Stray dog menace has become a major concern in India with frequent reports of stray dogs mauling down people. Dog bites are the leading cause of rabies-related deaths in humans. While Rabies is a preventable viral disease, and there are appropriate scientific treatments for the same, once the infection sets in, it is 100% fatal and there is no cure for it.
Amid multiple reports of children and elderly being attacked and mauled by stray dogs across the country, a Herbal ‘influencer’ has stirred a debate on social media after claiming that garlic juice can cure rabies.
Responding to an X post featuring a video of three stray dogs attacking a young boy on the street, a herbal influencer who goes by the name “ChiefHerbalist” ‘advised’ netizens on 4th July that if they are bitten by a dog and need to treat themselves for rabies, they should drink garlic juice every morning and evening two weeks. The influencer with over 1 lakh 86 thousand followers on X, claimed that it would cure rabies.
“In case you get bitten by a stray dog and you want to treat yourself of rabies; Grind garlic and press juice into water. Drink the juice every morning and evening for two weeks. You will be okay. Nature heals,” Chief Herbalist posted.
The herbalist’s absurd claim about curing rabies with garlic juice alarmed the doctors. One Dr Krishnamurthy asked the herbalist if he would become the subject of an experiment wherein he would be bitten by a rabid dog and then would treat himself with garlic juice. The doctor added that if herbalist’s garlic juice cures rabies, everyone will bow down to him.
“Let’s do a simple experiment. We will arrange you to get bitten by a rabid dog. Treat yourself without getting rabies with garlic juice. We will all bow down to you,” Dr Krishnamurthy, the head of department of interventinal cardiology at Kauveri Hospital said.
In response, the herbalist expressed eagerness to be a part of such an experiment. When the doctor said that had conducting such an experiment not been illegal, he would have done it immediately, the herbal influencer asserted that the doctor is “running away” from his challenge.
Quoting the first post by the “Chief Herbalist”, Dr Krishnamurthy said, “Such people giving advice which endangers lives should be put behind bars immediately without provision for bail.”
Such people giving advice which endangers lives should be put behind bars immediately without provision for bail. #MedTwitterhttps://t.co/KX5poucvkj
— Dr Deepak Krishnamurthy (@DrDeepakKrishn1) July 10, 2024
An X user claimed that an acquaintance of his lost his life during the covid pandemic days after doing exercises shown on Instagram reels. The X user asserted that if someone follows the garlic juice ‘treatment’ to cure rabies and ends up losing their life, the herbal influencer would be to blame.
To this, the herbalist brazened out, “I also lost someone who took Covid vaccine recommended by a Doctor. Lol.”
In response to the herbal influencer’s garlic juice recommendation, another doctor advised people to visit a hospital and take necessary vaccines to prevent rabies. “Please visit the nearest hospital in case of dogbite and take the vaccine and immunoglobulin if needed to PREVENT rabies. Don’t wait to get rabies. Once you get it, you won’t have much appetite for Garlic lemonade,” the doctor said.
Please visit the nearest hospital in case of dogbite and take the vaccine and immunoglobulin if needed to PREVENT rabies. Don't wait to get rabies. Once you get it, you won't have much appetite for Garlic lemonade. https://t.co/ZjqVrUgQDK
Rabies is a preventable viral disease most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal. The RABV virus infection is the root of the ailment. The virus infects the central nervous system of mammals which ultimately results in brain disease and death. It causes encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) in humans and other mammals. Rabies spread from the saliva of infected animals. The majority of rabies in the United States are linked to skunks, raccoons, bats and foxes. However, dogs continue to carry the rabies virus in many other nations, including India, and dog bites are the leading cause of rabies-related deaths in humans worldwide.
A detailed OpIndia explainer on Rabies, its causes, symptoms, prevention and medical treatment can be read here.
Notably, India continues to be the country with the world’s largest number of rabies deaths annually. Thousands of people in the country die of rabies after suffering days of excruciating pain and horrific symptoms of hydrophobia.
The number of human deaths globally due to dog-mediated rabies is estimated to be 59,000 annually. India is responsible for 36% of rabies-related deaths worldwide, according to the statistics of the World Health Organisation.
Videos of a man infected with rabies demonstrates hydrophobia, which is a symptom of the virus. Once clinical signs of rabies appear, the disease is nearly 100% fatal. pic.twitter.com/obMhuVnku2
Notably, some health and wellness websites do suggest applying garlic paste on the dog bite wound since garlic contains antiviral properties. However, it is not a proven rabies remedy. It is claimed that ancient Greek philosopher and polymath Aristotle also recommended garlic for Rabies treatment, however, blindly following any ancient remedy or a modern-day ‘herbalist’ can prove detrimental for the affected person.
Applying garlic juice or any other home remedy to a dog bite wound is not an effective or scientifically supported treatment for preventing rabies. Rabies is a viral infection that is almost 100% fatal, and immediate medical intervention is crucial.
The appropriate response to a dog bite is to thoroughly wash the wound with soap and water and seek medical attention immediately. A healthcare professional will determine if post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for rabies is necessary, which includes a series of rabies vaccinations. Using unproven methods like garlic juice can delay proper treatment and increase the risk of infection and can even result in death.
In Uttar Pradesh, a new regulation has been issued governing the attendance of all council school instructors and personnel. According to the orders issued by State Project Director Kanchan Verma, teachers and employees have been directed to note their attendance in the school’s digital register. This came into effect from 8th July onwards.
Teachers are instructed to provide their real-time attendance with location. Schools operate from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., but the state government requires teachers to record their attendance between 7.45 and 8 a.m.
Notably, the department has provided the option of marking attendance 30 minutes after the scheduled time. Teachers and staff who arrive late to school must provide an explanation for arriving late.
