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ED attaches Mehul Choksi’s Thailand factory worth Rs 13 crores

OpIndia Staff
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ED attaches Mehul Choksi’s Thailand factory worth Rs 13 crores

Bank fraud accused and fugitive Mehul Choksi has landed in fresh trouble, as the Enforcement Directorate has issued a provisional order to attach his Thailand factory, worth Rs 13 crore.


According to reports, the ED, after probe and gathering concrete evidence about a Thailand factory, discovered it is owned by Abbeycrest (Thailand) Ltd. which is connected to Choksi’s Geetanjali group of companies. ED said that the attachment has been done under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and the factory is a beneficiary of the Letters of Understanding (LoUs), that were fraudulently issued from the Punjab National Bank, worth Rs 92.3 crore. ED under the same act had attached various other properties of Choksi last year.

The ED will reportedly soon issue Letters Rogatories (judicial requests) for the legal formalisation of the attachment of the property in Thailand.

“With this attachment, the value of attachment/seizure in the PNB scam is to the tune of Rs 4,765 crore (approx). Further investigation is in the process,” ED was quoted by media reports.

Nirav Modi, his uncle Mehul Choksi and others are being probed under various criminal laws after the Indian financial sector was rocked by a startling revelation of fraud early last year following a complaint by the Punjab National Bank (PNB). Both Nirav Modi and Choksi are currently absconding. Mehul Choksi is reported to be residing in the Carribean country of Antigua, with which India doesn’t have an extradition treaty. In December, last year, his advocates had given an assurance to the court that their client is fully cooperating with banks, to settle the case. They also said that Choksi cannot travel to India, due to his bad health.

 Minister of State for External Affairs General VK Singh (Retd.) had informed parliament that fugitive Nirav Modi is currently in the United Kingdom. He had also stated that extradition efforts have been initiated by ED and CBI. The Interpol has also issued a Red Corner Notice against him as per request by Indian authorities.

Uttar Pradesh: Hindus protest over Muslims throwing garbage at religious site in Bahraich, violence ensues

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Hindus protest over Muslims throwing garbage at religious site in Bahraich, violence ensues

Communal tensions have been reported at Kundaspara in Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Fakharpur Police station. It is reported that a Savitri Vat is located in the area where villagers gather to offer their prayers. The villagers claim that recently, an attempt was made by Muslims to occupy the spot forcibly.

It was also claimed that people from the Muslim community, with the intention to take control of the site, throw animal parts and garbage to defile the place. Thus, when Hindus reach the place to offer their prayers, certain goons from the Muslim community chased them away.

When Hindus protested against it, people from the other community indulged in stone-pelting. Four people, including the BJP booth president, were injured in the incident. The villagers also claim that they had written to the Police several times complaining about the Police of people from the other community but no action was taken and their concerns were not addressed.

Patrika also reported that the villagers had threatened to convert their religion if justice is not served to them. They are reported to have said that since it appeared to be a crime for Hindus to offer their prayers at their religious site under the Yogi government, then converting to other faiths appeared to be an acceptable course of action.

However, when OpIndia.com contacted the local police station, they denied that anyone had issued any threat to convert their religion. The Police also said that it was more of an incident between two families rather than two communities. We were told, “A Muslim family lives right next to the Chabutra and they throw garbage towards the place of worship against which people protested. So a minor conflict erupted as a consequence between the two sides. It wasn’t an instance of conflict between Hindus and Muslims as such, it was a dispute between two families.”

The Police further stated that efforts were currently on to resolve the dispute. A Panchayat was also organized for the purpose where people from both communities participated. The situation is said to be under control and the Police said that a boundary wall will soon be constructed to settle the matter.

Naseeruddin Shah who had launched a website to ‘expose’ Modi now lies about having ‘high hopes’ from him

OpIndia Staff
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Naseeruddin Shah who had launched a website to ‘expose’ Modi now lies about having ‘high hopes’ from him

Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah has been in the thick of things recently. The actor didn’t appreciate Virat Kohli’s aggression during the Test match series between India and Australia and called the cricketer “world’s worst behaved player”. That’s where the trouble began.

Soon, the actor started receiving harsh criticism for his tirade against Kohli. Under such circumstances, Naseeruddin came out and said that he was scared for the lives of his children in today’s India. Along expected lines, his statement created quite the stir in mainstream media and he had to skip the Ajmer Literature Festival after various groups launched protests against him.

