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AHMEDABAD
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Sadhvi claims martyr

bearing the cross

died due to her curse

Pragya sets off storm ‘KarkARE IPS body slams
over IPS Karkare killing tortured me’ remark, Oppn
DNA Correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
Apologises later for ‘emotionally
charged’ remarks
hits out at BJP
DNA Correspondent
Mumbai: BJP’s controversial Lok Sabha correspondent@dnaindia.net
candidate from Bhopal, Sadhvi Pragya
Singh Thakur, said that police officer He- New Delhi: The IPS Officers’
mant Karkare was targeted during the Association condemned sad-
26/11 Mumbai terror attacks as she had hvi Pragya’ remarks on Fri-
“cursed” him for torturing her. day and the Opposition Con-
As the BJP distanced itself from the gress used the remark as an
remarks which it said were made “due to opportunity to hit out at the
years of physical and mental torture”, BJP, saying it had exposed Devotees from Christ The King Church take out a procession at Nahur on Good Friday —Hemant Padalkar/DNA
and the late IPS officer’s colleagues be- the “anti-national face” of
rated her for insulting him, the Sadhvi the saffron party.
apologised for the remarks. “Ashok Chakra awardee

Hardik slapped Truck carrying

“I felt the enemies of the country were late Sri Hemant Karkare, IPS
benefitting from my statement, so I take made the supreme sacrifice
it back and apologise for it. It was my per-
sonal pain,” an aide quoted her as saying.
fighting terrorists. Those of
us in uniform condemn the groceries tilts,
at election rally load kills four
The apology for her “emotionally insulting statement made by
charged” remarks came at a public meet- a candidate and demand that
ing in Berasia area, 45 km from the par- sacrifices of all our martyrs
ty’s district headquarters, her aide Upma be respected.” DNA Correspondent
Singh said. “Pragyaji said if her remarks Congress president Rahul correspondent@dnaindia.net
have hurt someone, she was sorry for it,”
the aide told PTI.
He tortured me and Gandhi tweeted, “Hemant
Karkare gave his life protect-
Congress leader says BJP behind attack Mumbai: Four men chatting
subjected me to
Addressing BJP workers in Bhopal on harsh abuse which was ing India. He must be treated DNA Correspondent on the roadside were killed
Thursday, the Sadhvi, accused in the unbearable. I told him he with respect.” Party spokes- correspondent@dnaindia.net ‘Pending Quota’ after a truck carrying grocer-
Malegaon blasts case, had also claimed will be destroyed. A little person Randeep Surjewala ies tilted to one side, smash-
that Karkare “made up his mind” not to over a month later sutak told a press conference in Ahmedabad: Patidar quota ing the load on them in Vikh-
release her from custody. was going to start... Delhi, “The remark is a gross stir spearhead Hardik Patel, roli West on Thursday. The
“Karkare was called by the (blast) insult to soldiers. The com- who joined the Congress last freak mishap occurred when
Sadhvi Pragya Singh
probe panel member to Mumbai. I was ment has exposed the anti- month, was slapped by a per- the truck was reversing on a
Hemant Karkare Thakur, BJP
then in a Mumbai jail. The commission national face of the BJP.” He son while he was addressing road under repair. One per-
member told him that if he didn’t have further said that Prime Min- a public meeting in Suren- son was injured.
any proof against me, he should not un- month later, he was shot dead by terror- ister Narendra Modi “must dranagar district on Friday. Residents of Surya Nagar,
lawfully hold me in jail,” she told the ists,” she said. apologise” to the nation for Hardik, one of the star „„Man walks up to the Ashwin Hebare (32), Chan-
gathering. BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli said, thej BJP nominee’s remarks campaigners of the Congress stage in Surendranagar drashekar Musale (35), Hamid
“But he (Karkare) said he will do any- “What Pragyaji has said that would evi- and take action against her. for the Lok Sabha elections, district and slaps Hardik Shaikh (36) and Vishal Shelar
thing... bring proof from here and there, dently be her point of view perhaps be- RJD leader Tejashvi Yadav was in the middle of his with his left hand (22) were having a casual talk
but will not release Sadhvi... This was cause she herself underwent investiga- told reporters in Patna, speech at Baldana village of around 11.15 pm when the
his cunningness. It was treason... He tor- tion and torture. We salute the sacrifice “BJP’s ideology is the same Wadhwan taluka, when the „„Attacker says wanted driver of a truck loaded with
tured me and subjected me to harsh of Karkareji and won’t do politics over it. as Sadhvi Pragya’s. People attacker walked on the stage, to teach Hardik a lesson nearly 20 tons of goods tried
abuse which was unbearable. I told him BJP considers him a martyr.” like her are spreading nega- and slapped him. after his 2015 quota stir to reverse the vehicle.
he will be destroyed. A little over a  —With inputs from PTI tivity in politics.” The attacker, later identi- claimed 14 lives The Park Site police said a
fied as Tarun Gajjar, a resi- culvert of a stormwater drain
„„Hardik’s supporters
dent of Mehsana’s Jasalpur gave in under the weight of

SpiceJet hires 100

BJP’s satti barred
from campaigning
Himachal BJP unit chief Satpal
Singh Satti, who used deroga-
tory language against Rahul
Gandhi, barred from election
campaigning for 48 hours  P5
man cuts off finger
after ‘wrong’ vote
A man claiming to be a staunch
BSP supporter has claimed he
chopped off his finger after
voting for the BJP ‘by mistake’
in Uttar Pradesh’s Shikarpur P4
the case of bengal’s
missing poll officer
EC seeks report from District
Magistrate about Arnab Roy,
the polling officer in charge of
EVMs in Bengal’s Nadia, who
went missing on Thursday  P4
Jet pilots, 400 staff
Mumbai: Budget carrier
SpiceJet Friday said it has
already absorbed over 500
employees, including 100 pi-
lots, of the grounded carrier
Jet Airways and it is open to
induct more as it adds more
aircraft and routes in the
times ahead.
The Gurugram-based no-
frills airline has already an-
nounced induction of 27
more planes -22 Boeing 737s
and five turboprop Bombar-
dier Q400s - in the fleet to help
overcome to an extent the
capacity deficit due to Jet
Airways temporarily with-
drawing its domestic and in-
ternational services.
SpiceJet chairman and
managing director Ajay Sin-
gh in a statement Friday said
that his carrier is giving
“first preference” to Jet Air-
ways staff in recruitment.
“As we expand and grow,
we are giving first preference
to those who have recently
lost their jobs due to the un-
fortunate closure of Jet Air-
ways,” Singh said.
He said that SpiceJet has
already provided jobs to over
100 pilots, over 200 cabin crew
and 200-plus technical and air-
port staff recently. “We will do
more. We will also induct a
large number of planes in our
fleet soon,” Singh added.
The carrier Thursday an-
nounced the launch of 24
new flights to Mumbai and
SpiceJet is making all
possible efforts to
minimise passenger
inconvenience and serve
Indian customers who are
finding it difficult to get seats
in this busy season
Ajay Singh, SpiceJet chairman
and managing director
to Delhi, with 16 services
connecting Mumbai and
four Delhi while the re-
maining four connecting
the two metropolitan cities.
These flights are set to be
rolled out between April 26
and May 2.
The carrier has also said
that it will connect Mumbai
to international destinatui-
ons with direct non-stop
flights, including to Hong
Kong, Jeddah Dubai, Colom-
bo, Dhaka, Riyadh and Kath-
mandu, starting May-end.
“SpiceJet is making all
possible efforts for passen-
ger convenience to serve In-
dian customers who are find-
ing it difficult to get seats in
this busy season,” Singh
said. —PTI
thrash him, rip his
village, shouted “14 jan ne the truck, which tilted and
Aim to put India among top 50 bharkhi gayo” (you are re-
sponsible for the loss of 14
clothes; cop take injured
attacker to hospital
got stuck. As a result, the
goods fell, crushing the four
in ease of doing business: PM
lives) while slapping Hardik, men. Locals took them to a
referring to the death of 14 media within moments. hospital where doctor de-
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday Patidar youths who were Hardik, who filed a com- clared them dead before ad-
promised traders Rs 50-lakh loan without collateral, killed in police firing after plaint against Gajjar with mission.
credit card facility and a pension scheme for small shop- violence broke out at many Wadhwan police, blamed the Families of the deceased
keepers, while adding he would put India in the global places in the state following BJP for the attack on him. “I said Hebare had asked the
top 50 when it comes to ease of doing business. He said his rally on August 25, 2015. was attacked by the BJP. To- driver, Devendra Jadhav, not
while his government has stood by traders in Congress workers and day, it was an attempted slap, to reverse the vehicle, but he
thick and thin, the Congress has abused them Hardik’s supporters over- but tomorrow the party will ignored his advice. One per-
by calling all of them ‘chor’. Addressing a trad- powered Gajjar, and thrashed attack me with bullets,” son, Chand Shaikh, sus-
ers’ convention at Talkatora stadium, he said him. His clothes were also Hardik wrote on Twitter. tained minor injuries.
the BJP-led government has worked to sim- torn, before he was taken Gajjar, however, claimed The police have booked
plify lives and businesses scraping 1,500 away by the police. An in- that he had slapped Hardik to the driver for rash driving
archaic laws, simplifying processes and jured Gajjar was admitted to teach him a lesson for the and causing death due to neg-
providing easy credit.  Report, P4 hospital, even as video of the hardships suffered during ligence and have booked the
slap-gate went viral on social his agitation. road contractor.
ND Tiwari’s son
Priyanka leaves Cong ‘goons’ for Sena
was murdered,
DNA Correspondent
finds autopsy
“I know my previous com-
correspondent@dnaindia.net ments will be used against
me and my ideology will be
New Delhi: Rohit Shekhar The Congress lost its most questioned, but I am satisfied
Tiwari, son of late Uttara- dazzling spokesperson to with my decision. Being a
khand chief minister ND Ti- Shiv Sena on Friday, as Pri- Mumbaikar, I have always
wari, was strangled, accord- yanka Chaturvedi quit the had an association with the
ing to an autopsy report by Grand Old Party to join the Shiv Sena. There has been no
the AIIMS in Delhi. Sena in the presence of party change of heart.”
“The medical board unan- president Uddhav Thackeray Thackeray said that Pri-
imously concluded that the and his son Aditya. yanka needed no introduc-
cause of death in this case is She was “hurt” with the tion and would be able to
asphyxia as a result of stran- Congress’s decision to rein- represent Sena’s views as
gulation and smothering. It is state a group of party work- firmly as she did in her previ-
a sudden unnatural death, ers who had been sacked af- Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and his son, Aditya, welcome Priyanka ous job. Shiv Sena workers
placed in the category of ter they allegedly manhan- Chaturvedi to the party, at Matoshree in Mumbai —Hemant Padalkar/DNA have got a “good sister” in
homicide,” said the head of dled her in September in Ut- her, she is a fighter, he said.
the forensic department. The tar Pradesh’s Mathura, Gandhi Vadra, is the party’s to champion women’s em- Chaturvedi refuted re-
Crime Branch has started an where she was addressing a poll in-charge for UP. powerment and for the youth. ports that her exit had any-
investigation, said the police. press conference. She had Chaturvedi said she was There is no better platform thing to do with the Congress
ND Tiwari was a veteran publicly spoken out against switching sides to achieve than Sena to accomplish my refusing her a ticket from
Congress leader who held the party on Thursday for her dreams. “When I decided goals,” she said. She said Mathura. She said she felt
various positions at the Cen- taking back the “goons”, with to come back to my Mumbai- Mumbai was her janmabhoo- her decade-long service was
tre and was the CM of Uttara- a nod from Jyotiraditya Scin- kar roots, I realised that Shiv mi and karmabhoomi and she not valued by the Congress,
khand and UP.  Report, P10 dia, who along with Priyanka Sena is the biggest platform wanted to serve its people. which hurt her.  Turn to P4

