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Delhi elections: Amid tight security EVMs moved to 21 counting centres ahead of results

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi elections: Amid tight security EVMs moved to 21 counting centres ahead of results

Day before the counting to the high octane Delhi assembly elections results are declared, the electronic voting machines (EVMs) were escorted to 21 designated centres amidst high security. Personnel from Delhi police and armed military commandos are part of the multilayer security.

As per reports, these centres will be guarded by at least 200 security personnel until February 11. The number will be doubled on the counting day.

On 8th February, the polling day, 42,000 Delhi Police personnel, along with 190 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) were deployed along with 19000 home guards to assist the forces and maintain law and order in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.

However, ahead of the counting, Aam Aadmi Party has already raised the ‘EVMs are tampered’ bogey. AAP MP Sanjay Singh on Saturday tweeted videos alleging EVMs were being taken for tampering.


Singh had questioned why the EVMs were being taken down from a bus when there were no centres nearby. AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal had also expressed shock at delay in releasing final turnout out voter figure.


Meanwhile, the Election Commission has clarified that the EVMs in Singh’s video were reserved and unused EVMs. Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer clarified that the returning officers were busy through the night and hence took time to release the final figure of voter turnout. He said that data entry is important for accuracy.

The counting for the Delhi elections will be held on Tuesday, 11th February, 8 AM onward.

Bihar: After shoes in Katihar, Kanhaiya Kumar’s convoy attacked with eggs and engine oil in Jamui

OpIndia Staff
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Bihar: After shoes in Katihar, Kanhaiya Kumar’s convoy attacked with eggs and engine oil in Jamui

The convoy of former Jawaharlal Nehru (JNU) Students’ Union and CPI leader Kanhaiya Kumar came under attack once again. The incident reportedly occurred in Jamui, Bihar, where people threw eggs and engine oil at Kumar’s convoy. Kumar’s convoy was attacked while it was on its way to Aadha from the guest house. This is the second incident within 7 days when Kanhaiya had been attacked.

Kanhaiya, who fought the last year’s General Lok Sabha elections and lost miserably from Bihar’s Begusarai, is on a month-long ‘Jan-Gan-Man Yatra’ against NRC and CAA, during which he is slated to cover all the major cities of Bihar and address about 50 meetings. The one-month journey began on January 30 from Bettiah, Bihar and is expected to end on February 29.

According to the police, Kanhaiya Kumar arrived in Jamui on Sunday for his ‘Jana Gana Mana Yatra’ and addressed a meeting against CAA and NRC in the district. Today when Kanhaiya Kumar’s convoy proceeded and reached Mahisauri bus stand, it was confronted by a group of people shouting slogans against Kanhaiya, throwing eggs and engine oil at his convoy.

Read: JNU Tales: How comrades went from hating Lalu Yadav to worshipping him

A clash allegedly broke out between Kanhaiya Kumar’s supporters and the locals following which the locals started hurling eggs and engine against the Kanhaiya Kumar’s convoy. Reports also claim that Kanhaiya Kumar’s supporters got embroiled in a quarrel with media personnel at the spot. The police and district administration present on the spot tried to defuse the simmering tension and escorted the convoy to safety. Though Kumar suffered no injuries in the scuffle, he accused police of negligence that allowed the situation to worsen.

Earlier last week, shoes and slippers were thrown at Kanhaiya Kumar’s convoy in Katihar while some protesters even pelted stones at his convoy when it was passing through the Supaul district.

Global terror organisations could use vehicle-borne IEDs to attack RSS leaders, offices: Intel inputs

OpIndia Staff
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Global terror organisations could use vehicle-borne IEDs to attack RSS leaders, offices: Intel inputs

An intelligence input by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) has warned leaders and the offices of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as they can be potential targets of global terror organisations, which could use IEDs or vehicle-borne improvised IEDs (VBIEDs) to carry out these attacks.

As reported by news agency ANI, the attacks can take place in Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan as unknown individuals, possibly linked to some global terror groups are planning to target RSS offices/leaders and police stations. As per reports the intelligence bureau has asked all concerned state governments to take appropriate steps to beef up the security of these establishments.

Keeping in view the threat, security has been increased in Maharashtra, Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, UP and Assam and security of office bearers are also under review.

In January this year, RSS man Varun Bopala was attacked and stabbed after a pro-CAA rally in Bengaluru, Karnataka. 6 SDPI supporters were arrested for the same. They had also planned to attack BJP MP Tejaswi Surya. Varun was attacked because the attackers could not get close to Surya due to the presence of security personnel around him.

