Five people were killed in the shooting attack at the Ramot Junction in Jerusalem on Monday, local media reported, citing first responders. Magen David Adom (MDA) ambulance service said that four victims had died on the spot, while the fifth victim died at a hospital a short while ago.
According to the MDA, at least seven others were in serious condition, two were in moderate condition, and three were in light condition. The two terrorists who were responsible for the attack were shot by a soldier and a young Haredi man who was armed, The Times of Israel reported, citing Channel 12 reports. Police said that “a security officer and a civilian who were present at the scene fired at the terrorists, and they were neutralised.”
In a statement, police stated that the deputy police chief, Avshalom Peled, along with large police forces, arrived at the site of the incident. Police sappers are also at the site of the shooting, checking for possible explosives. Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is conducting a “security assessment” with the heads of the security establishment, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel also condemned the attack and said, “A tragic morning in Jerusalem: two terrorists boarded a bus on route 62 and opened fire on passengers and bystanders. Many were murdered and others severely injured.”
Extending condolences, she said, “Our hearts are with the families who are mourning their loved ones on this terrible day. The people of Israel will continue to stand strong and united against those who seek to destroy us.”
A woman who was on board a bus in Jerusalem when terrorists opened fire on passengers recounted the horrific attack. Speaking to Channel 12, she said, “…The moment (the driver) opened the door… terrorists came. It was terrible. I was by the back door, I fell on everyone and escaped, I saved myself.” The woman mentioned that she hid underneath another nearby vehicle until the shooting stopped and the terrorists were neutralised.
“There was gunfire there beyond anything imaginable. I can’t believe I’m standing here. Indescribable gunfire,” she added.
-IANS
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A single-judge Bench of the Calcutta High Court on Monday dismissed a petition filed against the Vivek Agnihotri–directed movie ‘The Bengal Files’ because the petitioner could not back the claims behind his petition with substantiated information and supporting documents.
The petition was filed by Santanu Mukherjee, grandson of freedom fighter Gopal Mukherjee a.k.a. Gopal Patha, with the latter being portrayed in the movie. Santanu Mukherjee filed the petition on two grounds, the first of which was that his grandfather was wrongly portrayed in the movie. The second reason was that it was not clear what the sources of information were about his grandfather, based on which the latter was portrayed in the movie.
He also filed an Right To Information (RTI) application on these points, but failed to get any reply to it. The third ground was how Agnihotri could be a member of the CBFC. The matter came up for hearing at the single-judge Bench of Amrita Sinha on Monday. During the course of the hearing, Justice Sinha clearly said that such petitions did not come under the jurisdiction of her court and the petitioner should approach the appropriate forum in the matter. She also observed that since the petitioner could not present the details of the information based on the RTI application he made and present the same in the court, his petition stood cancelled.
Last month, Santanu Mukherjee also registered an FIR against the movie at a police station in Kolkata for allegedly wrongfully describing his grandfather as a butcher in the movie. “Besides being a part of the freedom-fighters’ group, Anushilon Samity, my grandfather owned two goat-meat shops. But that does not make him a butcher himself.
He was a wrestler. He took to arms to protect people from the communal violence unleashed by the Muslim League in Kolkata in 1946,” Santanu Mukherjee said then. ‘The Bengal Files’, is perceived to be the third part of the ‘Files’ trilogy, the first being ‘The Tashkent Files’ in 2019 and the second being the much-controversial ‘The Kashmir Files’ in 2022.
Previously, the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government had been accused of issuing gag orders against other feature films on allegedly “flimsy” grounds.
-IANS
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At least eight people have lost their lives as the Gen Z-led demonstrations against alleged corruption and the government’s decision to ban social media escalated into violent clashes in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu on Monday, local media reported.
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered at Maitighar in the city to vent their anger over the ban, which has triggered widespread outrage among young Nepalis. The protests, however, spiralled out of control after demonstrators broke into restricted zones and stormed the Federal Parliament premises in New Baneshwor.
Authorities swiftly imposed a curfew across key areas and deployed the Nepali Army to contain the unrest. Security forces resorted to tear gas, water cannons, rubber bullets, and even aerial firing in a desperate bid to disperse the crowds. Despite the crackdown, protesters continued to clash fiercely with security personnel.