fun at sea karnika, formerly jalesh, to undertake 15 sailings by mid-may

Country’s first premium cruise liner is here
DNA correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
Mumbai: India’s first world-
class, premium cruise liner
was launched off the Mum-
bai harbour on Friday.
Jalesh, the 2,000-passenger
capacity ship with state-of-
the-art facilities was chris-
tened Karnika by Shreyasi
Goenka who took on the man-
tle of the vessel’s Godmother.
A special postal stamp of
was released to commemorate
the historic occasion on Indi-
an waters. Milkha Singh, the
first Indian athlete to win a
gold at the Commonwealth
Games, Sushmita Sen, the first
Indian to win Miss Universe,
Mahesh Bhupati, the first In-
dian to win a Grand Slam tour-
nament, and Mary Kom, the
first Indian woman boxer to
win Asian Games, were among
those who graced the occasion.
Subhash Chandra, the
first Indian to launch a pri-
vate satellite TV channel
(Zee), was the chief guest at
the event. Punit Goenka, MD
& CEO, ZEEL, and Amit
Goenka, CEO, International
Broadcast Business & Z5
Global, were also present.
Karnika has been named
after a celestial nymph, who
according to legend emerged
when gods and demons
churned the ocean for ‘amrit’,
the elixir for life. The name
also reflects a true Indian
identity drawing inspiration
from the first Indian ghat –
Manikarnika in Varanasi.
Jurgen Bailom, President
& CEO of Jalesh Cruises, said,
“Our ship will make it possi-
ble for Indians to experience
cruise vacations closer home
with high level of customisa-
tion that touches the sensibili-
ties of people here.” Turn to P4
Petition demands free access to
all places of worship for women
Abraham Thomas
abraham.thomas@dnaindia.net
New Delhi: The Sabarimala
ruling of the Supreme Court
has prompted many litigants
to demand similar rights for
women facing restrictions to
enter the sanctum sanctorum
of mosques, churches and
Parsi temples.
A petition in the Delhi
High Court recently ques-
tioned the practices followed
by the Parsis to restrict entry
of Parsi women into the fire
temple, restriction on Mus-
(From left to right) Chief guest Subhash Chandra, Milkha Singh, Susmita lim women’s entry into the
Sen, Mary Kom, Mahesh Bhupati and Gauhar Khan at the event on Friday inner well of dargahs, and
‘Discriminatory’
„„Petition says restrictions against
women to enter sanctum sanctorum
of churches, dargahs, and agiaries
„„It says the practices have no
divine sanction. It cites Sabarimala
ruling to justify its demands
the Christian women being the Roman Catholic Archdio-
denied entry into the sanc- cese of Delhi, the Delhi Or-
tum sanctorum of churches. thodox Centre, and the Jama
The petition by social ac- Masjid represented through
tivist Sanjjiv Kkumar has their lawyers appeared on
created a flutter as the heads April 11 before the HC in re-
of the Delhi Parsi Anjuman, sponse to its notices. Turn to P4
 02 
daily news & analysis I Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019
ah edabad
www.dnaindia.com I twitter.com/dna I epaper.dnaindia.com I facebook.com/dnaindia

Attacker says wanted NYAY to spur demand,

in brief

boost economy: Rahul

National Students Union
of India (NSUI), Congress’
to teach Hardik a lesson
‘I decided to hit Patel after my pregnant wife suffered during Patidar agitation’
DNA Correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net

Congress president Rahul Gan-

frontal organization for
students carried out a rally
in Ahmedabad propagating
the need to create jobs in the
country
—Pravin Indrekar/ DNA
Poll staff told to
not report ‘on
duty’ on Wed
Government staff on
election duty will not
have to report on duty
at their respective of-
fices a day after voting
takes place, said a
statement from the of-
fice of Chief Electoral
Officer (CEO). “Staff
on poll duty have to
work for longer hours.
They have to submit
election material at the
reporting centre either
at late night or on the
next morning. Consid-
ering their extended
working hours, they
need not report ‘on
duty’ at their respec-
tive offices.
Walk organised to
create awareness
among voters
The Ahmedabad dis-
trict election adminis-
tration has organized
DNA Correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
Tarun Gajjar, the person who
slapped Hardik Patel at an elec-
tion rally in Surendranagar on
Friday, claimed that he was not
connected with any political
party, but had done so to teach
the Patidar reservation stir
leader a lesson.
Gajjar suffered severe inju-
ries after he was overpowered
and beaten up by Congress
workers and Hardik’s support-
ers. He was admitted to hospi-
tal, where he told reporters
that he had suffered personally
because of Hardik’s protests,
and was planning to attack
Hardik for over three years.
“I am not associated with
any political party. My wife
was pregnant when the Patidar
agitation took place (in August
2015). She was undergoing
treatment at a hospital. Every-
thing was also shut when I
went to get medicine for my
child. I had suffered then, and
had decided that I would hit
him, and teach him a lesson,”
he told reporters from the hos-
pital bed. However, several
photos of Gajjar with Mehsana
Reshma Patel attacked
DNA Correspondent
File picture of Hardik Patel (top) Tarun Gajjar with
Mehsana MP Jayshreeben Patel (inset)
MP Jayshreeben Patel and
other BJP leaders, hinting at
his links with politicians, were
being shared online.
The incident took place in
Baldana village of Suren-
dranagar’s Wadhwan taluka
when Hardik was addressing
an election rally. Gajjar got on
the stage and slapped Hardik,
before he was overpowered
and taken away.
Gajjar claimed that he had
twice planned to attack Hardik
earlier this month.
“I had planned to slap
Hardik during his rally in Ka-
lol on April 13, but he did not
What BJP workers
come there. I then planned to
attack him in Balisana village
(in Patan) on April 17, but I
failed at the time. I got success
finally today,” he said further,
clarifying that he was not
against the Patidar communi-
ty, but was opposed to Hardik.
While Hardik said that the
BJP was behind the attack on
him and was trying to harm
him, the party denied the alle-
gation. “The BJP has nothing
to do with this incident. It
looks like an attempt to gain
sympathy,” Chief Minister Vi-
jay Rupani said.
He criticising the attack,
said that BJP workers misbe-
Cong demands
security for Patel
Following the attack on
Hardik Patel, the Congress
wrote to state’s chief elec-
toral officer S Murali
Krishna, and sought secu-
rity cover for him. The
party pointed out that
Hardik was provided Y+
security in the past, but
the cover was withdrawn.
saying such incidents had no
place in a democracy, even as
state BJP president Jitu Va-
ghani accused Hardik of re-
sorting to gimmicks.
The Congress too alleged
that BJP was behind the at-
tack, and said that it was a re-
sult of the party’s realisation
that it was losing in the Lok
Sabha elections. Surendrana-
gar SP Mahendra Bagria said
that Gajjar was not related to
any political party.
Meanwhile, state’s chief
electoral officer S Murali
Krishna had sought a report
from Surendranagar collector.
Cash in circulation rose since note ban: Sibal
DNA Correspondent
dhi said on Friday that the
Nyunatam Aay Yojana (NYAY),
under which his party has
promised payout of Rs72,000
annually to the poor upon com-
ing to power, would jump-start
the Indian economy.
“As soon as we form the gov-
ernment, 20% of the poorest
Indians will get the money di-
rectly into their bank ac-
counts...Rs3.60 lakh in five
years. This is our surgical
strike on poverty,” the Con-
gress president said at a public
meeting in Bajipura village of
Surat. The village falls under
Bardoli Lok Sabha seat, from
where Congress has fielded
former minister Tushar
Chaudhary against MP Prab-
hu Vasava.
Gandhi said that prime
minister Narendra Modi had
conducted surgical strikes on
farmers, unemployed, and
shopkeepers through demone-
tisation and GST.
“There was a decline in con-
sumption, which led to the clo-
sure of factories, and lakhs of
jobs being lost. The money to
be paid under NYAY will boost
demand for products, which
will lead to jobs being created,
and it will jump-start India’s
Congress president Rahul Gandhi during a rally at Bajipura village —AFP
Jibe at PM
Rahul also criticised Modi
for failure to create jobs
for youths, and claimed
that lakhs had lost their
jobs in the wake of note
ban and GST
economy,” he said.
The Congress leader, who
also addressed two rallies in
the state on Thursday, said that
unlike Modi, who had failed to
deliver on the promise of Ach-
he Din, his party would fulfil
its promises. He pointed out to
the farm loan waivers in Mad-
hya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,
Rajasthan, Punjab and Karna-
taka, where the Congress is in
power. “Narendra Modi gave a
ness that happened was for
waiver of loans of Rs3.50 lakh
crore to corporates, but does
not have money to waive off
farmers loans. We waived off
farmers’ loans within days of
coming to power,” he said.
Gandhi also said that his
party would come out with a
separate budget for farmers .
Taking a jibe at the prime
minister, Gandhi said that he
was chowkidar only for the
rich, and not for farmers,
youth, and women. He criti-
cised the PM for the Rafale
scam, saying he had stolen
Rs30,000 crore from people.
Gandhi also slammed the Modi
government for GST, saying
“We will remove the Gabbar
Singh Tax introduced by Modi
government within six
months, and give GST to you.”
while Prime Minister Naren-

