March 2023 - Page 51 of 63 - Lokmarg

BBC Ignored Humiliation Charges By Dalit Journo: NYT Report

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Leading American daily, The New York Times, published an article today that highlighted the rise of journalist Meena Kotwal belonging to the Dalit community who started a news outlet in India that told stories of marginalised groups in the country. In the article, Kotwal gave details of what it was like to work briefly at the BBC in India where she allegedly had to face “public humiliation and discrimination at work.”

According to the New York Times report, Meena Kotwal, the founder of news portal ‘The Mooknayak’, wanted to start a news outlet that focussed on marginalised communities as “she knew there were millions who desperately needed their stories told”.

Kotwal narrated her experience of working at the BBC in New Delhi in its Hindi-language service in 2017, which she described as the beginning of “public humiliation and discrimination at work.”

“The honeymoon did not last long. A dominant-caste colleague (at the BBC) nudged Ms. Kotwal to reveal her own caste, she said, and then outed her to colleagues. It was the beginning of what she described as public humiliation and discrimination at work,” according to the New York Times.

Kotwal went on to reveal that her complaints to her bosses at the BBC were “brushed off”. After two years at the BBC, when she eventually filed an official complaint with BBC officials in London, her contract was not renewed and her complaint was dismissed.

“Her (Kotwal) bosses brushed off her concerns. One used a refrain often heard from people of dominant castes, telling her that Dalits no longer existed in modern India, according to messages viewed by The Times — denying not just her complaint, but her community’s very existence,” according to the New York Times report titled, ‘With Stories of her Oppressed community, a Journalist Takes Aim at the Walls of Caste.’

“After two years on the job, she filed an official complaint with BBC officials in London. The company reviewed her claims of discrimination, according to an internal document, but ruled that her grievances were without “merit or substance.” Her contract, due to end soon, was not renewed,” added the New York Times in its report.

When NYT contacted the BBC for further clarification on this incident, the BBC refused to get into the details of the case and said that it “does not discuss individual personnel matters and fully complies with Indian law.”

A London-based spokesman for the BBC gave a statement to the New York Times, saying, “We know there is always more to do in a global organization, but we are making significant progress in terms of the diversity of the people who work with us.”

The BBC is currently under investigation in India by the Income Tax department for alleged violations of transfer pricing rules that resulted in “vast diversion of profits” according to government sources in the know.

The New York Times interviewed other journalists from marginalised communities for this report, who also claimed to have undergone similar negative experiences in newsrooms. (ANI)

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Manik Saha Set To Repeat Term As Tripura Chief Minister

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

After Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) victory in the recently concluded Tripura Assembly polls, the caretaker Chief Minister Manik Saha was elected as the leader of BJP legislative party on Monday.

Earlier on Monday, there was a general meeting of all the newly elected BJP MLAs who unanimously proposed the name of Manik Saha for the leader of the legislature party.

“My sincere gratitude to all for electing me as the leader of the legislature party. Under the guidance of PM Narendra Modi ji, we shall work together to build ‘Unnata Tripura, Shrestha Tripura’ and ensure the welfare of all sections of people,” tweeted Saha after the meeting.

Manik Saha on Friday submitted his resignation to Governor Satyadev Narayan Arya at Raj Bhavan in Agartala and the Governor asked him to continue till the new government is sworn in.

BJP returned to power in the state by winning an absolute majority.

According to the Election Commission of India, BJP won 32 seats with a vote share of around 39 per cent. Tipra Motha Party came second by winning 13 seats. Communist Party of India (Marxist) got 11 seats while Congress bagged three seats. The Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT) managed to open its account by winning one seat.

The CPI(M) and the Congress, arch rivals in Kerala, came together in the Northeast this time in a bid to oust the BJP from power. The combined vote share of CPI(M) and Congress remained around 33 per cent.

Chief Minister Saha defeated Congress’ Asish Kumar Saha from the Town Bordowali seat by a margin of 1,257 votes. In the 60-member Tripura assembly, the majority mark is 31.

The BJP, which had never won a single seat in Tripura before 2018, stormed to power in the last election in alliance with IPFT and had ousted the Left Front which had been in power in the border state for 35 years since 1978.

The BJP contested on 55 seats and its ally, IPFT, on six seats. But both allies had fielded candidates in the Ampinagar constituency in the Gomati district.

The Left contested on 47 and Congress on 13 seats, respectively. Of the total 47 seats, the CPM contested 43 seats while the Forward Bloc, Communist Party of India (CPI) and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) contested one seat each.

