Wednesday, November 13, 2024
Home Blog Page 5395

Kashmiri Pandits hold rally in Melbourne to support of revocation of Article 370, share personal stories of their genocide

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Kashmiri Pandits hold rally in Melbourne to support of revocation of Article 370, share personal stories of their genocide

On Sunday, the Kashmiri Pandit community from Australia held a rally in Melbourne in support of the historic decision of the Narendra Modi government to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution that accorded special status to Jammu and Kashmir, reports ANI.

The Kashmiri Pandit community joined by other members of the Indian-Australian community had organised a rally from Victorian state parliament to Federation Square. The Indian community carried tricolours and posters that read, “J&K is our motherland… India is our nation” and sang patriotic songs during the rally.


The Kashmiri Pandits, who were subjected to genocide by the Islamic terrorists, shared their personal stories of how they were driven out of their ancestral homeland back in 1989-1990 by Pakistani backed terrorists.

“Back in 1990, one day my father-in-law came home and told us we have to leave within 15 minutes. Imagine leaving your whole life behind you and pack your belongings in a couple of suitcases within 15 minutes, never to return home. That was just the beginning of a long struggle ahead,” said a Kashmiri Pandit.

A similar rally was earlier held in Washington DC by Kashmiri Pandits from various parts of the United States, during which they had raised slogans in support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking the “bold and historic step”.

Recently, members of Kashmiri Pandits organisation in the United State of America – ‘Global Kashmiri Pandit Diaspora’ (GKDP) had organised a protest march outside the office of The Washington Post in the US capital city Washington DC. The protest was organised against the “unbearable series” of articles published in the newspaper following the scrapping of Article 370 and Article 35A in Jammu and Kashmir by the Narendra Modi government.

Angered by the pro-Pakistan propaganda peddled by its communally coloured reports after the abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, members of Kashmiri Pandits on Saturday shot a letter to the Editor of Washington Post over their biased reportage on Kashmir.

As Supreme Court refuses to interfere in Jammu and Kashmir, Ghulam Nabi Azam files petition against abrogation of Article 370

OpIndia Staff
-
0
As Supreme Court refuses to interfere in Jammu and Kashmir, Ghulam Nabi Azam files petition against abrogation of Article 370

The Supreme Court of India has listed a petition filed by Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad against abrogation of Article 370 for hearing tomorrow. A bench Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, and justices S.A. Bobde and S. Abdul Nazeer will head the petition. This bench is already hearing several other petitions filed against the decision of the union government to end the separate status granted to Jammu and Kashmir, and restrictions imposed in the state.

According to details available on the Supreme Court website, the petition by Ghulam Nabi Azad was registered with the court on September 12, and it was verified the next day. The court has decided that the matter will be taken up on September 16.

It may be note that the apex court has so far refused to interference on the Jammu and Kashmir. Responding to petitions filed to lift the restrictions, the court had said that the administration should be given adequate time to restore normalcy in the state to withdraw the curbs.

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court had refused to accept a plea against communication blockade in the state filed by Robert Vadra’s relative Tehseen Poonawalla. The court had issued a notice to the union government on a petition filed by Anuradha Bhasin, Executive Editor of Kashmir Times. The final hearing for that petition is also scheduled for tomorrow.

Once we return to power, all cases against Azam Khan will be withdrawn: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Once we return to power, all cases against Azam Khan will be withdrawn: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav

Coming to the rescue of Azam Khan who is an accused in several cases, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said that all cases against Rampur MP Khan would be dropped if his party was voted back to power, reports Indian Express.

Addressing a press conference in Rampur after visiting Azam Khan’s residence, Akhilesh Yadav assured the party’s full support to Khan, who is facing several police cases including those related to alleged land-grabbing.

“I will meet the Governor of Uttar Pradesh, Anandiben Patel, regarding false cases against the MP. I will inform her about the harassment being faced by Azam Khan. I am taking back copies of all FIRs against Azam with me to Lucknow. We have full faith in the courts and we will get justice. Similarly, several cases had been lodged against Mulayam Singhji. Then, the courts had helped us,” said Akhilesh, who was accompanied by Azam’s son, MLA Abdullah Khan, at the press conference.

