Indian-origin NASA scientist detained in US, forced to unlock phone

February 14, 2017

Houston, Feb 14: An Indian-origin NASA scientist has said he was detained and forced to unlock his PIN-protected work phone at the US border by custom officials.

SiddBikkannavar

Sidd Bikkannavar, 35, said in a post on social media that US Customs and Border Protection officers wanted his cell phone and password -- before they would let him through at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

"On my way home to the US last weekend, I was detained by Homeland Security and held with others who were stranded under the Muslim ban," Bikkannavar wrote in a Facebook post.

"I initially refused, since it's a (NASA)-issued phone and I must protect access," Bikkannavar wrote.

Bikkannavar, bornin Pasadena,designs technology for space telescopes likethe enormous James Webb telescopethat's set to be launched into orbit in 2018.

"Just to be clear -- I'm a US-born citizen and NASA engineer, travelling with a valid US passport. Once they took both my phone and the access PIN, they returned me to the holding area with cots and other sleeping detainees until they finished copying my data."

Bikkannavar spent a few weeks away pursuing his hobby of racing solar-powered cars.

As a member of a Chilean team, he visited Patagonia in early January under the Obama administration.

Hereturned after Trump took office and issued the executive order on travel into the United States.

Nothing about Bikkannavar should have caused concern for CBP — he's a natural–born US citizen, enrolled in a programme that allows individuals who've already passed background checks to quickly enter the country.

In addition, he has never visited the countries on the immigration ban, and he's 10-year employee of a major US federal agency.

"I don't know what to think about this. I was caught a little off guard by the whole thing," Bikkannavar told media here in a phone call.Bikkannavar detailed his experience on Facebook, explaining his absence to friends and coworkers.

The episode, aside from the profiling it ostensibly involved, also put him in a fix with his employers, because he was required to protect access to the phone.

"I'm back home, and JPL has been running forensics on the phone to determine what CBP/homeland security might have taken, or whether they installed anything on the device," Bikkannavar explained in the post, adding that he has also been working with JPL legal counsel and the lab has issued him a new phone and new phone number.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)filed numerous complaints in Januaryagainst CBP for demanding that Muslim-American citizens give up their social media information when they return home from overseas.

Earlier this week, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly issued a statement in response, tellingtheHouse Homeland Security Committee,"We want to get on their social media, with passwords: What do you do, what do you say? If they don’t want to cooperate then you don’t come in".

Clarification: Coastaldigest.com had initially called Sidd Bikkannavar a Muslim based on a report provided by a prominent Indian news agency that is usually reliable. However, it could not independently verify the claim. Even though the detained NASA scientist does not look very ‘foreign’, his last name is from the Hubli-Dharwad region in North Karnataka. In his social media post, he never mentioned his religion. He just stated that he was detained by Homeland Security and held with others who were stranded under the Muslim ban.

Comments

Naren kotian
 - 
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

cmon man ... jews believe in same prophet who founded ur faith :) biggest joke .. adakke jews kandre kolli antha heli kodu alva ...jews women na kandre rape maadi antha helodu... brothers and sisters anthe ... kumda ...

Fairmen , curiosity , wow ... we went to a madrasa in search of knowledge ... but came to know half boileds are more and particualrly common sense ilve illa antha ... maatu yettidre jihad ....victim conspiracy and sumne kaage haarsode ... hogappa ammi biryani tinnu hogu ... kabbadii aado time aithu :)

Naren kotian
 - 
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

hahaha lo maraya gut alla kano madrasa product , adakke helodu 'moojikaasda'?antha .... i like it .. i like it ... frustration nodrappa ... jingchak jigi jigi chak ...,mama gut andre enu gotta ... hahaha :) papa PFI and CFI ngo galige funds bartha illa ... vila vila antha oddatha irodu nodokke maja maams

Abu Naren
 - 
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

O Banghi sakka da Naren you do not know any thing your chaddi sakka has taught you only hatredness. Poor guy after sakka's training directly appointed in Singapore air port toilet cleaning. Your whole chaddi team,banghi pariwar & jews can not do any thing to Islam.When you get frustrated do not drink toilet cleaner with mullas urine. Cool down do not act like Foolish you are thinking you know every thing you are a Joker. Banghi pariwar member even u do not have a gut to show your own identity.

