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In pictures: After a gruelling election campaign, PM Modi visits the abode of Lord Shiva in Kedarnath

OpIndia Staff
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In pictures: After a gruelling election campaign, PM Modi visits the abode of Lord Shiva in Kedarnath

Amidst the insurmountable snowclad Himalayan mountains and the pristine Mandakini river flowing by its side, lies the divine resting place of Lord Shiva-Kedarnath. The abode of Lord Shiva remains open for its devotees only between the months of April (Akshaya Tritiya) and November (Kartik Purnima, the autumn full moon) due to inclement weather conditions. However, this time around, one among the lakhs of devotees to visit the shrine has been none other than the Prime Minister of the country, Narendra Modi.

PM Modi is on a two-day visit to Kedarnath and Badrinath
PM Modi at Kedarnath (Source: Twitter)

After completing a marathon 51-days of campaigning during the Lok Sabha elections in which PM Modi addressed a stunning 142 rallies and 4 roadshows, the PM is on a two-day visit to the holy shrines of Kedarnath and Badrinath. The PM is said to have done 3-4 rallies daily, extending it to 5 rallies on two occasions and said to have taken rest for only 3-4 days since he started his election campaign on March 28 in Meerut and ended it in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone on Friday. Uttar Pradesh saw 29 rallies from PM Modi while West Bengal witnessed 17 of them.

Along with offering prayers at the shrine, PM Modi also took stock of the ongoing developmental work at Kedarnath. Modi also undertook the strenuous climb as a part of his Kedarnath visit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a devotee of Baba Kedarnath and he has been personally involved in the supervision of the construction works on the various development projects at the shrine.

Last year, in a grand reopening ceremony, the idol was brought in a flower-adorned palanquin to be reinstalled in the temple. Thousands of devotees had flocked to the Himalayan temple to have a Darshan and to offer prayers. Several new amenities such as meditation cave, new pavements and other facilities were added for the pilgrims. A laser show on Lord Shiva has been one of the major attractions for the pilgrims coming to the shrine.

Here are some of the photos of PM Narendra Modi at one of the holiest Hindu shrines of Kedarnath:-

Dressed in the traditional Pahari attire of Uttarakhand, PM Modi walked all the way from the helipad to the Kedarnath temple to offer his prayers to Lord Shiva.

PM Modi at Kedarnath (Source: Twitter)

After offering prayers at the temple, PM Modi was seen taking stock of the re-developmental works at Kedarnath. PM Modi has also been personally involved in overseeing the new projects being developed, embellishing the holy shrine.

PM Modi reviewing developmental work in Kedarnath (Source: Twitter)

One of the latest projects developed at Kedarnath is the meditation cave. It was inaugurated in May last year and has been one of the tourist attractions. PM Modi can be seen in the picture wearing a saffron robe, characteristic of a hermit, engrossed in meditation inside the meditation cave.

PM Modi in a cave at Kedarnath (Source: Twitter)

PM Modi has been one of the staunch devotees of Lord Shiva and this is the fourth time in the last 2 years that he has visited the holy shrine of Kedarnath. Last year, in November, PM visited Kedarnath Temple on the occasion of Diwali. In 2017, during the reopening ceremony, PM Modi visited the shrine. PM Modi had also visited Kedarnath in the same year on its closing ceremony on October 30.

PM Modi visits Kedarnath for prayer and meditation, ‘secular intellectuals’ rush to mock his faith

OpIndia Staff
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PM Modi visits Kedarnath for prayer and meditation, ‘secular intellectuals’ rush to mock his faith

After campaigning ended yesterday for the last phase of the General Elections, Prime Minister Modi visited the Holy Shrine of Kedarnath in Uttarakhand. He will meditate at the Shrine as well.


Narendra Modi has never shied away from practising his Hindu faith in public after he assumed office. It has caused much consternation among liberals who perceive any demonstration of Hindu faith to be an attack on Secularism. This time, too, as photos of him meditating emerged on social media, liberals were quick to attack and mock the Prime Minister for practising his faith.