Addressing reporters in Rampur, Akhilesh said, “Once the Samajwadi Party is voted back to power in Uttar Pradesh, all the cases lodged against senior SP leader and Rampur MP Azam Khan will be withdrawn.”

He added that as long as the administration continues to do “injustice”, more people would lose faith in the government. He added that people are losing faith in the government and administration. “You should see the list of cases against Azam. There are all types of fake cases against him… His family members are being taken to the police station to humiliate them,” said Akhilesh.

Claiming that the BJP government was indulging in vendetta politics, Azamgarh MP Akhilesh Yadav said that this was being done to divert the attention of the people from the real issues.

Several cases have been booked against Rampur MP Azam Khan. Just three days back, Rampur Police in Uttar Pradesh had booked Azam Khan on allegations of ‘stealing goats’ following the complaint which was filed on October 2016.

It was first land-grabbing, then lion statues, followed by books and valuable manuscripts. He has also been booked for ‘stealing buffaloes’. Recently, the Rampur MP was also booked for electricity theft. The power supply to Azam Khan’s resort ‘Humsafar’ in Uttar Pradesh was cut after raids were conducted in the resort by the Uttar Pradesh electricity department.

Reacting to Akhilesh’s remarks, BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi said he should stand with the poor farmers whose land was snatched by Khan.

“During the tenure of the SP government, Khan usurped the land of farmers and also exploited the people of Rampur. Today, those people are filing cases against Azam for all the exploitative measures. Akhilesh Yadav should instead stand with the poor people,” said Tripathi.

Pakistani singer who threatened PM Modi with python, now faces jail time for keeping exotic animals in her salon

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Pakistani singer who threatened PM Modi with python, now faces jail time for keeping exotic animals in her salon

Rabi Pirzada, a Pakistani pop-singer who had threatened Prime Minister Modi with snakes now faces legal actions by the Punjab Wildlife Department for the alleged violation of law by keeping prohibited exotic animals as pets.

According to the reports, Pirzada has been slapped with notice after Punjab Wildlife Department took notice of her alleged violation of law after she kept prohibited exotic animals some rare cobras, snakes, a lion and a crocodile as pets in her beauty salon in Lahore.

She has been booked under the Punjab Wildlife (Protection, Conservation and Management) Act of 1974 as possession of such animals is illegal and can lead to imprisonment of two to three years or a fine of up to Rs.20,000.

In a Twitter post, Pakistani singer Rabi Pirzada had issued a bizarre treat to the Indians, particularly Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a video, Pirzada was seen playing with snakes, crocodile, as she claims these are special gifts for Prime Minister Modi.

Through her video, Pirzada had indirectly threatened of a snake attack against him for revoking special status of Jammu and Kashmir.


Rabi Pirzada claimed that as a Kashmiri, she is ready with her snakes (not a creative euphemism, she actually meant snakes as in the reptiles) and asked Indians to be ready as she is all set to send those snakes across the Line of Control to inflict damage on the Indians. She further said that Indians should be ready to die in hell.

“As a Kashmiri girl, I am ready with all these snakes to gift it to Prime Minister Modi. Get ready to die in hell. All my friends are however peace friendly,” said Rabi Pirzada.

Later, the Pakistani singer began to sing in support of Kashmir. In the video, it can be seen that singer Pirzada is playing along with snakes, whom she refers to it as her friends.

After the video had gone viral, Pakistan’s Punjab wildlife department had promptly constituted a team after the video had garnered a lot of criticism from animal rights activists and netizens

AB Hannan, principal of an Assam school, makes Hijab compulsory for girl students to protect them from ‘evil eyes’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
AB Hannan, principal of an Assam school, makes Hijab compulsory for girl students to protect them from ‘evil eyes’

A school in Karimganj in Assam had made hijab compulsory for its girl students. AB Hannan, the principal at East Point Public School in Karimganj, informed on Facebook that he has made it compulsory for girl students to wear hijab. He said that he has taken this decision to protect his students from ‘evil eyes’, and to improve their personality.

