On Monday (11th November), Supreme Court judge Sanjiv Khanna was sworn in as the 51st Chief Justice of India (CJI). He succeeds the retired CJI DY Chandrachud, the erstwhile left-liberal hero now villainised by the same ecosystem in India.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna is the nephew of former Supreme Court Judge Hans Raj Khanna, who infamously took on Indira Gandhi’s government in 1976. In a dissenting judgment, he ruled that the right to life and personal liberty could not be suspended, even during an Emergency.
This cost Justice Hans Raj Khanna his appointment as CJI. Indira Gandhi broke the convention of appointing the seniormost judge as the Chief Justice of India, promoting Justice Hans Raj Khanna to resign.
Inspired by his uncle, Justice Sanjiv Khanna enrolled at the Bar Council of Delhi in 1983 and was appointed to the Delhi High Court as an Additional Judge in 2005.
Justice Khanna was thereafter elevated to the Supreme Court in January 2019. He is set to serve in the capacity of Chief Justice of India for a brief period of 6 months until 13th May 2025.
Key Judgments as Supreme Court Judge
The newly appointed CJI was a part of the 7-Judge Bench that overruled the 1967 Azeez Basha case, which denied minority status to Aligarh Muslim University.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna and three other judges directed that the status of AMU be freshly determined based on the tests laid down in that particular case (Aligarh Muslim University Through its Registrar Faizan Mustafa v Naresh Agarwal).
In April 2024, he along with Justice Dipankar Dutta shot down [pdf] a petition filed by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), seeking 100% VVPAT verification of votes cast on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
He noted that bank officials are aware of the identities of the donors who purchased the bonds. Justice Khanna was previously part of the 2019 Bench that increased the number of booths, which undergo VVPAT physical verification, from 1 to 5 per Assembly Segment.
In February this year, Justice Khanna was part of a 5-judge bench that dubbed the electoral bond scheme ‘unconstitutional.’ Justice Khanna in a concurring judgment dismissed the argument that donor privacy applied to donations made through banks.
He was part of the 5-Judge Bench that unanimously upheld the constitutionality of abrogation of Article 370. In a concurring judgment, Justice Khanna stated that the removal of Article 370 did not undermine India’s federal structure.
In 2019, Justice Khanna did not interfere with the decision of the Election Commission of India (ECI), which stalled the release of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s biopic amid the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).
He was also part of the Bench which rejected the Centre’s petition to increase the compensation given to victims of the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy. The apex court contended that the settlement could be set aside only on grounds of ‘fraud’, which was not pleaded by the Centre.
He along with 4 other Judges also upheld that the Supreme Court has the authority to grant divorce to couples using its discretionary powers under Article 142 of the Indian Constitution without the need to approach lower courts. (Shilpa Sailesh v Varun Sreenivasan)
In 2018, Justice Khanna also ruled in favour of the decriminalisation of adultery in Joseph Shine v Union of India.
Key cases where the decision is pending
He is also part of the 2-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court, deciding the constitutionality of the Triple Talaq law enacted by the Modi government.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna is also hearing the case (Youth For Equality v State Of Bihar) to determine the validity of the caste-based survey carried out by the JDU-RJD government in 2023.
He is also part of a Bench tasked to decide the validity of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioner Act enacted by the Modi government. The law removed the CJI from the 3-panel committee meant to choose the Chief Election Commissioner.
Justice Khana is also heading a Bench on a case (Durga Dutt v Union of India) seeking to make Fundamental Duties, which was introduced by the Indira Gandhi govt in 1976, enforceable in India.
He along with two other Judges will also assess the 2006 Nagaraj judgment, which validated reservation in promotions. The newly appointed CJI will also hear the 2023 case, concerning the ban on BBC’s propaganda documentary against PM Modi.
Justice Khanna is also part of a 2-Judge Bench, which will decide if certain provisions of The National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions Act of 2004 and The National Commission for Minorities Act of 1992 are constitutionally valid.
He will further decide whether minority status should be given based on State population or nationwide population.
Conclusion
Justice Sanjiv Khanna has ruled in favour of the Modi government over the abrogation of Article 370 and against it in the electoral bond case.
He has drawn the praise of the left-liberal lobby for decriminalising adultery, declaring electoral bonds invalid, and not interfering with the decision of the Election Commission of India to stall the release of PM Modi’s biopic.
The newly appointed CJI was hailed by the same ecosystem for paving the path for Aligarh Muslim University to attain minority status.
He had occasionally drawn ire from the coterie over holding abrogation of Article 370 constitutional and not entertaining their demand of a 100% EVM-VVPAT match.
As mentioned above, Justice Khanna is part of several Benches which are yet to decide key constitutional matters such as the validity of the Triple Talaq law, Bihar caste census, and legislation pertaining to the appointment of Election Commissioners.
If the incumbent CJI finds merits in the arguments presented by the government and rules in its favour, Justice Sanjiv Khanna will be equally demonised by the left-liberal ecosystem as it did with his predecessor Justice (retd.) DY Chandrachud.
The cabal spares none unless they give favourable verdicts in all cases. They demand a judiciary committed to their ideals like the one once espoused by Indira Gandhi.