Hindustan Hamara
 - 
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

Hehehe'Kave you met any Israelis in US? In Israel they do not have any option but to like you otherwise who will clean their toilets? Jews & Muslims are brothers because they believe in same prophets but where you are fitting in except cleaning toilets. Hindustan belongs to every Hindu, Muslims, Christians, and Sikhs but not belongs to RSS criminals. Hindustan belongs to Indians not to Nagpur Colonialist.

Naren kotian
 - 
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

hahaha ... jews dont like hindus ? cool go and meet any jewish organisation ... then u will ... have u visited israel ? or have u interacted with isrelis? dont talk like madrasa product . sorry we see israelis as our own brothers than others .we feel both of them are in same page ... we dont give damn about palestanians ...if they do problem , israel has the right to brutally kill ... Hindustan hamara ? hahaha hindustan belongs to nationalist true lovers of India , not for jihadists ... nationalist indians can be anyone , may be christians , hindus or sikhs or even muslims ... hogappa ... camel toliyakke illandre nimma shake bandu toilet tolilikekke heltane ... haha

Viren Kotian
 - 
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

I think US security agencies mistook him for a Muslim just like Indian news agencies mistook him for a Muslim. When US authorities realised that he was a Hindu, they immediately released him! Good development.

Hindustan Hamara
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

There are thousands of people who are converted to Islam in US and have not changed their names. If Anwar is the reason for his detention then I can'? help Naren. It is just that US police force is most effective unlike Indian police where Babri Masjid demolition gay Advani and his mafia gang still roaming free without any trial and responsible for gujarat genocide gay becomes PM. In US Jews do not like Indians. Stop licking their feet in Israel just because they are killing Palestinians...Such hatred towards Muslims will destroy your heart beyond any repair. We want you to study and accept beautiful religion of Islam and enter paradise.

N S Mohammed
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

CD i requested many times you to improve quality. Today lots of space errors in your compose. Pls.......

Fairman
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

This makes a positive change as follows.

This will prompt the common citizens of their curiosity to know deeply about Islam, which ultimately make them inseparable from it as happened after 9/11 of 2001.

naren kotian
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

good .. CD at last accepted your mistake , he is native of north karnataka . bikkanavar ... may be police thought anwar ... so they detained him thats all .. got it ?, this type of security arrangement is quiet common in israel , even though 2 indian passports HOLDER enters , they will check if indian national is hindu , christian or buddhist or jain .. if not there is a mandotory verification BY 5 ARMY officers 5 levels .before landing itself they will ask plenty questions . even muslims with canada passports and US passports are not spared . its good for the safety . thats why israel is safe .good decision USA

Rikaz
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

As a matter of fact more then 50% of US people voted for Trump to initiate this law.....because of that reason Trump won election...and it was his election slogan, people should have defeated his slogan...but they did not....Muslims should avoid going US as long as is sitting up there....

Rikaz
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

Naren, his passport says his religion is Islam, may be he has deceived US authority or converted to Islam.....

Rizwan
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

on the day of judgement while getting entry to paradise, it will be opposite . All the non believers will regret , had i been gone through or followed the quran, seing at Muslims entering paradise with the warm welcome.

shaji
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

US is adopting policty which is take it to ruin. its well said \Vinasha kaala vipareeta budhi\". Trump will put USA in troubled water and US citizens will kick him out sooner or later. Let us hope for this at the earliest to save US and US citizens from distruction."

Rikaz
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

Mr. Unknown, you should read Quran with meaning so that you will come to know and understand that if Quran teaches Muslims violence....no where in the Quran it is mentioned anything about it......simply commenting for the sake of commenting that wont take you anywhere.....

Naren kotian
 - 
Tuesday, 14 Feb 2017

FYI ,...cd have some common sense and give proper heading ... he is not muslim ... his full name sidharth bikkanavar ... and also he originally hails from karnataka .nonsense journalism

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News Network
June 8,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 8: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday fielded Eranna Kadadi and Ashok Gasti as it's candidates for the June 19 Rajya Sabha elections from Karnataka, ignoring the recommendations of the state BJP unit.

The state unit had recommended the names of Prabhakar Kore, Ramesh Katti and Prakash Shetty.

The names of the two candidates were announced in a party statement in Delhi.

