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Madras HC refuses to quash FIR against Catholic priest George Ponnaiah who derogated ‘Bharat Mata’ and ‘Bhumi Devi’

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The Commune
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Tamil Nadu Catholic priest Father George Ponnaiah who wanted the FIR that was filed against for using offensive words against ‘Bharat Mata’ and ‘Bhumi Devi’ suffered a setback when the Madras High Court has refused to quash the FIR as the court observed that offensive words used fall under Section 295A of the IPC, reports Live Law.

The Madras HC bench of GR Swaminathan was hearing pastor George Ponnaiah’s who was charged under various sections including 143, 153A, 269, 295A, 505(2), 506(1) of IPC and Section 3 of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 for making derogatory remarks against ‘Bharat Mata’, Hindu religious beliefs, PM Narendra Modi and HM Amit Shah, during a meeting at Arumanai on July 18, 2021.

George Ponnaiah who hails from Kanyakumari had moved the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court in August last year, seeking bail and also tried to quash the FIR registered against him.

However, Justice GR Swaminathan observed that the offensive words used against “Bharat Mata” and “Bhumi Devi” attract the offence of hurting religious sentiments under Section 295A of the Indian Penal. Thus, quashing the plea, the Madras HC observed: “The petitioner poked fun at those who walk barefoot out of reverence for Mother Earth. He stated that Christians wear shoes so that they won’t catch sources of infection and filth. Nothing can be more outrageous to the feelings of the believing Hindus”.

Justice GR Swaminathan added: “Bharat Mata evokes a deeply emotional veneration in a very large number of Hindus. She is often portrayed carrying the national flag and riding a lion. She is, to many Hindus, a Goddess in her own right. By referring to Bharat Mata and Bhumi Devi in the most offensive terms, the petitioner has prima facie committed offence under 295A of the IPC.”

In his defence, Ponnaiah said that he was only making religious criticism which the court dismissed and observed that his speech was punishable under Section 153A of the IPC for promoting communal disharmony. 

Justice Swaminathan said, “a reading of the petitioner’s speech as a whole does not leave anyone in doubt. His target is the Hindu community. He is putting them on one side and the Christians and Muslims on the other. He is clearly pitting one group against the other. The distinction is made solely on the ground of religion. The petitioner repeatedly demeans the Hindu community”.

Speaking at a function jointly organized by Christians and Islamists at a church in Arumanai municipality, Kanyakumari district, Pastor George Ponnaiya said,” No Hindu will vote for them(DMK) no matter how many temples the Minister of HR&CE Sekhar Babu visits and performs Kumbabishegam, or how many temples he visits and worships without wearing clothing. Neither Mandaikaadu Amman temple worshipers nor Hindu votes helped the DMK win. DMK won by begging Christians and Muslims. DMK should not forget this. You did not win because of your talent.”

He further said that he had already told DMK MLA Prince that it was because of Christian Pastor’s direction and Pentecostal staff’s door-to-door campaign DMK won.

He continued, “We informed DMK Kanya Kumari district secretary Suresh Rajan that we will campaign in Nagercoil during a meeting in Nagercoil. However, he declined since it would unite Hindu votes against the DMK. As a result, BJP’s MR Gandhi won the election.”

He even warned Hindus saying, “we (minorities) were 42% once and now we are 62% of the total population in Kanyakumari. Soon, our population will cross 70%. We will continue to increase our population and no one can stop it. We tell this as a warning to Hindus. We do not fear BJP or RSS. You cannot stop us. “

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UP CM Yogi to give land to persecuted Hindus who fled Pakistan and Bangladesh

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The Commune
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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that Hindus who were expelled or had to leave Pakistan and Bangladesh due to religious persecution will be provided with land that the state government freed from encroachers in Uttar Pradesh.

“Hindus, who were living in Meerut for decades after facing expulsion from Pakistan and Bangladesh, could not afford to build their own houses or buy lands. We have given 63 such Bengali Hindu families two acres of land and 200 square yards for housing per family in Kanpur Dehat. These lands were freed from ‘bhu mafia’ (land grabbers),” he said.

