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Tag: Narendra Modi

  • ‘Modi could visit Pakistan in a month’: Mian Mansha hints at backdoor diplomacy with India

    ‘Modi could visit Pakistan in a month’: Mian Mansha hints at backdoor diplomacy with India


    Business tycoon Mian Muhammad Mansha claims that he is aware of backchannel diplomacy being pursued by India and Pakistan.

    Talking to the Lahore Chambers of Commerce and Industry on Wednesday, Mansha said that there should be “no permanent enemies” and the two arch-rivals should work to resolve their differences.

    “If the economy does not improve, the country may face disastrous consequences. Pakistan should improve trade relations with India and take a regional approach to economic development. Europe fought two great wars but ultimately settled for peace and regional development. There is no permanent enmity.”

    He further insisted that the two countries need to resolve their issues and increase trade.

    “If things improve between the two neighbours, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi could visit Pakistan in a month,” said Mansha.

  • Rahul Gandhi asks Twitter why his followers seem to be restricted, Twitter denies claim

    Rahul Gandhi asks Twitter why his followers seem to be restricted, Twitter denies claim

    Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote a letter to Twitter CEO Parag Aggarwal in December to inquire about the decrease of his followers and if it was due to the influence of the Indian government, reports Wall Street Journal.

    “I want to bring your attention to what I believe is Twitter’s unwitting complicity in curbing free and fair speech in India… I have been reliably, albeit discreetly, informed by people at Twitter India that they are under immense pressure by the government to silence my voice,” wrote Gandhi.

    “Since August, the average number of my new monthly Twitter followers has fallen to nearly zero. There is an inflection point after which my Twitter account seems to have been paralysed.”

    Co-founder of AltNews, Mohammed Zubair, analysed the Twitter account of Rahul Gandhi and compared it with the Twitter accounts of Indian Home Affairs Minister Amit Shah and Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi. It revealed that followers of Gandhi dropped drastically whereas Shah and Modi gained more followers since September 2021.

    Twitter also responded to Rahul Gandhi’s claims of restricting his followers, “Follower counts are a visible feature, and we want everyone to have confidence that the numbers are meaningful and accurate. Twitter has a zero-tolerance approach to platform manipulation and spam. We fight spam and malicious automation strategically and at scale with machine learning tools, and as part of those consistent and ongoing efforts to ensure a healthy service and credible accounts, follower counts can and do fluctuate.”

    Twitter also highlighted that they do remove accounts that violate its community policies.

    “We remove millions of accounts each week for violating our policies on platform manipulation and spam. You can take a look at our latest Twitter Transparency Center update for more context. While some accounts notice a minor difference, in certain cases the number could be higher,” Twitter said in response to Gandhi.

    Last year, Twitter temporarily suspended the account of Rahul Gandhi on August 8, 2021, when he uploaded a photograph with the family of a nine-year-old Dalit rape victim, which was taken down by Twitter later.

  • Watch: PM Modi’s slip of tongue of ‘beti patao’ makes him a Twitter meme

    Watch: PM Modi’s slip of tongue of ‘beti patao’ makes him a Twitter meme

    Addressing the World Economic Forum (WEF), Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi landed himself in some trouble. His slip of tongue moment went viral on social media, where he could be heard saying ‘beti patao’ instead of ‘beti padhao’.

    Modi ideally wanted to address the ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao‘ initiative being adopted in India, but his faltered speech changed the entire meaning of the word and idea communicated.

    https://twitter.com/suryapsingh_IAS/status/1484051506932633601

    ‘Patao’ primarily is translated as ‘dating or flirting’ while the actual term ‘padhao’ means ‘educating or teaching’.

    Twitter is all pumped up as the recent subject of the meme world is Narendra Modi for his beti patao gaffe.

    https://twitter.com/AseemAn33925929/status/1484113301965803526
    https://twitter.com/ImOdd_MF/status/1484252506926743552
  • India kills Muslims for eating meat, allows import of pork products from US

    India kills Muslims for eating meat, allows import of pork products from US

    India, a country known for killing Muslims for meat, especially cow meat. Following Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s rise to power, extremist Hindu groups have led attacks across the country that have targeted Muslim and Dalit communities. These attacks have been carried out with the stated intention of protecting cows.

    The United States (US) announced on Monday that India would allow imports of US pork and pork products for the first time, welcoming the removal of an old block on US farm trade, reports Dawn.


    Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai made the announcement in a statement.

    “This new opportunity marks the culmination of nearly two decades of work to gain market access for US pork to India — and it signals positive movement in US-India trade relations,” Vilsack said.

    “We will continue working with the Indian government to ensure that the US pork industry can begin shipping its high-quality products to consumers as soon as possible,” she said.

  • ‘Real and present threat to peace’: PM calls on international community to take action against Modi

    ‘Real and present threat to peace’: PM calls on international community to take action against Modi

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Monday slammed the Narendra Modi-led Indian government for its continued silence on the “hate speech” conclave, which called for the genocide of Muslims in India.

    Last month, leaders from several far-right groups in India had issued calls for the ethnic cleansing of minorities in the country, especially targeting its 200 million-strong Muslim population.

    Prime minister in a series of tweets on Twitter said, “The continuing silence of Modi govt on the call at an extremist Hindutva summit in December for the genocide of minorities in India, especially the 200 million Muslim community.”

    He said the “extremist ideology” of the ruling BJP government was behind the provocations against India’s minorities.

    “The extremist agenda of the Modi govt is a real and present threat to peace in our region,” tweeted PM Khan.

    He urged the international community to take notice of the calls and act against them.

    As the premier tweeted, the Supreme Court of India decided to take up a case related to the hate speeches, including open calls for genocide made at the conclave, NDTV reported.

    “We will take up the matter,” Chief Justice of India NV Ramana said, as quoted by the media outlet.

    According to Time of India, as many as 200,000 Muslims gathered in the Bareilly city last week and offered themselves what they called “mass sacrifice” in protest against the hate speeches.

  • 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.”