“We are aware of your problems, you can mark your attendance after 30 minutes. Orders have been given for digital signatures of council schools. But now there is an opportunity to mark attendance 30 minutes after the scheduled time. Instructions have been given to Basic Education Officers and Block Education Officers. It is definitely necessary to mention the reason for reaching school late,” the state education department said.
परिषदीय विद्यालयों के शिक्षकों को 08 जुलाई से उपस्थिति बनाने होंगे। 18 जून को जारी आदेश में 15 जुलाई से डिजिटल उपस्थिति पंजिका पर हाजिरी बनाने के निर्देश दिये गये हैं। नए आदेश का 18 जून को जारी निर्देशों पर कोई प्रभाव नहीं होगा। राज्य परियोजना निदेशक कंचन वर्मा ने आदेश दिया है। pic.twitter.com/Namx0N8hTI
— Department Of Basic Education Uttar Pradesh (@basicshiksha_up) July 7, 2024
हमें है आपकी समस्याओं का ख़याल, 30 मिनट बाद तक बना सकेंगे हाजिरी
परिषदीय विद्यालयों के डिजिटली हस्ताक्षर के आदेश दिये गये हैं। लेकिन अब निर्धारित समय से 30 मिनट बाद तक हाजिरी बनाने का मौका मिला है। बेसिक शिक्षा अधिकारियों और खंड शिक्षा अधिकारियों को निर्देश दिये जा चुके हैं।
— Department Of Basic Education Uttar Pradesh (@basicshiksha_up) July 7, 2024
On the 18th of June information about the module developed under the term ‘Digital Registers’ was made available on the Prerna portal, as well as rules for the use of 12 digital registers at the school level.
While the Uttar Pradesh government’s decision is intended to enhance the quality of education and ensure that teachers fulfil their duties diligently, the move has not been without controversy.
Teachers protest against online attendance system in Uttar Pradesh
The CM Yogi Adityanath-led government’s decision to implement an online attendance system intends to curb the menace of teacher absenteeism in the state’s schools, which has adversely impacted the educational environment. Several teachers, however, have strongly protested against the move. On 8th July, a massive online trend calling for a boycott of the new digital attendance system was launched. Under the “#BoycottOnlineAttendance” tag, educators raised their concerns and shared videos of peaceful protests by teachers across Uttar Pradesh.
Teachers are opposing it on social media, claiming it will be against their interests in many ways. They are required to arrive at their schools by 7:30 am and mark attendance between 7:45 am and 8 am before the start of classes. However, in remote villages, internet connectivity is limited, making it difficult to mark attendance online.
Additionally, a lot of schools are situated in remote areas and are surrounded by water during the rainy season. In such a case, if a teacher arrived late, he or she would be deemed absent, and their leave would be deducted. The protesting teachers have sought certain relaxations in the online attendance system, such as half-day casual leave.
On the 8th of July, only 2% of teachers out of over 6 lakh teachers and para teachers (Shiksha Mitra) marked attendance online. This means that on the very first day of the digital attendance’s implementation, only 16,015 out of 6.09,282 lakh teachers marked their attendance.
Almost no teachers marked their attendance online in 14 of the state’s 75 districts, as per a report in HT. Notably, while in Shahjhanpur there are 10,194 teachers, in Pilibhit where there are 5,899, and in Sant Kabir Nagar there are 4819 teachers, none of them marked their attendance.
Only one of the 11,934 teachers in Bareilly followed the government’s orders. Only two teachers out of 6,810 marked online attendance in Rampur, while only 9 teachers out of 7,293 in Maharajganj attended.
In Bahraich, only 20 teachers out of 11,282 digitally marked their attendance using the government tab; in Gonda, only 23 teachers out of 10,832 marked their attendance; in Gorakhpur, only 52 teachers out of 12,519 marked their attendance; and in Unnao, only 56 teachers followed the government directive. In 24 districts 1% of teachers marked their online attendance, in 13 just 2%, in 11 districts 3%, while Bhadohi saw a maximum of 13% online attendance by teachers.
In the Shahjahanpur district teachers gathered in large numbers to protest the move. Meanwhile, in Sambhal, a memorandum was handed over to the DM office. Major demonstrations took place in Kanpur Dehat, Chandauli, Bareilly, Sidharth Nagar and several other districts as well.
— ??????? ?????'???????' (@abhinav019) July 8, 2024
Meanwhile, thousands of teachers also wore black bands around their arms while on duty as a mark of protest against the digital attendance system. On Tuesday, teachers of a government school in Chaprua Khera, Zone-1 in Lucknow wore black arm bands in protest against the digital attendance system. Similar scenes were seen in Jiamau Primary School.
#WATCH | UP | Teachers of a government school in Chaprua Khera, Zone-1 in Lucknow wore black arm bands in protest against the digital attendance system, yesterday. pic.twitter.com/kYZw3nMeXs
The protesting teachers have demanded that they be given half-day leave, as other state employees are, and that they be given 30 earned days of leave, as state employees or PL, as college teachers. Moreover, compensatory leave should be provided in the same manner as other departments. Basic shikshak adhikari should be granted the power to waive online attendance in the event of inclement weather and participate in departmental events.
Notably, BJP MLC Babulal Tiwari met Chief Minster Yogi Adityanath on the 9th of July and informed him about the issues raised by the affected teachers. He highlighted the teacher’s and Shiksha Mitra’s issues including the demand for 15 casual leave, 15 half casual leave, 25 earned leave, the status of state employees to teachers, cashless medical facility, No promotion for 15 years, and exemption from non-teaching duties.
Meanwhile, Sandeep Kumar, President of Lucknow Metropolitan Primary Education Association said, “The teachers are troubled because the online digital attendance system is not working well and due to this the teachers are not able to register attendance within the given time limit. It leads to a deduction of salary…Currently, the teachers are marking their attendance using this system.”