Some even mocked the Prime Minister for wearing the traditional attire of Uttarakhand for the occasion, something which he is known to do during his visits to various places. Earlier, such people and even Congress leaders have mocked the traditional attires of North Eastern India when PM Modi donned them.


In their hatred, these liberals often tend to forget that media always follows a country’s Prime Minister and PM Modi’s immense popularity is mined by all media channels for their own benefit. One of the pitfalls of leading the country is that it’s almost impossible to escape the media eye.

ANI had shared later that the Prime Minister granted permission to some media personnel after their request to make initial visuals. However, no media will be allowed in the vicinity of the cave once he begins his meditation tonight.


The visceral reaction that liberals have whenever the Prime Minister practices his Hindu faith reveals the deep insecurity they suffer from. While it is completely natural in other countries for the leaders to publicly practice their faith, it is only in India that ‘intellectuals’ run to mock when a national leader does so, especially when that leader makes no qualms about his/her Hindu traditional beliefs.

Delhi Police rubbish Arvind Kejriwal’s outlandish claims that he can be murdered because PSOs answer to Modi

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi Police rubbish Arvind Kejriwal’s outlandish claims that he can be murdered because PSOs answer to Modi

Delhi police on Saturday issued a statement to refute the claims of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleging a threat to his life. Earlier in the day, Kejriwal had expressed a threat to his life and had claimed that his PSOs report to the BJP government.

In its statement to news agency ANI, Delhi Police rubbished the allegations made by the AAP chief. “Our security personnel posted in CM’s security team are committed to their duties. The unit has been providing security for several high dignitaries of all political parties”, the Delhi Police said.


The Delhi Chief Minister had claimed that he would be assassinated like former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In his never-ending theatrics, Kejriwal threw up a bizarre claim that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is after his life and will murder him one day.

Kejriwal further alleged that all the security personnel surrounding him report to BJP and that his PSO also follows BJP’s instructions. “I will be murdered like Indira Gandhi by my PSO (Personal Security Officer) one day,” he said.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYIS1aB4sds]

In a strong response to his baseless allegations, Delhi police clarified that Delhi CM enjoys ‘Z’ plus security cover, which is the highest in the country and that he is guarded by a team of at least 40 armed and trained professionals. They divulged further that Kejriwal has been provided with two pilot vehicles and that his residence and children are also protected by the security unit of the Delhi police.

Interestingly, the AAP Convener had in 2013 made a grand show of refusing the high-security cover provided by Delhi Police saying “God is my biggest security.” However, in an interesting U-turn, he not only later accepted the security cover but also demanded an upgraded security cover, which was provided to him in 2015.


Kejriwal was recently slapped by a person during an election campaign. He has been physically attacked several times. However, in an interesting turn of events, most of these attackers turned out to be AAP supporters.

Unhappy with the current direction that Aam Aadmi Party has taken, several senior leaders have left the party, including the founder members. There were also rumours that Kejriwal was beaten up recently by his own MLAs.

Congress’ Lucknow candidate Acharya Pramod slams Shatrughan Sinha for not following ‘party dharma’

OpIndia Staff
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Congress’ Lucknow candidate Acharya Pramod slams Shatrughan Sinha for not following ‘party dharma’

The Congress candidate for Lucknow, Acharya Pramod Krishnam, while speaking to ANI in UNA, Himachal Pradesh, came down heavily on his party colleague and actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha for not following the ‘party dharma’ and taking politics ‘lightly’.

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“Rahul ji joined Shatrughan ji’s roadshow as he was following ‘party dharma’ but Shatrughan ji didn’t follow the ‘party dharma’. He’s taking politics lightly. Politics is related to India’s future, there should be sensibility,” said Krishnam.


Taking a dig at Sinha’s line of work, Krishnam said that politics is not a scripted drama, where you play various characters like that of a doctor or a drunkard at different hours. Politics is related to the Nation’s future and should be dealt with compassion, said the Congress’ Lucknow candidate.

