Newslaundryhttps://www.newslaundry.comWe have finally migrated our website to better architecture! While the fancy new website will be up in a few months, we have fixed issues related to payment and login in the meantime. You will need to log in anew. If you have forgotten your password, you can generate one by clicking on the forgot password link (it works!). Send any questions or feedback to contact@newslaundry.com.en-inTue, 19 Mar 2024 05:03:57 +0000hourly1Electoral Bonds: What we know so far, what we will know soon, and what we may never knowhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/19/electoral-bonds-what-we-know-so-far-what-we-will-know-soon-and-what-we-may-never-knowhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/19/electoral-bonds-what-we-know-so-far-what-we-will-know-soon-and-what-we-may-never-know#comments4b54af8b-2915-4a1f-be40-83a4fdda427bTue, 19 Mar 2024 03:30:00 +00002024-03-19T03:30:00.000ZSupriya Sharma/api/author/1931936Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondThe floodgates have opened. After six years of secrecy surrounding who gave money to political parties through electoral bonds, information has finally started to come out on the orders of the Supreme Court of India. 

However, the information is still partial – and confusing. 

The Election Commission released one set of data on March 14, another on March 17 – and more is expected to come before March 21.

So what did each data set contain and what has it revealed? 

Why is the data that is still to come out crucial?

Here is an explainer to help you navigate this big, developing story that could have far reaching implications in India. We start with some important background.

What are electoral bonds?

Before the Supreme Court struck them down as illegal on February 15, electoral bonds were paper instruments that anyone could buy from the State Bank of India and give to a political party, which could redeem them for money. 

When the Modi government introduced the scheme in 2018, it claimed that electoral bonds would help clean up political finance in India by allowing donors to contribute money to parties anonymously.

Until then, political parties only had the option of accepting contributions above Rs 20,000 through regular bank cheques and transfers, and they had to mandatorily disclose the names of those donors in annual reports filed to the Election Commission.

Were the bonds actually anonymous?

Technically, yes. Unlike a bank cheque, the bond did not carry any names – no name surfaced in the banking system when the bond was redeemed. While this allowed a donor to remain anonymous, recent disclosures have made it clear that donors declared their identities to the parties while handing them over the bonds. 

This means political parties knew the identities of the donors. But crucially the Indian public did not. The electoral bond scheme allowed political parties to get away without making any significant disclosure to the Election Commission, using the (false) argument that the bonds were anonymous.

The Supreme Court struck down the scheme as illegal on grounds that the public had the right to know who gave money to political parties. It ordered the State Bank of India to disclose information on both the buyers and the beneficiaries of the bonds. The bank was asked to give the data to the Election Commission by March 6, which would then make it public. 

On March 4, the bank asked for an extension till June. The court rejected the plea, setting in motion the release of the bond data, with the first dataset coming out on March 14.

What did the first dataset reveal?

On March 14, the Election Commission of India uploaded two lists on its website. The first was a list revealing the names of the buyers of each and every bond purchased between April 12, 2019 and January 2024, with the date and the denomination of the bond. 

This list revealed that the largest buyer of the bonds was a lottery company, that infrastructure and pharmaceutical companies were major donors, that Reliance-linked firms bought bonds, among other things. It also showed 21 companies bought bonds after they were raided by central agencies like the Enforcement Directorate.

The second list released by the Election Commission on March 14 featured the date and the amount of each bond encashed by political parties. This helped us tabulate the total amount each party had received, revealing that the BJP had pocketed Rs 8,250 crore of Rs 16,492 crore bonds redeemed – just over half the money given through electoral bonds.

A combination image showing the starting pages of the two lists. For representation purposes.

What was missing from the first dataset?

Two things were missing. One, the unique code of every bond that could help match the buyer and the beneficiary. The existence of this hidden alphanumeric code on the bonds was first revealed by journalist Poonam Agarwal in 2018 after she purchased two bonds and got them tested by a forensic lab. 

Two, the lists did not contain data for bonds purchased before April 12, 2019 – which amounted to over Rs 4,000 crore.

The cut-off was the date of an interim order passed by the Supreme Court in April 2019. Hearing petitions challenging the legality of the electoral bond scheme, the court had then ordered that while it was still deciding the matter, the Election Commission must collect information on electoral bonds from all political parties and submit it to the court in a sealed cover. 

When the Supreme Court finally passed its final judgement in the case in February 2024, it asked for only data related to electoral bonds bought and encashed after the interim order of April 12, 2019 to be made public. 

Explaining the rationale, the judges said on March 18: “We took that date because it was our considered view that once the interim order was pronounced, everybody was put on notice.” The court seemed to imply that until the interim order was passed, those who donated money through bonds did so assuming their identity would remain anonymous and hence, their privacy should be protected – as opposed to those who donated after the interim order date.

But the second dataset released by the Election Commission ended up inadvertently revealing the identities of some of the pre-April 2019 donors.

What did the second dataset reveal?

The second dataset was uploaded on the Election Commission's website on March 17. It contained the reports that political parties had filed to the commission between 2019 and 2023 that had been submitted to the Supreme Court in sealed covers.

There was no standard format to these disclosures. Most parties only revealed the date and amounts of the bonds they had redeemed. Three parties – the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Janata Dal (Secular) – revealed the names of all their donors – busting the myth that the bonds were anonymous. 

The DMK disclosure showed its largest donor was the lottery company, Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Limited. The Janata Dal (Secular) revealed among those who had donated to the party ahead of the 2018 Karnataka election was Infosys – the software giant’s name had not surfaced in the first dataset since it did not contain the names of the buyers of bonds pre-April 2019.

Two other parties ended up revealing the names of the bond donors for 2019: the Aam Aadmi Party and the Nationalist Congress Party. They did not disclose information for the subsequent years, though.

A combination of images of the Election Commission's second disclosure on March 17.

What data is still to come out?

The unique codes of the bonds are still to be revealed. On March 18, the Supreme Court asked the State Bank of India to submit data with the “alphanumeric number” of all bonds “purchased and redeemed” and file an affidavit by March 21 stating no information related to the bonds had been suppressed. 

Once the codes are known, it will become possible to map donors to recipients, revealing who gave money to which party. This information can be used to unearth quid-pro-quo relationships between donors and parties, either in the form of policy concessions or other favours granted by governments, or as payments made to get investigative agencies off their back.

But even after the codes are revealed, a crucial gap will remain in the data: the period between March 2018 and April 2019. 

Since the Supreme Court has taken the view that information for the period before April 12, 2019 must not be revealed, it will be hard to draw a definitive picture of the Rs 4,000 crore of bond money that transferred hands in the lead up to the Lok Sabha election in which the BJP won a landslide victory.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Divya Aslesha, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddharth Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

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Over 3 years after arrest, HC grants bail to student leader in Hathras conspiracy casehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/over-3-years-after-arrest-hc-grants-bail-to-student-leader-in-hathras-conspiracy-casehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/over-3-years-after-arrest-hc-grants-bail-to-student-leader-in-hathras-conspiracy-case#commentsb9d18931-6df0-46dc-8327-77bbeec75baaMon, 18 Mar 2024 18:15:14 +00002024-03-18T18:15:14.546ZNL Team/api/author/730883HathrasShotThe Allahabad High Court has granted bail to student leader Masood Ahmed in the 2020 Hathras conspiracy case in which four people, including journalist Siddique Kappan, were charged under the UAPA, LiveLaw reported.

A bench of Justices Attau Rahman Masoodi and Ajai Kumar Srivastava considered the bail to the other accused and Masood’s prolonged custody before granting relief to Ahmed without offering any opinion on the case merits. 

Kappan was released last year. he  had been in jail since September 2020, when he was arrested under UAPA charges while going to Hathras to report on the rape case and subsequent death of a Dalit woman. He was granted bail in the case by the Supreme Court on September 9, 2022. But he remained in jail in connection with a PMLA case, filed against him and others by the Enforcement Directorate in February last year.

In September, 2022, the Supreme Court granted bail to the journalist in the UAPA case, stating that “every citizen has the right to free expression”. However, he was only granted bail in the PMLA case by the Allahabad High Court in December 2022.

His wife had earlier told Newslaundry that he was “beaten for knowing Arabic and studying in Jamia”.

Read all about the chargesheet here.

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पीएम मोदी के 'करीबी' टॉरेंट ग्रुप ने खरीदे 185 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्डhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/pm-modi-close-torrent-group-bought-185-crore-rupees-electoral-bondshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/pm-modi-close-torrent-group-bought-185-crore-rupees-electoral-bonds#comments20acb329-59c2-47e6-948f-d9dc360a06e0Mon, 18 Mar 2024 10:30:29 +00002024-03-18T10:30:29.648Zप्रतीक गोयल/api/author/731028Electoral bonds,Political funding,Torrent GroupPolitical-fundingProject Electoral BondReportपांच साल पहले, महाराष्ट्र के तत्कालीन मुख्यमंत्री देवेंद्र फडणवीस ने एक कंपनी को 285 करोड़ रुपये के संपत्ति कर का भुगतान करने से छूट दी थी.

चुनाव आयोग द्वारा जारी डाटा से पता लगा है कि उसी कंपनी ने 7 मई, 2019 से 10 जनवरी, 2024 तक 185 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे.

यह टॉरेंट ग्रुप कंपनी का समूह है. जिसकी सहायक कंपनियां टोरेंट पावर लिमिटेड और टोरेंट फार्मास्यूटिकल्स लिमिटेड हैं. इसकी दोनों कंपनियां चुनाव आयोग की वेबसाइट पर अपलोड किए गए दस्तावेज में चुनावी बॉन्ड के खरीदारों के रूप में दर्ज है.

ध्यान देने वाली बात है कि समूह के मानद चेयरमैन सुधीर मेहता को प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी का करीबी माना जाता है. न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री को यह भी पता चला कि 2007 से लेकर 2014-15 तक, कंपनी ने भाजपा को 33.11 करोड़ रुपये से अधिक का चंदा दिया.

चर्चा में आई ये तस्वीरें. 

आम चुनावों का ऐलान हो चुका है. एक बार फिर न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

कई सालों के ‘करीबी संबंध’

चुनाव आयोग द्वारा सार्वजनिक की गई जानकारी के अनुसार, 7 मई और 10 मई 2019 को टॉरेंट पावर और टॉरेंट फार्मास्यूटिकल्स ने 14.9 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे.

दो हफ्ते बाद 27 मई, 2019 को राज्य सरकार ने एक सरकारी प्रस्ताव जारी किया. इसमें कहा गया कि भिवंडी नगर निगम को टॉरेंट पावर से ब्याज और जुर्माना सहित 285 करोड़ रुपये का संपत्ति कर एकत्र करने की आवश्यकता नहीं है.

प्रस्ताव में कहा गया है: “चूंकि राज्य सरकार इस निष्कर्ष पर पहुंची है कि इस तरह के संपत्ति कर की वसूली अंततः भिवंडी के नागरिकों के हित में नहीं है, राज्य सरकार नगर निगम को टॉरेंट पावर से संपत्ति कर की वसूली के लिए सभी कार्यवाही वापस लेने का निर्देश दे रही है.”

यह प्रस्ताव तब जारी किया गया, जब टॉरेंट पावर ने राज्य सरकार को सूचित किया कि संपत्ति कर वसूलने से "ज़्यादा शुल्क लगेगा जो नागरिकों के हित में नहीं होगा". इसके तुरंत बाद, स्थानीय नागरिकों ने टॉरेंट पावर पर भिवंडी में "माफिया की तरह के ऑपरेशन" चलाने का आरोप लगाते हुए एक अभियान शुरू किया.

अनुमानित रूप से 37,000 करोड़ रुपये के टॉरेंट ग्रुप की शुरुआत 1940 के दशक में उत्तमभाई नाथालाल मेहता ने की थी. इसका मुख्यालय अहमदाबाद में है और इसके वर्तमान अध्यक्ष सुधीर मेहता हैं.

मेहता और उद्योगपति गौतम अडानी, प्रधानमंत्री मोदी के “पुराने दोस्त” हैं. वे तब उनके साथ खड़े रहे जब 2003 में गुजरात दंगों के तुरंत बाद जब भारतीय उद्योग परिसंघ ने उस समय के मुख्यमंत्री मोदी की कड़ी आलोचना की थी. रिसर्जेंट गुजरात ग्रुप का हिस्सा होने के नाते, उन्होंने एक बयान जारी कर सीआईआई से "राज्य की छवि खराब करने का सुनियोजित प्रयास" न करने का आग्रह किया. बयान में दंगों को "एक दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण सामाजिक दुर्घटना" बताया गया था, इसके बाद सीआईआई ने मोदी से माफी मांगी.

2014 में मोदी के प्रधानमंत्री बनने के बाद, टॉरेंट फार्मास्यूटिकल्स नई दवा मूल्य निर्धारण नीति के तहत अपनी नई विकसित दवा के लिए मूल्य नियंत्रण से छूट हासिल करने वाली पहली कंपनी थी. जनवरी 2015 में दिल्ली में बराक ओबामा और मोदी के बीच भारत-अमेरिका सीईओ फोरम में मेहता और अडाणी मोदी के 17 सदस्यीय प्रतिनिधिमंडल का हिस्सा थे. वे नवंबर 2014 में ऑस्ट्रेलिया में मोदी के प्रतिनिधिमंडल का भी हिस्सा थे.

इस ख़बर को अंग्रेजी में पढ़ने के लिए यहां क्लिक करें. 

यह रिपोर्ट एक सहयोगी परियोजना का हिस्सा है, जिसमें तीन समाचार संगठन - न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री, स्क्रॉल, द न्यूज़ मिनट और कई स्वतंत्र पत्रकार शामिल हैं. 

आम चुनावों का ऐलान हो चुका है. एक बार फिर न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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‘मोदी का सपना साकार करने वाली’ कंपनी एपको ने खरीदे 30 करोड़ के बॉन्डhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/apco-infratech-private-limited-purchase-bonds-worth-30-crore-rupees-in-3-yearshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/apco-infratech-private-limited-purchase-bonds-worth-30-crore-rupees-in-3-years#commentsfe05a116-11d4-4728-8820-e676dbd24244Mon, 18 Mar 2024 09:52:23 +00002024-03-18T09:52:23.108Zप्रतीक गोयल/api/author/731028Electoral bonds,Project Electoral Bond,APCOPolitical-fundingProject Electoral BondReportखुद को "प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी के भारत को 5 ट्रिलियन डॉलर की अर्थव्यवस्था बनाने के सपने को साकार करने वाले नायकों में एक" बताने वाली कंपनी ने 30 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे. 14 मार्च को चुनाव आयोग द्वारा जारी आंकड़ों के मुताबिक, कंपनी ने ये बॉन्ड 15 जनवरी, 2020 से लेकर 12 अक्टूबर, 2023 के बीच खरीदे. ये जानकारी सामने आने के बाद एपको इंफ्राटेक प्राइवेट लिमिटेड कंपनी पर अब सवाल उठने लगे हैं. 

एपको का मुख्यालय लखनऊ में है. इसके मालिक अनिल सिंह हैं. जानकारी के मुताबिक, कंपनी को उत्तर प्रदेश और महाराष्ट्र में सड़क, परिवहन, सिंचाई और जल स्वच्छता से संबंधित कई परियोजनाएं मिली हुई हैं. 

इनमें नवंबर 2019 में उत्तर प्रदेश में 1,500 करोड़ रुपये की बुंदेलखंड एक्सप्रेसवे परियोजना और 2022 में मुंबई में 9,000 करोड़ रुपये की वर्सोवा-बांद्रा सी-लिंक परियोजना शामिल है. 

2021 में, एपको को बेंगलुरु-चेन्नई एक्सप्रेसवे परियोजना के अलावा मुंगेर और मिर्जा चौकी के बीच चार-लेन सड़क निर्माण के लिए ठेका मिला. 

2022 में इसे चंदौली-सकलडीहा-सैदपुर, मोहनसराय-उपाध्याय नगर-चकिया, जुंजवानी से सिधारा, फरीदाबाद-बल्लबगढ़ बाईपास, शामली-अंबाला एक्सप्रेसवे और नायडूपेटा-तुरपु कनुपुर सहित कई राजमार्गों और सड़क निर्माण का ठेका मिला. 

इससे पहले साल 2020 में, एपको को मुंबई में डॉ. ई मोजेज रोड और केशवराव खाड़े मार्ग पर ओवर-ब्रिज बनाने का ठेका दिया गया था. पिछले साल, नियंत्रक एवं महालेखा परीक्षक (कैग) की एक रिपोर्ट में कहा गया था कि परियोजना में शामिल सभी ठेकेदारों को 27.14 करोड़ रुपये का "अनुचित लाभ" दिया गया. 

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री विज्ञापन-मुक्त पत्रकारिता में यकीन करने वाला संस्थान है. पत्रकारिता का यही मॉडल सार्वजनिक हित में काम कर सकता है. हमारी स्वतंत्र पत्रकारिता को आगे बढ़ाएं और आज ही सब्सक्राइब करें. 

2022 में, यूपी सरकार ने राज्य जल और स्वच्छता मिशन के तहत, एपको को आगरा और मथुरा में "ग्रामीणों के बहु-समूह जल आपूर्ति योजना के डिजाइन, ड्राइंग, डीपीआर और निर्माण" के ठेके दिए.  ये ठेके 1,840.7 करोड़ रुपये और 892 करोड़ रुपये के थे. 

इस साल जनवरी में, महाराष्ट्र राज्य सड़क विकास निगम ने समृद्धि महामार्ग गलियारे के किनारे सुविधाएं विकसित करने के लिए एपको को नामित किया. 

कुल मिलाकर एपको को उत्तर प्रदेश लोक निर्माण विभाग की ओर से दो रोड प्रोजेक्ट, यूपी एक्सप्रेसवे औद्योगिक विकास प्राधिकरण की ओर से तीन, ग्रेटर मुंबई नगर निगम की ओर एक, महाराष्ट्र राज्य सड़क विकास निगम से दो, भारतीय राष्ट्रीय राजमार्ग प्राधिकरण से नौ, भारतीय रेलवे कंस्ट्रक्शन इंटरनेशनल लिमिटेड से एक प्रोजेक्ट मिला.  

यह रिपोर्ट एक सहयोगी परियोजना का हिस्सा है, जिसमें तीन समाचार संगठन - न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री, स्क्रॉल, द न्यूज़ मिनट और कई स्वतंत्र पत्रकार शामिल हैं. 

प्रोजेक्ट इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड में अबान उस्मानी, आनंद मंगनाले, अनीशा शेठ, अंजना मीनाक्षी, आयुष तिवारी, अजीफा फातिमा, बसंत कुमार, धन्या राजेंद्रन, जयश्री अरुणाचलम, जोयल जॉर्ज, एम. राजशेखर, मारिया टेरेसा राजू, नंदिनी चंद्रशेखर, नील माधव, निकिता सक्सेना, पार्थ एमएन, पूजा प्रसन्ना, प्रज्वल भट्ट, प्रतीक गोयल, प्रत्युष दीप, रागामालिका कार्तिकेयन, रमन किरपाल, रवि नायर, साची हेगड़े, शब्बीर अहमद, शिवनारायण राजपुरोहित, सिद्धार्थ मिश्रा, सुप्रिया शर्मा, सुदीप्तो मंडल, तबस्सुम बरनगरवाला और वैष्णवी राठौड़ शामिल हैं. 

इस रिपोर्ट को अंग्रेजी में पढ़ने के लिए यहां क्लिक करें.

आम चुनावों का ऐलान हो चुका है. एक बार फिर न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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सुप्रीम कोर्ट के एसबीआई को सख्त आदेश- इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड से जुड़ी हरेक जानकारी देंhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/supreme-court-directs-sbi-to-disclose-all-details-related-to-electoral-bonds-by-21st-marchhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/supreme-court-directs-sbi-to-disclose-all-details-related-to-electoral-bonds-by-21st-march#comments566a6e59-602f-4998-a172-f023920973f0Mon, 18 Mar 2024 08:20:19 +00002024-03-18T08:20:19.766Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889supreme court,Electoral bonds,SBIKhabar BaaziMediaसुप्रीम कोर्ट ने सोमवार को भारतीय स्टेट बैंक (एसबीआई) को आदेश दिए कि वह वह इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड से जुड़ी हरेक जानकारी उपलब्ध करवाए. सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने बॉन्ड के यूनीक नंबर्स के खुलासे का भी आदेश दिया है. माना जा रहा है कि इन नंबर के जरिए बॉन्ड खरीदने वाले और फंड पाने वाली राजनीतिक पार्टी के लिंक का पता चलेगा. 

सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने कहा कि 21 मार्च की शाम 5 बजे तक एसबीआई ये जारी उपलब्ध करवाएं.  साथ ही बैंक के चेयरमैन एक हलफनामा दाखिल करें कि अब उन्होंने कोई भी जानकारी नहीं छुपाई है. साथ ही कोर्ट ने चुनाव आयोग को भी एसबीआई से मिली जानकारी तुरंत अपलोड करने निर्देश दिया है. 

मुख्य न्यायाधीश (सीजेआई) धनंजय यशवंत चंद्रचूड़ के अगुवाई वाली संविधान पीठ ने कहा कि बैंक जानकारियों का खुलासा करते वक्त चुनाव नहीं कर सकता कि क्या छुपाएं और क्या उपलब्ध करवाएं. सीजेआई ने कहा कि आप हमारे आदेश का इंतजार न करें बल्कि सारी जानकारी दें. 

मालूम हो कि इससे पहले संविधान पीठ ने 11 मार्च के फैसले में एसबीआई को बॉन्ड की पूरी डिटेल देने का निर्देश दिया था. हालांकि, बैंक ने सिर्फ बॉन्ड खरीदने और कैश कराने वालों की जानकारी दी. इस बात का खुलासा नहीं किया गया था कि किस डोनर ने किस राजनीतिक पार्टी को कितना चंदा दिया. 

आम चुनावों का ऐलान हो चुका है. एक बार फिर न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.इ

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रोज़नामचा: चुनाव आयोग ने सार्वजनिक किया राजनीतिक दलों से मिला डाटा और भूपेश बघेल पर केस दर्ज https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/roznamcha-18-march-2023-data-of-electoral-bonds-redeemed-by-political-parties-and-fir-against-bhupesh-baghelhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/roznamcha-18-march-2023-data-of-electoral-bonds-redeemed-by-political-parties-and-fir-against-bhupesh-baghel#commentse6b102b5-8589-4404-b708-9ba6b3b8b319Mon, 18 Mar 2024 07:33:46 +00002024-03-18T07:33:46.992Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889Electoral bonds,bhupesh baghel,Political PartiesKhabar BaaziMediaहिंदी के प्रमुख अखबारों ने आज एक नहीं बल्कि अलग-अलग ख़बरों को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है.  किसी ने राजनीतिक पार्टियों द्वारा चुनाव आयोग को दिए चंदे के आंकड़े को सार्वजनिक किए जाने तो किसी ने महादेव एप मामले में पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री भूपेश बघेल समेत कई लोगों पर मामला दर्ज किए जाने को प्राथमिकता दी है.  

आइए आज के प्रमुख अखबारों की अन्य सुर्खियों पर भी एक नज़र डालते हैं. लेकिन उससे पहले अगर आप रोज़नामचा को अपने ई-मेल पर पाना चाहते हैं तो यहां क्लिक करें. 

हिंदुस्तान अखबार ने निर्वाचन आयोग द्वारा राजनीतिक पार्टियों को मिले चंदे का आकंड़ा सार्वजनिक किए जाने को प्राथमिकता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, लोकसभा चुनाव की घोषणा के अगले दिन रविवार को निर्वाचन आयोग ने चुनावी बॉन्ड के जरिए मिले चंदे के बारे में राजनीतिक दलों से प्राप्त आंकड़ों को अपनी वेबसाइट पर सार्वजनिक किया. इससे पता चला कि विभिन्न राज्यों में सत्ता पर काबिज दलों को चुनावी बॉन्ड से भरपूर चंदा मिला. 

राजनीतिक रैलियों से लोकसभा चुनाव प्रचार का आगाज होने को भी अखबार ने प्राथमिकता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी ने आंध्र प्रदेश में चुनाव प्रचार किया. यहां उन्होंने कहा कि यह संयोग है कि इस बार नतीजे 4 जून को आने वाले हैं. लोग कह रहे हैं कि चार जून को हम 400 पार जाने वाले हैं. वहीं, मुंबई में रविवार को इंडिया गठबंधन ने भी रैली की और कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष मल्लिकार्जुन खड़गे ने कहा कि भाजपा 400 सीटें लाकर संविधान बदलना चाहती है. 

इसके अलावा दिल्ली के मुख्यमंत्री अरविंद केजरीवाल को अब दिल्ली जल बोर्ड मामले में ईडी का समन, रेव पार्टी आयोजित करने और सांपों का जहर सप्लाई करने के मामले में एल्विश यादव गिरफ्तार, बरसाना के मंदिर में रेलिंग टूटने के कई घायल, अरुणाचल और सिक्किम में मतों की गणना दो जून को और गुजरात की यूनिवर्सिटी में नमाज पढ़ने को लेकर विदेशी छात्रों पर हमला आदि ख़बरों को भी अखबार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है. 

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

जनसत्ता अखबार ने चुनाव आयोग द्वारा राजनीतिक दलों से प्राप्त इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा सार्वजनिक किए जाने को प्राथमिकता दी है. आंकड़ों के मुताबिक, भारतीय जनता पार्टी को सबसे ज्यादा 6986 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा मिला. वहीं, बसपा और एआईएमआईएम को बॉन्ड के जरिए कोई चंदा नहीं मिला. वहीं, साल 2019 में भाजपा को मात्र तीन महीनों में 3 हजार रुपये से ज्यादा का चंदा मिला. 

दिल्ली के मुख्यमंत्री अरविंद केजरीवाल को शराब घोटाले और जल बोर्ड मामले में फिर से तलब किए जाने को भी अखबार ने प्रमुखता से प्रकाशित किया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, ईडी ने उन्हें दो समन भेजे हैं. जल बोर्ड मामले में उन्हें 18 मार्च को तो शराब घोटाला मामले में 21 मार्च को बुलाया है. 

इसके अलावा महादेव सट्टेबाजी मामले में छत्तीसगढ़ के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री भूपेश बघेल के खिलाफ मामला दर्ज, गुजरात विश्वविद्यालय में विदेशी छात्रों से मारपीट मामले में दो गिरफ्तार और राष्ट्रीय स्वयंसेवक संघ महासचिव दत्तात्रेय होसबाले फिर से तीन साल के लिए सरकार्यवाह नियुक्त आदि ख़बरों को भी अखबार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.

अमर उजाला अखबार ने चुनाव आयोग द्वारा राजनीतिक दलों से मिले चुनावी बॉन्ड के ब्योरा सार्वजनिक किए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, चुनावी बॉन्ड योजना के जरिए भाजपा को सबसे ज्यादा चंदा मिला है. वहीं, 1368 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा देने वाली फ्यूचर गेमिंग ने सबसे ज्यादा चंदा द्रमुक को दिया. निर्वाचन आयोग की ओर से सार्वजनिक की गई जानकारी में यह खुलासा हुआ. 

महादेव एप मामले में भूपेश बघेल के खिलाफ केस दर्ज किए जाने को भी अखबार ने प्रमुखता से प्रकाशित किया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, इसमें बघेल समेत 22 लोगों के खिलाफ मामला दर्ज किया गया है. छत्तीसगढ़ पुलिस की आर्थिक अपराध शाखा ने ईडी की जांच रिपोर्ट के आधार पर यह कार्रवाई की है. 

इसके अलावा जल बोर्ड में अनियमितताओं पर दिल्ली के मुख्यमंत्री अरविंद केजरीवाल को समन, सांपों के जहर की तस्करी में एल्विश यादव गिरफ्तार, बिहार में शिक्षक भर्ती पेपर लीक में 270 गिरफ्तार और जोमैटो को 8.57 करोड़ रुपये का जीएसटी का नोटिस आदि ख़बरों को भी अखबार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है. 

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

दैनिक भास्कर अखबार ने राजनीतिक दलों द्वारा चुनाव आयोग को दी गई चुनावी चंदे से जुड़ी जानकारी सार्वजनिक किए जाने को जैकेट पेज पर पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, इसमें 523 पार्टियों की ओर से दी गई जानकारी है. भाजपा ने बताया है कि उसे कुल 7700 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा मिला है. वहीं, जदयू ने कहा कि कोई सीलबंद लिफाफा फेंक गया था जिसमें 1-1 करोड़ के 10 बॉन्ड निकले. 

अखबार ने झारखंड सिविल सेवा परीक्षा में पेपर लीक के आरोपों के बाद हंगामा होने को पहले पन्ने की सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, परीक्षार्थियों का आरोप है पेपर पैकेट की सील टूटी हुई थी.

महादेव सट्टा केस में छत्तीसगढ़ के मुख्यमंत्री भूपेश बघेल समेत कई लोगों पर मामला दर्ज होने को भी अखबार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, बघेल ने कहा कि भाजपा ने हार के डर से मेरा नाम मामले में जोड़ा है. 

इसके अलावा ईडी ने अरविंद केजरीवाल को भेजे फिर से समन, एनडीए के दलों की दिल्ली में बैठक आज, अहमदाबाद में हॉस्टल में नमाज पढ़ रहे विदेशी छात्रों को पीट और रेप पार्टी में सांप के जहर की सप्लाई करने के मामले में एल्विश यादव गिरफ्तार आदि ख़बरों को भी अखबार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है. 

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

दैनिक जागरण अखबार ने चुनावी बॉन्ड और इससे जुड़े सभी पत्र व्यवहारों का ब्योरा चुनाव आयोग द्वारा सार्वजनिक किए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, चुनावी बॉन्ड के जरिए जिन पार्टियों को सबसे ज्यादा चंदा मिला है, वे इससे जुड़ी सूचना सार्वजनिक करने में आनाकानी कर रही हैं. ज्यादातर दलों ने यह नहीं बताया कि उन्हें किस कंपनी या व्यक्ति से चंदा मिला है. 

प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी द्वारा आंध्र प्रदेश में रैली के दौरान कांग्रेस पार्टी पर राजनीतिक हमला किए जाने को भी अखबार ने प्रमुखता से प्रकाशित किया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, प्रधानमंत्री ने कहा कि राजग में हम सभी को साथ लेकर चलते हैं लेकिन दूसरी तरफ कांग्रेस का एक ही एजेंडा है, सहयोगियों का इस्तेमाल करो और छोड़ दो. 

इसके अलावा राहुल गांधी ने कहा- देश में जानबूझकर फैलाया जा रहा है द्वेष, ईडी ने अरविंद केजरीवाल को एक ही दिन में भेजे दो समन, चीनी सेना ने अरुणाचल प्रदेश को बताया अभिन्न अंग और महादेव एप मामले में छत्तीसगढ़ के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री भूपेश बघेल समेत कई लोगों पर केस दर्ज आदि ख़बरों को भी अखबार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है. 

अगर आप रोज़नामचा को अपने ई-मेल पर पाना चाहते हैं तो यहां क्लिक करें. 

आम चुनावों का ऐलान हो चुका है. एक बार फिर न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Electoral bonds: Govt points to ‘witch-hunting’ and social media posts, SC says disclosure is intenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/electoral-bonds-govt-points-to-witch-hunting-and-social-media-posts-sc-says-disclosure-is-intenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/electoral-bonds-govt-points-to-witch-hunting-and-social-media-posts-sc-says-disclosure-is-intent#comments9633414e-5f04-4505-b9f9-86cdf90514a3Mon, 18 Mar 2024 06:57:29 +00002024-03-18T06:57:29.234ZNL Team/api/author/730883Electoral bondsShotThe Supreme Court has asked the State Bank of India to reveal each detail it has on electoral bonds, including the alphanumeric and serial number corresponding to each bond, LiveLaw reported. 

The court has told the SBI to file an affidavit on Thursday that no detail has been withheld. It had earlier dismissed the SBI’s request seeking an extension to furnish electoral bond details, following which the Election Commission published two sets of data and the information earlier submitted to the court in sealed cover.

Meanwhile, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta sought directions against “social media commentary” on the data.

“How this court's judgment is playing out is something which it must be informed of…Now the witch-hunting has started at some other level, not at the government-level. Those before the court have started giving press interviews deliberately embarrassing the court. A barrage of social media posts intended to cause embarrassment has started. Statistics can be twisted in any manner. Based upon twisted statistics, all kinds of posts are made. Would your lordships consider issuing a direction,” he said, according to LiveLaw.

However, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud reportedly said that “as an institution, our shoulders are broad enough to deal with social media commentary. Our intent was disclosure…We are governed by a rule of law.”

Appearing for FICCI and ASSOCHAM, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, meanwhile, asked how the information can be asked to be disclosed when there was a guarantee of anonymity.

But CJI Chandrachud said “there is only one answer”. “With effect from April 12, 2019, we directed the collection of details. Everyone was put on notice at the time. This is why we did not ask the disclosure of the bonds sold prior to this interim order. This was a conscious choice by this constitution bench,” he said, according to LiveLaw.

Appearing for SBI, advocate Harish Salve said the bank’s current status of the disclosure was only based on its understanding of the court’s interim directive for April 2019.

CJI Chandrachud said, “When we say ‘all details,’ it includes all conceivable data. This interim order has merged with our final judgment. We will clarify that and say that the State Bank of India will not only file the bond numbers but also ask it so submit an affidavit saying that it has not suppressed any details. The onus should not be on the court.”

The CJI earlier said the court’s judgment had asked the SBI to disclose all details. “That includes the bond numbers as well. The bank cannot be selective in disclosing all details. Do not wait for the orders of this court.”

Newslaundry has joined hands with The News MinuteScroll and independent journalists to explore the data released so far and decode the pattern of political funding through electoral bonds. Read here

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‘Everyone deserves a second chance’: Meet the philanthropist who helped free 20,000 prisonershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/everyone-deserves-a-second-chance-meet-the-philanthropist-who-helped-free-20000-prisonershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/everyone-deserves-a-second-chance-meet-the-philanthropist-who-helped-free-20000-prisoners#comments88f5759b-6106-4d3f-a267-38f7ba2ea228Mon, 18 Mar 2024 04:30:00 +00002024-03-18T04:30:00.000ZTanishka Sodhi /api/author/1275080jailSunny Side Up

Last month, Indian businessman Firoz Merchant donated 2.25 crore rupees for the release of over 900 prisoners across different nationalities, including Indians, from UAE prisons. These amounts went towards fines and also tickets to the prisoners’ home countries in cases of deportation.

Since he started his philanthropic initiative, The Forgotten Society, in 2008, Merchant, who is based in Dubai, has contributed towards the release of over 20,000 prisoners.

In conversation with Newslaundry’s Tanishka Sodhi, Merchant explains what motivates him, saying people imprisoned due to financial constraints deserve a second chance at life.

Watch.  

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7 firms that failed drug quality test gave money to political partieshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/7-firms-that-failed-drug-quality-test-gave-money-to-political-partieshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/18/7-firms-that-failed-drug-quality-test-gave-money-to-political-parties#comments84d41f74-6ca7-4d8b-9b15-e282d71ed218Mon, 18 Mar 2024 04:00:09 +00002024-03-18T04:00:09.974ZTabassum Barnagarwala/api/author/1931742Electoral bonds,Pharmaceutical companiesProject Electoral BondThirty-five pharmaceutical companies in India have contributed nearly Rs 1,000 crore to political parties through electoral bonds, data released by the Election Commission on March 14 has revealed. 

Of these, at least seven companies were being investigated for poor quality drugs when they purchased the bonds. 

Pharmaceutical manufacturers are regulated by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, which empowers state-controlled Food and Drug Administrations to inspect manufacturing units as well as test the quality of medicines being sold in the market. 

Any state Food and Drug Administration can send notices to a company if its drugs fail the quality test. But punitive action – such as the suspension of manufacturing or cancellation of a manufacturing licence – can only be taken by the state where the company’s factory is located or by the Centre.

“We often see a lax approach by drug regulators, both at state and central level,” said Amar Jesani, editor of the Indian Journal of Medical Ethics. He said it would not be surprising “if pharma companies finance political parties to strike some compromise in regulatory cases at the state level”.

Other experts noted that drug regulation is just one area where the pharmaceutical industry seeks concessions from governments. Firms could also be looking for cheap land, tax exemptions, favourable policies or for price caps to be removed.

More clarity on what prompted the firms to make donations to the parties is likely to emerge once the unique codes of the bonds that match the donors and the recipients become public.

Regardless, experts say it is significant that drug companies are a major contributor of political finance. “They have invested hundreds of crores in political parties,” said S Srinivasan, an activist who is part of the All India Drug Action Network. “Nobody believes that they did it for the love of democracy, elections or charity.”

Here is a list of the seven companies that received notices from the state Food and Drug Administrations the years they purchased bonds.

Hetero Labs and Hetero Healthcare bought electoral bonds for Rs 39 crore in April 2022. In the preceding 10 months, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration issued six notices issued to the Hyderabad-based company for substandard drugs.

At least three of them pertained to Remdesivir, an antiviral drug widely used to treat Covid-19, that helped Hetero expand its business during the pandemic. 

A lab test conducted by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration found that a Remdesivir sample had yellow-coloured liquid instead of clear liquid. A notice regarding this was issued to Hetero in July 2021. A second sample had less than required quantity of the drug and a notice was issued in October that year. A third sample of Remdesivir was found spurious, with a notice issued in December 2021. 

A spurious drug could lead to the suspension of a company’s manufacturing licence, said Omprakash Sadhwani, former joint commissioner of drugs in Maharashtra. But the Telangana regulator did not act against Hetero. 

Two other products of Hetero were also found substandard in 2021: an antifungal medicine, Itbor capsule, and Monocef, used for bacterial infection.

In addition to the Rs 39 crore bonds Herero bought in 2022, it also purchased bonds worth Rs 10 crore in July 2023 and Rs 11 crore in October 2023 – a total of bonds worth Rs 60 crore. 

Torrent Pharma bought electoral bonds worth Rs 77.5 crore between May 2019 till January 2024. 

The Gujarat-based company’s antiplatelet medicine Deplatt-150 had failed the salicylic acid test and was declared substandard by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration in 2018.

In October 2019, the United States Food and Drug Administration issued a warning to the firm for repeated quality-related failures at its manufacturing unit. Such a notice attracts inspection by Indian authorities and could lead to the suspension of a company’s manufacturing licence. However, the Gujarat government did not take any action against the pharmaceutical company. 

In September 2019, Torrent Pharma’s drug Losar H, used to lower blood pressure, was found to be substandard by the Gujarat Food and Drug Administration. In December 2021, its medicine Nicoran LV, used to treat heart diseases, was found spurious by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration. 

In February 2023, its Lopamide medicine, used to treat diarrhoea, failed the dissolution test and was found substandard. 

The pharmaceutical company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 12.5 crore in May and October 2019, Rs 7.50 crore in April 2021, Rs 25 crore in January and October 2022 , Rs 7 crore in October 2023 and Rs 25.5 crore in January 2024.

Zydus Healthcare purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 29 crore between 2022 and 2023.

In 2021, the Bihar drug regulator had declared a batch of remdesivir medicines manufactured by the Gujarat-based company as spurious after traces of bacterial endotoxin were found in them. Several patients were reported to have suffered adverse drug reactions from the medicines. 

But the Gujarat drug regulator did not collect samples of these batches for further testing and nor did it initiate any action against the manufacturing unit of Zydus.

Glenmark received five notices for its substandard drugs between 2022 and 2023. Four of these were issued by the Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration, which flagged its blood pressure regulating medicine Telma as substandard, mostly failing a dissolution test. The pharmaceutical company purchased Rs 9.75 crore of electoral bonds in November 2022. 

Cipla received four show-cause notices for its drugs between 2018 and 2022. Since 2019, it has purchased bonds worth Rs 39.2 crore. 

In August 2018, its RC cough syrup was found spurious during an inspection. It purchased bonds worth Rs 14 crore the next year.

In July 2021, it received notices twice for its remdesivir medicine, Cipremi. Like Hetero, Cipremi was found to have less than the required quantity of remdesivir in it. Cipla bought bonds worth Rs 25.2 crore in November 2022.

IPCA Laboratories Limited bought bonds worth Rs 13.5 crore between November 2022 and October 2023. In October 2018, its anti-parasitic medicine, Lariago, had lower than required chloroquine phosphate levels and was found substandard. The medicine, flagged by the Mumbai Food and Drugs Administration, was manufactured in a Dehradun plant of IPCA.

Intas Pharmaceutical bought 20 crore worth of bonds in October 2022. In 2020, the company’s Enapril-5 tablet had failed the dissolution test by the Maharashtra FDA.

In recent years, the country’s pharmaceutical sector has been in the global spotlight for deaths and infections linked to Indian-made cough syrups and eye ointments in several countries. 

The governments of these countries have suspended purchases, and international bodies organisations like the World Health Organization have issued alerts but the response of Indian authorities has been lax.

But the implications of the pharma industry funding political parties go far beyond drug regulatory action. 

Malini Aisola from the All India Drug Action Network said political financing enables pharmaceutical companies to secure “privileged access, power and influence in government policy making”.

Prashant Reddy, who has extensively researched drug regulatory laws in India, said political funding by the pharma sector might be aimed at influencing the larger legal framework in its favour. He pointed out that recent legislations introduced by the central government reduce punitive action against the makers of substandard drugs.

With inputs from Anjana Meenakshi, Maria Teresa Raju, and Nandini Chandrashekar.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddharth Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

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Infosys donated Rs 1 crore to Janata Dal Secular through electoral bonds in 2018https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/17/infosys-donated-rs-1-crore-to-janata-dal-secular-through-electoral-bonds-in-2018https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/17/infosys-donated-rs-1-crore-to-janata-dal-secular-through-electoral-bonds-in-2018#comments1aed895b-13b9-4e58-a18c-ccbc2b33c956Sun, 17 Mar 2024 12:57:27 +00002024-03-17T12:57:27.058ZAyush Tiwari/api/author/730895Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondNarayana Murthy-led Infosys donated Rs 1 crore to Janata Dal Secular two months before the 2018 Karnataka elections, shows the latest data on electoral bonds disclosed by the Election Commission on Sunday.

The Bengaluru-based software giant had so far been missing from the donors list, which features Indian conglomerates like the Reliance group and the Aditya Birla group. This is because the list only contained details of bonds purchased after April 12, 2019 – leaving out details of electoral bonds worth Rs 4,002 crore issued between March 2018 and April 2019.

The fresh data released on Sunday contains filings by political parties for the bonds redeemed between 2018 and November 2023. These filings made to the Election Commission, submitted to the Supreme Court in a sealed cover, were made public on the court’s orders.

According to the JDS filing, Infosys Technologies Limited donated Rs 1 crore in electoral bonds to the party on March 20, 2018.

Karnataka went to polls on May 12, 2018. The JDS won 37 of the 224 seats in that election. After a brief and controversial stint of the BS Yeddyurappa-led BJP government, the Congress-JDS alliance formed the government and Kumaraswamy became the state’s chief minister.

Between 2018 and 2024, the JDS received Rs 89.5 crore in electoral bonds. Its major donors were Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (Rs 50 crore) and Bengaluru-based Embassy group (Rs 22 crore).

Apart from the JDS, only three other political parties – Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, and Nationalist Congress Party – have disclosed the names of the donors in their filings to the Election Commission.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Divya Aslesha, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddharth Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

If you’re reading this story, you’re not seeing a single advertisement. That’s because Newslaundry powers ad-free journalism that’s truly in public interest. Support our work and subscribe today.

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At Rs 509 crore, ‘Lottery King’ Santiago Martin is DMK’s biggest donor through electoral bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/17/at-rs-509-crore-lottery-king-santiago-martin-is-dmks-biggest-donor-through-electoral-bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/17/at-rs-509-crore-lottery-king-santiago-martin-is-dmks-biggest-donor-through-electoral-bonds#comments727b4715-7e87-4fcc-b735-e85fdd278764Sun, 17 Mar 2024 12:20:47 +00002024-03-17T12:20:47.479ZShabbir Ahmed/api/author/1931698DMKProject Electoral Bond‘Lottery King’ Santiago Martin’s company Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Ltd was the biggest donor to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.

As per numbers filed by the DMK to the Supreme Court in a sealed cover, the party received Rs 656.5 crore through electoral bonds between April 2019 and November 2023, out of which Rs 509 crore was donated the Coimbatore-based Future Gaming.

Project Electoral Bond’s detailed profile of Santiago Martin had revealed his ties with the DMK. The disclosures made by the Election Commission earlier revealed that Martin topped the list of electoral bonds buyers, purchasing bonds worth Rs 1,368 crore. Who received the remaining bonds worth Rs 859 crore given by Martin is not known yet.  

DMK’s second highest donor through EBs is Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd, which donated Rs 105 crore to the party. India Cements, owned by former BCCI chief N Srinivasan, donated Rs 14 crore, followed by Sun TV Network Private Limited which donated Rs 10 crore. 

These new facts emerged after the Election Commission today released a set of electoral bond data that was handed over to the Supreme Court in November 2023 in a sealed cover. Parties submitted this data after the top court issued a direction to them to submit the details of donations received through electoral bonds.  

Most political parties like the BJP, Congress, BRS and others only revealed to the Election Commission the number of electoral bonds and the amounts received through them on different dates. However, the DMK, AIADMK and JDS named donors in their letters to the EC.

According to the letter written by DMK treasurer TR Baalu, though the electoral bonds scheme does not require the details of the donor to be furnished to the party encashing the bonds, the donors to the DMK did reveal themselves nonetheless.  

Between April 2019 and March 2020, the DMK received Rs 45.50 crore from corporates like India Cements, MEIL, Ramco Cements, Apollo group, LMW company, Birla group, Triveni group and IRB. In October 2020, the party received Rs 80 crore from two companies: Future Gaming and Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd. It was between April 2021 and January 2022 that the DMK received the highest donations through EBs – Rs 306 crore. From April 2023 to November 2023, the party received another Rs 65 crore.

Future Gaming started purchasing electoral bonds in October 2020 and the first purchase of electoral bonds for Rs 60 crore was donated to the DMK.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekhar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddhartha Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Sudipto Mondal, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

Small teams can do great things. All it takes is a subscription. Subscribe now and power Newslaundry’s work.

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Company that calls itself ‘protagonist of Modi’s dream’ buys electoral bonds worth Rs 30 crhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/company-that-calls-itself-protagonist-of-modis-dream-buys-electoral-bonds-worth-rs-30-crhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/company-that-calls-itself-protagonist-of-modis-dream-buys-electoral-bonds-worth-rs-30-cr#comments66aca4bb-f04f-4bf2-a2dd-d6c0a1b3e444Sat, 16 Mar 2024 16:37:11 +00002024-03-16T16:37:11.190ZPrateek Goyal/api/author/730929Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondA company that says it’s “one of the protagonists of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of India becoming a $5 trillion economy” bought electoral bonds worth Rs 30 crore, according to data published by the Election Commission on March 14.

The company in question, APCO Infratech Private Limited, bought these bonds from January 15, 2020 to October 12, 2023. 

APCO, headquartered in Lucknow, is owned by one Anil Singh. It’s been awarded a plethora of projects in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, spanning roadways, transport, irrigation and water sanitation.

These prestige projects include the Rs 1,500 crore Bundelkhand expressway project in Uttar Pradesh in November 2019 and the Rs 9,000 crore Versova-Bandra sea link project in Mumbai in 2022.

In 2021, APCO got a contract for the Bengaluru-Chennai expressway project and another for four-lane construction between Munger and Mirzachauki. In 2022, it won a contract for road construction on highways including through Chandauli-Sakaldiha-Saidpur, Mohansarai-Upadhyaya Nagar-Chakia, Junjwani to Sidhara, Faridabad-Ballabgarh bypass, Shyamali-Ambala expressway, and Naidupeta-Turpu Kanupur.

In 2020, APCO was given a contract to build over-bridges on Dr E Moses Road and Keshavrao Khade Marg in Mumbai. Last year, a Comptroller and Auditor General report said “undue favour” amounting to Rs 27.14 crore was given to all the contractors involved in the project.

In 2022, the UP government, under its State Water & Sanitation Mission, awarded APCo a contract for “design, drawings, DPR and construction of multi-group of villagers water supply scheme” in Agra and Mathura. The contracts were worth Rs 1,840.7 crore and Rs 892 crore.

In January this year, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation nominated APCO to  develop wayside amenities along Samruddhi Mahamarg corridor. 

In total, APCO has been awarded two road projects by the UP Public Works Department, three by the UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority, one by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, two by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, nine by the National Highways Authority of India, and one by Indian Railways Construction International Ltd, a PSU.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekhar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddhartha Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Sudipto Mondal, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

If you’re reading this story, you’re not seeing a single advertisement. That’s because Newslaundry powers ad-free journalism that’s truly in public interest. Support our work and subscribe today.

