India appoints retired General Anil Chauhan as defence chief

[MenInG]

Eight Indians have been arrested for making “offensive” social media posts about the death of the country's military chief in a helicopter crash, according to officials speaking to AFP on Monday and local reports.

General Bipin Rawat, who was killed along with his wife and 11 others in last week's accident, was a hugely popular figure seen as close to Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

But he also courted controversy, in one instance presenting an award to an officer who tied a civilian in occupied Kashmir to the front of his military vehicle in a show of force.

One man was arrested within hours of the chopper crash for posting to Instagram that Rawat had “burnt alive even before entering Jahannum”, the Muslim word for hell.

He was arrested along with two others in Rajasthan state for “hurting public sentiment”, police confirmed to AFP. Five other arrests across India were reported by local media outlets on the weekend.

A bank staffer in Jammu district was suspended from work after accusations she had reacted to a Facebook news post of Rawat's death with an emoji of a laughing face.

Two people were being investigated in the southern state of Karnataka, where chief minister Basavaraj Bommai ordered the arrest of “perverted minds” who had disrespected the military commander.

Police have arrested hundreds of Indian internet users in recent years, with rights groups sounding the alarm over growing curbs on freedom of speech in the world's largest democracy.

More than a dozen people were arrested in October for celebrating Pakistan's defeat of India in a cricket match, with several still in custody after being charged under sedition and anti-terror laws.

DAWN

 

[offstump]

Eight Indians have been arrested for making “offensive” social media posts about the death of the country's military chief in a helicopter crash, according to officials speaking to AFP on Monday and local reports.

General Bipin Rawat, who was killed along with his wife and 11 others in last week's accident, was a hugely popular figure seen as close to Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

But he also courted controversy, in one instance presenting an award to an officer who tied a civilian in occupied Kashmir to the front of his military vehicle in a show of force.

One man was arrested within hours of the chopper crash for posting to Instagram that Rawat had “burnt alive even before entering Jahannum”, the Muslim word for hell.

He was arrested along with two others in Rajasthan state for “hurting public sentiment”, police confirmed to AFP. Five other arrests across India were reported by local media outlets on the weekend.

A bank staffer in Jammu district was suspended from work after accusations she had reacted to a Facebook news post of Rawat's death with an emoji of a laughing face.

Two people were being investigated in the southern state of Karnataka, where chief minister Basavaraj Bommai ordered the arrest of “perverted minds” who had disrespected the military commander.

Police have arrested hundreds of Indian internet users in recent years, with rights groups sounding the alarm over growing curbs on freedom of speech in the world's largest democracy.

More than a dozen people were arrested in October for celebrating Pakistan's defeat of India in a cricket match, with several still in custody after being charged under sedition and anti-terror laws.

DAWN

What Indian law did these people break? I thought india was a bastion for democracy and free speech? Expression of love and laughter through Bollywood and a nation on the verge of becoming a world leader in everything?

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

Guys

The thread is about the death of Gen Bipin.

Lets leave it at that.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> | Final moments of Mi-17 chopper carrying CDS Bipin Rawat and 13 others before it crashed near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu yesterday<br><br>(Video Source: Locals present near accident spot) <a href="https://t.co/jzdf0lGU5L">pic.twitter.com/jzdf0lGU5L</a></p>— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1468799533337382914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For some reason I always imagine Tamil Nadu to be flat terrain and very sunny

 

[street cricketer]

For some reason I always imagine Tamil Nadu to be flat terrain and very sunny

Well it's mostly that, but we do have our cool hill stations

 

[MenInG]

KEY HIGHLIGHTSAn Indian Air Force helicopter with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife and 12 armed forces personnel onboard had crashed near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on Dec 8CDS Gen Rawat, his wife and 11 armed forces personnel had died on the day of the crashGroup Captain Varun Singh had suffered over 80 per cent burns in the crash and was undergoing treatment at a military hospital
Bengaluru: Group Captain Varun Singh, the lone survivor of the Tamil Nadu chopper crash who was undergoing treatment at the Command Hospital in Bengaluru, passed away on Wednesday at the hospital.

Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and 12 others had died in the chopper crash that took place on the afternoon of December 8 near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu.

The Indian Air Force tweeted to inform about the sad development.

