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Of Cows, Men and Murder

[email protected] (Agencies)
May 7, 2017

The reprehensible acts by cow vigilantes seem to be going on unhindered. Some incidents have happened right in front of the police, who have turned a blind eye.

vigilantes

Despite the Centre issuing an advisory last year on the action to be taken by the state governments over such incidents, not much has changed on the ground. This has only emboldened self-styled cow protectors to have a free run.

A big concern is that most of the attacks have taken place in the BJP-ruled states, and as the saffron juggernaut rolls on election after election, the future could be unpredictable.

Uttar Pradesh

Noida, May 5, 2017

Two contact workers, assumed to be Muslims, thrashed for “cow smuggling”

Dadri, September 28, 2015 (The trigger)

* Mohd Akhlaq (52), son Danish dragged out of their house, beaten with bricks for storing and eating beef

* Akhlaq dies, Danish suffers severe injuries

* Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath bans cow slaughter after taking over in March

* Orders sealing of illegal slaughterhouses, triggering protests

Jammu & Kashmir

Udhampur, Oct 9, 2015

* Truck attacked with petrol bombs after rumours of it carrying dead cows

* Driver succumbs to injuries 10 days later

* Seven held for murder

Reasi, April 20, 2017

* Nomadic family with livestock intercepted

* Family, including nine-year-old girl, beaten with iron rods

* Four arrested and charged with attempt to murder

Cow slaughter or possession of its meat in J&K is criminal offence carrying jail term of not less than 10 years (now also in Gujarat)

Haryana

* Beef is banned, 10-year punishment for cow slaughter

* “Beef biryani policing” -- police squads check random eateries for selling beef

Faridabad, June 10, 2016

* Gau Rakshak Dal members stop beef transporters

* Force them to eat cow dung

Rajasthan

Alwar, April 1, 2017

* 50-year-old dairy farmer Pehlu Khan dies after vigilantes beat him up for transpoting cows; four others injured

* 7 arrested, but none who were named in FIR

* Vipin Yadav, an accused, was compared to Bhagat Singh by cow vigilante Sadhvi Kamal

Has a dedicated Cow Welfare Department, but 2,000 cows died in state-owned shelters due to negligence

Delhi

Kalkaji, April 22, 2017

* Three youths beaten up by around 25 men, said to be members of People for Animal, for transporting buffaloes

* Youth were en route to municipal slaughter house

* Cops arrested the youth first, attackers later

Kerala House, Oct 26, 2015

* Delhi Police raid Kerala House after complaints that beef was being served

* Hindu Sena claims it received a tip off

* The menu, it claims, has all items in English, except one which is in Malayalam

Gujarat

Una, July 11, 2016

* Four Dalit youths stripped, tied to an SUV and beaten up for skinning dead cow

* But CID report says cows were killed by lions

* Video of incident posted on social media with warning

Punjab

* Case filed on August 6, 2014, against Gau Raksha Dal after a video showing members brutally thrashing “cow smugglers”, went viral

*Dal chief Satish Kumar arrested from Vrindavan on Aug 22, 2016, after being booked on charges of sodomy, rioting and extortion

Telangana

* Struggle against Al kabir and Allanna mechanical slaughter houses of Medak district (earlier undivided AP) has been going on for long

* 'Gau Rakshaks' keep vigil on trucks that carry bovines and raid them

* Such raids result in communal tension, particularly during Bakrid

Andhra Pradesh

East Godavari, Aug 10, 2016

* Two Dalits who were skinning a dead cow were brutally beaten by locals

* Farmers who were searching for their missing cows mistook the duo as cow thieves, tied them to a tree and thrashed them

* 7 arrests were made in the case

Maharashtra

Senior BJP MLA Mangalprabhat Lodha seeks capital punishment for slaughtering cows and bulls

Jharkhand

Latehar, March 18, 2016

* Two Muslim men found hanging from a tree

* Mazlum Ansari (32) was a cattle trader; Imteyaz Khan (13) was the son of a cattle trader

Karnataka

Chikkamagalur, July 17, 2016

Seven Bajrang Dal members attack a Dalit family on suspicion of cattle theft and cow slaughter

Madhya Pradesh

Mandsaur, July 26, 2016

* Two Muslim women carrying buffalo meat slapped, kicked and abused by women members of Hindu Dal on suspicion that it was beef

* Police accused of making half-hearted attempts to intervene

Kerala

Surprisingly, for April 12 Malappuram Lok Sabha bypoll, BJP candidate N Sreeprakash promised “clean slaughterhouses for good beef”

Ernakulam, April 19, 2017

Eight RSS activists were arrested in connection with an attack on a house where a calf was slaughtered for Easter

Assam

Nangaon, May 1, 2017:

Two men lynched for “trying to steal cows” in a village, 130 km from Guwahati

Manipur

Imphal East, Nov 3, 2015

Headmaster of govt madrasa killed for “stealing cows” from his neighbouring village

What the Constitution says...

Article 48 (Directive Principles)

Organisation of agriculture and animal husbandry: The state shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter, of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.

Govt advisory of August 9, 2016

* States are enjoined upon and expected to ensure that any person who takes law into his/her own hands is dealt with promptly, and punished as per law

* There should be no tolerance at all for such persons and full majesty of law must come to bear on them, without exception

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Agencies
July 6,2020

The Covid-19 pandemic has made an unprecedented impact on the Indian businesses, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and startups. According to a joint survey by FICCI and Indian Angel Network (IAN), the pandemic has hit the businesses of around 70% startups.

With uncertainty in the business environment and an unexpected shift in priorities of the government as well as corporates, many startups are struggling to survive, it says.