a Walk for Vote on Sat-
urday to create aware-
ness about voting
among voters in the
city for the ongoing
Lok Sabha elections.
The walk will begin
from Vijay Char Rasta
at Naranpura in
Ahmedabad, to Guja-
rat University at
around 6.30am.
A musical perfor-
mance will be held be-
fore the event.
correspondent@dnaindia.net
Candidate of Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP) from
Manavadar legislative As-
sembly constituency Reshma
Patel was attacked on Friday,
allegedly by workers of BJP.
She was also threatened to
stop the campaign. She was
later shifted to a local hospi-
tal. NCP has also sought po-
lice security for Reshma. Ma-
navadar is one of the four
Assembly constituencies
where by-poll is being held.
have done needs
to be condemned
in strongest possible
words
Jayant Patel,
President of NCP in Gujarat
Reshma was campaigning
at Vanthli Road in Junagadh,
where she was obstructed al-
legedly by BJP workers and
then physically attacked. At
the hospital, she reportedly
haved with her and threat-
ened to kill her.
Later on, a delegation of
NCP had met the officials of
the chief electoral officer
(CEO) and urged that Resh-
ma be provided proper police
security. The office of CEO
instructed additional direc-
tor general of police (ADG),
district collector, superinten-
dent of police to ensure Resh-
ma’s security.
A press statement from
BJP said that the party has
nothing to do with the attack.
correspondent@dnaindia.net
Senior Congress leader Kapil
Sibal on Friday said that con-
trary to claims that demone-
tisation had helped make a
cashless economy, the cash in
circulation has increased
since the ‘ill-founded’ move
was implemented.
Sibal said that the cash in
circulation had, in fact, gone
up from Rs17.97 trillion on
November 4, 2016 to Rs21.41
trillion on March 15, 2019. He
said that contrary to claims
Pravin Indrekar
that it was a war on black
money, demonetisation was a
move by the Modi govern-
ment to help those with black
money. “The only cashless-
the common man who was left
with no cash in hand while
those who had black money
managed to get it converted
even after the deadline for
Rs500 and Rs1000 old curren-
cy notes as acceptable legal
currency ended,” said Sibal.
Calling it the biggest scam
in the history of the country,
Sibal said,”This is the biggest
scam in the history of the
country. There can be some
bankers, officials etc behind
this.” He also said that oppo-
sition was getting stronger
dra Modi’s popularity is go-
ing down. “I can see the
graph of Modi is going down
whereas the opposition’s
graph is going up including
Congress and others. Re-
sponse for the second phase
is worrisome for BJP,” Sibal
said talking to reporters
here. Sibal also played a vid-
eo sourced from tnn.world
which showed a person alleg-
edly associated with BJP con-
verting old currency notes
worth Rs 5 crore for new cur-
rency notes worth Rs 3 crore.

Shah accuses Cong of defaming ‘BJP will scrap

state post 2002 communal riots
Chhota Udepur: Bharati-
ya Janata Party (BJP) chief
Amit Shah Friday challenged
Congress president Rahul
Gandhi to debate with the
president of the ruling party’s
youth wing on what the coun-
try’s oldest party has done for
the poor in its over the five-
decade rule.
Addressing an election
meeting here, Shah listed
achievements of the Naren-
dra Modi government and ac-
cused the Congress of creat-
ing hurdles in the path of de-
velopment of Gujarat.
“Rahul baba chants about
the poor. Congress again rais-
es the remove poverty (garibi
hatao) slogan. For five genera-
tions and 55 years, only your
family ruled the country.
“Come to any crossroad in
Vadodara with an account of
what you did for the poor, and
our youth morcha president
will respond to you,” Shah
said. Shah’s dare comes
against the backdrop of Gan-
dhi on several occasions chal-
lenging Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi to a debate on
corruption, especially in the
Rafale fighter jet deal, and de-
monetisation.
“For five generations, you
(Congress) sought votes in the
Amit Shah addressing a public meeting at Chhota Udepur
Bharatiya Janata Party has always fought for
the pride of Gujarat, it has worked to restore
the pride of Gujarat
Amit Shah, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president
name of the poor, tribals, Dal-
its, farmers, villagers, but did
nothing for their develop-
ment,” the BJP chief said.
Shah said the Modi govern-
ment had taken many steps to
alleviate poverty, citing exam-
ples like providing subsidised
gas cylinders to seven crore
families, houses to 2.5 crore
people and electricity connec-
tions to 2.35 crore citizens.
“The Congress had created
hurdles in the development of
Gujarat and defamed the state
post the 2002 communal ri-
ots,” Shah said. “After the
2002 communal riots, the
Congress worked to defame
Gujarat. The BJP has always
fought for the pride of Guja-
rat, it has worked to restore
the pride of Gujarat,” he
said. —PTI
Article 370 on
getting majority’
Dharampur: BJP presi-
dent Amit Shah said Friday
that his party would abrogate
Article 370 of the Constitu-
tion which gives a special
status to Jammu and Kash-
mir after getting a majority
in both houses of Parliament.
Speaking at a poll rally at
Dharampur in Gujarat’s Val-
sad district, he also said the
main issue in the ongoing
Lok Sabha elections was na-
tional security.
“We have already said in
our manifesto that we will
repeal Article 370 once we get
a majority in both Lok Sabha
and Rajya Sabha so that
Kashmir becomes an integral
part of India permanently,”
said Shah.
At present, the BJP does
not enjoy a majority in the
Upper House of Parliament.
Shah was here to campaign
for Dr K C Patel, BJP MP and
candidate from Valsad. All 26
Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat
will go to the polls on April 23.
“This fight is not just about
development. There is no
doubt development took place
under Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi. The issue this time
is national security and only
Modi and the BJP can provide
that,” he said.  —PTI

Election row dig was aimed at PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi

