Friday, November 15, 2024
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Left and ultra-left wing groups to form ‘Joint Action Forum’ to protest in campuses across India over abrogation of Article 370

The left and the ultra-left ideologues in the country seems to be unhappy about the historic decision of the Narendra Modi government to successfully abrogate controversial Article 370. 

Instead of celebrating the inclusive constitutional reform, a group of 60-70 Left-wing professors, former students’ union leaders, social activists and political party workers have now decided to create chaos inside the campuses across the country by forming a Joint Action Forum (JAF) to fuel protests against the decision to abrogate Article 370, reports The Sunday Guardian.

As per the report, the JAF will involve various Left-aligned organisations, who have decided to drive a nationwide campaign against the abrogation of Article 370 through flash protests and also use social media for the purpose.

Interestingly, the JAF was formed just last week in Delhi where all the members present took the decision to trigger huge protests on the matter inside campuses.

After its formation, the JAF decided that it would create a mass movement against the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A. The primary role of the members of the JAF will be to use all platforms of protest, including social media to create a mass movement. The members, with the help of students’ union leaders, social workers and like-minded individuals, will organise protests on the campuses of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), University of Hyderabad (UoH), Delhi University (DU), and NALSAR University of Law,” a source close to Sunday Guardian said according to their report. 

“The JAF has formed several sub-committees including Fund Raising Committee, Social Media Committee, Coordination Committee, etc. These committees will help the JAF in sustaining the protests. The Fund Raising Committee will crowd-source the funds required for the agitation. Similarly, the Social Media Committee, through Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, will help the JAF in spreading its messages,” said the same source.

The ultra-left wing forces will hold a “Mashal Juloos” (torch rally) under the JAF. A similar protest has already been held in JNU on the night of Wednesday-Thursday this week in which around 500 teachers, activists and students participated. During the Mashal Juloos march, slogans against the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A were raised by the protestors.

Reportedly, the JAF has also created a team consisting of experts in photography and video-editing to further their propaganda on the issue in social media. The JAF has created various social media pages where they indulge in propaganda videos and photographs, claiming that these have been released by their fact-finding teams.

A similar video named “Caged Kashmir” was released on social media on Wednesday showing some purported videos of Jammu and Kashmir produced by ultra-left wing members including career protestor Kavita Krishnan. The members of this team had visited Kashmir to further anti-India propaganda but it was rejected by the Press Club in Delhi.

Although the JAF is working secretly, the Ministry of Home Affairs seems to be aware of the issue. On Friday, a similar protest was stopped in Lucknow and several members, including Sandeep Pandey who represents the Rehai Manch and Arundhati Dhuru, were placed under house arrest.

As normalcy is prevailing in the Jammu and Kashmir, a certain anti-India establishment within the country seems to be disgruntled and are trying various means to instigate violence against Indians, particularly Hindus in Kashmir.

To add fuel to the fire, some of the sections of Indian political establishment, pseudo-liberal-secular media and intelligentsia are parroting the lines of Pakistan to keep the pot boiling in Kashmir. The Congress party and its ecosystem are hell-bent on inciting the people of Jammu and Kashmir by deliberately toeing the Pakistani line on Jammu and Kashmir.

Army veteran Surendra Poonia receives threats from Pakistan, files online complaint with cyber crime portal

Army veteran Major Surendra Poonia (Retd.) on Saturday filed an online complaint with the Ministry of Home affairs after threatening calls and intimidating messages asked him to stop tweeting on Indo-Pak issues.


Major Poonia shared screenshots of the threats he has been receiving as well as screenshot of message which said how an unknown number had threatened to character assassinate him and malign him. He added that his Regimental insignia is ‘Balidan’ (sacrifice) and he doesn’t know the meaning of fear.


Major Poonia expressed his anguish by directing his tweet to Vodafone, questioning the service provider about the breach of integrity and customer privacy.


He further alleged that unidentified callers have threatened to release his obscene videos if he fails to stop tweeting about India Pakistan amid the brewing turmoil between the neighbours.

He confirmed to have filed an online compliant against the unknown callers and numbers with cyber crime portal of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Pehlu Khan case: Justice Chandrachud says judging a case based on evidence is one of the ‘great torments’

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Justice DY Chandrachud, on Saturday said that one of the ‘biggest torments’ of being a judge is that one has to decide on the basis of evidence. Justice Chandrachud was opining on the 2017 Alwar lynching case where all six accused were recently acquitted by a Rajasthan court.