“IAF is deeply saddened to inform the passing away of braveheart Group Captain Varun Singh, who succumbed this morning to the injuries sustained in the helicopter accident on 08 Dec 21. IAF offers sincere condolences and stands firmly with the bereaved family.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed his condolences over the passing away of the braveheart.

"Group Captain Varun Singh served the nation with pride, valour and utmost professionalism. I am extremely anguished by his passing away. His rich service to the nation will never be forgotten. Condolences to his family and friends. Om Shanti," the PM wrote on Twitter.

President Ram Nath Kovind remembered Group Captain Singh as a man who displayed the soldierly spirit of valour and indomitable courage.

"Sad to learn that Group Captain Varun Singh breathed his last after putting up a valiant fight for life. Though badly injured in the chopper crash, he displayed the soldierly spirit of valour and indomitable courage. The nation is grateful to him. My condolences to his family," the President tweeted.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted that he was pained beyond words to learn about the demise of IAF pilot, Group Captain Varun Singh. "He was a true fighter who fought till his last breath. My thoughts and deepest condolences are with his family and friends. We stand firmly with the family, in this hour of grief," the minister tweeted.

Home Minister Amit Shah also tweeted: "Deeply pained to learn about the passing away of Group Captain Varun Singh, who was battling with the injuries after the helicopter accident in Coonoor. May God bless the Brave's soul and give strength to his family. My deepest condolences. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti."

The Indian Army also expressed condolences: "General MM Naravane COAS & All Ranks of Indian Army pay heartfelt condolences on the demise of Group Captain Varun Singh, who succumbed this morning to the injuries sustained in the unfortunate helicopter accident in Coonoor on 08 Dec 21 (sic)."

https://www.timesnownews.com/india/...-group-captain-varun-singh-passes-away/840701

 

[Realromeo]

I think China just wanted to send India a polite reminder of whose boss. Rawat had been belittling China a bit to much recently then their are the recent fights between the two. The death of Rawat does greatly expose and embarrass the Indian military that they can't even protect their top man.

You are just delusional. China doesn't care about India enough and this guy isn't really some massiah of the Indian military.

 

[PakLFC]

You are just delusional. China doesn't care about India enough and this guy isn't really some massiah of the Indian military.

China is sitting in India which is a fact. They want Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim too. Nothing delusional about it. I agree that Rawat was just talk, now he's not even that.

 

[MenInG]

The probe into last month’s helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu that killed the country’s first Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat, and 13 others is close to being complete and the final report is expected to be submitted to the Air Force Chief in January, Defence sources told The Indian Express.

There is no official word from the Air Force on the probe’s findings so far. Sources suggested that the likely cause is not human or technical error but what is known as Controlled Flight into Terrain (CIFT), when the pilot unintentionally hits a surface.

CIFT means the helicopter was airworthy and the pilot was not at fault, sources said. In this case, reduced visibility because of bad weather in the Coonoor area, where the crash occurred, could be one of the causes, they said. CIFT is one of the main causes of aircraft crashes globally.

Air Force officials said the final report will shed light on the details of the accident.

The tri-services court of inquiry is headed by Air Marshal Manvendra Singh, who is the country’s top helicopter pilot in the armed forces. The Court of Inquiry was commissioned by Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari. Before submission, the findings will be legally vetted to ensure that all protocols were followed in the probe.

The black box of the helicopter had been recovered soon after the crash, and the probe included going through the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR).

The 13 others in the Mi-17v5 helicopter of the Air Force, including Rawat’s wife, and a dozen military personnel. The helicopter had crashed on December 8 as it was descending to land amid bad weather. General Rawat was headed to the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington.

On December 9, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had informed Parliament that the helicopter had taken off from the Sulur Air Base at 11.48 am and was expected to land at Wellington by 12.15 pm.

The Air Traffic Control at Sulur Air Base lost contact with the helicopter at approximately 12.08 pm.

Local residents had spotted a fire in the forest near Coonoor and rushed to the spot where they observed the wreckage of the helicopter engulfed in flames, Singh had said.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/cds-chopper-crash-probe-report-error-7701480/

 

[MenInG]

The Delhi police on Saturday said primary technical investigation into a fake viral video of a Cabinet meeting from December 2021 has revealed that the accounts were being operated from Pakistan.

