PM Narendra Modi to participate in two-day BJP National Executive meeting in Hyderabad

New Delhi: BJP will hold a national executive meeting today and tomorrow (on July 2 and 3) at Hyderabad International Convention Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be participating in the meeting.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Hyderabad on Saturday to participate in the two-day long Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National Executive meeting.

According to a senior BJP leader, the party's expansion will be the meeting's key agenda. They will also discuss areas where there is a need to induct more party workers, sources said.

The two-day Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National Executive meeting will start in Hyderabad today.

The meeting will be attended by BJP national president JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chief Ministers of 19 states and other BJP senior leaders at Hyderabad International Convention Centre.

PM Modi will attend the meeting and is expected to address the national executive on Sunday.

In his speech and then BJP national executive the Prime Minister is expected to give a roadmap for the party in the coming times especially when they look at Assembly elections in the big states like Gujarat.

On Sunday afternoon the Prime Minister will address a public rally at the Parade grounds.

This is the first time that a meeting is taking place with complete participation by the BJP national executive members since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The last meeting which took place in November 2021 happened in a hybrid manner in which leaders were present physically as well as joined virtually.

"After 18 years, a national executive committee is being held in Hyderabad... The city is decked up. National leaders, CMs and other leaders are visiting 119 constituencies wherein a massive public rally is supposed to be held on July 3. We are expecting a huge crowd," Telangana BJP spokesperson NV Subhash told ANI.

The entire city of Hyderabad has donned a saffron hue with the BJP flags and banners ahead of the party's mega show. The posters showcase the achievement of the central government. Every nook and cranny of the city is decked up with big cutouts and banners of top BJP leaders.

There will be a photo exhibition where the senior leaders and photos from the earlier national executive meet and important events will be exhibited today at 6 pm.

Meanwhile, former MP K Visweshwar Reddy has announced that he will joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Telangana.

"I decided today that I'll join BJP in Telangana. Once Telangana achieved statehood, we all had great aspirations. We can do wonders with funds for one of the richest states. But what happened is exactly the opposite," said Reddy. He quit Congress last year.

The BJP's initiative comes at a time when Telangana is heading for Assembly polls in 2023 and the BJP sees a huge prospect of bringing down the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi government.

This two-day meeting of the BJP has seen the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leadership taking potshots at the Modi government especially when the leaders talk about development.

TRS working president KTR has taken a potshot at the Modi government telling them to learn from the KCR government and that they have copied all the Telangana government schemes and rebranded it.

BJP takes a lot of hard from its recent successes in the Telangana bypolls and a greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation election and looks at Telangana for a way to get in the roads in the South.

The Hyderabad city police, along with state government departments, have put elaborate security arrangements in place ahead of PM Modi's visit to Hyderabad.

With inputs from agencies

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Udaipur murder: Kanhaiya Lal's killers in NIA custody

Jaipur: After officially taking over the probe into the Udaipur tailor's murder case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken custody of the two accused, Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad.

NIA will bring them from Ajmer's high-security jail to Jaipur, ANI reported.

Rajasthan | #KanhaiyaLal murder: NIA takes accused Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad into their custody from Ajmer's high-security jail to bring them to Jaipur pic.twitter.com/uQZ61LWHs4

— ANI MP/CG/Rajasthan (@ANI_MP_CG_RJ) July 2, 2022

Earlier two persons -- Mohsin and Asif -- were arrested on Thursday night for conspiring the brutal beheading of tailor Kanhaiya Lal.

He was killed on Tuesday afternoon by two cleaver-wielding men, Akhtari and Mohammad, who posted a grisly video of the crime online claiming responsibility for the beheading. Both the accused were arrested in Rajsamand hours after the crime.

"Two persons have been arrested. They were co-conspirator of the murder of Kanhaiya and they are being interrogated," police said on Friday.