The CPI(M)-led Left Front ruled the state for nearly four decades, with a gap between 1988 and 1993, when the Congress was in power but now both parties joined hands with the intention to oust BJP from power. (ANI)

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Delhi Police Gears Up To Curb Hooliganism On Holi Festival

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

During the Holi season, the police will set up pickets to check the use of black films, triple riding, underage driving and driving without a helmet, said Delhi police on Monday.

“Mobile pickets will also do random checking for liquor and police will take strict action against drunken driving. To check the use of black films, triple riding, underage driving, and driving without a helmet pickets will be there,” said SS Yadav, Special Commissioner of Police, Traffic.

Yadav added, “On the day of the Holi festival, adequate deployment of the police force will be done as per requirements. As Holi gives a message of the triumph of good over evil we want all Delhi residents to be safe, and clean during Holi.”

The PCR and traffic police will conduct an integrated check, besides running a campaign against drunken driving.

“To check on black films, triple riding, underage driving, and without a helmet driving pickets will be there. Mobile pickets will also do random checking for liquors and police will take strict action against drunken driving,” SS Yadav further noted. (ANI)

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‘They’ll Trouble Us A Thousand Times But…’: Rabri On CBI Raid

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Former Chief Minister of Bihar Rabri Devi on Monday took a jibe at the Central government after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) reached her residence in connection with the land-for-job case, saying that it would continue bothering her family, but they won’t cow down.

“They (the central government) will bother us a thousand times but we won’t bow down,” Rabri said as she reacted to CBI’s visit to her residence in Patna on Monday.
The CBI in a statement said that Rabri Devi had herself decided March 6 (today) as the date of the hearing.

“A few days ago CBI summoned former Bihar CM Rabri Devi and she herself decided Monday, March 6 as the date of questioning at her residence. It’s not that CBI barged in,” a CBI official told ANI.

Earlier in the day, former Bihar CM while commenting on the central agency visit to her residence, said, “This is nothing. This has been the case since the beginning.”

However, condemning the visit of the CBI team to Rabri Devi’s residence, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said, “This is wrong, raids like these are humiliating.”

Earlier on October 7 last year, the CBI filed a chargesheet against former Bihar chief ministers Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, their daughter Misa Bharti and 13 others in the alleged land-for-job scam.

CBI on Monday told ANI that it is likely to question former Lalu Prasad Yadav in connection with the alleged scam.

CBI has also said that it had also served notice to Yadav a few days ago.

“A few days ago CBI had served notice to former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Yadav in connection with the land-for-job case. CBI is likely to question Lalu Yadav soon,” a CBI official told ANI on Monday.

A chargesheet filed by the CBI last year stated that during the investigation, it was found that the accused in conspiracy with the then GM Central Railways and CPO, Central Railways engaged persons as substitutes in lieu of land either in their name or in the name of their close relatives.

This land was acquired at prices lower than the prevailing circle rate and much lower than the market rate. It was also alleged that the candidates have used false TC and submitted false attested documents to the Ministry of Railways, said the CBI statement.

The alleged scam occurred between 2004 and 2009 when Lalu Yadav was the Railway Minister. Apart from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief, the chargesheet also includes the name of the then Railway General Manager.

CBI stated that the investigation had revealed that the candidates were considered for their engagement without any need for substitutes and there was no urgency for their appointment which was one of the main criteria behind the engagement of substitutes and they joined their duties much later from the approval of their appointment and they were subsequently regularised.

There were several anomalies found in the applications of the candidates and the documents that were enclosed due to which the applications should not have been processed and their engagement should not have been approved but it was done.

Recently on February 27, while taking cognizance of CBI chargesheet, Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court issued summons against Lalu, his wife

Rabri Devi and 14 others in connection with alleged land-for-job scam.(ANI)

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Delhi Excise Case: Sisodia Sent To Tihar Jail Till March 20

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia was taken to Tihar jail on Monday after the Rouse Avenue Court sent him to Judicial Custody till March 20 in a case pertaining to alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the excise policy in the national capital.

Tihar Prison officials told ANI that the Aam Admi Party (AAP) party leader has been kept in jail No 1.
“Former Deputy CM and AAP leader Manish Sisodia has been kept in Jail No 1 of Tihar jail,” prison officials told ANI.

Sisodia was arrested last Sunday in an ongoing investigation of a case related to alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the excise policy of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD).

The Special Judge MK Nagpal on Monday sent Sisodia to Judicial Custody for 14 days after noting that CBI didn’t demand further Custody of him at this time, but it may be sought later if required.

Sisodia has been allowed to have medicines prescribed in his MLC conducted by the CBI officials.

