A MiG 27 UPG aircraft crashed on a routine mission from Jodhpur on Sunday morning.
This is a developing story and further detail on the same is awaited.
MiG 27 UPG aircraft crashed on a routine mission
Rahul Gandhi to contest from Wayanad in addition to Amethi
Congress president Rahul Gandhi will contest Lok Sabha polls from Wayanad constituency. He will be contesting from Wayanad in addition to Amethi constituency. The decision was announced by senior Congress leader AK Anthony in a press conference.
“Rahulji has given his consent to contest from two seats. I am pleased to inform you that he will contest from Wayanad apart from Amethi”, said Congress leader AK Anthony.
Earlier speculations were rife about Rahul contesting from Wayanad constituency. There were also reports about Karnataka and Tamil Nadu state Congress units asking Rahul to contest from those states. The Wayanad seat is considered as a bastion of Congress.
Cong lost credibility, faith of voters; will face massive defeat than 2014: Ranjit Patil
After playing the blaming game and mud-slinging on each other for the last five years, both the biggest parties of the nation and the intensity with which they have been countering and questioning each other is reached to new height. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indian National Congress (Congress) are finally out on field and using every means of campaigning to get to the head of the voters. However, in this rat race of the political advertisements – all the political parties and their candidates are violating the Model Code of Conduct openly without bothering about it.
While talking with Afternoon Voice Maharashtra State Home Minister and BJP leader Ranjit Patil said, “We will form the government in the State as well as in the Centre with high majority. PM Modi has done such a wonderful work that it has become almost impossible for the opposition leaders to face him. He has the support of crores of people which makes him stand out of the crowd. As far as Congress is concerned, it has lost the credibility, the faith of the voters, and it is going to lose the elections with an even bigger margin than the 2014 elections.”
Since the Election Commission of India announced the upcoming general elections schedule, all the political parties – be it national or regional – are running either and thither, and trying their best to meet the voters as well as convincing them of their pious strategy and manifestos, which they will apply for the harmony of the nation and its people after coming into power. The general elections will be done into seven phases across the nation starting from 11 April and ending on 19 May. The counting of the votes will start from 23 May and the result will also be declared on the same day.
As per reports, research papers, interviews and the reaction of the Indian voters, it is quite evident that the BJP has been failed on almost every aspects – be it education sectors, Indian economy, employments, farmers’ issues, Dalits’ issues, women issues, freedom of speech or the most importantly as claimed by many Indian senior media persons, rationalist and political analysts – the democracy, that under the Modi-led BJP government has been almost diminished, and they also assume that if the Modi government again comes to power in 2019 then Indian may turn into second North Korea of Kim Jong-un.
However, the fact seems to be different than what these intellectuals, rationalist and political analysts believe as there are crores of voters who want Modi to be the Prime Minister of the country again in 2019. Modi too is reportedly going in every corner of the nation, meeting with the people, discussing their problems, explaining his manifestos that he will apply in the next term if he comes to the power, and somewhere he seems to be successful in convincing the voters that Modi-BJP is the one who will solve all the crisis of the people.
Moreover, the Congress is also on the same field as the BJP, Congress Party president Rahul Gandhi – who more than discussing the real issues of the nation and its people, has been in media coverage in the last five years for alleging Narendra Modi for doing corruption in the Rafale Jet deal, looting billions of Indians’ money, and fooling the voters. Apart from being a hard core opposition leader, Gandhi is also organising rallies, meeting with party leaders, member and supporters in every nook and corner of the country and making his own strategy to defeat Modi, and in between this, he may has proved himself to be somewhere close to the Congress’ Prime Ministerial candidate however; it is not confirmed by the party yet.