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Rs 45 cr in bonds by infra firm founded by BJP MP, a hydropower project, and curious case of U-turnshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/bjp-mps-infra-firms-rs-45-cr-in-bonds-a-hydropower-project-and-curious-case-of-u-turnshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/bjp-mps-infra-firms-rs-45-cr-in-bonds-a-hydropower-project-and-curious-case-of-u-turns#comments3179c7c9-60c2-4204-babd-6f360434cf4bSat, 16 Mar 2024 14:51:50 +00002024-03-16T14:51:50.954ZAban Usmani/api/author/1623929Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondInfrastructure firm Rithwik Projects Private Limited, and its founder and Rajya Sabha MP Chintakunta Munuswamy Ramesh, could be a study in coincidence.

In 2019, the MP had switched to the BJP from the Telugu Desam Party, just months after he was accused by the Income Tax department of siphoning off funds to the tune of Rs 74 crore in 2018. The defection, which had jolted the TDP, involved three other party MPs, came weeks after the party’s defeat in the Lok Sabha polls, and while TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu was in Europe.

Last year, just two weeks before Rithwik Projects purchased electoral bonds to the tune of Rs 5 crore, the Hyderabad-headquartered company was awarded a letter of contract for a hydroelectric power project in Congress-governed Himachal Pradesh on January 14. 

On March 23, SVJN Limited, a state-run clean energy PSU, inked a contract agreement worth Rs 1,098 crore for the same project. And three weeks later, Rithwik Projects again donated money, this time with bonds to the tune of Rs 40 crore.

Meanwhile, the Himachal project – the 382 MW Sunni Dam Hydro Electric Project – is scheduled to be completed by November 27. It is located in the Mandi and Shimla districts of Himachal Pradesh along the Satluj river.

Rithwik deals in areas ranging from mining and irrigation to highways and infrastructure. The company’s portfolio includes projects such as a mini township for Kashmiri migrants and the Paleru earth dam.

Ramesh claims to have no involvement in the affairs of Rithwik since 2012. However, his brother is still the executive director and his son Rithwik as the lead of operations.

The income tax department had in 2018 accused Rithwik Projects of siphoning off Rs 74 crore through untraceable transactions and of dubious bills to the tune of Rs 25 crore. Ramesh’s properties in Hyderabad and Kadapa were searched with tax sleuths claiming to have seized several documents.

BJP’s complaint against Ramesh in Rajya Sabha, and TDP’s U-turn

Months before Ramesh had joined the BJP in 2019, the party’s spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao had written to the Rajya Sabha ethics committee to seek action against the MP over the income tax department’s allegations of fraudulent transactions.

Rao had also counted Ramesh as one of the “Andhra Mallyas” – a reference to fugitive Vijay Mallya. 

Ramesh’s former party TDP had pulled out of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in 2018 over the Narendra Modi government’s position on the demand for special status to Andhra Pradesh. In 2019, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said that the NDA was permanently shut for TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu.

But earlier this month, the TDP returned to the NDA’s fold ahead of the Lok Sabha elections to “help in reaching the aspirations of the people of Andhra Pradesh”.

Ramesh is still a Rajya Sabha member with his tenure set to end next month. And the income tax case against him is pending.

The BJP MP now wants to contest the Lok Sabha election from Visakhapatnam.

Last year, a report by the Association of Democratic Reforms had mentioned his name among MPs with the highest declared wealth in Andhra Pradesh. Ramesh had declared assets to the tune of Rs 258 crore.

In 2018, Rithwik Projects faced a fine of over Rs 2 crore for alleged illegal mining. A district vigilance officer had earlier told The New Indian Express the firm was lifting gravel and metal in the guise of using it for the Vamsadhara water project but were selling it to private parties instead.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddhartha Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Sudipto Mondal, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

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Meet the top 10: Lakshmi Mittal bought 10% of bonds purchased by individualshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/meet-the-top-10-lakshmi-mittal-bought-10-of-bonds-purchased-by-individualshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/meet-the-top-10-lakshmi-mittal-bought-10-of-bonds-purchased-by-individuals#comments997360f8-98e8-46f6-bfae-bc11df524d0cSat, 16 Mar 2024 14:21:52 +00002024-03-16T14:21:52.399ZSumedha Mittal/api/author/1716307Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondIn October 2022, Prime Minister Modi decided to use the occasion of Diwali to congratulate India’s citizens for the expansion of the ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India plant in Gujarat’s Hazira.

An odd choice for a festive event, but Modi explained that the plant would open “many doors of new possibilities” to move India towards self-reliance.

The plant in question is India’s largest, set up as a joint venture between Lakshmi Mittal’s ArcelorMittal and Japan’s Nippon Steel Corporation. The joint venture was announced in 2019, the same year that Mittal purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 35 crore, as per data released by the Election Commission on March 14.

The EC listed 1,313 donors of which 368 are individuals, not companies. And Mittal leads the pack of individual donors who collectively bought electoral bonds worth Rs 378 crore.

Importantly, the top 10 individuals purchased bonds worth Rs 172 crore – 45 percent of the total bought by individuals. They’re businessmen spanning sectors like aviation, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and communication, though some of the 10 are fairly obscure.

Here’s the list.

#1: Lakshmi Mittal

The 73-year-old steel magnate himself accounts for 9.2 percent of all electoral bonds purchased by individuals, purchasing 35 bonds of Rs 1 crore each on April 8, 2019. This window of purchase was just ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, which the BJP was tipped to win – and win it did. 

Two years later, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel submitted a “wish list” to the Gujarat CM’s office for “expected assistance” to expand the plant. The company also signed a Rs 1,600 crore investment deal with the state government last year, and an MoU this year to further expand the plant.

Mittal, who lives in London, sparked a controversy after he made donations to the Labour Party in 2001 and 2007. The first time, he gave the party 125,000 pounds. The second time, he donated two million pounds,  

#2: Laxmidas Vallabh Asmita Mercha 

The Reporters Collective identified “Mercha” as Laxmidas Vallabhdas Merchant and one Asmita Merchant, who are “related to each other”. Merchant is the group controller at Reliance Industries. He purchased electoral bonds of Rs 25 crore in November 2023. The report said he’s also a director in at least six companies linked to Reliance’s takeover of the Network18 conglomerate.  

#3: KR Raja JT

This individual purchased electoral bonds with Rs 25 crore on a single day. That was November 17, 2023 during a two-week window to purchase bonds during the assembly polls in Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana. We now know the BJP was the biggest beneficiary of bonds bought in this phase, encashing Rs 703 crore of a total of Rs 1,006 crore.

But who is KR Raja JT? No one seems to know.

#4: Rahul Bhatia

Rahul Bhatia is speculated to be the 68-year-old CEO of InterGlobe Aviation which owns Indigo. As the fourth biggest individual donor, Bhatia purchased bonds worth Rs 20 crore on April 7, 2021 during a 10-day window that coincided with elections in Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Assam and West Bengal.

InterGlobe Aviation also purchased bonds worth Rs 5 crore in October 2023. Two of its subsidiaries – InterGlobe Air Transport and InterGlobe Venture Pvt. Ltd – purchased bonds worth Rs 11 crore and Rs 20 crore respectively around the time of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. 

#5: Inder Thakurdas Jaisinghani

Jaisinghani is the chairman and managing director of Polycab India, the country’s largest manufacturer of wire and cables. In his individual capacity, he bought bonds worth Rs 10 crore in April 2023 and Rs 4 crore in October 2023 – a total of Rs 14 crore. 

#6: Rajesh Mannalal Aggarwal

Aggarwal is the chairman of Ajanta Pharma, a director at SBFC Finance Ltd and Gabs Investment Private Ltd, and a partner at Riteaid Enterprises LLP. He bought bonds worth Rs 13 crore across multiple windows in January and April 2022 and in April, October and November 2023.

#7 and 8: Harmesh and Rahul Joshi

Rahul Jagannath Joshi and his son Harmesh Rahul Joshi are joint directors at Seven Hills Shipping and Om Freight Forwarders Europe, operating in transport, communication and storage. The father-son duo bought bonds in tandem – Rs 10 crore each in January 2022 and Rs 10 crore each in November 2023. Both periods coincided with assembly polls. 

#9 and 10: Raju Kumar Sharma and Saurabh Gupta

Both bought bonds with Rs 10 crore. Sharma’s purchase was in January 2020 and Gupta’s in April 2019. We were unable to establish either of their antecedents.

Update at 10 pm, Mar 16: This report has been updated with more details on Mittal’s contributions to the Labour Party.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

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‘Pakistan’ firm or Delhi ‘fraud’: The truth behind Hub Power, which purchased bonds in 2019https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/pakistan-firm-or-delhi-fraud-the-truth-behind-hub-power-which-purchased-bonds-in-2019https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/pakistan-firm-or-delhi-fraud-the-truth-behind-hub-power-which-purchased-bonds-in-2019#comments4ff4918f-7ccf-4b3e-8708-464a326d3211Sat, 16 Mar 2024 13:56:24 +00002024-03-16T13:56:24.465ZBasant Kumar/api/author/730930Political fundingProject Electoral BondIn the electoral bonds data released by the Election Commission, one name stood out – Hub Power Company.   

Shortly after the preliminary analysis of the data, news outlets and social media platforms buzzed with reports that Pakistan-based Hub Power Company Limited had purchased bonds worth Rs 95 lakh in April 2019, months after the Pulwama attack. The company, speculated to be Pakistan’s largest independent power producer, did not purchase the bond even once after 2019.

Many claimed that the bond money was encashed by the BJP. The Modi government and central investigation agencies are yet to issue any clarification on the matter. 

So, is Hub Power Company really a Pakistani firm? 

Newslaundry’s investigation revealed that no company by this name has been registered with the union corporate ministry. But a simple Google search led to one “Hub Power Company”, located at Delhi’s Geeta Colony, with Ravi Mehra as its director, and a registered GST number. 

Its purported “office” was locked when Newslaundry reached the residential area. Locals said one Ravi Arora used to live there, and not Ravi Mehra. 

Arora is reportedly a government employee and works as a principal private secretary at the central government’s revenue department. 

His neighbour Anil told Newslaundry, “Ravi Arora has lived here for a long time. His wife works at LIC. Father was in DTC and he himself is with the government’s revenue department. After the pandemic, they left this locality, but the house is still in their name. To our knowledge, he does not have any business.”

However, an elderly woman living in the same locality claimed that Arora has an electricity business. “Whenever the electricity went off, we would come to him and he would help us.”

House no. 2/40 at Geeta Colony.

Newslaundry managed to track down Arora himself. He denied owning any company named “Hub Power”. 

Arora said even when his family lived there, police and bank officials would come at times in connection with a loan default. “But the person they look for is Ravi Mehra, who lives on the second floor of 2/40 in Old Geeta Colony.”  

The Old Geeta Colony is about 100 metres away from Arora’s house. But contrary to Arora’s claim, locals deny any Ravi Mehra’s presence in the neighbourhood.

Kamal Sethi, who owns house number 40 and runs a dairy store in the locality, told Newslaundry that he had “never heard of this name” and police or bank officials never came searching for Ravi Mehra at his house.  And the investigation hit a roadblock.  

‘Fraud’, and an Arora-Mehra mix up 

The Delhi government’s GST department told Newslaundry that Hub Power was a “fake company”, which was eventually shut down. 

A senior official at the department said the company was ostensibly set up “to commit fraud”. “We found out that the company did not do the business it claimed to do. The department took suo motu cognizance and cancelled its registration.”

The official said that “only a photograph was provided for the GST registration and no other document”. Notably, in regular practice, the Aadhaar and PAN card details are also required for GST registration, but the department official said that a lot of times, “fraudsters get away with all this”.  

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddhartha Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Sudipto Mondal, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

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Reporters Without Orders Ep 313: CAA protests in Assam, UP’s new information commissionershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/reporters-without-orders-ep-313-caa-protests-in-assam-ups-new-information-commissionershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/reporters-without-orders-ep-313-caa-protests-in-assam-ups-new-information-commissioners#commentsc55bc1ee-3eb0-4e07-9a2b-8a76834265bcSat, 16 Mar 2024 12:48:23 +00002024-03-16T12:48:23.535ZNL Team/api/author/730883NL PodcastsReporters Without Orders

This week, host Basant Kumar is joined by Newslaundry’s Pratyush Deep.

Pratyush reported on the Assam police increasing security and barricading in anticipation of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, which the government this week said it would soon implement. He says there’s a huge difference in intensity of protests between 2019 and 2024. But Basant points out the government laid the groundwork to make sure no protest could take place.

Basant talks about his report on Uttar Pradesh appointing a chief information commissioner and 10 information commissioners last week. At least four have links to the BJP or are favourable to Chief Minister Adityanath, he says. He also explains his interview with Indrajeet Ghorpade, a 32-year-old techie and activist from Pune who has filed over 50 complaints against hate speech on news channels. 

Watch. 

Timecodes

00:00:00 - Introduction

00:05:53 - Cops try to quell Assam’s CAA disquiet 

00:24:10 - Appointments of information commissioners in UP 

00:33:42 - Interview with Indrajeet Ghorpade 

00:34:48 - Recommendations

Recommendations

Pratyush

In 15 more donors of BJP, 4 shell firms, 11 companies that faced central action by Prateek Goyal

Basant

Poacher on Amazon Prime

Produced by Prashant Kumar, edited by Parikshit Sanyal, and recorded by Anil Kumar.

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Party time: Of 22 phases of electoral bonds, regional parties top in 8, Cong only in 1https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/party-time-of-22-phases-of-electoral-bonds-regional-parties-top-in-8-cong-only-in-1https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/party-time-of-22-phases-of-electoral-bonds-regional-parties-top-in-8-cong-only-in-1#comments685ba22a-3ff2-4ed2-9b8f-59722423ba52Sat, 16 Mar 2024 12:20:15 +00002024-03-16T12:20:15.085ZShivnarayan Rajpurohit/api/author/1670920Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

Good punters bet on the winning horse. As such, the results of corporate and individual purchases funding political parties throw little surprise.

Of the Rs 12,769 crore of electoral bonds encashed, the Bharatiya Janata Party pocketed almost half at Rs 6,060 crore. It’s followed by the Trinamool Congress with Rs 1,609 crore, Congress with Rs 1,421 crore, and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi with Rs 1,214 crore.

So far, so unsurprising. But we did spot some patterns when it came to phases.

The purchase of bonds by companies/individuals and their encashment by parties took place across over 30 phases in total from 2018. Phase 1 was launched from March 1-10, 2018. Each phase or window for sale of bonds normally opens for 10 days four times a year. More phases were added in election years.

Parties can encash bonds within 15 days of the bond’s issue date. 

Notably, the Election Commission only released electoral bond data for 22 phases – from phase 9 in April 2019 to phase 30 in January 2024. Here’s what we found from our analysis of these 22 phases.

➞ The BJP topped the charts in 13 phases. In four of these phases, where the total encashment was Rs 1,000 crore, the BJP got 3,012 crore. The Congress, in comparison, was the largest receiver in only one phase in October 2023.

➞ The BJP was also far ahead of other parties in phases preceding the Lok Sabha polls in 2019 and 2024.

➞ Four regional parties – TMC, BRS, Biju Janata Dal and YSR Congress – were the largest receivers of the bond money in eight phases. 

➞ Top donors substantially contributed to regional parties. We’ll give you examples later in this report. 

➞ More bonds were bought in the run-up to Lok Sabha or assembly polls. Stakes often skewed in favour of incumbent parties or those tipped to win. There were two exceptions. In the 28th phase in October 2023, the Congress received the highest amount ahead of the five assembly polls, though it only won in Telangana. Similarly in November 2022, the BJP received the highest amount ahead of the Himachal Pradesh polls, but it lost the election. 

Let’s break this down.

Graphic by Gobindh VB.

Regional party time

Overall, out of 22 phases, the TMC and BRS were the regional parties that received the highest amounts in three phases each. 

The TMC topped in July 2020 (Rs 15.38 crore of Rs 45.38 crore), January 2021 (Rs 26 crore of Rs 42.07 crore) and July 2021 (Rs 107 crore of Rs 150.51 crore). 

The BRS was top beneficiary in October 2021 (Rs 153 crore of Rs 614.33 crore), April 2022 (Rs 410 crore of Rs 648.48 crore) and July 2023 (Rs 318 crore of Rs 812.75 crore).

Let’s look at a couple of these phases more closely.

In July 2021, the 17th phase, the TMC received 107.6 crore of the total Rs 150.51 crore bonds redeemed by political parties. The BJP got Rs 18 crore. The top donors in this phase were Future Gaming and Hotel Services PR (Rs 30 crore), MKJ Enterprises Ltd (Rs 22.4 crore), and the Sanjiv Goenka-led Haldia Energy Ltd (Rs 20 crore).

In the 18th phase in October 2021, the BJP received about 10 percent of the total Rs 614.33 bonds redeemed. The biggest chunk went to the BRS (Rs 153 crore), TMC (Rs 141.94 crore), BJD (Rs 125 crore) and DMK (Rs 99 crore). During this 10-day window, the top purchasers of bonds were Future Gaming (Rs 195 crore), Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd (Rs 100 crore), Essel Mining and Industries Ltd (Rs 50 crore), and Haldia Energy Ltd (Rs 30 crore).

In the 20th phase in April 2022, the BRS was the largest receiver again. It encashed bonds worth Rs 410 crore out of the total Rs 648 crore. Next came the DMK (Rs 100 crore) and the BJP (Rs 98.5 crore). Top purchasers in this period were Future Gaming (Rs 100 crore), Yashoda Super Speciality Hospital (Rs 80 crore), Chennai Green Woods Private Ltd (Rs 50 crore), DLF Commercial Developers Ltd (Rs 40 crore), and Haldia Energy and Megha Engineering and Infrastructure  with Rs 25 crore each.

Meanwhile the YSR Congress was top beneficiary in the 14th phase in October 2020 (Rs 89 crore of Rs 282.29) while the BJD was top in the 21st phase July 2021 (Rs 107 crore of Rs 389.5 crore). 

Polls open money floodgates

Electoral bond transactions were more muted during months with zero or fewer elections. 

But during the run-up to polls, they sky-rocketed.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2019, political parties redeemed bonds worth Rs 2,107 crore. Of this, the BJP – tipped to win at the time – received 84 percent, approximately Rs 1,770 crore in two phases across April and May. Transactions fell in July, with donors buying bonds worth Rs 45.38 crore only. At the time, assembly polls in Haryana, Jharkhand and Maharashtra were still six months away. 

But when sale of bonds opened for the phases coinciding with the assembly polls in 2023, the amounts spiked. Phases 28 and 29 fell in October and November 2023, ahead of the polls in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh. 

Bonds with Rs 1,148 crore were sold in phase 28. The Congress, in its only climb to the top, got Rs 401 crore. It went on to lose all the elections except Telangana. During phase 29, the BJP scored Rs 703 crore bonds out of Rs 1,006 crore sold.

Another spike was witnessed in January 2022 in the run-up to the state polls in Goa, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Uttar Pradesh. Out of Rs 1,212 crore of bonds sold, the BJP got half.

There were exceptions too. Three months after its poll victory in West Bengal in April 2021, the TMC’s redemption of bonds was the highest at Rs 107 crore in the 17th phase. In another phase in April 2022, BRS encashed the highest amount at Rs 410 crore of the total Rs 648.48 crore. Telangana was still one and a half years away from the assembly polls.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekhar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddhartha Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Sudipto Mondal, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

If you’re reading this story, you’re not seeing a single advertisement. That’s because Newslaundry powers ad-free journalism that’s truly in public interest. Support our work and subscribe today.

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Lok Sabha polls: Seven phases starting from April 19, counting of votes on June 4https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/lok-sabha-polls-seven-phases-started-from-april-19-counting-of-votes-on-june-4https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/lok-sabha-polls-seven-phases-started-from-april-19-counting-of-votes-on-june-4#comments593ed1f2-2de1-4fa1-b5f0-87d0d05214d6Sat, 16 Mar 2024 11:01:43 +00002024-03-16T11:11:46.659ZNL Team/api/author/730883General elections 2024Shot

After weeks and months of speculation, the Election Commission finally announced the dates for India’s next general election. 

The 2024 elections will take place in seven phases, with the first date of polling on April 19. All votes will be counted on June 4, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced at a press conference.

Phase 1 – Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and some constituencies in Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Tripura, Manipur, Assam and West Bengal – will vote on April 19.

Phase 2 – Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Rajasthan, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Jammu and Kashmir – will vote on April 26.

Phase 3 – Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, and Jammu and Kashmir– will vote on May 7.

Phase 4 – Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir – will vote on May 13.

Phase 5 – Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh – will vote on May 20.

Phase 6 – Bihar, Haryana, Jharkhand, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, NCT of Delhi – will vote on May 25.

Phase 7 – Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chandigarh – will vote on June 1.

The announcement comes two days after the appointment of two new election commissioners, Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, after the sudden resignation of election commissioner Arun Goel on March 6 and the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey on February 14.

The 2019 poll was held in seven phases from April 11 to May 19, with results declared four days later. 

The term of the assemblies in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Odisha will end on various dates in June. Andhra Pradesh will vote in their assembly polls on May 13 and Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim on April 19. Odisha will be in two phases, voting on May 13 and May 25. 

These elections will be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls.  

Before announcing the dates, Kumar wandered through a host of facts and figures of importance this election.

Break-down of voters

Kumar estimated 96.88 crore voters registered to vote across India – 49.7 crore male and 47.1 crore female – which is six percent higher than 2019. Approximately 1.82 crore are first-time voters, 19.75 crore are aged between 20 and 29, and 48,000 are transgender voters. 

He said the EC had conducted a “comprehensive clean-up” of registers, removing duplicate names and names of those who have passed away, to “ensure the integrity and purity of the electoral process”.

The votes of older voters and those with over 40 percent disabilities would be “taken from home”. Kumar promised a “sustainable election” with “waste management” carried out at polling stations. He also announced apps – like Know Your Candidate and cVigil – for citizens to educate themselves and also file complaints on issues like bribery, muscle power and misinformation.

Seats and warnings 

In the 543-member Lok Sabha, Uttar Pradesh sends 80 lawmakers – the highest in number – to the Lok Sabha. In second place is Maharashtra with 48 seats in the Lok Sabha, and then West Bengal with 42, Bihar with 40, Tamil Nadu with 39, Madhya Pradesh with 29, and Karnataka with 28.

In total, 84 seats are reserved for the SCs and 47 reserved for STs. 

On the scourge of “misinformation”, Kumar said no one should be allowed to “create fake news which is not based on facts”. Describing it as a “menace”, he said authorised individuals in each state were “empowered to ask for takedown of social media posts”. “The entire machinery will now react to what is coming by facts,” he said, adding that the EC would launch a ‘myth vs reality’ section on its website. 

To curb the “plummeting level of political discourse”, Kumar said the ECI has issued a final advisory to the political parties, “putting them on notice” and presuming their knowledge of guidelines.

He said the commission will also look at the history of the MCC violations by the political parties and leaders. These violations include hate speech, religious speech, and masquerading advertisements as news, among others.    

With elections weeks away, Newslaundry and The News Minute have a series of ambitious coverage planned. These include watching the watchdogs and the big battlegrounds. From tracing campaign cash to decoding issues surrounding women voters, and Modi’s 10 year report card. Choose the issues that decide your vote, and know facts beyond rhetoric. Click here to support us.

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लोकसभा चुनाव की तारीखों का ऐलान: 7 चरणों में मतदान, 4 जून को परिणामhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/loksabha-elections-2024-schedule-general-elections-assembly-elections-and-26-by-elections-announcedhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/loksabha-elections-2024-schedule-general-elections-assembly-elections-and-26-by-elections-announced#comments7ae6d4d0-8514-4302-944f-7bfc8f56cfdaSat, 16 Mar 2024 10:58:05 +00002024-03-16T10:58:05.019Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889assembly elections,Loksabha Elections,CEC Rajiv KumarKhabar BaaziAnother Election showलोकसभा चुनाव 2024 की तारीखों का ऐलान हो चुका है. दिल्ली के विज्ञान भवन में चुनाव आयोग ने प्रेस कॉन्फ्रेंस कर चुनावों का पूरा शेड्यूल जारी किया. पिछली बार की तरह ही इस बार भी सात चरणों में लोकसभा चुनाव होगा.

पहले चरण का मतदान 19 अप्रैल, दूसरे चरण का मतदान 26 अप्रैल, तीसरे चरण का मतदान 7 मई, चौथे चरण का मतदान 13 मई, पांचवें चरण का मतदान 20 मई, छठे चरण का मतदान 25 मई और सातवें एवं अंतिम चरण का मतदान 1 जून, 2024 को होगा. वहींं, 4 जून को मतगणना होगी. 

लोकसभा चुनावों के साथ ही देश के चार राज्यों- सिक्किम, ओडिशा, अरुणाचल प्रदेश और आंध्र प्रदेश में भी विधानसभा चुनाव होंगे.

26 विधानसभाओं पर होगा उप-चुनाव

मुख्य चुनाव आयुक्त ने बताया कि देशभर की 26 विधानसभा सीटों पर भी उप-चुनाव होंगे. इन सभी सीटों पर लोकसभा चुनाव के साथ वाले चरण में णतदान होगा. इन 26 विधानसभाओं में बिहार, गुजरात, हरियाणा, झारखंड, महाराष्ट्र, त्रिपुरा, उत्तर प्रदेश, पश्चिम बंगाल, तेलंगाना, हिमाचल प्रदेश, राजस्थान, कर्नाटक और तमिलनाडू की सीटें शामिल हैं.

सातों चरण का पूरा शेड्यूल

1.8 करोड़ वोटर नए

चुनाव आयोग ने प्रेस कॉन्फ्रेंस में जानकारी दी कि देश में कुल 96.8 करोड़ मतदाता हैं. जिनमें 49.7 करोड़ पुरुष और 47.1 करोड़ महिला मतदाता हैं. इसके अलावा 48 हजार के करीब ट्रांसजेंडर मतदाता हैं. मुख्य चुनाव आयुक्त राजीव कुमार ने बताया कि इस बार कुल 1.8 करोड़ लोग पहली बार अपने मताधिकार का प्रयोग करेंगे. 

महिला मतदाताओं की भागेदारी बढ़ी 

चुनाव आयोग ने बताया कि पिछले चुनावों के मुकाबले लगातार महिला मतदाताओं की भागेदारी बढ़ रही है. नए मतदाताओं में भी 18-19 वर्ष के बीच की 85.3 लाख महिला मतदाता शामिल हैं. इसके अलावा युवाओं की भी मतदान में भागीदारी बढ़ रही है. 

पिछले सवा साल में 11 चुनाव

चुनाव आयोग ने प्रेस कॉन्फ्रेंस के दौरान जानकारी दी कि पिछले सवा साल के भीतर 11 इलेक्शन हुए हैं. ये सभी शांतिपूर्ण तरीके से संपन्न हुए हैं. साथ ही इस दौरान  फेक न्यूज पर एक्शन लेने का तरीका भी पहले के मुकाबले बहुत मजबूत हुआ है. पिछले 2 साल में हमने इसे और मजबूत किया है.  

देखिए चुनाव आयोग की पूरी प्रेसवार्ता 

पहली बार घर से वोट कर सकेंगे मतदाता 

85 साल से अधिक उम्र के लोगों और दिव्यांगों को इस बार घर से वोट डालने की सुविधा मिलेगी. ऐसा पहली बार होगा. इसके अलावा उन्हें बूथ पर आने के लिए स्वयंसेवक और व्हीलचेयर भी उपलब्ध करवाई जाएगी. चुनाव आयोग इसे पूरे देश में लागू करेगा. 

चार चुनौतियां और चुनाव आयोग

चुनाव आयोग ने कहा कि उनके सामने 4 प्रमुख चुनौतियां होंगी. जिसमें मसल पावर यानि बाहुबल, मनी पावर यानि धनबल, मिस इन्फोर्मेशन यानि भ्रामक जानकारी और आचार संहिता का उल्लंघन प्रमुख हैं. इन सबसे निपटने के लिए चुनाव आयोग ने इस बार काफी तैयारी की है. 

आम चुनावों का ऐलान हो चुका है. न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Home Minister Amit Shah cited wrong data to underplay BJP’s share of electoral bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/home-minister-amit-shah-cited-wrong-data-to-underplay-bjps-share-of-electoral-bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/home-minister-amit-shah-cited-wrong-data-to-underplay-bjps-share-of-electoral-bonds#commentsab71d3d5-6114-4e97-85ed-1d0bba105225Sat, 16 Mar 2024 08:21:27 +00002024-03-16T08:21:27.055ZAyush Tiwari/api/author/730895Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

The Bharatiya Janata Party has received Rs 8,252 crore through electoral bonds, not Rs 6,000 crore, as Home Minister Amit Shah claimed at a media event on Friday. 

At the India Today conclave, Shah claimed the BJP had received just Rs 6,000 crore of the Rs 20,000 crore worth of bonds. 

The minister got both the numbers wrong.

Data from the State Bank of India shows bonds worth Rs 16,492 crore were redeemed between March 2018 and January 2024.

Of this, the BJP received Rs 8,252 crore – the single largest share for any party.

This means the BJP cornered half the money raised from electoral bonds. 

What Shah said

It all started when India Today journalist Rahul Kanwal asked Shah about the allegation that several firms had bought electoral bonds after coming under the scanner of central agencies like the Income Tax Department and the Enforcement Directorate.

The home minister did not directly answer Kanwal’s question. Instead, defending his party, he said: “The Bharatiya Janata Party has received bonds worth approximately Rs 6,000 crore. The total bonds are worth Rs 20,000 crore. So where did bonds worth Rs 14,000 crore go?”

Shah then reeled off the numbers for how much money other political parties received through the bonds: Rs 1,600 crore for Trinamool Congress, Rs 1,400 crore for the Congress, Rs 1,200 crore for the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, Rs 775 crore for the Biju Janata Dal and Rs 639 crore for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.

He got even these numbers wrong. 

What the official data shows

Electoral bonds have been issued in 30 phases since 2018. Until March 14, data on how much each party had received was available for only the first 25 phases, based on annual audit reports filed by the parties before the Election Commission.

The disclosures made by the Election Commission this week include data for the remaining five phases.

This reveals a full picture of funds collected by political parties through electoral bonds.

It shows 25 political parties redeemed bonds worth Rs 16,492 crore between March 1, 2018 and January 2024.

The BJP had the largest share at Rs 8,252 crore. The second largest is the Congress at Rs 1,952 crore, followed by the Trinamool Congress at Rs 1,705 crore, the BRS at Rs 1,408 crore, the BJD at Rs 1,020 crore, and the DMK at Rs 677 crore.

While the data for how much each political party received is now complete, data for who bought Rs 4,002-worth bonds remains missing, as we have reported.

Flawed argument

At the India Today conclave, Shah also argued that the BJP had received donations proportional to its strength in the Parliament. 

“We have 303 MPs across the country. We have received bonds worth Rs 6,000 crore. The other 242 MPs of other parties turned out to have bonds worth 14,000 crore,” he said. “Why are they causing a ruckus?”

The minister’s argument is flawed.

For one, India is a federal country with governments both at the Centre and in the states. While the BJP has an overwhelming majority in Parliament, it has struggled to win and hold on to states. Opposition parties have been in power in several of India’s cash-rich states.

Two, electoral bonds are not the only way in which political parties receive funding. They also accept large donations from electoral trusts made up of major corporations, and smaller amounts from individuals and companies. Unlike electoral bonds, which gave complete anonymity to the donors until the Supreme Court struck down the scheme as illegal and unconstitutional in February, these donations must be mandatorily disclosed to the Election Commission on an annual basis.

Between 2018 and 2023, the BJP received Rs 1,245 crore through electoral trusts, nine times the amount received by the Congress.

In the same period, the BJP received Rs 3,337 crore from donations. In contrast, the Congress received just Rs 535 crore and the Trinamool merely Rs 54 crore.

This means the BJP actually received at least Rs 12,834 crore of funds between 2018 and 2023 – more than double the number cited by Home Minister Amit Shah.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddharth Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

If you’re reading this story, you’re not seeing a single advertisement. That’s because Newslaundry powers ad-free journalism that’s truly in public interest. Support our work and subscribe today.

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एनएल चर्चा 310: हरियाणा में मुख्यमंत्री परिवर्तन और इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा सार्वजनिक https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/nl-charcha-episode-310-electoral-bonds-data-public-by-election-commission-and-nayab-saini-new-cm-of-haryana-cmhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/nl-charcha-episode-310-electoral-bonds-data-public-by-election-commission-and-nayab-saini-new-cm-of-haryana-cm#comments801f5bdf-8068-468c-a947-5da096e79761Sat, 16 Mar 2024 08:14:02 +00002024-03-16T08:14:02.834Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889Electoral bonds,NL Charcha,Nayab SainiNL CharchaPodcast

इस हफ्ते चर्चा के प्रमुख विषय हरियाणा में नायब सिंह सैनी बने नए मुख्यमंत्री, चुनाव आयोग ने सार्वजनिक किया इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा और पूर्व आईएएस ज्ञानेश कुमार और सुखबीर संधू बने नए चुनाव आयुक्त आदि रहे.

इसके अलावा केंद्र सरकार ने द्वारा नागरिकता संशोधन कानून (सीएए) लागू करने की घोषणा, एक देश-एक चुनाव पर विचार के लिए बनाई गई पूर्व राष्ट्रपति रामनाथ कोविंद की अध्यक्षता वाली कमेटी द्वारा राष्ट्रपति द्रौपदी मुर्मू को अपनी रिपोर्ट सौंपना और सरकार द्वारा यूएपीए के तहत जम्मू-कश्मीर नेशनल फ्रंट पर पांच वर्ष का प्रतिबंध लगाना आदि ख़बरें भी हफ्तेभर की सुर्खियों में शामिल रहीं.

वहीं, म्यांमार के 77 नागरिकों को निर्वासित करेगा मणिपुर, बीजेपी का आंध्र प्रदेश में तेलुगु देशम पार्टी व जनसेना पार्टी के साथ गठबंधन, दिल्ली के इंद्रलोक में नमाजियों को लात मारने की वीडियो वायरल होने के बाद दिल्ली पुलिस का जवान सस्पेंड, 2018 में हापुड़ में मॉब लिंचिंग में कासिम कुरैशी की हत्या के मामले में 10 आरोपियों को उम्रकैद की सजा और बेंगलुरु में बढ़ रहा पानी का संकट आदि ख़बरों ने भी हफ्तेभर तक लोगों का ध्यान खींचा. 

इस हफ्ते चर्चा में बीबीसी की डिजिटल वीडियो संपादक सर्वप्रिया सांगवान शामिल हुईं. इसके अलावा न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम से रमन किरपाल, स्तंभकार आनंद वर्धन और हृदयेश जोशी ने हिस्सा लिया. वहीं, चर्चा का संचालन न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री के प्रबंध संपादक अतुल चौरसिया ने किया.

चर्चा के प्रमुख विषय चुनाव आयोग द्वारा इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा अपनी वेबसाइट पर सार्वजनिक किए जाने और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री के भी इसपर रिपोर्ट किए जाने को लेकर अतुल सवाल करते हैं, “अभी जो भी जानकारी सामने आई है उसमें क्या महत्वपूर्ण चीजें आपको दिखीं?”

इसके जवाब में रमन किरपाल कहते हैं, “बीजेपी की सरकार चुनावी चंदे के लिए एक ऐसी योजना लेकर आई जिसमें पारदर्शिता बिल्कुल नहीं थी. सुप्रीम कोर्ट के आदेश के बाद अब चंदे का डाटा सार्वजनिक हुआ है. आयोग द्वारा जारी किए गए डाटा में हम इस चीज के संकेत खोजने की कोशिश कर रहे हैं कि ईडी और आईटी के छापे के बाद किन कंपनियों ने दान देना शुरू किया. इस डाटा में बड़ी-बड़ी फार्मा, इंफ्रा और माइनिंग कंपनियां हैं. जो सरकार के साथ सौदा करती हैं और उन्हें कई प्रोजेक्ट्स मिलते हैं.”

सुनिए पूरी चर्चा-

नोट: इस हफ्ते चर्चा पेवॉल के पीछे नहीं है. अपने फेवरेट पॉडकास्ट प्लेटफॉर्म से चर्चा सुनने के लिए इस लिंक पर क्लिक करें.

टाइम कोड्स

00 - 5:29 - इंट्रो और जरूरी सूचना

05:30 - 19:40 - नायब सिंह सैनी बने हरियाणा के नए मुख्यमंत्री

19:41 - 24:28 - सुर्खियां

24:29 - 1:12:13 - चुनाव आयोग ने सार्वजनिक किया इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा और नए चुनाव आयुक्तों की नियुक्ति

1:12:14 - 1:18:32 - सलाह और सुझाव

पत्रकारों की राय क्या देखा, पढ़ा और सुना जाए

हृदयेश जोशी

इंडियन एक्सप्रेस में फिल्म ‘आलम आरा’ पर संपदा शर्मा का लेख 

आनंद वर्धन

किताब- द ऑक्सफोर्ड कम्पैनियन टू पॉलिटिक्स इन इंडिया

सर्वप्रिया सांगवान

नेटफ्लिक्स पर डॉक्यूमेंट्री- द मिनिमलिस्ट्स 

रमन किरपाल

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री पर इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड और राजनीतिक फंडिंग से जुड़ी रिपोर्ट्स

नेटफ्लिक्स पर डॉक्यूमेंट्री- टू किल ए टाइगर

अतुल चौरसिया 

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री पर इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड और राजनीतिक फंडिंग से जुड़ी सीरीज़

नेटफ्लिक्स पर डॉक्यूमेंट्री- स्पाई ऑप्स

ट्रांसक्रिप्शन: सत्येंद्र कुमार चौधुरी

प्रोड्यूसर: आशीष आनंद

एडिटिंग: उमराव सिंह

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चंदा देने वाली हब पावर पाकिस्तानी है या कोई हिंदुस्तानी शेल कंपनी? https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/pakistani-or-a-shell-firm-named-hub-power-company-donated-95-lac-through-electoral-bonds-in-2019-electionshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/pakistani-or-a-shell-firm-named-hub-power-company-donated-95-lac-through-electoral-bonds-in-2019-elections#comments0e95404b-0006-4bcf-aed4-6bd6de551a94Sat, 16 Mar 2024 07:24:47 +00002024-03-16T07:24:47.755Zबसंत कुमार/api/author/730901Hub Power CompanyPolitical-fundingReportइलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड् खरीदने और उसे भुनाने वाले राजनीतिक दलों की सूची जारी होने के कुछ देर बाद ही हब पावर कंपनी की चर्चा शुरू हो गई. चुनाव आयोग द्वारा सार्वजनिक किए गए डाटा के मुताबिक, इस कंपनी ने साल 2019 के अप्रैल महीने में 95 लाख रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. हालांकि, 2019 के बाद एक बार भी इस कंपनी द्वारा बॉन्ड खरीदे जाने की जानकारी सामने नहीं आई है. 

हब पावर कंपनी का नाम आते ही बताया जाने लगा कि यह एक पाकिस्तानी कंपनी है. जिसने पुलवामा हमले के दो महीने बाद बॉन्ड खरीदे. कई लोगों ने भारतीय जनता पार्टी पर आरोप लगाए कि वो एक पाकिस्तानी कंपनी से चंदा ले रहे थी. यह खबर तेजी से फैली. मालूम हो कि साल 2019 में फरवरी महीने में पुलवामा हमला हुआ था. जिसमें 40 से ज्यादा जवान शहीद हो गए थे.  

गौरतलब है कि हब पावर कंपनी लिमिटेड (HUBCO) पाकिस्तान की सबसे बड़ी स्वतंत्र बिजली उत्पादक है. 

भारत सरकार, भारतीय जनता पार्टी या किसी भी जांच एजेंसी की ओर से हब पावर कंपनी को लेकर कोई स्पष्टीकरण नहीं आया है. तो क्या ये वाकई पाकिस्तानी कंपनी है या फिर भारत में भी ऐसी कोई कंपनी है? 

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री की पड़ताल में सामने आया कि कॉरपोरेट मंत्रालय में इस नाम से किसी कंपनी की जानकारी दर्ज नहीं है. 

कॉरपोरेट मंत्रालय की वेब सर्च का स्क्रीनशॉट
दिल्ली के जीएसटी विभाग में दर्ज जानकारी

हालांकि, गूगल करने पर ‘हब पावर कंपनी’ के नाम से दिल्ली की गीता कॉलोनी के एक पते पर रजिस्टर एक कंपनी की जानकारी सामने आई. इसके संचालक के तौर पर रवि मेहरा का नाम लिखा था. साथ ही दिल्ली राज्य में इसके जीएसटी रजिस्ट्रेशन की जानकारी भी सामने आई. 

हमारी टीम जब गीता कॉलोनी के इस पते पर पहुंची तो वहां ताला लगा हुआ था. रवि मेहरा के बारे में पूछने पर पड़ोसियों ने बताया कि यहां रवि मेहरा नहीं रवि अरोड़ा रहते हैं. जो कि एक सरकारी कर्मचारी हैं और उनका कोई कारोबार नहीं है. 

पड़ोसी अनिल ने बताया, “रवि अरोड़ा लंबे समय तक यहां रहे हैं. उनकी पत्नी एलआईसी में काम करती हैं. पिता डीटीसी में थे और वो खुद रेवेन्यू विभाग में हैं. कोरोना के बाद वे लोग यहां से चले गए, हालांकि, घर अभी उनके नाम पर ही है. हमारी जानकारी में उनका कोई कारोबार तो नहीं था.’’

गीता कॉलोनी स्थित रवि अरोड़ा का मकान

उनके पड़ोस में रहने वाली एक बुजुर्ग महिला ने बताया कि अरोड़ा का बिजली का कारोबार है. कौन सा कारोबार, इसकी वो कोई साफ जानकारी नहीं दे पाती हैं. कहती हैं, ‘‘बिजली जब जाती थी तो हम उनके पास ही आते थे वो मदद कर देते थे.’’

इसी बीच हमने जीएसटी विभाग से इस कंपनी की डिटेल्स निकाली, जिसमें सामने आया कि यह एक फर्जी कंपनी थी. जिसे बाद में बंद कर दिया गया. 

विभाग के एक सीनियर अधिकारी ने न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री को बताया, “ऐसा लगता है कि यह कंपनी फर्जीवाड़ा करने के लिए ही खुली थी. जीएसटी रजिस्ट्रेशन के बाद जब हमने जांच की तो पता लगा कंपनी जो दावा करती है वो कारोबार करती ही नहीं. ऐसे में विभाग ने स्वतः संज्ञान लेकर इसका रजिस्ट्रेशन रद्द कर दिया.” 

अधिकारी ने बताया कि जीएसटी रजिस्ट्रेशन के लिए सिर्फ तस्वीर दी गई और कोई डाक्यूमेंट उपलब्ध नहीं कराया गया. जानकारी के मुताबिक, जीएसटी रजिस्ट्रेशन के लिए आधार और पैन कार्ड देना पड़ता है. हमने इस अधिकारी से पूछा तो वो कहते हैं, ‘‘यह सब फ्रॉड करने वाले लोग करते हैं. जब हमारी जानकारी में आ जाता है तो हम कार्रवाई करते हैं.’’

अब तक यह साफ हो गया था कि दिल्ली में रजिस्टर हब पावर कंपनी एक फर्जी कंपनी है. तो आखिर यह कंपनी है किसकी? 

जीएसटी डिटेल्स में रवि अरोड़ा का पता दर्ज है. गूगल पर नाम रवि मेहरा का है. जीएसटी रजिस्ट्रेशन में दी गई तस्वीर अरोड़ा की नहीं है. लेकिन पता उनका दर्ज है.  

हब पावर कंपनी के नाम पर जीएसटी विभाग को दी गई तस्वीर

हमने इस बारे में 2/40 गीता कॉलोनी के मालिक रवि अरोड़ा से बात की. फिलहाल, वह भारत सरकार के रेवेन्यू विभाग में प्रिंसिपल प्राइवेट सेक्रेटरी हैं. हमने उनसे पूछा कि आपके पते पर एक कंपनी रजिस्टडर्ड है, जिसने 95 लाख का बॉन्ड् खरीदा है तो क्या हब पावर कंपनी आपकी है? इस सवाल का जवाब वो ना में देते हैं. रवि कहते हैं, ‘‘जब हम वहां रहते थे तब भी हमारे यहां कई बार पुलिस आई. बैंक वाले यह कहते हुए आए कि लोन लिया गया है. हालांकि, वो शख्स जिसका नाम रवि मेहरा है वो ओल्ड गीता कॉलोनी में 2/40 के सेकेंड फ्लोर पर रहता है. उसका मुझसे कोई लेना देना नहीं.’’

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री की टीम रवि अरोड़ा के बताए पते यानी 2/40 ओल्ड गीता कॉलोनी पहुंची. यहां 40 नंबर के तीन मकान हैं. यह रवि अरोड़ा के घर से महज सौ मीटर की दूरी पर हैं. यहां ऐसे किसी शख्स की आसपास के लोगों को जानकारी नहीं है. हमने आस-पड़ोस के लोगों से पता किया. जीएसटी रजिस्ट्रेशन के लिए दी गई तस्वीर दिखाई लेकिन किसी ने भी उस शख्स की पहचान नहीं की. सेठी डेयरी चलाने वाले कमल सेठी कहते हैं, ‘‘हमने इस नाम के बारे में कभी नहीं सुना है. इस बिल्डिंग में तो इस नाम का कोई रहता भी नहीं था.’’ तो क्या कभी पुलिस, बैंक अधिकारी या कोई और ऐसे किसी शख्स को ढूंढते हुए यहां आए? इसका जवाब वो ना में देते हैं. 40 नंबर मकान कमल सेठी का ही हैं. 

ओल्ड गीता कॉलोनी स्थित मकान
ओल्ड गीता कॉलोनी स्थित मकान

एक ओर रवि अरोड़ा दावा कर रहे हैं कि कई बार पुलिस और बैंक वाले उनके पते पर आए है. जिन्हें उन्होंने ओल्ड गीता कॉलोनी भेजा. लेकिन दूसरी ओर वहां सालों से रह रहे लोग ऐसे किसी शख्स के होने से ही इनकार करते हैं. 

सवाल यह उठता है कि झूठ कौन बोल रहा है? और यह फर्जी कंपनी किसकी थी? क्या यह कोई शेल कंपनी थी? और क्या यह वही हब पावर कंपनी है, जिसने इलेक्ट्रोल बॉन्ड् ख़रीदे हैं? 

अभी तक जो जानकारी सार्वजनिक हुई है उस आधार पर इन सवालों का जवाब नहीं दिया जा सकता है. ना ये दावा किया जा सकता है कि ये कंपनी भारत वाली है या फिर पाकिस्तान वाली.  

भाजपा को सबसे ज्यादा चुनावी चंदा

अभी तक चुनाव आयोग ने 12 अप्रैल 2019 से 11 जनवरी 2024 तक इलेक्ट्रोल बॉन्ड् के जरिए किस दल को कितना चंदा मिला है इसकी जानकारी साझा की है. इस समयावधि में भारतीय जनता पार्टी को सबसे ज़्यादा 6,060 करोड़ रुपये, तृणमूल कांग्रेस को 1,609 करोड़ और कांग्रेस पार्टी 1,421 करोड़ रुपये मिले हैं. सबसे ज्यादा चंदा किन कंपनियों ने दिया जानने के लिए पढ़िए न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री की ये रिपोर्ट.

एसबीआई 1 मार्च 2018 से 15 फरवरी 2024 तक 16518 करोड़ रुपये के 28030 बॉन्ड्स बेचे थे. अभी तक 12,516 करोड़ रुपये की कीमत के 18,871 बॉन्ड् की ही जानकारी सामने आई है. बाकी बचे 4002 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड् की जानकारी भविष्य में आने की संभावना है. 

इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स पर हमारी बाकी रिपोर्ट्स पढ़ने के लिए इस लिंक पर जाएं.

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Prasar Bharati’s new chairman: Ex-IAS officer known for handling UP govt’s PR departmenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/prasar-bharatis-new-chairman-ex-ias-officer-known-for-handling-up-govts-pr-departmenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/prasar-bharatis-new-chairman-ex-ias-officer-known-for-handling-up-govts-pr-department#comments1b3ed29f-273a-4799-a34d-64c981271256Sat, 16 Mar 2024 07:17:57 +00002024-03-16T07:17:57.406ZNL Team/api/author/730883Prasar BharatiShot

Public broadcaster Prasar Bharti got a new chairman on Saturday with the appointment of former IAS officer Navneet Sehgal to the top post.  

Sehgal earlier led the Uttar Pradesh government’s public relations and sports departments as its principal secretary, and is known for his proximity to industrialists, actors, and sports associations. He reportedly also worked closely with Prime Minister Modi’s office. 

The bureaucrat’s appointment to the Prasar Bharati top post comes weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, and after a hiatus of three years. The last chairman was journalist A Surya Prakash, whose three-year term ended in February 2020. Prasar Bharati operates DD News, Doordarshan and Akashvani.

Sehgal was selected by a three-member panel led by Vice President and Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, and comprising the Press Council of India chairperson Ranjana Prakash Desai and a nominee of the President. 

Newslaundry earlier reported that the public broadcaster also began its news sharing service to offer content “free of copyright” to registered outlets, including newspapers, magazines, TV channels, digital outlets and “even social media news channels”, Read here.