Each of the 63 families will also be given ₹1.20 lakh under ‘Mukhyamantri Awas Yojana’, at a programme organised to distribute appointment letters to candidates selected for various posts in government services.

The chief minister said all the land freed from “encroachers” was brought under a ‘land bank’ and these pieces of land will be used for setting up schools, industries, and other businesses. “Many facilities of the Defence Industrial Corridor have also been built on these recovered lands,” he said.

According to the chief minister, under his leadership, the state government currently has 64,366 hectares of recovered land and it is being allotted for the poor to build houses.

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Coincidence or Conspiracy? 1-yr-old Khalistani video bears uncanny resemblance to PM’s security breach in Punjab

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The Commune
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It has been two days since there was a security-lapse in PM’s visit to Punjab, where his convoy was stranded on a flyover for 20 minutes, because of protestors who came in trucks and tractors. While the Home Ministry has condemned this, asking the Punjab government for a detailed report, an old animated video with uncanny resemblance to the incident is going viral on social media.

The animated video, which is almost 1-year-old, dated 1st Dec, 2020, is titled ‘Fer Dekhange- Kissan Ekta Zindabad’, and was uploaded by a channel called Dhakka Gaming. The song featured in the background is ‘Bhaagi’ sung by Punjabi singer Simu Dhillon. This song was released in September last year, when the so-called farmer’s protest was at its peak.

The video goes something like this. It starts with an animated version of PM Modi, walking towards his convoy and getting in while two gunned men are guarding it. He starts along with his entourage. Next, the video focuses on another individual, having resemblances to rapper/singer Sidhu Moosewala, who has sympathised with the Khalistanis several times in the past. He gets onto a tractor and starts driving away, and is eventually followed by 2 more tractors.

Exactly at the middle of the video, when the convoy goes up a flyover, hundreds of civilian vehicles and thousands of public are seen waiting for his entourage. After this, the animated version of PM gets out of the car, in what looks like an attempt to negotiate, but the crowd starts running towards the PM, leading to the security personnel fleeing. The PM’s animated figure tries to strangle, but the public besiege him as he is cornered. Some of the public are holding sticks, and the PM sits on the road, surrounded by them.

This video has been shared by BJP leader Kapil Mishra, who claimed that the same thing appearing in the video in 2020, has actually happened in 2022. A number of netizens have been shocked because of the resemblance that the video which was released a year ago shares with the incident that actually took place 2 days ago.

(With inputs from Opindia)

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Missing items and substandard products in DMK’s Pongal gift package; worms and insects found

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The Commune
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For Pongal this year, the DMK government in Tamil Nadu is providing all rice card holders and family card holders, a gift package which consists of a total of 2o food items. According to the Government Order (GO) released on December 20, the 20 items on the list are rice, jaggery, cashew, alfalfa, grapes, cardamom, yellow dal, ghee, turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, mustard, cumin, salt, pepper, tamarind, lentils, semolina, wheat, along with a yellow cloth bag or ‘Manja Pai’.

Ration shops have started distributing these gift packets and there are a lot of criticisms about the quality of the products provided by the government. For example, locals and residents from Kannirajapuram Fair Price Shops in Ramanathapuram have complained that they have received only 18 items in their package and that some of them have worms and other insects in them.

There have also been complaints that the quality of the food products given are very very low. An older lady from Ramanathapuram has said that the quality of the jaggery is very poor and that the wheat packets had worms in them. The public who are supposed to benefitting from this scheme from other areas have also complained about the quality of these products, and these videos are being shared across social media.

In another case, a dead lizard was found in the tamarind packet given as part of the gift.

Today, opposition leader Edappadi K Palanisamy, showed a few of these videos during a press meet that happened outside the assembly. “This is how the DMK is giving pongal packages,” he said referring to complaints shared by local who have received poor quality products. “The DMK also promised to purchase sugarcane from the farmers directly for ₹33. But the Sugarcanes were procured at the rate of ₹14-20, per sugarcane. The rest of the money has been siphoned off by the party cadres. They have procured it from Tamil Nadu for, Collection, Commission, Corruption,” the Ex-Chief Minister added.

