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Maharashtra

Mumbai: Hindu Activists Demand Swift Enforcement Of High Court’s Loudspeaker Order, Muslim Scholars Decry Targeting

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Mumbai: After Bombay High Court’s judgement stressing that public interest prevails over religious use of loudspeakers, all communities have welcomed the judgement. However, Muslim scholars and activists have argued that only the Muslim community will be targeted against through this order, whereas the judgement speaks for all the communities.

On Thursday, the Bombay High Court passed a judgement saying that use of loudspeakers is not an essential part of any religion. The High Court was hearing a petition filed by Jaago Nehru Nagar Residents Welfare Association and Shivsrushti Co-op. Housing Societies Association Ltd. alleging police inaction against noise pollution caused by loudspeakers installed on masjids in the area.

While the HC bench reminded the authorities that cumulative ambient noise levels must not exceed 55 decibels during the day and 45 decibels at night in residential areas, the court also noted that the police are bound to act on the complaints of noise pollution. The judgement brought two major changes in the existing procedures including the level of volume while using loudspeakers during the day and the responsibility of police to act against the religious pleas flouting the norms.

Advocate Kaushik Mhatre, who appeared for this matter, said, “According to Mahesh Bedekar vs The State of Maharashtra, the court has set a benchmark of sound levels to be below 55 decibels against the earlier practice of using the speakers on high volumes. It has also asked the police to take action against noise pollution instances under the Maharashtra Police Act.”

While the judgement has been welcomed by all communities upholding the convenience of human beings and the wrath caused by noise pollution, Muslim scholars and activists argued that it should not be turned.

Mufti Manzur Ziyaee, chairman of International Sufi Carvan, said, “Just like the entire planet, pollution is a major concern in India and everyone should contribute to curb it. Whether it is a religious, social or a personal event, the guidelines should be followed by all. There will be narratives targeting one particular community as the facilitator of this issue. Rather than religious perspective, both the communities should look at the issue as a national an environmental concern.”

Religious scholars said that apart from implementing the guidelines on religious places and events, they should also be implemented on social and personal events to win the fight against noise pollution.

Ashfaq Qazi, Mufti of Jumma Masjid at Kalbadevi, said, “Sharia does not say that we need to disturb someone through azaan. We support this order by the High Court as we also believe that nobody should be affected due to noise pollution. Azaan is held only for three to five minutes whereas there are events which use loudspeakers till late in the night. There should not be a dual policy and the rules should be same for all kind of events.”

Saleem Sarang, president of Muslim Welfare Association, suggested that only one mosque should use loudspeaker in the localities with multiple mosques as the objective of alerting people is being fulfilled by one mosque also. However, he alleged that Maharashtra’s member of legislative council Chitra Wagh has already given the judgement a communal angle through her social media post.

“Since the court’s judgement is for all the religions, it should be followed by everyone. However, the Muslim community is being specifically targeted by politicians like Wagh, who are portraying that the judgement is only for Muslims. She should not paint this issue with communal colours,” Sarang added.

Hindu organisations, on the other hand, alleged that the judgement is specifically meant for Muslim community which uses loudspeakers for religious purposes multiple times everyday, whereas the Hindus use it occasionally during festivals. They also demanded that the new guidelines should be implemented urgently.

Shriraj Nair, national spokesperson of the Vishva Hindu Parishad, said, “We support the High Court’s observation since loudspeakers being played five times a day is a big nuisance. Hindus use these loudspeakers for religious use only during festivals and does not harass people everyday. However, the law of the land is above every organisation and individual and should be followed by everyone irrespective of their religion.”

Sunil Ghanwat, national convenor of Mandir Mahasangh, said, “We welcome the Bombay High Court’s judgement. However such similar orders have been passed by multiple high courts and the supreme court as well but the government fails to implement them strictly. This is the reason mosques have been flouting these orders five times a day. We urge the government to implement the court’s judgement on immediate basis.”

