Hyderabad: India witnessed some major controversies this year, especially in politics, sports, and education, with social media further amplifying them to the point that it seemed the crises would never end.
From India and Maldives’ diplomatic ties sinking to their lowest to wrestler Vinesh Phogat seeing her Olympic dream crash most bizarrely, here are ten such controversies that captured the nation’s attention for weeks together.
India-Maldives Diplomatic Row
It all started with a reaction from a bunch of Maldives’ politicians on Lakshadweep. They deemed it was okay to poke a country that has roughly 2700 times a larger population than theirs. The union territory comprising a bunch of remote islands on the southwestern coast of India became the centre of discussion when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited its pristine beaches in January.
On January 4, he shared some breathtaking photos from Lakshadweep, including ones in which he was seen snorkelling. “For those who wish to embrace the adventurer in them, Lakshadweep has to be on your list. During my stay, I also tried snorkelling—what an exhilarating experience it was!” Modi posted on X.
The Prime Minister’s post prompted many to search for Lakshadweep, triggering a wave of interest among tourists in the place. However, soon after, some politicians, including three sitting ministers of the Mohamed Muizzu-led Maldivian government, posted derogatory and racist remarks against India and Indians while mocking those comparing Lakshadweep with the Maldives.
The comments triggered a diplomatic row with the Indian High Commission raising the issue with the Maldivian government, following which the three ministers were suspended. The Muizzu government also distanced itself from the remarks and attempted to mend the ties as the diplomatic fallout led to a boycott of Maldivian vacations by many Indians, including Bollywood celebrities.
This had a significant impact on the Maldivian economy, heavily reliant on tourism revenue from India. Realising the blunder its politicians had made, the Maldives attempted to mend ties with its Foreign Minister, Moosa Zameer, visiting India in May 2024 to discuss bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest.
Sandeshkhali Protests Brought BJP, TMC Face-to-Face
The Sandeshkhali area of West Bengal became a centre of political conflict after Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of inciting riots.
The unrest began on January 5 after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) planned to raid the house of an influential TMC leader, Sheikh Shahjahan, who was accused in multiple cases, including atrocities against women.
A month later, on February 8, local women staged a protest calling for the immediate arrest of Shahjahan and his accomplices. The BJP backed the demonstration, igniting a verbal war that culminated in violent violence.
On February 17, TMC leader Shibu Hazra, a key suspect in the alleged land grab and sexual harassment of women in Sandeshkhali, was arrested from the Najat area of Basirhat, followed by more arrests.
Amid the prohibitory orders, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari got the Calcutta High Court’s permission to visit Sandeshkhali after his two failed attempts to visit the area. However, Adhikari's visit triggered another row after a Sikh police officer accused him of hurling a “Khalistani” slur at him, which the leader denied. Following this, CM Banerjee slammed the BJP, saying that the party’s "divisive politics have shamelessly overstepped constitutional boundaries."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought up the Sandeshkhali incident during the BJP’s election in West Bengal's Cooch Behar, accusing TMC of protecting the culprits involved. “The entire country saw how the Trinamool threw its weight to save the culprits of the Sandeshkhali incident," he had said.
Wrestler Vinesh Phogat’s Bizarre Olympic Disqualification
India’s Paris Olympics 2024 campaign was also marred with controversy after wrestler Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from the women's 50kg final for failing the weigh-in by 100 grams. It missed her chance to become the first Indian woman wrestler to win an Olympic gold.
Before entering the finals, Phogat beat top seed Yui Susaki, two-time European Games medallist Oksana Livach, and Pan-American Games champion Yusneylys Guzman Lopez.
According to the regulations, she was required to reduce around 2 kg of weight before the final showdown. However, after taking various dramatic steps, Phogat missed the weigh-in by 100 kg on August 7 and was disqualified from the tournament. Following this, she approached the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), hoping to get a joint-silver medal, but his appeal was dismissed. However, Phogat announced her retirement from wrestling through a social media post on August 8, much before the verdict.
The final verdict signed by Sole Arbitrator Annabelle Bennett allowed Cuba's Yusneylys Guzman Lopez, who lost to Phogat in the semi-final, to fight against the USA's Sarah Hilderbrandt in the gold medal bout.
Paper Leak Scandal in NEET
The National Eligibility and Entrance Test (Undergraduate), a prominent medical competitive test in the country, saw various anomalies, which resulted in the 2024 NEET-UG scandal. On May 5, 2024, it was accused of question paper leaks, but the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the annual test, denied the allegations, despite social media statements to the contrary.
Four students were among 13 persons held by police in Patna, Bihar, after reportedly paying between Rs 30 lakh and Rs 50 lakh to receive the questions in advance.
During a raid at an exam centre in Godhra, Gujarat, a teacher who also served as the deputy superintendent was found to have instructed candidates to leave unsolved questions blank, promising to deliver the correct answers. It was determined that applicants from several states had taken the exam at the same site, and five persons were arrested.
The cases were handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which found an unexpected increase in top scores in the test results, announced on June 4, 2024, sparking another controversy. Several students received mathematically implausible ratings, resulting in complaints and legal challenges. Students protested, demanding a retake and cancellation of the exam.
Tirupati Laddus and Political Slugfest
The Tirupati temple, dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, became a hotbed of controversy after a Gujarat-based lab allegedly found animal fat in the ghee used to make sacred laddus, offered as a devotional offering or prasad.
The revelation triggered a political slugfest in Andhra Pradesh after Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu accused his predecessor YS Jagan Mohan Reddy of “religious desecration” and corruption in the procurement of ghee and other items.