In the Facebook post with grammatical errors, he wrote, “to protect my students from evil eyes and as a part of best personality of girls today I made compulsory wearing Hijab for my all girls students at East Point Public School, Karimganj”.

Hannan also posted a photograph of girl students in school wearing hijab on their uniforms.

It may be noted that in his Facebook profile, Hannan’s profile says he works at the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. But his bio of the same account describes him as IAS/ACS aspirant. Moreover, his Instagram account mentions that he is the principal at the East Point Public School in Karimganj. His updates and images on his Facebook account also reveal that he works at the school in Karimganj, not with the Government of India.

Hijab is compulsory as per Islamic Sharia rules in several Muslim countries, where women are punished if found without Hijab in public places. In several such countries, like Iran, women are trying to break free of this rule, where many women have gone to jail by willingly breaking this rule.

It is not known whether all students in the school are Muslim or are there non-Muslim students also.

Hijab is a veil mandated by Islam, it is mainly worn by Muslim women. In Islamic countries where it is mandatory, it is worn by all women living in such countries. In that context, it is worrying that Hijab has been made mandatory for students in a school in India.

Hindi is a beautiful language, as is Tamil, Kannada etc: ‘Imposition’ narrative must be quashed and Sanskrit used for national integration

Rahul Kaushik
-
0
Hindi is a beautiful language, as is Tamil, Kannada etc: ‘Imposition’ narrative must be quashed and Sanskrit used for national integration

On the occasion of Hindi Diwas yesterday, the usual suspects proceeded to create the usual noise about alleged Hindi Imposition. Hindi was accepted as the Rajbhasha (mind you, Rajbhasha ie Official language not Rashtra Bhasha or National Language) of the newly independent Indian nation on 14 September 1949. In 1953, Jawaharlal Nehru, the Godfather of all those who are screaming Hindi imposition today, started celebrating Hindi Diwas officially.

Former PM Jawaharlal Nehru’s love for Hindi was, however, as superficial as it could be, considering he did not do anything substantial to ensure that the Hindi language flourishes. Instead, he introduced a provision that English may be used as an official language until the system is ready to fully adopt Hindi as Official Language. Well, 72 years have passed since then.

Being a North Indian born in a Hindu family, with roots in Uttar Pradesh – I till very recently, always believed that Hindi is indeed the national language and that it is the national duty of every Indian to learn and speak Hindi. Reason for this notion can be that I belong to the core area of the so-called cow belt. The only language that’s spoken in our family is Hindi. I have lived all my life in Delhi, so have learnt only Hindi.

Gradually when first due to my association with Sangh, then my education and work, I began interacting with people from other parts of the country, I realised how narrow my thinking was! These interactions actually gave me a new perspective on national integration. Then in the last 6 years, my social media interactions with people from South, East and even the West have transformed my thought process completely.

There are 22 languages mentioned in the Indian constitution. Every language has equal stature. Hindi is the official language, accepted in the constitution but it is not our National language. Rather I would say, each one of the languages like Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Odia, Assamese, Maithili, Bhojpuri, Bengali etc is our national language and should enjoy equal stature. Why should we impose Hindi on a Kannadiga, or Maratha or Assamese? When Marathi supremacists insist people to speak in Marathi or when Kannada Rakshan Vedike people destroy Hindi signboards in Karnataka, the feeling is that of indignation. Why do we then think that someone living in Chennai or Mangaluru or Kochi should not feel the same about Hindi being imposed on him?

Despite all propaganda and confrontation, Hindi has not only thrived but has grown manifolds across India in the last 70 years. Cinema has played a great role in it. Also, the large size of the Hindi speaking population has compelled advertisers, marketers, companies, publication houses to use Hindi in a big way to cater to a wider audience. Even people in South Indian states are learning Hindi as it’s increasingly becoming an important medium of communication across India. This is happening voluntarily, without the so-called imposition. The question thus remains – do we need a national language?

