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The Supreme Court heard petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, issuing notices to the Election Commission and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar as Chief Justice Surya Kant addressed attempts to pressure the judiciary.
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00:00Good evening, hello and welcome. You're with the news today, your primetime destination news,
00:04newsmakers, talking points. The SIR showdown is now in the Supreme Court where the judges
00:12will begin hearing. Opposition bid to browbeat the Supreme Court or is this a call for justice?
00:19We'll have top lawyers joining us on that question. Also, police question the Manipur
00:24MP Akhoijam of the Congress. Will his party though speak up and take a stand? And the
00:31Ankita Bhandari murder, why is there a delay in the CBI probe? Questions for all as always
00:37on the news today. But first, it's time for the nine headlines at night. The Supreme Court
00:44issues are noticed to the Election Commission over Rahul Gandhi's plea questioning the SIR
00:51exercise. The Chief Justice of India also pulls up India Block Netas over the October 12th
00:58March on to the Supreme Court, says the judiciary cannot be browbeaten.
01:08Actor Imran Khan is told to leave India by the 28th of October for participating in an anti-CEC
01:17minister, despite being a U.S. citizen, acted to challenge the order in the Bombay High Court.
01:25Central Park in the heart of Delhi to remain in Connaught Place, to remain shut for the next two
01:31days ahead of the tricolor protests by the Khokrut Janata Party. Delhi police tells High Court they
01:37will ensure all possible measures are taken to control the protests.
01:44A political row erupts after AISA chief Neha Bora says Bangladesh showed the way for a revolution.
01:51Lawyer, Prashan Bhushan actor, Prakash Raj also say they want regime change. BJP uses it to claim
01:57these are believers in anarchy.
02:03Politics speaks over the Ankita Bhandari case. Rahul Gandhi writes to the president, urges to reconsider
02:09Dushyan Gautam's appointment as Sikkim governor after demanding justice for the family.
02:16Uttarakhand chief minister says government will ensure justice in the case.
02:23Delhi police grills Congress Manipur MP Bimal Akhoi Jam in the JNU sex abuse case. Women
02:31BJP MPs meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla demanding Akhoi Jam sacking.
02:40Law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal tells India today government has the numbers and the will to bring
02:46the delimitation bill in the parliament claims DMK will support the bill but gives no deadline
02:51as to when that will happen.
02:56Maharashtra FDA cracks down on adulteration of spices banned sale of unpackaged spice powder sale.
03:04measures aim to improve hygiene, product, traceability and quality control.
03:14Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosts the Asian Games medal winners at home.
03:20Lords India's Nari Shakti in Japan says 38 of the 85 medals won by women in a sign of the
03:27changing times.
03:43The story that we are breaking at this moment Central Park in Connaught place in the heart of the national
03:49capital
03:49to remain shut on October 16th and 17th ahead of the Kokhrut Janta Party's Lehrado Thiranga march.
03:58The Delhi police tells the Delhi High Court that all possible measures will be taken against
04:04CJP leader Abhijit Dhipke. Appeals to the protesters as well as the general public not to join such assemblies.
04:12The Delhi police now claiming they will facilitate a group of 11 persons carrying the national flag
04:18and the singing of the national anthem at a suitable place. The CJP is saying this is a clear attempt
04:25to
04:25restrict their protests and they will go ahead with their planned protests. Shreya Chatterjee is now joining me.
04:32Shreya, the High Court gave permission to the Kokhrut Janta Party to hold this protest.
04:37Now you've got the Delhi police putting in restrictions and shutting down Connaught place for two days. So,
04:45we are now heading into another possible confrontation between the police and the CJP. What preparations are
04:51being made? We are told once again metro stations for example could be shut.
04:56Well, absolutely Rajdeep you know because the Delhi police has cited droid kishnuri orders of section 163
05:02implemented in and around the adjoining regions of Connaught place. We will see the similar exercise
05:08being carried out that we've already seen Delhi police being doing. Shutting down of metros could
05:12be a possibility but there will be forces on the ground to ensure that such mobilization is not allowed.
05:18And they've also said that they know that there's a mobilization happening under the call of CJP with
05:23support from the Ahmadinejee party as well as per the permission they've already
05:26I mean got for requesting. So, clearly the Delhi police will do the same that is clear because
05:32they've also cited that there was an October 14 writ petition because of which they have to follow
05:36order to ensure there is safety and security to the people of Delhi as well. So, we will not see
05:42any difference in the kind of clash that we've already seen with the Delhi police and the CJP.
05:48Right, okay. Shreya Chatterjee joining us with those details. We'll wait and see how this plays out but
05:53clearly in the heart of the national capital, we now may have another confrontation brewing. Kokruj
05:58Janta Party saying that they are going to lead this Yatra tomorrow. Now, all of this also taking place
06:04with the showdown over SIR and the Chief Election Commissioner reaching the Supreme Court today. A two-judge
06:10bench headed by the Chief Justice of India took up multiple petitions related to the SIR. It has issued
06:18notices to the EC and the Chief Election Commissioner in the petition filed by Rahul Gandhi and other
06:25India bloc leaders. The Chief Justice of India stirred a bit of a controversy though. Surya Khan questioning the
06:32conduct of the opposition leaders led by Rahul Gandhi, who led, remember, a protest march to the Supreme
06:38Court on Monday, saying the Supreme Court would not be browbeaten. Lawyers who represented the
06:44protesters have meanwhile sought an independent probe into alleged police excesses, particularly
06:49against women and women journalists. Here is tonight's top story.
