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Maharashtra will be the first Trillion Dollar state in the country if the Devendra Fadnavis govt continues the momentum

Ashutosh Muglikar
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Maharashtra will be the first Trillion Dollar state in the country if the Devendra Fadnavis govt continues the momentum

Maharashtra has always been a pioneer in leading the country when it comes to its economy. We are the highest contributors to India’s GDP (14.89%) and the recipient of highest Foreign Direct Investment across all the states. We are an industrial house with the largest container port handling 70.71 million tonnes of traffic in FY 19 traffic in FY 19 with equally great achievements when it comes to agricultural production. We are the financial capital of the country and the educational hub of the nation at some point in time. It’s a state that is deeply rooted in the culture and at the same time focused and marching into the new era.

This stunning achievement was and is led by numerous industrialists and entrepreneurs for decades. The state is the pride of the nation and constant contributor to its growth. A hitch in its development has a direct and immediate impact on the national economy. Growth was badly hit in 2011 -2014 and then came the change in power at the state level and Devendra Fadnavis took over as the Chief Minister. What were his achievements? I try to highlight.

Magnetic Maharashtra

The Chief Minister started off the Magnetic Maharashtra programme to attract new capital and industry. It was broadly based on the vision of utilising the skilled workforce that the state offered and coupled with the incentives for new investment. The idea was to develop MSME and industrial clusters and tap the unutilised potential in areas like Amravati, Akola, Chandrapur and Solapur and Sangli. The Pune, Mumbai Kolhapur belt is fairly developed with state-of-the-art industry and enterprises.

Also Read- Devendra Fadnavis government has delivered almost every promise on economy and employment made before 2014 Maharashtra elections: An analysis

The state was lagging behind due to the policy paralysis offered by the earlier government. To set things right, the Devendra Fadnavis led government introduced new policies like state tax abatement, stamp duty exemption, skill development and single window clearance. Special incentives were offered for mega and ultra mega investments. Result? Thousands of MOU’s with investment commitments running into lacs of crores were signed up. Usually, many of these MOU’s never materialise into actual investments due to various factors, however, Maharashtra has a different story to offer. It converted 63% of the MOU’s Into actual investments.

Effect of the above

  1. GSDP of the state at current prices grew at a CAGR (in Rs) of around 11.77 per cent from 2011-12 to 2017-18.
  2. At current prices, GSDP of Maharashtra was Rs 24.97 trillion (US$ 387.36 billion) in 2017-18. This was at Rs. 16.50 Trillion (US$ 272.68 Billion) when Devendra Fadnavis took over.
  3. Maharashtra state’s per capita GSDP at the current price was Rs 205,537 (US$ 3,189.09) in 2017-18. This was Rs. 142381 ( US$ 2353.40) in 2013-14.
  4. The per capita GSDP of Maharashtra grew at a CAGR of 10.46 per cent between 2011-12 and 2017-18.
  5. At current prices, NSDP of Maharashtra was Rs 21.94 trillion (US$ 340.41 billion) in 2017-18. This number stood at Rs. 14.49 Trillion (US$ 239.47 Billion)
  6. Maharashtra’s NSDP grew at a CAGR of around 11.75 per cent from 2011-12 to 2017-18.
  7. At current price, the state’s per capita NSDP was Rs 180,596 (US$ 2,802.11) in 2017-18.
  8. The per capita NSDP of Maharashtra grew at a CAGR of 10.43 per cent between 2011-12 and 2016-17
  9. Over 2017-18, the tertiary sector contributed 54.50% to the state’s GSDP at current prices and this number was 51.07% in 2011.
  10. In 2017-18 the secondary sector contributed 33.60% to the state’s GSDP at current prices and this number stood at 30.88% in 2011.
  11. The tertiary sector grew at a CAGR of 15.12% between 2011- 12 and 2017-18. Growth was driven by trade, hotels, real estate, finance, insurance, transport, communications and other services.
  12. The secondary sector grew at a CAGR of 15.50% between 2011-12 and 2017-18. The growth in the secondary sector was driven by growth in manufacturing, construction and electricity, gas & water supply industries.
  13. The primary sector expanded at a CAGR of 6.25 per cent between 2011-12 and 2017-18. Agriculture is the major contributor in the growth of the primary sector followed by forestry and fishing

The above facts can be accessed and verified from the following Source.

The state increased its installed power capacity from 34,000 MW in 2013-14 to 44,000 MW in 2019-20. The state has 2 big ports which have handled 131.29 Million Tonnes and there are 48 minor ports which have handled 20.12 Million Tonnes in 2018-19. These are some staggering numbers if examined critically and that the state effectively uses the 700 kms of Coastline very effectively is a testament to the government’s efforts to build physical infrastructure.