Preliminary reports suggest that five of the deceased died while undergoing treatment at the Trauma Centre, two succumbed at Civil Hospital, and one passed away at Kathmandu Medical College, Sinamangal. Some of the victims have been identified, others are yet to be confirmed, reports leading Nepalese daily, The Himalayan Times.
The scale of the violence also left hundreds injured, including protesters, journalists, and security personnel, many of whom are being treated in hospitals across Kathmandu. Several remain in critical condition. Officials described the situation in Baneshwor as “highly tense,” claiming that protesters had pelted stones at police and forced their way into the Parliament compound before eventually being driven out.
The government announced that the curfew would remain in effect until 10 p.m., covering areas from Baneshwor Chowk to Bijuli Bazaar bridge in the west, Tinkune Chowk in the east, Ratna Rajya School in the north, and Shankhamul bridge in the south.
Reacting to the incident, Nepalese Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli said that his administration is not against platforms but against “lawlessness, arrogance and belittling the country.”
“I hear of a planned ‘Gen Z rebellion.’ We are not against platforms or social networks — but we are against lawlessness, arrogance, and belittling our country. For a year, we told social networks: register under Nepal’s law, pay taxes, be accountable,” Oli said, adding that the companies refused to comply with the rules.
On August 25, the Nepal Cabinet decided that all social media operators must register within seven days under the Directive on Regulating the Use of Social Media, 2023, and the deadline expired on September 3, the country’s leading daily, The Kathmandu Post, reported.
On September 4, the Nepal government blocked all unregistered social media platforms after they did not contact the ministry by the deadline. After the directive, the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) shared the names of 26 platforms that would be shut down, including Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, YouTube, WhatsApp, X, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Reddit, Discord, Pinterest, Signal, Threads, WeChat, Quora, Tumblr, Clubhouse, Mastodon, Rumble, VK, Line, IMO, Zalo, Soul and Hamro Patro.
-IANS
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The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a plea filed by social activist Medha Patkar challenging the Delhi High Court’s refusal to allow her to examine an additional witness in a decades-old defamation case against V.K. Saxena — the present Lt Governor of Delhi.
After a bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Satish Chandra Sharma expressed its inclination not to interfere with the Delhi High Court decision, Patkar’s counsel sought permission to withdraw the matter, which the apex court allowed.
Senior advocate Maninder Singh, instructed by advocates Gajinder Kumar and Kiran Jai, appeared on caveat on behalf of respondent-Saxena. Earlier, the Delhi HC had upheld the March 18 order of the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), which found Patkar’s application to be “a deliberate attempt to delay the trial rather than a genuine necessity”.
The case dates back to December 2000, when Patkar filed a complaint alleging that a newspaper advertisement published on November 10, 2000, was defamatory. The complaint named three individuals as accused, including the publisher and editor of the newspaper, as well as Saxena. While the proceedings against two of the accused were quashed following a compromise and apology in 2008, the trial continued against Saxena.
After Saxena pleaded not guilty, Patkar’s side began leading evidence. Between 2018 and 2024, four prosecution witnesses were examined, including Patkar herself. The trial, however, faced prolonged delays due to several factors, including settlement efforts, the Covid-19 pandemic, and repeated adjournments.
In February, Patkar moved an application under Section 254(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), seeking the trial court’s permission to examine a new witness who was not included in the original list. Judicial Magistrate First Class Raghav Sharma of Saket Courts rejected Medha Patkar’s application to summon an additional witness, citing the prolonged pendency of the case and the timing of her request.
“The present case has been pending for 24 years, and the complainant has already examined all witnesses listed at the time of filing the complaint,” the court said, pointing out that Patkar had earlier filed an application under Section 254(2) of the CrPC to summon additional witnesses, yet failed to mention the current witness at that time.
“If this witness was truly material to her case, she would have either included them in the original list or at least named them in the earlier application,” the order said. It added that the emergence of the new witness only after the examination of all other prosecution witnesses “raises serious doubts about the genuineness of this request”.
In her petition filed before the Delhi High Court under Article 227 of the Constitution, Patkar argued that the trial court had erred by treating her Section 254(1) application as if it were under Section 254(2) of the CrPC. Patkar’s counsel further argued that denying the right to present a witness — who was willing to appear voluntarily — amounted to a miscarriage of justice. Patkar had not delayed the trial deliberately, and earlier delays were mostly due to external factors, her counsel submitted.