He has also been permitted to carry a pair of spectacles, a diary, a pen, and a copy of The Gita during the judicial custody period.

As requested by Sisodia’s side, the court also directed the Jail superintendent to consider the request of keeping the accused in the vipassana cell/ Meditation cell.

The CBI during the hearing submitted that he has not supported the investigation, and the witnesses were terrified.

“His party and leaders are politicizing the matter and that various important witnesses are to be examined,” CBI added.

On the last date, the Court issued notice to CBI on bail moved by Sisodia and listed the matter for March 10, 2023.

Earlier, Sisodia himself submitted in the court that CBI officials are “taking care of me, treating me respectfully and giving all things and not using any third degree. But they are making me to sit so long 9-10 hours daily and asking the same questions again and again… it not less not mental harassment.” On this the Court directed CBI not to ask repetitive questions.

The former Delhi Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sisodia in his bail petition in a trial court stated that no fruitful purpose would be served to keep him in custody as all the recoveries have already been made.

After the court’s order, party MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj said, “Unless bail is decided, Court has no option but to extend judicial custody. Today CBI had no questions for which they would’ve sought Manish Sisodia’s interrogation. The bail hearing is on March 10 when it’ll be decided if he gets bail or his custody is extended.” (ANI)

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TN Govt Conducting Census Of Migrant Workers In State

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Amid the row over alleged attacks on the state’s migrant workers from Bihar, Tamil Nadu’s minister for Labour Welfare and Skill Development, CV Ganesan, on Monday said the DMK government was in the process of conducting a census of its migrant workforce.

The minister said migrant labourers were safe in the state and the same was conveyed to a four-member team from Bihar, which visited the state recently to gather information the alleged attacks on migrant labourers.

“Our government is in the process of conducting a census of migrant labourers. Migrant workers in Tamil Nadu are safe. They said as much to the fact-finding team from the Bihar government that visited the state recently,” Ganesan said at a press conference on Monday.

He added that the government, led by Chief Minister MK Stalin, has taken steps to make sure that the migrant labourers from across the country are safe.

“Our government has been proactively taking steps to ensure the safety of migrant labourers. A census of migrant workers is ongoing in every district. There are an estimated 6 lakh migrant workers in Tamil Nadu,” the minister said.

Earlier, on Saturday, a 4-member team from Bihar reached Chennai and went into a huddle with Chenna’s district collector, commissioner of the state Labour department and other government officials in connection with the matter.

The fact-finding team was sent after videos of alleged attacks led to panic among the state’s migrant workers.

“We met senior officials of the Tamil Nadu government, assuring them that the Bihar government is focussed on ensuring the welfare and well-being of our migrant labourers. We are getting all the support and cooperation from the Tamil Nadu government,” Balamurugan, IAS, secretary of Bihar’s Rural Development department said earlier.

Speaking to ANI, Mukesh, secretary of Bihar Association in Tamil Nadu said there is no truth to calls that they received of attacks (on migrant labourers) in Tamil Nadu.

“A 4-member team had come from Bihar to gather information on rumours of attacks on Bihar migrants that are doing the rounds. Some videos (of purported attacks on Hindi-speaking migrant labourers) have gone viral. Their families back home were concerned and scared as these rumours gained ground. We allayed their fears and assured the team that the migrannt labourers are safe. I get 150-200 calls per day. We visit the spot after getting a call and try to ascertain facts. We do not inform the police till we have checked facts. We have visited around 10 to 15 places so far. There was no truth to such claims. It was fake news,” he said.

Stating that no such attack took place in the state, the official said Tamil Nadu was the “safest place” for migrant workers.

He said that they have urged the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar not to allow broadcast of any such news report unless its authenticity has been ascertained.

The four-member team, comprising D Balamurugan, secretary, Rural Development, P Kanan, IPS (IG CID), Shree Alok, special secretary, Labour Department and an IPS officer, are to submit a report to the Bihar chief minister after their visit.

Amid pressure from the Opposition over alleged attacks on migrant workers from Bihar in Tamil Nadu, Kumar on Saturday said a four-member team will visit the southern state to take stock of the situation.

“As soon as I got to know through newspapers, I directed officials to look into the matter. They talked to their counterparts in the Tamil Nadu government and reported that a team should be sent there to ascertain facts,” Nitish Kumar said, adding that the four-member team will look into the matter in detail. (ANI)

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Intel Warning Against Use Of Chinese Phones By Army Families

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Amid the ongoing military standoff with China on the Line of Actual Control, defence intelligence agencies have issued a strong advisory to formations to ensure that the troops are not using Chinese mobile phones.