Apart from the above, the state saw massive investment in industrial infrastructure as well. There are 29 export SEZ. In just 2017 the state government proposed 12 Bio-Technology SEZ with an investment of 4733 crores.

A Trillion Dollar Economy

When the National GDP was showing signs of slowdown the Maharashtra state GSDP was growing at a healthy rate. With such massive investment in infrastructure, education, telecommunication, healthcare, power and heavy industry coupled with land reforms and ease of doing business initiatives, the state is set to be the first trillion-dollar state in the country 5 years before its scheduled time as per the current growth rate, which again was propelled by the Devendra Fadnavis government. A sincere and independent opinion regarding the performance of the state government on the economy front is that they have done massively well and its hoped that the same momentum is carried forward.

Fight against Islamism must become institutionalized like that against racism or sexism

Abhishek Banerjee
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Fight against Islamism must become institutionalized like that against racism or sexism

Can you spot what is wrong with this statement from the DGP of Uttar Pradesh? Oh, so the killers of Kamlesh Tiwari appear to have become “radicalized” by the words of Kamlesh Tiwari himself! In other words, UP DGP subtly (or not so subtly) putting the blame on Kamlesh Tiwari for his own murder.

Ever since Kamlesh Tiwari made those remarks, his life would always have been in danger. The first question is why there was no security provided for him. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should answer that question.

Read: UP DGP’s press conference: Confirms Gujarat ATS arrests, says suspects were radicalised and planned Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder

The second question is why Islamists think India is a soft state where they can get away with anything. Perhaps this is why:

Why were all of these four people not in jail already? What message does that send out to violent Islamists, if not that the Indian state will bend over backwards to tolerate their tantrums? Why did the UP DGP not answer these questions while doing a press conference on Kamlesh Tiwari murder?

Again, there is no sugarcoating this: I checked and found that all 4 Islamists mentioned here are either based in states currently ruled by BJP or held by BJP in recent past. So there is no passing the buck.

In any case, passing the buck to ‘secular parties’ and ‘liberals’ in general is merely an emotional crutch anyway. And I am guilty of using this crutch just as much as anyone else, maybe even more. How does it even matter who is ruling the state? This is a simple administrative issue of basic law and order : somebody makes a direct incitement of violence…that somebody should go to jail.

The UP DGP who made those foolish remarks after the murder of Kamlesh Tiwari is in august company: he is neither the first nor the highest ranking official to somehow try and take the blame away from Islamism.

UP DGP should peerhaps exaplin how is it that members of a ‘religion of peace’ get so easily radicalized as they supposedly got in Kamlesh Tiwari case? Ironically, the expression ‘religion of peace’ appears to have been first used famously by George Bush himself, while visiting a mosque less than a week after the 9/11 attacks. Here it is, straight from the White House archives.

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We Hindus of India have been facing aggression and oppression from Islamists for one thousand years. It was only after the 9/11 attacks that the world realized the seriousness of the Islamist threat. Now, 18 long years have passed since those attacks. And every kind of euphemism in order to avoid plain talk about Islamism. This year on Sep 11, the New York Times even edited out all mention of the terrorists themselves, choosing to blame the airplanes instead for “taking aim” at the World Trade Center!

They tried every kind of language trick, edited history, rewrote books. The media even whitewashed the narration of current events in real time, in a style that Orwell would have called “Reality Control.” But it’s a losing game. The reality of Islamism is for all to see. A better Facebook or Twitter algorithm to remove “Islamophobic” posts does not help one bit.

I have been saying this for a while. One has to zero in on the attitudes that underlie violence by Islamists. Hatred for “non-believers,” “idol-worshipers,” so called “apostates” and so on. This kind of hate must be stigmatized in the same way as racism, sexism and homophobia have been stigmatized in the modern world. From school textbooks to television to community awareness programs, we have to teach people that such hate isn’t acceptable. A word such as “k*f*r” should be socially “banned” just like the “N-word” in the United States.

Read: Legacy of Kamlesh Tiwari: Regardless of motivations behind his murder, those who shielded Islamism and shunned him should be ashamed

In other words, the fight against Islamism has to become more than just a law and order or national security issue. We often hear that only a very tiny fraction of people in Muslim communities have ever carried out an act of terrorism. Which of course is true. But this misses the point completely. Only a very tiny fraction of white people in the American South would have participated in an actual lynching. These people were just the tip of an iceberg of institutionalized racism.

The same goes for Islamism today. We need to set up institutionalized mechanisms to study the spread of Islamism and how to tackle it. The kind of complex that exists to tackle racism, sexism, homophobia or anti-Semitism. An effort at all levels : from establishing the study of Islamism as an academic discipline to community organizations dedicated to fighting Islamism. Like diversity goals in the context of racial or gender inclusion, we need corporate and government structures that focus on removing Islamist attitudes. One concrete way would be to order that  Muslim institutions must meet fixed quotas on representation of non-Muslims in order to be eligible to apply for state funding. And yes, these institutions must also meet certain quotas on representation of Muslim women and “lower caste” Muslims (yes, they exist and their voice is among the least heard in the country).

