Right-wing Twitter users troll BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia for standing with Arfa Khanum
Bhatia spoke in support of Arfa as she was engaged in war of words with Pakistani cricketer
New Delhi: In the midst of the ongoing ICC cricket world cup, an ‘X’ post by an Indian Journalist Arfa Khanum Sherwani criticising the behaviour of the crowds during the ongoing tournament turned into a heated discussion on the micro blogging site, with BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia getting trolled after he hit out at former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria over his remarks at Khanum’s post, on Monday.
The debate kicked off after Arfa on Sunday took to ‘X’ to express that she was “embarrassed and ashamed as an Indian.”
"Deplorable behaviour of many cricket fans during World Cup matches, makes me feel embarrassed & ashamed as an Indian. This petty, insecure & majoritarian approach towards sports which was meant to bring people together, is symbolic of the India Modi-RSS have created in last one decade," Arfa added expressing her dismay.
In the meantime, Danish Kaneria responded to Arfa’s post on the micro blogging site suggesting Arfa to “come to Pakistan.”
In his post the former cricketer wrote, “Come to my country Pakistan if you are feeling ashamed to be an Indian. India doesn't need people like you. I am sure many people in India will be happy to sponsor this trip."
Reacting to Kaneria’s remarks over Sherwani, Bharatiya Janata Party’s National Spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia took to X and suggested to Danish Kaneria that it would have been better if he could put his own house(Pakistan) in order first. He further added that, “Arfa criticized our country, wrongly so, but our relationship is not defined by the religion we profess but by the country we love, our Bharat. Even when there is very little in common with her, I decide to stand with a fellow Indian over the common faith we both have. This will surely go a long way to show to every citizen that the bond of love for our country should always be stronger than the bond of religion. Never ever dare to trouble a fellow Indian otherwise you will also be thrown out of the arena like the cricket ball. Jai Hind."
Moments after Gaurav’s post was live on the platform, In another post Gaurav slammed Arfa, sharing a photo of her heated debate with the former cricketer, he wrote in Hindi, “There is a saying, Dhobi ka kutta na ghar ka ghat ka.”
He went on, “People like her are so full of venom that they have started getting invites from Pakistan, even the Pakis pronounce that these venomous people don't love Bharat. Deliberate, introspect and ponder who gave them a chance to question your loyalty?”
Simultaneously, netizens started hitting out at the saffron party leader over his remarks on Arfa’s post.
Commenting on Gaurav’s first post where he warned Kaneria, a user @Bhanusingh_ questioned Gaurav of why there was so much love for the one who has problems in India. At the same time, another user @impuni stated that there was still a Samajwadi (Socialist) alive inside him (Gaurav), reflecting on Gaurav’s past association with the Samajwadi party as a spokesperson before joining the BJP in 2017.
Responding to his second post, a user @sunilmisr wrote, “the first line suits on you very well.”
Soon after Gaurav’s post went live on the platform, Kaneria responding to the BJP leader expressed tagging Gaurav Bhatia that the people should be allowed to decide on who would be thrown out of the arena, “You will not decide my fate, By the way, keep reading replies to this tweet. People are welcoming your support to Arfa Khanum. ??"
Netizens largely expressed support for Danish Kaneria on the platform.
“Danish Kaneria has unleashed an online lynch mob on me….,” Arfa Khanum
Arfa taking a serious note of Kaneria’s ‘come to Pakistan’ remark, Arfa asserted that the former Pakistan cricketer had started an online lynch mob on her.
"Danish Kaneria has unleashed an online lynch mob on me and I am trending on Twitter. Sad to see an intl cricketer celebrated by fans from different religions turning into a communal troll. Rest assured, I'm not leaving my country for Pakistan or any other place in the world," Sherwani replied to Kaneria's previous comment.
The heated debate continued as Kaneria responded to Arfa’s “Online lynch mob,” remark stating, “ Lynch' 'mob' 'communal' 'religious' 'troll' 'unleashed'! Don't use these propaganda words for me. Did I talk about communalism in my tweet? No! If you don’t like Pakistan, simply say - 'Danish, I don't like Pakistan'. That's it!"
Continuing the row, Sherwani in another reply asserted that "every word of your tweet was communal".
