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Fact-check: Union Government didn’t ‘reject’ any proposal for ‘free ride to women in Delhi Metro’ from Delhi government

OpIndia Staff
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Fact-check: Union Government didn’t ‘reject’ any proposal for ‘free ride to women in Delhi Metro’ from Delhi government

In the proceedings of the lower house of the parliament today, responding to a query raised by TMC’s Saugata Roy, the Minister for The Minister of State for the ministry of housing and urban affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri responded saying that the Union Government of India didn’t receive any proposal on free rides to women in Delhi Metro by the Delhi government.

However, many media outlets resorted to spreading inaccurate news about the matter claiming that the central government had rejected Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s idea of offering free rides to women in Delhi Metro.

Republic TV had published a report saying that the central government has rejected AAP government’s proposal to offer free rides in Delhi Metro.


An article in Times Now read that the BJP government at the centre rejected AAP government’s ‘free metro ride to women’ sop.


Another news outlet, Zee News published an article on a similar line. The report said that the central government has rejected Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s proposal to make Delhi Metro ride free for women.

The aforementioned reports stating that the central government has rejected the scheme of free rides to women in Delhi Metro are grossly misleading. However, in reality, the proposal was not placed before the Union government for them to reject it. The same had been enunciated by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in the parliament stating that they didn’t receive any proposal on free rides to women in Delhi Metro from the Delhi government. Such misleading reports by prominent news organisations lend credence to what appears as a big fat lie affirmed by Arvind Kejriwal.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said that there is no need for his government to send any proposal to the central government to implement the free metro ride for women scheme.


Kejriwal has again reiterated his promise of giving free metro rides for women in Delhi.

Anti-Sterlite protests were orchestrated by vested interests: Vedanta tells Madras HC

OpIndia Staff
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Anti-Sterlite protests were orchestrated by vested interests: Vedanta tells Madras HC

On Wednesday, the Vedanta Group told the Madras High Court that the 2018 anti-Sterlite protests were orchestrated by a group of NGOs and activist operating for profit and with ulterior motives. The Sterlite copper smelter plant at Tuticorin was shut down by the state government in May 2018 after a massive protest that claimed 13 lives.

The company accused the Tamil Nadu state government of yielding to the pressures of such organisations and its order of permanent closure of the plant as a ‘knee jerk reaction’ to appease people with vested interests. They said that even Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami had admitted that anti-social elements were behind the protests that led to the police firing at the protesters.

In a rejoinder the to the counter-affidavit filed by the government, the company said that it was clear from the large scale public demonstrations against the company that the Sterlite plant has been targeted by groups with vested interests.

The state government had filed its counter in response to the petitions filed by the company, challenging the orders of closure and refusal of consent, passed by the state government and Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB).

The company had also said that various reports by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in support of the Sterlite Copper Smelter unit cannot be ignored.

In November 2018, the National Green Tribunal had labelled closure of copper producing Sterlite Plant as unjustified. It then directed the Tamil Nadu state pollution regulator to pass a fresh order of renewal of consent for the smelter within three weeks and has directed the company to spend Rs 100 crore within 3 years for the welfare of the people in the area.

However, just a few days later the Madras High Court intervened and ordered the rollback of NGT’s order of reopening the Sterlite plant based on a petition filed by an activist. The Vedanta Group has complied with the NGT’s order and announced welfare projects worth Rs 100 crore.

Air India’s Mumbai-Newark flight AI191 makes precautionary landing in London due to bomb threat, turns out to be hoax

OpIndia Staff
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Air India’s Mumbai-Newark flight AI191 makes precautionary landing in London due to bomb threat, turns out to be hoax

An Air India flight from Mumbai to Newark made an emergency landing in London due to a bomb threat. Ait India flight AI191 had taken off from Mumbai at 4.49 AM this morning, but it turned around after over Northern Ireland airspace and made a precautionary landing at the Stansted airport in London at around 10.15 AM local time.

Flight path of AI191 on flightradar24

The Boeing 777-337(ER) headed to Newark airport in New York had taken off more than three hours late, as its scheduled departure time is 1.30 AM. Air India had tweeted about the precautionary landing, but later they deleted the tweet.

Air India’s deleted tweet about AI191

The London Stansted Airport was closed for some time due to the emergency landing and the presence of the fighter planes. The official Twitter handle of the airport later confirmed that the airport was re-opened after the landing of Air India flight.


According to reports, two Typhoon jets of Royal Air Force were scrambled to escort the Air India aircraft. The jets flew at supersonic speed, which caused a loud sonic boom over Derbyshire. The Derbyshire police tweeted to inform that the loud bang that the people might have heard came from the sonic boom of the RAF fighters.