The election is scheduled on June 19 to fill four Rajya Sabha seats from Karnataka, represented by Rajeev Gowda and BK Hariprasad of Congress, Prabhakar Kore of BJP and D Kupendra Reddy of JD(S) that will fall vacant on June 25, with their retirement.

June 9 is the last date for filing nominations. Party sources said both Kadadi and Gasti come from an RSS background.

Kadadi hails from Belagavi, while Gasti is a resident of Raichur.

The 54-year-old Eranna Kadadi started his active political career in 1989 and unsuccessfully contested the assembly election from Arambhavi constituency in 1994 on a BJP ticket.

He had also served as the Belagavi district Panchayat president in 2010.

Ashok Gasti is a lawyer by profession and former general secretary of the BJP's OBC Cell.

He is the former chairperson of the Backward Class Development Corporation.

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News Network
May 28,2020

Mangaluru, May 28: A pregnant woman who returned from Dubai in a repatriation flight suffered miscarriage after she was allegedly denied entry to her apartment flat and also refused proper treatment in the institutional quarantine.

Fathima was put in a paid quarantine facility after she returned on May 12 flight for her first delivery.

On the second day of her return, she tested negative for Covid-19 in the first test. As per SOP (Standard operating procedures) for pregnant women, she was ready to shift to her apartment, Shivdeep Residency, located at Shivbhag in the city for home quarantine.

However, the members of the Resident Welfare Association of the apartment who got a whiff of her arrival, called an emergency meeting the previous night and reportedly informed the pregnant woman that her entry to the flat would put other residents in trouble and suggested that she stay away.

Sources said the RWA consists of some serving and retired police officials.

With no other go, the woman continued in the paid quarantine.

Treatment for a pregnant woman?

Fathima's father-in-law Azeez Bastikar said the doctors who attended her during the quarantine did not provide proper healthcare required for a pregnant woman and also refused to touch her, out of fear.

Many a time, they did not even check her BP, saying that they ‘forgot to bring the kit’. When her situation worsened, the family members contacted several hospitals in the city but all of them allegedly refused to admit her, fearing the sealing down of the hospital in case she tests positive on the 14th day COVID test.

Finally, the six and half months pregnant woman was shifted to a clinic on Wednesday after her 14th day test had turned negative.

The doctors who checked her found out that she had suffered a miscarriage and operated on her to remove the stillborn. The doctors said further delay would have costed the woman her life.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Azeez Bastikar approached Deputy Commissioner Sindhu B Rupesh, seeking action against the doctors and hospitals who denied treatment and the RWA who refused her entry to the apartment.

Stating that the ill-treatment meted out to her daughter-in-law by doctors and others added to her trauma resulting in the miscarriage, he appealed to the authorities to ensure that no one else is treated in a similar manner.

He said that Fathima and her husband live in Dubai and that she came to India for a safe delivery as the situation was critical in Dubai.

The paid quarantine facility where she had to continue after RWA denied her access, charged her Rs 60,000 for her stay.

Meanwhile, the MCC commissioner Ajith Kumar Hegde on Thursday issued a notice to Shivdeep Apartment for refusing Fathima's entry.

The apartment has to respond within three days, failing which legal action will be initiated against it.

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News Network
March 31,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 31: The Kerala government

on Tuesday rejected concerns of community spread of novel coronavirus in the state in the wake of the second death of a patient here who had no travel history or reported contact with any infected person.

Setting aside the concern, Health Minister K K Shylaja said the deceased man, a native of nearby Pothancode, was already suffering from several other health issues including high blood pressure.

The 68-yearold man died at the government medical college here, taking the total number of COVID-19 deaths in Kerala to two, the government said.

"We have got information that the deceased man had come in contact with some persons arrived from the Gulf. As he was very sick and was not in a position to speak, we could not collect details from him directly," she told reporters here.

"So we had to collect such details from his relatives now. As per preliminary assessment, it was a case of contact spread. So, as of now, there is no need to get panic about the community spread," she said

The possibility of death was high among patients, aged above 60 years and suffering from other diseases like heart ailments or diabetics, she said.

"That's why we are giving strict directions to the elderly people to remain in homes and avoid contact with infected persons, " the minister said.

However, the minister directed those came in contact with the deceased person to remain in self-quarantine and inform the authorities if they developed any infection symptoms.

In both the coronavirus deaths in the state, the deceased persons were aged and were suffering from other diseases, she added.

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