- 7/11/2025
On this India First special broadcast, the focus is on the recent firing incident outside comedian Kapil Sharma's cafe in Surrey, Canada. Babbar Khalsa International, a designated terrorist organisation, has claimed responsibility for the attack.
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00:00Hello and welcome to an India Today special broadcast.
00:03The Bappar Khalsa International is a designated terrorist organization.
00:08Not just in India, but even in the United States of America, in Canada, in the United Kingdom, in the European Union, Japan and Malaysia.
00:16But a Bappar Khalsa International terrorist, Harjit Singh Ladi, has claimed responsibility for opening fire outside a famous restaurant,
00:24the restaurant of a famous comedian, Kapil Sharma.
00:26This happened in Saray in Canada.
00:28Clearly, Khalistani terrorists, or should we say extortionists, they once again reared their ugly head.
00:36The big question, Justin Trudeau government refused to take action.
00:40But will the Canadian government under Prime Minister Mark Carney act?
00:46That's the big question we're asking on India First.
00:49Comedian Kapil in Khalistani crosshairs.
00:59Hello, friends. This is Kapil Sharma, U.S. visa holder.
01:02Firing outside Kapil's cafe in Canada.
01:10K-terror threat and extremist escalation.
01:14Big test for new Canadian Prime Minister.
01:22Where Khanai crackdown on Khalistani's top focus on India First.
01:32Khalistani terror has, in the past, sadly, been passed off as freedom of expression in Canada.
01:43Despite their India-Khanesh bombing by Khalistani terrorists that killed 329 passengers,
01:49Canada refused to act or they would take perfunct reaction.
01:52With Justin Trudeau, it was World Bank politics.
01:56Will Mark Carney be any different?
01:58Because the Sarai police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, they've initiated an investigation.
02:03Reports in Canada say they're analysing CCTV images.
02:08The images that we are showing you, you see a man, he opens fire from a moving vehicle.
02:14Spent cartridges have been recovered, but no arrests have been made so far.
02:18The motive is under scrutiny.
02:20So, is it extortion? Is it terror? We'll investigate.
02:24Now, are these terrorists or are these actually extortionists who are masquerading as freedom fighters?
02:28We debate that.
02:29I'm Gaurav Savant. Let's get started with the headlines on India First.
02:38National Security Advisor Ajit Doval calls out Western hypocrisy on Operation Sindhu.
02:43He dares foreign media to show proof of damage on the Indian side.
02:48He says India did not miss a single target in Pakistan.
02:53Foreign press and all these things, they said Pakistan did death in India.
02:57You tell me one photograph, one image which shows any Indian damage being done.
03:05Even a glass pane, have a good tour.
03:0625-year-old tennis player and aspiring influencer Radhika Yadav shot dead allegedly by her father in Gurugram.
03:19WhatsApp chats revealed she wanted an independent life but faced restrictions at home.
03:25Trouble mounts for shifts in MLA Gaikwad complained to be filed against the MLA for thrashing a canteen staffer over quality of food.
03:39A day after income tax notice, Maharashtra Minister Sanjay Sirsath's new video shows him allegedly with a bag full of cash, Minister denies the cash claim.
03:57Congress versus Shashi Tharoor war heats up.
04:05Kerala Congress leaders hit out say Tharoor should give up party post or follow party line.
04:12Kamedian Kapil Sharma is the latest Indian celebrity to be caught in the crosshairs of Khalistani terrorists or extortionists.
04:28There was firing outside his newly opened cafe in Surrey, Caps Cafe.
04:32Babbar Khalsa international terrorist Harjeet Singh Laddi has claimed responsibility.
04:37Remember, a Canadian intelligence report in 2025, so this is the latest Canadian intelligence report,
04:44it says Khalistani elements are using Canadian soil for anti-India activities.
04:50The big question is, will Canada's new Prime Minister Mark Carney be able to change this situation on ground?
04:59His conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the Prime Minister had travelled to Calgary
05:04and had put a question to the Canadian Prime Minister.
05:06He said, there will be, this is a new dawn of relationship between India and Canada.
05:12But will this new dawn see action on ground?
05:15We bring you more in this report.
05:16From a participant in a comedy reality show to hosting the most popular family show.
05:35And now with his own special on Netflix.
05:41For much of the last two decades, Kapil Sharma has made people laugh and brought his audience's joy.
05:57Who would have then thought that he would have been the target of pro-Khalistani terror?
06:02Kapil's recently inaugurated cafe in Canada, Surrey, was targeted by pro-Khalistani terrorists.
06:09Unknown gunmen opened fire at the cafe from a car.
06:13They sprayed the glass facade of the cafe with bullets.
06:16Thankfully, nobody was injured.
06:18So I'm in Surrey, BC, here at Kapil's Cafe, which was shot up last night, as you can see.
06:26There's, you can see, A, B, C, D, E, F, eight or nine bullets.
06:31And then some glasses is fully shattered in.
06:35And you can see the glass on the floor here.
06:36So, this is a cafe owned by Kapil Sharma, who is a very, very famous Indian comedian, has a Netflix show, beloved by left, right.
06:46He's not a political guy, and he's from, you know, Punjab.
06:51Now, what happened is, last night, around 1.50, a bunch of bullets were fired into here, and the staff were still here, according to Surrey Police.
06:59Canadian police have begun an investigation into the case.
07:04Cops are scanning CCTV footages and gathering evidence to nab the accused.
07:09The responsibility of the attack has been claimed by Baba Khalsa terrorist Harjit Singh Laddi.
07:14Among NIA's most wanted terrorists, Harjit Singh Laddi has alleged that Kapil insulted Nihangs and demanded his apology.
07:22Social media, Harjit Singh Laddi has given a report to Kapil Sharma's report.
07:52This is not the first time radicals have targeted Indian celebs in Canada.
07:59Earlier, AP Dhillon's residence, Prem Dhillon's house and Gipi Graeva's car were targeted
08:05all at different locations across Canada.
08:09In the wake of the recent attack, Mumbai police have increased the security of Kapil Sharma back home.
08:16But the question persists, will the change of government in Canada
08:20finally stop the free run of pro-Khalistani terrorists in the country?
08:25With Arvind Oja, Bureau Report, India Today.
08:35News just coming in, the Sarai police, they've created a dedicated extortion investigation team.
08:41They're also partnering with regional, provincial and federal resources.
08:45That's the information that's coming in.
08:46What's the latest as far as their probe is being taken forward?
08:53Pranay Upadhyay is in touch with the Sarai police.
08:56He joins me on this special broadcast.
08:58Pranay, you've reached out to the Sarai police.
09:01Do they have leads?
09:02Have any arrests been made, especially after Babar Khalsa International claimed responsibility for the firing?
09:08Incidentally, Gaurav, we have reached out to the Sarai police and the response which we have received on our questionnaire.
09:16The Sarai police has clearly stated that so far they haven't made any arrests.
09:20It's been over 30 hours of this incident.
09:22But so far there has been no arrests as far as this case is concerned.