“Formations and units are to sensitise their personnel through various forms and channels to exercise caution with such (Chinese) mobile phone devices,” the advisory issued by the defence intelligence agencies said.

In the advisory accessed by ANI, the military spy agencies asked the formations to “discourage troops and their families from purchasing or using phones from countries hostile to India.”

The forces issued the advisory as there have been cases where malware and spyware have allegedly been found in Chinese-origin mobile phones by agencies, the sources said.

The spy agencies have asked the units and formations to “carry out the transition to other phones against the phones” mentioned in the list attached with the advisory.

The Chinese mobile phones available in the commercial market in the country include Vivo, Oppo, Xiaomi, One Plus, Honor, Real Me, ZTE, Gionee, ASUS and Infinix.

The spy agencies have been very active against Chinese mobile phone applications also in the past as multiple such applications were deleted from military personnel’s phones.

The defence forces have also stopped using Chinese mobile phones and applications on their devices.

India and China have been engaged in a military standoff since March April 2020 and have deployed heavily against each other on the LAC in Eastern Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh. (ANI)

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Khalistan Referendum Has No Legal Sanctity In Australia: Envoy

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Australian High Commissioner Barry O’Farrell on Monday said Australia’s respect for Indian sovereignty is unwavering, adding that the “so-called” Khalistan referendum call has no legal standing in Australia.

The Australian High Commissioner added that the Khalistan Referendum stands on no legal grounds in Australia as his country has an “unwavering respect” for India’s sovereignty.

The hardening of stance against suspected Khalistani elements in the country comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit Down Under this week.

Barry O’Farrell said, “Respect for Indian sovereignty is unwavering. The so-called Khalistan referendum call has no legal standing in Australia.”

“Most appalled to see temples being targeted, police are active and continue to be active to deal with those responsible,” the Australian High Commissioner to India said further.

There have been fears of an upturn on activities by the separatist outfit after suspected Khalistan supporters vandalised temples in Australia.

Concerns grew further after suspected Khalistan supporters allegedly vandalised the Indian Consulate in Brisbane on the night of February 21.

While there have been multiple attacks on Indians settled in Australia, this marked the first time an institution belonging to the Indian government came under attack.

“The attack the Indian Consulate in Brisbane (by suspected Khalistan supporters) is a direct attack on the Government of India,” J Bhardwaj, editor, The Australia Today, told ANI earlier.

Honorary Consul of India in Brisbane, Archana Singh, said she found a Khalistan flag attached to the office when she arrived for work on February 22. She added that she immediately notified the Queensland Police, which confiscated the flag and ensured that the Indian Consul was not under any immediate threat.

Australia Today had reported earlier that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his deputy Minister V Muraleedharan’s visit to Sydney and Melbourne in February had rattled the Khalistanis based in the US and Canada.

However, on the same day, suspected Khalistan supporters allegedly vandalised two Hindu Temples during celebration of Mahashivratri.

Emboldened by the alleged inaction of Australian security agencies and respective state police authorities, Khalistan supporters called Sydney Murugan Temple’s director, A. Poopalasingam and the director of Educational Activities, T. Sinnarajah, threatening them with dire consequences if they did not raise pro-Khalistan slogans, Australia Today reported earlier.

In January, Australia Today reported the vandalism of the historic Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple in the Carrum Downs suburb of Melbourne by Khalistan supporters on the occasion of the three-day-long “Thai Pongal” festival.

A video was circulated by suspected Khalistan supporters in which they were heard threatening volunteers of Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple on the morning of February 18.

The temple was threatened with dire consequences before starting the ‘havan’ if pro-Khalistan slogans were not raised. “If not, we will raise the Khalistan flag in your temple,” the threat call, as reported by The Australia Today, went.

President of the Victoria chapter of the Hindu Council of Australia, Makrand Bhagwat, was quoted as saying by The Australia Today, “I can’t tell you how upset I am seeing Hindu temples being threatened with Khalistan propaganda.”

In a statement to The Australia Today, the Indian High Commission in Canberra said, “(The) High Commission of India has taken up the issue with relevant Australian authorities for necessary action.”

Meanwhile, the Australian High Commissioner to India informed further that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will arrive in Ahmedabad on Wednesday evening to take part in Holi celebrations.

PM Modi and his Australian counterpart will also watch day 1 of the final test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Ahmedabad, the envoy informed. (ANI)

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No Farmer Became Helpless, Died By Suicide In Last 6 Years: Yogi

By LokMarg 6th March 2023

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday flagged off 77 tractors for farm machinery banks set up in cooperative sugarcane and sugar mill societies.