Lucknow, UP | Sandeep Kumar, President of Lucknow Metropolitan Primary Education Association says," The teachers are troubled because the online digital attendance system is not working well and due to this the teachers are not able to register attendance within the given time… pic.twitter.com/olxohVueoo
UP teachers earlier opposed facial recognition-based attendance rule
In a similar situation back in December last year, primary school teachers in Uttar Pradesh had opposed the government’s AI-based attendance involving facial recognition. At that time also, teachers had claimed that lack of connectivity and poor internet in rural areas would make it difficult for them to give timely attendance always and a failure of doing so would lead to salary deduction.
Opposition politicising the Yogi government’s attempt to improve the education system
Amidst the protests undertaken by government school teachers in Uttar Pradesh, opposition parties have started exploiting the issue to score political points against the ruling BJP government. In this vein, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav extended support to the protesting teachers and opposed the implementation of digital attendance saying teachers can get stuck in the way due to late running public transport, closed railway crossing, long distance etc. In such a situation, he claimed, teachers would suffer stress and their emotions would be hurt
“No teacher wants to reach school late but sometimes the reason for this is public transport running late, sometimes closed railway gates and sometimes the distance of fifty kilometres between home and school because teachers neither have government accommodation to live near school nor houses are available on rent in remote areas. This gives rise to unnecessary stress and a mentally confused teacher can sometimes get into an accident due to hurry, of which there are many examples. If due to some unforeseen reasons, teachers have to leave the school in the middle of the day due to personal health or home, family or social reasons, then a report of absence for the whole day will be sent. There can be many reasons for reaching school late or returning from school early. Even due to interruption in power supply or technical problems, there are problems in smooth functioning of services like internet. That is why the option of ‘digital attendance’ is not possible without a solid solution to practical problems. First of all, it should be implemented in the administrative headquarters of all other departments so that the senior officials can experience its practical aspects and problems, then only after the problem-solving, its implementation should be thought about later…” Yadav posted on X.
शिक्षकों पर विश्वास करने से ही अच्छी पीढ़ी जन्म लेती है।
कोई शिक्षक देर से स्कूल नहीं पहुँचना चाहता है लेकिन कहीं सार्वजनिक परिवहन देर से चलना इसका कारण बनता है, कहीं रेल का बंद फाटक और कहीं घर से स्कूल के बीच की पचासों किमी की दूरी क्योंकि शिक्षकों के पास स्कूल के पास रहने के… pic.twitter.com/Co625Vwsv4
Teacher absenteeism in Uttar Pradesh’s government schools has been a persistent issue, significantly impacting the quality of education in Uttar Pradesh. While Akhilesh Yadav claimed that “no teacher wants to reach school late”, there have been numerous incidents of teachers were found absent from duty. In 2022, it was reported that over 3,900 primary school teachers were found absent from duty across the state for three consecutive days. In many cases, it has been found during surprise checks that some teachers ‘missed’ the school for days. In such cases, students are left without guidance, and time that should have been spent educating them is wasted.
The Yogi government is implementing such digital measures to curb absenteeism and negligence of duty. By ensuring that teachers are present and accountable, these systems can help improve the overall educational environment and learning outcomes for students. However, for the sake of political gains ahead of the bypolls in the state, opposition parties are opposing the implementation of digital attendance.
When BJP lost elections in 1993 over bringing anti-copying legislation
The UP government’s efforts to improve the education system, including the implementation of the online attendance system for teachers, have faced significant opposition. This resistance mirrors the backlash against Chief Minister Kalyan Singh’s Anti-Copying Act of 1992, which aimed to curb cheating in exams.
In 1992, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh introduced the Anti-Copying Act, aimed at curbing rampant cheating in board examinations. This law imposed strict measures, including heavy fines and imprisonment for those caught cheating. While the intention behind the Act was to enhance the credibility of the state’s educational system, it faced massive backlash from students and their families. Imagine the condition of public examinations and the prevalence of lawlessness in Uttar Pradesh that even an educational reform intended to stop malpractice and cheating in school and university exams was fervently opposed.
The opposition, led by Mulayam Singh Yadav, capitalised on the discontent. Yadav criticized the Act, arguing that it unfairly targeted students without addressing the root causes of the educational deficiencies. His party used this sentiment to galvanize public opinion against Singh’s government.
Anti-Copying Act 1992
The Act authorised the police to enter examination centres to perform checks and arrest defaulters, as well as made “use of unfair means in examinations” a cognisable offence for which there was no bail.
As a result of the strict enforcement of the law, 17% of the students who had registered for the tenth and twelfth left the ongoing exams. Due to this ordinance, just 14.70% of intermediate and 30.30% of high school applicants passed the Uttar Pradesh Board exams in 1992.
Mulayam Singh Yadav had politicised this much-needed law. He even gave the argument that female students caught cheating as per this law would be rejected by suitors. Notably, Kalyan Singh brought the anti-copying law at a time when UP’s public examinations were caught in the clutches of “cheating mafias” involving teachers, students, officials and gangsters. This syndicate provided guides, model papers, answer slips, and illegal proxy examinees and even helped the cheaters in later stages of the exams. Instead of supporting the government for a serious reform aimed at improving the quality of education, Mulayam Singh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party went berserk and demanded its withdrawal.
As newspapers published pictures of handcuffed students who cheated in the 1992 board exams, the opposition used it to push its narrative that somehow the anti-copying law is “too harsh”. The widespread protests and dissatisfaction contributed significantly to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s poor performance in the 1993 state elections. Kalyan Singh’s government was ultimately defeated, and Mulayam Singh Yadav became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 1994. One of the first decisions taken by Mulayam Singh Yadav was to revoke this Act. With this, the “mockery” of the education system—mass cheating in examinations became widespread again. It was alleged that the SP government downplayed the incidents of copying/cheating in official records.