09:25They said that they are in the initial stage of investigation.
09:28And they are collecting the evidences, including the electronic evidences and the witness questioning is on as far as this incident is concerned.
09:36But as you mentioned that the Babar Khalsa has claimed the responsibility about this incident.
09:40This remains an organization, an outfit, which is like, you know, a separatist organization, a terror outfit as far as, like, you know, the Indian MHA is concerned.
09:49But still, the Sarai police said that they have instituted a frontline investigating team dedicated for this investigation, as you have mentioned.
09:59And in our response as well, the Sarai police has clearly said that they have dedicated extortion investigation team and have partnered with the regional and the provincial federal resources to combat the larger problem of extortion of South Asian business people.
10:12So definitely they are also looking at the extortion angle to this incident.
10:16Okay, so they masquerade as freedom fighters, they say, because allegedly, allegedly, a Nihang was insulted, therefore the firing, but even the police are investigating an extortion angle.
10:28Pranay, keep tracking that story, I'll come back to you for more.
10:30But this firing outside Kapil Sharma's restaurant in Sarai isn't the first such incident by the Khalistani terrorists in Canada.
10:37For a country that claims it believes in rule-based order, one would expect stronger action against a pattern of crimes.
10:45And we'll list that out to you.
10:47This is inaction?
10:49Or is this vote bank politics at play here?
10:51Joining me on this special broadcast, Terry Milski is a senior Karadian journalist and author, Blood for Blood, 50 years of Global Khalistan Project.
11:01Kushal Mehra is a very well-respected Indian author and analyst, joins us from Canada.
11:07Shashi Kanth is former director general of police, Punjab, someone who's tracked Khalistan terror very closely.
11:14But I want to ask Terry first, Babbar Khalsa International, it's already claimed responsibility for this shooting?
11:22Should Canada have taken stronger action against a terrorist organization that claimed responsibility not just for this shooting,
11:30but you know better, you've authored a book, you've studied the subject, that 1985 Air India AI-182 bombing,
11:37329 people were killed, Canada's worst terrorist attack, and yet that organization flourishes, sir.
11:44And the Babbar Khalsa International remained a legal organization, and it was only banned years later.
11:53But it has been an extraordinary ride for many Khalistani organizations, including the Babbar Khalsa and the Babbar Khalsa International,
12:03which is taking responsibility for this latest shooting in Surrey.
12:07I don't necessarily take for granted that somebody steps forward and says,
12:13well, I'm a gangster, but I'm going to try to improve my religious credentials by taking responsibility for this.
12:21In the name of the Babbar Khalsa, we're not just average extortionists committing crimes.
12:27Oh, no, we're not street criminals.
12:29We're something more glamorous than that.
12:32We're revolutionaries fighting for an independent state of Khalistan.
12:37Yeah, well, we'll see about that.
12:39I don't take that for granted, that just because somebody claims responsibility, he is responsible.
12:45Because, as you have rightly reported a moment ago, there has been a whole string of just plain extortions
12:51and putting a new label on them.
12:55It's just out of the 1930s movies where the mafia comes to your restaurant and says,
13:00it's a nice place you've got here, shame if something would happen to it.
13:04So you've got to pay me to protect you from me.
13:07And that's what's been going on.
13:09There has been a number of incidents which you've mentioned.
13:13So the situation we're now in is where Babbar Khalsa is claiming a responsibility.
13:18If this turns out to be true, that may be a big if, but if it turns out to be true,
13:24then I think Prime Minister Carney has a problem because he is supposed to be the new broom.
13:30He is supposed to sweep clean.
13:32He's not supposed to duplicate the permissive attitude of his predecessors.
13:37And I'm including all parties, not just the liberals, but the conservatives before them.
13:42And of course, the NDP, which is led by Khalistani Sympathizer for some time.
13:48In fact, they've propped up the true government.
13:51You know, the political system in Canada is that the reason why action is not being taken.
13:56Give me a moment.
13:57Let me bring in Kushal Mehra also into this conversation.
14:00Kushal, I was going through that CSIS report of 2025.
14:05And this report explicitly names Khalistani extremists as using Canada to support violence
14:13for a Khalistani state and targeting India.
14:16Now, despite this, Caps Cafe was targeted.
14:20And there have been earlier instances.
14:22What does this say about Canada's commitment to action against these Khalistani elements?
14:28Or is this just on paper?
14:30It's vote bank politics.
14:32Good evening, Gaurav, and good evening to everyone else who's watching this.
14:39This is, you know, basically the seeds were sown a long time ago.
14:44Prime Minister Harper tried to correct a few of those things.
14:47I will not say completely.
14:49And Terry is right that the entire Canadian political class is very much into it.
14:54And now, you know, we are looking at what has happened.
14:59Khalistan is no longer a secessionist movement.
15:02We need to completely redefine what Khalistan is.
15:05Khalistan is actually now a proper gang infestation.
15:10And it actually has multiple verticals.
15:14It's like a business.
15:15It has drugs.
15:16It has human trafficking.
15:17It has, you know, sexually trafficking innocent girls of Indian origin.
15:22It also has extortions.
15:25And this is not just a one-off case, Gaurav.
15:29Kapil being a celebrity, it has made the most news.
15:33But we had a shooting in Mississauga recently.
15:36We've had shootings in Surrey recently.
15:38We've had shootings in Brampton recently.
15:40We've had arrests being made by Peel Police.
15:43Specifically, there is a unit which is covering the extortion bit.
15:47This is all a culmination of what actually was led to happen under Prime Minister Trudeau and Jigmeet Singh's government.
15:54And Prime Minister Carney has to take over everything that they have given to him.
16:00You have given these people a free run in Canada.
16:03They literally, I don't know, I have to check the veracity of the video till now by Gurpath Wan Singh Pannu.
16:08But I just saw a video online where Gurpath Wan Singh Pannu is saying,
16:11why are we letting these Indian Hindu money come to Canada?
16:16Does Canada want to isolate itself and not have any investment anymore?
16:20Are Canadians not supposed to have jobs anymore?
16:23This is a really serious issue now.
16:25It's no longer about some, you know, imagined victimhood.
16:28This is gang war.
16:29Yes, it's a serious issue for Canada.
16:31You know, now you have these terrorists who are calling the shots.
16:34Are these terrorists, Shashikanji, in your appreciation,
16:37or are they actually extortionists and mafia who use Canada as a safe haven to target India?
16:44These elements are flourishing in Canada and able to carry out hits in India.
16:48Well, like my friends have mentioned, it's become a total mixture thing, yeah.
16:55Of course, it has started as a Pakistani movement, but awfully, like I've said rightly,
17:02there are drugs, there is human trafficking, there is extortion, there is everything.
17:08And this will continue.
17:09I'm sorry for saying this thing.
17:11It appears it will continue primarily because the situation as it exists in Canada,
17:16it will ultimately lead to a vote bank politics.
17:20The gentleman was talking about Harper.
17:22What had happened?
17:23When Harper had come here to India, he had specifically gone to the Golden Temple
17:28and met various persons who belong, who were hardliners.
