Budhni Manjhiyain (1943-2023) was an Indian tribal woman. She was labelled as Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s tribal wife. She passed away in 2023 due to old age.

Wiki/Biography

Budhni Manjhiyain (also spelt as Budhini) was born in 1943 (age 80 years; at the time of death) in Jharkhand.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 4″

Hair Colour: Salt and pepper

Eye Colour: Black

Family & Caste

Budhni was born into a family belonging to the Santhal tribe in Jharkhand.

Parents & Siblings

There is not much information about her parents and siblings.

Husband & Children

Budhni was married to Sudhir Dutta. He was a contract worker. The couple had a daughter named Ratna Dutta.

Career

Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC)

Budhni Manjhiyain had a job in thee Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) project in Jharkhand. The DVC project was India’s first multipurpose project focused on building dams and thermal and hydroelectric plants. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru described as “the noble mansion of free India”. In 1959, when Budhni was 15 years old, she was selected by the DVC to welcome the then Prime Minister Nehru who insisted that women should be a part of the inauguration. On 6 December 1959, Prime Minister Nehru visited Dhanbad to inaugurate the dam over its river. During this event, Budhni became the centre of controversy and she was expelled from her village. In 1962, DVC fired her without giving any reason and she was forced to become a daily wage worker in Purulia, West Bengal. In 1985, Budhni’s story was brought to the attention of Rajiv Gandhi, Nehru’s grandson, who helped her get back her job at DVC. In an interview, her grandson Baapi Dutta said,

The Centre had received a lot of criticism for the treatment meted out to my grandmother. During a visit to West Bengal, a local MLA told then PM Rajiv Gandhi about her ordeal. This later led to her getting a job at the DVC around 1985-86 as a contract labourer. ^[1]The Indian Express

She continued working in DVC until her retirement in 2005. After she retired, she insisted that her grandson be given a job in the DVC, where he works now.

Controversies

“Marriage” To Jawaharlal Nehru

On 6 December 1959, Prime Minister Nehru visited Budhni’s hometown Dhanbad for the inauguration of a dam. Budhni, who was 15 years old at the time, was chosen to welcome Nehru. During the inauguration, she put a tilaka (a red mark worn on the forehead by Hindus) and a garland on Nehru and was surprised when Nehru put a garland around her neck as well. He also made her press the button in the power station that started the dam’s operations.

A 15 year old Budhni Manjhiyain inaugurating the dam in Dhanbad with the then Prime Minister Nehru

When Budhni returned to her village after the inauguration, the village headman told her that she had to leave the village because she married someone outside their tribe. Budhni was a part of the Santhal tribe, according to whose customs, two people who garlanded each other were officially married. The Santhal tribe was strictly against marriage outside their tribe and expelled those who went against the customs. Although she tried to reason with the villagers and stay, she was made into an outcast and received several death threats. She was forced to leave her hometown and live in Panchet, Jharkhand, with the help of a man named Sudhir Dutta. ^[2]BBC

Death

Budhni Manjhiyain passed away on 17 November 2023 at the age of 80 due to “complications related to old age”.  ^[3]The Indian Express She passed away after suffering from a prolonged illness, in her home (a shack) in Panchet, a town in Jharkhand, India, with her daughter. Speaking about her death, her grandson Baapi Dutta said,

What happened to my grandmother was very wrong, but I have let it go… During her last moments, she did not complain and was at peace when she passed away.” ^[4]The Indian Express

Budhni’s remains were kept in Dhanbad where several people paid homage to her.

Facts/Trivia

• Budhni stated that she longed to go back to her village in the Manbhum district (present-day Jharkhand), but was never able to do so.
  

  Budhni Manhiyain, overcome by emotion, during an interview

• Budhni was labelled as the “tribal wife of Nehru” in 2001 due to news reports covering her story. Jawaharlal Nehru who played an important role in her being banished from her village was completely unaware of the controversy.

• In 2012, the newspaper The Hindu falsely reported that Budhni had passed away in 2011 at the age of 60. ^[5]The Hindu

• In 2021, author Sarah Joseph published the book “Budhini”, which is inspired by Budhni Manjhiyain’s life. Sarah researched Budhni’s life for several years before writing the book.
  

  Budhni Manjhiyain (left) with author Sarah Joseph, who wrote a book inspired by Budhni’s life

Sharon

Sourabh Chandrakar is a businessman of Indian origin who is the promoter of the Mahadev online betting app. He became infamous in 2023 for his involvement in a money laundering case linked to the app.

Wiki/Biography

Sourabh Chandrakar was born on Friday, 13 January 1995 (age 29 years; as of 2024) in Bhilai, Chhattisgarh, India. He attended St. Thomas College, Bhilai. His zodiac sign is Capricorn. In 2019, he moved to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where he founded the Mahadev Book Online App.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 9″

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Saurabh Chandrakar at his wedding function in RAK, Dubai

Family

Parents & Siblings

Chandrakar is the son of a former employee of the Bhilai Municipal Corporation. ^[1]News18 His brother, Gitesh Chandrakar, used to manage a juice shop ‘Juice Factory’ in Nehru Nagar, Bhilai. Later, Gitesh joined Saurabh in his alleged scam.

Wife & Children

In February 2023, he got married to Harshita in Ras Al-Khaimah, UAE.

Sourabh Chandrakar and his wife on their wedding day in February 2023

Signature/Autograph

Sourabh Chandrakar’s signature

Career

Humble Beginnings

In 2023, Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal were investigated for their involvement in a money laundering scheme linked to the Mahadev online betting app. The two had humble beginnings in Chhattisgarh. Talking about Chandrakar in an interview, his acquaintance Rakesh said,

His father used to work in Nagar Nigam. You can imagine the financial status of the family. He was as average as it can get. Nobody, not even he, would have imagined this kind of money coming his way.”

Reportedly, Chandrakar used to work as a salesman at a clothing store in Bhilai, earning Rs 10,000 a month. Around 2016, he was working at his brother’s juice shop called Juice Factory in Nehru Nagar, Bhilai. Chandrakar, having an online betting addiction, would steal money from the shop.

A picture of Juice Factory in Nehru Nagar, Bhilai, Chhattisgarh, which was run by Sourabh Chandrakar

Saurabh Chandrakar would often hang out at Sooraj Mobile at the Akashganga complex in Bhilai. He was a cricket enthusiast and his journey into the world of betting began with the sport. While talking about Chandrakar in an interview, his acquaintance Mahesh said,

My mobile shop earlier used to be down this road, right next to where he (Chandrakar) used to sit. For 8-9 months, we would interact daily till the lockdown when his Mahadev App IDs started selling like hot cakes.”

Meanwhile, Uppal owned a tire shop. ^[2]Hindustan Times Some sources state that Uppal came from an upper-middle-class family in Bhilai and used to take contracts for installing borewells and ran an oil-related business. Uppal had been involved in betting for more than ten years when he founded the app. Uppal had left Bhilai several years ago, but every time he visited his hometown, he would meet up with friends, mostly local gamblers, at a paan stall in the Akash Ganga market. It was there that he met Chandrakar. Together, they began their journey as local bookies, targeting people at the hyper-local level. In 2018, they moved to Dubai, where they established the Mahadev Online Betting App. ^[3]The Indian Express

The Rise of Mahadev Online Betting App

The betting app is an umbrella syndicate that provides an online platform for illegal betting websites to enrol new users, create user IDs, and engage in money laundering through a complex network of Benami bank accounts. Users could bet in a range of activities — from election results to games such as poker, card games and cricket. The Covid-19 pandemic gave the owners a chance to grow their racket. The duo hired operators and agents to get customers, taking advantage of the lockdown during which people were forced to work from home or were idle.