In a nationwide survey on the 'Impact of Covid-19 on Indian Startups' involving 250 startups, 70% participants said their businesses had been impacted by Covid-19 and around 12% had shut operations.

The survey shows only 22% startups have cash reserves to meet the fixed cost expenses over the next 3-6 months, and 68% are reducing operational and administrative expenses.

Around 30% of the companies said they would retrench employees if the lockdown was extended too long. The 43% startups have already started 20-40% salary cuts over April-June.

Over 33% startups said investors had put the investment decision on hold and 10% said the deals had been scrapped. Only 8% startups had received funds as per the deals signed before Covid-19 outbreak, the survey revealed.

The reduced funding has forced startups to put a hold on business development and manufacturing activities, which has resulted in loss of projected orders.

The survey highlights the need of an urgent relief package for startups, including possible purchase orders from the government, tax relief and swifter tax refunds, and immediate fiscal support measures, including grants, soft loans and payroll grants.

Besides 250 startups, 61 incubators and investors also participated in the survey.

While 96% of investors accepted that their investments in startups had been impacted by Covid-19, 92% said their investments in startups would continue to be low over the next six months.

Around 59% investors said they would prefer to work with the existing portfolio firms in the coming months. Only 41% said they would consider new deals.

"A comparison of priority investment sectors before and during Covid-19 shows 35% investors are now looking at investments in healthcare startups, followed by EdTech, AI/Deep Tech, FinTech and Agri," said the survey.

Around 44% incubators surveyed said their day-to-day operations had been considerably hit by Covid-19. Most incubators are now supporting their portfolio firms by providing them virtual platforms to interact with mentors, investors and industries.

Dilip Chenoy, FICCI Secretary General, said, "The startup sector is stressed for survival at the moment. The investment sentiment is also subdued and is expected to remain so in the coming months. Lack of working capital and cash flows may lead to major layoffs over the next 3-6 months."

Indian startups needed an enabling ecosystem and flow of funds to continue operations, the survey said.

Padmaja Ruparel, President, Indian Angel Network & Co-Chair of FICCI Startup Committee, said, "In these uncertain times, as investors, we must play an important role to provide the Indian startups funding, mentoring and hand-holding support to stay afloat and come out at the other end of this crisis."

To that end, IAN recently announced a debt fund to help IAN portfolio companies raise working capital and ensure business continuity by partnering with debt providers.

This must be replicated on a wider scale, so a larger number of startups are provided the capital support to make it during these tough times, Ruparel said.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: The National Commission for Women (NCW) has issued notice to some Bollywood celebrities named in a complaint against the promoter of a company for allegedly blackmailing and sexually assaulting a number of girls on the pretext of giving them a career in modelling.

Taking cognizance of the complaint filed by social activist Yogita Bhayana of People Against Rape in India (PARI), the NCW scheduled a virtual hearing presided by its chairperson on August 6.

The complaint against Sunny Verma, promoter of a company named IMG Ventures with its headquarter in Chandigarh, alleged that he has been blackmailing and sexually assaulting a number of girls on the pretext of giving them career in modelling.

PARI's Yogita Bhayana wrote a complaint letter to NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma.

"Through his company, he (Sunny Verma) invites the girls on the pretext of organising a Miss Asia contest with a claim that the contest will launch them as models. To make it look genuine, his company has also been taking an entry fee of Rs 2,950. Once the girls apply, they are alluded by the female accomplices of Sunny Verma to submit their nude pictures in order to get the better ranking in the contest," the complaint letter said on July 31.

It alleged that Verma, after receiving the pictures and sometimes even before, used to get in touch with the girls and ask for completely nude pictures and videos.

The complaint letter said that Verma also used to allude as well as threaten the girls to submit to his sexual desires if they were interested in modelling as a career or wish to win the contest.

"Once he established a physical relationship with the girls, he used to blackmail them for regular sexual favours. Many girls from across the country have suffered a sexual and mental assault from Sunny and his accomplices," said the complaint citing several letters, texts and audio clips from several girls as proof of this modus operandi of Sunny Verma and his company.

The complaint also said that Sunny Verma has been previously also arrested on charges of sexual assault.

"We would demand that NCW should investigate the case to its depth and get the guilty punished so that any other person should not dare to exploit these kinds of innocent girls on any pretext. It will be a message to people like Sunny Verma and all associated Bollywood stars. Looking forward to strict action from NCW against sexual offenders like Sunny Verma & others," the complaint said.

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Agencies
January 26,2020

New Delhi, Jan 26: Google on Sunday marked India's 71st Republic Day by dedicating a doodle illustrating the country's rich cultural heritage that permeates and unites the diverse nation.

From its world-famous landmarks like the Taj Mahal and India Gate, to the wide array of fauna such as its national bird (the Indian peafowl), to classical arts, textiles, and dances, the doodle, designed by Singapore-based artist Meroo Seth, brings together the rich cultural heritage of the country.

Republic Day marks the completion of India's transition towards becoming an independent republic after its constitution came into effect. The governing document had taken nearly three years of careful deliberation to finalise, and its eventual enactment was joyfully celebrated across the country.

While the Constitution was adopted by the Indian Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949, it came into effect on January 26 -- a day when Declaration of Indian Independence (Purna Swaraj) was proclaimed by the Indian National Congress back in 1929, as opposed to the Dominion status offered by the British Regime.

Festivities embody the essence of diversity found in one of the world's most populous nations, celebrated over a three-day period with cultural events displaying national pride.

Last year's doodle on Republic Day, designed by artist Reshidev RK, had featured Rashtrapati Bhavan in the background along with a display of the country's iconic monuments and heritage.

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