The long struggle of humanity against evils such as racism can give us many other ideas. For instance, in 1965, the US passed the Voting Rights Act, which gave the Federal Government special powers to act in certain high risk areas for racial injustice. We could adopt a similar model in India in the struggle against Islamism.

Or, we could take lessons from France and order the closing of places that preach hate. Here’s the French Ministry of the Interior tweeting to inform the public that 20 such places have been shut down.

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The French Government calls it the “Fight against radicalization.”

The exact details of what needs to be done in the Indian context need to be worked out. But the key is that Islamism should be seen as an issue that is bigger than law and order or national security. It is a deep rooted social problem and the onus is on the Indian state to fight this protracted battle.

Congress govt in Rajasthan stops the pension for MISA prisoners, says they were ‘rule breakers’ not freedom fighters

OpIndia Staff
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Congress govt in Rajasthan stops the pension for MISA prisoners, says they were ‘rule breakers’ not freedom fighters

Congress in Rajasthan has decided to withdraw the allowances being given to those detained under MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act) during the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi, saying that they do not consider them ‘freedom fighters’.

“The Cabinet further decided to withdraw the pension, medical facility and other allowances of the MISA, Defence of India Rule (DIR) and CrPC prisoners in the state,” said the government press release.

“Previous government had decided in favour of offering these facilities to such prisoners as per Rajasthan Loktantra Senani Samman Nidhi Niyam, 2008, which the Cabinet annulled on Monday. This decision would save about Rs. 40 crore annually,” it added. 1120 beneficiaries were getting a pension of Rs 20,000 a month, apart from some medical, transport allowances.

Addressing journalists after a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Dhariwal, the Minister for Local Self Government as well as Urban Development and Housing, said, “We don’t consider them as freedom fighters or as sentinels of democracy.” He reportedly added that they were rule breakers and hence were detained.

This is not the first state where Congress is in power that such a decision has been taken. In January, Congress in Madhya Pradesh had also suspended the MISA pension, arguing that there were many fake and ineligible beneficiaries.

However, when the decision led to an uproar in the state, the state government said the pension had not been discontinued but physical verification of beneficiaries had been ordered. The Madhya Pradesh government was forced to take back its decision and the beneficiaries in MP started receiving their pension, along with arrears since last month.

Satish Punia, Rajasthan’ BJP State President, speaking on Congress governments decision said: “There can be a no bigger example of politics of vendetta by the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government. The movement at the time of emergency was the second big movement in the country after the Independence movement, when people of all ideologies participated. The BJP government had started the pension considering the hardships faced by the families.”


Meanwhile, on the other hand, the BJP government in Maharastra had last year announced a Rs 10,000 monthly pension for those jailed during the emergency. In case one was jailed for less than a month, they would be eligible for a Rs 5,000 monthly pension.

Read: Fadnavis govt announces pension for those who fought against Indira Gandhi imposed emergency

Additionally, the wives of those jailed for more than a month would receive Rs 5,000 and in the other case, they would receive Rs 2,000. As per a PTI report, the scheme would have also extended to the widows of those jailed during the 21 month period from 1975 to 1977.

As per an Asian Age report, the pension would be granted to those arrested and jailed for more than a month during the emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi led Congress government in the 70s.

In 2017, the Devendra Fadnavis led Maharashtra government had also proposed to provide a freedom fighter status to those who were jailed during the dark Emergency period, imposed by Indira Gandhi.

All the agitators were arrested in the 1970s under the draconian Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) act while protesting against the lack of democracy.

Incidentally, the Congress party had then criticised this decision by the Maharashtra government by stating that it was an insult to freedom fighters if emergency detainees are accorded the same status and respect as them.

Hua to Hua? Manmohan Singh now says ‘what happened did happen’

Abhishek Banerjee
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Hua to Hua? Manmohan Singh now says ‘what happened did happen’

Dr Manmohan Singh is a spectacular individual, his career a sort of a parody of the lives of great people. We like to read about great people who achieved something through hard work, determination, courage and grit. Often against difficult odds. We like to talk to kids about these great lives and inspire them. Dr Manmohan Singh, on the other hand, reminds us of the ironies of life, that these qualities are not necessary for success. Sometimes, by hanging around the right people and doing whatever is convenient at the personal level, you can come out a big winner in life. Recently, Dr. Manmohan Singh had this simple comeback to Nirmala Sitharaman pointing out the financial disaster that the UPA government created in Public Sector Banks.

