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Rahul Gandhi to choose a Dalit to follow his orders? Reports suggest Shinde might become Congress President

OpIndia Staff
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Rahul Gandhi to choose a Dalit to follow his orders? Reports suggest Shinde might become Congress President

Sushil Kumar Shinde, a popular Dalit leader from Maharashtra may soon be the face of Congress, reports suggest. Rahul Gandhi reiterated his stance once again on Monday that he would not take back his resignation amidst indications that Shinde may replace the Gandhi scion.

It is widely believed that after the unexpected victory of 2004, Sonia Gandhi chose Dr Manmohan Singh to run the UPA government since she was facing resistance. It was speculated that to make sure allies like NCP, which had broken away from Congress on Sonia Gandhi’s foreign citizenship find it easier to support the Congress, Dr Singh was picked up as the face of the government. It seems like Rahul Gandhi could also be using similar tactics after the not-so-unexpected 2019 poll defeat.

The Gandhi family has reportedly agreed on Shinde’s name after another veteran AK Antony declined the offer to lead the party citing health conditions. Last time Congress had a non-Gandhi President was between 1996-1998 when Sitaram Kesri he grand old party before he was unceremoniously removed to make way for Sonia Gandhi.

In December 1997 Sonia Gandhi joined Congress formally and addressed her first election rally in Tamil Nadu. Soon, Sitaram Kesri, who was the Congress party president, was being forced to step down to make way for Sonia Gandhi to become the party president.

On March 14, 1998, Congress Working Committee decided to ask Kesri to step down so Sonia could take over. He was reportedly locked up in the bathroom at Congress headquarters in Akbar Road so he could not stop Sonia from entering the office with her supporters to take over as party president.

Interestingly, INC’s official website also didn’t mention him as one of the past presidents. After it was pointed out by OpIndia, Congress updated its website.

The other names which are doing the rounds as plausible options to replace Rahul were Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot, Mallikarjun Kharge, Janardhan Dwivedi and Mukul Wasnik. However, Shinde emerged as the probable winner for the post as he is considered to be close to the Gandhi family since 1971 and a well-known Dalit face in poll-bound Maharashtra.

Muslim groups carry out violent protests over alleged bike thief Tabrez’s death, stone pelting, clashes with police reported from Agra and Meerut

OpIndia Staff
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Muslim groups carry out violent protests over alleged bike thief Tabrez’s death, stone pelting, clashes with police reported from Agra and Meerut

After an alleged bike thief Tabrez Ansari was caught and beaten up by a mob in Dhatkidih, Jharkhand and died some days later in police custody, protests and politicisation over his death have been continuing in several areas.

As per reports, after protests in one locality of Meerut on Sunday where the police had to resort to lathi charge to control the situation, violent protests broke out in Mawana area yesterday.

As per reports, on Sunday, hundreds of protesters had gathered on Sunday evening near Faiz-e-Azam college protesting against the alleged mob lynching of Tabrez Ansari in Jharkhand. The police had to lathi charge on the gathered people to control the situation as the mob had started stone pelting. the police had stated that no permissions were sought for the gathering and protests.

On Monday, in Meerut’s Mawana area, hundreds of people had gathered near the Mosque at Mill road to hear Maulana Nafees Ahmed, who had organised a meeting for the members of Muslim community over the death of Tabrez Ansari. As a crowd of several hundred gathered near the Mosque to hear the Maulana’s speech, soon they started altercations with the police. The police had to lathi charge again to disperse the crowd.

As per reports, in Mawana, the protestors were demanding that the alleged bike thief Tabrez be declared a martyr and his family is compensated adequately. The police have suspended internet services in the area to curb rumour mongering. So far, the police have registered FIRs against 850(50 named and 800 unnamed) people over Monday’s violent protests.