It was also emphasised that the CrPC does not prohibit a complainant from producing a voluntary witness at a later stage merely because the witness was not named in the original list, particularly when no summons from the court was requested. In contrast, advocate Gajinder Kumar, representing Saxena, opposed Patkar’s plea on the grounds of delay and procedural abuse.
Kumar argued that the additional witness had not been mentioned in the original list submitted 25 years ago, nor in any previous examination or cross-examination, and claimed the move was an afterthought designed to fill gaps in the complainant’s case. Introducing new witnesses at such a late stage, Saxena’s counsel contended, would only prolong the already delayed trial.
In a detailed 19-page judgment dated July 29, a single-judge Bench of Justice Shalinder Kaur of the Delhi High Court acknowledged the importance of a fair trial but emphasised that proceedings cannot continue indefinitely, especially when “the criminal justice system is already burdened with an overwhelming pendency of cases”.
“A perusal of the petitioner’s application under Section 254(1) of the CrPC, seeking to summon a fresh witness, reveals that no sufficient cause has been disclosed for the failure to produce the proposed witness, i.e., Ms. Nandita Narayan,” it said, adding that the application failed to explain both the delay in bringing the witness and her relevance at such a belated stage. The Justice Shalinder Kaur-led Bench observed that while Section 254(1) gives the complainant the right to lead evidence, it does not mean unlimited liberty to produce new witnesses without justification.
Accepting Patkar’s argument, it said, would render Section 254(2) redundant and open the door for endless trial delays, concluding that the trial court had “correctly interpreted” the scope of Sections 254(1) and 254(2) of the CrPC.
Dismissing Patkar’s petition, the Delhi HC opined: “The Impugned Order has carefully analysed the petitioner’s contentions, harmonised statutory interpretation, and considered the long pendency and past conduct to reach a legally sustainable conclusion.”
-IANS
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The police on 9 September made the first arrest in the mob lynching case, where a couple was allegedly beaten to death on suspicion that they killed a 9-year-old boy. The police have registered an FIR against a total of 200 people. Police said the arrested youth is a resident of the Nishchintapur area in Tehatta of Nadia district. He was trying to flee the area but was arrested red-handed from the Karimpur police station area.
“One person has been arrested in the mob lynching case. Search is on for the other accused in the case. We are thoroughly investigating the matter,” said a senior officer of Nadia district police. After the murder of a 9-year-old boy in Tehatta last Friday night, a couple named Utpal Biswas and Soma Biswas were killed in a mob lynching. Their daughter-in-law, Nisha, is undergoing treatment in critical condition after being severely beaten up.
The police have recently registered a case against more than 200 people and started an investigation into the incident. Police are deployed round the clock at the place from where the body of the boy was recovered. CCTV cameras have been installed. The place where the couple was beaten to death has been cordoned off by the police, as broken bamboo pieces and blood stains following the mob lynching are still there. The police are not allowing anyone to reach the spot until the forensic team officials come and collect samples. On Sunday morning, the police arrested four people in connection with the killing of the boy. They were produced in a court which sent them to police custody.
On Saturday, the couple was lynched after being accused of murdering the boy. The incident occurred after residents recovered the child’s body wrapped in a tarpaulin from a pond. Enraged locals alleged that the two had killed the boy, thrashed them brutally, and set their house on fire. According to police, Swarnabha Biswas, a Class 3 student, went missing on Friday afternoon after playing in a nearby field. Despite an overnight search, the family could not trace him. On Saturday morning, villagers spotted his body floating in a pond near the house. Police said that the lynching took place shortly after the body was found.
-IANS
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Reinforcing the growing defence cooperation between India and the US, the armies from both countries conducted live drills at Fort Wainwright in Alaska as part of the 21st edition of the India–US Joint Military Exercise ‘Yudh Abhyas 2025’. Last week, the 21st edition of Yudh Abhyas commenced with a grand opening ceremony at Fort Wainwright in Alaska. This will continue till 14 September.
“In Fort Wainwright, Alaska, Indian Army and US Army warriors conducted live fire drills today,” the Embassy of India in Washington posted on X on Monday (India time).
As part of this exercise, a total of 450 soldiers from each side are taking part in field and command post exercises while also engaging with subject-matter experts (SMEs) to further strengthen operational synergy.