One important argument that comes in this discussion is that as a nation, India needs a national language in which people from different regions can communicate with each other. In my view, there can be arguments both in favour and against this notion. India is culturally a nation but it has hundreds of cultures thriving inside. We are a culture that celebrates diversity. People travel with Gangajal from Gangotri and worship Sri Rameshwara in Tamilnadu and the seawater from Kanyakumari is used to do Abhishek of Bhagwan Kedar in the Himalayas. Mandir, Mutt, Festivals join us like none else. It has thrived without a common language and I believe that it will continue to thrive in the future.

On the other hand, it’s true that having a common language will expedite the process of national integration by manifolds. Can Hindi be that language? Maybe, maybe not. The hatred for Hindi based on which most of the South Indian parties have thrived till date, won’t let that happen easily. It will lead to a huge confrontation.

One has to ask then – which other language has that capacity? Maybe Sanskrit? Most of the South Indian languages have originated from Sanskrit, just like Hindi. Many other languages of India like Marathi, Gujarati have a close connection with Hindi and Sanskrit. All languages spoken in North like Awadhi, Magahi, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Rajasthani, Marwari are more or less dialects of Hindi. So Sanskrit has a connection with most Indian languages.

The argument, however, that will be made against Sanskrit being a unifying language is that Sanskrit is a ‘dead language’ and nobody reads or learns it anymore. But if the ultimate goal is as big and pious as national integration, least we can do is giving it a serious try! If a completely lost language like Hebrew can be revived, and Kamal Ataturk can create a totally new language Turkish to get his nation rid of Arabic, why is it that India cannot revive a language like Sanskrit?

We ought to be proud of Hindi. It is a beautiful language spoken by a vast number of people in India. But at the same time, languages like Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, Odia and their other native languages are also dialects to be proud of.

‘China Pakistan’s best friend, don’t know much about Uighur issue’: Imran Khan feigns ignorance yet again on plight of Muslims in China

OpIndia Staff
-
0
‘China Pakistan’s best friend, don’t know much about Uighur issue’: Imran Khan feigns ignorance yet again on plight of Muslims in China

The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, has once again denied having any knowledge about the ongoing Uighur genocide in China. In an interview with Al Jazeera on Saturday, Khan went on to call China Pakistan’s “best friend” when prodded on the matter.


When asked whether he had the opportunity to discuss the matter with the Chinese administration, Khan admitted that he hadn’t and claimed that he didn’t have much knowledge about the persecution of Uighur Muslims in China.

“And frankly, we have been facing so many of our internal problems right now, that I don’t really know much about this problem. And since we have been in power for one year, domestically, apart from the economy, and now with Kashmir, we have been inundated with problems. But I will say one thing for China, for us China has been the best friend,” he told the news organization.

Imran Khan added, “At the moment, my responsibility is the people of Pakistan, and I have 220 million Pakistanis, and they are my responsibility. And my number one effort is to help my own countrymen.”

In March as well, Khan had claimed that he knew nothing about the matter. His answer even then was exactly the same. It appears that either a remarkable lack of curiosity is Khan’s defining characteristic as an individual or Pakistan, at the moment, is extremely scared of nudging China the wrong way.

It is also intriguing that while Khan considers Kashmir to be an issue that should concern the Muslim Ummah, he himself doesn’t consider Uighurs to be part of the Ummah even though they are Muslims themselves and are being persecuted due to their religious identity.

It is not exactly a secret that Pakistan is slowly but surely becoming a vassal state of China. There have also been reports that Pakistani women are being married by the Chinese and some of them are being trafficked and forced into prostitution. As a consequence of Pakistan’s isolation in the international arena, they are sliding further into the arms of the Chinese.

China, which seeks to establish itself as a global hegemony, has colonial ambitions and they are known to not tolerate actions that threaten their authority. Thus, it’s not really a surprise that Imran Khan is careful not to raise his voice on the Uighur Genocide. Because, at this present moment, they are at China’s mercy and the Chinese could do with them what they very well please.

