Nasheman News :  The Opposition on Monday created a ruckus in the Bihar Assembly demanding Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s resignation, two days after a special POCSO court in Muzaffarpur directed the CBI to investigate the involvement of Kumar and two IAS officers in the infamous shelter home rape case.

Legislators of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress, Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and the Left parties disrupted proceedings in both houses of the Assembly shouting slogans and demanding Nitish Kumar’s resignation.

While RJD spokesperson Bhai Virendra demanded a narco test of Nitish Kumar to confirm his involvement in the case, senior RJD leader and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, who is also the leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, said, “After the court directed the CBI to probe chief minister’s role in suppressing facts, Nitish Kumar should resign.” 

Special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Court Judge Manoj Kumar had on Friday ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the role of the Chief Minister as well as Muzaffarpur District Magistrate Dharmendra Singh and Principal Secretary (Social Welfare) Atul Prasad in the case. 

The order came on a petition filed by accused Ashwani, a self-claimed medical practitioner, demanding an investigation into the role of the three. 

According to a charge sheet filed in the case, Ashwani used to visit the shelter home to allegedly administer sedative-laced injections to the inmates before they were subjected to sexual abuse. 

The Muzaffarpur horror came to light in May 2018 when the Bihar Social Welfare Department filed an FIR based on a social audit of the shelter home conducted by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. 

Following the FIR, police arrested Brajesh Thakur, a journalist-turned-social activist who headed the NGO that ran the shelter home, and other accused including his close aides and some government officials. The matter was handed over to the CBI in July last year. 

State Social Welfare Minister Manju Verma was also forced to resign following protests over reports that her husband and former Janata Dal-United legislator Chandreshwar Verma allegedly had close links with Thakur. 

Thakur has been shifted to a high-security jail in Patiala following a Supreme Court order, while the other accused are lodged in jails in Patna and Muzaffarpur. 

This month, the trial of the case was shifted to Delhi. 

Recently, the apex court also directed the CBI to probe allegations of sexual abuse at all such shelter homes across the state. 

Nasheman News :  Controversial BJP legislator Raja Singh on Monday called for removing Indian tennis star Sania Mirza as the brand ambassador of Telangana, calling her “Pakistan’s daughter-in-law”.

The Telangana Assembly member said Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao must immediately remove Mirza as the brand ambassador in the wake of the February 14 terror attack in Pulwama that claimed the lives of 49 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers.

“We don’t need a Pakistani bahu as brand ambassador of Telangana,” said Raja Singh, who represents Goshamahal constituency in Hyderabad.

He feels that removing Sania Mirza, the wife of Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik, as brand ambassador will send a strong message to Pakistan over its involvement in terror activities.

Raja Singh said when the Central government was taking a series of tough measures against Pakistan, the state government should also take the step to convey strong sentiments of the Indian citizens to Pakistan.

The BJP leader suggested that the state government could appoint any other player as its brand ambassador. 

“We have cricketer V.V.S. Laxman and badminton stars Saina Nehwal or P.V. Sindhu, who are also from Telangana and who have brought many laurels to the state and to the country,” he added.

Telangana had named Sania Mirza as the state’s brand ambassador in July 2014. Then BJP leader in Telangana Assembly K. Laxman had termed Mirza as “non-local” and “Pakistan’s daughter-in-law” questioning her credentials to represent the state.

Reacting to Laxman’s comment, the tennis ace had said that though married to a Pakistani, she would remain an Indian until the end.

Married to Shoaib Malik in 2010, Sania Mirza gave birth to a baby boy in 2018.

Nasheman News :  Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan on Sunday took digs at DMK President M.K. Stalin and Rajinikanth.

At the Rotaract Annual District Conference held here, Kamal Haasan said Gram Sabha is there for decades and only after he started holding such meetings in villages in Tamil Nadu that others started copying that.

The founder of MNM party was obliquely referring to DMK President M.K. Stalin and others holding Gram Sabha meetings.

“Are you not ashamed of copying from a small boy?” he said.

At another point, Kamal Haasan said he cannot be wearing a torn shirt, and even if his shirt gets torn in the Assembly, he would wear another shirt.

Kamal Haasan was obliquely referring to Stalin, who came out of the Tamil Nadu Assembly in torn shirt on 17.2.2018 when the AIADMK government led by Chief Minister K. Palaniswami sought vote of confidence.

Similarly, Kamal Haasan, when questioned about his bold decision to contest the Lok Sabha elections, said: “After oiling one’s body and slapping of thighs, one should not back out from the wrestling field saying he would come the next day.”

If that happens then one would become a laughing stock, Kamal Haasan added.

On Sunday, actor Rajinikanth announced his decision not to contest in the Lok Sabha polls. He also said he would not support any party.

Nasheman  News :  Two Youth Congress activists were murdered by alleged CPI-M workers in Kerala’s Kasargode on Sunday night, state Congress president Mullapally Ramachandran said. The Left party, however, denied any involvement.

