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‘Ab Hind Banega Pakistan’: Event attended by Pakistani senator calls for Jihad against India, uses children to spread anti-Hindu bigotry

K Bhattacharjee
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‘Ab Hind Banega Pakistan’: Event attended by Pakistani senator calls for Jihad against India, uses children to spread anti-Hindu bigotry

The Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT), which claims to be the largest student network in Pakistan, organized the ‘Azadi-e-Kashmir Convention’ in Karachi on Saturday, the 12th of October. The theme of the event, as per its Facebook page, was “Ub Hind Banega Pakistan”. The organizers wanted to “build a pressure in India to show our Strength because we all are one.” Essentially, it was an event by Pakistan promoting Jihad against India.

While its Facebook page was evidence enough for the kind of morbid hatred against India that the event would cater to, the organizers appear to have outdone themselves with a promotional video that engaged school-going children in their grotesque charade.


In the video, there’s a kid who says, “Kitna mazaa aayega jab hum Delhi gate pe gaay ke kebab khaayengey (How amazing it will be when we will eat beef kebab at Delhi gate!)”. RSS features in the video as well, one kid says, “Sun lo RSS ke dehshatgardo, ab har Musalman ke shahadat ka badla lengey kyunki ab Hind banega Pakistan! (Listen, you RSS terrorists, we will now take revenge for the martyrdom of every Muslim because now India will become Pakistan!)”.

Disregarding the fact that such delusional words were being uttered by little kids who in all probability still wet their beds and aren’t brave enough go to the toilet alone at night, it is borderline child abuse to expose little kids to such hatred. The video indoctrinates children into a cult of hatred and the fact that this is considered acceptable in Pakistan shows the extent of anti-Hindu bigotry that is rampant in the country.

The video reminds one of another 16-year-old who made a speech recently at the UN summit. Her words could very well have been said by the kids in the video: ‘This is all wrong. I shouldn’t be up here. I should be back in school. Yet you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you!’

Quite disturbingly, the event was organized by a Pakistan students network. Even more disturbingly, a Pakistani senator, Siraj Ul Haq, made a speech at the event. It was attended by quite a large crowd as well. Siraj Ul Haq is the leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami in Pakistani, a far-right Islamist ‘political party’ in a theocratic Islamist state.


The President of Islami Jamiat-E-Talaba Karachi, Hafiz Umar Ahmed Khan, in his invitation to the students to attend the Kashmiri Convention, sounded like a petulant child whose favourite toy had been snatched away from him. He mouthed off all the familiar inanities, that Muslims are being oppressed all over India and that Muslims have ruled over the Indian subcontinent for a thousand years, something which definitely didn’t happen.

Hafiz Umar claimed that a debt was owed to India for all the ‘atrocities’ that the Indian regime has committed against Muslims. The debt must be repaid, he says, but forgets that he is not a Lannister. He invited his peers to join the convention while a song played in the background that had the lyrics, “Jasbaa na Jihad ka ho dil me toh khaak mazaa phir jeene me? (Unless you have the fire of jihad burning in your heart, is your life even worth living?)”

As it turns out, the song from Pakistan that calls for waging Jihad against India is the theme song for the Kashmir Convention. The song begins with a voice that says, “Kashmir toh hai hi hamara, Ab Hind banega Pakistan.” ‘Naara-e-Takbeer’ features in the lyrics as well. It’s hard to argue against Islamic fundamentalists who claim music is Haram when these are the songs that Pakistanis end up making.

The funniest image that came out of the convention shows the map of Akhand Bharat but with the colours of the Pakistani flag on it. For a country that has lost every war it has fought against India and was split into two by India in 1971, Pakistanis do appear to harbour great fantasies.


At its most fundamental level, the Kashmir Convention at Karachi was an exercise in mass delusion. None of the organizers really believe ‘Hind’ will ever become ‘Pakistan’ but it’s important for them to convince the Pakistani population that they do really believe it and are working towards it because the morbid hatred against India and delusions of ‘Ghazwa-e-Hind’ is the only thing that’s keeping the country together. The call for Jihad by Pakistan against India was a marker of their frustration.