Violent protests were being mobilised in Agra too. As per reports, on Monday, several Muslim groups took out protests in Agra demanding justice for Tabrez Ansari. Like in Meerut, the protests had begun after a gathering at the Royal Jama Masjid. The protests were reportedly organised by Indian Muslim Action Committee and Bharatiya Vikas Parishad.

Despite the implementation of section 144 of the CrPC and police presence, one section of Muslim protestors soon turned violent and proceeded towards the city’s Sadar Bhatti and Kashmiri Gate areas where they tried to shut down the local market. The police have stated that no permissions were sought for the gatherings and protests.

Hindu shop owners in the market reportedly opposed the call to shut down shops. Following which, the Muslim mob started stone pelting in the area. As the situation deteriorated, the police had to intervene and disperse the crowd. Several platoons of police forces have been deployed to avoid any violence and law and order situation.

Several areas in Agra, reportedly, Sadar Bhatti, Nal Ki Mandi, Subhash Bazar, Mantola, Fawwara, and Kinari Bazar remained closed due to stone pelting incidents. SSP Joginder Kumar has assured that the rioters will be identified and strict action will be taken against them.

Tabrez Ansari was caught by the locals in the Dhatkidih village in Jharkhand on suspicion of bike theft on 18 June. He was beaten up by them before being arrested by the police. He had died on June 22. An investigation team set up by the government had concluded that Tabrez might have died due to stress-induced cardiac arrest. Medical reports had established that no internal injury was found on Tabrez’s body, hence the police had dismissed the allegations that ‘mob-lynching’ was a cause of Tabrez’s death.

Delhi temple attack: Witness says AAP MLA Imran Hussain joined the mob and did not stop attacks on temple

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi temple attack: Witness says AAP MLA Imran Hussain joined the mob and did not stop attacks on temple

After the horrific incident of desecrating a temple in Hauz Kazi, Chandni Chowk in Old Delhi allegedly by a Muslim mob, the situation seems to have returned to normal. As per Times of India journalist Raj Shekhar Jha, three miscreants have been detained by the Police. One of them is reportedly a juvenile.

A day after the incident, startling reports have been emerging pertaining to the details of the temple attack. On July 1, a mob of 300-400 men barged into Durga Mata Mandir in Lal Kuan in Chandni Chowk area and had desecrated idols present inside the shrine. According to locals who had posted videos of the temple on social media, at around 12 am, the Muslim mob entered the temple and began to thrash Hindus residing the neighbourhood after they tried stopping Muslims from destroying temple idols.

According to Times of India journalist Raj Shekhar Jha, the tensions in the area had increased after local Muslims supported and gathered in large numbers, who shouted slogans in favour of a fellow Muslims, who allegedly attacked and broke idols inside the temple.


Shockingly, a large number of Whatsapp forwards and groups were created to circulate news of a Muslim’s death to gather people to the spot in large numbers indicating that there was a plan to fuel large scale violence in the area against Hindus.

In a video shared by Pradip Bhandari, CEO of Jan Ki Baat, one witness stated that few intoxicated Muslim men had gathered under their house. As people around the temple stopped them, they brought in more than 300-400 men to attack. He further alleged that Imran Hussain (AAP MLA) came and supported the Muslim mob but no one came in their support.


In another video shared by Bhandari, the priest of the temple can be heard stating that Muslim mob would have killed them had they not closed the door of the temple from inside. The priest also alleged that the mob even abused them.


The Delhi police which chose to refer the communal attack as “altercation and scuffle over parking issue” has tweeted that they have taken legal action and are making efforts to pacify both sides.

According to reports, the Durga Mata Mandir in Lal Kuan in Chandni Chowk area became the target of vandalism by a mob of 300-400 people on the night of June 30, 2019. According to police, this was triggered by a skirmish caused by an argument over parking. When the argument over parking in the area became intense, some people started pelting stones. Later in the night a mob entered the temple and vandalised it. The police have confirmed that Muslim youths in the area attacked the temple.