After the election schedule was announced, many political parties are all set to celebrate the victory in Maharashtra state. The major political parties of the state are Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) who play a crucial role in forming the government in Centre. Shiv Sena has alliance with the BJP whereas the NCP has alliance with the Congress. On one hand, a major portion of the state voters support the Shiv Sena-BJP, whereas on the other hand, another major portion of the voters support the NCP-Congress. Both the Congress and BJP have the same hold in the state, however, it is interesting to see, if the Sena-BJP again comes to power after feeding the ideology of Hindutva to the voters or the NCP-Congress retain the power by bringing all the corruptions cases, farmers’ issues and cast based issues at the front and exposing the Sena-BJP.
“We will win 46 out of 48 seats in the state. There is groupism in the party and we are trying our best to sort things out and bring all the leaders and party workers together for the sake of our party. As far as Maharashtra is concerned, everyone knows that we have strong hold here and also our government in the state has done remarkable works in the last five years. It has introduced so many schemes regarding education, farmers, and youths.” Ranjit Patil further added.
When asked about Priya Dutt contesting election from the Congress ticket against BJP’s Poonam Mahajan from Mumbai North-Central constituency, he added, “Priya comes nowhere close to Poonam when it comes to political approach and sensibilities. Poonam has been active in the State politics and also she keeps meeting youths of the state whereas Priya has neither any political understanding of the state or is connected with the people. To be precise, Priya doesn’t affect Poonam or the BJP in any manner and she will lose the election for sure.”
Nirav Modi denied bail again by London Court
The main accused in Rs. 13,000 crore Punjab National Bank scam, fugitive jeweller Nirav Modi was denied bail by London court. Since the arrest of the billionaire diamantaire last week, this is the second time the court rejected his bail application.
The next date of hearing is April 26. In the next hearing at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ court, Nirav Modi will be produced through video conferencing as per reports.
“There are substantial grounds to believe that Nirav Modi will fail to surrender,” Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot said. The same judge had ordered the extradition of another fugitive tycoon – former Kingfisher Airlines boss Vijay Mallya – last December.
Looking more dishevelled and dressed in a similar white shirt as his first court appearance last week, the scam-accused billionaire was brought to the dock to be produced before Westminster Magistrates Court Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot and sat behind a glass enclosure as the hearing got underway.
Why religious attacks on Urmila Matondkar?
Bharatiya Janata Party’s Mathura candidate Hema Malini got married to actor Dharmendra and they both got converted to Islam to validate the union as per Islamic rules. The conversion was necessary for them as Dharmendra didn’t want to divorce his first wife Prakash Kaur while marrying twice was impossible as per the Hindu Marriage Act. Although Tamil-speaking Chakravarthy household girl Hema Malini and Dharmendra changed their names to Aisha Bi R. Chakravarty and Dilawar Khan Kewal Krishn respectively, they both adhered well to their Hindu identity. BJP leader and 2019 Lok Sabha election candidate from Amethi Smriti Irani is Hindu by birth and her name was Smriti Malhotra before she got married to a Parsi businessman Zubin Irani; although she didn’t change her religion, her children are practicing Parsi.
The recently declared Congress’ Mumbai North Lok Sabha candidate popular actor-turned-politician Urmila Matondkar, who stepped into the party on Wednesday, got married to a younger Muslim Mohsin Akhtar Mir and as per viral posts on social media claims, she changed her name to Mariam Akhtar Mir though the couple denied of her being converted to Islam. The social media started witnessing a real-time drama soon after Urmila’s joining. Gossips around her religion and how she is making fool of the Hindus by hiding her Islamic name went viral in no time forgetting the fact that the Indian Constitution does not sanction the concept of a woman’s religion getting merged with her husband’s faith after an inter-religion marriage. An adult woman, born in whatsoever religion, can very well adhere to her own religion denying accepting her husband’s.
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi, born as Indira Priyadarshini Nehru in a Kashmiri Pandit family on November 19, 1917, in Allahabad is still under attack because of her marriage. Her husband was Feroze Gandhi (no relation to Mahatma Gandhi), whom she knew from Allahabad, and who was studying at the London School of Economics. The marriage took place in Allahabad according to Adi Dharm rituals though Feroze belonged to a Zoroastrian Parsi family of Gujarat, same as Smriti Irani.