In the weeks leading up to the assembly elections in the state of Jharkhand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is constantly exposing the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and the corruption under Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s government. The BJP’s key campaigners, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, have hammered the incumbent government on corruption and illegal infiltration.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed an election rally for the Jharkhand Assembly polls in Bokaro on Sunday, November 10th, and promised the people that the BJP would ensure corruption-free government in the state. PM Modi also slammed the JMM for playing caste politics by trying to mobilise the OBCs. Earlier, on 4th November, he stated that the JMM, Congress, and the RJD have crossed all the limits of corruption.
On 5th November, CM Yogi Adityanath, while addressing an election rally in Koderma, accused the JMM of fostering corruption and protecting mafia activities across the state. Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, on 2nd November, also accused the JMM of corruption in the name of government schemes.
Notably, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), to date, has sent 47 First Information Reports (FIR), 24 intimation letters, and 11 reminders to the top officials in Jharkhand accusing them of scams in the land, mining, sand, and MNREGA sectors. These notices have been sent by the central agency in just the past two years.
As per an exclusive report by News18, these notices have been sent to higher authorities in the state including at least three ministers, four senior IAS officers, and multiple district mining officers (DMO). Meanwhile, the officials who have received the reminders include the chief secretary, Director General of Police (DGP), Director General (DG) of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), and key principal secretaries.
As these notices remained unresponsive in the due period, the agency filed a comprehensive 140-page writ petition, including 10 annexures, in the Jharkhand High Court last week. The ED shared extensive documentation with the state, presenting evidence of alleged ‘criminal’ mismanagement and corruption in connection with at least five major scams from September 2022 to September 2024. These included counterfeiting government stamps, corruption in coal and MSME allotments, illegal sand mining and sales, irregularities in MNREGA, rural development scams, forged land deeds, and other land-related frauds.
“Despite the evidence, the Jharkhand government reportedly stonewalled the investigations, by not taking action or registering fresh FIRs, leaving the corruption network untouched and operational. This calculated inaction not only calls into question the accountability of the state’s highest offices but also raises alarm over systemic corruption that appears to be sheltered by those in power,” ED said in the petition.
“With each ignored intimation and FIR, the Jharkhand government has seemingly reinforced its complicity, allowing a culture of impunity to thrive. The state’s decision to turn a blind eye to such damning evidence threatens to further undermine public trust in governance, drawing serious questions about its commitment to law and order,” it added.
The state of Jharkhand governed by the JMM has been in the news for major corruption scams that looted the taxpayers for massive sums. Here are a few cases that were widely reported and that shook the system forcing central agencies to interfere:
Embezzlement of MNREGA funds
The Khunti district MNREGA scam in Jharkhand is one of the high-profile scams which actually dates back to Jharkhand in the 2010s. Recently, in April 2024, the SC dismissed a plea of suspended Jharkhand cadre IAS officer Pooja Singhal seeking bail in a money laundering case linked to the alleged embezzlement of MNREGA funds and other charges. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta declined the bail plea saying it’s an ‘extraordinary case’.
The top court was hearing an appeal filed by Singhal against the Jharkhand High Court order dismissing her bail plea. The Enforcement Directorate has accused Singhal of money laundering, saying more than Rs. 36 crore cash, linked to alleged illegal mining, was seized by its teams as part of two separate money laundering investigations.
IAS officer Pooja Singhal
Apart from the 2000-batch IAS officer, her businessman husband, a chartered accountant associated with the couple, and others were also raided by the ED as part of a money laundering probe linked to a case of alleged corruption in the MNREGA scheme. Singhal was arrested in 2022 after the ED stated that it had credible evidence of her connection with CA Suman Kumar from whom the ED had recovered more than Rs 25 crores of cash.
It all started when a money laundering case was filed against a former junior engineer in the Jharkhand government, Ram Binod Prasad Sinha. In June 2020, Sinha was arrested from the North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal by the ED after PMLA charges were filed against him in 2012.
Sinha was reported to have told the investigators that Pooja Singhal had obliged two NGOs, Welfare Point and Prerna Niketan, with Rs 6 crores fund and had granted a mining lease on 83 acres of forest land in contravention of the environmental regulations. She was accused of having committed irregularities in the MNRGEA. Singhal was the secretary of the Department of Mines and Geology and the managing director of Jharkhand State Mineral Development Corporation Limited (JSMDC). A detailed report regarding this case was covered by OpInida. The same can be read here.
Land scam involving Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren
In June this year, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren was granted bail by the High Court after he was arrested in a major land scam case. According to an official statement, the ED had opened a probe into three cases of land fraud based on numerous FIRs filed by the Jharkhand Police and the West Bengal Police against Pradip Bagchi, Bishnu Kumar Agarwal, Bhanu Pratap Prasad as well as others under various Indian Penal Code sections.
It was alleged that a massive mafia racket transferred land ownership illegally in Jharkhand. The government notification stated that “these criminal elements used to forge the legacy records in Ranchi and Kolkata.” Additionally, it was discovered that dishonest government employees had fabricated land ownership records to curry favor with the aforementioned land mafia. Around 14 individuals were arrested in this case by January 2024 including Bhanu Pratap Prasad, the Revenue Deputy Inspector of Badgai region in Ranchi.
During a raid on Prasad’s residence, the ED seized a substantial amount of government documents along with several suspicious documents retrieved from his mobile phone. The agency conducted more than 40 searches and over 5 surveys concerning the case.
CM Hemant Soren was grilled and arrested by the ED in land scam (NDTV)
Meanwhile, on 1st September 2023, the ED officials had attached three plots worth over Rs 161.64 crore in Ranchi in this case. It was alleged that these land parcels were fraudulently altered to the advantage of land mafias with the help of Land Revenue Department personnel. It was the second attachment in the case taking the total value of the assets that have been attached to a staggering Rs 236 crore.