Union Minister and Chandni Chowk MP Dr Harsh Vardhan visited the site this morning and condemned the incident while appealing for peace. “The kind of thing done to the temple is unforgivable. I have been told that Police is already in action, culprits will be arrested soon and punished. I appeal to the people to maintain harmony,” he said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has maintained complete silence over the incident.

Mumbai rains: Wall collapse leaves 16 dead, trains suspended, flights diverted, schools closed as city reels under a torrential downpour

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai rains: Wall collapse leaves 16 dead, trains suspended, flights diverted, schools closed as city reels under a torrential downpour

As rains continue to create chaos in Mumbai, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has declared that all schools and colleges will remain shut for the day as a precautionary measure.

Reportedly, the civic authorities have also declared a public holiday in Mumbai on Tuesday after IMD forecasts heavy rain. The officials have also advised people in Mumbai to avoid stepping out of their homes on Tuesday due to heavy rains. Mumbai has reportedly received heaviest rainfall in the last decade, claimed Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday.

As many as 16 people died due to rain-related accidents in Mumbai and Thane as the city witnessed massive rainfall in the 48 hours. Twelve people were dead and thirteen were injured as a wall collapsed on hutments in Pimpripada area of Malad East on early Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, Mumbai airport authorities have either delayed or diverted air traffic as nearly 52 flights were diverted to other nearby airports as of Tuesday morning.

Reportedly, the rainwater has drained into Mithi river, which has now crossed dangerous levels. At least 1000 people have been evacuated from Kranti Nagar area of Kurla in Mumbai to safer places to avoid any untoward incident due to the overflow of Mithi river.

The Central Railways have suspended the suburban train operations for now as rains continue to create a safety hazard. “It’s nature’s fury. Moving trains in such rains in Kurla Thane section is a safety hazard at this point of time. Suburban Train movement has been suspended till further advice. Inconvenience is deeply regretted,” tweeted Central Railway.

Western Railway has informed that local trains are being run with a frequency of 30 mins between Vasai Road-Virar as the water level receded to some extent in certain parts of these areas.

Several parts of Mumbai have received over 200mm rainfall in the last 24 hours leading up to Tuesday morning. The IMD has predicted continuous showers to persist till at least Wednesday.

He knowingly violated CARA guideline and JJ Act: Journalist who accused filmmaker Vinod Kapri of faking an adoption story for self promotion

OpIndia Staff
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He knowingly violated CARA guideline and JJ Act: Journalist who accused filmmaker Vinod Kapri of faking an adoption story for self promotion

Journalist Abhishek Upadhyay who had accused filmmaker Vinod Kapri of faking an adoption story for self-promotion has now claimed that Kapri violated the CARA (Central Adoption Resource Authority) guidelines and the Juvenile Justice Act (JJ Act) while tweeting the updates about the girl child. He shared a tweet of CEO of CARA, the central adoption agency, who had tweeted back on June 16 itself that the story of Kapri having ‘adopted’ the child is fake.


CARA CEO’s tweet from June 16 had linked a storypick story which wrote about Kapri and his wife Sakshi Joshi of having adopted the girl child. The link was also shared by the couple on their social media.


CARA CEO had clarified that this was a false story and the child is currently named ‘Ganga’ (and not Pihu as Kapri tweeted) and will be placed in State Government’s Adoption Agency. She will be rehabilitated through a legal process.

The Ministry of WCD had also tweeted on June 15 that the child has been placed in the hospital for interim care.


In fact, responding to Kapri’s tweet, the CARA CEO had tweeted that the child has been registered with CARA and will be rehabilitated through adoption with an already registered couples who are already on the waiting list after the Child Welfare Committee declares the child legally free for adoption.

On June 16, CARA CEO even warned Sakshi, Kapri’s wife to refrain from posting pictures of the child as it would be in violation of the JJ Act.


However, despite the warning, the couple continued to post pictures of the child. Kapri even put up the picture of the child as his display picture.