According to the Indian Embassy, recently, during the field training component of the exercise, soldiers from the Indian army and the US army rehearsed various battle drills together. The Indian Army contingent, comprising 450 personnel led by a battalion of the Madras Regiment, arrived in Fairbanks on August 31. They are training alongside US soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment (“Bobcats”), part of the 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Arctic Wolves), 11th Airborne Division. The 2025 edition is one of the largest bilateral military exercises for the Indian Army in terms of troops mobilised.
This edition includes mountain and high-altitude operations under sub-arctic conditions, heliborne and air-mobility integration, backed by artillery and aviation assets. Additionally, it will also focus on electronic warfare, surveillance, and counter-drone systems, medical evacuation and combat casualty care in field conditions, and live-fire tactical drills to validate seamless interoperability.
Yudh Abhyas currently stands as a flagship, high-complexity Army-to-Army exercise and has become one of the cornerstones of India-US military cooperation. India conducts more military exercises with the US than with any other country, the Indian Embassy mentioned. “India conducts more military exercises with the US than with any other country. These exercises, including Yudh Abhyas, Malabar, COPE India, Vajra Prahar, Tiger Triumph and several others, are central to building interoperability and forging mutual trust. It demonstrates how our two democracies continue to work towards peace, security and prosperity, including in the Indo-Pacific region,” the Embassy added.
-IANS
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Cybercrime police in Coimbatore have issued a strong alert to the public after nearly 50 residents of the city fell victim to a scam in which fraudsters posed as customer care executives of online travel firms to steal money from their bank accounts.
Police have urged citizens to remain extremely vigilant and not to trust unknown callers or numbers found online. The latest case involved a 60-year-old woman from Kerala, residing in Kovaipudur, who lost Rs 18 lakh. She had booked a hotel stay through a popular travel app, but cancelled her trip. While searching online for refund options, she came across a 10-digit mobile number claiming to be the company’s customer care contact.
“When she dialled the number, a man posing as an executive from the popular app company provided her with an email address for raising a refund request. Soon after she sent the email, she received a WhatsApp message from another person, who instructed her to download an APK file. Believing it was part of the refund process, she installed the app on her phone, which gave the fraudsters remote access,” an officer from the cybercrime wing said.
The scammer then asked her to transfer Rs 1 to a specified account as a “test transaction.” When she entered the bank details, the hackers captured her credentials and siphoned off ₹18 lakh from her account. The woman lodged a complaint with the cybercrime police. Police said this was not an isolated case. In recent months, dozens of people in the city have been duped in a similar fashion, losing money after downloading malicious applications or trusting fraudulent helplines they found online. Officials stressed that tickets and hotel bookings made through certified platforms such as this popular app can only be cancelled via their official websites or apps, and no genuine customer care agent would ever ask for third-party downloads or direct transfers.
“Fraudsters are constantly coming up with new tactics. People must remain vigilant, avoid searching for random contact numbers on the internet, and never share banking details with unknown callers or install unauthorised applications,” the officer cautioned. Cybercrime police reiterated their appeal to the public to stay alert against such scams and immediately report any suspicious attempts, stressing that awareness and caution are the strongest safeguards against cyber fraud.
-IANS
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Madhya Pradesh is the land of antiquity. In the heart of Vidisha district in the state stands one of India’s most magnificent ancient temples – the Bijamandal Temple, also known as the Vijay Surya Mandir. Built in the 8th century CE by the Chalukya dynasty and later expanded by Paramara rulers, this colossal temple complex once rivaled the grandeur of Konark and exceeded the scale of Khajuraho. Yet today, this sacred Hindu monument remains locked behind iron gates, its true identity deliberately obscured by bureaucratic mislabeling that calls it a “mosque” in government records.
The magnitude of this injustice cannot be overstated. For over six decades, Hindu devotees have been denied their fundamental right to worship inside their own ancestral temple, forced instead to offer prayers to locked doors during the annual Nag Panchami festival. This systematic suppression of Hindu religious rights represents not just an administrative error, but a calculated assault on India’s civilizational heritage.
The Sun Temple That Touched the Sky
The Bijamandal Temple’s original splendor was so immense that the renowned 11th-century scholar Al-Biruni described it as having a height of 315 feet with a shikhara visible from five kilometers away. The temple complex stretched over half a mile in length and width, reaching a height of 105 yards, making it one of the grandest temples in medieval India.
