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Disinformation Fact Sheet Human Rights Misinformation World
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Dichotomy, Fault Lines & Lies

Muslim women globally seek to free from hijab and burka. In India, its other way, radical religious fanatics push for regressive dress code Neha Dahiya Why’s it that there’s so much furore on the headgear, face cover or someone covering his or her body partially or in full? Incidents reported in last few weeks on Hijab in particular across the world seem lot more disturbing from humanity and civilizational perspective. Big question that continues to taunt the Islamic world was how a 22-year old Mahsa Amini from Sagrez in Iran was murdered by Iranian police on September 13 for allegedly not covering her head in full. And, there after the repression unleashed by Iranian government that made wane attempts to justify the broad daylight murder of Mahsa Amini is rather appalling and inhuman. Iranian President Sayyid Ebrahim Raisolsadati otherwise known as Ebrahim Raisi seems to have gone overboard to justify the brutal murder of Mahsa Amini. The claim from the Iranian administration seems to be that Hijab was mandated by Islam and there’s no way anyone can be free from the Islamic tradition of covering the head from top to toe with Hijab and a burkha. While the extremist islamist – jihadists came to claim the link between hijab and islam, women and girls have made attempts to free women from this barbaric tradition. Otherwise, how would one explain several nations mostly run by muslim leadership discarding the black robe and hijab that suffocated the women and girls over ages? Mahsa Amini was on a trip to Tehran with her brother Kairash when the morality police hitherto known as Gasht-e-Ershad  abducted her on Shahid Haghini expressway. As per reports Mahsa Amini was brutally beaten in the van and later on Vozara Avenue. As per reports, outside the detention centre, Kairash witnessed women taken inside that screamed for their lives. Mahsa Amini collapsed and slipped into coma and succumbed to beatings three days later. Under Iran’s sharia (Islamic) law, imposed since Ayatollah Khomeini took reins in 1979, women were bound to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothes to disguise their body. Even slightest signs of disobedience led to severe punishments and physical torture in detention centres commonly known as‘re-education’ run by the ruthless morality police. Muslim women world over including Iran have periodically campaigned against Hijab that has nothing to do with Islam in the strict sense. Women reportedly first took to streets against Hijab in Iran weeks after Khomeini’s arrival decades ago. India was no exception to such Anti-Hijab protests till December 2021 when six girls ebbed by the jihadists entered the Udupi government-run pre-university college in the Indian southern state of Karnataka swearing hijab to classes Most interesting is their indoctrination that claimed hijab was part of their religious practice. When they were turned out of the classrooms for not complying with the college uniform rules they argued for freedom to practice their religion and attire associated with it. Unlike many of their counterparts in dozens of countries, these girls wanted to wear a Burqa and Niqab covering their full body and a face veil concealing the uniform and identity of the student. The girls went to the Karnataka high court demanding to wear hijab on the campus premises. There is no law in Indian constitution mandating a code of conduct for women as in the case of Iranian theocracy. Instead, protected by the “Right to Live with Human Dignity” under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, there are absolutely no legal restrictions on Muslim women in India wearing the hijab or even the burqa in public. One needs to acknowledge that an institution has the power to impose a dress code on its premises. The freedom of a woman to wear whatever she pleases does not supersede an institution’s authority to decide a dress code for its registrants. The rule was applicable to any public or private office space, not just colleges. It also applied to hotels, dining establishments, places of worship, and other similar establishments. Arguments that wearing hijab was essential practice in Islam may not hold water. Hijab has roots in Persian and known as ḥajaba or the veil in Arabic. In Quran, hijab is termed as ‘Khimar’ which means curtain or partition in literal or metaphorical sense. Khimar originated from trilateral verb ‘khamara’ which again means ‘ghatta’, to conceal, hide, or cover something. Quran Surah al-Ahzab, verse-53 said, “Let them wear their Khimar over their juyub” referring to their chest. Allah instructed the believing women to bring the fabric to their front by drawing Khimar over their chests, as a covering. Khumurihina (plural of Khimar) used in this Quran verse refers to scarves that females wore on the Arabian Peninsula at the time. Given the clear distinction, justifiably one wonders as to why Hijab is used while Quran refers to as scarf or Khimar. Subsequently, verse 30 in chapter 24 and verse 54 in Chapter 33, Holy Quran asked both men and women to act with “decency” and “integrity,” both physically and morally. The Quran did not mandate a strictly religious “uniform,” and the first spiritual message did not mean to impose strict or “fixed” dress rules once and for all as propagated by Islamist fanatics but rather to “recommend” an “attitude” or “ethic” towards the body and soul. Khimar versus hijab is not one of Islam’s pillars but rather relate to moral principles, behaviour and relational ethics. Only when religious faith is exercised freely can it meaning something. As a result, discussing Islamic obligation to wear a hijab or Khimar is spiritually and technically incorrect as the Quran states, “No compulsion in religion.” (256 of Al-Baqara). Karnataka High court had ruled that hijab was not essential to religious practice of Islam and upheld the state government order on adhering to uniforms in educational institutions. The recent Supreme Court split verdict on Hijab and its reference to a larger bench has made the debate all the more intense. Six- Muslim girls that

