‘Love Jihad’ twist to Sandalwood Drugs Scandal

‘Love Jihad’ twist to Sandalwood Drugs Scandal 

Syed Ali Mujtaba 

The Sandalwood drug scandal in Karnataka has led to arrest of several film stars that has now sparked a new controversy and that’s ‘Love Jihad.’ Sandalwood refers to the Kannada language film industry in Karnataka.

The Sandalwood drug scandal story became juicy after the arrest actress  Sanjjanaa Galrani by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on September 8.

A twitter handler @ShobhaBJP whose actual name is Shobha Karandlaje has raised the issue of the evil link between Love-Jihad-and Drugs. She pointed out that ‘Love-Jihad’ cases being reported across the country has links with drugs mafia. This BJP sympathizer wanted this angle to be also probed and the motive to stir social harmony to be stopped. 

It is true that Sanjjanaa Galrani had converted to Islam in October 2018 and changed her name to Mahira. In the affidavit, the actress had declared that she converted to Islam on her own will after studying Islam for years. The document also has her photograph along with the date of conversion i.e. 9th October 2018.

Sanjjanaa Galrani who had made her film debut in Tamil Movie Oru Kadhal Seiver (2006), and soon became known for her controversial role in the Kannada film Ganda Hendathi (2006) remake of the Hindi film Murder (2004) is surrounded by rumors of dating Dr. Azeez Pasha, a Bengaluru-based cardiovascular surgeon.  

The speculation became nearer to truth when a picture of Sanjjanaa Galrani with Azeez Pasha surfaced in the social media confirming their relationship. In the picture both could be seen dressed in a traditional outfit, which looks like a wedding attire. 

On being quizzed, both Sanjjanaa and Dr Azeez had shared differing views about their marital status. The actress’ mother’s had her own opinion. Sanjjana who is trained in salsa dancer said; “I am not married, I want to make it clear that I am not,” She said while addressing to the media on the drug case. 

On the other hand, Dr Azeez said, “Yes, the photograph is from a ceremony that is akin to a marriage.” But when Sanjjanaa’s mother was asked, she confirmed that actress got engaged to Pasha and their wedding was postponed due to Covid 19. 

“They were engaged around three and a half years ago. They were set to be married this April, but the pandemic made us postpone it,” Sanjjanaa’s mother said. 

The Sandalwood Drug Case heated up after the arrest of Kanada actress Ragini Dwivedi on September 3, 2020.  The arrest was made linking Kanada film actors with drugs. On September 8, the Central Crime Branch also arrested Sanjjanaa Galrani’s in the same case. 

Sanjjanaa came under scanner after her assistant was held by the CCB officials for alleged role in supplying drugs in film parties. 

Currently, Sanjjanaa and Ragini are lodged in the Parappana Agrahara Central Jail in Bengaluru. Both have vehemently denied all such allegations.  

Sanjjanaa in a video that went viral is seen refusing to give her blood samples and then arguing with the investigating officer and other senior doctors that she had lost trust in the police and that she had no clue why she was arrested.

The Central Crime Branch officials have named 12 people in the First Information Report (FIR) related to the use of contraband drugs in Sandalwood. 

The CCB also arrested actor Ragini Dwivedi’s, friend and RTO clerk Ravishankar, realtor Rahul Shetty and an event manager, Viren Khanna, and Rahul Thonshe,  a close friend of Sanjjanaa Galrani. 

In the FIR, it has been mentioned that both the actresses Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjanaa Galrani supplied illegal narcotic substance during parties that they organized. Apart from this, actor couple; Aindrita Ray and Diganth Manchale were also summoned during the investigation of the Sandalwood drug case.

Sanjjanaa Galrani who is brought up in Bengaluru, is of Sindhi origin. She received her first modeling offer when she was in college. She appeared in over 60 television advertisements, the most notable being a ‘Fastrack’ with John Abraham.

Sanjjanaa Galrani has done over 50 projects including 43 films. Her films  include with Shivanna , Darshan , Pawan Kalyan, Prabhas Raju , Mohanlal, Mamooty besides other stalwarts in South India film industry. Her television projects include ‘Big Boss’ in Kanada.  She has also worked at Colours Channel in Hindi.  

The Sandalwood Drugs scandal has echoes from the arrest of Bollywood actress Rhea Chakraborty. Rhea was arrested for her alleged role in the drugs angle which had emerged in the investigations into the suicide death of her boyfriend and actor Sushant Singh Rajput.

Sushant Rajput was found dead at his apartment in Mumbai on June 14. The initial investigation revealed that prima facie it was a case of suicide but later his death has led to a drug trail in Bollywood, investigation of that is still being going on.   

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

On a Ladak Cliff India- China doing Handstands

On a Ladak Cliff India- China doing Handstands

Syed Ali Mujtaba

The Line of Actual Control (LAC) at Pangong Tso remains poised on a razor’s edge. India- China animosity is high, mutual trust is nonexistent, and all past agreements and mechanisms that provided the basis for managing the border dispute has gone for a toss. The situation is slipping fast towards a point of no return, but a war that looks eminent is something that both sides have ruled out.

This has come out clearly in the India-China five points agreement between external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on the margins of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meet in Moscow. They agreed that these five points will guide the two countries to ease the tension and work towards disengagement on the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The five points are; i) Both sides should not allow differences to become disputes. ii) Both sides shall abide by all the existing agreements and protocols. iii) Border troops of both sides should continue their dialogue iv) Both sides to continue communications through the Special Representatives mechanism V) Both sides should expedite to conclude new confidence-building measures.