EC seeks report on Chavda’s 56-inch remark

DNA Correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
The election authorities have
sought a report after Con-
gress candidate from Gandhi-
nagar Lok Sabha seat CJ
Chavda made comments
mocking 56-inch chest.
Speaking at an election
rally in Sanand on Thursday
evening, the Congress leader
said that a mule has a 56-inch
chest. “An elephant’s chest is
108 inch. A camel has a 90-
inch chest, while the horse
has between 72-80 inch. The
chest of the Indian wild ass is
62 inch. It is a mule which has
a 56-inch chest,” Chavda, who
is MLA from Gandhinagar
North seat, said. The dig was
aimed at prime minister Nar-
endra Modi, who has said on
several occasions that it re-
quired a 56-inch chest to take
Picture for representation
tough decisions. CEO S Mu-
rali Krishna took suo motu
note of the comments, and
sought a report from the dis-
trict administration.
Ahmedabad district collec-
tor Vikrant Pandey said that
he had sought a report into
the comments from Sanand
Assistant Returning Officer.
“We are expecting the re-
port by tomorrow,” he said.
Former chief minister
Shankersinh Vaghela, who
joined the NCP a couple of
months ago, was among those
who were present at the rally,
and addressed the gathering
in Chavda’s support. The elec-
tion authorities also ordered
a probe after media reports
said that cash was distributed
among people outside the
venue of an election rally ad-
dressed by Union minister
Smriti Irani on Thursday. The
rally had taken place in Patan
district. Newspaper reports
showed a woman, who was
part of a group, accepting
money from another.
“We have received a report
from Patan collector based on
the news clipping. It says that
in the absence of a video clip
or other concrete evidence, it
cannot be established wheth-
er there was any violation of
the Model Code of Conduct,”
CEO S Murali Krishna said.
In another development,
the CEO directed authorities
to provide security to NCP
leader Reshma Patel.
 ah edabad
www.dnaindia.com I twitter.com/dna I epaper.dnaindia.com I facebook.com/dnaindia Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019 I daily news & analysis
03

Guj has most crorepatis in phase-3

in brief
Ex-CJI to be chief
guest at Nirma
Univ convocation
Former Chief Justice of
India Dipak Misra will
deliver convocation
speech at the 27th con-
vocation of Nirma Uni-
versity to be held on
Saturday. Degrees will
be conferred to 29 PhD,
246 students of Master
of Business Adminis-
tration (Full Time), 55
State also has the third-highest number of candidates with criminal cases against them
DNA correspondent dates with lowest assets with
correspondent@dnaindia.net in figures movable assets worth Rs
„„A J Patel, the 3,300. With a liability of Rs 21
Gujarat has highest number Congress candidates crore, BJP’s Porbandar can-
of crorepati candidates in from Mehsana, has didate Ramesh Dhauk is in
absolute numbers, even beat- Rs 69 crore, the third position among the top
ing out its neighbouring state highestamong all 10 candidates with highest li-
of Maharashtra. candidates in Gujarat abilities.
Analysis of criminal back- As far as those with crimi- Picture for representation
ground, finances, education, „„Gujarat had 58 nal cases is concerned, Guja-

students of MBA (Fami-
ly Business & Entrepre-
neurship), 33 students
of Bachelor of Business
2,812 cases of
gender and other details of candidates with rat had 58 candidates with de-
candidates in states going to declared criminal cases clared criminal cases which is
polls in the third phase by As- which is 16% of all such 16% of all such candidates
sociation for Democratic Re- candidates while the while the state had 34 candi-

Administration-MBA,
5-year integrated pro-
gramme, 14 students of
BBA 176 students of
illnesses due to
forms (ADR) found that Guja- state had 34 candidates dates with serious criminal
rat had 75 crorepati candidates with serious criminal cases which is 9% of all such
while Maharashtra had 71 fol- cases which is 9% of all candidates. Gujarat stands
lowed by 46 in Karnataka. candidates third in absolute numbers as

heat since April 2

UG-IL, 5 students of M.
Tech., 2 students of
MCA, 5 students of B.
Tech. and 2 students of
MSc.
Boiler blast kills
one, injures six
A boiler blew off in a
factory in Navsari West
on Friday and ended up
killing one. The blast,
reportedly, injured six
other employees, who
were rushed to a private
hospital. Around 100
Although in percentage
terms, the percentage of
crorepati candidates in Guja-
rat is just 20% of all candi-
dates who are crorepatis.
The organisation analysed
370 of the 371 candidates who
are contesting for the 26 seats
in Gujarat which goes to polls
on April 23. Interestingly, de-
spite having the highest num-
ber of crorepati candidates,
none of the candidates fea-
ture among the top 10 with
Picture for representation
highest assets. However, one
candidate, Samsubhai De-
vada from Dahod, is among
the top 10 candidates with
zero assets. Three other can-
didates from Dadra & Nagar
Haveli also figure in the list.
Two candidates, both from
the BJP, also make it to the
top 10 list of candidates with
the highest income. Poonam
Madam, BJP’s candidate
from Jamnagar had a self in-
come of Rs 1 crore and total
income of Rs 4 crore while
Amit Shah who is contesting
from Gandhinagar had a self
income of Rs 53 lakh and to-
tal income of Rs 2 crore.
AJ Patel, the Congress
candidates from Mehsana,
has the highest total assets
among all candidates in Gu-
jarat at Rs 69 crore. Patel
ranks 12th among all the can-
didates in the states going to
polls in the third phase as far
as total assets are concerned.
Chandrakant Patil, BJP’s
candidate from Navsari
comes second in Gujarat with
Rs 44 crore of assets.
A candidate from the state,
Sirasat Vedhbhai who is con-
testing from Ahmedabad, is
also among the top 10 candi-
far as candidates with serious
criminal cases against them is
concerned. Maharashtra tops
with 54 such candidates fol-
lowed by Kerala which has 39
such candidates. Gargi Raval
The analysis by ADR re- gargi.raval@dnaindia.net no respite
vealed that Gujarat had 12 „„At present, the
red alert constituencies. With rising temperatures, mercury is hovering
These are constituencies the number of heat-related around 37 degree Celsius
where three or more candi- illnesses is increasing. and according to the
dates contesting the elections The highest number of Indian Meteorological
have criminal cases against cases being reported are of Department, it is
them. abdominal pain, followed by expected to rise to
unconsciousness, the data around 41 degree
from 108 GVK Emergency

Man found dead at

Celsius by next week
employees were inside Festive fervour Management and Research
the factory at the time Institute (EMRI) reveals.
of the incident. Fire of- Since April 2, 2019, the 108 nose bleeds, increases during

Vatva railway crossing

ficials are yet to ascer-
tain what caused the
blast.
65-yr-old lady
dies after cow
attack
A complaint of acciden-
tal death was lodged
with the Meghaninagar
Police Station on Thurs-
day after a 65-year-old
woman identified as
Tejuba Vihol, a resident
of Meghaninagar, died
after being attacked by
cows. Tejuba was pass-
ing by, when she was at-
DNA correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
A complaint of murder was
lodged with the Vatva police
station on Thursday after a
42-year-old man was killed
and dumped near Vatva Rail-
way crossing.
The deceased has been
identified as Sunil Dutt, a
resident of Vatva GIDC area.
As per police officials on
April 17 morning they found
emergency services have re-
ported 2,812 cases of illnesses
due to heat exhaustion or de-
hydration.
and waited for the reports. The highest incidences
On April 17 night, a man among them, accounting for
identified as Shailendra 48% of the total registered
Ram, a resident of Vatva cases, are abdominal pain
reached the Vatva Police sta- and unconsciousness cases.
tion to lodged a missing com- The services reported 794
plaint of his brother Sunil cases of abdominal pain and
Dutt. 562 cases of unconscious-
As per Shailendra, on ness, followed by fall victims
April 16 evening at around (363) and patients with com-
7.30pm, his brother had left plaint of chest pain (356).
the house to get soap and These are only the illness-
never returned. es that have been reported
His mobile was showing with the system, while there
summer. These are the result
of dehydration that happens
because of summer heat,”
said Jasvan Prajapati, chief
operating officer of 108 GVK
EMRI.
According to doctors, the
different types of illnesses
that afflict people during
summer are basically attrib-
uted to dehydration.
“In the summer, one must
keep oneself hydrated to
avoid any kind of negative
impact of heat. Anyone who
does not stay hydrated could
experience the adverse ef-

tacked by two cows.
Tejuba fell unconscious
and was later, taken to
the hospital for treat-
ment by a passerby. Dur-
ing the treatment, she
was declared dead by
the doctors.
a body from near Vinzol Rail-
way crossing area, but the
officials were not able to iden-
tify the man and the body was
sent to the hospital for post
mortem. The cops suspected
that it was a case of murder,
but they lodged a case of ac-
cidental death in the matter
switched off when they tried
to contact him.
When the Shailendra was
describing his brother, cops
showed the photo of the man
who was found dead near the
Railway crossing to him and
immediately identified the
man as his brother.
Pravin Indrekar/DNA
could be more cases which go
unreported.
“Every summer, we re-
ceive a number of calls re-
garding different health
problems. The number of
particular cases such as ab-
Residents from Ahmedabad took part in a procession to mark Hanuman Jayanti on Friday dominal pain, unconscious-
ness, falling, fainting and
fects of heat-related illnesses
such as heat exhaustion and
heat stroke,” said Dr Pravin
Garg, a senior family physi-
cian.
“One must wear light-col-
oured cotton clothes and the
elderly, children and preg-
nant women must take extra
care,” added the doctor.

