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After being adamant to go to ED office, Sharad Pawar says he will not go now, to ‘maintain law and order’

OpIndia Staff
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After being adamant to go to ED office, Sharad Pawar says he will not go now, to ‘maintain law and order’

After a lot of political drama and tantrums, NCP chief Sharad Pawar has finally stated that he will not make his uninvited visit to the ED office today. As per reports, Pawar has just now declared that he will cancel his visit because the Mumbai police commissioner and joint commissioner met him and requested him not to go, in order to maintain law and order.


NCP leader Sharad Pawar, despite the Enforcement Directorate’s intimation that he is not required at their office today, had remained obstinate in visiting the investigative agency’s office.


NCP leader Nawab Malik, while addressing the media said that the Enforcement Directorate has sent an e-mail stating that Sharad Pawar’s presence at their office is not required today and they will intimate them when he needs to visit the office. However, Malik asserted that Pawar is firm on visiting their office.

Earlier today, ahead of Sharad Pawar’s visit to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in connection with the money laundering case, prohibitory orders were put in force in South Mumbai. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief was supposed to visit the ED office today in Mumbai’s Ballard Estate area.

The former Maharashtra Chief Minister and his nephew, former Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, were named in the Rs 25,000 crore Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam. A case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has been registered against the accused.

After the ED took cognisance of the scam and booked money laundering case against the Pawars, several political parties have come forward taking up the cudgel to defend the NCP supremo. Former Congress President and Gandhi scion Rahul Gandhi jumped in the defence of Sharad Pawar, saying that he is being a victim of vindictive government just a month before the Maharashtra state elections.


Another political party and an ally of the BJP, Shiv Sena too appeared to side with the NCP leader, stating that the government should have had a ‘prior discussion’ with the ED as Pawar is a tall leader and enjoys considerable popularity in the state.

Amidst the ensuing the drama, the Mumbai Police teams had remained alert and deployed to maintain law and order in the finance capital of India. Mumbai Police was also taking the help of drones for the surveillance of Ballard estate where Section 144 has been imposed.

Could reports of CPI/CPM receiving Rs 25 crore from DMK be both true and false?

Abhishek Banerjee
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Could reports of CPI/CPM receiving Rs 25 crore from DMK be both true and false?

Who says that just because something is false that it cannot be true?

Or that just because something is true that it cannot be false?

Who decides that it has to be one or the other? We want “Azaadi.”

In Nineteen Eighty Four, George Orwell describes thus the all important concept of “doublethink” in a nightmarish future world ruled by Communists:

“The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them…  Even in using the word doublethink it is necessary to exercise doublethink. For by using the word one admits that one is tampering with reality; by a fresh act of doublethink one erases this knowledge; and so on indefinitely, with the lie always one leap ahead of the truth.”

Let us take the case of this recent news article on the matter of DMK donating Rs 25 crore to the Left parties: the CPI/CPIM.

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Reports of DMK donating Rs 25 crore to left parties

Ok, so the CPIM say the report of DMK “donating” Rs 25 crores to the CPIM was “concocted.” Maybe we should take the comrades at face value. Who doesn’t?

The CPIM further clarified in no uncertain terms that all donations and funds received during the period of Lok Sabha elections have been reflected in their statement submitted to Election Commission.

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CPIM’s clarification

Fine, we will take the comrades at face value. Again, who doesn’t?

But there does remain the small matter of the affidavit filed by the DMK before the Election Commission, in which they have recorded the “donations” made to Left parties.

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DMK’s affidavit

Rs 15 crores for the CPI. Rs 10 crores for the CPIM. A humble beginning towards building a true workers’ paradise. But nearly not enough, as the election results showed.

More interestingly, the CPI(M)’s election expenditure across the country was Rs 7.2 crore. If you assume they received Rs 10 crore “donation” from the DMK, where is the other Rs 2.8 crore?

Let it be. Comrades are not very good with money that does not have Mao’s face on it.

But, in case you missed it, look more carefully at What CPIM State Secretary K Balakrishnan told The Hindu.

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The ‘donation’ might reflect in the next affidavit

Now we learn that the affidavits will be filed “stage by stage.” And better still, that all the details “might” be reflected in the next affidavit.

Wait, didn’t CPI(M) say before that all donations and funds received during the period of Lok Sabha elections have been reflected in their statement submitted to Election Commission?

So which one is true: First of all, did the CPI(M) receive Rs 10 crore from the DMK or not? Was the report of them getting the money “concocted” like the CPIM said a few days ago? If the money was received, then why was it not reflected in the statement from the CPIM to the Election Commission? If there is another affidavit going to be filed, why did the CPIM say that all donations had already been submitted to the EC?

