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Dear Prime Minister, we need to clean-up the academia, and we need to do it now – an open letter

Abhinav Khare
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Dear Prime Minister, we need to clean-up the academia, and we need to do it now – an open letter

Dear Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji,

Ministry of Human Resource Development is as critical as Ministry of Home Affairs, if not more.

Education is the soul of India. Allowing wrong people to give wrong education to our kids is akin to selling our country’s soul. Education shapes the world view and narrative. Education shapes generations. Indian Education System is dominated by mediocre academics who are good at Leftist politics and bad at authentic research, innovation and creativity. We need to urgently fix it. We need to increase our spending on education by many folds and bring quality talent in Indian academia.

Today we are at war, at war with misinformation and propaganda against our culture and heritage. While the taxpayers watch helplessly in shock, the educational institutions of India are burning today filled with disparate groups and innocent youth inflicted with Left ideologies. There is one common thread that joins it all, it is the domination of our education system with Leftist post-modernism.

Few radical teachers and professors are misusing our youth while romanticizing “Azadi from Hinduism & Hindustan”. There have been examples where a couple of radical professors at our premier institutes were able to issue statements opposing Citizenship Amendment Act without the consent of their student councils which leaves the students no choice but to remain silent else, they face discrimination. How did we, as a country, allow our children to be used this brazenly, Sir?

Read- The NEP provides a way for Leftists to get back at the Hindus by controlling and changing the education system

The roots of this Leftist domination over all our educational and intellectual establishments started with the systematic removal of all non-Left intellectuals from these institutions in the 1950s. The biggest example was the removal of Columbia University Economist Jagdish Bhagwati from the Delhi School of Economics. The cleanse was so intense that by the 1990s, there were no non-Left thinkers remaining in these institutions.

We should not have a knee jerk response to these protests going around our universities. Instead, we should strategize and systematically work to reform this century old education system. We know, sir, that we won’t get immediate results.

The world has now understood and recognized the role of culture being integral to our broader development goals. The UNESCO International Congress “Culture: Key to Sustainable Development” held in Hangzhou, China in May 2013 recommended that culture be included in the United National development agenda and it should focus on heritage, diversity, creativity and the transmission of knowledge. The study of religion and culture is in fact mandatory in many countries around the world. In Finland, religious education is a mandatory subject both in comprehensive schools (7–16 years) and in senior/upper secondary schools (16-18/19 years). In Germany, Catholic or Protestant religious instruction is a required subject, but students over the age of 14 can opt out, thus ensuring that the necessary value system is built in a child before they venture forth in the world. If the developed nations know to respect their religion and culture, why should we ignore our traditions?

The Big-4 ministries have always been the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Defence. Education has always been neglected and now time has come to change that. It’s time that the Ministry of HRD is added into this power club.

Mr Prime Minister, India needs to be an open market of ideas and the Left cannot be barring entries to it. This is the clarion call; we need to clean-up the academia. And we need to do it now!

Regards,
Abhinav Khare
A Concerned Indian Citizen

Originally published on My Nation

We stand by the decisions on Article 370 and CAA despite severe opposition: PM Narendra Modi

OpIndia Staff
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We stand by the decisions on Article 370 and CAA despite severe opposition: PM Narendra Modi

While speaking at Chandauli, near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the Government will not back down from its stance on the abrogation of Article 370 and the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). He said that the decision of the government will not be rolled back as they are required in the interest of the company.


He said, “For years, India had been waiting for decisions like repealing Article 370 and introduction of CAA. These decisions were necessary for the interest of the country. Despite all the pressure, we stood our ground over these decisions and will remain so.”

The prime minister also said, “we took both these decisions after severe opposition from various corners of the world. We are committed to our decisions and we will continue with them”.

PM Modi’s statement came on a day when 5000 Anti-CAA protestors from Shaheen Bagh were denied permission to meet Home Minister regarding the said issue.

PM Narendra Modi also stated, “A trust has been formed for the construction of a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya. This trust will work rapidly.” He also laid the foundation of around 50 projects worth ₹1,254 crores in Varanasi.

India’s first overnight private train, “Maha Kaal Express” connecting Varanasi, Ujjain and Omkareshwar was also flagged off by PM Modi on Sunday. A 63-feet tall statue of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya was unveiled along with a Memorial Centre. A super-specialty hospital, housing 430 beds was also inaugurated.