Kingpins of the Mahadev betting app case, Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal

While Chandrakar and Uppal managed operations from Dubai, the person representing the app in Bhilai was Raja Gupta, also known as Raj. A school dropout, Raj worked as a salesman at a clothing store in the Akash Ganga market, earning Rs 1,600 a month until 2016. Later, he engaged in betting on cricket. Raj had a job at a mobile shop. As he went on his rounds to collect money for mobile chargers and headphones, he would get traders in the market to place their bets. Raj’s lifestyle underwent a drastic makeover after he joined hands with Chandrakar. He bought an i20 car and an iPhone, wore gold and silver ornaments, and had a flashy presence on social media, leading many to believe that he was the owner of the betting app. Reportedly, Raj was last seen in Bhilai in 2021. According to sources from the ED and the police, Raj’s alleged role was to recruit young individuals from Chhattisgarh and take them to Dubai, where they sold customer login IDs to operators for several lakhs. While Chandrakar and Uppal kept the lion’s share of profits, punters such as Raj earned around 20 percent. Police said like Raj, there are several other youngsters in Bhilai who collaborated with Chandrakar and Uppal, and whose fortunes changed overnight. Many of these 150-odd youngsters — from UP, Bihar, MP, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand — were taken to Dubai for training in the back-end operations — from issuing IDs to potential customers to handling the money flow. ^[4]The Indian Express While some stayed on, the others were sent back to India to handle operations there. One of those who went to Dubai said,

I desperately wanted money to repay my debts so I went to Dubai in December 2021. There were around 70 of us from Chhattisgarh and we stayed in a villa in Dubai for six months. I was paid Rs 40,000 a month, of which I sent Rs 10,000 to my family. They paid for our food and stay, and we got to roam around Dubai.”

Chandrakar and Uppal conducted their gambling operation from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Targeting a public who wants easy money, the betting racket soon flourished and extended its reach into countries such as India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.  They established a network of approximately 4,000 to 5,000 panel operators across India who would assist bettors in creating accounts on the app, placing bets, and handling financial transactions. ^[5]The Economic Times The syndicate franchised Panels or Branches to their known associates on a 70-30 profit ratio. Officials discovered that the panel operators were earning between Rs 40 to 50 lakh per month. Large-scale hawala operations were done to siphon off the proceeds of betting to off-shore accounts. The racket was pushed through advertisements and paid endorsements by celebrities like Huma Qureshi and Hina Khan. The duo grew to a point where it monopolised India’s illegal offshore gambling and went on to acquire brands like FairPlay, Reddy Anna and Lotus365. They even launched new brands under the name ‘Betbhai’ and Ambani Book’.

Alleged Affiliation With Dawood Ibrahim’s D-company

In 2023, the ED discovered that Chandrakar and Uppal had affiliations with the D-company, an organized crime syndicate founded and controlled by Indian gangster and drug lord Dawood Ibrahim. Reportedly, after the success of the Mahadev Book app, Chandrakar came in contact with some influential people in the UAE, who were close to Dawood Ibrahim’s brother Mushtaqeem Ibrahim Kaskar. Impressed by Chandrakar and Uppal’s earnings from the betting app, Kaskar asked the duo to develop a similar betting app for Pakistan. In 2021, Chandrakar launched a betting app named ‘Kheloyar’ in Pakistan with the protection of Dawood Ibrahim and support from the ISI. The app worked in India too. Several Bollywood celebrities, including Govinda, Randeep Hooda, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Daisy Shah, Rashmi Desai, and Shefali Jariwala, endorsed the Pakistan-based app through video clips.

Govinda promoting Kheloyar app

The Kheloyar gaming app was also one of the sponsors for the Lanka Premier League (LPL), Sri Lanka’s T20 cricket tournament, along with a few other illegal betting platforms in July 2023. Sources also said that Kaskar had gifted Chandrakar and Uppal a villa in Saudi Arabia. ^[6]India Today Reportedly, Chandrakar and Uppal’s extravagant spending not only caught the attention of intelligence agencies but also attracted criminal elements. Reportedly, Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi approached Chandrakar using an illegally acquired mobile phone from his prison cell in Tihar jail to make extortion demands. However, Chandrakar refused his demand for protection money and gave a stern warning citing his own underworld connections. The police suspected that Chandrakar was under the protection of the Dawood Ibrahim gang.

Arrested In Dubai

Sourabh was taken into custody in Dubai on 11 October 2024 to be handed over to the Indian law enforcement agencies to face trial. The arrest took place after Interpol released a Red Corner Notice against him.

The ED’s Probe into Alleged Scam

The Mahadev app first came under the scanner of the Chhattisgarh Police after a man, who was a regular on the platform, died by suicide in Durg district. During the investigation, it was revealed that he placed bets online. Then, racket came into the spotlight during Chandrakar’s extravagant Rs. 200 crore wedding in the UAE in February 2023. Chandrakar hired private jets to ferry family members from Nagpur to the UAE. He also invited celebrities like Ranbir Kapoor, Atif Aslam, Vishal Dadlani, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Tiger Shroff, Sunny Leone, and Nushrratt Bharuccha to perform at the wedding, leading them to come under the ED’s investigation. Thereafter, the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) special court at Raipur issued non-bailable warrants and lookout circulars for Chandrakar and Uppal. In 2023, fourteen people, including the promoters of the online betting app, Chandrakar and Uppal, were named as accused in the chargesheet by the ED. The chargesheet was filed at a special PMLA court in Raipur. ED issued a Look Out Circular (LoC) against Chandrakar and Uppal. According to the probe agency, the proceeds of the crime could be around Rs 6,000 crores. In February 2024, the Chhattisgarh Police announced a reward of Rs. 35,000 for information on Sourabh Chandrakar, with Rs. 25,000 from the Durg IG and Rs. 10,000 from the SP. ^[7]News 18

Nationality

Chandrakar holds a Vanuatu passport. Apparently, the duo obtained the citizenship of the Republic of Vanuatu, an Oceania country, to evade arrest in the Mahadev Betting App Scam. Reportedly, they also applied for an Australian residency visa.

Sourabh Chandrakar’s Vanuatu passport

Ravi Uppal’s Vanuatu passport

Behind-the-screen Movers of the Mahadev Betting App Scandal

Vikas Chaparia

Vikas Chaparia Event handler

Vikas Chaparia was a small-time share broker from Kolkata. He heavily invested in the Indian stock market on behalf of Chandrakar and Uppal. The ED acquired his holdings in the market amounting to around Rs 236 crore. Like Chandrakar and Uppal, he also acquired citizenship in Vanuatu and was frequently seen with the app’s promoters. He is also absconding.