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Human Rights Media Policy World
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477

Tolerate Xi, No Other Option

Western powers may shudder at third term for Chinese President, India may be uneasy with the pit-bull, but then does world have a say? K.A.Badarinath “Over throw the dictator” posters and banners that donned Sitong Bridge overpass in Beijing. Similarly thousands of Chinese people gathered at one of the suburban town 45-kilometres away on eastern edge of Beijing protesting the repressive President Xi Jingping’s zero-covid 19 norms in three years. These two instances are symptomatic of unease and restlessness within Chinese population against Oligarchs and multi-billionaires controlled Communist Party of China’s government even as the prima donna leader President Xi gets ready for third term coronation. Rarest of the rare protests that ordinary working class people staged on Thursday demanding their right to travel to work places in Beijing is tip of the iceberg. Whatever may be the line pursued by official communist party organ, People’s Daily, information trickling across social media point to a section of Chinese people seeking change in the leadership. South China Morning Post’s story talks of the protests that have sent larger message to President Xi Jingping and the Communist Party of China’s five years once national congress that begins its week-long session on Sunday. “Say no to Covid test, yes to food. No to lockdown, yes to freedom. No to lies, yes to dignity. No to cultural revolution, yes to reform. No to the great leader, yes to vote. Don’t be a slave, be a citizen,” read banners during Thursday protests as per a dispatch of CNN. These liners sum up the ordinary folks’ aspirations in China. “Go on strike, remove the dictator and national traitor Xi Jinping” pointed to the intent behind protest very succinctly. Not that these protests, public outrage or demand for democratic governance structures would mean anything to the autocratic rule led by President Xi Jingping. Anointing Xi to the ‘core’ by central committee of CPC only reflects the sycophants that have filled in the high chair. After having secured the ‘iconic status’, there’s nothing that may come in his way from continuing his lacklustre regime for another five years. Upper age limit of 68-years may not be applicable to President Xi. Party’s rule book that limits the Presidency to two terms also may not be a limiting factor. If reports from outlets like BBC were to be believed, President Xi will continue as ‘supreme leader’ for his life time. Apart from revamping the seven member polit-bureau standing committee with his acolytes, President Xi may even be elevated to become chairman with executive powers, a post that was abolished at the twelfth national congress in 1982. Mao Zedong who shaped Communist Party of China in the formative years was the most popular and the only chairman of the leftist formation China had in aftermath of the long march. If President Xi were to get designated as the Chairman now or after five years, he’s bound to ensure that one of his stooges would be appointed as General Secretary with limited or no executive powers. The 25-member strong polit-bureau of the party to be announced next week end would have faces that are ‘very loyal’ to President Xi Jingping. Along with third term for President Xi and reorganizing party and government’s top deck, there’s every possibility that Chinese military, political and party doctrine would get rewritten. Western block led by US, Japan, Australia and some of their European allies are bound to mount fresh challenge to Chinese Indo-Pacific strategy apart from isolating China further on economic, trade and investments matrix. His signature projects like Belt and Roads Initiative that pushed lot many countries into the Chinese debt trap may get a leg up. China’s development and security initiatives would get redefined and fortified notwithstanding its own block making and criticism on dragon’s debt stranglehold. China under President Xi’s third term would try and re-assert on security front, reimagine and re-energise its economy that took a huge hit last three years owing to Covid 19 pandemic. In a bid to bring the disenchanted communist cadres together and give a fillip to the world’s largest military, President Xi may lean heavily on the ‘nationalist sentiment and emotional China centric appeal’ that’s very anti-thesis of Communist party’s ideological stand. Russia – Ukraine conflict that has had led to a huge energy crisis in entire Europe and China siding with President Putin serves as the perfect backdrop to CPC rewriting its doctrine on ‘development and security’. For India, the fallout of possibly a more stringent CPC line, will be huge given that Beijing – New Delhi ties got redefined especially after East Ladakh adventurism attempted by President Xi and his cronies in last two years.  On economic front, there could be significant challenges as India readies to replace China across supply chains network including Defence equipment and services. As India warms up to assume chairmanship of G-20 and China continues to hold reins of BRICS till June next year,  a huge change in bilateral and multi-lateral engagements in the region and beyond would shape the post-Covid 19 world. Also, with India being chair of UNSC as an elected member for two years, there’s likelihood of some churn in global organizations. As a write up in South China Morning Post put it, western powers led by US may not like a third term for President Xi Jingping, but do they have an option. They have to live with it and the world will have to tolerate him for perhaps his lifetime. India will have to move its pawns with care and caution keeping the independent and balanced security and foreign policy stand intact. (Author is director and chief executive, Centre for Integrated and Holistic Studies, New Delhi)