Pregnant woman molested at ‘Universities need to leverage their autonomy’

her residence in Fatehwadi
DNA correspondent
DNA correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net

correspondent@dnaindia.net
A case of molestation was
lodged with the Vejalpur po-
lice station on Thursday af-
ter a 33-year-old pregnant
woman was molested by an
unidentified man while she
was alone at her residence.
The incident took place
on Thursday afternoon in a
flat located in Fatehwadi. As
per police, the woman was
living a rented house along
with her husband. She is a
housewife, while her hus-
band works in a private com-
A classroom at Ahmedabad
University on Friday evening
was packed, not by students,
but intellectuals and acade-
micians from across the city
who had gathered to attend a
session on ‘The Idea of a Uni-
versity’ and academic free-
dom.
The session was conduct-
ed by professor Apoorvanand
from the University of Delhi
and revolved around his book
‘The Idea of a University’,
along with professor Rakesh
Basant of Indian Institute of
Picture for representation
Management, Ahmedabad,
and professor Pankaj Chan-
dra, Vice-Chancellor of
Ahmedabad University.
Speaking about the impor-
tance of academic freedom,
Apoorvanand said, “Univer-
sities are democratic institu-
tions. There is no single
voice. All of us have our own
voices. So the idea of a uni-
versity is to help develop
these voices. But if you de-
cide what that voice is, the
foundation of a university
will weaken. For us to sur-
vive as democratic agents, to
be able to form our opinions
and then be able to express
Picture for representation
them, we need that freedom.”
Giving more insight into
the current situation, profes-
sor Basant said, “What wor-
ries me is our inability to
utilise the flexibility, autono-
my and academic freedom we
have. Why do we not leverage
what we have? If we are not
willing to use academic free-
dom on a regular basis, I do
not think we should crib. We
need to use what we have.”
Further, Basant shared
four issues that prevail in
present times — learning vs
livelihood, standardisation
vs flexibility, technology vs
personal interaction and the
issue of governance. He said,
“To me, a critical question
would be how do we make all
these tensions co-exist? Can
we do something with the
given autonomy and flexibil-
ity to deal with them in a
manner that can create learn-
ing opportunities so that we
don’t get bogged down by
these instances, where we
feel that academic freedom
has been curtailed?”
The 18 essays that make up
the book, ‘The Idea of a Uni-
versity’, shed light on recent
controversies including, the
JNU ‘anti-national’ accusa-
tion, government appoint-
ments, Rohith Vemula’s sui-
cide, etc. apart from academ-
ic principles, institutional
autonomy, good governance
and scientific responsibility.

AMC serves notices to eight Gas pipeline catches

pany located near ISKCON for help. Meanwhile, the ac-
temple. Case insight cused managed to flee from
As per her complaint, The incident took place the spot. Within moments,

fire, no casualties
around seven days back an on Thursday afternoon neighbours gathered at the

buildings over fire hazard

unidentified person had
come to her society’s gate
and asked the watchman if
there were any flats on sale.
The watchman took him
to the victim’s house saying
that the owner of the flat
wants to sell the house and
right now this couple was
staying on rent, after which
he left the place.
On Thursday afternoon,
the same man came to the
society and went directly to
the victim’s house. The vic-
tim opened the door and al-
lowed the man to get inside
thinking that he must have
come to see the house again.
innovative ways workshop, organised by Karnavati University, will be conducted on Sunday
in a flat located in
Fatehwadi. As per police,
the woman was living a
rented house along with
her husband
After a while when the ac-
cused realised that the wom-
an was alone in the house, he
started to misbehave with
the woman by commenting
on her. When the woman told
him to leave the house, the
accused grabbed her hand
and forcefully kissed her.
The pregnant woman
somehow managed to run
outside her house screaming
spot and later the Vejalpur
police was called by the vic-
tim.
L.D Odedara, inspector of
Vejalpur police station stat-
ed that “After the incident
came into light, our team
reached the spot and started
an investigation. Primary
we came to know the ac-
cused was wearing a white
Pathani and was having a
beard. As there was no
CCTV camera installed in
the society, we are trying to
recover CCTV footage from
the nearby area to identify
the accused and he will be
soon nabbed.”
DNA correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
The Ahmedabad Fire and
Emergency Services of
Ahmedabad Municipal Cor-
poration (AMC) is conduct-
ing an inspection of differ-
ent high rise buildings in
the city to check the fire
safety equipment and on
Friday has served notice to
eight more buildings. The
inspection has taken after
the fire incident at the Dev
Aurum building.
During the inspection,
the team is noticing many
faults in the pre-installed
fire system.
Ramada Hotel located
near to Prahladnagar gar-
den has the system but
there was no proper ventila-
tion in the staircase, which
was brought to the notice
by the department. Sapath
V and Hotel Holiday Ex-
DNA correspondent
press have been asked to correspondent@dnaindia.net
install fire sprinkler while
Indraprasth Corporate, On Friday morning, a fire
Shivalik Abaise, Arista, broke out in Adani gas pipe-
Commerce house 4 and Ve- line passing near Jivraj Mehta
nus Atlantis have been hospital, two fire tenders were
served notice due to non- rushed to the spot to control
functioning fire system or the situation.
having no fire system. Mon- The incident took place at
deal Heights were served around 11.45am near Ayojan-
notice due to non-function- nagar society located near
ing sprinklers which were Jivraj Mehta hospital. As per
later on okayed by the de- fire officials, there was some
partment. drainage work was going on in
the near, for which the con-
struction labours were digging
up the road to change the
drainage pipeline. While they
were using the JCB to dig the
Past instance
On March 29, there was
fire broke out in Adani
CNG gas pipelines
located in the New Ranip
area, during which one of
labourer sustained burn
injuries and was rushed
to the hospital
road one of the Adani gas pipe-
lines got damaged and it start-
ed leaking and the fire was
broke in it. As per senior fire
officials, within one hour of
operation, the fire was taken
under control and the vehicles
returned to the station.

Over 100 educators to be trained to teach through theatre

DNA correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
In a unique workshop aimed at
tapping innovative methodol-
ogy for classroom teaching,
over 100 educators from
Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar
will undergo a day-long train-
ing on how to inculcate theatre
while teaching regular sub-
jects in schools.
The workshop, organised by
Karnavati University, will be
conducted by theatre stalwart
and Sahitya Akademi award
winner Mahesh Dattani on Sat-
urday in which he will teach
the teachers and principals
about effective teaching
through fascinating tech-
niques of drama.
Speaking about the same,
Ritesh Hada, president, Karna-
vati University said, “As our
various activities, we have
been working with schools
across the country. Hence, we
wanted to do something to ben-
efit the schools by organizing a
workshop which is very rele-
vant in the present times. Im-
portance of theatre in educa-
tion is not a new concept but
we want it to reach as many
schools as it can. Also, this
kind of a workshop is a good
opportunity for educators to
exchange and share ideas.”
Interestingly, recently, the
Central Board of Secondary
Education (CBSE) has also
mandated art education for
Classes I to XII. The board, in a
Picture for representation
circular, said, “Art education
will be taught as a mandatory
subject for Classes I to XII and
facilities for the same may be
provided in every school. Eve-
ry school shall compulsorily
reserve a minimum of two pe-
riods per week, per class, for
new mandate
„„Recently, the Central
Board of Secondary
Education (CBSE) has
also mandated
art education for
Classes I to XII
„„The CBSE also cited
an example of how art
education could be
integrated with
teaching of other
subjects
art education. All the four
main streams covered by the
term arts, such as music,
dance, visual arts and theatre,
should be included.”
The CBSE also cited an ex-
ample of how art education
could be integrated with
teaching of other subjects. It is
possible to teach about the plan-
ets in the universe or forests
and oceans through art by ask-
ing each child to choose a plan-
et/forest/ocean and making a
travel brochure on it, the board
said. Nikhil Gohil, a primary
school teacher in a village in
Dangs, has adopted innovative
means to teach children. He
says, “Since I deal with tribal
children, they were facing dif-
ficulty in understanding con-
cepts of mathematics. So, I en-
acted a play through which
they are being taught subtrac-
tion, division, multiplication
and calculating percentage.”