The aircraft has been taken away from normal flight operations and parked on an isolated stand at the airport, and it was being checked by the police. Essex police were at the airport when the flight landed.

Update: According to a Reuters report, an Air India official has said that the bomb threat was a hoax.


The Air India official said that the flight was back in the air after no bomb was found in the plane and the information turned out to be false.

Union Government denies having received any proposal for free metro rides for women from Delhi Government

OpIndia Staff
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Union Government denies having received any proposal for free metro rides for women from Delhi Government

The central government of India on Thursday denied having received any proposal from the Delhi government regarding the proposed free metro ride for women.

Unstarred question asked by Saugata Roy to Central Government

The Minister of State for the ministry of housing and urban affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri responded to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha, stating that the Centre hasn’t received any proposal from the Delhi government for free Delhi Metro ride.

A few days back, in what appeared like a political gimmick to attract voters following a humiliating defeat on all 7 Lok Sabha seats, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced that women be allowed to travel free of cost in all DTC (Delhi Transport Corporation) buses, Cluster buses and metro trains in Delhi. He said that this has been to ensure that women can have safe travel experience, and access mores of transport which they were not able to do so due to high prices.

The Delhi CM had said that they will not require approval from anyone to implement this scheme. He also added that Delhi govt will bear the cost of the subsidy, as the centre didn’t agree to his proposal to not increase prices of metro tickets or to give 50% subsidy on raised ticket prices.

However, according to Minister of State for the ministry of housing and urban affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri, Delhi CM Kejriwal had been misleading people with his claim that a proposal for a free Metro ride for women in Delhi was sent to the Centre for seeking approval.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, on the other hand, has maintained that the proposal was submitted by the Delhi Metro which is ‘in principle’ agreeable to Delhi government.


The Delhi Metro Corporation is jointly owned by Union Government and Delhi Government with 50% share each. As Delhi govt is paying the subsidy, it will not require permission from others for the scheme, Kejriwal had earlier claimed.

Ahmedabad police nabs Uvais Syed for making ISIS hoax call, says he became paranoid about terror attack after reading too much ISIS news

OpIndia Staff
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Ahmedabad police nabs Uvais Syed for making ISIS hoax call, says he became paranoid about terror attack after reading too much ISIS news

In Ahmedabad, Karnaj police nabbed a 32-year-old man on Tuesday for making an ISIS hoax call to the police. Ahmedabad police were on high alert after they received the call informing them of a possible ISIS attack in the city.

The arrested man, Mohammad Uvais Syed, a resident of Karanj had called the police control room from his home number informing them about the ISIS agent’s plane. He said that the agent named Yusuf Pathan was seen analysing the route of Rath Yatra and would be attacking in three days. He said that the agent was standing near Lal Darwaja and he had recently visited Pakistan.

The police later discovered that the man was mentally unstable. He had become paranoid after seeing numerous news reports on the ISIS organisation. Police also seized 250 ISIS related news clippings from him.

After receiving the call on Tuesday night, the police tracked him down to investigate the authenticity of the information. Syed could not give any satisfactory answer as to how he got to know about the ISIS plan.

Reportedly, Syed failed to identify Pathan after he was asked to do so by the police. Yusuf Pathan is a resident of Phool Gali in Karanj. The police said, “When we grilled Syed, he told us that he had heard from someone that Yusuf Pathan had got into a fight in the area. Then, he presumed that Pathan must be involved with ISIS”. The police then called Syed’s father and brother, who told that he was whimsical and would presume anything.

Inspector Faiz Nayab of Karanj police station said, “Syed has been so exposed to news reports about ISIS that he began suspecting terror attacks everywhere”. He was later released on bail.

In December last year, a Muslim youth who had issued a bomb threat against the residence of Karnataka CM Kumaraswamy was arrested by the Bangalore police.

Bihar: Mother-daughter duo tonsured, beaten and paraded for resisting a molestation attempt, ward member Khurshid, 5 others booked

OpIndia Staff
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Bihar: Mother-daughter duo tonsured, beaten and paraded for resisting a molestation attempt, ward member Khurshid, 5 others booked

In another case of sexual crimes against women, a mother-daughter duo was beaten, molested and were tonsured by a group of residents of a village in Bhagwanpur, in Vaishali district of Bihar. As per reports, the mother and her daughter had resisted a molestation attempt by the perpetrators.

The police, taking cognisance of the shameful act, registered a complaint against five miscreants. The main accused, Khurshid, a local ward member, and another accused were arrested.

On the night of June 25, a group of perverts allegedly barged into the house of the victims and tried to molest them. When the duo opposed and resisted the attempts, the accused persons allegedly assaulted and abused the women calling them characterless.