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Business Leadership Policy
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Indo-Japanese Relations Go Beyond the Pacific

Modi and Kishida talks point to evolving common strategies that may spill over to multi-lateral engagement at G-20 and G-7 Amritpal Kaur Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent Japan visit was not limited to paying tributes to Abe San. Apart from representing India at his former Japanese counterpart’s funeral, Prime Minister Modi seems to have established a rather similar working understanding with the host government led by Fumio Kishida. Kishida, who was foreign minister in Shinzo Abe’s government, did not want to miss the opportunity in striking a relationship with Prime Minister Modi and his right wing BJP government in India. The two sides have thrown enough hints that Shinzo Abe’s vision for Indo Pacific partnership and larger alliance will continue to be the guiding principle in their relationship. Both sides have recognized that Quad was evolving as the operative group to implement the Abe’s vision for Indo Pacific region. Enough commitments were also made to move substantively in the path laid out by Shinzo Abe. Ease of doing business between two countries spread across trade, investments and manufacturing as well as services were a given in the whole gambit of bilateral relations. While this is second time Fumio Kishido met Modi on September 27 after having been anointed as Prime Minister, evolving intricate relations between the two countries has become a talking point in global diplomatic circles for right reasons. Insiders in Modi government do reveal that the Prime Minister chose to head to Japan for paying tributes to his friend Abe San rather than descending on London for Queen Elizabeth’s funeral. Increased relevance of the East Asia in Indian diplomacy matrix is yet another talking point. This was at display a few days before when Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and foreign minister S. Jaishankar were in Tokyo for two plus two dialogue. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited Inner Mongolia in September to forge defense and diplomatic ties between India and Mongolia. Minister Singh met Mongolia’s President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh and the Chairman of State Great Khural of Mongolia G. Zandanshatar. Apart from holding delegation level talks with his Mongolian counterpart to hasten implementation of strategic partnership between the two countries, Rajnath Singh inaugurated Cyber security Training Centre built with Indian assistance at the National Defense University in Ulaanbaatar. India Mongolia Friendship School also got wings during Singh’s visit.  On September 8, Indian Defence Minister and Foreign Minister held a two plus two ministerial dialogue at Tokyo with Japanese leadership centred around substantive engagement between Joint Staff of Japanese Self Defense Forces and Integrated Defense Staff of India. Japan participated for the first time in multilateral exercise MILAN. Both countries have operationalized the Reciprocal Provision of Supply Service Agreement. It was agreed that in the near future, Indian and Japanese Air forces will hold Air Force fighter exercise. India invited Japan to engage in development of the emerging and critical technology domains and Japanese defense companies to invest defense corridors in India. India pushed for maritime cooperation with Japan through its Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI) which is in line with Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP). Also, through Asean’s framework India and Japan have moved ahead to work on a greater Asian region. Rightly so, S. Jaishankar noted that given the tumultuous international environment, the 2+2 meeting between India and Japan promoted Rules-based order ensuring respect for international laws, norms and commitment to safeguard common resources of the world. Interestingly, both sides seem to have utilized the 2+2 meeting to reflect and coordinate approach on international issues. Also, in the scenario of aggravated environmental concerns, grim economic situation, Indo-Japanese cooperation seems to have moved beyond the immediate region, into the multilateral frameworks like QUAD, ASEAN platform, Re-CAAP and Supply Chain Resilience Initiative. Fortified India – Japan relations will come handy when New Delhi takes over as G-20 chair and Tokyo taking charge of G-7. (Author is a contributing scholar with CIHS)