Ruins of Bijamandal temple in Vidisha, showcasing ancient Indian temple architecture preserved as an archaeological site
Historical accounts reveal that this was not merely a single deity temple, but a magnificent Panchayatan complex dedicated to multiple Hindu deities. Over its 300-year golden period from the 8th to 11th centuries, the temple evolved to house:
Surya Bhagwan (the primary solar deity)
Lord Shiva and Parvati
Lord Ganesha and various Devi manifestations
Saptamatrika and Ashtamatrika panels
64 Yoginis associated with tantric traditions
Goddess Charchika (established by Paramara King Naravarman)
MP Tourism Plaque
A History of Repeated Destruction and Unyielding Rebuilding
Like many other temples across the country, Bijamandal has also seen its share of repeated destruction.
Systematic Destruction by Islamic Invaders
The temple’s tumultuous history exemplifies the broader pattern of Islamic iconoclasm against Hindu sacred sites. The destruction occurred in systematic waves:
1233-34 CE: Sultan Iltutmish first attacked and demolished the temple, looting its immense wealth and taking the main deity to Badaun mosque in Delhi, where it was deliberately placed on the entry steps for Muslims to trample upon as an act of religious humiliation.
1290 CE: Alauddin Khilji’s general Malik Kafur destroyed the rebuilt temple, stealing an eight-foot Ashta Dhatu idol and embedding it in the stairs of a Delhi Mosque for continued desecration.
1456-60 CE: Mahmud Khilji of Mandu obliterated both the temple and the entire town of Bhelsa (ancient Vidisha).
1532 CE: Bahadur Shah of Gujarat reduced the temple to near-complete ruins.
1682 CE: The final devastating blow came from Aurangzeb, who used cannons to pulverize the temple structure with the intent that Hindus should not worship – so he made it a “khandith” idol. He cemented the octagonal sections, converted them to quadrangular shapes, built a hall structure on top with two minarets, and declared it the “Alamgir Mosque.” Until 2000, the marks of twelve cannonballs remained visible on the temple walls as testimony to this act of religious vandalism.
Unwavering Hindu Resistance
Despite centuries of persecution, the Hindu community never abandoned their sacred site. After each destruction, devotees would return to worship among the ruins, demonstrating an unbroken spiritual connection spanning over a millennium. Following Aurangzeb’s death, Hindus immediately resumed worship of the scattered deity fragments, treating the site with the reverence due to their ancestral temple.
When the Marathas arrived in 1760 CE, they found the Islamic structure already in ruins and witnessed Hindus actively worshipping their deities. This continuous Hindu presence establishes an unbroken chain of religious practice that predates and outlasts any temporary Islamic occupation.
The Modern Betrayal: From Worship to Lockdown
Post-Aurangzeb, during the Maratha rule, the Islamic structure fell into disuse, and Hindus gradually resumed worship, considering it a temple of Charchika Mata or Bijasan Devi. This continued for centuries until a pivotal moment in 1922.
The 1922 Deception and Its Consequences
When floods destroyed the Muslim Idgah near the Betwa river, local Muslims approached the Scindia king requesting temporary permission to use the Bijamandal site for a single day’s Eid prayer. The king, unaware of the site’s significance as a Hindu temple, granted this one-time permission based on incomplete information. No official documentation exists for any permanent transfer.
However, Muslims violated this temporary arrangement by returning repeatedly for subsequent Eid celebrations. When Hindu organizations like the Hindu Mahasabha and Arya Samaj protested this unauthorized occupation, they faced government persecution instead of justice.
The Nehru Era: Institutionalized Anti-Hindu Bias
The situation deteriorated dramatically after 1947. When Muslims objected to Hindu Sharad Purnima celebrations in 1947, instead of protecting Hindu rights, Nehru’s government banned Hindus from entering their own temple. This marked the beginning of systematic state-sponsored discrimination against Hindu religious practices.
For 16 years, from 1948 to 1964, the people of Vidisha, supported by Hindu satyagrahis from across India, including groups from Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Maharashtra, and Punjab, conducted continuous protests demanding restoration of worship rights. They endured lathi charges, imprisonment, and even the desecration of women satyagrahis in jail to reclaim their temple. The government’s response was to impose curfews during Hindu festivals while facilitating Muslim prayers, and to jail thousands of Hindu protesters.
The 1965 Agreement: Muslims Abandon Claims
The breakthrough came in 1965 when Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri intervened directly. He called representatives of both communities and offered Muslims alternative land and ₹40,000 to construct a new mosque elsewhere in Vidisha – this mosque still stands today. Muslims accepted this offer and vacated the temple site, acknowledging through their actions that they had no legitimate claim to the Hindu monument.