However the force posture on the ground suggests both sides may not move towards any military de-escalation.  It is because of this the situation on the LAC is not only alarming but incredibly on the edge.  Indian and Chinese troops are just a few hundred meters apart at a forward position at Pangong Tso.  It appears India- China are doing handstands on the edge of a cliff in Ladak.

 India has consolidated its force posture and held its forward position there. China has mobilized massive number of troops including artillery, armored vehicles paratroopers, infantry and air defence personnel. Its H-6 bombers and Y-20 large transport aircraft are deployed at the LAC.

It looks both the countries are readying for war. But are there any real incentives for war?  India certainly does not want a military conflict, less so because country’s economy is devastated due to the pandemic.  On the other hand China too does not want a war because it has other theaters of conflict hotter than Ladak.

So what does India and China wants? China wants India to accept its bigger power status and its right to set the terms of engagement. China further wants to force India to do reverse act without crossing the threshold of war. However, India is equally determined not to play into the Chinese hands. Rather India wants to go on the front foot and test Chinese nerves as to how far it can go in such war of attrition.

There is no sign of urgency between the contending parties and even the approaching winter has no impact on the easing of the tensions. Both the countries are caught in mental complacence determined for a long haul waiting for other to blink. There is a danger in such strategy because longer the standoff, the likelihood of tinderbox to get ignited due to any miscalculation.

So what is at stake? Can India cede some of its territory that it claims since 1962 and accept a unilateral withdrawal at LAC to defuse the escalating tension.  This would mean redrawing of the LAC and accepting revision of LAC at China’s diktats.

India has rejected such idea and has chosen to remain firm on the ground and to achieve its strategic objective that is making China bend as if it’s an Arm wrestling.

On the other side, China as the stronger power sees no merit in pulling back its troops, restoring status quo ante and handing over India a “win“on a platter. Beijing is determined that not an inch of its territory to be lost. Chinese side perceives that such a compromise on its part will not be seen as the benevolence of greater power, but surrender to a resolute Indian side. So Chinese side is determined its military is fully capable and confident in safeguarding its national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

So what could be done in such a situation? External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had earlier said that the recent standoff between India and China “has to be found in the domain of diplomacy.” However he quickly qualified his statement that any solution must be “predicated on honoring all agreements and understandings and not attempting to alter the status quo unilaterally.”

However, in the dialogue between defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe on the margins of SCO at Moscow, the Chinese side said that onus of the crisis is on India. And to this the defence minister made counter allegation. He added  India is equally determined to protect its sovereignty and its territorial integrity.  So whatever hopes for peace was built before the meeting got quickly dissipated.

Now External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s five point agreement with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, have put a question mark whether such agreement will really defuse the tension on the ground?

This becomes more nuanced with his statement that any solution must be “predicated on honoring all agreements and understandings and not attempting to alter the status quo unilaterally.”

If that is the case, will the Chinese side reciprocate him on the ground especially after having gained an upper hand in the LAC crisis? Going by the current situation where the two forces are poised head to head in an eyeball to eyeball confrontation, the space for any compromise is almost nonexistent.

It is certain that Chinese president Xi Jinping will not pullback its troops perceiving that the cost of conflict weighs higher than complying to India’s demand of going back to the April position. This will be a huge loss for Chinese image both at home and abroad and such idea is totally ruled out.

As far as India is concerned, going by the words of both Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affair’s Minister Jaishakar, it is crystal clear, that India is not going to accept the current status quo and push forward to dislodge the Chinese troops from its occupied position.

In such situation how can the tension be defused? Well someone has rightly pointed out that diplomacy is the art of making possibility. So, it is possible that a solution can still be hammered out through a face-saving formula but what would be that mutually acceptable face-saver formula remains a mystery.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

China Closing on India, Opened New Flash-Point at POK

 

China Closing on India, Opened New Flash-Point at POK

Syed Ali Mujtaba

China is closing on India at Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) and has opened a new flashpoint with the construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam in POK. The way India has opposed the construction of the dam, it looks that after Ladak, the POK could be the next big flash point between India and China.  

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on July 15, 2020 had kicked off the construction work multi billion dollar project at the Diamer-Bhasha dam. Pakistan government in May 2020, signed a 442 billion contract with a joint venture of a Chinese state-run firm and a commercial arm of Pakistan’s military for the construction of this dam.

China Power, a Chinese state-run firm holds 70% and Pakistan’s Frontier Works Organisation (FWO), a commercial arm of its Armed Forces hold 30% share in the consortium to build the Diamer-Bhasha dam.

Pakistan’s Council of Common Interests (CCI) approved the construction of the project in 2010. However, it suffered delays because of international lending agencies which remained associated with the project, backtracked due to opposition from India. Pakistan finally gave the contract to China.

India in May 2020 had vehemently objected to the construction of multipurpose Diamer Bhasha dam. India denounced the project calling it a violation of its territorial sovereignty. India has opposed the move on the grounds that Gilgit-Baltistan region is part of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and all such projects in the Indian territories that are currently under Pakistan’s occupation are illegal.

"This dam will lead to submergence of a large part of land of the Indian union territories of J&K and Ladakh and we condemn the continuous attempts by Pakistan to bring about material changes in Indian territories under its illegal occupation,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said.

China has rejected India’s concerns, calling them misplaced and asserted that the economic partnership between China and Pakistan are directed at enhancing development and the welfare of people.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a media briefing in Bajing that it is part of a "win-win" bilateral cooperation to promote the wellbeing of the local population and the dam would accelerate development and create job opportunities, besides improving availability of water and clean energy.

