. This will come into effect from 1200 GMT on March 13, 2020, at the port of departure of any foreigner for onward journey to India. Any foreign national who intends to travel to India for compelling reasons may contact the nearest Indian Mission for a fresh visa,” an official statement said. 

India also announced that all incoming travellers, including Indian nationals, arriving from any destination and having visited China, Italy, Iran, Republic of Korea, France, Spain and Germany on or after February 15, 2020, shall be quarantined for a minimum period of 14 days with effect from March 13, 2020, at the port of departure of such traveller’s.

Read: 44 persons in Iran die of methanol consumption after rumours that alcohol can prevent Coronavirus infection

“Indian nationals are strongly advised to avoid all non-essential travel abroad. On their return, they can be subjected to quarantine for a minimum of 14 days. International traffic through land borders will be restricted to designated check posts with robust screening facilities. These will be notified separately by the Ministry of Home Affairs,” said the statement.

In the meeting, it was also decided that all States and Union Territories should be advised by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to invoke provisions of Section 2 of Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 so that all advisories being issued from time to time are enforceable.

The World Health Organisation has already declared COVID-19 as a pandemic. Soon after the apex health agency declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) after the outbreak started spreading outside Wuhan, China, the epicentre of the virus, countries were free make their own decisions if they want to close their borders, cancel flights, screen people arriving at airports or take other protective measures.

Coronavirus is a deadly respiratory disease which has killed more than 4,600 and so far more than 1,26,0000 cases are reported globally, according to the World Health Organisation. The outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was first reported from Wuhan, China, on 31 December 2019.

The transmission of the virus takes place when someone who is infected comes in contact with another person. According to medical experts, coughing, sneezing or even shaking hands with an infected person can cause exposure.

Madhya Pradesh Congress Twitter account has a prolonged meltdown after Scindia quits, gives a veiled death threat

Nirwa Mehta
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Madhya Pradesh Congress Twitter account has a prolonged meltdown after Scindia quits, gives a veiled death threat

While Congress leaders and supporters have not held back expressing their disappointment over Jyotiraditya Scindia quitting the Grand Old Party to join the BJP, Madhya Pradesh Congress state unit is still not over. Like a jilted psychotic lover, the party’s official social media account has been constantly sly-tweeting and also giving out what seems like veiled death threats.

In a now-deleted tweet, Madhya Pradesh Congress account juxtaposed images of the family from Burari which died under mysterious circumstances in July 2018 with that of Jyotiraditya Scindia joining the BJP.

In the tweet, MP Congress compared Scindia’s joining the BJP as ‘Burari-like incident’. “To obtain moksha, 11 members of family in Burari committed suicide. In hope of better future, Jyotiraditya Scindia joined the BJP. Both the unfortunate incidents will have same fate,” MP Congress said. It is imperative to mention here that Jyotiraditya Scindia’s father, Madhavrao Scindia, who was sidelined for party presidentship to let Sonia Gandhi take reins, died in 2001 in a mysterious aircraft crash.

Earlier in the day, MP Congress had listed out a number of posts the party had given to Scindia and questioned him on quitting the party and going to Modi and Shah.

One could almost imagine Bollywood rich ‘maalik’ getting angry at their ‘naukar’ and calling him ‘ehsaan faramosh’ at the end of the above rant. Congress conveniently skipped the part where Scindia was sidelined to make way for Kamal Nath as MP Chief Minister and that he was later made General Secretary in UP (West) where Congress has hardly any presence.

Upping its ante, MP Congress then resorted to melancholic poetry. Within minutes of this sad, grief-stricken poetry, Congress chose to let Scindia know that his fate might be similar to that of the Burari family. For the uninitiated, in July 2018, 11 members of the same family were found dead mysteriously. While some believe they died while carrying out a ‘ritual’ to attain ‘moksha’, some family members believe foul play.

Later, MP Congress reminded how ‘Maharaj’, as Scindia is called fondly because of his royal lineage, was living with respect in Congress but will now be a ‘chowkidar’.

Ahead of 2019 General Elections, the then Congress President Rahul Gandhi, in a volley of attack on PM Modi over the Rafale deal would chant ‘Chowkidar chor hai’ (the guard is the thief). However, unperturbed by the attack, PM Modi made it into his campaign and insisted he is a Chowkidar and thousands of people joined him in his campaign, calling themselves one too. Taking a dig at the same, MP Congress taunted Scindia that the ‘Maharaj is now a Chowkidar’.