National President of Women’s Wing, Nationalist Mahila Congress, Dr. Fauzia Khan spoke to Afternoon Voice and stated, “Creating an unconstitutional rift within communities on religious grounds is BJP’s political strategy. Indian people have faith in secular values. Marriage is your choice and faith is your choice. Do you require efficient religious leaders to run the country? Finally, people will only see who has run the country properly. How can they give the opportunity to a Chowkidar who has been fooling people?”
Having so many instances of inter-religion marriages in Bollywood and especially beforehand in the political corridor where the individuals followed their mind in terms of following their own religion or name without converting, why such futile and unnecessary fuss is created attacking Urmila? If BJP and his supporters were all comfortable with Hema Malini and Smriti Irani, why is it hard to accept Urmila her way?
In the ripe election season, such soft Hindutva attacks on Urmila Matondkar are expected to continue. The Rangeela actor, who belongs to a family of academicians, will contest against sitting BJP Lok Sabha member Gopal Shetty. However, moving ahead of these controversies around her religion, it is widely being considered that it will be difficult for her to secure a winning majority from the Mumbai North constituency which is known to be a BJP stronghold.
Senior BJP leader Ram Naik used to represent the Mumbai North constituency until 2004 when Congress candidate another actor-turned-politician Govinda defeated the Union Minister of Petroleum. Later, in 2009, Congress leader and former Mumbai Congress President Sanjay Nirupam again defeated Naik from the same seat. However, in 2014, BJP candidate Gopal Shetty overpowered Nirupam by a huge margin.
Urmila joined Congress after meeting the party President Rahul Gandhi and said that she felt the need to join the Congress party as the freedom to express was under attack in the country and there are numerous examples in this regard in the last five years. She also expressed that she is “here to stay”.
Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh expressed, “I welcome Urmila Matondkar in the party. Citizens have their right to choose religion and life partner as per the Indian Constitution. Elections are held for the country’s prosperity and it is not meant for any religion. The Modi government has not done any work in the past five years and the upcoming election must be fought on development and employment issues. Congress has fulfilled the loan waiver promise in three states within one month after coming to power. People will decide whether they should vote for a party that speaks lies or they should support Congress.”
Political analysts believe that while Nirupam has got the ticket from the Mumbai North-West seat, fielding newcomer Urmila Matondkar from the Mumbai North constituency is wasting a ticket prior to such a crucial national election. Experts believe that Nirupam or late Congress leader Gurudas Kamat managed to garner voters’ confidence as a favourite candidate more than Congress being the chosen party. Highlighting that the country’s oldest political party missed the narrative of the favourite candidate and favourite party, it is believed that the seat shuffle has high possibility to cost Congress two of the major seats.
BJP MLA Manisha Choudhary asserted, “As a women legislator, I welcome Urmila Matondkar. However, I oppose the party from which she is nominated to contest the election. This is not a fight between Gopal Shetty and Urmila Matondkar but between ideologies of BJP and Congress.”
She further added, “We are contesting the election on development agenda and what work our government has done under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership in the past five years. The states will be secure only if the country is safe. Gopal Shetty has started his political career from being a Corporator, later he got elected as an MLA and finally as an MP. I am confident that he will emerge victorious.”
BJP’s ally in state Shiv Sena’s MLA Prakash Surve said, “What religion Urmila has embraced doesn’t matter. Her entry into politics won’t make any difference to us. Voters are aware of BJP’s performances; even if they vote for Urmila, it will be favouring her stardom and not Congress. Congress lacks efficient leaders. If everything was fair in Congress, what led Sanjay Nirupam quit the Mumbai Congress Chief’s post?”