Despite its necessity, the Anti-Copying Act contributed to the BJP’s defeat in the 1993 elections, illustrating the political risks of educational reforms. Today, Akhilesh Yadav, Mulayam’s son, echoes similar opposition by criticizing the online attendance system for teachers, which aims to improve accountability and reduce absenteeism. This pattern of resistance to necessary reforms reflects a reluctance to address deep-seated issues within the education system, prioritising political gains over long-term improvements.
आख़िरकार शिक्षकों की एकजुटता के सामने भाजपा सरकार को ‘डिजिटल अटेंडेंस’ का अपना अतार्किक निर्णय स्थगित करना ही पड़ा। भाजपा सरकार को अब ये समझ आ गया होगा कि लोकतंत्र में जनता की आवाज़ ही सबसे बड़ा आदेश होती है न कि सत्ता की मनमर्ज़ी। शिक्षकों को इस नैतिक विजय के लिए बधाई!… pic.twitter.com/W4jLoL9bOF
Leveling up his attack on the state government, Akhilesh Yadav has claimed that the BJP government has “postponed” the online attendance rule for teachers. However, an official confirmation from the state government is yet to come out.
Several reports of violence have been reported from the Ranaghat-Dakshin constituency in West Bengal’s Nadia district, where the house of a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member was vandalised. The BJP has blamed the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC or TMC) workers for the vandalism even as by-polls in four assembly constituencies in the state which are underway on 10th July (Wednesday).
Ranjit Mondal, a BJP polling booth agent, charged that the accused fired bullets and damaged his residence on Wednesday morning. “The TMC wants to scare me as I am a polling agent of the BJP. I have lodged a complaint with the Election Commission over the attack,” he voiced.
Binoy Kumar Biswas who was fielded by the saffron party from Bagda the seat also confirmed the same and unveiled that the perpetrators were “sheltered by Trinamool Congress.” He mentioned, “The incident took place in the Purna Nagar area under Ranaghat police station in Nadia. Last night around 1:30 am, some miscreants broke into his house and vandalized part of it. Several bullets were also fired.”
Ranaghat, West Bengal: "A BJP worker's house was vandalized and shot at by miscreants allegedly sheltered by Trinamool. The incident took place in the Purna Nagar area under Ranaghat police station in Nadia. Last night around 1:30 a.m., some miscreants broke into his house and… pic.twitter.com/PaQ6clqJDb
An investigation is underway, according to a top police officer in the Nadia region and 26 persons have been detained about the incident. However, TMC refuted the accusations and the party’s Ranaghat-Dakshin candidate Mukut Mani Adhikari claimed, “There was one incident last night. The TMC was not involved. Today, I am canvassing the entire constituency and so far I have received no reports of violence. The polling is being held peacefully.”
Furthermore, Manas Kumar Ghosh, the BJP candidate for the Raiganj assembly constituency, informed that TMC members attempted to cause unrest in a few of the constituency’s booths during the by-elections. He also got into an altercation outside a voting place with some TMC members. and charged that the latter was attempting to scare off local voters. He stated, “Voting is being held smoothly. We want voters to exercise their franchise in a peaceful environment. The TMC is trying to create disturbances in some of the booths but we stopped them,” while talking to the journalists.
On Wednesday, Manoj Kumar Biswas, the BJP candidate for the Ranaghat Dakshin seat, also charged the ruling TMC with inciting chaos to impede voters from freely exercising their right to vote. He stated, “Ranaghat Dakshin is the BJP’s area. It has been proven again and again. There is tremendous enthusiasm among the voters. I am confident that in this election, voters will again make us win but the fact is that TMC, supported by the administration with criminal personnel, is trying to create a chaotic situation so that no voter comes to the voting centre. They are threatening our voters and workers. A free and fair election is not possible in West Bengal because the government does not want it.”
On 10th July, thirteen seats in seven states are scheduled to go to assembly by-elections. The constituencies of Maniktala, Ranaghat-Dakshin, Bagdah and Raiganj in West Bengal are also undergoing bypolls. Voting for these assembly by-polls, spanning seven states, began at seven in the morning. The result will be announced on 13th July and will determine the fate of multiple seasoned politicians and newcomers, including Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu’s wife Kamlesh Thakur. These elections, which are the first since the Lok Sabha elections, are to fill the vacancies in legislative assemblies left by the resignations or deaths of current members.
The constituencies going to by-polls include Raiganj, Ranaghat Dakshin, Bagda and Maniktala in West Bengal, Badrinath and Manglaur in Uttarakhand, Jalandhar West in Punjab, Dehra, Hamirpur and Nalagarh in Himachal Pradesh, Rupauli in Bihar, Vikravandi in Tamil Nadu and Amarwara in Madhya Pradesh.
A shocking case has come to light from the Beed district of Maharashtra. A Maulvi and his accomplice have been booked for brutally assaulting minor Hindu students. It is alleged that they assaulted the minor students with a stick for allegedly plucking Jamun fruits (blueberries) from a tree in Dargarh. The incident reportedly took place at Dindrud (Majalgaon) on Monday (8th July). According to reports, the Maulvi also attempted to strangulate a kid. One student is said to be in critical condition and is receiving treatment at a government hospital in Beed.
The accused have been identified as Maulvi Mujeeb Mujjid Sheikh and Sameer Attar Kasam. According to the complaint filed by the injured student’s mother, a case was registered against both the accused at Dindrud police station. Police have arrested Maulvi Mujeeb Mujjid Sheikh while Sameer Attar Kasam is still absconding. Further investigation is underway. The incident has sparked outrage among the villagers.
According to reports, 13-year-old students Tejas Navnath Katare and Ratneshwar Rustum Thombare hail from Dindrud. They are studying in secondary school. While returning home from school, they went to eat Jamun (purple berries) from a tree near Mahebub Subhani Dargah near Zilla Parishad School. During this time, Maulvi Mujeeb Mujjid Sheikh and Sameer Attar Kasam came there and they started brutally assaulting them with a stick. 3 students were injured in this attack. One student ran away in fear.
