In a rather absurd turn of events, the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh issued a notification stating that a “toilet seat tax” would be levied on the residents of urban areas. Soon after, the BJP joined by netizens criticised the Congress government over its desperate and bizarre toilet seat tax. While a face-saving move from the Congress government and CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu was expected, the Himachal Pradesh government resorted to blatantly lying about their own notification.
Sharing a news report about Rs 25 toilet seat tax being levied on the residents of urban areas, Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: ‘Unbelievable, if true! Whilst PM Modi ji, builds Swachhata as a people’s movement, here is Congress taxing people for toilets! Shame that they didn’t provide good sanitation during their time, but this step will shame the country.”
Unbelievable, if true! Whilst PM @narendramodi ji, builds Swachhata as a people’s movement, here is @INCIndia taxing people for toilets! Shame that they didn’t provide good sanitation during their time, but this step will shame the country! https://t.co/EPTmOmyufM
As outrage erupted over the controversial tax notification, the Himachal Pradesh government issued a press statement ‘refuting’ the media reports which said that sewerage connections will be given based on the number of seats installed by the building owner. The Congress government ‘clarified’ that “no such notification has been issued by the present government. Sewerage connections will continue to be provided as before. Our aim is to achieve 100 percent connectivity so as to reduce pollution and ensure proper treatment of sewerage.”
The press statement further claims that the recent notification in question has been issued “only regarding water charges, while all other things will remain unchanged.”
Meanwhile, CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said: “We are charging only Rs 100 per water connection…there is no such thing as a toilet tax in Himachal,” Sukhu told reporters. “This is far from facts. Since there are elections in Haryana, they (BJP) talk about Hindu-Muslim and sewerage but there is nothing like that. It is completely false.”
Did the Congress government impose a toilet seat tax in Himachal Pradesh?
While the Congress government has outrightly denied levying toilet seat tax, its own notification exposes their lies. In a notification dated 21-09-2024 and signed by Raksha Sharma, the deputy secretary (Jal Shakti) to the government of Himachal Pradesh, it is clearly mentioned that in urban areas where residents use their own water sources and the sewerage system of the Jal Shakti department, a tax of Rs 25 per seat per month would be levied.
“Where in urban areas, some establishments use their own water sources and the sewerage system of the department, sewerage charges be levied @ Rs. 25/-per seat per month,” the Jal Shakti Department’s notification reads.
Source: Himachal Pradesh Jal Shakti Vibhag
Thus, it is evident that the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh is lying about its own notification in a desperate attempt to escape embarrassment and criticism. While taking a U-turn or backtracking on a decision taken after outrage is not new, by denying their own notification, the Congress party is setting a wrong precedent in Himachal Pradesh.
Notably, Himachal Pradesh has been grappling with a financial crisis compelling the government to take desperate measures. Last month, it was reported that the Congress government introduced a milk cess and an environment cess on consumers. In addition, the state government legalised cannabis cultivation for medicinal and industrial purposes citing its potential as an economic asset. In July, the Congress government decided to discontinue the free electricity scheme for income-tax payers.
On 2nd October, 54-year-old Dr Mark Chavez from San Diago entered a guilty plea in a Los Angeles court to conspiracy charges about the drug-related demise of actor Matthew Perry. He changed his plea regarding his involvement in distributing the surgical anaesthetic ketamine. Perry, the star of the NBC sitcom Friends, received ketamine lozenges after he sold them to Dr. Salvador Plasencia (42), who ran a ketamine clinic.
A month before his passing, Perry discovered Plasencia, who then reportedly asked Chavez to get the medication on his behalf. The latter indicated that he might be open to creating a ketamine clinic if Plasencia asked him, provided there was no “shady stuff.” “The doctors preyed on Perry’s history of addiction in the final months of his life last year to provide him with ketamine in amounts they knew were dangerous,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada revealed while announcing the charges on 15th August.
He will be sentenced on 2nd April 2025 and could spend up to 10 years in prison but the plea enables him to plead guilty to a lesser charge in exchange for his cooperation with the investigation. Chavez who will remain out on a $50,000 bond had already given up his passport and agreed to turn over his medical license, among other conditions. Ketamine was identified in high quantity in the 54-year-old actor’s blood during a post-mortem test, which concluded that the drug’s “acute effects” were the reason for his death. It is used to treat pain, anxiety, and depression.