Recently, the public broadcaster also began airing Ayodhya’s Ram temple prayer rituals everyday. Read here.   

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Satish Nandgaonkar’s death kicks up row over newsroom toxicityhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/satish-nandgaonkars-death-kicks-up-row-over-newsroom-toxicityhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/satish-nandgaonkars-death-kicks-up-row-over-newsroom-toxicity#comments142f8866-b1a6-425f-95c7-559af72a87d3Sat, 16 Mar 2024 07:08:22 +00002024-03-16T07:08:22.832ZPrateek Goyal/api/author/730929hindustan times,Indian journalistsReport

If Satish Nandgaonkar had not been a journalist, he “would have led a beautiful life”.

This is what Anjali Ambekar, Nandgaonkar’s wife, said during a condolence meeting held for the late journalist at the Mumbai Press Club on March 13. 

Nandgaonkar, the head of the Thane and Navi Mumbai bureaus for Hindustan Times, died after a cardiac arrest outside the newspaper’s Mumbai office on February 28. Hours before, he was allegedly “badly humiliated” by the newspaper’s resident editor in Mumbai, Meenal Baghel. 

Ambekar alleged he was “sweating profusely in a full air-conditioned office”, told colleagues he would “resign the next day”, and then suffered a heart attack.

Nandgaonkar was rushed to a nearby hospital but was declared brought dead.

Ambekar filed a complaint with Hindustan Times, the Editors Guild of India, the Press Council of India and the Mumbai Press Club. Her complaint places the blame on Baghel, whom she named in the complaint multiple times. She wrote that Baghel “would underrate him, rubbish him and humiliate him in front of his colleagues, a thing that would affect the morale of sensitive journalists like Satish.”

The Mumbai Press Club then conducted a preliminary probe. While it concluded that a “direct relation” cannot be established between Nandgaonkar’s harassment and death, it was clear that he was “put under severe stress by continuous bludgeoning and insults by the executive editor, which might have triggered a cardiac episode”.

The Editors Guild subsequently issued a statement urging HT management to “conduct a fair and transparent inquiry”. “While the Guild is working to update the Code of Ethics for working journalists and editors with a view to tackle ever-evolving challenges, it calls upon managements of all news organisations to ensure the well-being of its journalist,” the statement said. “Every journalist deserves a fair hearing and fair play.”

Newslaundry spoke to Ambekar and a dozen journalists who have worked with Baghel to piece together what had happened. 

When contacted for this story, Baghel told this reporter to send queries to HT’s legal team. We have received no response so far. We also emailed a questionnaire to Monika Aggarwal, HT’s human resources head. This report will be updated if she responds. 

HT Mumbai’s ‘high attrition’ 

Before HT, Nandgaonkar had previously worked with Baghel at Mumbai Mirror. In her speech on March 13, Ambekar said she’d heard “so many things about what happened at Hindustan Times”.

“He was harassed and humiliated in front of so many of his colleagues,” she said, adding that this “trauma” had impacted her husband’s “morale and self-esteem”. As such, Ambekar demanded an investigation into the alleged harassment of her husband at his workplace and the “circumstances” prior to his heart attack.

She also said other journalists had allegedly resigned from HT due to Baghel’s “toxic behaviour” and that she was fighting “not only for Satish but for journalists who face similar situations”.

Newslaundry read through Ambekar’s complaint. It claimed that in the last six months, Ambekar asked Nandgaonkar on several occasions to “quit his job” but he had “a hope that things would soon improve”. She wrote that she’d seen his WhatsApp chats and emails and was “horrified” to note the “constant harassment he faced at the hands of Baghel.”  

Her complaint specifically mentioned two editorial meetings on February 12 and February 21 during which Nandgaonkar was allegedly “given a dressing down and humiliated”. On February 28, she said he also “testified” against Baghel in an enquiry into HT’s high attrition rate in Mumbai. It’s unclear as to the outcome of this enquiry.

“Meenal was slave-driving and harassing the journalists in her mad pursuit of stories,” the complaint said. “...Under acute stress, Satish suffered a cardiac arrest…Had the working conditions at HT been good, Satish would have been alive today.”   

Speaking to Newslaundry, Ambekar said, “Humiliating, downgrading and abusing colleagues at the workplace doesn’t improve productivity. On the contrary, it affects their mental health and physical health. I am taking this up because I don't want other journalists to have the same fate as Satish. I don’t want others to become victims of toxic newsroom culture.”

What happened on February 28?

According to the probe conducted by the Mumbai Press Club, Nandgaonkar attended a daily meeting at 12.30 pm on February 28. 

During the meeting, Baghel “came down heavily” on Nandgaonkar over a story filed late by one of his team members. The story was apparently sent to her unedited.

HT employees told the press club that Nandgaonkar tried to “reason” with Baghel, explaining that the reporter in question had filed from an area without internet, hence the delay. He also said he sent her an unedited story to avoid further delay. Baghel then called him “brainless” and accused him of “not doing your job”.

A colleague reported finding Nandgaonkar “glassy-eyed” at his desk later. The colleague invited him to come for lunch but he did not reply. The press club noted: “He was also heard complaining to other colleagues about upper back and shoulder pain, and said he would go to a pharmacy and get some painkillers.” 

Between 2.30 and 3 pm, Nandgaonkar left the HT office, located on the ninth floor of a building in Lower Parel. He went to a pharmacy where he collapsed on the floor, hitting his head against a glass panel.

“A bystander accessed his office number from the cards in his wallet and called the HT office. His colleagues rushed to the pharmacy and tried to call an ambulance, but finally, they used a taxi to rush him to Global Hospital in Parel area. However, on examination at the emergency area in the hospital, doctors declared him ‘dead on arrival’,” the press club reported.

‘You are useless’: Regular insults, humiliation

In the week before Nandgaonkar’s death, he was subjected to “regular insults and humiliation in front of the entire office, including his juniors”, said the press club’s report.

In an editorial meeting led by Baghel on February 21, she “loudly berated” Satish, calling him “useless” and “making demeaning remarks”, a colleague told the press club.  

“Colleagues said it was the first occasion that Nandgaonkar, who normally kept his cool, shouted back. However, the stress took its toll and colleagues said his face turned red and he was sweating profusely.”

Another colleague testified that she saw Nandgaonkar crying at his desk that day. 

According to the report, the exchange was over Nandgaonkar no longer having the authority to publish stories by his team of 10 stringers on the HT website. He had allegedly negotiated with management to publish their stories online since stringers’ copies did not always make it to the print edition. Publishing them on the website ensured they got paid.

Other colleagues detailed the extent of Nandgaonkar’s work. Apart from handling the Thane and Navi Mumbai bureaus, he worked the real estate and aviation beats as a reporter. He also did deskwork – rewriting and editing stories by his team members.

Importantly, the report said Nandgaonkar’s contract with HT had expired in December. Despite his repeated reminders, Baghel had not renewed it. 

The stress and humiliation had taken a toll, and he had spoken of leaving his job in recent days. Some colleagues said he had hesitated as he wanted to protect his team.”

A ‘systemic’ culture of toxicity, journalists say 

A reporter who joined HT in May 2018 told the Mumbai Press Club enquiry committee that she resigned “in disgust” in August 2022 – months after Baghel joined the bureau – after being subject to “continuous bullying” and insults in the edit meetings. 

She told the enquiry committee that she contemplated suicide at one point. The reporter said that most of her stories were “killed” as Baghel “bore a grudge” against her and used “swear words”. 

The press club report said, “Like her, about 10 other journalists…had left HT soon after Baghel joined in May 2022 due to the toxic atmosphere in the workplace.”

HT reporter Rutuja Gaidhani, who also testified to the press club, said she “rarely heard a word of encouragement” and “always felt humiliated”. During an edit meeting, Baghel once lashed out at her, she alleged, and questioned her ability as a reporter. These “tongue-lashings” never took place in private, they were “always a public harangue”. 

The worst aspect of the toxic work culture, Gaidhani told the press club, was that it percolated down to other section heads. As a result, the head of the Mumbai desk, among others, adopted the same tactic of yelling at reporters.

Senior journalist Naresh Kamath, who worked at HT for 18 years and resigned within a week of Baghel’s appointment, told the press club her “bullying ways” were “intolerable”. 

He also said: “As a matter of course, stories she did not like or rejected would evoke either a ‘what shit is this?’ or ‘why should we pay you for this?’ response.” Kamath said the “toxic atmosphere was too much to bear” and he recorded his experience about the work atmosphere in his exit interview. Kamatha confirmed this to Newslaundry.

Another former employee told the press body’s inquiry committee that Bagel’s “insulting behaviour and demeaning comments were a systemic problem”. Though HT journalists had complained to both group editor Sukumar Ranganathan and HR personnel, “there was no serious intervention from their side”. 

Shruti Ganapatye, who worked with Mumbai Mirror, told Newslaundry: “My question is are we going to normalise such an atmosphere? Are we not going to hold the newsroom bosses accountable for this toxicity?” 

Mumbai Press Club president Gurbir Singh told Newslaundry, “Prima facie, the extensive interviews we have had with HT and former HT staffers, establishes a trail of harassment and abuse meted out to Satish Nandagaonkar by the editor Meenal Baghel. This could have triggered a cardiac episode.”

He said justice will be served if HT Media or an independent body of editors, like the Editors Guild of India, sets up an impartial inquiry into determining the chain of events in the HT newsroom. He also urged the guild to develop an “editors newsroom code” to ensure “humane conditions of work” for journalists.

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TV Newsance 245: Did Modi just save us from nuclear annihilation?https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/tv-newsance-245-did-modi-just-save-us-from-nuclear-annihilationhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/tv-newsance-245-did-modi-just-save-us-from-nuclear-annihilation#comments1db91dae-294d-4294-90be-2efd7e1c12abSat, 16 Mar 2024 05:30:00 +00002024-03-16T05:30:00.000ZNL Team/api/author/730883TV NewsanceTV Newsance

On this episode of TV Newsance, we look at how our dear leader prevented total nuclear annihilation. 

Well, not quite, but that didn’t stop Amish Devgan from doing an entire news segment on it. Gullu found a CNN report originally about US diplomatic strategy and made the entire thing about...yes, Modiji. But giving Gullu tough competition was Syed Suhail on Republic Bharat. He took things up a notch to gush about Modi and Putin’s friendship. Only Modi could have saved the day!

Elections? What elections? Instead we’ll tell you all about anchors being part of the PM’s PR machinery. We’ll even look at that viral advertisement on Modi stopping the Russia-Ukraine war.

Watch. 

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Hafta 476: Electoral bonds, BJP candidates, CAA implementationhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/hafta-476-electoral-bonds-bjp-candidates-caa-implementationhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/hafta-476-electoral-bonds-bjp-candidates-caa-implementation#commentsa71cdbac-5731-4f04-ba25-46aaa64ab76bSat, 16 Mar 2024 04:39:46 +00002024-03-16T04:39:46.464ZNL Team/api/author/730883HaftaNL HaftaThis week, Newslaundry’s Abhinandan Sekhri, Shardool Katyayan and JayashreeArunachalam are joined by Jagdeep Chhokar, founder and member of the Association for Democratic Reforms.

On electoral bonds, Jagdeep says the exercise of matching the bonds data can never be conclusive, but “we should remember that the window between a bond being purchased and it being redeemed is 15 days”. 

The panel then discusses the BJP’s second list of candidates for the Lok Sabha polls. Abhinandan asks if the party is trying to change its image by dropping names of sitting MPs with a history of hate speech. Jayashree says it is fielding new faces only to strengthen the central leadership’s grip on state units.

On the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act, Shardool says the law is “practically useless”. He explains that the naturalisation process requires 11 years of residency in the country, whereas the deadline for granting citizenship under the CAA is December 2014, and the law is being notified almost after a decade. 

Tune in!

This episode is free for all! If you like what you are listening to, subscribe to Newslaundry today.

Hafta letters: Electoral bonds, revolutions in India, ‘Foxification’ of media

We have a page for subscribers to send letters to our shows. If you want to write to Hafta, click here

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Song: Sheher

Timecodes

00:02:31  - Headlines

00:19:19   - Electoral bonds

00:38:15  - BJP’s second list of candidates 

00:48:33 - Notifying of CAA rules

01:02:49 - Letters

01:34:48 - Recommendations

References

General Elections 2024 Fund

Kerala veterinary student’s death unveils stories of SFI’s ‘campus autocracy’

Kerala veterinary student death: Key accused taken for evidence collection in college

Horrific assault, silent onlookers: Report details brutal attack on Kerala vet student

EU introduces new rules on transparency and targeting of political advertising

A Fine Balance

Recommendations

Jagdeep

The Origins of Totalitarianism

Shardool

Monster Hunter

Chupke Chupke

मुझको सरकार बनाने दो

Are Gangs about to take over Haiti?

Constantly pretending your boss's dumb jokes are funny can lead to emotional exhaustion and lower job satisfaction

Jayashree

Man With a Movie Camera

The Jakarta Method

Abhinandan 

How to win an Oscar

85% of Indians support autocracy or military rule, shows Pew survey

Check out our previous Haftai recommendations.

Produced and recorded by Aryan Mahtta, edited by Hassan Bilal.

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Hafta letters: Electoral bonds, revolutions in India, ‘Foxification’ of mediahttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/hafta-letters-electoral-bonds-revolutions-in-india-foxification-of-mediahttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/hafta-letters-electoral-bonds-revolutions-in-india-foxification-of-media#comments5c5afec6-8348-475b-8117-de8a23fdece2Sat, 16 Mar 2024 04:15:00 +00002024-03-16T04:15:00.000ZNL Team/api/author/730883NL DhulaiNL Dhulai

Opening the letter, I apologise for my lack of ability to remember names. I mean no disrespect and disconnected tangents.

I have been a subscriber for a good amount of time and your electoral bonds articles were really fast and good on what I assume was a low budget – so congratulations!

I totally agree with the host on the fact that when criticising (the dictator discussion at the end portion), we must have an idealistic view of the situation. Otherwise, what are we even striving for when we are critiquing? And it’s even more appropriate to criticise from an idealistic viewpoint when the situation has already happened, as we have knowledge and experience from our past to know where it is heading as a collective.

Now, coming to the counter that was given on the show to this argument. It’s only appropriate to bring out the past and things that led up to it when there is a good faith discussion to solve a problem and limit testing it for contingencies. The right-wing uses this “good faith practice” as a means to dodge accountability and it just devolves into what-aboutism. 

I am linking to a playlist for the NL team which explains this practice in a better way. 

I don’t know why no one has caught on to this fact, but what is happening in India has already happened in the US. The only reason it isn’t this one-sided in the US as compared to India is because of their centrist and a few leftist propagandists. India has no propagandist on the other side. (I know comparing US politics to India is not correct as regional parties hold more power in India, but I want to show how the BJP treats its propaganda.) All this Soros media control is originally an antisemitic thing that started in the US. The Foxification of the Indian media is also taken from the US.

I’ll explain a little bit about myself so you can get where I am coming from. I got an internet connection during the early 2000s (jai ho, Indian army). And I just like learning new things. The amount of useless things I know scares me sometimes. I have been reading about world history, world politics and domestic American propaganda for kicks for a long time, until it became a reality in our country too. 

What I observed – and told my sister many times too – is how Arnab uses American propaganda and just Ctrl+V it on his news channels. It started with Fox-like debates and then it just devolved rapidly post 2014. I can’t recall all the parallels but if you can make a list of all the nonsense he (and others) did post 2014, I bet I can provide you with their original US counterparts (you’ll have a free Newsance episode).

Your Let’s Talk About on Israel was very good and I will use it to explain to people the issue. As you can see from above, I am not good at explaining things. One suggestion I would make is to explain and spend more time on the Sykes-Picot agreement and WW1 shenanigans as that was the moment for me which put everything in perspective and brought out the real facts of the matter. It painted the issue more as a freedom struggle rather than an antisemitic one (helped me disconnected from the US and Allied forces propaganda).

Enjoy my Zoomer brain fart!

Comd. Shepard

***

Appreciate Sudipto’s points last Hafta, and I think he was being misunderstood by the rest of the panel. To acknowledge that there is a general trend of sycophancy and dictatorship in our history that brought us here is not to say that what is happening now is okay, nor is it to deny that the scale and methods of today are different. We like to imagine an India pre 2014 as somehow being more secular, more fair. But this wasn’t really ever the case for Dalits, tribals, or even Muslims really, was it? The ugliness is out in the open now, but that doesn't mean it wasn’t under the surface before. Some of it is manufactured, yes, but a lot of it is also pre-existing. 

In general, wanting an end to conflict makes us reach for “viable” and “practical” solutions, which is something familiar that already existed. But most times that was never fair or just to begin with. It’s imperative that we collectively imagine more just and equitable futures, complex as they may be given current scenarios. 

Nithila

***

Hi Newslaundry team,

I have been a big fan of your work and a proud subscriber for the last 8-9 years. Something has been bothering me for the last few days. It is the amount being raised for your NL Sena project Modi 2.0 Report Card –  Rs 6,32,498. Each time I see this figure I wonder why they did not make it Rs 6,32,500? It is just two rupees extra.

I know I am sounding weird, but I feel a sense of discomfort each time I see this figure. I keep wondering why they are not raising extra two rupees and making it an even figure. To the point that I am compelled to write this letter and request an explanation.

Can you please explain – how did you arrive at Rs 6,32,498 and why did you decide to not make it Rs 6,32,500?

Aridaman

***

I’ve got used to hearing many mispronunciations on NL, such as Wed-nes-day for Wen’sday, but why does Abhinandan say Madras with a soft “d”? And why is no one on the panel correcting him? 

Supriya Guha

***

What’s up with the interior design in your studio? Looks like the interior designer, whoever he/she may be, selected the colours right from the German Nazi flag.

On a more serious note, thank you for the investigative pieces on political funding through electoral bonds. I hope SC forces SBI to reveal all information related to EB in the public domain. Fingers crossed.

Cyril

***

You completely glossed over my letter on suicide/murder of Sidharth the student from the Kerala veterinary college. You may check – the story was akin to the Nirbhaya case and made worse by the political angle to it. You haven’t answered how your south correspondent or The News Minute also did not feel this story enough to be discussed on Hafta. Please Google the story. It is astounding and so very tragic. Your partnership with The News Minute should bring up the southern states’ stories but this time, as in earlier times, they are very selective.

Anonymous

***

A few episodes back, there was a conversation around how Hafta subscribers are well read and well informed. I am guessing the suggestion is that hence they are anti-BJP. But there must be enough smart people voting for BJP as well. I see very few honest assessments as to why BJP is popular apart from some lazy analysis like ‘Indians do not value democracy’. This feels like Bollywood directors looking down on their audience because their movie failed at the box office. I am sure caste-privileged, left-leaning people like us reading three newspapers a day are not the only saviours of democracy. Also I hope there are more topics of discussions in Hafta other than just this left vs right debates. 

Prasad

***

Hello NL team,

Given the electoral bonds theme, I have an interesting link to share from my news feed. This talks about the EU’s new rules on transparency and targeting of political advertising. Please have a look before the episode. 

Sending the whole team wishes for the spring! 

Shubham

***

Hi NL team,

Loved Sudipto’s point of view as a fellow Kannadiga. And was happy to hear him talk Tamil next time, Sudipto, make your points in Kannada, haha. Hindi, English haye haye.

Indian people are not capable of revolution. I am not going to say 1857. A revolution does not need to be bloody. Mayawati, Mamata and even the rise of BJP is revolution enough, don’t you think?

To more more of Hindu atheism (I am not playing with words here, it is Hindu atheism) or the more known “nastik” was a philosophy. The etymology of nastika will take you to carvaka. I am not an expert but this is what my research has come up with due to my own atheistic beliefs.

Can you please have a look at ITC’s e-choupal? And does it really work? Cooperative using innovations.

About Empire podcast, Sirjee William Dalrymple is in Delhi only, you can collaborate with him also.

Dhiraj

***

This one is in reference to episode 474, where the guest was questioning why farmers from only one part of the country are protesting. 

First thing, this question is actually covered in detail by The Red Mike, which did brilliant coverage of this. Secondly, should this question really be one for a farmer to answer? If tomorrow there is a new tax introduced for hospitals, will we start this divide-and-rule on why X hospital is protesting and not Y?

Regardless, this is not even a question of farm laws anymore but of oppressing the rights of citizens. There is a 21-year-old kid who died and frankly, no one was surprised or bothered by it. Heck, I’ll even go ahead and say farmers are in the wrong when it comes to their protests (which they’re not), but they deserve an audience. For years, the government squatted on its promises that it made to farmers previously. Question the government on why it has done jack before we start the nuance of whether farmers’ demands are right or wrong.

Anonymous

***

Hi NL team,

Some thoughts from me on the last Hafta here.

Abhinandan mentioned something around how there is a lack of ideology and used an example of Eklavya and how he gave his thumb without question. To start with, the analogy wasn’t very clear to me so if you can explain your point again, that would be helpful.

The way I did understand what you said makes me slightly disagree with you. I don’t think there is a lack of ideology at play here. The Mahabharata, of course, has different accounts from writers’ perspectives and I have read it quite extensively. Some say Eklavya knew exactly why Dronacharya was asking him for his thumb; he could see the malice in his guru’s mind and “still” gave him his thumb anyway as he was adamant to follow his ideology (which we still see today in our culture, to respect gurus/teachers etc). So, I don’t think it’s a situation where he doesn’t have a strong ideology.

Drawing a comparison to the current world, what today’s ministers lack is self-reflection and thought. So, if you ask them their ideology, they are the first to say “Hindutva” or anything of the sort. But if you ask them their position on economics, markets, welfare, health etc, or whether they are religiously left or right, economically left or right, socially left or right – I am sure they won’t be able to answer. In fact, I am sure quite a few of them just brand everything as “leftist”.

For example, if you look at the BJP’s politics, they may be very hard on right-wing politics on their religious scale but economically, they launch welfare schemes which may say they are more centrist economically. But unlike Eklavya, none of the MPs I feel would be able to have strong opinions about what they stand for. Which we can see with horse-trading anyway.

Lastly, feedback – Tippani has become very irregular. If you have Abhinandan backfilling for Manisha, please shower love on Tippani and get someone to cover for Atul too. It’s the first thing I see on a Wednesday.

Thanks a lot and keep up the good work.

Anonymous 

***

Recently, during one of our English literature classes, we delved into Salman Rushdie’s The Free Radio," where our professor provided historical context, particularly focusing on the forced sterilisation campaign led by Sanjay Gandhi. In her discussion, she asserted that this campaign unfairly targeted a specific community within India, specifically Hindus. I found this assertion troubling and wondered about its veracity, given some prior questionable statements made by the professor.

Previously, our professor has made unsubstantiated claims, such as labelling Arvind Kejriwal as a communist and suggesting that the current government in Karnataka shares communist ideologies. Furthermore, she stated that states governed by communist parties perpetually remain impoverished due to their supposed dependence on poverty. To challenge her assertions, I presented data regarding poverty rates in Kerala and Uttar Pradesh, which seemed to provoke her ire.

Unfortunately, these instances are not isolated incidents. Many professors in our English department at Delhi University seem ill-equipped to deliver accurate information or even proficiently communicate in English. As permanent members of the faculty, their lack of teaching skills is increasingly hindering our educational experience. 

Anonymous

***

Hi NL,

Lots of us have abandoned Twitter (X) for Bluesky, the musky, mucky smell of X is too much for us. Could you guys please at least post your links on Bluesky? 

Shashwati

***

Hi NL team,

Very disappointed with the discussion on electoral bonds on the last Hafta. The panel had done no homework. The SC had never ordered matching of the donors, bonds and recipients, therefore, the very premise of SBI’s extension plea was based on incorrect interpretation of the order. In fact, the gentleman from ADR on the Hafta post the SC order had said that people like them will do the data analysis once disclosed by SBI and EC.

Also, someone from ADR was on The Mojo Story along with Mr Garg where he mentioned that The News Minute has already reported on about 30 companies and their donation patterns. However, he said that the same cannot be presented in court as the accuracy of the report cannot be validated. When people make such claims in interviews, it puts a question on the genuineness of the report as well as the news platform. You guys need to find a better way to present such reports to stakeholders like ADR and other social enterprises/activists.

You need to get Sudipto back. Though I didn't agree with some of the things he said, he however did bring some new perspective and energy into the show.Bandana

Newslaundry will be reporting on the general elections this year in partnership with The News Minute. Click here to support us.

In times of misinformation, you need news you can trust. We’ve got you covered. Subscribe to Newslaundry and power our work.

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Multiple investigations could not stop Santiago Martin’s onward march. What explains his success?https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/multiple-investigations-could-not-stop-santiago-martins-onward-march-what-explains-his-successhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/16/multiple-investigations-could-not-stop-santiago-martins-onward-march-what-explains-his-success#comments38522168-8b65-4685-a493-5724e9b1f78bSat, 16 Mar 2024 03:42:36 +00002024-03-16T03:42:36.161ZShabbir Ahmed, Anand Mangnale, Binu Karunakaran, Ravi Nair/api/author/1931548Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

The revelation that his lottery empire is the single largest buyer of electoral bonds in India has made Santiago Martin infamous across the country. But if a person close to him is to be believed, the Tamil Nadu-based businessman is relieved that the scale of his contributions to political parties has become known.

Martin’s company, Future Gaming and Hotel Services PR, purchased Rs 1,368 crore worth electoral bonds in 22 phases, data released by the Election Commission on Thursday showed.

A close associate of the man known as ‘lottery king’ said he was frustrated by the endless financial demands made by political parties and now hopes that these would stop.

The attempt to cast himself as a victim of political rent-seeking, however, sits at odds with Martin’s links to parties across the spectrum.

His son Charles Jose Martin is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, while his wife Leema Rose is with the Indhiya Jananayaga Katchi, or IJK, an ally of the BJP. 

Martin’s son-in-law Aadhav Arjun is with the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi or VCK, an Ambedkarite party which is part of the Congress-led INDIA alliance, for whom he designs election strategy. 

Far from indicating ideological sympathies, his family’s dalliance with politics appears to be guided by the classic investor’s logic: spread your bets. 

For years, many have asked why political parties were keen to befriend the 59-year-old businessman being investigated for fraud, manipulation and money laundering. The electoral bonds data may have finally provided the answer: the lottery king was delivering them a jackpot.

Martin’s growth

Not much is known about his childhood, other than that he grew up in Coimbatore. 

After spending a few years in Myanmar as a manual labourer in the late 1980s, when he returned to the city as a teenager, the only employment he could find was selling lottery tickets. 

In 1991, he took a leap of faith. He turned into a distributor of Tamil Nadu state lotteries.

It was the era of liberalisation in India and lotteries had become a national addiction among those who were left out of the economic boom as well as those desperate for instant success. States found easy revenue in lotteries, and Martin jumped right into it. 

When his home state banned the sale of lottery tickets in 2003, Martin expanded his operations to other states, including those in India’s North East, like Sikkim, Manipur, Meghalaya. 

He sold over a crore lotteries daily, paying massive taxes to state governments. When asked about his Midas touch in the early 2000s, Martin boasted: "I succeeded because I grasped the psychology of the buyer and the tricks of the trade.”

Martin’s tricks of the trade, however, are not just limited to the lottery business. A person who has worked with Martin during those years said that the businessman cultivated strong ties with politicians and government officials in the northeastern states and neighbouring Bhutan by chaperoning their children who had come to study in Tamil Nadu.

“We used to say that he runs governments,” the person who spoke on the condition of anonymity said. “He monopolised the paper lottery industry for years. His first focus was to ensure that agencies don’t come after him.”

Yet, he could not keep allegations of fraud and financial jugglery at bay.

In 2001, the Income Tax Department said it had found evidence that Martin had manipulated the lottery system to ensure prizes mostly went to unsold tickets, which his company retained. An example of this was his son Jose Charles winning Rs 50 lakh in the Azad Hind Bumper Lottery of the Nagaland government in 1997 – Martin claimed his son was plain lucky. 

Tax investigators also found evidence of alleged manipulation by Martin in Sikkim and Bhutan lotteries, which they reported to the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Central Vigilance Commission.

In 2007, Martin’s business in Karnataka came under the scanner for allegedly running an illegal lottery racket in the state with the help of police officials. In 2010, Kerala sought a ban on the Sikkim and Bhutan paper lotteries after it grew suspicious about them.

The next year, the CBI registered nearly 30 cases against him and his aides for cheating the Sikkim government of Rs 4,500 crore by selling lotteries on behalf of the Sikkim government in other states. The CBI filed its chargesheet in the case in 2014 and the trial has been dragging in the courts since then. 

But the investigations did not stop Martin’s onward march. Despite the state police and central agencies regularly raiding his premises, his empire kept expanding. It is currently spread across sectors ranging from real estate to alternative energy, healthcare to hospitality, media and textiles apart from gaming and lotteries.

What explains his success?

Links with Tamil Nadu politics

In Tamil Nadu, Martin is believed to have initially forged a connection with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. 

This became evident when, as the proprietor of a music company called SS Music, he produced Ilaignan, DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi's 75th movie as a scriptwriter in 2011. Martin also funded Karunanidhi’ ‘Ponnar Shankar film project, which had been in limbo for years.  

In 2012, Kanthi Alagiri, the wife of Karunanidhi’s son Alagiri, was accused of buying temple land allegedly grabbed by Martin at a throwaway price. Alagiri was then union minister in the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government.

Despite the political clout that Martin reportedly enjoyed, he had no luck in getting the ban on lotteries lifted in Tamil Nadu. 

The ban had been imposed by the J Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK government – DMK”s main rival. In 2006, when the DMK came back to power, Martin actively lobbied for a removal of the ban. But the DMK government led by M Karunanidhi did not oblige. 

Martin’s supporters cite this as proof that there was no quid pro quo between him and the party. Opposition leaders, however, claim that the ban was merely a smokescreen – they accuse the DMK of helping Martin take his illegal operations underground. 

A police officer who tracked the tycoon during the DMK regime said, “Martin grew so powerful during that period that he bribed everyone from the police station to the secretariat who helped his illegal lottery business flourish”. 

In 2010, a dossier prepared by the Enforcement Directorate – a copy of which we have seen – estimated that Martin’s illegal operations had caused the public exchequer a loss of Rs 7,500 crore. 

The dossier claimed that Martin was involved in illegally selling over Rs 10 crore worth of lottery tickets per day in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Jammu. The alleged modus operandi, according to the dossier, involved selling a lottery ticket officially worth Rs 1 for Rs 500 in the black market. If that were not enough, the company was also accused of cheating lottery winners who were paid only 50% of the approved prize.

The ED investigation claimed that Martin had built a strong network of stockists and retailers across the county. The agency suspected that the profits derived from the illegal sale of lotteries were either laundered through investments in real estate or through informal and illegal “hawala” channels.

In 2011, when the AIADMK returned to power under J Jayalalithaa, Martin was put in jail in connection with a land grab case in Salem district. According to media reports, Tamil Nadu police had received more than 40 complaints of land grabbing against Martin. He denied the allegations.

The move to BJP

Observers said that Martin made his biggest political gambit in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. That year, his wife Leema Rose Martin joined a newly formed party in Tamil Nadu called the Indhiya Jananayaga Katchi, or IJK, which became part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. 

During the Lok Sabha campaign, Leema Rose shared the dias with Narendra Modi. 

Leema Rose with IJK leaders .

This was a precursor to Rose and Martin’s son, Charles Jose Martin, joining the BJP in 2015 in the presence of the then organising secretary Ram Madhav in Delhi. Charles is currently a director in 20 group firms part of his father’s empire and a designated partner in another 17. 

At that time, many BJP leaders in the state had expressed surprise at the induction of Martin’s son into the party since the family was perceived to be close to the DMK. But Tamil Nadu BJP chief Tamilisai Soundarajan had defended the decision, arguing there were no cases against Charles. “He is a youngster who may want to contribute to society. There is no problem in his joining,” she had said at the time.

More recently, in the 2021 Tamil Nadu assembly elections, Martin’s son-in-law Aadhav Arjuna, a national basketball player turned political strategist, worked for the DMK as part of political consultant Prashant Kishor’s I-PAC. 

Even after the elections, Arjuna was part of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s son-in-law Sabareesan’s team and went on to head the political strategy company called PEN launched by him. He later joined the VCK.

Charles Martin joining the BJP.

Martin and the Kerala connection

Much before Martin’s purchases of electoral bonds became known, a ‘bond’ controversy involving the tycoon left the Communist Party of India (Marxist) in Kerala red faced. 

In 2007, while the VS Achuthanandan-led Left Democratic Front government in Kerala was cracking down on illegal lottery sales, the party's mouthpiece Deshabhimani accepted Rs 2 crore from Martin in the form of bank bonds worth Rs 50 lakh each. 

EP Jayarajan, who was the daily’s general manager, initially said the bonds were accepted as development funds. When it was pointed out that it was illegal for parties to accept bank bonds, Jayarajan said Martin had given the money in lieu of advertisements.

A CPIM state committee meeting finally put the matter to rest by deciding to return the money. Jayarajan was sacked from his post as Deshabhimani general manager.

In 2010, based on a complaint by Kerala’s Lottery Monitoring Cell, a cheating case was registered against Martin for allegedly failing to ensure the authenticity of lottery tickets and remitting unclaimed prize money to the government of Sikkim. Martin was slapped with 32 cases across Kerala but the probe was handed over to the CBI in 2011 because it required a multi-state investigation.

According to the investigation, the sales bill raised by Sikkim government for 2009-10 was nearly Rs 5,000 crore but Martin’s company had remitted just around Rs 140 crore. This prompted the Congress-led United Democratic Front government in Sikkim to ban online lotteries in the state for two years as soon as it assumed power in 2011. 

The Congress in Kerala trained its guns at the CPIM over its alleged “lottery mafia” links. But in the end the Congress faced embarrassment after senior party leader and lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi appeared in court to defend Martin. 

The CPIM too faced a similar ignominy in 2016 when MK Damodaran, the legal advisor of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, appeared for Martin while challenging a confiscation order issued by the ED.  

The money that Martin gave

While he battled the investigations, chargesheets, and legal cases, Martin quietly contributed money to political parties through electoral bonds, the data released by the Election Commission shows.

Future Gaming funnelled Rs 150 crore to political parties in 2020. This was 2.6 times the profits declared by the company in the same year. The company declared annual returns worth Rs 56.97 crore in 2020. But it managed to buy 150 electoral bonds worth Rs 1 crore each in October the same year. 

The same trend continued in 2021. Although the company declared profits of only Rs 49.43 crore that year, it managed to donate nearly seven times the amount to political parties. Future Gaming bought electoral bonds worth Rs 334 crore on four different dates that year. In March 2021, they also donated Rs 100 crore to Prudent Electoral Trust, which in turn gave the largest share to the BJP. 

Throughout 2022, the lottery business bought the highest amount of electoral bonds in a year, worth Rs 500 crore. In 2023, the company bought bonds worth Rs 321 crore. And in the final phase of EB sales in January 2024, it bought EBs worth Rs 63 crore. 

Notably, the Income Tax Department conducted major raids on Future Gaming in May 2019. The data on electoral bonds purchased between March 2018 and April 2019 was not made available by the Election Commission of India and therefore it is unclear if Future Gaming bought more bonds during the time.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekhar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddhartha Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Sudipto Mondal, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

If you’re reading this story, you’re not seeing a single advertisement. That’s because Newslaundry powers ad-free journalism that’s truly in public interest. Support our work and subscribe today.

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Raid to electoral bond pipeline: How companies raided by central agencies went on to purchase electoral bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/companies-central-agency-action-raids-purchased-electoral-bonds-indiahttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/companies-central-agency-action-raids-purchased-electoral-bonds-india#comments5fa796e6-e5dd-48f9-bcf8-8cee33812abbFri, 15 Mar 2024 16:31:05 +00002024-03-15T16:31:05.578ZParth MN, Neel Madhav, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar/api/author/1931525Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

Scores of companies bought electoral bonds after they were faced with action by central government agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate, the Income Tax department, the Central Bureau of Investigation, and the Goods and Service Tax authorities, an analysis by Project Electoral Bond shows. 

They include companies in the top five donors list, such as Future Gaming and Hotel Services PR, Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd, and Yashoda Super Speciality Hospital. Who encashed the bonds they purchased will only be known once the missing Unique Identification Numbers for electoral bonds – that link the buyer to the receiver – are revealed by the Election Commission of India. 

Here’s a list of companies that faced action and bought electoral bonds soon after. This list will be updated if the Project Electoral Bond team finds more information.

1. Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Limited

Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Limited – the biggest buyer of electoral bonds, having spent Rs 1,368 crore on them between October 2020 and January 2024  – has faced raids several times over the last few years. Run by “Lottery King” Santiago Martin from Coimbatore, the company focuses on online lotteries. Martin has been under the scanner of agencies since 2007. In 2011, the CBI registered 30 cases against him and his close aides. 

In 2019, the ED launched a money-laundering probe against Martin. Further, the ED attached the company’s assets from April 2022 to May 2023 as part of the investigation. Between April and December that year, Future Gaming bought electoral bonds worth Rs 290 crore. 

Raids were also conducted on properties owned by Martin and his son-in-law, Aadhav Arjun, in September 2022 and April 2023. In this period, Future Gaming bought electoral bonds worth Rs 303 crore. 

2. Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited

Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited is a Hyderabad-based giant which has won several government contracts including many works in the Rs 1.15 lakh crore Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project in Telangana – considered the ‘world’s biggest lift irrigation project’, which the CAG pulled up for gross irregularities. 

In October 2019, Income Tax officials had conducted a raid at its premises. Between April 2019 and November 2023, MEIL purchased a whopping Rs 980 crore worth electoral bonds. It has a paid up capital of Rs 156 crore.

Three other companies of MEIL – Western UP Power Transmissions Co Ltd, SEPC Power, and Evey Trans Pvt. Ltd – have bought Electoral Bonds worth Rs 220 crore, Rs 40 crore, and Rs 6 crore respectively, taking the total tally of the group above Rs 1,200 crore. 

3. Vedanta Limited

The Vedanta Group, founded by industrialist Anil Agarwal, pumped in a total of Rs 376 crore through electoral bonds between April 2019 and November 2023. The period covers the entire COVID-19 pandemic, during which Agarwal ran a covert operation to weaken India’s environmental laws, according to an OCCRP report

The company’s oil business, Cairn India, “lobbied to have public hearings scrapped for exploratory drilling in oil blocks it won in government auctions. Since then, six of Cairn’s controversial oil projects in Rajasthan have been approved despite local opposition,” the report said. 

In March 2020, the CBI had booked Vedanta, among other companies, for criminal conspiracy and cheating over the supply of coal.

In August 2022, TSPL, a Vedanta company, was raided by the ED in connection with a money laundering case. The CBI had raided the premises of Karti Chidambaram in the same case.

4. Hetero Pharma Group

Hetero is one of the biggest pharma companies with manufacturing units in Russia, Mexico, Iran, China and Egypt, besides India. 

On October 9, 2021, the I-T department raided the Hyderabad-based Hetero Pharma Group and detected “unaccounted” income of Rs 550 crore; they seized Rs 142 crore in cash. 

The company pumped Rs 60 crore in electoral bonds over the course of the next two years. In October 2023, Hetero Biopharma Limited bought electoral bonds worth Rs 5 crore, and Hetero Drugs Limited bought electoral bonds worth Rs 1 crore. 

On April 7, 2022 and July 11, 2023, Hetero Drugs purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 19 crore and Rs 10 crore, respectively.

On April 7, 2022 and October 12, 2023, Hetero Labs also purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 20 crore and Rs 5 crore, respectively.

On October 17, 2022, Hetero acquired a manufacturing plant in Telangana. It shot to limelight during the Covid pandemic after it started developing Remdesivir – the drug that was extremely sought after especially during the second wave of the pandemic. The month before the I-T raids, it had received emergency use authorisation from the Drug Controller General of India for its version of Tocilizumab.

In June 2023, the Telangana High Court set aside the state government’s order to allot 15 acres of prime land in Khanamet village to a charitable organisation co-founded by Hetero Pharma group’s chairman, Dr B Pardhasaradhi Reddy, who was given a Rajya Sabha ticket on May 19, 2022 by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi. Most of the company’s electoral bonds were purchased shortly before and after Reddy’s Rajya Sabha ticket. 

Reddy is also associated with 89 other companies and LLPs, according to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs website. With family assets of over Rs 5,300 crore, he also invested in Honour Labs, which features prominently in the electoral bonds list, after the raids of October 2021.

5. Hero MotoCorp

Hero Motocorp purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 20 crore in October 2022. This is the first time the company was seen purchasing any electoral bond since the inception of the scheme. The company bought 20 EBs worth Rs 1 crore each on October 7, 2022. 

This purchase was preceded by an I-T department raid at the company in March the same year. The raids were conducted at Hero MotoCorp offices and the residences of its promoters, including that of the chairman and CEO of the group, Pawan Munjal, in Gurugram, Haryana, and Delhi. 

At the time, news reports claimed the company made over Rs 1,000 crore bogus expenses and over Rs 100 crore cash transactions for a farmhouse in Delhi’s Chhatarpur. However, the company later denied these claims.

Ten months down the line, in August 2023, the Enforcement Directorate seized movable assets worth about Rs 25 crore during searches in connection with an alleged money laundering case involving CEO Munjal and others.

6. Rashmi Group

In July 2022, the Enforcement Directorate froze fixed deposits worth Rs 95 crore after raiding the West Bengal-based Rashmi Group. The group was accused of causing a loss of Rs 73 crore to the exchequer by “deliberate mis-declaring the facts and mis-utilising the dual freight policy of the Indian Railways to avail wrongful benefits of lower tariff of freight for transportation of iron ore”.

Before and after the raid, the group purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 95.5 crore. Rashmi Cements and Rashmi Metaliks bought bonds worth Rs 10 crore each before the raid on October 8, 2021. 

In January 2022, Rashmi Metaliks purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 12 crore, and Rashmi Cements bought bonds worth Rs 5 crore. In July 2022, Rashmi Metaliks purchased a further Rs 5 crore.

In August 2022, the Calcutta High Court gave Rashmi Metaliks a clean chit in the money laundering case. 

In October 2022, the group purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 13 crore: Rs 9 crore in January 2023, Rs 15 crore in July 2023, Rs 11.5 crore in October 2023, and Rs 5 crore in November 2023.

In December 2023, the Rashmi Group forayed into mining after the Union Ministry of Coal allotted it three mines in West Bengal.

7. DLF Group

Between October 2019 and November 2022, various entities of the DLF group purchased a total of Rs 170 crore worth electoral bonds. Going against the trend of the other companies on this list, DLF stopped buying bonds after it was raided. 

The group is no stranger to controversy. In April 2014, the Comptroller and Auditor General had pulled up the Haryana State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corporation – then under the UPA government – for selling land to DLF at a lower rate, causing a loss of Rs 439 crore to the exchequer. The group was allegedly involved in the land grab case with Robert Vadra in Haryana during the Hooda regime. Robert Vadra is Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s husband. 

In December 2022, Noida authorities issued a notice of Rs 235 crore to DLF regarding compensation to the previous owner of the land where the group had built a mall. 

In November 2023, the ED raided the Gurugram-based DLF premises in its money laundering probe against another real estate group Supertech.

8. Reddy’s Labs

On May 8, 2019, Reddy’s Laboratories purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 7 crore. It also purchased bonds worth Rs 27 crore in October 2022, Rs 15 crore in November 2022, and Rs 4 crore in July 2022.

In November 2023, I-T officials had raided an employee of the lab, K Narender Reddy, for alleged cash transactions. The raids were part of several other raids on the same day, which included people close to BRS leader P Sabitha Indra Reddy. 

Just after the raids, the company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 31 crore, followed by Rs 21 crore in November 2023, and Rs 10 crore in January 2024, adding up to Rs 84 crore. 

9. Navayuga Engineering

Navayuga Engineering Company Limited has purchased a total of Rs 55 crore in electoral bonds in April 2019 and October 2022. It was raided by I-T officials in October 2018, six months before the company bought its first set of EBs. 

In April 2021, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd acquired complete control of Krishnapatnam Port Co. Ltd from the Navayuga Group for Rs 2,800 crore.

The company hit the headlines again in November last year because it had built the Uttarakhand tunnel that collapsed and endangered the lives of 41 workers who were trapped inside for 17 days.

10. Aditya Birla Group: Utkal Alumina and Grasim Industries

Utkal Alumina International Limited bought electoral bonds worth Rs 145.3 crores in the years 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2023. The company is a fully owned subsidiary of Hindalco, a part of the Aditya Birla Group.

In February 2019, the Odisha State Pollution Control Board issued a show cause notice to Utkal Alumina, revoking consent to operate the Baphlimali bauxite mine. Later in the same year, locals and villagers staged a protest, which turned violent, against the company’s plant in Rayagada district. 

In October 2023, the state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation and Hindalco, the parent company of Utkal Alumina, signed an MoU for the ‘long-term linkage of raw material’ policy of the Odisha government, for the Hindalco alumina refinery at Kansariguda in Rayagada.

Another Aditya Birla Group company, Grasim Industries Limited, purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 20 crore in April 2019, Rs 3 crore in October 2019 and Rs 10 crore In October 2020. However, a year later, the I-T department slapped a Rs 8,334 crore income tax demand as capital gains tax in a transaction related to the demerger of its financial services business. 

11. United Phosphorus

UPL Limited, formerly United Phosphorus, bought electoral bonds worth Rs 10 crore in October 2019 and Rs 50 crore in November 2022. The company faced I-T raids in January 2020, on allegations of tax evasion and account manipulation. 

12. Aurobindo Pharma

Aurobindo Pharma Limited is a pharmaceutical manufacturing company in Hyderabad. The company manufactures generic pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. The company bought Rs 52 crore worth of electoral bonds between 2021 and 2023. 

In November 2022, the ED arrested its director, Sarath Reddy, on charges of money laundering as part of investigations into the Delhi liquor policy case. Reddy has also been director of APL Healthcare in 2009, which bought electoral bonds worth Rs 10 crore in November 2023. 

The other director of Aurobindo Pharma, Girish Paman Vanvari, was a director at Avon Cycles Limited, which purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 1.4 crore in October 2022. 

13. Trident Chemphar

In July 2022, Trident Chemphar, a Hyderabad-based group, procured electoral bonds worth Rs 5 crore. An employee of the group, E Chandran, approached the Telangana High Court in November 2022 against the ED for torture. He was picked up as an accused in the Delhi liquor policy case.

Trident’s directors are Venkata Krishna Anjaneya Prasad Marthy, Sadananda Reddy Sannareddy, Chiranjeevi Kondreddy, and Lakshmi Vara Koka. Three of the four directors have been involved with Veritaz Healthcare Limited as well, which was acquired by Aurobindo Pharma in March 2022. Marthy was a co-director at Veritaz while Sadananda Reddy and Kondreddy were additional directors. As mentioned above, Aurobindo Pharma’s director Sarath Reddy is also accused in the Delhi liquor policy case. 

14. IFB Agro Limited

IFB Agro Limited bought bonds worth Rs 92.3 crore from 2021 to 2024. 

In June 2020, the company’s Noorpur plant in West Bengal was attacked by armed goons leading to uproar. Jagdeep Dhankar, then West Bengal Governor, stepped in after the attack and demanded a deeper probe, raising concerns about a climate conducive for investment. The day after the attack, on June 25, 2020, the company had a GST search at the same venue.

In 2022, the company’s board of directors approved “contributions to political parties by way of subscription to the electoral bonds in one or more tranches aggregating not more than Rs 40 crore for the financial year 2022-23”. The company’s board then also added that it was facing “excise related issues”. In a recording of the company’s Annual General Meeting for FY 2023, Joint Executive Chairman Bikramjit Nag said the bonds were bought “as per our instructions from the government” and that the company is looking for opportunities outside West Bengal. 

According to a report in The Wire, in February 2024, the company declared that it had contributed Rs 40 crore to political parties through electoral bonds in the first nine months of the financial year 2023-2024. The contribution is three times its after-tax profits in the same period, which stands at Rs 13.87 crore. 

15. Chennai Green Wood Private Limited

Chennai Green Woods Private Limited bought electoral bonds worth Rs 105 crore – Rs 90 crore in 2022 and Rs 15 crore in 2023. The company is owned by YSRCP Rajya Sabha MP Ayodhya Rami Reddy. Ramky Group, the parent company of Chennai Green Wood Private Limited faced Income Tax Department raids in July 2021

The Ramky Group, the parent company of Chennai Green Wood Private Limited, is also part of the investigations into disproportionate assets cases against incumbent Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. 

16. Rungta Sons Private Limited

Rungta Sons Private Ltd operates in forestry, logging, and other related sectors. Incorporated in 1943, the company is classified as a non-government company. Its directors are Mukund Rungta, Siddharth Rungta, Nandlal Rungta, Ashutosh Mohanty, Hirak Mazumder and Braj Kishore Jha.

Rungta Sons bought electoral bonds worth Rs 50 crore on April 5, 2021. After a brief hiatus of three years, on January 11, 2024, the company purchased 50 electoral bonds worth Rs 1 crore each.

