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Archives for July 2023

Defamation case: Gujarat HC to deliver verdict on Rahul Gandhi’s plea on Friday

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Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court will on Friday deliver its verdict on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his Modi surname remark.

As per the causelist issued by the HC on Thursday, the court of Justice Hemant Prachchhak will deliver the verdict at 11:00 am.

A stay on conviction would pave the way for Gandhi’s reinstatement as a Member of Parliament.

In May, Justice Prachchhak, while hearing Gandhi’s plea, had refused to grant any interim relief saying it will pass a final order after the summer vacation, which ended three weeks back.

During a hearing on April 29, Gandhi’s lawyer had argued that a maximum punishment of two years for a bailable, non-cognisable offence meant his client could lose his Lok Sabha seat “permanently and irreversibly”, which was a “very serious additional irreversible consequence to the person and the constituency he represents”.

A metropolitan magistrate’s court in Surat sentenced the former Congress president to two years in jail on March 23 after convicting him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (criminal defamation) in a 2019 case filed by Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Purnesh Modi.

Following the verdict, Gandhi, elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala, was disqualified as MP under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.

Gandhi challenged the order in a sessions court in Surat along with an application seeking a stay on the conviction. While granting him bail, the court, on April 20, refused to stay the conviction, after which he approached the HC.

Surat West MLA Purnesh Modi filed a criminal defamation case against Gandhi over his “how come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?” remark made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019.

I am the president of NCP, asserts Sharad Pawar

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New Delhi, Jul 6: “I am the president of NCP,” veteran Sharad Pawar asserted on Thursday after a meeting of the party’s Working Committee which approved the decision to expel Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare and nine others who joined hands with NDA recently.

Briefing the media here, party leader P C Chacko said eight resolutions were passed in the meeting.

Pawar also said the “truth will come out” on Ajit Pawar’ claim of having majority.

Chacko said the organisation was behind Pawar.

“NCP Working Committee approves decision to expel Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare and nine who joined hands with NDA. Sharad Pawar was elected national president. We don’t take seriously claims of someone being national president.

“Our organisation still intact and we are with Sharad Pawar,” Chacko asserted.

He also said every three years, NCP holds elections and people are elected regularly.

The resolutions passed by the working committee include a stand against the undemocratic and unconstitutional actions of the BJP government and the misuse of government agencies against the Opposition.

It also condemned the central government policies resulting in spiralling inflation, unemployment and women’s plight.

Ajit Pawar and eight of his colleagues joined the Eknath Shinde government on July 2. While Pawar was made deputy chief minister, the others were sworn in as ministers.

Several of them have been accused of corruption and are being investigated by central probe agencies.

“Who’s Annamalai?, does BJP exist in Tamil Nadu” Subramanian Swamy’s takes jibe at his own party

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Chennai: Senior BJP leader and former Rajya Sabha Member, Subramanian Swamy, made a satirical comment on his own party’s performance in Tamil Nadu during an interaction with the media. Responding to a reporter’s query about BJP’s TN President Annamalai, Swamy questioned the existence of a BJP presence in Tamil Nadu and asked, “Is there a party called BJP in Tamil Nadu? Annamalai? Who is he?”

Swamy’s remark came in response to the reporter’s question about Annamalai being referred to as the ‘Singam’ (Lion) of Tamil Nadu and his potential for growth. Swamy’s sarcastic comment questioned the party’s strength and impact in the state.

The video of Swamy’s remark is now circulating widely on social media platforms, drawing attention and generating discussions about the state of the BJP’s presence in Tamil Nadu.

This is not the first time Swamy has criticized his own party. The veteran leader has expressed his disapproval of the saffron party under the leadership of PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, on multiple occasions in the past.h

After Delhi meet, Congress leaders vow to put up united fight in Rajasthan

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NEW DELHI: The Congress high command seems to have got Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his former deputy Sachin Pilot to strike a truce by taking cognizance of three demands made by the latter including an inquiry into corruption charges against the Vasundhara Raje-led government in the state previously. The leadership are also learnt to have issued a stern warning to the warring leaders that there was no place for indiscipline and that anyone speaking outside the party forum will be firmly dealt with.  