In September, the ED also filed a second chargesheet in the case. The first prosecution complaint had previously been lodged on 12th June 2023. Notably, 14 accused arrested in the case included Pradip Bagchi, Afshar Ali, Saddam Hussain, Imtiaz Ahmed, Talha Khan, Faiyaaz Khan, Bhanu Pratap Prasad, 2011-batch IAS officer Chhavi Ranjan (Ex DC Ranchi), Dilip Kumar Ghosh, Amit Kumar Agarwal, Bishnu Kumar Agarwal, Rajesh Rai, Bharat Prasad, and Prem Prakash.
The CM of the state was also arrested in the case on January 31st after his name was mentioned in the statements of businessman Vishnu Agarwal and Revenue Sub-Inspector of Bargain Circle Bhanu Pratap Prasad. The ED had accused him of running a scheme to manipulate records, via fictitious transactions and forged documents, and acquiring 8.86 acres of land in Ranchi worth crores. However, later he was released.
Jharkhand Mining Scam
The CBI recently, on 5th November, conducted searches at 16 locations across three states, including election-bound Jharkhand, as part of its investigation into an illegal stone mining scam at Nimbu Pahar, where a political aide to Chief Minister Hemant Soren is reportedly under scrutiny. The searches were carried out in Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Bihar, covering 11 locations in Jharkhand’s Sahibganj, three in Ranchi, and one each in Patna and Kolkata, targeting premises of suspects and their associates. During the raids, the CBI seized Rs 50 lakh in cash, one kilogram of gold, one kilogram of silver, and property documents worth several crores. The agency filed this case on November 23, 2023, following directives from the Jharkhand High Court.
Cash collected in Jharkhand illegal mining scam (The Hindu)
In an earlier FIR from November 20, 2022, the CBI’s Ranchi unit booked Pankaj Mishra, a reported political aide to Chief Minister Soren, along with Pavitra Kumar Yadav, Rajesh Yadav, Sanjay Kumar Yadav, Bachhu Yadav, Sanjay Yadav, and Suvesh Mandal, for their alleged involvement in pilferage and illegal extraction of stone at Nimbu Pahar in Sahibganj.
Following the preliminary inquiry, the CBI assumed control of the FIR filed by Sahibganj Police against the eight accused. During a hearing, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) reported that Mishra was responsible for the illegal stone mining and transportation operations in Sahibganj, noting that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had also raised serious concerns over illegal mining in the area.
The high court noted the ED’s assertion that Pankaj Mishra, a representative of the Jharkhand chief minister and a highly influential figure, was directly involved in illegal mining in Sahibganj and neighbouring areas. The court added that Mishra, already arrested under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and held in jail, appeared to benefit from political protection, hindering a thorough investigation.
Jal Jeevan Mission Scam
In the month of October, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted simultaneous raids at 20 locations in connection with a multi-crore scam involving the Jal Jeevan Mission under the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation. Among those facing the raids were IAS officer Manish Ranjan, Drinking Water and Sanitation Minister Mithlesh Thakur, and his associates.
Reports indicate that these raids are part of an investigation into alleged irregularities in the Jal Jeevan Mission, the scam allegedly exceeding around Rs 4,000 crore. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has already been filed regarding these allegations. During the Lok Sabha election campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior BJP leaders also highlighted the scam, which involves a central scheme aimed at providing piped drinking water to every household.
Image- Amar Ujala
Raids took place at the premises of Vinay Thakur, Minister Mithlesh Thakur’s brother; Harendra Singh, his personal secretary; and several department engineers, with locations including Indrapuri, Ratu Road, Harmu, and Morhabadi in Ranchi, as well as Chaibasa and Garhwa in Jharkhand. It is crucial to note that Mithlesh Thakur, a contractor-turned-politician, is an important figure in the current administration. IAS officer Manish Ranjan, who previously faced ED scrutiny over a rural development scam, served as the department’s secretary for an extended period.
Tender Scam in Jharkhand
On 30th October, the ED accused former Jharkhand rural development minister Alamgir Alam of pressurising the department’s chief engineer to collect a “commission” from each tender. The ED filed a prosecution complaint at the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ranchi and stated that Alamgir Alam and his associates generated proceeds of crime totaling up to Rs 56 crore.
The agency reported that the chief engineer, responsible for final decisions on department tenders, was compelled to collect 3 percent of each approved contract’s value as a commission for the rural development department. Of this amount, around 1.35 percent was allegedly funneled to Alam’s aides on his behalf, with the remaining portion distributed among engineers and other officials.
Alamgir Alam has been held in jail since his arrest by the ED on May 15th. Later, in June, he resigned as cabinet minister and Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader in the Jharkhand Assembly. A four-time MLA, Alam has not been fielded as a candidate by the Congress, which forms part of the ruling alliance with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha in the state. Instead, his wife Nishat is running for his seat in Pakur.
Alamgir Alam (Image- Aaj Tak)
The case by ED against Alamgir Alam is based on two First Information Reports (FIRs) one of which was by the Jharkhand Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in 2019, and another by the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in 2023. The 2019 FIR, filed by the Jharkhand ACB, resulted in a chargesheet against Suresh Prasad Verma from Jamshedpur and his tenant Alok Ranjan, with Rs 2.67 crore being recovered. Following this, the ED filed an Enforcement Complaint Information Report (ECIR) in 2020, alleging that the funds recovered from Alok Ranjan were part of a ‘commission’ collected by then-chief engineer Veerendra Kumar Ram from the rural development department.