Pakistan is going through a very difficult phase right now and it must be really difficult to be a Pakistani. Shunned by the Ummah, forced to sell themselves to a country that has imprisoned over a million Muslims in concentration camps, complete lack of support at the international arena while India has started pulling its weight, dwindling economy, the Kashmir they fantasized about for so long is gone and no one takes Pakistanis seriously on the matter and India has been allowed to walk without suffering any adverse consequences at all.

To add to that, resentment is slowly building against the Pakistan regime. It is likely that Pakistan will be put on the FATF Blacklist. Balochistan is on the boil, as usual. India is constantly threatening them with war and there’s a serious chance that they might end up losing the part of Jammu & Kashmir they currently hold. If current trends hold, there’s a serious threat of Pakistan descending into anarchy.

Read: Pakistan plundering Balochistan, we appeal PM Modi to support freedom struggle: Dr Allah Nazar Baloch of BLF speaks exclusively to OpIndia

Therefore, how does a failing regime like Pakistan keep it all together? By drumming up hatred against India and raising the call for Jihad for Kashmir. Anti-India hatred and Jihad is the opium of the Pakistani masses and it is what the rulers use to keep them distracted from the failures of the regime. But there are long term costs that have to be paid for feeding the population such delusions.

Entire generations cannot be brainwashed into believing ‘Ab Hind Banega Pakistan’ without them being pushed over the edge when they realize it’s obviously not happening. They will eventually turn against the regime or be manipulated into becoming terrorists by Pakistan to wage Jihad against India. Eternal conflict is the price that must be paid for brainwashing little children with such hateful propaganda.

We enjoy freedom living in India, says Tibetan spiritual guru Dalai Lama

OpIndia Staff
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We enjoy freedom living in India, says Tibetan spiritual guru Dalai Lama

Dalai Lama, the Tibetan leader in exile, yesterday said that the Tibetan refugees in India enjoy the freedom of India.


“Living in India, we already enjoy freedom. For over 60 years. One way I am refugee. But in another way I enjoy India’s freedom,” he said.

Speaking on Tibet’s freedom, Dalai Lama said that while they appealed to the UN regarding Tibet’s freedom, former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had said that the UN could not do much and they should appeal to China for the same. Taking a dig at China, he said that he has retired since 2001 and Tibet can now teach China a thing or two on how to practice democracy.

Read: Dalai Lama admits of knowing about sex abuse by Buddhist teachers since the 1990s

Tibet territory is currently administered by China which Tibetans consider illegal military occupation. The Tibet’s government in exile is currently headquartered in Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh, India and claims to represent the entire Tibetan Autonomous Region and Qinghai province. The Dalai Lama is the spiritual guru of the Tibetans and currently lives as a refugee in India.

Arvind Kejriwal makes false claims about Dalits, gets support from Pakistan to show India in bad light

OpIndia Staff
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Arvind Kejriwal makes false claims about Dalits, gets support from Pakistan to show India in bad light

As assembly elections are approaching in Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, who is now a full-time campaigner, on Sunday made questionable claims about Dalits, which was soon picked up by Pakistan establishment to further their anti-India propaganda.

The half-truths and propaganda peddled by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal got resounding support from a Pakistani minister, who used it to further to spew venom against India and to divide societies by inciting Dalits.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal speaking at a Valmiki Jayanti event in Sultanpuri on Saturday claimed that he dreamt of Dalit community students studying and becoming doctors and engineers one day. Appeasing the Dalit community ahead of the Delhi assembly elections, Kejriwal added that his dream was same as Baba Saheb Ambedkar, who had said that key to strengthening the Dalit community is education.

Read: Days after saying AAP was formed to fight casteism, Kejriwal plays the caste card, again

“In the past 70 years, these political parties have strategised to continuously weaken the Dalit community. They dream of making Dalit children cleaners and helpers and I dream of making them doctors and engineers,” he claimed.

In a hurry to further his appeasement politics, Kejriwal resorted to making questionable claims as he said that he wished to see students from the Dalit community become doctors and engineers in the future. In saying so, Kejriwal implicitly hinted that no students from these communities had never achieved anything to become doctors and engineers in the past.

Arvind Kejriwal’s statement insinuated that Dalits and backward classes are getting no education in the country as a matter of policy and that there are no doctors and engineers who belong to the Dalit community. This statement, of course, has no basis in fact.

Kejriwal deliberately ignores the fact there are already several doctors belonging to Dalit community in the country. In fact, Kejriwal chooses to ignore the achievement of India’s President Ramnath Kovind, who belongs to a Dalit community.

