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National Herald: Supreme Court grants one week to the Gandhis to file fresh affidavit in income tax assessment case

OpIndia Staff
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National Herald: Supreme Court grants one week to the Gandhis to file fresh affidavit in income tax assessment case

The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted one week’s time to the Gandhi family to file their affidavit following which the I-T Department will file its response in the National Herald case.


They will have to file the affidavit on their claims that the CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) on 4th January wrongly withdrew a 31st December circular that would have led to their exoneration in the National Herald tax assessment case. The next hearing of this case is slated to happen on January 29. Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram is the lawyer representing Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in this case.

In December, the Supreme Court in the National Herald case had allowed the reassessment of the tax files from of Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi 2011-2012.

As the judiciary is tightening the noose, things seem to be slipping out from the  Congress party bigwigs’ hands. Earlier too, we had reported how high-strung Gandhis had tried to oppose the Income Tax’ investigation into the National Herald case. Congress had also earlier reportedly threatened tax officials with legal consequences for asking “irrelevant questions” during their investigations. Baffled with so much going against them, the Congress president had asked the court to gag media on National Herald case which the Court in all earnestness had declined.

It is notable here that the income tax assessment cases against the Congress leaders relate to an investigation into the complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in connection with the National Herald case.

In the complaint, Swamy had accused Sonia and Rahul of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by paying just Rs 50 lakh, through which Young India (YI) had obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore that the Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) owed to the Congress party.

40% of 700 ongoing National Highway projects completed in 4 years

OpIndia Staff
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40% of 700 ongoing National Highway projects completed in 4 years

The ministry of road transport and highways, in a two-day exercise to review the ongoing projects in the country, established that the central government in the last four years has completed 40 per cent of the 700 ongoing national highway (NH) projects in India.

More than 300 projects were identified to have been completed in 2019, with the central government achieving the highest ever construction in the financial year 2018-19.

In order to boost highway construction, transport minister Nitin Gadkari had pegged construction rate at 45 km per day in the current financial year from the previous 24 km per day.

Due to the government’s relentless efforts the length of the national highway, which stood at about 91287 km in 2014 reached about 131326 km currently followed by the central decision to declare about 39040 km length of state roads as new National Highways.

Additionally, the transport ministry has also approved of declaring about 53,031 km of state roads as new national highways.

In comparison to the 4942 km of the highways constructed until November 2017, the central government completed about 5759 km of highways during the corresponding period in the current financial year. A total of 2105 km was awarded in contracts till November as against 2927 km during the same period, last year.

The transport ministry claiming to have set a self-target of constructing 16,420 km and awarding 20,000 km of National Highways during the current financial year, in its statement said, “The ministry’s focus is to ensure that pre-construction activities are substantially completed before awarding of projects”.

By far, until November 2018, the transport minister’s home state, Maharashtra, has witnessed maximum highway construction of 1214.32 km.

The BJP government managed to construct 66.95 km, 466.51 km, 414.33 km of highways in Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan respectively. The leap the transport ministry has taken from a total construction of 4,410 km in 2014-15 to constructing 9,829 km and awarding 17,055 km in 2017-18 has been huge.

Kushal Singh, partner, Deloitte India, reiterated that “Highway construction has definitely improved, one key aspect which led to this was the decision of the government to not award a project unless 80% land is in possession. The average for completion of projects has come down and that can majorly be attributed to land availability,” he said.

Keeping Prime Minister’s vision of ‘transformation by transportation’ for Northeast in view and giving a boost to Modi’s ‘Act East’ policy, the centre reportedly sanctioned around Rs 190,000 crore worth of projects for the construction of road projects for over 12,000 km in the North-East alone.

Amongst various other achievements, it was reported how in the last four years under Modi rule, 240 per cent more houses in urban areas were sanctioned as compared to those sanctioned under the 10 year of UPA government led by Congress.

According to the Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri had stated that the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna has been a roaring success and the target of providing houses to all urban poor will be achieved before 2022.

Letter written by Rahul Gandhi shows that the Bharat bandh is orchestrated by the Congress party

OpIndia Staff
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Letter written by Rahul Gandhi shows that the Bharat bandh is orchestrated by the Congress party

Trade unions have declared a two-day Bharat bandh starting from today, calling for nationwide strike demanding various demands. Several trade unions, bank employee unions, farmers’ bodies and teachers’ associations are taking part in the strike against the Narendra Modi government, which has been supported by the left parties. The Bandh has hit normal life in various parts of the country, with buses, taxis, autos largely remaining unavailable for commuters.