daily news & analysis I Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019
in brief
After EC ban, Yogi
calls Sambhal SP
candidate as
‘Babar ki Aulad’
Sambhal (UP): In yet an-
other controversial re-
mark after the end of
Election Commission’s
(EC) 72-hour ban on him,
UP CM Yogi Adityanath
on Friday called Samajwa-
di Party (SP) candidate
Shafiqur Rahman Barq as
‘Babar ki Aulad’ (succes-
sor of Babar). “On the one
hand, there is a candidate
from a party which devel-
oped places linked to Baba
Bhim Rao Ambedkar and
Gautam Budhha. On the
other hand, there is an
Opposition candidate who
calls himself a ‘Babar ki
Aulad’,” Yogi said at an
election rally in Sambhal.
He said, “Once I was in
Parliament, I asked the SP
candidate, who was also
an MP, as to who were his
predecessors, he said he
was the successor of Ba-
bar. I was surprised.” Yo-
gi’s comments come days
after the EC barred him
from campaigning for 72
hours for allegedly mak-
ing comments amounting
to the violation of the
model code of conduct.
 —ANI
Rahul gets EC notice
over banner of NYAY
Amethi: The Election Com-
mission (EC) has issued a
notice to Congress president
Rahul Gandhi for alleged vio-
lation of model code of con-
duct (MCC) over the party’s
Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY)
scheme banner put up on a
wall in Amethi.
The EC said that the ban-
ner was put up without the
permission of the owner of
the building. Furthermore,
the details of the printing
firm were not seen on the
banner, the poll body said in
a statement on Thursday.
Rahul has been asked to
reply within 24 hours in the
matter, the EC said.
Under the NYAY scheme
or the minimum income
guarantee scheme, the Con-
gress has promised that it
will give Rs 72,000 per year
to 20 per cent of India’s
poorest if the party emerged
victorious in the ensuing
Lok Sabha elections.
Rahul has said that the
NYAY scheme would be a
“surgical strike” against
04 
‘Aim to bring India in global Poll officer goes missing
in WB’s Nadia district
top 50 for ease of doing biz’
PM Narendra Modi woos traders, calls them ‘backbone’ of the economy
DNA Correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
New Delhi: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Friday
said he aims to raise India’s
ranking in ease-of-doing-
business to top the 50 in the
next five years from the cur-
rent ranking of 77.
Addressing a massive
gathering of traders at Del-
hi’s Talkatora stadium, PM
Modi said, “India has jumped
to the 77th rank globally in
terms of ease-of-doing-busi-
ness in the last five years. My
aim is to reach the 50th posi-
tion in the next five years.”
Emphasising that the trad-
ers have always “thought
about the country” and at-
tached themselves to the
“needs of the nation”, PM
Modi said, “I am very much
impressed with one thing
from you – your hard work.”
Calling traders the “back-
bone” of the Indian economy,
PM Modi said, “You do not
just run business. In fact, you
serve the people by working
for long hours every day,” PM
Rahul Gandhi
poverty, and would not
harm the country’s econo-
my.
The Congress president
is pitted against BJP’s Sm-
riti Irani from Amethi in
the current Lok Sabha elec-
tions. Smriti had lost from
the seat in the 2014 Lok
Sabha elections.
Amethi, a traditional
bastion of the Gandhi fam-
ily, will go to polls on May 6.
Counting of votes will take
place on May 23.
—ANI
PM Narendra Modi at the ‘Traders Sammelan’ at Talkatora Stadium —PTI
You serve the people by working for long
hours every day. They (Congress) called all
businessmen chor (thieves) without realising
the contribution of the business community to the
Indian economy
Narendra Modi, Prime Minister
Modi said.
The prime minister said
he always believed that trad-
ers are also “meteorologists”.
“Because they plan every-
thing in advance and esti-
BSP supporter
mistakenly
votes for BJP,
chops off finger
Bulandshahr: Pawan Ku-
mar, who claims to be a
staunch Bahujan Samaj Par-
ty (BSP) supporter, chopped
off his finger after he “mis-
takingly voted” for the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
in the second phase of Lok
Sabha elections.
Speaking to ANI on Thurs-
day, Kumar said he acciden-
tally pressed the button of
BJP’s lotus instead of BSP’s
elephant on the EVM.
“I accidentally pressed the
button having Lotus symbol
instead of an elephant. I
chopped my finger for the
mistake,” he said.
Kumar, who hails from
Abdullapur Hulasan village
in Shikarpur area of the
constituency, voted for BJP
sitting MP Bhola Singh in-
stead of Yogesh Verma, the
candidate fielded by the alli-
ance of the Samajwadi Par-
ty, BSP, and Rashtriya Jana-
ta Dal.
—ANI
mate beforehand,” he said.
Making a strong re-elec-
tion pitch, PM Modi promised
traders a Rs 50-lakh loan with-
out any collateral, credit card
facility and a pension scheme
Rajini says ready to face assembly polls in TN
Chennai: Tamil ‘superstar’
Rajinikanth Friday said his
formal political entry will co-
incide with the next assembly
polls in Tamil Nadu.
The remarks virtually reit-
erate his earlier announce-
ment that he will float a party
by the next assembly polls in
Tamil Nadu, due in 2021, and
contest from all the 234 seats.
“Whenever the assembly
elections are held,” was the
actor’s brief response to a
question as to when his po-
tenders & Notices Petition demands free
access to all places of...
for small shopkeepers.
Lashing out at the Con-
gress, PM Modi said earlier
the Congress-led govern-
ments used to “insult” trad-
ers. “They called all business-
men chor (thieves) without
realising the contribution of
the business community to
the Indian economy,” he said.
PM Modi
said his gov-
ernment has
abolished as
many as 1,500
archaic laws ball
ballet
in the last five
years. “In the
run up to 2014
elections, I Roy. “We have
had promised that if voted to
power, we will end one law
every day. You will be happy
to know 1,500 laws have been
abolished in the last five
years,” he said. “Our govern-
ment has brought in Startup
India Standup India initia-
tive. We have promoted the
digitisation of business. Now,
youth are very much inter-
ested in starting their own
business,” PM Modi said.
litical entry was expected.
Asked if he would take a
decision based on the out-
come of bypolls to 18 assem-
bly segments held on Thurs-
day along with 38 Lok Sabha
seats, Rajinikanth said he
will respond after the results
are out. To a question if the
results may lead to assembly
polls in the state and whether
he would then face them, the
actor shot back, “Ready to
face, whenever they are held.”
The outcome of the bypolls to
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Arshad Ali
correspondent@dnaindia.net
Kolkata: A polling officer
who was in charge of EVM-
VVPATs went missing from
Krishnanagar in Nadia dis-
trict of West Bengal on
Thursday.
The officer, Arnab Roy
(30), had supervised the prep-
arations on Thursday at Bi-
pradas Pal Chowdhury Insti-
tute of Technology. He has
been untraceable since the
evening of
that day.
District
Magistrate
t (DM) Sumit
Gupta has said
that the ad-
ministration
is trying find
informed the office of the
Chief Electoral Officer (CEO),
West Bengal. Police is investi-
gating the matter,” he said.
It was found that Roy is an
official of the MGNREGA
project in Nadia district. He
was made in-charge of the
EVM-VVPATs at Ranaghat
Lok Sabha constituency.
He resides at Krishnana-
gar at a government apart-
ment, near the district mag-
taken apart
Rajinikanth
a total of 22 assembly seg-
ments in Tamil Nadu could
decide the continuance of the
From p1
The religious heads claimed
that the traditional practices
cannot be challenged in a
writ petition by a rank out-
sider as these are matters of
faith and religious practices.
Now the court has fixed the
petition for hearing on Au-
gust 26 asking the religious
heads to file their objections
to be considered on that day.
This petition has been
clubbed with another petition
moved in the HC by three law
students – Deeba Faryal, Shi-
vangi Kumari, and Anukriti
Sugam. They claimed to have
visited the Hazrat Nizamud-
din Dargah in Delhi where
they were greeted by a sign-
board restricting women from
entering the sanctum sancto-
rum. They have demanded
women be allowed access to
the sanctum sanctorum of the
Dargah, which can be ac-
cessed only by Muslim men.
Recently, the Supreme
indi
Arnab Roy
istrate’s office. His wife, Ani-
ta Jash, too is a MGNREGA
official. A temporary office
has been set up at Bipradas Pal
Chowdhury Institute of Tech-
nology. Sources said that Roy
went there on Thursday but
didn’t return home in the even-
ing. His car was found parked
at the institute. At 11 pm that
day, a missing complaint was
filed at Kotwali police station.
Actress and BJP candidate from
Hooghly parliamentary constituency,
Locket Chatterjee’s house at Bandel
was allegedly vandalised by Trinamool
Congress (TMC) goons on Friday morning.
The TMC denied the charges and blamed
the incident on BJP’s internal feuds —ANI
AIADMK government in the
state.
The bypolls to four other
seats will be held on May 19.
In the 234-member House,
the K Palaniswami govern-
ment has 113 MLAs, exclud-
ing the Speaker. It needs a
simple majority of 117 to con-
tinue. All eyes are on the out-
come of the bypolls, as a loss
for the AIADMK could well
lead to the next assembly
polls. In December 2017, the
superstar had announced
Court too got a taste of its Sa-
barimala verdict of Septem-
ber 28, 2018, when a Muslim
couple from Pune cited the
verdict to demand mixed con-
gregation of men and women
to offer prayers in mosques
and Idgahs. A bench of Jus-
tices SA Bobde and S Abdul
Nazeer issued a notice on the
petition by Zuber Ahmad Na-
zir Ahmad Peerzade and his
wife Yasmeen.
Priyanka leaves Cong
‘goons’ for Shiv Sena
From p1
“Why, after giving 10 years
to a political party, have I
taken this decision? I
used to be trolled on so-
cial media for my
bindaas remarks. I and
my family used to be
targeted. I was hurt
as my own party
men made deroga-
tory remarks
against me and re-
CPI(M) candidate
seeks re-poll in
assembly seats
Kolkata: CPI(M) candi-
date from Raiganj Parlia-
mentary constituency, Md
Salim has written to
Arvind K Mina, returning
officer of Uttar Dinajpore
district of Bengal seeking
a repoll at 23 booths in five
assembly constituencies
within Raiganj constitu-
ency. Among the reasons
he said was entry of armed
goons in the booths, voters
and presiding officers be-
ing intimidated and proxy
votes by offenders.
 —Arshad Ali
Police sources said that
Roy’s colleagues had said that
he was last seen walking out
of the institute in the after-
noon, while on call on his mo-
bile. “Some of his colleagues
had also seen him talking to
someone on the phone for a
long time in the backyard of
the institute,” an officer from
Kotwali police said.
Full report on: www.dnaindia.com
that he would take the politi-
cal plunge and contest the
next assembly polls in the
state whose politics is domi-
nated by Dravidian majors-
the DMK and AIADMK.
Since he made his an-
nouncement on December 31,
2017, speculations had often
been rife about the launch of
his political party, although
‘Rajini Makkal Mandram’, a
forum seen as a forerunner to
his political ambitions, is in
vogue. —PTI
Country’s first
premium cruise
liner is here
From p1
The 70,285-ton ship sailed on
its maiden voyage from Mum-
bai to Goa on April 17. Karni-
ka will undertake 15 sailings
for Mumbai-Goa-Mumbai and
Mumbai-High Seas-Mumbai
between April and mid-May
2019. The ship will undertake
its first international sail
from Mumbai to Dubai on
May 24 where it will port until
mid-September before return-
ing to Mumbai. On board,
passengers will have a variety
of cuisines, entertainment,
adventure and relaxation to
choose from. Additionally, the
cruise offers land-based ex-
cursions at different ports for
passengers.
instated,” Chaturvedi
said in her resignation
letter. “In the last few
weeks, certain things
have convinced me
that my services are
not valued in the
organisation
and that I
have reached
the end of
the road,”
she noted.