“I tell you this is one of the great torments of being a judge because you’ve to decide on basis of evidence, as it stands and then you find that police investigation has been so woefully inadequate that it’s going to result in acquittal,” he said on the sidelines of Literature Live Independence Day lecture in Mumbai yesterday. He even added how court monitored investigation at times have resulted in better outcomes.

A native of Haryana’s Nuh, the 55-year old Pehlu Khan and his sons were allegedly accosted by a bunch of people on the suspicion that they smuggled cattle to neighbouring states for slaughter. The mob lynched Pehlu Khan with rods and sticks on April 1, 2017, two days after which Khan died of the injuries. Media perception had already decided the accused were guilty. The accused, however, were acquitted for ‘benefit of doubt’ after the court found lapses in police investigation.

Habitual offender Prashant Kanojia shares news from Akhilesh era to stoke caste tensions, blame Yogi govt of caring about temples but not Dalit girls

Controversial journalist Prashant Kanojia tweeted the screenshot of a news report from 2015 in an effort to stoke caste tensions. The tweet appears to have been deleted since then.


The report in the screenshot said that a Khap Panchayat in Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh had decreed that two Dalit girls ought to be raped and paraded naked across the village. It was supposed to be punishment for their brother eloping with a married woman. The girls had then petitioned the Supreme Court and requested security.

Serial fake news peddler Prashant Kanojia tweeted the news with the insinuation that the Yogi Adityanath led government in Uttar Pradesh was only bothered about making the Ram Mandir but not protecting Dalit girls.

The news, however, appears to be from August 2015 when the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh was SP’s Akhilesh Yadav. The then Baghpat Superintendent of Police had denied that such an order was passed but asserted that security had been provided to the family. Then UP CM Akhilesh Yadav, too, had reportedly taken cognizance of the matter and instructed local administration to provide security to the family.

Prashant Kanojia effectively shared old news from 2015 when Akhilesh Yadav was the Chief Minister to insinuate wrong-doing on the part of the Yogi Adityanath government. He also tried to sow discord by sharing old news without context while saying that Dalit girls are dispensable for the state government.

Prashant Kanojia is a regular offender. The freelance journalist was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh government for posting derogatory tweets about Gods, Goddesses and inflammatory posts on UP CM Yogi Adityanath. He had also made vile comments against Dalits and Hindu saints. Later, he was ordered to be released by the Supreme Court.

PM Narendra Modi launches RuPay card in Bhutan during his two-day visit to the Himalayan state

Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day state visit to Bhutan, signed nine MoUs, and one power purchase agreement including the inauguration of RuPay cards with the Himalayan state. The agreements were signed by PM Modi in the presence of Bhutanese Prime Minister Lotay Tshering at Semtokha Dzong Saturday.

As per the report, Bhutan became the second country after Singapore where RuPay cards were launched. This will be done in two phases, wherein during the first phase, RuPay cards will be issued by Indian banks to Indian travellers to be used in Bhutan. This has been done with a view to ease tourism in the country. This was announced by Foreign Secretary Vijay Gohkale during a press meet ahead of the PM’s visit to Bhutan.

Gokhale further added that in the next phase, Bhutanese banks will be authorized to issue RuPay cards to Bhutanese citizens to be used in India.

Besides the MoUs, PM Modi inaugurated Mangdechhu hydroelectric power plant and remote launching of ISRO-built ground station for South Asian Satellite.

As a gesture to strengthen the bond between the Himalayan neighbours, both PMs launched stamps to commemorate the five decades of India-Bhutan Hydropower cooperation.

Ahead of his visit to Bhutan, PM Modi had said that his visit during this time reflects Government of India’s commitment to strengthen India’s relations with its Himalayan nation.

The complete list of MoUs signed can be accessed here.

Career-protester-turned-politician Shehla Rashid downplays terrorism in Kashmir, calls legitimate action by India ‘state terrorism’ instead

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In a series of tweets posted by career-protestor-turned-politician Shehla Rashid today, the former JNUSU vice president brazenly defended Kashmiris embracing the path of terrorism while pinning the blame on India for the same. Shehla, who seemed despondent after UNSC’s refusal to intervene in the Kashmir issue, contended that “Armed insurgency” in Kashmir is a “direct result of violent policies of India since 1953”.


Furthermore, she said that the Indian government is indulging in state terrorism by apparently trampling upon the social, civil and political rights of the Kashmiris. It is noteworthy to mention that Shehla describes the decision to abrogate Article 370 as “terrorism” while normalising the violence inflicted by Kashmiri terrorists as “Armed Insurgency” against the state repression.