Since morning today, the Congress sympathisers, supporters and alliance partners are painting a grim picture about the imagined losses that India’s trade community and MSMEs had to bear due to Modi government’s policies. A coordinated attempt has been designed and executed to establish the authenticity of the Bandh as well as justify its necessity. Congress and other opposition parties have claimed that the Bandh has been a spontaneous protest and not politically motivated.

However, the synchronised efforts to tarnish Modi government betrayed political connotations when a Letter exposing direct involvement of Congress President Rahul Gandhi came to the fore. Rahul solicited Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC)’s support for a platform to amplify the grievances faced by traders and unions across the country based on a survey conducted by Congress itself. As a result, Mr Reddy, INTUC president obliged and extended INTUC’s support to the Congress party.


With this letter, the veracity of the Bharat Bandh stands exposed. In a nutshell, Rahul Gandhi sought INTUC’s support to stage a protest on their behest. The INTUC chief happily obliged and allowed his platform to be used for scoring political brownie points.

This essentially means that the entire protest was designed in the Indian National Congress’ headquarters and to lend authenticity to their manufactured ‘protest’, Rahul Gandhi sought solidarity from Trade unions. The Bandh spearheaded by trade unions lent the much-needed credence to the protest and gave a semblance of authenticity that the protest is spontaneous and not provoked by external political influences.

However, much to the Congress’ chagrin, the letter exposes the political underpinnings behind the Bandh call and destroys any vestiges of authenticity associated with the protest.

With this exposé, another Congress lie has been busted. The desperation among Congress leaders to get back to power appears palpable. Earlier, the Supreme Court had rejected the fabrications conjured up by Congress regarding the Rafale deal. Their lies in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scams are slowly being unravelled by the alleged middleman Christian Michel.

CBI Director under Indira Gandhi saved a corrupt man because he had a contact in her household

K Bhattacharjee
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CBI Director under Indira Gandhi saved a corrupt man because he had a contact in her household

In the earlier report, we discussed the manner in which former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, destroyed the lives of four government officials using the CBI as a tool to preserve the interests of her family. We also established that it wasn’t a one-off incidence but a pattern of behaviour that Indira Gandhi exhibited during her rule.

In this report, we shall elaborate on the extent to which the CBI was compromised during her regime.

Sudarshan Kumar Verma was a clerk who was employed in Northern Railway. The CBI Delhi Branch was informed by Gopal Das, a loco-shed man, that Verma was demanding a bribe to fix his salary. Consequently, a case was registered by the CBI and he was caught in the act of demanding and receiving the bribe.

Verma, as it happened, had a contact in the Prime Minister’s household and D. Sen, the Director of CBI, was asked by someone from Indira Gandhi’s home to look into the matter.

A complaint was lodged against him and following an investigation, prosecution under various sections of the Indian Penal Code including the Prevention of Corruption Act was sent to the Vigilance Officer, Northern Railway. Normally, such cases do not call for the attention of the Director or the Joint Director. But in this particular case, Sen called for the case papers as soon as the case was registered.

Sen then decided to examine the case once again even after a recommendation for the prosecution was submitted. Sometime in September 1976, Verma submitted a representation to Sen that the case against him be reconsidered. A.P. Mukherjee, DIG of CBI Delhi Branch, made his opinion known that there was no substance in the representation by Verma.

In September 1976, after much deliberation over the matter of his representation, Sen issued orders to the Delhi Branch of the CBI to take further necessary action. Then, a fresh report was prepared to recommend Departmental action against Verma.

The Commission observed, “The circumstances of the case and the evidence given by Shri Sen leave little room for doubt that someone from the Prime Minister’s household contacted Shri D. Sen and asked him to so arrange that Shri Verma was not prosecuted.” It further observed that defying normal procedure, Sen had “suggested a different line of action according to which Shri Verma could be dealt with departmentally.”

The Commission admitted that it wasn’t possible to determine who exactly from the Prime Minister’s household had pressurized Sen into intervening in the matter personally. But the statements provided to the Commission by Sen are particularly revealing. The Commission report states, “Shri D. Sen has stated that he met Shri Verma in the morning Durbar at the house of the Prime Minister, Smt. Indira Gandhi, and that Shri Verma made a representation. Shri D. Sen further stated that because the representation was made to him at the Prime Minister’s house, he called for the papers and reconsidered the matter.” In conclusion, the Commission states, “…a clear case in which perversion of the normal process by Shri D. Sen and misuse of power is established.”

Thus, we see that four innocent government officers were harassed and humiliated by the CBI headed by Sen at the behest of Indira Gandhi and a corrupt clerk at Northern Railway escaped all consequences simply because he had a contact at the Prime Minister’s household. It is consistent with the observation made by the American Embassy that the corruption of those favourable to the party disposition was ignored while perceived political opponents were attacked ruthlessly using the state apparatus.