By Vijay Salgaonkar
Hema Malini too is a Muslim if Urmila is; Indira, Smriti both married Parsis
Viral posts on Facebook claiming the actor turned politician Urmila Matondkar converted to Islam and changed her name to ‘Maryam Akhtar Mir’ have hit headlines and the social media IT cell has gone on to the level of changing the name of her father and mother and moreover, her religion. Her father Shrikant Matondkar, who is known as Kanta Mama in Kudaldeshkar wadi of Girgaon, is very well Hindu, Brahmin. However, there is fake news on the internet that shows her parents as some Shivinder Singh and mother Rukshana Sultana. All these are done to damage her image and project her as a non-Hindu. Whereas, her mother, Sindhu, and father, Shrikant, both are Maharashtrian Brahmins! Her lecturer father and homemaker mother struggled a lot to give good upbringing to their two daughters and one son, again they all are Hindu. Urmila started her career as a child artist. She was only seven when she appeared in Shyam Benegal’s 1981 film Kalyug and is best known for her role as a child artist in Shekhar Kapur’s Masoom, 1983. Till then, she lived in Kudaldeshkar chawl and then shifted to Andheri.
Later on, some social media profiles made postings as Urmila Matondkar has connections with Bhagwat. However, we could not find a single photograph of them together or any mention about them. Bhagwat does not have a social media account; moreover, Bhagwat and Urmila are not relatives at all. Urmila did marry a Kashmiri businessman, Mohsin Akhtar Mir, in 2016, but she has not changed her religion. It is a common trend to play up such claims before elections. One must know that she has not been converted to Islam and she has a temple at her house. In a statement, Urmila’s husband said, “Even my staff at home can vouch for the fact that she has not converted to Islam.” If Urmila marrying a Muslim guy is a reason for controversy, then why are we ignoring Hema Malini and Smriti Irani?
We all know that Dharmendra then tied the knot with Hema Malini in an intimate ceremony. Dharmendra converted to Islam to get married to her as he was already married and a father of four children. Dharmendra left his first wife, got converted to Islam, and became Dilawar Khan before marrying his Dream Girl Hema Malini. There were also stories about how he paid the crew member for calling out maximum cuts during the shoot of Sholay just so that he could repeat a romantic scene with his lady-love again and again. To perform Nikah, Hema Malini too got converted to Islam but both the husband and wife retained their Hindu names. Today, Hema Malini is BJP’s sitting MP from Mathura.
Smriti Irani (born as Smriti Malhotra) married a Parsi businessman, Zubin Irani, in 2001. In October the same year, the couple had their first child, a son. In September 2003, the couple had their second child, a daughter. Both her children are practicing Parsis. Smriti is also a stepmother to Shanelle who is Zubin Irani’s daughter from his previous marriage with a coordinator and former beauty contestant Mona Irani and now is a law student at Georgetown University in the United States. Today, Smriti Irani is at the peak of the BJP politics and no one has any objection to her being Parsi. However, Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi, born as Indira Priyadarshini Nehru in a Kashmiri Pandit family on November 19, 1917, in Allahabad is still under attack because of her marriage. Her husband Feroze Gandhi (no relation to Mahatma Gandhi), whom she knew from Allahabad, and who was studying at the London School of Economics. The marriage took place in Allahabad according to Adi Dharm rituals though Feroze belonged to a Zoroastrian Parsi family of Gujarat, same as Smriti Irani. However, the double standards of BJP politics could accept one and Indira, a senior most politician of India, is called as Muslim and is constantly under attack.
Let it be Urmila, Hema, Smriti, or anyone else, they are Indian citizens with individual identities; they all belong to the film and entertainment industry of India. Matondkar decided to join the Congress because the party’s ideology matched with that of her father Shrikant Matondkar, who was a senior leader of the All India Bank Employees Association. These days, people enter politics for gains but she has done it because her ideology and value system matches with that of the Congress. Same as Hema and Smriti, their ideology matches to BJP. Everyone knows who is playing the politics of religion. Bollywood actors are just artists. They go where they are invited and speak what they are asked to at that platform. However, that is their personal issue. Some actors officially joined some or the other political party and she chose to join Congress after meeting party president Rahul Gandhi. The party also fielded her against BJP’s Gopal Shetty and it is expecting that she could win the seat by using her star power and humanitarian work for the underprivileged.