Later, after being pointed out by social media users that the couple has been violating CARA guidelines and even JJ Act despite the warning from CARA CEO, Kapri started deleting his tweets. He said their only concern is the health of the child and that they will continue the fight to get ‘that’ little baby.


Despite CARA guidelines that the child will be rehabilitated through adoption with an already registered couples who are already on the waiting list and Kapri and his wife keep on insisting on adopting that particular child out of turn.

On Sunday, journalist Abhishek Upadhyay had accused filmmaker Vinod Kapri of having used the tragedy of a newborn to promote himself and his movie ‘Pihu’ which was supposedly set to release on Netflix in the following days.

A few weeks back, an emotional story of a journalist couple ‘adopting’ a baby rescued from a garbage dump in Nagaur, Rajasthan made rounds on social media evoking strong sentiment amongst the social media users. A journalist couple, Vinod Kapri and Sakshi Joshi, had warmed everyone’s hearts after they had announced that they would be adopting a baby girl found abandoned near a garbage mound in Rajasthan’s Nagaur area.

In a series of tweets, Upadhyay claimed that Kapri had planted stories in Indian as well as international media houses that he had already adopted the newborn child. However, Nagaur administration has clarified that the formalities are yet to start and a committee will take a decision on who will be the adoptive parents of the child.

Make your train journey delicious: How to get food from your favourite restaurant delivered at your seat on Indian Railway

OpIndia Staff
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Make your train journey delicious: How to get food from your favourite restaurant delivered at your seat on Indian Railway

Today Railway Minister Piyush Goyal tweeted about the e-catering scheme, the food ordering service for Indian Railway passengers. Using this service, passengers from all over the country can have a wide range of cuisines delivered right at their reserved seats.


This is how this e-catering service of IRCTC works. Passengers can choose to dial 1323 or send an SMS “MEAL” to 139 for ordering their meals. Alternatively, passengers can also log in to the IRCTC e-catering website or download the “Food on Track” mobile app that’s available on both IOS and Android.

While booking online, you would be required to enter your PNR number first.

After entering the PNR number, you will see a list of stations where your train will make a halt at. After clicking on the drop-down menu of any station, you will see the catering services and restaurants available at that station. You can then click on any service of your choice.

Then you will get to see the menu to select the items that you want. The total price would be displayed at the bottom. Click on next when you’ve finished selecting the items.

After that, you will have to fill a short form confirming your personal details including your name, mobile number, email address, coach and seat number.

Confirm your order and click on continue.

Then select your payment method, either Cash on Delivery or prepaid and click on “Pay Now”.

After successful payment, you will receive a confirmation via SMS and email. It will include the details of your order and an OTP (One Time Password) which will be used for verification by the service provider at the time of delivery of the meal.

There are several private companies already working with the Indian Railways in offering e-catering services including Railrestro, Railyatri, Zoopindia, and TravelKhanna to name a few.

Lok Sabha passes bill reversing court order which had effectively ended reservation in college and university teacher posts

OpIndia Staff
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Lok Sabha passes bill reversing court order which had effectively ended reservation in college and university teacher posts

Lok Sabha today passed The Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Teachers’ Cadre), Bill 2019 which reverses the decision of Allahabad High Court upheld by the Supreme Court directing Departments in Universities to be treated as separate units while calculating the reserved posts for SCs, STs, and OBCs. The Bill proposes the University or the College to be treated as the unit instead of Department while calculating the reserved seat, reverting to the earlier position before the High Court order.

The Bill will apply to central educational institutions including universities established under Acts of Parliament, deemed universities, institutions of national importance, and the institutions receiving aid from central government. Clause 3 of the Bill, which is a non-obstante clause, nullifies the effect of judgements which ordered reservation to be granted department-wise.

The Bill, however, exempts certain institutions notified as ‘institutions of excellence’. These institutions are- Homi Bhabha National Institute (including its constituent units), Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, North-Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Science, National Brain Research Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Physical Research Laboratory, Space Physics Laboratory and Indian Institute of Remote Sensing. The Central government had promulgated an ordinance on this subject in the month of March which will stand repealed when this Bill is passed by the Rajya Sabha.