It is notable here that ‘Acharya’ Pramod’s name is included in the list of fake babas of the country by All India Akhara Parishad. He is a known follower of Hazrat Ali and had once said, “Nahi Hai Jo Mohammad Ka, Hamara Nahi Ho Sakta” (One who does not belong to Mohammad, cannot belong to us).

Advising Sinha to ‘respect’ the party, Krishnam added, “It is the large-heartedness of Rahul Gandhi that he gave respect to Shatrughan Sinha but Shatrughan Sinha should also give respect to the party.”

Krishnam’s statement came soon after Congress President Rahul Gandhi participated in a roadshow held in support of Shatrughan Sinha, who is also the party’s candidate from Patna Sahib.

Previously too, Shatrughan Sinha had drawn flak by Krishnam when he was seen campaigning for his wife and SP-BSP-RLD grand alliance candidate Poonam Sinha. He had attacked Sinha supporting his wife despite being a Congress member.

Interestingly Poonam Sinha has been pitted against Acharya Pramod Krishnam, who are both taking on BJP leader and Home Minister Rajnath Singh in the Lucknow constituency.

Krishnam had expressed his displeasure over Sinha’s move at that time and had asked Sinha to campaign for him instead. “Shatrughan Sinha has come here and fulfilled his duty as a husband, but I would like to tell him that he should now campaign for his party and fulfil his political dharma,” Krishnam had said.

Meanwhile, Shatrughan Sinha who had recently joined the Congress party after being shunned by BJP, on being questioned about campaigning for his wife had said that he loved the party but not more than his family.

Kamal Haasan claims that the word ‘Hindu’ didn’t exist before the Mughals: Here is the truth

OpIndia Staff
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Kamal Haasan claims that the word ‘Hindu’ didn’t exist before the Mughals: Here is the truth

On Friday, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founder Kamal Haasan claimed that the word ‘Hindu’ is not native to India and that it didn’t exist before the arrival of the Mughals. Haasan made the claim in a statement in Tamil posted on Twitter.


Haasan claimed that the word ‘Hindu’ was never used in the Shavaite and Vaishnaivite writings by ancient saints. “The 12 Alwars ( ancient Vaishnavite saints) or 63 Nayanmars (Ancient Shaivite saints) did not make a reference about the word Hindu anywhere, We were named as Hindus by Mughals or other foreign rulers who came before Mughals. The Britishers who ruled us followed and endorsed the same word” read the statement.

Explaining why the word ‘Hindu’ should not be used, the statement further read, “It is ignorant on our part to use a name given by non-native rulers when we had our own identity. The identity of ours is Indian, it could be the latest one, But that is the one which will last forever. It is not good to confine the whole broader nation into a religion set up, it will mess up the commerce, polity and spirituality. In normal terms: Living with unity will have crores of benefits – this is a famous Tamil saying which is been repeated many times for Tamils.”

Kamal Haasan’s statements on the word ‘Hindu’ is not entirely true, the word has been in usage before the arrival of the Mughals as pointed out by popular Twitter handle TrueIndology. He mentions how Swami Vidyaranya, founding Guru of the Vijayanagara empire in the 14th century, much before the Mughals, had used the word ‘Hindus’.

“One who reveres Omkara, worships cow and keeps away from Himsa is called a Hindu”, he has said.


Since ancient times India was known as the ‘land of seven rivers’ or ‘Sapta Sindhus’, finding mention in the ancient texts of Rig Veda. The word ‘Hindu’ is derived from the word ‘Sindhu’. This is because the letter ‘s’ in Sanskrit is some times changed to ‘h’ in some Prakrit languages. The same was the case with the Persians who had mentioned in the Avesta, the religious texts of the Zoroastrians, the word ‘Sapta Sindhu’ as ‘Hapta Hindu’.

The word 'Hindu'
Essentials of Hindutva – V.D. Savarkar

The people of India were referred to as ‘Sindhus’ or ‘Hindus’ by both Indians and non-Indians. The Persians referred us as ‘Hindus’, the Greeks later dropped the harsh accent and called Indos which later came to be known as Indians. We were also known as Hindus or Shintus by the Chinese.