Read: Read how this Digvijaya Singh aide is running a fake news website and Facebook pages for anti-Modi and pro-Islamist propaganda

“The one who lived with pride as a Maharaj in Congress is now happy joining the ranks of a chowkidar. While there was noise that Modi or Shah will join him when he becomes a party member but it was only Nadda and VD Sharma who welcomed you,” MP Congress tweeted. JP Nadda is BJP National President while Sharma is a BJP MP representing Khajuraho constituency.

Even later in the night, MP Congress put out an ironic tweet.

MP Congress suggested that one should be a supporter, not a ‘bhakt’ or a ‘slave’. Do note that Congress leaders have constantly maintained that only Rahul Gandhi is good enough to be the party president. This despite the fact that the party has faced humiliating defeat in 2019 general elections under him and it now struggling for relevance. The irony of Congress dishing out gyaan on ‘ghulami’ is staggering.

Read: ‘Tum log zindagi bhar maa bete ki ghulami karte rahoge,’ Twitterati reacts to Congress’ inability to see beyond the dynasty

Continuing the rant on Thursday as well, three days after Scindia very politely bid his goodbye to the party he was with for 18 years, MP Congress taunted him that neither PM Modi nor HM Amit Shah have tweeted to welcome him to the BJP.

“Modi/Shah ji, please do not be in such a hurry! It has not even been 24 hours and you people have started insulting him. Maharaj, the same Maharaj whose family history even Shivraj ji talks about,” MP Congress tweeted. It is imperative to mention that before Scindia made his resignation to Sonia Gandhi public, he had met the Prime Minister at his residence along with Home Minister Amit Shah.

Perhaps now is the good time for Congress to rise above its pettiness and move on with whatever dignity that is left.

1993 Mumbai bomb blasts: 12 blasts that had brought India’s financial capital to a standstill on March 12, 27 years ago

Jinit Jain
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1993 Mumbai bomb blasts: 12 blasts that had brought India’s financial capital to a standstill on March 12, 27 years ago

27 years ago, on March 12, 1993, a series of 12 devastating and catastrophic bomb blasts knocked the bottom out of India’s financial hub. In less than 2 hours on that fateful Friday afternoon, the ruinous bombs which exploded in rapid succession in Mumbai, then Bombay, sent the city into chaos as iconic structures were subjected to a ferocious attack.

The first bomb went off at 1:30 PM in the Bombay Stock Exchange and after that, a series of car and scooter bombs went off at regular intervals at many locations in the city over the next 2 hours. The attack at the Stock Exchange was so severe that the explosion in the parking affected at least 10 floors above it. The intensity of the explosion was so high that the sound of the blast was heard up to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus Railway station.

Shortly afterwards, another bomb went off in the front of the Mandvi branch of Corporation Bank near Masjid. A car bomb went off at the Air India building, leaving a deep crater and killing about 59 people in the attack. Shiv Sena Bhawan was also targeted by the terrorists.

Other places where the bomb blasts took place include Zaveri Bazar, Mahim Causeway, Century Bazar, Hotel Sea Rock in Bandra, Plaza Cinema, Juhu Centaur Hotel, Sahar Airport, and Airport Centaur Hotel.

The attack, which was one of the largest coordinated terror attacks on Indian soil rendered more than 300 people dead and over 1400 injured.

In all, 12 bomb blasts thundered the city of Mumbai but the then chief minister, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, brazenly lied and ‘invented’ a 13th bomb blast out of thin air to build a spurious equivalence between the sufferings endured by the Muslims and Hindus. He had stated that a 13th blast had taken place in Masjid Bunder.

Pawar had seemingly conjured up a blast to balance out the victimhood. Because all 12 blasts that actually happened had happened in Hindu-majority areas. So Pawar had added a blast out of his imagination to portray that Muslims were the victim too. He had admitted it himself and even claimed that he was praised for it.

Read: 1993 Mumbai blast accused Munaf Moosa arrested by Gujarat ATS, was living in Nairobi with a Pakistan passport

The attacks, coordinated by Dawood Ibrahim, the leader of the Mumbai-based international organised crime syndicate, D-Company, were in response to the demolition of the Babri Masjid in December 1992 when the abandoned mosque in Ayodhya built over the Ram Janmabhoomi site was brought down by Hindu groups.