Ever seen the CAA had been passed by the Parliament, the country had witnessed 24/7 sit-in Islamist protest at Shaheen Bagh, Muslim mob violence and vandalism of public property. The PM’s statement came as a reassurance to his supporters that the CAA or the decision to revoke Article 370 will not be rolled back by the government despite constitent pressures from the left-liberal groups and some political parties.

Congress planning to nominate Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to the Rajya Sabha: Reports

OpIndia Staff
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Congress planning to nominate Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to the Rajya Sabha: Reports

Speculations are rife that the Congress party will nominate Priyank Gandhi Vadra, the sister of former Congress President and daughter of the interim president, to the Rajya Sabha from either Chhattisgarh or Madhya Pradesh. As per reports, the party believes that the entry of Rahul Gandhi’s sister will augment the voice of the party in the Upper House of the Parliament.

The tenures of senior leaders of the Congress party, including Ambika Soni, Ghulam Nabi Azad, and Digvijaya Singh, are set to come to an end and Congress will fill these seats from the vacancies allotted to Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, and Jharkhand. The decision of the Congress party is likely influenced by the drubbing it received in the Delhi Assembly Elections on Tuesday.

Read: “Rahul thinks he is knowledgeable, Priyanka toes Vadra line”, unhappy Congress functionaries want a non-Nehru-Gandhi as party president

The Lok Sabha currently has two members from the Nehru-Gandhi Parivar while the Rajya Sabha has none. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s formal introduction into politics came last year ahead of the General Elections when she was made the Congress-in-Charge of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. The party had not benefitted from her entry and it was reduced to a single seat in UP after Rahul Gandhi forfeited the family bastion of Amethi to Smriti Irani.

If the journalist closest to the Nehru-Gandhi Parivar, Pallavi Ghosh, is to be believed, there are leaders within the party who consider Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s nomination to the Rajya Sabha to be a ‘double-edged sword’. She reported, “While it may be a good strategy to have Rahul Gandhi lead the charge against ruling BJP in the Lok Sabha and Priyanka in the Rajya Sabha, it would leave the Congress open to shriller accusations of dynasty politics.”

Accusations of dynasty politics thrown at Congress hurt the party because it is true. With Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s entry to the Rajya Sabha, there will be three members from the Parivar in the Parliament of the country. Furthermore, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s daughter does not have any significant achievement in politics thus far and her biggest asset continues to be her family name.

Pak-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad calls for ‘revenge’ ahead of US President Trump’s visit to India

OpIndia Staff
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Pak-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad calls for ‘revenge’ ahead of US President Trump’s visit to India

Ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to India, Pakistan-sponsored Islamic terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) has released a video calling for a “revenge”, which said, “the killers would not be forgiven”.

Reportedly, the video threatens the Indian government and calls for revenge for ‘harassing Muslims and destroying their settlements’. In the video, a person citing Quran Sharif was heard saying, “We have heard a lot of lullabies on peace… now every excuse has gone… it’s time to see things ‘unrestrained’.”

It is believed that the video and its contents are Pakistan’s attempt to show during Trump’s tour that Kashmiris are angry after the removal of Section 370 and they are carrying out terrorist attacks. This comes days after intelligence reports had revealed that Pakistan-sponsored Islamic terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) has created a new group of highly-trained terrorists called ‘Ghaznavi Force’ to carry out Pulwama-style terror attacks in India.

According to the inputs gathered by the Indian intelligence agencies, Pakistan’s notorious spy agency – the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) joining hands with terror group JeM has made an elaborate plan to carry out more deadly terror attacks in India.

Reportedly, “Ghaznavi Force” comprises fighters from other banned terror outfits like LeT, Hizbul Mujahideen, AuGH and Al Badr. The terrorists belonging to this group might attempt to target security forces, their convoys, vital installations and border outposts by planting IEDs, the agencies have warned.

United States President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump are scheduled to visit India on February 24-25.

Meanwhile, security agencies have received an input pertaining to the video that a meeting of terrorist groups was held in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir earlier this month and officials of ISI and Pakistan Army were also present in that meeting. It was in the meeting the Pakistani establishment seems to have decided to activate Hizbul Mujahideen.

