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Cartoon posted by Guj unit of BJP after Ahmedabad blasts case verdict causes row, Twitter removes it

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Ahmedabad: A caricature tweeted by the Gujarat unit of the BJP hailing the special court’s verdict sentencing 38 convicts to death in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts case has been removed by Twitter after a row.

“The post on the 2008 serial blasts verdict has been removed by Twitter after someone reported against it,” Gujarat BJP spokesperson Yagnesh Dave said on Sunday, adding that the tweet was in response to the court’s judgement.

The cartoon depicted men wearing skull caps hanging by the noose. It had a tricolour and a drawing depicting the scene of a bomb blast in the background, with “Satyamev Jayate” written on its top right corner.

It was posted on the official Twitter handle of the Gujarat BJP on Saturday, a day after the special court sentenced to death 38 convicts and handed life terms to 11 others in the 2008 serial bombing case in which 56 persons lost their lives and over 200 were injured.

The caricature is not available on either the Instagram or Facebook social media pages of the state BJP unit.

Not hurt by Wriddhi’s comments but he deserved honesty and clarity about his position: Dravid

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Not hurt by Wriddhi's comments but he deserved honesty and clarity about his position: Dravid
Rahul Dravid

Kolkata: India’s head coach Rahul Dravid is not at all “hurt” that veteran keeper Wriddhiman Saha has revealed a very classified conversation that he had on his future but at the same time wanted to give the Bengal stumper clarity about his position in the team.

Wriddhiman, whose India career has come to a halt, had told the media that head coach Dravid had asked him to consider retirement during a private conversation after the South Africa series.

“I’m actually not hurt at all. I have deep respect for Wriddhi and his achievements and his contribution to Indian cricket. My conversation came from that place. I think he deserved honesty and clarity,” Dravid replied in his typical classy manner where he revealed little about a breach of trust with regards to dressing room conversation.

The ‘Wall’ said that he will continue having such conversations with players whether they like the content of the discussion or not.

“It’s about conversations I constantly have with players. I don’t expect players to always agree with everything I say about them. That’s not how it works. You can have difficult conversations with the players, but that doesnt mean you brush it under the carpet and don’t have the conversations,” Dravid was crystal clear in his approach.

Dravid said that his philosophy is to discuss with players even before every playing eleven being picked.

“I always believe in having those conversations before every playing XI is picked and be open to questions such as why they are not playing. It’s natural for players to get upset and feel hurt.”

Dravid also explained that rationale behind speaking to Wriddhiman was because Rishabh Pant has already established himself as the new No 1 keeper and the Bengal man wouldn’t have got chances.

“I was just trying to convey that with RP (Pant) having established himself as our No.1 wicketkeeper-batsman, the idea was to say that we are looking to groom a younger wicketkeeper (KOna Bharat). This doesnt change my feelings or respect for Wriddhi.”

For Dravid, telling a harsh truth is better than avoiding a conversation.

“Easiest thing for me is to not have those conversations and not speak to players about it. That’s not what I am going to do.

“But at some stage, I hope they respect the fact that I was able to front up and have those conversations,” he added.

US: Biden agrees to meet Putin if he halts Ukraine attack

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US: Biden agrees to meet Putin if he halts Ukraine attack
Joe Biden / Vladimir Putin

Kyiv(AP): In what appeared to be a last-ditch diplomatic gambit brokered by French President Emmanuel Macron, the White House said US President Joe Biden has agreed in principle to a meeting with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin as long as he holds off on launching an assault that US officials warn appears increasingly more likely.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration has been clear that we are committed to pursuing diplomacy until the moment an invasion begins.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are set to meet on Thursday in Europe as long as a further invasion doesn’t occur.

We are always ready for diplomacy. We are also ready to impose swift and severe consequences should Russia instead choose war,” Psaki said in statement. “And currently, Russia appears to be continuing preparations for a full-scale assault on Ukraine very soon.

In Kyiv, life outwardly continued as usual for many on a mild winter Sunday, with brunches and church services, ahead of what Biden said late last week was an already decided-upon Russian attack.

Russia on Sunday rescinded earlier pledges to pull tens of thousands of its troops back from Ukraine’s northern border, a move that US leaders said put Russia another step closer to what they said was the planned invasion of Ukraine. Residents of Ukraine’s capital filled a gold-domed cathedral to pray for peace.

Russia’s action extends what it said were military exercises, originally set to end Sunday, that brought an estimated 30,000 Russian forces to Belarus, Ukraine’s neighbor to the north. They are among at least 150,000 Russian troops now deployed outside Ukraine’s borders, along with tanks, warplanes, artillery and other war materiel.