In the early hours of December 7, 2023, three units of the company in Ramgarh were raided by the Income Tax department. 

17. Shirdi Sai Electricals 

Hyderabad-based Shirdi Sai Electricals Limited is a manufacturer of electrical goods. It had won, among other things, a contract for fixing ‘smart metres’ to agriculture electricity connections in farms across Andhra Pradesh. 

The company faced Income Tax raids on December 20 2023. On January 11, 2024, the company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 40 crore. 

The raids were preceded by allegations by the Andhra Pradesh BJP that the state government had given about 2.5 lakh acres of land to several private companies, mainly Indosol Solar Pvt. Ltd and Shirdi Sai Electricals, under the guise of hydro and renewable energy projects by blatantly flouting the tendering norms. It was alleged that N Visveswara Reddy and K Ravi Kumar Reddy, who were the main promoters of Indosol Solar Pvt. Ltd. and Shirdi Sai Electricals, were very close to Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. 

18. HES Infra Private Limited

Hyderabad-based HES Infra Private Limited was raided by the Income Tax department in February 2021. It purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 20 crore in April 2022 and Rs 2 crore in November 2023.

In November 2022, the company was blacklisted by the Madhya Pradesh government over a nine-year delay in a project. The company had won the bid  in 2013 for canals to irrigate 40,050 hectares in the command area of Tons river for Rs 238.33 crore. The state government categorised the delay as “sedition”. 

19. Shri Jagannath Steels & Power Limited

The company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 11 crore in April and October 2021m and Rs 3.5 crore in January 2022. 

Notably, a director of the company is Prashant Kumar Ahluwalia, one of the Ahluwalia brothers who all run the KJS Ahluwalia group, which deals in steel and mining. Most of its mining businesses are in Odisha. 

In December 2020, the I-T department zeroed in on the Ahluwalia group to unearth alleged tax evasion worth Rs 100 crore by KJS Cement Industries in Madhya Pradesh. I-T sleuths conducted multiple searches at various premises belonging to the cement manufacturer located at Maihar, Satna, Delhi and Jaipur. In August 2020, the GST intelligence officials detected over Rs 17 crore tax evasion by KJS Cement and arrested one of its directors. 

The Ahluwalia brothers also allegedly played a key role in the Odisha mining scam.

20. Kalpataru Projects International Limited

The Kalpataru Group has business interests in power transmission, engineering, and logistics across the country. It is considered close to former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot. 

In 2023, when Rajasthan had its assembly polls, Kalpataru Projects purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 20 crore in April and July. However, in August, the group was raided by the I-T department. During the probe, the I-T department reportedly found large-scale tax evasion and detected bogus bills worth Rs 600 crore.

Following the raids, the company’s purchase of electoral bonds reduced drastically to Rs 5.5 crore. It bought these bonds in October 2023, two months after the raids. 

21. Sun Pharma 

Sun Pharma was reportedly under the scanner of GST Intelligence for alleged service tax evasion in May 2019. The company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 10 crore on May 8, 2019 after having bought Rs 21.5 crore worth of EBs in April the same year. 

With inputs from Megha Mukundan.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddharth Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

If you’re reading this story, you’re not seeing a single advertisement. That’s because Newslaundry powers ad-free journalism that’s truly in public interest. Support our work and subscribe today.

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Firms linked to Keventer group bought electoral bonds worth Rs 600 crore while it faced ED probehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/firms-linked-to-keventer-group-bought-electoral-bonds-worth-rs-600-crore-while-it-faced-ed-probehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/firms-linked-to-keventer-group-bought-electoral-bonds-worth-rs-600-crore-while-it-faced-ed-probe#comments8c693cd3-15cd-425f-926f-2cffe1301a3cFri, 15 Mar 2024 14:57:36 +00002024-03-15T14:57:36.226ZPrajwal Bhat/api/author/1780444Electoral bonds,keventerProject Electoral Bond

Between April 2019 and January 2024, four firms linked to the Kolkata-based Keventer group of companies donated over Rs 600 crore to political parties through electoral bonds. This would mean that the group purchased the most number of bonds after the lottery giant Future Gaming and Hotel Services, and the Hyderabad-headquartered Megha group of companies.

The Keventer group, which is led by the industrialist Mahendra Kumar Jalan, deals in a range of interests including food processing and real estate. 

Firms linked to the group began purchasing the secretive bonds a year after the Enforcement Directorate reportedly launched a preliminary inquiry against one of its companies, Keventer Agro Limited. The case, an alleged disinvestment scam involving hundreds of crores, picked up steam and the ED began an official investigation by October 2019. 

Even as the four firms were buying up bonds, the ED raided the group’s office in Kolkata in February 2021. A year-and-a-half later, in September 2022, the Supreme court delivered a verdict in its favour, dismissing an appeal that sought an independent investigation into the matter. 

An initial analysis of the data released by the Election Commission of India revealed that three of the four firms linked to the Keventer group are among the top eleven donors on the list.

Keventer Foodpark Infra Limited (now known as Magnificent Foodparks Project Limited) donated the highest amount, Rs 195 crore, followed by MKJ Enterprises, which bought bonds for Rs.192.42 crore. Madanlal Limited’s donation of Rs 185.5 crore in the financial year 2019-20, was nearly hundred times its total profit before taxes that year. Sasmal Infrastructure Limited – which, most recently,  bought nine bonds worth Rs 1 crore each on 11 January 2024 – donated Rs 44 crore. 

In total, the four companies donated Rs 616.92 crores to political parties. They are all registered at the same address and also have common directors.

Siddharth Gupta is a director of MKJ, Keventer Foodpark and Madanlal. (He also serves as a director of Keventer Capital Limited and Keventer Projects Limited.)

Radheshyam Khetan, who is the CEO of Keventer Realty, Keventer group’s real estate firm, is a director at both Keventer Foodpark and Madanlal. Until July 2023, Khetan was also a director at MKJ Enterprises. MK Jalan, the managing director of MKJ Enterprises, is also a director at Sasmal.

The group’s troubles with the ED involved a dairy firm called Metro Dairy in West Bengal. It was set up in the early nineties as India’s first public-private partnership project in the dairy sector. In 2017, the state government divested its entire stake of 47 percent and sold it to Keventer Agro for Rs.85.5 crore. When the Keventer group sold nearly 15 percent of its shares in Metro Dairy to a Singapore-based private equity firm Mandala Capital soon after, it claimed a far higher price: Rs 170 crore.

Allegations of impropriety followed. A year later, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury filed a public interest litigation in the Calcutta High Court, accusing the state government of severely underpricing Metro Dairy’s shares in the stake sale to Keventer. The Calcutta High Court dismissed the petition, ruling that the sale was neither illegal nor arbitrary, a verdict that the Supreme Court upheld.

With inputs from Siddhartha Mishra.

Update at 11.30 am, Mar 16: This report previously said Sasmal bought nine bonds worth Rs 10 crore each. This has been corrected to nine bonds worth Rs 1 crore each.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Small teams can do great things. All it takes is a subscription. Subscribe now and power Newslaundry’s work.

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चुनावी सालों में रिलायंस से जुड़ी कंपनियों ने खरीदे इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/reliance-linked-firms-donates-crores-of-rupees-electoral-bonds-in-crucial-election-yearshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/reliance-linked-firms-donates-crores-of-rupees-electoral-bonds-in-crucial-election-years#comments0efdb768-e3cb-453f-ade0-26ee7c5f2301Fri, 15 Mar 2024 14:49:19 +00002024-03-15T14:49:19.228Zआयुष तिवारी/api/author/731023election commission,Electoral bonds,ReliancePolitical-fundingReportमुकेश अंबानी की अगुवाई वाली रिलायंस इंडस्ट्रीज से जुड़ी कंपनियों ने 2019 के लोकसभा चुनाव के दौरान इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड खरीदे. इसके अलावा 2022 के गुजरात एवं हिमाचल प्रदेश विधानसभा चुनावों से पहले विशेष अवधि के दौरान भी बॉन्ड खरीदे गए. 

गौरतलब है कि 2022 में विशेष अवधि के दौरान हुई इस बिक्री के लिए मोदी सरकार एक विधायी संशोधन लाई थी. 

चुनाव आयोग द्वारा 14 मार्च को जारी बॉन्ड की जानकारी से पता चलता है कि इस अवधि के दौरान जुटाए गए बॉन्ड्स का एक बड़ा हिस्सा भारतीय जनता पार्टी को मिला. 

बॉन्ड का यह डाटा भारत के सर्वोच्च न्यायालय द्वारा 2017 में मोदी सरकार द्वारा शुरू की गई चुनावी बॉन्ड योजना को अवैध और असंवैधानिक करार दिए जाने के बाद सार्वजनिक किया गया. 

भारत की अधिकांश बड़ी कंपनियां चुनावी बॉन्ड के खरीदारों की सूची से गायब हैं. प्रारंभिक जांच में अडाणी और टाटा समूह की कंपनियों द्वारा बॉन्ड की किसी भी खरीद का पता नहीं चला है.

भारत की सबसे मूल्यवान कंपनी रिलायंस इंडस्ट्रीज ने कोई चुनावी बॉन्ड नहीं खरीदा. हालांकि, साझा निदेशकों, पतों और सहयोगियों के माध्यम से रिलायंस समूह से जुड़ी कंपनियां सूची में दिखाई पड़ती हैं.

जैसा कि 20 से अधिक पत्रकारों और तीन स्वतंत्र समाचार संगठनों- न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री, स्क्रॉल और द न्यूज़ मिनट के आपसी सहयोग के प्रोजेक्ट द्वारा पहले रिपोर्ट किया गया कि 410 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदने वाली क्विक सप्लाई चेन प्राइवेट लिमिटेड बॉन्ड खरीदने वाली कंपनियों से एक है.

कंपनी के तीन निदेशकों में से एक तापस मित्रा, रिलायंस ऑयल एंड पेट्रोलियम, रिलायंस इरोज़ प्रोडक्शंस, रिलायंस फोटो फिल्म्स, रिलायंस फायर ब्रिगेड और रिलायंस पॉलिएस्टर के निदेशक भी हैं. उनके लिंक्डइन प्रोफाइल के अनुसार, वह मुकेश अंबानी की रिलायंस इंडस्ट्रीज लिमिटेड में अकाउंट्स (एकत्रीकरण) विभाग के प्रमुख हैं.

बॉन्ड खरीदने वाली कंपनियों का एक अन्य समूह मुकेश अंबानी के पुराने व्यापारिक सहयोगी सुरेंद्र लूनिया से जुड़ा है. लूनिया ने ही रिलायंस से जुड़ी कंपनियों की एनडीटीवी में 29.18 प्रतिशत की हिस्सेदारी अडाणी समूह को बेच दी थी. इन कंपनियों में नेक्सजी डिवाइसेज़ प्राइवेट लिमिटेड और इन्फोटेल बिजनेस सॉल्यूशंस लिमिटेड शामिल हैं. लूनिया इन दोनों फर्मों के बोर्ड के सदस्य हैं.

चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदने वाली दो अन्य कंपनियां- इन्फोटेल एक्सेस इंटरप्राइजेज़ प्राइवेट लिमिटेड और इन्फोटेल टेक्नोलॉजीज़ प्राइवेट लिमिटेड- अपने निदेशक कमल कुमार शर्मा के माध्यम से लूनिया से जुड़ी हुई हैं. जो लूनिया के इन्फोटेल समूह में कार्यकारी निदेशक और मुख्य वित्तीय अधिकारी हैं.

इन कंपनियों ने 9 मई 2019 को संयुक्त रूप से कम से कम 50 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. ये वही वक्त था जब नरेंद्र मोदी और भाजपा को सत्ता में वापस लाने वाले लोकसभा चुनाव चल रहे थे.

बिक्री की एक ख़ास अवधि

शुरुआत में, चुनावी बॉन्ड योजना लोकसभा चुनाव के साल को छोड़कर साल भर में बिक्री के लिए केवल चार अवसरों की अनुमति देती थी.

7 नवंबर 2022 को, हिमाचल राज्य के चुनाव से कुछ दिन पहले और गुजरात में विधानसभा चुनाव से एक महीने पहले, मोदी सरकार 15 अतिरिक्त दिनों हेतू बॉन्ड बिक्री की अनुमति देने के लिए एक संशोधन लेकर आई.

सूचना के अधिकार अधिनियम के माध्यम से सेवानिवृत्त नौसेना कमांडर लोकेश बत्रा द्वारा प्राप्त जानकारी के अनुसार, संशोधन के ठीक दो दिन बाद 9 नवंबर 2022 को एक सप्ताह के लिए बिक्री खोली गई. इस दौरान 676 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड बेचे गए.

चुनाव आयोग द्वारा जारी आंकड़ों से पता चलता है कि भाजपा को इसमें से 590 करोड़ रुपये मिले यानी सरकार के संशोधन के कुछ दिनों बाद इकठ्ठा किए गए हिस्से का 87 प्रतिशत.

इस चरण में रिलायंस से जुड़ी कंपनियां सबसे बड़ी दानकर्ता थीं. तीन कंपनियों- क्विक सप्लाई चेन प्राइवेट लिमिटेड, नेक्सजी डिवाइसेज़ प्राइवेट लिमिटेड और मैनकाइंड फार्मा लिमिटेड ने इस चरण में 164 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. यह इस चरण में बेचे गए सभी बॉन्ड्स का लगभग 24 प्रतिशत है.

गौरतलब है कि लूनिया, 2015 से मैनकाइंड फार्मा के नौ निदेशकों में से एक हैं.

लूनिया से जुड़ी एक अन्य कंपनी एमएन मीडिया वेंचर्स ने इस बिक्री अवधि में 5 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. संदीप जयरथ इस कम्पनी और नेक्सजी डिवाइसेज़ प्राइवेट लिमिटेड में एक साझा निदेशक हैं. लिंक्डइन के अनुसार, एमएन मीडिया वेंचर्स के दूसरे निदेशक कुलविंदर पाल सिंह, सुरेंद्र लूनिया के इन्फोटेल समूह में वित्त और लेखा के वरिष्ठ प्रबंधक हैं. फर्म का पंजीकृत पता इन्फोटेल एक्सेस एंटरप्राइजेज वाला ही है, जो एक और दान देने वाली फर्म है जहां लूनिया के व्यापारिक सहयोगी अंकित लूनिया निदेशक हैं.

चुनावी बॉन्ड के इस चरण के दौरान, रिलायंस समूह के बाद वेदांता समूह (111.75 करोड़ रुपये या सभी बॉन्ड का 16.5 प्रतिशत), यूनाइटेड फॉस्फोरस (50 करोड़ रुपये), श्री सिद्धार्थ इंफ्राटेक एंड सर्विसेज (30 करोड़ रुपये), डीएलएफ (25 करोड़ रुपये) थे. करोड़), सिप्ला (24.2 करोड़ रुपये) और मारुति सुजुकी (20 करोड़ रुपये) का बॉन्ड खरीद में नंबर आता है.

दिसंबर 2022 में गुजरात चुनाव से पहले एक और बार बिक्री हुई. बत्रा द्वारा आरटीआई के माध्यम से प्राप्त आंकड़ों से पता चलता है कि इस चरण में 232 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड बेचे गए. दिसंबर में बेचे गए इन बॉन्ड्स का सबसे बड़ा हिस्सा फिर से भाजपा को मिला. जो कि 165 करोड़ रुपये या कुल राशि का 71 प्रतिशत है.

इस चरण में, आदित्य बिड़ला समूह से जुड़ी कंपनियों ने 100 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. जो इस चरण में बेचे गए कुल बॉन्ड्स का 43 प्रतिशत है. इसके बाद मेघा इंजीनियरिंग एंड इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर लिमिटेड (56 करोड़ रुपये), रैमको सीमेंट्स (15 करोड़ रुपये) और फ्यूचर गेमिंग (10 करोड़ रुपये) आते हैं.

क्विक सप्लाई

क्विक सप्लाई द्वारा खरीदे गए 410 करोड़ रुपये मूल्य के बॉन्ड्स में से सबसे बड़ी खेप, जनवरी 2022 में खरीदी गई थी.

कम्पनी ने उस साल 5 जनवरी को 225 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे, इसके बाद 10 जनवरी को 10 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे.

14 जनवरी को, रॉयटर्स ने बताया कि रिलायंस समूह ने स्थानीय बैटरी सेल उत्पादन को बढ़ावा देने के लिए, मोदी सरकार के 2.4 बिलियन अमेरिकी डॉलर के कार्यक्रम के तहत प्रोत्साहन प्राप्त करने के लिए अपनी बोली दाखिल की है. मार्च 2022 में समूह सॉफ्टबैंक ग्रुप समर्थित ओला इलेक्ट्रिक के साथ टेंडर पाने में कामयाब हुई.

रिलायंस से जुड़ी एक और फर्म हनीवेल प्रॉपर्टीज प्राइवेट लिमिटेड है. जिसने 8 अप्रैल 2021 को 30 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. इसके दो निदेशकों में से एक, सत्यनारायणमूर्ति वीरा वेंकट कोरलेप, 2005 से रिलायंस समूह की कई फर्मों के बोर्ड के सदस्य हैं. यह फर्म भी अपना पंजीकृत पता समूह की कई अन्य फर्मों के साथ साझा रखती है.

(आनंद मंगले के सहयोग से)

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री ने पहले ही केंद्रीय एजेंसी की कार्रवाई और पिछले पांच वित्तीय वर्षों के दौरान 30 कंपनियों द्वारा भाजपा को 335 करोड़ रुपये के दान के बीच एक स्पष्ट पैटर्न पर रिपोर्ट की थी. 

इसके बाद हमें 11 कंपनियां और मिलीं, जिन्होंने 2016-17 से 2022-23 तक भाजपा को 62.27 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा दिया और इसी अवधि के दौरान उन्हें केंद्रीय एजेंसी की कार्रवाई का सामना करना पड़ा. 

चंदे की कहानी पढ़ने के लिए इस लिंक पर जाएं.

हमारी उपरोक्त रिपोर्ट एक साझा प्रयास का हिस्सा है. जिसमें तीन समाचार संगठन - न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री, स्क्रॉल, द न्यूज़ मिनट - और कुछ स्वतंत्र पत्रकार शामिल हैं. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Awful and Awesome Ep 344: Oscars, Poor Things, Manjummel Boys https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/awful-and-awesome-ep-344-oscars-poor-things-manjummel-boyshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/awful-and-awesome-ep-344-oscars-poor-things-manjummel-boys#comments7c4ea85a-218b-4512-be88-cc694d1e529bFri, 15 Mar 2024 14:02:16 +00002024-03-15T14:02:16.435ZNL Team/api/author/730883Awful and AwesomeThe Awful and Awesome

While discussing Poor Things:

Jayashree: You threw me under the bus. I asked if I should watch American Fiction or Poor Things, and you led me to Poor Things.

Rajyasree: Which has won an Oscar.

Jayashree: So many terrible movies have. I had to watch Poor Things over dinner. So, I did not get my calorie intake last night, because it was a struggle.

This and a whole lot of awful and awesome as Rajyasree Sen and Jayashree Arunachalam discuss the movies Poor Things, American Fiction, Manjummel Boys, and the 96th Academy Awards. 

Have something to say? Write to us at newslaundry.com/podcast-letters.

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Timecodes

00:00 - Introductions

01:29 - Headlines

03:45 - Poor Things

18:40 - American Fiction

25:54 - NL-TNM Election Fund 

27:28 - Manjummel Boys 

34:10 The Oscars 

References

General Elections 2024 Fund

Poor Things 

American Fiction

Manjummel Boys

96th Academy Awards

Click here to download the Newslaundry app on Android. And here for iOS.

Produced and recorded by Priyali Dhingra and Shubang Gautam, edited by Umrav Singh. 

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Where is the data for electoral bonds worth over Rs 4,002 crore?https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/where-is-the-data-for-electoral-bonds-worth-over-rs-4002-crorehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/where-is-the-data-for-electoral-bonds-worth-over-rs-4002-crore#commentsfe135632-8e2f-4ffe-8d98-2deb6050e140Fri, 15 Mar 2024 13:32:21 +00002024-03-15T13:32:21.682ZAyush Tiwari/api/author/730895Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

The State Bank of India has sold 28,030 electoral bonds worth Rs 16,518 crore since March 2018, according to its responses to Right to Information requests.

But the buyers’ list released by the Election Commission on Thursday contains information for only 18,871 bonds accounting for Rs 12,516 crore.

Why has information for 9,159 bonds worth Rs 4,002 crore not been disclosed?

Part of the answer lies in an admission made by the State Bank of India in the Supreme Court earlier this week that it had made an “oversight” in its calculations. Another part of the answer lies in a “sealed cover” that has not yet been made public.

The admission

On February 15, the Supreme Court had declared as unconstitutional the electoral bond scheme that allowed individuals and companies to buy these monetary instruments anonymously and donate them to political parties. It asked the State Bank of India to disclose detailed information related to the bonds to the Election Commission by March 6.

Since March 1, 2018, the bank has sold bonds in 30 phases.

However, in a plea filed before the court seeking an extension for handing over the data to the Election Commission on March 4, it only accounted for bonds sold in 22 phases since April 2019.

It said that “twenty-two thousand two hundred seventeen (22,217) electoral bonds were used for making donations to various political parties” between April 12, 2019 and February 15, 2024.

Eight days later, it clarified that it had made an “oversight” in its calculations.

In a compliance affidavit filed before the court on March 12, the bank pointed out that it had actually sold only 18,871 bonds between April 12, 2019, and February 15, 2024.

The remaining 3,346 bonds were sold between April 1, 2019, and April 11, 2019, as a table in paragraph 4 of the affidavit shows.

Why did the bank not release data for these 3,346 bonds?

In the compliance affidavit, it cited the Supreme Court’s February 2024 judgement that asked it to “submit details of the Electoral Bonds purchased since the Interim order of this Court dated 12 April 2019 till date to the ECI”.

The interim order was passed by a three-judge bench of Ranjan Gogoi, who was then the chief justice, Justice Sanjeev Khanna and Justice Deepak Gupta on April 12, 2019. It asked the bank to submit detailed information for the electoral bonds issued till May 15 of that year to the Election Commission in a “sealed cover”.

By referring to this interim order, the bench led by current Chief Justice DY Chandrachud likely meant to direct the SBI to release data other than what had already been submitted in the sealed cover.

However, the SBI interpreted this as a direction to release information on the bonds issued between April 12, 2019, and February 15, 2024 – opening up a gap in the data.

The sealed cover

The result is that a part of the data contained in the sealed cover is out, while the rest is not.

The sealed cover data would include information for bonds issued in ten phases between March 1, 2018 and May 15, 2019.

This number comes to 11,681 bonds.

Of this, data for 2,522 bonds issued since April 12, 2019, and May 15, 2019, has been disclosed.

But information for 9,159 bonds issued between March 1, 2018 and April 12, 2019 is still missing. These are bonds worth Rs 4,002 crore.

The Election Commission has not yet released the information contained in the “sealed cover”. This, despite the Supreme Court, in an order on March 11, asking it to “forthwith publish the details of the information which was supplied to this Court in pursuance of the interim orders on its official website”.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Project Electoral Bond includes Aban Usmani, Anand Mangnale, Anisha Sheth, Anjana Meenakshi, Ayush Tiwari, Azeefa Fathima, Basant Kumar, Dhanya Rajendran, Jayashree Arunachalam, Joyal George, M Rajshekhar, Maria Teresa Raju, Nandini Chandrashekhar, Neel Madhav, Nikita Saxena, Parth MN, Pooja Prasanna, Prajwal Bhat, Prateek Goyal, Pratyush Deep, Ragamalika Karthikeyan, Raman Kirpal, Ravi Nair, Sachi Hegde, Shabbir Ahmed, Shivnarayan Rajpurohit, Siddharth Mishra, Supriya Sharma, Tabassum Barnagarwala and Vaishnavi Rathore.

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भाजपा को चंदा देने वाली 41 में से 18 कंपनियों ने खरीदे 2010 करोड़ रुपये के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्डhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/18-companies-who-faced-action-from-central-agencies-bought-more-than-2010-crore-worth-electoral-bondshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/18-companies-who-faced-action-from-central-agencies-bought-more-than-2010-crore-worth-electoral-bonds#commentsc8ed306e-98eb-4e03-8706-f3badfbdacbbFri, 15 Mar 2024 13:03:48 +00002024-03-15T13:03:48.912Zप्रतीक गोयल/api/author/731028BJP,Electoral bonds,Political fundingPolitical-fundingReportबीते फरवरी में न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट की रिपोर्ट में 30 कंपनियों द्वारा केंद्रीय एजेंसियों की जांच का सामना करने और भाजपा को चंदा देने की बात सामने आई थी. हाल ही में भी हमें 11 और कंपनियों के बारे में पता लगा था.  

इसी बीच चुनाव आयोग ने 14 मार्च को इलेक्टोल बॉन्ड्स का डाटा जारी कर दिया है. इस डाटा में 18 कंपनियां ऐसी हैं, जिनके बारे में हम पहले भी रिपोर्ट कर चुके हैं. अब पता चला है कि इन 18 कंपनियों ने 2010.5 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड भी खरीदे थे. यह आंकड़ा हमारी पड़ताल में सामने आई कुल 41 कंपनियों द्वारा अन्य माध्यमों से दिए गए चंदे से करीब 5 गुणा ज्यादा है.  

आइए इन कंपनियों पर एक नजर डालते हैंः

फ्यूचर गेमिंग एंड होटल सर्विसेज पीआर 

यह कंपनी स्वघोषित ‘लॉटरी किंग’ सेंटिआगो मार्टिन की है. मार्टिन के खिलाफ कई आपराधिक मुकदमे दर्ज हैं. न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट ने पहले यह बात उजागर की थी कि 2019 में आयकार विभाग की कार्रवाई के बाद 2020-21 में 100 करोड़ रुपये देकर यह कंपनी प्रूडेंट इलेक्टोरल फंड की सबसे बड़ी दानकर्ता के रूप में सामने आई. 

अब ये बात भी सामने आई है कि इस कंपनी ने सबको पीछे छोड़ते हुए 21 अक्टूबर 2020 से 9 जनवरी 2024 तक 1368 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे.  

यशोदा हॉस्पिटल्स 

हैदराबाद-आधारित यशोदा ग्रुप ऑफ हॉस्पिटल्स ने 4 अक्टूबर 2021 से 11 अक्टूबर 2023 के बीच 162 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे. इससे पहले हमने अपनी रिपोर्ट में बताया था कि 2020 में इस कंपनी पर जांच हुई थी. जिसके बाद इसने भाजपा को चंदा देना शुरू किया था. 

आईआरबी इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर डेवलपर्स 

आईआरबी मुंबई आधारित इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर कंपनी है. जिसे विरेंद्र डी. म्हैस्कर चलाते हैं. 2015 में इस कंपनी के पुणे और मुंबई दफ्तर पर सीबीआई ने छापे मारे थे. 2014 से 2023 तक इसने और इसकी सहायक कंपनियों- मॉडर्न रोड मेकर्स और आइडियल रोड बिल्डर्स ने भाजपा को 84 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा दिया. 

कल आई जानकारी के मुताबिक, आईआरबी की तीन शाखाओं- मॉडर्न रोड बिल्डर्स, आईआरबी एमपी एक्सप्रेसवे और आइडियल रोड बिल्डर्स ने मिलकर 84 करोड़ के बॉन्ड्स भी खरीदे थे. जहां मॉडर्न रोड बिल्डर्स ने 16 अप्रैल 2019 से 3 जुलाई 2023 के दौरान 53 करोड़ के बॉन्ड्स खरीदे. वहीं, आईआरबी एमपी एक्सप्रेसवे ने 4 जुलाई 2023 को 25 करोड़ के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड् खरीदे. आइडियल रोड बिल्डर्स ने 4 अक्टूबर 2023 को 6 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे. 

सोम डिस्टीलरीज  

मध्य प्रदेश की कंपनी सोम डिस्टिलरीज एजेंसियों की छापेमारी के बाद भाजपा को चंदा देने में सबसे तेज कंपनियों में से एक रही. हमारी पड़ताल के मुताबिक, इस कंपनी ने अपने प्रमोटर्स के छूटने के 10 दिन बाद ही चंदा दे दिया था. अब यह जानकारी सामने आई है कि इस कंपनी ने 2023 में 3 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. जिनमें 12 जुलाई 2023 को 1 करोड़ और 10 अक्टूबर 2023 को 2 करोड़ के बॉन्ड्स शामिल थे.

श्री सीमेंट्स

कुल 7.5 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा देने वाली यह कंपनी कोलकाता की है. इसने 8 मई 2019 को 1.5 करोड़ रुपये, 21 जनवरी 2020 को 4 करोड़ रुपये और 21 अक्टूबर 2020 को 2 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे. उल्लेखनीय है कि ‘बांगुर श्री’ के नाम से 21 जनवरी, 2020 को 40 लाख रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदने का भी जिक्र है.  

हमने पहले बताया था कि श्री सीमेंट्स ने 2020-21 और 2021-22 में खुद पर चल रही केंद्रीय एजेंसी की जांच के दौरान ही भाजपा को 12 करोड़ का चंदा दिया था. 

हेटेरो ग्रुप 

हैदराबाद स्थित यह दवा कंपनी बी पार्था सारदी रेड्डी की है. रेड्डी, भारत राष्ट्र समिति (बीआरएस) पार्टी के राज्यसभा सांसद हैं. वह देश के सबसे अमीर सांसद भी हैं. हमारी 30 कंपनियों की सूची में भी इस हेटेरो ग्रुप का नाम आया था. जो केंद्रीय जांच एजेंसियों की जांच का सामना कर रहीं थीं.  

इस ग्रुप की तीन कंपनियों- हेटेरो ड्रग्स, हेटेरो लैब्स और हेटेरो बायोफार्मा ने 7 अप्रैल 2022 से 12 अक्टूबर 2023 के बीच 60 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे. 

यूएसवी प्राइवेट लिमिटेड 

मुंबई स्थित इस स्वास्थ्य-सेवा कंपनी को लीना गांधी तिवारी चलाती हैं. वे भारत की दूसरी सबसे अमीर महिला हैं. उनके 20 कार्यस्थलों पर आयकर विभाग ने छापे मारे थे. जिसके एक महीने बाद उन्होंने भाजपा को 9 करोड़ रुपये दान में दिए.  

कल आई जानकारी के मुताबिक, यूएसवी लिमिटेड ने 15 नवंबर 2022 को 10 करोड़ के चुनावी बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे. 

चेन्नई ग्रीन वुड्स प्राइवेट लिमिटेड 

चेन्नई ग्रीन वुड्स प्राइवेट लिमिटेड एक निर्माण कंपनी है. यह रामकी ग्रुप का हिस्सा है. जिसके चेयरमैन वाईएसआरसीपी पार्टी के राज्यसभा सांसद अयोध्या रामी रेड्डी हैं. केंद्रीय जांच एजेंसियों के द्वारा जांच के दौरान इस कंपनी ने भाजपा को 2022-23 में 1 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा दिया.  

इसके अलावा 5 जनवरी 2022 से 12 अक्टूबर 2023 के बीच इस कंपनी ने 105 करोड़ के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे.  

अरबिंदो फार्मा 

हैदराबाद आधारित यह दवा कंपनी अरबिंदो रियल्टी एंड इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर लिमिटेड की भी मालिक है. ईडी ने इसके निदेशक सरथ रेड्डी को दिल्ली शराब घोटाले से कथित संबंध के लिए नवंबर 2022 में गिरफ्तार किया था. 3 अप्रैल 2021 से 8 नवंबर 2023 में कंपनी ने 52 करोड़ के बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे.  

एसपीएमएल ओम मेटल जे. वी. 

यह कंपनी ओम कोठारी ग्रुप की है. जिसका बिजनेस हाईड्रो पावर, रियल एस्टेट, ऑटो डीलरशिप, होटल और एंटरटेनमेंट क्षेत्र तक फैला है. जुलाई 2020 में कर अधिकारियों ने इसके कार्यस्थलों की तफ्तीश की थी. इसके बाद 2021-22 में में इसने भाजपा को 5 करोड़ का चंदा दिया था. इसके अलावा इसने 4 अक्टूबर, 2021 को 5 करोड़ के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स भी खरीदे थे. 

माइक्रो लैब्स

डोलो-650 बनाने वाली माइक्रो लैब्स ने 10 अक्टूबर 2022 से 9 अक्टूबर 2023 तक 16 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे. यह कंपनी बेंगलुरु में स्थित है. दिलीप और आनंद सुराणा इसके मालिक हैं. 

कुछ समय पहले न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट ने पाया था कि माइक्रो लैब्स ने भाजपा को 2017-18 में 21 लाख, 2019-20 में 50 लाख और 2022-23 में 2 करोड़ का चंदा दिया था. केंद्रीय एजेंसियों ने इसके 40 ठिकानों पर छापेमारी की थी.   

रामको सीमेंट्स 

तमिलनाडु आधारित रामको ग्रुप एक प्रमुख सीमेंट कंपनी है. कई बार इस कंपनी को भी छापेमारी का सामना करना पड़ा है. इसकी तरफ से भी भाजपा को चंदा देने की बात सामने आई थी.

नई जानकारी के अनुसार, इसने 10 अक्टूबर 2022 से 15 नवंबर 2023 के बीच 54 करोड़ के चुनावी बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे.

केजेएस ग्रुप 

मध्य प्रदेश आधारित केजेएस सीमेंट्स के मालिक कमलजीत सिंह आहलूवालिया हैं. इसने 20 अप्रैल 2019 और 9 मई 2019 के दौरान 14 करोड़ के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे. इस कंपनी का नाम हमारी पिछली रिपोर्ट में भी शामिल था. 

त्रिवेणी अर्थ मूवर्स 

त्रिवेणी अर्थ मूवर्स एक माइन डेवलपर कंपनी है. इसका मुख्यालय सालेम में है. इसके मालिक बी प्रभाकरण हैं. कंपनी ने भाजपा को 2014-15 में 89.99 लाख, 2016-17 में 20 लाख और 6 जुलाई 2017 को 3 करोड़ का दान दिया था.  

हालिया जानकारी के आधार पर पता चलता है कि त्रिवेणी अर्थ मूवर्स और उसकी सहायक कंपनी त्रिवेणी सैनिक माइनिंग प्राइवेट लिमिटेड ने 9 अप्रैल 2021 से 13 अक्टूबर 2023 तक 11 करोड़ के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे थे.  

ट्राइडेंट लिमिटेड 

कंपनी के मालिक पद्मभूषण पुरस्कार से सम्मानित राजेंदर गुप्ता हैं. कंपनी ने 5 और 6 अक्टूबर 2023 को 7 करोड़ के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे. इससे पहले कंपनी ने वित्त वर्ष 2021-22 में भाजपा को 4.10 करोड़ रुपयों का दान भी दिया था.  

कैपेसाइट इंफ्रा प्रोजेक्ट्स 

मुंबई आधारित इस इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर कंपनी ने 6 अप्रैल से 12 अप्रैल 2023 के बीच 7 करोड़ के बॉन्ड्स खरीदे. राहुल कत्याल इसके मालिक हैं. 

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री ने पहले भी जानकारी दी थी कि इस कंपनी पर अगस्त 2019 में कर विभाग के छापे पड़ने के बाद अक्टूबर 2019 में इसने भाजपा को 5 करोड़ का दान दिया था. वित्त वर्ष 2022-23 में इसने भाजपा को 1 करोड़ रुपये भी दिए थे. 

आईलैब्स टेक्नोलॉजी सेंटर प्राइवेट लिमिटेड 

हैदराबाद स्थित इस निवेश कंपनी को श्रीनिवासराजू चिंतलापति, कृष्णा प्रसाद तुमुलुरी, श्रीनिवास तल्लाप्रगदा, दुद्दूकुरी वेंकट धनुमजय राव चलाते हैं. इसने 10 अप्रैल 2023 को 5 करोड़ के चुनावी बॉन्ड्स खरीदे.  इससे पहले मई 2019 में भी कंपनी ने भाजपा को 5 करोड़ रुपयों का दान दिया था. 

एल्केम लैबोरेट्रीज 

यह देश की एक प्रमुख दवा कंपनियों में शामिल है. संप्रदा सिंह और बीएन सिंह ने साल 1973 में इसकी शुरुआत की थी. इसका पहला संयंत्र नवी मुंबई के पास तलोजा में स्थापित किया गया. इसने भाजपा को 2020-21 में 1 करोड़ और 2022-23 में 25 लाख रुपयों का दान दिया. सितंबर 2023 में कर विभाग ने कंपनी पर छापे मारे थे. इसी साल फरवरी में इस पर फर्जी लेनदेन और कर चोरी के आरोप लगे.  

जानकारी मिली है कि कंपनी ने 14 नवंबर 2022 को 15 करोड़ के चुनावी बॉन्ड्स भी खरीदे. 

गौरतलब है कि न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री ने पहले ही केंद्रीय एजेंसी की कार्रवाई और पिछले पांच वित्तीय वर्षों के दौरान 30 कंपनियों द्वारा भाजपा को 335 करोड़ रुपये के दान के बीच एक स्पष्ट पैटर्न पर रिपोर्ट की थी. 

इसके बाद हमें 11 कंपनियां और मिलीं, जिन्होंने 2016-17 से 2022-23 तक भाजपा को 62.27 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा दिया और इसी अवधि के दौरान उन्हें केंद्रीय एजेंसी की कार्रवाई का सामना करना पड़ा. 

चंदे की कहानी पढ़ने के लिए इस लिंक पर जाएं.

हमारी उपरोक्त रिपोर्ट एक साझा प्रयास का हिस्सा है. जिसमें तीन समाचार संगठन - न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री, स्क्रॉल, द न्यूज़ मिनट - और कुछ स्वतंत्र पत्रकार शामिल हैं. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Tax exemptions, ‘close’ to Modi: Torrent Group bought electoral bonds worth Rs 185 crorehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/tax-exemptions-close-to-modi-torrent-group-bought-electoral-bonds-worth-rs-185-crorehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/tax-exemptions-close-to-modi-torrent-group-bought-electoral-bonds-worth-rs-185-crore#commentsd2568665-bc53-43e2-b39a-c5b10c774daaFri, 15 Mar 2024 11:17:03 +00002024-03-15T11:17:03.422ZPrateek Goyal/api/author/730929Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

Five years ago, then Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis granted a company exemption from paying property taxes of Rs 285 crore.

After the Election Commission released SBI’s data on electoral bonds last night, we now know the same company bought electoral bonds worth Rs 185 crore from May 7, 2019 to January 10, 2024.

This is the Torrent Group, whose subsidiaries – Torrent Power Ltd and Torrent Pharmaceuticals Limited – are listed on the PDF uploaded on the EC website as purchasers of electoral bonds. 

Crucially, the group’s chairman emeritus Sudhir Mehta is considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Newslaundry also learned that from 2007 until around 2014-15, the company donated over Rs 33.11 crore to the BJP.

Here’s what we found.

Mehta, sitting next to Modi, as part of a delegation to Japan. Photo from the website of Parimal Nathwani.
Mehta with Modi in July 2012. Photo from the website of Parimal Nathwani.

‘Close ties’ through the years

On May 7 and May 10, 2019, Torrent Power and Torrent Pharmaceuticals bought electoral bonds worth Rs 14.9 crore, as per last night’s data.

Weeks later, on May 27, 2019, the state government issued a government resolution that said the Bhiwandi Municipal Corporation need not collect property tax worth Rs 285 crore, including interest and fines, from Torrent Power. 

The resolution said: “As the state government has come to the conclusion that recovering such property tax is not ultimately in the interest of the citizens of Bhiwandi, the state government is directing the municipal corporation to withdraw all proceedings to recover property tax from Torrent Power.”

The resolution was issued after Torrent Power informed the state government that recovering property tax would lead to “higher tariffs that would not be in favour of citizens”. Soon after, local citizens started a campaign accusing Torrent Power of running “mafia kind of operations” in Bhiwandi. 

The Torrent Group, estimated at Rs 37,000 crore, was started in the 1940s by Uttambhai Nathalal Mehta. Headquartered in Ahmedabad, its current chairman is Sudhir Mehta. 

Mehta and industrialist Gautam Adani are “old friends” of Prime Minister Modi. They stood by him when the Confederation of Indian Industry came down heavily on Modi in 2003 when he was chief minister, shortly after the Gujarat riots. As part of the Resurgent Gujarat Group, they issued a statement urging CII not to make a “concerted attempt to tarnish the image of the state”. The statement described the riots as “an unfortunate social mishap”. CII then apologised to Modi.

After Modi became prime minister in 2014, Torrent Pharmaceuticals was the first company to secure an exemption from price control for its newly developed drug under a new drug pricing policy. Mehta and Adani were subsequently part of Modi’s 17-member delegation at the Indo-US CEO Forum between Barack Obama and Modi in Delhi in January 2015. They were also part of Modi’s delegation to Australia in November 2014.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

Small teams can do great things. All it takes is a subscription. Subscribe now and power Newslaundry’s work.

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नेताओं के ‘चंदा’ मामा की जानकारी सार्वजनिक, हिंदी के प्रमुख अखबारों पर एक नजरhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/roznamcha-famous-hindi-newspapers-coverage-on-electoral-bonds-and-political-fundinghttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/roznamcha-famous-hindi-newspapers-coverage-on-electoral-bonds-and-political-funding#comments572a220f-1d91-443d-8563-df8859b40354Fri, 15 Mar 2024 07:29:39 +00002024-03-15T07:29:39.024Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889Electoral bonds,Roznamcha,Political fundingKhabar BaaziMediaचुनाव आयोग ने सुप्रीम कोर्ट के निर्देशानुसार गुरुवार की देर शाम को इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स से जुड़ा डाटा सार्वजनिक कर दिया. 763 पन्नों के इस डाटा में इलेक्टोरल बॉन्डस खरीदने वालों और उसे भुनाने वाली पार्टियों की जानकारी शामिल है. हालांकि, किसने किसको कितना चंदा दिया. इसका खुलासा अभी डाटा में नहीं है क्योंकि इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स का नंबर जारी नहीं किया गया है. राजनीतिक पार्टियों के चंदा लेने की इस व्यवस्था को सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने अंसवैधानिक करार दिया था. कोर्ट का मानना साफ था कि जनता को पता होना चाहिए कि किसने किस पार्टी को कितना चंदा दिया. ऐसे में डाटा सार्वजनिक होने के बाद हर ओर इसकी चर्चा हो रही है. लोगों में उत्सुकता है कि वो कौन लोग हैं, जिन्होंने करोड़ों रुपयों में पार्टियों को चंदा दिया और क्या उन्हें इसके बदले कुछ मिला भी..

ऐसे में हमने जानने की कोशिश की कि आखिर देश में सबसे बड़ी प्रसार संख्या से लेकर नंबर वन और देश के सबसे विश्वसनीय होने का दावा करने वाले हिंदी अखबारों ने इस मामले को कितना महत्व दिया. 

आइए एक नजर डालते हैं हिंदी के प्रमुख अखबारों के पहले पन्ने पर ताकि पता चल सके कि अखबारों ने इस जानकारी को कितना महत्व दिया.

दैनिक जागरण

सबसे ज्यादा पढ़े जाने का दावा करने वाले देश के प्रमुख अखबार दैनिक जागरण के लिए इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा सार्वजनिक होना बहुत ही आम ख़बर है. जिसे पहले पन्ने के एक  कोने में छोटे से कॉलम में समेट दिया गया. वो भी मात्र चंद शब्दों में.

अखबार के पहले पन्ने पर कोने में छपी इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स की ख़बर

अखबार के लिए आज की बड़ी सुर्खी देश में एक साथ चुनाव कराए जाने को लेकर पूर्व राष्ट्रपति रामनाथ कोविंद के नेतृत्व वाली कमेटी द्वारा रिपोर्ट सौंपे जाना है. इसके अलावा प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी के भाषण, गृहमंत्री अमित शाह का सीएए को लेकर बयान, पेट्रोल-डीजल के दामों में मात्र दो रुपये की कटौती, नए चुनाव आयुक्तों की नियुक्ति और यहां तक कि दूसरे की जगह परीक्षा देने वाले आईएएस को सजा की ख़बर को भी पहले पन्ने पर भरपूर शब्द और स्थान मिले हैं. लेकिन इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स की ख़बर को एक कॉलम की भी जगह नहीं मिली है. 

अमर उजाला 

अमर उजाला अखबार का पहला पन्ना

अमर उजाला अखबार ने पेट्रोल-डीजल के दामों में दो रुपये की कटौती को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. वहीं, इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे जाने की जानकारी सार्वजनिक होने को अखबार ने दूसरी प्रमुख ख़बर के तौर पर प्रस्तुत किया है. अखबार ने ख़बर में देश के शीर्ष 10 चुनावी दानकर्ताओं की भी सूची दर्शाई है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, योजना के तीन शीर्ष खरीदारों ने ही कुल 2744 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे हैं. 

हिंदुस्तान 

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

हिंदुस्तान अखबार ने इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स के जरिए चुनावी चंदे के आंकड़े जारी होने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. अखबार ने 5 कॉलम और करीब आधे पन्ने में इस ख़बर को प्रकाशित किया है. अखबार ने पांच प्रमुख दानकर्ताओं और किस पार्टी को कितने बॉन्ड मिले इसकी भी जानकारी साझा की है. खब़र के मुताबिक, राजनीतिक दलों को चंदा देने वालों में स्टील टाइकून लक्ष्मी मित्तल से लेकर एयरटेल के प्रवर्तक अरबपति सुनील भारती मित्तल तक शामिल हैं. 

दैनिक भास्कर

दैनिक भास्कर अखबार ने इलेक्टोरल बॉन्डस की जानकारी सार्वजनिक होने को अपनी पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. भास्कर ने इसके लिए एक चुटीला शीर्षक भी दिया है- नेताओं के ‘चंदा’ मामा. ख़बर के मुताबिक, निर्वाचन आयोग ने सुप्रीम कोर्ट की तय समय सीमा से एक दिन पहले डाटा सार्वनजिक कर दिया. इसमें बॉन्ड खरीद की तारीख, खरीदार के नाम, भुनाने की तारीख, भुनाने वाले राजनीतिक दल का नाम और बॉन्ड की रकम शामिल है. 

अखबार ने लिखा है कि भाजपा को 1-1 करोड़ कीमत वाले 5854 बॉन्ड मिले हैं. 

जनसत्ता 

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

जनसत्ता अखबार ने एक देश, एक चुनाव की सिफारिश, नए चुनाव आयुक्तों की नियुक्ति और इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड का डाटा सार्वजनिक होने को लगभग बराबर महत्व दिया है. तीनों ही ख़बरों को तीन-तीन कॉलम की जगह मिली है. हालांकि, पहली सुर्खी एक देश-एक चुनाव की सिफारिश नजर आती है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, अधिकांश बॉन्ड जहां राजनीतिक दलों के नाम जारी किए गए. वहीं, कांग्रेस और समाजवादी पार्टी को दिया गया चंदा अध्यक्ष, अखिल भारतीय कांग्रेस कमेटी और अध्यक्ष, समाजवादी पार्टी के नाम पर दिया गया. 

इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड के जरिए चंदा देने वाली दस शीर्ष कंपनियों के बारे में जानने के लिए ये रिपोर्ट पढ़िए.

चंदे की कहानी पढ़ने के लिए यहां क्लिक करे.

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Reliance-linked firms bought electoral bonds in crucial election years – after an amendmenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/reliance-linked-firms-bought-electoral-bonds-in-crucial-election-years-after-an-amendmenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/reliance-linked-firms-bought-electoral-bonds-in-crucial-election-years-after-an-amendment#commentsd0b33ed4-de19-4978-af1f-1aa253153a8cFri, 15 Mar 2024 07:00:00 +00002024-03-15T07:00:00.000ZAyush Tiwari/api/author/730895Electoral bonds,RelianceProject Electoral Bond

Firms linked to Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries purchased electoral bonds in the middle of the 2019 Lok Sabha election as well as in a special window of sale opened ahead of the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections in 2022. 

The 2022 sale was made possible by a legislative amendment brought by the Modi government. 

The Bharatiya Janata Party received the lion’s share of bonds raised during this period, data released by the Election Commission of India on March 14 shows.

The data was released after the Supreme Court of India ruled the electoral bond scheme, introduced by the Modi government in 2017, was illegal and unconstitutional. 

Most of India’s top companies are missing from the list of the buyers of electoral bonds. An initial scan did not reveal any purchases of bonds by the Adani and Tata group of companies. 

Reliance Industries, India’s most valued company, did not purchase any electoral bonds. However, firms linked to the Reliance Group through common directors, addresses and associates appear on the list.

Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited, which purchased bonds worth Rs 410 crore, is one of them, as previously reported by a collaborative project involving over 20 reporters and three independent news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, and The News Minute.

One of the company’s three directors, Tapas Mitra, is also the director of Reliance Oil and Petroleum, Reliance Eros Productions, Reliance Photo Films, Reliance Fire Brigades, and Reliance Polyester. According to his LinkedIn profile, he is the head of accounts (consolidation) at Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Limited.