Then, finally, Naseeruddin featured in a video by Amnesty International, an NGO that is under investigation for alleged FCRA violations where he can be seen supporting the ‘Urban Naxals’ who were arrested in connection with the violence at Koregaon Bhima and an alleged assassination plot of Prime Minister Narendra  Modi.

Therefore, Naseeruddin’s opposition to Narendra Modi is quite obvious from all his actions. But, it appears that the actor is also lying blatantly to further his agenda. In an interview with India Today, when he was asked about his opinion of Narendra Modi, he said, “That is a very difficult one,” and added, “I had great faith in 2014 when he ascended to power. I won’t go so far as to say that my faith has been shaken. I still look forward to the future.”

Amusingly enough, in 2013, Naseeruddin certainly doesn’t appear to have faith when one looks at his statements and actions from that time. In fact, he sponsored an effort in 2013 which was directed to ‘expose’ Narendra Modi.

Naseeruddin can appear very convincing when he is speaking but that has more to do with his skills as an actor, it’s his job to appear convincing. The internet, however, has a long memory and never forgets a thing.

It has become a general theme for actors to say outlandish things and scream ‘no space for dissent’ whenever people criticize their statements. It appears that snowflakes in Bollywood do not understand how Freedom of Expression works. If they have the right to voice their ‘dissent’, then others have the right voice their own dissent against the ‘dissent’ by celebrities. However, celebrities appear to be under the impression that they are beyond ridicule and criticism merely because they’re celebrities.

How ‘cow’ becomes cattle, ‘cow vigilantes’ become ‘mob’ and ‘Muslim man’ becomes ‘man’ when perpetrator is Muslim

OpIndia Staff
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How ‘cow’ becomes cattle, ‘cow vigilantes’ become ‘mob’ and ‘Muslim man’ becomes ‘man’ when perpetrator is Muslim

A lot has been said and written about cow vigilantes and the havoc they have wreaked since 2014. The running narrative is that Hindus, who worship the cow are on a rampage to lynch and kill all Muslims who consume beef. However, there are certain instances of cow vigilantism that escape the outrage by the “liberals” mostly because the perpetrators are Muslims.

On 30th December, a Muslim man, Kabul Miyan was lynched to death by a mob on the suspicion of cow theft in Araria, Bihar. The ghastly incident took place after two cows and a calf was stolen from another Muslim man, Muslim Miyan, and the villagers were keeping a vigil to locate the cattle. When they said Kabul moving around suspiciously, they caught hold of him and thrashed him. Thereafter, Muslim Miyan’s cattle was reportedly found near the spot of the incident.

According to reports, the mob was led by a Muslim man called Mohammed Muslim. In a video of the gruesome attack that went viral, Mohammed can be seen laughing and encouraging the mob. During the preliminary investigation, it was revealed that Kabul had 13 cases registered against him in Sikati police station. Police officers are now trying to identify the people involved in the incident and take stern steps against them.

This incident, however, failed to inspire the kind of ire that several other lynchings inspired. There was no ‘Not in my name’ placards, nobody called India ‘lynchistan’ and there were no cries of justice for the Muslim man beaten to death, as there always is, ignoring the fact that this phenomenon is more of a law and order situation and not that of religion.

In fact, the reporting was starkly different from when media reports incidents when Muslims are lynched by Hindus for exactly the same reasons.

NDTV headlined their story, “Man, 55, Beaten To Death By Mob Over Alleged Cattle Theft In Bihar’s Araria”.

How NDTV reported the Araria incident

It was interesting to note how “Muslim man” became just “Man”, “Cow Vigilantes” became just a “mob” and “cow” became “cattle”. Starkly different from some of their other reportage about such instances.

How NDTV reported another incident from 2017

IndiaToday followed the same pattern. Their headline had the exact same keywords as the NDTV headline. Man. Cattle.

IndiaToday does an NDTV

Their reportage was, however, extremely different when allegedly, the mob was headed by one Anuj Bansal.

IndiaToday mentions “Muslim” and “cow” in another article where perpetrator was Hindu

IndianExpress of the “And they hanged him” fame could not be left behind in the media free fall.

Their headline was simple. Man lynched on suspicion of cattle theft.