In a separate investigation, the Delhi Police EOW further charged chartered accountant Mukesh Mittal for allegedly assisting Ram in laundering illicit funds into the bank accounts of Ram’s relatives. In May, the ED conducted searches at properties linked to Alamgir Alam’s private secretary Sanjeev Kumar Lal, domestic helper Jahangir Alam, and real estate associate Munna Singh, who allegedly gathered commissions on Lal’s behalf. The ED claimed that Rs 32.20 crore seized during a search at Jahangir Alam’s residence in Ranchi was concealed there by Lal on Alamgir Alam’s instructions.
Over a span of three days, from May 6th to May 8th, the ED seized Rs 37.55 crore in cash. Statements from Ram and Alamgir Alam’s secretary, Lal, made under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), revealed that a commission of 3-4% of the total value of tenders awarded to contractors was extracted for departmental projects. The ED further alleged in its complaint that Alamgir Alam was directly involved in possessing and concealing at least Rs 35 crore in proceeds of crime through Sanjeev Kumar Lal, and in acquiring and hiding an additional Rs 56 crore of illicit funds.
On Sunday, 10th November, a case of alleged forced Christian conversion stirred tension in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. According to media reports, members of Hindu organisations, including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, gathered outside a house where the alleged conversion was taking place in the name of mass prayers. They raised slogans against the people involved in the matter, and the police were called.
Women and children were safely evacuated from the three-storey building. Two persons, identified as Saul Naga and Indrajeet Khare, were arrested by the police, while ten others were detained for questioning for their alleged involvement in the forced conversion.
Accusations of inducements for conversion
Several Hindu organisations’ activists accused the organisers of the event of luring Hindu men and women to convert to Christianity with promises of financial and health benefits. Over 100 people, including women and children, were present at the event. The police were called by the Hindu organisations to stop the “prayer meeting”. The in-charge CSP and SDM, along with around 30 police personnel, arrived at the scene to maintain law and order.
Police intervention and investigation
All the women and children present at the event were evacuated. In-charge CSP Akhilesh Kaushik said in a statement that the police had received complaints in the past. The investigation into the matter is underway, and several individuals were taken to the police station for questioning.
Community concerns and prior complaints
The Kotwali police station in Raigarh had been receiving complaints about suspected forced conversion for the past 15 days. The recent incident in the Jutmill police station area intensified local outrage. Residents reported that regular prayer meetings were being held four times a week and that people from afar were participating. The locals expressed frustration over alleged police inaction despite repeated complaints.
Legal implications of forced conversion
Notably, under the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Act 1968, forcibly or fraudulently converting anyone, or doing so through inducements, is a criminal offence punishable by up to one year in prison, a fine of up to ₹5,000, or both. In cases where minors, women, or those from Scheduled Castes or Tribes are lured, penalties double to two years of imprisonment and a ₹10,000 fine. Sections 298 to 302 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, outline crimes affecting religious sentiments. Religious conversion through coercion is a non-bailable and non-compoundable offence, carrying strict penalties.
On the morning of 10th November, a vendor was reportedly caught spitting on the vegetables in the market at Karwar, Karnataka. He has been identified as Abdul Hassan Sab Razzak. The video was recorded by a passerby after which locals assembled at the spot and protested. They raised the issue of hygiene and potential health risks as well as the transmission of illnesses brought on by such actions. The accused was then taken into custody by the authorities.
Razzak relentlessly denied the allegations, however, the people asserted that he spat while sprinkling water on the vegetables to make it “halal” (permissible or lawful) which is essential to Islamic practices and refers to acts, behaviours, or items that are permitted in the religious teachings. The instance led to strong reactions on social media as netizens voiced their disgust over the viral video. One called the practice of spitting and urinating on vegetables a “fashion” and added, “This issue should be raised on every platform to expose these clowns.”
Urinating vegetables and spiting have become the fashion now. This issue should be raised on every platform to expose these clowns.
A user referred to it as a profound “jihadi mentality” which “disregards public health and basic decency.” The person further remarked that urinating on vegetables and spitting on meals are examples of behaviours that indicate a solidified jihadi attempt against the Hindu community and the principles they uphold.”
He added, “This isn’t isolated, it aligns with a disturbing pattern where certain elements blatantly disregard societal norms to push their agendas, showing zero respect for the well-being of others,” and demanded strict action “to curb this jihadi mindset that threatens community harmony and public health.”
Such an act is not just about hygiene; it’s a clear reflection of a deeper, Jihadi mindset that disregards public health and basic decency. 🤢 When actions like urinating on vegetables and spitting on food occur, it signals an absolute JIHADI attempt against the Hindu community…
Reportedly, the Uttar Pradesh government, under Yogi Adityanath’s leadership, is planning to introduce two significant ordinances aimed at addressing the growing issues of food contamination and unhygienic practices. This decision follows a series of alarming incidents where individuals were found spitting in food or contaminating it with urine, which has led to public outrage and raised health and hygiene concerns.