Another set of firms that purchased bonds are linked to Surendra Lunia, an old business associate of Mukesh Ambani, who sold a 29.18 percent stake in NDTV held by Reliance-linked firms to the Adani Group. These firms include Nexg Devices Pvt Ltd and Infotel Business Solutions Limited. Lunia sits on the boards of both these firms.

Two other firms that purchased electoral bonds – Infotel Access Enterprises Private Limited and Infotel Technologies Private Limited – are linked to Lunia through their director Kamal Kumar Sharma, who is the Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer at Lunia’s Infotel group. 

Altogether, these firms bought bonds worth at least Rs 50 crore on May 9, 2019, when India was in the throes of the Lok Sabha elections that brought Narendra Modi and the BJP back to power.

A special window of sale

The electoral bond scheme initially allowed only four sale windows in a  year, barring the year of Lok Sabha elections.

On November 7, 2022, days before the Himachal state elections and a month before the Gujarat state elections, the Modi government amended the scheme to allow for a window of 15 additional days in such a year.

According to information accessed by retired Navy Commodore Lokesh Batra through the Right to Information Act, a week-long sale window opened on November 9, 2022, just two days after the amendment. Bonds worth Rs 676 crore were sold in this window.

The data released by the Election Commission shows that the BJP received Rs 590 crore of this figure – 87 percent of the share collected days after the government's amendment.

Firms linked to Reliance were the biggest donors in this phase. Three firms – Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited, NexG Devices Private Limited and Mankind Pharma Limited – bought bonds worth Rs 164 crore in this phase. That is nearly 24 percent of all bonds sold in this phase.

Lunia is one of the nine directors at Mankind Pharma since 2015.

Another firm linked to Lunia, MN Media Ventures, purchased bonds worth Rs 5 crore in this sale period. It shares a common director, Sandeep Jairath, with NexG Devices Private Limited. A second director of MN Media Ventures, Kulwinder Pal Singh, is a senior manager of finance and accounts at Surendra Lunia’s Infotel group, according to LinkedIn. The firm also shares the same registered address as Infotel Access Enterprises, another donor firm where Lunia’s business associate, Ankit Lunia, is a director.

During this phase of electoral bonds, the Reliance group was followed by Vedanta group (Rs 111.75 crore or 16.5 percent of all bonds), United Phosphorus (Rs 50 crore), Sri Siddharth Infratech and Services (Rs 30 crore), DLF (Rs 25 crore), Cipla (Rs 24.2 crore) and Maruti Suzuki (Rs 20 crore).

Another window opened up before the Gujarat elections in December 2022. Data obtained by Batra through RTI shows that bonds worth Rs 232 crore were sold in this phase. The BJP again picked up the largest share of the bonds sold in this December phase – Rs 165 crore or 71 percent of the value.

In this phase, firms linked to the Aditya Birla group purchased Rs 100 crore worth of bonds – 43 percent of all bonds sold in this phase – followed by Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Limited (Rs 56 crore), Ramco Cements (Rs 15 crore) and Future Gaming (Rs 10 crore). 

Qwik Supply

Of the Rs 410 crore-worth bonds purchased by Qwik Supply, the largest tranche was purchased in January 2022.

It bought bonds worth Rs 225 crore on January 5 that year, followed by bonds worth Rs 10 crore on January 10.

On January 14, Reuters reported that the Reliance Group submitted a bid to receive incentives under the Modi government's US$2.4 billion programme to boost local battery cell production. In March 2022, The Group won the tender along with Softbank Group-backed Ola Electric.

Another firm with a Reliance link is Honeywell Properties Private Limited, which purchased bonds worth Rs 30 crore on April 8, 2021. One of its two directors, Satyanarayanamurthy Veera Venkata Korlep, has been on the board of several Reliance group firms since 2005. The firm also shares its registered address with several group firms.

With inputs from Anand Mangnale.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and several independent journalists.

Small teams can do great things. All it takes is a subscription. Subscribe now and power Newslaundry’s work.

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‘Gaming the future’: How front pages covered or skipped the big story on electoral bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/gaming-the-future-how-front-pages-covered-or-skipped-the-big-story-on-electoral-bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/gaming-the-future-how-front-pages-covered-or-skipped-the-big-story-on-electoral-bonds#commentsaab082e4-700e-4c39-9614-74c2001c8079Fri, 15 Mar 2024 05:43:08 +00002024-03-15T05:43:08.350ZNL Team/api/author/730883Electoral bondsShot

In perhaps the biggest reveal ahead of the general elections, the Election Commission published the details on the “purchasers” and beneficiaries of electoral bonds on Thursday evening.

It was a two-part detail submitted by the State Bank of India. A 337-page document listed the names of purchasers, and another 426 pages featured the names of political parties that encashed the bonds. 

Preliminary number-crunching revealed the names of the biggest purchasers, including a lottery king, an infrastructure giant, and a mining conglomerate.

How did front pages cover this news?  

First, The Indian Express. A six-column package titled “Who paid the parties” carried six stories on the top donors to electoral bonds and a “telling pattern” in the newspaper’s Delhi edition.

The main report noted that the “first veil of secrecy is lifted; top 20 donors account for just under half of the total Rs 12,156 crore purchased through electoral bonds 2019-2024.”

The second lead in the package noted that three of the top five donors – Future Gaming, Megha Engineering and Vedanta – bought bonds with ED and I-T knocking on their doors. Another report detailed how on facing the “GST heat”, different pharma companies bought bonds on the same day.    

A story detailed that Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress was placed at No. 2 in the beneficiary list, with bonds worth Rs 1,609 crore, whose “redemption surged after the Assembly polls win”. Another report profiled the top bonds purchaser, Santiago Martin, who contributed across parties. 

The newspaper had another full-page coverage on the electoral bonds in its inside pages. 

Page one of The Indian Express.

“EB bumper: ‘Lottery king’ Santiago No. 1 bond buyer,” read the page one lead headline on The Times of India’s Delhi edition. 

The four-column report detailed the top 22 bond buyers who accounted for “half of the “Rs 12,000 crore purchases from April 2019 to January 2024”. It also carried a graphic of the biggest donors in “the Rs 100 crore club”. 

A report on the biggest donor, Future Gaming, said the company has been on the ED and I-T radar for “10+ years”.       

A long story on the paper’s front flap was titled “Gaming the future? Rs 1,394 crore poll bet by great gambler”. The story featured a list of all the companies which contributed between Rs 20 crore to Rs 100 crore. It also included a scan code that would digitally open the “full list”.   

Screenshot of The Times of India front page.

The Chennai edition of The Hindu’s page one banner headline said, “Poll bonds: 22 firms donated over Rs 100 crore”. It noted that the BJP encashed bonds worth over Rs 6,060.5 crore, “highest among all parties”. 

“In fact, the BJP’s share of the total bonds encashed by the parties was over 47.5 percent,” said the report.   

In the Delhi edition of Hindustan Times, the big story did not find a place on the front page, which featured a half-page ad. 

The news was instead carried on the front flap, with the headline “Lottery firm top donor as EC uploads electoral bonds data”. It also carried a graphic detailing the top 10 bonds buyers.       

The front flap on Hindustan Times.

The electoral bonds story was the second lead on The Telegraph’s Kolkata edition. The two-column story was titled “Lottery firm top electoral bond list”. Meanwhile, the lead story was about chief minister Mamata Banerjee being “pushed” from behind, sustaining head injuries. 

A screenshot of the page 1 of The Telegraph.

Newslaundry has joined hands with The News Minute, Scroll and independent journalists to explore the data released last night and decode the pattern of political funding through electoral bonds. Read here

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इलेक्टोरल बॉन्डस का डाटा सार्वजनिक: ये हैं चंदा देने वाली टॉप 10 कंपनियांhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/here-are-the-top-10-donors-of-electoral-bonds-from-2019-to-2024-as-per-election-commission-datahttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/here-are-the-top-10-donors-of-electoral-bonds-from-2019-to-2024-as-per-election-commission-data#comments65c845e3-b0db-4d81-ad87-cd2c882ea571Fri, 15 Mar 2024 05:27:03 +00002024-03-15T05:27:03.985Zप्रोजेक्ट इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड/api/author/1931455election commission,Electoral bonds,Political fundingPolitical-fundingReportचुनाव आयोग ने गुरुवार की देर शाम इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स का डाटा सार्वजनिक कर दिया. आयोग ने अपनी वेबसाइट पर इसे दो भागों में जारी किया है. एक भाग में उन लोगों के नाम हैं. जिन्होंने अब तक इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे हैं. वहीं, दूसरे भाग में बॉन्ड से चंदा पाने वाली पार्टियों के नाम शामिल हैं.

चुनाव आयोग द्वारा सार्वजनिक डाटा के मुताबिक, आइए एक नजर डालते हैं उन खरीददारों पर जिन्होंने सबसे ज्यादा इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे या कहिए कि सबसे ज्यादा चंदा दिया. 

सूची में पहले स्थान पर फ्यूचर गेमिंग एंड होटल सर्विसेज लिमिटेड है. जिसके पास 1,368 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड हैं. सैंटियागो मार्टिन के स्वामित्व वाली इस लॉटरी कंपनी का मुख्यालय कोयंबटूर में है. यह सिक्किम और नागालैंड में आयोजित पेपर लॉटरी का एकमात्र वितरक भी है. चुनाव आयोग के डाटा के मुताबिक, इसने फ्यूचर गेमिंग एंड होटल सर्विस पीआर, फ्यूचर गेमिंग एंड होटल सर्विसेज प्राइवेट लिमिटेड और फ्यूचर गेमिंग एंड होटल सर्विसेज प्राइवेट लिमिटेड के नाम से इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स खरीदे हैं. 

मालूम हो कि कंपनी और मार्टिन दोनों के खिलाफ प्रवर्तन निदेशालय यानि ईडी की जांच चल रही है. मनी लॉन्ड्रिंग मामले में केंद्रीय जांच ब्यूरो द्वारा दायर आरोप पत्र में मार्टिन का भी नाम था. पिछले साल ईडी ने इनकी 450 करोड़ रुपये से ज्यादा की संपत्ति जब्त कर ली थी. पिछले हफ्ते ही ईडी ने मनी लॉन्ड्रिंग जांच के सिलसिले में मार्टिन के दामाद के घर पर तलाशी ली थी. 

#2 दूसरे नंबर पर हैदराबाद स्थित मेघा इंजीनियरिंग एंड इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर लिमिटेड है. जिसने 966 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे हैं. मेघा ग्रुप की स्थापना 1986 में पीपी रेड्डी द्वारा की गई थी. रेड्डी और उनके भतीजे पीवी कृष्णा रेड्डी दोनों कथित तौर पर तेलंगाना के मुख्यमंत्री केसीआर के "करीबी" हैं. अधिक जानकारी के लिए न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री की 2019 की ये रिपोर्ट पढ़िए. 

#3 तीसरे नंबर पर क्विक सप्लाई चेन प्राइवेट लिमिटेड है. जिसका मुख्यालय महाराष्ट्र में है. इसने चुनावी बॉन्ड के माध्यम से कुल 410 करोड़ रुपये का दान दिया है. इसके निदेशकों में से एक मुकेश अंबानी की रिलायंस इंडस्ट्रीज के स्वामित्व वाली कई कंपनियों में भी निदेशक है. 

#4 चौथे नंबर पर खनन दिग्गज वेदांता लिमिटेड है. जिसकी स्थापना व्यवसायी अनिल अग्रवाल ने की थी. इसका मुख्यालय मुंबई में है. यह समूह विवादों से अछूता नहीं है. इस पर कर्ज़ और पर्यावरणीय नियमों के उल्लंघन को लेकर आरोप शामिल हैं. पिछले साल, इसने अपने व्यवसायों के "अलगाव" की घोषणा की थी. बावजूद इसके उसने 399 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे.

#5 पांचवें नंबर पर हल्दिया एनर्जी लिमिटेड है. जो 375 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीद रही है. 1994 में निगमित, इसका पूर्ण स्वामित्व सीईएससी लिमिटेड के पास है, जो आरपी-संजीव गोयनका समूह का हिस्सा है. यह "कोलकाता शहर और उसके उपनगरों की बढ़ती बिजली की मांग को पूरा करने" के लिए पश्चिम बंगाल के हल्दिया में एक थर्मल पावर प्लांट संचालित करता है.

पिछले साल, अल जज़ीरा ने रिपोर्ट किया था कि नरेंद्र मोदी सरकार ने आरपी-संजीव गोयनका को "बड़े कोयला भंडार पर कब्ज़ा करने के लिए प्रतिस्पर्धी प्रक्रियाओं को दरकिनार करने" की अनुमति दी थी.

#6 सूची में छठे नंबर पर एस्सेल माइनिंग एंड इंडस्ट्रीज लिमिटेड है, जिसने 224.5 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे. आदित्य बिड़ला समूह का हिस्सा, यह देश की सबसे बड़ी लौह अयस्क खनन कंपनियों में से एक है. 

2022 में, कंपनी ने मध्य प्रदेश सरकार को पत्र लिखकर हिंसा के खतरों के बारे में चिंता व्यक्त की थी क्योंकि उसने सांची से लगभग 200 किमी दूर बक्सवाहा जंगल में अपनी खनन परियोजना को क्रियान्वित करने की कोशिश की थी. 2014 में, ओडिशा में खनन उल्लंघनों की जांच करने वाले एक विशेषज्ञ पैनल ने कंपनी को राज्य के वन क्षेत्रों में अवैध खनन का दोषी ठहराया.

#7 सातवें नंबर पर वेस्टर्न यूपी पावर ट्रांसमिशन कंपनी लिमिटेड है. जिसमें मेघा समूह की बड़ी हिस्सेदारी है. इसने 220 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे हैं. मेघा इंजीनियरिंग को मिलाकर ग्रुप ने 1,186 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे हैं.

#8 सूची में आठवें नंबर पर केवेंटर फूडपार्क इंफ्रा लिमिटेड है. जिसने 2019 से अब तक कुल 195 करोड़ रुपये के चुनावी बॉन्ड खरीदे हैं. कोलकाता स्थित कंपनी खाद्य प्रसंस्करण क्षेत्र में है और लुगदी और कृषि उत्पादों का निर्यात करती है. 

#9 एमकेजे एंटरप्राइजेज लिमिटेड सबसे ज्यादा चंदा देने वालों में नौंंवे नंबर पर है. जिसका मुख्यालय कोलकाता में है. कंपनी स्टील का कारोबार करती है. इसने चुनावी बॉन्ड के जरिए 180 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा दिया है. इसके अध्यक्ष और प्रबंध निदेशक महेंद्र कुमार जालान हैं. जालान कुछ केवेंटर कंपनियों के निदेशक भी हैं. 

#10 मदनलाल लिमिटेड ने 185.5 करोड़ रुपये के बॉन्ड खरीदे हैं. कंपनी एमकेजे समूह और केवेंटर समूह की कंपनियों का हिस्सा है. कंपनी प्रतिभूतियों और रियल एस्टेट क्षेत्र की खरीद और बिक्री में लगी हुई है.

गौरतलब है कि न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री ने पहले ही केंद्रीय एजेंसी की कार्रवाई और पिछले पांच वित्तीय वर्षों के दौरान 30 कंपनियों द्वारा भाजपा को 335 करोड़ रुपये के दान के बीच एक स्पष्ट पैटर्न पर रिपोर्ट की थी. 

इसके बाद हमें 11 कंपनियां और मिलीं, जिन्होंने 2016-17 से 2022-23 तक भाजपा को 62.27 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा दिया और इसी अवधि के दौरान उन्हें केंद्रीय एजेंसी की कार्रवाई का सामना करना पड़ा. 

चंदे की कहानी पढ़ने के लिए इस लिंक पर जाएं.

हमारी उपरोक्त रिपोर्ट एक साझा प्रयास का हिस्सा है. जिसमें तीन समाचार संगठन - न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री, स्क्रॉल, द न्यूज़ मिनट - और कुछ स्वतंत्र पत्रकार शामिल हैं. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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41 companies donated to BJP and faced central action. 18 of them bought electoral bonds of Rs 2,010 crorehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/of-41-companies-that-donated-to-bjp-18-bought-electoral-bonds-of-rs-2010-crorehttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/of-41-companies-that-donated-to-bjp-18-bought-electoral-bonds-of-rs-2010-crore#commentsd9aa4c48-3703-472c-9f50-47535c47aec5Fri, 15 Mar 2024 05:21:15 +00002024-03-15T05:21:15.250ZPrateek Goyal/api/author/730929Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondPolitical Funding

Read the previous instalments of our political funding investigation here.

In February, Newslaundry and The News Minute reported on 30 companies that donated Rs 355 crore to the BJP after being subjected to central agency action. Three days ago, we found 11 more companies that fit into that ostensible pattern, donating Rs 62.3 crore to the party in power.

Eighteen of these have now featured on the list of electoral bond purchasers released by the Election Commission last night. These 18 bought bonds to the tune of nearly Rs 2,010.5 crore – five times the donations made through other methods by the 41 companies we reported on earlier.

Here are the details.

Future Gaming and Hotel Services PR

This Tamil Nadu-based lottery company is headed by self-proclaimed lottery king Santiago Martin, who has multiple criminal cases against him. 

Newslaundry and The News Minute previously reported that after the Income Tax department searched its premises in May 2019, the company became the biggest donor to Prudent Electoral Trust – donating Rs 100 crore in 2020-21. Prudent received Rs 245.72 crore in 2020-21 from 19 companies, of which Rs 209 crore went to the BJP. 

Now, based on the data that came out last night, we know that from October 21, 2020 to January 9, 2024, Future Gaming bought electoral bonds worth Rs 1,368 crore, seemingly the top purchaser in India.

Yashoda Hospitals

Hyderabad-based Yashoda group of hospitals bought electoral bonds worth Rs 162 crore from October 4, 2021 to October 11, 2023. It’s owned by Rao brothers Ravender, Surender and Davender. We previously reported that they were searched in December 2020 and subsequently donated to the BJP.

IRB Infrastructure Developers

IRB is a Mumbai-based infrastructure company headed by Virendra Mhaiskar.

In 2015, the CBI raided its premises in Pune and Mumbai after a complaint of land grabbing, forgery and cheating. From 2014 to 2023, the company and its two subsidiaries, Modern Road Makers and Ideal Road Builders, donated Rs 84 crore to the BJP.

According to last night’s data, three subsidiaries of IRB – Modern Road Makers, IRB MP Expressway and Ideal Road Builders – together purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 84 crore. Modern Road Makers bought Rs 53 crore of electoral bonds  from April 16, 2019 to July 3, 2023. IRB MP Expressway purchased Rs 25 crore of electoral bonds on July 4, 2023. And Ideal Road Builders purchased Rs 6 crore of electoral bonds on October 4, 2023.

Som Distilleries

Madhya Pradesh-based Som Distilleries was among the quickest to donate to the BJP after a raid, as per our previous investigation, donating to the BJP 10 days after the release of its promoters.

Now we know the company bought electoral bonds of Rs 3 crore in 2023, Rs 1 crore on July 12, 2023 and Rs 2 crore on October 10, 2023.

Shree Cements

Kolkata-based Shree Cements, headed by Hari Mohan Bangur, bought electoral bonds of Rs 7.5crore – Rs 1.5 crore on May 8, 2019, Rs 4 crore on January 21, 2020, and Rs 2 crore on October 21, 2020. It should be noted that a separate entry for January 21, 2020 indicates bonds of Rs 40 lakh bought by “Bangur Shree”.

We previously reported that Shree Cements gave Rs 12 crore to the BJP in 2020-21 and 2021-22 while also facing central agency action.

Hetero Group

The Hyderabad-based Hetero group is a pharmaceutical firm run by B Partha Saradi Reddy, a Rajya Sabha member from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi and its richest MP. It figured on our first list of 30 firms that donated to the BJP while also being stung by central agencies.

The group’s three companies – Hetero Drugs, Hetero Labs and Hetero Biopharma – purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 60 crore from April 7, 2022 to October 12, 2023.

USV Private Ltd

The Mumbai-based healthcare company is run by Leena Gandhi Tewari, India’s second-richest woman. Twenty of its premises were raided by the Income Tax department in 2017. It donated Rs 9 crore to the BJP a month later.

According to last night’s data, USV Private Ltd also bought electoral bonds worth Rs 10 crore on November 15, 2022. 

Chennai Green Woods Private Ltd

Chennai Green Woods Private Ltd is a construction company owned by the Ramky Group, whose chairman is YSRCP Rajya Sabha MP Ayodhya Rami Reddy. Along with several central agency stings, it had donated Rs 1 crore to the BJP in 2022-23.

From January 5, 2022 to October 12, 2023, the company purchased electoral bonds of Rs 105 crore. 

Aurobindo Pharma

The Hyderabad-based pharma giant also owns Aurobindo Realty and Infrastructure Ltd. In November 2022, The Enforcement Directorate arrested Sarath Reddy, director of Aurobindo Pharma, for his alleged role in the Delhi liquor policy case.

Between April 3, 2021 and November 8, 2023, the company bought electoral bonds of Rs 52 crore.

SPML Om Metal JV

The company is owned by the Om Kothari group, which has business interests  in hydropower, real estate, auto dealerships, hotels and entertainment centres. It was searched by tax officials in July 2020 and donated Rs 5 crore to the BJP in 2021-22. It also bought electoral bonds of Rs 5 crore on October 4, 2021.

Micro Labs

Micro Labs, which manufactures Dolo-650, is a Bengaluru-based pharmaceutical company run by brothers Dilip and Anand Surana. It bought electoral bonds of Rs 16 crore from October 10, 2022 to October 9, 2023. 

Previously, Newslaundry and The News Minute found that Micro Labs donated Rs 21 lakh to the BJP in 2015-16, Rs 9 crore in 2017-18, Rs 3 crore in 2018-19, Rs 50 lakh in 2019-2020, and Rs 2 crore in 2022-23. Forty of its locations were raided by tax sleuths in July 2022. 

Ramco Cements

The Ramco Group is a major cement manufacturing group based in Tamil Nadu. It’s often had run-ins with central agencies and we’d recorded a pattern of donations to the BJP too.

According to the new data, Ramco Cements bought electoral bonds worth Rs 54 crore from October 10, 2022 to November 15, 2023.

KJS Group

The Madhya Pradesh-based KJS cements, owned by Kamaljeet Singh Ahluwalia, bought electoral bonds of Rs 14 crore from the period between April 20, 2019 and May 9, 2019. It also figured on our second list of companies that fit in our ‘pattern’.

Thriveni Earth Movers

Thriveni Earth Movers is a mine developer company headquartered in Salem and owned by B Prabhakaran. The company donated Rs 89.99 lakh to the BJP in 2014-15, Rs 20 lakh in 2016-17, and Rs 3 crore on July 6, 2017.

According to new data, Thriveni Earth Movers and its subsidiary company Thriveni Sainik Mining Private Ltd bought electoral bonds worth Rs 11 crore from April 9, 2021 to October 13, 2023.

Trident Ltd

The Punjab-based company is run by Padmashree awardee Rajender Gupta. It bought electoral bonds worth Rs 7 crore on October 5 and 6, 2023. The company had donated Rs 4.10 crore to BJP in the financial year 2021-22.

Capacite Infraprojects

The Mumbai-based infrastructure company headed by Rahul Katyal bought electoral bonds of Rs 7 crore from April 6 to April 12, 2023. 

We previously reported that Capacite’s premises were raided in August 2019 by the tax department. In October 2019, it donated Rs 5 crore to the BJP. In 2022-23, it donated Rs 1 crore to the party.

ILABS Technology Centre Pvt Ltd

The Hyderabad-based investment platform is run by Srinivasaraju Chintalapati, Krishna Prasad Tumuluri, Srinivas Tallapragada and Duddukuri Venkata Dhanumjaya Rao. It bought electoral bonds of Rs 5 crore on April 10, 2023.

It had also donated Rs 5 crore to the BJP in May 2019.

Alkem Laboratories

Alkem Laboratories is a major pharmaceutical company founded by Samprada Singh and BN Singh in 1973, setting up its first plant in Taloja near Navi Mumbai. It donated Rs 1 crore to the BJP in 2020-21 and Rs 25 lakh in 2022-23. In September 2023, its premises were searched by the tax department while in February this year, the company was accused of tax evasion and fraudulent transactions.

It also bought electoral bonds worth Rs 15 crore on November 14, 2022.

Update at 2.30 pm, Mar 15: IRB and its two subsidiaries purchased electoral bonds worth a total of Rs 84 crore, not Rs 53 crore. This has been corrected.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

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Telangana-Andhra firm bought bonds worth Rs 55 crore six months after I-T raidshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/telangana-andhra-firm-bought-bonds-worth-rs-55-crore-six-months-after-i-t-raidshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/15/telangana-andhra-firm-bought-bonds-worth-rs-55-crore-six-months-after-i-t-raids#comments7812d645-e459-45d5-b274-d78420203565Fri, 15 Mar 2024 04:47:40 +00002024-03-15T04:47:40.320ZProject Electoral Bond/api/author/1931423Electoral bondsProject Electoral Bond

Navayuga Engineering Company Limited bought electoral bonds worth Rs 30 crore six months after it was raided by the Income Tax Department. Navayuga made headlines in November last year, when 41 workers were trapped for 17 days inside the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel in Uttarakhand, which the company is building.

In all, the company bought bonds worth up to Rs 55 crore over a period of three years, according to the documents released by the Election Commission of India on March 14. 

Founded in Visakhapatnam and headquartered in Hyderabad, Navayuga purchased 30 bonds of Rs 1 crore denomination each on April 18, 2019, six months after the IT department raided its offices. 

The IT Department raided Navayuga’s offices in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam in October 2018 in connection with alleged tax violations and money laundering. The company was also raided in 2012. 

In July 2018, the Registrar of Companies officials inspected Navayuga premises in Hyderabad and found that around 47 firms were all registered at the same address. 

Navayuga bought 25 bonds each worth Rs 1 crore on October 10, 2022. 

The company has won government contracts all over the country, including a barrage construction in the Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project in Telangana and the Polavaram project. In September 2019, the Jagan Mohan Reddy government cancelled the Rs 3200 crore Polavaram contract work given to Navayuga. Navayuga is also building the Dhola-Sadia bridge across the Brahmaputra in Assam, which is said to be the longest river bridge in India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the bridge in May 2017. 

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.  

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Lottery, infrastructure, a mining giant: Meet the top 10 purchasers of electoral bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/lottery-infrastructure-a-mining-giant-meet-the-top-10-purchasers-of-electoral-bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/lottery-infrastructure-a-mining-giant-meet-the-top-10-purchasers-of-electoral-bonds#commentsc2108d05-67b1-4b07-843b-2b549e9f0dedThu, 14 Mar 2024 18:02:03 +00002024-03-14T18:02:03.897ZProject Electoral Bond/api/author/1931423Electoral bondsProject Electoral BondHours after the Election Commission published details of electoral bonds, as submitted by the State Bank of India, we now know the top 10 purchasers of electoral bonds from April 2019.

#1 on the list is Future Gaming and Hotel Services Ltd with a whopping Rs 1,368 crore worth of electoral bonds. Owned by Santiago Martin, the lottery company is headquartered in Coimbatore. It’s also the sole distributor of the paper lottery organised in Sikkim and Nagaland. Its bonds have been listed as Future Gaming and Hotel Service PR, Future Gaming and Hotel Services Pvt Ltd, and Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Ltd in the EC data.

The company and Martin have been the subjects of investigations by the Enforcement Directorate. Martin was also named in a chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in a money laundering case. Last year, the ED froze assets worth over Rs 450 crore. Just last week, the ED conducted searches at the home of Martin’s son-in-law in connection with a money laundering investigation.

#2 is the Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd which purchased electoral bonds of Rs 966 crore. The Megha Group was set up in 1986 by PP Reddy. Both Reddy and his nephew PV Krishna Reddy are reportedly “close” to Telangana Chief Minister KCR. Read Newslaundry’s piece from 2019 for more.

#3 is Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited, headquartered in Maharashtra and donating a total of Rs 410 crore through electoral bonds. One of its directors is also director at a host of companies owned by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries.

#4 on the list is mining giant Vedanta Limited, founded by businessman Anil Agarwal and headquartered in Mumbai. The conglomerate is no stranger to controversy, including allegations of debt and multiple conflicts over its subversion of environmental regulation. Last year, it announced the “demerger” of its businesses.

Regardless, it purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 399 crore.

#5 is Haldia Energy Limited, purchasing electoral bonds worth Rs 375 crore. Incorporated in 1994, it’s wholly owned by CESC Ltd, part of the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group. It operates a thermal power plant at West Bengal’s Haldia to “cater [to] the growing power demand of the city of Kolkata and its suburbs”.

Last year, Al Jazeera reported that the Narendra Modi government allowed RP-Sanjiv Goenka to “bypass competitive processes to corner large coal reserves”.

#6 on the list is Essel Mining and Industries Ltd, which purchased a total of Rs 224.5 crore through electoral bonds. 

Part of the Aditya Birla Group, it is among the country’s largest iron ore mining companies and producer of noble ferro alloys. In 2022, the company had written to the Madhya Pradesh government expressing concerns about threats of violence as it tried to execute its mining project in Buxwaha forest, nearly 200 km from Sanchi. In 2014, an expert panel tasked with investigating mining violations in Odisha held the firm guilty of illegal mining in the state’s forest areas.

#7 is Western UP Power Transmission Company Ltd, in which Megha group has controlling shareholding, purchased bonds worth Rs 220 crore. Including Megha Engineering, the group has purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 1,186 crore.

#8 on the list is Keventer Foodpark Infra Limited, which has purchased electoral bonds to the tune of Rs 195 crore since 2019. The Kolkata-based firm is in the food processing sector and exports pulp and agricultural products.

#9 is MKJ Enterprises Limited, headquartered in Kolkata, dealing in steel, and purchasing Rs 180 crore through electoral bonds. Its chairman and managing director is Mahendra Kumar Jalan – also a director with some Keventer companies, which ties in nicely with entry #8.

#10 is Madanlal Ltd, which purchased bonds to the tune of Rs 185.5 crore. The company is part of MKJ Group and Keventer Group of companies. The company is engaged in purchase and sale of securities and real estate sector.

The EC released SBI’s data on electoral bonds just before 8 pm today in the form of two files, one containing names of “purchasers” of electoral bonds and the other containing names of the political parties that encashed the bonds.

We had earlier reported an ostensible pattern between central agency action and Rs 335 crore in donations to the BJP by 30 companies during the last five financial years. We later found 11 other companies which donated Rs 62.27 crore to the BJP from 2016-17 to 2022-23, and faced central agency action during the same period.

Check out the full series here.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and independent journalists.

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किसान संगठनों का संकल्प: ‘भाजपा की पोल खोलो, विरोध करो और सज़ा दो’ https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/kisan-mahapanchayat-delhi-farmers-leader-rakesh-tikait-gurnam-singh-charunihttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/kisan-mahapanchayat-delhi-farmers-leader-rakesh-tikait-gurnam-singh-charuni#comments0eb64bb8-bb1d-40a7-bbe5-5bb16b93ee7bThu, 14 Mar 2024 15:56:09 +00002024-03-14T15:56:09.114Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889BJP,Farmers OrganisationsVideoReport

14 मार्च को संयुक्त किसान मोर्चा (एसकेएम) ने दिल्ली के रामलीला मैदान में किसान-मज़दूर महापंचायत की. इस महापंचायत में देश के अलग-अलग हिस्सों से हज़ारों की संख्या में किसान पहुंचे.  इस महापंचायत में प्रमुख रूप से पांच मांगें सरकार से की गईं. 

  • सभी फसलों के लिए गारंटीशुदा खरीद के साथ एमएसपी मिले.

  • सर्वसमावेशी कर्ज माफ़ी योजना लागू हो.

  • बिजली का निजीकरण बंद हो और प्रीपेड स्मार्ट मीटर हटाए जाएं.

  • लखीमपुर खीरी किसान नरसंहार के मुख्य साजिशकर्ता और केंद्रीय गृह राज्य मंत्री अजय मिश्र टेनी को बर्खास्त किया जाए.

हालांकि, एसकेएम की ये मांगे पुरानी हैं. साल 2020 में जब तीन कृषि कानूनों के खिलाफ दिल्ली में 13 महीने तक किसान आंदोलन हुआ था तब भी इनमें से कई मांगें उसमें शामिल थीं. यहां मौजूद किसानों का कहना था कि ये हमारी मांगें नहीं हैं बल्कि सरकार के वो वादें हैं जो अभी तक अधूरे हैं.  

इस महापंचायत में राकेश टिकैत, जोगिंदर सिंह उगराहां, मेधा पाटेकर, गुरनाम चढूनी समेत कई और किसान नेता पहुंचे. यहां कई संकल्प भी लिए गए. जिसमें चुनावों के मद्देनजर मुख्य संकल्प भाजपा के विरोध में देशव्यापी जन प्रतिरोध खड़ा करने का रहा. इसके लिए किसान अभी अपने-अपने गांवों में भाजपा नेताओं के खिलाफ प्रदर्शन करेंगे. 

बता दें कि पंजाब और हरियाणा के बीच शंभू बॉर्डर पर अभी भी किसानों का धरना जारी है. हालांकि, यहां के धरने का नेतृत्व करने वाले संगठन आज की महापंचायत में शामिल नहीं थे. 

महापंचायत में खनौरी बॉर्डर पर मारे गए किसान शुभकरण के मामले में केंद्रीय मंत्री अमित शाह से इस्तीफे की भी मांग की गई.  

आगामी 23 मार्च यानी शहीद भगत सिंह के फांसी वाले दिन पर देश के सभी गांवों में ‘लोकतंत्र बचाओ ‘ दिवस मनाने की भी घोषणा की गई.

देखिए ये रिपोर्ट. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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At Delhi’s Ramlila ground, farmers vow to ‘expose, oppose, punish BJP’https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/at-delhis-ramlila-ground-farmers-vow-to-expose-oppose-punish-bjphttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/at-delhis-ramlila-ground-farmers-vow-to-expose-oppose-punish-bjp#comments41a8709b-3e1c-42f5-b31f-5ea7ee89334fThu, 14 Mar 2024 15:45:17 +00002024-03-14T15:45:17.578ZBasant Kumar/api/author/730930Farmer ProtestsGround ReportVideo

Thousands of farmers from across the country gathered at Delhi’s Ramlila ground today for a farmer-labourers mahapanchayat in connection with their “five main demands”.  

At the meet organised by farm union Sanyukt Kisan Morcha, the farmers demanded a minimum support price for agricultural produce, along with guaranteed purchase of all crops; an all-inclusive loan waiver scheme; halting the privatisation of electricity; and removal of prepaid smart metres.

The farmers also demanded that Ajay Mishra Teni, whom they hold responsible for the Lakhimpur Kheri violence of October 2021, be removed from his post as minister of state for home affairs. 

Speaking to Newslaundry, the farmers said these are not their demands but “unfulfilled promises” of the Modi government. They also demanded that Home Minister Amit Shah take responsibility and resign over the death of farmer Shubhakaran Singh, who died after alleged police action at the Khanauri border.

Notably, the farmers’ protest is going on at the Punjab and Haryana borders. But the organisations helming those protests did not take part in the mahapanchayat.

However, many farm leaders and activists, including Rakesh Tikait, Joginder Singh Ugrahan, Medha Patekar, and Gurnam Chaduni were present at the Ramlila ground, where the farmers took several resolutions, including “exposing, opposing, and punishing the BJP”, and orchestrating a “nationwide public resistance against the BJP”. 

The farmers also announced that they will observe ‘Save Democracy’ Day across the villages of the country on March 23, the death anniversary of revolutionary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.

Watch.

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763 pages of purchasers and political parties: EC releases SBI’s data on electoral bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/763-pages-of-purchasers-and-political-parties-ec-releases-sbis-data-on-electoral-bondshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/763-pages-of-purchasers-and-political-parties-ec-releases-sbis-data-on-electoral-bonds#comments3cdb321c-e40d-473d-b84b-e295da3cfe1eThu, 14 Mar 2024 15:13:51 +00002024-03-14T15:13:51.138ZNL Team/api/author/730883Electoral bondsShot

At 7.53 pm and 7.55 pm today, the Election Commission uploaded on its website details on electoral bonds submitted by the State Bank of India.

The first file, titled Part I, contains names of “purchasers” – companies that bought electoral bonds – with the date of purchase and denomination. This document runs into 337 pages.

Part II, which is 426 pages, contains names of the political parties that encashed the bonds, with denominations and dates.

These are the contents of the two PDFs submitted by the SBI earlier this week, after the Supreme Court refused to extend its deadline in the case. The PDFs were loaded onto a pen drive; the passwords to access them were handed over separately in an envelope.

Newslaundry had earlier reported an ostensible pattern between central agency action and Rs 335 crore in donations to the BJP by 30 companies during the last five financial years. We later found 11 other companies – which donated Rs 62.27 crore to the BJP from 2016-17 to 2022-23, and faced central agency action during the same period.

Turns out that many of those companies are also part of the list of electoral bond buyers. For example, Yashoda Hospitals bought 162 bonds worth Rs 1 crore each between October 4, 2021 and October 11, 2023. 

The Hyderabad-based group consists of a chain of hospitals, including four hospitals, four heart institutes and four cancer institutes. It was launched in the eighties by the Rao brothers, Ravender, Surender and Devender. The family is related to Telangana’s former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao.

The group, which has been accused of being favoured by the erstwhile KCR government in Telangana, donated Rs 2.5 lakh to the BJP in 2019-20. In December 2020, several of its premises were searched across Telangana, and the very next year, the group donated to the BJP – Rs 10 crore in 2021-22 and Rs 5 lakh in 2022-23.

Who else is part of the list? Watch this space for more.

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‘Keep me out of politics’: Meet the man who anchored the electoral bonds fighthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/keep-me-out-of-politics-meet-the-man-who-anchored-the-electoral-bonds-fighthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/keep-me-out-of-politics-meet-the-man-who-anchored-the-electoral-bonds-fight#commentsa4afe40e-c7c3-4431-8151-a613758cf684Thu, 14 Mar 2024 13:33:49 +00002024-03-14T13:33:49.388ZShivnarayan Rajpurohit/api/author/1670920Electoral bondsReport“Done and dusted.”

With shaky hands, Commodore Lokesh Batra (retd) tapped this WhatsApp text away to a lawyer from his Noida home, minutes after the Election Commission of India tweeted that it had received electoral bond data from the state-run State Bank of India. 

The 77-year-old transparency campaigner had been jittery amid speculation that the SBI may drag its feet on sharing the details on Tuesday. But his phone soon buzzed with messages informing him of the ECI’s tweet – from Association of Democratic Reforms, a non-partisan think tank and a petitioner in the electoral bond case, and lawyers.

“Now, it’s official,” Batra broke into a nervous smile. He had his reasons, after a years-long battle fought through the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005. The original petition, which has come to be known as the ADR v/s Union of India case, after all, cites a few documents Batra had acquired in the last six years. 

Delivering its verdict in the case on February 15, the Supreme Court had termed the electoral bonds – a way of political funding through anonymous donors since 2018 – unconstitutional and asked the SBI to reveal datasets of bond buyers and parties that encashed it by March 6. However, the SBI sprang a “silo” surprise. Unimpressed, the apex court persisted and put the largest bank in India on notice. The bank then transferred the datasets to ECI on Monday.

‘Talk a lot but can’t write’

Beyond the court, newsrooms have looked up to the sprightly Batra for information on electoral bonds. His Noida house is the first port of call for journalists on electoral bonds.

“I talk a lot but I can’t write,” he told Newslaundry

What is it that he wants to talk about? Transparency in governance, reforms, bureaucratic negligence or anything else that concerns the people. But any discussion on a broken water purifier and water pump is summarily dismissed or delayed. “The family” – household chores – “comes last for him. But whatever he is doing is for the nation,” said his wife Jyotsana, a social worker.

Her words – “take risks, speak up” – are what uplifts him.

Multan to mission mode

Batra was born in Multan in an undivided India in 1946. During Partition, the family, like a million others, crossed the Indian border. “When we moved to this side, I was an infant. I don’t remember much,” he said, eager to move onto a more exciting phase of his life as a Navyman.

He joined the Navy in 1967 before graduating from Meerut University, participated in the 1971 India-Pakistan war, rescued people struck by natural calamities during a super cyclone in Odisha (1999) and an earthquake in Gujarat (and built their homes); went beyond his official duty to empower women and the differently-abled; and undertook literacy initiatives.

A hydrographer in the Navy, he was transferred to Delhi in 1992, and worked in South Block in Delhi. During this time, he maintained an unofficial file called “HRD” which contained ideas how the Navy can lend its helping hand to the poor and disadvantaged. Some of these ideas – a low-floor bus for the differently-abled and roping in wives of armed forces during natural calamities – became a reality.

In 1998, his ideas culminated into a book, “Outreach”, brought out by the Navy in association with 14 ministries and NGOs, including Unicef and Unesco. It was unveiled by President KR Narayanan and Prime Minister Atal Bihari. Batra had earlier approached Sonia Gandhi for publication of the book through the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation. She agreed. But Batra later pulled out after she joined politics. “I was a serving officer and could not be involved with a party for the book,” he said.

On the day he retired in 2002, the family waited for a reception. Unmindful, he continued to work from South Block till 8pm. “My daughter picked me up and we went to a photo studio for a photo. This was the last time I was in uniform,” he reminisced.

The press information bureau, in a release, lauded for introducing vision to various issues related to widows, and disabled and needy servicemen. It went on to appreciate his relief efforts in rebuilding the Moda village in Gujarat's Jamnagar district. It’s rare for PIB to issue a press release commending a commodore rank officer for his services.   

After retirement, he stayed true to his commitment to work ethics and community service. He would write letters to editors and send photos to them about issues that needed to be highlighted. “I would take pictures from my Nikon camera,” he said.

Inside and outside government, he has remained the same: altruistic. 

During his Navy days.
At his book release.
In his study room.
Helping a family rebuild a house in Jamnagar.

‘Disagree that RTI is a weapon’

“In this age, timing and exclusivity is important. I want everyone to have this information. What’s the point of filing RTIs when you are not sharing them?” said Batra, who prefers the tag of “transparency campaigner” over “RTI activist”.

“My aim is to bring reforms. Some people say RTI is a weapon. I completely disagree with it. A weapon is used against adversaries or enemies, not against our people. Officials who reply to RTIs are also human beings. There are good people. I use RTI to bring reforms and change. If I file an RTI on an issue, it may wake up officials to it,” he said.

One of the first RTIs he filed was on poor water quality in Noida. Another one he remembers clearly was related to the implementation of section 4 of the RTI Act by the Delhi government led by Sheila Dikshit.

“Section 4 is the soul of the Act. Under the section, the government is required to share its data with the public. So I filed an RTI asking the chief ministers’ office about the implementation of Section 4. The application was shared with all departments of the Delhi government. It was an attempt to remind the government that data should be readily available to the public.” 

Section 4 says that all government departments should provide information to the public suo motu.

Batra also used to attend RTI awareness camps held by Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia, when they were RTI activists.

In 2006, when the nation was rocked by the Nithari serial murders, Batra, who was an active member of a Noida welfare collective, filed RTIs. Queries were related to cleaning of drains (human skeletons were found there) by the municipal corporation, and communication between the National Commission for Women and Uttar Pradesh police. Through his RTIs, he showed how police and the commission were negligent towards the disappearance of children and the murders. The details took longer than months. “It was a long battle of six years,” he said.

Subsequent RTI applications brought many changes to governance: a new system under which overseas Indians could pay and file RTI, an online portal, getting 34 mistakes corrected in the Hindi version of the Act etc.

All these successes involved persistence and an eye for detail. 

Batra revealed how he would write RTI applications. “For each RTI application, I would first give the background of the issue and share documents I have received from previous RTI applications. Only then, I would move to information I need. I would normally seek the whole government file. This may lead to new information,” Batra said.

‘Keep me out of politics’                                                                                         

On February 15, when the SC called electoral bonds unconstitutional, Batra was watching the proceedings from the US well past midnight. “After the hearing, he ran upstairs and informed me… All of us were skeptical that the SC would do this. But he was always optimistic,” said his wife, Jyotsana.

Batra returned to India on March 10. Excited about the Supreme Court hearing the next day, he saw history unfold in the courtroom – evident in his use of phrases such as “I was there when Justice Chandrachud said” or “I was there when judges took out a few pages (supplied by ECI from the sealed cover containing electoral bond details till 2019)”.

Jet-lagged and sleep deprived, Batra has now been nursing a sore throat because of relentless media interviews. “I may not be able to talk much because of a sore throat. I need to have hot water,” he told Newslaundry at his Noida home, forgetting about the hot water fix for four hours. 

The entry to his study room, with cabinets overflowing with files, has disability-friendly ramps. He is on the hunt to donate old files to libraries or think tanks. The room features photos of his grandchildren, maxims, best wishes and quotes. On a glass cabinet, Jesus Christ, Mother Teresa and a gayatri mantra sticker make space for each other.

“These words – be the change you want to see in the world – inspire him the most,” Jyotsana told me, pointing to a desk plaque. “My aim is to bring reforms and ask questions from the government of the present day. I am not concerned which party is in power,” he said.

Batra steers cleared of party-specific questions. Even in casual conversations, he would avoid party names.  “During the 2019 elections after the model code of conduct was in force, there was a huge billboard of a party on Pedder Road in Mumbai,” he recalled.

“BJP’s?” I asked.

“I don’t want to get involved into the BJP-Congress debate.” He paused. “There was Modi-ji’s picture, announcing ghar me ghus ke mara (we beat them up in their house).”

In a scrap book prepared by his grandchildren, one of the pages reads: “We love our grandfather as much as Indians love (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi.” “What? Did they write this?” Batra asked Jyotsana. “Again politics. Keep me out of it,” he declared.

A long battle, far from over

Batra’s “done and dusted” WhatsApp message to ADR and lawyers is just the end of another years-long battle.

On electoral bonds, what had caught his attention was finance minister Arun Jaitley’s budget speech in February 2017 introducing an anonymous way of political funding. But Batra saw it as scope for donations by questionable sources.

Later, MoS (finance) P Radhakrishnan lied in Parliament that ECI had not raised concerns on the electoral bond scheme.

However, through his RTIs, Batra learnt that the Reserve Bank of India and Election Commission were not in favour of the electoral bond scheme which led to amendments in the Reserve Bank of India Act, Representation of People’s Act and Income Tax Act. And over the years, he amassed a huge dataset on the scheme, leading to investigating stories (here, here).

ADR and lawyers work closely with Batra.

“We work as a team. Whenever I receive any new detail on electoral bonds, I first share it with them as they are fighting the case in the Supreme Court. They also reciprocate by sharing affidavits and other relevant material with me,” he said.

“Now we have to see the electoral bond data when ECI publishes it on their website on March 15. We have to see if we can match the donor and donee from the datasets. Then, I have to focus on the PM Cares Fund,” he said.

There is another challenge that he is wrestling with: how to create a Twitter thread. “The last tweet in the threads goes up. I need to learn this... I have been active on Twitter for the past two years. The aim is to share the information with the public. Anyone can use it… I don’t share exclusives with journalists. I pass on the information to everyone.”

Update at 11:50 am on February 15, 2024: Commodore Lokesh Batra’s year of birth was corrected.

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स्वतंत्र पत्रकार ग्रीष्मा कुठार और इंडियन एक्सप्रेस की रितिका चोपड़ा ने जीता चमेली देवी जैन पुरस्कारhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/greeshma-kuthar-and-ritika-chopra-wins-the-chameli-devi-jain-award-for-the-year-2023https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/greeshma-kuthar-and-ritika-chopra-wins-the-chameli-devi-jain-award-for-the-year-2023#comments3f51a73b-3ff3-4b24-8b20-0ab84130b03dThu, 14 Mar 2024 12:29:44 +00002024-03-14T12:29:44.190Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889Chameli Devi Jain award,greeshma kuthar,ritika chopraKhabar BaaziMediaचमेली देवी जैन पुरस्कार के विजेताओं की घोषणा हो चुकी है. इस साल यह पुरस्कार ग्रीष्मा कुठार और रितिका चोपड़ा को दिया गया है. ग्रीष्मा एक स्वतंत्र पत्रकार हैं जबकि रितिका इंडियन एक्सप्रेस के साथ जुड़ी हैं.  

ग्रीष्मा को यह पुरस्कार मणिपुर जैसे हिंसा-प्रभावित क्षेत्रों से उनकी रिपोर्ट्स के लिए दिया गया है. वहीं, रितिका को यह पुरस्कार शिक्षा और सरकारी नीतियों के क्षेत्र में प्रभावशाली रिपोर्ट्स के लिए दिया गया है.  

बता दें कि ग्रीष्मा पहले भी द कारवां और अल जज़ीरा जैसे कई प्रकाशनों के लिए लिख चुकीं हैं. उन्होंने अपनी रिपोर्ट्स में हाशिये पर जी रहे लोगों पर राजनीति का क्या प्रभाव होता है इस पर प्रकाश डाला है. वहीं, रितिका इंडियन एक्सप्रेस में सरकारी नीतियों की राष्ट्रीय ब्यूरो प्रमुख हैं. वह सरकार की नीतियों, शिक्षा और चुनाव आयोग को लेकर रिपोर्टिंग करती हैं.  