06:56The Supreme Court on Thursday heard a bunch of petitions related to protest against a special
07:02intensive revision of electoral rules. A two-judge bench of Chief Justice Surya Khan and Justice
07:08Joy Malia Bakchi took up the pleas one by one. On India bloc leaders' plea against voter deletions and
07:16alleged irregularities in SIR, the court issued notices to the Election Commission and Chief Election
07:23Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The CGI however said, and I quote, we would like to ask one of the
07:29petitioners about his conduct on the next state of hearing, unquote. While the court did not mention
07:35the name of the petitioner, the reference was to Rahul Gandhi and opposition leaders who took out a
07:40march to the Supreme Court on Monday. The bench also took up a petition seeking restrictions on protest
07:47inside court premises. The court issued notices to the Congress, Rahul Gandhi and other India bloc leaders
07:54over the protest held on Monday. During the hearing, BGP leader and senior advocate Gaurab Bhatia said
08:02200 lawyers signed a memo citing browbeating of judiciary. The CGI responded saying, and I quote,
08:10nobody can browbeat the judiciary, unquote. The bench added, and I quote, we are not sitting in
08:17ivory towers. We know what statements they make outside and what they say in court, unquote.
08:23Taking up a batch of petitions on Delhi protests, the court issued notices to the center and Delhi
08:29police. These petitions are on alleged police accesses against journalists, restrictions on protest
08:36and public movement. The bench ordered law enforcement agencies to preserve CCTV footage and recordings
08:44linked to the protest. Advocate Indira Jai Singh suggested setting up an independent committee
08:50to investigate alleged excesses by police. She also sought protection for a journalist who had alleged
08:57sexual harassment by a police officer. Jai Singh pointed out that the police officer has filed a complaint
09:04alleging caste insult by the journalist. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued,
09:10distinction must be made between journalists and real makers. The court also issued notice on plea
09:17challenging denotification of Jantar Mantar as a protest site. Meanwhile, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan
09:25tendered an unconditional and unqualified apology to the Supreme Court. The apology came in response to a
09:31contempt case over violation of the court's October 10 order against complete ban on metro services and
09:38internet ban during CGP protest. The Home Secretary in an affidavit said cellular internet services was
09:45suspended only in a radius of 4 km. He clarified Wi-Fi and broadband were not suspended. The government
09:53sought a modification in the court to allow suspension of internet services where needed. With the notices
10:00issued, the stage is now set for a court battle over SIR and CEC Gyanish Kumar. With Anisha Mathur,
10:08Bureau Report, India Today.
10:12Okay, let's now focus on the court, what the court said. Joining me now first is Vrinda Grover,
10:18Senior Advocate Supreme Court, who's also appeared for the Kokhrut Janata Party when it came to their
10:23detention. Appreciate Vrinda Grover, you joining me. I want to ask you, Vrinda Grover, the court seem to
10:30suggest today that they are displeased with what they are calling the brow beating of the judiciary by
10:35political parties leading the march to the Supreme Court. They are also not giving clear directions as
10:41what to do with these protests that are building up. You all wanted a committee to be set up to
10:47investigate the police excesses. The court hasn't yet set up one. How do you see what the court is
10:53doing at the moment? Is the court, in your view, troubled by what they are seeing as protests
10:59carrying on around them, including in Supreme Court premises?
11:05I'm not going to second-guess or speak for the court, of course. And I think there are many people
11:12people representing the India bloc both inside and outside the courtroom who can respond to that.
11:18All that I would like to say here is that, insofar as the SIR matters are concerned,
11:24very early on when the Bihar state went to SIR, there were petitions filed. I'd also find on behalf
11:31of some citizens of Bihar. And there was advance signals that SIR will lead to disenfranchisement
11:40and disproportionately burden certain groups of people. And now we are seeing that it's across
11:45the board people are getting impacted. And through various investigations, et cetera, it's now become
11:51plain and clear that there are serious discrepancies in the functioning, in the integrity, and there is
12:01a reason for why there is a hue and cry over this mass disenfranchisement that we are in the middle
12:08of.
12:09So these are issues that the court will have to consider, and it has, I believe, given notice on,
12:16and will engage with them. And we see every day the ECI issues a fresh notice and changes a rule
12:25they've made. Every single day some new notification even for Delhi arrives. So there is trouble there
12:32which needs to be addressed and needs to be addressed because it goes to the heart of our democracy.
12:37So far as protests are concerned setting up committees, there is more than enough credible
12:44prima facie evidence material in the public domain to show that there have been police excesses.
12:53Even the fact that people are picked up every day and put into those vans, which actually are
13:02probably at places that cattle should be put and taken to far-flung areas, are these not illegalities?
13:08Why are people not being allowed to protest? Yes, the answer is there is 163 imposed.
13:14The question is, why is 163 imposed? Why is it that people cannot protest? There is so much evidence of...
13:21Public order. Public order. I mean, the public order was said by the Solicitor General today in court
13:28very clearly. And he also claimed that women constables, he claimed women constables had also been targeted.
13:34All right. So let's have an impartial independent inquiry. Public order, law and order has been said by
13:42every state regime, including colonial rulers. We are governed by a constitution. Police does not get
13:50to decide my fundamental rights. There is evidence of police excesses from July and ongoing as we speak.
13:58There is an HPEC, High Powered Inquiry Committee, headed by a former Supreme Court judge, which is yet to
14:05commence effective engagement. As we speak, women journalists, women's molestation has come to light
14:14through evidence in the public domain. What is these kind of excesses are being allowed? Who in this city,
14:22in this country, is not aware of police, you exercising disproportionate and excessive force? Against what?
14:32Let us look at what is being said. Tomorrow...
14:35No, so you want the Supreme Court to order an independent inquiry into the event stretching from July till today?