Chavez acknowledged in his plea deal that he used a fake prescription to get ketamine from a wholesale distributor as well as from his old clinic. He professed to provide nine ketamine lozenges and twenty-two 5-millilitre vials of ketamine. Perry’s aide, Kenneth Iwamasa, allegedly collaborated with the two doctors to give the actor about $50,000 worth of ketamine in the final weeks of his life, according to the prosecution. The two doctors texted one other, reportedly debating how much they might charge Perry for vials of the medicine.
Their texts read, “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Let’s find out.” The pair traded at least four vials of ketamin when they met that same day in Costa Mesa, which is midway between Los Angeles and San Diego. Prosecutors informed that Plasencia requested Chavez to continue supplying the drugs so Perry would have a “go-to” source after selling them to Perry for $4,500. Perry began seeking more ketamine than his doctor would provide.
According to Matthew Binninger, Chavez’s attorney, his client was “accepting responsibility” and “incredibly remorseful” for his patient’s overdose. Plasencia, a medical professional from Santa Monica who goes by “Dr P,” has entered a not-guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. According to the indictment, Chavez got the ketamine by “writing a fraudulent prescription in a patient’s name without her knowledge or consent, and lied to wholesale ketamine distributors to buy additional vials of liquid ketamine that Chavez intended to sell to Plasencia for distribution to Perry.”
Five people including Chavez are accused about Perry’s death who was found dead in his backyard jacuzzi in his Los Angeles residence in southern California on 28th October 2023. Other people charged concerning Perry’s death include Erik Fleming (54), a friend of the actor who the authorities referred to as a “street dealer,” and Kenneth Iwamasa (60), the actor’s live-in personal assistant. Both are awaiting punishment after entering guilty pleas. Jasveen Sangha (41) dubbed the “ketamine queen” and a suspected drug dealer, is also charged but has pleaded not guilty.
According to a medical examiner’s report, Perry was receiving ketamine infusion therapy to address depression and anxiety. However, at the time of his death, the amount of ketamine in his body was dangerously high, around the same amount required for general anaesthesia during surgery.
“We allege each of the defendants played a key role in his death by falsely prescribing, selling or injecting the ketamine that caused Matthew Perry’s tragic death. Perry’s journey began with unscrupulous doctors who abused their position of trust because they saw him as a payday to street dealers who gave him ketamine in unmarked vials,” highlighted Drug Enforcement Administration chief Anne Milgram.
Perry has battled addiction for many years since his days on “Friends,” when he rose to prominence as Chandler Bing and became one of the biggest performers of the time. He appeared in ten seasons of NBC’s smash sitcom with Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and David Schwimmer. The show ran from 1994 to 2004.
Nationalist Congress Party- Ajit Pawar faction MLA and Deputy Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly Narhari Jhirwal jumped from the roof of Maharashtra’s Mantralaya on Friday and landed on a safety net.
He allegedly jumped from the third floor of the Mantralaya, the administrative headquarters of the Maharashtra Government in Mumbai.
Jhirwal has been opposing the reservation for the Dhangar community from the Scheduled Tribe quota.
#WATCH | NCP leader Ajit Pawar faction MLA and deputy speaker Narhari Jhirwal jumped from the third floor of Maharashtra's Mantralaya and got stuck on the safety net. Police present at the spot. Details awaited pic.twitter.com/nYoN0E8F16
Visuals of the incident shows the MLA along with three other people climbing back inside the building after the safety net blocked their fall from the third floor. Police personnel were also seen in the video footage.
MLAs from the tribal community of Maharashtra protested in the Mantralay on Friday even as a cabinet meeting headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde began. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and other ministers present for the meeting.
Dhangar community in Maharashtra, which have reservations under the OBC category, are agitating in Pandharpur demading Scheduled Tribe reservation, claiming they are the Dhangad community already listed in the Constitution.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
On Friday, 4th October, the Delhi Police revealed a shocking update on the murder case of Dr Javed Akhtar who was shot dead in Nima Hospital late on the night of Wednesday. As per reports, two teenagers who committed the crime were hired by the husband of a nurse working in hospital.
At around 1.45 am on Wednesday, two individuals entered the cabin of Dr Javed Akhtar, a Unani practitioner, and fired bullets at point-blank range.
The Delhi Police have arrested one of the accused persons who reportedly confessed to the police that they were hired by the husband of a nurse to kill the doctor. The Doctor allegedly had an affair with the nurse, and therefore her husband got Dr Javed Akhtar killed.
The minor accused further revealed that he was in love with the nurse’s daughter and that the nurse’s husband had promised him that he would get him married to his daughter if he murdered the doctor.