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“What happened did happen,” he says. Which literally means, “hua to hua” as Sam Pitroda would likely have put it. The Congress Party’s stock response to everything : scams, bad loan disaster and riots during their tenure.

Yes, Modi sarkar is now in its sixth year. And common people can, should and are demanding answers from the incumbent government on what it has done and how quickly to clean up the mess left by UPA. Whether the solutions brought by Modi sarkar were good or bad for the country. We can’t change the past. We can only work on the future.

As citizens of India, asking those questions from Prime Minister Modi and/or Nirmala Sitharaman is our right and privilege. Perhaps even our duty, but when Dr Manmohan Singh says forget what happened in his time, it sounds like he is mocking the people of India. It’s like he is telling us how little he ever cared about us. He does not even have the luxury of passing the buck to an earlier generation of Congress leaders. Whatever did happen was happening literally under his watch.

The festering bad loan crisis is a gift to India from the UPA years: even Raghuram Rajan in his rare moments of frankness, had no option but to acknowledge this cold hard fact.

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Good that Rajan was careful to mention that the blame lies with the public sector banks, not Dr Manmohan Singh who sat in the PM’s chair and certainly not the divinely appointed National Advisory Council. Now perhaps the top management of those public sector banks can blame the junior management. In turn, they can blame the managers of individual branches, then the bank tellers sitting behind the glass windows and finally the humble folk who run around bearing messages from cabin to cabin. Let it be their fault.

In response to Nirmala Sitharaman, to rub it in, Dr Manmohan Singh even adds that the new government should learn from the UPA’s mistakes!

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This is hilarious! Congress has run this country for almost 60 years. Starting in 1972, Dr. Singh has held almost every powerful position imaginable : Chief Economic Adviser, RBI Director, RBI Governor, Finance Secretary, Deputy Chair of Planning Commission, RBI Governor, Finance Minister and finally Prime Minister! During this career, India lost 20 years outright to Nehruvian socialism, collapsed in a heap in 1991, suffered record breaking scams and finally was left squirming under a mountain of bad loans! Now as he walks away, he shrugs it all off. Learn from our mistakes, he says.

Read: ‘Liberal-friendly’ leadership left behind such a nasty stink of corruption that we are cleaning up even today: Nirmala Sitharaman on Raghuram Rajan’s tirade

Didn’t I tell you it sounds like he is laughing at us? So what if India was hit by every possible kind of economic misfortune during his years in the Congress’ establishment? Look what it did for Dr. Singh’s CV. He has that CV which glows in the dark. What do you have?

If you want to understand just how non-serious Dr. Singh was yesterday, you can just look at the rest of his remarks.

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What?

I told you he is mocking us. In fact, he is just randomly saying stuff now to get a rise out of people. Like a troll.

Of course, Congress did not vote for removing Article 370.

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They even tore up copies of the resolution to show just how much they were in favor of Article 370.

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And in the Lok Sabha, the Congress questioned if Kashmir is even an internal matter of India! Remember?

Dr Manmohan Singh knows this just as well as you or I do. But he doesn’t need to be serious any more. He is just having fun. He has been a big winner in his life. He doesn’t care about ours. When it comes to the rest of us, whatever happens, will happen. Hua to hua.

Jadavpur Univesity set to lose ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag as Bengal govt refuses to commit the state’s share of funds

OpIndia Staff
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Jadavpur Univesity set to lose ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag as Bengal govt refuses to commit the state’s share of funds

The controversial Jadavpur University (JU) of Kolkata may lose the ‘Institute of Eminence’ (IoE) tag as the Government of West Bengal led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has refused to commit Rs 2,000 crore for the renowned university, reports Indian Express.

According to the reports, the state government in West Bengal has refused to provide funds to JU despite the intervention of the Governor Jagdeep Dhankharon on Friday, who had asserted that the JU is an institution of global repute and deserves the coveted tag of the IoE.

With Mamata Banerjee reluctant to commit funds, the JU’s ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag will go to the next institutes on the waitlist – Savitribai Phule Pune University, followed by Aligarh Muslim University.

Last month, the HRD Ministry had awarded Institue of Eminence status to five public-funded institutions — IIT-Madras, Banaras Hindu University, IIT-Kharagpur, Delhi University and the University of Hyderabad, which would be funded Rs 1,000 crore for expansion. However, Jadavpur University and Anna University’s IoE tag was put on hold despite the UGC’s recommendations.

The Ministry of Human Resources Development (MHRD) had written to the governments of West Bengal and Tamil Nadu to commit Rs 2,000 crore and Rs 1,750 crore respectively for JU in West Bengal and Anna University in Tamil Nadu for being conferred with the prestigious status of eminence.