With regard to India’s objection that POK is inalienable part of India, the Chinese spokesman said, “China's position on the issue of Kashmir is consistent and it considers Kashmir is a historical baggage that has to be unloaded as per UNSC relevant resolutions.”

Since the major part of the Diamer-Bhasha dam is located in Gilgit-Baltistan, China has directly has crept into the theater of Kashmir conflict.  The construction of the dam has brought a new dimension into the Kashmir conflict and may become a source of conflict in the region.

Michael Kugelman, Deputy Director at the Asia program of Wilson Center at Washington DC says; “exploiting India’s vulnerabilities is an essential element of China’s “contain India” policy.”

“It is only a matter of time that China’s expansionist strategy in Kashmir is more visible and India will have no option then to challenge Chinese belligerence just like they did in Doklam, North Sikkim or Ladakh,” Kugelman added.

The US academic sees the growing Chinese investments in Pakistan-administered Kashmir as a strategy of closing on India. Kugelman  warns that Kashmir could emerge as the next big flashpoint between India and China where Pakistan will have pivotal role to play.

According to Kugelman, “these moves will bring one more tension to already strained India-China relationship. He was referring to the tense situation in Ladak where Indian and Chinese troops are locking horns on the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Chinese investment in POK for the Diamer Bhasha dam has attracted  alarming response from India’s Defence head. Chief of the Defence Staff General Bipan Rawat has repeatedly talked about two front wars. About LAC standoff General Rawat has said, if negotiations fails with China, then India is ready with the option of war. The CDS is also of the view to bring the US into the theater India China Pakistan conflict. He has given statement that India should join ‘Quad’ to contain China at South China Sea.

Chinese moves in Kashmir have certainly aggravated strains to the already strained ties between India and China. The tension will involve Pakistan and the fact is all three are nuclear-armed neighbors, the prospects of the ‘Day After’ is chilling.

Many Indian experts have expressed concerns over the alarming situation developing on the LAC and LOC and attribute it to the ill-conceived hardline policies of the BJP government towards Kashmir, Pakistan and China.

The alarming situation has its echoes from the BJP’s historic judgment of abrogating Article 370 and doing away the special status to Jammu and Kashmir. The BJP with such acts instead of cooling down the temperatures has added fuel to the fire and has complicated the situation on the ground.

War as an exit option from such complicated situation sends chill in the spines of many Indian. The BJP government is under the impression that China is another Iraq or Afghanistan where US may assemble a coalition of force and come for India’s rescue. If the US does not come for India’s defence can India hold the ground on its own?

This war of attrition started by the BJP for its domestic consumption may go out of control and in such situation anything could happen. The BJP may not be there to see the remains of the day, but will common Indians cope up with such a situation is the big question that begs for an answer.  

The best bet for India is to refrain from war mongering and cool down the temperatures that has reached a new high in India-China, India Pakistan relationship.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

 

 

 

Is BJP Responsible for Pushing Bangladesh out of India’s Orbit? Syed Ali Mujtaba

Is BJP Responsible for Pushing Bangladesh out of India’s Orbit?

Syed Ali Mujtaba

There are some noteworthy developments taking place in India- Bangladesh relationship which is not being reported in the mainstream media but has significant impact on India as a nation.

The first is India’s foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla’s visit to Dhaka on August 18-19, 2020.  The seriousness of the visit can be ascertained from the fact that India’s foreign secretary traveled to Dhaka on a chartered aircraft. Apparently he may be having some serious issues to discuss about India- Bangladesh bilateral relationship.

However he was treated in a lukewarm manner when he arrived in Dhaka. There was no Bangladeshi official to receive him at the Dhaka airport nor there was anyone to see him off when he left.

India’s foreign secretary was made to wait in his hotel room for almost four hours and then when he went to the PMO he had to wait for another one hour before was finally granted audience with Bangladeshi PM. This treatment is unprecedented in India- Bangladesh relationship, but no media ever reported and none had the audacity to ask uncomfortable question about it  to the MEA.

 “All Izz Well”- was the curt reply of MEA spokesperson India Anurag Srivastava when he was asked about it. His face expression and sounded tone was more of “Three Idiots,” type the Amir Khan’s blockbuster of 2009.   

The fact is there was no discussions on bilateral relationship with the Indian foreign secretary at the Bangladeshi PM at that brief meeting. Though as a protocol Bangladeshi foreign secretary was present in the meeting but the foreign minister of Bangladesh was conspicuous by his absence.

The entire meeting of Indian foreign secretary with Bangldeshi PM was only a courtesy call, a photo opportunity sans any tangibles a take away.  However, a hype was built in Indian media that Harsh Vardhan Shringla’s visit to Dhaka was a huge success.  

The second most noteworthy development in India- Bangladesh relationship is the shabby treatment meted to Ms Riva Ganguli, India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh. 

It is reported that Ms Riva Ganguli had to wait unsuccessfully for almost four months to meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. This is something significant as it suggests how much India Bangladesh relations have plumed and how far Dhaka has moved away from New Delhi’s orbit.

The most important events that had occurred when Ms Riva Ganguli has arrived in Dhaka in March 2019 are as follows.  Ms Riva Ganguli arrived to witness Dhaka-Delhi relations unfolding in a manner that was unbelievable with an Awami League government in power.

The first thing she witnessed was; Sheikh Hasina dropping several pro-India heavyweights from her new cabinet. This happened without New Delhi knowledge.

In October 2019, wshen Sheikh Hasina’s visited India her visit was downgraded from state visits to an official visit, depriving her of being received by the Indian Prime Minister on arrival, a 21-gun salute and the guard of honor, ceremony etc. This is a noticeable development in India- Bangladesh relationship but no media reported. 