And, so.. the heir takes his oath

nandini
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And, so.. the heir takes his oath

So, The Heir will take his oath as the Prime Minister of India in May 2019.

Not for him the sweltering courtyard of the Rashtrapati Bhavan like the incumbent before but the cool air-conditioned comfort of the chandeliered Durbar Hall.

The foreign dignitary guest list is tight and minimal. Only those who matter to the new dispensation have been invited – The Chinese and the Pakistani. The Chinese are happy they can dominate this dummy. The Pakistani are happy this dummy is not smarter than their dummy.

Though not said openly, there is an air of disbelief and hence a desire to get over the ceremony at the earliest and to make it official, lest something is discovered that would render the election null and void.

In the front row, sits The Matriarch.

Her lips twitching with nervousness, her eyes darting back and forth, her brain working overtime at the list of neutered men and women who will take the oath along with her son. If anyone of them has even a modicum of self-respect she will have them tarred and quartered immediately.

Five years out of power and she will brook no one with half a cell of intelligence exceeding that of her son.

“India”, she smirks, “deserves no better”.

Bent And Waiting, Slaughterhouse Lawyer, Mujhe-Judge-Banaa-Doh lawyer, Slick-Flick, Chinese-Slick-Flick, Fainting-Mumbler, the Retainer and the Grand Wazir take their places behind her.

Nodding at each other, they acknowledge,

“We are back in business!”

Robotic Singh has also been pulled out of the trunk, dusted, displayed but of little use today.

Unfortunately, there are some whose time has still not come.

The Young Turks have been relegated to a row at the rear. Too clever by half and a spirit not completely obliterated. Spare-Heir and husband, Are-You-Serious? are making an appearance together. Unity For Treasury is a family tradition after all. It must be said The Gravy Train just cannot get over it.

“Its finally happening”, they nudge each other in glee.

Breathless Bhartha gushing and delighted,

“Nothing to report Pakistan. You are nowhere in the epicentre of Lutyens Delhi. Mission Accomplished! However, for old times’ sake, I have to inform you though there is a helicopter whirring outside and security is lax because it’s the UTA after all”.

A TV channel magnate is admiring the hall and planning his next 25 Greatest Global Living Indians. No venue like Rashtrapati Bhavan, but of course, the President might not be so pliant this time.

Right next to him is Shaker-Faker looking nervously about.

Who knows the 61st Cavalry might just do the coup. The President is after all the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. Mr MSG sidles close, an extension to his house is much needed and nothing like a sweet interview on mothers in law to cover growing costs.

Fan-Girl, finally introduced to Pidi breaks all protocol to bring the star doggie to the swearing-in.

Kaun-Jaat-Ho stands outside with his mic demanding Kaun-Jaat-Ho of every guest who comes in, till he’s reminded that all that matters now is ~ Hamare Jaise Secular Ho? ~

The JNU Trio with The Gujarat Duo will be in talks with The Mothership but are now happy to be invited to the big event. Their joy knows no bounds when Uncles Lenin and Marx, who last won JNU elections and are now permanent features of the Indian political landscape, come up to meet them up.

Some Bollywood types teetering on their stilettos are hurriedly correcting their placards to ‘I am India’ from ‘I am Italy, I am proud’!

In minutes the entire hall turns around in shock to hear the shrill voice of the MadBanshee. Striding in she asked loudly:

“Bhy? Bhy couldn’t we bring our cars to the porch? You couldn’t have made it here without me and Bua-Bhatija. And I hope we are sitting in the front row. ChaaraChor jee is getting indefinite bail from prison and will require a seat too”.

Rising to greet them The Matriarch smiles and hides the dagger in her heart.

“Must fatten those files to keep this regional lot on a tight leash”.

The old Kitchen Cabinet is here in full force, ready with a draft of the Communal Bill to push through the next Parliament session. The glint in their eyes and the sprint in their walk is visible to all.

As the durbans attempt to close the doors for the swearing-in ceremony, they recoil at the sight of an encompassing mass of shrouded men in dark cloaks, their faces hidden but a chilling presence marked.

Invitees whose souls have been sold for silver see them and stand up with bowed heads. While others unaware of anything unusual look over the Program Card.

The Matriarch goes on her knees and kisses a ringed gnarled hand.

“We are at your service and at your mercy again”

Her son does the same.

“Your mother served us well. We expect same from you”

And poof!

They disappear.

Someone shudders and whispers: “Handlers … those… those were the Handlers!”

Meanwhile, the LittlePeople are planning for the first day of new Government:

  • The New Prime Minister will move into 5 Race Course Road, Lok Kalyan is out of the window.