17:34And they talked and they tried to explain his position.
17:37I don't think any political party, any prime minister from Canada will be in a position
17:42to take a stand against these persons, yes.
17:45For the sake of it, for paper things, yes, it will be there, certainly.
17:49There will be investigation, there will be everything, but I doubt.
17:52And second reason, the guys who have come to the crime, they basically live in Germany.
17:57From there, they have come here and because of their nationality issues and all those things,
18:04so they keep on moving around since they are Europeans.
18:08As per nationality is concerned, they move on to USA, Canada, back to Europe.
18:12So it's a very complicated thing.
18:14I don't think any one government can take very strong action on this particular thing.
18:20That's a very, very pertinent point you make.
18:22And I will come to the question whether this was an intelligence agency's project,
18:29a Western intelligence project to keep India in check.
18:32But that's a little later in the debate.
18:34Terry, if I could bring you in once again.
18:36Kushal spoke of a pattern.
18:39So, for example, just on the 12th of June, 2025,
18:42a business owned by the cousin of that murdered pro-Khalistani terrorist, Nijar,
18:46there was a firing that took place on 12th of June.
18:4811th of June, a 57-year-old Punjabi-origin businessman,
18:51I think Satvinder Sharma, he was shot dead in Surrey.
18:55Then on 4th of September, I'm taking you back to 2024,
18:58a shooting was reported outside, you know, that rapper, A.P. Dhillon's house,
19:03that was in Vancouver, again Canada.
19:05Then February 2024, bullet hole found near the window of Inderjeet Singh Ghosal's house
19:11by construction workers.
19:12Again, 2nd of February 2024, gunshots, again, in Surrey,
19:19in the British Columbia province, close to some associate of Nijar.
19:23And then if I go back to 2023, 2022, it just goes on to indicate there's a big pattern, sir.
19:29And yet, so there's an extortionist division, extortion division,
19:33anti-extortion division.
19:34There's a crime division.
19:35And yet, all of this continues to happen year after year.
19:39How do you see that?
19:41Well, what's interesting, what you said, this is all quite correct.
19:44There has indeed been a wave of violence.
19:48And let's remember who the victims are, though.
19:51The victims, in every case you just mentioned,
19:54they are themselves of Indian origin.
19:57Yes.
19:57And that explains, to some degree, I don't think it's a good explanation,
20:00but it's a kind of an explanation,
20:02the indifference and complacency of the wider Canadian society.
20:07Well, it doesn't affect us.
20:09It's all within their community.
20:11And that kind of attitude persisted throughout the many years of the Air India investigation,
20:19where the police rarely were able to distinguish between the good guys and the bad guys,
20:24and failed utterly to solve all of the other crimes that went along with terrorism.
20:31The political element and the religious part of it were two sides of the same coin.
20:37We're talking about the same people.
20:39And the explanation, such as it is, for Canada's complacency has always been that,
20:47as in the Kanishka bombing, where most of the victims were Canadian citizens,
20:52but they were of Indian origin, they somehow didn't count enough to make the police
20:58and the authorities in the Parliament of Canada to really take it seriously.
21:05And most recently...
21:05But that's a very disturbing point, isn't it?
21:08Because if I may, if I may, Kushal, drugs don't make this distinction
21:14whether browns are dying or whites are dying.
21:18And the same drugs available in the market would target their population.
21:22Human trafficking.
21:23Look at how initially those Pakistani grooming gangs,
21:27they thought that they're only trafficking Pakistani origin girls.
21:30Suddenly, they were targeting British girls.
21:33And for decades and decades, will Canada wake up
21:38only when Canadians, white Canadians are targeted by these Khalistani elements?
21:42And I believe in some instances, with human trafficking and drug trafficking,
21:46it's already started.
21:48I mean, you should go to Vancouver, Gaurav, and see how drugs are affecting...
21:53You just have to travel in downtown Vancouver, you'll know what's happening with drugs.
21:58This has already started affecting Canadian society.
22:01And as always, Terry is right.
22:04Terry is spot on because they look at it as a brown-on-brown issue.
22:08They always do that.
22:10And they don't understand.
22:11And the Khalistanis have played the victim cards so well in Canada
22:15that they somehow...
22:17They've learned well from the Pakistanis.
22:19Yeah, they've made everything about victimhood.
22:22Because victimhood epistemology is the essence of Canada.
22:24Everybody is a victim.
22:26Everybody is playing oppression Olympics in Canada.
22:28And the Khalistanis use it so well that if you...
22:31Just imagine,
22:32If anybody makes the kind of bigoted, casteist, sexist remarks that the Khalistanis make,
22:41imagine if it was an average white Christian in Canada making all these remarks.
22:46They would be chided.
22:48The entire state machinery would be after them.
22:51These things would happen.
22:53But just because it's like a minority,
22:55eh, who cares what happens in Surrey?
22:57Who cares about what happens in Brampton?
22:58And eventually, the spillover of this will happen in downtown Toronto,
23:05in mainstream Vancouver,
23:07in all the major cities.
23:09Because right now they think
23:10we have enough Indian businesses of a kind to extort.
23:15Eventually, these businesses will be like,
23:17you know,
23:18and they'll move on.
23:20They will invest in other countries.
23:22They will go somewhere else.
23:23Then what are these people going to do?
23:26Because see,
23:26it's clearly not happening at the pace at which it happens in Canada, in India.
23:30Because they know in India,
23:32the law,
23:33even at times being excessive,
23:35is going to deal with it.
23:36The Indian law will actually deal with it.
23:39But here,
23:40it's a free for all.
23:41Just do what you want to do.
23:43Okay.
23:44And Mr. Shashikant,
23:46as far as India is concerned,
23:48our intelligence agencies must be sharing all the latest information
23:52with authorities in Canada,
23:55or whether it's the Royal Canadian Mounted Police,
23:58or it's their foreign office,
23:59telling them what's happening in their country,
24:02whether it's human trafficking,
24:03drug trafficking,
24:04the kind of elements who are going in,
24:06and how they're damaging the Canadian society,
24:09their state.
24:10Is all of that happening?
24:12And despite that,
24:13are the political leadership in Canada
24:15responsible for the decay in their own system now?
24:20Yeah.
24:20When I was in service,
24:21we used to have regular meetings with CNP guys,
24:24and even guys from the intelligence.
24:26And we used to share.
24:28And I'm sure this practice,
24:29which was sort of institutionalized,
24:32is still happening.
24:33There's proper interaction of,
24:35proper interaction,
24:36exchange of information.
24:37But again,
24:38like this,
24:39my other speakers have said,
24:41the problem that comes up
24:43is a brown skin syndrome.
24:44Right?
24:45The brown guy?
24:46Okay.
24:47Forget about it.
24:48Move on.
24:49Again,
24:49the gentleman has mentioned about
24:51the downtown,
24:52when poor,
24:53I've traveled through,
24:54you'll find on both sides of the road,
24:56you'll find these druggies,
24:58both whites,
24:59and all the nationalities.