During the assault, the accused Maulvi hit Tejas on the head with a stick. He also tried to kill the kid by strangulation. Tejas was seriously injured. He has been given a city scan and is kept under medical observation due to severe head injuries. He is currently undergoing treatment at the government hospital in Beed. While Ratneshwar Thombare was slightly injured.
Tejas’ mother, Vandana Katare filed a complaint at the Dindrud police station. Based on her complaint, the Police registered an FIR (No. 142/2024) under sections 109, 118(1), and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). They have arrested the accused Maulvi and search is underway to nab the remaining accused.
On Tuesday (10th July), the Supreme Court of India ruled that a Muslim woman can seek maintenance from her husband in the event of a divorce.
The apex court’s order negates the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act 1986, a law [pdf] which was passed by the Rajiv Gandhi government to appease the Muslim community.
In 1985, the Supreme Court upheld the right to alimony of a Muslim woman in the infamous Mohd. Ahmad Khan v. Shah Bano Begum case. However, the Rajiv Gandhi government overturned the judgment in 1986 with the above-mentioned legislation.
Secular law will prevail over Rajiv Gandhi-era law
In the present case, a petitioner identified as Mohd Abdul Samad moved the Supreme Court after he was directed to pay interim maintenance to his divorced wife under Section 125 (Order for maintenance of wives, children and parents) of the Code of Criminal Code (CrPC).
A 2-judge Bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Augustine George Masih noted that the secular law under Section 125 CrPC would prevail over the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act 1986 in the case of petitioners.
During the hearing, Justine Augustine George Masih noted, “This Act does not bar…it is the choice of the person who had applied or moved an application under 125…There is no statutory provision provided under the Act of 1986 which says that 125 is not maintainable”.
— Dainik Bhaskar Digital (@dainikbhaskardi) July 10, 2024
Justice Nagarathna pointed out that there was nothing in the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act 1986 which “barred one remedy in favor of the other.”
The Court dismissed the petition of Mohd Abdul Samad and stated, “We are dismissing the criminal appeal with the conclusion that Section 125 CrPC would be applicable to all women and not just married women.”
The judgment in the case was reserved by the apex court on 19th February 2024.
Four prominent BJP Sikh leaders in Chandigarh have received death threats allegedly from Khalistani terrorists for their association with the party. A letter threatening murder has been sent to the BJP office located in Chandigarh, and along with it, some inflammable substances have also been recovered by the police. In the letter, BJP leaders have been warned to leave BJP or prepare to be killed. Slogans of Khalistan and Pakistan Zindabad have also been written in the letter.
According to media reports, the BJP leaders who have received threats include BJP National General Secretary Manjinder Singh Sirsa, BJP Sikh Coordination Committee and National Railway Committee member Tejinder Singh Saran and BJP General Secretary Parminder Brar. Apart from this, BJP’s state organization general secretary Srinivasulu has also received threats. BJP leaders are said to have complained to the Chandigarh Police about the threats. The police, taking cognizance of the event have begun investigation in the case. The DGP of Punjab and Chandigarh will also be looking into the matter.
Leave BJP otherwise you will be killed
BJP leaders Parminder Singh Brar and Tejinder Saran have been warned in the letters saying, “we had earlier also warned you through social media posts that you people are Sikhs and that you wear Sikh turbans. You, along with the BJP and RSS, are betraying the Sikhs and the people of Punjab. You are interfering in Sikh matters with RSS. You either leave BJP or we will remove you from this world.”
Accused of misleading the people of Punjab
The letter reads, “You along with BJP worked to hinder the farmer’s movement. You are a traitor to the Sikh religion. You are misleading the people of Punjab with the help of BJP-RSS and planning to ask people to join the BJP. You are working to spoil the relations between Sikhs and Muslims, BJP and RSS will throw you out after using you. Many people came to destroy the Sikhs and Punjab and were driven away. Neither the Sikhs nor the Punjab could be destroyed. You have ruined Punjab. Which we will clean now and we will meet you very soon.”
Will take revenge for brothers killed in Canada-Pakistan
It is further written in the letter, “sitting in Chandigarh, the BJP leaders are allegedly conspiring against us and we will soon take revenge. Manjinder Sirsa also speaks the language of RSS, we will teach him a lesson too. Manjinder Sirsa handed over Delhi SGPC to BJP RSS. We will never leave him. We will soon free the Gurudwaras of Delhi DSGMC from BJP. Many traitors like you, along with the BJP government, have killed our brothers in Canada, Pakistan and India and we will take revenge.”
The letter read, “We also warn BJP State Organization General Secretary Srinivasulu to leave Punjab soon because we have no enmity with him but we will not leave any traitor of the Sikhs. Long live Khalistan and we will remain so.”
At the end of the letter, slogans like- Khalistan Zindabad, Pakistan Zindabad, Hardeep Nijjar Zindabad, Avtar Singh Khanda Zindabad, Paramjit Singh Panjwad Zindabad, Maulana Rahim Ullah Tariq Zindabad, Pir Bashir Ahmed Zindabad, Maulana GR Rahman Zindabad have been written.
Majid Freeman, the primary instigator of attacks on Hindu temples in the 2022 Leicester violence, has been arrested on suspicion of counter-terrorism offences, including encouraging acts of terrorism.
Freeman, who was among those confronting former Labour MP Jon Ashworth during the election campaign over Gaza, has shared recordings of “Palestinian resistance” fighters on social media and raised questions about Hamas crimes on October 7.
Majid Freeman, the chief instigator of the attacks on Hindu Temples in Leicester in 2022 has been arrested for terrorism related offences.
Majid Freeman, the fanatic who was at the forefront of instigating violence against Hindus in Leicester
Majid Freeman is a local Leicester Muslim “activist” who is known to harbour problematic and extremist Islamic views. Throughout the Leicester violence, Majid was at the forefront of spreading fake news that instigated violence against Hindus.