By all legal and moral standards, the property should have reverted to its rightful owners, the Hindu community.
But tragedy struck. Shastri’s untimely death allowed anti-Hindu bureaucrats to perpetuate the injustice by maintaining the fraudulent “mosque” classification in official records.
Today, worship is permitted only once a year, on Nag Panchami. And even then, for the last 30-35 years, the garbhagriha (inner sanctum) has remained locked. Hindus are forced to worship a locked iron door – an insult and historical injustice to Hindus.
ASI’s Fraudulent Classification: A Bureaucratic Crime Against Heritage
Now take a look at the images of the temple complex and the sculptures within the temple complex.
Pillar in Vijay Mandir with inscription of Naravarman – Source: Wiki
What do these tell you – do they indicate by any inkling that it is an Islamic establishment? But that is not what the ASI did.
The 1951 Gazette Deception
The Archaeological Survey of India’s classification of Bijamandal as a “mosque” in its 1951 gazette notification represents one of the most egregious examples of historical revisionism in independent India. This classification was made despite:
No documentary evidence of legitimate Islamic construction
Overwhelming archaeological proof of Hindu origins
Continuous Hindu worship for centuries
Absence of Islamic architectural elements in the original structure
When challenged under RTI queries, ASI officials admitted that historians recognize the site as a temple but claimed they were legally bound by the 1951 classification. This circular reasoning using a fraudulent classification to justify continued fraud exposes the bankruptcy of ASI’s position.
The “Non-Living Monument” Fraud
ASI’s designation of Bijamandal as a “non-living monument” represents another layer of administrative deception. This classification is used to deny Hindu worship rights while simultaneously allowing tourism and commercial exploitation. The hypocrisy becomes evident when considering that:
Multiple ASI-protected sites across India permit regular worship
Bhojshala temple in Dhar allows Hindu worship despite similar disputes
Jama Masjid in Delhi, also under ASI protection, permits Muslim prayers without restriction
This selective application of rules reveals the discriminatory intent behind ASI’s actions.
The Unlock Bijamandal Movement: A New Chapter in Hindu Resistance
Several locals from Vidisha began raising their voice for the temple. One of them is Dr Shubham Verma.
Dr. Shubham Verma’s Crusade for Justice
In 2018, frustrated by decades of humiliating “lock worship” ceremonies, local researcher and activist Dr. Shubham Verma launched the groundbreaking “Unlock Bijamandal” movement under the banner of Sakal Hindu Samaj. This movement marked a decisive shift from passive acceptance to active resistance against religious discrimination.
Hindu protesters holding a religious flag during a street demonstration associated with Bijamandal temple issues in Madhya Pradesh.
The movement gained massive momentum in 2024 when Hindu groups formally requested permission to worship inside the temple during Nag Panchami. When the then-collector Buddhesh Kumar Vaidya denied this request, citing ASI’s fraudulent “mosque” classification, the movement exploded into national prominence.
Government Response: Intimidation and Threats
The government’s response to peaceful Hindu demands revealed the extent of anti-Hindu bias in the administrative system. District authorities issued threatening letters warning Hindu devotees of two years’ imprisonment and ₹1 lakh fines for attempting to worship in their ancestral temple. Police forces from five districts were deployed to prevent Hindus from entering the temple during Nag Panchami 2024.
The intensity of this repression treating Hindu worship as a criminal act demonstrates how far the Indian state has strayed from its constitutional obligations to protect all citizens’ religious rights equally.
The Civilizational Stakes
This is not merely about one temple but about India’s relationship with its own civilization. When the Indian state protects structures built through Islamic conquest while denying rights to the indigenous Hindu community, it becomes complicit in legitimizing historical genocide and cultural destruction.
The Al-Biruni accounts themselves serve as historical testimony to both the temple’s magnificence and the Islamic strategy of deliberate religious humiliation. These primary sources from Islamic historians leave no room for doubt about the temple’s original Hindu identity and the calculated nature of its destruction.
A Call to Conscience and Courage
This is no longer about history. It is about justice. It is about the integrity of our nation to honour its own heritage.
Hindus must unite to see Bijamandal for what it represents. It is Ayodhya, Kashi, and Mathura playing out in silent, heartbreaking repetition. Hindu voices should join the chorus demanding its liberation.