–  However, 10 Tughlaq Lane will be retained for guests who cannot be seen

with a special and private tunnel connecting the two homes.

–  A section of the Prime Ministerial garden will be dedicated especially for

Shivjee Ki Booti as the Shiv Bhakt deserves so.

  • The Statue of Unity will be brought down because the new government doesn’t consider a symbol of unity important for the country. However, the tallest statues of Bada Nanajee, Dadijee and Daddyjee will be installed across the land as the people must not be allowed to forget their sacrifices.
  • All rural toilets will be dismantled. Because an empowered woman should go out into the fields like the men.
  • The poor will be asked to voluntarily give up their LPG cylinders or the male members will have to undergo a vasectomy in memory of Dadijee.
  • Aadhaar will be discontinued. You have full rights to do your hanky-panky business in complete privacy.
  • Rs. 5000 and Rs. 10000 notes will be printed so that hoarding and storing is easier. The government will take a revolutionary step and provide free termite proof sacks.
  • The Rafale order will be cancelled. The Government is in no hurry but will only buy from anybody who agrees to their sweat money terms.
  • All promises made during the election campaign are to remain just that -promises.
  • At the LoC, there will be no retaliation by our security forces. Love will be the operative word.
  • All PowerPoint Presentations for the new PM will be numbered 1, 2 and 4.
  • The new PM will periodically leave for undisclosed locations. His cabinet in his absence will report to his mother or sister if the former is indisposed.
  • Forget the Ram Mandir, Library or Hospital the new government will repay the debt of every vote with a Grand Mosque.
  • Inflation will be back at 10% but everyone will get an Aloo Machine.
  • Those who are supposed to be in jail will be rewarded with plum posts.
  • All absconding criminals will return home to live the good life.
  • Arrest warrants for those who mocked, laughed or joked about the new PM in the past five years are ready to be served.
  • Huge banners will go up across the country – The India We Knew Is Back.

Wake up! Wake up!

Thank God, it’s only a nightmare!

Something you can still wake up from and see that it never becomes a reality.

IndiaSpend misrepresents facts of a case to boost the number of Muslim victims in its database

OpIndia Staff
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IndiaSpend misrepresents facts of a case to boost the number of Muslim victims in its database

The most dangerous are those who have nothing to lose. With their faulty statistics and biased reporting which has been exposed time and again, IndiaSpend hardly has any credibility left to lose. Which makes them a dangerous agenda peddling platform. The latest report by Swarajya exposes their another attempt at cherrypicking and selective reportage to boost the number of Muslim victims in their ‘hate crime watch’ list.

In October 2018, eight-year-old Azeem died in South Delhi following a scuffle in the playground. Liberals had turned his death into ‘lynching’ and ‘hate crime’ even as police demolished their claims. A month after this incident, another incident took place at the same place where some mosque-goers had claimed that some people had pelted stones at them. IndiaSpend considers it ‘hate crime’.

IndiaSpend describing a ‘hate crime’

It mentions the religion of perpetrators as ‘unknown’.

Religion of alleged perpetrators: unknown

The truth is far from what IndiaSpend has claimed. As reported by Swarajya, the two couples mentioned in the above report, Mumtaz and his wife Shabana and Liaqat Ali and his wife Saroj, fought and injured each other. Essentially, victims were also perpetrators and vice-versa and all belong to the same religion. You really can’t make it up.

Near Hauz Khas, in Begumpur area, is South Delhi’s biggest madarsa. Jamia Faridiya and Jama Masjid is surrounded by Valmiki Camp where about 500 families belonging to Valmiki community (a scheduled caste) and about 20-25 Muslim families live. There is land nearby which the people claim is public land and the madarsa claims it as its own. This was one of the major reasons for a scuffle between the communities. Police intervened and the contentious passage was closed permanently and a separate route was created for the residents.

However, in the last week of November, another scuffle broke out between some residents and madarsa owners. IndiaSpend, its obsession to peddle a narrative, cherrypicked Inspector Vijay Singh’s statement from Indian Express report. Inspector Singh had said, “Mumtaz and his wife Shabana, and Liaqat Ali, his wife Saroj and their daughter sustained minor injuries and were taken to the hospital. The quarrel is reportedly over a route.” IndiaSpend took this quote to list the four as ‘victims’ while ignoring the fact that the quarrel was over a route.

According to Swarajya, Liaqat Ali and his wife Shabana aka Saroj live in the Valmiki colony mentioned above and Mohammad Mumtaz is a teacher and caretaker of the madarsa. The scuffle took place mainly between these two couples.