The proposed ordinances, titled the Prevention of False and Anti-Harmony Activities and Spitting Prohibition Ordinance 2024 and the UP Prevention of Contamination in Food (Consumer Right to Know) Ordinance 2024, seek to implement strict penalties for such actions. Beyond punishing offenders, these laws also aim to promote transparency, giving consumers the right to know how their food is prepared and handled.
In Uttarakhand, a major controversy has erupted over inviting Muslim MLAs to the Deepotsav event in Haridwar on 11th November. Muslim MLAs have been invited to Har Ki Pauri, where the entry of non-Hindus is restricted. Questions have been raised over the Haridwar district administration’s decision to extend this invitation. Following the dispute, non-Muslims can no longer enter Har Ki Pauri. The incident has triggered outrage among Hindu rights organisations like Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad.
Reports say that Deepotsav will be held at Har Ki Pauri on Monday evening, and this program is part of the Silver Jubilee Festival, which commemorates the state of Uttarakhand’s 25th anniversary. The residents of Haridwar have been asked to light lamps. Moreover, there is a plan to light 3 lakh diyas in this program. Apart from this, a bhajan evening will also be organized. State Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has also been invited to the program.
The Haridwar district administration has also invited MLAs to the Deepotsav program including Congress MLA from Piran Kaliyar Furqan Ahmed, BSP MLA from Laksar Mohammad Shahzad, and Congress MLA from Mangalore Qazi Nizamuddin.
Shri Ganga Sabha strongly objected to the invitation extended to these three Muslim MLAs. Notably, the Sabha organises Ganga Aarti and other events in Har Ki Pauri. According to the Shri Ganga Sabha, non-Hindus are not permitted to visit Har Ki Pauri, hence the administration’s invitation is inappropriate.
The Sabha has stated that calling Muslim MLAs is an insult to the laws and would not be tolerated, adding that the district administration is unaware of the Har Ki Pauri rules and that the restriction on non-Muslims is more than 100 years old.
Meanwhile, a Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader said that non-Hindus are not permitted to enter Haridwar’s Har Ki Pauri and other ghats; this restriction is a hundred years old and was established by Mahamana Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya following an agreement with the British rulers; it is also a Municipal Corporation bylaw.
As a result, the former Muslim governor of the state, Aziz Qureshi, and Christian Margaret Alva took part in the previous program from locations other than Har ki Pauri. This rule is reported to have been in effect since 1916, and it was adopted by Madan Mohan Malviya from the British when he established the Aarti. In response to the criticism in this case, the administration has prohibited non-Hindus from attending the ceremony at Har Ki Pauri. The District Magistrate of Haridwar imposed this restriction. Meanwhile, the Hindu rights groups Bajrang Dal and VHP welcomed the move calling it a huge win.
A shocking incident of alleged murder for opposing conversion to Christianity has come to light in Satoli village of the Mannalli Police Station area in Bidar, Karnataka, where a 52-year-old man identified as Basavaraj Narasappa was brutally murdered by his wife and three children. The incident took place on 8 November. Reports suggest that Narasappa, who was deaf and mute, was killed by his family members as he refused to convert to Christianity and questioned why Hindu rituals were not being performed at home.
However, the police refuted the claims of the matter being related to religious conversion and stated that the family killed the man over a property dispute.
Basavaraj Narasappa was deaf and mute since birth and communicated through sign language. He was married to Adeemma, and the couple had three children: Ratnamma, Prabhakar, and Hanumanth.
According to a News 18 report, the murder happened for opposing conversion to Christianity. Reportedly, the daughter allegedly cooked food at home after killing her father, and all of them had meals with the body inside the house. The incident reportedly occurred after Basavaraj questioned why rituals were not being performed at home and why no rituals were conducted during the Dussehra festival.
The police, however, refuted the claims that the matter was related to religious conversion. The police said it was related to a property dispute. Following the initial investigation, the police stated that the deceased had four brothers and that his father’s property was divided equally among them. Reports suggest that, as he was disabled, his wife and children feared that the property could be signed over to someone else. Due to their fear, they allegedly did not allow him to go outside. If he tried to leave, his family members would beat him and stop giving him food.
On 8 November, when Basavaraj returned home, his wife Adeemma, along with the children, tied his hands and legs and killed him. A case was registered at Mannalli Police Station against the victim’s family members based on the complaint of his brother Mallikarjun.
The wife and three children were arrested by the police, and an investigation into the matter is underway.
The Republic of Iraq is gearing up to push minor girls into marriages. Furthermore, the girls will be deprived of any financial assistance or alimony and even any right to their kids in case of a divorce. The motive behind the move, as per the administration, which is aligned with the Sharia Law, is to discourage girls from having any romantic relationships as they are deemed inappropriate.
Iraq is on the verge of lowering the legal ‘consent’ age from 18 to 9, which would allow men to marry young children. An amendment that would repeal the nation’s “personal status law” is about to be approved by the Iraqi parliament, which is controlled by a coalition of conservative Shia Muslim parties. When it was first presented in 1959, the law, also known as Law 188, was hailed as one of the most innovative in the Middle East. It established a comprehensive set of regulations that control the affairs of Iraqi families, irrespective of their religious affiliation.
The second amendment to the law was passed on 16th September. The amendment will eliminate women’s rights to inheritance, divorce, and child custody in addition to lowering the legal marriage age. Additionally, the law would give residents the option of deciding family matters through the civil judiciary or religious authority. The proposed amendment is intended to shield girls from “immoral relationships,” according to the government.