Following the dispute, the temple management body, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) board, formed a four-member panel to investigate quality standards in laddu preparation. It also sought the lab reports following various complaints.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is an ally of Naidu's Telugu Desam Party, also joined the bandwagon, with Union Minister Bandi Sanjay terming the act as an “unforgivable sin,” suggesting a communal angle to the controversy. However, the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) strongly defended against these accusations.
As the conflict was refusing to go down, the Supreme Court on October 4, 2024, constituted an “independent” five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) consisting of two CBI officers to replace the one formed by the Andhra Pradesh government to probe the allegations.
The TTD board purchases nearly 5 lakh kilograms of ghee annually through a tender process every six months. It was previously supplied by the Karnataka Milk Federation, which stopped four years ago due to overpricing, after which the temple management reportedly started procuring the ghee from Tamil Nadu's Dindigul, which allegedly contained traces of animal fat.
Adani Group Again Facing Serious Charges
Gautam Adani, the chairperson of the Indian multinational conglomerate Adani Group, was indicted by a US court in New York for his involvement in an alleged bribery and fraud scheme.
Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani are among eight defendants who are accused of paying about Rs 2,029 crore ($265 million) in bribes to Indian government officials between 2020 and 2024 to secure solar energy supply contracts with state-run power distribution companies (DISCOMS).
Even when the bribery claims are associated with Indian authorities, US law allows it to prosecute corruption investigations involving US investors or markets.
The period in which the bribes were allegedly paid coincides with the release of a damning report by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research in 2023. The report accused the Adani Group of stock manipulation and accounting fraud. It triggered a $150 billion loss in the Adani Group's market value.
The alleged bribery period coincides with the publication of a crucial report by Hindenburg Research, a US-based short seller, in 2023. It charged the Adani Group with accounting fraud and stock manipulation, following which the market value of the conglomerate dropped by $150 billion.
Following the charges, the Adani Group denied all of them, saying the allegations by US prosecutors are “baseless” and the conglomerate is a “law-abiding” organisation, “fully compliant" with all laws.
The revelations led to widespread outrage and stormy sessions in the Parliament as the issue dominated the discussions. The Congress, led by Rahul Gandhi, and other top MPs lodged a strong protest and demanded Adani’s prosecution.
RG Kar Hospital Incident Triggers Nationwide Outrage
The country erupted in protest after the body of the 31-year-old trainee doctor was found inside the seminar hall of Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital, with officials suspecting rape and murder. The incident triggered widespread outrage, and the case was handed over to the CBI, which filed a charge sheet against the main suspect, Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer attached to the Kolkata Police.
However, the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) found no signs of a struggle at the alleged crime scene in the Kolkata hospital. The report includes findings from an examination conducted on August 14. It also revealed that there were no biological stains on or around the alleged crime scene, except for the mattress, raising doubts if the crime took place in that particular spot.
Following these findings, the victim's family has demanded a fresh investigation. The Calcutta High Court will hear their plea on January 2.
SEBI Chief in the Line of Fire
In October, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Parliament summoned the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chief, Madhabi Puri Buch, for a performance audit. This came during a dispute over the allegations made by US research firm Hindenburg against Madhabi and her husband Dhaval Buch over their alleged ties with the Adani Group. It had alleged that the Buchs owned stakes in offshore entities linked to Adani Group's alleged financial irregularities—the allegations that both parties have denied.
Apart from SEBI, the TRAI chief and top officials from the Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs) and the Ministry of Communications have also been asked to be present before the PAC.
The Hindenburg allegations had invited strong political reactions from the various parties, including Congress, as the grand old party staged nationwide protests led by its leader, Rahul Gandhi, and demanded the resignation of the SEBI chief.
Curious Case of IAS Officer Puja Khedkar
Puja Khedkar, a 2023-batch IAS officer, has been accused of providing false information in her 2022 UPSC Civil Services Examination application to avail herself of reservation benefits.
She also allegedly used her private Audi, a luxury sedan, with a ‘Government of Maharashtra’ sticker and a red-blue beacon in Pune.
Even before joining as an assistant collector, she had demanded an official car with a VIP number plate, accommodation, an official chamber with adequate staff, and a constable.
Khedkar also claimed to be from the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, which has an income cap of Rs 8 lakh per annum for the non-creamy layer certificate. However, her father's election affidavit showed assets worth Rs 40 crore and an annual income of Rs 43 lakh, raising questions about her eligibility as an OBC candidate.
While Khedkar continues to refute the allegations against her, the UPSC filed a criminal case in July, accusing her of faking her identity to make multiple attempts in the exam. The Delhi Police then registered an FIR against her under various sections of the IPC, the Information Technology Act, and the Right of Persons with Disabilities Act.
Consequently, the UPSC cancelled Khedkar's candidature and debarred her permanently from all future examinations and selections of the Commission.
Following this controversy, the Centre allowed the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to perform Aadhaar-based authentication to verify candidates' identities voluntarily, both at the time of registration and during various stages of examinations and recruitment.
AI Deepfakes Bring Major Worries:
Several Bollywood actresses, including Rashmika Mandanna, Alia Bhatt, and Deepika Padukone, were the targets of altered videos in 2024 as the abuse of deepfake technology increased.
The nationwide debate was sparked over AI deepfakes after a viral deepfake video featuring Rashmika gained the limelight. It also highlighted the risks of unregulated access to growing artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The video, which was viral on social media, shows a woman with Mandanna's face, wearing a revealing black outfit, entering an elevator.
The face of the woman was morphed meticulously using AI tools to resemble Mandanna.
The incident generated widespread concerns regarding security, privacy, and the moral implications of such technology in the entertainment sector that were raised by this concerning trend.
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