Chandrabhushan Verma

ASI Chandrabhushan Verma

Chandrabhushan Verma worked as an assistant sub-inspector in the Chhattisgarh Police. He played a crucial role in keeping the people behind the app safe from the police and politicians in Chhattisgarh. He was the main connection between Chandrakar and Chhattisgarh, making sure everything ran smoothly and that they got a significant share of profits, which came through illegal channels from Dubai. Verma distributed these profits among senior police officers and politicians, helping the Mahadev app become a top betting platform. The ED found out that he had close relationships with Vinod Verma, political advisor to the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. They also found that with the money from Dubai, he managed to corrupt the entire police system in Raipur and Durg district in Chhattisgarh. Additionally, the ED discovered proof that Verma had bought several properties in the name of his family members since 2020. Chandrabhushan Verma’s mother-in-law Yashodha Verma set up a firm called Aditya Trading Company in her name. At first, it seemed that the company was supposedly engaged in grain and rice trading, receiving significant funds from rice millers for grain sales. However, it was later found that these transactions were fake, and the money in the company’s account was recognized as illicit gains connected to the Mahadev app case. According to the ED, Chandrabhushan’s father, Punaram, and father-in-law, Shivkumar, were partners in Shrijan Associated and were receiving proceeds of crime disguised as genuine trade payments.

Satish Chandrakar

He was in constant touch with Ravi Uppal in Dubai and reported the daily operations of the app. He was the owner of four panels of the Mahadev betting app. The ED also found that on behalf of Chandrabhushan Verma, he would give money to government officials and politicians to make sure they didn’t take any action against the betting apps.

Anil and Sunil Damani

Anil Kumar and Sunil Kumar Damani Hawala brothers

The Damani brothers were key in moving a lot of money through hawala. Money from Dubai sent by Uppal and Chandrakar would go to the Damanis, who then gave it to police agents and others. They charged a fee of Rs 100 per lakh, and it’s believed they helped transfer around 55-60 crore rupees in hawala money for the Mahadev app promoters.

Vishal and Dheeraj Ahuja

According to the ED, the Ahuja brothers oversaw ticketing operations for the Mahadev app promoters, their families, business partners, and celebrity endorsers of betting websites like FairPlay.com and the Reddy Anna app. They handled travel arrangements for various events, including the star-studded annual event in the UAE in September 2023. The ED also found that the Ahuja brothers owned nine sections of FairPlay and Reddy Anna apps and used fake bank accounts for transactions related to ticket bookings. Pawan Nathani, who was closely linked to the Ahuja brothers, also played a role in supplying them with fake bank account information used for handling betting transactions on the Mahadev app. ^[8]Mid-day

Mrugank Mishra

On 16 October 2023, Mrugank Mishra (25), a key accused in the scam, was detained at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai by security personnel on his arrival from Dubai. Mishra was accused of helping the promoters of the app in opening hundreds of dubious bank accounts to divert money generated by the scam. His custody was later taken by a police team from Rajasthan, where he faced a cheating and forgery case related to the Mahadev app. ^[9]The Economic Times

Others

Others involved in the scam include Atul Agarwal, Nitish Dhawan, Amit Shah and Rohit Gulati. All of them were in Dubai when the scam broke out.

Tamanpreet

Pranjali Awasthi is an Indian entrepreneur who is known for raising $450,000 (Rs 3.7 crore) in funding for her Artificial Intelligence startup called Delv.AI at the age of 16 years.

Wiki/Biography

Pranjali Awasthi was born in the year 2007 (age 16 years old; as of 2023) in India. Her family moved to Florida, USA when she was 11 years old. She started learning coding when she was just 7 years old. At 13, she began her internship in university research labs at Florida International University. While working on machine learning projects, she simultaneously attended high school, Doral Academy Charter High School, majoring in Linear Algebra and Calculus. ^[1]Pranjali Awasthi – LinkedIn

Physical Appearance

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Family

Parents & Siblings

Her father is an engineer.

Husband & Children

Pranjali is not married.

Career

Pranjali Awasthi started her company Delv.AI during her internship in university research labs. She was accepted to the September 2021 HF0 residency where she launched her product. Her responsibilities included conducting searches, data extraction, and crafting literature reviews. In 2020, when OpenAI unveiled its ChatGPT-3 beta, she recognized its potential to promote and enhance research data extraction and summarization. Although Delv.AI was at its budding stage, she was determined about establishing a company that would use machine learning to extract data and remove data silos. Her time at HF0 ended when she secured her inaugural investment from On Deck and Village Global. The seed funding received in early 2022 enabled her to recruit her first engineer and commence work on a minimum-viable product. Throughout her fellowship, she was able to make strong ties within the A.I. community. Moreover, because of her triumphant Product Hunt launch, these connections proved invaluable during subsequent fundraising efforts. She managed to gather $450,000 from a combination of funds and angel investors like Lucy Guo and Village Global, resulting in a valuation of around $12 million. ^[2]Business Insider

Social Entrepreneurship

Pranjali’s passion for social entrepreneurship started during her childhood in India. During visits to her grandfather, a farmer, she would see him mentoring village children to build their artisanal skills. She recalls the handmade fashion items they crafted as both chic and trendy. Recognizing their global appeal, she planned to sell them without the interference of intermediaries who often took large cuts, leaving the creators with meager earnings. This inspired her to establish ‘Indic Valley’, an online portal showcasing these artisanal creations. Pranjali’s ambition is to empower these craftsmen by granting them ownership and control over their work on this platform.

Pranjali in conversation with the artisans in India

Despite the challenges amplified by the pandemic, she successfully garnered external investments. With these funds, she was able to gather an initial group of roughly 30 artisans for her site, streamlined the company’s framework, and ironed out the logistics. Indic Valley presents a range of eco-friendly, handcrafted wooden bangles, shawls, footwear, and more, all originating from the heart of India’s villages.

Awards and Achievements

• Associate Member – Issued by Masason Foundation (Jun 2023)

• IEEE Rising Star 2022 – Issued by IEEE Canada Young Professionals Committee (Nov 2021)

• HF0 Fellow – Issued by Backend Capital (Sep 2021)

• AIME Qualifier – Issued by Mathematics Association of America (Feb 2021)

Favourites

• Indian Snacks: Parle G, Momos

Facts/Trivia

• Pranjali always looked up to her father, who believed that computer science should be included in the school curriculum alongside other foundational subjects. His passion for the subject inspired her to get into coding at the young age of seven.

• During the COVID pandemic, the shift to virtual learning in schools enabled her to take up an internship. She dedicated approximately 20 hours weekly to the Schwartz Center for Computational Neuroscience, a part of the Institute of Neural Computation at the University of California San Diego.

• Throughout her research internship, Pranjali was aware of the increasing difficulty in identifying specific information on search engines. This realization drove her to think about how AI could remove this challenge. This eventually gave birth to her company, Delv.AI. The primary mission of Delv.AI is to assist researchers in easily getting specific details amid the vast universe of online content.

• In 2021, Pranjali attended Miami Hack Week where she met Lucy Guo and Dave Fontenot, both partners at Backend Capital. The duo had also founded the HF0 residency, a live-in startup accelerator based in San Francisco and Miami.
  

  Pranjali at Hackerfellow

• She secured a place in their September 12-week program in exchange for a minor stake in her future enterprise. After taking the advice of her parents who believed in the invaluable networking opportunity it presented, she took a break from high school. The residency covered her daily commute to and from the house via Uber.

• A highlight of her residency was the launch of Delv.AI’s beta version on Product Hunt, which also coincided with her 15th birthday. Her product climbed to become the third most sought-after product of the day.

• Her Indian heritage meant academics were a familial priority. Although she considered pursuing a GED, she made a comprise by completing her high school credits online. She completed her school in June 2023. Her parents supported her in the decision to skip college for the moment to continue focusing on her business.