Indian Express forgets to mention the religion of victim and ‘cow’ becomes ‘cattle’

While Indian Express has run several reports an opinion pieces where the Muslim card was played abundantly in other crimes. This one, for example, written by Harsh Mander.

Indian Express runs op-eds that play the Muslim victim card

While we have known for quite some time that Hindu victims don’t inspire sympathy from the media, just like the sadhus beaten to death by Muslims because they opposed cow-slaughter never got any attention, it is unfortunate to know that the headlines are watered down even when the victims are Muslims.

Evidently, it is not the religion of the victim that drives their outrage but the religion of the perpetrator. In cases where a Hindu is said to have committed the crime, the outrage that has ensued from the usual quarters have been high. In this case, for example, where the mob was led by a Muslim and the cow that was stolen was also of a Muslim, the headlines have been watered down to replace “cow” with “cattle” and there is no sign of “Muslim” or “Vigilantism” in the headline, as is the norm.

While this narrative has been used to demonise Hindus and the BJP alike, as soon as the government changed in Rajasthan from BJP to Congress, the media starting whitewashing the lynching incidents that were taking place in the state. From the ‘dara hus musalman’ narrative, the religion vanished and Sageer Khan became a nameless youth who was beaten up.


Often, it is seen that cases of mob violence are related to cows being stolen from those who depend on these animals for their livelihood. Just like in this case from Bihar. However, this aspect is summarily ignored by most “liberal” commentators because painting Hindus are out-of-control religious mobs suits their narrative of demonising Hindus.

Media seems to help actively in creating the narrative against Hindus, while the real issue of cow smuggling is pushed under the rug.

Punjab: Days after Congress leaders boasted of clearing farm loans, farmer commits suicide in Bathinda

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab: Days after Congress leaders boasted of clearing farm loans, farmer commits suicide in Bathinda

A 55-year old farmer has reportedly committed suicide in Bathinda, Punjab after he was unable to clear a debt of Rs 3.5 lakhs. According to reports, 55-year-old Nachhatar Singh of Ramgarh Bhunder village in Bathinda allegedly committed suicide yesterday in his fields.

As per reports, Nachhatar Singh consumed poison in his field yesterday. He owned 2.5 acres of land but had to sell it. Later, Nachhatar’s unmarried brother Teja Singh gifted his 2 acres of land to Nachhatar’s brother Sukhwinder Singh and since then Nachhatar’s family has been farming the land.

Nachhatar’s family had allegedly owed Rs 3.5 lakhs to a bank and a commission agent. Unable to clear the debt, Nachhatar was reportedly under severe mental stress and hence consumed poison in his fields. He was noticed by his son when he carried tea for Nachhatar. He was taken to a nearby hospital and later shifted to a private hospital in Ludhiana where he was declared dead.

BKU Ugrahan, a farmers’ organisation in the area has demanded a compensation of  5 lakhs and a job for his son.

Many incidents of farmer suicides have come to light in recent times. In Karnataka, despite the Congress-JDS government declaring 44,000 crores for farm loan waivers, it was reported that only 800 farmers have been benefitted so far. In Madhya Pradesh too, the newly formed Congress government, despite promising an unconditional loan waiver, had announced a waiver scheme that benefits only a select number of farmers and comes with a bunch of terms and conditions.

PM Modi had recently criticised Congress’ loan waiver promises as a ‘lollipop’ to cheat people and had stated that farmers need a more comprehensive and effective solution.

It is notable here that just three days ago, two Punjab Congress leaders had protested against PM Modi’s statement about the Punjab government failing to help farmers and had carried a poster before the parliament that the Congress government in Punjab had cleared loans of  417387 farmers in the state by spending Rs 3445 crores.

Ayyappa devotee died of skull injuries by CPIM workers, not cardiac arrest as Kerala CM had claimed

OpIndia Staff
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Ayyappa devotee died of skull injuries by CPIM workers, not cardiac arrest as Kerala CM had claimed

Two days after Chandran Unnithaan, an Ayappa devotee and member of Sabarimala Karma Samithi died after stone pelting by CPIM workers, the preliminary autopsy report has proved contradictory to what Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan had stated.


According to reports, on January 3, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan had addressed the media confirming the death of Unnithaan and had stated that he had died due to a cardiac arrest. Vijayan had reportedly stated, “There was tension at Pandalam at 6.30 pm yesterday. A person named Chandran Unnithan got injured in it. As per the information received he died of cardiac arrest at the Believer’s Church hospital at 11 pm. Cardiac arrest can’t be due to stone pelting.”