Shehla continued her diatribe saying that India has always undermined the authority and will of the Kashmiri people and overthrown the Kashmiri leadership, which is why Kashmiris had to take up the arms and revolt.


Echoing Pakistan PM Imran Khan, who had earlier foreboded increased terror attacks like Pulwama after the abrogation of Article 370, Shehla said that the revocation will fuel “Armed Insurgency” in Kashmir. She further added that India has weakened the case for democracy and any attempts to hold elections will be termed as a sham. 

In a forlorn hope, Shehla exhorted world leaders such Justin Trudeau, Jeremy Corbyn, Bernie Sanders, Jacinda Ardern, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Kashmiri diaspora across the world to put pressure on the Indian government to undo its action in Kashmir.


It is pertinent to note here that Shehla Rashid claimed that India has been inflicting atrocities on Kashmiris since 1953. Article 370 was appended in the constitution of India in 1952. If India has been repressing fundamental rights of Kashmiris since 1953, one wonders what is the potency of Article 370? If Article 370 was as powerless as Shehla claims it to be, why in her subsequent tweets she demands Kashmiri diaspora and various other leaders of the world to create pressure on the India government to undo its action in Jammu and Kashmir?

Article 370, by Shehla’s own admission, is superfluous, as she alleges that the Indian government had been continuously involved in subjugating Kashmiris even when it was a part of the constitution. These are meretricious arguments peddled by Shehla which in reality has no integrity. In actuality, Shehla is profoundly distressed with the implications of the revocation of Article 370.

Ever since Article 370 has been rescinded, there is a growing apprehension among Kashmiri politicians of losing relevance and the corresponding fear of fading into oblivion as the central government has assumed the direct control of the state by bifurcating it into two union territories.

Many Kashmiri politicians, therefore, are raising false alarms and indulging in fear-mongering, to somehow get the move reversed. The current utterances from a former activist for hire-turned-politician Shehla Rashid appear as a meltdown of this realisation.

Old controversy resurfaces: Google throws up images of Pakistan PM Imran Khan when searched for “Bhikari”

An old controversy has resurfaced on Social Media with several people pointing out that the Internet behemoth Google shows up images of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan when searched “Bhikari”- a Hindi word that means “Beggar”.

Bhikari search on Google shows Pakistan PM Imran Khan

Several people on Social Media pointed out that when one googles ‘Bhikari’, the search engine shows up images of Pakistan PM Imran Khan.


People possibly started pointing out that Imran Khan is shown as a ‘beggar’ in Google search after the United States of America cut Pakistan’s aid further by $440 million. This was also in reaction to Pakistan losing its mind over the Modi government’s bold decision to abrogate Article 370 and bifurcate Jammu and Kashmir thereby fully integrating the state of Jammu and Kashmir with the rest of India.

This controversy is, however, not new. In December 2018, a resolution had been submitted in Punjab Assembly, Pakistan to summon Google CEO and question him as to why Imran Khan’s images show up when one searches for the word ‘Bhikari’.


Pakistan is suffering from an unprecedented economic crisis. Its foreign reserves are at an all-time low. According to credit rating agencies, Pakistan’s economy is on the brink of collapse. To deal with such a catastrophic situation, Islamabad is now finalising a bailout package with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ward off a balance of payments crisis, despite more than billion in short-term loans from allies such as China and Saudi Arabia.

In such dire straits, Pakistani PM Imran Khan has been consistent in his implorations to its diaspora across the world to make a donation towards Pakistan and help its government in lifting the country out of an endless abyss. Khan has also propounded austerity measures within Pakistan to tackle the economic woes besieging the country.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has given an ultimatum to Pakistan to act on terror by October 2019 or face blacklisting. Last year in June, the FATF had placed Pakistan on the grey list of countries whose domestic laws are considered weak to tackle the challenges of money laundering and terrorism financing. A blacklisting from FATF would severely reduce Pakistan’s chances of securing bailout packages from institutions like IMF.

Imran Khan has been queuing up to world leaders to winkle financial packages from them. Recently, he met American President Donald Trump with the hope to renew the financial aid that America offered to Pakistan. However, it appears like Khan did not cut ice with Trump as America proceeded to slash the aid to the cash-strapped nation by nearly US $440 million, bringing down its commitment to just US $4.1 billion. Khan also met Saudi Prince who assured investments to the tunes of $15 billion in Pakistan’s fragile economy, following which Pakistan has announced the highest civilian award to be accorded to the Saudi Prince. The leitmotif of Pakistan PM Imran Khan’s recent foreign trips has been extrication of Pakistan from its financial tribulations.