• Pranjali has been a spokesperson for many events like Rising 2021: Women in AI where she spoke about inspiring youngsters to pave a career in AI. She also spoke at AI Summit in New York where she spoke on ML in Modern Healthcare.
  

  A hoarding of Pranjali as a spokesperson

• She said she might consider going to college later to learn new business skills like law and psychology. ^[3]Hindustan Times

• She has remarkable test scores in her competitive exams. She got a score of 35 on her ACT in 2022 and a score of 5 in AP Calculus BC, Computer Science, and Physics in 2021.

• She is called ‘P’ by her batch mates and team members. ^[4]Pranjali Awasthi – Twitter

• Her hobbies include playing piano and badminton.

• Inspired by Prajali, her old high school opened a whole building for AI enthusiasts in Blockchain learning and Cyber Security courses.
  

  Pranjali’s tweet about her old high school

Pratishtha

Brooke Sansone is an American personality known for being the fiancee of the American singer, Charlie Puth.

Wiki/Biography

Brooke Sansone, also known as “Brookie” by her loved ones ^[1]Michael Sansone – Instagram, was born on Tuesday, 18 April 2000 (age 24 years; as of 2024), in New Jersey, USA. Her zodiac sign is Aries. She completed her education at Red Bank Catholic High School in Monmouth. Then she completed her Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the College of Charleston in 2021. ^[2]Brooke Sansone – LinkedIn

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 8″

Weight (approx.): 58 kg

Hair Colour: Brown

Eye Colour: Brown

Family

Parents & Siblings

Her father’s name is Paul Sansone Jr., an auto dealer, while her mother’s name is Chris Sansone.

Brooke Sansone’s parents

She has an elder sister named Emmaline Sansone and a brother, Michael Sansone.

Brooke Sansone and her sister

Brooke Sansone’s brother

Husband & Children

She got married to singer Charlie Puth in Montecito, California, on 7 September 2024.

Charlie and Brooke’s photo taken during their wedding

Relationships/Affairs

Charlie Puth and Brooke Sanson first revealed their relationship in the summer of 2022. They confirmed it on the singer’s social media with his 31st birthday post in December 2022.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Charlie Puth (@charlieputh)

In February 2023, the couple made their first red carpet appearance at Clive Davis’ Pre-Grammy Gala in Los Angeles.

Fiance

Charlie Puth announced his engagement with Brooke on 7 September 2023, via his Instagram account.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Charlie Puth (@charlieputh)

Career

Brooke works at the NYC design company, Butter and Eggs Interiors, as their digital marketing and PR coordinator. Before this, she gained experience as a marketing intern and later worked as a social media marketing manager at Hyer Home in Charleston. Moreover, because of her love for fashion and beauty, Brooke has collaborated with her friend, Olivia D’Angelo, to manage an Instagram page, Thee Closet Next Door. Through this platform, they post about a variety of stunning outfits and accessories.

Brooke Sansone’s Instagram page – Thee Closet Next Door

Favourites

• Food: Pizza, Bagels, Mushrooms

Facts/Trivia

• Both Puth and Sansone were born and brought up in New Jersey and shared their childhood together.
  

  Sansone and Puth family sharing time together

• They tend to keep their relationship under wraps, but Puth did mention that his track “Lipstick” was inspired by Sansone.

• It was on The Howard Stern Show in October 2022 that the singer-songwriter first admitted to being “in love” and having a girlfriend. During that same interview, before their relationship became public, Puth shared his fond memories of Sansone, saying,

I’ve known her since we were kids. She’s consistently been kind to me. I believe that in life’s inevitable ups and downs, she’d stand by my side.”

• She is an animal lover and the family owns a pet dog named Luca Julius.
  

  A picture of Brooke’s pet dog

• Brooke also likes to play tennis and go swimming in her free time.
  

  A picture of Brooke posing on a tennis court

• She is a globetrotter and loves traveling to various places with her friends and family members.

• Sansone is a nonvegetarian and likes to have alcohol on occasion. ^[3]Brooke Sansone – Instagram
  

  A picture of Brooke Sansone having alcohol

Pratishtha

Jakkam Pushpavalli is an Indian tutor, who became popular in 2023 when she announced her wedding plans with a politician from Andhra Pradesh, Vangaveeti Radha Krishna.

Wiki/Biography

Jakkam Pushpavalli was born in Narasapuram, Andhra Pradesh. She completed her schooling in Narasapuram. She pursued her higher education in Hyderabad. ^[1]TV9Telugu

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 5″

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Family

Parents & Siblings

Her father’s name is Jakkam Babji, who is the former municipal chairperson of Narsapuram. Her mother’s name is Ammani. She has a sister.

Jakkam Pushpavalli with her father (second from right) and mother (extreme right)

Husband & Children

On 16 August 2023, it was reported that politician Vangaveeti Radha Krishna was planning to marry her. He is the son of Vangaveeti Mohana Ranga Rao, a former Andhra Pradesh politician associated with the Indian National Congress. Radha Krishna was elected as an MLA from the Vijayawada East Constituency in 2004.

Career

After finishing her studies in Hyderabad, she worked as a yoga instructor in the same city for a while. Later, she started working as a tutor for a private educational institution.

Facts/Trivia

• Once, actor and politician Pawan Kalyan stayed at their home when he visited Narasapur as a part of the Varahi Yatra.

Tanvi

Anu Acharya is an Indian Entrepreneur known to be the founder of Mapmygenome India, a leading Indian genomic diagnostic company specializing in leveraging personal genomics to optimize healthcare. ^[1]Mapmygenome In 2000, she founded Ocimum Bio Solutions as a bioinformatics company to provide global solutions for discovery, investment and genomic innovation. She was named a ‘Young Global Leader’ by the World Economic Forum in 2011. With her innovative DNA testing solutions, she has made a name for herself as one of the leading female entrepreneurs in India.

Wiki/Biography

Anuradha Acharya was born in 1972 (age 51 years, as of 2023) in Bikaner, Rajasthan, India but basically spent most of her life in Kharagpur, West Bengal where she pursued her education. ^[2]Outlook Business She is a distinguished alumna from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) in Kharagpur, India where she completed her graduation. In 1995 she moved to Chicago, US and received two Postgraduate degrees in Physics and MIS ^[3]Management Information Systems) at the University of Illinois. ((Global Indian

Physical Appearance

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Dark Brown

Family

Anuradha Acharya belongs to a Marwari family.

Parents 

She is the daughter of Prof. H. N. Acharya (deceased on 2 November 2014), who was a physics professor at IIT-Kharagpur. Her father was her inspiration and she wanted to become a physicist like him. ^[4]Outlook Business ^[5]The Man Who Inspired Me

Anuradha Acharya with her late father Prof. H.N. Acharya

Husband & Children

Acharya is married to Subash Lingareddy. He is the founder and CFO of Ocimum Bio Solutions. They have two daughters together, Neha and Akhila. ^[6]Outlook Business

Anuradha Acharya with her husband and daughters

Career

Beginnings

She was encouraged by her father to pursue the best suitable goals in life. Although she wanted to become a physicist like her father and even win a Nobel prize, she later realized her real interest lay in entrepreneurship. ^[7]Outlook Business She started working in Mantis information, a telecommunications start up in the United States where she gained experience in the Telecom, IT and entrepreneurship fields. ^[8]Global Indian After a year, she worked at a consulting firm called SEI Information, helping entrepreneurs effectively socialize. ^[9]Your Story

The idea was to be a path-breaker in whatever I did.”