Kolkata: Female passenger alleges verbal abuse, deliberate delay and threatening calls by Ola driver

OpIndia Staff
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Kolkata: Female passenger alleges verbal abuse, deliberate delay and threatening calls by Ola driver

On Saturday, a 46-year-old woman was allegedly harassed by her Ola cab driver in Kolkata after a verbal confrontation ensued between the two over burning an incense stick inside the car, reported The Times of India.

As per the report, the woman, a process scientist at a private firm, had boarded a shared Ola cab from BT road around 6 p.m. When she boarded the taxi, one of the co-passengers pointed out the incense stick that was burning beside the steering wheel.

Since she was allergic to the smell, the 46-year-old scientist allegedly requested the driver to extinguish it. The driver was unmoved and instead resorted to verbal abuse. The female rider then threatened to call the cops, following which he put the incense stick out.

There were a total of 3 passengers in the taxi. After the two riders got off near Brabourne Road, the Ola cab driver began his verbal tirade and drove recklessly. This rash driving reportedly resulted in an accident with a bus near Sealdah flyover.

When a traffic police officer stopped the car, the woman reportedly complained about the driver to him. Her efforts were in vain as the cop allowed the driver to go about his business. She rang up the Ola customer care service and lodged a complaint against the driver. The woman was told that the driver’s account was blocked for the day. However, the abusive driver told her that he had a booking at Maniktala.

She recounted, “As I called up the customer care operator again, the driver was asked to drop me and said that he would not receive any passenger for the day.” The woman alleged that the man began driving slowly in a completely different direction from her destination in Prince Anwar Shah road. After sitting through 3 long hours, she was finally dropped at home at around 8:55 pm.

The driver then began demanding an extra ₹100, even though she had already paid the due fare of ₹205. Shaken by the harrowing experience, the woman recalled, ” As I refused to pay him the extra money and walked away, the driver called me from different numbers, asking for the money. There were 56 missed calls.

The female scientist had reported the incident to the Kolkata Traffic Police. But, none from the law enforcement has contacted her as of yet. Ola officials have reportedly informed her that the reckless driver had been de-rostered.

NOT SATIRE: Congress to launch nationwide protests against BJP because SC upheld 2012 decision by Congress-led Uttarakhand govt

OpIndia Staff
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NOT SATIRE: Congress to launch nationwide protests against BJP because SC upheld 2012 decision by Congress-led Uttarakhand govt

A political battle has erupted over the Supreme Court’s verdict that declared that states were not legally bound to provide reservations in jobs to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The verdict also declared that individuals have no fundamental right to claim reservations in promotions.

“There is no doubt that the state government is not bound to make reservations. There is no fundamental right which inheres in an individual to claim reservation in promotions. No mandamus can be issued by the court directing the state government to provide reservations,” said a bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Hemant Gupta on Friday.

“There is no doubt the state government is not bound to make reservations. There is no fundamental right which inheres in an individual to claim reservation in promotions. No mandamus can be issued by the court directing state governments to provide reservations,” the bench said.

The Supreme Court announced the verdict in a case related to the Uttarakhand Government’s decision in 2012 to not provide reservations in promotions. It was the Congress party which was in power at the time. The Uttarakhand High Court had eventually struck down the notification.

The same was said by the Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thaawar Chand Gehlot in the Lok Sabha on Monday. “The case arose due to Uttarakhand Government’s 2012 decision to not implement reservation in promotions, in the state. In 2012 Congress was in power in Uttarakhand,” he said. Gehlot also made it clear that the Government of India was never a party to the case.


However, when the Union Minister reminded the Congress party that the Supreme Court was upholding a decision taken by their own party when in power, the elected representatives of the party staged a walkout from the Lower House of the Parliament. Even more amusingly, Kapil Sibal had appeared in Court for people seeking promotion against the decision taken by a Congress government. The Congress party is also planning to launch country-wide agitations against the BJP for a decision taken by the Congress government in Uttarakhand in 2012.


Rahul Gandhi, the former president of the Congress party, said, “BJP & RSS’s ideology is against reservations. They never want SC/STs to progress. They’re breaking the institutional structure. I want to tell SC/ST/OBC and Dalits that we’ll never let reservations come to an end no matter how much Modi Ji or Mohan Bhagwat dream of it.”

It is a perplexing series of events that have ensued and is symbolic of the desperation of the Congress party. The Congress government in Uttarakhand in 2012 decides to not provide reservations of the SC/ST communities in promotions. The Uttarakhand High Court strikes it down. Then the matter reaches the Supreme Court where Kapil Sibal, a senior leader of the Congress party, argues against a decision taken by his own party when in power. Then, the Supreme Court decides to uphold the decision taken by the Congress government. And the Congress party blames the BJP for the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the decision taken by its own government in Uttarakhand.