Plus, they say the amount from the DMK “might” be reflected in the next affidavit. So how many more affidavits could potentially be there? One, two, three … a hundred? Is it open ended? Is the CPI(M) entitled to file what it wants and when it wants and as many times as it wants?

And now, we have more:

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Left now says it is not unethical to take money from friendly party

How much reality changes and how quickly!

Just so we are clear, are you saying the reports of DMK donating Rs 25 crore were not concocted then?

Now we learn it’s not unethical to take money from friendly party. How could it be? It is even less unethical to not mention it in the election affidavit, not to know whether all the expenses have been mentioned already in the affidavit, not to know if there will be more affidavits and if so, how many.

After all, what is a bit of money between friends? Money from workers of the DMK to the workers of the CPIM. Didn’t somebody say : “Workers of the world unite! There is nothing unethical about it.”

Hey, I think I have a new slogan for the Left Parties going forward. Anyone remember the Pepsi marketing tagline from the 1996 Cricket World Cup? Never mind. Here is my idea for the slogan:

CPI/CPI(M): Nothing unethical about it.

US pulls up Pakistan, says it should show more concern for the Muslims in China than in Kashmir

OpIndia Staff
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US pulls up Pakistan, says it should show more concern for the Muslims in China than in Kashmir

Days after US President Donald Trump met Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, the United States has called out Pakistan for displaying apathy for the plight of Uighur Muslims held in detention centres in Xinjiang province of China. Reprimanding Pakistan for its propagandist rhetoric about the alleged human rights violations committed in Jammu and Kashmir, the United States has asked Pakistan to show more concern for the condition of Muslims in China.

The US Acting Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia Alice Wells while addressing the issue of heightened tensions between the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours in the wake of abrogation of Article 370 urged both the countries to reduce the rhetoric. “Mr Khan’s comments on Kashmir were unhelpful. A lowering of rhetoric would be welcome, especially between two nuclear powers,” she said.

Pointing out at the stoic silence espoused by Pakistan regarding the detention of over 1 million Uighur Muslims by China, Wells said, “I would like to see the same level of concern displayed by Pakistan about Muslims who are being detained in Western China, almost like in concentration chamber. The issue of the trampling of human rights of Muslims is not just limited to Kashmir but applies broadly across the world and you’ve seen the administration very involved here during the UN General Assembly and trying to highlight horrific conditions that Muslims in China are subjected to,” she said.

Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan was caught between two stools while he was waxing eloquent about the alleged human rights violations committed by the Indian Armed Forces in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 on Monday during an event organised by Council on Foreign Research. Khan was put in a fix when he was asked to comment on the human rights violations committed by China on Uighur Muslims.

During the interaction with media professionals, when one of the attendees asked Khan to comment on the plight of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang province of China and the horrifying atrocities they are being subjected to by the Chinese regime, he declined to comment on the issue. Khan avoided the issue by saying that crucial issues are discussed with China in private as they had been at Pakistan’s side when they had hit rock bottom and thus he would desist from speaking anything on the Chinese treatment given out to Uighur Muslims.

Not just Imran Khan, several senior-level Pakistani administrators have consistently refused to speak on the condition of Uighur Muslims in China, lest they rub their “all-weather ally” the wrong way.

China is facing criticism from the world community for pursuing harsh policies against the Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang. Damning reports blaming Beijing of interning members of its Muslim population – by “re-educating” them away from their faith have emerged. It is believed that China has resorted to this measure to curb riots and violent attacks the government has endured at the hands of Muslim separatists in the Xinjiang province.

In these detention centres, Uighur Muslims are allegedly compelled to unlearn their traditions, pan their Islamic practices and extend their loyalty to Xi Jinping’s Communist Party. Many Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia, who are otherwise at the forefront of taking up the cudgel to defend atrocities against Muslims have kept mum against China. Possibly because China has either been aggressively investing in these countries or bailing them out of their economic crisis.

Left terror in Jadavpur University: Assault of democracy in an educational institute in Bengal

Guest Author
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Left terror in Jadavpur University: Assault of democracy in an educational institute in Bengal

यत्र नार्यस्तु पूज्यन्ते रमन्ते तत्र देवता:।
यत्रैतास्तु न पूज्यन्ते सर्वास्तत्राफला: क्रिया:ll

‘Where women are honoured divinity blossoms, where dishonoured all action become unfruitful.’