25:01Nobody's taking any action.
25:03They know from where this drug is coming.
25:05And Indians,
25:06as well as Chinese,
25:08they are deeply involved in this thing,
25:11whether drugs and all those things.
25:13But Indians,
25:14yes,
25:14somehow they're going a step ahead
25:16in trying to claim for some support
25:19from within the country
25:20because they have an agenda in India as well.
25:23They want to have supporters.
25:24They want to have their sleepers says.
25:26So they are trying to do this thing
25:27to boot this next small section of Indians
25:30who are living in India.
25:30So it's politics,
25:33put ground as international politics,
25:35a terrorist thing.
25:37So this is all sort of getting mixed up.
25:39And that's brought us to...
25:39No, but Adi's Khalistani extortionist,
25:41Adi's Khalistani extortionist Kushal,
25:45a Frankenstein's monster,
25:47and have they,
25:47you know,
25:48turned to destroy their own elements?
25:50For example,
25:51this recent Nagar Kirtan incident,
25:53they targeted a temple,
25:54but were they also targeting a Gurdwara
25:56with that graffiti
25:58and they did not even spare a Gurdwara?
26:00What does that indicate, Kushal?
26:03Well, that Gurdwara is the strongest
26:05anti-Khalistan Gurdwara in Canada.
26:08That's why they attacked it,
26:09Ross Gurdwara.
26:11You're talking about the Ross Gurdwara.
26:12The Ross Gurdwara has always stood up
26:14against these elements.
26:15The Ross Gurdwara is,
26:16you know,
26:17very proud of its Indian roots
26:19and that's why they hate it.
26:21So this is not the first time
26:23they've said things about the Ross Gurdwara.
26:25They've been after the Ross Gurdwara
26:27for a long, long time.
26:29And the management of the Ross Gurdwara
26:31successfully has,
26:32you know,
26:33shielded the Gurdwara's management committee
26:35against these Khalistani elements
26:37till now.
26:38They try to take over
26:39that Gurdwara for the longest time.
26:41They've not succeeded till now.
26:43It's going to go on happening
26:45until,
26:46see,
26:46Canada is a very top-down
26:48driven society.
26:49If the Prime Minister
26:50wants to fix this,
26:51it will.
26:52And I see some signs of it.
26:54So I will give credit
26:55where it's due.
26:56I do see Prime Minister Karni
26:58sending a signal.
27:01You know,
27:01so there are subtle things
27:02that have started happening.
27:03Under Justin Trudeau,
27:04the intelligence sharing had stopped.
27:06Now CESIS and their Indian counterpart
27:08is sharing intelligence.
27:09We know that.
27:10There are some local police
27:12projects that have been taken off
27:14and they are arresting
27:15as far as the extortion racket
27:17is concerned.
27:18But the problem is
27:19that,
27:20see,
27:20expecting a local person
27:22to rat out
27:23against these people
27:24is fraught with danger
27:26because
27:27I don't want to name my source.
27:29I literally spoke to a person.
27:31I'm not even going to say
27:32which industry he was involved
27:33or she was involved in
27:34because then it's so easy
27:35to find out
27:36who that person is.
27:37Okay.
27:38I spoke with them
27:38and they said
27:39they got an extortion call
27:40recently
27:41asking for half a million
27:43Canadian dollars.
27:45And
27:45I'm not making it up.
27:47This is the conversation.
27:48I want half a million.
27:51They're like
27:52that's too much.
27:53Quarter of a million?
27:55They're negotiating
27:55on an extortion call.
27:57This is how ridiculous
27:58things have become
27:59in Canada.
28:00So,
28:00not freedom fighters,
28:02not mafia.
28:03They're now extortionists
28:04and gang members.
28:05Terry Milsky
28:06in your appreciation
28:07and since you've studied
28:08this project so closely
28:10is there a solution?
28:12What's the way forward?
28:14Well,
28:14the way forward
28:15has to start
28:16with a recognition
28:17at the political level
28:19that we've been
28:20whistling past
28:21the graveyard.
28:22We've been ignoring this
28:23and now look
28:24where we've ended up.
28:26What happened
28:27before Kani
28:28became prime minister
28:29that
28:30it went clearly
28:32went way off the rails.
28:34The indulgence
28:35of
28:36Kalistani
28:37criminality
28:38just went
28:40far too far.
28:41Now we want
28:42to see
28:42from the new government
28:43actions,
28:45not words.
28:46For example,
28:47there's an easy
28:49acid test for this
28:50that you can administer.
28:52Is the Liberal Party
28:53prepared
28:54to throw out
28:55members of its caucus
28:56in the national parliament
28:58who refuse
29:01to tow
29:02the Kalistani line?
29:04They have
29:05in the past
29:06thrown out,
29:08for example,
29:08Ramesh Sangha,
29:10Chandra Aria.
29:11They didn't play
29:13the Kalistani game
29:14and they were booted
29:16out of the Liberal Party.
29:17Then last year,
29:18another Liberal
29:19member of parliament,
29:20this is the ruling party
29:21in Canada,
29:23got up a petition
29:24in the national parliament
29:25and used
29:28the
29:28parliament's
29:31website
29:31to promote it,
29:33a petition
29:33for another inquiry
29:35that he hopes
29:36will blame
29:36the Indian government
29:37for the Kanishka bombing.
29:39This is an old nonsense
29:41that they're trying
29:42to revive
29:42and it's very important
29:43to the Kalistanis.
29:45Now,
29:46he was allowed
29:46to go through
29:47with that.
29:48Nobody said boo.
29:49Nobody in the Liberal Party
29:50said,
29:50wait a minute,
29:51why aren't we
29:53throwing him
29:54out of the Liberal Party?
29:55Because this kind
29:56of nonsense
29:56undermining
29:57the system
29:59which established
30:00beyond doubt
30:01that the Indian government
30:02was not,
30:03they didn't blow up
30:04the plane,
30:05the Kalistanis did.
30:06We know who did.
30:07And so,
30:08my point is simply
30:09that that will tell us
30:10if you want to know
30:11when we've turned
30:12the corner,
30:13it'll be when
30:14the political parties
30:15say,
30:15okay,
30:16we're not playing
30:17this game anymore.
30:18We think we may
30:19get more votes
30:20on the other side
30:21of the question
30:22than by pandering
30:23to the Kalistanis.
30:24I will let that be
30:25the last word
30:26on this part
30:27of the show.
30:28It's not words
30:29but action
30:30on ground
30:30against the
30:32Khalistani elements.
30:33Will Prime Minister
30:34Markkani rise
30:35to the occasion.
30:37Mr. Shashikan,
30:38Kushal and Terry
30:39as always,
30:40many thanks
30:41for joining me
30:41on this India Today
30:43special broadcast.
30:44There's a soul-starring
30:45Ved Mantra
30:46in the Yajur Ved.
30:47This Ved Mantra
31:04talks about
31:05that supreme being
31:07that helps you
31:08travel through space.
31:11Now,
31:23is that actually
31:24possible?