“The husband suspected an affair between the nurse and Dr Akhtar. The accused teen was in love with the nurse’s daughter. So, the husband promised he would get his daughter married to him if he killed Dr Akhtar,” a Delhi Police officer told the media.
According to a senior police official, the minor also took money from the husband’s ATM account. The police are now questioning the nurse and her husband to verify the claims.
As per police, the accused initially said that he killed the doctor over a monetary dispute, but later revealed the actual motive after further questioning. CCTV footage and eyewitness accounts confirmed that they shot him immediately after entering his cabin without any provocation, confirming that it was a targeted killing.
Notably, police tracked down the suspect through his Instagram account, where he posted a photo with a pistol and boasted, “First murder of 2024.” This led the police to nab him in Hapur. The second accused is still at large and a search operation is on to nab him.
A police officer said, “The police obtained clues about one of the suspects from his Instagram account. After the murder, he posted a story in which he was holding a pistol and claimed to have committed the first murder of 2024”.
“Southern Range Crime Branch has apprehended one juvenile in connection with the murder of Dr Javed Akhtar. The apprehended juvenile admitted his involvement in the crime. Efforts are ongoing to apprehend the co-accused. A team has been dispatched for further investigation,” an official from Crime Branch said.
As reported earlier, two individuals entered Dr Akhtar’s cabin and fired bullets at point-blank range. Reports stated that the two boys had earlier visited the same hospital for a wound dressing. They came back later and asked to meet Dr Akhtar for a prescription.
While inside the doctor’s cabin, they shot him dead. Hospital staff rushed to the doctor’s cabin hearing gunshot wounds and found him in a pool of blood. The boys are said to be teenagers of around 16-17 years. Dr Akhtar was a Unani medicine practitioner.
Nima Hospital is a small nursing home near Nargis Masjid in Khadda Colony under Kalindi Kunj PS area. It is a three-bed setup.
In a significant development leading to the infrastructural growth of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Narendra Modi government has formally recognized Galathea Bay, an international transhipment centre as a ‘major port’. A lot of controversy has been happening over the issue in the past month with the opposition parties led by Congress joining hands with environmental experts claiming catastrophic ecological and human consequences due to the project. However, the government has decided to go ahead with it. It is believed that this action places the Rs 44,000 crore mega project under the administrative control of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, thus rendering it capable of receiving central funding.
The facility will be developed in four phases, with Phase 1 scheduled to be completed in 2028 and capable of processing 4 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units). When fully developed by 2058, the port is supposed to handle up to 16 million TEUs. This comes one year after the government sought proposals for the transhipment port. For decades, inadequate facilities at India’s ports, along with a lack of deep drafts have hampered maritime logistics. This has lately begun to change, but the absence of a centre for transhipment in the country continues to erode productivity.
What is a transshipment hub and why project at Galathea Bay is important?
As per the reports, almost all major ports on India’s east coast and a few on the west coast lack appropriate depth. Most of these ports have drafts ranging from 8 to 12 meters. In comparison, the depth of berths and waterways in large international ports ranges from 12 to 20 meters, or even higher in some cases. This severely restricts the size of vessels that can enter an Indian port. As a result, relatively small vessels with cargo capacities ranging from 25,000 to 75,000 tonnes, have to operate at these ports disallowing larger vessels, such as Capsize ships, which can carry 165,000 to 180,000 tonnes.
This limitation is becoming more difficult to deal with as the size of boats around the world increases every few years. Transferring a specific cargo or container in a single large vessel is less expensive than transferring it in several smaller ships due to economies of scale, particularly for freight-sensitive goods. Dredging, which is the removal of silt and other material from the ocean floor near channels and ports, can help increase and maintain draft. However, this procedure is expensive, particularly when used to significantly increase a port’s draft, and it has several limits. The other option is transhipment.
Transhipment is the process of unloading goods from one ship and loading them onto another vessel for transport to the final port of discharge. In India, arriving cargo is unloaded from large ships at a transhipment hub and loaded onto smaller ships, which are then transported to ports that cannot accommodate large boats due to their low draft.
Outbound merchandise from Indian ports that cannot handle large vessels is unloaded from small ships at the transhipment hub and transferred to larger ships heading for the destination port. Cargo can travel a significant portion of the journey between the origin and destination ports on a large vessel using this method.
India should no longer rely on foreign ports
At present, Colombo and Singapore, along with certain other important ports in the region, such as Dubai, serve as transhipment hubs for cargo bound for Indian ports. Nearly 25% of all containers coming from India are transshipped through foreign ports. Colombo, Singapore, and Klang (Malaysia), all foreign ports, handle approximately 80% of this.