This is the teaching of our scriptures and perhaps this is what the ‘students’ of Jadavpur University need to be learn in their classrooms. The assault of democracy in an educational institute of Bengal, as shocking and shameful as it may be, is unfortunately not an aberration.

It is a part of a standard operating procedure right out of the playbook of an ideology which does not believe in – debate, discussion and free speech. It believes in imposing itself by perpetuating a certain breed of ‘intellectuals’ who knowingly mislead the youth. Quick to pick up the banners and raise slogans against the government, nation, the idea of India and against all of the things we hold dear, they have no qualms embracing, glorifying and idealising foreign despots.

Often dawning the garb of activists, human rights crusaders and intellectuals with the tag of ‘eminence’, the Marxist idea of free speech does not extend to their backyard where it is buried instead. So insecure and intolerant in their convictions, the very prospect of an individual with an alternative set of idea interacting with students sends shivers down their spine. Perhaps, this stems from a realisation that the foundation of their ideological beliefs is infested with termites and the ivory facade will soon come crumbling down.

What we saw in Jadavpur was not a protest, it was a blockade. The intent was not to merely express displeasure but deny entry through violent means. Heckling and protests while an integral part of democracy cannot be used as an instrument to subvert the rights of those who we seek to oppose. Needless to say, students at JU aren’t obligated to seek permission from ‘Urban Naxals’ before inviting any citizen, let alone a minister of the government. Unfortunately, the courtesy of free speech is not for those in disagreement. This attempt at physical blockade is somewhat reflective of the mental blockade the Left seeks to perpetuate over Indian education.

If in the land of Durga and Saraswati we cannot respect women, if colleges cannot teach our youth to respect women, then everything else that they learn is an exercise in futility. What use will their lofty degrees of social sciences serve, if the holders cannot end up as law-abiding citizens?

As gross was the misconduct of students, the behaviour of the administration was even more disparaging. With the VC pleading inaction and the police spectating in the interim, a state of chaos was purposefully perpetuated. That the holder of the highest constitutional office in the sate had to personally led a rescue and relief only reflects the gravity and simultaneous failure of public order.

As thinking individuals, we must decide the breath of national discourse we seek in our Universities – conflicting ideas being discussed and debated for each student to expand his vision and mould his thinking or a singular foreign idea being forced feed by the academic intolerant and intellectually arrogant.

The students of Bengal know better – even those who may not agree with Babul Supriyo and Agnimitra Paul. Violent reprisals cannot quell the firm nationalistic voice emerging from our educational institutions. It is time the followers of Polpot, Mao and Marx made way for believers of Vivekanand, Aurobindo and Tagore – this is the renaissance that the Bengal awaits!

Ashutosh Poddar is a heritage conservationist. He tweets at @poddar_ashutosh.

Madhya Pradesh sex scandal: Congress blames RSS leaders ‘who do not marry’, suggests Mohan Bhagwat should also get married

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh sex scandal: Congress blames RSS leaders ‘who do not marry’, suggests Mohan Bhagwat should also get married

Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Manak Agarwal has put the blame of honey trapping sex scandal case squarely on the RSS because “RSS people do not marry”.


As per reports, Agarwal said that one of the biggest reason for the honey trapping case is that RSS people do not marry. “RSS people should get married. Mohan Bhagwat should also get married,” he said. Full-time RSS pracharaks (workers) observe celibacy and adopt chastity while devoting their lives to the Sangh. Mohan Bhagwat is the Sarsanghchalak (chief) of the RSS and a lifelong celibate.

A huge honey-trapping sex scandal has emerged in Madhya Pradesh where high profile bureaucrats, politicians, including an ex-chief minister and journalists are believed to be involved.

After the police arrested the women involved and unearthed the Madhya Pradesh honey trap racket, there are new skeletons tumbling out of the closet every day. It was earlier reported that among the names of high profile and powerful persons ‘trapped’ by the women, there are several names of ministers and IAS officers in the state.

As per latest reports, the investigating team has found that the racket also included names of several Bhopal-based media persons. As per a report, the names include a resident editor of a Hindi newspaper, a cameraman of a news channel and the owner of the regional satellite channel.

The media persons, as per the report, were not the victims of the honey trap racket but rather the ‘conduits’. The media persons allegedly helped broker deals between the bureaucrat victims and Shweta Jain, the kingpin of the racket.

As many as 13 IAS officers, a former governor and a former chief minister are reportedly among the people used by the racket to extort money and favourable deals for their NGOs. The police are now examining thousands of digital files, filled with lurid sex chats, videos and images that were recovered from the arrested persons.