Hyderabad: Students of St Francis College harassed by college admin because their Kurti length was one inch above knee

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Hyderabad: Students of St Francis College harassed by college admin because their Kurti length was one inch above knee

Students of St Francis College in Hyderabad were punished on Friday and not allowed to enter college premises because their Kurti was an inch above their knees. Security staff maintained a vigil at the gates and only those with the requisite Kurti length were permitted inside.

“Things have gotten worse as we are being humiliated by the security guards for wearing kurtis that end less than an inch above the knee,” said a student, told Deccan Chronicle on the condition of anonymity. “We are made to stand outside college, missing classes and tests.”

“This college talks about women’s empowerment but it is merely lip service,” another student is reported to have said. “When we questioned the code, they said a short dress invites men. This is ridiculous. We get good matches only if we wear proper attire.”

Students have further alleged that teachers often make the girls stand up in class and check the lengths of their Kurtis before giving them attendance for the particular lecture. “The first three days they allowed us to go in. They just shouted at us saying ‘what is this’, chased us and pulled us back, but they didn’t stop us from going in. But on Friday, they started to stop because apparently they had given a warning,” a student told The News Minute.

“People are getting angrier by the minute. We didn’t want anyone to touch us. Now, the management is okay with these people behaving with us the way they are. And they believe it’s okay because it’s a woman and not a male security guard, so they can do that,” the student further alleged.

The dictat was issued in July. According to it, students were ordered to wear Kurtis below their knees while shorts, sleeveless or other similar dresses were banned in the campus. The order came into effect on the first of August. A protest has been called by the students on Monday. They have apparently told the Principal that it’s not possible for everyone to change their entire wardrobe.

Congress to use the amended Motor Vehicles Act to target BJP ahead of the assembly elections

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Congress to use the amended Motor Vehicles Act to target BJP ahead of the assembly elections

The Congress party has decided to make the much-debated ‘Motor Vehicles Act’ as their election issue to target the ruling BJP ahead of the state assembly elections, reports Hindustan Times.

Reportedly, the Congress party has decided to rake up the issue of the recent amendments in the Motor Vehicles Act in the upcoming assembly elections in three states to target the BJP. The Congress party plans to use the issue of hefty fines and the refusal of some states including those ruled by Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) to implement the law as a poll plank in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand.

The newly appointed Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee chief Kumari Selja said the MV Act will definitely be one of the issues apart from others in the upcoming elections. She said the party will raise it in the campaign and the party will highlight the issue after the MV Act confronted a backlash across the country.

Few states including BJP ruled Gujarat, Maharashtra and Uttarkhand have either modified the rate of fines prescribed by the Act and opposition ruled states like West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh have outrightly refused to implement the act.

Congress leader Kumari Selja said the MV Act was an instance of an unpopular policy being forcefully implemented by the BJP. She added that Congress stood a chance in the assembly elections in Haryana, where just months ago in the general elections, the BJP won all 10 Lok Sabha seats.

“Those issues were different that time and (now) people want things on the ground. Look at this latest thing (MV Act). I mean go down any road in Haryana, people are reeling under this Motor Vehicle Act. Just see that,” she said.

There were reports from parts of the country that few violaters were made to pay hefty fines under the new law. Otherwise, the law is being welcomed with backers of the act calling it as a deterrent against rash driving and traffic violations.

“Saving lives is one thing and extortion is another. Which was the first state to oppose it? It was the model state of Gujarat. A model state doesn’t believe what the government of India is doing,” said Selja.

Reacting to the Congress accusations, Haryana BJP spokesperson Rajeev Jaitley said that it showed Congress’s negative mindset. “The MV Act is for people’s safety. Are they trying to say that rural people’s lives don’t go in accidents? Why does Congress always do negative politics?” said Jaitley.