The case is being investigated by NIA with support of the Anti-Terrorist Squad and Special Operations Group of the Rajasthan Police.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Off-centre | Udaipur beheading: Time to decry religious extremism

As widely reported, Justice Surya Kant of the Supreme Court of India, referring to Nupur Sharma, the former spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party, remarked: “This lady is single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country.” The honourable judge of the highest court of the land was responding to the submission of Sharma’s lawyer, senior advocate Maninder Singh, that his client’s life was under threat.

Let us recall that Sharma had already apologised, but Justice Kant was not satisfied: “She was too late to withdraw”; moreover, she had apologised “conditionally,” and that “sentiments” had been “hurt.” Justice Kant added, “She should have gone to the TV and apologised to the nation.” Sharma was pleading for the multiple FIRs filed against her to be clubbed, but the two-member bench presided over by Justice Kant, was not convinced: “The conscience of the court is not satisfied.”

Without questioning the wisdom of the Supreme Court let alone its ruling, one might wonder, as a concerned citizen of this country, what the implications of Justice Kant’s remarks might be. If Sharma is “single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country”, does this mean that Riaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad, the killers of Kanhaiya Lal, the tailor lynched in Udaipur, are not guilty of the crime of murder? I am sure this is not what the honourable Justice Kant meant.

The law of the land will, of course, have to take its course. If so, could Justice Kant have meant that hurt sentiments can justify taking innocent lives, disregarding the law of the land? Once again, I am sure that that is not what the honourable justice had in mind. The only logical conclusion that one might derive, from the court proceedings as reported in the media, is that people holding responsible positions, not just ruling party spokespersons, must exercise utmost caution. Far from losing their tempers, they must not take offence, even when provoked but refrain from hurting religious sentiments and hold their tongues.

But shouldn’t the highest court of the land also condemn those who are quick to take offence, not just those who happen to give offence? Are, moreover, blasphemy, sacrilege, apostasy, and such religious offences to be recognised in a so-called secular country such as India? Should those who take offence also take the law into their own hands and administer theologically sanctioned, but patently illegal, punishments, including horrifying and ghastly beheadings — sar tan se juda, as the hate-filled slogans go? Perhaps, we shall have to await the pleasure and sagacity of our honourable judges, as also on the right opportunity, to pronounce on such matters?

***

Also Read

Nupur Sharma single-handedly responsible for what's happening in the country: SC on Prophet Muhammad remarks row

Explained: The Sufi-Barelvi sect linked to the Udaipur killing and the other brands of extremist Islam

Udaipur killing: Prime accused has links with Pak-based Dawat-e-Islami, visited Karachi, says DGP

Udaipur tailor murder: Delhi Jama Masjid's Shahi Imam condemns act, says 'not only act of cowardice but against Islam'

***

But, to be perfectly honest, I am not entirely surprised that this horrible hate crime in Udaipur is being blamed, directly or indirectly, upon the indiscretions of one person while we fail to call out Islamist fanaticism for its violence and hate crimes against humanity. About 95 years back, the killing of the editor-publisher of Rangeela Rasool, Mahashe Rajpal, the founder of the famous Hindi publishing house, Rajpal & Sons, was similarly justified and the killer praised by several eminent personalities.

Doesn’t it seem obvious that we, as a state and society, have been somewhat lax, even apathetic, about religious hate crimes? That is why I must take a line quite contrary to the one cited earlier. I believe that this is the opportunity to rectify our past mistakes. We must say in one voice that there is no room for blasphemy punishments meted out by private agents in our republic. No political party or religious group should be allowed to justify such acts. No religious ideology can legitimate acts of crime and hatred against those who do not subscribe to it.

It is true that organised religions, like dogmatic ideologies, tend to brainwash their adherents and create false consciousness. Untold crimes, in which millions have been slaughtered, enslaved, oppressed, and displaced in the past have been justified in the name of such systems of belief. We must stop trying to defend them or being apologists for what is unpalatable about the inhuman and inhumane aspects of such creeds.