Women’s rights in Iraq have been under attack for over ten years by the Shia religious organisations that control the political system. Shia parties in Iraq had previously attempted to reform the personal status law, but their efforts were unsuccessful in 2014 and 2017, primarily because of opposition from Iraqi women. However, according to Dr Renad Mansour, a senior research fellow at Chatham House, the coalition currently holds a sizable parliamentary majority and is poised to pass the legislation.
He stated, “It’s the closest it’s ever been. It has more momentum than it’s ever had, primarily because of the Shia parties. It’s not all Shia parties, it’s just the specific ones that are empowered and are really pushing it.” Dr Mansour added that Shia Islamist outfits were using the proposed amendment as part of a larger political strategy to “consolidate their power” and reclaim legitimacy. “It is not yet clear exactly when the amendment will go before parliament for a vote, but it could come at any moment,” he further conveyed.
Iraq does not have a male guardianship system like neighbouring Saudi Arabia, which requires women to get consent from a husband, father, or male guardian before making important life decisions like getting married. All that is about to change, though, and the nation might soon resemble Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. The Coordination Framework, a political alliance of groups with ties to Iran, has controlled the Iraqi political system since 2021. They have enacted many laws that are based on the Sharia Law including criminalising homosexuals and transgenders and adopting religious holidays.
According to the coalition administration, the proposed amendment seeks to “protect” young girls and is consistent with the interpretation of the Sharia Law. The administration is anticipated to pass the legislation in spite of the objections from Iraqi women’s organizations because it has a legislative majority.
The fresh amendment: Disaster for women and children
The proposed modification to the Personal Status Law (PSL), the civil code that determines the legal foundation for social and family life in Iraq, gave Iraqi individuals two choices when they were married, they may choose between rules based on sectarian preferences or the modern, primarily secular law. However, the men alone will have the last say in this matter. This idea has sparked significant worries about the future of women’s and children’s rights in addition to deepening the religious divide.
The PSL, which was adopted in 1959, brought every element of society together under a single code while taking into account the human rights of women and children as well as Islamic precepts that apply to all faiths. Articles covering child custody, inheritance and alimony centred on the welfare of children and women and the marriage age was placed at eighteen. Moreover, to maintain uniformity in the jurisdiction over family matters, all marriages had to be contracted in front of a judge in the state court system otherwise the union was considered illegal.
The recently proposed modification undermines the strong checks and balances and centralized accountability that were made feasible earlier. This law would make family law arbitrary and dismiss human rights as well as social consequences by giving clerics most, if not all, of the decision-making authority over family problems.
The legalization of child marriage is the most significant outcome of the proposed amendment. The current PSL specifies that 18 is the legal marriage age. Girls as young as nine might be able to legally marry if this amendment is approved. In Iraq, child marriage is already a significant social problem. 28% of girls are married before they reach the current legal age, based on the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). This is due to a loophole in the personal status law that permits religious leaders, rather than the courts, to perform thousands of marriages annually, even ones involving girls as young as 15 who have their father’s consent.
These unregistered weddings are common in Iraq’s ultra-conservative Shia populations that are also economically disadvantaged. However, the girls and any children they might bear are denied numerous privileges because the marriage is not recognized by the law. For instance, if a woman does not have a marriage certificate, hospitals could refuse to accept her for childbirth. According to Human Rights Watch, the amendment would legalize these religious weddings, increasing the risk of sexual and physical abuse for underage girls and preventing them from accessing jobs and education.
The implications for young Iraqi girls, who already face difficulties, might be devastating if the proposed change is approved. A maelstrom of early pregnancies and associated health hazards, along with even fewer opportunities for education and financial security, would follow. According to data, 46.2% of Iraqi women who marry before turning 18 have only completed pre-primary education or have no formal education. Likewise, early marriages have negatively impacted children due to unwanted sexual interactions, domestic rape and domestic violence coupled with pregnancy and delivery hazards, according to a United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) report on child marriages in the Kurdistan area of Iraq.
The problem of child marriage, along with other clauses that limit mandatory child custody with the mother from ten years to as little as two years, impart preference to men in inheritance and child custody disputes, and waive child support obligations. It also institutionalizes gender discrimination and increases the vulnerability of women and young girls to exploitation.
Opposition and concerns regarding the law
A number of Iraqi lawyers, social activists and Sunni religious figures are opposing the proposed modifications. Women’s rights groups have taken to social media to express their outrage over the action, accusing the government of trying to “legalise child rape.” The 188 Alliance, a group that opposes gender discrimination and the oppression of Iraqi women and seeks to stop Iraq from becoming increasingly gender-segregated like Afghanistan, is among the primary opposition voices and organised agitations across the country in August. According to activists and experts, the amendment would essentially nullify the nation’s most significant women’s rights.
Sarah Sanbar, Iraq researcher at Human Rights Watch expressed, “The amendment would not just undermine these rights. It would erase them. It’s explicitly written in the draft that when there’s a dispute between the couple, the sect of the husband takes priority. This is going to remove a lot of protections for women. It will undermine the principle of equality before the law.” She was also worried that the amendment would grant Iraqi women from specific sects more economic autonomy and privileges while keeping others in violent marriages or impoverished. “(These women) will have to stay in harmful situations because they fear losing custody of their children,” she voiced.