The Journalist further maintained, "Asking an Indian Muslim to 'go to Pakistan' is as communal and majoritarian as asking a Pakistani Hindu to convert to Islam. It is telling the minority people that you don't belong here or not until you convert to majority religion Got it?," the journalist wrote.
Meanwhile, Kaneria wrote, "I am not talking about conversion, majoritarianism, Hindus, Indian Muslims or religion."
"I am simply talking about your 'loyalty'. Got it? Let's end the debate with a single answer — "Just show me a single tweet in which you praised Bharat and its culture," he added in response.
“This debate ..highlights India’s greatest strength and strategic asset,”
In the meantime, several users showing support for Arfa's post expressed displeasure over Kaneria’s remarks. A user @joydas wrote, “A Pakistani Match Fixer who was banned for life is trolling an Indian Journalist and Indian RW is supporting the Pakistani Spot-fixer. Because the Pakistani the Matchfixer is Hindu and the Indian Journalist is Muslim and for Indian RW, Religion comes before Nation.”
Another user @parthpunter wrote, “Indian right wing in a nutshell: Supporting an ex cricketer who's trolling a journalist only because she's a Muslim. It doesn't matter that the ex-cricketer was banned for life for spot fixing.”
Reacting to the debate Congress leader Gaurav took to ‘X’ and wrote, “This debate for me highlights India’s greatest strength and strategic asset. Our ability to appreciate and defend our pluralism. This is why 1.2 billion people have remained proud and united. Indians will always rise to protect our DNA “unity in diversity’. #MohabbatKiDukan.”
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.
Karnataka Lokayukta to register case, probe Bowring wall collapse
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Lokayukta Justice B S Patil on Thursday took serious note of the compound wall collapse at Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in the city that killed seven people, and announced registration of a case on its own while warning of action against officials found responsible.
The Lokayukta, who visited the site and conducted an inspection, expressed strong displeasure over the incident and questioned the inaction of authorities, even as police and emergency teams had earlier rushed to the spot to rescue victims trapped under the debris following heavy rain, strong winds and a hailstorm on Wednesday evening.
“I will now register a suo motu case. This is not just about this one incident — such incidents must not occur anywhere in the state or the city in the future,” Justice Patil told reporters.
Seven people, including a six-year-old girl, were killed and seven others injured when the compound wall collapsed as rain-battered victims had taken shelter near it, according to police. The victims included people from Kerala who were in the city on a study tour.
Calling for systemic accountability, the Lokayukta said, “Dilapidated buildings and weakened compound walls, especially in areas with public access, must first be identified. They must either be repaired, demolished, or rebuilt.”
He added that responsibility would be fixed on officials of the BBMP and the concerned departments.
Justice Patil said that hearings would be conducted and preventive action initiated, while also probing those responsible for it, how the incident could have been prevented, and why it was not prevented.
A Scene of Crime Officers (SOCO) team and a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team also inspected the site, while police cordoned off Kovil Street to facilitate the probe.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said the government had initiated measures following the rain-related incidents and stressed preparedness.
“Since last night we have initiated measures regarding the rains. When it rains heavily, we must be prepared, and we are working towards that,” he told reporters here.
On the wall collapse, Shivakumar said, “I will not directly blame any officials. It was an old wall, and trees had grown alongside it. Due to that pressure, it collapsed.”
The Deputy CM said instructions had been issued to identify such vulnerable structures and clear areas around them, including relocating street vendors.
Karnataka Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil said a technical assessment had been ordered.
“This is a very serious matter. Innocent people have been affected. We are issuing directions to the engineers to find out why this compound wall collapsed and to assess its structural strength,” he told reporters after inspecting the spot.
The Minister noted that the wall was ‘very old’ and required thorough examination to prevent recurrence.
Speaking to reporters, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge asked the Karnataka government to take precautions to ensure that incidents like the collapse of the Bengaluru government hospital compound wall, which caused loss of life, should not repeat.
Meanwhile, addressing a press conference, Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad said the collapse raised questions about construction and maintenance practices.
“If a wall collapses within 25 years of its construction, it needs to be examined -- whether there was any technical issue, or if anything was altered inside, weakening it. All this can only come out through a technical investigation,” he said.
The Congress MLA also called for wider structural audits across the city, stating that all such structures, whether private or government, must be audited.
He urged citizens to support victims, saying it was a collective responsibility in times of crisis.