Watch: This video of a busy, bustling Srinagar busts Pakistan’s lies on Kashmir

OpIndia Staff
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Watch: This video of a busy, bustling Srinagar busts Pakistan’s lies on Kashmir

Imtiyaz Hussain, a senior official of Jammu and Kashmir police has shared a video of Srinagar city. The video, dated 26 September, shows a busy, bustling city with going about its business in a perfectly peaceful manner, something that is completely opposite of what propagandists and Pakistan’s paid trolls claim.


The 1.35 minutes long video shows hundreds of cars on streets, vendors opening their shops, men, women moving about buying vegetables and groceries, and young people moving on bikes with their friends, the scenes from a normal city on any given day.

Hussain, who has been regularly sharing updates and visuals from the valley, stated that there has been no ‘siege’ in Kashmir, except in the mind of some propagandists.

As both PM Modi and Pakistani PM Imran Khan are scheduled later today to address the UNGA in New York, Kashmir is expected to be the in focus.

Pakistani minorities launch massive protests in New York ahead of Imran Khan’s UNGA speech

OpIndia Staff
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Pakistani minorities launch massive protests in New York ahead of Imran Khan’s UNGA speech

Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan is scheduled to address the UNGA later today. Ahead of his speech, the persecuted minorities in Pakistan have launched a massive and widespread protest across New York City.

As per reports, hundreds of taxis and trucks have appeared on the streets of the city displaying slogans and images of atrocities carried out by Pakistan on its own citizens. The campaign has been launched by an US-based advocacy group, Voice of Karachi.


Karachi’s former mayor Wasay Jalil has been quoted by ANI as saying, “Since Pakistan does not allow Mohajirs to hold even a peaceful protest against such injustices, we have no other option but to approach the United Nations and other international bodies to seek their intervention. It is our moral, human, and democratic right.”

Jalil had added, “Atrocities are being committed against Mohajirs, it has been going on for decades, we have lost more than 25,000 lives and there have been thousands of forced disappearances. We want to apprise the world of our situation caused by Pakistan.”

Mohajirs are the Muslim immigrants belonging to multiple ethnic groups who had migrated to Pakistan from various parts of India during the partition.

Nadeem Nusrat Khan, the chairman of Voice of Karachi group, stated to ANI, “It is ironic on part of Pakistan and Prime Minister Imran Khan to peddle a false narrative on Kashmir issue at the UN in New York when the country’s own minorities are facing the worst human rights situation.

Khan added further, “It is really shameful that Pakistan says India is against Muslims. Pakistan has literally curbed and created a hell for the religious minorities. We want Pakistan to treat all its ethnic and religious minorities with the dignity that they deserve. I think it would be better for the Pakistan Prime Minister to fix his own home first before talking about other issues.”

The protest taxis and trucks are displaying images of the atrocities and infographics about the plight of minorities in Pakistan. Some of the slogans read, “Pakistan: A country in denial of UN charter on Human rights” and “Mohajirs demand the UN intervention in Pakistan.”

There are also posters and digital billboards highlighting the Pakistani atrocities at Balochistan, demanding freedom for the region that was illegally occupied by Pakistan in 1948.

Kaushambi rape case: Third accused Mohammad Akib arrested in the minor Dalit girl rape case

OpIndia Staff
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Kaushambi rape case: Third accused Mohammad Akib arrested in the minor Dalit girl rape case

The third accused in the horrific Kaushambi rape case Mohammad Akib aka ‘Badka’ has been finally arrested after almost a week of being on the run. The Police caught him on Thursday and a chargesheet has been filed against all three.

It is believed that the hearing will be made fast-track under the POCSO Act.

On Tuesday, September 24, the main accused, Adil, in the rape case was arrested after he was shot at in a police encounter when he tried to escape from a mazaar where he was hiding. Acting on a tip-off, the police reached Rawatpur but Adil then tried to escape while climbing the walls. When the police followed him, he started firing at them. The police also indulged in retaliatory firing where Adil was shot in his legs. A country-made pistol and motorcycle was also recovered from him.

In a deplorable incident, on 21st September, a 15-year-old minor Dalit girl was allegedly gang-raped and filmed by three men in Ghosia village of Kaushambi district that falls under Saray Akil police station, near Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. In a video of the gang-rape that has gone viral, the girl can reportedly be heard saying, “Allah ki kasam, mere saath mat karo (for Allah’s sake, don’t do this with me).” Amidst screams and desperate cries, the helpless girl kept begging for mercy. However, the brutes refused to spare her. As per reports, the villagers nearby rush to the spot after hearing the victim wailing and screaming.