One Congress strategist who HT spoke to said that the party was firming up ways in which to use the implementation of the MV Act in the election campaign. “There’s no point getting into security issues like Balakot and this issue is one that the BJP is firefighting with so it would be good to use that,” he said, requesting anonymity.

The new Motor Vehicles Act 2019 which came into effect from September 1 has made stricter rules for those breaking traffic rules. From higher penalties for driving errors to imprisonment up to one month for racing and speeding and up to six months for offences relating to accidents, the new Act is bringing back things in order by instilling fear and discipline on roads.

As per the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways data in 2017, 4.64 lakh accidents had occurred in that year that claimed lives nearly 1.47 lakh people. The two-wheelers accounted for over a third of all road accidents. With states begining to implement the provisions of the Act with heftier fines and imprisonment for drunken driving, driving without a licence and insurance and juvenile offences, people will start to follow rules and road accidents may actually reduce.

In the last one week itself, there has been a rush among motorists to renew their lapsed insurance policies, driving licenses, etc. Additionally, valid motor insurance is needed for the aggrieved parties to get compensation in case of road accidents. However, the act passed by the central government is just a model act. The state governments are free to make their own laws and rules.

The Congress party in a hurry to put the blame on the centre and then making it as an election issue can be counterproductive to them as the reforms introduced by the BJP government is being welcomed by most of the citizens of the country barring a few. From demonetisation to GST reforms to Balakot strikes, the Congress party have not only erred in picking up the right narrative to target the BJP but also played into their hands by taking the wrong sides on developmental and reformative issues.

West Bengal: Majidur Rahman fakes Hindu identity to develop relationship with Hindu girl, later rapes and murders her

OpIndia Staff
-
0
West Bengal: Majidur Rahman fakes Hindu identity to develop relationship with Hindu girl, later rapes and murders her

A week after the body of a half-naked girl was found in a river in Gangarapur area in West Bengal’s Dakshin Dinajpur district, two men arrested with the case has confessed to having raped and murdered the girl. The main accused in the case is one Majidur Rahman, who had started a relationship with the girl introducing himself as Pintu Sarkar, hiding his religion.

On September 7th, the body of a girl was recovered from the Punarbhaba river in Jahangirpur under Gangarampur police station. The girl was killed by slitting her throat, had deep injury marks on the face, and her lower garments were missing. Three days later, the girl was identified as Jaba Roy. Upon investigation, Majidur was identified as a suspect and he was arrested from the India-Bangladesh border by police on September 11.

Now it has been revealed that Majidur is already married, but he had hidden his marital status and his religion to Jaba while developing the relationship with her. It is alleged that he had identified himself as Pintu Sarkar. Majidur works in a diagnostic laboratory in Gangarampur, and the girl, who was suffering from an ailment, used to visit the lab for tests. They got to know each other during such visits, and that had developed into a relationship.

According to reports, the girl became pregnant as a result of the relationship, and after that, she came to know the true identity of Majidur. She insisted that he should marry her, but he kept refusing it. On 6th September, he called her on the pretext of talking about the mater and took her to an isolated place near the river bank. There, two of his friends joined them, one of whom is his colleague in the laboratory. There, the three men brutally raped the girl, killed her, and dumped her body in the river.

Two of the accused, including Majibur, has been arrested and has been remanded to police custody by the local court, while the third accomplish is still absconding. The incident had triggered a huge protest in the area, and several organizations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, took out marches and blocked national highway 512 on 13th September. Protesters had clashed with the police also, after which police lathi-charged the agitators. Several people were injured in police action, and many were arrested later on.

On the same day, BJP MP Locket Chatterjee visited the family of the victim. She has assured all kinds of legal assistance to the family. Although protests have been controlled by huge presence of police force, the situation remains tense in Gangrampur. The people in the area demanding that the accused should be hanged.

1...5,3945,3955,396...6,958Page 5,395 of 6,958

Contact: [email protected]

About us

News and opinion website that brings you reports and narrative from a perspective often ignored or suppressed by the mainstream media of India.

Follow us

© OpIndia.com