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Fact Sheet Human Rights Media Misinformation Uncategorized World
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540

Mahatma, an Apostle of Peace

Neha Dahiya / New Delhi, India Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi’s 153-rd birth anniversary is celebrated on October 2 as international non-violence day in consonance with United Nation’s resolution of 2007. On this day, CIHS team has compiled ten major instances where Mahatma Gandhi’s statues have been defaced, mutilated or pulled down by terror groups owing allegiance to Khalistan, Pakistan or Islamic State. In most incidents, desecration of Mahatma Gandhi statue, Khalistan separatists were involved. They have spray-painted words like Khalistan, Racist, Rapist, never forget 84, and other divisive phrases. In one incident, separatists draped the Khalistan flag over the statue. 1. Richmond Hill, Canada| July 13, 2022 A five-meter-tall statue of Mahatma Gandhi was defaced at Vishnu Mandir in the area of Yonge Street and Garden Avenue. Statue was vandalized at around 12:30 pm and graphic words such as Rapist and Khalistan Zindabad were spray painted on the Plinth. The chairman of the temple shared that the statue has been here for the past 30 years but poignant acts like this have never happened before. The High Commission of India in Ottawa condemned the incident on a tweet that reads, “We are deeply anguished by this hate crime that seeks to terrorize the Indian community. It has led to increased concern and insecurity in the Indian community here. We have approached the Canadian government to investigate and ensure perpetrators are brought to justice swiftly”. Constable Amy Boudreau, the spokesperson for York Regional Police said that the crime will be investigated as a hate bias-motivated incident. Prior to this incident, many a time Mahatma Gandhi statue was defaced, ripped or vandalised by motivated elements involved in Khalistan movement. [1] 2. New York, United States of America | February 04, 2022 An eight-feet-high bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi was defaced by miscreants in Manhattan’s Union Square. The statue was donated by the Gandhi Memorial International foundation on October 02, 1986, to mark the 117th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Consulate General condemned the act as despicable, the matter has been taken up by the local authorities.[2] Utsav Chakrabarti, executive director of the HinduPACT said that this is not the first time that a statue of Gandhi has been vandalised in the US. “In the past few years, statues of Mahatma Gandhi have been vandalised by groups aligned with radical Islamists and their sympathisers in South Asian communities.[3] Statue of Mahatma was removed from the University campus in Accra amid students and staff protest, they claimed that Mahatma Gandhi insulted Black Africans and was a Racist. Plinth stating Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948), The Mahatma (Great soul) was also removed.