Twenty four years after serial blasts battered and brushed India’s commercial capital Mumbai, snuffing out the lives of hundreds of people – a special TADA court on 16 June 2017 had convicted key mastermind of the blasts Mustafa Dossa, gangster Abu Salem and four others. One accused had been let off for lack of evidence.

According to the prosecution, members of the crime syndicate run by underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, along with his key aide Tiger Memon, Mohammed Dossa and Mustafa Dossa had plotted the dastardly attacks on Mumbai.

Mustafa Dossa, Tiger Memon and Chhota Shakeel had organised training camps in Pakistan and in India to impart and undergo weapon and arms training and handling of explosives, the prosecution said.

The conspirators held 15 meetings before the execution of the blasts, the prosecution adds.

While Memon was hanged in 2015 for his role in organising Mumbai bomb blasts, other key-conspirators such as Tiger Memon, Dawood Ibrahim, Anees Ibrahim, Chhota Shakeel and others are still on the run and continue to elude the Indian Investigative agencies. Till the time all the involved in the gruesome bomb blasts are not brought to book, the indelible scars of the attack will continue to torment the much-vaunted mystical phoenix of ‘Spirit of Mumbai’.

Coronavirus: Hollywood actor Tom Hanks, wife Rita Wilson test positive

OpIndia Staff
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Coronavirus: Hollywood actor Tom Hanks, wife Rita Wilson test positive

Hollywood actor Tom Hanks and his wife, actress Rita Wilson have tested positive for COVID-19 Coronavirus. Hanks took to Twitter to make the announcement regarding his diagnosis.

As per the statement, Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson were in Australia and felt a little unwell. “We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills which came and went. Slight fevers too,” Hanks said in a statement about their symptoms.

Read: UK Health Minister tested positive for coronavirus, had attended a reception with British PM and several ministers

The couple then got medical attention and got tests done for coronavirus which came out to be positive. Keeping in mind public health and safety, the couple will now be tested, observed and isolated for as long as required. “Take care of yourselves,” Hanks said.

The Hanks were in Australia for production of Baz Luhrmann’s untitled Elvis Presley movie where Hanks is playing Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker.

Congress MP Kapil Sibal admits in Parliament that CAA will not take away citizenship of any Indian

OpIndia Staff
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Congress MP Kapil Sibal admits in Parliament that CAA will not take away citizenship of any Indian

Congress MP Kapil Sibal admitted in the Rajya Sabha today that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act does not take away the citizenship from anyone, a reality which his party members have been refuting vehemently since the time the law has come into being.

Rajya Sabha on Thursday was witnessing a debate on Delhi violence which was triggered by anti-CAA protests. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, during his speech, said that people were misled on the Citizenship Amendment Act. While hitting out at the opposition for allegedly politicising the issue by spreading misinformation around the act which led to the riots in the national capital, Amit Shah asked if anyone in the house could point out if there was even a single provision in the CAA that took away the citizenship of Indians.

The Home Minister appealed that all political parties should say in one voice that nobody will lose citizenship due to CAA. Only after that, there will be no riots. “On what basis are we baking our political bread”, he asked. “Everyone sitting in this house is wise people, Kapil Sibal is a very senior advocate in Supreme Court, show me any provision in the CAA law due which Muslims will lose citizenship,” the home minister asked the house.

As Amit Shah had taken Sibal’s name, the Congress leader rose to intervene, and said, “nobody is saying that CAA will snatch the citizenship of any person. We are not saying that”.

After that Sibal went on to bring the issue of NPR, saying that during the enumeration for NPR, the enumerators will ask dozens of questions, and put D before names of people. This is not about Muslims, but poor will suffer, Sibal claimed.

Amit Shah then intervened to say several of Sibal’s party colleagues had made statements alleging the CAA will take away the citizenship of a particular group. He said that he can quote numerous leaders of Congress saying CAA is against minorities. Responding to Sibal’s allegations on NPR, the Home Minister also reiterated that no documents will be sought for NPR, like the last NPR during UPA govt. and people are free to not provide if they are not willing or able to provide some information. “As the Home Minister I am saying in Rajya Sabha, no name is going to be marked as D, there is no need for anyone to fear the process of NPR,” Amit Shah clarified. The home minister made it clear that nobody will be marked as D (doubtful) for leaving some columns during the NPR enumeration, as alleged by the opposition parties. To this, leader of opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad rose and asked, “I think the home minister is saying that no D will be put with anyone’s name, if I heard correctly. You are saying this? so there will be D?” Amit Shah replied in affirmative, which was acknowledged by Azad.