The development happened at a meeting held on Thursday which was attended by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leader Rahul Gandhi, general secretary in-charge of the organisation KC Venugopal, former deputy CM Sachin Pilot and several other leaders from the state. Gehlot attended the meeting through video conferencing.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Pilot said that the party has taken cognizance of his demands and assured action on the issues. “I have raised three important issues — a probe into the corruption cases against the previous BJP government, reforms in the State Public Service Commission, and compensation to students affected by the recent examination paper leaks. 

The party has taken note of it. The government is looking at these issues with seriousness and will take action,” he said. Pilot said that he has fulfilled whatever role was given to him by the party in the past and will continue to do that. 

“I will fulfil whatever role the Congress president, Rahul Gandhi, and the party offer for me,” he said. “There has been a meaningful discussion for the upcoming elections in Rajasthan,” he said.

Referring to the paper leak and issue of the constitution of the Rajasthan Public Service Commission, AICC in-charge Rajasthan Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said that a strong and transparent law was being enacted in the state and the legislation was being brought in the next session of the Rajasthan assembly.

Briefing the media, Venugopal said that the party leaders resolved to fight the election together as the party had strong credentials in the state. When asked about the CM candidate of the party, Venugopal said, “Our tradition is that we never announce the chief ministerial candidate. But we will fight together in the elections. Our government is doing good work and it will give us results,” he said.

Third Saturday of every month to be ‘bag-free day’ for school children in Karnataka: Education Dept

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Bengaluru: In a bid to create a more conducive learning environment for school children in Karnataka, the Education Department has issued a circular directing all schools in the state to observe the third Saturday of every month as ‘bag-free day’, to be known as ‘Sambhrama Shanivara’.

The initiative aims to alleviate the burden of heavy textbooks carried by students during their studies. The new system of a ‘bag-free day’ will be implemented in schools starting from the academic year 2023-24.

To support this initiative, the Education Department has developed an instruction manual for teachers and ten self-explanatory modules covering various subjects for students. These resources aim to actively engage students in co-curricular and extracurricular activities, fostering the development of their civic consciousness. Teachers will receive further guidance on implementing these activities during progress review meetings conducted at different levels within educational institutions. District and block-level officers, as well as Cluster Resource Persons (CRP), have also been instructed to visit schools on bag-free days to provide additional support and guidance to teachers.

The Education Department has made student activity books and teachers’ guidance manuals available on the website of the Department of State Educational Research and Training (DSERT). Teachers from primary and high schools will receive instructions on effectively utilizing these learning materials.

The department emphasizes the active participation of schools in this project to ensure its success in creating an enjoyable educational experience for children. It further highlights that schools must submit comprehensive monthly reports on the activities conducted, including the observation of ‘bag-free day’, to the Educational and Vocational Guidance branch of the DSERT at.

Bill tabled to scrap BJP govt’s amendment to APMC Act

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BENGALURU: The Karnataka APMC (Regulation and Development) (Amendment) Bill, 2023, was tabled in the Assembly on Wednesday.

“It is proposed to restore the earlier provision under the Act, which enables APMCs to have control over trading of notified agricultural produce at their yards to protect the interests of farmers,” according to 
the Bill.

It said farmers, who sold their produce outside APMC yards, are prone to exploitation by traders in the absence of a regulatory mechanism. Also, the flow of revenue to the government under different heads of taxes has been affected because of trading not taking place at APMC yards.

The Bill stated that farmers will be benefited by way of competitive and fair prices for their produce sold under the Unified Market Platform. As there is no online system to ensure transparency in trading outside APMC yards, farmers will not get remunerative prices for their produce.

There is a mechanism under the Act for settlement of disputes between farmers and functionaries at APMC yards regarding weight and payment made for the produce sold. But the same dispute redressal mechanism is not available for transactions made outside APMC yards by farmers, the Bill said. Continued on: P4

“Approximately one lakh people are working at APMC yards by obtaining licenses from APMC committees. Porters, weighing men, cart operators, and assistants for traders, commission agencies and stockists are among them. These workers will lose their jobs. Hence, there is a need to amend the existing law,” the Bill stated. Further, the Bill explained that APMCs contribute to the Revolving Fund set up by the government for implementation of the Minimum Support Price Scheme. 

