Tag: Narendra Modi

  • PM Modi trapped on flyover by angry farmers after major security lapse

    PM Modi trapped on flyover by angry farmers after major security lapse

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi was trapped on a flyover for 20 minutes by protesting farmers in East Punjab on Wednesday in what was being described as a security lapse.

    Modi was on his way to a memorial in the northern state when the route was blocked by protesting farmers.

    “This was a major lapse in the security of the PM,” a statement from the federal home ministry said.

    The protestors were demanding the resignation of a minister whose son has been accused of the deaths of farmers.

    The protesters were demanding the resignation of junior home minister Ajay Mishra, whose son has been accused of an incident that left eight people dead in October 2021.

    The incident took place in Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Lakhimpur Kher, which resulted in eight people’s death.

    Farmers alleged that the son, Ashish Mishra, was behind the attack, but the Mishra’s deny the allegation.

  • Modi can attend SAARC summit virtually if he doesn’t want to come to Islamabad: Pak Foreign Minister

    Modi can attend SAARC summit virtually if he doesn’t want to come to Islamabad: Pak Foreign Minister

     

    Pakistan has extended India a virtual invitation to attend the summit for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) virtually if Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi does not want to attend the summit in Islamabad. It was revealed by Foreign Minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi in a news conference on Monday.

    He said, “Pakistan considers SAARC as an important forum. We are willing to host the 19th SAARC summit and if India has any issue in attending the summit in person then it can attend virtually.”

    The Secretary-General of SAARC recently visited Islamabad and Pakistan has shown eagerness to host the summit.

    FM Qureshi further added, “If India cannot attend the summit in Islamabad at least it should not stop other members,” while giving an invitation to other SAARC members for the next summit.

    While talking about bilateral relations with India, Qureshi said that durable peace, sustainability and economic development in the region have been halted by the ruling party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) whose political ideology is based on anti-Pakistan and anti-Muslim sentiments.

    He added, “India’s unilateral and illegal actions in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) since August 5, 2019, aimed at undermining the status of the disputed territory, perpetuating its illegal occupation and altering its demographic structure, and the unabated widespread violations of human rights and international humanitarian law and state-terrorism perpetrated against the innocent Kashmiris have further vitiated the environment and threatened international peace and security.”

    He further expressed that Pakistan wants friendly relations with every neighbouring country, however, it depends on India to take necessary steps towards dialogue and resolution of the Kashmir dispute.

    The Foreign Minister also highlighted the worsening situation of Kashmiri leaders and the persecution of the locals.

    In November 2016, India refused to attend the SAARC summit which was scheduled in Islamabad due to the high tensions between both countries.

  • ‘Ethnic cleansing’: Naseeruddin Shah asks Modi govt to stop genocide of Muslims

    ‘Ethnic cleansing’: Naseeruddin Shah asks Modi govt to stop genocide of Muslims

    Indian actor Naseeruddin Shah has asked the Modi government to stop genocide of Muslims and warned that oppression could lead to civil war.

    In an interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, Shah said if attempts are made for Muslim genocide and ethnic cleansing, India’s 200 million Muslims are going to fight back.

    He said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not care but ethnic cleansing of Muslims will trigger a civil war in India.

    While talking about the Mughals in India, he said that they “contributed” in the country and “came here to make this their homeland”.

    “The so-called atrocities of the Mughals are being highlighted all the time. We forget that the Mughals are people who have contributed to the country. They are people who have left lasting monuments in the country…who have left the tradition of dancing, music, painting, literature. Mughals came here to make this their homeland. You can call them refugees if you like,” he said.

    Shah, after this statement, earned a lot of backlash from the Indian social media, especially Indian Twitter. In a clip circulating on social media, the actor is seen talking during Thapar’s show on his YouTube channel. However, the clip omitted a few lines he said about the real marauders.

    These lines from the original video were omitted in the clip: “No one talks about Taimur, no one talks about Mahmud of Ghazni, no one talks about Nadir Shah. I don’t think these people are conversant with that history. Those were the marauders who came, looted and left.”

    https://twitter.com/MeghBulletin/status/1476082232586477572?s=20

    The clip is being circulated widely in India and has made ‘Mughals’ trend on Indian Twitter.

  • ‘Victory against injustice’: Rahul Gandhi’s response to Modi’s U-turn on controversial farm laws

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi has taken a U-turn by announcing that his government will repeal three controversial agricultural reform laws, which set off huge protests across India by the farmers.