Puthiya Tamilagam leader, Dr. Krishnaswamy said, “There have been allegations that the Pongal items provided by the Tamil Nadu government are substandard. A White Paper has to be released on details regarding where these products were purchased and at what market price.”

It is to be noted that, during the previous AIADMK regime, ₹2500, a Pongal gift package along with Dhotis and Sarees were given. However, this government is only providing a ‘Manja Pai’ and 20 other  food items.

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Security forces eliminate 3 JeM jihadi terrorists, 12 taken down in 1st week of 2022

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The Commune
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Infiltration Bid Foiled In J&K's Nowshera Sector, Two Terrorists Killed Two Soldiers Martyred, Two Injured as J&K’s Longest Anti-Terror Operation Enters Ninth Day

With the elimination of three Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) jihadi terrorists who were killed in an overnight encounter with security forces in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, the number of dead Jihadi in the first week of 2022, now stands at 12 killed.

The three JeM terrorists were exterminated in an encounter that broke out in Budgam’s Zolwa village late on Thursday, a police official said.

‘All three slain terrorists were affiliated with JeM terror outfit based out of Pakistan and the security forces recovered three AK 56 rifles and other incriminating materials from the site of the encounter,’ said Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar.

One of the terrorists has been identified as Waseem from Srinagar, while the identities of the other two are being ascertained

Earlier on Wednesday (5 January), three Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists, including a Pakistani national, were killed in an encounter with security forces in the Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir, and on 4 January, two terrorists were eliminated by the security forces in an encounter in the Okay area of Kulgam district.

On Monday (3 January), wanted Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Salem Parray was killed in an encounter with security forces in Harwan area on the outskirts of Srinagar.

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Indira Gandhi’s assassins honored by SGPC inside Sri Darbar Sahib complex 2 days after PM Modi’s security breach

By
The Commune
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The Congress party which is in power in the Indian state of Punjab has suffered embarrassment after the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) in Amritsar celebrated and commemorated Indira Gandhi’s assassins on January 6, 2021.

Former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassins Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh were hanged on 6th January in 1989 and the SGPC commemorated this for their role in the brutal killing of India’s first and only female PM.

The top Sikh body that controls all the Gurudwara paid homage to them in Amritsar Gurdwara Jhanda Bunga inside the Sri Darbar Sahib complex and offered ardas i.e. prayers while remembering the killers as ‘martyrs’ and they also honored their family members.

SGPC members honored Waryam Singh, who is the brother of Satwant Singh along with others. They were given the robe of honor by Gyani Gurminder Singh and SGPC members Manjit Singh Bhurakohna and Advocate Bhagwant Singh Sialka as Gyani Gurminder Singh recited the holy Hukumnama.

The SGPC Amritsar also sent out a tweet in which it said, “Historical Event. Martyrs Bhai Satwant Singh and Bhai Kehar Singh were hanged till death in Delhi Jail. The bodies of these two martyrs were cremated inside the Jail and meanwhile, the Curfew was imposed in Punjab. (6-1-1989)”

This celebration of the assassins of Indira Gandhi came just two days after the security breach of Prime Minister Narendra Modi cavalcade.  

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Former IPS officers write to President of India to take immediate action PM Modi’s security lapse

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The Commune
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modi omicron india vaccines boosters

After the security breach incident that endangered the life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Punjab, a group of former IPS officers urged President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday (January 6) to take immediate action as they alleged ‘intentional and planned security lapse’ by the state government in collusion with protesters.

In a letter to Kovind, 27 former Indian Police Service (IPS) officers said it was ‘one of the gravest security lapses in the history of this country committed through conspiracy and collusion.

Protesters blocking the prime minister’s route “was not only a sheer lapse of security but a shameful open display of collusion of the state machinery with the so-called protestors to embarrass and harm” him, they added.