Later in November 2019 when Sheikh Hasina was in Kolkata to watch Bangladesh-India cricket match but New Delhi soft peddled  her visit to West Bengal capital. Riva Ganguli who went to Kolkata to meet Bangladeshi PM was left gasping her breath.  

Ms Riva Ganguli is a witness to the first-hand account of Bangladesh establishing a hand-in-glove relationship with China. This extended to strategic areas where India was eased out right before her eyes.

Ms Riva Ganguli also watched China investing over $26 billion soon after her arrival in Dhaka in strategic areas, with promises of much more investments.

When India wanted to get the major strategic project i.e., the second terminal in Sylhet airport and MS Riva Ganguli wanted to meet Sheikh Hasina for this, the Bangladesh PMO delayed her appointment till the project was given to China.

All these suggest that India’s High Commissioner’s to Bangladesh has little role in molding the decision of the neighboring countries towards India. These developments has the potentials of game-changer in worsening the India- Bangladesh ties.

The main reason for deteriorating India- Bangladesh ties is the BJP government’s blatant anti-Muslim, anti-Bangladesh policy to energize its Hindutva vote bank. This indeed has severely impacted India Bangladesh relationship.

Home Minister Amit Shah openly called Bangladeshi Muslims as ‘termites.’ This was bait for Hindutva hardliners, a mental massaging to pump up their radical ideology. 

Some other BJP leaders had openly threatened the Bangladeshi Muslims to be thrown into the Bay of Bengal.

The National Registration Act (NRC), the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and all such actions of the BJP government  have anti – Muslin anti- Bangladesh agenda.

Even though the BJP remains in a denial mode the impact of its policies such as the NCR and the CAA, cast a long shadow on India- Bangladesh relationship.

The BJP in order to please its Hindutva constituency has mortgaged Bangladesh to China. The primary focus of the BJP is its Hindu vote bank and even though it means denial of the gains India had made in 1971.

Such anti-Muslim anti Islam policy of the BJP may be sound of music to the Hindu vote bank but it has sullied India’s image in the community of nations where Islam and Muslim’s have a significant global presence.

Another harm BJP’s Hindutva ideology has done to India is to re-establish the idea of two-nation theory propounded by Muslim League in 1940’s for which it is being blamed in India. It appears that the Hinduvta ideology of the BJP concurs with the idea of Muslim League and it tries to reinforce this version of Indian history.

Well these are some seminal changes taking place under the BJP rule in India. The primary focus of the BJP is building the Hindu identity of the country, even if it means denting India’s relationship with other countries. India's crest fallen relationship with Bangladesh is a pointer that the political leadership of the country is working against India as a nation.   

 The large Indian population has to a make judgment whether they want BJP and its ideology to dominate the political discourse in the country or it want to change the sullying image of India that is being perpetrated by the BJP though through it’s supermicist ideology. 

The ball of improving India-Bangladesh relations is in New Delhi’s court. A change in attitude in India’s foreign policy in dealing with the neighbor such as Bangladesh may go long way in mending the sullen ties.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He is author of the book Soundings on South Asia (Sterling, 2005). He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com 

Love Jihad Echoes at Indian Girl’s marriage with Bangladeshi Boy

Love Jihad- Indian Girl’s marriage with Bangladeshi Boy

   By  Syed Ali Mujtaba

  Chennai: A Chennai-based businessman has lodged a complaint with the Chennai Central Crime Branch on May 21, 2020, that his daughter has been kidnapped from London to Bangladesh by some Bangladeshi nationals.

The girl's father in his complaint says that his daughter who was studying in London where a Bangladeshi national named Nafees enticed her into a relationship.

The girl’s father alleges that the prime accused Nafees, had married her daughter in London and later abducted her to Bangladesh where she is allegedly confined to a house.

Nafees is the son of a top politician in Bangladesh. His father is Shakhawat Hossain Bakul, a leader of Bangladesh National Party (BNP) who is a former Member of Parliament of Bangladesh.  

In the complaint the father of the girl says, her daughter was "radicalized" and was forced to convert to Islam. He calls the marriage as a case of ‘Love Jihad.’

The case came to light when the girl managed to call her parents from Bangladesh and revealed that she had been sexually harassed and was being tortured.

The girl’s father, who had migrated to Chennai from north India, a few years ago and runs a business in Royapuram then, contacted Nafees and others for her daughter’s release.

The culprits demanded money from him and made him lodge a complaint with the Chennai Central Crime Branch.

A case was registered in a Chennai police station relating to human trafficking against Nafees and few Bangladeshi nationals on a complaint for kidnapping of a city-based woman from the UK to Bangladesh.

 The City police station transferred the case to Chennai Central Crime Branch (CCB) which in turned transferred it to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).  

Chennai Police Commissioner Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal has said, since the case involves investigation in foreign countries it has been transferred to National Investigation Agency (NIA)

The NIA has confirmed that to have received information from the Tamil Nadu government regarding the registration of case on May 28, 2020.

The NIA has filed a FIR for alleged kidnapping and trafficking of an Indian citizen. It is investigating the case under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.

In the FIR the NIA has named Nafess as prime accused and few other Bangladeshi nationals. The FIR also includes other names like Malaysia based Islamic preacher, Zakir Naik and Yasir Qadri and Nauman Ali Khan, both US-based preachers of Pakistan origin.  