पुरस्कार के लिए इस बार 65 लोगों ने अपने नाम भेजे थे. विजेताओं का चयन राधिका रामासेषन की अगुवाई वाली स्वंतत्र ज्यूरी ने किया. जिसमें लेखक मरियम अल्वी और डाउन टू अर्थ के प्रबंधक संपादक रिचर्ड महापात्रा भी शामिल थे. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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HC upholds order directing Bloomberg to take down Zee ‘irregularities’ reporthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/hc-upholds-order-directing-bloomberg-to-take-down-zee-irregularities-reporthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/hc-upholds-order-directing-bloomberg-to-take-down-zee-irregularities-report#comments89806305-3c0d-4b3e-bfe1-17f5842d28c1Thu, 14 Mar 2024 11:58:44 +00002024-03-14T11:58:44.004ZNL Team/api/author/730883bloombergShotThe Delhi High Court has upheld the trial court order directing Bloomberg to take down a report alleging that the Securities and Exchange Board of India had found irregularities to the tune of 241 million US dollars at Zee Entertainment, Bar and Bench reported.

The court has reportedly granted three days’ time to Bloomberg to comply with the directions.

Earlier this month, the high court had reserved its judgment on the pleas filed by Bloomberg against the trial court order. Bloomberg had told the court that the order was without reason and without a prima facie case.

Headlined ‘India regulator uncovers $241 million accounting issue at Zee’, the Bloomberg report was published on February 21 this year.

Zee had sued Bloomberg and its journalists Anto Antony, Saikat Das and Preeti Singh. The company claimed that the report contained false and misleading information about the company’s corporate governance and business operations. It alleged that the article was published with malicious intent and resulted in a 15 percent drop in the company’s share price, causing significant financial losses to investors.

“The article by Bloomberg, incorrectly published that Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has found a $241 million accounting issue at the Company; whereas there is no such order from the mentioned regulator. Despite the Company firmly refuting the same, the article incorrectly published financial irregularities in Zee, without the basis of any order from the regulator,” Zee said in a statement.

In times of misinformation, you need news you can trust. We’ve got you covered. Subscribe to Newslaundry and power our work.

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Independent journo Greeshma Kuthar, Indian Express’s Ritika Chopra win Chameli Devi awardhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/independent-journo-greeshma-kuthar-indian-expresss-ritika-chopra-win-chameli-devi-awardhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/independent-journo-greeshma-kuthar-indian-expresss-ritika-chopra-win-chameli-devi-award#comments992233b2-aba5-483f-9f6f-7f0f2e7d5117Thu, 14 Mar 2024 10:47:04 +00002024-03-14T10:47:04.534ZNL Team/api/author/730883Chameli Devi Jain award,Chameli Devi AwardShot

The Chameli Devi Jain Award for outstanding woman media person this year has been jointly conferred on independent journalist Greeshma Kuthar and The Indian Express’s national editor Ritika Chopra, The Media Foundation announced today. 

Kuthar has been awarded for her deep-dive investigative reports from conflict areas such as Manipur, and Chopra has been recognised for her in-depth investigative stories in the fields of education and government policy, said a statement issued by the foundation.

Kuthar has written for several publications including The Caravan and Al Jazeera, and focuses on the “social and cultural impact of political narratives on marginalised communities”.

Meanwhile, Chopra is the national bureau chief for government stories and the national education editor at The Indian Express.  

The two winners were selected from a total of 65 entries by an independent jury, chaired by senior journalist Radhika Ramaseshan and comprising author Mariyam Alavi and Down to Earth managing editor Richard Mahapatra.

Newslaundry has also extensively covered the ethnic violence in Manipur, which has left many dead, and more than 60,000 people displaced. Read here.

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‘Given 6 names, 10 mins before meet’: PM-led panel picks poll commissioners, Adhir registers dissenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/given-6-names-10-mins-before-meet-pm-led-panel-picks-ecs-chowdhury-registers-dissenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/given-6-names-10-mins-before-meet-pm-led-panel-picks-ecs-chowdhury-registers-dissent#commentse0675422-c5f7-4d7f-a904-0934b1c00861Thu, 14 Mar 2024 09:51:57 +00002024-03-14T09:51:57.519ZNL Team/api/author/730883election commissionShot

Leader of Opposition and Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has registered his dissent over the selection of former IAS officers Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu as the election commissioners, saying he was not provided with the list of the “short-listed” names in advance. 

Chowdhury is part of the three-member committee which is led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and includes home minister Amit Shah for the selection of the ECs. He had sought the details of the shortlisted persons on Wednesday, a day ahead of the committee meeting, Indian Express reported. 

After the meeting, the Congress leader said he gave a dissent note, raising questions about the selection procedure.

Speaking to the media, Chowdhury said the meeting was reduced to a “formality” as the government is in majority in the panel. “What they want happens… the Chief Justice of India should have been on this committee.” 

“I was given 212 names, how can someone examine so many candidates in a day? Ten minutes before the meeting, I was given a shortlist of six names. It was fait accompli that the chosen two will be selected,” he said, slamming Modi government for introducing the new law, Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, which replaced the CJI by a cabinet minister on the selection committee. 

After the sudden resignation of election commissioner Arun Goel on March 6, weeks before the Lok Sabha polls, and the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey, the election commission had two vacancies. 

In a letter to law ministry secretary Rajiv Mani on Wednesday, Chowdhury had sought the “dossier” with the “bio-profiles” of the shortlisted persons. He had also referred to the norms of the selection process.

He had said in the letter, “It will be essential to have the bio-profiles of the persons shortlisted by the Search Committee well beforehand … This will enable in taking a reasoned decision in the matter.” 

But the Congress MP was sent five lists by the government, reportedly covering over 210 names.

As per Indian Express, the list shared with Chowdhury contained the names of 92 officers who have retired as secretary or equivalent, 93 officers serving as secretary or equivalent, 15 officers who retired as chief secretaries of state and UTs over the last one year, and 36 officers serving as chief secretaries in states or UTs.

The six short-listed names, revealed minutes before the meeting, were Utpal Kumar Singh, Pradeep Kumar Tripathi, Gyanesh Kumar, Indevar Pandey, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, and Sudhir Kumar Gangadhar Rahate, all former bureaucrats, as per Financial Express.

Sandhu and Kumar, who were selected, are both 1998-batch former IAS officers from Punjab and Kerala, respectively. 

Sandhu was appointed as the chief secretary of Uttarakhand when Pushkar Singh Dhami became the chief minister in 2021. Meanwhile, Kumar oversaw the abrogation of Article 370 during his tenure in the home ministry. He has also served at the ministry of parliamentary affairs.

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प्रसार भारती ‘शब्द’ अब देगा न्यूज़ चैनलों को कॉपीराइट-मुक्त फोटो और वीडियो सामग्रीhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/prasar-bharti-starts-shabd-to-provide-audio-visual-contenthttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/prasar-bharti-starts-shabd-to-provide-audio-visual-content#commentsd56f4b85-8621-4c94-b887-b774bc7aba27Thu, 14 Mar 2024 08:15:43 +00002024-03-14T08:15:43.718Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889prasar bharti,Anurag Thakur,SHABDKhabar BaaziMediaप्रसार भारती की नई शाखा शेयर्ड ऑडियो विज़ुअल्स फॉर ब्रॉडकास्ट एंड डिसेमिनेशन (शब्द) जल्दी ही पंजीकृत अखबारों, मैगजीनों, टीवी चैनलों, डिजिटल संस्थानों और “सोशल मीडिया न्यूज़ चैनलों” को कॉपीराइट-मुक्त फोटो और वीडियो की सामग्री देना शुरू करेगा जिनका उपयोग वे व्यावसायिक कार्यों के लिए कर सकते हैं.  

दी इंडियन एक्सप्रेस की खबर के मुताबिक, इस माध्यम पर फोटो और वीडियो लाने के लिए 1,500 रिपोर्टर्स और स्ट्रिंगर्स काम करेंगे. न्यूज़ चैनलों को इन सामग्रियों का उपयोग करने के लिए किसी को श्रेय देने की बाध्यता भी नहीं होगी.  

जो न्यूज़ संस्थान सूचना एवं प्रसारण मंत्रालय में पंजीकृत हैं उन्हें ये सामग्री डीडी न्यूज़ और आकाशवाणी न्यूज़ की आधिकारिक वेबसाइट और न्यूज़ ऑन एयर ऐप पर मिलेगी.  

बुधवार को ‘शब्द’ का विमोचन करने के बाद अनुराग ठाकुर ने कहा कि “शुरुआती प्रस्ताव” के रूप में “पहले साल के लिए सभी सेवाएं मुफ्त होंगी, जिनमें सभी प्रमुख भारतीय भाषाओं में विविध सामग्री मुहैया कराई जाएगी”  

द हिन्दू ने अनुराग ठाकुर के हवाले से लिखा, “यह पत्रकारिता जगत में क्रांति लाएगा और छोटे मीडिया संस्थानों को भी इससे फायदा होगा. जिनके पास जानकारियां जुटाने के लिए बड़ा तंत्र मौजूद नहीं है.” 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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IT Rules amendment: Bombay HC refuses to stay govt’s ‘fact check unit’ https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/it-rules-amendment-bombay-hc-refuses-to-stay-govts-fact-check-unithttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/it-rules-amendment-bombay-hc-refuses-to-stay-govts-fact-check-unit#commentse5b7e366-0a9d-492b-9fed-214a3807757fThu, 14 Mar 2024 07:32:00 +00002024-03-14T07:32:00.691ZNL Team/api/author/730883IT Rules,New IT RulesShot

The Bombay High Court has rejected the interim petition challenging the amendment to the IT Rules, which allows the government to identify “fake news” about itself on social media, Livelaw reported.

In a 2:1 judgement, the Bombay HC refused to put a stay on the government’s fact check unit. The decision came after the third judge, Justice AS Chandurkar, opined to reject the petitions, following the suit of Justice Neela Gokhale. On January 31, the bench of Justices Gokhale and Gautam Patel delivered a split verdict in the matter.  

The order issued on Wednesday said, “The third judge has rendered his opinion. Consequently, the majority view is that the interim applications for stay and continuation of the previous statement (by the Union not to notify the FCU) are rejected.” 

The amendment, originally notified on April 6, said social media companies and other intermediaries must take down content deemed fake by a government fact-check unit.

The petitions against the amendment were filed by stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, the Editors Guild of India and the Association of Indian Magazines.

Kamra’s plea had said the amended rules will “have a chilling effect” on the public.   The Guild’s petition had also challenged its constitutional validity, saying it violated “the right to freedom of speech and expression”. 

The amendments have been widely criticised by press groups, opposition leaders and journalists. 

During the hearing on the matter, the Bombay HC had observed that the new IT Rules gives the government “unfettered power” in absence of any “guidelines and guardrails”. 

The court had also questioned the need for a separate fact-check unit despite the Press Information Bureau’s own fact-check unit. But in response, solicitor general Tushar Mehta, representing the government, had said that the PIB’s fact check unit was “teethless”. 

Last month Mehta said that we currently live in a “very dangerous era” and the FCU would function in public interest.  

Newslaundry has reported on length on the controversies surrounding the amendment and why it’s a blow for press freedom. Read about it here.

To know how the amended IT Rules translate to “greater opacity” in surveillance and impact RTI, read here.

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रोज़नामचा: दिल्ली मेट्रो के गलियारों को मंजूरी, भाजपा की दूसरी सूची जारी और एसबीआई का हलफनामाhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/roznamcha-14-march-2024-delhi-metro-sbi-affidavit-in-supreme-court-and-bjp-second-list-of-loksabha-candidateshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/roznamcha-14-march-2024-delhi-metro-sbi-affidavit-in-supreme-court-and-bjp-second-list-of-loksabha-candidates#commentsc29d9ee4-2bcf-4690-b049-28155896007cThu, 14 Mar 2024 06:50:37 +00002024-03-14T06:50:37.629Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889BJP,Delhi metro,RoznamchaKhabar BaaziMediaहिंदी के प्रमुख अखबारों ने आज एक नहीं बल्कि अलग-अलग ख़बरों को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. कुछ अखबारों ने दिल्ली मेट्रो के दो नए गलियारों को मंजूरी दिए जाने तो कुछ ने भाजपा द्वारा लोकसभा चुनाव के लिए उम्मीदवारों की दूसरी लिस्ट जारी किए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. वहीं, कुछ अखबारों ने एसबीआई द्वारा सुप्रीम कोर्ट में इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स की जानकारी साझा किए जाने का हलफनामा दायर करने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. 

आइए आज के प्रमुख अखबारों की अन्य सुर्खियों पर भी एक नज़र डालते हैं. लेकिन उससे पहले अगर आप रोज़नामचा को अपने ई-मेल पर पाना चाहते हैं तो यहां क्लिक करें.

हिंदुस्तान अख़बार ने मेट्रो के दो नए गलियारों को मंजूरी दिए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, केंद्रीय सूचना और प्रसारण मंत्री अनुराग ठाकुर ने प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी की अध्यक्षता में बुधवार को हुई बैठक के बाद मंत्री मंडल के फैसलों की जानकारी दी. उन्होंने बताया कि दिल्ली मेट्रो के चौथे चरण में दो नए गलियारों को मंजूरी दे दी गई है. जिसमें पहली लाइन इंद्रलोक से इंद्रप्रस्थ के बीच जबकि दूसरी लाइन लाजपत नगर के साकेत जी ब्लॉक के बीच होगी. उन्होंने यह भी बताया कि मेट्रो लाइन के निर्माण पर 8399 करोड़ रुपए खर्च होंगे. इसकी व्यवस्था, भारत सरकार, दिल्ली सरकार, अंतरराष्ट्रीय फंडिंग एजेंसियों से की जाएगी.

भाजपा द्वारा लोकसभा चुनाव के लिए 72 उम्मीदवारों की दूसरी सूची जारी किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, इसमें तीन पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री मनोहर लाल खट्टर, त्रिवेंद्र सिंह रावत, बसवराज बोम्मई शामिल हैं. इसके अलावा चार केंद्रीय मंत्री नितिन गडकरी, अनुराग ठाकुर, पीयूष गोयल और प्रह्लाद जोशी को उम्मीदवार बनाया गया है. गोयल पहली बार लोकसभा चुनाव लड़ेंगे.

इसके अलावा स्वदेशी चिप का उत्पादन अगले वर्ष के अंत तक शुरू होगा, पांच वर्ष में 22 हजार चुनावी बॉन्ड बिके और कांग्रेस महिलाओं को हर वर्ष एक लाख देगी आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.       

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

दैनिक जागरण अख़बार ने चुनावी बॉन्ड पर एसबीआई द्वारा सुप्रीम कोर्ट में हलफनामा दिए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, चुनावी बॉन्ड को लेकर गरमाई राजनीति के बीच भारतीय स्टेट बैंक ने सुप्रीम कोर्ट में इसकी जानकारी दे दी है कि कुल कितनी कंपनियों ने बॉन्ड खरीदे और कितने राजनीतिक दलों को लाभ मिला. चुनाव आयोग 15 मार्च को यह जानकारी सार्वजनिक भी कर देगा. चुनाव आयोग को मुहैया कराई गई जानकारी में एसबीआई ने बताया है कि 2019 से 15 फरवरी 2024 के बीच 22, 217 चुनावी बॉन्ड्स की खरीदी हुई है.

प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी द्वारा बुधवार को गुजरात के धोलेरा व साणंद और असम के मोरीगांव में 1.25 लाख करोड़ रुपए की लागत से बनने वाले सेमीकंडक्टर संयंत्रों का शिलान्यास किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, इस दौरान उन्होंने कहा कि भारत ने 1962 में सेमीकंडक्टर बनाने का सपना देखा था और 62 वर्ष बाद साकार हुआ है. केंद्रीय सूचना प्रौद्योगिकी मंत्री अश्विनी वैष्णव ने कहा कि धोलेरा के टाटा संयंत्र में पहली सेमीकंडक्टर चिप दिसंबर, 2026 में बनकर बाहर आ जाएगी. उन्होंने यह भी दावा किया कि 2029 में भारत शीर्ष पांच सेमीकंडक्टर उत्पादक देशों में शामिल हो जाएगा.

इसके अलावा सीएए पर दिल्ली के मुख्यमंत्री अरविंद केजरीवाल ने खेला ‘पाकिस्तान कार्ड’, नितिन गडकरी नागपुर व मनोहर लाल खट्टर करनाल से लड़ेंगे चुनाव और कांग्रेस का गरीब महिलाओं को सालाना एक लाख देने का वादा आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.            

अमर उजाला अख़बार ने प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी द्वारा 1.25 लाख करोड़ रुपए की लागत से बनने वाले सेमीकंडक्टर संयंत्रों का शिलान्यास किए जाने, भाजपा के 72 प्रत्याशियों की दूसरी सूची जारी किए जाने और चुनावी बॉन्ड को लेकर एसबीआई के शीर्ष अदालत में हलफनामा दायर किए जाने को जैकेट पन्ने पर प्रमुखता दी है.

वहीं, दिल्ली मेट्रो फेज-4 के दो कॉरिडोर को केंद्र सरकार द्वारा हरी झंडी दिए जाने को पहले पन्ने पर पहली सुर्खी बनाया गया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, पहला कॉरिडोर लाजपत नगर से साकेत जी ब्लॉक और दूसरा इंद्रलोक से इंद्रप्रस्थ तक होगा. कैबिनेट के फैसलों की जानकारी देते हुए केंद्रीय मंत्री अनुराग ठाकुर ने बताया कि कॉरिडोर पर 8,400 करोड़ रुपये की लागत आएगी.

देश में ई-परिवहन के लिए 500 करोड़ की नई योजना की घोषणा किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, देश में ई-परिवहन को बढ़ावा देने के लिए भारी उद्योग मंत्रालय ने बुधवार को 500 करोड़ की नई योजना की घोषणा की. अप्रैल से जुलाई तक चार महीने की यह योजना ई-दोपहिया और ई-तिपहिया वाहनों के लिए है. उद्योग मंत्री महेंद्र नाथ पांडे ने कहा कि योजना के तहत हर ई-दोपहिया वाहन पर 10,000 रुपये तक मदद दी जाएगी.

इसके अलावा बेंगलुरु विस्फोट मामले में दिखा संदिग्ध गिरफ्तार, दिल्लीवासियों की आवाजाही होगी सुगम, आप सरकार पर 50 हजार जुर्माना और जिंदगी खोकर चार लोगों को नया जीवन दे गया 18 वर्षीय युवक आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने अन्य पन्नों पर जगह दी है.

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

जनसत्ता अख़बार ने चुनावी बॉन्ड को लेकर एसबीआई के सुप्रीम कोर्ट में हलफनामा दायर किए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. भारतीय स्टेट बैंक ने बुधवार को सुप्रीम कोर्ट को बताया कि एक अप्रैल, 2019 से 15 फरवरी, 2024 के बीच कुल 22,217 चुनावी बॉन्ड जारी किए गए. इसमें से राजनीतिक दलों की ओर से 22,030 बॉन्ड को भुनाया गया. शेष 187 बॉन्ड को भुनाकर इसकी राशि को नियमों के तहत प्रधानमंत्री राष्ट्रीय राहत कोष में जमा कराया गया है.

भाजपा द्वारा जारी की गई 72 उम्मीदवारों की दूसरी सूची में नितिन गडकरी, पीयूष गोयल और मनोहर लाल खट्टर का नाम शामिल होने भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, भारतीय जनता पार्टी ने बुधवार को लोकसभा चुनाव के 72 उम्मीदवारों की दूसरी सूची जारी की. इसमें केंद्रीय मंत्री नितिन गडकरी, पीयूष गोयल, प्रह्लाद जोशी व अनुराग ठाकुर और पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री मनोहर लाल खट्टर, त्रिवेंद्र सिंह रावत और बसवराज बोम्मई के नाम शामिल हैं. गडकरी एक बार फिर नागपुर से चुनाव लड़ेंगे, जबकि गोयल मुंबई (उत्तर) से पहली बार लोकसभा चुनाव मैदान में उतरेंगे.

इसके अलावा दिल्ली मेट्रो के चौथे चरण के दो गलियारों को मंजूरी और शेयर सूचकांक 906 अंक लुढ़कने से निवेशकों को 13.47 लाख करोड़ का नुकसान आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने ओर जगह दी है.    

दैनिक भास्कर अख़बार ने लोकसभा चुनाव को लेकर भाजपा की दूसरी सूची में 34 नए चेहरे व 15 महिलाओं के नाम शामिल होने को जैकेट पन्ने पर प्रमुखता दी है.

वहीं, सर्दियों में देश की हवा 8 प्रतिशत सुधरने व पूर्वोत्तर और उत्तर भारत में और बिगड़ने को पहले पन्ने पर पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, सेंटर और साइंस एंड इन्वायरमेंट की अर्बन लैब की चौथी सलाना वायु गुणवत्ता विश्लेषण रिपोर्ट के अनुसार पिछली सर्दियों के मुकाबले इस बार देश की हवा की गुणवत्ता 8 प्रतिशत सुधरी है. इसके बावजूद पूर्वोत्तर और उत्तर भारत की हवा ज्यादा दूषित हो गई है. लैब ने देश के 254 शहरों के 538 मॉनिटरिंग स्टेशन के सीपीसीपी से 1 अक्टूबर से 31 जनवरी 2024 के डेटा के आधार पर यह रिपोर्ट तैयार की है.

यूपी पुलिस भर्ती पेपर लीक से जुड़े एक आरोपी के एसटीएफ के हत्थे चढ़ने पर खुलासा किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, यूपी एसटीएफ के मुताबिक, 17-18 फ़रवरी को हुई पुलिस भर्ती परीक्षा का परचा एक दिन पहले ही हरियाणा के रिजॉर्ट में लीक किया गया था. पेपर लीक गिरोह ने मानेसर में रिजॉर्ट बुक कर परीक्षार्थियों को वहीं रोका गया. 16 फरवरी को रिजॉर्ट के गार्डन में पेपर बांटे और आंसरशीट भरवाई.

इसके अलावा यदि ट्रम्प जीते तो 11 लाख भारतीयों को ग्रीन कार्ड मिलना हो जाएगा मुश्किल, बॉन्ड पर एसबीआई का सुप्रीम कोर्ट में हलफनामा, बीएसई ने पेटीएम पेमेंट्स बैंक की जगह कोई अन्य अकाउंट स्टॉक ब्रोकर से जोड़ने के निर्देश दिए और निर्वाचन आयुक्तों की नियुक्ति को लेकर बैठक आज आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.           

आइए आज के प्रमुख अखबारों की अन्य सुर्खियों पर भी एक नज़र डालते हैं. लेकिन उससे पहले अगर आप रोज़नामचा को अपने ई-मेल पर पाना चाहते हैं तो यहां क्लिक करें.

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Prasar Bharati’s news sharing service to offer content ‘free of copyright’ to registered outlets https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/prasar-bharatis-news-sharing-service-to-offer-content-free-of-copyright-to-registered-outletshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/14/prasar-bharatis-news-sharing-service-to-offer-content-free-of-copyright-to-registered-outlets#comments82415a6d-a6bd-43be-ac25-335b1f6883d7Thu, 14 Mar 2024 06:01:57 +00002024-03-14T06:01:57.264ZNL Team/api/author/730883Prasar Bharati,I&B MinistryShot

Weeks before the Lok Sabha polls, public service broadcaster Prasar Bharati began its news agency-like service to offer content to registered news outlets including newspapers, magazines, TV channels, digital outlets and “even social media news channels”, Indian Express reported

The content on PB-SHABD or Prasar Bharati-Shared Audio Visuals for Broadcast and Dissemination, uploaded by over 1,500 reporters and stringers in different formats, will be free of copyright or credit obligations.

The content will be available on the websites of DD News and Akashvani News and the News on Air mobile app for outlets registered with the I&B ministry.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur, who launched the service on Wednesday, said the “accurate and meaningful” content will be free for a year as an “introductory offer”. It will include images, videos, news feed, audio and text in all major Indian languages. 

“This will revolutionise the news industry and will massively support smaller news organisations that do not have access to an extensive network for content gathering,” The Hindu quoted him as saying.

Newslaundry had earlier reported that Prasar Bharati has signed an exclusive two-year contract with the Hindusthan Samachar, a news agency established on the ideology of Sangh. Read here.

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Court-reviewed surveillance, transparency measures: Europe parliament clears press freedom lawhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/court-reviewed-surveillance-transparency-measures-europe-parliament-clears-press-freedom-lawhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/court-reviewed-surveillance-transparency-measures-europe-parliament-clears-press-freedom-law#commentsa975cbd0-5741-463b-ad80-7547ce18c353Wed, 13 Mar 2024 14:44:09 +00002024-03-13T14:44:09.354ZNL Team/api/author/730883europe,spywareShot

The European Parliament has approved the Media Freedom Act, which was first proposed by the EU executive in September 2022, with 464 votes in favour, 92 against and 65 abstentions.

The legislation must now be formally approved by a vote in the Council of the European Union before the EU’s official journal publishes it.

The new law prohibits authorities from forcing journalists to disclose their sources.

While the use of spyware has been allowed, it will be possible only on a case by case basis and will depend on authorisation by a judicial authority – subjects will have the right to be informed after the surveillance has occurred and will be able to challenge it in court.

Several EU states such as France, Italy, Malta, Greece, Cyprus, Sweden, and Finland had earlier pushed for an exemption allowing governments to tap into journalists’ conversations for national security purposes.

Under the new law, it will not be possible to dismiss heads of public media organisations and their board members before the completion of contract as long as they meet the criteria. Additionally, the law states that public media will have to be financed using transparent procedures.

In a further boost to transparency within the media sector, the law states that current affairs outlets, irrespective of their size, must publish information about ownership on a national database.

Against online censorship?

Tech platforms, such as Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) or Instagram, will not be able to arbitrarily restrict or delete independent media content. 

The European Media Freedom Act, which was approved by the European Parliament’s committee on culture on January 24 after the approval of EU member states, reportedly relies on the journalism trust initiative mechanism. 

JTI is an official ISO-type standard published in December 2019 by the European Committee for Standardisation in a first for Europe’s news publishing industry. Any media outlet that strives for excellence by referring to the different clauses of the JTI standard has the option to be audited by an external, independent certifier. 

Under the European Media Freedom Act, platforms such as Meta and X will be encouraged to use JTI to identify trustworthy news media. 

Media outfits will have to be notified in case of objections and given 24 hours to respond. They can then take the case to an out-of-court dispute settlement body and request an opinion from the European Board for Media Services, which is a new EU board of national regulators to be set up by the EMFA.

NGO Reporters Without Borders termed the law a “major step forward for the right to information within the European Union”.

Věra Jourová, European Commissioner for values and transparency, told the parliament that the legislation will send a “clear message to those who want to weaken democracy”.

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Not given ‘fair hearing’: The Caravan moves Delhi HC to quash govt’s ‘perverse’ takedown orderhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/not-given-fair-hearing-the-caravan-moves-delhi-hc-to-quash-govts-perverse-takedown-orderhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/not-given-fair-hearing-the-caravan-moves-delhi-hc-to-quash-govts-perverse-takedown-order#comments9de0ae13-d738-40bf-bb17-d1cd2ddbadc6Wed, 13 Mar 2024 12:34:02 +00002024-03-13T12:34:02.545ZNL Team/api/author/730883The CaravanShot

Weeks after the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting ordered Delhi-based magazine The Caravan to take down an article and social media posts under section 69 of the IT Act, the media outlet moved the Delhi High Court, saying the order “violates the fundamental right to free speech and expression and the freedom of the press”.   

The petition, filed on February 28, also said the “impugned order is an arbitrary, excessive, and unconstitutional exercise of power”, and also violated the right to equality. 

The article in question is a story by Jatinder Kaur Tur, published by the magazine on February 1. Headlined “Screams from the Army Post”, it’s about the Indian army’s alleged “torture and murder of civilians” in Jammu. 

The ministry directed the magazine to also take down a video story based on the report as well as a social media post on the ethnic violence in Manipur. It alleged they “have the potential to lead to communal disharmony and uprising against the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir, they are detrimental to sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the State, and public order in the country”.

But in its petition, The Caravan pointed out that it was not given a “fair hearing” or given details of the allegations against it. It said the ministry’s inter-departmental committee had “revealed their pre-determined mind” in its decision to issue the notice “without detailing any reasons”.  

It added that the decision was “arbitrary and perverse” as there was “no material on record” to conclude that the article, video, or social media post were detrimental to the country and its security, or could lead to communal tensions in Jammu and Kashmir. The Caravan further said that the order did not even mention “how the post on the Manipur article is detrimental to these state interests”.

The Caravan also emphasised that its February 1 report was “based on interviews with the six survivors of the torture, relatives of the deceased” as well as “other eyewitnesses of the incident, local residents of the area, political leaders, civil servants, officers of the Intelligence Bureau, and senior officers of the Indian Army”. It had also examined “medical reports of the victims, publicly reported and available facts”.

While the army was given a chance to respond to the story, the petition said the media outlet had received “no responses or denials” from the army so far.

What were the committee’s observations? 

As per the petition, the ministerial committee had ordered the magazine to take down the article on the premise that it was “one-sided” and its contents levelled “serious allegations of custodial torture and murder against the Indian security forces in Jammu and Kashmir”. 

The committee also noted that the article portrayed the army’s actions “from a communal angle” and made claims about its “politicisation”.

The magazine said in its petition that these observations are “wholly unfounded” and singularly “cannot be ground to order the pulling down of the article”. On claims of the army’s “politicisation”, the petition said such concerns have been expressed in several other pieces of academic and journalistic writing. 

The petition added that the social media post on the Manipur violence “stands on a completely different footing” and the observations did not make any reference to it except saying that it could potentially “incite hate amongst communities, disturb peace and public order in the country”. 

Sequence of events 

The petition detailed the sequence of events reported in the article in question, starting from “several persons” being picked up from villages in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri and Poonch by the 48 Rashtriya Rifles of the Indian army on December 22 last year.  

The article alleged these people were taken to three army bases, where they were tortured with “lathis and iron rods, and chilli powder rubbed into their faces, wounds, and buttocks. Their bodies also showed signs of electrocution burn marks”, said the petition, adding that a video of what happened was recorded by an “unknown person”. The incident was “widely reported by several media organisations.”    

The action reportedly came a day after a militant attack on an Indian army convoy.

Following the alleged torture, three persons from Topa Pir died from their injuries, and the government gave their families compensation of Rs 20 lakh, a government job, and a plot of land. Subsequently, the report said one Brigadier MP Singh gave each family additional compensation of Rs 10 lakh.

In the aftermath of the incident, the report alleged several senior army officials in Rajouri were transferred out, including a brigadier. An FIR was registered and the army ordered a court of inquiry. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pande visited the families and those injured on December 27.

A month later, on January 29, The Caravan sent questions to the army public relations officer on the matter. It published its article two days later on February 1.

Newslaundry had earlier reported on the broadcasting ministrys notice to The Caravan, and that the “government is concealing facts. Read here.

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क्लैश ऑफ महामानव: डंकापति, शक्तिमान और वीर रणदीप हुड्डा https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/nl-tippani-episode-182-randeep-hooda-film-veer-savarkar-and-upcoming-general-electionshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/nl-tippani-episode-182-randeep-hooda-film-veer-savarkar-and-upcoming-general-elections#comments57ff08de-19df-4e46-abb9-fdba1a23ec42Wed, 13 Mar 2024 11:46:00 +00002024-03-13T11:46:00.000Zअतुल चौरसिया/api/author/730974NL Tippani,Randeep Hooda,Veer SavarkarNL TippaniVideo

देश में चुनावी युद्ध के बादल मंडराने लगे थे, पाले खिंच रहे थे, चुनावी महाभारत के योद्धाओं ने एक दूसरे पर हमले भी शुरू कर‌‌ दिए थे. चुनावी धमक दरबार तक भी पहुंची थी. धृतराष्ट्र आर्यावर्त के इस मेगा उत्सव की हर खबर जानने को बेचैन थे. धृतराष्ट्र ने खास तौर से सभी दरबारियों को उपस्थित रहने का आदेश दिया था. तो क्या कुछ हुआ इस खास दरबार में. देखिए धृतराष्ट्र संजय संवाद में.

काफी दिनों से एक उहापोह थी कि टिप्पणी का एक लोकप्रिय हिस्सा बंद करना पड़ेगा. इस सेगमेंट का नाम था इतिहास का अंड-बंड संस्करण. बहुत दिनों से इसका कोई योग्य उम्मीदवार नहीं मिल रहा था. फिर अचानक से रणदीप हुड्डा का आगमन हुआ. इनकी एक फिल्म आई है स्वातंत्र्य वीर सावरकर. रणदीप बाबू को मुगालता हो गया कि फिल्म बनाने से ही कोई इतिहासकार और जानकार भी बन जाता है. हुड्डाजी ने न्यूज़ 24 पर चाय वाला इंटरव्यू दिया. न जाने उन्हें कौन सी अफीम वाली चाय पिलाई गई जो हुड्डा ने अंड-बंड दावे कर डाले. 

टिप्पणी देखिए और लोगों तक भी पहुंचाइए.

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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रोज़नामचा: नायब सैनी बने हरियाणा के नए मुख्यमंत्री और एसबीआई ने सौंपा इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स का डाटाhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/roznamcha-13-march-nayab-saini-haryana-new-cm-and-sbi-handover-electoral-bonds-data-to-election-commission-of-indiahttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/roznamcha-13-march-nayab-saini-haryana-new-cm-and-sbi-handover-electoral-bonds-data-to-election-commission-of-india#comments660a5604-2224-4da9-9c41-d06311aefcbaWed, 13 Mar 2024 07:09:53 +00002024-03-13T07:09:53.135Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889Electoral bonds,Roznamcha,Nayab SainiKhabar BaaziMediaहिंदी के प्रमुख अखबारों ने आज एक ही ख़बर को प्राथमिकता दी है. ज्यादातर अखबारों ने हरियाणा में हुए राजनीतिक घटनाक्रम को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. 

आइए आज के प्रमुख अखबारों की अन्य सुर्खियों पर भी एक नज़र डालते हैं. लेकिन उससे पहले अगर आप रोज़नामचा को अपने ई-मेल पर पाना चाहते हैं तो यहां क्लिक करें.

हिंदुस्तान अख़बार ने नायब सिंह सैनी को हरियाणा का नया मुख्यमंत्री बनाए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, आगामी लोकसभा चुनाव के पहले हरियाणा की सियासत में मंगलवार को बड़ा उलटफेर हुआ. सुबह मुख्यमंत्री मनोहर लाल खट्टर ने पद से इस्तीफा दे दिया. इसके कुछ घंटे बाद भाजपा की राज्य इकाई के अध्यक्ष सैनी मुख्यमंत्री चुन लिए गए. शाम को उनके साथ और पांच अन्य मंत्रियों ने शपथ ग्रहण की.

स्टेट बैंक के चुनाव आयोग को चुनावी बॉन्ड का ब्योरा दिए जाने को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, सुप्रीम कोर्ट के पांच जजों की संविधान पीठ के कड़े रुख के बाद भारतीय स्टेट बैंक ने मंगलवार को चुनावी बॉन्ड के जरिए राजनीतिक दलों को चंदा देने वालों का विवरण चुनाव आयोग को सौंप दिया. संविधान पीठ ने इस मामले में बैंक को समय देने से इनकार कर दिया था. कोर्ट ने कहा था कि एसबीआई 12 मार्च को बैंक बंद होने से पहले चुनावी बॉन्ड से जुड़ा सारा ब्योरा निर्वाचन आयोग को सौंप दे.

इसके अलावा कांग्रेस की दूसरी सूची में तीन दिग्गजों के बेटों को मौका, पोखरण की सरजमीं पर ‘भारत शक्ति’ ने लोहा मनवाया, सीएए के तहत नागरिकता का आवेदन करने के लिए पोर्टल लॉन्च किए जाने पर सुप्रीम कोर्ट पहुंची मुस्लिम लीग और प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी ने अहमदाबाद में 10 नई वंदे भारत ट्रेन की शुरुआत की आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.            

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

अखबार का पहला पन्नादैनिक जागरण अख़बार ने हरियाणा में नायब सिंह सैनी के नए मुख्यमंत्री बनने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, लोकसभा चुनाव के पहले हरियाणा सरकार का चेहरा बदला है. सैनी नए मुख्यमंत्री बने हैं. इससे पहले हरियाणा में अचानक बदले राजनीतिक घटनाक्रम में मनोहर लाल और उनकी पूरी कैबिनेट ने मंगलवार सुबह त्यागपत्र दे दिया. हरियाणा भाजपा के अध्यक्ष एवं कुरुक्षेत्र के सांसद सैनी को भाजपा विधायक दल का नेता चुने जाने के बाद शाम को ही उन्होंने हरियाणा के 11वें मुख्यमंत्री के रूप में शपथ ली. मनोहर लाल और उनकी पूरी कैबिनेट के इस्तीफा देने के बाद ही वहां पिछले साढ़े चार साल से चला आ रहा भाजपा व जननायक जनता पार्टी का गठबंधन भी टूट गया.

हैदराबाद में केंद्रीय गृह मंत्री अमित शाह के भाजपा इंटरनेट मीडिया कार्यकर्ताओं की एक बैठक को संबोधित किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, मंगलवार को अपने संबोधन के दौरान उन्होंने कहा कि प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी ने सीएए के जरिए हिंदू, बौद्ध, सिख और जैन शरणार्थियों को नागरिकता देकर सम्मानित किया है. कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष मल्लिकार्जुन खड़गे, राहुल गांधी और एआईएमआईएम के असदुद्दीन ओवैसी झूठ बोल रहे हैं कि सीएए के लागू होने से देश के अल्पसंख्यक अपनी नागरिकता खो देंगे. इसमें किसी की नागरिकता छीनने का कोई प्रावधान नहीं है.

इसके अलावा एसबीआई ने चुनाव आयोग को सौंपा चुनावी बॉन्ड का ब्यौरा, झारखंड में कांग्रेस विधायक अंबा प्रसाद से जुड़े 17 ठिकानों पर ईडी की छापेमारी और गुजरात तट के पास ड्रग्स की बड़ी खेप के साथ छह पाकिस्तानी गिरफ्तार आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.

अमर उजाला अख़बार ने हरियाणा में मनोहर लाल खट्टर की जगह नायब सिंह सैनी के नए सीएम बनने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, लोकसभा चुनाव से ठीक पहले भाजपा ने सबको चौंकाते हुए हरियाणा में पूरी सरकार बदल दी. जननायक जनता पार्टी से गठबंधन तोड़ दिया और मनोहर लाल की जगह पार्टी के प्रदेश अध्यक्ष नायब सिंह सैनी को नया मुख्यमंत्री बना दिया. 

एसबीआई के निर्वाचन आयोग को चुनावी बॉन्ड से जुड़ा पूरा ब्योरा सौंपे जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, सुप्रीम कोर्ट के कड़े रुख के बाद भारतीय स्टेट बैंक ने चुनावी बॉन्ड का ब्योरा निर्वाचन आयोग को सौंप दिया. 2018 में चुनावी बॉन्ड योजना के शुरू होने के बाद से 30 खेपों में खरीदे गए. 16,518 करोड़ रुपए के चुनावी बॉन्ड से जुड़ी जानकारी मंगलवार को मिलने के बाद निर्वाचन आयोग को सुप्रीम कोर्ट के निर्देश के तहत अब 15 मार्च तक अपनी वेबसाइट पर इसे अपलोड करना होगा.

इसके अलावा अहमदाबाद के साबरमती में प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी ने कहा कि बापू की स्वदेशी की भावना से प्रेरित है वोकल फॉर लोकल, सीएए के तहत भारत की नागरिकता चाहने वालों के लिए पोर्टल लॉन्च, गुजरात में 480 करोड़ की ड्रग्स के साथ 6 पाकिस्तानी तस्कर गिरफ्तार और जैसलमेर में युद्धाभ्यास में शामिल तेजस दुर्घटनाग्रस्त आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.    

जनसत्ता अख़बार ने नायब सिंह सैनी को हरियाणा का नया मुख्यमंत्री बनाए जाने को पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, लोकसभा चुनाव से पहले हरियाणा की राजनीति में मंगलवार को हुए नाटकीय घटनाक्रम में मुख्यमंत्री मनोहर लाल खट्टर ने अपने पद से इस्तीफा दे दिया. इसके कुछ ही देर बाद भाजपा की राज्य इकाई के अध्यक्ष सैनी ने राज्य के 11वें मुख्यमंत्री के रूप में शपथ ली. सैनी के साथ ही कंवरपाल गुर्जर, मूलचंद शर्मा, चौधरी रणजीत सिंह चौटाला, जय प्रकाश दलाल और बनवारी लाल ने भी मंत्री पद की शपथ ली. हालांकि, पूर्व गृह मंत्री और अंबाला छावनी से छह बार के विधायक अनिल विज को नई कैबिनेट में जगह नहीं मिली है.

पाक नौका से 480 करोड़ का नशीला पदार्थ जब्त किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, भारतीय तट रक्षक बल के नेतृत्व में बहु जांच एजेंसी के दल ने गुजरात में पोरबंदर के पास अरब सागर में एक पाकिस्तानी नाव से नशीला पदार्थ जब्त किया है. जांच दल ने इस नाव पर सवार चालक के छह सदस्यों को गिरफ्तार कर लिया है. रक्षा मंत्रालय की ओर से मंगलवार को जारी बयान में कहा गया कि तटरक्षक बल, नारकोटिक्स कंट्रोल ब्यूरो और आतंकवाद निरोधक दस्ते ने गत 11 मार्च की मध्यरात्रि में इस कार्रवाई को अंजाम दिया.

इसके अलावा एसबीआई ने चुनावी बॉन्ड का ब्योरा चुनाव आयोग को सौंपा, हापुड़ जिले की एक अदालत ने भीड़ हिंसा के मामले में 10 लोगों को सुनाई उम्रकैद की सजा और विदेश मंत्री एस जयशंकर ने कहा कि चार साल के तनाव से भारत व चीन को कुछ हासिल नहीं हुआ आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.   

अखबार का पहला पन्ना

दैनिक भास्कर अख़बार ने लोकसभा चुनाव से पहले हरियाणा में बड़ा सियासी उलटफेर होने व नायब सिंह सैनी को नया मुख्यमंत्री चुने जाने की ख़बर को जैकेट पन्ने पर प्रमुखता दी है. वहीं, सीएए के तहत नागरिकता के लिए पोर्टल लॉन्च किए जाने को पहले पन्ने पर पहली सुर्खी बनाया है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, नागरिकता संशोधन कानून लागू करने के बाद केंद्र सरकार ने इसके आवेदन का वेब पोर्टल लॉन्च कर दिया. इसमें 31 दिसंबर 2014 से पहले पाकिस्तान, बांग्लादेश और अफगानिस्तान से आए छह अल्पसंख्यक समुदायों के प्रवासी नागरिकता के लिए आवेदन कर सकेंगे. पोर्टल पर कुछ सवालों के जवाब और फीस भी देनी होगी.

एनआईए के हरियाणा-पंजाब समेत 4 राज्यों में 30 ठिकानों पर छापेमारी किए जाने को भी अख़बार ने प्रमुखता दी है. ख़बर के मुताबिक, खालिस्तानी-गैंगस्टर लिंक केस में एनआईए ने मंगलवार को बड़ी छापेमारी की. छापेमारी के लिए एनआईए की टीम सुबह करीब 5-6 बजे राज्यों की पुलिस के साथ संदिग्धों के ठिकानों पर पहुंच गई थीं. एजेंसी का संदेह हैं कि इनके विदेश में बैठे गैंगस्टर से भी तार जुड़े हैं. एजेंसी ने पाकिस्तान सहित विदेश से संदिग्ध कॉलों पर पंजाब के छह जिलों में छापेमारी की.

इसके अलावा एसकेएम को दिल्ली में 14 मार्च को महापंचायत करने की मंजूरी मिली, पीएम नरेंद्र मोदी ने वेस्टर्न डेडिकेटेड फ्रेट कॉरिडोर जनता को किया समर्पित, 6 दिन से भूख हड़ताल पर सोनम वांगचुक ने कहा- लद्दाख के साथ धोखा हुआ, सरकार हमारी सुन नहीं रही आदि ख़बरों को भी अख़बार ने पहले पन्ने पर जगह दी है.       

आइए आज के प्रमुख अखबारों की अन्य सुर्खियों पर भी एक नज़र डालते हैं. लेकिन उससे पहले अगर आप रोज़नामचा को अपने ई-मेल पर पाना चाहते हैं तो यहां क्लिक करें.

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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Why learning outcomes for tribal districts are poorhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/why-learning-outcomes-for-tribal-districts-are-poorhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/13/why-learning-outcomes-for-tribal-districts-are-poor#comments62189299-ab3d-4105-9bcd-36cbe317f06dWed, 13 Mar 2024 06:17:24 +00002024-03-13T06:17:24.855ZLisann Dias/api/author/1930937Education,TribalReport

Learning levels for primary school children in predominantly tribal districts were poor compared to neighbouring districts with lower tribal populations, an IndiaSpend analysis of data from the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2022 across five states has found.

A study by researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B) uses results of the National Achievement Survey, 2021, finding that learning levels for scheduled tribe (ST) children in grade V were 53 percent and 41 percent in mathematics and language tests, respectively. The corresponding national averages are 55 percent and 44 percent.

“Increased provision of infrastructure facilities in schools is necessary, yet not sufficient to improve the learning outcomes of children in these tribal regions,” the study says. “[O]ne of the most important aspects requiring attention is pedagogy. For instance, teachers need to capture the attention of students by making classroom teaching interesting as well as interactive, which can be done through the use of visual aids, games and real-world applications. Teachers also need to cater to the diverse learning styles and needs of students.”

As per the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) report for 2017-18 published by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the literacy rate for STs is 67.7 percent, and the corresponding figure overall is 76.9 percent.

Nationally, children’s basic reading ability has dropped to pre-2012 levels, reversing the slow improvement achieved in the earlier years, shows the ASER 2022 report. ASER provides information on the status of school education (enrollment, infrastructure, learning etc.) only for rural India. It does not provide information by social groups. IndiaSpend used census data to categorise districts with a tribal population of more than 50 percent as ‘tribal districts’ and those with less than 50 percent as ‘non-tribal districts’, and analysed the average learning outcomes for the districts.

Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland were selected due to their relatively poor infrastructure compared to other states with high tribal populations, according to data from the Unified District Information System for Education plus 2021-22 (UDISE+). Odisha and Chhattisgarh had better infrastructure such as electricity, water, sanitation and hygiene, and yet had poor learning levels.

Poor facilities responsible for poor outcomes

Lack of basic infrastructure usually translates to poor learning outcomes. For example, 37 percent of government schools in Arunachal Pradesh and 46 percent in Nagaland do not have drinking water facilities within the school premises, according to UDISE+. Similarly, 37 percent government schools in Arunachal Pradesh, 30 percent in Nagaland, and 29 percent in Manipur do not have functional girls’ toilets within the school premises.

“Learning outcomes are directly linked to the environment in which a student is studying,” said Protiva Kundu, Research Lead and Thematic Lead - Social Sectors, from the Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA). “The presence of basic infrastructure in schools, like adequate classrooms, toilets, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities, and playgrounds creates an enabling environment for the student’s learning.”

According to ASER data, the three states exhibit low learning levels. At the primary level, reading outcomes stand at 23.1 percent for Arunachal Pradesh, 49.8 percent for Manipur, and 34.3 percent for Nagaland. Similarly, mathematics outcomes are 49.2 percent for Arunachal Pradesh, 69.9 percent for Manipur, and 47.0 percent for Nagaland. These figures vary from the national averages of 55 percent in reading and 44 percent in mathematics (Data from some districts are missing).

“Once basic components are in place, such as drinking water, separate and functional toilets, classrooms that do not leak, you do not require smart classrooms,” said Priya Nadkarni, founder of Mrida Education and Welfare Society, a non-profit based in Madhya Pradesh that provides vocational, career, and skills training to middle grade and high school tribal student. “To a certain extent, there is a relationship as, if these facilities are absent, children won't attend school."

Overall, learning levels in districts of these three northeastern states are lower than the national average. It appears that there is little difference between the learning outcomes in the tribal and non-tribal districts, but the districts for which data are missing have tribal populations of 70 percent or more.

Chhattisgarh, Odisha see low learning outcomes despite WASH

Although electricity and WASH facilities are available in many tribal districts of Chhattisgarh and Odisha, this access to infrastructure has yet to translate into better learning outcomes.

According to UDISE+ data, drinking water facilities are available in 98.4 percent government schools in Chhattisgarh, and functional toilets in 97.6 percent schools. In Odisha, the coverage is 97 percent for drinking water facilities and 96.4 percent for functional toilets.