The accused persons then called a local barber and tonsured the victims. The victims were then paraded around the village by the accused persons. It is reported that the victim family is extremely poor.

Following this, the duo registered a complaint in the Jodhpur police station, Bhagwanpur district, Bihar, against six people in their neighbourhood. The officer at Jodhpur police station, Sanjay Kumar, taking cognisance of the disgraceful act, assured that strict action would be taken against the accused.

Last year on August, in a similar act, another woman in Bihiya, a small town in Bhojpur district, Bihar, was stripped, thrashed and paraded by some goons on the suspicion of being involved in the murder of a young man. An RJD leader was later found to be one of the prime accused in the case. In December last year, RJD leader Kishori Lal Yadav and 4 others were convicted for the crime and were sentenced to 7 years in prison.

Noida: Mohammed Shakil Ansari booked for coercing his daughter and son-in-law to leave their house to accommodate his 2 new wives

OpIndia Staff
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Noida: Mohammed Shakil Ansari booked for coercing his daughter and son-in-law to leave their house to accommodate his 2 new wives

According to the Noida resident Jannati Begum, her father Mohammed Shakil Ansari has married two new wives after her mother’s death in February this year and is now pressurising and coercing her and her husband to evict their house in order to accommodate his two new wives. Begum has filed a complaint against her father alleging that her father had attacked her and abused her after she and her husband refused to vacate the house, says a TOI report.

Begum has claimed that her 55-year-old father had married a 16-year-old girl named Shahnaaz two months after her mother’s death. Ansari belongs to Bihar’s Purnia where he went to after his wife’s death in February and soon married Shahnaaz. “We had no inkling of his new marriage. We came to know about his marriage only after he brought Shahnaaz home. He started pestering us to leave the house to accommodate his new wife. However, I remonstrated his marriage saying that it has brought dishonour to the family and refused to leave the house,” Begum said.

In the police complaint lodged at Phase III police, Jannati had alleged that she has been at the receiving end of thrashings and abuses over the matter by her father.

Begum’s husband defended their move of refusing to move out of the house claiming that they had invested money in the construction of the house along with the purchase of the land. “We had made a contribution of Rs 2 lakhs to buy this plot of land in 2007. In addition to this, we had also spent Rs 5 lakhs in its construction,” he said.

Begum has further asserted that last week her father asked them to vacate the house claiming he had married yet another woman who needs to be accommodated in the house. “Since Shahnaaz is housed in the shop and he had married another woman, we need to leave the house to make a place for his new wife,” she said.

Ansari, on the other hand, has claimed that she had married only Shahnaaz and not a third woman. “I said I married the third woman as they were not vacating the house, he said.

The investigation is underway and on confirmation of the allegations levelled by Jannati Begum, her father Ansari will be arrested. The police have lodged a complaint under IPC Sections 506(criminal intimidation) and 504(intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) against Ansari.

Cricket World Cup Match preview – India v West Indies: Can India remain unbeaten?

Ritesh
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Cricket World Cup Match preview – India v West Indies: Can India remain unbeaten?

After New Zealand lost to Pakistan, India remains the unbeaten team of this World Cup but can they keep the tag against West Indies too? A win here will almost confirm their slot for the semis.

India has played much better than any team in this World Cup, and despite the hiccups against Afghanistan, they remained unbeaten. Kohli has previously said that the team takes one game at a time. This game will be no difference to them, and this team is known for going hard at the opponents from the very first ball.

India has been tremendous in all three departments, which makes them the most lethal Indian team of recent times. Especially the bowling has improved a lot with the inclusion of Bumrah, Kuldeep and Chahal. The middle order is a little weak and was tested in the last game against Afghanistan. The team management may play Pant ahead of Shankar for more stability in the middle order.

West Indies has nothing to lose. They are almost out of this World Cup and no chance to reach the semis. Well, they are themselves to be blamed for this situation. They have lost matches from winning positions too many times because of their brain fade batting and bowling. All they can do now is spoil the party of other teams now.

Players to watch out

Virat Kohli is due for a big score, although he has scored three consecutive half-centuries in the tournament, anything less than a century is considered as a failure for him, such is the standard he has set. He has scored three consecutive hundreds against West Indies in the bilateral ODI series at home, so he knows the bowlers well, and he is hungry too.

Jason Holder must be pretty disappointed with the team’s performance. He tried his best but couldn’t motivate the team enough to win the matches. He would like to end the tournament on a high note and may play a part in both batting and bowling. Even though Brathwaite scored a sensational hundred in the previous game, Holder still remains the best West Indies all-rounder of the team.