14:43The independent inquiry has already been ordered. Is it in any way restraining the police? Where is the
14:53restraint on the police? I don't see that restraint at all. Bennett guns were fired in July in independent
14:59India and Delhi. Where is the restraint? They are not using weapons anymore. Hands have become the
15:06weapons. There is... So where is the restraint on use of excessive force? The ordering of the independent
15:14inquiry committee is not the restraint that it's having no effect on the police. Today, we know that
15:21there are women journalists who are approaching the Supreme Court saying we are unable to discharge
15:27our duty without fear. You know, the fact though, Vrinda Grover, is we've seen now,
15:33the Delhi police has just announced even tomorrow for Connaught Place. They put several restrictions.
15:39Only 11 people can come there and hoist the flag. They are saying very clearly, telling citizens,
15:45please don't come to Connaught Place. They are closing that central area for two days.
15:49So, I mean, you've got the court, which on Sunday was giving various guidelines as to where you can
15:55protest, how you can protest, what restrictions are there. The Delhi police is setting its own agenda.
16:00Now, today, the Home Secretary gave an unqualified apology over contempt of court proceedings.
16:07But the fact at the moment is, on the ground, the Delhi police seems very concerned that these
16:12protests can spiral out of control. See, what is this language, Rajdeep? Spiral out of control.
16:21Are any of the protesters armed? Are they violent? Are they using any form of weapons?
16:29People are collecting to voice that they are angry. They are upset. They are troubled. They don't believe
16:37that the ECI is conducting a very important constitutional task, the way it should as per law.
16:45Why can people not express this? Why is Central Park closed? Because people are saying they are going to
16:52collect to wave the national flag. For that reason, we closed the Central Park of Connaught Place. Can we
16:59just pause in this country? This is an absurdity we are dealing with. We have got entangled in 144 designated
17:08space. This is a country where citizens have freedoms, citizens have rights. Citizens have not abused those
17:15rights and freedoms. If some incidents have taken place. Those should be investigated of all sides.
17:23And there is an inquiry committee. Let it look into it. Where have those FIRs against policemen
17:30been filed? The RAF men who gave the orders for the pellet guns. Where is that FIR? I want to
17:36know.
17:36Why are we saying? Police have said it will not happen because people will collect and do what?
17:43Can I ask you a very direct question then at the end? Do you believe the Supreme Court has done
17:47enough
17:48to ensure that these rights are protected? Do you believe that the courts also have been very, very
17:56reluctant to get involved in what they believe are primarily executive functions?
18:01It is the Supreme Court's cardinal duty to safeguard our fundamental rights and to ensure that we enjoy
18:10our freedoms to the fullest. And every arbitrary exercise of power is restrained. If today,
18:18women journalists are not able to discharge their duty. If today, ordinary people cannot express themselves
18:25on the streets without being bundled away and thrown into some remote corner, then my fundamental
18:32rights and freedoms are being infringed. And there is nothing we have for tomorrow or day after that
18:39these will not be. Because what the police is doing is using the law book, ruling, using the rule book
18:46to
18:46say that only law and order. They are going under 163 of BNSS. They are saying there are also duties,
18:56public inconveniences. They are saying public inconveniences. Who is the public? Yes, so we were
19:02told vendors and traders of CP. So therefore, for all those hawkers and vendors, you have closed down
19:09the central park, the central park where the hawkers actually went. So let's not use these little guises as
19:16though we are so foolish in this city, in this country. This issue of Jantar Mantar, it's not the first
19:23time
19:23it's come before the Supreme Court. There is an MPSS judgment of 2016. And I, for one, do not think
19:29that we should
19:30counter juxtapose the protester and the citizen. The protester is as much a citizen. Who is troubled by these
19:39peaceful protests asking direct questions? And those questions are being asked inside the Supreme
19:46Court. That means they are valid questions about SIR. Let me leave it there. Let me leave it there.
19:52Vrinda Grover for joining me here on the show tonight. Thank you very much. Appreciate you joining me. I want
19:57to turn from there to another senior Supreme Court advocate. Aryama Sundaram is joining me. Aryama Sundaram,
20:03we've seen these bunch of petitions before the Supreme Court. Today, the Chief Justice,
20:07Surya Khan making it clear that no one can browbeat the judiciary. He was referring to the march
20:12to the Supreme Court that was led by the Congress and opposition groups. How do you see it? Is the
20:18judiciary being browbeaten or is this a call for justice? Well, according to me, I can't see any
20:26litigant before a court going in a huge procession to the court to file his case. However, having said that,
20:32I have seen this kind of thing done in political cases. You know, when a political case has political
20:40ramifications, you have the leader of a party together with a lot of others going to court to
20:44file a case. That's one thing. But I think what really is of concern is not the fact of the
20:51litigants going to court to file the case. The concern which I felt was that requesting an
20:58audience with the Chief Justice earlier, which I find very strange because nobody who's planning to
21:03file a case should say, by the way, can I have a private discussion with the judge before I file
21:09this case to discuss it? So you're saying where the opposition party and we'll run pictures of Rahul
21:14Gandhi's march. You're saying that's where perhaps the opposition party or the opposition party should
21:19have been more circumspect that they shouldn't have written to the Chief Justice seeking an audience
21:24with him when they were about to go and file a very a petition before that very Chief Justice's
21:30court. Am I correct? Absolutely right. Absolutely right. You cannot do so. And I think that was
21:39certainly not something which should have even been attempted. And surely political leaders should
21:44know those lines which are very clearly drawn, which is the foundation of our democracy, our
21:50separation of powers. Quite apart from that, even as a layman, what would you say if the other side in
21:56your case had gone and met with the judge who was going to hear the case before filing the case,
22:03what would your reaction be? So I think even making a request to do that was,
22:07according to me, quite quite stunning and not just surprising.
22:12You know, but but what I'm finding is all these cases coming before the Supreme Court,
22:17it gives the Supreme Court an increasingly political hue, given the stakes involved.