The government must immediately correct all records to declare the site the “Vijay Surya Temple,”, unlock the sanctum sanctorum, end the grotesque spectacle of Hindus worshipping a locked door on Nag Panchami, apologize for decades of misclassification and willful ignorance, and also begin the process of restoring the temple to its rightful status as a living place of worship.
The sculptures of Bijamandal are speaking. They are testifying to their own identity. The only question that remains is whether we have the courage to listen and the will to act.
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In a shocking incident, the DMK panchayat president of Nariyampattu village in Tirupattur district has been arrested in connection with a jewellery theft case in Chennai.
The victim, Varalakshmi (50), a resident of Nelkundram near Koyambedu, was returning from Kanchipuram to Chennai in a government bus a few weeks ago. On reaching home, she discovered that a small pouch containing 5 sovereigns of gold jewellery was missing from her bag.
Following her complaint at the Koyambedu police station, officers launched an investigation and traced the theft to Bharathi (51), the serving panchayat president of Nariyampattu and a DMK supporter.
15-Year Habit of Stealing
Police said Bharathi had been systematically targeting women passengers on buses plying between Tirupattur and Chennai for more than 15 years. She would reportedly divert the attention of women by striking up conversations with children or fellow passengers before stealing their jewellery.
Investigators revealed that Bharathi had operated on buses across Ambur, Vellore, Vaniyambadi, Hosur, Krishnagiri, and Dharmapuri. The stolen valuables were allegedly sold, and the proceeds used to build commercial complexes in her hometown.
Despite being elected as panchayat president, Bharathi admitted to police that she continued stealing because of the “pleasure” she derived from it. “Even after gaining money, fame, and facilities, I could not give up the habit of stealing. Every time I vow not to steal again, I fail when I get the opportunity,” she confessed during interrogation.
Family members had reportedly urged him to abandon theft after entering politics, but he persisted, telling police that the thrill of stealing was irresistible.
Bharathi has been booked in connection with the Koyambedu theft case and further investigations are underway to trace his other alleged offences.
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The police have discovered 145 kg of illegal drugs in the northern region of Afghanistan and took into custody 10 alleged drug smugglers, a statement of the Ministry for Interior Affairs said on 8 September.
In the drive against illicit drugs, counter-narcotics police arrested three persons and discovered 106 kg of opium poppy and 32 kg of hashish in Kunduz province on 7 September. Another man with 4 kg of hashish was arrested in the neighboring Baghlan and six persons with 3 kg of illegal drugs were detained in Balkh province, the statement of the ministry posted on X said. The police won’t allow anyone to produce or smuggle illegal drugs in the country, the statement further said, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Previously, police discovered 78 kg of opium poppy and arrested one person in the northern Takhar province on Thursday. Earlier on September 4, provincial police spokesman Nizamudin Omir said that police discovered 78 kg of opium poppy type in the northern Afghanistan Takhar province and took into custody an individual on charge of attempting to smuggle the contraband. The alleged drug smuggler placed 78 kg of opium poppy in the cavities of a car and wanted to take it from Takhar to an unknown location, but police, during a routine search, recovered the contraband and arrested its owner, the official said. This is the second discovery of an illegal drug in the northern region of Afghanistan over the past three days.
Earlier, police discovered 18 kg of opium poppy and detained two smugglers in the northern Baghlan province on September 2. Earlier in August, Afghan police set on fire 29.8 tonnes of illegal drugs seized during a series of operations in eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, according to a statement issued by the office of the Deputy Minister of Interior for Counter-Narcotics. The confiscated substances included 1,442 kg of methamphetamine (ICE), 588 kg of heroin, 15,714 kg of hashish, 460 kg of opium poppy, and other narcotics, along with materials used in drug production, said the statement issued on 25 August.
The contraband was uncovered during counter-narcotics operations in Jalalabad city and various districts of the province, it said. Without furnishing details on whether the narcotics had been discovered, the statement noted that 2,586 individuals were arrested for smuggling, purchasing, and selling the illicit drugs, and their dossiers were referred to the judiciary for further investigation. Additionally, police have rounded up 5,786 drug users in the province and shifted them to rehabilitation centres for treatment, it said. The Afghan interim government, which banned poppy cultivation, drug processing, and trafficking in April 2022, has vowed to fight the menace until the country becomes a drug-free nation.
-IANS
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