[4] The statue was gifted to the University of Ghana by Indian Embassy on June 13, 2016, unveiled by former president Pranab Mukherjee during his visit to Ghana and its national university. After the Installation of Statue, online protests with #GandhiMustFall and #GandhiForComeDown sparked in many universities demanding removal of statue. A six feet tall, 294 kg (650-pound) statue of Mahatma Gandhi was vandalized and ripped from the base by miscreants in central park of City of Davis in northern California. The statue was found by park employee with sawed off ankles and half face mutilated and missing. The statue was donated by the Indian government to the city of Davis in 2017 and was installed amidst protest from Anti-India organisations. These protests were led by the Organization for Minorities in India (OFMI) and other Khalistani separatists, which opposed the statue’s installation. However, the installation had already been approved by the City of Davis. Since that time, OFMI has been campaigning to take down Mahatma Gandhi statue.  Guarang Desai of Friends of India Society International said, “An atmosphere of hatred was created by these Anti-India organisations for years and not only they have run hate campaigns against Indian icons but were also at forefront to push Hinduphobia and erase India from California school sixth and seventh-grade textbooks”[5].  California Sikh Youth Alliance shared images of the torn statue on Twitter, another user with username KHALISTAN1984 writes “TODAY IS A GOOD DAY” On the same day the statue was ripped in Davis, Khalistani separatists in India stormed to Red Fort violently breaking down barricades and injuring over 300 Indian police officers. The statue of Mahatma Gandhi was vandalised by members of Khalistani separatists at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Plaza in front of Indian Embassy at Washington DC. Separatist Protestors draped Khalistani Yellow Flag on the statue and flashed banners and placards. They also pasted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi effigy on the statue. Hundreds of Separatists carried out a Car rally in Greater Washington DC area, Maryland, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Ohio and North Carolina in support of Khalistanis in India protesting against Indian agriculture laws. The Khalistani protestors in Washington DC brandished Kirpans and raised Anti-India slogans in front of the Indian embassy. They said they are representing the Republic of Khalistan. The Indian Embassy condemned the reckless act by hooligans masked as demonstrators.[6] The statue was unveiled by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on September 16, 2000, in the presence of former US president Bill Clinton. A-life sized bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi was vandalised by un-known people in Melbourne. The Victorian police said that a power drill tool is used to decapitate the statue. The statue was vandalised hours after it was unveiled by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison alongwith Consultant General of India Raj Kumar at the Australian Indian Community Centre in the Melbourne suburb of Rowville. The statue was donated by the government of India as a part of celebration of 75 years of India’s Independence. Scott Morrison said that the vandalism of the statue was very disgraceful and disappointing. During the Black Lives Matter protest, people spray painted ‘Racist’ on the Mahatma Gandhi statue plinth in Parliament Square, London. Demonstrators taped placards with anti-racism messages on the statue. Statue of former UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill was also spray-painted ‘Racist’. The statue was installed in 2015 and is one

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Disinformation Fact Sheet Hindus Misinformation Policy
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532