The two Youth Congress activists – Krupesh, 19, and Joshy, 24 – were attacked by three assailants who came on motorcycles and seriously injured. While Krupesh breathed his last at the Kasargode district hospital, Joshy died while being taken to a hospital in Mangaluru in neighbouring Karnataka.

The Kasargode unit of the Congress has called for a dawn-to-dusk shutdown in the district on Monday to protest the murder.

Addressing the media at Kochi after hearing about the incident, Ramachandran said that this murder was a planned one executed by the goons attached to the CPI-M.

“Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who also holds the Home portfolio should explain this ghastly incident. This is not acceptable to the Kerala society… its high time that the CPI-M directs its cadres to lay down arms,” he said.

Kasargode district Congress president K. Hakkim told the media that the incident occurred near Periya near here.

“This is a Kannur model murder that was neatly planned and executed in the dark,” he alleged.

Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala told the media that the CPI-M is using power to eliminate its political opponents and this will be strongly opposed by the Congress.

But Kannur district CPI-M secretary M.V. Balakrishnan told the media that his party has no role in this incident.

“We strongly condemn this incident and our party has no role in this. We want the police to quickly arrest the people behind this,” he said.

Nasheman News : Amid dragging speculation whether he will take the plunge or not, superstar Rajinikanth on Sunday announced that he will not contest the coming Lok Sabha elections nor will he support any political party.

In a statement on a letterhead of his fan club Rajini Makkal Mandram (RMM), a former bus conductor who enjoys frenzied following among Tamil cinema buffs, informed his fans that his name or photograph should not be used by anyone seeking votes.

“I am not going to contest the coming Lok Sabha elections. Our target is Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. I am not going to support any party in the Lok Sabha elections. So nobody can use my photo or the RMM’s symbol in support of or in the campaign of any party,” Rajinkanth said.

The 68-year-old actor, who has worked in over 200 films, appealed to his fans: “Tamil Nadu’s main problem in the coming elections will be water. Any party that will form a strong and stable government at the Centre and which can solve the water crisis of Tamil Nadu permanently through schemes and give an assurance to fulfil them should be given support and fans should vote on that basis.”

There has been a lot of speculation whether Rajinikanth would enter politics and fight elections. He had some time back hinted at entering politics actively to fulfil the political vacuum caused by the death of iconic leaders M. Karunanidhi and J. Jayalalithaa.

While announcing his entry into politics, Rajinikanth had said he would be able to provide “good” governance like the late M.G. Ramachandran, the founder leader of AIADMK.

Rajinikanth had talked of spiritual politics that lent itself to speculation that he could back the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha battle in Tamil Nadu, which elects 39 members to the Lok Sabha.

Reacting to the development, political strategist Jhon Arokiasamy told IANS: “By this announcement, Rajinikanth signals that he is maintaining an equidistance between the BJP and the Congress. Also, he does not want any connection with the likely AIADMK-BJP alliance.

“Perhaps this was done after the reversals suffered by the BJP in the recent Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka and other states. That apart, he is setting the Lok Sabha poll narrative for Tamil Nadu by referring to the water problem,” Arokiasamy added.

Rajinikanth has had a pro-BJP image in recent times and it is believed that he perhaps did not float a political party after the BJP suffered defeats in recent Assembly elections.

The actor’s long-time colleague in cinema, Kamal Haasan, who has no love for the BJP, last year floated a political outfit, Makkal Needhi Maiam. He has announced that his outfit will contest the coming Lok Sabha elections on its own.

Meanwhile, BJP’s National Secretary H. Raja told IANS: “Rajinikanth is consistent in his stand. On Dec 31, 2017 he said his target is only the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls.”

According to Raja, it is only the BJP that can provide a permanent solution for Tamil Nadu’s water problem with its schemes of linking of rivers.

On the other hand, Tamil Nadu Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar said the contest was between the AIADMK-led alliance and the DMK-led alliance.

Political analyst Raveendhran Dhuraiswamy told IANS: “Rajinikanth’s announcement may have a positive fallout for possible AIADMK-BJP alliance.”

Nasheman News : The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Sunday said some miscreants were putting up fake photographs of body parts of troopers, killed in the Pulwama attack, to spread “hatred”, and appealed people to not share or ‘like’ such posts.

“It has been noticed that on social media some miscreants are trying to circulate fake pictures of body parts of our martyrs to trigger hatred. Please do not circulate, share or ‘like’ such photographs or posts,” the CRPF said in a statement. 

Such posts/pictures should be reported to webpro@crpf.gov.in, it added.

The CRPF also said “miscreants” were spreading “fake news” about harassment of students from Kashmir on social media.

“The CRPF helpline has enquired about complaints of harassment and found them incorrect. These are attempts to spread hatred. Please do not circulate such posts,” it said.

As many as 49 personnel were killed on February 14, when a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a CRPF convoy on the Jammu-Srinagar highway in Pulwama.