This high-profile case involves investigation in Bangladesh, UK, Malaysia, and the US. As a result investigation of this "love jihad" case is closely watched by many Indians.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

Survey says 89.1 Per Cent Chinese Support Military Retaliation against India

Survey says 89.1 Per Cent Chinese Support Military Retaliation against India

Syed Ali Mujtaba

Chennai Sept 2, 2020: The Global Times and China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR) have recently conducted a survey on China- India border tension asking people if they agree that the Chinese government should be tough in fighting back against India's provocations.

 To this, 89.1 per cent support military retaliation and 50.4 per "strongly supporting" self-defence and counterattacks, the Global Times reported.

Meanwhile, China has issued a rebuttal to the Indian Army’s claims of August 31st events reported in the media that Indian troops had successfully foiled the PLA designs to cross the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The People’s Liberation Army PLA’s Western Theater Command issued a statement saying, its Indian troops that had "illegally crossed the LAC on August 31, which is a severe violation of the consensus reached before at the multi-level talks between the two countries."

"Such blatant provocations lead to tensions on the border," the PLA statement said, urging India to withdraw its troops that crossed the LAC and strictly restrain frontline forces.

"Indian action this time will definitely escalate tensions, as China has been forced to be tough and would take action; otherwise the Indian provocation would be endless," Chinese state-run newspaper 'Global Times' quoted PLA’s Western Theater Command statement.

Admitting that the "negotiations held by the both sides since June 15 have achieved limited progress, the Chinese media reportedly blamed India for maintaining a tough stance."

The report quoted experts saying that Indian side had "even urged Chinese troops to retreat from some locations within Chinese territory, which China has refused."

India's Ministry of Defence issued a statement on August 31 that Indian troops had preemptively thwarted Chinese intentions to unilaterally change the status quo on the southern bank of Pangong Tso in Eastern Ladakh.

It further said, People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops had violated the previous consensus arrived at during military and diplomatic engagements during the ongoing standoff in Eastern Ladakh and carried out provocative military movements to change the status quo.

"Indian troops preempted this PLA activity on the Southern Bank of Pangong Tso Lake, undertook measures to strengthen our positions and thwart Chinese intentions to unilaterally change facts on the ground," the government statement said.

The statement ended with pacifying not that the Indian Army is committed to maintaining peace and tranquility through dialogue, but is also equally determined to protect its territorial integrity.  

On Aug 24, 2020, Chief of Defense Staff General Bipin Rawat had said, if talk fails, military option to deal with Chinese transgressions is on the table.

He added that Indian armed forces are fully prepared to tackle any threat from China and there is no lack of coordination among the principal intelligence agencies.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

Foreign Tablighi Jamaat Members Filling Coffers of PM Cares Fund

Foreign Tablighi Jamaat Members Filling Coffers of PM Cares Fund

Syed Ali Mujtaba

Two hundred fifty foreign Tabligi Jamaat members (TJ) out of 900, belonging to 34 countries have accepted the plea bargain offer of the government and agreed to deposit fines to the PM Cares Fund as a batter deal to walk free.

These 250 foreign TJ members have paid a total sum of INR 434,000,615,000 or Four hundred thirty-four billion six hundred fifteen thousand to PM Cares Fund.

Controversy surrounding PM Cares Fund

PM Cares Fund – an acronym for Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund, was set up in March 2020 with the objective of being a “dedicated national fund” to deal with “any kind of emergency or distress situation.”

It has run into controversy after opposition parties questioned the rationale of PM Cares Fund when the PM National Relief Fund is operational. The political parties further raised concern over the transparency of the PM Cares fund as money parked in its coffer cannot be audited independently.

This matter was heard by the Supreme Court under public interest litigation. The Apex Court ruled in favor of the government. It upheld the view that PM Cares fund cannot be subjected to any external auditing.

However, this does not absolve the government from the public criticism that PM Cares Fund is an extortion racket that the government has opened to accumulate money for electoral purposes in the shadow of the pandemics.

"Freedom Money"

Notwithstanding, so far 34 Thai nationals, 22 Nepali nationals, 98 from Indonesia, 23 from Kyrgyzstan, 62 from Malaysia and 11 from Saudi Arabia have deposited their ‘freedom money’ in the PM Cares Fund.

The 34 Thai nationals have paid the fine of Rs 6,000 each totaling INR 204000. The 22 Nepalese nationals paid a fine of 4,000 each totaling INR 88,000. The 98 Indonesians have paid 10,000 each totaling INR 98000. The 23 Kyrgyzstan nationals paid 5000 each totaling INR 115000. The 62 Malaysian paid 7,000 each totaling INR 434000. The 11 Saudi Arabian paid 10,000 each totaling INR 110000.

A grand total of all these money deposited in the PM Cares Fund is staggering INR 434000615000 or Four hundred thirty-four billion six hundred fifteen thousand. The amount so far deposited to the PM Cares Fund is only from 250 TJ members and there are 650 more members to pay their freedom money.

"Bargain Process Option"

A Delhi Metropolitan Magistrate, Gagandeep Jindal, hearing the case of 34 Thai nationals gave them the bargain process option to accept their guilt and pay a fine of Rs 6,000 each. They 34 Thai TJ members deposited INR 2,04,000 to the PM Cares Fund and sought amnesty.

Similarly, another court had directed 22 Nepalese to walk free on a payment of Rs 4,000 fine each. They Nepalese nationals together have deposited INR 88,000 to the PM Cares.

A Metropolitan magistrate Rajat Goyal allowed 98 Indonesians to walk free under the same plea on payment of Rs 10,000 each as a fine. They have deposited INR 98,000 to the PM Cares Fund.

Similarly, another Metropolitan magistrate Rohit Gullia allowed 23 TJ members from Kyrgyzstan to walk free on payment of Rs 5,000 each. The Kyrgzs deposited INR 1, 15,000 to the PM Cares.