Islamist Crime Syndicate Stopped in Its Tracks

India imposed ban on PFI and eight of its affiliates spreading terror.  On September 28, 2022, the Indian government imposed a five-year ban on the Popular Front of India (PFI) and all of its affiliated organisations. PFI, an extreme Islamist organisation that took over from the National Development Front (NDF) in 2006, is infamous for its total disdain for the Indian constitution and its participation in anti-India activities. India’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) therefore determined that the PFI was an unlawful organisation in violation of India’s 1967 Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and as a result, the PFI is banned. PFI and its associates have customarily engaged in forced conversions, funding of terrorism, illicit hawala transactions, criminal conspiracies, inciting violence through hate speech, and other acts of terror. These atrocious crimes against humanity have included the cruel murder of innocent Hindus, Christians, and even moderate Muslims. The PFI was established in 2006 as a reformation of the National Democratic Front  (NDF) in Kerala, the southernmost and most literate state of India. Originally founded in 1994, NDF was disbanded as a pan-Islamic group that was exposed to multiple instances of hate speech and related crimes. By combining the approaches of NDF, Manitha Neethi Pasarai, Karnataka Forum for Dignity, and other organisations, PFI a developed with a multi-state worldview. PFI advertises itself as a neo-social movement empowering people to achieve justice, freedom, and security, yet its actions point to it being a spiteful crime syndicate. To further its nefarious criminal agenda, PFI has a number of organisations that engage with different socio-economic groups, including but not limited to the Rehab India Foundation (RIF), Campus Front of India (CFI), All India Imams Council (AIIC), National Confederation of Human Rights Organisation (NCHRO), National Women’s Front (NWF), Junior Front, Empower India Foundation, Rehab foundation Kerala, and others. At the time of its banning, PFI’s crime syndicate maintained operations in 23 Indian states, with major concentration in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Kerala provided as the organisation’s primary base. Wherein, PFI assets that it works with human rights activists (rather people who may be viewed as HR activists) to stop human rights violations in the country, however in reality, the organisation works to incite Islamist hate against people of other faiths and cultures while ostensibly defending the rights of minorities. In a notification dated September 27, 2022, the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs highlighted PFI’s connections to terrorist organisations like ISIS and Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh. Furthermore, PFI cadres have taken part in terrorism in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Besides this, the organization’s founding founders were the heads of the outlawed jihadist terrorist group Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). In the course of its investigation leading to the ban, India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) discovered that PFI opened 27 bank accounts, 9 of which were RIF accounts, and that a total of INR 120 crores was routed by PFI through a rogue network in West Asian nations, particularly Qatar, Kuwait, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia. The funds were covertly moved to India for nefarious and extremist activities. The money was transferred in such a deliberate manner that cash deposits and withdrawals occurred every day, and payments were restricted to a maximum of INR 50,000. so that they are exempt from giving tax number or other forms of identification. On September 22, 2022, the PFI offices in the Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Puducherry, Assam, and Rajasthan were searched by India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). PFI Chairman O. M. A. Salam, its National General Secretary Anis Ahmed, its Member of the National Executive Council P. Koya, its National Vice Chairman E. M. Abdur Rahiman, its National Secretary Afsar Pasha, its Member of the National Executive Council Abdul Wahid Sait, its National Secretary (Media and Public Relations) Mohammed Shakib, and its President of the West Bengal unit Minarul Sheikh were all detained during the search and seize operations carried out as part of Operation Octopus of the Indian Investigation agencies. So far, 247 PFI members have been detained as further investigations are ongoing. PFI has a long history of engaging in several anti-humanity and anti-india actions. Rifles, bombs and bomb making manuals, provocative literature outlining how to further the ideology of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda were seized by police from the offices of PFI members in July 2010. In 2012, the Kerala government briefed the Kerala High Court at a case hearing that PFI was connected to 27 community-based murder cases, 86 murder attempts, and 106 instances of communal violence, and that its activities were detrimental to national security. PFI centres across the nation were the targeted of many searches in April 2013 that resulted in the seizure of lethal weapons, foreign currency, and human shot targets in addition to explosive raw materials like gunpowder, swords, and other weaponry. In wake of the Assam clashes of 2012. the criminal syndicate PFI cooperated and worked with Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HUJI), a Pakistan based Jihadi terrorist group that calls for Jihad against the people of diverse faiths, in order to spread inflammatory messages,. Roughly 28 to 30% of these messages originated in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Towing the line of proscribed international Anti-Jew terrorist organisations. In July 2014, Anti-Jewish demonstrations and antisemitism were stoked in many Indian regions by Islamist minded PFI. The PFI office in Shaheen Bagh, Delhi served as an outpost during the Anti-CAA protest in 2019–20, and the criminal group was actively involved in a misinformation campaign with the sinister goal of peddling false information  about National Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR) to Muslims in order to incite violence and Anti-India and Anti-Hindu hatred. The evil scheme of the criminal gang PFI was to provoke a civil war in India over the NRC and CAA. The criminal organisation was also involved in establishing an illegal helpdesk in Goalpara and Kamrup, Assam, to fabricate false documents. When the world was struggling with the