According to the residents of Valmiki colony, some women had gone to check the updates of the new route which was being constructed. Arguments broke out between them and Mohammad Mumtaz from madarsa and he reportedly hit them with a stick. As per Liaqat, that is when he stepped in to protect the women and himself got injured by the hands of Mumtaz. “The mullahs were attacking the women. When I intervened, they assaulted me saying I stand with Hindus so I must be beaten up,” he said.

He added that he would not side with the madarsa just because they belong to the same religion as him. He said he would stand up for what is right and his neighbours.


He adds that his wife Shabnam also reached the spot and got assaulted. Shabnam also claimed that their 13-year-old daughter also got injured. When she protested, stones were hurled towards her. She even accused the madarsa owner of trying to give the incident a communal colour when it is not so. She says that while her name is Shabnam, her family calls her Saroj and hence they (madarsa caretaker) wants to popularise her name as Saroj so that it appears like a Hindu name and the incident could get a communal tone.

Shabnam grew up in the colony and says that thirty years back, it was just a small mosque for a few Muslim families but over time it has been illegally expanded into a madarsa with 40 rooms.

Meanwhile, the madarsa has its own version. Mumtaz and his brother Izaz Ali, who both teach at the madarsa and take its care, claim that the quarrel was started by Liaqat and his wife, who first pelted stones at them. Mumtaz claims that he picked up the stick (but did not hit anyone with it) because they called them goons and terrorists. Mumtaz added that the group had gone to instigate and fight and not to enquire about the progress of the road.

Mumtaz adds that the mosque came at the dispute land before the Valmiki camp came up. He showed a kabristan (Muslim graveyard) and claimed that the whole land was a kabristan and they set up the shanties here and encroached upon the land.

Both the groups, however, claim that the dispute is now over. That the new route is now ready and they all hope that the matter is now resolved. But the land dispute appears far from over.

Zubair, another resident from the Valmiki colony has moved the High Court against usurping of the public land by madarsa by closing the passage. Mumtaz reportedly claims that it is Zubair who stoked the Hindu-Muslim tension in the neighbourhood who actually wanted to encroach upon the madarsa land.

Menawhile, from the above case, it is amply clear that the dispute was because of the land and not a ‘hate crime’. The crime was clearly not driven by the religious or caste identities of the victims. One wonders, why does IndiaSpend continue peddling the fake narrative? It is as if IndiaSpend is not even trying to hide its anti-Hindu bias anymore.

This is not the only time propaganda websites have shown their anti-Hindu bias in their supposed objective analysis. We had earlier reported how Hindustan Times had also launched a biased ‘hate tracker’ which had similar biased reporting and factual flaws. IndiaSpend’s ‘fact-checker’ website also launched a ‘tracker’ which tried to track ‘cow-related’ crimes‘. That data was also equally flawed and biased.

Abhishek Banerjee, a columnist with OpIndia, had written about how IndiaSpend have regularly indulged in peddling this narrative. They had earlier filed a report how 87 people had died in cow-related violence since 2010, of which 97% of the crimes happened after Modi came to power. The above ‘interactive fact-check’ map is an extension of the same report’. As can be seen even then that their ‘research’ was based on ‘Google search’ with particular keywords.

Is there more to it than what meets the eye? Readers should also remember that the founding trustee of Indiaspend, factchecker.in’s parent organization, is now the Data Analytics head of Congress party. Should we connect the dots?

Union government approves granting of ST status to 6 OBC communities in Assam

OpIndia Staff
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Union government approves granting of ST status to 6 OBC communities in Assam

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh announced today that the union cabinet has approved the demand of six communities in Assam to be granted Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. He said that the government has adopted a draft bill for the same, which will be tabled by the Tribal Affairs minister in the parliament during the current session.


On 7th January 2019, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) accepted the proposal of the Assam government to award ST status to six communities in the state. The Koch Rajbongshi, Sutiya, Moran, Matak, Tai Ahom and Tea Tribes are listed as OBCs at present, and they are demanding ST status for a long time. Following the clearance from NCST, the union government decided to go ahead with the next step in granting the ST status.

Before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJP had promised the six communities that if it comes to power, it will take steps in granting ST status to them. After BJP won the elections and formed the government, they had started the process of the same. After BJP formed the state government in Assam in 2016, the home ministry had formed a committee to recommend the modalities to grant the ST status.

Although the government had planned to grant the ST status before Assam elections in 2016, they could not do that due to the complexities involved. For example, the tea tribe does not refer to a single tribal, it consists of as many as 96 communities working in tea gardens. There was also opposition from the existing communities in the ST category, launching counter-agitations against the proposal. They felt that inclusion of new communities in ST category will hamper the existing Scheduled Tribes. Due to these reasons, the proposal got delayed. The delay had also prompted the six communities to re-start their agitations in support of their demand.