“It was noticed that there were various accounts which had tweeted the same video with the same content and same hashtag. All the accounts were created between October 2021 to December 2021,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell Cyber Cell) K.P.S. Malhotra said.

“A technical analysis has revealed that these accounts were being operated from a single browser and were being used from Pakistan. The 46 accounts are being blocked,” he said.

The police on Friday registered an FIR in connection with the fake video, which was readily available on various news portals and social media platforms.

The video showed a meeting of the Cabinet Committee held on December 9, 2021, after CDS General Bipin Rawat’s demise. The video was morphed and a new voice-over was superimposed in which the alleged persons tried to show that the meeting was against the Sikh community, the police said.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/citie...-circulated-from-pakistan/article38199064.ece

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi: Pilot error caused the chopper crash that led to Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat's death last month, according to preliminary findings of the inquiry team investigating the matter.

"The accident was a result of entry into clouds due to an unexpected change in weather conditions in the valley. This led to spatial disorientation of the pilot resulting in a Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT)," the team found after analysing the Flight Data Recorder and Cockpit Voice Recorder besides questioning all available witnesses to determine the most probable cause of the accident.

CFIT occurs when an airworthy aircraft, while under the complete control of the pilot, is inadvertently flown into terrain, water, or an obstacle.

According to the IATA (International Air Transport Association), the term refers to accidents in which in-flight collisions with terrain, water, or another obstacle occur without indication of loss of control.

The United States Federal Aviation Administration says CFIT is ''...an unintentional collision with terrain (ground, mountain, body of water, or an obstacle) while an aircraft is under positive control."

The critical distinction in such incidents is the fact the aircraft is under the control of the flight crew.

A Mi-17V5 helicopter carrying Gen Rawat, his wife Madhulika, and 12 other armed forces personnel - from the Sulur Air Force base in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore to the Defence Staff Services Colleges in Wellington, had crashed on December 8 last year.

The crash killed CDS Gen Rawat, his wife, and 11 others. Group Captain Varun Singh, a passenger on the chopper, miraculously survived the crash only to die of severe burn injuries a few days later.

The Tri-Services Court of Inquiry, led by the country's top helicopter pilot Air Marshal Manvendra Singh, into the Mi-17 V5 accident has submitted its preliminary findings. The Court of Inquiry ruled out mechanical failure, sabotage, or negligence as a cause of the accident.

"Based on its findings, the Court of Inquiry has made certain recommendations that are being reviewed," it said.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/gen...quiry-finds-2708571#pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

 

[daytrader]

India appoints retired General Anil Chauhan as defence chief

The Indian government said on Wednesday that it had appointed Anil Chauhan as its defence chief, to succeed Bipin Rawat, who died in a helicopter crash along with 13 others last December.

Chauhan, 61, served as a lieutenant general before retiring in May 2021, after commanding the Indian army’s eastern division.

He will also function as secretary to the department of military affairs once he takes charge, the government said in a statement.

His appointment comes after months of speculation over who would be India’s defence chief, while the situation at the country’s borders with China and Pakistan remains tense.

Rawat was appointed as India’s first Chief of Defence Staff by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in late 2019.

Rawat, his wife and 12 defence personnel were en route to a military staff college in southern India when the air force helicopter they were travelling in went down.

DAWN

 

[ex-q-zit]

"A Great Soldier": S Jaishankar Remembers Bipin Rawat On Death Anniversary

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday paid glowing tributes to India's first Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat on his first death anniversary.

General Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 12 other military personnel were killed in a helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on December 8 last year.

As India's first Chief of Defence Staff, General Rawat was spearheading an initiative to bring convergence in the functioning of the Army, the Navy and the Indian Air Force and bolster the country's overall military prowess.

"Fondly remember India's first CDS Late Gen. Bipin Rawat on his death anniversary today. A great soldier, a strong leader and a wonderful human being," Jaishankar tweeted.

The headquarters of the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) said 71 military officers serving in 44 Indian embassies and high commissions paid homage to the late commander CDS.

"On the occasion of the first death anniversary of #CDS Late Gen #BipinRawat and others who laid down their lives on Dec 8, 2021 in a helicopter crash, 71 military officers serving in 44 Indian Embassies and High Commissions paid online homage on the National War Memorial portal," it tweeted.

NDTV