ball
ballet
l o k s a bh a e l e c t i o n 2 0 1 9 - 2 0
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in brief
BJP will get a big
rasgulla: Mamata
Balurghat: TMC supremo
Mamata Banerjee said the BJP
will get a ‘big rosogolla’ in
West Bengal. “Dilli ka laddoo jo
khaya woh pachhtaya (whoever
ate the laddoo of Delhi has
regretted it). In 2014, they got
two seats, they will get a big
rosogolla this time. They will
get a big zero,” she said. “In
Uttar Pradesh, they had 73
seats. I doubt whether they
will get even 13 this time,” she
added.
Lalu under fire for
distributing tickets
Patna: The JD(U) has
complained to the Election
Commission against RJD
chief Lalu Prasad Yadav for
distributing party tickets
using his signature even
though he is in jail. “Did Lalu
Prasad Yadav, a convict in
the fodder scam case, take
permission from a court
before using his signature to
distribute tickets? If not, then
the EC should declare illegal
the candidature of those who
have obtained his signature,”
JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj
Kumar said.
Blame Nehru for
J&K issue: Khattar
Bhiwani: Haryana CM
Manohar Lal Khattar said the
Kashmir issue was born out
of the “mistakes” committed
by India’s first prime minister
Jawaharlal Nehru. Address-
ing a public rally in Bhiwani,
Khattar said, “Kashmir could
have been an integral part of
India but it was because of
the mistakes committed by
Jawaharlal Nehru that Article
370 came into force in the
state.” He also told voters that
Congress does not want to
scrap Article 370.
Did BJP become rich
by selling tea: HDK
Hubbali: Taking a jibe at Prime
Minister Narendra Modi,
Karnataka Chief Minister HD
Kumaraswamy asked if the
BJP became rich by selling tea
across the country. “BJP has
said it will run a corruption-free
government. What corruption
free? Did Modi sell tea around
the country and make the party
rich? This claim of corruption
free government of his is fake,”
Kumaraswamy said. “Around
Rs 78 lakh was recovered
from one BJP leader in Karwar.
Where did this money come
from?”
EC gags Himachal BJP
chief Satti for 48 hours
New Delhi: The Election
Commission (EC) on Friday
barred Himachal Pradesh
BJP unit chief Satpal Singh
Satti from election cam-
paigning for 48 hours start-
ing from 10 am on Saturday.
Satti was accused of
using derogatory lan-
guage against Congress
president Rahul Gan-
dhi during a rally held
in Himachal Pradesh
recently. The Congress
party had objected to
Satti’s statement and
had demanded an apology
from him and BJP.
“Rahul Gandhi is out on
bail. His mother is out on
bail. His brother-in-law is out
desert storm rajasthan youth rue joblessness, say PM Modi has done all he can
In Bikaner, PM’s goodwill trumps unemployment
Bikaner: Sitting outside a
coaching institute, several
18-to-25-year-old job aspir-
ants are discussing notes
from the previous class. The
discussion turns political,
and unemployment is a dom-
inant theme. There are
around 14,000 registered un-
employed people in Bikaner,
according to data provided by
the National Career Service.
However, many young job
seekers feel Prime Minister
Narendra Modi should re-
turn to power and employ-
ment generation should not
be the only measure of the
government’s performance.
Sukhdev Singh (18) shrugs
t
In J&K, bijli, sadak, paani can wait
Parties in Kashmir have put issues of sub-nationalism and identity at the forefront of their campaign
Ishfaq-ul-Hassan
h_ishfaq@dnaindia.net
Srinagar: It’s not jobs or de-
velopment, but the key issues
that dominate the political
discourse in Jammu and
Kashmir are still soft separa-
tism and sub-nationalism.
From protecting the region
special status under Article
370 and Article 35A, to au-
tonomy, self-rule, the Armed
Forces Special Powers Act,
Public Safety Act, etc. issues
used by mainstream political
parties to woo voters in the
Valley all revolve around
questions of identity and
emotion. Meanwhile, more
traditional common man’s is-
sues — bijli, sadak, paani —
find themselves relegated to
the backburner.
Leading the charge are Na-
tional Conference (NC) and
Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP), who are both trying to
project themselves as sav-
iours of the state’s special
status. “It’s not an election;
Sikh hardliner Bibi Battle for Bhatinda heats up as
gets Khadoor Sahib SAD, AAP, Cong make it personal
Chhavi Bhatia
chhavi.bhatia@dnaindia.net
New Delhi: Battling internal
strife, an ailing Shiromani
Akali Dal (SAD) has fielded
Sikh hardliner Bibi Jagir
Kaur from Punjab’s Khadoor
Sahib. Khadoor Sahib is an
important constituency, one
that spans across the three
belts of the state: Majha, Do-
aba and Malwa. Her candida-
ture is being seen as the
SAD’s attempt at countering
the sharp criticism it faced
among Sikh voters because
of its mishandling of the sit-
uation arising from the al-
leged desecration of the
Guru Granth Sahib in 2015.
Bibi enjoys close ties with
the Panthic clergy, and was the
first woman president of the
Shiromani Gurudwara Par-
bandhak Committee (SGPC). A
three-time MLA from Bholath,
she has courted several contro-
versies in the past, the most
prominent being the alleged
on bail, and yet he calls the
Prime Minister a ‘chor’
(thief). Modiji is not even on
bail. There is no case against
him. Then who are you to call
him (Modi) a chor like any
judge? A Punjabi man asked
me to convey this to
you with a heavy
heart, and that in-
spires me to tell you
this. If this country’s
‘chowkidar’ is a ‘chor’,
then you are a
m********,” he had
said at an election
rally on April 13.
The polling in Himachal
Pradesh will take place on
May 19. The counting of votes
will begin on May 23. — ANI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a rally earlier this week —PTI
at the mention of lack of jobs.
“So what if there are no jobs?
How much can a single man
do? And Modiji has still done
all set
15 mn
First-time voters aged between
18 and 19, while nearly two-
thirds of India’s population is
below 35 years of age.
of terrorists? Jawans do not count bodies, it is the work of vultures.
— Rajnath Singh, BJP leader and Union minister
superstar Rajinikanth says he will contest Tamil Nadu Assembly elections if the aiadmk govt falls
Kashmir’s politics, in numbers
not only pdp and NC, but also congress assured to preserve J&K’s special status
May 5
Polling for
Anantnag
and Ladakh
2014 LS elections
BJP: 3 seats
(Jammu, Udhampur, Ladakh)
it’s a battle for our survival,
identity and autonomy. You
don’t have to vote for NC or
me; you vote for Kashmir and
for yourself,” said Justice
(retd) Hasnain Masoodi, NC’s
candidate from Anantnag.
abduction and murder of her
daughter Harpreet.
She married the son of the
Dera head in 1980, and after
her husband’s death, she for-
mally appointed herself head
of the dera, which helped her
gain considerable influence
in Sikh-dominant Lubana.
She joined the SAD in 1995,
and rapidly grew within the
party. In 1999, she became the
first woman chief of the apex
gurudwara body. Her ticket is
seen as a decisive blow to rebel
sitting MP Ranjit Singh
Brahmpura who broke away
and formed his own faction.
ballot in shadow of bullets
BSF soldiers stand guard at Kangan, some 35 km from Srinagar. Security was intensified across Jammu and
Kashmir following reports that terrorists may strike the state, even as the poll machinary rolled in. —AFP
a lot for the country. It’s not
like there are no jobs, those
who study hard do find jobs,”
he says.
`11.85L
Cash seized by Election Com-
mission’s flying squad from
Mumbai’s Sion area, two weeks
ahead of elections in the city.
Oppn wants to know number of terrorists killed in Balakot. How
can jawans count the number when the target is a huge gathering
34,22,149
35.1%
PDP: 3 seats
(Anantnag, Srinagar, Baramulla) Baramulla
Both NC and PDP are con-
testing the three seats from
Kashmir Valley, while back-
ing Congress candidates
from the two seats in Jammu.
“BJP is outraged that we
want to restore the state’s
Chhavi Bhatia
chhavi.bhatia@dnaindia.net
New Delhi: A sitting MP, a
rebel candidate, a legislator,
and a former deputy chief
minister: The battle for
Bhatinda may well be one of
the most high-profile contests
in the ongoing Lok Sabha elec-
tions, with all parties putting
up heavyweight candidates.
Traditionally a Badal
pocket borough, the Congress
and Aam Aadmi Party have
also made it a matter of pres-
tige this time. In 2014, the con-
test was an all-Badal affair:
Sitting MP Harsimrat Kaur
Badal locked horns with es-
tranged brother-in-law Man-
preet Singh Badal who con-
tested on a Congress ticket.
Today, there are speculations
that she may vacate the seat
for her husband Sukhbir and
instead fight from Firozpur.
However, given the handsome
margins of victory she en-
joyed in 2009 and 2014, the