Yet, learning outcomes in Chattisgarh stand at 40.1 percent in reading and 34.5 percent in mathematics at the primary level, while in Odisha, they are 41.6 percent and 40.3 percent respectively. The average learning outcomes for reading and mathematics in tribal districts are 30.7 percent and 27.07 percent, respectively, in Chhattisgarh, and 17.12 percent and 18.73 percent respectively in Odisha, far below the state averages.

Chhattisgarh fares poorly overall in learning outcomes for both reading and mathematics. However, districts such as Narayanpur and Bijapur, which have a tribal population of almost 80 percent, fare the worst. Most tribal districts of Chhattisgarh have relatively poor learning outcomes compared to the non-tribal districts. Among non-tribal districts, Koriya and Korba which fare the worst have a tribal population of 46.1 percent and 40.6 percent, respectively. Except for Uttar Bastar Kanker, all of the tribal districts have learning outcomes below the state-wide average.

In Odisha, all of the tribal districts have learning outcomes below the state average in both reading and maths. Among non-tribal districts, Puri – which has the smallest tribal population – fares the highest. Kalahandi and Naupade, which fare the worst among non-tribal districts, have tribal populations of 30 percent and 33 percent respectively.

IndiaSpend has reached out to the education departments in the five states for comment on the learning outcomes, infrastructural facilities and teaching approaches. We will update this story when we receive a response.

Lack of qualified teachers and poor pupil-teacher ratios

“Infrastructure is a critical input for learning outcomes as it helps create a conducive learning environment,” said Kundu of CBGA. “However there are many other determinants which influence learning outcomes, such as teacher-student ratio, professionally qualified teachers, availability of textbooks, the language of textbooks, mode of teaching, socio-economic condition of the students, parents’ livelihoods, parents' income, distance to schools etc. These are particularly important when it comes to tribal children.”

IndiaSpend analysed the district-wise qualification of primary teachers and pupil-teacher ratios in Odisha and Chhattisgarh.

The Ministry of Education has recommended a pupil-teacher ratio for regular school at 10:1 for the primary level and 15:1 for the upper primary, secondary and higher secondary level.

In the primary classes of Odisha's tribal districts, an almost equal proportion of teachers have a graduate qualification, and a higher secondary or below qualification. Districts such as Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, and Sundargarh have the least percentage of teachers with a graduate qualification. They also have a significant tribal population. In the non-tribal districts in Odisha, almost all districts have more than 50 percent of teachers with a graduate qualification. Naupada and Kalahandi districts have a proportion of less than 50 percent of teachers with a graduate degree, but they exhibit significantly higher tribal populations of 29 percent and 33 percent, they also have significantly lower learning outcomes in both English and mathematics compared to the other ‘non-tribal’ districts. The districts with a significantly high proportion of graduate-qualified teachers have the least tribal population, at less than 10 percent.

In Chhattisgarh, most tribal districts have less than 50 percent of primary teachers with a graduate qualification. Among non-tribal districts, all districts have 60 percent or more teachers with graduate qualifications except Koriya (56.7 percent) which has a tribal population of 46 percent. Koriya also sees poor learning outcomes among the non-tribal districts. The variations in pupil-teacher ratios are greater for tribal districts. Narayanpur and Bijapur which had the lowest learning outcomes in the state also have less than 50 percent of graduate-qualified teachers.

Teaching approaches and partnership programmes

Learning levels depend on the organisation of the teaching-learning process, as the IIT-B study says.

Pratham has evolved a solution called Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) which enables children to acquire foundational skills like reading and arithmetic quickly. Regardless of age or grade, teaching starts at the child's level and is targeted to children who have already reached grade III, IV or V but have still not acquired basic skills. The focus is on helping children with basic reading, understanding, as well as arithmetic skills.

The TaRL approach is implemented in two ways – directly by Pratham instructors through “Learning Camps” or as part of a Pratham-government partnership programme where government teachers implement TaRL as part of the school day. In the direct model, Pratham instructors run three to five camps of 10 days each, for about three hours a day. In the partnership model, government teachers use this approach over a longer period in the school year (four to six months) with a dedicated time of one to two hours a day.

When Pratham partnered with the Government of Karnataka in 2017, letters could only be read by 16 percent of students, words by 23 percent, paragraphs by 23 percent, and an entire story by only 29 percent. Additionally, division could only be performed by 31 percent, multiplication by 49 percent, subtraction by 66 percent, and addition by 79 percent.

By the end of the project in 2018, an entire story could be read by 65 percent of the students. The ability to perform mathematical operations increased to 69 percent in division, 82 percent in multiplication, 93 percent in subtraction, and 97 percent in addition. This project involved over 450,000 children in grades IV and V across 17,000 schools in 13 districts.

“You need resourceful and motivated teachers who will use every situation to create learning opportunities,” reflects Nadkarni. “There is no straightforward solution to improve learning outcomes.” She believes that learning outcomes are a function of many factors beyond the classroom. These could be nutrition, access to school, culture within the community, and the presence of role models.

“India is heterogeneous and the characteristics of students vary across class, caste, religion, gender, geographical presence, and economic status, and hence every student has varied needs,” reflects Kundu from CBGA. “Any uniform education policy won't be able to address the diversity.”

This report is republished with permission from IndiaSpend.org, a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit. It has been lightly edited for style and clarity.

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With bonds, notices, and beefed up security, cops try to quell Assam’s CAA disquiethttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/with-bonds-notices-and-beefed-up-security-cops-try-to-quell-assams-caa-disquiethttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/with-bonds-notices-and-beefed-up-security-cops-try-to-quell-assams-caa-disquiet#commentsfe4d5063-2028-47ac-bf9f-2804fb6a859fTue, 12 Mar 2024 15:51:50 +00002024-03-12T15:51:50.845ZPratyush Deep/api/author/731433CAA,AssamReport

From the increased security and barricades at key official establishments to notices to opposition figures and activists, the Assam police is trying hard to tackle any protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act rules notification.

Amid announcements from Union ministers about the possibility of CAA rules being rolled out ahead of Lok Sabha polls, tensions had been palpable in several parts of Assam – where five people had died during protests in 2019 after the controversial citizenship law was approved by Parliament. 

Objections in Assam to CAA are about the grant of citizenship to illegal immigrants, unlike other parts of the country where an alphabet soup of CAA-NRC-NPR had triggered concerns about exclusion of Muslims.

However, amid heavy security deployment, there were sporadic protests in parts of Assam – by student organisations and other groups – on Tuesday.

The police has now issued legal notices to 16 leaders from the United Opposition Forum, which includes regional parties and state units of national parties, directing them to withdraw their call for a strike, or the ‘sabartmak hartal’, to protest against the CAA rules.

Bamboo barricades had been placed in many parts of Guwahati and security was beefed up at the Legislative Assembly and the Janata Bhawan on Monday evening. Police deployment has seen an increase on the streets of Guwahati since March 1.

And for the last couple of weeks, the state police have also been issuing notices to activists and making them  sign ‘bonds’ to ensure there is no disturbance to the law and order situation in the state.

At least seven people were detained in the fresh protests on Tuesday. An Assam police spokesperson claimed they all were released later.

Meanwhile, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said he will be the first to resign even if one person, who has not applied for the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the state, gets citizenship. 

Who signed the bonds?

Activists from the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti and its sister concerns along with activists of Bir Lachit Sena and All Assam Students Union (AASU)  were among the dozens who have been asked to sign bonds with a surety of Rs 2 lakh  under section 107  of CrPC, which pertains to cases of emergency when a breach of “peace” is imminent. 

Some of them were also served notices under section 149 of CrPC for their “potential involvement in activities related to the Citizenship Amendment Act agitation”.

KMSS had played a significant role in the anti-CAA protests in Assam in December 2019. Four of its leaders, including Akhil Gogoi, were also arrested under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act during the protests.

The notices

Meanwhile, the legal notice to opposition parties by DCP (crime) in Guwahati directed them to withdraw their strike failing which they will face legal action. “There is every likelihood of breach of peace and security leading to disruption of normal life” and it is “likely to lead to road blockade, forceful closure of shops and other business establishments, damage to public and private property”, it read.

The notice further stated that calling a ‘sabartmak hartal’ “will lead to a highway and railway track blockade, which has been declared illegal and unconstitutional by various judgements” by the Supreme Court, Kerala High Court and Gauhati High Court.

The notice reiterated Assam DGP GP Singh’s threat about recovering any damage to public property from protesters.

Since March 1, DGP Singh has been posting appeals on X, asking people to refrain from any protest. Singh also shared videos of violent protests in December 2019, saying that Assam police will not let it happen in 2024. “Some people have spoken about the right to protest…I want to refresh the memory of people with what such words led to in December 2019. Vandalism & arson, including at our revered Srimanta Sankardev Kalashetra.”

Bonds, police visits

Activists claim the police are harassing them to quell any possibility of protest.

KMSS cadres claim that at least seven activists from the outfit have been detained in Sivasagar, Tinsukia, Dhemaji and Dhubri so far. “Two of our activists, one each from Tinsukia and Dhubri, were detained  even before they staged any protests. They were on their way to protest but police picked them up and detained them,” Lakhyajyoti Gogoi, president of youth wing of Raijor Dal, told Newslaundry.  

“Government is using police force to quell our right to protest and freedom of expression. Police are also visiting our houses to ask us not to protest. Today, the police visited my house twice while I was outside,” said Pranjal Kalita, general secretary of Raijor Dal’s sister outfit Satra Mukti Sangram Samiti, adding that more than 20 of the group’s activists, especially office bearers, have been asked to serve such “bonds”.

Activists claimed more than 50 had been made to sign these bonds. Newslaundry has seen copies of at least five bonds.

Issued by additional district magistrates and under section 107 of the CrPC, the bonds suggest that some  report “reveals that the person may likely to commit breach of the peace or disturb the public tranquility or do any wrongful act that may probably occasion a breach of the peace or disturb the public tranquility and after careful examination of the report.”

Ritumoni Hazarika, organising secretary of KMSS,  was also allegedly asked to sign the bond but he refused. “I did not sign it and have filed a petition in the court opposing this kind of undemocratic  thing,” Hazarika claimed.

AASU general secretary ShankarJyoti Baruah also claimed that the district and state level office bearers were asked  to appear before the authorities for the signing of similar bonds. “However, none of our members signed those bonds,” he claimed.

Meanwhile, AASU has launched a series of protests opposing the implementation of CAA in the state. It has also filed a petition challenging the CAA rules in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

However, the Assam police denied that any such bonds were issued or that police visited activists’ houses. “I have no idea about any of these things. I am not sure if district SPs have done something. No such orders are issued from the headquarters,” said Assam police spokesperson Prashanta Bhuyan.

‘Momentum will intensify soon’

Lurinjyoti Gogoi, the former general secretary of AASU who spearheaded the anti-CAA agitation across the state in 2019, said the protests against CAA rules are set to intensify. “People have a clear understanding that the act would be harmful…the general public is still against CAA and the momentum of the anti-CAA protest would soon intensify,” Gogoi said. 

Gogoi had formed a regional party named Axom Jatiya Parishad in 2021 and had unsuccessfully contested assembly polls. This time, he is a probable opposition candidate for Dibrugarh Lok Sabha constituency, which is likely to pit him against former CM Sarbananda Sonowal. 

The 2019 anti-CAA protest had dented Sonowal’s image as an Assamese nationalist leader. The AASU, which had honoured Sonowal with the Jatiya Nayak (national hero) title in 2005  after the Supreme Court struck down the controversial Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act 1983, withdrew the award after the BJP government at the Centre enacted the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019.

Meanwhile, Srinkhal Chaliha, leader of Bir Lachit Sena, has also called for a protest in Sivasagar district’s Rang Ghar on Wednesday where both Akhil Gogoi and  Lurinjyoti Gogoi are likely to be present. “What we have realised is that if you want to scare BJP, you have to ensure their loss in the political arena. That can only be achieved if we can ensure a reduction of at least 20,000 of their votes in every Lok Sabha constituency. To ensure this, we are thinking of taking this protest to every village of the state,” claimed Rantu Pani Phukan, chief secretary of Bir Lachit Sena.

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इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड: सुप्रीम कोर्ट में स्टेट बैंक ऑफ इंडिया ने क्या कुछ कहा? https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/supreme-court-rejected-sbi-plea-on-seeking-extention-to-furnish-electoral-bonds-details-to-election-commissionhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/supreme-court-rejected-sbi-plea-on-seeking-extention-to-furnish-electoral-bonds-details-to-election-commission#comments85671602-8cde-487f-b725-f7532ef94d19Tue, 12 Mar 2024 15:04:36 +00002024-03-12T15:04:36.054Zविकास जांगड़ा/api/author/1754595Electoral bondsPolitical-fundingVideo

देश के सबसे बड़े बैंक को देश की सबसे बड़ी अदालत से फटकार पड़ी है.. स्टेट बैंक ऑफ इंडिया की याचिका को सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने खारिज कर दिया. एसबीआई ने इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड की जानकारी देने के लिए 30 जून तक का समय बढ़ाने की मांग की थी. इस पर सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने करीब 40 मिनट में ही फैसला सुना दिया. सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने सख्त लहजे में कहा कि बैंक 12 मार्च तक सारी जानकारी चुनाव आयोग को सौंपे और चुनाव आयोग सारी जानकारी को इकट्ठा कर 15 मार्च शाम 5 बजे तक इसे सार्वजनिक करे. 

तो 11 मार्च को सुप्रीम कोर्ट में हुई इस त्वरित सुनवाई में एसबीआई की मुख्य दलीलें क्या थी. सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने उन्हें किस आधार पर खारिज किया और क्यों तय अवधि से दो दिन पहले 4 मार्च को स्टेट बैंक ऑफ इंडिया सुप्रीम कोर्ट पहुंचा था. 

इन सब सवालों के जवाब हम इस वीडियो में देने वाले हैं.. देखिए ये वीडियो रिपोर्ट. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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A BJP leader and journos who ‘praise Yogi’: Meet UP’s new information commissionershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/a-bjp-leader-and-journos-who-praise-yogi-meet-ups-new-information-commissionershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/a-bjp-leader-and-journos-who-praise-yogi-meet-ups-new-information-commissioners#commentsac244010-3020-4e0d-a12f-73e3a0b6fcdcTue, 12 Mar 2024 13:39:42 +00002024-03-12T13:39:42.193ZBasant Kumar/api/author/730930Uttar PradeshReport

In violation of the RTI Act in Uttar Pradesh, local BJP leader Swatantra Prakash Gupta has been appointed as information commissioner by a committee led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. 

At least four of the 10 newly-appointed information commissioners are either linked to the BJP or are known to be favourable towards Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Newslaundry learnt. These appointments, and that of chief information commissioner Rajkumar Vishwakarma, were approved by governor Anandi Ben Patel on March 7. 

As per law, information commissioners, who are responsible to disseminate information requested under the RTI Act, cannot be an MP or a member of the state legislature, and should not hold an office of profit or be associated with a political party. 

Of the 10 newly-appointed information commissioners, two are retired police officers, one is a retired IAS officer, four are journalists, one is a senior advocate and BJP leader, one is former judicial officer, and one is an associate professor. 

Among these, journalists Virendra Singh Vatsa and Padum Narayan Dwivedi and professor Dr Dilip Kumar Agnihotri often write in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and CM Yogi. 

Vatsa is an editor at news daily Hindustan, while Dwivedi works with RSS-affiliated Hindustan Samachar. Agnihotri is an associate professor at Vidyant Hindu College in Lucknow and often writes for BJP-affiliated think tank Shyama Mukherjee Research Foundation.  

Govt presser did not disclose Gupta’s BJP links 

In the March 7 press release issued by the UP government, BJP leader Gupta was identified as “senior advocate”. 

But Gupta himself told Newslaundry he has served in several “high posts” in the BJP, though he denied holding any “direct responsibility” at present. “I worked a lot for the party but kept getting sidelined. Currently, I do not have any direct responsibility in the party. However, my ideology is of the BJP. I have been associated with it from the start.”

However, Newlaundry confirmed with party sources that the Badaun resident has been serving as the co-convenor of UP BJP’s law and legal cell since July 2021. On February 12, he was also assigned the role of party incharge for Bareilly Cantt for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. 

Gupta often represents the BJP in media interviews and party events, including PM Modi’s Jan Vishwas Yatra. He also addressed a BJP rally at Budaun district’s Saijani village on January 27, where CM Yogi and central minister Hardeep Singh Puri were present to inaugurate an HPCL unit. 

A senior journalist from Badaun, who did not want to be identified, told Newslaundry Gupta has a long association with the RSS, and had also served as the district president of BJP’s student-wing ABVP. He subsequently served as the member of two state committees, and has been eyeing the party’s ticket to contest polls. 

Newslaundry sent queries on the matter to Shishir, director of Uttar Pradesh information and PR department. This report will be updated if a response is received. 

Journalists, professor ‘who praise’ Yogi 

The social media accounts of journalists Vatsa and Dwivedi are populated with posts linked to BJP leaders, retweets, or birthday wishes for BJP politicians. 

In a Facebook post on February 28, Vatsa described CM Yogi as “a raging fire”, and “love and sacrifice”. It also included a picture of him with Yogi, with the caption, “Had the good fortune of meeting the ever majestic CM Shri Yogi Adityanath ji Maharaj in Lucknow yesterday.” 

Vatsa has reportedly written several poems and songs on Ram and Ayodhya, one of which was played at the Republic Day celebrations in Delhi this year. The song was titled “Jahan Ayodhya Siyaram ki deti samta ka sandesh (Where Siyaram’s Ayodhya gives the message of parity)”.  

Meanwhile, Dr Agnihotri has written at least 11 articles for Shyama Mukherjee Research Foundation, all of which ostensibly praise PM Modi or CM Yogi. Some of his articles are titled “Beshumar hain UP ki Pragati ka praman (Countless are the evidence of UP’s progress) and “Budget mein Modi ki guarantee (Modi’s guarantee  in the budget)”. 

His Facebook display picture is also a photograph of him with CM Yogi.

This report was originally published in Newslaundry Hindi.

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Does CAA spell end of the road for visas to Afghans? Three takeaways from India’s visit to Kabulhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/does-caa-spell-end-of-the-road-for-visas-to-afghans-three-takeaways-from-indias-visit-to-kabulhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/does-caa-spell-end-of-the-road-for-visas-to-afghans-three-takeaways-from-indias-visit-to-kabul#comments48587c8b-5ce1-4561-9f0f-e722c9316da8Tue, 12 Mar 2024 11:47:47 +00002024-03-12T11:47:47.658ZNirupama Subramanian/api/author/1830866Citizenship Amendment ActAnalysisOpinion

From March 7, an official delegation of India’s Ministry of External Affairs was in Kabul on a three-day visit. Led by JP Singh, the joint secretary in the ministry in charge of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran, the delegation held talks with Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. It met former President Hamid Karzai and also met Afghan businessmen who trade with India.

Here are three takeaways from the visit.

No sign yet visa restrictions will be relaxed

The visit took place days ahead of the government notification of the rules of the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2019. Several thousand Afghans, especially of the minority Hazara and Tajik communities, have been desperate to come to India to flee the Taliban’s persecution. Over the decades, India was a country that gave safe haven to Afghans from the conflicts that ravaged their homeland. 

India’s open-door policy for Afghan refugees and Delhi’s development activities in Afghanistan from about 2004 to 2021, earned India huge goodwill among the people, more than in any other country in the region. At present, India hosts more than 15,000 Afghans who live in India under the protection of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. 

Previous governments were not just liberal with visas, they also facilitated education with generous scholarship schemes. Some students took up jobs in the universities where they had studied. Traders and businessmen travelled across the country. Afghan patients built years-long relationships with their doctors in India, visiting regularly for consultations. Some Afghans found Indian partners. 

But all that has changed. When the CAA was enacted, the broad message was clear: India would no longer welcome Muslims escaping tyranny in their own countries. But the Afghans, perhaps the only Muslims from the neighbourhood who might have thought of applying for Indian citizenship for reasons of persecution in their own country, remained sanguine. They thought the bonds between the two countries were so deep that nothing could change the generosity of India towards Afghans. Plus, they did not think that India would look at them with the suspicion reserved for Pakistani or Bangladeshi Muslims. 

“We thought we would be treated differently,” one Afghan student waiting for a visa in Kabul told me two years ago.

But the days after August 15, 2021 brought a rude awakening. As thousands of Afghans sought to flee their country in the wake of the Taliban takeover, India sent in special planes to evacuate Hindus and Sikhs. But all others found, to their shock, that their existing visas were no longer valid and they could not get new ones. More than 2,000 students who had gone to Afghanistan during the summer break or during the Covid wave, couldn’t return after knocking on many doors for over two years. Most have given up. Some moved to Pakistan to study; others obtained visas to Turkey or western countries. But some who left behind families are still waiting to be reunited. Those who remain in India cannot travel back to Afghanistan even for family emergencies, for fear of not being allowed to reenter. 

In the 30 months since the Taliban takeover, India has processed only a few hundred visas for business or medical emergencies. National security has been the main justification.

In his meeting with the Indian delegation, former President Hamid Karzai conveyed a gentle reminder of how it used to be in the past. And the Taliban, who see India's no visa policy for Afghanistan as a lack of Delhi’s trust in their system, also made a pitch for liberalisation of visas in the meeting with the Indian delegation. 

The CAA rules specify that citizenship application is open only to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis, Christians and Jains who arrived in India before December 31, 2014. Though Muslims from other South Asian countries are not barred from visiting India, the pointed omission of Muslims in the CAA rules is likely to make even the ordinary visa application process for Muslim visitors fraught. Some Afghans have been told there will be select relaxations in the visa policy after the Indian elections, but there is no guarantee this will happen.  

Meanwhile, the Taliban has begun making a serious outreach to Hindu and Sikh minorities. Last year, the Kabul regime appointed a “Land Grabbing Commission” to return lands seized from Hindus. The Islamic Emirate has pledged that it will protect all minorities. In a newsletter out of March 9, the Commission said it has instructed its technical teams in the provinces and districts to “stabilise and identify lands of Hindu citizens that have been forcibly taken or are likely to be grabbed through fake deeds”.

In Delhi, Guljeet Singh, a representative of Afghan Sikhs, said most of the community who were evacuated by India have left for Canada. Of the families that remain, some 20 to 30 male members were planning to return to Kabul to restart their shops. Many of them were in the homoeopathic medicine trade when they were evacuated from Kabul. 

“They will not take their families with them. But the men need to provide for the families. The gurudwara was supporting us for two years. Now that time is over, and the men need to find jobs. There aren’t any jobs here,” said Singh.  

Manjeet Singh Lamba, a Sikh representative in Kabul, said 200 Sikhs were planning to return to Kabul. Newslaundry could not contact him to independently confirm his announcement. 

India’s engagement with Taliban remains driven by hostility with Pakistan

While India has readily cut off ties to the Afghan people, despite the fact that they have been its biggest asset in Afghanistan over the years, it has increased its engagement with the Taliban in the same period. 

The delegation’s meeting with Muttaqi was confirmation that Delhi remains hopeful that the Taliban regime will protect India’s national security and other interests in Afghanistan. The main driver for Delhi’s engagement with Afghanistan over the years has been the adversarial India-Pakistan relationship. Over the years, building ties with Afghanistan has been India’s low-cost way to keep Pakistan on tenterhooks about its so-called “strategic depth”, except for a five-year period from 1996 to 2001 when the Taliban grabbed state power and ruled Afghanistan for the first time. Then, India identified the Taliban with its creator, the Pakistan army/ISI, and made no attempt to establish relations with it.

But a lesson from that era, which included the shock of the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC-814, was that conflating Taliban and Pakistan could only hurt India. The Taliban’s Pashtun identity is as important as their religious ideology. Despite its best efforts, the Pakistan army has not been able to wipe out Pashtun consciousness by superimposing Islamic extremism on it.

Predictably, the Pashtun identity question came to the fore quickly in Pakistan’s relations with the current Taliban dispensation over the border question and also the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, which Pakistan accuses the Afghan Taliban of protecting and harbouring. Additionally, issues have emerged over Pakistan’s presumption that, after the American withdrawal in August 2021, it would now call the shots in Afghanistan.

The Taliban’s evident quest to be treated as separate from Pakistan is one of the reasons why India, which shut its Kabul embassy during the 2021 Taliban takeover, soon decided it would be folly to stay out any longer. In June 2022, a “technical team”, comprising mainly security officials, reopened the Indian embassy. By then, over a dozen countries had already reopened their Kabul embassies at non-ambassadorial levels. Some, like Russia and China, had never left. 

While India, like other countries, does not recognise the Taliban regime, it appears to have gone farther than most in engaging with it. After a short interruption in 2021, India-Afghan trade resumed. When the embassy reopened, flights between Kabul and Delhi began twice a week. In October 2022, India signed a new agreement with the Taliban to increase the volume of trade through an air corridor. Last year, Taliban officials attended MEA-funded capacity building classes at IIM Kozhikode where they learned about India, its governance structures, and how its democracy functions.

In January 2024, for the first time, the Indian Embassy in the UAE invited the Taliban representation in Abu Dhabi for its Republic Day reception. A few days later, on January 30, an Indian official from the “technical team” participated in a meeting of representatives of regional countries that the Taliban convened.

Bilal Sarway, a well-informed Afghan journalist who left Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover, tweeted suggesting that India may be seeking to widen its engagement by reopening the Kandahar consulate. Newslaundry could not confirm this independently.

During last week’s visit, the Indian side emphasised its humanitarian role in Afghanistan but did not raise a key humanitarian crisis – the denial of education to women and their restriction in the public sphere. For optics though, the Indian delegation included a woman official. 

But while tactically useful, the present engagement does not envisage a roadmap for a long game in Afghanistan. That brings no succour to India’s long-standing anti-Taliban political friends in Afghanistan, whom Delhi has given up as not counting for much in the present reality of Afghanistan.

Taliban wants more

As is the Taliban practice, it lost no time in putting out the photographs of the Indian delegation's meetings at the Taliban foreign ministry. Spokesman Abdul Qadir Balkhi tweeted that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan “seeks to strengthen political and economic relations with India as an important actor in the region”. The Indian acknowledgement of the visit came a day later.

The Taliban sees every diplomatic engagement as de facto acceptance by the world and a step towards de jure recognition. It was no different this time. As became evident during the power struggle at the Afghan Embassy in Delhi and the eventual departure of diplomats appointed by the former Islamic Republic of Afghanistan government, including Ambassador Farid Mamundzay, the Taliban is eager to send its own representatives to Delhi. 

China, meanwhile, is represented in Kabul by an ambassador-rank diplomat. It also accepted a Taliban ambassador in Beijing, who presented credentials to President Xi Jinping in January. In Delhi, work at the Afghan embassy is being handled by the consul-generals at Mumbai and Hyderabad. But with the Taliban keen to increase trade with India, the need for a full-time person in Delhi will have to be addressed.

India is now Afghanistan's second biggest export destination after Pakistan. The Afghan ministry of Industry and Commerce valued its 2023 bilateral trade with India at $779 million (the Indian side is yet to publish the numbers). Of this, $579 million were reported to be exports to India, comprising mainly fruit, dried fruit, and spices, while $200 million were imports, mainly sugar.

Trade takes place mainly through the Wagah border. While Pakistan has stopped trading with India since 2019, it has permitted limited Afghan exports to India through this route, continuing a system that pre-existed the Taliban regime. But India is not allowed to export to Afghanistan through Wagah. 

Afghanistan now wants to ramp up the trade relationship and has been putting pressure on Delhi to “send ships to Chabahar” – the port in Iran jointly developed by India with the aim of connecting by road (and rail) to the Afghan border to give India-Afghan-Central Asia trade a Pakistan bypass. 

India had been playing down the Chabahar link in recent years for a number of reasons, including India-US proximity and Iran’s growing ties with China, which cast a bit of a shadow on India’s own relations with Iran. While the US had given India a Chabahar carve-out from its sanctions on Iran, shipping is tied to international instruments such as insurance. That, and the allure of the US-backed India-Middle East Economic Corridor, had dimmed the appeal of the Iranian port once vaunted as India’s connectivity masterstroke.

However, as tensions in the Red Sea rose with the Iran-backed, Yemen-based Houthis attacking ships passing through and in the vicinity of that strategic shipping corridor, Delhi has sought to renew ties with Iran. On a visit to Tehran in January, Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar said he emphasised India's commitment to Chabahar, and that the two sides discussed a long-term roadmap for India's involvement in the development of the port.

Meanwhile, a Taliban delegation visited the Chabahar port at the end of February to assess facilities for transit trade to and from Afghanistan. During last week’s visit to Kabul by the MEA team, both sides said the expansion of economic ties and trade through Chabahar were discussed.

Afghanistan is also keen that India complete infrastructure projects that it left half finished, including the construction of a dam for water supply to Kabul.

Even if Delhi takes up that offer, it is clear that in common with other countries, India’s engagement with the Taliban, or more generally, its Afghanistan policy, may remain tactical in nature, with no long or medium term direction. This will change only when India’s relationship with Pakistan improves.

Update at 10.30 pm, Mar 13: This piece originally said Delhi ‘remains hopeful that the Taliban regime will protect India’s national security and other interests in Pakistan’. This has been corrected to ‘in Afghanistan’.

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What’s the job of a public broadcaster? For Doordarshan, it’s airing Ram temple’s daily aartihttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/modi-eras-dd-national-what-screams-public-broadcasting-more-than-ram-temples-daily-aartihttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/modi-eras-dd-national-what-screams-public-broadcasting-more-than-ram-temples-daily-aarti#comments25abb92d-de17-4fae-bdc4-1dbed0dcfa14Tue, 12 Mar 2024 08:36:59 +00002024-03-12T08:36:59.766ZNL Team/api/author/730883dd newsShot

DD National will live telecast the aarti or prayer rituals from Ram temple in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya everyday at 6:30 am, said the public broadcaster in a post on X. “Now everyday lord Ram lalla’s divine darshan!” read the post.     

A DD National official told The Hindu that the channel had been trying to get permission for the live broadcast.  

On the day of the temple’s consecration on January 22, the channel had clocked more than one crore views, and had deployed over 40 cameras for the live footage shot in high resolution 4K, earlier used for the G2O Summit.

From 21 days before the large-scale inauguration ceremony, the channel had also been broadcasting special programmes and news bulletins centred around the Ram temple, in the build up to the event. These included daily Ayodhya round-up, guest discussions, special stories and vox-pop, some of which continued even after the inauguration ceremony. 

It also got at least two original songs crafted for the ceremony, and roped in author Neelesh Misra for a storytelling series from Ayodhya, focusing on the story of Ram’s return to his kingdom. 

More than 75 lakh people have visited the temple since its inauguration, although the temple is still under construction and is expected to be completed by December this year.

Newslaundry had extensively covered all about the new Ayodhya – from homes demolished in preparation for the grand event to the power tussle between sadhus and the Modi government-nominated trust, and murky land deals.

To know what happened inside the Big Media circus in Ayodhya, watch this.      

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CAA vs SC ultimatum to SBI: What was the top story in newspapers? https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/caa-vs-sc-ultimatum-to-sebi-what-was-the-top-story-in-newspapershttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/caa-vs-sc-ultimatum-to-sebi-what-was-the-top-story-in-newspapers#commentsc8b44d4c-7156-4dbf-9060-3a8a196e93a4Tue, 12 Mar 2024 06:33:05 +00002024-03-12T06:33:05.361ZNL Team/api/author/730883CAAShot

In two major developments in India’s political landscape, the Modi government implemented the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, and the Supreme Court gave a day’s ultimatum to the State Bank of India on Monday for furnishing details of electoral bonds donors. 

Both news made it to the front pages of most dailies. But which made top news? 

The CAA, which seeks to grant Indian citizenship to “persecuted” Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, excluding Muslims and atheists, was the front-page lead of the Delhi edition of The Indian Express and Times of India, and the Chennai edition of The New Indian Express

In contrast, the top court’s judgement in the electoral bonds case was the lead report on Hindustan Times and The Hindu.

Meanwhile, The Telegraph’s Kolkata edition carried both the news in its front page lead package. 

First, The Indian Express. “No passport, no visa: Rules eased for seeking citizenship under CAA” read the headline of the page one package, with a slug that said “PM delivered on commitment: Shah”. The headline of the package’s second article said “Opposition-ruled states say bid to polarise polls, will oppose”. 

“The rules, which pave the way for implementation of the CAA, state that ‘any document’ that shows one of the parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents of the applicant was from one of these countries would suffice to prove their nationality. And instead of a visa, even a certificate issued by an elected member of a local body would be enough,” read the report, adding that the state governments would have limited participation in the process. 

The newspaper also carried two explainers in the inner pages titled “With CAA, Modi govt underlines: Delivered all that we promised” and “CAA: issues in the legal challenge to the citizenship law”.   

The report on SC’s verdict in the electoral bonds case was the third lead on the front-page. It said, “In fact, it [Supreme Court] quizzed the SBI on the steps taken till date subsequent to the February 15 order.”

Front page of The Indian Express.

The Telegraph pulled off a balancing act with both the news in its page one lead package, which was titled “Poll oven in pre-heat mode”. The first headline read “AM: Cough up electoral bond details sans delay: SC to SBI”, and the report cited the top court as saying that “there should be some candour from your [SBI] side”.  

The second report in the package was titled “PM: Centre unsheathes contentious CAA rules. It carried a “factsheet” on the CAA, which mentioned the law had triggered protests “as many feared that coupled with the planned countrywide National Register for Citizens (NRC), it would result in lakhs of Muslims losing their citizenship”. 

Front page of The Telegraph.

The Times of India’s page lead was titled “4 years after Parliament passage and ahead of polls, government notifies CAA rules”. The report highlighted the key changes in the law including the reduction in length of residency in India for qualifying for Indian citizenship from 11  years to five years. 

The law exempts “tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura” and “areas regulated through Inner Line Permit”, said the report. It also carried the response of several chief ministers, including Tamil Nadu’s MK Stalin, who said “Modi seeks to salvage his sinking ship by cynically resurrecting CAA, exploiting religious sentiments for political gain”.   

The newspaper also carried a detailed explainer on “What changes now that CAA rules are notified”. 

The report on SC’s verdict refusing the SBI’s plea for more time to submit electoral bond information was on the front flap of the newspaper. It said the top court has warned against “wilful disobedience” and that the SBI’s shares fell by two percent.

Front page of The Times of India.

The lead report on The New Indian Express’s Chennai edition was titled “CAA in play before general elections as government notifies rules”. It carried a graph titled “walking the talk”, detailing the timeline of the law, starting in 2019, when it was enacted.     

A report in the inside pages quoted opposition leaders as saying that CAA is a bid to polarise Lok Sabha elections. 

The SC verdict was the second lead, titled “SBI info to ECI won’t say who gave what to whom”. It cited CJI DY Chandrachud as saying that the information on electoral bonds is “readily available” with the SBI.

Meanwhile, the lead news on Hindustan Times was headlined: “SC gives one day to SBI to furnish poll data”. It said SBI has been warned of “contempt action”.

The second page carried a lead report on the CAA. “Govt notifies CAA rules in big pre-poll decision”, read the title of the report which detailed the 39-page notification. It said the applicant must prove they entered before December 31, 2014 and that the applicant or either of their parents was a citizen of India.

A report on the CAA in the inside pages was headlined, “Opposition questions timing of CAA rules notification; BJP hails PM”. 

Front page of Hindustan Times.

The Hindu’s page one lead was titled “SC firm, tells SBI to share poll bond details today”. It quoted CJI Chandrachud, “We asked you to do a plain disclosure. We did not tell you to match the details. You simply need to comply with our February 15 judgement.”

A report at the bottom of the page was headlined “Union Home Ministry notifies CAA rules ahead of Lok Sabha election”, along with a picture of a protest against the law by left activists in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram.

A front page report on The Hindu.

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वीएचपी, बजरंग दल समेत अन्य संगठनों से जुड़ने वाले युवाओं का क्या है भविष्य?https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/how-youths-get-attracted-to-vhp-bajrang-dal-and-other-right-wing-groupshttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/how-youths-get-attracted-to-vhp-bajrang-dal-and-other-right-wing-groups#commentse36786d4-9e0d-4fa1-998d-e9fe2ee4ce8fTue, 12 Mar 2024 06:31:00 +00002024-03-12T06:31:00.000Zअवधेश कुमार/api/author/1462355RSS,vhp,Bajrang DalReportगांव, नगर और शहरों में युवा तेजी से राजनैतिक और गैर-राजनैतिक संगठनों से जुड़ रहे हैं. ऐसे युवा सोशल मीडिया और इन दलों द्वारा समय-समय पर चलाए जा रहे अभियानों के माध्यम से इन संगठनों में शामिल हो रहे हैं. इनमें विश्व हिंदू परिषद, बजरंग दल, दुर्गा वाहिनी, भीम आर्मी और विभिन्न राजनीतिक दलों के अनुषांगिक संगठन व अन्य दबाव समूह शामिल हैं. 

कभी-कभी लगता है कि छात्र पढ़ाई और अपने भविष्य की परवाह किए बिना इन संगठनों से जुड़ रहे हैं. ये संगठन कैसे काम करते हैं, इनका प्रभाव कितना है, इनसे जुड़े युवा क्या सोचते हैं और संगठन से जोड़ने के लिए क्या जतन किए जाते हैं? हमने इन सवालों के जवाब जानने के लिए बांदा जिले का दौरा किया.

बांदा जिले के कोर्रा खुर्द गांव निवासी अरुण कुमार पटेल 2016-17 में हिंदू युवा वाहिनी के सक्रिय सदस्य थे. तब उत्तर प्रदेश विधानसभा चुनाव का शोर अपने चरम पर था. पटेल ग्रेजुएशन की पढ़ाई पूरी कर ‘हिंदुओं को जगाने का काम’ कर रहे थे. 

वे बताते हैं, "मैं सोशल मीडिया के माध्यम से इस संगठन से जुड़ा था. तब राज्य में समाजवादी पार्टी की सरकार अपने आखिरी दौर में थी. हमें सोशल मीडिया पर लेख और वीडियो के जरिए बताया जाता था कि मुसलमान गुंडागर्दी कर रहे हैं. दंगा फसाद की जड़ मुसलमान हैं. ये सब देखकर मैं भी हिंदू युवा वाहिनी में जुड़ गया. मुझे पहले साल तहसील मंत्री बनाया गया और बाद में जिला कार्यकारिणी सदस्य. इस दौरान हम गांव-गांव जाकर हिंदुओं को जागरूक करते थे. हिंदू समाज के बारे में बताते थे. मुस्लिम समाज के लोग, जो दंगा फसाद कर रहे हैं उनसे हमें कैसे बचना है ये सब जाकर लोगों को समझाते थे. हम गायों के लिए भी काम करते थे कि उन्हें कैसे बचाना है. कुल मिलाकर हिंदू धर्म के लिए काम करना था. हमारे व्हाट्सएप ग्रुपों में भी इन्हीं सब मुहिमों पर बातें होती थीं."

पटेल अब कहते हैं, "जब मैं ये सब कर रहा था तब मेरी उम्र काफी कम थी. समझ नहीं थी और न ही कोई गाइड करने वाला था. अब लगता है कि वह एक गलत कदम था क्योंकि बिना भविष्य देखे ही राजनीतिक क्षेत्र में चले गए. अब अफसोस होता है. पढ़ लिया होता तो शायद कोई नौकरी कर रहा होता. काफी पढ़ाई की बर्बादी हुई है. आज मैं अपना दल (सोनेलाल) के लिए काम कर रहा हूं और बीजों की दुकान चलाता हूं."

वह आखिरी में कहते हैं, “आज के युवा पहले अपना भविष्य देखें और पढ़ाई पर ध्यान दें. ऐसे संगठन सिर्फ बर्बादी की जड़ हैं.”

हालांकि, ये कहानी सिर्फ 28 वर्षीय अरुण कुमार पटेल की नहीं है. युवा गुमराह होकर ऐसे राजनीतिक चक्र में फंस जाते हैं कि फिर उनका निकलना मुश्किल हो जाता है.

सुशील कुमार तिवारी

इस बारे में हमने कई युवाओं से बात की. ऐसे ही बीए द्वितीय वर्ष के छात्र सुशील कुमार तिवारी से हमरी मुलाकात बादां के एसपी दफ्तर के बाहर हुई. सुशील की अपनी एक अलग कहानी है. अपनी कहानी बताते हुए वह कई बार हंसते हैं तो कई बार अफसोस जताते हैं.

सुशील सबसे पहले युवा मोर्चा से जुड़े थे. लेकिन अब वह इस सगंठन के साथ नहीं हैं. उनका कहना है कि इस संगठन से जुड़ने के बाद उनकी पढ़ाई का बहुत ज्यादा नुकसान होने लगा था. जिसका अंदाजा उन्हें जल्दी ही लग गया था. 

सुशील कहते हैं, “शुरुआत में मुझे एक व्हाट्सएप ग्रुप में जोड़ा गया, जिसमें किसी से बात करने से पहले जय श्री राम कहना जरूरी है. जब कहीं भी कोई घटना होती तो उस गांव में क्या हुआ उसकी सूचना इस ग्रुप में दी जाती.” 

आप कैसे इस ग्रुप में जुड़े? इस सवाल पर वह कहते हैं, “मेरी मौसी के लड़के ने मुझे बताया कि युवा मोर्चा में जुड़ जाओ तो मैं जुड़ गया. ग्रुप में जुड़ने के लिए मेरा आधार कार्ड और मोबाइल नंबर लिया गया था.” 

वे आगे कहते हैं, “मुझे जल्द ही समझ आ गया था कि इससे मेरी पढ़ाई का नुकसान हो रहा है. इसके बाद मैंने एक दिन गुस्से में उस व्हाट्सएप ग्रुप को डिलीट कर दिया. उस ग्रुप में दिनभर हिंदुओं के साथ ये हो गया…वो हो गया..ऐसी खबरें आती थीं. फिर हम सब ग्रुप में कमेंट करते थे कि क्या होना चाहिए.”

वे कहते हैं, “जब मैंने ग्रुप छोड़ा और पढ़ाई पर फोकस किया तो उसका रिजल्ट भी मिला. अब मेरी बीएसएफ हेड कांस्टेबल के तौर पर नौकरी लगने वाली है. पहले जोधपुर में मेरा फिजिकल हुआ उसके बाद महाराजपुर में लिखित परीक्षा दी वो भी क्लियर हो गई है, अब मेरा सिर्फ मेडिकल बचा है. अगर मैं यही सब में लगा रहता तो शायद नौकरी नहीं मिलती.”

वह बताते हैं कि दिनभर में उनका ज्यादातर वक्त सिर्फ मैसेज पढ़ने और रिप्लाई करने में चला जाता था. ग्रुप से निकलने के बाद अब पूरा ध्यान पढ़ाई पर लगा पा रहे हैं. उन्हें लग रहा है कि जैसे किसी जाल से निकल गए हों. 

वे आखिर में एक सलाह भी देते हुए नजर आते हैं कि युवाओं को अभी सिर्फ पढ़ाई पर फोकस करना चाहिए. क्योंकि बिना पढ़ाई के कुछ नहीं है.

बांदा शहर और खासतौर से ग्रामीण क्षेत्रों में युवा किसी न किसी संगठन से जुड़े हैं. हमने देखा कि उनकी पढ़ाई से ज्यादा सक्रियता व्हाट्सएप ग्रुपों में है. ये ग्रुप इन युवाओं को बांधकर रखते हैं. चार युवकों के झुंड में खड़े एक युवक ने बताया कि वह इन व्हाट्सएप ग्रुपों, इंस्टाग्राम व अन्य सोशल मीडिया प्लेटफॉर्म पर एक दूसरे से जुड़े रहते हैं और इनके माध्यम से हिंदू धर्म के लिए कैसे काम करते हैं, यह सब सीखते हैं. 

युवाओं के इस झुंड में बात करने से समझ आया कि इनकी पहुंच सिर्फ यहीं तक सीमित है कि किस गांव में गाय मर गई. क्या उसे मारने वाले मुसलमान थे या किसी हिंदू लड़की का दोस्त मुस्लिम तो नहीं है. इनका मानना है अगर अब हिंदुओं के लिए काम नहीं किया तो फिर देश में मुस्लिम राज आ जाएगा.

ऐसे युवाओं की अपनी एक पहचान है. इनके हाथ में कलावा और माथे पर टीका. अगर बाइक पर हैं तो उस पर या तो हिंदू लिखा होगा या फिर जय श्री राम. वाहन पर नंबर ठीक से हो या न हो लेकिन धार्मिक पहचान के संकेत आपको जरूर मिलेंगे.

ऐसे संगठनों को चला रहे पदाधिकारियों से भी हमने बात की. हमने जानना चाहा कि कैसे ये लोग युवाओं को जोड़ते हैं. 

विश्व हिंदू परिषद जिला अध्यक्ष चंद्रमोहन बेदी

इस बारे में हमने विश्व हिंदू परिषद जिला अध्यक्ष चंद्रमोहन बेदी से बात की. उनके घर पर हुई इस मुलाकात की शुरुआत वे ‘जो हिंदू है वो हमारा है’ कहके करते हैं. 

बेदी संगठन के बारे में कहते हैं, “विश्व हिंदू परिषद के तीन आयाम हैं. बजरंग दल, दुर्गा वाहिनी और मातृ शक्ति. इनमें नई जनरेशन के लोग बजरंग दल से जुड़ते हैं. इसमें 15 साल से 35 साल तक के युवाओं को भर्ती किया जाता है. इसी उम्र की महिलाएं दुर्गा वाहिनी से जुड़ती हैं. 35 साल से ज्यादा उम्र के युवक-युवतियों को क्रमश: विश्व हिंदू परिषद और मातृ शक्ति से जोड़ते हैं.” 

संगठन कैसे काम करता है? इस सवाल पर वह कहते हैं, “हमारा जन्म हिंदू समाज के लिए हुआ है. हम कोई राजनैतिक काम नहीं करते हैं. हम सिर्फ समाज का काम करते हैं. हमारे लिए युवा बहुत ज्यादा महत्वपूर्ण हैं क्योंकि उनकी बदौलत ही हम आज राम मंदिर का निर्णाण कर रहे हैं. ये काम 500 साल से अटका था. इसके लिए हमने 78 लड़ाइयां लड़ीं और इसमें हमारे पौने चार सौ हिंदू लोग शहीद हुए हैं.” 

वह आगे मीर बाकी का जिक्र करते हुए कहते हैं कि मुसलमान क्रूर होते हैं. यह किसी को बताने की जरूरत नहीं है. हर समाज का व्यक्ति इस बारे में जानता है. इन्होंने हिंदुओं के खून के गारे से मस्जिद बनाई थी. 

(मीर बाकी का नाम अयोध्या विवाद में इसलिए बार-बार आता है क्योंकि कहा जाता है कि इसी शख्स ने मुगल बादशाह बाबर के राज में यहां मस्जिद बनवाई थी)

“हम युवाओं के सहारे लैंड जिहाद यानी मठ, मंदिरों और गोशालाओं की जगहों पर कब्जे छुड़ाना, जिहादियों से लड़ाई लड़ना. इस तरह के काम करते हैं. बाकी आज कल सबसे ज्यादा हिंदू बहन-बेटियों के साथ लव जिहाद चल रहा है. इसमें हमारी बहन-बेटियों को मुसलमान लड़के कलावा बांधकर अपने को हिंदू बताते हैं. उसके बाद लड़की को प्रेम जाल में फंसाते हैं. अपनी ओर आकर्षित करके साल दो साल में ही लड़की की जिंदगी खराब कर देते हैं. आज कल मुसलमान लड़कियां भी हिंदू लड़कियों से दोस्ती करती हैं, कोचिंग जाती हैं और फिर बाद में उनकी मुस्लिम लड़कों से दोस्ती कराती हैं. ऐसे कई उदाहरण हमारे सामने हैं. बाद में अटैची में उनके टुकड़े मिलते हैं. हमारा काम इन्हें जागरूक करने का है. बांदा में भी हर महीने कम से कम 10 से 15 लड़कियां भागती हैं. जिसके बाद हम प्रशासन की मदद से उन्हें बरामद कर वापस लाते हैं.” बेदी कहते हैं. 

नए युवा आपके साथ कैसे जुड़ते हैं, आप उन्हें क्या बताते हैं और शुरुआती स्टेज में उन्हें क्या करना पड़ता है? इस सवाल पर बेदी कहते हैं, “जब हम 15 साल के बच्चों को अपने साथ लाते हैं तो पहले बजरंग दल में उनका 10 दिन का प्रशिक्षण होता है. कानपुर प्रांत में हमारे 21 जिले हैं. हर जिले में बदल-बदल कर साल में एक बार यह प्रशिक्षण होते हैं. ऐसे ही दुर्गा वाहिनी का है. हम उन्हें 9 दिन का प्रशिक्षण देते हैं. हम इन्हें तीर चलाना, निशानेबाजी, तलवारबाजी, बंदूक चलाना, आग के गोले में कूदना, गढ्ढे फांदना, कहीं फंस जाएं तो वहां से कैसे निकलना है आदि की ट्रेनिंग देते हैं. कुल मिलाकर जैसे मिलिट्री की ट्रेनिग होती है वैसे ही हम ट्रेनिंग देते हैं. यही हमसे जुड़ने के बिल्कुल शुरुआती स्टैप होते हैं.”