Well, each politician should take moral responsibility and work for the betterment of the nation, keeping religious bias aside. India is a land of religious diversities. India is a democratic country where the government is formed by the people, for the people, and of the people. Democracy is the beauty of Indian politics. The people of India choose which representative and which political party should run the government. This gives them power. Better representation of a larger range of public opinion. The narrow focus and vote bank politics of most of the parties even in the central government sidelines the national issues such as economic welfare and national security. Instead of checking the religion of a candidate and judging her/him, we the Indians should value their efforts. The lack of homogeneity in the Indian population has led to the rise of political parties with agendas catering to one or a mix of these groups. We are sad to see the lowering standards of India politics. In most of the cases, the main dominant measure of political participation is the number of people who turn out on voting day. A number of reasons have been postulated to explain why participation in political activity is high in certain groups and low in others. Factors such as lack of awareness, community beliefs and values, cultural factors, and missing fundamentals in a political system have been put forward to explain political participation. Of all these, the cultural and religious factors stand out as the most influential. In this 21st century, we the voters need to grow and say no to such selective attacks.
(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)
NDA will retain power and win more than 300 seats: PM Modi
Speaking highly of BJP’s electoral prospects in 2019 general elections Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that NDA will retain power and win more than 300 seats. He said, “Earlier people had raised doubts over who Modi is but now they are aware about what he has done for safeguarding nation’s security and welfare of poor.
Now people know about Modi’s vision and work. BJP will emerge victorious with complete majority and more mandate as compared to 2014 polls. This time people will strengthen us in those areas where we have lesser representation. In 2019 there is no contest.”
He attacked the Congress party and alleged that previous governments were involved with corruption over defence deals.
PM Modi lashes out at opposition for politicizing air strike
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a jibe at opposition for demanding proof of air strikes at Jaish-E-Mohammad (JeM) camp in Balakot in Pakistan. Addressing a public rally Modi stated, “Already one month has passed (since the air strike took place) and Pakistan is counting bodies. When India takes action against terrorists, enters their house and kills them but some people are demanding proof of attacks.”
“Those people who have betrayed the poor since last since last seven decades are now undermining the contribution of armed forces and scientists day and night. It is about time to give a befitting reply to people who are insulting the capabilities of our scientists and armed forces”, he added.
Drowning Jet raises serious questions
Finally, Chairman of Jet Airways Naresh Goyal and his wife Anita Goyal resigned from the board membership on March 25, 2019. After this, Jet Airways’s lenders took control of Jet’s board and management. Under the leadership of the State Bank of India, the banks’ lender group has agreed to put Rs 1,500 crore immediately to get 51 per cent stake in Jet. 11.4 million new shares will be issued for this. Jet Airways has to pay around Rs 8,000 crores to 26 banks. So far, more than 80 jet aircraft have been out of operation. However, after Goyal’s resignation, in BSE stock exchange, Jet’s shares rose by 12.69 per cent.
The condition of Air India is also deteriorating. Air Sahara, Kingfisher, East-West Airline, Skyline NEPC, Modilufta, etc. have been closed in the past. At the time of closure, Air Sahara had 17 per cent stake in the market. In such a case, the question arises that the situation in the aviation sector is not as good as it looks from outside.