“Today is going to be a historic day for the sugarcane farmers when on the eve of Holi, Rs 2 lakh crores will be sent directly to the farmers’ bank accounts through DBT,” CM Yogi said.

Prior to 2017, the state’s sugarcane farmers were compelled to burn their crops because of a lack of water for irrigation, electricity, and timely payment of their dues.

In the previous six years, no farmer in Uttar Pradesh became helpless and attempted suicide, said CM Yogi.

The Chief Minister added, “We have freed the sugarcane farmers from the brokers’ clutches, and today the farmers do not have to wander around in search of the slip because their slip arrives on their smartphone.”

He said that the state’s 77 sugarcane committees are receiving tractors and other equipment today. The happiness of sugarcane farmers will be doubled by receiving such a gift on the eve of Holi.

“We all know what the condition of sugarcane farmers was earlier. Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office, the farmer has for the first time been included in any government’s agenda and has begun to benefit from the government’s programs. Every farmer who was previously dependent on moneylenders is now able to benefit from the Soil Health Card, Kisan Bima Yojana, Agricultural Irrigation Scheme, and Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi”, CM Yogi said

Mentioning that now 2.60 crore farmers in the state are taking advantage of the facility of the Prime Minister’s Kisan Samman Nidhi, he said, “Within the last three and a half years, we have done the work of transferring an amount of Rs 51,000 crores to their accounts.”

Asserting that a farmer is just a farmer and has no caste, creed, or religion, Yogi said, “We all know what was the situation in the state before 2017. There was no electricity and no water for irrigation. We have now provided irrigation facilities to 22 lakh hectares of land. Previously, farming was considered a loss-making venture due to a lack of water, fertilizers, and a fair market price for the product.”

“Today, UP was going to create a new record in the country, adding that sugarcane payments totalling more than Rs 2 lakh crores are now reaching farmers’ bank accounts for the first time. Many states in the country do not even have an annual budget of two lakh crores, he pointed out,” he added.

The CM went on to say that it is due to the efforts of sugarcane farmers that they are producing additional 10 tonnes of sugarcane per hectare. Apart from this, the area of sugarcane production has increased to 8 lakh hectares of additional land in the state today.

“In contrast to the previous governments, where sugar mills were closed or sold at throwaway prices, we did not shut down any sugar mill, and instead re-started the closed sugar mills. Munderwa and Pipraich sugar mills were made functional again. When the world’s sugar mills were shut down, Uttar Pradesh still had 119 sugar mills operating,” said Yogi.

He emphasized that during the Covid-19 period, when sanitisers were in short supply across the country, the government made sanitisers available at no cost to all municipal corporations in Uttar Pradesh via these sugar mills. Along with this, sanitisers were made available in 27 states across the country.

The Chief Minister stated that his government paid the sugarcane price on time and procured wheat and paddy at the higher minimum support price. “For this more and more purchase centres were established. The instructions were clear: as long as the farmers had crops, the government would purchase them. No farmer will have to wander around. We have issued 284 licenses for the Khadsari units, which has resulted in job creation.”

The Chief Minister said that maximum green ethanol is being produced in the country through sugarcane farmers.

“Previously, our own money was spent in the form of terrorism against us under the name of the Petro Dollar. But now ethanol is being produced in farmers’ fields in the form of sugarcane and soon it will be seen being used in the form of diesel and petrol”, he remarked.

The CM stated that Uttar Pradesh currently is the largest producer of ethanol in the country.

“Today, our farmers are progressing by using mechanized farming. Apart from this, co-farming is being practised through FPO, enhancing the fertility of the land as well as profits of farmers,” CM Yogi remarked.

The Chief Minister cited the example of a progressive Bijnor farmer who, instead of selling his sugarcane to sugar mills, makes vinegar and markets it abroad.

He said that due to mechanized farming, today the stubble is mixed with the soil instead of being set on fire, contributing significantly to the farm’s fertility. Farming is being advanced through mechanization.

CM Yogi stated that 105 of the state’s 119 mills pay the sugarcane price within 10 days.

“We’ve also put pressure on the remaining 14-15. Where previously brokers were involved, the slip now arrives on the farmer’s smartphone. Those who used to exploit farmers have had their businesses shut down,” he added.

Sugar Industry and Sugarcane Development Minister Chaudhary Laxmi Narayan, Minister of State Sanjay Singh Gangwar, Chief Secretary Durgashankar Mishra, Agricultural Production Commissioner Manoj Singh, Additional Chief Secretary Devesh Chaturvedi, Principal Secretary Home Sanjay Prasad were present on the occasion. (ANI)

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