Blasphemy, sacrilege, and apostasy — such terms and ideas have no place in the modern world. No more appeasement politics; no more soft-pedalling extremism; no more looking the other way when hate and prejudice are being taught in state-funded religious schools; no more selective and one-sided condemnation of so-called “Hindu fascism”; no more tolerance of the utterly intolerant and violently ignorant.

As Karl Popper famously put it in his “paradox of intolerance”: “Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them.”

While we isolate the enemies of the free society and the state, we must also reign in the continuous anti-Muslim rhetoric that is being spewed day and night on social media. It is the extreme elements that need to be continuously monitored, isolated, and overcome. But day-to-day relations between communities must remain peaceful, even cordial if India’s future is to be secure.

We cannot have a continuously divided polity and fragmented society based on religious, regional, linguistic, or caste identities. The state must be fair to all, treating citizens alike, regardless of their identities. Our country was divided on religious lines. In post-Independence India, we almost lost two states to religious extremism, Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab. We are still highly susceptible to religious intolerance, bigotry, and chauvinism. Now is the time to put an end to them in our land.

This is the second and final part of a two-part series. Click here to read the first part.

The author is a professor of English at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Views expressed are personal.

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Punjab top cop applies for two months leave after seeking central deputation

Chandigarh: Amid rival political parties attacking the AAP-led government over the alleged deteriorating law and order in Punjab, DGP V K Bhawra is learnt to have applied for leave for two months after seeking central deputation.

This comes after two major back-to-back incidents - murder of singer Sidhu Moose Wala and an attack on state police's intelligence headquarters in Mohali.

Bhawra, a 1987-batch IPS officer, has made himself available for central deputation, sources here said.

The Aam Aadmi Party's defeat in the recent Sangrur Lok Sabha bypoll was also attributed to the law and order issue and the murder of Moose Wala.

With Bhawra seeking central deputation, the names of DGP (prisons) Harpreet Singh Sidhu and DGP (Administration) Gaurav Yadav are doing the rounds for the top post of the Punjab Police. Bhawra was appointed as the director general of police in January this year, replacing officiating DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya. He was appointed just before the model code of conduct came into force ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections.

He was selected by former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi-led state government from a panel of three officers shortlisted by the Union Public Service Commission. The other two officers in the panel were senior IPS officers Dinkar Gupta and Prabodh Kumar.

Punjab has seen four DGPs in the last 10 months.

"Punjab will be having 4th DGP in less than a year which does not augur well for the state facing multiple security challenges. Wonder how UPSC which oversees such appointments will take it," ex AAP MLA Kanwar Sandhu tweeted.

The Bhagwant Mann-led government has been facing criticism from Opposition parties over several incidents including a rocket-propelled grenade attack at the state police's intelligence headquarters in Mohali and the murder of a kabaddi player in Jalandhar.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Uddhav Thackeray sacks Eknath Shinde as 'Shiv Sena leader'

Mumbai: Ten days after Eknath Shinde launched a rebellion against him which led to the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray removed the newly appointed chief minister from the post of Shiv Sena leader for indulging in "anti-party activities".

Shinde has also "voluntarily" given up the membership of the party, therefore "in exercise of powers vested in me as Shiv Sena party president, I remove you from the post of Shiv Sena leader in the party organisation," said the letter from Thackeray.

The letter is dated 30 June, the day Shinde took oath as chief minister with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy.

Earlier on Friday, Thackeray lashed out at the BJP for giving the CM post to Eknath Shinde, and said that had the former ally partner agreed to this earlier, there would have been no Maha Vikas Aghadi in the state.

For the unversed, the Shiv Sena and BJP had parted ways after the 2019 Assembly elections in the state as the former demanded 2.5 years of Chief Ministership each for both the parties during the term of five years, which the latter had not agreed to. Shiv Sena had then stitched an alliance with rivals NCP and Congress to form the government.