Who will buy Jet
The loss of Jet Airways has increased to more than Rs 13 billion and it will have to pay a loan of Rs 63 billion by March 2021. However, its financial condition is not good for the past 11 years. So far, Jet’s shares have fallen 71 per cent. In this case, it is being said that it can be sold. According to an estimate, Mukesh Ambani or Tata Sons can buy Jet Airways. Naresh Goyal’s stake in Jet Airways is 51 per cent. In 2013, Goyal has already sold his 24 per cent stake to Etihad Airways. Tata Sons already owns two airlines, Vistara, and Air Asia. It has a 41 per cent stake in Vistara. Vistara is a joint venture of Tata and Singapore Airlines.
Reasons for failure
Jet is unable to pay salary to its employees due to mounting losses. Due to allegations of financial irregularities, the raid on the company’s Mumbai and Delhi offices by the Income Tax Department has also blemished its credentials. Jet Airways was spending more on other expenses except for the cost of fuel, compared to Indigo, so that by the end of 2015, Jet was earning 50 paise per kilometer on every seat compared to Indigo. In order to go ahead from Jet, Indigo lowered the ticket prices, but Jet did not, due to which it came into a loss, which it could not compensate later. Jet suffered the biggest loss in 2017 when fuel prices started to rise. Due to the already being in debt, its condition worsened even more.
The financial condition may further get worse
The group of lenders has taken over the management of Jet, but finding a buyer of Jet will not be easy for them. Most importantly, banks have no experience in the aviation sector. Etihad Airways, which has 24 per cent stake in Jet Airways, has written in a letter to the consortium leader, State Bank of India that it is ready to invest Rs 150 per share in the jet, while the existing stock price of Jet is Rs 275. It can be said that the lenders can face many more such difficulties in the future.
Will the government bring a solution?
It is being said that due to political compulsions, the government wants to save the jet. The Modi government wants to give a message that the economy is in better condition in the country. The government doesn’t want to take any risk before the 2019 general elections.
For some years, the Modi government has been constantly praising its achievements about aviation connectivity in the country. The government has also been claiming that the common man wearing a sleeper can travel on aircraft. Construction of new airports and increased number of flight services have been shown by the Modi government as development activities. In such a situation, the drowning of a big and renowned company of the aviation sector like Jet Airways will raise serious questions on the policies of the Modi government.
Will the financial condition of Jet be improved?
To improve the performance of the jet, the performance at operation level needs to be improved and employees should be trained at all levels, because the pilot, cabin crew members, the staff of engineering section, ground handling staffs, etc. play important role in this regard. Intelligent use of planes, such as the route on which the passenger’s traffic is high, more than one aircraft can be used. By the way, there is a need to make more use of the planes, which consumes less fuel. Advertisement can be used to woo travellers. Reduction in passenger fare is also a good option. According to the festivals, travellers can be tempted through schemes. For this, the basic fare may be reduced. Lower fares can be compensated by increasing the frequency of flights. This goal can also be achieved by committed and quality service.
Conclusion
It can be said that the dazzling world of the aviation field looks brighter from the outside, but in reality, it is not. The loss of Jet Airways shows the same truth. It is clear from the investigation that the cost of airlines in the aviation sector is high, but revenue is less. Their financial condition further worsens in the round-the-clock competition. In such a case it can be said that there are still many difficulties in making air transport available for common man. The negative part of this area is that the region is not bright in terms of security and compensation provisions also.
By Satish Singh
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of AFTERNOON VOICE and AFTERNOON VOICE does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
PIL seeks stay on PM Modi’s biopic: ECI gets HC notice
After hearing a plea seeking a stay on the release of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s biopic starring Vivek Oberoi on an urgent note, the Bombay High Court bench of Chief Justice Naresh Patil and Justice N M Jamdar on Friday sent a notice to the Election Commission of India and has sought a reply by Monday.
The plea, filed by the National President of the Republican Party of India (I), stated that if the movie is permitted to be released for public viewing before the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, it would violate the Model Code of Conduct imposed by the ECI. It also question the scheduled time of the film’s release and pointed that it can give the needed political mileage for PM Modi.
The film is supposed to release on April 5 as per schedule.