The word 'Hindu'
Essentials of Hindutva – V.D. Savarkar

The word, thus, ‘Hindu’ refers to the inheritors of the ancient civilization who have inhabited the ‘land of the seven rivers’ since thousands of years. It now describes people who still follow the traditions which were born in this sacred land.

For the past few days, Kamal Haasan has been at the centre of a controversy over his comments on Godse, where he claimed that Godse was independent India’s first ‘Hindu terrorist’. Following which the BJP had filed a complaint with the EC for violating the Model Code of Conduct.

After sandals and reasons behind extra-marital affairs, judiciary turns focus on ‘Chur Chur Naan’

OpIndia Staff
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After sandals and reasons behind extra-marital affairs, judiciary turns focus on ‘Chur Chur Naan’

The Indian Judiciary has been showing interest in many offbeat topics. In the latest, the Delhi High Court held that there cannot be any monopoly over the terms ‘Chur Chur Naan’ and ‘Amritsari Chur Chur Naan’ as they are “completely generic”.

Justice Prathiba M Singh was hearing a petition filed by Praveen Kumar Jain, the owner of an outlet in Paharganj, Delhi, that sells naan and other food items, who alleged trademark infringement against another outlet which uses a similar name for their dish.

The court said the word ‘Chur Chur’ merely means “crushed” and ‘Chur Chur Naan’ means “crushed Naan” and nothing more, and thus cannot acquire trademark signification. The court furthered that these terms are used in normal colloquial language and there cannot be any monopoly in respect of such expressions.

“The plaintiff has obtained registration of the trademarks ‘Chur chur Naan, Amritsari Chur Chur Naan’, but the same would not in any manner prevent the bonafide description of the character of the naan which is crushed, that is, ‘chur chur’,” the court said.

Previously, the Delhi High Court had also shown a keen interest in defining ‘Sandals’ and ‘Chappals’. Moreover, after successfully passing its verdict on ladies footwear, the Indian Judiciary shifted its focus to discovering what really causes people to indulge in extra-marital affairs.

According to a report a bench of the Madras High Court in March this year, asked a set of twenty questions to Central and State Governments, to ‘find out’ the reasons as to why people resort to illicit relationships despite being married.

The questions included whether ‘public exposure of women’, mingling in office, mega serials on TV or forced marriages can be the reason why people indulge in extramarital affairs.

In another bizarre incident, the Bombay High Court had last year lashed out at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for its faulty online approval process for goat slaughter on Eid after a person named ‘Neil Armstrong’ had obtained permission to slaughter 5 goats inside one of their own courtrooms.

MK Venu calls ‘aggressive’ chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ provocative in The Wire, justifies Mamata Banerjee’s reign of violence

Editorial Desk
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MK Venu calls ‘aggressive’ chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ provocative in The Wire, justifies Mamata Banerjee’s reign of violence

Propagandist MK Venu, in his recent article for The Wire, has defended, even justified, the great violence that Mamata Banerjee has unleashed in West Bengal in her bid to retain power in the state. Venu’s article is only further evidence of the fact that the Left’s opposition to the Right is not on the basis of principles, it’s on the basis of the different visions for the country that the two factions have.

The article further reveals that liberals like Venu live in a world of their own, completely out of touch with ground realities. He writes, “Amit Shah’s protestations of innocence notwithstanding, it is now clear that the West Bengal voter’s sympathy in this regard will be with Banerjee, whatever spin the Bharatiya Janata Party might want to give through its embedded TV channels.”

Venu, quite clearly, has very little idea about the will and intent of the voters of Bengal and projecting his own desires onto the public. Of course, he would very much like it if it were so but “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live”.

The writer then proceeds to assert that slogans of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ justify the use of violence against those who chant it. He says, “Shah’s roadshow with saffron-clad youth aggressively chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ was by itself provocative – it would have instilled fear and awe in the minds of people in any town in Uttar Pradesh. But then West Bengal is not Uttar Pradesh, and Banerjee too has learnt politics the hard way in the streets. The BJP has therefore met its match in the Trinamool Congress (TMC).”