ये सब सीखने के बाद क्या होता है और बिना लाइसेंस के बंदूक कैसे चलाएंगे? “अगर मान लो हमें कही जरूरत पड़ी तो फिर हम उनका उपयोग करेंगे. जिनके पास लाइसेंस होता है, वही चलाते हैं, हम संगठन के माध्यम से युवाओं का लाइसेंस भी बनवाते हैं. हम सिर्फ अपने ओर अपने समाज के लिए ऐसा करते हैं.” 

क्या कभी हथियार चलवाने की जरूरत पड़ी? इसके जवाब में बेदी कहते हैं, “अभी तो ऐसा मौका नहीं पड़ा लेकिन तैयारी करके रखनी पड़ती है. कभी-कभी ऐसी घटनाएं हो भी जाती हैं. जैसे अभी कानपुर में दंगे हुए थे. पत्थरबाजों को कैसे जवाब देना है. हम बजरंग दल के युवाओं को ये भी सिखाते हैं कि कैसे पत्थर फेंकना है. पथराव को कैसे रोकना है, ये सब भी सिखाते हैं.” 

लेकिन ये सब काम तो पुलिस का है? “पुलिस आएगी जब आएगी लेकिन उससे पहले तो हमें कुछ करना है.” 

15 साल, 20 साल के बच्चों की उम्र पढ़ने या नौकरी की तैयारी करने की होती है, लेकिन आप उन्हें हथियार चलाना सिखा रहे हैं?. इस सवाल के बाद वह थोड़ा सोचने लगते हैं. फिर कहते हैं, “हम ये सब गर्मियों की छुट्टियों यानि मई-जून में कराते हैं. जब बच्चे बिल्कुल फ्री रहते हैं. दूसरी बात हम केवल हर कार्यकर्ता से संगठन के लिए दिन में केवल एक घंटा मांगते हैं, हर समय के लिए नहीं कहते हैं. हमेशा समय देने के लिए हमारे पूर्ण कालिक सदस्य होते हैं.” 

महीने या सालभर में आपसे कितने नए युवा जुड़ते हैं? इस पर वह कहते हैं, “हमारे यहां साल में एक अभियान चलता है. तीन साल में पहले बजरंग दल में भर्ती अभियान चलता है. फिर विश्व हिंदू परिषद, फिर मातृ शक्ति और दुर्गा विहिनी के लिए भी भर्ती होती है. ये हर तीन साल में चलता है. हमारा मकसद साफ है- जो हिंदू है, वो हमारा है. हम उनको पद देते हैं. इस अभियान के माध्यम से सैंकड़ों युवा हमसे हर महीने जुड़ते हैं.” 

विश्व हिंदू परिषद दुर्गा वाहिनी की बांदा जिला संयोजिका निधि धूरिया

दुर्गा वाहिनी की बांदा जिला संयोजिका निधि धूरिया कहती हैं कि वे महिलाओं के लिए काम करते हैं. महिलाओं को इतना सशक्त बनाने की कोशिश करते हैं कि वह अपनी रक्षा स्वयं कर सकें. इसके लिए वे महिलाओं को तलवारबाजी, निशानेबाजी, लठ्ठबाजी, जूडो-कराटे सिखाते हैं ताकि परेशानी में उन्हें किसी की जरूरत न पड़े.”

निधि कहती हैं, “हम शक्ति साधना कैंप लगाते हैं, जिनमें यह सब प्रशिक्षण दिया जाता है. अभी हमारे साथ 105 बहनें जुड़ी हुई हैं. इनमें से 15 पदाधिकारी हैं.”

युवतियों को जोड़ने के लिए क्या करती हैं? इसके जवाब में निधि कहती हैं, “हम इंटर कॉलेजों में जाते हैं. वहां की टीचर और प्रिंसिपल से मिलते हैं. फिर छात्राओं से बात करते हैं. वे हमारी बात सुनकर हमारे साथ जुड़ने के लिए तैयार हो जाती हैं.” 

32 वर्षीय धूरिया ने एमए तक पढ़ाई की है. वह फिलहाल एक स्कूल में योग भी सिखाती हैं. 

विश्व हिंदू परिषद से जुड़े एक अन्य युवा ने कहा, “जब हिंदुओं के साथ अत्याचार होता है और पुलिस कार्रवाई नहीं करती है तो फिर वहां बजरंग दल अपने हिसाब से कार्रवाई करना जानता है क्योंकि देश का बल बजरंग दल है फिर चाहे मुकदमे लगें या कुछ हो. हम फिर यह सब परवाह नहीं करते हैं. हम हिंदू, हिंदुत्व और मंदिरों के लिए काम कर रहे हैं.”

आप पर कितने मुकदमे हैं? इसका जवाब देते हुए वे कहते हैं, “ये सब तो चलते रहते हैं. साधारण सी बात है. अगर कोई मुकदमा हिंदू समाज के लिए लग रहा है तो ये हमारे लिए गर्व की बात है. मैं अपने हिंदू समाज के लिए काम कर रहा हूं. इससे मुझे कोई दिक्कत नहीं है. हम युवाओं को जोड़ने के लिए आर्मी की तरह ट्रेनिंग देते हैं. जहां भी हिंदू समाज की बात आती है वहां हम सबसे आगे खड़े होते हैं. जब भी कोई घटना होती है तो वहां पुलिस बाद में आती है, हम पहले पहुंच जाते हैं.”

बजरंग दल जिला अध्यक्ष 28 वर्षीय अंकित कुमार

बजरंग दल के जिला अध्यक्ष अंकित कुमार कहते हैं, “जो भी हिंदू हैं वह बजरंग दल और विश्व हिंदू परिषद से जुड़ने का भाव रखते हैं. युवाओं को जोड़ने के लिए हम समय-समय पर अभियान चलाते हैं. जैसे कोचिंग सेंटरों और कॉलेजों पर जाकर या फिर खेल कूद के माध्यम से भी नव युवकों को जोड़ने का काम करते हैं. जिहादियों से बहन-बेटियों की सुरक्षा कैसे हो हम इस पर काम करते हैं. युवाओं के जुड़ने से हम मजबूत होते हैं.” 

“हम विद्यालयों में जाकर संपर्क करते हैं. ये सब हिंदू हित चिंतक अभियान के माध्यम से होता है. जो भी हिंदू हितों की चिंता करता है, हम उसे जोड़ते हैं. उनका एक शुल्क भी रहता है. ऐसे कार्यक्रम प्रतिवर्ष होते हैं.” उन्होंने कहा. 

वह आगे कहते हैं, “अगर स्कूल का डायरेक्टर हिंदू होगा तभी हम बात आगे बढ़ाते हैं. फिर कैंप लगाकर बच्चों को जोड़ते हैं. इस दौरान बच्चों को यही समझाते हैं कि हम अपने लिए तो 24 घंटे जीते हैं लेकिन एक घंटा अपने समाज, देश और राष्ट्र के लिए निकालें. हिंदू हित का जिसके अंदर भाव होता है, वह समर्पण के साथ हमारे साथ जुड़ता है. सोशल मीडिया के माध्यम से भी हम लोगों को जोड़ते हैं.”

वह आखिर में जोड़ते हैं, “आज बांदा जिले के हर गांव में बजरंग दल का कार्यकर्ता है. चित्रकूट, हमीरपुर, महुआ बांदा में लगभग डेढ़ से दो लाख हमारे कार्यकर्ता हैं. हिंदुत्व के लिए जीना चाहिए और हिंदुत्व के लिए ही मरना चाहिए. जब अन्य समाज कर सकता है तो फिर हिंदू समाज क्यों नहीं कर सकता है.”

बादां जिले के बनियान पुरवा बदौसा गांव निवासी सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता अवध पटेल युवाओं के इन संगठनों से जुड़ने की एक अलग ही वजह बताते हैं. वह कहते हैं, “यहां बुंदेलखंड में शिक्षा का स्तर बहुत खराब है. सामाजिक स्थिति भी ठीक नहीं है. इन संगठनों से ज्यादातर गरीब घरों के बच्चे जुड़ रहे हैं. अमीर घरों के बच्चे इन सब में नहीं पड़ रहे हैं. दूसरी बात, यहां के युवाओं को कोई भी ठीक दिशा देने वाला नहीं है. क्योंकि यहां पर न तो इनके परिवार वाले इतने पढ़े हुए हैं और न ही यहां का माहौल उस तरह का है कि बच्चा पढ़ लिखकर सही दिशा में जाए.”

वे आगे कहते हैं, “जो युवा घर से मजबूत हैं या जमीन जायदाद वाले हैं वह पैसे और पहचान के बल पर आगे बढ़ जाते हैं. लेकिन ज्यादातर युवा अपना समय इन संगठनों में खराब करने के बाद बेरोजगार होकर धक्के खाते हैं. फिर जो दो-चार बीघा जमीन होते है उसी के सहारे अपना जीवन गुजार देते हैं.”

हमने पाया कि युवा किसी खास वजह या शख्सियत से आकर्षित होकर ऐसे संगठनों का हिस्सा बन जाते हैं. लेकिन इनमें अधिकांश युवा आर्थिक, सामाजिक और शैक्षणिक रूप से पिछड़े होते हैं. वही, दूसरा ओर आर्थिक रूप से संपन्न परिवारों के युवा होते हैं. जो अपने परिजनों के बूते राजनीति में अपना भविष्य बनाने की चाहत रखते हैं. इन दोनों ही समूहों में से पहले वर्ग (आर्थिक रूप से पिछड़ा और कम पढ़े लिखे परिवार) को कुछ सालों का समय बिताने के बाद ये महसूस होने लगता है कि उनका भविष्य फिलहाल यहां नहीं है. ऐसे युवा इन समूहों से अलग हो जाते हैं और जीवन यापन के दूसरे अवसरों की ओर मुड़ जाते हैं. जैसे- नौकरी, व्यापार व अन्य रोजगार आदि.

साफ तौर पर कहें तो उनको इस तरह के संगठनों की स्याह हकीकत का पता चल जाता है. 

(यह रिपोर्ट रूरल फेलोशिप का हिस्सा है. न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री से अवधेश कुमार व ख़बर लहरिया से गीता देवी ने इसे तैयार किया है.)

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‘Feel angry watching TV news’: Activist behind NBDSA fines on many channelshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/feel-angry-watching-tv-news-activist-behind-nbdsa-fines-on-many-channelshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/feel-angry-watching-tv-news-activist-behind-nbdsa-fines-on-many-channels#comments3637438e-5122-42b3-b95c-f3373f30a84aTue, 12 Mar 2024 06:12:29 +00002024-03-12T06:12:29.948ZBasant Kumar/api/author/730930NBDSANL Interview

“In a way, this is my medium of resistance. I come from the LGBT community, so I know how it feels when a minority is oppressed,” says Indrajeet Ghorpade, a 32-year-old techie and activist from Pune.

Indrajeet has filed over 50 complaints so far against several news channels with the News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority. In most of his complaints, the NBDSA – a self-regulatory body which has over 120 channels as members – has taken action ranging from fines to directions to take down content and issue apologies.

The activist says he started filing such complaints during the Covid period. “At that time the media was calling the workers and especially the Muslims as 'Corona bombs'. At the same time, the case of Sushant Singh Rajput's death came up. The media also covered it badly. I was home…I read the rules of NBDSA. Since I am an IT professional, it did not take much time for me to understand it. After that, I started filing complaints.”

But how to file such complaints? What is the process? How do channels counter them? Why does the media often lack objectivity? Indrajeet has some answers.

Watch.

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इंद्रजीत घोरपड़े: जिनके चलते अमन चोपड़ा और अमीश देवगन के शो पर लगा जुर्माना, पड़ी डांटhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/indrajeet-ghorpade-on-whom-comaplaint-nbdsa-acted-against-aaj-tak-news-18-and-othershttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/12/indrajeet-ghorpade-on-whom-comaplaint-nbdsa-acted-against-aaj-tak-news-18-and-others#comments1360c1a9-4a4f-4732-b2b1-bc59c60c0ca4Tue, 12 Mar 2024 05:31:02 +00002024-03-12T05:31:02.635Zबसंत कुमार/api/author/730901Amish Devgan,Aman Chopra,Indrajeet GhorpadeMediaVideo

हाल ही में न्यूज़ ब्रॉडकास्टिंग एंड डिजिटल स्टैंडर्ड्स अथॉरिटी (एनबीडीएसए) ने अमन चोपड़ा और अमीश देवगन समेत कुछ एंकरों के शो पर कार्रवाई की. एनबीडीएसए ने एकतरफा रिपोर्टिंग पर आपत्ति दर्ज कराते हुए इनके शो पर जुर्माना भी लगाया और साथ ही उन वीडियोज को तमाम प्लेटफॉर्म से हटाने का आदेश दिया. 

एनबीडीएसए, समाचार और डिजिटल प्रसारकों द्वारा बनाई गई एक स्व-नियामक एजेंसी है. करीब 125 चैनल इसके सदस्य हैं. 

एनबीडीएसए ने यह कार्रवाई इंद्रजीत घोरपड़े की शिकायत पर की है. महाराष्ट्र के पुणे के रहने वाले 32 वर्षीय इंद्रजीत ने अब तक टीवी चैनलों के 50 कार्यक्रमों के खिलाफ एनबीडीएसए में शिकायत दी है. वे दावा करते हैं कि उनकी शिकायतों में से 90 प्रतिशत मामलों में चैनलों पर कार्रवाई हुई है.

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री ने इंद्रजीत से शिकायतों और मीडिया को लेकर बात की. इसके पीछे उनका मकसद क्या है? ये सवाल पूछने पर इंद्रजीत कहते हैं, ‘‘यह एक तरह से मेरे प्रतिरोध का माध्यम है. मैं खुद एलजीबीटी कम्युनिटी से आता हूं तो मुझे पता है कि किसी अल्पसंख्यक को दबाया जाता है तो कैसा महूसस होता है.’’

इंद्रजीत आगे बताते हैं, ‘‘इस सिलसिले की शुरुआत कोरोना काल के दौरान हुई. उस वक़्त मज़दूरों को और खासकर मुस्लिमों को मीडिया ‘कोरोना बम’ की संज्ञा दे रहा था. उसी वक़्त सुशांत सिंह राजपूत की मौत वाला मामला आया. उसकी कवरेज भी मीडिया ने बुरी तरह से की. मैं कोरोना काल में घर पर रह रहा था. मैंने एनबीडीएस के नियमों को पढ़ा. चूंकि मैं आईटी प्रोफेशनल हूं तो मुझे समझने में ज़्यादा वक़्त नहीं लगा. उसके बाद मैंने शिकायत दर्ज करानी शुरू कर दी.’’

इंद्रजीत एनबीडीएस के सामने अपना पक्ष खुद ही रखते हैं. कैसे एनबीडीएस में शिकायत करते हैं? वहां क्या प्रक्रिया होती है? चैनल अपना पक्ष रखते हुए क्या कहते हैं? और  क्या मीडिया एलजीबीटीक्यू कम्युनिटी पर रिपोर्टिंग करते वक़्त सावधानी बरतता है? इन तमाम सवालों पर इंद्रजीत ने खुलकर अपना पक्ष रखा.

देखिए पूरा इंटरव्यू-  

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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दिल्लीवालों में आक्रोश, पूछा- पुलिसवाले सुरक्षा के लिए हैं या फिर लात मारने के लिए?https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/11/delhi-police-si-manoj-tomar-suspended-after-kicking-people-offering-namaz-in-delhi-peple-ask-strict-actionhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/03/11/delhi-police-si-manoj-tomar-suspended-after-kicking-people-offering-namaz-in-delhi-peple-ask-strict-action#comments6aaf1eb7-0c25-4d98-9b44-dba81101cd13Mon, 11 Mar 2024 08:29:50 +00002024-03-11T08:29:50.147Zतनिष्का सोढ़ी/api/author/1561182delhi police,Namaz,Manoj Kumar TomarReportVideo

उत्तरी दिल्ली के इंद्रलोक इलाके में गत शुक्रवार को आक्रोश का माहौल था. यहां दिल्ली पुलिस के एसआई मनोज कुमार तोमर ने एक मस्जिद के बाहर नमाज पढ़ रहे लोगों को लात मार दी. इस घटना का वीडियो तुरंत ही सोशल मीडिया पर वायरल हो गया. लोगों में गुस्सा बढ़ता देख तोमर को निलंबित कर दिया गया.

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री ने इलाके के स्थानीय लोगों से बात की और पूछा कि क्या हुआ था. लोगों ने कहा कि मस्जिद में भीड़ थी, जिसके कारण कुछ लोग मस्जिद के बाहर पार्किंग वाले इलाके में नमाज अदा करने लगे. 

स्थानीय लोगों में से एक ने कहा कि पुलिस कर्मियों ने पहले तो हमें नमाज पढ़ने से रोका नहीं लेकिन बाद में उन्हें लात मारी. 

लोगों का कहना है कि तोमर का निलंबन काफी नहीं है बल्कि उसे नौकरी से बर्खास्त करना चाहिए. वहीं, एक ने पूछा, "पुलिस हमारी सुरक्षा के लिए है या उत्पीड़न के लिए?"

देखिए ये वीडियो रिपोर्ट. 

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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छापेमारी और चंदा: भाजपा का संयोग या प्रयोग?https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/02/27/electoral-bonds-political-funding-series-exclusive-investigation-by-newslaundry-and-the-news-minutehttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/02/27/electoral-bonds-political-funding-series-exclusive-investigation-by-newslaundry-and-the-news-minute#comments6f96becf-67d7-448b-b8ff-536a0a32e8acTue, 27 Feb 2024 11:02:19 +00002024-02-27T11:02:19.439Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889BJP,Electoral bonds,Political fundingPolitical-fundingVideoNL TNM Election Fund

सुप्रीम कोर्ट की संविधान पीठ ने इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स स्कीम पर फैसला देते वक्त जो कहा उसका एक आशय यह भी था कि यह चंदा देने वाला..राजनीतिक पार्टियों से लाभ लेने के लिए चंदा दे रहा है.. इसे क्विड प्रो को करार दिया यानी यानी एक हाथ देना दूसरे हाथ से लेना.

राजनीतिक दलों को चंदा पाने के और भी रास्ते हैं. इनमें से एक है सीधे कारपोरेट कंपनियों से मिलने वाला चंदा. इसकी जानकारी राजनीतिक दल चुनाव आयोग को देते हैं. इस तरीके से चंदा हासिल करने में सत्ताधारी दल को बढ़त हासिल है, उसके पास ऐसी एजेंसिया और ताकत है, जिसका इस्तेमाल कर कारपोरेट की बांह मरोड़ी जा सकती है. 

हम ऐसा क्यों कह रहे हैं. और ये सवाल क्यों उठ खड़ा हुआ है? ये जानने के लिए आपको न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट की ताजा इन्वेस्टिगेशन पढ़नी होगी. 

सार्वजनिक रूप से उपलब्ध जानकारियों और दस्तावेजों का मिलान करने पर हमने पाया कि पिछले पांच-छह सालों के दौरान भाजपा को 30 कंपनियों से लगभग 335 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा मिला है.  मजे की बात ये है कि इन सभी तीस कंपनियों ने भाजपा को चंदा तब दिया जब उनके ऊपर केंद्रीय जांच एजेंसियों मसलन ईडी, सीबीआई या फिर आयकर विभाग ने छापा मारा. क्या यह महज संयोग है या फिर किसी योजनाबद्ध रणनीति का हिस्सा है, हमें नहीं पता. अगर यह संयोग है, तो यह दुर्लभ संयोग है. 

तो ये 30 कंपनियां कौन सी हैं.. इनके नाम जानने के लिए तो आपको न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री- द न्यूज़ मिनट द्वारा की गई तीन महीने लंबी एक पड़ताल को पढ़ना होगा. इसे हमारे साथी प्रतीक गोयल, कोराह अब्राहम, बसंत कुमार और नंदिनी चंद्रशेखर ने किया है. इस पड़ताल में कुछ बेहद दिलचस्प बाते सामने आई हैं. 

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भाजपा की निरंतर सफलता में इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड, चुनावी ट्रस्ट और कॉरपोरेट घरानों पर छापेमारी का हाथ https://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/02/20/electoral-bonds-electoral-trusts-and-raids-on-corporate-is-behind-bjp-continuous-successhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2024/02/20/electoral-bonds-electoral-trusts-and-raids-on-corporate-is-behind-bjp-continuous-success#commentsb148dab3-3b93-4430-8915-704c77febfd5Tue, 20 Feb 2024 05:41:43 +00002024-02-20T05:41:43.797Zप्रतीक गोयल/api/author/731028BJP,Electoral bonds,ED raidsPolitical-fundingReportNL TNM Election FundNL-TNM 2024 Election Fundराजनीति में कॉरपोरेट फंडिंग एक विवादित विषय रहा है. भारत में यह और ज़्यादा विवादों से भरा है क्योंकि यहां हालिया कुछ सालों में अधिकांश पैसा केवल एक ही पार्टी के खाते में गया है. ऐसा लगता है कि यह सब किसी सुनियोजित पैटर्न पर चल रहा है.

पिछले पांच वित्तीय वर्षों में भाजपा को लगभग 335 करोड़ रुपये चंदा देने वाली करीब 30 कंपनियों को केंद्रीय जांच एजेंसियों की छापेमारी का सामना करना पड़ा है. एक पैटर्न यह है कि पहले छापा, तुरंत बाद चंदा, दूसरा पैटर्न यह है कि छापे के बाद चंदे की राशि में बढ़ोत्तरी. कुछ कंपनियों ने कार्रवाई के ठीक बाद के महीनों में चंदे की राशि को अनपेक्षित रूप से बढ़ा दिया. 

क्या यह महज संयोग है?

इसी तरह इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड के पहले चुनावी चंदे के लिए जो व्यवस्था काम करती थी उसे चुनावी ट्रस्ट कहते हैं. चुनावी ट्रस्ट की व्यवस्था इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड आने के बाद लगभग विलुप्त हो गई है. लेकिन एक ट्रस्ट इसके बावजूद काम कर रहा है, आखिर क्यों? और कुछ कंपनियां अभी भी इसी ट्रस्ट के जरिए चंदा क्यों दे रही हैं?

ये कुछ ऐसे प्रश्न हैं जिनका न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट की यह खोजी पत्रकारिता सीरीज़ जवाब देने का प्रयास करती है. पिछले 10 वर्षों से सार्वजनिक रूप से उपलब्ध सभी तरह के आंकड़ों के साथ हमने इसे समझने की कोशिश की है. यानी, चुनावी बॉन्ड को छोड़कर सारे उपलब्ध आंकड़ों के आधार पर.

इस बात के मद्देनज़र कि नरेंद्र मोदी सरकार की इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड योजना को सर्वोच्च न्यायालय द्वारा रद्द कर दिया गया है. अदालत ने पार्टियों की कॉरपोरेट फंडिंग में लेनदेन की आशंका (क्विड प्रो को) और सार्वजनिक पारदर्शिता के अभाव का जिक्र किया है. 

सत्ता, बॉन्ड और कॉरपोरेट्स

हाल के वर्षों में बार-बार यह जानकारी सामने आई है कि सत्तारूढ़ पार्टी अर्थात भाजपा को लगातार बाकी राजनीतिक दलों की तुलना में कहीं ज़्यादा धन चुनावी चंदे के रूप में मिला है.

चुनावी ट्रस्टों के जरिए भाजपा को सबसे ज्यादा धन मिला. 2022-23 में कांग्रेस को चुनावी ट्रस्टों के ज़रिए उद्योग जगत से भाजपा द्वारा कमाए गए हर 100 रुपये पर मात्र 19 पैसे मिले. चुनावी ट्रस्ट एक ऐसी योजना है, जिसमें कॉरपोरेट कंपनियां अपने दान को एक ट्रस्ट में जमा करती हैं. इसके बाद ट्रस्ट अपनी पहचान गोपनीय रखते इस राशि को विभिन्न राजनीतिक दलों को वितरित करता है. 2013 के बाद से, जब यूपीए सरकार द्वारा यह योजना शुरू की गई थी, तब से भाजपा को इसका सबसे अधिक फायदा हुआ है. पार्टी को पिछले 10 वर्षों में विभिन्न ट्रस्टों के माध्यम से 1,893 करोड़ रुपये से अधिक चंदा मिला है.

इसी तरह इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स से भी भाजपा को ही सबसे ज्यादा धन मिला. साल 2022-23 में उसे लगभग 1,300 करोड़ रुपये मिले, जो इसी दौरान कांग्रेस को मिले धन से सात गुना ज़्यादा है. इस अवधि में भाजपा की लगभग 61 प्रतिशत फंडिंग इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड के माध्यम से हुई थी. 2018 से 2022 के दौरान इस तरीके से मिले कुल चंदे का करीब 57 फीसदी हिस्सा भाजपा को मिला.

सीधे मिलने वाले चंदे में से भी भाजपा के खाते में बहुत बड़ा हिस्सा गया. एसोसिएशन फॉर डेमोक्रेटिक रिफॉर्म्स (एडीआर) के अनुसार, 2022-23 में राष्ट्रीय दलों को दिए गए कुल 850.4 करोड़ रुपये में से 719.8 करोड़ रुपये अकेले भाजपा को मिले.

वहीं, इस बीच सरकार की ओर से जारी किए जाने वाले इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड्स की संख्या में भी बढ़ोतरी देखी गई.

मार्च 2022 से मार्च 2023 तक के वित्तीय वर्ष के दौरान, कुल 2,800 करोड़ रुपये के इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड बेचे गए. मौजूदा महीने में संसद में सरकार के आंकड़ों के अनुसार, 2019 से अभी तक 16,518 करोड़ रुपये से ज़्यादा के बॉन्ड खरीदे जा चुके हैं.

ये बॉन्ड किसने खरीदे? पारदर्शिता के लिए काम करने वाले सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता कोमोडोर (सेवानिवृत्त) लोकेश बत्रा को आरटीआई से मिली जानकारी के मुताबिक 2018 से दिसंबर 2022 तक 1,000 रुपये मूल्य के बॉन्ड कुल बिक्री का सिर्फ 0.01 प्रतिशत थे, जबकि एक करोड़ रुपये की कीमत वाले बॉन्ड 94.41 प्रतिशत थे. संभावना ये भी है कि यह चंदा कॉरपोरेट फर्मों द्वारा कुछ व्यक्तियों या शेल कंपनियों के पीछे छुपकर किया गए.

सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने अब भारतीय स्टेट बैंक को नए बॉन्ड्स जारी करने से रोक दिया है. साथ ही भारत के चुनाव आयोग को 2019 के बाद से प्राप्त फंडिंग का विवरण सार्वजनिक करने के लिए कहा है. इस बीच योजना की नवीनतम किश्त के ज़रिये मिले धन से, आगामी चुनाव के लिए पूरे भारत में चुनाव प्रचार के लिए धन मिलने की संभावना भी है.

राजनीतिक दलों की कॉरपोरेट फंडिंग पूरी दुनिया में एक विवाद का विषय है. कंपनियों द्वारा राजनेताओं को पैसा देना, दोनों के बीच सांठगांठ के प्रश्न उठाता है. इससे भ्रष्टाचार के साथ-साथ सत्ता व व्यापार के बीच आपसी लेनदेन वाले अनैतिक संबंध को बढ़ावा मिलता है. यह एक ऐसा आयाम है जिसे उच्चतम न्यायालय ने भी 15 फरवरी को अपना फैसला सुनाते समय रेखांकित किया था. अदालत का कहना था, "कंपनियों द्वारा किया गया योगदान विशुद्ध रूप से व्यापारिक लेनदेन है, जो बदले में लाभ हासिल करने के इरादे से किया जाता है."

दो गहन डेटा रिपोर्ट में दिखाई देती दो प्रवृत्तियां

न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट ने जब पिछले 10 वर्षों में 1 करोड़ रुपये या उससे अधिक का दान देने वाली कंपनियों की सूची खंगाली, तो दो रुझान नज़र आए.

भाजपा को कुल 335 करोड़ रुपये का चंदा देने वाली करीब 30 कंपनियों को इसी अवधि में केंद्र सरकार की एजेंसियों द्वारा छापेमारी जैसी कार्रवाइयों का सामना करना पड़ा था.

कुछ कंपनियों ने कार्रवाई होने के बाद पार्टी को और ज़्यादा दान दिया, जबकि कुछ अन्य को एक साल में दान न देने के बाद कार्रवाई का सामना करना पड़ा.

मध्य प्रदेश स्थित एक डिस्टिलरी ने छापेमारी के बाद पार्टी को सबसे तेजी से दान दिया. कम्पनी के प्रमोटरों को जमानत मिलने के कुछ ही दिनों बाद यह काम हुआ.

ये 30 कंपनियां कौन हैं? उन पर क्या आरोप लगाए गए? इसको विस्तार से जानने के लिए इस श्रृंखला का इस हफ्ते प्रकाशित होने वाला पहला भाग अवश्य पढ़ें.

इसी सीरीज़ की हमारी दूसरी रिपोर्ट चुनावी बॉन्ड के पहले वाली व्यवस्था, यानी चुनावी ट्रस्ट पर नज़र डालती है, जो आज लगभग विलुप्त हो चुका है. विलुप्ति के शोर में भी एक ट्रस्ट मैदान में खड़ा है. भारती समूह द्वारा स्थापित किया गया प्रूडेंट इलेक्टोरल ट्रस्ट. पिछले कुछ वर्षों में बड़ी कॉरपोरेट कंपनियों ने प्रूडेंट को सैकड़ों करोड़ रुपये दान किए हैं और इसमें से अधिकांश पैसा सीधे भाजपा को गया है.

प्रूडेंट की सक्रियता वो भी एक पार्टी के पक्ष में चौंकाती है. जब अन्य ट्रस्ट मुश्किल से ही कुछ धन एकत्र कर पा रहे हैं तो यह कैसे काम कर रही है? और इलेक्टोरल बॉन्ड होने के बावजूद कुछ कंपनियां चुनावी ट्रस्ट के माध्यम से ही दान देना क्यों पसंद करती हैं? इस श्रृंखला की हमारी दूसरी रिपोर्ट में इस रहस्य के बारे में पढ़ें.  

ये दोनों विशेष रिपोर्ट पढ़ने के लिए आपको न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री- द न्यूज़ मिनट को सब्सक्राइब करना होगा. नहीं किया है तो कर लीजिए. ताकि आप गर्व से कह सकें- मेरे खर्च पर आज़ाद हैं खबरें.   

और हां, आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे आप समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

इस ख़बर को अंग्रेजी में पढ़ने के लिए यहां क्लिक करें.

आम चुनाव करीब आ चुके हैं, और न्यूज़लॉन्ड्री और द न्यूज़ मिनट के पास उन मुद्दों पर ध्यान केंद्रित करने के लिए सेना प्रोजेक्ट्स हैं, जो वास्तव में आपके लिए मायने रखते हैं. यहां क्लिक करके हमारे किसी एक सेना प्रोजेक्ट को चुनें, जिसे समर्थन देना चाहते हैं.

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खूनी नफरत का बिगुल बजाने वाला मोनू मानेसर एंड गैंगhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2023/09/01/monu-manesar-full-documentary-in-hindi-by-newslaundry-bajrang-dal-vhp-haryana-policehttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2023/09/01/monu-manesar-full-documentary-in-hindi-by-newslaundry-bajrang-dal-vhp-haryana-police#comments413b5522-3d13-43e9-a245-bf363e3b6580Fri, 01 Sep 2023 13:35:17 +00002023-09-01T13:35:17.526Zन्यूज़लॉन्ड्री टीम/api/author/730889vhp,Bajrang Dal,Monu ManesarVideoMonu Manesar's video profilesubscriber-onlyNL Documentaries

‘हम सिर्फ एक ही बात कहते हैं, अगर आप गौहत्या करोगे तो आपको उसकी सजा जरूर मिलेगी’ ये बोल थे तथाकथित गौरक्षक मोनू मानेसर के, जब वो अपने काम-काज के तरीकों के बारे में बता रहे थे. 

मोनू इसी साल फरवरी में दो मुस्लिम लड़कों की हत्या के आरोप के बाद से फरार चल रहा था. जिसे आज हरियाणा पुलिस ने गिरफ्तार किया. हाल ही में मोनू एक बार फिर से हरियाणा के नूंह और गुरुग्राम में सांप्रदायिक हिंसा से पहले दिए अपने ‘भड़काऊ बयानों’ के लिए चर्चा में था. 

फरार मोनू को भले ही दो-दो राज्यों (हरियाणा-राजस्थान) की पुलिस नहीं ढूंढ पा रही थी लेकिन वो खुलेआम टीवी चैनलों पर इंटरव्यू दे रहा था. ऐसे में बहुत से सवाल उठते हैं कि आखिर मोनू को संरक्षण कौन दे रहा है? किसकी मदद से वो इतना बेखौफ हो कर गौसंरक्षण के नाम पर कानून अपने हाथ में लेता है? और आखिर वो ये सब कैसे करता है? 

हमारी यह फिल्म इन सभी सवालों का जवाब तो देती ही है साथ ही उन सभी चीजों का भी पर्दाफाश करती है जो मोनू मानेसर को ताकतवर बनाती हैं. चाहे वो इसके सहयोगी हों, मुख़बिर हों, उसे हथियार मुहैया कराने वाले हों, उसकी मोडिफाइड गाड़ियां हों, जीपीएस ट्रैकर्स हों या पुलिस का संरक्षण. 

कुछ स्वतंत्र फिल्म निर्माताओं ने इसे तैयार किया है. ये लोग साल 2021 के अंत और 2022 की शुरुआत के बीच कई हफ्तों तक मोनू मानेसर के साथ रहे और उसके पूरे गैंग को कैमरे में दर्ज किया है. 

सिर्फ आपके सहयोग से इस सच्चाई का पर्दाफ़ाश करने में हमें सफलता मिली. इस तरह के फिल्म निर्माताओं की हौसला-अफ़ज़ाई के लिए एनएल सेना प्रोजेक्ट को अपना सहयोग दें ताकि आगे भी इस तरह की फिल्में आप तक पहुंचती रहें. 

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GPS tools, spike bars, and informer-cop nexus: Inside the world of Monu Manesar https://www.newslaundry.com/2023/09/01/gps-tools-spike-bars-and-informer-cop-nexus-inside-the-world-of-monu-manesarhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2023/09/01/gps-tools-spike-bars-and-informer-cop-nexus-inside-the-world-of-monu-manesar#comments656122ce-1ce9-4332-91ab-266224e6e7abFri, 01 Sep 2023 13:30:00 +00002023-09-01T13:30:00.000ZNL Team/api/author/730883Cow Vigilantism,Monu Manesar,Haryana ViolenceMonu Manesar's video profileVideoGround ReportNL Documentaries

“We have only one clarion call…If you slaughter cows, there will be hell to pay,” Monu Manesar says in a film documenting the modus operandi of the Bajrang Dal vigilante. On the run after being booked for the murder of two Muslim men in February this year, Monu is again in the news for his alleged provocative speeches ahead of the Nuh and Gurugram communal violence that claimed seven lives.

A nexus of collaborators and informers, equipped with spiked bars, “modified” SUVs, GPS trackers and the patronage of the police – the film spotlights everything that enables Monu. As he explains his tactics to identify and “catch” vehicles carrying “cows”, Monu says he and his men block the roads “with the police’s help” if they find a truck with cows. “We block the road ahead with the police’s help…We take control, catch the vehicle and the cow smugglers.”

The film was made by independent filmmakers who trailed Monu and his accomplices for weeks between late 2021 and early 2022. We were able to release this only because of your support.

Contribute to this NL Sena project to incentivise these brave filmmakers to do more, and not quit. 

Update at 4.45 pm, September 12: Monu Manesar has reportedly been held by the SIT probing the Nuh violence. Further details are awaited.

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डॉक्यूमेंट्री: सांसों में सिलिका- हर साल इस बीमारी से हो रही हजारों मजदूरों की मौतhttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2022/11/25/documentary-silica-in-my-breathehttps://hindi.newslaundry.com/2022/11/25/documentary-silica-in-my-breathe#commentsacdae86c-4276-4a10-9e60-5fccb43c78a5Fri, 25 Nov 2022 13:36:33 +00002022-11-25T13:36:33.114Zहृदयेश जोशी/api/author/730886documentary,SilicaGround ReportVideoNL Documentaries

सिलिकोसिस कार्यस्थल पर होने वाली एक जानलेवा बीमारी है जिसे “मौत का कुंआं” भी कहा जाता है. सिलिका मिश्रित धूल फेफड़ों में जाने से मजदूर बीमार हो जाते हैं. भारत में हर साल हजारों मजदूर इस बीमारी के कारण दम तोड़ रहे हैं.  

देश में सिलिकोसिस पीड़ितों की सही संख्या का अंदाजा नहीं है लेकिन अलग-अलग अनुमान और आईसीएमआर के डाटा से पता चलता है कि साल 2000 में ही कोई एक करोड़ लोग इसकी चपेट में थे. मजदूर को मौत के दरवाजे तक ले जाने वाले ये सारे उद्योग कंपनियों और ठेकेदारों के लिए सोना उगलते हैं लेकिन इन मज़दूरों के पास कोई स्वास्थ्य या सामाजिक सुरक्षा का कवर नहीं है. 

देखिये हृदयेश जोशी द्वारा निर्देशित भारत के कई राज्यों से जमीनी हकीकत दिखाती यह डॉक्यूमेंट्री - सांसों में सिलिका.  

यह डॉक्यूमेंट्री ठाकुर फैमिली फाउंडेशन के सहयोग से बनी है. हम वडोदरा स्थिति पीपुल्स ट्रेनिंग एंड रिसर्च सेंटर का भी शुक्रिया अदा करते हैं जिन्होंने इस डॉक्यूमेंट्री को बनाने के लिए हमें अपनी कुछ तस्वीरें और वीडियो इस्तेमाल करने की अनुमति दी.

यह एक विज्ञापन नहीं है. कोई विज्ञापन ऐसी रिपोर्ट को फंड नहीं कर सकता, लेकिन आप कर सकते हैं, क्या आप ऐसा करेंगे? विज्ञापनदाताओं के दबाव में न आने वाली आजाद व ठोस पत्रकारिता के लिए अपना योगदान दें. सब्सक्राइब करें. ]]>
Dams and disasters: How an Uttarakhand village was drowned for ‘development’https://www.newslaundry.com/2022/05/10/dams-and-disasters-how-an-uttarakhand-village-was-drowned-for-developmenthttps://www.newslaundry.com/2022/05/10/dams-and-disasters-how-an-uttarakhand-village-was-drowned-for-development#comments8f5af706-ab2b-4b7a-bb0a-05fb32a0f5ccTue, 10 May 2022 15:30:00 +00002022-05-10T15:30:00.000ZNoman Siddiqui/api/author/1609213UttarakhandGround ReportNL Documentaries

For decades, Uttarakhand’s Lohari village in Dehradun district has been home to a tribal community called the Jaunsars. They live mainly in the foothills of the western Himalayas and are believed to be descendents of the Pandavas.

Now, residents of Lohari allege they are being forced to abandon their homes to make way for the Vyasi Hydroelectric Project, the biggest dam project on the Yamuna river. The foundations of the project were laid in 1972, when a land acquisition agreement was signed between villagers and the government for the construction of the dam.

Displacement due to dams and development projects is not uncommon. It can also be traumatic and dehumanising. Those displaced often struggle to get the compensation that was promised when the project was commissioned.

But there are other issues too. Environmentalists say laws and studies are often violated and ignored to ease the paths of such projects. These projects can also assault ecology and riverine populations, while impacting people’s livelihoods and their culture. According to the South Asia Network on Dams, River and People, there have been 20 floods in India since 2009 as a result of dams “breaking”, or excess water being released from them.

As one Lohari resident said, how can this be development when people are being displaced?

In this report, we explore the impact of projects like the Vyasi dam on people and the environment. If the state government claims to have designed a rehabilitation plan, why are locals so angry and upset?

Watch.

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Arsenic in water brings death and disease in UP, Biharhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2022/01/24/arsenic-in-water-brings-death-and-disease-in-up-biharhttps://www.newslaundry.com/2022/01/24/arsenic-in-water-brings-death-and-disease-in-up-bihar#comments162c2293-810f-4114-a073-917e30404841Mon, 24 Jan 2022 16:02:07 +00002022-01-24T16:02:07.722ZHridayesh Joshi/api/author/731013health,water pollutionVideoArsenic Agony 1NL DocumentariesAround 900 kilometres from Delhi, it is difficult to find a single household unaffected by illness in Tiwaritola village of Ballia﹘a border district cushioned between Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Reason: presence of high levels of arsenic in groundwater.

“I have been taking medicines for my liver and arthritis since 2000. Even getting up or sitting down hurts, bones ache all the time; uric acid increases, there are problems related to thyroid,” says Tarkeshwar Tiwari, a 63-year-old villager suffering from liver cirrhosis. “I fell ill due to the arsenic. The water here has too much of it. We came to know about this because of my medical investigation.”

Diseases linked to kidneys, liver, gallbladder, uterus or other organs are common in the village. But it is not just Tiwaritola; arsenicosis is a menace in many villages in the district. The disease happens due to long-term use of groundwater with arsenic levels higher than the norms. Risks of cancer increase as body parts develop problems. Dark patches and rashes on the skin, especially on the palms, back and feet, are common symptoms.

In December 2021, the government accepted in parliament that at least 76 inhabited areas in Ballia, which is the most affected in UP, are affected by arsenic pollution. On December 13, in reply to a question in Rajya Sabha, the government said that 107 areas in 10 districts of UP are affected by the element.

On March 22 last year, the government accepted in the House that 150 districts of 21 states have arsenic levels higher than the safety limit. Twenty-eight of 75 districts in UP, 22 of 38 districts in Bihar, 18 of 33 districts in Assam, and nine of 23 districts in West Bengal have dangerous arsenic levels.

However, experts and volunteer organisations say the situation is more grim than what the government data claims.

Tarkeshwar Tiwari's village Tiwaritola is among several areas affected in UP's Ballia.

Dependency on groundwater a problem?

While arsenic is a geogenic problem, and more than 100 countries are facing this menace, there was no information about its health hazards in India until nearly five decades ago. While scientists and researchers continue to probe the reasons behind the spread, there are some who say the problem did not exist before due to the use of surface water﹘from rivers, ponds and open wells﹘for the purpose of drinking and cooking.

According to these experts, arsenic arsenopyrite was present as a mineral in the flood plains of Ganga but it didn’t dissolve in water. However, this changed with exploitation of groundwater since the 1970s, they said.

The chemistry of water sources started changing and the arsenopyrite started to ionise, claimed Dr Ashok Kumar Ghosh, head of the research department in Mahavir Cancer Institute of Patna. He attributed this change in water usage to organisations such as the WHO and UNICEF emphasising on groundwater instead of surface water to avoid diseases like diarrhoea in several developing countries. Because of such suggestions, there was a rise in the use of groundwater with rapid installations of hand pumps and tubewells, Ghosh claimed.

India stands at 120 among 122 countries in the World Water Quality Index. According to a study by IIT Kharagpur, 20 percent of the country today is affected by arsenic and 25 crore people are in danger of developing related diseases.

As per WHO, the concentration of arsenic in groundwater should not be more than 10 micrograms per litre, or 10 PPB (parts per billion), but it is 10, 20 or 50 times the limit, sometimes going up to 100 or 200 times, in India.

Patches on the skin are common symptoms of arsenicosis.

The menace was first identified in the country in West Bengal in 1980, with professor Kunal Kanti Majumdar﹘a professor of community medicine at KPC Medical College of Kolkata University who has been an advisor to WHO and UNICEF﹘saying that there are about 60 lakh people in the state who live in areas affected by arsenicosis. “Arsenicosis has been found in more than 1 lakh people. Cancer has been confirmed in 8,000 of these.”

The alarm was rung in UP’s Poorvanchal region by arsenic expert Dipankar Chakravarthy, who died in 2018, when he submitted a report to the government on the presence of arsenic in half a dozen districts of UP and Bihar in the early 2000s.

However, Saurabh Singh, who worked with Chakravarthy and has been observing the issue over the last 17 years through his association with the Varanasi-based NGO Inner Voice Foundation, said, “It took us years to convince government officers, despite numerous meetings, that there’s arsenic in UP and Bihar. Because whenever we went, they parroted the same line that arsenic is in West Bengal, not in UP and Bihar.”

“On the banks of Ganga…if you look from Kanpur to Kolkata, then you’ll find that at least 5,000 cancer cases have developed in the last 15 years…when our team goes and examines the water, they find it's happening because people have been drinking water polluted with arsenic for a long time…And the concentration of arsenic is extremely high, at some places we have found 500 PPB, 1000 PPB and even up to 3000 PPB.”

However, governments seemed to remain oblivious to the problem, especially in UP and Bihar. While there are several patients in Handia and Kaudihaar blocks of Prayagraj district with symptoms of arsenicosis, a list of affected districts presented on December 13 last year by the Ministry of Jal Shakti﹘while responding to a question related to the arsenic problem in the Rajya Sabha﹘did not have Prayagraj district in it.

Newslaundry sent a list of questions to Akhand Pratap Singh, executive director of UP water and sanitation mission and special secretary of the Namami Gange and rural water supply department, as well as the Namami Gange principal secretary Anurag Srivastava. Queries were also sent to the DMs of Ghazipur and Ballia, which are among the most affected districts in UP. This report will be updated if we receive a response.

The tragedy has been unfolding in Bihar too.

In Chakani village, about 100 kilometres from Bihar’s Bhojpur, Abhimanyu Singh’s mother Lalpari died from cancer a few years ago, with arsenicosis symptoms on her skin. Saying that the doctors had pointed to arsenic, Singh claimed, “Due to being close to the Ganga, we have ample water, but what can we do about the arsenic present in the groundwater?”

Dr Arun Kumar, a scientist at Mahavir Cancer Institute who has been conducting field research on patients with arsenicosis, said, “In the past few years, during research in arsenic-affected areas, we have seen that people are drinking water with many times more arsenic than the safe limit. According to research, if someone is drinking only 2 litres of water with more than 10 PPB of arsenic, then within a few years there’s a chance of 1 person out of 500 developing cancer…some of our tests showed arsenic levels higher than 500 PPB…In this condition, one out of 10 persons has a higher chance of developing cancer.”

Ashok Kumar Ghosh of the institute said “people didn’t believe us” when we “started working in 2003” in “Patna, Bhojpur, Bhagalpur and Vaishali”. “Especially the government claimed that it was all rubbish and these scientists keep blabbering…arsenic might be in Bangladesh but not in Bihar.”

The number of cancer patients have been rising at Mahavir Cancer Institute in Patna.

‘Link between cancer, arsenic and water’

Nupur Bose, a professor in the environment and water management and geography departments in Patna’s A N College, has worked on arsenic-affected areas for about 20 years, and has created a large database of arsenicosis patients.

“The number of cancer patients is increasing in Mahavir Cancer Institute, which we collaborate with on many projects for scientific research. We have found that these patients are coming from places we identified as arsenic-affected areas in 2004 and 2005. We even remember the names of those people. We checked our database and discovered that these patients are the same people who had handpumps installed with extremely high arsenic levels. We went to those regions again and verified this.”

Dr Ashok Ghosh said the institute now has photographs of hundreds of patients who have arsenicosis and cancer. “A strong correlation has been found between arsenic and gallbladder cancer which we are also researching. Patients who are coming here are coming from arsenic hot spots.”

Early deaths?

Many claim that people are dying early in arsenic-hit areas as compared to the average life expectancy in the country (67.5 years for men and 69.8 years for women).

“Nobody survives beyond the age of 55-60. People who have good food regimes and can buy clean drinking water are the ones who are relatively safer,” said Chandrabhushan Singh, a social worker who helps arsenic-hit patients in the districts of Bihar and eastern UP.

Rajendra Yadav, whose mother Samal Devi died of cancer a few years ago, said, “People are poor, they have no choice but to drink contaminated water. They have no money for treatment when they fall ill. Their diet is not nutritious. What else would happen other than death?”

In part II: Arsenic in the food chain, how it affects social dynamics

(This report has been brought about with help from the Thakur Family Foundation; the foundation has not interfered in any editorial decision)

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Will Indian policies help those on the brink of climate crises?https://www.newslaundry.com/2021/12/13/will-indian-policies-help-those-on-the-brink-of-climate-criseshttps://www.newslaundry.com/2021/12/13/will-indian-policies-help-those-on-the-brink-of-climate-crises#comments251f9388-4572-4e0d-8df4-c81a161514f5Mon, 13 Dec 2021 11:29:52 +00002021-12-13T11:29:52.758ZNoman Siddiqui/api/author/1609213Climate change,VideoGround ReportNL Documentaries

According to the World Meteorological Organisation, India lost more than $70 million in 2020 in natural calamities linked to climate change﹘one year before PM Modi’s speech at CoP26 which some saw as watering down of climate action ambitions. Will policies in India work in favour of those on the brink of climate change crises? We explore the issue through the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, and the impact of development, which prominent environmentalist Dr Vandana Shiva terms “violence against earth”.

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