Former Punjab director general of police (DGP) P C Dogra and former Maharashtra DGP Praveen Dixit are among the 27 signatories to the letter.

“The stoppage of the carcade of the prime minister for 15 to 20 minutes in a planned manner on a flyover demonstrates poor law and order in Punjab and threatens the democracy in our country,’ they said, noting that the Punjab police was primarily responsible for Modi’s travel and security within the state and had to provide a secure passage on all the routes, in accordance with the established protocol.

‘We are approaching yourself for the reason that it has never happened that the state agencies are making one or the other excuse and there are contradictory statements even at the level of chief minister regarding the prime minister’s route,” they said.

“We, the former police officers, request your honour to take immediate action on this matter having serious bearing on national security and state responsibility to maintain law and order in a border state going for election in a few months,” they wrote in the letter to the president.

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Captain Amarinder Singh calls for President’s rule in Punjab

By
The Commune
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Former Punjab Chief Minister and retired army Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday called for President’s rule in the state. He called for the imposition of the President’s rule after a serious breach was reported in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s security when he had gone to an area in Punjab which is very close to the international border with Pakistan.

Amarinder said the Channi government had utterly failed in ensuring law and order in the state. In a tweet the former CM of Punjab who had called Navjot Singh Sidhu unstable and close friend of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan Niazi, “Complete failure of law and order in Punjab, CM and HM Punjab, in particular. When you cannot provide smooth passage to the Prime Minister of the country and that too just 10km from the Pakistan border, you have no right to stay in office and should quit!,”

https://mobile.twitter.com/capt_amarinder/status/1478687537560358913

PM Modi on Wednesday (January 5) had to return without addressing a rally in the poll-bound state after his convoy got stuck in a road blockade near Hussainiwala.

Amrinder Singh who after leaving the Congress party and forming the Punjab Lok Congress said, “If we have to keep our state safe and keep law and order system here, then I think President’s rule should be imposed,”.

Meanwhile the Union Home Ministry, in a statement, has described this incident as a “major lapse” in the Prime Minister’s travel in Punjab.

The MHA statement read, “The Prime Minister’s schedule and travel plan was communicated well in advance to the Punjab Government. As per procedure, they have to make necessary arrangements for logistics, security as well as keep a contingency plan ready. Also in view of the contingency plan the Punjab Government has to deploy additional security to secure any movement by road, which were clearly not deployed,”.

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DMK functionaries interfere in sugarcane procurement for Pongal, farmers unhappy

By
The Commune
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A report by India Ahead News Tamil has revealed that DMK office bearers at the district level are interfering in the sugarcane procurement from farmers and siphoning off the profit from them leaving the farmers disgruntled.

The DMK government began the distribution of Pongal gift to 2.15 crore ration card holders, which includes 21 grocery items along with a full sugarcane. For this, the MK Stalin-led DMK government had said that it would procure sugarcane from the farmers at a price of ₹33 per cane with the cane not being shorter than six feet. This procurement rate is 10% more than last year’s rate. Approximately ₹88 crore has been set aside by the government just for this sugarcane purchase.

However, instead of the regular intermediaries, DMK office bearers at the district level are procuring the canes from the farmers at a rate of ₹14-15. The farmers instead of getting the promised ₹33 per cane are left with a meagre amount while the remaining ₹18-19 is siphoned off by the DMK men. This, the farmers say leave them with money that not even compensates the input cost of growing sugarcane.

This problem has risen this year because, instead of the cooperative societies themselves, the sugarcanes are being procured by cooperative society unions. A sugarcane farmer, Muthuvel, from Vanathirajapuram said in a video, “Yesterday the government purchased sugarcane from us at ₹14-15 through intermediaries. When this news came out, Minister or Food and Civil Supplies Sakkarapani said that an order has been passed that only the Associate Registrar of the Cooperative societies can procure sugarcane from the farmers, and intermediaries cannot interfere. However, we have sold all our sugarcanes, not to intermediaries, but to those the respective authorities and representatives from DMK.”

