KOLKATA, Apr 20: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unscheduled stop to buy Bengal’s favourite snack ‘jhalmuri’ during poll campaigning in Jhargram was just a “drama”.

“How come cameras were present when he made the unscheduled stop? The entire episode was scripted,” she alleged.

The TMC supremo took the opportunity to target the prime minister with her allegation that the BJP seeks to put restrictions on people’s dietary habits.

“You have suddenly started loving Jhalmuri. But what about people being prevented from eating fish and mutton in BJP-ruled states?” Banerjee posed.

The prime minister on Sunday posted a video on his official X account in which he was seen buying ‘jhalmuri’, a popular Bengali street food made of puffed rice, green chillies, and spices, from a nondescript shop in Jhargram.

The PM, who was accompanied by his security personnel, paid the shopkeeper for the snack. When the man denied taking the money, the prime minister insisted that he accept it.

At a poll rally at Murarai assembly constituency in Birbhumm district, Banerjee questioned the spontaneity of the entire episode.

“Cameras were placed there beforehand. The SPG (the force responsible for providing proximity security to the prime minister) had arranged for the whole thing.

“He was seen carrying a Rs 10 note in his pocket. Is it believable? It’s all drama,” she claimed.

At another rally in the Khardaha assembly seat, the chief minister said, “One has the right to eat whatever he loves. I love litti, chhatu, and dhokla, everything. Why should you stop eating non-veg?”

“We never dictate anybody’s dietary habits. Once we win (the West Bengal polls), I will send tiler naru (sesame seed laddoo), khirer naru (thickened milk laddoos) to every BJP leader who came to Bengal,” she said.

At an election meeting in the state capital, Banerjee claimed the prime minister schedules his election meetings in a way that he addresses a rally in one part of the state in a bid to influence people voting in another part of the state the same day, “going against the rules”.

“As the Election Commission is under their control, they can do whatever they want,” she said.

On the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, she accused the poll panel of “first having deleted lakhs of names and then having branded people as infiltrators as wished by the BJP”.

“But in the wake of the Supreme Court directive and due to my fight, 32 lakh electors of the 60 lakh who had been placed under logical discrepancy bracket, have been retained in the rolls,” she said.

“Sooner or later, all legitimate voters will get re-enrolled in the voters’ list. The BJP should remember the top court has ordered that pending cases will be cleared by the tribunals.”

Earlier in the day, the TMC supremo accused the BJP of secretly aiding “some traitors in fielding Independents from the minority community in different constituencies”.

“This has happened in my area, Bhabanipur, as well. They have come from Murshidabad and Malda,” she said.

“They have commodified religion. I respect humanity. I believe in secularism. I respect every religion, caste, creed and language. But those who have betrayed their own people, betrayed our party, will be rejected by the people.”

About the Constitution amendment bill to implement women’s quota in legislatures from 2029 getting derailed in the Lok Sabha, Banerjee said, “We have always fought for reservation for women. We don’t need a bill to give women seats. We already have 50 per cent reservation for women in panchayats and municipalities.”

“In the Lok Sabha, our party (TMC) has 37 per cent women MPs. In the Rajya Sabha, our women’s representation is 46 per cent. PM Modi should take lessons from us. They don’t have the right to insult women. Since 1998, we have been fighting for this. I fought in the Lok Sabha for the Women’s Reservation Bill.

“In the name of the women’s reservation bill, they wanted to divide the country. They wanted to divide Bengal as well,” she said.

Banerjee termed the BJP’s failure in getting the bill passed the “start of PM Modi’s fall”. “After we win Bengal, we will dethrone the BJP in the Centre,” she said.

Banerjee also alleged that the “Election Commission has prepared a list of TMC leaders to arrest or restrain them on false grounds before the day of voting”.

“They have shifted and transferred most of the administrative and police officials conversant with the state and brought in their own people from states like Haryana, Odisha, Tripura, and Bihar to execute the orders dictated by their BJP masters in Delhi.”

“They are threatening everyone. Raids are still happening at our party offices. The I-T department is being sent to raid our candidates. If they have the guts, they should face me directly,” she said.

About the heavy deployment of Central security forces in Bengal for the elections, Banerjee said, “You failed to prevent the terror attack in Pahalgam (last year). But you (BJP) are bringing in armoured vehicles to conduct elections in Bengal. Is it to intimidate and create terror among people?”

“They won Maharashtra and Bihar through manipulation. They brought trainloads of people from outside to influence the Bihar polls,” she alleged and urged people to “remain alert and foil the BJP’s gameplan in Bengal”.