In the same process, Metropolitan Magistrate Siddharth Malik had asked 62 Malaysian nationals to pay 7,000 each to gain freedom. They deposited a total sum of INR 4,34,000 to the PM Cares.

A Court of Metropolitan Magistrate Ashish Gupta allowed 11 Saudi Arabian nationals to walk free upon payment of 10,000 each. The Saudis deposited a sum of INR 1, 10,000 to the PM Cares Fund.

Charges against Tablighi Jamaat

A total of 900 foreign nationals from 34 countries had come to India to participate in the Tablighi Jamaat congregation held in mid-March 2020 in Delhi.

The government has found them guilty on several charges. The first charge being they are super spreaders of coronavirus and are guilty of culpable homicide. This charge was leveled at a time when the COVID 19 figures were not even 500 and no death in the country.

This charge of the government that the TJ members are super spreaders of coronavirus and guilty of culpable homicide has become a laughing stock in the courts, when the COVID 19 cases has crossed over three million with 50 thousand deaths. The government lawyers are finding it hard to substantiate its charge on the TJ members in the current context when India is at number two position in terms of Covid 19 cases.

The second charge by the government is; these foreign TJ members are guilty of violating government orders to Covid-19 lockdown. This charge is also being contested as Tabligi members have given their entire schedule of activities during the lockdown. They allege that it's the government that has disrupted their schedule by announcing the lockdown on midnight of March 24 and they have not violated any lockdown norms. The plantiff is finding hard to defend its allegations and defence arguments seems more logical.

The third charge leveled on the foreign Tabligi Jamat members is that they have misused the visa norms. According to the government they had come to India on tourist visas but had indulged in religious preaching activity and even involved in conversion activity.

This allegation is also being contested, as the TJ members who say that it is the Indian government’s ingenuity that has bestowed on them the certificate of preachers. They are otherwise half literate people, who had come to this great country for learning and travelling purposes. They say that tourist visas are the most appropriate category for such purposes.

The government lawyers have to prove the allegation that TJ members were involved in religious conversion activity.  And the Judge sitting in judgment has to decide whether Tabligis are preachers or just ordinary folks who had come to India to purify their souls.

ED Raids on Tablighi Jamaat HQ

The most serious among all the charges leveled by the government is the allegation that the Tabligi Jamat members are into money laundering. The government has used its Enforcement Directorate that has raided at least 20 places in the country including Tabiligi Jamat’s Markaz in New Delhi. 

In order to dig out the illegal trail of money being laundered by TJ members the ED has asked the money changer shop in front of Tabligi Jamat Markaz in Delhi to provide them a report of 6 years of money being exchanged by the foreign TJ members.

The money laundering charge has not yet come for trial but it is reported that such charge-sheet is being prepared by the government. This is a very serious charge and somehow if the government is able to establish this allegation then the foreign ‘Tabligi Jamat’ members can be in real trouble. This allegation if proved true can lead to the ban of Tabligi Jamat as an organization in the country.

How far the government of the day is going to be successful in proving its allegations will depend upon the court’s wisdom. Right now the government’s allegations against the Tabligi Jamat members look like vendetta against a particular religious community and its religious faith.  

In this story of the plea bargaining offer and acceptance of guilt and its amnesty by paying fine in PM Cares Fund, stand tall some 44 foreign Tabligi Jamat members. These TJ members have hit a discordant chord and dug in before the courts saying they are ready to face the trial till they are exonerated from all the charges or are sentenced for their crime.

Among the brave hearts there are 7 Thai nationals who want the government to proceed with the charges against them. They have made public that they will not accept the plea bargain offer and will not paying any fine to get released. They say they have not done crime and are not guilty of any misconduct. They have openly challenged the government to prove their allegations and are ready to face the gallows.

This is a very interesting case between the government and some courageous religious soul in the shadow of Covid 19. The government has its own agenda to placate its majoritarian vote bank and wants to break the courage of the TJ members with the bait to buy freedom.

The stories of India’s freedom fighters are lace with such saga where the British government had also given similar bait for freedom by paying fine and writing apology. There were some Indian freedom fighters that refused the British government’s offer and preferred jail.

On the same lines are some of these TJ members who strong heads and  to prove the point that if the courts pronounce the judgment that they are not guilty of any misconduct then this government will be clearly in dock for indulging in  anti-Islam and anti-Muslim vilification.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com.

Webinar Discusses Unique Dimensions of Kashmir Situation

Webinar Discusses Unique Dimensions of Kashmir Situation

Syed Ali Mujtaba

‘The army has always felt that internal issues of the Kashmiris where a section have separatist tendencies nurtures requires a political and not a military solution,’ said Lieutenant General Rameshwar Roy, speaking at a webinar; “Challenges towards Peace & Stability in Kashmir” organized by the Tillotoma Foundation.

General Roy, who served as former Director-General, Assam Rifles and Chief-of-Staff, Southern Command and Former Corps Commander at Nagrota, Jammu & Kashmir talked about the challenges related to the administration in Jammu and Kashmir. 

With a resolve to strive for effective development in Kashmir, General Roy pointed out the problems within the delivery mechanism there. He called those problems as obstacles to the development of the Kashmir valley.

General Roy highlighted about the internal politics of Kashmir and talked about corruption at the low level administrative bodies and upwards in the former state. 

General Roy was emphatic that day-to-day problems of the Kashmiri people should be addressed immediately.  He also wished that non-security issues in Kashmir should be handled in a better manner.