It is notable here that after the communist government in Kerala had secretly escorted to of their women activists belonging to the restricted age group inside the Sabarimala temple, there were agitations and protests all over the state. In the evening, there was a clash between the members of the Karma Samithi and CPIM workers near their party office in Pandalam.

As per reports, CPIM workers had pelted stones at the members of the Sabarimala Karma Samithi from the rooftop of the party office building. Chandran Unnithaan, a  55-year-old resident of Koorambala was grievously injured in the stone pelting. He was taken to the Pandalam Hospital and when his condition worsened he was reportedly shifted to the Believers Church Medical College Hospital in Thiruvalla. There he was declared dead.

An autopsy was reportedly conducted at the Kottayam Government Medical College Hospital on Thursday morning. As per latest reports, doctors conducting the autopsy have confirmed that the cause of Unnithaan’s death was due to the skull injuries. The News Minute has quoted sources from the Medical College saying, “The cause of death as of preliminary examination is from the skull injuries. Though he was a heart patient, it is the injuries that lead to bleeding and death”.

Unnithaan’s death summary reportedly states that there was heavy bleeding from his ear, nose, and mouth due to the skull injuries. He was declared dead at 10.48 pm on Wednesday.

As per latest reports, Kerala police have now confirmed that Unnithaan’s death was not due to cardiac arrest but pre-meditated murder. Yesterday, two CPIM workers named Kannan and Aju had been arrested in connection with Unnithaan’s death.

Yesterday, three SDPI workers were also arrested for stabbing 4 BJP workers in Vadanapally, Thrissur. The Sabarimala Karma Samithi had called for a dawn-to-dusk bandh in the state in protest of the communist government’s attempts to desecrate the Sabarimala temple traditions.

The Jacobite Syrian Church should focus on the rape culture in Churches instead of Sabarimala

K Bhattacharjee
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The Jacobite Syrian Church should focus on the rape culture in Churches instead of Sabarimala

People must have noticed, Christians are quite heavily invested in the Battle for Sabarimala. They have been celebrating and appear overjoyed at the prospect of desecration of the abode of Bhagwan Ayyappa.

Recently, the Jacobite Syrian Church had supported the Women’s Wall initiative of the Kerala government. The Church announced that it intended to gather 1 lakh women for the event that was organized to felicitate the desecration of the Hindu Temple. Several such are celebrating and even supporting the Communist regime in Kerala in their bid to desecrate Sabarimala.

It’s particularly infuriating because there are various other avenues where the efforts of Christians are required for the sake of women empowerment. Churches, all over the world, have become a breeding ground for sexual predators. The religious institutions of Christianity are infested with rapists and paedophiles. And yet, every prominent person from the community appears more interested in the desecration of a Hindu Temple than they are about the welfare of Christian women and children.

For instance, a recent investigation by the Associated Press revealed the horrific extent to which nuns are exploited in Catholic institutions. The nuns were raped repeatedly and yet the Catholic hierarchy completely ignored the sex pests within their midst. Many of them have accepted sexual abuse as a part of life, they are just too scared of the backlash from powerful priests. They are reluctant to even speak about their experiences. And why shouldn’t they be? We all saw what happened when a nun dared to confront Bishop Franco Mulakkal.

In June last year, when a nun from Kuravilangad convent accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the Malankara Orthodox Church of raping her multiple times for years, the entire Church Machinery rushed to the Bishop’s defence. Not only her, but even her supporters are now banished and treated as outcasts inside the accuser’s convent in rural Kerala.

The Catholic federation threatened nuns that they will be thrown out if they protested against the Bishop. Father Augustine issued warnings of disciplinary actions by the Church if anyone dared to protest against the Bishop. Upon his return from prison after bail was granted, he was welcomed by his diocese in a grand ceremony. This is what rape culture looks like, this is what prominent people from the Christian community should fight against, not the pious devotees of Bhagwan Ayyappa.

Incidentally, while the Jacobite Church was busy gathering support for the desecration of Sabarimala and Christian journalists were celebrating the desecration, Christian women and children were holed up in a Church after being molested by DYFI activists. They feared for their lives and were scared to even step out of the Church. No Christians in the media chose to spoke out against the Communists in Kerala. There was and still is a stoic silence on the matter.