31:25Of course,
31:25traveling in space
31:26is already happening.
31:28India's group captain
31:29Subhanshu Shukla
31:30is part of
31:32that mission
31:33in space.
31:34The first Indian
31:35in the international
31:36space station.
31:37It's happening
31:38almost for decades
31:39after squad leader
31:41Rakesh Sharma.
31:42He was a cosmonaut.
31:44Now we have an astronaut.
31:46But what is
31:46India's big
31:48space plan?
31:50To talk more
31:50about it
31:51and India
31:52does intend
31:52to take huge leaps.
31:54It's already
31:54taking those huge leaps.
31:56Is Dr. Jitendra Singh,
31:58Minister of State
31:59Independent Charge,
32:00Science and Technology,
32:02Earth Sciences,
32:02Prime Minister's Office
32:04and Ministry of Personnel.
32:05Sir, welcome
32:06on Chakraview Podcast.
32:09Thank you, Gaurav.
32:10Sir,
32:11you wear multiple hats.
32:12You're a medical doctor.
32:14You look at
32:16space science
32:16very closely.
32:17You're a member
32:18of parliament
32:18from Jammu and Kashmir.
32:20But if we were
32:21to talk about
32:22India's space plans
32:24first,
32:25tell us about
32:26the broad overview,
32:28especially
32:29Group Captain
32:29Subhanshu Shukla's
32:30mission.
32:31What do we hope
32:32to achieve through this?
32:33Yeah, of course.
32:36And before that,
32:37just picking up
32:37from the shloka
32:38that you
32:39so beautifully
32:40decided to begin
32:41with
32:41about
32:43the earth
32:44being
32:45the voyage
32:47exploring
32:48the earth.
32:50And this is
32:50precisely what
32:51Subhanshu said,
32:51that earth
32:52looks just one.
32:53You can't
32:54demarcate boundaries,
32:55which is very much
32:56in keeping with
32:57Vasudev Kutumbakam also.
32:58So, I think
32:59that there also
33:00India has
33:00superitually
33:01proved a point.
33:02So, that connects
33:03with your
33:04initial recitation.
33:05But having said
33:06that, as far as
33:07the space plans
33:08are concerned,
33:08of course,
33:09India, of course,
33:11has all,
33:12is moving
33:14on its space plans
33:15on all those
33:16levels which
33:17other nations
33:17which had
33:18launched themselves
33:20before us,
33:20like for example,
33:21notably
33:21then USSR
33:23and also
33:24to some extent
33:25European Space Agency.
33:27But besides that,
33:28I think India
33:29has also qualified
33:30in making
33:33initiatives
33:36or undertaking
33:37initiatives
33:37which were
33:38not so commonly
33:40undertaken
33:41by the other nations
33:42which started off
33:43before us.
33:43Like for example,
33:44in the infrastructure
33:45development,
33:46the sectoral development.
33:47Today,
33:47most of,
33:48at least in the last
33:4911 years
33:50after Prime Minister
33:50Modi took over,
33:52almost all the
33:53infrastructure,
33:54the flagship programs,
33:55the government
33:55of India
33:56have a very,
33:56very important
33:57and a heavy
33:58space technology
33:59component.
33:59Look,
34:00for example,
34:00look at the
34:01Smart City program
34:02that started
34:03by Prime Minister
34:03Modi,
34:04the railway crossings,
34:06unmanned crossings,
34:08then,
34:09of course,
34:10disaster forecasts.
34:12Now,
34:12we are even
34:13offering our help
34:14and our inputs
34:15at least to all
34:16the neighboring countries.
34:17In fact,
34:17way back in 2015
34:18or 16,
34:19we launched a satellite
34:20which was,
34:21some people
34:22fancibly thought
34:22it could be named
34:23as SARC satellite
34:24but then somehow
34:24Pakistan did not
34:27offer to become
34:29a part of it.
34:29Of course,
34:30it is to their
34:31disadvantage
34:32but we are offering
34:33now inputs
34:33to all the other
34:34neighboring countries
34:35besides that
34:36huge,
34:37huge forays
34:39into the telemedicine,
34:40communication,
34:41of course,
34:41what we are talking
34:42today
34:43and also
34:45in some
34:47of our
34:48governance programs
34:49interesting
34:50like Swamit
34:51program
34:52undertaken
34:53by the government
34:54of India
34:55very successfully.
34:56It has become
34:56almost a global
34:57success story
34:58where using
34:59space technology,
35:00using drones,
35:01you can map
35:01the farms,
35:02you can map
35:02the land,
35:03you put the
35:04revenue officer
35:04and the patwari
35:05out of job,
35:06you made the
35:07citizen master
35:08of his destiny.
35:09So,
35:09I think India
35:10is now doing
35:11all that anybody
35:12else could be doing
35:13rather than
35:14a better way
35:15and we have
35:16also proved
35:17that we are
35:18no longer
35:18followers.
35:20In more ways
35:20than one,
35:21we are also
35:22in fact
35:24motivating
35:26or beckoning
35:26others to
35:27follow.
35:27Like for
35:28example,
35:30America landed
35:30on the surface
35:31of moon
35:31way back
35:321969,
35:33Neil Armstrong.
35:34And 1969
35:34is the year
35:35when officially
35:36Israel was
35:36established.
35:37We were just
35:37being born.
35:38But today,
35:39we are the
35:39first to land
35:40on the southern
35:40pole of moon.
35:41moon.
35:42So,
35:43likewise,
35:44in more ways
35:45than one.
35:45Now,
35:45for example,
35:46you were talking
35:47about the
35:47various experiments,
35:48at least six
35:49or seven of
35:49them are the
35:50ones which
35:50are being
35:51conducted for
35:51the first
35:51time.
35:52No
35:52astronaut
35:53of any
35:54region from
35:55any country
35:56has ever done
35:56so.
35:57And what
35:57he is doing
35:58is going to
35:59offer inputs
36:00to the rest
36:00of the world
36:01as well.
36:01So,
36:02for example,
36:02because I was
36:03reading,
36:04there is an
36:04MOU that
36:05your ministry
36:08has signed,
36:09whether plants
36:10can be grown
36:11in space.
36:12Tell us more
36:13about these
36:14experiments or
36:14these, you
36:15know, plans
36:17that you have.
36:17No, exactly.
36:18That's a very
36:18interesting story
36:19because when I
36:19suggested to
36:21this chairman
36:23ISRO,
36:24the then
36:24chairman ISRO
36:25that we would
36:25have and then
36:27also took
36:28the secretary
36:29department of
36:30biotechnology
36:31into conference,
36:31many others
36:32were wondering
36:33why I was,
36:33you know,
36:34harping on this
36:34idea.
36:35Then I told
36:35them,
36:36okay,
36:36one day we
36:37may be having
36:38a specialty
36:38called space
36:39biology.
36:39And even
36:40the medical
36:40domain where
36:42I belong to
36:43could be having
36:44a separate
36:44specialty of
36:46space physicians.