22:22Do you believe that all of this that's going to happen, whether it's SIR, whether it's the Chief
22:26Election Commissioner's future, whether it is the right to protest, all of this is going to drag the
22:32courts into a political battle? A short answer.
22:37A short answer. Right now, the court has shown no indication to get into a political battle,
22:44has clearly said we will view this case on the facts of the case. All the disputes which are raised
22:50in
22:50these petitions will be looked at in the particular circumstances. Now, where does the line? Where
22:58is there that Lakshman Rekha between political and judicial? It is here. It is the politician has a
23:05totally different agenda. The court's duty is to act judicially. So what the court has to do,
23:10has to do is that even though a case may have political ramifications, like certain cases have
23:17economic ramifications, certain decisions can affect the stock market. So that way, decisions of
23:22court can always have ramifications. It may have political ramifications, but the question before
23:28the court is, is what is being done in keeping with the constitution or in keeping with statute,
23:36or is it against the constitution or statute? And if incidentally, a decision of the court has
23:43political advantage for one side and political drawback for another, well, that is incidental.
23:48That is collateral. So let me ask you in conclusion, is your fear now that this SIR battle is going
23:55to
23:55only make the court get more and more politicized? That's the fear. Shouldn't that be a concern that the
24:02court is now being going to be dragged into a political battle, whether it likes it or not?
24:10Every attempt has been made to make, get it politicized, but I do not see it getting politicized.
24:17I see it being very careful not to get politicized and I hope it will continue and not be politicized
24:23because if a court gets politicized, I am sorry, but that is the very end of separation of powers.
24:28That's the very end of a democracy. Okay. Appreciate you joining me there,
24:34uh, Aryama Sundaram. The dangers, of course, of, uh, a battle like this being fought in the manner it
24:40is in the courtroom are apparent to see. Let me turn to a story that's breaking at the moment.
24:46The Congress MP from Manipur, Bimal Akhoi Jam, has been grilled by the Delhi police for one and a half
24:52fire this evening. The police have just released him. They've questioned him in a JNU sexual harassment
24:58case. 11 students accused Akhoi Jam of sexual abuse. The police have registered an FR against him
25:05based on a complaint by JNU officials. Akhoi Jam has denied the allegations, claiming that this is a
25:10political witch hunt against him. He has also challenged the university's account of the inquiry
25:17process. So those are the, uh, there you have Bimal Akhoi Jam who came back to Delhi today and says,
25:23insists he's innocent. Remember all of this with the BJP stepping up its attack. A queue of BJP women
25:29MPs today going to the Lok Sabha speaker and the Mahila Morcha approaching the national commission for
25:36women. They all want action against Bimal Akhoi Jam. His supporters in Manipur though are saying this is a
25:43political witch hunt. Meanwhile, questions are also being raised. Why is the Congress leadership
25:48so silent over the case? Those are the questions I want to take to Renuka Chowdhury.
26:23Joining me now on that big story is, uh, Renuka Chowdhury, the Congress member of
26:28parliament, former also minister for women's and child development. Appreciate you joining us,
26:34Renuka Chowdhury. Direct question. On the 9th of October, your MP from Manipur, Bimal Akhoi Jam,
26:41was sacked by JNU, dismissed following an internal committee inquiry that found him guilty
26:47of sexual harassment. And 11 women had complained of sexual harassment. And yet we haven't heard a
26:54squeak from any of your Congress leaders. You talk about, uh, uh, putting women in front of Mahila
27:02power and not a word from the Congress leadership or any of you when it comes to your own MP
27:07being
27:08indicted for sexual harassment.
27:15First of all, Rajdeep, it's very unfortunate that we are reducing these
27:21serious incidents to something Congress versus BJP or any such thing. Mr. Akhoi Jam was called.
27:28He deposed in front of the committee. He answered. He asked, saying that if he found guilty,
27:36he's willing to step aside. He's done the due diligence of all this. So I, it's not about Congress
27:42not saying a squeak or whatever you're calling it. It's nothing like that. We know the politics of what
27:50happens to people in Northeast. We are aware of it. And this man has come by himself. He's spoken.
27:57He's deposed. He's not run away. And he's answering you.
27:59No, no, he may not have run away. Please don't bring in, man, the politics of…
28:02You have him on your national team.
28:04What has the Northeast got to do with it? The fact is, 11 women have deposed against him. There was
28:09a full
28:10inquiry committee report. It was under the POSH Act. At the end of it, it's not one, two, 11 women
28:16deposed against him. And you're calling it, you know, this happens to the Northeast. I've heard,
28:22Mr. Akhoi Jam was on my program. He says this is a witch hunt.
28:25I'm not. My point is, why don't you ask him to step aside, suspend him till he's cleared his name
28:31through a court of law? I mean, at the moment, you're not saying a word. On every other issue,
28:36the Congress raises its voice, but not a word when your own MP is involved.
28:40No, no. What are you saying? Step aside from where? Step aside…
28:42He's a member of parliament. No, I want to ask you that.
28:45He's a member of parliament. The Congress should say,
28:47we do not want you to come to parliament till such time as your name is cleared.
28:51What is to stop you? You asked Bhrit Bhush and Saran Singh to be suspected by the TKP.
28:56Okay, great. So now, national TV is going to decide. One minute. Where is the comparison
29:03between the two cases? So now, we will have to do what the national TV channels will tell us,
29:10that this is how you must conduct yourself. He's a member of parliament. Why are you telling me,
29:14go tell the speaker. If you feel so strongly… Oh, come on, Reduka Chaudhary. No, because your
29:20party says, your leadership says, let's smash the patriarchy. Priyanka Gandhi Badra says,
29:26ladki hu, lad sakthi hu. You all say you are committed to women's empowerment. I brought in
29:31Bhrit Bhush and Saran Singh because in 2023, Congress MPs every day were asking for his suspension
29:36after he was accused of sexual harassment by women wrestlers. Now, you can't, you can't have
29:41selective outrage. That's the point. You can't be selective, Renuka Chaudhary.