The second speaker of the webinar, Jitendra Kumar Ojha, National Security Analyst & former Joint Secretary, Government of India, said the conflict in Kashmir has a lot of unique dimensions.

Mr Ojha touched upon the issue of money laundering in Kashmir. He spoke about the radicalization of Kashmiri youth as well as the major military and non-military threats to internal security.

Highlighting some major factors for peace and stability, Mr Ojha talked about Pakistan’s engagement in Kashmir conflict. State-sponsored covert war, raking up Kashmir issue at international forums and radicalization of the Pakistani diaspora, are some of the modus operandi of Pakistan to remain relevant in the conflict, Mr Ojha said.  

 Ms Yukta Acharya, Senior Coordinator & Research Associate, Tillotoma Foundation who moderated the discussion  said that there is a humanitarian angle involved in the Kashmir situation and this has be looked into with human compassion. 

‘We are not only concerned about the peace and stability in Kashmir but also about the well-being of people of Kashmir, Ms Acharya said.

 The Kashmiri people have suffered a lot over the years and they should no further suffer more hardship and this should be the priority right now, she added.

Ms Acharya said the event of August 5, 2019 is a seminal development that has heavily impacted the situation in Kashmir valley, and pose a major challenge towards building peace and stability in Kashmir.

Elaborating on this, Ms Acharya pointed that since August 5, 2019 there is heavy deployment of armed forces in the Kashmir valley.  The deployment of such large number of Armed forces has vitiated peace in the region.  The Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) gives special powers to the army personnel in Kashmir.  The use or misuse of AFSPA should be taken into consideration when we are talking about challenge towards building peace and stability in Kashmir. Linked to it are the human rights issues and that must be protected at any cost, Ms Acharya concluded.

Tillotoma Foundation based in Kolkata is engaged in International Relations, Financial, Environmental, and Strategic & Defence Policy globally.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

 

 

Watch Mohammed Rafi Training Recruits

Watch Mohammed Rafi Training Recruits

Syed Ali Mujtaba

Meet Mohammed Rafi is an Assistant Sub-Inspector of police in Telangana. His job is to train Telangana State Special Protection Force. He does so in his unique style. The recruits love his style and gleefully do the exercise without feeling any drudgery.

ASI Mohammed Rafi has found an interesting way to train. He uses the tunes of one of the popular Hindi track ‘Dhal Gaya Din’ of legendary playback singer Mohammad Rafi and he sings along while conducting the drill practice of the recruits.

While conducting physical drills, ASI Rafi’s style brings the recruits out of their physical duress and all enjoy the drill practice wholeheartedly.

Leaving many amused, Mohammed Rafi’s drill practice video clip has become viral on the social media. This video is viewed by over one lakh netizens. It has prompted hilarious reactions from many and some have lauded the drill instructor for his creative style of training.

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IPS officer Anil Kumar and the official Twitter page of Indian Police Service Association have made his video clip public. After that, Mohammed Rafi has become very popular figure in the country.  Watch Mohmmad Rafi in action….

 http://muslimmirror.com/eng/video-watch-mohammed-rafi-how-he-trains-police-recruits/

PM Modi should Restore J&K Status for Chinese withdrawal

PM Modi should Restore J&K Status for Chinese withdrawal 

Syed Ali Mujtaba

There is a Chinese proverb; the one who ties the knot can alone untie it. This proverb China wants to attribute to India to reduce the tensions going on along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). China wants India to undo the abrogation Article 370 that changed the status of Jammu and Kashmir.

There are few plausible reasons making rounds for Chinese incursion into India. They are; India’s construction of Darbuk-Shyok-Daulet Beg Oldi (DSDBO) road from 2000. India along with the US and other powers hedging China and India not complying with Wuhan spirit or it’s follow up at Mamallapuram near Chennai are other reasons given for Chinese aggression.  

Among the numerous stance of India breaking the Wuhan spirit, the most logical seems to be the abrogation of Article 370 that relates to Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019, and the claim over the territories in the possession of China thus challenging China’s territorial integrity.

This idea was conveyed by Wang Shida, the Deputy Director of the Institute of South Asian Studies at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR).

He says:     “On the Chinese side, India opened up new territory on the map, incorporated part of the areas under the local jurisdiction of Xinjiang and Tibet into its Ladakh Union Territory. This has forced China into the Kashmir dispute and stimulated it to take counter-actions on the Kashmir issue.” CICIR is Beijing-based think-tank affiliated to the Ministry of State Security, China’s top intelligence body.

The author says, China had raised this issue at the United Nations Security Council. ‘The Foreign Minister had conveyed China’s strong opposition to the India’s moves of abrogation of Article 370 and the establishment of Ladakh as a union territory.’

The author quoted Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement in Parliament of taking back Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Aksai Chin from China.

Wang Shida said such statement had “posed a challenge to the sovereignty of Pakistan and China and “made India-Pakistan relations and China-India relations more complex.”

 The author acknowledged that India’s foreign minister had conveyed to Beijing that the move was an entirely internal matter that did not impact India’s external boundaries or the LAC with China. But China opposed the Ladakh map for including Aksai Chin as a part of Indian Territory as that has dramatically increased the difficulty in resolving the border issue.

Now in such situation the question is will India untie the knot, the way Chinese wants it to do?  Will PM Modi restore the previous status of Jammu and Kashmir in bargain for the withdrawal of Chinese troops?   Or will he stick to his party’s nationalist agenda that changed the status quo in Jammu and Kashmir, even if it means compromising Indian Territory?   

As things stand on ground military level talks has failed between India and China. The PLA had flatly rejected the Indian demand for the withdrawal of the Chinese troops from the areas it occupied in May and restores the status quo that prevailed in April.

