News Analysis India

Tag: India variant

  • Maligning image of Kumbh, Hinduism with toolkit’s help a ‘political conspiracy, says Ramdev

    By ANI
    HARIDWAR: Yoga Guru Ramdev on Wednesday alleged that there is an attempt to maligning the Kumbh and Hinduism with the help of a toolkit and termed it as a “political conspiracy”. This comes a day after BJP accused Congress of designing a toolkit to malign Kumbh as a “super spreader” COVID-19 event.

    Ramdev, in a video message, urged the people to boycott “such power” who are against the country. “Maligning the image of Kumbh and Hinduism with the help of a toolkit is a political conspiracy. I request people, who are politicising the matter, do whatever you want to do but do not disrespect 100 crore Hindus. This is disgusting. I urge people to boycott such power who are against the country,” the Yoga Guru said.

    Earlier in the day, Acharya Mahamandaleshwar of Juna Akhara Swami Avdheshanand Giri Maharaj urged people not to politicise the Kumbh. He alleged that the culture, rituals, faith and traditions of the nation are being tarnished in a “well-planned manner”.

    The BJP had on Tuesday alleged that the toolkit has instructions for social media volunteers of Congress to call the new COVID-19 mutant as “Indian strain” or “Modi strain” against the World Health Organization (WHO)’s instructions.

    The first Shahi Snan of Kumbh was held on March 11 on the occasion of Mahashivratri, while the second and third were held on April 12 and 14. The last snan took place on April 27. The duration of the Kumbh has been shortened to 30 days this year due to the ongoing COVID pandemic.

  • PIL in SC seeks NIA probe into toolkit on COVID, suspension of political party status for Congress

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed on Tuesday seeking an investigation into toolkit on COVID-19 pandemic by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and suspension of membership of Congress party if the allegations against them are found to be true.

    Lawyer Shashank Shekhar Jha made the Indian National Congress (INC) Party, Union of India (UOI), and Election Commission of India (ECI) as respondents in his PIL before the Apex Court. The petition sought direction to the Central government to register a preliminary inquiry pertaining to the alleged toolkit.

    Jha said that the toolkit matter must be probed to disclose any offence under section 120-B (Criminal Conspiracy) and various other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and section 13 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), and to secure the custody of the said toolkit.

    The PIL also sought a direction to the Election Commission of India to suspend the registration of the Congress, if they are found to be allegedly doing anti-national acts and playing with the lives of the common people and a direction to the Union Government to issue necessary guidelines to each and every political party, group, and individual to stop all kinds of hoardings portraying an anti-national stance.

    Jha, in his PIL further sought necessary direction to the Central government against the usage of photos of funerals, dead bodies, naming of mutant COVID-19 variant after India and its Prime Minister, calling out a single religion for COVID-19.

  • Author of toolkit to defame PM Modi, India is member of Congress research wing, alleges BJP

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: The controversy over Congress’ alleged use of toolkit to tarnish the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over handling of COVID-19 intensified on Wednesday as Bharatiya Janata Party revealed the identity of the alleged author of the document as a member of the Congress’ research wing.

    Responding to the Congress assertion that the document shown by the BJP was fake and its threat to lodge an FIR against BJP President JP Nadda, senior BJP leader and party spokesperson Sambit Patra stated that the party had itself exposed the author of the toolkit.

    Patra, with details collated by domain experts of the toolkit in hand, named Saumya Verma as the author of the toolkit that aimed to defame the Prime Minister and the country by directing to call Covid strain B.1.617 as “Indian Variant” or “Modi variant”.

    ALSO READ| Congress to take BJP to court over toolkit ‘forgery’: Prof Rajeev Gowda

    Patra, with details collated by domain experts, named Saumya Varma as the author of the toolkit that aimed to defame the Prime Minister and the country by directing to call Covid strain as ‘Indian variant’ or ‘Modi variant’.

    Patra said that Varma according to her profile is a member of the research wing of All India Congress Committee (AICC) and works directly for Congress leader Professor Rajeev Gowda.

    The BJP leader presented papers of the toolkit author where the name of the project was given as ‘Central vista vanity project AICC Research’ along with various photographs of Varma with Rahul Gandhi and Gowda as a member of the AICC research team.

    Congress had threatened to lodge an FIR against Nadda and Patra accusing them of forgery of a toolkit to divert the country’s attention from the government’s failure to tackle the COVID pandemic. Patra said that the pointers mentioned in the ‘Congress toolkit’ were used by various Congress leaders including Rahul Gandhi and “this should be evidence enough”.

    “The toolkit mentioned that how a certain variant should be called Indian or Modi variant. Rahul Gandhi tweeted Covid as Modi pandemic and Sonia Falerio is the daughter of a Congress leader called the variant as Modi variant. Shashi Tharoor too has called it an Indian variant as mentioned in the toolkit. We now know the origin of the toolkit,” said Patra.

    The BJP had come out with an ‘expose’ on Tuesday where it alleged that Congress has come out with a toolkit to tarnish Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s and government on handling of the pandemic. The contents of the toolkit ranged from targeting PM Modi to taking the help of foreign publication journalists for building a narrative against the government over its handling of the pandemic.

    BJP President JP Nadda had condemned Congress for “dividing society and spewing venom at a time when the country is fighting COVID-19 while urging Congress to go beyond toolkit models and do something constructive.”