India News
Conversion racket: 48 hours after Maulana Kalimuddin Siddiqui’s arrest, no outrage on social media. Baffling!
Preaching is not a crime and the voluntary conversion so too. The hounding of Maulana Kalim Siddiqui is nothing but an attempt to criminalise Muslims. However, such arrests of Muslims likely to continue till end Uttar Pradesh polls and the BJP has no other option to polarise Hindu voters.
The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad on Wednesday arrested renowned Islamic scholar Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui from Meerut for allegedly running a conversion syndicate. A local court has remanded Siddiqui in judicial custody till October 5.
Apart from Ohkla MLA Amanatullah Khan, Shafiqurrrahman Burq, Professor Apoorvanand and some others, there were no popular outrage on social media and anywhere else on the midnight arresting of an Islamic scholar.
Despite trending hastag #ReleaseKalimuddinSiddiqui, neither any political party nor leaders who claimed to be secular had said anything about the incident.
Even after 48 hours of Siddiqui’s arresting, the AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi have not tweeted anything about arresting but there are reports that he want impartial judicial probe into the case.
The UP ATS had arrested Siddiqui from Meerut and made accused in propagation of religion which is the right given to him by the Constitution under article 25. Article 25 guarantees the freedom to profess, practice and propagate religion to all citizens.
All of a sudden arresting Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui by UP ATS is an unconstitutional and aggressive act.
Preaching is not a crime and the voluntary conversion so too. The hounding of Maulana Kalim Siddiqui is nothing but an attempt to criminalise Muslims. However, such arrests of Muslims likely to continue till end of next year’s assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and the BJP has no other option to polarise Hindu voters.
Media has already started pushing the propaganda with news pieces claiming that the Maulana has been rounded up for suspicious activities.
Islamic scholar Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui had come into the limelight at the time of Bollywood actor Sana Khan’s marriage with Gujarat’s mufti Anas. After this, Sana Khan left her film industry and decided to lead a life of Islamic tradition. In November 2020, Sana Khan was married to Mufti Anas Saeed and Siddiqui were present during wedding ceremony.
Including Malana Siddiqui, 11 people have been arrested in the conversion case so far.
What is UP anti-conversion law?
After the arrest of the two clerics Umar Gautam and Mufti Kazi Jahageer Alam, the UP Anti-Terrorist Squad had arrested eight more people and booked them under the anti-conversion law, the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2020.
With an aim to penalize love jihad, the Uttar Pradesh government had enacted anti-conversion law in February 2021.
Under the law, a person who wants to convert and the individual who is performing the conversion have to seek permission from a district magistrate. It also makes religious conversion punishable if it has been done by misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion or allurement.
However, the critics and legal experts have called the law a violation of fundamental rights.
In other India News, The roof of a school in Bai village of Gannaur tehsil of Sonepat collapsed. At least 25 students have suffered serious injuries in this accident.
India News
There is still a chance to send the Women’s Reservation Bill to the Select Committee for including caste quota: RJD MP Manoj Jha
Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Manoj Jha suggested sending the bill to the Select Committee for including the Schedule Caste, Schedules Tribes, Other Backward Castes in the Bill.
Speaking on the Women’s Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha, the Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Manoj Jha, said there is still a chance to send the bill to the Select Committee for including the Schedule Caste, Schedules Tribes, Other Backward Castes in the Bill as well.
The Rajya Sabha MP said it would have been a revolutionary step if the 33 percent reservation would not be from the existing quota but it should be a separate quota.
He said the government has created a provision to empower women who come from SC, ST, and OBC communities. There is not much for the welfare of women in the religious text, he added. RJD MP Jha suggested the Modi-led BJP government to take a stand and work for the welfare of the women without any hesitation, he further added.
Speaking on surname privilege, he said people often overlook their privilege. He said his surname is a privilege. He added our surname has afforded us privilege. Consider those surnames that lack such advantages. In this country, a name may hold little significance, but everything lies in the surname, the Rajya Sabha MP said.
Early in the day, he said the government doesn’t have a clear intention on this bill. There’s no road map and this bill is being passed in Lok Sabha. You have rejected and excluded a big population. PM Modi and his team need to understand that the discussion is not happening on the passing of the bill but on OBC. He further raised questions on OBC not being included in the bill. He said government should revise their position once again or else people have other options to change their position and their bill, Manoj Jha said.
Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav has also spoken on the Women’s Reservation Bill and said the reservation should be ensured for backward women and minority women. No one knows when it will be implemented because it will be implemented after the census and delimitation, he added.
India News
PM Modi to lay foundation stone of International Cricket Stadium in Varanasi on September 23: PMO
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi on September 23 to lay the foundation stone of an International Cricket Stadium.
The Prime Minister’s Office on Thursday announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi on September 23 to lay the foundation stone of an International Cricket Stadium around 1:30 pm.
The PMO also said that PM Modi will also reach Rudraksh International Cooperation and Convention Centre where he will participate in the closing ceremony of Kashi Sansad Sanskritik Mahotsav 2023 around 3:15 pm.
PM Modi will also inaugurate 16 Atal Awasiya Vidyalaya built across Uttar Pradesh, during the programme, the Prime Minister’s Office added.
The Varanasi International Cricket Stadium is a step towards realising PM Modi’s vision to develop a modern and world-class sports infrastructure. PM Modi is a Lok Sabha MP from Varanasi.
As per the PMO statement, the International Cricket Stadium will be built in Ganjari, Rajatalab. This will be developed at the cost of Rs 450 crore and will be in more than 30 acres of area.
It has been revealed that the world-class stadium will take inspiration from Lord Shiva for its thematic architecture. The designs will be developed for crescent-shaped roof covers, trident-shaped floodlights and ghat steps-based seating arrangements for the attendees.
According to the statement, the total capacity of the stadium to accommodate people will be 30,000 spectators.
To provide the best quality education, 16 Atal Awasiya Vidyalaya, which is basically built for the children of labourers, construction workers and those orphaned due to the Covid-19 pandemic, will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the same day. The project has been developed at the cost of Rs 1,115 crore with an aim to make quality education accessible for these children and support their holistic development.
Every school under this scheme has been constructed in an area of 10-15 acres with a classroom, recreational area, sports grounds, mess, a mini auditorium, hotel complex, and also residential flats for the staff members. Such facilities will help children get quality education.
India News
India suspends visa services in Canada as diplomatic crisis worsens
The incidents took place three days after the Canadian prime minister accused India of being involved in the assassination of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
In the midst of a diplomatic dispute between the two nations over allegations linking Indian government officials to the death of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in June, India has banned visa services for Canadian citizens until further notice.
The notice issued by centre reads, with effect from September 21, 2023, Indian visa services have been suspended until further notice, according to a notice posted on the website of BLS International, an online visa application centre in India that also offers visa consultancy services.
The incidents took place three days after the Canadian prime minister accused India of being involved in the assassination of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
In his Monday speech to Parliament, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed that Indian spies were responsible for Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s death by gunshot.
The Canadian citizen, who also served as the president of Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, was killed, according to Trudeau, and there are reasons for national security agencies in his country to suspect that agents of the Indian government were responsible.
According to Trudeau, Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential association between Government of India agents and the murder of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India responded to Canada’s charges by calling them absurd and motivated.
The two nations then each removed a senior official; India expelled a top Canadian diplomat on Tuesday for interference in internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities while Ottawa ordered a senior Research and Analysis Wing officer to leave the country.
To discuss relations between India and Canada, PM Modi and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met on Wednesday in the new Parliament building.
The Canadian Prime Minister’s and Foreign Minister’s statements in their Parliament were both rejected, according to a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