The continued deployment of the Russian forces in Belarus raised concern that they could be used to sweep down on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, a city of about 3 million people less than a three-hour drive away.

Katerina Spanchak, who fled a region of eastern Ukraine when it was taken over by Russian-allied separatists, was among worshippers crowded into the capital’s St. Michael’s monastery, smoky with the candles burned by the faithful, to pray that Ukraine be spared.

We all love life, and we are all united by our love of life,” Spanchak said, pausing to compose herself. We should appreciate it every day. That’s why I think everything will be fine.

Our joint prayers will help to elude this tragedy, which is advancing,” said another worshipper, who identified himself only by his first name, Oleh.

A US official said Sunday that Biden’s assertion that Putin has made the decision to roll Russian forces into Ukraine was based on intelligence that Russian front-line commanders have been given orders to begin final preparations for an attack. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the sensitive intelligence.

The United States and many European countries have charged for weeks that Putin has built up the forces he needs to invade Ukraine – a westward-looking democracy that has sought to move out of Russia’s orbit – and is now trying to create pretexts to invade.

Western nations have threatened massive sanctions if Putin does.

US officials on Sunday defended their decision to hold off on their planned financial punishments of Russia ahead of any invasion, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called passionately Saturday for the West to do more.

If you pull the trigger on that deterrent, well then, it doesn’t exist anymore as a deterrent,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told Fox on Washington’s sanctions threat.

Russia held nuclear drills Saturday as well as the conventional exercises in Belarus, and has ongoing naval drills off the coast in the Black Sea.

The announcement that Russia was reversing its pledge to withdraw its forces from Belarus came after two days of sustained shelling along a contact line between Ukraine’s soldiers and Russian-allied separatists in eastern Ukraine, an area that Ukraine and the West worry could be the flashpoint in igniting conflict.

Biden convened the National Security Council at the White House on Russia’s military buildup around Ukraine. White House officials released no immediate details of their roughly two hours of discussion. (AP)

Youngster brutally killed in Shimoga, schools, colleges in city declared holiday

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Youngster brutally killed in Shimoga, schools, colleges in city declared holiday

In an incident reported from Shimoga, a youngster was brutally stabbed and killed in the city’s Bharati Colony here on late Sunday evening.

The deceased has been identified as Harsha, an activist of Bajrang Dal.

Harsha was reportedly brutally killed after stabbing around 10 pm on Sunday. Local police reached the spot immediately after the incident was brought to their notice.

Bajrang Dal activists gathered around the hospital where the body of the youngster was taken to, leading to a tense situation in the vicinity. Security has also been beefed up in the city following the incident.

All the schools and colleges in the city have also been ordered to remain closed on Monday, February 21.

PM Modi wishes Queen Elizabeth II speedy recovery after she tests positive for Covid

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New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday wished Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II a speedy recovery after she tested positive for COVID-19.

The Buckingham Palace said she has tested positive for the infection and is experiencing “mild cold-like symptoms”.

“I wish Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth a speedy recovery and pray for her good health,” Modi tweeted.

The 95-year-old monarch remains at her Windsor Castle residence and is expected to carry out light duties over the next few days.

“She will continue to receive medical attention and will follow all the appropriate guidelines,” a Buckingham Palace statement said.

India beat West Indies by 17 runs, win series 3-0

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India beat West Indies by 17 runs, win series 3-0

Kolkata: India beat West Indies by 17 runs in third and final T20 to complete a 3-0 series whitewash here on Sunday.

Suryakumar Yadav top-scored with 65 off 31 balls to fire India to 184 for five in 20 overs.

In response, West Indies ended at 167 for nine after another sublime knock from Nicholas Pooran (61 off 47) went in vain.

Brief Scores:

India: 184 for 5 in 20 overs (Suryakumar Yadav 65, Venkatesh Iyer 35 not out; Roston Chase 1/23).

West Indies: 167 for 9 in 20 overs (Nicholas Pooran 61; Harshal Patel 3/22).

K’taka sees 1,001 COVID cases, 18 deaths

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Bengaluru: COVID-19 cases in Karnataka declined from 1,137 cases on Saturday to 1,001 cases on Sunday while 18 deaths took place today. These took the total infected and fatalities till date to 39,36,586 and 39,795, said the State Health Department.

A bulletin said 1,780 people were discharged. The total recoveries were 38,84,120 so far. Active cases stood at 12,634.

Bengaluru urban district reported 485 infections and 12 deaths.

Other districts too had fresh cases: 93 in Tumakuru, 51 in Belagavi, 48 in Mysuru, 46 in Ballari and 42 in Kodagu.