29:46Rajdeep, Rajdeep, this is not, this is not being selectively outraged. The outrage is uniform,
29:54whether it is this side or that side. Okay. And this man has come forward himself and he has deposed,
30:02but you're diverting away from Ankita Bhandari's case. How old is that case?
30:07No, no, I'm not diverting. I'm not diverting. In fact, I have a discussion coming up on that after
30:12this. I want to… No, no, ma'am. I am not diverting away. Ma'am, just listen to me. If
30:18you want justice for
30:19Ankita Bhandari and we all want that, I'm focusing on that as well. You also want justice for the 11
30:25women who are claiming that they were subject to allegedly, allegedly sex for Marx, sexually
30:33suggestive references being made time and again to them. Now, this has gone through a process.
30:38Precisely, precisely. The term is alleged. Yes. Yes, it has to go through a process.
30:44That's what justice says. And the process, you have yourself said it was alleged.
30:51It was allegedly said. And the man has stood up and deposed in front of the committee.
30:56He's also challenged you and said that if he's found guilty, he should, he will step aside himself.
31:03You have to wait for justice to come through. No, but on Brig Bhushan Saran Singh also there
31:09were allegations made by the wrestlers. Ma'am, on Brig Bhushan Saran Singh also there were allegations.
31:13No, no, they came out with proof. It wasn't allegations. But the court cleared him.
31:20It wasn't. Yeah, of course we know how the courts work. Yeah, right. The court cleared him. And you're
31:27believing that, that it was justice. Brig Bhushan Saran had all the medal winners who brought great
31:35stature to our country. They threatened to throw the medals into the Yamuna. How are you even, I mean,
31:42these are apples and oranges, Rajdeep. You can't talk like this. You can't. You should.
31:48No, no, no. You have to take up the issue. No, no, you tell me what, what should be the
31:53outlook
31:53of political parties. Do you agree? Do you agree that whenever a public representative is charged
32:00with sexual harassment and the inquiry process under the POSH Act is followed, should that MP be asked to
32:09step aside or not? Which is why…
32:14By whom? By your leadership.
32:17A member of parliament becomes…
32:22You have to prove him guilty. Right? He's deposed. Listen, I'm not here to defend him or offend him or
32:31any
32:31such thing. I want the issue. At least we are not appointing him as governor or the president of the
32:36party there. Right? We are not doing any of those. So you have to understand that we are looking at…
32:44Every time we raise a counter issue, you people shoot back to all these things,
32:49they rewind and replay like the ruling dispensation. How old is the Ankita Bhandari case? Tell me.
32:55The girl was 19. The girl was 19 and she's dead. She can't defend herself.
33:03Her parents were sitting there last night. And because Rahul Gandhi has gone to speak,
33:08you… they have been whisked away by the police. They've been vanished. What kind of government are
33:15we living in? You trash the girl children. The women are beaten up. The universities are not safe.
33:22College is outside. Colleges, there are men who are misbehaving. Nothing is done about that.
33:27And you're bringing it… comparing it to this gentleman's case… No, no, no. Can you take the…
33:31No, no. Renuka Chaudhary. Renuka Chaudhary. Can you take the moral high ground on my program? He is
33:37saying… You could take the moral high ground if you had zero tolerance to all cases involving sexual
33:42harassment. I mean, you… it'll have to be zero tolerance. Yes. Yes. If the man is guilty, if the
33:49man… Yes. If the man is found guilty, hang him. Who's saying no? Hang him. We're not protecting him.
33:55So, you're saying these 11 girls are lying? Are you saying these 11 girls are lying that it's a
33:59political witch hunt? Are you saying these 11 girls are lying that it's a political witch hunt by a
34:03BJP, RSS controlled JNU? No. Rajdeep, do not put words… one minute. Do not put words into my mouth.
34:12I am not saying they're lying. Every utterance by a girl has to be taken seriously, as you should about
34:19the women who've been beaten up, the young girls who have been threatened, the girls who have vanished from
34:24the process of protesting, the girls who have been groped freely by armed and uniformed personnel.
34:34Every one of those complaints should come into cognizance, Rajdeep. Okay. But here you have this
34:38man who's sitting there. Let him be… let it be proved I'll be the first one to come out. Okay.
34:44I will.
34:44Okay. But there is a process and there is a procedure. If he's guilty, hang him. No one's
34:51going to protect him. Nobody. Okay. But come back to the real issue today. A 19-year-old child,
34:59a girl child who was earning her living. Her phone, how convenient. The potholes in those investigations are
35:07quite amazing. This 19-year-old girl is dead. How many years is it? How old is this case, Rajdeep?
35:14Okay. It's 2020. Okay. I've taken your view. How old is this case?
35:17I've taken your view. It is four years and counting and that's the story I'm going to turn.
35:20I'm going to turn to that story in a moment. But Renuka Chaudhary, for you…
35:24Yeah. And then what happens? Why have her parents vanished? Okay.
35:30Why have her parents disappeared? Okay. Why were they removed at four in the morning? Okay. Why?
35:34I've taken your point. I appreciate you joining me. Thank you very much.
35:40Thank you. Okay. Let's turn to that Ankita Bhandari story. The murder mystery surrounding 19-year-old
35:46Ankita Bhandari once again in the national spotlight after Rahul Gandhi visited them along with his sister
35:53Priyanka Gandhi Wadra at a sit-in protest at India Gate last night. The parents were detained.