36:47And then I
36:48told them from
36:49my own experience
36:50that look here
36:50about 20-30
36:51years back,
36:51we had newly,
36:53you know,
36:54come across
36:54a new emerging
36:55specialty called
36:56sports medicine.
36:57Nobody thought
36:57much about it.
36:58True.
36:59It was not
36:59taken very seriously.
37:03But today,
37:04sports medicine,
37:05sports physician
37:05among the highest
37:06paid.
37:06So I said,
37:09tomorrow you
37:10may have
37:10space physicians
37:11who might be
37:12asked even to
37:13accompany these
37:14voyages and
37:14expeditions in
37:15the space.
37:16Now all that
37:16Subhashro is
37:17doing,
37:17it could have
37:18been done in
37:19a better way.
37:19You know,
37:20there are some
37:20very important
37:21life sciences
37:21experiments being
37:23done for him.
37:23A, myogenesis
37:24compared to the
37:25muscles,
37:26how the muscles
37:26become dysfunctional
37:28or tend to get
37:28wasted in the
37:29microgravity and
37:30how to strategize
37:31their recovery.
37:32So that is one.
37:34The other is
37:34the human impact
37:35on the use of
37:36continuous use of
37:37electronic gadgets
37:38looking at the
37:38screen and how
37:40with what frequency
37:42do you need to
37:43take, give rest
37:44to your faculties
37:46and eyes.
37:47All faculties.
37:47So to avoid
37:48any adverse
37:49cognitive effects.
37:50Now this could
37:51have been done in
37:51a better way by
37:52biotechnologist or
37:53a physician but
37:54they are not
37:55trained to be
37:56there in
37:56the microbes.
37:57So now
37:58astronaut was
37:58trained as a
37:59doctor or as
38:01researcher to do
38:02and he has
38:02done it
38:03beautifully.
38:04He has picked
38:04up so well.
38:05I mean a
38:05fighter pilot,
38:07you know a
38:08scientist is
38:09also now being
38:09trained as a
38:10doctor to
38:11carry out these
38:11experiments in
38:12space.
38:12Tomorrow we
38:12might have
38:13space physicians
38:14also trained to
38:15acclimatize
38:16themselves to
38:17the microgravity
38:17and accompany
38:18the crew there.
38:19Correct.
38:20Amazing.
38:21What are
38:22India's big
38:23plans?
38:23Because we
38:24hear a lot
38:25about Bharatiya
38:27Antiriksh station.
38:28Absolutely.
38:28We hear a lot
38:29about Gaganyan.
38:31We hear about
38:31Chandrayaan 4.
38:32So let's take
38:33it step by
38:33step.
38:35India's
38:35manned
38:36mission or
38:37a human
38:38mission to
38:38space,
38:39what is the
38:39role of
38:40that?
38:40When will
38:41it happen?
38:41And why
38:42delays are
38:42happening?
38:43You are
38:43right.
38:43As of
38:44now,
38:45the schedule
38:46is 2026,
38:51maybe the
38:52first quarter
38:52of it.
38:53And delay
38:53of course,
38:54we had
38:54very ambitiously
38:55planned it to
38:56time it with
38:57the 75th
38:58year of
38:58independence.
38:59Then
39:00unfortunately
39:00COVID happened
39:01that was
39:01an important
39:02and at
39:02that point
39:03in time
39:03when the
39:04lockdown
39:04happened,
39:06our
39:06astronauts,
39:07the potential
39:07astronauts were
39:08undergoing training
39:09in Moscow
39:12in one of the
39:14institutes and
39:15they had to be
39:15called back.
39:16So the whole
39:16thing got
39:17derailed.
39:18So then there
39:18was a gap of
39:19one or two
39:19years.
39:20Again, the
39:20training had
39:21to be started
39:22again.
39:23Then there
39:23was the
39:23Indian
39:24component of
39:24the training.
39:25So it
39:26took time.
39:28Meanwhile, of
39:29course, this
39:29offer to a
39:31company to the
39:31International Space
39:32Station happened
39:32and since we
39:33already had four
39:34of them already
39:34undergoing training,
39:35virtually almost
39:36completed their
39:37training and
39:37also going
39:38through the
39:38quarantine.
39:39Group
39:40captain,
39:40Nayar,
39:41Krishna,
39:41Angad,
39:41and Shubhaju
39:42of course was
39:43a squadron leader
39:45at that time.
39:45Now he is also
39:46a group
39:46captain.
39:47So the
39:47choice had to
39:48be one of
39:48them.
39:48So this
39:49selection of
39:51Shubhaju was
39:53also from
39:54among those
39:55four who
39:56were actually
39:56trained for
39:57Gaganiya.
39:57So it got
39:58derailed.
39:59Then the
40:00different,
40:01now of course
40:01we are into
40:02the test
40:02flights for
40:03Gaganiya
40:03because there
40:04are different
40:04modules,
40:04the crew
40:05module,
40:05the lab
40:05module,
40:06and getting
40:08it back safe
40:08is equally
40:09important.
40:09So it's
40:10going to be
40:10a whole of
40:10science and
40:11a whole of
40:11government
40:11because the
40:12naval guards
40:12are going
40:12to be
40:13involved in
40:13that when
40:14they retreat
40:15them back
40:16in the
40:17waters.
40:18And therefore
40:19I think
40:20maybe by
40:20the end of
40:21this year,
40:22if it all
40:22goes as we
40:23have planned,
40:24we'll have
40:24the final
40:25test flight
40:26which would
40:26be actually
40:27carrying a
40:27robo-astronaut
40:28and she
40:29will be a
40:30female robo
40:30who's been
40:31named
40:32Vyomitra.
40:33And after
40:35that when
40:35everything
40:36happens as
40:37per the
40:38envisage plan
40:39and we are
40:39satisfied on
40:40all accounts
40:40and even the
40:41safety and
40:41security part,
40:42then maybe
40:43by the
40:43beginning of
40:44next year,
40:44we'll have
40:44the first
40:45human being
40:46in space,
40:47Indian human
40:48being in
40:48an indigenous
40:49flight.
40:49In an
40:50indigenous
40:50flight.
40:51Sir,
40:51this is
40:55something that
40:55I wanted to
40:56understand and
40:56while you've
40:57spoken about
40:58it, since
40:58we're doing a
40:59detailed
40:59conversation,
41:00I'd like to
41:01understand the
41:02government's
41:03thought process
41:03on Vyomitra
41:04before I come
41:05back to
41:06Gaganyan and
41:07India's
41:08international or
41:09Indian space
41:10station.
41:11No, I think
41:11if you take a
41:12holistic view
41:13and you just
41:14try to assess
41:15the tone and
41:16tenor of this
41:16government of
41:17the last one
41:17decade ever
41:18since Prime
41:18Minister Modi
41:19took over,
41:20there has been
41:21absolute
41:21democratization of
41:22opportunities,
41:23democratization of
41:24the tasks
41:26allocated.
41:26Of course,
41:27he was the
41:27first one who
41:28introduced girls
41:30students to
41:30scenic schools,
41:31also had
41:32female red
41:34parades,
41:35et cetera,
41:35et cetera.