There were deaths in six districts, including the two in Dharwad.

There were zero fatalities in 25 districts.

The test positivity rate for the day was 1.42 per cent and the case fatality rate was 1.79 per cent.

As many as 70,290 tests were conducted and they included 53,503 RT-PCR tests. This took the total tests so far to 6.40 crore.

There were 19,998 people who got inoculated and the number of those vaccinated so far was 9.96 crore, the department said.

MP: After Digvijaya Singh video on unity surfaces on social media, BJP says Kamal Nath is target

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MP: After Digvijaya Singh video on unity surfaces on social media, BJP says Kamal Nath is target
Congress Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh

Bhopal,: A video showing Congress Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh exhorting party leaders to stand united failing which it would be tough to find workers post the 2023 Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh surfaced on social media on Sunday, leading to the ruling BJP saying it was yet another example of “groupism” gripping the grand old party.

The video, which has been purportedly shot in Ratlam, has Singh telling party workers about the urgent need for unity.

“You are not ready to sit together. I am here but you are standing separately…. This will not do. I am telling you the election of 2023 (Assembly elections of Madhya Pradesh) will be the last one. If you will not contest elections honestly then be ready to sit at home. The Congress will not make a comeback and even finding workers (for the party) will be hard, he says in the video.

Ratlam District Congress (City) president Mahendra Kataria told PTI Singh was speaking to party workers outside the local circuit house on Saturday.

“On Saturday morning, Singh told party workers who had come to meet him to gather at the lawn. He expressed displeasure after seeing the workers who came from Jaora (a town in Ratlam district) standing in groups separately. So, he told them to be united, Kataria said.

Mocking the Congress over the video, state BJP secretary Rajneesh Agrawal said Singh was highlighting groupism in the party and that the video was aimed at unseating Kamal Nath as the state unit president.

“Singh already knows the truth that it is a distant dream for Congress to regain power in MP in 2023. He knows his party will become non-existent after that. However, Singh purposefully mentioned groupism in the party in the video to highlight that all this was happening under the leadership of Kamal Nath,” Agrawal claimed.

Sonu Sood restrained from visiting polling stations in Moga, car impounded by police

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Chandigarh: The Election Commission on Sunday restrained actor and philanthropist Sonu Sood from visiting polling stations in Moga, where his sister is contesting on a Congress ticket, after receiving complaints that he was allegedly influencing voters, according to officials.

Sood’s vehicle was also impounded by police, they said, adding that a video surveillance team was also deployed outside his residence.

However, he has denied the charges of influencing voters.

Moga Returning Officer (RO) Satwant Singh said that Sood was directed not to visit polling stations.

Sood accused some candidates of buying votes, but the district election office did not find any substance in the allegation.

In a tweet, Sood alleged, Other Candidates in #Moga Constituency are buying votes. @ECISVEEP should take immediate action regarding the same.

“We should be extremely careful of rumours and fake news & ensure that we all go out and vote for the right candidate who can bring the change for the betterment of our society. Your every vote will strengthen our democracy and is crucial for the development of our country,” he said in another tweet.

On Sood’s accusation, the RO said no such incident came to their notice.

He said several locations were checked but no cash was found.

Sood’s sister had joined the Congress last month. Election to the 117-member Punjab Assembly is being held on Sunday.

Indian embassy in Ukraine advises Indians to leave if stay not essential

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Indian embassy in Ukraine advises Indians to leave if stay not essential

New Delhi: In a fresh advisory, the Indian embassy in Ukraine on Sunday asked Indian nationals to leave the eastern European nation temporarily if their stay is not essential.

The advisory came following rising tensions between the NATO countries and Russia over the Ukraine crisis.

“In view of the continued high levels of tensions and uncertainties with respect to the situation in Ukraine, all Indian nationals whose stay is not deemed essential and all Indian students, are advised to leave Ukraine temporarily,” the embassy said.

It said available commercial flights, and charter flights may be availed for travel, for an “orderly and timely departure” from Ukraine.

“Indian students are advised to also get in touch with respective student contractors for updates on charter flights, and also continue to follow E embassy Facebook, website and Twitter for any update,” the embassy said.

According to an official document in 2020, Ukraine had a small but vibrant Indian community and there were about 18,000 Indian students studying in that country.

The US and its Western allies have been severely critical of Russia over its build-up of forces near the Ukraine border.

The US has already sent extra troops to Europe to support its allies in the backdrop of fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Russia has positioned around 100,000 troops near its border with Ukraine besides sending warships into the Black Sea for naval exercises, triggering concerns among the NATO countries about a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine.

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