According to reports, it was also discussed that terrorists operating in Kashmir should be given “more responsibility” instead of Pakistani terrorists. An order has been issued that Hibzul should take all “responsibilities of terror acts from Lashkar-e-Taiba and JeM.

Many attacks are being planned on the police, security forces and common people in urban areas to create fear among Kashmiris. Besides, attempts are also being made to carry out major suicide attacks on the convoys and camps of the security forces.

Watch: Akhilesh Yadav lashes out at a police officer after a man reached near the stage and started chanting “Jai Shree Ram”

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: Akhilesh Yadav lashes out at a police officer after a man reached near the stage and started chanting “Jai Shree Ram”

On Saturday, Samajwadi Party leader and former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav, lashed out at a police officer after a man reached near the stage and chanted “Jai Shree Ram.” The incident happened when Yadav was addressing a gathering at Kannauj.


The man who reached the stage has been identified as one Ashok Shukla. Akhilesh Yadav was speaking over the issue of unemployment when Shukla interrupted him. He then reached for the stage but was soon overpowered by the security forces.

During the speech when Akhilesh Yadav was attacking the government for inflation, the man interrupted him and asked what he plans to do about if he comes to power. As his question was not audible to Yadav, he asked the man to come closer. When he repeated the question from near the stage, instead of answering Akhilesh Yadav instead asked him if he belongs to a political party. In response to this, the man chanted “Jai Shree Ram”, angering the SP leader.

The former UP CM then slammed a police officer present there for allowing the man to reach the stage. He asked, ‘how can he come here? You are providing security, how can he reach here? What were you doing? Now he can’t leave from here, I want that you bring him to me along with all the details like his name, father’s name, village etc’. He also asked the police to check the belongings of the man thoroughly.

After that, the former Chief Minister claimed that Shukla belonged to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and that he could have killed Yadav. He said that a BJP leader had threated him two days ago and now this man tried to breach the security, and he could have taken his life. He asked the police officers what actions will be taken against the man and under which sections he will be booked.

This is not the first time when Akhilesh Yadav intimidated a public officer on duty. Last month, he called the Emergency Medical Officer at a hospital in Chhibramau town of Kannuaj, a ‘Chhota aadmi,’ and told him to get out of the hospital ward.

PM Modi flags off Kashi Mahakal Express connecting three Jyotirlings in Varanasi

OpIndia Staff
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PM Modi flags off Kashi Mahakal Express connecting three Jyotirlings in Varanasi

The Kashi Mahakal Express was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today. It is the third private train that is launched by the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) after the successful run of the two Tejas Express trains between New Delhi-Lucknow and Mumbai-Ahmedabad.

The Kashi Mahakal Express train will run between Indore and Varanasi and connect the three Jyotirling pilgrimage centers of Omkareshwar (near Indore in Madhya Pradesh), Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh) and Kashi Vishwanath (Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh).

Source: Piyush Goyal/Twitter

The train will have two routes. The service through the Sultanpur-Lucknow route will be bi-weekly and though Prayagraj, it will be a weekly train. The train via the first route will make a stop at Bina, Jhansi, Kanpur, Ujjain, Sant Hirdaram Nagar, Lucknow and Sultanpur stations, both to and fro. The train via Prayagraj will have stoppages at Ujjain, Jhansi, Kanpur Sant Hirdaram Nagar, Bina and Allahabad stations, both to and fro. The Kashi Mahakal Express, like the Tejas trains, will have a dynamic fare structure.

The train will make its regular run from the 20th of February after its inaugural run on the 16th. People can book their tickets on the train from authorized travel agents and from the website and app of the IRCTC. They can also get their tickets from the online travel partners of IRCTC. The train will have an advance reservation period of 120 days.

Despite denial of permission, Shaheen Bagh protestors begin march towards Home Minister’s residence

OpIndia Staff
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Despite denial of permission, Shaheen Bagh protestors begin march towards Home Minister’s residence

The women of Shaheen Bagh have begun their march towards Amit Shah’s residence in Delhi on Sunday despite receiving no permission from the Delhi Police. In light of the march, the Home Minister’s residence has been barricaded from all sides. The protesters against the Citizenship Amendment Act had applied for permission on Saturday afternoon which was rejected. Security has been heightened in view of the march.


Deputy Commissioner of Police of South East Delhi, R.P. Meena, said, “They told us that they wanted to take out a march but we told them they cannot as they do not have appointment call from Union Home Minister. We are talking to them and we hope that they will understand.”