It was a process of discovery for me, in terms of realising my strengths and weaknesses and capitalising on what I was best at.” ^[10]Outlook Business

Breakthroughs 

After returning to India at the end of 1999, she launched two companies called ‘Bandwidth Bazaar’ for Bandwidth trading and  ‘VoiceGram’ which was based on the idea of integrating voice and text mobile. The domains didn’t work out and eventually shut down. ^[11]Outlook Business Anuradha Acharya, however, remained unwaivered.

Entrepreneurship is not just about great ideas, it is about perseverance and dedication.” ^[12]Outlook Business

She co-founded Ocimum Biosolutions in 2000 in Hyderabad with her husband, Subash Lingareddy. ^[13]Outlook Business It was a biotechnology organization with a main focus on product development and contract research, a totally different career than she had her expertise in. From studying Physics to genomics, bioinformatics, molecular and computational biology, Anuradha Acharya took a big leap. Her endeavours started becoming fruitful with the promising progress of the Human Genome Project (HGP). Sometime after, she was joined by Dr. Sujata Pammi, another co-founder of Ocimum Biosolutions. ^[14]Outlook Business

I am always interested in learning new things and the sector was very interesting and completely new to India.” ^[15]Outlook Business

Her next achievement came in the form of Mapmygenome, a genomic company founded by her, with specialization in Genomic database computation. Despite financial crisis, she established the company with her own savings.

Mapmygenome 

Mapmygenome, a genomic diagnostic company founded by Anuradha Acharya

With personalized health solutions and actionable diagnostic approach towards one’s health, Mapmygenome helps people to understand their body better. They work towards wellness products under a diverse range of categories including wellness (Genomepatri), Beauty (Beautymap), Gut health (Mapmybiome), Sports, fitness & nutrition (Myfitgene), Drug response (Medicamap), Heart health (Cardiomap), Cancer (Oncomap), Ancestry (Genomepatri Heritage), and Nutritional counselling. ^[16]Mapmygenome

Genome diagnostic products from Mapmygenome

Anuradha Acharya at the Mint Digital Innovation Summit and Awards events, Bengaluru, 9 June 2023

Genomepatri 

Genomepatri logo, the wellness product from Mapmygenome

She developed a revolutionary product called Genomepatri that allow people to know their gene sequence and help them identify the diseases they might be prone to. ^[17]Outlook Business Genomepatri is marketed via attention grabbing campaigns, that helps more people know about the phenomenon and benefit of knowing one’s genetic composition. It is currently available at ₹7,999.00 (price may vary). ^[18]Mapmygenome

Getting your palm read is so old-fashioned. Really. Who does that? @anuacharya @mapmygenome #genetesting #dnatesting #genomics #predictandprotect pic.twitter.com/mtwDvfQVhx

— Swapan Seth (@swapanseth) July 10, 2023

Present

Anuradha Acharya has a plethora of achievements in her name. She has been appointed as a Governing Board Member at CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), and at NIBMG (the National Institute for Biomedical Genomics, Kalyani, West Bengal). In addition, she also held the position of President of the Hyderabad Chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization in the past. She currently serves:

• On the board of Association of Biotech Led Enterprises (ABLE)

• As the Vice Chair Board on the Global Agenda Council on Genetics,

• As a board member for the Association of Biotech Enterprises,

• On the board of mentors at IvyCap Ventures

• On the advisory board for the Action for India

Anuradha Acharya at the PrecisionMed Exhibition & Summit, Dubai, 23 May 2023

Challenges 

Around the time of the launch of Mapmygenome, she has to face a number of difficulties including shortage of indigenous talent and sufficient funds. Genomic database was still a new concept in India trying to find its footing. Genomic testing was an unclear concept as per Indian regulations and hence, it was always an uncertainty. ^[19]Outlook Business Despite all these challenges, Anuradha Acharya made her dream project happen.

Remember that you are an entrepreneur, not a ‘woman tech entrepreneur’. You are likely to have it twice as difficult, be prepared for that. Build a great team and a fabulous product. Create a legacy.” ^[20]Yourstory

Literary Work

She is a poetry, literature, photography, music, and fitness enthusiast. ^[21]Yourstory She has published her book on Poetry called ‘Atomic Pohe- Random Rhymes at odd times- On Science, Non Science and Nonsense.’ ^[22]Atomic Pohe- Random Rhymes at odd times- On Science, Non Science and Nonsense. In the book ‘Pharmaceutical Outsourcing: Discovery and Preclinical Services (Pharmaceutical Outsourcing, Volume I), she has written a chapter on Research as a Service (RaaS) ^[23]Pharmaceutical Outsourcing: Discovery and Preclinical Services. She has an article named ‘What mergers can do for you,’ published in the Nature Biotechnology. ^[24]Nature Biotechnology In addition, she actively contributes in renowned newspapers and magazines.

Awards, Honours, & Achievements

• She was listed in Red Herring’s 25 Tech Titans under 35 in 2006.

• She won Astia Life Science Innovators Award in 2008.

• She was named as Biospectrum Entrepreneur of the Year in 2008.

• She received the honour as Young Global Leader in the World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2011.

• She was mentioned in the Member of Young Leaders Forum (British High Commission, 2013).

• She was awarded with ET Women Ahead honor by the Economic Times in 2015.

• Under her tenure, Mapmygenome has won various awards including Emerging Company of the Year 2015 (Govt. of Karnataka), T Startup Awards 2015 (Women Ahead)​, VCCircle Innovative Healthcare Startup (2015), E, Nasscom Emerge 50 (League of 10), SMART CEO ​List of Top 50 Startups, etc.

• She was listed in the W-power trailblazers by Forbes in 2018.

Favourites

Anuradha Acharya is an avid adventure sports lover. ^[25]Yourstory She also follows football. She attended the FIFA World Cup 2022.

Anuradha Acharya at FIFA World Cup 2022

Facts/Trivia

• While living on the IIT Kharagpur campus, Anuradha got intrigued with Physics and wanted to become a Physicist. During her school years, she used to spend most of her time in the library, doing experiments in the Physics lab or playing basketball. ^[26]Outlook Business

• Her father played huge role in her character development while growing up. He taught her many life lessons that enabled her to take the right course in life.

• In her childhood, her father used to reward her and her siblings for doing house chores. It was another life lesson from her father, teaching them the value of labour. ^[27]Outlook Business

• Mapmygenome raised $1.1 million in 2015 with cumulative support of angel investors. ^[28]Outlook Business

ShrutiAle

Madhukar Balvantray Parekh is an Indian Businessman, and the chairman of the Pidilite Industries, India’s leading maker of adhesives that deals with a wide range of products including stationery, car products, construction chemicals, art materials, sealants, food and fabric care, speciality industrial products, etc. ^[1]Pidilite As of 2022, he is the 16th richest man in India. ^[2]Forbes

Wiki/Biography

Madhukar Balvantray Parekh was born in 1946 (age 77 years; as of 2023) in Mumbai, India. He is a Gold Medallist Alumnus of ICT (Institute of Chemical Technology, University of Mumbai) where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Chemical Technology. He completed Masters’s in Chemical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, US in 1969. He then joined Abbot Laboratories and worked for a few years there before coming back to India and joining his father’s business.

Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), Mumbai, Madhukar Parekh’s Alma mater

Physical Appearance

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Family

Madhukar Balvantray Parekh belongs to a Gujarati Baniya family.