It was on 28 August 2022 that a scuffle broke out after India defeated Pakistan in a T20 match after the Indian flag was desecrated. After the scuffle, Hindus had even calmed the situation down and tended to the individual who had snatched and desecrated the Indian flag. Majid Freeman, however, had a different story to tell.
On the 30th of August, after the Leicester police got influenced by the Muslim organisations and lied about “death to Muslims” being chanted by Hindus (they later clarified their investigation found no such chants were heard), Majid took to Twitter to rabble-rouse against Hindus.
Source: X
Majid Freeman and his support to Shockat Adam
Majid Freeman, a rabid Islamist who was at the forefront of instigating violence against Hindus during the 2022 Leicester episode, extended his support to pro-Palestine Shockat Adam.
In one tweet, he said, “Remember this from the other week? @JonAshworth will be regretting this right now. The best man @ShockatAdam won and has now replaced him in Leicester South.”
Source: X
Just like Shockat Adam, Majid Freeman left no stone unturned to rationalise the violence carried out by frenzied Muslim mobs. Freeman took it a level further by constantly peddling fake news and instigating his fellow co-religionists to ‘teach Hindus a lesson’.
In September 2022, the rabid Islamist alleged that 3 men had tried to abduct a teenage Muslim girl. “CONFIRMED: An incident took place this morning not far from a college in Leicester,” he tweeted.
Source: XSource: X
“A Muslim teenager was approached by 3 men but she ran away into the school. The college & police are aware of it and the family have been given an incident number by Leicester Police,” he claimed.
The conspiracy theorist even claimed to have met the family of the girl, who was traumatised by the alleged kidnapping attempt. “The girl is very shaken but she is ok alhamdulillah. They’ve reported the incident to the police. Hopefully, we’ll get to the bottom of this and the people behind it are caught,” he said.
The fake news was then amplified by other Islamists, who alleged the role of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in the alleged abduction attempt. The Hindu man, falsely accused of kidnapping the Muslim girl, was doxxed on Facebook and his residential address was leaked on social media.
Later, the Leicester police debunked the disinformation through a press release. It said, “Yesterday we issued an appeal following a report that a teenage girl had been approached by three men in the area of Richmond Way, Leicester, on Monday morning.”
“A full investigation has been carried out. Following extensive enquiries, we have established that the incident did not take place and no offence was committed,” the cops confirmed.
Islamists also tried to use the trope of provocation to justify their attacks on the Hindu community. They claimed that Hindus raised anti-Islamic slogans whereas they only chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Vande Mataram.’
Majid Freeman was yet again at the helm of this fake news.
Source: X
Interestingly, Majid Freeman was also interviewed by the BBC to set the narrative in favour of the perpetrators.
Source: X
The deliberate attempt by Majid Freeman to stoke hysteria in the Muslim community and lay the foundation of violence against the Leicester Hindus did not stop the then-city Mayor from arranging a meeting with him.
A new revelation has come to light in the case of sexual exploitation of women players by a cricket coach in Kerala. It has been learned that since 2018, the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) has received regular complaints regarding the coach’s activities, however, he continued in his position and no action was taken against him. According to media reports, a complaint was lodged against women’s cricket coach M Manu in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala in 2018 for misbehaving and harassing the girls. The issue was also brought up during the Kerala Cricket Board meeting but to no avail.
He was even accused of sexually abusing an underage female player in 2022 and the KCA was informed about the same. Afterwards, a case was registered against him under the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He was permitted to stay on the job even after a First Information Report was lodged against him. Later, the minor changed her statement. KCA claimed it asked M Manu to stay away from coaching after the case came to light in 2022 but resumed his role when the court cleared him. It alleged that many people then had come in support of him.
It is important to note that M Manu, who is a cricket coach at KCA, was the subject of recent allegations of sexual assault. Six victims have complained about him thus far and the cases have been filed under the POCSO Act. They stated that he molested them sexually in 2017-18. He is also charged with harassing another minor female player in a lodge in Tenkasi, Tamil Nadu, six years prior. An FIR was registered in the case in June 2024. He accepted the accusation during police interrogation but has not yet confessed to the rest of the cases. The females have also narrated their ordeal in their complaints.
The young girl who had originally complained had gone to a different city as a result of her trauma. She recently encountered M Manu when she went back to Thiruvananthapuram for a tournament after which he was apprehended. Following this, complaints were raised by other trainees.
According to the players, M Manu tormented them, asked for their nude pictures and forced them to pose naked inside the gym and toilets at the KCA headquarters. He used to claim that these photographs were required for a physical evaluation process by the KCA and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). He made obscene comments about the female players even during training. Furthermore, he had a history of pressuring the girls for sexual favours and those who objected were kicked from the team.
A complaint alleging that M Manu, a Sreevaraham resident, abused a trainee in a restroom when she was eleven years old led to his arrest on June 12. He is currently in the custody of Kerala Police. The authorities are investigating the case against him. His phone has been seized and sent for forensic inquiry. He is now being questioned in other cases. The cops reportedly have circumstantial evidence and are also collecting information from other victims.
In a case reported from the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, a 25-year-old Hindu woman was raped and threatened by the accused identified as Asif Yunus Pathan. The accused initially posed as a Hindu under a false identity and established a friendship with the woman. Later he exposed his real face as he threatened her on 4th July and brutally raped her, as per the woman’s complaint.
The accused has been arrested under sections 63, 69, 329(4), and 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Samhita, 2023.
The FIR copy of the incident has been obtained by OpIndia. The victim in her complaint said that the accused in the month of June sent a friend request on Facebook. She said he created a fake account in the name of ‘Nava Patil’ and began chatting with her. The woman is believed to have trusted the account after which she accepted the request and responded to his chats.
Later the accused forced the woman to exchange phone numbers and chat on WhatsApp. The accused after a few days forced the woman to send her nude pictures on WhatsApp. He threatened the woman saying that he would expose their chats to her husband if she failed to fulfil his derogatory demands, as per the complaint.