This bill will help in filling around 8000 posts all over the country in various higher educational institutions which are lying vacant at present.

In the month of January this year, the Supreme Court had dismissed a petition filed by the Central government challenging the Allahabad High Court order given on 7th April 2017. The order changed the formula to calculate the number of reserved posts from 200 point roster to 13 point roster system. The court had ordered that each individual department in a college or university will have to be considered as a separate unit while calculating the number of posts reserved for reserved categories. This had effectively ended reservation for SC, ST and OBCs in most colleges and universities, as most departments in such institutions don’t have enough number of posts to have reserved posts. This had the effect of considerably reducing the reserved posts in higher educational institutions by at least 50-60% and even up to 90-95% in many institutions.

Amit Shah in Rajya Sabha: Those endeavouring to break India will be responded back in the same coin

OpIndia Staff
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Amit Shah in Rajya Sabha: Those endeavouring to break India will be responded back in the same coin

In a blistering attack in the upper house of the parliament, Home Minister Amit Shah went all guns blazing against the anti-India brigade forewarning those who talk about disintegrating India will be responded back in the language they understand. Reassuring the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Shah said they have no reason to worry.


Shah tabled Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha after it was passed in Lok Sabha on Friday last week. He contended the bill intends to bring children along the international border (IB) into the mainstream.

Shah said, “People who are living along the Line of Control (LOC) and Line of Actual Control (LAC) are included in the 3% reservation. However, the people living along the IB face similar kind of difficulties. Pakistan routinely violates the ceasefire and conducts shelling and firing, disrupts the peace and these children too should have equal opportunities.”

Shah asserted about 40,000 people from the last 70 years were waiting to get elected as ‘Sarpanch’ of their villages. It was the BJP that empowered these people and brought democracy to the villages in Kashmir.

He also expressed his anguish over the abject situation of the Kashmiri Pandits. “Kashmiri Pandits were expelled from their own state. Their religious places were desecrated. Once, strong Sufi culture pervaded throughout Kashmir but then Sufis were selectively targeted and eliminated,” Shah asserted.


Taking a dig at the Congress party, Shah said that BJP is not like Congress to hold elections on its own. “Under own rule, the Election Commission has full autonomy and authority to conduct elections in Jammu and Kashmir. We don’t run Election Commission as the Congress did,” he pointed out.


Shah also defended his party’s decision to form an alliance with the hardline party PDP in the state of Jammu and Kashmir and said, “The state gave a fractured mandate. It wasn’t our decision but it was people’s mandate for an alliance. When we thought separatism was being promoted, we withdrew our support from the government.”

Odisha: IAS officer accused of spending 70 lakh in six months for renovation of her official residential quarters

OpIndia Staff
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Odisha: IAS officer accused of spending 70 lakh in six months for renovation of her official residential quarters

An Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, Rashmita Panda, has been accused of spending Rs 70 lakh in six months for the renovation of her official residential quarters in Rourkela. The Odisha Government has now transferred the District Collector of Sundargarh for defrauding the government by misusing government funds.

Panda is a 2010 batch Indian Administrative Service officer, who has in the past held posts of the Vice-Chairperson of the Rourkela Development Authority, Commissioner of the Rourkela Municipal Corporation and CEO of the Rourkela Smart City Authority. She will now serve as the Director of Employment-cum-Chief Executive Officer of the Odisha Skill Development Authority.

According to the notification issued by Odisha government, Nikhil Pawan Kalyan, a 2012 batch IAS officer will replace Panda. Prior to this, Kalyan was heading Dhenkanal Collectorate.