Parents & Siblings

His father was Balvantray Kalyanji Parekh (1924-2013) ^[3]Pidilite, the founder of Pidilite Industries, also known as ‘India’s Fevicol Man’. His mother’s name is Kantaben. He has two younger siblings, Ajay Parekh and Kalpana Parekh. Ajay Parekh is the executive director of the family business. ^[4]Forbes His sister Kalpana Parekh is a minor stakeholder in the company.  ^[5]Forbes

Balvantray Kalyanji Parekh, Founder of Pidilite Industries, Father of Madhukar Parekh

Wife & Children

He resides in Mumbai with his wife and two daughters.

Career

He came to Mumbai in (date) to study law. However, he didn’t pursue Law and instead worked in part-time businesses along with his brother. During his ventures, he came across various flaws in the Indian furniture industry which sparked his interest. He joined his father’s company Pidilite Industries in 1972. Pidilite Industries (headquartered in Mumbai, India) was founded by his late father Balvantray Kalyanji Parekh in 1959. After joining the company, Madhukar Parekh brought many significant changes to boost its reputation. Under his leadership, Pidilite Industries has scaled great heights in terms of development and revenue (1,288.87 crore net profit, as of 31 March 2023). ^[6]ZEE Business Other notable brands under Pidilite Industries include Dr Fixit, FeviKwik, M-seal, Cyclo, Acron, Manipal, Roff, WD-40, and Hobby Ideas.

Pidilite Industries Products

Madhukar Balvantray Parekh also serves as the Chairman and Managing Director of Vinyl Chemicals India Ltd. and as an independent non-executive director of Excel Industries Ltd. ^[7]Digital Yug

Awards, Honours, Achievements

• He secured rank 13 in the ‘Top 25 Business Leaders in India’, Business Today, in 2012.

• He won ‘Chemtech Business Leader of the Year’ in 2013.

• He was the recipient of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2014 in the Consumer Products category (Ernst & Young).

• ICC Lifetime Achievement Award for the year 2017 from Indian Chemical Council.

• Ranked as 16th Richest Man in India in Top 50 Richest Indians (2019) by Forbes India Magazine.

• Under his tenure, Pidilite Industries has won ‘Most Promising Company of the Year’ at the CNBC-TV18, 11th India Business Leader Awards (IBLA).

Net Worth

As of July 19 2022, he has a net worth of Rs 23,170 crore.

Facts/Trivia

• He was ranked number 4 in the IIT JEE entrance test but chose chemical technology since he was interested in chemical business.
• He took up a Peon’s job at the beginning of his career.
• His family business was listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in 1993.

ShrutiAle

Who is Lisa AI News Anchor?

Lisa is an AI bot developed by Odisha Television Limited (OTV), a well-known Odia news network in India. Lisa is called India’s first AI-powered Odia news anchor. As the pioneering Odia AI, Lisa is envisioned to lead the way into a new era of news broadcasting. In a video posted on Twitter by OTV, Lisa introduces herself with confidence, expressing her enthusiasm for this momentous occasion. The news network disclosed that she would soon begin hosting news updates, demonstrating her capabilities as an AI news anchor. Notably, Lisa possesses an impressive multilingual skillset, enabling her to communicate in Odia, English, and other languages.

Lisa AI – Launch

On 9 July 2023, Odisha Television Limited (OTV) introduced Lisa, the state’s first AI news anchor, joining the growing number of companies employing artificial intelligence (AI) to improve their service offerings. In a press conference that was attended by numerous respected industry dignitaries, Jagi Mangat Panda, the company’s promoter and managing director, introduced Lisa to the guests and extended a warm welcome to her as a new member of the OTV family. During the introduction, Jagi Mangat Panda emphasized Lisa’s significant role in delivering daily news updates, particularly in special segments covering news from Odisha, India, and around the world. Mr. Radhamadhab Mishra, the Senior Editor of OTV, and Litisha Mangat Panda, the head of the digital business joined Jagi Panda at the launch event. They engaged with Lisa, conversing not only in Odia but also in English. The guests were observed applauding the effectiveness and flexibility of AI Lisa in fulfilling her designated role. After Lisa was launched, OTV MD Jagi Mangat Panda said,

The AI anchor is OTV’s gift to television journalism. It is the first AI anchor in the free-to-air regional television broadcasting arena and also the first Odia news anchor.”

Jagi Mangat Panda (sitting centre) at the unveiling ceremony for AI-powered news anchor Lisa in Bhubaneswar

Jagi Panda added,

AI is going to be a great partner in helping us doing the jobs that are repetitive and are more data analytical. Its us will allow news people to focus more on bringing out new angles and do more creative work to present news in better quality to the people.”

According to Litisha Mangat Panda, the head of OTV’s digital business, the introduction of the AI anchor Lisa marks a significant milestone in the state’s media industry. She said,

We hope that the ongoing AI revolution will sweep television and digital news broadcasting.”

Lisa AI – Developers

Odisha Television Limited (OTV) developed Lisa AI in collaboration with a Mumbai-based startup, and after launching Lisa on 9 July 2023, they said that the AI-powered news anchor Lisa would start presenting news updates for the channel by the end of the month. According to Lisa’s developers, Lisa possesses the ability to communicate in numerous languages, but currently, it will deliver news in Odia and English specifically for the TV network’s channel and digital platforms. Additionally, the AI bot Lisa will maintain an active presence on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook.

Lisa AI news anchor was introduced by OTV on 9 July 2023

Lisa AI – Development

The creation of the AI anchor Lisa involved the utilization of LLM, learning algorithms, and voice recognition capabilities to develop an anchor that could imitate human-like interactions. These technologies served as the foundation for Lisa, empowering her to analyze extensive information, engage in conversations, and deliver news and content with exceptional accuracy. Lisa’s design is so refined that her voice, appearance, and diction give the impression that she belongs to the cultural fabric of Odisha. According to its developers, Lisa will continue to improve, incorporating user feedback and technological advancements to enhance its capabilities and deliver an exceptional viewer experience.

A newspaper cutting about the launch of India’s first AI news anchor, Lisa

Shukla Sundeep

Seema Haider is a Pakistani woman who became viral in July 2023 when it was reported that she entered India illegally in May 2023, with her four children, to live with her alleged lover-turned-husband, Sachin Meena, after meeting him on PUBG.

Wiki/Biography

Seema Haider aka Seema Ghulam Haider ^[1]Hindustan Times aka Seema Rind ^[2]The Express Tribune aka Seema Jakhrani ^[3]The Express Tribune was born in a village in Kot Diji district of Sindh Province in Pakistan. As per one source, she was born in 1995 (age 28 years; as of 2023), ^[4]Hindustan Times and as per another source, she was born on Tuesday, 1 January 2002 (age 21 years; as of 2023). ^[5]The Express Tribune According to her husband Ghulam Haider, she did not attend any school for formal education; however, she studied under various NGOs which provide education to underprivileged children.

A childhood photo of Seema Haider (center) with her father and sister

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 7″

Weight (approx.): 55 kg

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Family & Ethnicity

She belongs to a middle-class Baloch family. ^[6]ABP News

Parents & Siblings

Her father’s name is Ghulam Raza Rind. She has two sisters and a brother named Asif who serves in the Pakistan Army.