Sharpening her attack on Modi, the TMC supremo said the prime minister has named “stadiums, and schools after himself. Even the Covid vaccination certificates were named after him”.

She blamed the BJP for “turning the LPG crisis severe” and said, “People in Bengal are now getting LPG as the crisis eased a bit after I fought for them. After the election, they will make LPG scarce again.” (PTI)

NEW DELHI, Apr 20 : CBI notices from May 1 will carry a special QR code, allowing people to verify their genuineness through an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot, ABHAY, a first-of-its-kind initiative by any agency to deter the public from falling prey to cybercriminals, officials said on Monday.

Launching the chatbot at the 22nd D P Kohli Memorial Lecture here on Monday, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant called it a “pivotal and opportune initiative” that would act as an “effective safeguard” against fraudsters masquerading as Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials.

“Such a mechanism can serve as an effective safeguard against fraudsters who masquerade as CBI officials and circulate fabricated notices through instant-messaging platforms, often invoking the threat of so-called digital arrest to coerce and browbeat unsuspecting individuals,” the CJI said.

A senior CBI official said the QR codes will also include the notices’ expiry dates.

When a person receives the purported notice, he can scan the QR code on ABHAY available on the CBI website, which will immediately check the agency’s database to determine whether the document is genuine or forged.

Cybercriminals use such notices to coerce people into a digital-arrest scam by posing as CBI officials and extort money.

“To maximise ABHAY’s impact, it would be prudent to ensure its widespread accessibility and adoption. Much like essential applications that are pre-installed on mobile devices, such a tool could be integrated by default to enhance public utility,” the CJI said.

Equally important is the need for sustained awareness — its purpose, functionality and benefits must be actively disseminated to foster an informed citizenry — he said.

The CJI also awarded the Police Medal for Meritorious Service to 23 CBI officers and officials on the occasion.

He said in matters of cybercrimes, it is advisable to adopt a victim-centric approach.

“Systems must be designed not only for efficiency, but for accessibility and empathy. It is important to recognise that a significant number of victims of cyber fraud are often retired persons and senior citizens, many of whom lose not merely disposable income, but their entire life savings accumulated over decades of honest work,” Justice Kant said.

He said for such victims, the loss is not only financial but deeply startling, often accompanied by a sense of distress, helplessness, deprivation of social security and even ignominy.

“Reporting mechanisms must therefore be simple, accessible and reassuring. Response times must be minimised, particularly in the crucial initial hours when recovery may still be possible. At the same time, institutional support must extend beyond legal processes to include sensitivity towards the psychological impact of such offences, ensuring that victims are treated with dignity, patience and understanding,” the CJI said. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, Apr 20 : Over 700 citizens, including former civil servants, academics, activists and journalists, have written to the Election Commission alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s national address on April 18 violated the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for elections and sought an inquiry as well as remedial action.

In a complaint dated April 20 addressed to the Chief Election Commissioner, the signatories claimed that the address, broadcast on official platforms such as Doordarshan, Sansad TV and All India Radio, amounted to “electioneering and partisan propaganda” during the MCC period.

The MCC is currently in force in Assam, Kerala and Puducherry, where voting was held on April 9, Tamil Nadu (polling on April 23) and West Bengal (polling on April 23 and 29). Votes will be counted for all these assembly elections on May 4.

The complaint said that the use of government-funded media for such messaging gave the ruling party an “undue advantage” and undermined the level playing field essential for free and fair elections.

Citing provisions of the MCC, the complainants said ministers are barred from combining official functions with electioneering and from using official machinery for partisan purposes.

The letter urged the poll panel to take cognisance of the issue, examine the content and manner of the address and initiate appropriate action. It also called for equal airtime on public broadcasters for other political parties if prior permission had been granted for the telecast.

Among the signatories are former Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, political economist Parakala Prabhakar, activist Yogendra Yadav, economist Jayati Ghosh, musician-author T M Krishna, former Union secretary E A S Sarma, activist Harsh Mander, journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, academic Zoya Hasan and former ambassador Madhu Bhaduri.

Others include transparency activist Anjali Bhardwaj, former civil servants Ashish Joshi, Amitabha Pande, and Avay Shukla, journalists John Dayal and Vidya Subrahmaniam and CPI leader Annie Raja along with several academics, lawyers and social activists.

The signatories said the Commission should act swiftly to “uphold the sanctity of the electoral process” under its constitutional mandate. (PTI)

CHANDIGARH, Apr 20: The Chandigarh Police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) against renowned author and commentator Madhu Kishwar and several other social media users for allegedly circulating a misleading and obscene video clip targeting a constitutional authority.