    “Today I have come to tell you, the whole country, that we have decided to withdraw all three agricultural laws,” announced Modi.

    “In the parliament session starting later this month, we will complete the constitutional process to repeal these three agricultural laws.”

    “I appeal to all the farmers who are part of the protest … to now return to your home, to your loved ones, to your farms, and family. Let’s make a fresh start and move forward,” said the Indian prime minister.

    “Friends, I apologise to the countrymen and want to say with a clean heart and conscience that we must have fallen short in our efforts to explain (the benefits of the farm laws) to a section of the farmers.”

    Rahul Gandhi, leader of the Congress party, took to Twitter and wrote, “Congratulations on this victory against injustice!”

    In a high-profile protest against controversial agricultural reforms, tens of thousands of farmers drove a convoy of tractors festooned with brightly-coloured flags through the outskirts of India’s capital of New Delhi on the country’s Republic Day, January 26.

    Three laws pertaining to agriculture and farming were passed in India, which the farmers said would affect their livelihood. Modi billed these laws as necessary to modernise Indian farming.

  • President Arif Alvi, actor Riz Ahmed hit out at Akshay Kumar’s ‘Sooryavanshi’ for Islamophobic content

    Journalist Rana Ayyub highlighted the ‘Islamophobic’ elements in Bollywood’s Sooryavanshi in her article for Washington post. The acclaimed journalist tweeted about the same, reinstating that, “yet another exercise in criminal Islamophobia that seeks to normalise Narendra Modi’s anti-Muslim agenda. She claimed that it “feeds into the Muslim as terrorist narrative.”

    Starring Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif in the lead, it also features Ranveer Singh and Ajay Devgn. The film has already raked in over INR 150 crores at the Box-office.

    Pakistan’s President Arif Alvi expressed his disappointment on the same.

    He added, “The first step in liquidating a people is to erase its memory. Destroy its books, its culture, destroy its history.”

    Hollywood actor Rizwan Ahmed who recently shunned Hollywood for stereotyping Muslims, used the ‘disgusted’ emoji for the film.

    Earlier, Riz called out English films for their misrepresentation of Muslims, “The game right now is messed up. The game right now is rigged,” Ahmed said in a new interview with news outlet Muslim. “Muslims are either not on screen or they are [and] they’re the bad guys. They’re perpetrators or victims of violence. We’re either invisible or we’re villainized, cause the stories we tell about our community affect the laws that get passed, the people that get attacked, the people that get invaded.”

  • ‘Shouted slogans, threw stones, and set fire’: Muslim ex-FM home attacked in India

    ‘Shouted slogans, threw stones, and set fire’: Muslim ex-FM home attacked in India

    Hindu extremists have attacked and set fire to the home of a former Indian foreign minister (FM), police say, in the latest incident of religious violence. Critics say religious violence has increased under Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, reports Al-Jazeera.

    Salman Khurshid, a Muslim from the Opposition Congress party, published a book in which he compared the kind of Hindu nationalism that has grown under Modi to “extremist groups” such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/ISIS).

    A mob of about 20 people from an extremist local Hindu group massed outside Khurshid’s house near the northern city of Nainital on Monday.

    “They shouted slogans, threw stones, broke several windows, ransacked [the entry] and set fire [to a door],” said a local police chief Jagdish Chandra.

    Khurshid posted images of the aftermath of the attack on social media, and wrote, “Shame is too ineffective a word.”

    “I hoped to open these doors to my friends who have left this calling card. Am I still wrong to say this cannot be Hinduism?” he added.

    Activists say that religious minorities in Hindu-majority India have faced increased levels of discrimination and violence since Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in 2014.

  • In pictures: UN chief gets uncomfortable as maskless Modi gives a big hug during #Cop26

    In pictures: UN chief gets uncomfortable as maskless Modi gives a big hug during #Cop26

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi was once again seen getting too close and hugging United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the opening day of Cop26 — a climate conference — in Glasgow.

    Antonio Guterres was seen visibly uncomfortable and awkward as PM Modi tried to embrace him after he greeted British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at the start of the Glasgow climate conference.

    Guterres placed an arm on Modi to try and keep him at a safer distance but could do little to stop bear-hugger Modi.