Scared of the threats, the woman sent him the pictures. This continued for days. Then on 4th July, the accused called the woman and blackmailed her saying that he was coming to her house. On refusal, he threatened her. Reportedly, he barged into her home and brutally raped the woman for hours.
After this, he left home, got intoxicated, and returned to her home to continue to rape her. The woman yelled in pain listening to which her neighbors asked her what had happened. On narrating the ordeal, the enraged locals tried to trap the accused who then managed to flee from the spot.
Eventually, the police were informed and the accused was arrested under sections 63, 69, 329(4), and 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Samhita, 2023. The Police confirmed to the media that the accused hid his original identity to trap the woman and raped her on 4th July 2024.
अहमदनगर, महाराष्ट्र ⛔
मोहम्मद आसिफने फेसबुकवर श्री. पाटील या नावाने अकाऊंट बनवून एका 25 वर्षीय हिंदू महिलेशी मैत्री केली.
4 जुलै 2024 रोजी तो तिच्या घरी गेला आणि तिच्यावर बलात्कार केला.
— अहम् ब्रह्मास्मि ? (@That_Pune_Guy) July 8, 2024
A similar case was reported on 8th April, 2024. A minor Hindu girl belonging to the SC/ST community was sexually assaulted by one Hamid Sayyed. The accused first developed a ‘friendship’ with the minor and then sexually assaulted her. He also captured derogatory photos and videos of the minor and threatened her to obey him, failing which he said he would publicize her images.
The FIR in that case was filed on 2nd April 2024 under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, and the SC/ST Act, 1989.
In the current given case, the accused has been arrested. Further investigations are underway.
Two days after the Labour Party swept the general election in the United Kingdom, ‘journalist’ Shoaib Daniyal on Saturday (6th July) left no stone unturned to fearmonger about the Hindu community in the country.
Daniyal, who works as the political Editor of the leftist propaganda site Scroll, wrote a vicious piece (archive) titled ‘How Hindutva is playing a silent role in British politics.’
The propaganda artist not only downplayed Hinduphobia in the UK as a ‘political construct’ but suggested that organisations with supposed ties to the BJP and RSS were influencing politics in the country through ‘Hindutva.’
Screengrab of the propaganda piece by Shoaib Daniyal
At the very onset, Daniyal whitewashed the role of Islamists in the 2022 Leicester violence by shrewdly labelling it as a ‘communal disturbance’ between Hindus and Muslims over an India Vs Pakistan cricket match.
The Scroll propagandist claimed, “In Leicester, for example, it (INSIGHT UK) had played a key role presenting a Hindutva view on the violence, with its narratives being amplified by the controversial Indian Hindutva website, OpIndia.“
Hindu manifesto rattles Shoaib Daniyal
He lamented that Hindus were becoming a formidable political force in the United Kingdom despite constituting only 1.6% of the population.
The fact that the Hindu community has decided to stand up for itself and not let its vote go to waste has rattled the likes of Shoaib Daniyal.
“The influence of these Hindutva organisations has allowed them to lobby politicians for policies that fit their ideology…” he whined.
Screengrab of the Hindu Manifesto
As proof of growing ‘Hindutva politics’ in the UK, the Scroll propagandist highlighted how a Hindu manifesto [pdf] released ahead of the general elections in the country sought protective security funding for the community in light of the 2022 anti-Hindu Leicester violence.
Daniyal also seemed surprised that Hindus were demanding recognition of hate directed towards the community as a ‘religious hate crime,’ the absence of which helped Islamists like Mohammed Hijab to threaten Hindus in Leicester.
“Most contentiously, the manifesto calls for recognising “anti-Hindu hate as a religious hate crime”. For British Hindus who do not see eye to eye with Hindutva, this manifesto is controversial,” he wrote.
Reliance on anti-Hindu and anti-India propagandists
Shoaib Daniyal roped in the Director of Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR) UK, Rahiv Pandit, to suggest that a law against anti-Hindu hate or Hinduphobia in the UK is an agenda of the BJP and the RSS.
For the unversed, the organisation was formed in 2019 by Islamist outfits ‘Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC)’ and the Organization for Minorities of India (OFMI). Sunita Vishwanath is the co-founder of HfHR.
The organisation endorsed the anti-Hindu event ‘Dismantling Global Hindutva Conference’ in 2021. It also came up with a “special toolkit” to propagate against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his State visit to the US in June 2023.
Sunita Vishwanath, co-founder of Hindus for Human Rights (#HfHR) is co-host of multiple events with IAMC – all ‘concerned’ about India.
Her other organization Women for Afghan Women is funded by Soros’ Open Society Foundation.
In October last year, the X (formerly Twitter) account of HfHR was withheld in India in response to a legal demand.
In February this year, OpIndia reported that the organisation hosted an anti-Hindu event with Dana Bergen as the speaker. Bergen is a member of the ‘Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), which received $6,50,000 from far-left billionaire George Soros.
Rajiv Pandit of HfHR (UK) downplayed Hinduphobia in the UK and claimed that a law to punish anti-Hindu crime would be akin to stifling dissent and criticism of PM Modi.
“Hinduphobia is a propaganda project,” he set the perfect stage for extremists to continue targeting the Hindu community in the near future.
Mukulika Banerjee, who has been a close associate of Rahul Gandhi, could have been powering this hate campaign against Karan Kataria at LSE ostensibly for having links with the Hindu right, the RSS in particular. https://t.co/7u6KXoV8HRpic.twitter.com/ZqZEo8Bwbo
In his article, Shoaib Daniyal cited an ‘academic’ by the name of Mukulika Banerjee to allege that discrimination against Hindus was not systematic. “Hinduphobia is a recent, made-up term,” she was quoted as saying.