Talking about the swearing-in ceremony of Shinde, Thackeray said, "About what happened yesterday, I had told Amit Shah earlier as well that there should be a Shiv Sena CM for 2.5 years (during Shiv Sena-BJP alliance). Had they done this earlier, there would have been no Maha Vikas Aghadi."

Thackeray, who headed a coalition government of Sena, NCP and Congress, stepped down as chief minister on 29 June after the Supreme Court refused to stay the floor test ordered by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari. With 39 out of 55 Sena MLAs being part of Shinde's camp, it was apparent that the government had lost its majority.

The Sena had earlier sought disqualification of 16 rebel MLAs, and also removed Shinde as the party's leader in the Assembly. The Shinde camp, on the other hand, claimed that as they had majority, their group was the real Shiv Sena in the legislature.

The Eknath Shinde's government in Maharashtra will face a Vote of Confidence on 4 July, to prove its majority in the State Assembly. The Special Session of the Maharashtra Assembly will be held on 3 and 4 July.

(With inputs from agencies)

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In Bengal, vegetable gardens brew hope for women left jobless in locked tea garden

Alipurduar: Phoolbanti Lakda, a 30-year-old Adivasi woman from Bandapani tea garden village in Alipurduar district of West Bengal was gleaming with joy while showing her rain-washed emerald green kitchen garden which had a green array of lady’s finger and brinjal plants laden with vegetables. Some long beans and bitter gourds were hanging from creepers tied with bamboo trellises in her small but very well laid out garden in the backyard of her small tin roofed house. 

Like Lakda there are many other Adivasi and Nepali women in this locked tea estate who have earned their place in the sun by establishing their own vegetable gardens. The women of this village who are living in the fringes of the society decided to grow their own vegetables to fulfill the nutritional needs of their families since the estate got closed in 2013.

The women farmers with minimal literacy rate ranging between the age group of 20 to 50 have found the freedom to decide what they get to eat. From spinach to mushrooms, they grow it all. “Some families sell their surplus vegetables after meeting their family requirement in the weekly Mangal Haat (Tuesday market) of the village. I don’t sell my vegetables in the market but I don’t have to buy them either. We mostly eat what we grow,” said Anima Xalxo, another women farmer in the village. Sujita Oraon, another resident, said she sells her surplus vegetables in the local market and makes around Rs 3,000 from every batch of vegetables. She had a comparatively bigger garden than the others and it had lady’s finger and spinach growing when this writer visited her farm.

Bandapani tea estate is around six kilometres away from the Dalgaon (Birpara) railway station and sits cheek by jowl with the Bhutanese border. There is one bridged and three unbridged rivers that one has to cross to reach the village. During the monsoon, the village gets disconnected from the mainland as the rivers get swollen up with rainwater.

“More than 200 families in the village have big or small kitchen gardens. Which has helped families to fulfil their nutritional needs and be less dependent on the market,” said Rajmuni Kindo, who runs a ration shop in the village. “Most of the time the families barter vegetables according to their yield. A sense of community bonding develops because of our kitchen garden," she added. Kindo has been working for a few years liasioning between the district rural development body and the villagers. “I have a vermicompost pit, which I have learned from a skill training programme of the district and a small kitchen garden where I grow all seasonal vegetables,” Kindo said.

Brewing problems in the locked tea estate

A total of 1,200 families live in the Bandapani gram panchayat and every house had at least one or more than one member employed in the tea garden till the estate got shut down eight years ago due to financial irregularities. Many left the village after losing their jobs for bigger Indian cities and towns while a few unfortunate ones fell prey to human traffickers and are still away from their families.