    Modi has been pictured getting close and cosy with PM of Luxembourg Xavier Bettel and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau.

    Modi was seen carelessly meeting the world leaders in an atmosphere where Covid-19 SOPs, including wearing face masks, were strongly advised to be followed.

  • ‘Photoshopped image’, New York Times issues correction about PM Modi’s fake picture

    ‘Photoshopped image’, New York Times issues correction about PM Modi’s fake picture

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s ‘fake image’ started doing the rounds on social media.

    In the picture, which seems to be a cover photo for the New York Times (NYT), Modi can be seen writing something. The headline of the cover photo glorifying Narendra Modi is, “LAST, BEST HOPE OF EARTH”.

    Indian and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) followers shared the fake image so many times that the New York Times had to give a clarification.

    Taking to Twitter, NYT wrote, “This is a completely fabricated image, one of many in circulation featuring Prime Minister Modi.”

    “Resharing or circulating photoshopped images online only adds to misinformation and uncertainty, at a time when truthful, trusted journalism is needed most,” read the statement.

    Twitterati reacted to the fake image even more after the clarification was issued.

    Columnist and writer, Ashok Swain tweeted, “Nothing hurts when you have no shame left!”

    https://twitter.com/ashoswai/status/1442958821031174151

    Indian journalist, Rana Ayyub took to Twitter and wrote, “What an embarrassment !! If nothing, the photoshop skills of our politicians is making international news.”

    Congressman Saral Patel tagging PM Modi on Twitter wrote, “One more feather in @narendramodi’s hat.”

    Journalist Swati Chaturvedi tweeted, “I feel embarrassed as an Indian at this persistent fakery is @narendramodi embarrassed or not?”

    A Twitter user wrote, “Modi has made India the laughing stock of the world, with his IT Cell !!”

  • India prioritise Hindus and Sikhs for ‘Afghan emergency visas’

    India prioritise Hindus and Sikhs for ‘Afghan emergency visas’

    India’s government said on Tuesday that it would prioritize taking in Hindus and Sikhs from Afghanistan — a move that drew comparisons to a controversial 2019 citizenship law, enacted under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that differentiates against Muslims, reported New York Times.

    The country’s home ministry said it would introduce “emergency visas” to allow Afghans to stay in India for six months. 

    However, it did not say whether Muslims, who make up the majority of those seeking to leave Afghanistan as the Taliban take over, would also be considered.

    “We are in constant touch with the Sikh and Hindu community leaders in Kabul,” S. Jaishankar, India’s external affairs minister, said on Twitter. “Their welfare will get our priority attention.”

    For its part, Pakistan’s leadership has stopped short of hailing the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan.

    “When you adopt someone’s culture, you believe it to be superior and you end up becoming a slave to it,” Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Monday in a veiled reference to the United States and Western culture. “In Afghanistan, they have broken the shackles of slavery,” Mr. Khan said at an appearance in Islamabad, “but the slavery of the mind does not break away.”

  • ‘Modi distorting history and stoking communalism is the special forte of his RSS-BJP regime’: Pakistan

    ‘Modi distorting history and stoking communalism is the special forte of his RSS-BJP regime’: Pakistan

    As Pakistan celebrated its 75th Independence Day, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter and made controversial statements degrading the sacrifices of the many people during the time of partition of the subcontinent.

    Pakistan responded to Modi’s “shameful” tweets, saying that “distorting history and stoking communalism is the forte of the RSS-BJP regime”.

    Modi took to Twitter and said, “In memory of the struggles and sacrifices of our people, August 14 will be observed as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day.”

    “May [this day] keep reminding us of the need to remove the poison of social divisions, disharmony and further strengthen the spirit of oneness, social harmony, and human empowerment,” Modi added.

    In a statement, Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri dubbed Modi’s move “a political and publicity stunt”, and said that “no modern state is so much in contradiction with itself as the Indian state — the so-called ‘largest democracy’.”

    “It is shameful that the practitioners of ‘Hindutva’ ideology, and purveyors of hate and violence, would so hypocritically and one-sidedly invoke the tragic events and mass migration that occurred in the wake of Independence in 1947,” said the statement.

    The Foreign Office further added, “Distorting history and stoking communalism is the forte of RSS-BJP regime. Far from healing old wounds, they would go to any extent to sow further dissensions for electoral gains. We are sure that people of goodwill in India would completely reject this political stunt.”