One accused Nazik was caught by the villagers and beaten up by the angered crowd while Adil and a third unknown culprit, who is now identified as Mohammad Akib, managed to flee.

According to media reports, when the father of the girl went to the police station to report the rape in Kaushambi, the police thrashed him instead. The girl can be seen saying how she was pushed into the field and raped brutally. “Muslim,” she says when asked who were the perpetrators. In the video, the father of the girl says, “Three men raped my daughter, hence I went to the police station to file a report. There I was beaten up,” the father said. Angered over police apathy, the villagers reached the police station to stage a protest. Eventually, the police registered a case against all three accused.

Madhya Pradesh sex racket: After politicians and bureaucrats, high-profile journalists’ names emerge as ‘brokers and negotiators’

OpIndia Staff
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Madhya Pradesh sex racket: After politicians and bureaucrats, high-profile journalists’ names emerge as ‘brokers and negotiators’

After the police arrested the women involved and unearthed the Madhya Pradesh honey trap racket, there are new skeletons tumbling out of the closet every day. It was earlier reported that among the names of high profile and powerful persons ‘trapped’ by the women, there are several names of ministers and IAS officers in the state.

As per latest reports, the investigating team has found that the racket also included names of several Bhopal-based media persons. As per an IANS report, the names include a resident editor of a Hindi newspaper, a cameraman of a news channel and the owner of the regional satellite channel.

The media persons, as per the report, were not the victims of the honey trap racket but rather the ‘conduits’. The media persons allegedly helped broker deals between the bureaucrat victims and Shweta Jain, the kingpin of the racket.

The allegation of journalists and key media persons being involved in the racket was first made by BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya recently. Speaking to media, Vijayvargiya had stated that he has specific information about 3 or 4 journalists being involved in the racket.

IANS has quoted Hemant Sharma, the editor-in-chief of a Hindi daily saying that there is a certain group of journalists who move in the power corridors only with the sole purpose of blackmailing and extorting money from the senior government officials and politicians who they know are involved in corruption. Sharma has also stated that Shweta and Arti Dayal did have some journalists in their racket who they used for negotiating deals with their victims.

In another development, the father of Monika Yadav, the 18-year-old girl who was arrested among other women, was detained by the Indore police for interrogation. Reports stated that Monika had revealed that some material evidence is hidden in her house and the police team had gone to the Sawansi village in Rajgarh district along with Monika.

Monika, reportedly a talented girl from a poor family, was trapped by Arti Dayal with the promise of financial help for a journalism course. Monika and Arti were arrested along with their driver Omprakash on September 18 from a hotel in Indore, where they had gone to collect Rs 50 lakh from a government official whom they were blackmailing.

Arti Dayal, Shweta Swapnil Jain, Barkha Soni, Shweta Vijay Jain, Monika Yadav and a driver named Omprakash Kori were the first persons to be arrested in the high profile honey trapping racket. Barkha is the wife of a former Congress IT cell vice president and a former Mahila Congress member. Shweta had even tried to get an election ticket from Sagar but could not do it after her MMS went viral.

As many as 13 IAS officers, a former governor and a former chief minister are reportedly among the people used by the racket to extort money and favourable deals for their NGOs. The police are now examining thousands of digital files, filled with lurid sex chats, videos and images that were recovered from the arrested persons.

NASA unable to locate Vikram Lander at targeted landing site, releases images captured by its lunar orbiter

OpIndia Staff
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NASA unable to locate Vikram Lander at targeted landing site, releases images captured by its lunar orbiter

The American space agency, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has released images captured by its lunar orbiter of the targeted landing site of Chandrayaan-2’s lander, Vikram.


The images were taken at dusk and the NASA team was unable to locate the lander which crash landed earlier this month. According to NASA, the images are captured by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) Quickmap and was not able to locate the lander. “The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) passed over the landing site on Sept. 17 and acquired a set of high resolution images of the area; so far the LROC team has not been able to locate or image the lander. It was dusk when the landing area was imaged and thus large shadows covered much of the terrain; it is possible that the Vikram lander is hiding in a shadow. The lighting will be favorable when LRO passes over the site in October and once again attempts to locate and image the lander,” NASA said in a statement.

On 7th September, Chandrayaan-2’s landing module had gone silent after Vikram Lander lost connection when it was merely 2 KMs from the landing surface of the moon. While ISRO was able to locate the lunar module in one piece, it had tiled a little because of the hard landing. All efforts to resume the communication has so far been unsuccessful.

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