41:36And I think
41:38keeping the
41:39same spirit
41:40alive is like
41:40that.
41:41And we have
41:41some, and
41:42yes, as far
41:43as the space
41:43sector is concerned,
41:44I think we
41:44already have
41:45several women
41:46leaders and
41:48most of our,
41:49many of our
41:49projects are
41:50actually woman
41:50led.
41:50Like for
41:51example,
41:51our very
41:52ambitious
41:52solar project
41:55was Aditya
41:57project.
41:57Aditya L1.
41:58Aditya L1
41:59led by a
42:01woman,
42:01Nizar,
42:02she's a
42:02Tamirian.
42:05And so
42:06also Chandrayaan
42:073, which was
42:07a great success.
42:09Number 2 was
42:10Kalpana.
42:10So again a
42:11woman.
42:12And so also
42:13in many of our
42:14other projects.
42:15So I think
42:16there's absolute
42:17equivalent
42:19distribution of
42:20tasks and
42:21equivalent
42:21performance as
42:22well.
42:22Sir, one of
42:23the aspects
42:24that the
42:24world is
42:25looking at
42:25very closely
42:25and you
42:26hinted about
42:27that initially
42:28is deep
42:30sea exploration.
42:32And when it
42:32comes to
42:33India, given
42:34our huge
42:36coastline and
42:37our exclusive
42:38economic zone
42:38and others
42:40who are trying
42:41to come into
42:42our waters,
42:43what are we
42:43doing there?
42:44The role of
42:45space, the
42:46role of science
42:46and you
42:47wear multiple
42:47hats, how
42:49do we
42:49harness that
42:50wealth?
42:51I'm so glad
42:58Gaurav
42:59because this
43:01is something
43:01not talked
43:01about often.
43:03And that
43:03is why
43:04Prime Minister
43:04Modi spoke
43:06about it
43:07twice consecutively
43:08in his two
43:09Independence Day
43:10addresses,
43:112022 maybe,
43:122023 maybe,
43:13because he
43:13was trying to
43:14awaken the
43:15Indian mind
43:16to this vast
43:17wealth which
43:18is lying
43:19unexplored.
43:20So in fact
43:21there was a
43:21group of
43:22youngsters from
43:24Australia
43:24last year.
43:26so in a
43:26lighter way
43:27I told
43:27them,
43:27I said
43:28your
43:28island
43:28called
43:29Australia,
43:29your
43:30country
43:30called
43:30Australia,
43:31your
43:31continent
43:31called
43:32Australia,
43:32but your
43:32ocean
43:33not
43:33called
43:33Australia.
43:34My ocean
43:35called
43:35Indian
43:35ocean.
43:36And then
43:37I tried to
43:37give them
43:38a philosophical
43:38explanation.
43:39I said
43:40I said
43:40my
43:40poor
43:40who
43:40has
43:41been
43:41in
43:42the
43:42country
43:43and
43:44I said
43:44I said
43:44I said
43:45I said
43:46I said
43:46that
43:46there was no
43:51banking system
43:51in place
43:52so
43:52they
43:53would
43:53go
43:53and
43:54get
43:55out
43:55so
43:56that
43:57when
43:57you
43:57have
43:583-4
43:58peedhi
43:59after
43:59they
43:59sit
44:00on
44:00the
44:00house
44:01that
44:01you
44:01can
44:02keep
44:02out
44:03so
44:03I said
44:04I said
44:04I said
44:04I said
44:04I said
44:04I said
44:04I said
44:05I said
44:05I said
44:06But the number is that it feels like it's a feeling of feeling right now.
44:12Till 2014-15, there was no attention given to this vast, vast resource as you rightly pointed out.
44:1911,000 km long our coastal area.
44:2211,000 km.
44:24And if you explore, almost 12 states lying on the core.
44:28If you explore it, I think the amount of minerals, metals and fishery,
44:34would be almost as much as you are getting on the land.
44:37I don't want to understand anything else.
44:39Again, since this is so fascinating,
44:42and there are India's adversaries who want to come into this area,
44:48and they know what we have here.
44:50How does that knowledge get spread widely that we have to spend a lot of resources
44:57in protecting our assets in the ocean,
45:00that we need a more powerful Navy,
45:02we need more exploration.
45:05There's a map in the Navy Chief's office,
45:07which I'm very fascinated by,
45:10which shows India as the center of the world.
45:13I mean, we are in the world,
45:15and the whole world is around us.
45:18One and the other.
45:20If you look at India's map, sir,
45:22South is, you know, the tip.
45:25This is our map.
45:28And the rest is behind us.
45:29We have a very Himalaya-oriented approach.
45:31Our ocean orientation is now going to change.
45:35Our power is there.
45:37Our power is there.
45:38You are right,
45:39we have three thousand start-ups.
45:42We have three thousand start-ups.
45:45I mean,
45:46till this government came,
45:47I wonder why,
45:48no attention was given.
45:49In fact,
45:50Himalaya ko bhi,
45:51I mean,
45:52we haven't seen Himalaya.
45:53Himalaya ka resource bhi,
45:54abhi shuru hua.
45:55Explore ho ne.
45:56We have so many, you know,
45:58states and UTI territories lying in the lap of Himalaya.
46:01You know,
46:02we have now almost,
46:03within three, four years,
46:04we have three thousand start-ups.
46:05Engaged in lavender cultivation.
46:06It's become a lucrative source of livelihood.
46:07We have three thousand start-ups.
46:09Engaged in lavender cultivation.
46:10Hmm.
46:11It's become a lucrative source of livelihood.
46:13And how much money is there?
46:14How much money is there?
46:15There is,
46:16in the world,
46:17B.E.Tech.
46:18and MBA,
46:19the kids left here.
46:20Right.
46:21So, I asked one of them,
46:22he said,
46:23he said,
46:24he said,
46:25he said,
46:26he said,
46:27he said,
46:28he said,
46:29he said,
46:30he said,
46:31he said,
46:32he said,
46:33he said,
46:34he said,
46:35this way,
46:36he said,
46:37The head of the orientation,
46:38this way,
46:39he said,
46:40there is a lot of opportunities,
46:41also for livelihood in Himalayas,
46:42and our ocean,
46:43this way,
46:44not allowed.
46:45The space was just a sophisticated sector.
46:47But the area was necessarily available,
46:48but no one was available to us,
46:50we did not.
46:51just because we are a seafaring nation,
46:53we can see Hmalayas.
46:54You mean that,
46:55we can see India,
46:57we can see India and that.
46:58we can see India,
47:00we can see India,
47:01and that.
47:02Our exclusive domain.
47:03Well,
47:04Sir, again, I know I'm digressing a little,
47:11but in this time, the kind of things are going on.
47:13Pradhan Vantri Narendra Modi went on for five days.
47:17And it was a very important visit, not just the BRICS summit,
47:21but also the other countries.
47:22And I think he's made a record in getting head of state.
47:2426, I believe.
