'India's Got Latent' row: Ranveer Allahbadia, Apoorva Mukhija apologise to NCW
New Delhi (PTI): YouTubers Ranveer Allahbadia and Apoorva Mukhija submitted written apologies to the NCW over their offensive remarks made on "India's Got Latent", panel chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said on Friday and asserted that their comments on the online show were "simply not acceptable".
Allahbadia, Mukhija and show producers Saurabh Bothra and Tushar Poojari appeared before the National Commission for Women (NCW) here on Thursday. According to sources, the two YouTubers were quizzed for hours.
Addressing a press conference on Friday, Rahatkar said the NCW will not accept the use of inappropriate language.
"Four people appeared before the commission -- Tushar Poojari, Saurabh Bothra, Apoorva Mukhija and Ranveer Allahbadia. The commission will not accept the use of inappropriate language. Such remarks are simply not acceptable," the NCW chief said in response to a question.
Rahatkar said the individuals expressed regret over their remarks.
"Keeping the social impact in mind, they were issued notices. They came before the commission and expressed deep regret. They said they should not have spoken in such a manner and have now submitted 'maafinama' (written apology)," she said.
According to reports, Allahbadia, in particular, assured the NCW that he would be more mindful in the future. "This is the first and last time such a mistake has happened. From now on, I will think carefully and speak with respect toward women," he reportedly told the panel.
The NCW took cognisance of the remarks made by Allahbadia, Mukhija and others on comic Samay Raina's show that sparked outrage last month.
Several FIRs were lodged against Allahbadia, popularly known as BeerBiceps, for his comments on parents and sex. Though the Supreme Court granted him interim protection from arrest, it termed his remarks "vulgar" and said he had a "dirty mind" that shamed society.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Baramati plane crash: Rohit Pawar alleges attempts to shield VSR Ventures
Mumbai (PTI): NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar on Wednesday alleged that someone was trying to save VSR Ventures in connection with the plane crash that killed Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, and claimed that the AAIB preliminary probe vindicated the doubts earlier raised by him.
He also accused VSR company of indulging in several grave lapses in the past.
The Learjet 45 aircraft, operated by VSR Ventures, crashed near the Baramati air strip in Pune district on January 28, killing Pawar and four others.
In its 22-page preliminary report on the VSR Venture's Learjet plane crash, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) said the visibility at the time of the crash was below the required level. It also flagged about fading marks on the runway and presence of loose gravels on the runway surface.
Pawar said, "I am not against VSR or the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Ajitdada was travelling in a VSR aircraft. Unless we go into the depth of every aspect, we will not know the truth. But someone is trying to save this company. The doubts we had raised have been proven correct in the inquiry report."
He also claimed that the AAIB report contained discrepancies, including mentioning Baramati as a district, and questioned how seriously the probe had been conducted.
Pawar, who has been regularly holding press conferences to raise issues concerning the Baramati plane crash, also contested the report's conclusion that the aircraft hit trees before crashing.
"The report says the aircraft struck trees and then fell. But there are no trees at that spot. There is only a small bush which the aircraft did not even touch. What is stated in the report about hitting trees is incorrect," he said.
Pawar further alleged that VSR Ventures had displayed irresponsibility on multiple occasions, citing an incident involving the then chief minister Eknath Shinde's Davos visit on January 20, 2023.
He claimed that the aircraft carrying Shinde had entered Iranian and Iraqi airspace without overflight permission, following which fighter jets from the two countries allegedly warned of action, forcing a change in route from Bahrain to Zurich.
"There have been several such grave lapses by VSR," he said.
Pawar demanded to know from where VSR Ventures derived its "audacity", and sought details about its investors and officials, though he added that he was not personally concerned with who they were.
Drawing a comparison, he said the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had taken over the probe into actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death within two days, whereas a month had passed since the Baramati crash without a similar action.
He claimed that VSR Ventures had two directors and three shareholders, and that there were eight common names across two related companies.
He further alleged that the owner of VSR was related to the Union Civil Aviation Minister and questioned why the company, though registered in Delhi, had made high-value investments in Jubilee Hills (upscale area in Hyderabad) at rates allegedly Rs 17 crore above the market price.
The MLA representing the Karjat-Jamkhed assembly constituency in Ahilyanagar district also raised concerns about the legal and institutional framework of the AAIB under the 2017 rules, claiming it was neither a statutory nor an autonomous body and remained answerable to the secretary and the minister, besides being attached to the DGCA.
"There is no independent investigative agency," he alleged.