“This is a catastrophe for women. My husband and my family oppose child marriage. But imagine if my daughter gets married and my daughter’s husband wants to marry off my granddaughter as a child. The new law would allow him to do so. I would not be allowed to object. This law legalises child rape,” said Raya Faiq. She serves as the coordinator for a coalition of organizations opposed to the proposed legislation. There are a few Iraqi MPs in the group as well.
Supporters of the new law confronted opponents during coalition-organized protests in Baghdad, the country’s capital, and many other cities, accusing them of “moral decadence” and “following Western agendas.” Nadia Mahmood, co-founder of the Iraq-based Aman Women’s Alliance mentioned, “Following the mass youth protests which took place in Iraq in 2019, these political players saw that the role of women had begun to strengthen in society. They felt that feminist, gender and women’s organisations, plus civil society and activist movements, posed a threat to their power and status (and) began to restrict and suppress them.”
Despite facing fierce resistance, a group of 25 female members of parliament have been working to prevent the proposed law from going to a second vote. The latest modifications will be formally discussed and then put to a vote by the Iraqi parliament. Alia Nassif, an Iraqi MP disclosed, “Unfortunately, male MPs who support this law speak in a masculine way, asking what’s wrong with marrying a minor? Their thinking is narrow-minded. They don’t take into consideration that they are the legislators who determine people’s fate but rather follow their masculine thinking to authorise all this.”
Protesters expressed their concern that if the legal amendments were implemented, their children would have to deal with a future that is much more cruel than their own. “I have one daughter and I don’t want her to be forced like me to marry as a child,” stated Azhar Jassim. She had to drop out of school to get married at the age of sixteen. The director of Model Iraqi Woman and international human rights legal counsel Athraa Al-Hassan expressed her “apprehension” that the Guardianship of the Jurist, a Shia system that prioritizes religious authority over the state, could replace Iraq’s current political structure. A similar arrangement is used by the governments of Iran and Afghanistan, where a Guardian Jurist is the nation’s top authority.
After failing to impose the death penalty, the ruling coalition made same-sex partnerships punishable by up to 15 years in prison in April. Additionally, it decided last year that media outlets should use “sexual deviance” instead of “homosexuality” across all platforms and even the word “gender” was prohibited. “What they aspire to in parliament is not in the interest of society, but their personal interest,” declared Al-Hassan. She is one of the most prominent figures in the nation’s feminist movement.
“We are defending the rights of women and girls (and) protecting Iraqi society from disintegration and the establishment of sectarianism among the social fabric,” she added. Al-Hassan called the amendment “extremely dangerous” and warned it was a “violation of the constitution” to meddle in the business of the Iraqi judiciary. “Iraq is a civilised civil state that cannot be otherwise. The first female minister in the Arab countries was Iraqi and the first female judge was Iraqi. We aspire to progress, not regress,” she asserted.
Iraq has long been plagued by sectarian strife. According to Dr Mansour, changing Law 188 would exacerbate already existing differences. “It would bring everything back to the sect. But many Iraqis don’t want to be defined politically by their sect. They want to be defined by their government and their state.”
The new amendment attempts to further regress the conservative Iraqi society and deepen the cracks of sectarianism and discrimination. It has caused shockwaves, particularly with reference to the status of women and children after the passage of the law.
The All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) has extended support to the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) candidate Azhar Tamboli from the Hadapsar seat in Maharashtra. The SDPI is the political wing of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI). On 7th November, AIMIM Maharashtra leader Ruhinaaz Sheikh announced that the party will support SDPI candidate Azhar Tamboli in the coming elections. Sheikh said that Tamboli would be a voice of Muslims in the Assembly.
Similarly, the SDPI has also supported AIMIM candidate from Aurangabad constituency Imtiaz Jaleel to make sure that the votes of the Muslim community does not get divided.
Notably, SDPI’s Azhar Tamboli had earlier this year, filed a petition seeking a ban on the film “Humaare Baarah” which shed light on the challenges endured by Muslim women as they are relegated to the stature of inferior beings and treated similarly to baby-making machines in their households, in the name of religion.
With AIMIM and SDPI joining forces for electoral gains, the Asaduddin Owaisi-led party and the Congress party have come on the same page. During the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year, the SDPI extended support to the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). The SDPI had said that since the Congress-led alliance was opposing the BJP, it would support the UDF. The Congress party has demanded a ban on SPDI in Karnataka but had qualms about taking support from the same outfit in Kerala. Ahead of the Karnataka assembly elections last year, former deputy chief minister of Karnataka and Congress leader Gangadharaiah Parameshwara sought the help of SDPI to defeat the BJP.
Notably, the SDPI had made covert alliances with Congress in several seats to oust BJP from power during the Karnataka assembly elections of 2018. SDPI leader Ilyas Thumbe had revealed in March this year that SDPI in 2018 had taken back their candidates from more than 25 seats as a result of secret pacts with Congress. Congress also had withdrawn its candidacy from three constituencies with a Muslim majority for SDPI to contest. However, Congress has denied any pact made with the Islamic organization.
On Sunday (10th November), a shootout broke out on Muzaffarnagar’s Kukda Road after UP police stopped a gang smuggling cows. A gang member identified as Sandeep, was injured and hospitalised, while four others were arrested in a subsequent operation. The police seized a bike, an Ashok Leyland vehicle, and three alive cows from the spot. This gang used to steal stray animals and sell them for slaughter.