If all of this wasn’t enough, the Congress party plans to launch a nationwide agitation against the BJP because the Supreme Court decided to uphold the Congress government’s decision in Uttarakhand in 2012. Taking many leaps further, Rahul Gandhi, who was recently found having a profound intellectual conversation with a ten-year-old about how the country has changed since she was five years old, says that the Congress party will never let reservations come to an end despite the fact that he was commenting against a Supreme Court’s verdict that upheld a decision taken by a Congress government. If the Congress party wasn’t so hell-bent in spreading anarchy across the country, then all of this would truly have been funny.

Gargi College harassment case: Delhi Police files FIR, initiates probe, college admits lax administration

OpIndia Staff
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Gargi College harassment case: Delhi Police files FIR, initiates probe, college admits lax administration

Day after mass-molestation and sexual harassment was reported at Delhi University’s Gargi College, the college principal has reportedly accepted laxity in administration and apologised to students. The Gargi College Student Union had earlier called for an indefinite strike starting Monday after many students alleged a large scale of molestation incidents that occurred during their annual Festival, ‘Reverie’ in Delhi. The Delhi Police has registered an FIR in the matter on the basis of a complaint filed by the Principal.

Students allege that around 200-400 people entered the premises without showing any ID and indulged into mass molestation of girl students. Many students in the condition of anonymity have alleged that those men masturbated, groped and even followed some of them to the Green Park metro station.

Students also accused the acting principal, Promila Kumar for negligence as they allege that she had reportedly remarked in a personal interaction, “If you feel unsafe, don’t come to these fests.” The acting principal had also reportedly stated, “The event was open for boys studying in other DU colleges. We had police, commandos and bouncers on campus, and staff was also on duty. There was an arena in the campus meant only for girls. If they were outside that, it was their personal choice.”

On Monday, hundreds of female students staged a massive demonstration outside the college campus protesting against the inaction of the college. NSUI students today protested outside the college campus, targeting the Delhi police for inaction and lack of preparedness to the incident.

Students allege that a similar incident also occurred last year at the same fest. “But the college administration treated it as a security issue and not a sexual one. I was personally harassed the last time” said a student in anonymity.

When this issue reached the parliament, Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal in Lok Sabha said that the college administration has been asked to look into the matter.

Meanwhile, National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken cognizance and sent a team to the college to probe the incident and will record the statements of the college students. Delhi Commission For Women Chief Swati Maliwal also arrived at Gargi College to inquire about the allegations.

Wayanad, Kerala: Major sex racket busted, scores of men suspected of sexually abusing and raping teen girl

OpIndia Staff
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Wayanad, Kerala: Major sex racket busted, scores of men suspected of sexually abusing and raping teen girl

The Kerala Police has stumbled upon a major sex racket while investigating the rape case of a teen girl from Chikmagalur in Karnataka, Manorama news has reported. An interstate sex racket that facilitated the sexual exploitation of a 16-year old girl by over 100 men at four resorts in Wayanad has been busted in its wake.

The case came to light last year after the girl, aged 16, was raped at a resort in Kakkadampoyil in Wayanad. Subsequent investigations revealed that the girl had been abused by numerous men at three other resorts. Following the investigation, TL Iliyas, a human trafficker who trafficked girls from Karnataka to Kerala, was arrested by the Police who gave them the details of the sex racket.

Quite a few people have already been arrested by the Police in the matter. P Mansoor (28) of Pookkottur, Malappuram; Nisar Babu of Thurakkal, Kondotty, the resort owner Muhammed Basheer (50) of Cheekkode and a woman named Farzana (25) have been arrested for their involvement in the racket. As per the report, Farzana used to trap girls and bring them over to Kerala from Karnataka. The said girl was in class 8 when she dropped out of school after being trapped by Farzana.

Read: Walayar Rape Case: Protests erupt against Kerala government over lapses in investigation after four accused gets acquittal

A larger number of people questioned by the Police are now absconding. The involvement of political leaders and government officials in the sex racket is also suspected. Allegations are being made that efforts are underway to scuttle the probe after a key member of the Police team that busted the racket is sought to be transferred.

Son locks up father for being BJP supporter to prevent him from casting vote in Delhi elections: Report

OpIndia Staff
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Son locks up father for being BJP supporter to prevent him from casting vote in Delhi elections: Report

As per an Indian Express report, a son locked up his father inside the house for being a BJP supporter to prevent him from casting his vote in the recently concluded Delhi assembly elections.


A news snippet was shared by journalist Padmaja Joshi wherein it was claimed by Indian Express that a college going student in his 20s had locked up his father knowing that he was going to vote for the BJP.

Indian Express journalist Anya Shankar on Facebook

The same was also claimed by Indian Express journalist Anya Shankar on Facebook.