Seema Haider’s father

Seema Haider with her mother

Seema Haider (left) with her sisters during teenage

Husband & Children

She first married Ghulam Haider, a resident of a village in Garhi Khairo taluka of Jacobabad district in Sindh Province of Pakistan on 16 February 2014. Ghulam initially worked as a labourer and auto rikshaw driver in Pakistan; however, in 2019, he moved to Saudi Arabia and started working as a labourer.

Seema Haider’s ex-husband, Ghulam Haider

She has four children with him including a son named Farhan Ali, renamed Raj (age 8 years; as of July 2023) and three daughters named Farwa, renamed Priyanka (age 6 years; as of July 2023), Fariha Batool renamed Munni (age 4 years; as of July 2023) and Farha Batool renamed Pari (age 2.5 years; as of July 2023). She claimed that Ghulam divorced her several times on the phone. Allegedly, her second husband is Sachin Meena of Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India whom she married at Nepal’s Pashupatinath Temple as per Hindu customs and traditions in March 2023. After her marriage to Sachin, she renamed her children Raj, Priyanka, Munni, and Pari.

Seema Haider and her four children with her boyfriend, Sachin Meena

Relationships/Affairs

Ghulam Haider

Seema initially got in touch with Ghulam Haider when he called her back inadvertently in response to a missed call. They subsequently started talking and fell in love with each other. Seema’s family was against her marriage to Ghulam; however, she went against her family’s wishes and married him in February 2014. They started living in the Bhittaiabad area of Karachi after their marriage, where she gave birth to her four children. Allegedly, Ghulam has two children from a previous marriage.

Seema Haider and Ghulam Haider after their marriage

Sachin Meena

Seema said while talking to the media that she first met Sachin Meena in July 2020 while playing PUBG. She used to talk to a lot of strangers as she used to keep the mic on. She liked Sachin’s way of playing and his accent, and after four months, they exchanged their numbers and started talking on WhatsApp and Instagram via voice calls and video calls. Later, they developed a friendship that turned into love, and both confessed their love for each other in January 2021 and started to find ways to meet each other.

She applied for an Indian Visa in February 2023; however, it was rejected as the visa application had a document that required the signature of a gazetted officer on the invitation of an Indian person. Sachin submitted his Aadhaar card copies for the same; however, she could not get the signature of a gazetted officer. She then found out that Indian citizens do not need any visa to travel to Nepal, hence they decided to meet in Nepal in March 2023; she left her children in Pakistan and met Sachin alone. In Nepal, they met for the first time on 10 March 2023 following which they got married at Pashupatinath Temple and spent a week together at a hotel in Nepal after which she went back to Pakistan, and Sachin came back to India.

Seema Haider with Sachin Meena after their marriage in Nepal

Journey to India

After realising that she would not be able to go to India legally, she made up her mind to go to India via Nepal. According to one source, she sold her parents’ house at her ancestral village to undertake the journey, and as per another source, she sold her first husband’s house. After selling the plot for Rs 12 lakhs, she boarded a flight from Karachi to Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), then a connecting flight to Nepal. In Nepal, she took a van to Pokhara and entered India on 11 May 2023 after taking a bus to Delhi. After reaching Delhi’s Kashmere Gate ISBT, she took a bus to Jewar and left the bus at Faleda intersection near Rabupura, Sachin Meena‘s village, in Uttar Pradesh. Sachin met her there and took her to a rented room, which he rented for Rs 2500 per month, in Ambedkar Colony, about one km from his village Rabupura.

Room near Greater Noida where Seema Haider and Sachin Meena lived secretly

Landlord of Seema Haider’s room, Girish Kumar

They maintained utmost secrecy to such an extent that Sachin’s father, Netrapal Singh, who works at a plant nursery near the village, his mother, Ritu, and his five siblings did not know anything about the rented room or Seema until 30 June 2023, when the police knocked at their home in Meena Thakurain colony of Rabupura.

Sachin Meena’s father, Netrapal Singh Meena, his mother, Ritu, and his younger brother, Vikas

Religion/Religious Views

Seema Haider initially followed Islam; however, after getting married to Sachin Meena in 2023, she started following Hinduism. In an interview, she said that she liked Hinduism, and after her marriage to Sachin, she started following all Hindu practices. ^[7]Aaj Tak

Seema Haider’s photo on her passport, wearing Hijab

Caste/Ethnicity

She belongs to the Baloch community. ^[8]ABP News

Arrest & Bail

Sachin and Seema started living together on 13 May 2023. Sachin worked at a ration shop during the day and earned Rs 13000 monthly and visited his family daily. On 29 June 2023, the couple visited an advocate in Bulandshahr to get married legally; however, the advocate was shocked upon seeing Seema’s Pakistani passport and alerted the police. When the police officials raided their rented room, they found that the couple had already vacated the room and were trying to flee the city. As per one source, the police arrested them on 30 June 2023 in Ballabgarh, and as per another source, she was arrested on 4 July 2023. ^[9]Hindustan Times

Seema Haider with her lover, Sachin Meena, and his father, Netrapal Singh, in police custody

The FIR number 159/2023 was filed at Rabupura Police Station against Seema for illegally entering India, Sachin Meena and his father, Netrapal Singh aka Nittar for illegally helping and sheltering an illegal immigrant. They were subsequently jailed at Luksar Jail in Uttar Pradesh. Netrapal was given bail on 6 July 2023, ^[10]Court Verdict and Sachin and Seema were given bail on 7 July 2023 by Justice Nazim Akbar of the Junior Division of the Jewar Civil Court; they were subsequently released from jail at 8:30 am on 8 July 2023. ^[11]Court Verdict ^[12]Court Verdict Court ordered them to stay at the same house until the final judgement. Their lawyer, Hemant Krishna Parashar, told the media that all three of them have to visit the Rabupura Police Station daily to sign an undertaking and cannot leave the town without the police’s permission.

Bail order of Seema Haider

Bail order of Sachin Meena

Reaction in India & Pakistan

After the news of Seema and Sachin‘s love affair became viral, the public came in support of Seema and requested the government to provide Indian citizenship to her and her four children. Many Hindu organisations visited their house and provided assurance and monetary support to the couple. Some people questioned Seema’s credentials and doubted that she could be an ISI spy as well. When asked about whether Seema would return to Pakistan, she said that she would be killed if she ever returned to Pakistan, hence she would prefer dying in India instead of Pakistan. Sachin Meena’s parents, Netrapal and Ritu, said that they would wholeheartedly welcome the foreign daughter-in-law to their house and praised Seema’s bravery in crossing the borders.

Seema Haider and Sachin Meena with his parents

Her first husband, Ghulam Haider, released a video in which he requested the Indian government, especially the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, to send back Seema and their children to Pakistan. He even claimed that his father, Ameer Jan, has filed a police complaint at Malir Cantt after Haider was unable to get in touch with Seema and his children. Seema alleged that her ex-husband Ghulam Haider used to beat her and even applied chilly powder to her face. While debating him on a news channel, Seema said that she would even give him a divorce as per the legal procedure, and alleged that Ghulam was releasing videos to gain sympathy.

Seema Haider with Sachin Meena while talking to the media

The Pakistani public condemned Seema’s actions and said that she should have gone to India through a legal channel. Seema claimed that she has also received death threats against her and Sachin from a few Islamic clergies (Maulanas) of Pakistan. A few Pakistani people belonging to the Jhakrani tribe of Balochistan released a video in which they threatened of killing every Hindu woman in Sindh if Seema and her children are not returned to Pakistan.