Notification issued by the Odisha government regarding the transfer of IAS officer, Rashmita Panda. Courtesy: Twitter

The information came to the fore after RTI activists filed requests alleging the officer renovated her official residence by spending Rs 68.57 lakh. Pradip Pradhan, convenor of the Odisha Soochana Adhikar Abhijan alleged no tenders were called for the renovation. The project cost of each head of expenditure was deliberately kept below Rs 5 lakh to avoid the tender process, he added.

According to the details of the expenditure, which was available, Rs 4.04 lakh was spent on mosquito nets; Rs 4.45 lakh on plastic emulsion painting work, Rs 10 lakh on external and internal electrification and Rs 4.44 lakh on construction of drains and a portico.

Construction of a guard room, raising the height of the boundary wall, construction of an additional dining room, and fixing of aluminum sliding windows all were estimated at Rs 4 lakh each.

Responding to the allegations, Panda told Outlook, “This is a complete lie. I never spent money allotted from the government fund for the renovation of the house during my stay in Nabrangpur.” Talking about the residential quarter in Rourkela, she said she found the house in a dilapidated condition and took the responsibility upon her to renovate it. She also asserted that it was not for her “personal interest” at all.

“We are all public servants, and we can never stay in a single place for such a long time. So there is no question of misusing the government funds at all,” she furthered.

The Modi government in December 2017 had instructed all the IAS officers to declare their assets, including income and property details, failing, which they would be denied vigilance clearances necessary for promotions and foreign postings.

Apart from filing such returns, IAS officers also have to take permission before accepting gifts above Rs 5,000. They also have to inform the government, in case they accept gifts from family and friends exceeding Rs 25,000.

After TRS leader arrested for assaulting forest officer, his brother and TRS MLA Koneru Konappa caught teaching villagers to blame the officers

OpIndia Staff
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After TRS leader arrested for assaulting forest officer, his brother and TRS MLA Koneru Konappa caught teaching villagers to blame the officers

A video where TRS leader Koneru Krishna is seen to lead a mob assaulting a female forest officer on duty in Komaram Bheem Asifabad district in Telangana had surfaced yesterday. This video was shared widely across all social media platforms.

Now, in another shocking video, Krishna’s brother, who is also a TRS MLA, Koneru Konappa was caught trying to brainwash the villagers in a bid to twist the sequence of events in front of the media that led to the arrest of Krishna.

The MLA from Khagajnagar was caught on camera trying to convince locals to mislead the media on the events that led to the attack. He is seen telling the people, gathered around him, “I will call the reporters, media, tell them that the forest officials were threatening you all to not go to your lands. Say they’ve dug up our lands, our farms are inside, they’re threatening us not to get into our land.”

The incident, which took the social media by a storm on Sunday, the forest officer Chole Anitha was seen standing on a tractor while a group of men holding wooden sticks surrounded her. They start attacking the vehicle while one of them hit Anita as well that left her with a fractured right hand. The forest department officials had arrived at the area for a plantation drive, which the TRS leaders are opposing.

Following this incident, Krishna was arrested along with 15 others after a case was registered against them. Anitha recorded a statement naming Krishna Rao as the one who attacked her and led the mob.

Krishna, who is a Zilla Parishad vice-chairman was booked under Sections 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 332 (Voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 307 (Attempt to murder), 147 (Rioting), 148 (Rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 427 (Mischief causing damage), 507 (Criminal intimidation), 509 (Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the IPC.

Taking serious note of the incident, Telangana police authorities have placed Khagajnagar DySP and Rural CI under suspension on the charges of negligence in discharging their duties.

Moreover, referring to an incident, which occurred two weeks ago, in which the residents and forest officials got into an argument the Kagaznagar MLA Konappa was further heard misguiding the villagers, “Tell the media that they had beaten us 15 days back, and now again they have beaten us up.” Though no violence was reported then, the MLA was heard asking the locals to distort and present a magnified version of the incident in front of media.

Nevertheless, forest authorities on Monday went and carried out a planting drive, that is currently underway amidst heavy police security in the contentious land.

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