At Munirka, a 20 something guy has locked his father inside the house because he was going to vote for BJP. Father from the window : “MC, BC, aa tu Ghar wapas. Ek paisa nahi milega saale.” Guy: “Kaunsa Ambani ke ghar paida kiya hai mujhe”. ? He says he’s inspired by his friend who did the same in Palam. Some days I love my job.

The same claim was shared by Deputy Editor, Al Jazeera, Nadim Asrar on Twitter citing Shankar.


OpIndia could not independently verify the claims.

Can a 4-month old go to protests: SC fumes over infant’s death in Shaheen Bagh protests, issues notice to centre and Delhi govt

OpIndia Staff
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Can a 4-month old go to protests: SC fumes over infant’s death in Shaheen Bagh protests, issues notice to centre and Delhi govt

Taking suo motu cognisance on the death of a 4-month old infant, the Supreme Court on Monday took a tough stand on the matter saying how could a 4-year-old visit Shaheen Bagh to protest, questioning the mother’s wisdom on taking the child with her to the protest site.

A bench headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde issued notices to the centre and the Delhi government on suo-motu plea to “stop the involvement of children and infants in demonstrations”.


A lawyer representing a group of mothers from Shaheen Bagh argued in the apex court that even Greta Thunberg was a child when she became a protester and raised concerns over the children from the area being called Pakistani in their schools. The CJI asked the counsel how can a 4-month-old go to the protest site and how could the mothers justify this.

Read: Infant’s death was ‘Qurbani’ in the ‘jihad’: Shocking video emerges where anti-CAA protestor justifies using children for protests

The SC bench also expressed displeasure at two women lawyers representing the Shaheen Bagh protestors trying to make extraneous arguments on someone calling a child Pakistani in school and other arguments deviating from the issue. “In this proceedings, we are considering the death of a four-month-old child,” said CJI Bobde.

CJI Bobde further added, “We respect motherhood, social peace. Don’t make arguments to generate guilt.”

The court took the suo moto cognisance on the involvement of children in protests after a National Bravery Award winner Zen Gunratan Sadavarte wrote to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) seeking directives for stopping children from being used in protests days after reports had emerged that at least one infant had died after parents took them to Shaheen Bagh for protests and exposed them to Delhi’s bitter cold.

In one of the most heart-wrenching incidents of recent times, four-month-old infant Mohammed Jahan lost his life after suffering from severe cold and congestion during anti-CAA protests in Shaheen Bagh. However, Nazia, the mother of the four-month-old infant Mohammad Jahan, is unapologetic about her son’s death but instead has chosen to ignore his death and rejoin the ‘protests’ at the Shaheen Bagh.

4 AMU students to lose Rs 1 lakh each in surety bonds due to involvement in anti-CAA violence: Reports

OpIndia Staff
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4 AMU students to lose Rs 1 lakh each in surety bonds due to involvement in anti-CAA violence: Reports

The Aligarh District Administration is planning to seize surety bonds worth rupees 1 lac each from four students of Aligarh Muslim University. The surety bonds were signed by the students assuring peace on the campus prior to 15 December’s violence.

As per a report in Swarajya Magazine, Additional city magistrate(ACM), Ranjit Singh, said on Sunday that under section 107 of CrPC, the surety bonds were signed by four students and two former students assuring that they will maintain peace.

ACM Singh named the students as Huzaifa Amir, the former secretary of the students union, former Vice-President of students union Hamza Sufiyan, research scholar Salman Imtiaz, the former President of Students Union and Moinuddin, a student of post-graduation.

Salman Imtiaz, the research scholar confirmed that the bond was signed by him along with other students on August 1 after a ruckus was created at the Vice-Chancellor’s office over a decision of the administration to take disciplinary action against three students in separate incidents.

Despite signing the surety bonds, the four students were allegedly found involved in the violence occurred on December 15. The district administration also identified 44 persons from AMU and is serving them notices for disrupting peace in the city.

ACM Ranjeet Singh said that the university administration has been asked to provide their addresses but no response has been received despite sending a reminder to them.

As per the Swarajya report, AMU’s proctor Wasim Ali denied the allegations claiming a lack of evidence of their involvement in violence. He said, “On the basis of just names, we cannot confirm that these are the same persons identified by the administration”.

The AMU proctor said that the campus is coming back to normalcy. He said, “Classes are now being attended by students and pending exams have also been conducted by faculties”.

Recently, a former AMUSU president and student leader Faizul Hasan was booked for hate speech. Speaking to a group of people, Hasan was seen inciting Muslims for violence, claiming that ‘Muslims can destroy anything’.

The Aligarh Muslim University in Uttar Pradesh had emerged as one of the epi-centres of the anti-CAA agitations being perpetrated in the name of ‘peaceful protests’. The students and Muslim mob associated with the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) had unleashed violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. The ‘students’ of AMU had clashed with UP Police on December 15.

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