Then there is the ‘small’ matter of rampant paedophilia within the Church. Almost every month, a new horror story of paedophile priests breaks out into the public domain. 2018 was a terrible year for the Catholic Church. In July, the Vatican was rocked after Chile raided various church offices in a massive crackdown after child sex abuse allegations surfaced against the clergy. Then, in August, a Grand Jury Report stated that the Catholic Church had covered up sexual abuse by its priests in Pennsylvania, USA for decades.

Later in the same month, the Pope himself was accused of covering up sexual abuse within the Church by an Archbishop. What is worse, the Archbishop, who is a former papal nuncio to the United States, claims that the Pope had knowledge about the sexual predatory behaviour of a particular priest and yet promoted him to an extremely powerful position. And not too long after, a study commissioned by the Church itself revealed that over 3,600 children were sexually abused by its men in Germany between 1946 and 2014.

Pause for a moment and try to imagine the enormity of the crisis within Christian institutions. The Pope himself is accused of covering up paedophilia, perhaps the most horrible crime of all. And yet, the Christians from the ’eminent class’ in the media, in politics and Churches are not willing to deal with the sexual predator in their own home at all.

Why does it seem like prominent people from the Christian community hate Hinduism far more than they love their own children and women? Even when they do speak out against the Church, they do so to prove their ‘secular’ credentials, not because they are really interested in helping these poor women and children.

I find it extremely hard to believe that ’eminent citizens’ from the Christian community are celebrating the desecration of Sabarimala because of their commitment towards women empowerment. If they were indeed serious about their commitment, there wouldn’t have been an utter lack of effort to fight the rape culture within their own institutions. Charity begins at home after all.

Defiling the sacred spaces of pagan cultures has been the endeavour of Christian fanatics ever since the inception of Christianity. It’s deeply worrying that even at an age where sexual crimes appear to be rampant in Christian institutions, powerful people from the Christian community appear to be more concerned with the desecration of Hindu Temples.

Consider this, they are more concerned about Sabarimala than the fact that the Vatican Church is being headed by a man who has been accused of covering up paedophilia himself. There is no victim at Sabarimala. There are no sexual predators either. And yet, Churches and Christians in the media are far more concerned with Hindu ritualistic practices and traditions of the one shrine among the crores of shrines dedicated to crores of deities than the rape culture within their own institutions. Under such circumstances, could they really be believed when they say they are fighting Hindu traditions for the sake of women empowerment?

As for the irrationality of the Hindu tradition at Sabarimala, as hinted towards by the journalist, religion by its very nature is beyond the scope of conventional rationality and logic. Therefore, religious practices should be understood in their own terms. For instance, to ancient pagans, many aspects of Christianity appeared extremely comical. Try as they might, they could not fathom how were Christians so convinced that a God who could not even save himself from being crucified would save them from the fires of hell. As a Hindu, monotheism itself appears ridiculous to me. For I am convinced that a belief in the multiplicity of the Divine is the natural order of things. Even secular religions are pretty irrational. I can never understand how anyone could possibly believe in the existence of something as vague as human rights.

Besides, Hinduism is not a religion based on what book. There is no uniformity in Hinduism. Where one temple doesn’t allow women of a certain age group, another temple doesn’t allow men at all. To view Hinduism through the prism of Abrahamic religions is a folly.

Therefore, instead of mocking people for their irrational belief, we all have them, Churches and ’eminent’ citizens from the Christian community should focus a little less on Sabarimala and more on the sexual exploitation of women and children by the Churches and Christian priests. Unlike female devotees of Bhagwan Ayyappa, Christian victims are desperate for their help.

Actor Naseeruddin Shah collaborates with Amnesty International to paint a grim picture about India

OpIndia Staff
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Actor Naseeruddin Shah collaborates with Amnesty International to paint a grim picture about India

The controversial organisation Amnesty International, which is facing investigations for violation of FCRA regulations, has roped in actor Naseeruddin Shah to promote its anti-India propaganda. A video has emerged in which Naseeruddin Shah can be seen portraying India in a bad light and raising false alarms against the purported deterioration of law and order in the country.