Read: AAP and their lowly caste games: Atishi, who had earlier changed her surname to ‘Singh’ is back to being ‘Marlena’

Sensing a chance to further their lies and propaganda, the Pakistan Science and Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhary, who is otherwise known to be one of the most deranged men stepped into the scene to spread his anti-India hatred by referring to the claims made by Kejriwal. Chaudhary claimed that even after seven decades of India achieving independence, Delhi CM can still only dream about Dalit upliftment. He added that one can only imagine the ‘social degradation of the country called India’.


Interestingly, in 2016, an official Senate Committee Report from Pakistan underlined this very aspect to attack India. One of the points mentioned was that Pakistan should manipulate the ‘Dalit faultline’ of India to break the country up. Elements like Arvind Kejriwal, in their petty politics, have often unwittingly become a part of Pakistan’s fifth column warfare to undermind India.

Read: The full analysis of the Pakistan senate committee report that underlined how they wish to break India. 

Shockingly, the rhetorics of Arvind Kejriwal has yet again aided Pakistan to spread their usual lies against India. Arvind Kejriwal who had once come to the rescue of Pakistan by asking proof for surgical strikes has yet again knowingly or unknowingly become a part of anti-Hindu politics sponsored by Pakistan, which often instigates Dalits against the upper-caste communities.

In fact, it is ironical to see Pakistan lecturing India on human rights and caste issues as terror-state of Pakistan, perhaps the only country in the world, has killed its own citizens for demanding their basic human rights. The Pakistani state which has killed ethnic minorities such Sindhis, Pashtuns, Bengalis and Balochs, including some of the Muslim minorites such as Ahmediyas and Shias, has no moral right to meddle into the internal issues of India.

No lessons learnt: Rahul Gandhi attacks Rafale deal and Chandrayaan mission in Maharashtra, admits no work done in 70 years

OpIndia Staff
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No lessons learnt: Rahul Gandhi attacks Rafale deal and Chandrayaan mission in Maharashtra, admits no work done in 70 years

After a long break of about five months, post the Lok Sabha debacle, former Congress President Rahul Gandhi returned to the campaign trail on Sunday ahead of Maharashtra state assembly elections. Despite the humiliating defeat his party faced, Rahul Gandhi seems to have not learnt any lessons as he once again resorted to making false claims to target the Modi government.

On Sunday, Rahul Gandhi addressed three rallies in Maharashtra ahead of the state assembly elections, scheduled to be held on October 21. Gandhi resorted to his usual tactics of attacking the Modi government with half-truths as he brought up various issues such as Rafale deal, Chandrayaan-2, abrogation of Article 370.

Flogging the dead horse, former Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Sunday raked up the Rafale issue at a rally in Mumbai’s Chandivali ahead of the assembly election. At the rally, Rahul Gandhi termed the Rafale deal as the “biggest scam” in the country and claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi had interfered in the deal.

Read: Here is a compilation of the lies spread by Rahul Gandhi about the Rafale Deal in the run-up to 2019 Lok Sabha Elections

Rahul Gandhi went on to make similar claims of Ministry of Defence knowing about PM Modi’s interference in the Rafale deal. “The whole country knows there was theft in Rafale deal, people from the defence ministry wrote clearly that PM Modi is interfering in the deal that is why there is guilt. The name ‘Rafale’ hurts, that is why Rajnath Singh ji went to France to collect Rafale,” Rahul Gandhi said.


In the run-up to 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi and his media cronies had made several claims in connection with the Rafale deal to attack against the Modi government. However, the Congress party and its ecosystem had failed to convince the voters that there are was any irregularities in the Rafale deal. It is rather interesting to see why the former Congress President is emphasising on issues which have not only seen a logical end but also has caused severe damage to his own party’s electoral politics rather than to the BJP.

Read: As Rahul Gandhi continues Rafale lies, his own link with an arms dealer could spoil his pitch (Exclusive) 

Rahul Gandhi, however, did not stop at Rafale deal but targetted the Modi government for its foreign policy, national security issues. Gandhi said that the party is using moon mission, Article 370 and other issues to distract people from the real issues of the country.

In a bizarre attack against ISRO’s recent lunar mission, Chandrayaan-2, the Congress leader said when the youth ask for jobs, the government tells them to watch the moon. Taking a dig at the government, Rahul Gandhi went to claim that ‘rockets’ will not help in filling up stomachs of hungry people.