47:26But it's being mocked at by some political leaders within our country.
47:31You heard what Punjab Chief Minister Bhagawan Taman said,
47:34unable to pronounce even the names of the countries he visited.
47:38What do you make of that, sir?
47:39I think that we would have to come out of that mindset and understand
47:43that Prime Minister is Prime Minister of every Indian.
47:46He's not Prime Minister of BJP alone.
47:50So as to make some other political party find a fault with it.
47:54So when you tend to look to that narrow prism,
47:57then these kind of thoughts happen.
47:58If you grow about this, then you'll take pride in this.
48:02So if you look at Gandhi, you don't say Gandhi of Congress.
48:06And the BJP holds him in the equal reverence.
48:09So I think we need to evolve.
48:12As I said, we are still an evolving nation.
48:14So when you say that the people of Punjab have been born,
48:19they don't take the name to the right?
48:22No, the people who don't take the right.
48:23The people who don't take the right.
48:26They are its kind of thinking.
48:29They don't take the right.
48:30It's not that those countries are poor.
48:32Yeah.
48:33Yeah.
48:34Yeah.
48:35Yeah.
48:36Yeah.
48:37Yeah.
48:38Yeah.
49:04But let us all accept, in all, humility,
49:07humility, regardless of what the political affiliation may be, regardless of even what
49:13the ideology may be, even for those who do not subscribe to the ideology of the ruling
49:19party of the day, will they not confess that the biggest brand ambassador that India today
49:27has is Prime Minister Modi?
49:37And we know that his word carries greater trustworthiness, greater credibility, greater
49:55reach.
49:56So this is our asset.
49:58And when you have to project something about India, I think the easiest methodology available
50:06to us is to operate through Prime Minister Modi.
50:09When you see the statement of Bhagawan's Bhagawan's Bhagawan?
50:12I think it has been said from a very narrow prism of view, but a common citizen of India
50:22would not subscribe to that.
50:23The way it is happening, there is a voter card revision in Bihar.
50:32Wipaksh said that this is a vote of a vote.
50:37topka ka. Narendra Modi
50:39sirkaar ke mantri ke rup me aap isse kis rup me
50:41dhikta hai? Yeah, yeah, pehli baat to ye kal
50:43jab mujhe lagtha ki jab Supreme Court
50:45nene kuch keh diya to uske baat keheni ki
50:47awashaktah nahi na auchita hai. Election
50:49commission is an independent body. Jo ye liog
50:51kehte hai, hunka mind condition ho ga
50:52congres ke pachas saal ke rai se. When
50:55they would be interfering in the working of the
50:56independent body, chahe CBIA ho chahe election
50:58commission. They are taking time to
51:01understand that this is a government led by
51:02Prime Minister Modi which does not interfere
51:05in the working of the independent constitutional
51:06bodies. And they understand that
51:08jayse hum karte raih 40-50 saal
51:10huni ke doran CBI
51:13ko kaha gaya tha. Barrett
51:15engage. Humare sirkaar ke doran
51:17nahi kaha gaya. And they understand that
51:19jis tarah se hum hathkande
51:21aap nate the, yehi aap nare hongae. Unko
51:23samjh nahi aaya. And this is liye to kehtae
51:24hai, BJP is a party with a difference.
51:27But you have all these opposition
51:28parties who are ganging up and they
51:30insist that this entire exercise
51:33of the election commission,
51:35they're looking at the election commission as
51:36an extension of the Bharatiya Janata Party and they're saying
51:38it's happening at the behest of
51:40the BJP. Why is it happening just
51:42now, just before election? No, they are saying
51:44it is happening at the behest of the BJP
51:46because when they were in the ruling
51:48dispensation, they
51:50were doing it at the behest of Congress, at the
51:52behest of the ruling party. So they think the BJP
51:54also would follow the same pattern as they were doing.
51:57And that's why he said BJP is
51:58a party with a difference. They don't understand
52:00the working of, we follow the norms
52:02of democracy within the party, outside the party
52:05in equal measure.
52:07And if it is happening
52:09incidentally, at the time
52:11when the elections are closed,
52:13I don't think you need to attach motives to that.
52:15That means it's a very subjective observation
52:17or maybe it suits your
52:18imminent prospects of defeat.
52:21You're preparing a ground or an
52:22explanation for that.
52:24Sir, when we talk about, you know,
52:26the use of science,
52:29the use of technology, can
52:31this also be used to prevent
52:33the threats that our country faces
52:35at various borders? We spoke of
52:37Operation Sindhuur, but then there's a threat
52:38that we face on the Bangladesh border.
52:40There's a threat that our country faced at the
52:42Myanmar border in Manipur.
52:44There's a threat that we face all along the
52:46India-Tibet border.
52:48Where does science and technology help
52:51India? You know,
52:52in 2020, we were told that we were surprised
52:55when the Chinese came to
52:57Tibet so quickly at
52:58our borders, at the India-Tibet border.
53:00How do you view that?
53:01No, I think we are now much ahead of that.
53:03We have
53:04very precise surveillance
53:06systems in place
53:08all along the border, along the
53:10international border. Incidentally, my
53:12constituency has a sizable
53:14span of
53:16IB international border.
53:18And it's to be seen to be avoid how they
53:20are being deployed over there.
53:22So these are electronic
53:23surveillance monitoring systems,
53:26both by thermal detections.
53:28Otherwise,
53:29you can even visualize.
53:31And even the tunnel detection
53:32technologies are being applied,
53:35both Helibon and others.
53:39So I think we are now much ahead
53:40in that.
53:41And that's why we've been able
53:43to cut down on infiltration
53:44in a considerable measure
53:46compared to what it was.
53:47But that also is being attended to.
53:53And on other borders like Myanmar,
53:56on India-Tibet?
53:57There were
53:58sometimes, you know,
54:00some
54:01controversies or contradictions
54:03about the exact border.
54:04That's also being
54:05in that also,
54:08the space department
54:09has been made a partner
54:11to actually work out that.
54:14And our center...
54:15On the Myanmar border?
54:16Yes.
54:16Our center at Shillong
54:17is also working on that.
54:18Also to precisely define
54:20and demarcate.
54:21That works even along
54:22the Bangladesh border?
54:24All the borders,
54:25wherever it is required.
54:27Okay.
54:27And the Home Ministry
54:28is also working closely.
54:31In fact,
54:31the Northeastern Council,
54:33which when I was
54:34the donor minister,
54:35that happened.
54:35The Northeastern Council,
54:36which was earlier
54:37affiliated only
54:40to the donor ministry,
54:42has now also
54:43been made subservient
54:45to the Home Ministry,
54:46the Ministry of Home Affairs,
54:48for this precise reason as well.
54:51Sir,
54:51we've had a brilliant conversation
54:53and, you know,
54:55there's so much else
54:56that I want to talk to you about.
54:57Perhaps, you know,
54:58we will do that
54:59at a later date.
55:00For joining me here
55:01on the Chakra View podcast.
55:03Many thanks, sir.
55:04I enjoyed it.
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