35:59later by the police and only released in the early hours of Thursday. The family is demanding that BJP
36:05leader Dushyan Gautam's appointment as Sikkim governor be put on hold, insisting that there remain
36:11allegations of his links to their daughter's murder case that need to be properly investigated.
36:17They've now issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the government warning of more protests if their demands are not met.
36:24Take a look.
36:35Ankita Bhandari's parents picked up by Delhi police from India Gate early Thursday morning.
36:41They had spent the night out in the open, demanding that the Narendra Modi government
36:46put on hold its decision to appoint Dushyat Gautam as the governor of Sikkim.
36:52Just hours earlier, leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi and many other Congress leaders had met Ankita's
36:58parents to show solidarity.
37:00As a former leader of the Kiswami, the
37:15representative of the Kiswan-san, there were many cases and were affected,
37:17the people of the Kiswami, the other Narendra Modi and the other Narendra Modi,
37:19the friends of the Kiswami, the former Kiswami, the other Narendra Modi ji.
37:48Ankitab Bhandari's murder that took place four years ago is now becoming an election
37:53issue in Uttarakhand.
37:54The 19-year-old worked as a receptionist at a resort near Rishikesh.
38:00She went missing from the resort on September 18th in 2022.
38:06Four days later, her body was found.
38:09She was murdered for resisting resort owners' attempt to push her into sex trade.
38:15After the murder, part of the resort was bulldozed.
38:18Her family claims this destroyed white evidence.
38:23Resort owner Pul Kitaria, who is the son of former BJP MLA Vinodarya, was arrested on
38:29September 23rd.
38:31Pul Kitaria and two others were convicted of the murder in 2025.
38:36All three accused were sentenced to life imprisonment.
38:41The murder case was back in the headlines again in December 2025.
38:48Actress Urmila Sanawar, wife of former BJP MLA Suresh Rathod, posted videos on social media
38:55on December 22nd.
38:58Sanawar claimed she had information about the alleged VIP linked to the murder case.
39:03She shared an audio recording of an alleged conversation with Rathod.
39:08The videos mentioned the name Gattu, who many identified as Dushyant Gautam.
39:14On December 23rd, Rathod claimed the recordings were fake.
39:20Dushyant Gautam rejected the allegations and filed a defamation case in Delhi High Court against
39:25Sanawar, Rathod and some Congress leaders.
39:30But Trotist swept Uttarakhand over Dushu.
39:33CM Pushkar Dhami was forced to order a CBI probe in January this year.
39:38The central agency took statements from Ankita's family on October 9th.
39:43The delay in CBI is being questioned by the opposition.
39:47The situation was not completely reported by the CBI.
39:53The system was reportedly presented by the CBI.
39:54The person who died of the V.I.P.
39:56The V.I.P.
39:57The parents said that they were all about CBI.
40:07The V.I.P.
40:09They were all about the V.I.P.
40:10The V.I.P.
40:11The V.I.P.
40:12The V.I.P.
40:23Dushant Gautam's appointment as Sikkim Governor has reignited the controversy.
40:28The Congress is making it one of its main issues in the elections she jewels next year.
40:34Vedankit Sharma, Bureau Report, India Today.
40:44Bhandari's story is Yogita Bhayana, activist who's really taken up this cause, and Shaina NC of the Shiv Sena UBT
40:52who's spoken out on it saying that the case, no one should be presumed guilty and there should be no
41:00media trial.
41:01But Yogita Bhayana, let me come to you first.
41:03You brought the parents of Ankita Bhandari yesterday to India Gate.
41:08Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Vadra met him.
41:10This is a four-year-old case.
41:12What prompted you to get them to come to India Gate to raise their voice?
41:17Why now?
41:23Actually, it's other way around.
41:24It's them who were seeking some kind of solace, some kind of place where they can speak about what is
41:32happening to them.
41:32And to my surprise, when they called me two days ago, they told me that this VIP alleged, you know,
41:40the person who has been heard about that he was a VIP.
41:44And from day one, we know with the fact that someone from the authorities and the government of Uttarakhand is
41:53trying to protect that VIP.
41:55Someone alleged, and there are recordings, that that VIP was Dushyant Gautam.
42:01We are not saying that, okay, he is the main culprit or he is the VIP.
42:07We just wanted that there should be investigation.
42:09But Yogita Bhayana, can I stop you?
42:11There is a CBI, there is an ongoing, Yogita, there is an ongoing CBI investigation that's going on.
42:17Yes.
42:17So far, you know, you can't, everyone is innocent and proven guilty.
42:21So far, both the SIT, which was set up by Uttarakhand and the CBI has not found Dushyant Gautam guilty.
42:28So, the parents may well feel that there is a VIP protecting them.
42:33How can you go in public and say, no, it's Dushyant Gautam, he cannot be governor of Sikkim?
42:41I totally agree with what you are saying.
42:44My only submission is that, why are you in hurry, when you know the investigation is going on, SIT is
42:51happening, CBI is happening, it's going on.
42:54If you don't trust your own system and if you want to give him a clean shit and make him
42:59a governor, please do so.
43:00We want it, we want the closure as much as they want it.
43:04But, you know, the CBI is with you, either you are a failure as a government that you can't get
43:09justice or you can't complete an inquiry within the time frame.
43:12There, you are a failure.
43:14If you don't trust that, you say that this will go on for years and till then, why he should
43:18suffer, he should deserve and he should get what he deserves like a governor post.
43:23Finish the inquiry, give him a clean shit, make him a governor, president, prime minister, whatever you want to make
43:30him.
43:31But, there is a name, there is a name, there is a clear cut chat of Ankita Bhandari with her
43:37friend that they are pushing me to entertain a VIP guest.
43:42Fair enough.