Maharashtra

Gadchiroli : After the surrender of commander Bhupati alias Sanu and 60 Maoists with weapons, the Naxalites got a shock, confidence in government was restored : Devendra Fadnavis

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Mumbai: The end of Maoists in Maharashtra is near. In Gudchiroli, a prominent Maoist, Venugopal Malujo alias Bhupati alias Sonu, who was active in many places, has surrendered along with his associates. 60 Maoists have surrendered before the Gudchiroli police, which is a big success for the Maharashtra Police. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said that the Naxalites have been eliminated from the state’s Gadchiroli area and many Maoists have surrendered and they have returned to the right path and normal life. Their faith in the Constitution of India and the administration has been restored. It is a great blessing that the Naxalites have been eliminated from the state. Soon, the 10 to 15 Maoists who are hiding in the forests will also surrender. He said that Bhupati had expressed his desire to surrender. The police were in touch with him and then he expressed his desire that he wanted to surrender to me. So I said that I am ready to go to the forest too. But Bhupati was brought here and today Bhupati has surrendered. This is a big success. With the efforts of the central and state governments, the Naxalites have now become unstable and weak, which is why many Naxalites have surrendered before.

Fadnavis has said that the red terror has ended, the surrender of Naxalites from the borders around Gudchiroli is certain, due to the crackdown on Maoists from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and other borders, Maoists have either surrendered or repented from Naxalism to a large extent. He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah’s dream of a Pakistan-India relationship with the Naxalites is being realized in shame. Bhupati was a Maoist who was the backbone and ideological ideology of the Maoists. His surrender will further strengthen the police operation. He said that it is the result of the hard work of all the senior officers including Maharashtra Police DGP Rashmi Shukla and the officers involved in the Naxal operation that the Maoists’ back has been broken today. Fadnavis said that there was a reward of Rs 6 crore on the Naxalites and now this Maoist has been brought back to the right path.

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Maharashtra

Firing in Ghatkopar : Armed man enters Darshan Jewellers, creating sensation in the area, police are actively searching for the accused.

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Mumbai: A shooting incident in Ghatkopar, Mumbai has created a sensation. A shooting incident was carried out here for robbery, after which the police reached the spot and conducted a panchanama. An armed man entered a shop in Ghatkopar Darshan Jewellers to commit a robbery. There, he put a knife to the throat of the complainant and fled. The police have started an investigation into the matter and have started searching for the unknown robbers. DCP Rakesh Ola said that an armed man had entered the shop and threatened the complainant by putting a knife to his throat. After the entry of armed unknown persons into Darshan Jewellers, a sensation spread in the area and questions have been raised about law and order. The shooting at 10:30 am has caused panic in the area. The police have formed teams in this matter and have started searching for the unknown robbers. So far, no one has been arrested in this case. At present, the police have refused to say anything more about this. DCP Rakesh Ola denied the shooting incident and said that the gunman at Darshan Jewellers had targeted the complainant and put a knife to his throat. The police are investigating the matter further.

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Maharashtra

Hafiz Tauseef Ansari arrested for links to Pakistani terrorist organization, other terrorist organizations mislead and trap youth: Investigative agencies claim

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After a raid by the Andhra Police ATS and the local police station in Malegaon, Mumbai, the police have claimed to have arrested a suspected youth from the Nomani Nagar area. The above-mentioned youth was active on social media and along with his activities on social media, he was in contact with the enemy country Pakistani terrorist organization. The accused has been arrested on this allegation. Along with this, a case has also been registered against the accused in the Dharmapur Town Police Station in Andhra. Maharashtra ATS and intelligence agencies have also interrogated him. The accused has been identified as Hafiz Tauseef Aslam Ansari. He is a tailor by profession and was also active on social media. Whether he came in contact with the Pakistani terrorist organization knowingly or intentionally, or he knew about it, the police are investigating him. The arrest of Hafiz Tauseef has created a sensation in Malegaon. After the arrest of Tauseef in Malegaon, the police have also seized his mobile phone and other documents and have also expanded the scope of the investigation. An investigation is underway to determine whether he has any criminal case registered against him, along with his suspicious activities and the number of times he has provided information related to India to terrorist organizations. His social media accounts are also being examined and monitored. Earlier, the Maharashtra ATS had arrested several youths, including a young PIO on charges of having links with Pakistani intelligence operatives. Many youths have also been trapped in the PIO’s honey trap. The PIO’s method is such that first the PIO regularly talks to an Indian citizen and the girl then makes her pictures and pornographic videos public. After threatening to make the pornographic chat public, they lure him with money and transfer money to the account. In such a situation, the intelligence agencies are obliged to take action against such youths. There are many youths who unknowingly fall for this misleading propaganda and get badly trapped. Therefore, one should remain alert and avoid the misuse of social media.

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