The case was filed on Monday at the Sector-26 police station following a formal complaint received on April 19. The complainant alleged that the accused deliberately shared a doctored video clip, attaching a false identity to the individual shown in the footage and incorporating obscene language to tarnish the reputation of a person holding a high constitutional office.

According to the official statement issued by the Chandigarh Police, the preliminary investigation revealed that the individual featured in the controversial video is actually a travel vlogger. The vlogger’s spouse, who regularly shares updates about their activities on social media, had originally posted the footage.

During the initial probe, the police recorded statements from the vlogger and the woman in the video, confirming that third-party social media users had misrepresented the content. The complainant asserted that the act was not a mere oversight but a calculated attempt to spread misinformation, disturb public peace, and damage the dignity of the individual involved.

The FIR invokes multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including provisions related to creating false electronic records and defamation, along with relevant sections of the Information Technology (IT) Act, such as 66C, 66D, and 67, which pertain to identity theft and the publishing of obscene material in electronic form.

Investigations into the social media handle of Madhu Kishwar indicated that the post involved a clip of a man receiving a facial massage at a wellness centre. The post allegedly attempted to pass off the person in the video as a different individual, creating a false and inflammatory narrative.

The Sector-26 police station is currently conducting a thorough forensic examination of the digital footprints to identify all individuals who participated in the creation and viral dissemination of the content.

Authorities have emphasised that the investigation is focused on determining the level of orchestration behind the spread of this material. The police reiterated their commitment to taking strict action based on digital evidence, ensuring that those responsible for manufacturing and proliferating malicious misinformation face the full extent of the law.

(UNI)

LUCKNOW, Apr 20: Senior BJP leader and former Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Monday slammed opposition parties over their stance on the women’s reservation law, alleging that attempts to stall or dilute the reform would ultimately prove politically damaging.

Talking to reporters outside the airport here, Naqvi accused the opposition of indulging in “distractive and negative politics” on what he described as a key initiative aimed at women’s empowerment.

He alleged that parties opposing or questioning the reform had “done a self-goal” by not supporting what he termed a historic measure and said such actions would undermine their political credibility.

Referring to the developments around the proposed changes to the women’s reservation framework, Naqvi said that any “technical setbacks” should not be seen as a defeat of the larger objective and asserted that the government remains committed to implementing the reform.

He also targeted the Congress, alleging political inconsistency and accusing opposition parties of attempting to create instability, while maintaining that the women’s reservation initiative would eventually be realised. (PTI)

NASHIK, Apr 20: A local court on Monday did not grant interim protection from arrest to Nida Khan, an accused in the sexual harassment and religious coercion case at the Nashik unit of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), directing the police to submit their response to her plea by April 27.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Nashik police, which is probing nine cases of molestation and harassment at the IT major’s Nashik unit, has launched a search for Khan in different parts of Maharashtra.

Khan on Saturday moved the Nashik court seeking anticipatory bail and an interim protection from arrest pending the plea hearing, citing her two-month pregnancy.

During the hearing on Monday, her lawyer, Rahul Kasliwal, pressed for interim relief, which would have given her protection from arrest until her main plea was decided by the court.

Additional Sessions Judge K G Joshi, however, did not pass any order on the interim prayer and directed the police and the complainant to file their response to Khan’s plea, while posting the matter for April 27.

The SIT has arrested eight persons, including a female operations manager, by registering nine FIRs after allegations of exploitation, attempt of forceful conversion, hurting religious sentiments, molestation and mental harassment of female employees at the TCS unit came to light.

The Nashik police have formed three teams to trace Khan.

Khan is accused of targeting employees in a WhatsApp group, pressuring them to pray and eat non-vegetarian food.

According to the FIR, Khan allegedly advised women employees to dress and behave in accordance with Islamic traditions.

Some victims have also alleged that they were coerced or pressured into adopting religious practices, including praying, changing dietary habits, and adopting religious symbols.

Besides Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) provisions for sexual harassment and defamation, Khan has also been booked under relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The defence, however, contended that there were no allegations involving caste-based slurs or insults and hence, the SC/ST Act was not applicable.

In a related development, a magistrate court here remanded two other accused in the case, Raza Rafiq Memon (35) and Shafi Bikhan Sheikh (36), to 14-day judicial custody.

The others arrested in the case are currently in judicial custody.

TCS has clarified that it has adopted a zero-tolerance policy towards harassment and coercion of any form for a long time, and the employees allegedly involved in sexual harassment at the Nashik office have been suspended. (PTI)