In April 2023, news outlet FirstPost reported that Mukulika Banerjee was behind a nefarious Hinduphobic campaign that led to the disqualification of an Indian-origin student Karan Kataria from Student Union elections at London of School of Economics (LSE) over alleged ties to RSS and ‘Hindu nationalism’.
She is a close associate of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as well. As such, it is no coincidence that Mukulika Banerjee believes that Hinduphobia is a ‘made-up term’.
3. Subir Sinha, Reader in Development Studies, SOAS. Sinha has many times equated Hinduism with Nazis. 4/7 pic.twitter.com/aJ82G3VUxj
— Stop Hindu Hate Advocacy Network (SHHAN) (@HinduHate) June 9, 2023
The Scroll propagandist had also sought the opinion of one ‘academic’ named Subir Sinha from the SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies) in his article. Sinha went on to claim that ‘Hinduphobia’ was coined to deviate discussion on alleged ‘caste discrimination.’
In the past, Sinha had disseminated lies about the 2002 Gujarat riots, the Hindu epics Ramayana and Mahabharata and the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A by the Modi government.
He had also cast aspersions on the Indian democracy, made vitriolic remarks against Hindus and tried to falsely implicate Hindus in the 2022 Leicester violence. Sinha had also co-authored a dubious report titled ‘Modi Mirage’ in May this year.
Shoaib Daniyal also roped in UK-based ‘author’ named Amrit Wilson, who suggested that Hinduphobia is being ‘re-defined’ along the lines of anti-semitism to silence criticism.
“In 2018, Bob Blackman said at a meeting organised by the Hindu Forum of Britain that there was a need to learn how a new definition of antisemitism, regarded as controversial since it is seen as a means of silencing criticism of Israel, was adopted by institutions in Britain in order to do something similar for Hinduphobia,” she was quoted as saying.
For the unversed, Wilson made baseless claims about RSS provoking violence in Leicester in 2022 to deviate public discourse from the mayhem unleashed by the Islamists. She had amplified the conspiracy theory, originally peddled by Muslims, that a bus ferried RSS supporters to Leicester to stir violence on the behest of a Hindu temple.
The Scroll Editor whines about Hindus being vocal about their rights in UK
In its article, Shoaib Daniyal lamented how Hindus in the United Kingdom were being vocal about their rights and the atrocities committed against them to the policymakers.
“The sharpest example of Hindutva’s success can be seen on the ground in Leicester, in the charged post-riot environment. When Scroll visited Leicester it found that Insight was working on the ground, with some success, to persuade Hindus to boycott the (SOAS) inquiry,” he added.
The propaganda artist noted that Labour Party MP and UK’s new Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, had made it clear that Hinduphobia (a term that he and his coterie has been trying to negate) has no place in the country.
“In spite of the ideological diversity within British Hindus, it is clear that Hindutva organisations have largely been able to successfully represent themselves as the sole spokespersons of the community to policy makers,” he further whined.
While the Scroll Editor was busy fearmongering about Hindus, he forgot to mention how 4 Muslims were elected in the UK general election solely based on their pro-Gaza and anti-Israeli stance. OpIndia had reported about one such controversial MP Shockat Adam.
Shoaib Daniyal and his past controversies
The innate ability of Shoaib Daniyal to peddle the dubious narrative of ‘Muslim victimhood’ and paint a doomsday image of religious minorities in India under the Narendra Modi government has drawn attention from across the border.
Several of his vicious pieces have been ‘reproduced with permission’ in the Pakistani newspaper Dawn between 2015 and 2020.
Screengrab of the stories by Shoian Daniyal, which were reproduced by Dawn
As early as 2016, OpIndia reported how Daniyal whined about naming a blood bank after late politician Balasaheb Thackeray but rationalised the naming of an actor’s son after tyrant and invader, Taimur.
When women’s rights activist Trupti Desai announced that she would enter the inner section of Haji Ali in 2016, Shoaib Daniyal (who otherwise masquerades as liberal) defended the prohibition of women in Dargah.
The Scroll propagandist was also seen resorting to mental gymnastics and glaring hypocrisy in a 2018 article, titled ‘Celebrating Bhima Koregaon is unpatriotic? So why not other British victories in India too?’
He had argued, “Holding multiple perspectives of the past is quite normal. The Indian peoples are a variegated lot and so are their histories. It is, therefore, possible to both mourn Bhima Koregaon as a victory for British colonialism and celebrate it for helping destroy a terrible system of caste apartheid.“
OpIndia had exposed how Shoaib Daniyal suggested the almost opposite thing in a 2017 piece titled ‘From Haifa to Jallianwallah Bagh: Celebrating the Raj’s military history will open a can of worms.’
At that time, he had claimed that celebrating memories of colonial wars and pride over the exploits of the British Indian Army was a case of ‘Commemorating Colonialism’. “It is then a curious act of historical masochism that Indians, as the victims of this very army of colonial occupation, now want to celebrate its exploits in service of the British Empire,” Daniyal selectively claimed in the case of Haifa but not Bhima Koregaon.
Terrifying story of how the Hindutva website, OpIndia attacked the Muslim principal of one of Mumbai's most prestigious schools — leading to her being fired. https://t.co/StI3QKd0Oo
In June 2019, he courted controversy for suggesting that people were ‘not unhappy’ during the draconian Emergency period (1975-1977) imposed by the Indira Gandhi government. The Scroll propagandist left no stone unturned to justify the darkest chapter of Indian democracy.
“Voters don’t always punish authoritarianism. A lesson from the 1977 general election that is doubly relevant today.#replug,” he claimed in a now-deleted tweet.
True to his religious ideology, Shoaib Daniyal has recently extended his support to Parveen Shaikh, the pro-Hamas, ex-principal of The Somaiya School.
Shaikh was ousted from the educational institute after OpIndia exposed her divisive, intolerant and dangerous views. Daniyal was seen peddling his usual ‘Muslim victimhood’ trump card.