10 July '23 Jacobabad, Sindh, Pakistan:
Dacoit belong to Baloch Jhakrani tribe issued a death threats & threat to rape Hindus in Sindh if India fails to send their daughter-in-law #SeemaHaider Jhakrani back along with her children.
Seema d/o Ghulam Raza Rind married Ghulam Haider… pic.twitter.com/KRHIP6DsFh

— Mahesh Vasu (@maheshmvasu) July 10, 2023

Facts/Trivia

• Seema and Sachin were inspired by Sunny Deol‘s blockbuster Bollywood film, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. In an interview, Seema said that she has made several reels on TikTok and Instagram from the film’s songs. They watched the film during their stay in Nepal in March 2023.

• She said in an interview that Bollywood should make a film on her and Sachin‘s love story like Veer Zara.

• After her marriage to Sachin, she started wearing Mangalsutra and became a vegetarian. She even stopped eating garlic as Sachin‘s family does not consume it. ^[13]Aaj Tak
  

  Seema Haider with her lover Sachin Meena wearing a Hindu robe with Radhe Radhe written on it

• Allegedly, Seema got so crazy in love with Sachin that if he ever got angry with her and stopped talking to her, she would cut her hands; she claimed that she has cut her hand many times when she was in a relationship with him.

• In August 2023, Seema received an offer to star in a movie centered around the murder of Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal by Islamic radicals. According to reports, representatives from Jani Firefox Production House met with Seema in Greater Noida and conducted an audition for their upcoming film titled ‘A Tailor Murder Story’ in which she was selected to portray the character of a RAW agent. ^[14]The Times of India

• In August 2023, Yashraj Mukhate made a short video on her which became very viral.

• On 22 August 2023,  Seema Haider sent Rakhis to some prominent Indian politicians including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath. ^[15]Hindustan Times In an interview, she talked about this and said,
  

  I have posted these (rakhis) in advance so that they reach well in time to my dear brothers, on whose shoulders lie this country’s responsibility. I am very happy. Jai Shri Ram. Jai Hind. Hindustan Zindabad.”

Amit

K Vidya is an Indian former SFI (Students’ Federation of India) leader who is accused of furnishing a fake experience certificate of Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam, a government college in Kerala, to secure the job at the Malayalam Department of the RGM Government College of Attappady in Palakkad district. She was also a former student at Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam. ^[1]The News Minute

Wiki/Biography

K Vidya hails from Maniyanodi in Thrikaripur, Kasaragod. ^[2]Malayalam Samayam She did graduation in Malayalam from Payyannur College. She was a college union member and SFI activist at Maharaja’s College and Sanskrit University. Vidya enrolled for PhD at Kalady Sree Sankaracharya Sanskrit University in 2020. ^[3]Mathru Bhumi

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 4″

Weight (approx.): 55 kg

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Dark Brown

Figure Measurements (approx.): 34-28-34

Family

Not much information regarding her family is available.

Career

According to her experience certificates, she has previously worked as an assistant professor on a contractual basis from June 2018 to March 2019 and from June 2020 to March 2021 at Maharaja College, Ernakulam. She has also worked at Karinthalam College in Kasaragod from June 2022 to March 2023 as guest faculty.

Controversies

Forged Experience Certificate

According to the reports, Vidya submitted the forged experience documents and certificates while giving the job interview for the position of guest lecturer at the Malayalam Department of the RGM Government College of Attappady in Palakkad district on 2 June 2023. On Wednesday 7 June 2023, the matter gained public attention when the RGM college authorities sent the experience certificate of Vidya to the principal of Maharaja’s college when they developed doubts related to the authenticity of the certificates. According to reports, Vidya had previously worked at Karinthalam College in Kasaragod from June 2022 to March 2023, utilizing the same forged certificate. The case gained media coverage when another controversy involved PM Arsho, the State Secretary of SFI (Students Federation of India). It was revealed that Arsho’s mark sheet indicated that he had passed exams at Maharaja’s College without actually taking them. Arsho, an MA Archaeology student, clarified that he had not written any papers during the third-semester exams, which led to the allegations against him. The authorities of Maharaja College concluded that it was due to a software error at the National Informatics Centre (NIC). The principal of Maharaja College confirmed that Vidya has produced forged documents in the name of the college and confirmed that they have not employed a single person as guest faculty in the Malayalam department for the last 10 years. On this, the authorities of the Maharaja College filed a complaint against Vidya. Ernakulam Central police filed a case against Vidya on the petition filed by the authorities of the Maharaja College where Vidya had been using forged experience documents, stating that she had worked as an assistant professor on a contractual basis in the college from June 2018 to March 2019 and from June 2020 to March 2021.

Copy of K Vidya’s forged experience certificate from Maharaja College

According to the FIR reports, the charges registered are Sections 465 (forgery), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), and 471 (using a document or electronic record knowing that it is forged) of the Indian Penal Code. ^[4]The News Minute ^[5]The Times Of India The case was later transferred to Agali police station as the RGM College comes under its jurisdiction. On Wednesday 21 June 2023, the police took Vidya into custody from Meppayur in Kozhikode. Vidya was taken from her friend’s house in Meppayur around 7 pm. The police said that they managed to catch Vidya with the help of mobile phone calls and the tower location of her friends. ^[6]The Times Of India

Manipulation of the Reservation Roster

As per the reports, it is found that Kalady Sree Sankaracharya Sanskrit University’s SC/ST cell regarding K Vidya’s PhD admission indicates that the reservation roster was manipulated during the admission process in 2020. The reports also showed the intervention of the vice-chancellor’s office in the matter. Due to this, Dr Bichu Malayil stepped back from the academic association with K Vidya during the course of her PhD at the university unless Vidya proves herself innocent. As per the reports, Vidya has used her forged experience certificate at the Government Arts and Science College, Kinanoor, Karindalam, Kasaragod to secure the job of guest lecturer. ^[7]Mathru Bhumi

Facts/Trivia

• The Congress party accused Vidya of using political connections to get the forged documents as she was an SFI activist during her college days at Maharaja College. However, education minister R Bindu claimed that the seal on the certificate was fake and the college has nothing to do with it. ^[8]Mathru Bhumi

• On the arrest of K Vidya after 15 days of filing the complaint, the police confirmed that she has used the false certificates to beat the senior to secure a job at Karinthalam Government College in Kasaragod. Her competition was with a senior K. Rasitha and she told how having the false documents helped her to secure a job in the college. Out of all the candidates shortlisted for the job, Vidya secured the top rank while Rasitha secure the second. If Vidya wouldn’t have submitted the fake documents, Rasitha would have secured the job in the college. ^[9]Onmaronama

• As per the sources, K Vidya has made the fake documents on her mobile phone. She created the fake seal and the entire certificate without anyone’s help. ^[10]Onmanorama The college seal and designation seal was all made using the cam scanner app. The logo of the college was downloaded from Google. ^[11]Kerala Kaumudi

• The police were able to retrieve the fake documents from her mobile phone with the help of a cyber cell. As per the reports, the has destroyed all her original forged certificates.

• Vidya was earlier arrested by Agali police but was granted bail on certain conditions. However, she was arrested again in the Kasaragod case.

• At the time of the interrogation, Vidya developed uneasiness and was admitted to the hospital. Doctors claimed that it was due to excessive dehydration and that she was not feeling well. ^[12]The New Indian Express

Anmol