Modi buried Nehru’s India: Pakistan echoes left-liberals and Congress

With each passing day, it is becoming more and more difficult to distinguish between the Pakistani rhetoric and that of Indian opposition parties and liberals. Congruence between the two appears to have become a regular feature after the stripping of Article 370.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Saturday said at a press conference after chairing a high-level committee meeting over Kashmir, “Narendra Modi has buried Nehru’s India.” It is something that the Congress party and Indian liberals have often lamented about.

Qureshi also lamented that India’s policy is revolving around ‘Doval Doctrine’.

Pakistan’s frustration over the issue has reached such ridiculous levels that after a week of grand statements inciting bloodshed and violence, it has now started blaming Rahul Gandhi for losing the elections and allowing PM Modi to assume power.

The narrative peddled by Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan during his meltdown on social media was also virtually indistinguishable from that of the Congress party on the Kashmir issue. He had communalized the decision to abrogate Article 370 and equated the RSS with Nazis, a narrative peddled regularly by Indian liberals. He had also called the BJP as Hindu Supremacists, another familiar rhetoric.

Amusingly enough, Pakistan also appears to feel threatened by nuclear weapons now. After blackmailing the world over its nuclear weapons for years, Pakistan’s ISPR Major General Asif Ghafoor has expressed concern over Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh’s recent comments on India’s nuclear policy. He said, “Kashmir is a nuclear flashpoint and the world needs to look into Indian Defence Minister’s remarks about the use of nuclear weapons.”

Rajnath Singh had hinted at a change in India’s nuclear policy on Friday. Singh had said, “Pokhran is the area which witnessed Atal Ji’s firm resolve to make India a nuclear power and yet remain firmly committed to the doctrine of ‘No First Use’. India has strictly adhered to this doctrine. What happens in future depends on the circumstances.”

India destroys Pakistan post across LOC after one Indian soldier is martyred in Pakistan’s ceasefire violation

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In retaliatory fire, the Indian army destroyed a Pakistani post across the Rajouri sector in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday. Pakistan has violated the ceasefire targeting Indian posts. India’s Lance Naik Sandeep Thapa was martyred.


As per a report by ANI, during the intervening night of Thursday-Friday, the Indian army had foiled various infiltration bids by terrorists to cross over to the Indian side. According to army sources, in a bid to help terrorists enter India, Pakistan has set up a major communication hub in Kali Ghati area of Neelam Valley in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The communication hub intends to help push the terrorists, which are backed by Pakistan’s army, into the Indian side. With a range of 50-60 kilometres, this hub facilitates the terrorists to communicate with their guides even across the LoC.

On Thursday, Northern Army Commander Lt. Gen Ranbir Singh had asserted that in the last few days, Pakistan was trying hard to help infiltrators enter into India. Indian army positions have been alerted to thwart any misadventure by Pakistan army on the LoC.

The abrogation of Article 370 has rattled Pakistan, which has since stepped up its efforts to create unrest in Kashmir. In the wake of this development, it has resorted to multiple ceasefire violations.

Zakir Naik faces interrogation in Malaysia for hate speech against Hindus and Chinese citizens

Malaysian authorities are set to interrogate Zakir Naik again on Monday for his alleged racially insensitive remarks against Hindus and Chinese citizens of the country. He was interrogated for three and a half hours on Friday as well.


In one instance, the Radical Islamic preacher could be allegedly seen in a video clip saying that Hindu Malaysians do not support the Prime Minister of Malaysia but his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi. On a separate occasion, Naik allegedly told Chinese Malaysians to leave the country.

There also appears to be anger brewing against Naik in the country. M Kula Segaran, Minister of Human Resources in Malaysia, had issued a statement condemning Zakir Naik’s remarks against Hindus and said that “It is time for the fugitive foreigner to leave Malaysia and to face charges of terrorism and money laundering charges in India.”

Zakir Naik had then demanded an apology from the Minister to which Kula Segaran has responded by telling Naik to go file a defamation suit.


The Police in Malaysia has also arrested the man who had threatened to behead Syahredzan Johan, a civil liberties lawyer and the political secretary to Lim Kit Siang, Member of the Malaysian House of Representatives after Johan suggested that the Malaysian Government should withdraw Naik’s Malaysian Permanent Resident status.


Zakir Naik is wanted in India in cases involving money laundering. The government of India had taken his channel, Peace TV, off the air and banned his NGO for peddling hate propaganda.