“Instead of concentrating or debating on these burning issues, the government is busy showing people how the Indian Chandrayaan rocket was sent to the moon, Article 370 in Jammu & Kashmir, Pakistan, China, Japan, Korea, et al… But, remember, rockets will not help fill up the stomachs of the hungry millions,” Gandhi said.

In a hurry to attack the Narendra Modi government, the Wayanad MP committed yet another gaffe after he admitted that no work was done in this country in the last 70 years. “We saw what happened in the last 70 years. They destroyed the entire system,” said Gandhi in an attack against his own party.


In his earlier speech in Latur, Maharashtra, Rahul Gandhi claimed that the government has cleared off bad loans of around 15 top industrialists to the tune of Rs 5.50 lakh-crore in past few years. Continuing his tirade against the government, he said the centre has also given a “Diwali gift” of tax benefits to the rich industrialists’ worth Rs 1.45 lakh crore last month, but there were no similar concessions for the suffering farmers.

On Sunday, former Congress President addressed three rallies. the first rally was in Ausa in Latur, followed by two rallies in Mumbai-in Chandivli, a Gujarati-dominated area. The third rally was in Mumbai’s Dharavi, where Dalits and Muslims have a strong presence.

‘Khoda pahad nikli chuhiya’, CM Khattar takes a dig at Sonia Gandhi becoming Congress President, Congress hops mad

OpIndia Staff
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‘Khoda pahad nikli chuhiya’, CM Khattar takes a dig at Sonia Gandhi becoming Congress President, Congress hops mad

In a frontal attack on Congress, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar while addressing a rally in Nissing, Karnal, on Sunday said that Congress cannot think beyond the ‘family’.


Taking a dig at the Gandhi family, CM Khattar said, “After the 2019 general elections defeat, Rahul Gandhi resigned as party president and called to get a non-Gandhi as the party president. We were happy that finally the party is moving away from nepotism. They went around the country to find a new party president but then after three months made Sonia Gandhi the party president. Khoda pahad aur nikli chuiya, aur woh bhi mari hui (you dig a mountain and find a rat, that too a dead one),” Khattar said.

Read: Rahul Gandhi joins Pakistan in spreading fake news concocted by Indian media about Haryana CM ML Khattar

This statement of Haryana CM ML Khattar has Congress hopping mad. All India Mahila Congress President Sushmita Dev called it shameful and said that BJP is a party full of ‘rabid misogynists’.


Congress leader Ruchira Chaturvedi called Khattar’s statement a tactic divert attention.


Mahila Congress through its official account also chimed in.


Former AAP MLA and new recruit in Congress, Alka Lamba referred to Khattar’s statement as ‘neech soch‘ on women.


Khattar, when he said ‘khoda pahad, nikli chuhiya’, was using a very popular idiom which means that despite all the strong buildup for something, the outcome was very disappointing. In August this year, after months-long drama, despite Rahul Gandhi’s insistence that Congress President should be a younger leader, eventually his 72-year-old mother was made the party president.

The last time she became Congress president, the then Congress chief Sitaram Kesri was reportedly locked up in a bathroom in Congress headquarters at Akbar Road so he could not stop Sonia Gandhi from entering the office with her supporters to take over as the party president.

This is not the first time Khattar has attacked Sonia Gandhi. Last week, while addressing a rally in Jhajjar in Haryana had accused Congress of sympathising with terrorists and that Sonia had shed tears for militants. Senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid had said that following the Batla House encounter where Indian Mujahideen terrorists were killed, upon seeing the pictures Sonia Gandhi had cried ‘bitterly’.

Haryana state will go for assembly polls on 21st October along with Maharashtra. The results will be declared on 24th October.

Section 144 imposed in Ayodhya in anticipation on Ram Janmabhoomi case verdict as the hearing enters its last week

OpIndia Staff
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Section 144 imposed in Ayodhya in anticipation on Ram Janmabhoomi case verdict as the hearing enters its last week

Ahead of upcoming Diwali festivities and in anticipation of verdict on the Ram Janmabhoomi case which is expected in November, section 144 has been imposed across Ayodhya till December 10. The prohibitory orders prohibit assembly of four or more persons across the district.