“When prices of agricultural produce fall below MSP, the revolving fund comes to the rescue of farmers. Prior to the amendment of the Act, APMCs contributed Rs 125 crore to the revolving fund annually. Because of the amendment, the APMCs’ role has been restricted to their yards only, affecting their income. Hence, the contribution to the revolving fund has come down to 50%, which is Rs 60 crore,” it stated.

The Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements (Amendment) Bill, The Karnataka State Road Safety Authority (Amendment) Bill, 


and Karnataka Legislature (Prevention of Disqualification) (Amendment) Bill were among the Bills tabled in the Assembly on Wednesday.

Miscreants stole tomatoes worth B2 lakh grown on a two-acre farm at Gonisomenahalli village of Belur taluk in Hassan district on Tuesday night. According to the police, the miscreants came in a goods vehicle and took away 90 bags of tomatoes. Officials have promised compensation to the farm owner.  

A year after Sri Lanka unrest, Slave Island’s condition goes from bad to worst

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COLOMBO: As Sri Lankans flocked to a jubilant street party celebrating their president’s ouster, retired accountant Milton Perera sat at home pondering whether his family could afford to eat the next morning.

Before his dramatic toppling last year, Gotabaya Rajapaksa was blamed for an economic crisis that brought food and fuel shortages, blackouts and runaway inflation to the island nation.

But Perera told AFP at the time that with the once-loved leader out of office, the hardships his country had endured to that point would get worse.

A year later, with millions of his compatriots struggling to put enough food on the table, the 75-year-old says his prediction has proved correct.

“Last year we had money, but no goods,” Perera told AFP inside his rundown government flat, a short distance from the seafront protest site where Rajapaksa’s toppling was orchestrated last year.

“Now there are goods, but we don’t have money.”

His home in Slave Island — a working-class pocket of Colombo where the Portuguese housed African slaves during the colonial period — is damp from a leaking water main.

Municipal authorities have not come around to repair it because they no longer have money for maintenance.

With sunken cheeks and veins protruding from his gaunt limbs, Perera wheezes as he moves gingerly around his kitchen, the product of his chronic asthma.

Before the crisis, medication to treat his condition was provided free by public hospitals — a government programme that has now been scrapped.

Two months ago Perera’s welfare payments were stopped as part of other spending cuts, meaning he is no longer able to afford an inhaler to treat his symptoms.

His family’s water and electricity bills have doubled thanks to the removal of government utility subsidies.

The economic crisis had already forced Perera, his wife, his two children and their extended families to regularly skip meals when AFP first visited their home.

A year later, supermarkets are again fully stocked with the kitchen staples that disappeared from the shelves during last year’s chronic shortages — but Perera’s family can’t buy them.

“We can’t afford meat, fish and eggs,” B. M. Pushpalatha, Perera’s wife, told AFP as the couple shared an unadorned meal of rice and lentils. “They are too expensive.”

Sri Lanka defaulted on its $46 billion foreign debt in April 2022 as its economy went into a tailspin unprecedented in its history as an independent nation.

Petrol queues at pumping stations stretched for miles and motorists — several of whom died in queue — spent days waiting to top up their tanks.

Families had no gas to cook food, farm yields fell dramatically due to a ban on fertiliser imports, and hospitals were empty of life-saving pharmaceuticals.

Months of angry protests culminated in the July 9 storming of Rajapaksa’s presidential palace, a short walk from Perera’s home, with its occupant forced into a brief but humiliating exile.

Rajapaksa’s departure did not conclude Sri Lanka’s economic woes, with inflation peaking at 70 percent in September. Petrol rationing also remains in force.

His successor Ranil Wickremesinghe secured a $2.9 billion IMF bailout in March by agreeing on a tough austerity regimen to plug the country’s black hole of debt.

“Many of the decisions I have been compelled to take since assuming the presidency have been unpopular,” Wickremesinghe said in a February address to the nation.