While clearing the proposal, NCST has asked the state government to revise the quantum of reservation for OBCs and STs, so that the interests of the existing STs can be protected. It is expected that the reservation for OBCs will be reduced while the same for STs will be increased, to accommodate the new communities under ST category.

Among the six communities, the Koch Rajbongshis have been the most vocal in the demand, and they are also demanding a separate state for them named Kamatapur, comprising the adjoining parts of Assam and West Bengal. Most people of this community are located in the districts of western Assam. The people of Sutiya, Moran, Matak, Tai Ahom communities are mostly concentrated in Eastern Assam. While the people of Tea Tribes are scattered across the state in various tea estates, which includes Santhals and other communities traditionally working in tea gardens.

Among the six, three communities were rulers in the state in past. The Tai-Ahoms ruled over the Ahom Kingdom for 600 years in Assam, while the rulers of the Kamata kingdom belonged to Koch Rajbongshi community, known as the Koch dynasty. The Sutiya kingdom was located on eastern Assam, and lasted almost 500 years.

Granting the Scheduled Tribe status to the six communities will mean that more than 50 percent population in the state will be tribal, making Assam a tribal dominated state. It will also increase the number of assembly constituencies reserved for ST candidates. At present, 16 out of 126 seats are reserved for 126, which may increase considerably after the expansion of ST category. This will also have an impact on the issue of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh in the state. One of the fears about rising number of Bengali Muslims from the neighbouring country is that they will gain political power by electing their own representatives. The areas where most Bengali Muslims live overlap with the area dominated by the six communities. When assembly seats in that places will be reserved for STs, that fear will go away in that places.

After the hostilities BJP is facing in Assam due to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, this announcement is expected to bring some relief to the party and the government in the state. The support of these communities will be crucial in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

BJP’s Rath Yatra : SC issues notice to West Bengal government on denial of permission

OpIndia Staff
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BJP’s Rath Yatra : SC issues notice to West Bengal government on denial of permission

The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the West Bengal government, asking it to respond to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s appeal against a Calcutta High Court order restraining the party from conducting rath yatras in the state.

According to reports, the Supreme Court bench of Justices L. Nageshwar Rao and S. K. Kaul has asked the BJP state unit to submit a revised plan of its “Ganatantra Bachao Yatras” to the state government. The court posted the matter for hearing on January 15.

The Bharatiya Janata Pary’s West Bengal unit had gone to the Supreme Court after the Calcutta High Court had denied permission to hold rallies in the state. The Supreme Court had also refused an early hearing in December when BJP had approached it.

BJP had planned three grand rallies from different parts of the State, travelling across the State’s 42 parliamentary constituencies over one-and-a-half months to protest against the Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool Congress government.

Amit Shah was supposed to flag them off from Cooch Behar on December 7and PM Modi was meant to end the campaign by addressing a rally in Kolkata. The state police and administration had then denied permission citing threats of ‘communal disharmony’ in the state.

The BJP had alleged in the plea that the state government was repeatedly attacking the fundamental right of citizens due to which different petitions have been filed challenging the state government’s order to deny permission to hold yatras.

The BJP in its petition had stated that the party has been facing severe “political vendetta” by the ruling All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) Party since the year 2014, with permissions being denied to it at the last minute with the sole intention of harassing it. In its plea, the BJP accused the executives in the State as “political agents” of the ruling party and asserted that they intentionally did not respond to letters sent by the BJP seeking permission to conduct the yatras.

After escorting women inside Sabarimala, Kerala government arrests women trying to enter the Vavar Mosque

OpIndia Staff
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After escorting women inside Sabarimala, Kerala government arrests women trying to enter the Vavar Mosque

The Kerala government has arrested three women of a Hindu outfit for attempting to enter the Vavar mosque at Erumely in Kerala on Monday evening.

The Vavar mosque is located en route to the Sabarimala hill shrine and is often visited by pilgrims travelling to Sabarimala, but like most mosques, it does not permit women to enter the prayer hall.

However the three women, identified as Revathy and Susheela Devi from Tiruppur and Gandhimathi from Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, allegedly belong to a Hindu fringe group called the Indu Makkal Katchi or Hindu Makkal Katchi accompanied by three men of the same outfit were arrested for trying to hurt religious sentiments and for trying to instigate communal tension, according to Kozhinjambara police.

“They wanted to create communal tension. The police knew about their visit to Palakkad and security was tightened at all seven check posts near the district. The group were finally found and taken into custody at the Velathavalam check post in Palakkad,” a source told The News Minute.

