Now journalist held for 'false' news over electricity supply in Chhattisgarh
Raipur: A day after a man was arrested on sedition charges over his social media post on power cuts in Chhattisgarh, a journalist was Friday held for publishing a "false" news over electricity supply in Mahasamund district.
Dilip Sharma, who runs an online news portal, was arrested based on a complaint lodged by Executive Engineer (EE) of electricity department, Mahasamund, S K Sahu, a police officer said.
In his complaint lodged on Thursday, Sahu had alleged that Sharma, in a recently published news, had claimed that there was a blackout in more than 50 villages in Mahasamund for 48 hours which was "false and baseless", Sub Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) Mahasamund, Narad Kumar Suryawanshi, told PTI.
Sharma was booked under IPC section 505 (1) (b) (with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public, or to any section of the public whereby any person may be induced to commit an offence against the State or against the public tranquility), he said.
Sharma was produced in a local court which granted him bail, he added. Talking to PTI after his release, Sharma alleged he was being implicated in a false case.
He claimed he had published an "authentic" news about the blackout for 48 hours in villages of Bagbahra area in Mahasamund from June 6 to June 8.
Additional General Manager (Public Relations) of Chhattisgarh State Power Holding Company, Vijay Mishra, said according to the state government's policy, the power utility has been supplying 24 hours of electricity in cities as well as villages.
Despite that some anti-social elements have been trying to defame power company by spreading false information of blackout, he alleged.
"Power cuts can be due to natural phenomenon like storms or some other local reasons. Presently pre-monsoon maintenance work is underway, for which sometimes power supply has to be withheld. But there is no question of power cut as Chhattisgarh is a power surplus state," Mishra asserted.
Meanwhile, the opposition BJP accused the Congress government of murdering the freedom of expression in the state.
"The Congress is not able to digest its loss in the Lok Sabha election. It has become intolerant. It is trying to murder freedom of expression in the state which is evident in the cases involving Mangelal Agarwal and Dilip Sharma," state BJP chief Vikram Usendi said.
"It is a political character of Congress to murder freedom of expression and whenever it comes to power to shows its nature," he claimed.
The action against Sharma came a day after 53-year-old Mangelal Agarwal was arrested in Rajnandgaon district on Thursday evening on the charges of sedition for allegedly spreading rumours over power cuts on a social media platform.
However, facing criticism over the action, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel Friday directed the police to withdraw charges of sedition from the case.
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Rajnath to top commanders: Outmaneuver adversaries with strategic surprise
Jaipur/New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday directed the top military commanders of the three services to integrate an "element of surprise" into modern warfare to outmaneuver India's adversaries and bolster strategic posture.
In his address at the joint commanders conference in Jaipur, Singh also described the Operation Sindoor as a testament to the "swift, precise, and joint response" of the Indian armed forces to safeguard national interests and called upon the military to remain ready to deal with any security challenges.
In their two-day deliberations, the commanders carried out a comprehensive review of the combat preparedness of the military in the wake of the evolving regional security situation.
Operation Sindoor was a demonstration of India's growing capabilities and a symbol of the nation's collective resolve and new military ethos, Singh said, a day after the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor.
He also unveiled a 'Joint Doctrine for Integrated Communication Architecture' that is aimed at strengthening doctrinal clarity, interoperability and integrated communications across the armed forces in future multidomain operations.
The joint commanders' conference, themed 'Military Capability in New Domains', brought together the top leadership of the defence ministry and the three services to deliberate on emerging security challenges and future readiness.
Comprehensive deliberations were held on future warfare, multidomain operations, technological transformation and joint capability development.
The conference witnessed extensive discussions on cognitive warfare, cyber resilience against evolving quantum and AI-enabled threats, military capability development in emerging domains, indigenous innovation and AI-enabled warfighting concepts.
It was attended by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi, Chief of the Army Staff Gen Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh and Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh among others.
In his remarks, Singh asked the commanders to remain "future-ready" by learning from the operation as well as the current global security landscape.
He underscored the need to strengthen capabilities in artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, data analytics and secure communication networks to stay prepared in the rapidly evolving geopolitical security scenario. He emphasised that future conflicts will increasingly be shaped by hybrid threats, information dominance and operations conducted simultaneously across cyber, space, electromagnetic and cognitive domains, according to an official readout.
Highlighting the transformative impact of emerging technologies, Singh stressed on the importance of ensuring integrated national preparedness across all spectrums of conflict, it said.
Singh's remarks at the conference came a day after the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor.
The defence minister appreciated the progress achieved in enhancing jointness, integration and technological adoption across the three services, the readout noted.
Singh said that jointness constitutes a pivotal dimension within the transformative changes sweeping across the global defence sector.
"Future wars will not be won solely through weaponry, but through innovative thinking and enhanced synergy," he said.
The defence minister exhorted the commanders to cultivate the "element of surprise" to remain unpredictable to the nation's adversaries and secure a strategic edge in any given situation.
He, however, urged them to remain vigilant of the element of surprise of the enemy and always stay two steps ahead.
Singh also reiterated the Narendra Modi government's commitment to enhancing the capabilities of the defence forces through state-of-the-art weapons and platforms. He added that special focus is being laid on research in niche domains.
During the conference, he released a documentary film on Operation Sindoor.
The film reaffirms the nation's and defence forces' commitment to operational preparedness and decisive national response capabilities.
Demonstrations of advanced systems and platforms developed for intelligence fusion, operational planning and information management were also showcased during the conference reflecting growing integration of cutting-edge technologies into joint operational structures, according to the defence ministry.
The discussions will contribute significantly towards shaping India's future military transformation and integrated operational preparedness, it said.