This reliance on foreign ports is undesirable for a few reasons. According to research on the Ministry of Shipping’s Sagarmala portal, Indian ports lose Rs 1,500 crore in potential revenue each year from transhipment handling of cargo that originates or is bound for India.
As per a report on the Sagarmala portal, this translates into an estimated total loss of Rs 3,000-4,500 crore to the economy (assuming an economic multiplier of 2-3x for ports). The loss is even higher if the opportunity to handle cargo emerging from other countries in the region is considered. Transhipment increases the costs faced by the Indian sector. Besides that, the unavoidable cost of the feeder journey to and from Indian ports to the transhipment hub, and the cost of handling the shipment at the hub (loading and unloading) is also incorporated into the transshipped cargo.
In India, this is paid at foreign ports. If transhipment hubs are constructed in India, much of this will go to Indian ports, resulting in employment development. Further, as Chinese influence grows through enormous investment in port facilities in the Indian Ocean as part of the Belt and Road Initiative, reliance on foreign ports poses a potential national security risk.
The Chinese already operate a portion of the Colombo port, which accounts for more than 40% of Indian transhipment. Beijing operates the International Container Terminals at Colombo Port, contributing to 40% of total container movement in the island country in 2019. It has also spent billions of dollars on port infrastructure, including new business and residential zones known as Port City Colombo.
Image- Logistics Insider
About the transshipment hub being built at Galathea Bay
Despite India’s public concerns, Sri Lanka has been obliged to make concessions to China, such as allowing its intelligence-gathering ships to dock. With Colombo growing reliant on Beijing for debt relief, the need for New Delhi to reduce this dependence has never been greater. Galathea Bay on Great Nicobar Island, where the proposed transhipment hub may be built, has a depth of 18 to 20 meters, making it suitable for huge ships. The bay has a rocky floor preferably suitable for the project.
The island borders the East-West Sea Route, one of the world’s busiest maritime commerce routes, and is roughly equidistant from the present transhipment hubs of Colombo, Port Klang, and Singapore. The island is approximately 8 nautical miles away from the route. According to this news report, the shipping diversion time to the proposed port will be less than an hour, while it is four hours to Kochi and eight hours to Thoothukudi. The East-West Sea Route serves some of the fastest-expanding global economies, including Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Bangladesh.
It is strategically located near the mouth of the Malacca Strait, which connects the Indian and Pacific oceans. Every year, around 100,000 vessels travel through this tiny stretch of water, accounting for roughly one-quarter of global trade.
The projected port can compete with the Port of Singapore for cargo originating in and headed for Bangladesh and Myanmar. Currently, over 70% of cargo from Bangladesh and Myanmar is transshipped through Singapore. The Great Nicobar Island is closer to Bangladesh and Myanmar than Singapore, reducing the distance travelled on the feeder route to the transhipment hub and so lowering costs.
Why the said project is being opposed
The Indian National Congress, India’s major opposition party, has joined environmentalists and former officials in criticizing the development of the Great Nicobar Island, claiming it could have catastrophic ecological and human consequences. Despite unresolved disagreements over clearances given, the national government is moving forward with the project.
Great Nicobar’s holistic development plan includes building an international container transhipment port along with an airport, gas, and solar power plant, and township on the isolated island costing Rs. 81,000 crore and roughly a million trees.
Legal proceedings in a case challenging the project’s environmental clearance disclosed that the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM), an autonomous body assigned to supporting coastal management, concluded that the project no longer fell in a no-go fragile coastal zone, potentially facilitating port development at the hands of the centre.
Instead of pausing and subjecting the Great Nicobar mega infra project to a thorough review in view of its hugely adverse environmental and humanitarian impacts, the Union Govt has just declared Galathea Bay as a major port to be developed in public-private partnership mode. And… pic.twitter.com/HDEhzVb32g
A beforehand mapping effort by the NCSCM had discovered that elements of the project, including the port, were located in the ecologically most sensitive CRZ 1A zones, where most development activities are forbidden. The NCSCM’s recent conclusion, however, notes that the project area is located in the CRZ 1B zone, an intertidal zone where ports and harbours are permitted.
Considering the continuing case in the National Green Tribunal, T. K. Ramachandran, secretary of the Ministry for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, informed the media on August 4th that there was no hurdle in its implementation, and that the government would proceed with the project.