The Government of Tamil Nadu has agreed informally to commit the funds, while the Trinamool Congress (TMC)-led state government in West Bengal refused to fund. The West Bengal Education Minister had criticised the centre for asking the State government to contribute a grant. He has criticised the centre for allegedly adding the rider at the last moment.

“It is informed that as per the proposal submitted by Jadavpur University, the total cost for meeting the objectives of IoE over five-year period has been estimated as Rs 3,000 crore (approx), out of which, the Central Government, under this scheme would provide grants to the extent of 50% – 75% of the total requirement or Rs 1,000 crore, whichever is less, in a span of five years and the remaining amount would be borne by the State Government and the University. This leaves a substantial portion of funding to be committed by the State Government,” read the ministry’s letter states, justifying the demand.

What is the ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag?

The Institute of Eminence scheme is aimed at developing 20 world-class institutions which would put India on the global education map. The institutions selected will be given greater autonomy and freedom to decide fees, course durations and governance structures.

Under the scheme, the public institutions will also receive a central government fund of Rs 1,000 crore, while the private institutions will not get any funding. For declaring the institutions of eminence the government considered the universities in three categories Public, private and greenfield.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has released a list of 20 institutes, 10 public and 10 private which are recommended for Institutions of Eminence.

Think before pressing NOTA to teach your party a lesson, you may end up learning a hard one yourselves

Guest Author
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Think before pressing NOTA to teach your party a lesson, you may end up learning a hard one yourselves

To NOTA, or not to NOTA, that is the proverbial billion ballots question. And the question has existed ever since the Supreme Court in September 2013 upheld the existence of this option on the EVMs. This is in itself interesting, as the option came more as a judicial pronouncement, rather than as a result of any detailed deliberation in the parliament.

But NOTA is here to stay for now, and we must work with its reality. I grappled with the question “What makes someone vote NOTA?” while discussing this issue with some of its advocates. We now know that it has no direct real-world ramifications. The hoax suggesting that if NOTA gathers a certain amount of votes in the state assembly polls, all parties have to recall their candidates and fresh elections are held, has been comprehensively debunked, most recently in this article.

E.g. Assume that there are two candidates in the state assembly election Mr. A, and Mr. B. If Mr. A gets just 1 vote, Mr. B gets 2 votes, and the NOTA option gets 100 votes, it makes no difference to the result. Mr. B still wins by virtue of getting the highest number of votes among the contesting candidates.

But does it have indirect adverse implications for the election process? It is my view that it does.

Pragmatically, the basic premise of elections is very simple. You vote for the party that you believe is relatively better, or for the cynics amongst us, relatively less bad than the others. The BJP government had a certain manifesto before the last elections. They have acted on virtually every single item promised. In some cases, there was a higher level of success than others, just like everything else in life.

Also Read- Demystifying the ‘Civil Society’: How are the ‘Urban Maoists’ and NOTA connected

Based on my interactions, albeit limited as they are, I surmise that several NOTA voters are BJP supporters who have some specific dissatisfaction. Whether it is not liking their local candidate, or not agreeing with a policy decision, or not wanting to vote for an alliance party’s (Shiv Sena, in this case) candidate.

While I do not discount their grievances one iota, one must also remember that in an Indian election we are in-effect voting for the leadership. We have all seen how good candidates underperform under bad leadership, and we have seen even ordinary candidates deliver under able leadership. Both Narendra Modi in Delhi and Devendra Fadnavis in Maharashtra have exhibited this able leadership, thus encouraging everyone to do their best. You don’t have to agree in entirety with the person you vote for, that is impossible. You must agree with them just enough to ensure that the country is taken forward in the right direction.

For example, my logic for voting for BJP in Maharashtra is straightforward,

  1. Maharashtra is a rich state with large allocations for infrastructure. I do not want it to fall into hands that may have a chequered history of delaying such projects and making them more expensive. CM Fadnavis has done a spectacular job so far, and you don’t change your pilot in the middle of a flight.
  2. I want to strengthen the hands of Narendra Modi in Delhi by bolstering/ supporting his numbers in the Rajya Sabha. Article 370 was removed in just five months of Modi 2.0 paving the way for true integration of India despite the current composition of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. I am enthused with what all PM Modi could accomplish with enhanced numbers in the Rajya Sabha, and four-and-a-half years to spare.

It is worth noting that the Narendra Modi led BJP is the only political party that has unabashedly stuck to its development agenda. It has not played to any vote-bank gallery, whether It is region, religion, caste, or language. It has thus not cultivated a “vote bank” as the opposition parties like Congress, NCP, MIM, etc. may have.