“However, because of those decisions, today no citizen of this country will die of dehydration in oil queues. You won’t starve without gas or fertiliser.”

But the steep cuts to government spending and welfare programmes have exacerbated hardship across the country.

An additional four million Sri Lankans had fallen below the poverty line since the crisis began, said Dhananath Fernando, chief executive of the Colombo-based Advocata Institute think-tank.

“That means about seven million people in a country of 22 million are earning less than 14,000 rupees ($46) a month,” he told AFP.

Of those, nearly four million Sri Lankans did not have the means to adequately feed themselves, the United Nations said in June.

Fernando said the figures showed a sharp deterioration in living standards across the country in the past year with no prospect of a quick recovery.

Unless the austerity measures began to bear fruit, the island risked a return to the sustained social unrest that broke out last year, he added.

“If we really fail to take Sri Lanka to a growth trajectory in the future, I’m not completely ruling it out,” Fernando said.

Ashwin continues to be No1 in Test rankings; Williamson topples Root

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DUBAI: Team India and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin remained number one in the latest ICC Test Rankings released on Wednesday, even as New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson replaced Joe Root as the top-ranked batter.

The senior off-spinner Ashwin has 860 points and is followed by Australia skipper Pat Cummins, who has moved two spots to second with 826 points.

Another Indian who has remained static at number one is Ravindra Jadeja, who leads the all-rounders’ list with 434 points.

While Ashwin too remains in the second spot, Akshar Patel has dropped to fifth among all-rounders.

Rishabh Pant, who has been out of action since his car accident in December last year, is the top-ranked Indian batter at number 10.

Skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli occupy the 12th and 14th spots respectively.

Shubman Gill is ranked fifth in the ODI rankings while Kohli (eighth) and Rohit (10th) are the other two Indian batters in the top 10.

Mohammed Siraj is the lone Indian in the top 10 in the bowling chart at number two.

Smith surges ahead but Williamson tops Test rankings

Former England Test skipper Root has slipped to fifth position, allowing Williamson to regain the top spot.

This is the sixth stint at the top for Williamson, who first attained the number one position in November 2015 and was last at the top in August 2021.

Australia batter Steve Smith has made rapid progress towards the top of the Test rankings after the second England-Australia Test at Lord’s.

Smith’s ‘player of the match’ efforts of 110 and 34 have lifted him four places to the second position.

Smith was last at the top in June 2021, when he replaced Williamson for a couple of weeks before being overtaken again by the New Zealand batter.

The race for the top positions in the list is bound to remain interesting in the coming days as Smith is just one point behind Williamson’s 883 rating points after the latest weekly update, while third-placed Marnus Labuschagne (873) and Travis Head are also separated by just one point.

England batter Ben Duckett has shot up 24 places to reach the top 20 for the first time in his career after scores of 98 and 83 in the second Ashes Test while his captain Ben Stokes is up nine places to 23rd after a valiant 155 in the second innings.

Rains continue to lash several parts of Kerala many schools shut, hundreds displaced

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THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Rains continued to lash several parts of Kerala on Thursday,Affecting Normal life as schools declared a holiday in many districts and hundreds were displaced from their homes, which were damaged by uprooted trees or flooded by rising river water, forcing them to take shelter in the relief camps.

The continuous rains since the previous night damaged hundreds of homes in various districts of the state.

However, in several other dams, the water levels showed a “falling trend”, indicating a drop in rainfall intensity as was predicted a day ago by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The IMD had also issued Orange alert in six districts of the state for Thursday.

Incessant heavy rainfall across Kerala over the last few days affected normal life as roads got flooded, water levels rose in rivers and dams, homes were damaged by uprooted trees and a furious sea displaced many in the coastal areas.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, in a Facebook post, had said on Wednesday that a total of 47 camps are functioning in Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Malappuram and Kasaragod districts and 879 persons have been shifted there.

The Chief Minister also said that as the heavy rains continue, there are possibilities of flash floods, landslides and waterlogging in low-lying areas and therefore, the public and government agencies should be vigilant and cautious.