While section 144 was imposed in Ayodhya since August 31 this year, it only covered ‘unlawful assembly’. The order now includes restricted use of drones, unmanned aerial vehicles for filming, sale and purchase of crackers and even holding media debates. Moreover, the Uttar Pradesh state government will also be hosting a three-day ‘Deepotsav’ beginning the eve of Diwali on 26th October, which is also expected to bring in a huge crowd of devotees.

Read: Here is why Muslim petitioners won’t budge on Ayodhya dispute

Supreme Court has been carrying out day-to-day hearing of the case and the arguments are to be concluded on 17th October. Diwali, the festival of lights which celebrates return of Lord Ram to Ayodhya after spending 14 years in exile and defeating Ravan in the Hindu epic Ramayana, falls on 27th October, 2019.

Last week, UP CM Yogi Adityanath, without mentioning Ram Janmabhoomi case, had had said that he hopes “a very good news” awaits all. While he did not elaborate further on his statement, he did urge people to draw inspiration from Lord Ram. Without specifying the SC verdict on Ram Janmabhoomi temple, Yogi Adityanath said, “We are Ram bhakts, there is a lot of strength in bhakti. I feel we will soon get to hear very good news.”

IRCTC shares to be listed on stock market on Monday, 14th October

OpIndia Staff
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IRCTC shares to be listed on stock market on Monday, 14th October

“The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), which recently concluded its Initial Public Offering (IPO) will be list its shares on the stock market on Monday, 14th October. The shares will be listed on both, the BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) and the NSE (National Stock Exchange).

“Effective from Monday, October 14, 2019, the equity shares of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited shall be listed and admitted to dealings on the Exchange in the list of ‘B ‘ Group of Securities,” the BSE said in a circular issued on 11th October 2019.

The IPO was oversubscribed 112 times at a price band of Rs 315 to Rs 320 per share. State-owned IRCTC, which sells tickets for Indian Railways and manages its catering services, is expected to raise Rs 500-600 crore through its IPO. The government is looking to offload up to 20 million shares in IRCTC, following that the government’s stake in IRCTC will come down by 12.5 per cent.

IRCTC’s business is divided into four segments — internet ticketing, catering, packaged drinking water under the ‘Rail Neer’ brand, and travel and tourism. While its sales rose 25% to Rs 1,899 crore, its profit grew 23.5% to Rs 272.5 crore in the fiscal year 2019, compared to last fiscal.

Read: Tejas Express is the REAL reform: Indian Railways on road to privatisation

IRCTC is the subsidiary of Indian Railways and handles online ticketing, catering and tourism operations. The IRCTC is one of the most visited websites in the Asia-Pacific region, with a transaction volume of more than 25 million per month, and 7.2 million logins per day. About 800,000 tickets are booked every day through the IRCTC website and Rail Connect.

However, catering has been the company’s biggest contributor to sales over the years. While more than half of its revenues at Rs 1,044 crore came from its catering business in 2019, internet ticketing business contributed about 12% of its revenue. The remaining Rs 444 crore came from its tourism and travel-related services and Rs 176 crore from its Rail Neer packaged drinking water business.”

Chandrababu Naidu regrets decision to quit BJP-led NDA, says joining hands with Congress was a big mistake

OpIndia Staff
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Chandrababu Naidu regrets decision to quit BJP-led NDA, says joining hands with Congress was a big mistake

After facing a humiliating loss in the 2019 Lok Sabha and Andhra Pradesh state assembly elections, the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) President N Chandrababu Naidu has now openly regretted his decision to quit the BJP-led NDA government.

According to the reports, former Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu while addressing a public rally at the coastal district of Visakhapatnam hosted by party members regretted over his decision to quit the BJP-led NDA government.

In several closed-door meetings, Naidu had also expressed similar kind of regrets with regard to joining hands with the Congress in the Telangana elections, where both the parties suffered humiliation at the hands of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).

On Saturday, the TDP party president also acknowledged that his decision to pull out of the Narendra Modi-led government in May 2018 dealt a big blow to his TDP in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections this year.

“We pulled out of the BJP-led government and withdrew our Ministers from the Union Cabinet to press our demands on Amaravati, Polavaram and Special status for Andhra. This move has backfired and the party has suffered a lot because of that decision,” said Naidu.