In a letter to Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on August 10th, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh urged existing clearances for the project should be suspended and thoroughly and impartially reviewed, including by the Parliamentary committees concerned. Ramesh identified various flaws in the procedures that laid the groundwork for the project, including violations in getting approval from indigenous communities.
A petition filed by environmentalists stated that the project violated coastal area laws
In late July, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Limited (ANIIDCO) submitted an affidavit to the National Green Tribunal based on which the NCSCM revealed its conclusions. The project’s implementing agency, ANIIDCO, was responding to a review petition filed by Ashish Kothari, an environmental activist.
The petition argued that the project violated the Island Coastal Regulation Zone announcement in 2019 since about seven square kilometres of the project fell in a CRZ 1A region. This includes 0.63 square kilometres of port and port reclamation, 0.6 square kilometres of airport, and the majority, 5.84 square kilometres, of projected townships. The petition asked that the project exclude these areas.
According to the notification, CRZ 1A regions shall be protected from large development since they contain mangroves, corals, coral reefs, and sea grass, and serve as nesting sites for birds, turtles, and other delicate ecosystems. CRZ 1B areas are likewise ecologically fragile, however, they are intertidal zones that allow for the construction of ports and harbours under particular conditions.
Last year, the National Green Tribunal acknowledged that there were some unanswered deficiencies in the government’s approach to the development project. It formed a High Powered Committee (HPC) led by the Union Environment Ministry to review the environmental clearance granted to it. The HPC’s results were never made public for security concerns. However, in its affidavit, ANIIDCO stated that the HPC approved the results of a ground-truthing investigation conducted by the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management, which concluded that the project did not fall under the 1A category.
The proposed port can compete with the Port of Singapore for cargo originating in and bound for Bangladesh and Myanmar. Singapore handles more than 70% of all goods from Bangladesh and Myanmar. The Great Nicobar Island is closer to Bangladesh and Myanmar than Singapore, reducing the distance travelled along the feeder route to the transhipment hub and so saving prices.
The name of a man linked to Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has emerged in a case of illegal occupation of forest land in Odisha. As per reports, Mohammad Masoom Khan seized around 100 acres of forest land in the tribal-dominated Motu area of the Malkangiri district and established Islam Nagar. Khan reportedly had support and encouragement from the previous BJD government as his illegal actions created a vast empire. Moreover, allegations of cooperation between the BJD and Masoom Khan have surfaced. The forest department’s Malkangiri division has launched a probe in response to these developments.
Masoom Khan is believed to be close to former Lok Sabha MP and senior BJD leader Pradeep Kumar Majhi. Khan has participated in multiple political events arranged by the party and pictures of him have recently gone viral on social media. He is also seen with Majhi in many photographs doing the rounds online.
The forest department has now initiated action by taking appropriate measures. The local ranger was alerted and given instructions to carry out an investigation and submit a report after receiving the complaint, according to Priyanka Mahuka, the Assistant Conservator of Forests in the Malkangiri district. The results of the local ranger’s inquiry will indicate whether further action needs to be taken.
BJP demands action against the accused, terms it land jihad
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Malkangiri MLA Narsingh Madkami charged that BJD leaders assisted Khan. He stated that over 100 acres of forest land had been encroached upon and brought up the name of former Nabarangpur MP Pradeep Majhi and his close association with Khan. According to Madkami, the BJD leader has engaged in illegal acts to create Islam Nagar in the Motu region. He stated, “Violating the Forest Act, more than 100 acres of forest land has been encroached by local BJD leader, Mausam Khan, a close associate of former Nabarangpur MP Pradeep Majhi, to establish Islam Nagar in Motu area in the tribal dominant Malkangiri district.”
He hit out at BJD leaders and added, “It is shocking that the name of traditional Baribancha village has been renamed as Islam Nagar. Several illegal buildings, warehouses, roads and ponds have been constructed in the illegally acquired area by using the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) fund. Furthermore, large transformers have been installed by the electricity department. All these illegal activities occurred during the previous BJD Government’s regime.”
The BJP MLA demanded a thorough investigation into the matter and maintained that the responsible parties must face severe consequences. According to local BJP leaders in Malkangiri, political backing is required to cut trees, take over 100 acres of forest land and erect massive high-rise structures. Furthermore, they highlighted that similarly, political support is necessary for the construction of a sizable reservoir using funding from the Agriculture and Fisheries Department, a road under the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA scheme, and a sizable transformer installed by the Electricity Department.