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Disinformation Misinformation World
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481

Wikipedia: An Islamist-Leftist Global Propaganda Tool

It is widely believed that Wikipedia is a reputable online encyclopedia but according to Wikipedia itself, “Wikipedia is not a reliable source for academic writing or research.” In light of numerous instances of bias, factual misrepresentation, and the dissemination of false information, Wikipedia cannot be trusted to provide impartial and authentic information. This is a need of the time to know about the Wikipedia’s management, ownership and guidance board, are they impartial and focused or a part of larger nexus of the Evangelists, Islamists, and leftists. Rohan Giri / New Delhi (Rohan is a journalism graduate from Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) New Delhi, and Manager Operations at CIHS.)

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Disinformation Fact Sheet Hindus
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IAMC: A US-Based Islamist Disinformation Factory

 Rohan Giri / New Delhi Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC), formerly known as Indian Muslim Council (IMC USA), is a US-based organisation that is in the news for supposedly advancing the interests of Indian Muslims in America. The organisation’s mandate states that its goal is to safeguard India’s pluralism, tolerance, and respect for human rights, however this is far from the reality. Through the dissemination of organised false information and the portrayal of India as the oppressor of Indian Muslims, its efforts frequently demonise India. IAMC routinely spreads its agenda-driven, biassed ideas about India and Hindus in particular, utilising disparaging and Hinduphobic slurs, under the guise of interfaith and inter-community debate. IAMC and its representatives have been defaming India’s sovereignty, culture, tradition, and government efforts over the past few years, misleading the American people about Indian events and happenings. Thereby continuously attempting to sow strife between the oldest and largest democracies in the world. Over many years, the agenda-driven leadership at IAMC created numerous organisations with the same members. In order to conceal the organisation’s dubious identity, support, and foreign ties—including those with United Nations-prohibited terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Islamist extremist organisations like the Jamaat-E-Islami—the entities were given new names. Deeper investigation reveals that Shaik Ubaid, the founder of IAMC, BTF, JFA, and ImamNet, and Abdul Mujahid, the founder of Sound Vision and a co-founder of JFA and BTF, are the major protagonists in the nexus. Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) can be found backing all of these the major organisations. Select  organisations are detailed below. It’s crucial to note that the Islamic Circle of North America ICNA is a nexus of Islamist fundamentalist organisations like  Jamaat-e-Islami and its affiliated terrorist groups and entities. The US government indicated in a resolution that it is concerned about the threat that theocratic organisations pose to democracy and human rights and that ICNA receives funding, shares leadership, and is openly associated with Jamaat-e-Islami.[1] Claims and realities don’t always match up, and IAMC is not an exception to this common occurrence. Even while the Indian American Muslim Council claims to be a non-profit organisation that advocates for Muslim rights, the truth is that it has close ties, both directly and indirectly, to extremist and terrorist organisations that are run by jihadis and islamists. Mohammad Siddiqi, the founder of the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), a terrorist group that has been proscribed in India and has carried out multiple bombings aiming to establish an Islamic state in India was once hosted as a guest at the Shaik Ubaid-founded IAMC.[2] Moreover, IAMC’s founder Sheikh Ubaid is associated with ICNA, which has links with Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba.[3] At the inaugural convention of the IAMC, they lined up the extremist guest speaker, Asim Ghafoor, aka Asim Abdur Rehman Ghafoor. Ghafoor was a former spokesperson for the terrorist-linked groups Global Relief Foundation (GRF), and Care International[4]. The IAMC is run by Rasheed Ahmed. From 2008 to 2017, he was the executive director of the Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA). Three islamist humanitarian organisations, including IMANA, raised millions of money under the guise of assisting India but provided little to no relief to India during COVID-19. IMANA is connected to a number of terrorist organisations, including the Pakistan Jamaat-e-Islami, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizb-ul-Mujahideen.[5] Top IAMC functionaries like Kaleem Kawaja have vociferously advocated the cause of Taliban, once he recorded to have stated “Brother, can you spare a tear for Taliban?”[6] Additionally, IAMC has a history of advocating against India, whether it is through the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) or by glorifying motivated and agenda driven journalists, actors and writers like Rana Ayub, Swara Bhaskar, Angana P. Chatterji and Barkha Dutt. IAMC began influencing the supposedly independent, bipartisan United States federal government panel USCIRF in 2013–2014. Through the commissioner Nadine Maenza, Shaik Ubaid was able to influence the USCIRF with the assistance of the US-based lobbying group Fidelis Government Relations (FGR). The lobbying’s objective was to designate India as country of particular concern (CPC) and draw attention to the country’s human rights issues. In 2020, when USCIRF recognised India as CPC, the well-funded lobbying efforts of IAMC and its nexus would finally yield results. In its 2014 report, the USCIRF altered the map of India by defacing regions of India’s Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, and Arunachal Pradesh.[7] IAMC awarded extraordinary reward money for some of its favoured journalists in the annual Human Rights and Religious Freedom Journalism (HRRF) Awards. Select names decided by IAMC for various cash prizes included Shahid Tantray of The Caravan Magazine, Aishwarya S Iyer of Scroll, Ismat Ara of The Wire, Sumedha Mittal of The Caravan, Naomi Barton of The Wire, Priyanka Thirumurthy of The News Minute, and Akanksha Kumar of Newslaundry, among others.[8] Each prize has gone to an individual who supports the pro-Pakistani, Islamist narrative that the Indian government is terrorising Indian Muslims. To further its jihadist and Islamist goal of destabilising relations between the two progressive nations, India and the USA, IAMC frequently spreads misleading information about India. IAMC has been at the forefront of demonising both America in India and India in America while disguising itself as a pluralist and advocacy group. It has been working continuously against American and Indian interests. Whether it is by encouraging Journalists by compensating them for their activities against India and America, or by lobbying and coercing USCIRF to label India as a country of particular concern. IAMC aggressively supports an anti-Hindu and anti-Indian agenda in the US while publicly promoting its vile lies. Strong checks and balances must be in place to ensure that such propaganda organisations do not have free reign in a free and democratic America. (Rohan is a journalism graduate from Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) New Delhi, and Manager Operations at CIHS.) [1] https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-116hres160ih/html/BILLS-116hres160ih.htm [2] https://www.hinduamerican.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Coalition_Against_Genocide_A_Nexus_of_HinduphobiaUnveiled.pdf [3] https://organiser.org/2022/06/05/84205/bharat/equality-labs-nexus-of-anti-bharat-forces-in-the-united-states-which-is-creating-division-and-rancor/ [4] https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1006295370821952160 [5] https://twitter.com/DisinfoLab/status/1457625435823493122 [6] https://www.milligazette.com/Archives/01032002/0103200254.htm [7] https://thedisinfolab.org/uscirf-an-organization-of-particular-concern/#rb-Chapter—5-JFA-IAMC-ICNA-and-other-Alphabets [8] https://iamc.com/indian-american-muslim-council-iamc-is-thrilled-to-announce-the-shortlist-across-five-categories-of-the-first-ever-human-rights-religious-freedom-journalism-awards-2022-hrrf/

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