India v West Indies in ODIs:

Overall: Matches 129, India Won 59, West Indies Won 62, Tied 2, No Result 3

World Cup: Matches 8, India Won 5, West Indies Won 3

Recent Form (most recent first): India W W NR W W, West Indies L L L NR L

ICC Rankings: India (1), West Indies (9)

Upcoming Records:

Kohli needs just 37 runs to become the quickest to reach 20,000 International runs milestone. He will be the fastest to reach the milestone.

Virat Kohli needs 30 runs to become the third highest run scorer for India in World Cup after Tendulkar and Ganguly.

Hardik Pandya needs two wickets to reach 50 wickets milestone in ODIs.

Squads:

India: Virat Kohli (capt), Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shikhar Dhawan, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Vijay Shankar, Rohit Sharma, Kuldeep Yadav.

West Indies: Jason Holder (capt), Fabian Allen, Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Shannon Gabriel, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope (wk), Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Nicholas Pooran, Kemar Roach, Andre Russell, Oshane Thomas.

AAP led Delhi Waqf Board promises money, govt job to Jharkhand’s Tabrez’s wife while Delhi’s Ankit Saxena’s father awaits compensation

OpIndia Staff
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AAP led Delhi Waqf Board promises money, govt job to Jharkhand’s Tabrez’s wife while Delhi’s Ankit Saxena’s father awaits compensation

After failing to fulfil promises made to Ankit Saxena’s parents, the Delhi AAP government led by Arvind Kejriwal has now resorted to appeasement politics by promising employment to the wife of Tabrez Ansari, who was allegedly killed by a mob in Jharkhand.

Reportedly, a panel of Delhi Wakf Board which is Chaired by AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan on Thursday said it has decided to give Rs 5 lakh and a government job to the wife of 24-year-old Tabrez Ansari who was allegedly killed by a mob in Jharkhand. The Wakf Board chairman also said they will help Ansari’s wife get legal aid.

“We are trying to send a cheque of Rs 5 lakh to Tabrez’s wife. I may also go there to hand over the cheque to her. We will also give her a job at the Wakf board and provide her legal help,” said Amanatullah Khan.

Shockingly, the decision of the Delhi Wakf Board comes at a time when the Delhi government is facing a backlash for its failure to provide compensation as promised to the parents of Ankit Saxena, a Delhi-based photographer who was brutally murdered in February last year by his Muslim girlfriend’s family who did not approve of the inter-religious love affair.

Recently, Yashpal Saxena, father of Ankit’s father had expressed his disappointment at Delhi government for not keeping up the promises. Yashpal Saxena had said that they have not received any of the promised compensation from Delhi government.

Adding how the Delhi CM has let him down, he had wondered if the rift between the two communities would have helped him get early compensation. Yashpal Saxena after getting deceived by Arvind Kejriwal government had said he was broken after AAP government defaulted on their promise of providing both legal and financial help.

Rebel AAP leader Kapil Mishra questioned Kejriwal’s intentions ahead of Delhi Assembly elections and accused him of Muslim appeasement.


Meanwhile, media reports came out about Delhi government’s insensitivity towards Ankit Saxena’s family, AAP had said that it will expedite the file for Ankit Saxena’s family’s compensation and financial assistance.

The first time in 30 years, no bandh in Jammu and Kashmir on Union Home Minister visit

OpIndia Staff
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The first time in 30 years, no bandh in Jammu and Kashmir on Union Home Minister visit

For the first time in 30 years, there is no call for bandh in Jammu and Kashmir during the visit of the Union Home Minister in the state. The Home Minister Amit Shah reached Srinagar yesterday for a two-day visit to review the situation in the state and the security arrangements made for the Amarnath Yatra.

Reportedly, Amit Shah is set to meet state party leaders, delegations of civil society and Panchayat members besides paying obeisance at the Amarnathji Shrine. During a security meeting, he had urged all agencies to continue with their tough approach against militants and rioters. He is also scheduled to meet the J&K Governer Satya Pal Malik.

Separatist groups are notorious for calling for a bandh whenever a Union Minister visits the state. Surprisingly after 30 years, neither factions of the Hurriyat Conference led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq have called for a bandh. As per reports, all leaders of the separatist groups have been silent with Amit Shah’s arrival on Wednesday.

The silence may have been due to the recent crackdown on separatist leaders. The NIA had recently nailed top separatist leaders, some of who have admitted their involvement in a terror funding case.

Terror activities continue to prevail in the state. 3 CRPF jawans were martyred and several others were injured when a patrol team of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) came under terrorist attack in Anantnag two weeks ago.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had previously tabled the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill. The bill seeks to amend the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004, which provides for reservation in appointment and admission in professional institutions for persons belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and socially and educationally backward classes.

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