Also Read: To the angry middle class, read it before you press NOTA, or worse, choose Congress

India has been lifted from this morass of vote-bank politics only recently, and virtually singlehandedly by PM Modi who is instilling a higher loyalty among politicians and people. The fiscal-breaking, and society-dividing hand-out era is slowly and surely coming to end.  If you agree with what PM Modi is trying to achieve, or what CM Fadnavis is working tirelessly on, then don’t do yourself a disservice by voting for NOTA. It will be like cutting your nose, to spite your face.

Allow me to elaborate. The Congress vote bank, for example, will vote for Congress irrespective of the work done by its elected representatives. This is the nature of vote bank politics, because the chosen population segment is pampered and has little sarokaar with the overall development of the country. In fact, this is the exact disease that has ailed India for the decades since Independence. PM Modi encapsulated this type of politics superbly as “mera kya, mujhe kya rajneeti”.

But if the BJP alliance voters split their votes with NOTA, even if based on some genuine issue, then it will result in BJP perhaps not being able to form a strong government in Maharashtra. BJP is contesting on ~146 seats in Maharashtra (purely on its own), almost same as the majority mark in the assembly. It is unlikely that BJP will win all the seats that it contests on. Recall that in 2014 BJP contested the elections without its biggest alliance partner and got ~120 seats after contesting ~260. So, it will likely require an alliance after the polls. Now if NOTA causes a decline in the seats of the alliance, the obvious beneficiaries are parties like Congress, NCP, MIM etc. In which case there may be a very real possibility that enough space is vacated for a hotch-potch combination of parties to come to power while BJP becomes the opposition. With so much money being spent for infra projects, do we want to risk this happening?

For those NOTA advocates who believe that their vote doesn’t matter, and won’t change the outcome of polls, I would like to cite the example of Madhya Pradesh. It was a safe state for the BJP, and had seen immense development under the able leadership of then CM Shivraj Chouhan. Just last year, BJP lost the majority in that state by just 7-8 seats. In about twelve seats, NOTA votes contributed to BJP’s loss, as per this article. Of these twelve, in about eight seats the margin of defeat was 300-3000 votes only. As such, the indirect result of NOTA votes is a loss for BJP!

I am not advocating for people to vote for this party, or that. I am simply suggesting that a vote for NOTA is in effect voting against the BJP. It is nothing but actively punishing PM Modi for elevating Indian politics from its “mera kya, mujhe kya” mindset. It should not happen that in the quest to teach BJP “a lesson”, we end up learning a hard one ourselves. And if that happens, time will tell us that was a pyrrhic victory for the NOTA advocates.

Author: Anirudha Limaye

PM Modi was gracious in congratulating me, economic slowdown not India specific: Esther Duflo on India, PM Modi and the Economy

OpIndia Staff
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PM Modi was gracious in congratulating me, economic slowdown not India specific: Esther Duflo on India, PM Modi and the Economy

Nobel Prize Winner and economist Abhijit Banerjee’s wife Esther Duflo has praised PM Modi and Indians for showing more grace in congratulating the trio after they won the 2019 Nobel Prize for Economics. Esther Duflo, who belongs to France also stated how President Macron only congratulated her and did not mention the other two for winning the prestigious award.

In an interview to Times of India, Esther Duflo expressed that Indians and PM Modi have shown more class in congratulating them, especially her, after the trio of – Michael Kremer, Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo won the 2019 Nobel Prize for Economics.

Duflo further stated that PM Modi did graciously congratulate her and Michael Kremer in a tweet along with Abhijit Banerjee. She recognised the grace of PM Modi, who had congratulated not only Abhijit Banerjee but also the other two economists.

Read: Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel: Read how Nobel Prize in Economics differs from original Nobel Prizes

As Nobel Prize Committee announced the award for the trio for their work “experimental approach to alleviating global poverty”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Indian-American Abhijit Banerjee on winning the Nobel Prize for Economics, saying he has made notable contributions in the field of poverty alleviation. He had also congratulated Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer for winning the Nobel.


Speaking to Times of India on the issue of economic slowdown, Duflo said that the slowdown was not just an India-specific problem. Duflo added that the slowdown is not just in India, but it is also in China. “There are also fears of a recession in the US and Europe. If you can’t boast about the economy, you find something else – and that problem is everywhere. The thing is to acknowledge it and not do silly things,” added Duflo

Analysing the current slowdown, she said even China has revised its growth target to 7% from double-digit levels, the Premier has called it “The New Normal”, and the press is dutifully echoing it. She suggested that the governments can do two things in bad times to protect the poor, first being not slashing social programmes, and using the existing money even better.

‘Target for Jihadis’: 2 days before his murder, Kamlesh Tiwari wrote about UP IB speaking to him about threat to his life

OpIndia Staff
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‘Target for Jihadis’: 2 days before his murder, Kamlesh Tiwari wrote about UP IB speaking to him about threat to his life

On 18th October 2019, Hindu leader Kamlesh Tiwari was brutally murdered by then unidentified assailants by slitting his throat. Now, the Uttar Pradesh DGP has confirmed that Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder was prima facie due to ‘radicalisation’ and reportedly, the ones in custody have admitted that Kamlesh Tiwari was murdered because of his speech against Prophet Muhammad.