They asserted that the BJD, specifically former MP Pradeep Majhi, have completely shielded and fostered this massive criminal operation. The BJP leaders accused that the administration has disregarded these acts for political purposes and aided as well as abetted this unlawful venture. “We implore Mohan Majhi’s administration to look into this case thoroughly and take decisive action against individuals involved, especially in light of the recent change in government,” they expressed.
Anil Biswal, the state spokesperson for the BJP, clarified that the issue pertains to land jihad. He underlined that strict measures are being put in place by the BJP governments in Uttarakhand and Assam, who have taken a tough stance against it. He assured that the Odisha government will follow the same policies as the BJP-led administrations in Assam and Uttarakhand.
He suspected that it was a long-term plan to create Islamnagar by forcibly occupying forest territory in a predominantly tribal region and promised that the administration of Chief Minister Mohan Majhi would safeguard the interests of the indigenous people. He further noted that this occurrence shows that, in spite of their commitments to support tribal interests, Congress and BJD are actually anti-tribal.
The onslaught on the Hindu community has continued unabated since the fall of Dhaka and the undemocratic ouster of Sheikh Hasina on 5th August this year.
In the latest series of attacks, idols of Goddess Durga and other Hindu deities were vandalised at the Rishipara Barwari Puja Mandap and the Manikadi Palpara Barwari Pujamandap on 28th September and 1st October respectively.
The attacks were carried out in Sujanagar upazila in Pabna district in Rajshahi Division of Bangladesh. While a total of 4 idols were defaced at the Rishipara Barwari Puja Mandap, another 5 Hindu idols were destroyed at the Manikadi Palpara Barwari Pujamandap.
Idol vandalism at the Manikadi Palpara Barwari Pujamandap in Pabna
The attacks have raised concerns among the local Hindus, who have sought immediate intervention from the law enforcement authorities and district administration.
A team of police, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and army officials visited the Hindu temples, which came under attack. Durga Puja is set to commence on 9th October this year and will be conducted in 51 temples in Sujanagar upazila.
The President of the Manikadi Palpara Barwari Pujamandap, Bijan Pal, informed that he saw the idols intact when he left the temple on the night of 1st October. When he came to the temple the following day, he found that the idols were beheaded.
Attempts to downplay idol vandalism in Pabna
He pointed out that efforts were underway to repair the damaged, under-construction idols. Sujanagar Upazila Executive Officer (UNO) Md. Rasheduzzaman tried to brush off the case as a ‘one-off incident.’
“This is an isolated incident. We are trying to find the culprits to take legal action. At the same time, to ensure the safety of each temple, a committee consisting of local people has already been formed,” he claimed.
Subodh Kumar Noto, the President of Sujanagar Upazila Puja Celebration Parishad, has expressed concerns over the two consecutive attacks on Hindu temples.
Idols vandalised in Kishoreganj
On Thursday (3rd October), 7 idols of Hindu deities were destroyed at the Gopinath Jiur Akhara Durga Puja mandap. The incident occurred in Kishoreganj in the Dhaka Division of Bangladesh.
The vandalism was carried out in the wee hours of the night when the guards, responsible for ensuring the security of the temple, were asleep.
The accused scaled the walls and broke off the heads of the idols. On learning about the matter, the police and local authorities visited the scene to assess the damage.
Idols of Hindu deities vandalised at the Gopinath Jiur Akhara Durga Puja mandap
An emergency meeting was conducted with the leaders of the Hindu community, who demanded the immediate arrest of the perpetrators involved in temple desecration and idol vandalism.
The Hindus staged a protest on Thursday evening. They took to the streets and assembled outside the office of the district commissioner, seeking justice.
Despite assurances by Deputy Commissioner Fouzia Khan and SP Mohammad Hasan Chowdhury, no arrests have been made so far.
Hindus left traumatised
While speaking about the matter, the president of the Kishoreganj district Puja Celebration Committee Narayan Dutta Pradeep said, “The vandalism has left the Hindu community heartbroken. Everyone is now in a state of fear. If such acts continue, how can we celebrate our religious festivals?”
The President of the Gopinath Jiur Akhara Durga Puja celebration committee, Litton Sarkar, emphasised, “Those responsible seek to disrupt communal harmony and should be swiftly identified and arrested.”
In total, 16 idols of Hindu deities and three temples were attacked in the past 6 days in Bangladesh.
Attack on Hindus in Bangladesh
There have been at least 205 attacks on Hindu temples, shops and businesses since the ouster of Sheikha Hasina as Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
OpIndia had reported how a Hindu boy named Utsab Mandal was almost lynched by a Muslim mob on accusations of ‘blasphemy’ in the Sonadanga residential area of Khulna city.