43:43Now, that Pulkitaria is arrested, his CDR detail, his call details are not even taken out till yet.
43:52Convicted also from the lower court, of course, he is fighting high court and I have been going to high
43:56courts.
43:57Convicted in lower court and there is no call detail of that convicted, thank you for correcting me, there is
44:03no call record of that convicted criminal.
44:06Now, why they bulldoze that resort?
44:09Within few hours, the lady who bulldozed is, you know, Renu Bisht, she is the MLA, no action has been
44:16taken on her.
44:17They have been very patient.
44:19It's not that they have some kind of a fun, listen first, let me complete.
44:23They don't enjoy coming from 20 hours journey from hills where they don't even have electricity properly to come on
44:30Delhi, you know, stay hungry, don't just cry all the time and just demand justice.
44:35They have been very patient and now they have come, taken to the streets because they have no choice.
44:40Right.
44:41And, I mean, what else you can say?
44:43Okay, you want to make him a governor, please give him a clean shit through the CBI first.
44:47Okay, I've heard you.
44:48Investigate, no, where are the call details of this gentleman?
44:52Yogita, I've heard you loud and clear.
44:54You see, Shaina NC, these are parents, poor parents who've been fighting for more than four years, right?
45:00The CBI inquiry is ordered after public pressure only in 2026 January.
45:05In these eight months, the parents are saying the CBI has not even listened to them or heard them out
45:10till October.
45:11So, parents naturally feel the case is going slow.
45:14They come to Delhi, surely they are entitled to have their voice heard.
45:18Now, if Rahul Gandhi goes, good for Rahul Gandhi and good for the parents, the BJP should be listening.
45:24There's a BJP government in Uttarakhand.
45:26They claim the government of the day, their argument is, is protecting somebody.
45:32And the person whom they believe is being protected is made the governor of Sikkim.
45:38Rajdeep, the question here is, what is the agenda of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi?
45:43I mean, please, the whole nation rallies behind Ankita's case and it has been a delay.
45:49I'm not going to dodge this question.
45:51Four years is too long.
45:52The CBI probe, the fact that a senior politician has been named.
45:57I am completely in agreement, even if we, as Shiv Sena, our leader, Egnanji Shinde, has always talked that women's
46:05dignity, women's respect.
46:07But at the same time, Rajdeep, please also discuss the JNU case.
46:11Where is this high moral ground when 11 girls have testified against a professor?
46:17I just discussed it with Renuka Chaudhary.
46:20I asked Renuka Chaudhary why you're silent.
46:22I just discussed that with Renuka.
46:24You see, I don't want to get into whataboutry today.
46:26The fact is, at the end of the day, Ankita Bhandari's parents deserve justice.
46:31The 11 girls who have accused the professor of sexual harassment deserve justice.
46:37My limited point to you, my limited point to you is the moment Rahul Gandhi reached there,
46:43where the BJP machine began saying this is all politically organized, politically choreographed.
46:49Of course it is.
46:50Of course it is.
46:51Because where was Rahul Gandhi four years back?
46:53I mean, please, let's not give him a status of being a great messiah for the women of this country
47:00when he hasn't been able to sack a member of parliament who is a professor at JNU
47:05and where there are 11 cases of girls speaking up.
47:08And they have spoken up on gory details of how they were sexually harassed.
47:14I mean, if you come out for Ankita, great, you must.
47:19Everybody must.
47:20But the point is, you can't have double standards where you don't take action against your member of parliament
47:25and you only pretend to be sitting on the streets of Delhi
47:29because you think it's great media, theatrics and optics, photo optics.
47:33Okay, ma'am, I've heard you.
47:36I want Yogita Bayana to answer that.
47:39Yogita, Rahul Gandhi coming there, did you all request him?
47:42Did the parents request him?
47:44Or was that spontaneous impromptu?
47:49I don't know.
47:50We tweeted, we put it on our social media
47:52and he picked up from one of the journalists' social media.
47:55This is what I heard.
47:56And his team connected, not with me, with some people around.
47:59And he reached out to the venue within a few hours.
48:02And, of course, we are the one who actually told him to leave Jantar Mantra when Nirbaya happened.
48:08And we really wanted it.
48:09But at the same time, his karikatta started coming.
48:12And, you know, honestly, this is the fourth time I met him with four different victims.
48:18And he's always there for sexual violence victim.
48:20However, you know, every party, definitely, they are having certain people.
48:25And I am not going to defend that because it is happening all over.
48:30Yes, I did ask.
48:32Yes, I did ask.
48:33Yes, I did.
48:34Do you think I wouldn't ask?
48:36Because I don't belong to any particular party.
48:38And I can openly shame all of you because you all are same end of the day.
48:42I don't care.
48:43Because you don't care about women.
48:45You might say, you don't do anything.
48:47Your delegation has met the president of India.
48:51Do you promise me on this channel, would you take these parents to the president of India?
48:56Would they have reached their parliamentarians meeting your own party?
49:01Om Bhirla.
49:02You would not have guts to take.
49:03Listen to me.
49:04You all are same for girls.
49:06Nobody is bothered.
49:08A cross-party line.
49:10I have worked across.
49:12I have been working for 15 years.
49:13I have seen women fighting.
49:15Otherwise, no one can.
49:16Yogita, I have taken your point.
49:19So, I don't care.
49:21Yogita, I have heard you.
49:22I have heard you.
49:23You put an open...
49:24Okay, I am putting the voice fader down.
49:26You put out an open challenge, Yogita.
49:29Then why doesn't the BJP, which has gone to the president on Bimal Aikojaam, go to the president on Ankita
49:36Bhandari's case also?
49:37So, why don't there, you know, there are elections in Uttarakhand and clearly there are political, there will be politics
49:43as well.