Reportedly, Naidu also spoke about the real meaning behind the friendly caution thrown by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a debate on the no-confidence motion proposed by TDP in Parliament. He was quoted saying, “The PM has said that TDS has fallen into the trap of the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP). PM had also warned me not to take a hasty decision and stay in the NDA.”

Expressing regret over joining hands with the Congress, the TDP chief had earlier said that people have not accepted his affiliation with the Congress. “I have taken the decision to share seats with Congress in Telangana. We fared miserably. Halfway through I have realized that it was a grave mistake, but it was too late,” Naidu had said.

Interestingly, the BJP has made no comments on the reconciliation efforts made by former ally Naidu. “BJP President Amit Shah has then told Naidu that the doors are closed for him and his regional party with the NDA,” a senior leader from BJP has pointed out.

The disastrous results in the 2019 elections have pushed the TDP into a corner as it is now facing an existential battle as most of its cadre and senior leaders have left the party to join the BJP post the 2019 elections rout. Recently, in a huge setback to former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, nearly 60 prominent national, state and district level leaders of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) along with thousands of party workers had joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

In June, four out of the six Telugu Desam Party MPs had resigned from the party. S Chowdary, CM Ramesh, TG Venkatesh, the TDP MPs from Andhra Pradesh and lone party MP from Telangana Garikapati Mohan Rao had passed a resolution following their decision to quit the party and had joined BJP.

Gandhis’ security protection may be downgraded to ‘Z plus’, may lose SPG cover if Centre accepts intelligence agencies inputs

OpIndia Staff
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Gandhis’ security protection may be downgraded to ‘Z plus’, may lose SPG cover if Centre accepts intelligence agencies inputs

“The intelligence agencies, after a detailed review of threat perception of the Gandhis, have advised downgrading of security protection accorded to them from SPG cover to “Z plus security”, reports The Sunday Guardian.

If at all centre accepts the centre’s recommendation, then the Gandhis – Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi would lose their SPG cover and will be replaced with a ‘Z plus’ security.  At present, only Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the three Gandhis are recipients of proximate security by SPG personnel.

The agencies intelligencies have concluded that while evaluating the danger posed to the Gandhis, that their safety would be ensured by replacing the SPG with ‘Z plus’. As of now-former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, top BJP leaders LK Advani and Murali Manohar Joshi, as well as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh are under ‘Z Plus’ protection. Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been accorded with a ‘Z special’ category security.

Read: ‘Possible assassination attempt’ on Rahul Gandhi turned out to be camera flashed by AICC photographer

However, the withdrawal could be controversial as some argue that two members of the Gandhi family, both former Prime Ministers were brutally assassinated and that the withdrawal of the SPG could have wide-ranging political ramifications. While former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards following Operation Bluestar in 1984, ex-PM Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in 1991 when he was not holding the post.

The threat perception to individuals is annually evaluated and a decision is taken based on the appraisal arrangements for security after evaluation. An expert committee from various intelligence agencies put forth their recommendations to the Home Ministry and the Cabinet Secretariat, where the final decision is taken after due consultation with the government.

Recently, in a bid to strengthen the security cover provided to the Gandhis and to keep track of their movements, the Special Protection Group (SPG), which provides protection to them, was also tasked with a fresh mandate by the Centre. The Gandhi family has been notified that they should allow SPG personnel to accompany them all the time when they travel abroad. In case, if they are not willing to accept the mandatory SPG protection then there could be curtailment on their foreign visits on account of security considerations.

The Gandhis – Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and daughter Priyanka Gandhi would earlier travel with the SPG till their first location abroad, who would then send the SPG personnel back to the country, preferring their own privacy. The Gandhis would then travel to destinations of their choice, thereby making themselves susceptive to risks.

Read: Before claiming ‘assassination attempt by sniper rifle’, Congress should have at least understood it could not have been a sniper rifle at all

For instance, if any of the Gandhis was travelling to Thailand, the SPG would escort them till there and thereafter fly back to New Delhi. From Thailand, the family of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi would be on their own with Indian missions coordinating with the local police for ensuring their safety.

The SPG was formed in 1985, as a protection unit for the Prime Minister, after the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her own security guards. It was set up after the submission of the Birbal Nath committee report and formalised under an Act in 1988. In the beginning, sharpshooters from the IPS, as well as other ranks from various state police organisations, paramilitary outfits and the intelligence agencies were inducted into the elite squad. S. Subramaniam was made its first director. Presently, the SPG has more than 3,000 personnel who guard Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sonia Gandhi and her son and daughter, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, respectively.