The police also arrested accused Lokesh Kumar, Kailash, Upesh Singh, and Deen Mohammad. Police seized three live cattle, a Max pickup truck, a motorcycle and a cartridge from the accused persons. According to journalist Sachin Gupta, one of the accused, Lokesh, had earlier served as a district vice president for Chandrashekhar Azad’s Azad Samaj Party.
Police said that the gang seized stray cattle at night and transported them for illegal sale. Meanwhile, attempts are being made to arrest the absconding accused while arrested people are being interrogated for further information on this cow smuggling gang.
Speaking about the arrests made in the matter, SP (city) Satyanarayan Prajapat said, “All arrested accused are residents of Muzaffarnagar. One of the two escapees is Chand, a Deoband native and gang boss. They collect stray animals from forest areas around the district and transport them to Haridwar and other locations where they have buyers. We have a team looking for the escaped gang members.”
Meanwhile, New Mandi SHO Dinesh Chand said that a case has been filed under different sections, including 109 (attempt to murder) of BNS and the Cow Slaughter Act. The officer added that the accused have been sent to jail, and further investigation is underway.
On Sunday, 10th November, Congress leader Kamru Zzaman Choudhury sparked a controversy during a debate on Times Now regarding the funds allocated by the state of Uttar Pradesh for the upcoming Maha Kumbh. During the debate, Kamru called for selling Temple gold and using it to clear the country’s debt.
Maha Kumbh Expenditure Politics
We all respect what the Maha Kumbh represents, but in its name Maha Kumbh, thousands of crores have been siphoned by the organizers…: @Kamru_Choudhury
Kamru objected to the funds allocated by UP for Maha Kumbh, stating that the Kumbh has been taking place since before the existence of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). “We respect the Maha Kumbh. But the problem is, in the name of the Maha Kumbh and the Ram Mandir, thousands of crores have been siphoned off by the organisers.” When Times Now anchor Pranesh Kumar Roy questioned him over the allegations and asked for proof, he became defensive.
Roy then countered Kamru and asked for his views on the rampant land grabbing by the Waqf Boards occurring in the country. Kamru repeatedly dodged the questions, claiming that what happens at the Waqf Board level and in Hindu temples is completely different. According to him, there is nothing wrong occurring at the Waqf Boards.
In an attempt to divert the discussion from the Waqf Board and the land grabbing issue, Kamru, out of nowhere, suggested that selling all the gold in temples would make India debt-free. His statement angered BJP National Spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari, who demanded an apology from Kamru, which was not forthcoming. In a post on X, Bhandari said, “Shocking! “Mandiro main itna Sona hai ki isko bech de” Congress officially says it wants to snatch the Gold that belongs to our temples and sell the gold! Congress has eyes on looting our temples! This is what Mughals did in past. Congress is Dangerous!”
Shocking!
"Mandiro main itna Sona hai ki isko bech de"
Congress officially says it wants to snatch the Gold that belongs to our temples and sell the gold!
When Roy questioned other panellists about their views on Kamru’s statement, SP’s IP Singh avoided the question and steered the debate in a completely different direction.
During the debate, SP’s IP Singh put forward questionable logic to support his claim that the Maha Kumbh is a scam. He listed several ongoing projects and argued that, as these projects remain incomplete, questions should also be raised about the Maha Kumbh. He claimed, “The way money was looted in the name of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya and the Ghats in Banaras, around 50% of the money allotted for the Maha Kumbh is being looted.”
Kamru raised similar concerns during the debate, alleging that a “land scam” occurred in Ayodhya and asserting that it was never investigated. The controversy over the alleged land scam in Ayodhya, involving the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, centres on the trust purchasing land from Ansari at Rs 18.5 crore after he bought it from Kusum Pathak for Rs 2 crore. Allegations by AAP and SP of price inflation were based on both transactions being registered on the same day. However, evidence shows the original sale agreement between Kusum and Ansari was made in 2019, before land prices rose post-Ayodhya verdict. The trust’s acquisition ensured transparency, legality, and avoided potential title disputes, disproving claims of a scam. OpIndia’s detailed explanation busting the claims of scam can be checked here.
Rashtriya Ulama Council Spokesperson Adv Talha Rashidi joined in with further accusations. He questioned why the Waqf Board was being discussed in the debate when it is a body established by Parliament. Additionally, he objected to criticisms of the BJP for raising the issue of appeasement politics, claiming that similar appeasement occurs during festivals like the Kanwar Yatra and Rakshabandhan. He also questioned why there was opposition to reservations for Muslims in Maharashtra.
Interestingly, Rashidi ignored the fact that the majority of large Hindu temples are under government control and that a portion of the funds from these temples is used for welfare schemes. When Roy asked why it would be a problem if part of the money taken from temples is used for Hindu festivals, Rashidi had no response.
About Maha Kumbh 2025
The 45-day religious event, Maha Kumbh, is held once every 12 years along the banks of the Ganga in Prayagraj. The event will start on 14th January 2025. The estimated budget for the event is nearly Rs 6,382 crore, of which over Rs 5,600 crore had already been set aside by October 2024. Twelve years ago, when the Maha Kumbh was last held, the Samajwadi Party was in power, and the event had a budget of Rs 1,152 crore. Around 12 crore visitors attended the religious event over 45 days at that time. According to reports, an estimated 40 crore people may attend the Maha Kumbh this time. The funds are being spent on 1.45 lakh toilets, temporary parking areas, CCTV cameras, tents, and other arrangements. It is estimated that the state economy will get influx of around Rs 1.2 lakh crores from the event.