The home minister added that if any member of the house still has any doubt, leader of opposition Ghulam Navi Azad can bring them to him for clarifications. Shah said that senior leaders like Azad, Anand Sharma and other members can come to meet him to discuss the issue to remove all the myths about CAA and NPR, in the presence of officials.

Time has come to stop the myths about CAA and NPR, Amit Shah said.

Although CAA is meant to expedite the process of giving citizenship to persecuted minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, and it has nothing to do with Indian citizens, several opposition parties including the Congress party and left-liberal intellectuals and journalists have been spreading the falsehood that CAA will take away the citizenship of Muslims, thereby causing fear among the community and resulting in riots across the country.

This is, however, not the first time the Congress leader has stated the fact contradicting the lies spread by other leaders of the party. In January 2020 while speaking at the Kerela Literature Festival, Congress leader and lawyer Kapil Sibal categorically stated that states do not have the power to stop implementation of a law that has been passed by the Parliament. His comments directly contradicted the rigid stance that the CMs of the Congress-ruled States had assumed.

Sibal’s views were also shared by Congress old guard, Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Monday. He stated that a State cannot say no to a law passed by the Parliament from a Constitutional perspective. Hooda, however, said that the law can always be challenged in a Court of law.

It is pertinent to note here that the Congress party has been vehemently opposing the Citizenship Amendment Law, along with NRC and NPR. In fact, in its manifesto released for the Delhi elections, the party promised to not implement the National Population Register (NPR) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) in its present form. The grand old party also vowed to challenge the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in the apex court.

NPR is a part of the census and was earlier prepared in 2010-2011 along with the 2011 Census during the Congress-led UPA government. CAA aims to fast-track the citizenship of minorities from three neighbouring countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who have migrated to India illegally, owing to religious persecution. As for a nationwide NRC, no draft has been laid down by the government. The exercise to update the NRC in Assam was initiated during the Congress government in the state, while by the time it was completed BJP had come to power.

Despite hard-hitting facts, the Congress party and its leaders did not back down from rumour-mongering and casting aspersions on CAA, NRC, and NPR.

The distinct narratives peddled by these Congress loyalists often contradicted each other and thus left the people hanging in the balance to figure out the party’s official stand on its own. One thing, however, remained common in their various statements – the attempt to club NRC (National Register of Citizens) and NPR (National Population Register) with CAA.

Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault in landmark #MeToo case

OpIndia Staff
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Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault in landmark #MeToo case

In what is being considered as a big victory for the #MeToo movement, the New York court sentenced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault. The MeToo movement had started after allegations against Harvey had surfaced.

In the judgment that was announced on Wednesday morning at the Manhattan Supreme Court by Judge James Burke, the tainted filmmaker was given a minimum of five years and a maximum of 29 years in prison for raping an aspiring actress in 2013 and forcibly performing oral sex on a TV and film production assistant in 2006. A second criminal case is pending in California.

Weinstein (67) had arrived at his sentence hearing in a wheelchair and handcuffs. The former movie producer’s trial came to a close at the end of February, with a New York jury of five women and seven men finding him guilty of rape in the third degree and a criminal sexual act in the first degree. The charges were based on testimony in a New York courtroom by Miriam Haley and Jessica Mann, who both spoke at the sentencing.

From the Manhattan courtroom, Weinstein was taken to the Downstate Correctional Facility, in Fishkill, 75 miles north of New York City, to await his assignment to an upstate prison, where he will start to serve his term.

He is likely to be sent in the near future to Los Angeles, where he faces charges, including forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force and sexual battery by restraint. Those charges, based on allegations made by two women, carry a potential 28-year prison sentence.

On the eve of sentencing, more than 1000 pages of emails and documents sent by the disgraced film producer were made public in which he had begged forgiveness and support from friends including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Mike Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York, and Apple CEO Tim Cook. Weinstein told them, in November 2017, a month after The New York Times published bombshell allegations against him, that he was suicidal.