‘Jai Shri Ram’ is a cultural slogan. Since long, it has been a manner of greeting each other for Hindus. Rama is extremely popular in Bengal as well. Therefore, it is bewildering that anyone would call the slogan ‘provocative’.

However, it provides us with a glimpse into the mind of the quintessential liberal. For such people, even the slightest public demonstration of Hinduism is cause enough to inflict violence upon the followers. ‘Jai Shri Ram’ would never have become the cry of protest for Hindus in Bengal if Mamata Banerjee had not pushed minority appeasement politics. It would never have picked up ground had it not been for Mamata Banerjee’s own conduct.

Bengalis took refuge in Rama because celebration of Durga Puja itself became problematic in Mamata Raj. And where else could they take refuge in if not at the feet of Rama who has provided the means for the establishment of political solidarity among Hindus transcending barriers of caste, class, creed, region and language?

The last time I checked we were still living in a country that at least claims to be secular. And yet, we have liberals like Venu who claim chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ is cause enough to attack Hindus. It’s truly reflective of the opinions that liberals have of Hindus and the status they would relegate Hindus to if they had their way.

“Banerjee too has learnt politics the hard way in the streets,” says Venu. When she came to power, people had great hope and expectations. But now, the hope has faded and people have realized that Trinamool is just CPI(M) ‘goondagiri’ on steroids.

Throughout the article, Venu makes the claim that the Election Commission has unfairly favored the BJP over Trinamool. It appears consistent with the conduct of liberals in recent times who appear set to question the legitimacy of the results should Narendra Modi return to power. He has also questioned the timing of the EC’s decision to invoke Article 324 of the constitution and put an end to campaigning before the mandated time. According to him, the decision unfairly favours BJP and it will make the voters sympathetic to Mamata.

Venu does not have a single word to offer for the numerous BJP Karyakartas who have been murdered by goons allegedly associated with Trinamool. He has no words to offer the BJP candidates who have been attacked by goons associated with Trinamool. And like the chief of the Editor’s Guild, he is silent on the journalists who have been attacked by Trinamool goons as they worked to expose the manner in which Mamata’s henchmen were rigging the elections. Venu accuses the EC of unfairly favoring Modi but maintains stoic silence over the rampant polling malpractice that Trinmaool engaged in, often with support from the polling officers.

All of this reveals that it never was about principles. The Left bears a morbid hatred for anything and everything that is Hindu and will justify absolutely everything as long as it suppresses the Hindu revival that is underway. If liberals are going to justify the use of violence against Hindus for chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’, what else do you think justifies violence against Hindus according to them?

The article also reveals The Wire’s own ideological inclinations. It is hardly surprising considering only a few days back, they had provided a platform to a Kashmiri politician who equated cows to terrorists, attempted to undermine the legitimacy of anti-terror operations and hyped up the Hindu-Muslim divide without attracting any rejoinder from the media outlet.

Just a few days ago, Shekhar Gupta, the chief of Editors Guild and the head of The Print had justified Mamata’s violence in West Bengal too but calling her a politician who fights ‘fire with fire, venom with venom’.

CRPF Jawan deployed for Rabri Devi’s security commits suicide

OpIndia Staff
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CRPF Jawan deployed for Rabri Devi’s security commits suicide

A CRPF jawan posted in the security of RJD supremo Lalu Yadav’s wife and former Chief Minister of Bihar Rabri Devi has reportedly committed suicide by shooting himself. According to media reports, the deceased CRPF jawan was from Karnataka and had returned on duty after spending a few days at his home. The incident happened late night on Friday.

Giriyappa Kirasor, the 29-year-old jawan was from the CRPF’s 122nd battalion and was on security duty at Rabri Devi’s bungalow at Circular Road, Patna. Though the motive of the suicide isn’t clear yet, according to media reports, Giriyappa had some issues in his family.