The three persons arrested so far are named Shamim Rashid Pathan, Faizan Pathan and Mohsin Sheikh, Sheikh is a Maulvi by profession.

Read: Kamlesh Tiwari murder case: Gujarat ATS nabs Shamim Pathan, Faizan Pathan and a Maulvi from Surat

Uttar Pradesh DGP has also confirmed that Maulana Anwar-ul-Haq and Mohammed Mufti Naeem Kazmi have been detained and are being questioned about their role in the murder of Kamlesh Tiwari.

The gruesome images of Kamlesh Tiwari’s lifeless body with deep gashes across his throat have haunted everyone since the day of the murder.

Read: UP DGP’s press conference: Confirms Gujarat ATS arrests, says suspects were radicalised and planned Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder

As it turns out, only two days before his murder, Kamlesh Tiwari had taken to Facebook to speak about how Uttar Pradesh Intelligence Bureau (UP IB) thought that he was a ‘target for Jihadis’.

Facebook post by Kamlesh Tiwari

In his post on 16th October, two days before he was brutally murdered, Kamlesh Tiwari had written that his party and the ground workers of his party were protesting for the past one week.

A little research shows that Kamlesh Tiwari’s party HSP was protesting against the horrific Murshidabad murders in West Bengal where an entire family was brutally murdered including their 7-year son and 8-month pregnant wife.

Kamlesh Tiwari then says that while the protests were on, he got a call from Uttar Pradesh IB to confirm when he might be travelling to Kolkata. He also wrote that IB had told him that they will need all details from him since he is ‘a target for Jihadis’.

A few days back, a Twitter handle by the name of Kamlesh Tiwari had tweeted a newspaper clipping of a 2018 news item which claimed that ATS has charge-sheeted two Gujarat based ISIS suspects wanted to kill Tiwari.

Kamlesh Tiwari had ruffled several feathers after his 2015 speech where he allegedly ‘insulted’ Prophet Muhammad.

Read: Lest we forget: When countless Muslims marched, went on a rampage and rioted demanding the head of Kamlesh Tiwari

Kamlesh Tiwari was arrested by the then Akhilesh Yadav government for his remarks against Prophet Mohammad’s sexuality in 2015. Muslim groups in Deoband,  Saharanpur and West Bengal had launched massive riots and protests demanding Tiwari’s death.

Kamlesh Tiwari had remained in jail or over a year after the National Security Act was slapped on him. In September 2016, the Allahabad HC had finally quashed the NSA  charges against him and he was released later. The arrest and subsequent charges on Kamlesh Tiwari over remarks against Prophet Muhammad had caused an outrage in the nation, especially among Hindu groups.

In Kaliachak, Malda, West Bengal, Muslims had engaged in rampant violence and riots while ‘protesting’ against Tiwari’s remarks. Over 2.5 lakh Muslims had gathered in Kaliachak and had looted shops, burnt buses and had set fire to a police station to express their anger over Tiwari’s remarks. Tiwari had stated that Prophet Mohammad was the first homosexual in the world.

Samajwadi party friendly ‘journalist’ and trolls spread fake news after CBI gives Indrani Mukerjea conditional reprieve in INX Media case

OpIndia Staff
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Samajwadi party friendly ‘journalist’ and trolls spread fake news after CBI gives Indrani Mukerjea conditional reprieve in INX Media case

On Saturday, the CBI filed a charge sheet in court in which it stated that Indrani Mukerjea, who is also an accused in the INX media case along with P Chidambaram, has “turned approver” and has been pardoned in the multi-crore scam.

Indrani Mukerjea, who is at the centre of the CBI’s case against former Union Minister P Chidambaram in the INX Media corruption case, is one among 15 named in the charge-sheet but will not be tried. In July 2019, Indrani Mukerjea had submitted a plea to turn approver in the INX Media Case, which was approved by courts.

Mukerjea had turned approver in the INX Media case against Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram. Following this, the CBI had endorsed the request stating that pieces of evidence provided by her would help the investigating agency consolidate the case.

Indrani, who is currently locked up in Mumbai’s Byculla Jail is also accused of the murder of her daughter Sheena Bora. Indrani is the co-founded the INX Media with her then-husband Peter Mukerjea, which allegedly received foreign investment clearances in return of bribes paid to the Chidambaram in 2008. The probing agency even claims that both Indrani and Peter reportedly paid bribes to Chidambaram, ensuring that there is no delay in their application.