The three had earlier this week, announced that they would be visiting the Vavar mosque as they felt that if women could enter the Sabarimala temple, they should also be allowed to enter the mosque.

The group has been charged under section 153 A of the IPC (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc.) and will be presented before the magistrate after the police record their arrest.

The Chief of Hindu Makkal Katchi, Arjun Sampath in September 2018, at the time when SC announced its verdict on Sabarimala had dubbed the judgement as a “big shock” for all devotees of Lord Ayyappa. He had then urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring a bill in Parliament to ensure “status quo at the Sabarimala temple, to allow men alone in the temple”.

Last week, acting on the communist government’s instructions, two ultra-left activists Bindu Ammini and Kanakdurga were smuggled into Sabarimala Temple in the wee hours using state power.

This conspiracy aided by the Kerala government, who have earlier also attempted several times to allow activists and non-Hindus to enter the Sabarimala shrine, attracted immense protest, as it is being perceived as a mockery of the faith of millions of Swami Ayyappa devotees, who have respected the temple’s age-old tradition.

The intolerance of the Communist government and the zealotry of liberals has created an extremely tensed atmosphere in the state. Several people have criticised the stand taken by the communist government on the issue and have called out the double standard.


Kerala has been converted into a battleground as the government’s conspiracies and atrocities to desecrate the Sabarimala temple and its long-drawn traditions seizes to stop.

In the past few days, Kerala has witnessed widespread violence and protests after the constant attempts by the communist government to desecrate the temple traditions were opposed by Hindu organisations. The Sabarimala Karma Samiti, an umbrella organisation of Hindu groups had called for a 12-hour bandh in the state.

On January 2, after the government sneaked two leftist activists into the temple, a member of the Sabarimala Karma Samiti was stoned to death allegedly by CPIM workers. Several BJP workers supporting the bandh were also attacked by government-supported goons.

The time when Indira Gandhi used CBI to destroy 4 government officers ‘socially, physically and morally’

K Bhattacharjee
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The time when Indira Gandhi used CBI to destroy 4 government officers ‘socially, physically and morally’

In an earlier report, we elaborated on the manner in which former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, forced the Punjab National Bank to pay an overdraft to the Associate Journals Ltd., a party owned entity, without any security. There’s no knowledge of the money every being repaid at all. In another report, we elaborated on the crony capitalism that through which Indira Gandhi benefited Maruti.

Today, we shall pour over the pages of the Shah Commission’s report once again which was formed to investigate the excesses committed during the Emergency. We shall discuss one specific chapter where four senior officials of the Government of India were harassed and humiliated by Indira Gandhi using the CBI as a tool. And once again, we shall see that Maruti Private Ltd. finds itself at the heart of the story.

The Beginning

In 1975, a question was asked by Member of Parliament Jyotirmoy Basu regarding the import of machinery by Maruti. Four officers of the ministries, Krishnaswamy (Deputy Secretary, Heavy Industries), A.S. Rajan (Development Officer, DGTD), L.R. Cavele (Chief Marketing Manager, PEC) and P.S. Bhatnagar (Deputy Marketing Manager, PEC) were collecting information to enable the concerned Minister to provide an adequate answer to the question.

Between April 9 and 14, 1975, Krishnaswamy, Rajan and Bhatnagar contacted Maruti and Batliboi and Company during the process of gathering information. At least Maruti did not provide the information that was asked of them. What followed is a twisted story of gross abuse of power and the harassment of officers who, on the basis of evidence, committed no crime at all.

On the 14th of April, 1975, the Minister of Heavy Industries, T.A. Pai, was contacted by R.K. Dhawan, Additional Private Secretary to the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and complained against the officers in his ministry who were collecting information from Batliboi. Dhawan then called Rajan and Bhatnagar himself and directed them to stop collecting information on the concerned matter. Cavale too received a call from N.K. Singh, Special Assistant to the Commerce Minister, demanding to know what transpired regarding the question on the import of machinery by Maruti.

Pai was then summoned to her residence by Indira Gandhi. According to Pai, she was “completely upset and furious”. She claimed that the management of Batliboi was harassed by officers from his ministry. She then directed Dhawan to contact D. Sen, then Director of the CBI, and instruct the latter to initiate inquiries into the conduct of these officers and raid their houses. She also instructed D.P. Chattopadhyay, then Minister for Commerce, to initiate inquiries into the conduct of Bhatnagar who had harassed certain parties.

The Harassment

Chattopadhyay ordered disciplinary proceedings to be initiated against Bhatnagar. He admitted in testimony before the Commission that he took Indira Gandhi’s words as gospel truth on the matter and he relied on his conviction that the Prime Minister would have complete knowledge on the matter and thus, did not bother to verify the information that he had received. Bhatnagar was suspended on the 15th of April and he was informed of it at around 10 p.m. at night.