The jawan reportedly shot himself with his service weapon, an Israeli made rifle. The DSP of the Secretariat confirmed the incident saying that the body has been sent for post-mortem and will be sent to the jawan’s village thereafter.

As per some media reports, the deceased CRPF jawan Giriyappa had a quarrel with his wife over the phone last night. It is presumed that he took this violent step after his conversation with his life. At present, a police investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, Rabri Devi has been on a continuous campaign trail for the Lok Sabha elections in the entire state. RJD had formed a pre-poll alliance with Congress and RLSD in Bihar.

Recently, Rabri Devi was in the news for making derogatory remarks against PM Modi. She had likened PM Modi to a ‘Jallad’ and asserted that the PM has got judges and journalists killed.

The Congress ecosystem is investing full scale in discrediting the Indian election

Abhishek Banerjee
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The Congress ecosystem is investing full scale in discrediting the Indian election

Here is a curious fact. How many rallies did Narendra Modi hold in Varanasi city in the course of his 2014 election campaign?

The answer is zero. None. Which must be a record of sorts in what was always a record-breaking campaign.

Why? Because they wouldn’t let him. The EC would not give Narendra Modi a needlepoint of land to hold a rally in the city.

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A day before polling in Varanasi, the EC struck again. A raid on the BJP’s election office in Varanasi.

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“Campaigning material seized”: A headline that must be considered quite extraordinary and shameful in what is supposed to be a free and fair election in a democratic country.

The extraordinary persecution of Narendra Modi at the hands of the Election Commission in 2014 (and many times before that) is a long forgotten affair. Over the last few days, there has been a volley of criticism from liberals against the Election Commission, with allegations that they have shown a pro-BJP bias.

You must be wondering what exactly they are complaining about.

In fact, in the odd case that the EC has intervened in this election, it has actually done so with a measurable bias against BJP.  Remember that Yogi Adityanath was banned from campaigning for three days and Mayawati was banned for two days. In other words, 50% extra punishment if you are from the BJP. How much more clear could the double standard of the Election Commission be?

Then, what are liberals complaining about?

There are two reasons for this. The first is habitual. Earlier when liberals wanted the EC to jump, the EC would reply with: how high? Not so much any more.

The second reason is much more sinister. I will explain that later in the post.

First, let me tell you what kind of Election Commission the ‘secular’ ecosystem had come to expect over the years.

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In early 2009, Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswami wrote a letter to the President of India recommending the removal of Election Commissioner Navin Chawla.

The reason? CEC Gopalaswami claimed that Chawla’s bathroom breaks were leading to phone calls from the ruling party!

Can you imagine the reaction if an allegation like this were to come up today?

It still amazes me how little this matter was even mentioned back in 2009. A staggering example of how something can remain in the public domain yet hidden in plain sight if all the big stakeholders have reasons to keep their mouth shut.

How did the UPA government respond? They threw out the CEC’s recommendations. Navin Chawla stayed on as Election Commissioner. On April 20, 2009, CEC N Gopalaswami finished his term and Navin Chawla took over as Chief Election Commissioner. Much of the General Election 2009 happened under him.

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Shudder. Feeling lucky that Indian democracy somehow survived? Wait till you find out more about the history of Navin Chawla.

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I must say I’m truly proud of our Election Commission. Holding the world’s largest election under the leadership of a man accused of misusing power during the Emergency!

If this is not giving you the shivers already, allow me to direct you to an older article I had written documenting an even darker episode from 2007 when BJP nearly got banned. Not kidding. Go check it out.

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While BJP has been raked over the coals by the Election Commission, nearly getting banned, you wouldn’t be surprised to hear who get VVIP privileges from the same EC.

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In a sudden move in August 2016, the Election Commission changed the definition of a “National Party”. You see, you need to win a certain number of seats and have a certain national presence to enjoy the status of a “National Party”. Due to their miserable performance in 2014, parties like CPI(M), BSP and NCP no longer met the minimum standard.

But not to worry. After the people have spoken, we always have the Election Commission to overturn their verdict and change the definition of “National Party” to suit the secular parties.