Also Read- Shocking: Indrani Mukherjea of INX Media names P Chidambaram, claims meeting him at North Block

As news emerged that Indrani Mukerjea has turned approver against P Chidambaram and Karti Chidambaram, the Congress party and its ecosystem soon jumped into action to foul-mouth both the CBI and accused Indrani Mukerjea.

The Congress party and its media ecosystem resorted to further their false propaganda by citing an NDTV article which had a misleading headline stating Indrani Mukerjea being “pardoned” by the CBI. As NDTV put out its misleading headline, the ecosystem began to peddle that the accused Indrani is being “pardoned” in a case where she is accused of murdering her daughter.

However, in reality, Indrani Mukherjea has been pardoned for her role in connection with the INX Media case against former Union Minister P Chidambaram, in which 15 accused have been in the charge-sheet. The CBI has not pardoned Indrani Mukerjea in connection with the murder case of Sheena Bora.

Reportedly, the pardoning of Indrani Mukerjea by the CBI is nothing but a conditional pardon granted through a due process of law by a court and that had happened in July itself. However, the ecosystem began its usual propaganda by making it sound unnecessarily sinister.

Also Read: All you need to know about the INX Media scam

Samajwadi Party friendly ‘journalist’ Rohini Singh, who has a history of peddling fake news, was once again caught spreading propaganda citing NDTV article after she asked whether there was anything more sick than “pardoning” Indrani Mukerjea, who according to Singh murdered her own daughter.

‘Journalist’ Rohini Singh peddling fake news

Habitual fake news peddler, Ashok Swain, who is known for his anti-India and anti-Hindu posts, went to ask whether India was still a country after he tweeted the misleading report of NDTV.


Another journalist Latha Srinivasan asked when did CBI had the right to pardon murders despite the fact that Indrani Mukerjea has not been given a reprieve in the murder charges.


The INX Media case refers to an ongoing high-profile money-laundering investigation in which the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance was given to the media group for receiving international investment funds worth several hundred crores. It involves an allegation of irregularities in foreign exchange clearances given to INX Media group for receiving overseas investment in 2007. P. Chidambaram was the Union Finance Minister at the time.

UP DGP’s press conference: Confirms Gujarat ATS arrests, says suspects were radicalised and planned Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder

OpIndia Staff
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UP DGP’s press conference: Confirms Gujarat ATS arrests, says suspects were radicalised and planned Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder

The DGP of UP police held a press conference in Lucknow today over the murder of Kamlesh Tiwari and the subsequent probe launched by them. Tiwari was murdered by two persons at his Khurshidbag Colony house yesterday.

Gujarat ATS had arrested three persons named Faizan Pathan, Khurshid Ahmed Pathan and a Maulvi named Mohsin Sheikh in connection with the murders. Khurshid is also stated to be a computer expert.


UP DGP just now confirmed the arrests. While Maulana Mohsin works in a saree shop in Surat, Faizan and Khurshid work in a shoe factory and tailor shop respectively. Two more suspects were arrested who had been released after initial interrogation, the DGP has stated.

One of the people let go after an initial investigation was Rashid Pathan’s brother and another was Gaurav Tiwari, a Hindu Mahasabha worker. The suspects had allegedly called up Tiwari and stated that they are interested to join the organisation and work in Gujarat.

Earlier, media reports have stated that the arrested suspects have already admitted that they planned Tiwari’s murder for his 2015 remarks against Prophet Muhammad.

DGP has stated that the UP police is trying to bring the suspects to Lucknow. He added that Khurshid Pathan was the mastermind of the planning. They were supported by the Maulvi Sheikh, who had stated that the murder of Kamlesh was necessary and will be religiously sanctioned because Tiwari had made derogatory statements against Prophet Muhammad.

The DGP has also has stated that as of now, they cannot confirm the affiliation of the suspects with any terrorist organisation. He has stated that the suspects were radicalised after the 2015 controversy after Tiwari’s statements.

The FIR by UP police has named Maulana Anwar-ul-Haq and Mohammed Mufti Naeem Kazmi. They have been detained by UP police last night. They had made calls for Tiwari’s death and had placed a 51 lakh bounty on him.

Read: UP ATS confirms: Maulana Anwar-ul-Haq and Mohammed Mufti Naeem Kazmi detained and being interrogated in Kamlesh Tiwari murder

The DGP also claimed that Kamlesh Tiwari was provided with a gunman and a personal security guard. He states that there have been no lapses from the police in providing security to him.

Media reports have stated that the three suspects have been arrested at the Limbayat area in Surat. All are in the 21-30 age group. The oldest suspect has been reportedly staying in Dubai and has been back in India 6 months ago. The Conspirators have now confessed that they have planned Tiwari’s murder over his 2015 remarks calling Prophet Muhammad gay.

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