“There are many tea estates in the Dooars region which are shut for many years now and due to poverty and lack of employment, it has become a breeding ground for human traffickers. We get to hear many incidents of human trafficking of women for the sex trade and domestic labour from the region,” said Shanti Oraon, a village coordinator of an Alipurduar-based NGO. “Livelihood is a major concern in Bandapani village. Though many former garden employees have formed a committee and are plucking and selling the tea leaves and few have joined the nearby functional tea gardens, however many women who earlier worked as tea pluckers and factory staff are still unemployed,” said Oraon.

The tea industry is advertised as the country’s second largest employer, but it is also an industry that undermines labour rights and deprives workers and their families of the most basic needs.

Bandapani suffers a major water crisis as there are only 17 functional bore wells for 1,200 families. The village is heavily dependent on Bhutan for water. The neighbouring country has given two water pipeline supplies from where villagers carry home water every morning. But there are times during the monsoons when the pipes break and the village suffers massive drinking water woes.

“Despite the crisis, we irrigate our kitchen garden with the water we gather from bore wells and the Bhutanese supply,” said Rathni Lakda, another women nutri gardener. The mother of two has a good yield of seasonal vegetables all year round. “I get villagers who walk into my house looking to buy veggies. I make around Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 every month by selling surplus vegetables,” Rathni said.

A five-minute drive from Chaybasa Line where Lakda lived lead us to the house of Puja and her mother Rita Kujur. The mother and daughter duo have been growing mushrooms in their house and a shed made next to their two-room house for three years. “We don’t have a kitchen garden but the mushroom cultivation has turned out pretty profitable. We make more than Rs 6,000 per batch," said the 26-year-old daughter.

There were many cylinders (mushroom bags) hanging from the shed which had oyster mushrooms growing. If the climatic conditions are favourable a cylinder can produce between 4-5 kilos of mushroom and it takes 25 days to grow,” Puja said. “The women farmers of the region still need many summers to grow vegetables that can make them economically independent by selling the crop in the local market. Instead, the kitchen garden has undoubtedly given us independence from relying on the local market for nutritional vegetables," said Puja.

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Vinayaka Chaturthi 2022: Date, puja vidhi, rituals, significance and mantras

Vinayaka Chaturthi is a festival that takes place every month to honour Lord Ganesha. The day is solely dedicated to Lord Ganesha, who is often addressed as Pratham Pujya, meaning the God is worshipped first.

As per the Hindu calendar, Vinayak Chaturthi falls in Shukla Paksha and Sankashti Chaturthi falls in Krishna Paksha. This month, Vinayaka Chaturthi will be observed on 3 July.

This festival is also called Varad Vinayaka Chaturthi, which means “praying to God to fulfil any wish one has.” On this day, devotees observe fast and offer prayers to please Lord Ganpati. They present offerings to the god and ask him to remove negative influences from their lives. People also pray to ensure prosperity, peace and harmony in their families.

Vinayaka Chaturthi Date and Time:

Vinayaka Chaturthi begins from 03:16 pm on 2 July 2022 (Saturday) and ends at 5:06 pm on 3 July (Sunday). The auspicious time for fasting and worship is from 11:02 am to 01:49 pm on 3 July.

Rituals to follow while observing fast:

-Those observing a fast need to wake up early in the morning, take a bath and wear clean/new clothes.

-While getting ready for the puja, devotees need to align their thoughts in a positive manner to observe the vrat sincerely.

-Offer water to the rising sun before beginning the fast.

-During the day, one can consume only milk, fresh fruits and few vrat recipes after performing puja.

-While observing the fast, strictly avoid eating garlic, onion and meat. Intake of tobacco or alcohol is also prohibited.

-Do not forget to read the Vrat Katha and end the puja by performing a special aarti.

Mantras to recite:

Om Ekdantaaye Viddhamahe

Vakratundaya Dhimahi

Tanno Danti Prachodayat

Significance of Vinayaka Chaturthi:

Lord Ganesha symbolises knowledge and wisdom, which is why devotees observe this day to broaden their abilities/skill and succeed in life. People also worship the god to remove all obstacles from their lives.

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