On Thursday, the Home Minister had said at the Times Now Summit that he was willing to meet those protesting against the CAA and the NRC. He had said that they only need to book an appointment with his office and that he will meet them within three days. However, the protesters of Shaheen Bagh insist that instead of a delegation, everyone will go to meet Amit Shah. Some have even insisted that either the Prime Minister or the Home Minister visit Shaheen Bagh personally to meet the protesters.

“Amit Shah had said if anyone has any problem with the CAA, then he/she can meet him and discuss the problem. Shaheen Bagh has a problem with CAA and that’s why tomorrow everyone in Shaheen Bagh will march to Amit Shah’s residence,” one protester said. The protesters insist that they will not be sending a delegation to meet Amit Shah but rather “every person will be part of the delegation”.

Shaheen Bagh is the same place where slogans of ‘Jinnah Wali Azadi‘ were raised by the anti-CAA protesters. The protest was masterminded by Sharjeel Imam, a fan of Muhammad Ali Jinnah who had urged Muslims to cut off North East India from the rest of the country. He is currently locked up in prison. A baby had also died at Shaheen Bagh after being exposed regularly to the harsh Winter weather of Delhi by the parents who consider it to be a sacrifice for the protest.

Actor Sushant Singh continues his delusional tirade, claims CAA will be withdrawn even after refugees have already been granted Indian citizenship under amended Act

OpIndia Staff
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Actor Sushant Singh continues his delusional tirade, claims CAA will be withdrawn even after refugees have already been granted Indian citizenship under amended Act

Actor Sushant Singh, has now asserted that the government will revoke the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Singh, who has been vociferously opposing the Citizenship law, had earlier claimed of losing his job for speaking the ‘truth’ against CAA. The ex-host of the crime-based show, Savdhaan India, once again went on a delusional rant against the law at a protest rally at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan on Saturday.

Probably ignorant of the fact that thousands of people are already being granted Indian citizenship under the newly amended Act, Singh asserted that the Centre will have to withdraw the controversial law. Addressing a rally, Sushant Singh said, “I am here to show solidarity with all of you. We will fight and the government will revoke CAA. I salute your resistance and courage.”

“I am happy that Home Minister has said anyone can seek an appointment to meet and discuss CAA with him. I got to know that a Shaheen Bagh protesters are planning to meet him tomorrow,” Mr Singh told reporters. Sushant Singh has also requested the Maharashtra government to not allow National Population Register (NPR) exercise in the state as “it is the first step of NRC”.

All of this when as many as 2,830 people from Pakistan, 912 from Afghanistan and 172 from Bangladesh have been given Indian citizenship in the past six years and hundreds of them were Muslims. In fact, days after enactment of newly amended Citizenship Act, eight Pakistani refugees, who were living in Kota, Rajasthan since 2000, had been given Indian citizenship on December 30.

Read: Low IQ Bollywood entertainers in their mad rush to appear ‘concerned secular citizens’ end up spreading falsehood, endorsing Pakistan

Though CM Ashok Gehlot had refused to implement CAA and NRC in Rajasthan it is being believed that there is immense pressure being put on the Congress government by the Hindu migrants in the state to consider the implementation of the Act.

Despite all such information being readily available on public platforms, the ultra-left wing intelligentsia of our country has consistently been displaying ignorance and spreading falsehood against the new Citizenship law.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill became an act after it was passed by the Indian Parliament and assented by the President in December last year.

The new Act seeks to grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees who came from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan on or before December 31, 2014. It applies to those who were forced to seek shelter in India due to persecution on the ground of religion. It aims to protect such people from proceedings of illegal migration. The cut-off date for citizenship is December 31, 2014, which means the applicant should have entered India on or before that date.

Moreover, those persecuted minorities from these 3 countries who come to India after 2014 using legal means will be granted citizenship after staying in India for 5 years, instead of normal requirement of 11 years.

Not over till the fat lady sings: Arvind Kejriwal sings yet again at his swearing in ceremony

OpIndia Staff
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Not over till the fat lady sings: Arvind Kejriwal sings yet again at his swearing in ceremony

Newly sworn in Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has done it yet again. AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal enthralled his supporters at the Ram Lila ground in the national capital today as he sang during his swearing in ceremony.