Another farmer from Mayiladuthurai, Ramalingam said, “No representatives from Cooperative societies or cooperative society unions came to procure sugarcane. At least not in Mayiladuthurai. Here, only DMK cadres come for procurement and the rates are very low. The maximum they procure sugarcane for is ₹17. Almost ₹13-14 is pocketed by these functionaries, as it will not cost much to transport the products. We never had direct purchase from Cooperative society representatives.”

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DMK Fin Min PTR resigned from party posting?

By
The Commune
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Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, who was appointed as the secretary of the DMK’s IT wing is said to have resigned from the post, Junior Vikatan has reported.

PTR (as he is popularly called) who indulges in cyber-bullying and slandering people with whom he doesn’t agree with, was instrumental in setting up the troll army of the party to unleash propaganda.

However, post becoming the Finance Minister of the state, there is dissatisfaction within the party leadership as PTR is not able to focus on the IT wing. In this context, PTR is reported to have resigned from his party post.

Some of the second tier leaders of the DMK were quoted saying in the report, “The party leadership is unhappy as DMK’s performance on social  media has reduced. The IT team does not give appropriate answers to the allegations and charges places by the Opposition parties on social media. For example, the AIADMK has been saying for 6 months now that DMK has not given the Pongal gift and ₹1000 aid to families, as promised in our manifesto. The DMK IT wing should have appropriately retaliated for this. But, no response was given with such vigour. The speed and energy that was there last year is missing now. Officials have been appointed in every government department to investigate and report to the government on the allegations coming up on social media. They have to send their report to the Chief Minister’s office every week. The Chief Minister’s office is monitoring social media meticulously. In such a situation, the party leaders are not happy that the IT wing has not acted diligently in responding to the opposition’s campaign and allegations.”

A few days ago, the party leadership has spoken to IT wing Secretary PTR about this issue. “The workload as a Finance Minister is ample. The AIADMK has ruined the financial positions of Tamil Nadu. That needs to fixed. Two months ago itself I have informed that I am not able to focus party work. If there is a qualified person, please hire him to work in my place,” PTR reportedly said. He has also reportedly written a letter of resignation to his party leadership and left. No decision has been taken upon that letter till date.

Although PTR has said that his reason for resignation is inability to focus party work, people close to him say that he also had some personal reasons. Junior Vikatan, quoting executives from the DMK IT wing said that PTR has been saddened by the appointment of writer Manushyaputhiran as an advisor to the IT wing. PTR apparently felt it as an insult as no other team other than the IT wing had an advisor appointed to it. He had collected all the statistics required for the 2021 Assembly elections. However, the DMK brought in Prashant Kishore as an advisor. PTR is said to be upset about that too.

Around the time PTR took over as Finance Minister, Mahendran left Makkal Needhi Maiam and joined DMK.  He was appointed as the Joint Secretary of the Information Technology team. The party leadership gave Mahendran the responsibility of social media and PTR the responsibility of statistics. PTR couldn’t digest being relegated to such a position in the party. That is when he decided to resign from the party posting. It is in this context that the party that called him in the first week of January and complained that the DMK’s activity has reduced on social media. PTR, who decided that it was not good for him to continue with the party posting even after that, resigned from his post.

“If social media was not functioning properly, then the leadership should have questioned Mahendran who was made responsible. There is still no clarity on why PTR was questioned. A faction within the party is making it difficult for PTR, in order to make Mahendran the head of the IT wing.”, sources were quoted saying.

Apparently, there is already a tiff in relationships between PTR and someone from the Chief Minister’s family. It is because of that individual’s pressure that PTR is facing heat. According to sources, DMK leader and CM Stalin has still not come to a decision with regard to the resignation letter.

“The legislature will meet until next Friday, after which a decision will be made on the letter which will likely be followed by an announcement. Perhaps, if the CM calls PTR and makes peace, the resignation issue is likely to come to an end as well,” sources from Arivalayam were quoted saying.

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