The disturbing thing is that this is not even the first time the EC did so.

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In the 1999 Elections, the CPIM did very poorly, falling below the threshold of “National Party status”. In 2000, the Election Commission had dutifully changed the rules, allowing CPIM to keep their status.

Our votes don’t matter as much as we think. As long as the Election Commission is there, I think they will find a way to award “National Party status” to the CPIM even if they don’t get a single vote in the whole country.

The same EC that tried to ban the BJP in 2007, with its 100+ Lok Sabha MPs and half a dozen elected Chief Ministers.

There is a difference between being in power and being in the establishment. Now you see.

Now you also see how irritated the opposition must be right now that their once docile EC is no longer listening to every little whim of theirs. Possibly the days of bathroom breaks leading to Congress phone calls is long gone.

As I said before, the second reasoning they are complaining so badly is far more sinister. This is the official beginning of a huge campaign to discredit India’s elections in the eyes of the whole world.

They have been calling the EC a variety of names in recent days. How far do you think we are from that New York Times or Economist article saying that Indian elections are compromised?

They already dubbed India as “lynchistan”. From America to Europe to South America, liberals have managed to label India and Hindus as the most intolerant people in the world.

They keep saying India is ruled by Hindu Taliban. Telling the world that this “Hindu Taliban” rigs election is only the next logical step for them.

Do not underestimate this campaign. Yes, few people in India will be convinced by this silly campaign. But this campaign is not aimed at us. It is aimed at everyone else. If they can convince people that sarees are symbols of Hindu fundamentalism, they can do a lot of things that will adversely affect us in this global economy.

Election Commissioners are not clones of each other, CEC Arora slams controversy over Lavasa letter

OpIndia Staff
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Election Commissioners are not clones of each other, CEC Arora slams controversy over Lavasa letter

Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, in a statement, has expressed his displeasure over the ‘unsavoury and avoidable controversy’ over election commissioner Ashok Lavasa’s reported letter to him regarding the internal functioning of the ECI. CEC Arora has stated that there have been always some disagreement or dissent among the three election commissioners as it can and should.

However, CEC Arora has emphasized that the seventh and last phase of polling is upon the ECI as well as the mammoth task of counting on 23 May. He has added that all the CEOs across the country, their staff and senior officers at the ECI headquarters have been working at their best throughout the phases and barring this instance (Lavasa’s letter) the work has been largely peaceful, free, fair and transparent.

The controversy surfaced when EC Ashok Lavasa reportedly recused himself from further meetings of the commission over Model Code of Conduct issues until dissent or minority views of a member are brought out in the final order. Lavasa had recorded his dissent over the ECI’s clean chit to PM Modi and Amit Shah over complaints of MCC violation. He had stated that in five instances, the PM and Amit Shah had got a clean chit by 2:1 majority.

To Lavasa’s dissenting view, the ECI had clarified that it was not mandatory to issue formal orders in all MCC violation cases. Also, since the violation of MCC is not a quasi-judicial verdict recorded after due hearings, the dissent note was not required to be the part of the final order. This was the legal view of the ECI and it was also communicated to Lavasa. However, unsatisfied, Lavasa still chose to opt out of attending meetings over MCC violations.

The CEC has asserted that the election commissioners are not expected to be template or clones of each other and they do have a dissenting view in many instances. He also mentions that till now, the disagreements had remained within the confines of the ECI.

Statement by CEC Sunil Arora, courtesy: ANI

Expressing his disapproval of Ashok Lavasa’s allegations over the functioning of the ECI and the media controversy being built on it, the ECI asserted that though he has never shied away from debate, there is a time for everything.

CEC Arora also addressed the issue of disagreement over the handling of MCC violation allegations and stated that it was decided in the ECI’s meeting on 14 May that certain groups will be formed to deliberate over the issues and out of the 13 areas that were identified, MCC was one too. He also highlighted that it was a unanimous decision. Such deliberations, the CEC mentioned, were also held after the 2014 elections.

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