Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday slammed a section of the media for allegedly spreading “fake news” about the memorandum prepared by the state government for central aid in the context of the Wayanad landslide disaster, terming it “destructive journalism.”

“What is happening in Kerala is destructive journalism. A section of the media has turned into factories for creating controversies,” Vijayan said at a press conference.

The Chief Minister said that Kerala has been discredited due to the fake news.

He alleged that after the media spread false information, a fake narrative emerged, claiming that Kerala was attempting to unfairly grab aid.

“The opposition also seized upon these reports. The aim behind these stories was to discredit the state government by any means,” Vijayan added.

The CM clarified that it is not the ministers who prepare the memorandum in the wake of a disaster, but rather professionals who have proven expertise in the field.

He said that the media had misinterpreted the data prepared by these experts.

The figures in the memorandum are not exaggerated, but are projected estimates, he added.

Mumbai: Tension prevailed in Dharavi slum here on Saturday after hundreds of local residents gathered on a road and opposed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s plan to pull down an alleged illegal portion of a mosque, an official said.

A large number of police personnel have been deployed there to prevent any untoward incident in view of the prevailing situation, he said.

“A team of BMC officials from G-North administrative ward reached the 90 Feet Road in Dharavi around 9 am to demolish alleged illegal portion of Mehboob-E-Subhani masjid. Soon, a large number of local residents gathered at the spot and stopped the civic officials from entering the lane where the mosque is located,” the police official said.

“Later, hundreds of people also assembled outside the Dharavi police station located there and squatted on the road to protest against the civic body’s move,” he said.

Heavy police ‘bandobast’ has been deployed and the situation is under control, the official said.

A delegation from the mosque, BMC officials and Dharavi police are currently holding talks to resolve the issue, he added.

Dharavi, a densely-populated colony, is considered Asia’s largest slum.

Mumbai: Actor Parvin Dabas was on Saturday admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of a suburban hospital here after a car accident, his family said.

Dabas, 50, has appeared predominantly in Hindi and English language films such as Mira Nair’s “Monsoon Wedding”, “Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara”, “Khosla Ka Ghosla”, “The Perfect Husband” and “The World Unseen”.

His wife, actor Preeti Jhingiani, said in a statement that Dabas, the co-founder of arm-wrestling competition Pro Panja League, is recuperating in Holy Family Hospital in Bandra.

“We regret to inform you that Parvin Dabas, Bollywood actor and co-founder of the Pro Panja League, has been hospitalised and is in the ICU at Holy Family Hospital Bandra following an unfortunate car accident in the early hours of Saturday morning.

“Details of the incident are still emerging, but we can confirm that Mr Dabas is receiving medical attention,” the statement read.

According to the statement, the Pro Panja League management is closely monitoring the situation.

The Delhi-born actor most recently starred in “Made in Heaven” season two and Tahira Kashyap’s “Sharmajee Ki Beti”.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi will take the oath of office at 4.30 pm, officials have said.

The new Council of Ministers announced by the party comprises Sultanpur Majra MLA Mukesh Ahlawat, a new entrant, besides ministers Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Imran Hussain.

Atishi will be the 17th female chief minister of the country.

The officials at the lieutenant governor’s office on Friday evening said President Droupadi Murmu has appointed Atishi as the chief minister of Delhi from the date of her being sworn in and has also accepted Arvind Kejriwal’s resignation.

The President has also cleared the appointment of five ministers, they added.

According to an AAP leader, the ceremony will be a low-key affair as the mood in the party is not upbeat because of Kejriwal’s resignation and also the delays in approvals, leaving little time for preparations.

AAP MLAs met earlier this week and unanimously chose Atishi as the leader of the ruling legislature party.

The party’s national convener Kejriwal walked out of the Tihar jail on September 13, after more than five months behind bars in an excise policy case.

In a surprise announcement two days later, Kejriwal said he would resign from the post of the chief minister of Delhi in the wake of the BJP’s “mudslinging” against him over corruption.

Kejriwal also announced that he would return to the post only after getting a “certificate of honesty” from Delhi people in the assembly polls.

The tenure of the Atishi government will be brief as the assembly polls in Delhi are due in February next year.

Her government will have to fast-track and give nod to various pending policies and welfare schemes such as the Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana, Electric Vehicle Policy 2.0 and doorstep delivery of services among others.

In the outgoing Kejriwal government, Atishi held 13 portfolios, including finance, revenue, PWD, power and education.