A red alert indicates heavy to extremely heavy rains of over 20 cm in 24 hours, while an orange alert means very heavy rains of 6 cm to 20 cm of rain.

Djokovic, Swiatek win at Wimbledon as confetti-throwing protesters strike

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LONDON: Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek were in cruise control at Wimbledon on Wednesday, but confetti-throwing climate protesters and rain delays caused more headaches at the All England Club.

Djokovic, bidding for a record equalling eighth Wimbledon men’s title and 24th Grand Slam crown, defeated Australia’s Jordan Thompson 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 7-5.

It was the 36-year-old’s 350th Grand Slam singles win, third only to Roger Federer and Serena Williams on the all-time list

Victory also preserved his 10-year undefeated record on Centre Court.

“We have a very romantic and special relationship, this court and I,” said Djokovic who could face old rival Stan Wawrinka in the third round.

While Djokovic and Swiatek moved effortlessly into the last 32, there were still four first round matches which had yet to start.

They were four of the 21 matches cancelled until Thursday due to rain.

The day before, only eight ties were completed as torrential rain swamped the All England Club.

On Wednesday, a new headache presented itself in the shape of Just Stop Oil climate protesters.

Two activists, both in their 60s, ran onto Court 18 to scatter orange confetti and jigsaw pieces during Grigor Dimitrov’s match against Sho Shimabukuro.

“Following an incident on Court 18, two individuals have been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass and criminal damage and these individuals have now been removed from the grounds,” said a Wimbledon spokesman.

Just hours later, the match between Katie Boulter and Daria Saville on the same court was held up when another protestor repeated the confetti-jigsaw gesture to jeers from frustrated fans.

Women’s top seed Swiatek beat Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-2, 6-0 to sweep into the third round.

The reigning US Open and French Open champion has never been beyond the fourth round at Wimbledon but has dropped just six games so far in this year’s tournament.

World number three Daniil Medvedev marked his return to Wimbledon after last year’s ban on Russian players with a first round win.

Former US Open champion Medvedev defeated French-born British wild card Arthur Fery 7-5, 6-4, 6-3.

In 2022, the All England Club banned all Russian and Belarusian players in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

“The reception today, I don’t feel it that often. I was really touched,” said the 27-year-old after his match on Court One.

Greek fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas survived a thrilling five-set battle against Dominic Thiem to book a blockbuster second round clash against two-time champion Andy Murray.

Tsitsipas held his nerve in a final set tie-break to secure a 3-6, 7-6 (7/1), 6-2, 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (10/8) victory after almost four hours in a match which had started on Tuesday.

“For a second I thought we were doing the repeat of Isner versus Mahut,” Tsitsipas said in reference to the longest match in history, played at Wimbledon in 2010.

Tsitsipas will have to quickly recover as his Centre Court duel with Murray is set for Thursday.

“I’m not expecting anyone supporting me, but it’s not my first rodeo,” he said.

Danish sixth seed Holger Rune reached the second round for the first time with a 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-2 win against British wildcard George Loffhagen.

US ninth seed Taylor Fritz saw off Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann in five sets in a match which had started on Monday.

Frances Tiafoe, the American 10th seed who made the last 16 in 2022, saw off China’s Wu Yibing in straight sets.

Wu needed a medical time out at the end of the first set after falling ill but still pushed his opponent with some impressive shot-making.

“Am I playing Superman right now?” asked a bemused Tiafoe.

Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk clinched the day’s big shock by downing Greek eighth seed Maria Sakkari 0-6, 7-5, 6-2 in a first round tie twice interrupted for the rain.

“I was like numb in a way. So I had a really good cry both times, that helped, because I was desperate,” said Kostyuk as she explained the turnaround.

Canada’s Milos Raonic, the 2016 runner-up to Murray but now ranked at 849, defeated Austria’s Dennis Novak in four sets for his first win at the tournament in four years.

Ninth-seeded Petra Kvitova, widely seen as a contender for a third women’s title, edged out Jasmine Paolini of Italy, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-1.

The veteran Czech arrived at the All England Club fresh from winning her sixth career grass-court title in Berlin.

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