INDIA

Several press organizations on Wednesday wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, seeking the Supreme Court's intervention in the alleged misuse of investigating agencies against journalists. The organization and associations include Digipub News India Foundation, Indian Women's Press Corps, Press Club of India, New Delhi, Foundation for Media Professionals Network of Women in Media, India, Chandigarh Press Club, National Alliance of Journalists, Delhi Union of Journalists, Kerala Union of Working Journalists, Brihanmumbai Union of Journalists, Free Speech Collective, Mumbai, Mumbai Press Club, Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Journalists, Press Association of India and Guwahati Press Club. In their letter to CJI, they wrote, “We write this letter as a volunt...

On the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Twitter experienced a contentious situation as the name of Gandhi's assassin, Nathuram Godse, began trending on the platform. Right-wing Twitter accounts posted slogans like 'Nathuram Godse Zindabad' and 'Nathuram Godse Amar Rahe,' expressing support for Godse. Twitter users from India even hailed him as a 'patriot' and 'hero.' A social media user named Proud Bharitya remarked, "This country gained independence due to the sacrifices of heroes, not through Gandhi's Ahimsa. Nathuram Godse Amar Rahe." Another user named Himanshu said, "Nathuram Godse, your sacrifice will always be remembered in our country. You are a true Sanatani." Nathuram Godse, who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi on January 30, 1948, in New Delhi, received the death pena...

Controversy erupted in the strife-torn state of Manipur over reported use of pellet guns on agitators during the recent students’ protests against the killing of two young students in Bishnupur district. In a massive protest in Imphal East and Imphal West districts, around 100 students were injured, and of them, at least 10 have suffered pellet injuries — much similar to what happened in Jammu Kashmir in 2016. Hospital sources said that several students, including minors, received multiple pellet wounds on the shoulders, heads, eyes and limbs. The injured students are now undergoing treatment at different hospitals in Imphal, drawing a grim reminder of the security forces using the same weapons to quell protests in Jammu Kashmir. Many organisations, including the Manipur Commis...

A young man was reportedly attacked by a group of individuals at a college campus in this location for wearing a skull cap while he was visiting to pay his sister's fees. A video capturing the incident has been widely shared on social media, IANS reported. The video depicts the man removing his cap after the aggressors attempted to physically confront him by grabbing his collar, with one of them even picking up a brick. According to the police, the incident occurred on Monday when Mohd Sahil, a resident of the Lisari Gate area, was waiting in line at the fee counter. Mohd Imran, Sahil's brother, who lodged a police complaint, stated, "Sahil was accompanied by our sister, who is a B.Sc. student at the college. Some young individuals started making communal remarks, objected to h...

A 40-year-old Muslim auto-rickshaw driver named Mahmud Alam fell victim to a violent attack and verbal abuse when a mob of approximately 20 individuals allegedly associated with Hindutva groups confronted him. This distressing incident unfolded in the capital city of Ranchi on Tuesday, reported Muslim Mirror. Alam recounted the harrowing ordeal in his formal complaint lodged at the Lalpur police station. He stated, "While I was ferrying passengers, a group of 15-20 people assaulted me, destroyed my mobile phone, and robbed Rs 1500 from me. I managed to escape to save my life, as they seemed intent on taking it." Alam explained that the attackers confronted him while he was transporting passengers. One of them forcibly seized control of his vehicle while the others demanded money. ...

Days after Lok Sabha MP Ramesh Bidhuri's abused and made derogatory remarks at Muslim MP Danish Ali during a Lok Sabha session, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made a significant move by promoting Bidhuri and assigning him a crucial electoral responsibility in Rajasthan's Tonk district. Tonk district, housing four assembly seats, including one currently held by senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot, is strategically vital for the BJP. Given the sizable presence of the Gurjar community in the area, the party sees Bidhuri, also from the Gurjar caste, as instrumental in securing votes. Sachin Pilot, a prominent Gurjar leader, currently represents Tonk. Sources within the BJP suggest that Bidhuri's new role is akin to becoming the party's chief campaigner for the district. In a distri...

Tensions flared when extremist Hindu right-wing men assaulted Muslim women for decorating a colony in Madhya Pradesh's Indore ahead of  Eid-e-Milad Un Nabi. Eyewitnesses on the scene recounted that the altercation ignited when members of the right-wing group voiced objections to the festive decorations that adorned Garib Nawaz Colony in honor of Eid-e-Milad Un Nabi. This disagreement escalated into a violent confrontation as the Muslim women responsible for the decorations tried to prevent their removal. Local authorities responded to the scene, deploying police officers to intervene in the escalating conflict. A police spokesperson confirmed, “We are actively investigating the matter.”

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) will now step up a campaign against ‘love jihad’ and illegal religious conversion through enticements. It will also get women, Dalits and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) to be the torchbearers of its “samajik sadbhav” (social harmony) agenda that also overlaps with the Sangh’s larger design of Hindu unity. This is the decision arrived by the RSS after multiple meetings that chief Mohan Bhagwat held as part of his ongoing Awadh Prant visit in Lucknow. For organisational purposes, the RSS has divided Uttar Pradesh into six parts — Braj, Meerut (both west UP), Kanpur-Bundelkhand, Awadh, Gorakhpur and Kashi (Varanasi). ‘Love jihad’ is a term coined by Sangh’s affiliate Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) to define Hindu women being lured by Muslim men th...

The Assam government led by CM Himanta Biswa Sarma may continue the ban imposed on Eid e Milad un Nabi processions in several parts of Assam, reports appearing in the media said. Eid-Milad-un-Nabi commemorated the birthday of Prophet Muhammad and Muslims across the globe observe the ocassion with high reverence. The Assam administration had banned processions and use of loudspeakers in Cachar, Hailakandi and Karimganj districts of Assam’s Barak Valley. The administration had banned the processions “in view of the law and order situation," adding that Muslims can celebrate in any open ground, mosque or Idgah.

Karnataka police have arrested a 32-year-old man named Mozif Baig from Srinagar, Jammu Kashmir. He is accused of attempting to convert a woman from a different faith and engaging in "unnatural sexual acts" under the pretext of marriage, reported Press Trust of India According to the police, Baig, who used to work at an IT firm in Karnataka, had known the woman since 2018, and they were in a live-in relationship. Both the woman and Baig worked in tech firms in the area. Initially, the couple had planned for a court marriage, but later, Baig allegedly pressured the woman to convert to Islam. The woman has also accused Baig of using the promise of marriage to coerce her into having sexual intercourse, including "unnatural sexual acts." She also claimed that Baig's brother threatened her...