This is not the first time Kejriwal has sung at his own swearing in ceremony. In 2015 when he swore in as Delhi’s CM, he had broken into a surprise rendition of ‘insan ka insan se ho bhaichara’ to a stunned audience.

He was spotted singing this song outside Delhi LG’s house in May 2018. Kejriwal was protesting outside Delhi LG’s house over allegations that the LG was ‘stalling’ Delhi government projects under ‘pressure from BJP’.

So much is his penchant for singing that his daughter even confessed that her father would make everyone in family wake up at 6 am and make them sing ‘insan ka insan se ho bhaichara’.

‘Snatch away your rights’: Actor Naseeruddin Shah instigates Muslim women protesting against CAA at Bilalbagh in Bengaluru

OpIndia Staff
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‘Snatch away your rights’: Actor Naseeruddin Shah instigates Muslim women protesting against CAA at Bilalbagh in Bengaluru

The hate for Modi amongst the ultra-left wing intelligentsia of the country is compelling them to uselessly speak against the Citizenship Amendment Law without actually understanding the nitty-gritty of the Law. One such esteemed member of the ‘anti-Modi’ brigade is Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah who on late Friday evening made a surprise visit to Bilal Bagh, Bengaluru’s Shaheen Bagh, where Muslim women are on an indefinite dharna against Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.

Necessitated by his left-liberal tendencies, Shah addressed the Muslim woman protestors who thronged the shamiyana at the protest venue. He instigated thousands of Muslim women present there asking them to snatch away their rights.

Reading out a few lines from a verse written by poet Safdar Hashmi, Shah said that the women-led protests have given him the courage to speak up. “Everywhere in the country, women are protesting. These brave women are being asked by some elements: How can they come out on the streets? Who has given them permission and whether men have sent them to protest? To them, I have only one thing to say: These brave women are awakened now and don’t need anyone’s permission to protest,” he said.

Taking an indirect dig at Modi led BJP government Shah said: “When students in Jamia Millia Islamia are attacked, when a nine-year-old girl in Bidar is traumatised and is forced to live alone because her mother is taken into custody on no grounds and when in Delhi’s Gargi College, miscreants enter the premises and misbehave with our daughters, people who have spoken about ‘beti-padao beti-bachao’ seem to have still not found a voice to speak out,” Shah said, adding the incidents left his blood boiling.


“But women like you in Shaheen Bagh and Bilal Bagh help find courage and peace of mind,” he said.

Notably, actor Naseeruddin Shah, who has never shied away from exhibiting his left-liberal tendencies, had recently joined hands with 300 artists, including filmmakers such as Ratna Pathak Shah, Jaaved Jafferi, Nandita Das, Mira Nair, among others to sign an open letter standing in solidarity with the students who have been protesting incessantly against the CAA and National Register of Citizens (NRC). These leftists had in their open letter called CAA a “threat” to the soul of India.

In response Union Minister Ramdas Athawale asked filmmaker Naseeruddin Shah to “study” the Citizenship Amendment Act and understand that it doesn’t harm the interests of Indian Muslims.

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, divisive caste activist MLA from Gujarat, Jignesh Mevani, had also addressed the people gathered at the Billa Bagh protest site assuring the protesters that he would take their message of peace and resistance to Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh and everywhere else where similar protests are underway.

“Mothers, the light and brightness of your faces….if Modi sees you all just once, he will resign. Although this protest belongs to all of us, it especially belongs to all you revolutionary sisters and mothers. That’s why I haven’t come here today to give a long lecture, I have come to just witness your illumined faces,” he said.

Also joining in with the protest was Ramachandra Guha and trans-right activist, Akkai Padmashali.

The protest at Bengaluru’s Bilal Bagh which has drawn inspiration from Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh, stepped into its 9th day of protest today. On Tannery Road where Bilal Bagh has been set up, Muslim women have blocked off the road by setting up a tent in which slogans against CAA and NRC are being shouted and songs are being sung.

The recent anti-CAA protests being perpetrated in different parts of the country have brought out into the open the ugly hatred that has been festering in the hearts of these leftist-liberals.

Recently, propagandist filmmaker Anurag Kashyap was also seen at Jamia and Shaheen Bagh expressing solidarity with the Islamist protestors present there, agitating against the Citizenship Amendment Law since over last two months.

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