Sunny Leone, Elephant, Pigeon: Voter List In East UP Stumps Officials
LUCKNOW: An exercise of updating voter lists in eastern Uttar Pradesh's Ballia district has produced some disastrous results. Officials in the state faced tough questions after two leaked pages of the updated lists showed photographs of an elephant, a pigeon, a deer and film actress Sunny Leone next to the name of residents of the district.
In the two pages leaked to the media, a photograph of the movie star appears next to the name of a 51-year-old woman while the photo of the elephant appears next to the name of a 56-year-old-man.
These updated voter lists are still being scrutinised and have not been made public. The leaked pages eventually made it to local journalists who sought a clarification from district officials. "This was done by one of our data entry operators. He was recently transferred from a city area to a rural one. We have filed an FIR against this person and we are modifying these details," said Manoj Kumar Singhal, a senior officer with the Ballia district administration.
Voter lists are being updated across Uttar Pradesh before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. In Ballia, the first deadline was July 15, according to reports in local newspapers. The data for the lists is provided by booth-level officers appointed by the district administration. This data is then entered and matched online by data entry operators. The final list is cleared by senior officers and sources say the errors were discovered when this cross-checking of data was happening.
courtesy : ndtv.com
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.
Parliament passes Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025
New Delhi (PTI): Parliament early Friday passed the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, after it was approved by the Rajya Sabha.
The Lok Sabha had on Thursday approved the Bill after over a 12-hour debate.
In Rajya Sabha, the Bill got 128 votes in its favour and 95 against after all the amendments moved by the opposition were rejected.
In the lower house, the bill was supported by 288 MPs while 232 voted against it.
Participating in a debate in the Rajya Sabha, Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the Bill was brought with a number of amendments based on suggestions given by various stakeholders.
"The Waqf Board is a statutory body. All government bodies should be secular," the minister said, explaining the inclusion of non-Muslims on the board.
He, however, said the number of non-Muslims has been restricted to only four out of 22.
Rijiju also alleged that the Congress and other opposition parties, and not the BJP, were trying to scare Muslims with the Waqf Bill.
"You (opposition) are pushing Muslims out of the mainstream," he added.
He said for 60 years, the Congress and others ruled the country, but did not do much for Muslims and the community continues to live in poverty.
"Muslims are poor, who is responsible? You (Congress) are. Modi is now leading the government to uplift them," the minister said.
According to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Waqf tribunals will be strengthened, a structured selection process will be maintained, and a tenure will be fixed to ensure efficient dispute resolution.
As per the Bill, while Waqf institutions' mandatory contribution to Waqf boards is reduced from 7 per cent to 5 per cent, Waqf institutions earning over Rs 1 lakh will undergo audits by state-sponsored auditors.
A centralised portal will automate Waqf property management, improving efficiency and transparency.
The Bill proposes that practising Muslims (for at least five years) can dedicate their property to the Waqf, restoring pre-2013 rules.
It stipulates that women must receive their inheritance before the Waqf declaration, with special provisions for widows, divorced women and orphans.
The Bill proposes that an officer above the rank of collector investigate government properties claimed as Waqf.
It also proposes that non-Muslim members be included in the central and state Waqf boards for inclusivity.