Amnesty International with the help of Naseeruddin Shah wants to convey in this video that the Human rights enshrined in the constitution are under constant threat in India. As can be seen in the video, Shah alleges that the country we had envisaged is rapidly devolving into a place where people who are speaking the truth, those who are raising their voice against corrupt practices, journalists are being targeted by the agencies and Human rights flagrantly violated.

The video starring Naseeruddin Shah paints a grim picture of the country in which people’s Freedom of Expression is curtailed, poor people are subjugated by the rich and powerful, those who speak out the truth are suppressed, journalists gagged.  The video essentially wants to show that the establishment in the country is bent on violating the rights of the people and organisations and coercing them to toe the government’s line.

Last month, Naseeruddin Shah had appeared in a video where he said that he fears for his children in India of today. He had alleged that there is a poison that has spread in the Indian society. His comments had attracted sharp reactions from various sections.

It is notable to mention that the Amnesty International has a bitter history of hostility with the Indian government. The organisation, along with hundreds of NGOs working in India, is under the scanner for receiving foreign funding in violation of laws in the last few years. After the NDA government came to power, agencies have started investigating the funding such organisations receive from abroad. Amnesty International is accused of flouting Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) regulations.

Therefore, it is entirely predictable why Amnesty International has come up with this smear campaign against the Indian government. To receive foreign funding, NGOs are required to enlist under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). There are certain norms to register under FCRA, and only FCRA registered NGOs can receive donations from abroad. Organisations without the registration can receive foreign contribution only after obtaining prior permission from the FCRA department, subject to fulfilling certain conditions. 

In the past too Amnesty International has resorted to besmirching India on the global platform. On the basis of hearsays from an ‘Urban Naxal’ Arun Ferreira, earlier Amnesty International had published an article claiming that India is becoming a dangerous place for Human Rights defenders.

However, with this video, the Amnesty International and Naseeruddin Shah have hit a new low. With no mention of the specific instances of human rights violations, the video reeks of glaring propaganda by the Amnesty International against the Modi government. As the general election is approaching, by raising the bugbear of anarchy and lawlessness in the country, the Amnesty International may well be seeking a regime change that is not hostile to Amnesty International’s various violations of laws.

Congress-JDS government in Karnataka increases tax on petrol and diesel

OpIndia Staff
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Congress-JDS government in Karnataka increases tax on petrol and diesel

Once again exposing the duplicity of the Congress party and its allies, the Congress-JDS Karnataka government has decided to increase the VAT on fuel, thereby increasing the prices of Petrol and Diesel in the state. The VAT on petrol has been raised from 28.75% to 32%, while the same on Diesel is increased from 17.73% to 21%. After the increase, petrol will cost ₹70.84 and diesel will cost ₹64.66 in the state.


It can be noted that when fuel prices were high until a couple of months ago, Congress president Rahul Gandhi regularly criticised the Modi government for the same. He has been demanding that fuel taxes should be brought under GST, which he describes as Gabbar Singh Tax. The Congress president has been demanding that the government should bring down the fuel prices.


The tax component in fuel prices is quite high in India, and it has been demanded to be reduced for a long time. Ironically, Rahul Gandhi’s own governments have been refusing to do, while he keeps attacking the BJP government. In October last year, the union government had reduced fuel prices by ₹2.50. The excise duty was slashed by ₹1.50, while the oil marketing companies were asked to take a cut of ₹1.00. Simultaneously, the finance ministry had requested the states to cut the VAT by a similar amount so that fuel prices come down by ₹5.00.

While most NDA ruled states had reduced VAT accordingly, states ruled by opposition parties had refused to do so, including Karnataka. With today’s increase in taxes, it again proves that while opposition parties attack the central government to earn political mileage, they themselves want the high taxes on fuel to continue and can’t let go the revenue it brings.

Fuel prices have come down substantially over last several weeks, following the reduction in international crude prices.

2019 poised to be a vibrant, eventful game as volunteers on Social Media start #ModiOnceMore campaign

Sanghamitra
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2019 poised to be a vibrant, eventful game as volunteers on Social Media start #ModiOnceMore campaign

2019 elections are just months away and all political parties have been bracing themselves for the mega elections of the world’s largest democracy, which will probably have the world’s largest population voting for a democratic government. The fervour and intensity of days to come can already be seen in India’s political and media climate. While PM Modi began the New Year with a 95-minute long interview to one of the largest news agencies in the country, which is still being talked over, opposition parties have also upped their game, attacking the government and propagating their claims with a renewed vigour.