49:43But you see, Shaina NC, that's the problem that I have.
49:46And I raised this with Renuka Chaudhary as well.
49:48When Brig Bush and Saran Singh happened, Congress MPs wanted him to be suspended by the BJP.
49:52No one said a word.
49:54BJP was entirely silent.
49:55You were then, of course, in the BJP.
49:57Look, Rajdeep.
49:57But no, no, one minute.
49:58Now, when Bimal Aikojaam happens, Congress is silent.
50:01This is not about politics.
50:02It's about ensuring justice and no selective outrage.
50:07I absolutely agree with you.
50:09I have a solution for them, Rajdeep.
50:10I have a solution for them.
50:11I'll come to your solution in a moment.
50:13Madam, I'll come in a moment to you.
50:15Madam, I'll come to you.
50:16Let her finish.
50:17Yes, Shaina.
50:17Please ask me the question.
50:18Yeah, go ahead.
50:19I'm completely on the same page as you.
50:21I mean, the cause of women is above any party line.
50:25I mean, whenever...
50:25But that's your same TV studios.
50:27No, you all have to walk the talk.
50:29You have to walk the talk.
50:31Yogita Bhaena, what is the suggestion you have for all political parties?
50:37So, I will bring them all together.
50:39If they are serious about women's safety,
50:41give two days in parliament every year for women's session,
50:45women's dedicated women's session.
50:47This couple of years, we need women's safety session.
50:50Maybe then later on, we can change it to women's empowerment
50:52or women's economic independence or what so.
50:55Right now, we need safety.
50:57Honestly, you have seen, though that is now under the surface,
51:01the young girls are coming forward asking for safety.
51:04What happened in Asta Kunsh?
51:05What is happening in Delhi and around?
51:07We really need that.
51:08I am willing to bring them together.
51:11Will they have a dialogue and do this in parliament if they are serious?
51:15None of them is serious.
51:16Agrib ji, I'm telling you, if they are serious, they should do it.
51:18And give appointment to these poor people.
51:20I couldn't agree with you more.
51:22I couldn't agree with you more.
51:26This case has been going on for four years now and the parents have been knocking at several doors
51:31and it has taken public pressure eventually for a CBI inquiry to take place earlier this year.
51:36But we don't know the answer to that.
51:38And then we've got elections in Uttarakhand also in a few months from now.
51:42What we want and that has been the message, I think, both to Renuka Chaudhary and my guests now.
51:47No selective outrage.
51:49Zero tolerance when it comes to any kind of crimes against women.
51:54Walk the talk.
51:55Otherwise, all these,
52:00These slogans make no difference to the lives of people unless you walk the talk.
52:05That's the message, I think, that's coming out loud and clear.
52:10Thanks very much to my guests for joining me.
52:15Let's take a break at this point.
52:17When we return our Get Real India story,
52:19we'll tell you a ground reality of a 14 crore project in Kanpur.
52:24Inaugurated not once but twice but is still not in working condition.
52:29These are the stories that need to be told back in a moment.
52:33You're watching the news today.
52:34News without the noise.
52:40Welcome back.
52:41Get Real India story.
52:43A bus terminal built in Kanpur at a cost of nearly 14 crore rupees now stands deserted.
52:49No buses, no passengers.
52:50It was built to ease traffic congestion, provide relief to commuters.
52:54The terminal has failed to serve their very purpose.
52:58Part of the problem, not just the massive expenditure.
53:01This terminal was inaugurated not just once but twice.
53:06It's time to get you Get Real India,
53:09a 14 crore project that hasn't taken off.
53:12Take a look.
53:23A bus terminal built at a cost of 14 crore rupees.
53:29Inaugurated first by CM Yogi Adityanath in August 2022.
53:32And then again in July 2024 by State Transport Minister Dayashankar Singh.
53:58All decked up, but nobody to host.
54:03This is Signature City Bus Terminal in Kanpur's Azad Nagar.
54:07Operational on paper, but largely non-functional on the ground.
54:13Inquiry counter shut.
54:17Offices locked.
54:19No passengers and just one bus.
54:26The new terminal built to take the load off Shaheed Major Salman Bus Terminal,
54:31which is in the heart of the city, seems to have hit a dead end.
54:45The new terminal built to take the load off of 12 crore rupees.
55:05It's also got to end thấy load off.
55:09It's good to hold to the job.
55:11The new driver also gaped .
55:13it's very bad.
55:14The passenger route was too bad.系
55:15Moore also won't be cured. It's
55:17evolving. The driver
55:17also began to fill thequent of repairs. A nouveaux
55:22detixreders have too bad. To start
55:22to focus right now, It is
55:24a the new
55:25building built on the wrong end, the weров
55:26earnings and ebrak market, for us,
55:45.
55:46.
55:47It seems so that sometimes the whole gt road, Kanapur's whole gt road, is only because of that because of
55:53Jakarkatri's bus adri.
55:54We also have to go out of Jakarkatri, so we have to face a day of the bus adri.
56:00Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation claims bus services from the Signature Terminal will be enhanced soon.
56:31A 14 crore rupee facility that has failed to take off even after four years of inauguration.
56:38When will this terminal finally serve the public?
56:41And who will be held accountable for the delay?
56:45With Simar Shawla, Bureau Report, India Today.
56:55And remember, this money is your and my taxpayers' money.
56:59And these are the questions we must keep asking.
57:02That's what journalism is supposed to do, raise these questions.
57:0514 crores.
57:07The terminal has not yet taken off.
57:10Think about it.
57:11Well, that's about all that we could pack in today.
57:13Thanks very much for watching.
57:14You stay well, stay safe.
57:15Good night, Shubratri.
57:17Jai Hind.
57:17Namaskar.
57:20Namaskar.