The Galwan River valley intrusion did not feature in the discussion of the military talks, the core issue of the current dispute. The PLA refused to discuss its intrusions into the Galwan River valley and instead claimed its ownership over the entire area that Indian forces were patrolling for over two and half decades.  At the moment the PLA has fortified its position at the Galwan River valley and are in a striking distance to India’s strategic Darbuk-Shyok-Daulet Beg Oldi (DSDBO) road.

As a consequence of dominating the DSDBO road, the Chinese have gained strategically and isolated India from the Depsang area where the road ends. The sub sector north (SSN) ends at Depsang plains, India’s last outpost at the base of the Karakoram Pass.

The other focal point of Chinese intrusion is on the north bank of the Pangong Lake. Here, the PLA is controlling the mountain ridges that overlook the lake and slopes from the height of Finger 8,7,6,5 and 4. Chinese claim line is now at finger 3 which they made a buffer zone and the new LAC. Indian patrols cannot go beyond Finger 3 and controls only finger 1&2.

It appears that China now has come inside three to five kilometres that is supposedly to be the Indian Territory. They occupy some sixty kilometres of Indian land. Since no joint statement was released after the India China military talks, its outcome is well known.

Now the problem Indian leadership faces is to diplomatically engage China and make them retreat to pre-April position. This is only possible only if there is some give and take. The give is India restore the previous status of J&K and the take is China withdraw its troops from its advanced position so that India regain its territory.

If this happens India will untie the knot and both go back to their old positions. India will go back to pre-August 5, 2019 position and China to pre May 2020 position. 

If this doesn’t happen then the government has to accept the loss of territory to China while keep on bluffing that the negotiation channel is on, and just like black stashed abroad which is yet to come the leadership will be promising it will retrieve the loss of territory from China.

In such case, the super nationalist leadership of the country has to go for an all-out war with China and evict it from its territory as India did with Pakistan during the Kargil war 1999. The problem in such adventurism is India may not get colonized again.    

All these are Hobbesian choices for India to make. But they very well fits into the Chinese proverb that the one who ties the knot can alone untie it.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com

Foreign Tablighi Jamaat members are to be sent back from India

Foreign Tablighi Jamaat members are to be sent back from India

Syed Ali Mujtaba

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is in the process of deporting the foreign Tablighi Jamaat members who had attended the Nizamuddin Markaz congregation in March 2020. They had been booked for violating visa norms.

They have completed the quarantine cycle and have been for more than three months in detention in India. The Indian government has been receiving requests from foreign governments to repatriate their citizens as soon as possible.

These foreign TJ members are from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand and other countries.  The government is in touch with foreign embassies to initiate the process of their deportation.

Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has made public that 2,594 foreign Tablighi Jamaat members had come to India since January till June 2, 2020. Among them 960 members are still in India.          

However there is an utter confusion in the actual numbers foreign Tablighi Jamaat members currently in India. The UP government has told the Allahabad High Court that it has 279 TJ members. The Delhi figure is 541 and the Chennai figure is 125. If we add them it makes 945, while the MHA has released the figure of 960. Where 15 other foreign TJ members are, is unknown.

In the related development the government has confiscated the passport of 723 foreign nationals among them are 23 Nepali nationals whose identity cards are taken away.  Among them are 270 Bangladeshi nationals.

The government sources say that many of the foreign nationals have violated the visa norms and have been blacklisted from entering India for next 10 years. They had entered India on the tourist visa but were engaged in preaching activities.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) officials have reportedly said; “the foreigner TJ members will be deported, but the cases filed against them will go on. The foreign embassies will arrange the flights and make arrangement for the return of their citizens.”

The MHA further said “those indulging in Tablighi activities have done a specific visa violation and will attract a fine of $500. Some of them do not have any money with them and the government will consider waiving the fine.”

Recently, the MHA has added a new category in the general policy guidelines relating to visa, putting restrictions on engaging in Tabligh activities in India.

In the related development the Uttar Pradesh government had informed the Allahabad High Court that 279 foreign Tablighi workers were lodged in jails while 46 had left the country after being released from institutional quarantine.

Similarly, Delhi Police has filed charge sheets against 541 such foreigners for violating visa norms, but arrested none of them. In Chennai there are 125 foreign TJ members under detention at the Borstal school in the Puzhal prison complex. They were arrested from various parts of the state for violating visa norms. 

Among the 125 foreign TJ members in Chennai there are 13 male members from Bangladesh, 13 from Myanmar, 14 from Thailand, more than 10 from Malaysia, 46 from Indonesia among them 6 are women, and 8 from Ethiopia among them 4 are women and 9 from France, besides other countries.  

Some of those foreign TJ members were in Tamil Nadu much before the TJ- Corona linkage was found in Delhi but were also being arrested along with those who had come to the state after attending the congregation in Delhi.     

The Federation of Muslim Organizations and Parties had demanded their immediate release and deportation to their respective countries.  “It is perhaps first time in the history of India that a detention camp is made for foreigners visiting Tamil Nadu,” said M. H. Jawahirullah President of the political party 'Manithaneya Makkal Katchi’.  

“The foreigner’s belonging to the Tablighi Jamaat had come to the state on a pilgrimage but were arrested on false charges at the behest of the Central government,” he added.  

The MMK leader said, “It is not the first time any foreigner has violated the visa rules but it is the first time foreigners are arrested for breaking visa rules. He   wondered if the government will apply the same yardstick on the Hindu, Christian or Jew preachers who may come to India for preaching purposes on tourist visa.

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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@mail.com