Rai was in charge of the environment, development and general administration departments, while Bharadwaj looked after the health, tourism and urban development departments among others.

Gahlot held the responsibility of transport, home and women and child development departments, while Hussain was the minister for food and supplies.

AAP sources said the four ministers retained in the new Cabinet are likely to hold their previous portfolios while Ahlawat could be allotted those lying vacant following the resignation of minister Raaj Kumar Anand in April this year.

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said, ‘one nation, one election’ is against the federal structure and practically impossible to implement, as he termed the Union cabinet’s decision to accept the recommendation in this connection as a “gimmick” by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to cover up his failures.

The Congress party will oppose the ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal, which carries the hidden agenda of the ruling BJP, both inside and outside the Parliament, Siddaramaiah said. The public opinion across the country is also against the proposed system.

Moving ahead with its “one nation, one election” plan, the union government on Wednesday accepted a high-level panel’s recommendations for holding simultaneous polls for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies and local bodies in a phased manner after a countrywide consensus-building exercise.

“The One Nation, One Election proposal approved by the Union Cabinet is not only against the federal structure but also practically impossible to implement. The fact that such an important proposal is being rushed through without any consultation with opposition parties reveals the malicious intent of the Narendra Modi government,” Siddaramaiah said in a release.

It seems the central government and the Prime Minister lack even basic knowledge of what should be the priorities of a government, he said.

“Unemployment is rampant across the country, inflation is destabilizing the economy, and people are suffering due to rising prices of essential commodities. Law and order has broken down nationwide, with atrocities against Dalits and women reaching alarming levels,” he alleged.

“Instead of addressing these pressing issues, the Prime Minister is trying to divert public attention with the gimmick of ‘One Nation, One Election’ to cover up his failures,” he added.

In its report submitted to the government in March, just before the general election was announced, the panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind had recommended implementing “one nation, one election” in two phases — simultaneous polls for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies in the first phase and elections for local bodies like panchayats and municipal bodies within 100 days of the general election in the second phase.

It also recommended a common electoral roll, which would need coordination between the Election Commission of India (ECI) and state election commissions.

The ‘One Nation, One Election’ system ws entirely anti-democratic, the CM said, adding, the proposal offers no solution to the crisis that would arise if the ruling party in either the Lok Sabha or a state assembly loses a vote of confidence.

“In such cases, a midterm election is the only proper solution. Allowing a minority party that has failed to win a vote of confidence to remain in power would be a betrayal of the democratic system,” he said.

The current Election Commission does not have the capacity or resources to conduct simultaneous elections for both the Lok Sabha and state assemblies across the entire country, Siddaramaiah said. The electoral system would need to be expanded to double its current capacity, which cannot be done in haste.

“For a new electoral system to be implemented, amendments must first be made to the Representation of the People Act. In addition, at least five chapters of the Constitution would need to be amended. Even for the NDA, it would be difficult to get the necessary support to pass constitutional amendments under the current system,” he opined.

“Despite knowing all this, the Narendra Modi government has approved this proposal just to create confusion among the people and cover up its failures,” he alleged.

Ernst & Young on Wednesday issued a statement after the death of a 26-year-old Chartered Accountant allegedly due to extreme work pressure at the firm, went viral on social media and turned the spotlight on work-related stress.

“We are deeply saddened by Anna Sebastian’s tragic and untimely passing in July 2024,” EY said.

Since the death, EY has been in touch with the family, helping them but it is only now that her family has chosen to write to the company, complaining about the “excessive workload”.

EY said it would continue to improve and provide a healthy workplace in its offices throughout the country.

Anna Sebastian Perayil, who passed her CA exams in 2023, worked at EY Pune office for four months before she succumbed. Her mother this month wrote to EY India chairman Rajiv Memani flagging the ‘glorification’ of overwork at the multinational consulting firm.

“Anna was a part of the Audit team at S R Batliboi, a member firm of EY Global, in Pune for a brief period of four months, joining the firm on 18 March 2024. That her promising career was cut short in this tragic manner is an irreparable loss for all of us,” the EY said in the statement.

It went on to state that while no measure can compensate for the loss experienced by the family, the firm has provided all the assistance and will continue to do so.

“We are taking the family’s correspondence with the utmost seriousness and humility. We place the highest importance on the well-being of all employees and will continue to find ways to improve and provide a healthy workplace for our 100,000 people across EY member firms in India,” it added.