We previously exposed how Muslim students have forced as many as 60 Hindu teachers, professors and government officials to resign from their positions.
Human rights activist and exiled Bangladeshi blogger, Asad Noor, has recently revealed that the minority community is now being coerced into joining ‘Jamaat-e-Islami’.
On 6th September, a procession of Hindu devotees carrying the idol of Lord Ganesha came under attack in the Kadam Mubarak area in Chittagong city of Bangladesh.
Ahead of the Durga Puja celebrations, a radical Muslim man vandalised the idols of Goddess Durga and other Hindu deities in Gouripur town in the Mymensingh district of Bangladesh on 25th September.
The accused was identified as 22-year-old Yasin Mia. The police arrested him on 26th September for his involvement in the desecration of Hindu idols.
Mia entered the premises of Gobindajew temple in the wee hours of Wednesday and began destroying the idols, which had been sculpted for the past 20 days. While attempting to take the idols away, he was spotted by a Hindu woman named Dolly Rani.
She raised alarm and Mia was quickly apprehended by two locals, Akhil Chandra Bishwasharma and Bipul Ghosh. The accused was then handed over to the police
In Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, a 10-day Garba program was cancelled on Thursday (3rd October) after the Bajrang Dal complained to the police about the presence of a Muslim man named Feroz Khan on the organising committee of a Garba program. According to Rajesh Binjve, a local Vishwa Hindu Parishad activist, the Bajrang Dal stated in a memorandum presented to Bhanwarkuan police that the Garba program was being organised in Ganesh Nagar allegedly to encourage “love jihad” and spread vulgarity.
According to Rajesh Binjve, the Bajrang Dal had asked the police not to allow the Garba event in Indore organised by Feroz Khan. Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajesh Dandotia said that the police had received a memorandum from the Bajrang Dal opposing the scheduled Garba event in Ganesh Nagar, Indore.
He said that the organisers had not yet requested permission from the police for the Garba program. Dandotia concluded: “If any person contacts the police for permission for this Garba program, then legal steps will be taken.”
Meanwhile, Feroz Khan claimed that the police had initially granted permission to the Shikhar Garba Pandal to organise the event, however, as the Hindu rights groups raised objections and ‘pressured’ the landowner where the Garba program was to be held leading to the event’s cancellation.
An indigenous woman (Orang Asli), belonging to the jakun tribe, was recently denied the right to practice her real Faith and profess her cultural and spiritual beliefs in Malaysia.
The victim had moved the court to nullify her conversion to Islam as a child. However, her plea before the Court of Appeal was dismissed by a 3-member panel in a 2:1 verdict.
Reportedly, the indigenous woman was converted to Islam when she was just 2 years old. She was fathered by a Muslim man, who did not marry her mother (belonging to the jakun tribe).
Victim converted to Islam as a child
Her mother had converted to Islam on 14th November 1995. The victim argued that she did not recite the oath of allegiance to Islam (Kalimah Syahadah) and did not consent to the conversion.
The indigenous woman’s petition, to be declared a non-Muslim, was turned down by the Kuantan High Court last year. Now, the Court of Appeals has also dismissed her application.
Justice Datuk Azhahari Kamal Ramli, in his majority verdict, claimed that the victim’s conversion was recorded in her mother’s conversion certificate (Islam bersama Ibu).
Court prevents adult woman from practicing her real Faith
“The plaintiff (appellant) was at all material time in the mother’s custody. The mother raised her alone,” he stated, adding that her absentee Muslim father must have ‘consented’ to the conversion.
The court did not take into consideration that the victim was only 2 years old at the time and could not have consented to her own conversion.
While preventing the adult indigenous woman from professing her cultural and spiritual beliefs, the judge said that a Syariah court was the right place to decide her case. He rationalised his verdict by claiming that the case involved the renunciation of Islam.
The Union Cabinet chaired by PM Narendra Modi on Thursday approved the decision to confer the status of Classical Language to five Indian languages. The languages included in the list of classical languages are Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese and Bengali. The decision was taken after proposals for the same were received from the governments of West Bengal, Bihar and Assam.
Accordingly, the Linguistics Experts Committee, under Sahitya Akademi, in a meeting on 25.07.2024, unanimously revised the criteria for selection of classical languages and approved the inclusion of five new languages to the list. Notably, Sahitya Akademi has been appointed as nodal agency for the LEC.