Weinstein’s own brother Bob, with whom he co-founded entertainment company Miramax, responded: “F–k u Harvey Weinstein. I pray there is a real hell. That’s where u belong. You deserve a lifetime achievement award for the sheer savagery and immorality and inhumanness, for the acts u have perpetrated,” he wrote, adding that his brother should not reply to the email.

Harvey Weinstein is a former movie producer who established the Miramax Films Corporation with his brother, Bob, in 1979. Miramax went on to produce critical and commercial hits like ‘Pulp Fiction’ and ‘Shakespeare In Love’, and the brothers found more success after launching The Weinstein Company in 2005.

Weinstein’s reputation was severely damaged after the New York Times published an article in October 2017, detailing decades of allegations of sexual harassment against Harvey Weinstein. Actresses Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd were among the women who had come forward. Among the accusations were that he forced women to massage him and watch him naked. He also promised to help advance their careers in return for sexual favours.

After this, many more women came up to share their ordeal, all of whom accused the producer of sexual harassment. More than 80 women had made allegations against Weinstein by October 31, 2017. Following these allegations, Weinstein was in October 2017, dismissed from his company and expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The allegations against him had, in fact, evoked the #MeToo social media campaign worldwide and many similar sexual abuse allegations against powerful men around the world started flowing in. This phenomenon was referred to as the “Weinstein effect“.

Weinstein was arrested in New York and charged with rape on May 25, 2018. His trial began on January 6, 2020, and he was also charged with rape in Los Angeles. On February 24, 2020, he was found guilty of two of five felonies in New York, charges which carry a sentence of up to 25 years. Today, on 11 March 2020 he was sentenced to 23 years in prison.

Tamil Nadu government refuses to adopt resolution against the Citizenship Amendment Act, opposition MLAs walk out of assembly

OpIndia Staff
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Tamil Nadu government refuses to adopt resolution against the Citizenship Amendment Act, opposition MLAs walk out of assembly

The Tamil Nadu government led by AIADMK on Wednesday clarified in the Tamil Nadu state assembly that no resolution against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be adopted because that will be amounting to cheating the public.

Revenue Minister RB Udhayakumar in a response to an issue raised by DMK leader MK Stalin said, “The Leader of Opposition MK Stalin demands to adopt a resolution against CAA. But he knows well that a resolution adopted by the State Assembly will not be binding on legislation enacted by Parliament. So, adopting such a resolution will be akin to cheating the people.”

Repeating that minorities need not have any fears over the NPR, the minister said, “All cases relating to CAA will be dealt with only by the Supreme Court. Hence, the House should ponder over how adopting a resolution against the CAA, an issue contested before the apex court will safeguard the interests of the people here.”

Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam said, “AIADMK has been safeguarding the interests of all sections of the people for over four decades. So, the AIADMK government will check any trouble for minorities including Muslims and Christians.”

Udhayakumar also clarified that the central government is yet to respond to the state government’s letter seeking clarifications regarding certain questions in NPR 2020. He also stated that only difference between the format for carrying out NPR 2010 and NPR 2020 was the additional three questions relating to the details about the native place, date of birth of parents and spouse, mother tongue, Aadhar card and Driving License number added in the format for NPR 2020.

TN Udhayakumar said, “The Opposition demands that these questions should be dropped. In the same vein, the state government has also urged the Centre to avoid these questions during NPR. But we did not ask the Centre to give up NPR itself since it was carried out already during the UPA government in 2010. The state government has, so far, has not issued any notification for NPR 2020.”

Referring to parties which had earlier supported the CAA and later changed their stand, Stalin said, “As such, the Tamil Nadu government should adopt a resolution in the State Assembly that the NPR which would pave way for the NRC in future will not be carried out in the state. It is crystal clear that NPR 2020 is being carried out only for facilitating NRC. NPR would divide people on the basis of religion and this would affect the plurality of the country. Hence the state government should adopt a resolution saying NPR in the present format will not be carried out in Tamil Nadu.”

Since the ruling party indicated that no resolution will be adopted against CAA, Stalin walked out with his party. MLAs belonging to the Congress and IUML and Thameemun Ansari, an MLA who is an ally of AIADMK followed suit.

Earlier, Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswamy had strongly defended the CAA, challenging the opposition to show any minority in India that will be affected by it.

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