This is the digital era and election campaigns are led as much in the rallies and roadshows as in digital platforms. Over the years the number of Indians using and depending upon digital media content or their entertainment and information has only increased, and hence, digital media campaigns are going to be even more important for any political party.

The 2014 elections saw the BJP emerging as one of the foremost parties to run a well-organized digital media campaign. Apart from the party machinery that had roped in IT experts to plan, manage and execute their digital and social media game in during the campaigning days, there was also a significant group of volunteers that worked day and night to ensure BJP’s victory.

A group of volunteers took charge of not only taking the BJP’s and Narendra Modi’s message to a larger audience, but it also played a very important role in countering the one-sided media narrative that has been set by the ruling Congress and the elite leftist Lutyens circle.

The volunteers, who are not official BJP workers or party members but mostly professionals in various fields with a wide range of careers like IT experts, software engineers, CAs, entrepreneurs, lawyers and management professionals, helped in running a massive social and digital media campaign that eventually saw BJP winning with an overwhelming mandate and Narendra Modi taking charge as the much awaited prime minister of India.

In the 4.5 years since the 2014 elections, the volunteers have taken on the mantle of what is generally known as the ‘Right Wing’ on social media platforms. They have discussed and analysed issues, critiqued the Modi government when it seemed lacking in effort or execution and played a significant role in calling out the hypocrisy of the self-proclaimed ‘secular liberal’ cabal that had shamelessly whitewashed the crimes of the Congress rule over the six decades and had carried out a slow but vicious war of twisted narratives and false propaganda against the Indic civilisational identity.

As the 2019 elections loom close and the socio-political scenario in the country is again heating up, the volunteers have again gathered together in support of PM Modi. In tunes of the massively successful slogan of 2014, Ab Ki Baar, Modi Sarkar, the group has launched their campaign with a reverberating #ModiOnceMore.


The hashtag was trended among the topmost yesterday. After PM Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and almost all BJP leaders endorsed it, it was one of the most widely circulated trends yesterday. The entire ‘Right Wing’ of social media, seems to have risen up to the occasion, forgetting their occasional disagreements and differences of opinions, to support PM Modi for the 2019 general elections. There are also groups of NRIs who have started a campaign of their own to bring PM Modi in power again.


Apart from the group that focuses on information-rich social media campaigns to negate the malicious propaganda being run by the opposition and their media stooges, there also exists a support base of BJP and PM Modi that appeals to the rural masses in Indian villages. The rural population base is more tilted towards Whatsapp and youtube, rather than Twitter and Facebook and there is a plethora of YouTube videos, popular songs and audio-visual messages that is taking the Modi wave to the masses.

With the advent of PM Modi taking charge of the country, the entire ‘Hindutva’ narrative too, has taken a massive surge in social media platforms. There were numerous songs, videos, and messages speaking of the Hindu cause that have been immensely popularised among the masses. There are also meme pages, blogs, poems and speeches, artworks and even T-shirts that have enjoyed so much popularity that it can be safely said that social media in India has witnessed a Hindu Renaissance of its own.

These songs and videos are based on themes popular in social media. For example, there was a video that went viral a couple of months ago where a young girl proclaims that she has eloped with her boyfriend on her own will and would rather live a life of poverty with the love of her life than endure the restrictions her family subjects her to. Her style of speech and her preference of ‘Nun-Roti’ gained wild popularity on social media.

Some regional artists have made a song based on the ‘Nun-Roti’ theme. The lyrics of the song, mixed with the popular ‘Theek Hai’, proclaim that even if they have to survive on ‘Nun Roti’ they will make sure BJP wins. The song, shared by ApanMusic and sung by a popular singer named Lalu Sajan, has many versions and millions of views on YouTube.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmjzYq9eVpM]

Another version of the song, with the colloquial ‘Theek Hai’ and adorned with doses of innovative Bhojpuri rap is doing rounds on social media too.


After 2014, almost all political parties have realised the power and reach of social media in the country. Statistical reports say that by 2019, India is going to have 258.27 million social media users. With PM Modi’s Digital India push and Reliance Jio ushering the age of affordable fast internet in every region of India, more and more Indians are now active on social media. An effective, focused and powerful campaign is bound to capture the attention of Indians.

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