The Classical Languages serve as a custodian of Bharat’s profound and ancient cultural heritage, embodying the essence of each community’s historical and cultural milestone, said a press release issued by the union cabinet.
With this, the number of languages in India with classical status has gone up to 11. The languages that were conferred with the status earlier are Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Odia.
The decision to confer classical status to languages was taken by the union govt in October 2004, and Tamil was declared the first classical language. A Linguistic Experts Committee (LEC) was constituted by the Ministry of Culture under Sahitya Akademi in November 2004 to examine the proposed languages for the status of Classical Language.
The main criteria for declaring a language classical are:
High antiquity of (its) is early texts/recorded history over a period of 1500- 2000 years.
A body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a heritage by generations of speakers.
Knowledge texts, especially prose texts in addition to poetry, epigraphical and inscriptional evidence.
The Classical Languages and literature could be distinct from its current form or could be discontinuous with later forms of its offshoots.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the Cabinet Decision to confer Classical Language status to Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese and Bengali languages. “Our Government cherishes and celebrates India’s rich history and culture. We have also been unwavering in our commitment to popularising regional languages,” he tweeted.
The prime minister added, “I am extremely glad the Cabinet has decided that Assamese, Bengali, Marathi, Pali and Prakrit will be conferred the status of Classical Languages! Each of them are beautiful languages, highlighting our vibrant diversity. Congratulations to everyone.”
Our Government cherishes and celebrates India's rich history and culture. We have also been unwavering in our commitment to popularising regional languages.
I am extremely glad the Cabinet has decided that Assamese, Bengali, Marathi, Pali and Prakrit will be conferred the…
PM Modi also posted separate tweets congratulating each language on getting the classical language status.
He said for Assamese, “I am immensely delighted that Assamese will now get the status of a Classical Language after this was approved by the Union Cabinet. Assamese culture has thrived for centuries, and it has given us a rich literary tradition. May this language continue to become even more popular in the times to come.”
His message for Bengali was, “I am very happy that the great Bengali language has been conferred the status of a Classical Language, especially during the auspicious time of Durga Puja. Bengali literature has inspired countless people for years. I congratulate all the Bengali speakers all over the world on this.”
For Marathi he tweeted, “Marathi is India’s pride. Congratulations on this phenomenal language being accorded the status of a Classical Language. This honour acknowledges the rich cultural contribution of Marathi in our nation’s history. Marathi has always been a cornerstone of Indian heritage. I am sure with the status of a Classical Language, many more people will be motivated to learn it.”
And finally; his message for Pali and Prakrit was, “Pali and Prakrit are at the root of India’s culture. These are languages of spirituality, wisdom and philosophy. They are also known for their literary traditions. Their recognition as Classical Languages honours their timeless influence on Indian thought, culture and history. I am confident that after the Cabinet decision on recognising them as Classical Languages, more people will be motivated to learn about them. This is indeed a joyous moment!”
He also posted separate tweets in Assamese, Bengali and Marathi congratulating the respective languages. While these three languages are widely used in Assam, West Bengal, Bangladesh and Maharashtra, Pali and Prakrit are no longer used.
“This is a historical decision and this decision goes very well with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the NDA government’s philosophy of taking ride in our culture, taking pride in our heritage and taking pride in all the Indian languages and the rich heritage that we have,” Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said at a cabinet briefing after the cabinet meeting.
Implementation strategy and targets:
The Ministry of Education has taken various steps to promote Classical Languages. Three Central Universities were established in 2020 through an Act of Parliament for promotion of Sanskrit language. The Central Institute of Classical Tamil was set up to facilitate the translation of ancient Tamil texts, promote research and offer courses for University students and language scholars of Tamil.
To further enhance the study and preservation of Classical Languages, the Centres for Excellence for studies in Classical Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, and Odia were established under the auspices of the Central Institute of Indian Languages in Mysuru. In addition to these initiatives, several national and internation awards have been instituted to recognize and encourage achievements in the field of Classical Languages. Benefits extended to Classical Languages by the Ministry of Education include National Awards for Classical Languages, Chairs in Universities, and Centres for promotion of Classical Languages.
Major impact, including employment generation:
The inclusion of languages as Classical Language will create significant employment opportunities, particularly in academic and research fields. Additionally, the preservation, documentation, and digitization of ancient texts of these languages will generate jobs in archiving, translation, publishing, and digital media.
States/districts covered:
The primary states involved are Maharashtra (Marathi), Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (Pali and Prakrit), West Bengal (Bengali), and Assam (Assamese). The broader cultural and academic impact will extend nationally and internationally.