With centre issuing new guidelines, the Gandhis have to now submit every minute detail of their travel plans. They have been asked to supply information of their past few tours as well. The direction will also enable the Centre to keep track of their movements while ensuring their protection.

Presently, the standard operating procedure is whenever a protectee arrives in any country, the Indian mission will coordinate with the local police and other authorities to ensure the security cover. The SPG only provides proximate protection. This arrangement will remain unaltered except that the SPG would have a more noticeable and pronounced role. The arrangement of the SPG being ever-present with their protectee had existed in the past as well, but the financial implications had compelled the then government to review the terms of engagement.

Recently, the central government had also made some changes in the security cover provided to former PM Manmohan Singh. As per reports, the SPG security provided to Dr Manmohan Singh was replaced with CRPF staff. The Gandhi Parivar was given the SPG protection after the assassination of both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.

Reportedly, senior police officials and security experts had held that if the SPG cover had not been withdrawn from Rajiv Gandhi by the VP Singh government, an attack against him would have not been possible. After his death, a close aide of Rajiv Gandhi had stated that Sonia Gandhi had lost complete faith in the Indian security apparatus and till the SPG was provided to her, she continued to be guarded by private security personnel hired by her well-wishers.

In the past, the SPG has also been used to keep surveillance on the protectee. Reportedly, former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao had deployed the SPG personnel comprised of IB officials at 10, Janpath, to keep tabs on the visitors of Sonia Gandhi.

The Centre is also considering a proposal to amend the SPG Act to include only the serving Prime Minister and perhaps the President under its jurisdiction.”

Fact Check: Read the truth behind viral video showing a Pune electric bus charged by a diesel generator

OpIndia Staff
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Fact Check: Read the truth behind viral video showing a Pune electric bus charged by a diesel generator

A video went viral on social media today showing an electric bus belonging to Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited is seen being charged by a diesel generator. Electric vehicles are being used to reduced pollution from induction combustion engine vehicles, therefore, this was a big irony that such an eco-friendly bus was charged by a polluting diesel generator.


The viral video soon made it to mainstream media, which claimed that PMPML is charging its e-buses using diesel generators. News18 gave a benefit of doubt to PMPML, saying it may be done by the driver on his personal capacity. A report by Pune Mirror of the Times group claimed that Pune does not have required infrastructure to charge the electric buses, hence alternatives like generators are used. They also quoted drivers saying that diesel generators used to charge the buses consume more diesel than diesel buses.

Also Read: GST Council reduces tax on Electric Vehicles and their chargers in a view to curb pollution

But soon several social media users pointed out that the video seems to be old, and it is before the bus was inducted into service, as there is no registration number plate on the electric bus seen in the video. The location also seemed to be not from inside the city, where the buses run. Several users from Pune also noted that PMPML has dedicated facilities to charge the electric buses using power from the grid, and generators are not used.


In response to the video, BJP leader from Pune Siddharth Shirole has clarified why the bus was charged using a generator. He informed that the e-buses procured by Pune are manufactured in Hyderabad, and they were driven to Pune. The typical range of the buses is 250 km, which is not enough to cover the distance between Hyderabad and Pune. As there are no charging stations on the highway, the buses were charged at Solapur using diesel generators. Shirole clarified that every bus inducted into service in Pune is charged using grid power only, and generators are used only for the transit on the highways.


The same was also said by other prominent persons from Pune, who confirmed that the buses were charged using gensets during the transit from Hyderabad to Pune, and gensets are not used for in-service e-buses in the city. Solapur is located almost halfway between Hyderabad and Pune, and it is logical that the buses need to be charged there to complete the journey on battery power. In the absence of a charging station in Solapur, diesel generators are used by the manufacturer to charge the buses to deliver them to Pune. This is just a single use of gensets during transit, and diesel generators are not used during their regular service in Pune.

PMPML charges its electric buses at its two depots, located at Bhekrai Nagar and Nigdi, where high capacity charges charge multiple buses at a time using power from the grid. Five more charging points are being installed at Baner, Ravet, Moshi and Katraj depots, as there are plans to induct more electric buses for the city.

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