Pai, on the other hand, did call his officers and discussed the matter with them. He also contacted the management of Batliboi. After his communication with both parties involved, he was convinced that there was no substance in the allegations levelled against his officers.

After receiving the Prime Minister’s instructions through her Additional Private Secretary, the Director of CBI, Sen, contacted the Deputy Director of the Intelligence Cell, Rajpal on the 15th of April and instructed him to verify the information against Krishnaswamy, Rajan and Bhatnagar. Rajpal was informed by Sen that these men were corrupt and possessed assets disproportionate to their income. He was instructed to submit his report within five days following which Rajpal directed his subordinates to collect the information and start surveillance. On the 17th of April, cases were formally registered against Bhatnagar and Rajan under the Prevention of Corruption Act. A day later, their residences were searched by CBI officers.

Cavale was transferred to Chennai from Delhi. He decided to not suffer the insult lying down. P.J. Fernandes, Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, took up the matter with the Chairman of the STC. The Chairman informed him that he was helpless and was only following instructions from superiors. Cavale was advised by the Chairman to accept the transfer order to avoid further “complications and possible harassment”. On the 21st, the CBI started their verification of him and he was put on surveillance. And although the inquiry against him did not reveal anything incriminating, six days later, the Director of CBI ordered the registration of a preliminary inquiry against him.

According to K. Vijayan, Superintendent of Police, he was pressured by Joint Director A.B. Chaudhary to write a note suggesting a search on Cavale’s house. Vijayan thus recorded the note and on the basis of this note, Cavale’s residence was searched on the 3rd of May and a case was registered against him for investigation under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Ultimately, after he was asked to resign, Cavale finally succumbed under pressure and tendered his resignation.

A similar fate awaited Krishnaswamy. Only in his case, his wife and his parents would be dragged through the mud as well. Without sufficient evidence, Sen registered a preliminary inquiry against him on the 27th of April. On the 3rd of May, his residence was searched. The Deputy Director of Intelligence had repeatedly told Sen that Krishnaswamy had a good reputation, had a moderate standard of living and he came from a well-off family. Despite Rajpal’s words, the Director of CBI threw caution to the wind. Krishnaswamy eventually went on a 4-month leave due to the harassment which was extended on half-pay. He was ultimately reverted to his parent cadre, the Railways.

Another case was registered against him by the Delhi Police on the insistence of the CBI under the Excise Act for possession of liquor beyond the permissible limit. In the end, however, the Trial Court did not find him guilty of any violation and acquitted him on the 4th of March, 1977.

The Commission’s Conclusions

The Commission reached some pretty damning conclusions. It reached the conclusion that officers from Batliboi were not harassed. Two representatives from the company denied that the officers had insulted anyone and asserted that they had not complained about it to anyone.

The Commission also concluded that there was a “gross abuse of the authority” vested in Indira Gandhi as the Prime Minister of the Country. It also concluded she had pressurized the Director of CBI into harassing the officers.

The Commission also held Indira Gandhi directly responsible for the filing of false cases against the officers and their humiliation. It also concluded that she did so because the information being collected could prove detrimental to Maruti. The report states, “…merely because they were responsible for collecting information in the discharge of their duties which would have been prejudicial to the interests of Maruti Limited, a concern in which Shri Sanjay Gandhi, her son, was vitally interested.”

It was emphatically concluded by the Commission that “there was nothing against any of these officers except the vague complaints if at all, allegedly made by the MPs and conveyed to the Director, CBI by Shri Dhawan at the instance of the Prime Minister.” It also lamented that “the CBI had destroyed these officers socially, physically and morally”.

A Pattern of Behaviour

In light of these revelations, it appears pretty clear that the Gandhi Parivar has toyed with every machinery of the state to destroy the lives of honest men and men of integrity in order to preserve their own interests. It appears ironical that the scion of the Gandhi Parivar, Rahul Gandhi, now accuses the NDA government of compromising our agencies. Perhaps Rahul Gandhi is aware of the history of his own family and therefore, assumes that the manner in which his family has conducted itself is the natural way for people to behave when in power.

The corruption during Indira Gandhi’s regime was such that even the American Embassy and people from other global agencies were in shock. A WikiLeaks cable revealed that bribery was rampant, no major figure could be charged with her approval and she went against her political opponents very harshly while excusing the enormous corruption within her own ranks. The money earned through bribery was deposited in the party funds, it is said, with a cut for the collector.

Indira Gandhi’s era was dark indeed and corruption certainly contributed as much to the darkness that the Emergency did.

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