Amit Chaudhary (19) ech-
oed these sentiments. “Who
says there are not enough
jobs? There are enough jobs
right now and more are
coming. As far as I know,
nobody can stop Modiji
from coming back to power,”
Chaudhary asked.
Sanwarlal Bhargav feels
getting jobs is harder due to
increased competition.
“Those who are preparing for
SSC also appear for Ra-
jasthan LDC (lower division-
al clerk) exams, this shoots
up the cut-off for the latter.
Earlier, they wouldn’t sit for
Rajasthan-specific jobs, but
now everyone wants to keep
324
Number of companies of central
forces deployed for the third
phase of voting in West Bengal
on April 23
Total electorate
Voter turnout
14.1% 72.19%
Srinagar
Jammu
special status. They are the
ones who used to sit with me
in the central Cabinet when
we got the autonomy resolu-
tion passed. Why didn’t they
raise these issues then? Res-
toration of autonomy will go
party may not want to experi-
ment, especially given its de-
clining popularity.
Harsimrat defeated Ra-
ninder Singh, son of CM
Amarinder Singh in 2009, by
one lakh votes. She repeated
her act in 2014 in a closely-
fought election, winning by
19,000 votes.
Meanwhile, the Congress
is also in a dilemma. With
Manpreet opting out, it’s
struggling to come up with a
prominent candidate, al-
though names of former
something on the side, in case
the main plan doesn’t work,”
the 23-year-old SSC-aspirant
from Gopeshwar Basti said.
Bhargav believes the Modi
government should get an-
other chance as “it takes time
to do something good”.
On the other hand, 20-year-
old Banwarilal Jyani has lit-
tle faith in the Modi govern-
ment. “I don’t feel there has
been any great development
under the Modi government.
Look at the GDP rate, it has
barely changed since 2014,”
said Jyani, who is also pre-
paring for SSC exams, has six
siblings, four of whom are
looking for jobs. — PTI
‘Cong to
blame for
NRC woes’
05
BJP national gen-
eral secretary Ram
Madhav accused the
Congress party for
encouraging infiltra-
tion in Assam He
also accused former
CM Tarun Gogoi of
backing out of the
exercise in 2010
Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019 I daily news & analysis
24 years on, Maya
& Mulayam share
dais at Mainpuri
a long way in removing cob-
webs of mistrust between
New Delhi and the state,”
Omar Abdullah, former
chief minister and NC vice- Nikhil M Ghanekar
president said. nikhil.ghanekar@dnaindia.net they said it
Another former CM, PDP „„Rajnath recalled that
chief Mehbooba Mufti, has New Delhi: Erstwhile arch Atal Bihari Vajpayee had
also been asking people to rivals BSP supremo Mayawa- credited Indira Gandhi for
stand united against divisive ti and Samajwadi Party pa- the Bangladesh war, and
forces. “BJP has already pub- tron-in-chief Mulayam Singh asked why can’t PM Modi
licised its agenda against our came together for the first
be accorded the same
identity and special status. time in 24 years in a cam- honour.
It’s working on a plan to di- paign rally in SP stronghold
vide us and weaken our fight. Mainpuri on Friday. „„He also criticised the
We have to guard our identity Addressing a massive Congress for not taking
and our interests as a Mus- gathering, the two leaders action against Pakistan
lim-majority state across lin- praised each other. Mayawati following the 2008
guistic and sectarian differ- said Mulayam is a true leader Mumbai attacks, and
ences,” Mehbooba said. of the backward community said India is no longer a
Even the Congress, which and called Prime Minister weak State.
is contesting two of the Val- Narendra Modi “a farzi (fake)
ley’s three seats, has prom- leader of the backward class-
ised to protect J&K’s special es”. She appealed to the vot- decision, taken with a view
status. “Even if BJP rules for ers in Mainpuri to deliver a of the situation in the coun-
the next 200 years, Congress “historic” and “record-break- try”. She said she will not
will not allow them to revoke ing” mandate for Yadav in the bother to clarify her position
Article 370,” said Ghulam Lok Sabha polls. on the guest house incident
Nabi Azad, senior Congress Mulayam said he will never as she had already done so
leader and leader of Opposi- forget Mayawati’s support. “All when the SP-BSP alliance
tion in Rajya Sabha. of you should always respect was announced. She also
Mayawati because she has sup- slammed asked voters to not
ported us in bad times. We are get swayed over the Con-
really happy and I thank her on gress’s promise of minimum
everyone’s behalf,” said the income support.
79-year-old leader. “There is no doubt that un-
The two leaders, whose der the Samajwadi banner,
parties formed the govern- Mulayam ji has taken along
ment in 1993, had broken ties all sections of the society
following the infamous guest ahead and especially those
house incident in June 1995 from the other backward
badal stronghold – when SP workers assaulted communities have been em-
BSP legislators camping at powered. These classes and
In 2009 and 2014, SAD’s the Lucknow state guest communities consider him
Harsimrat Kaur Badal house and cornered Mayawa- their true leader. Also, unlike
won from Bhatinda with ti, who eventually escaped PM Modi he is not from a
handsome margins: In 2009, unhurt. The incident drove a farzi (duplicate) or naqli
she defeated Raninder wedge between the parties, (fake) backward community.
Singh, son of CM Amarinder until January. Mulayam ji is in reality from
Singh, by one lakh votes, Mayawati said the re- a backward community, by
while in 2014, she won by newed tie-up was a “difficult birth,” Mayawati said.
19,000 votes
deputy CM Rajinder Kaur
Bhattal, Gidderbaha MLA
Amrinder Singh Warring and
Sangrur MLA Vijay Inder
Singla are being considered.
Meanwhile, the AAP has
fielded Talwandi Sabo MLA
Baljinder Kaur, who heads
the party’s women’s wing.
Also in the fray is Sukhpal
Khaira who parted ways with
AAP to float the Punjab Ekta
Party. Three other disgrun-
tled AAP MLAs have openly
backed him, which isn’t help-
ing the party. SP’s Mulayam Singh greets BSP supremo Mayawati — PTI
Volatile North Kerala region
to see another bruising fight
Kozhikode: The politically
volatile north Kerala re-
gion is witnessing a fierce
battle between the ruling
triple-threat contest
CPM-led LDF and the Op- Kasaragod
position Congress-headed Rajmohan Unnithan
UDF in the three Lok Sabha (Congress)
constituencies of Vadaka- KP Satheesh Chandran
ra, Kannur and Kasaragod. (CPM)
While the main battle is Ravish Tantri (BJP)
between the two fronts in
Kerala, the BJP has
emerged as a significant Vadakara
player after extending sup- Kannur P Jayarajan (CPM)
port to the Sabarimala PK Sreemathy (CPM) KERALA K Muraleedheeran
devotees. Polling here takes K Sudhakaran (Congress) (Congress)
place on April 23. CK Padmanabhan (BJP VK Sajeevan (BJP)
In Vadakara, the CPM
has fielded strongman P
Jayarajan. Congress’s Mul-
lappally Ramachandran
had won here with a mea-
gre margin of 3,300 votes in
2014. But after Ramachan-
dran opted out of the race,
Congress, in a surprise
move, picked K Muraleed-
heeran. Muraleedheeran is
a three-time MP and incum-
bent MLA from Vattiyoork-
avu, and the son of former
CM K Karunakaran.
In adjacent Kannur, in-
cumbent PK Sreemathy of
CPM is highlighting the the Modi government. brought to justice”.
development work carried In Kasaragod, meanwhile, Congress fielded senior
out the Left Front govern- the Left holds supreme. The party leader Rajmohan Un-
ment. Congress leader K last time it was defeated here nithan here, while the CPM
Sudhakaran, from whom was in 1984. Congress is aim- has fielded KP Satheesh
Sreemathy wrested the seat ing to make use of the sym- Chandran. Rahul’s deci-
by a 6,500-vote margin in pathy generated after the sion to contest from Kerala
2014, has made the Left’s killing of its two youth work- too has lifted the Con-
violent politics a poll plank. ers in Periya in February. gress’s spirits.
The BJP has fielded CK Police said the killings were Meanwhile, the BJP has
Padmanabhan, a familiar politically motivated. Rahul fielded Ravish Tantri, a
political face who is bank- Gandhi said he will “not rest Hindu hardliner, to gain
ing on the achievements of till the murderers are momentum here. — PTI
 06
Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019
 opini n
www.dnaindia.com I twitter.com/dna I epaper.dnaindia.com I facebook.com/dnaindia

Do you call yourself feminist?

Assessing the extent of an individual’s understanding of feminism towards making a world of equals
daily news & analysis

Cong house in disarray

Evolution with
time is a continu-
ous process. A
headway towards
Chaturvedi’s move shows party members are in ennui egalitarianism has
gained traction in

C
ongress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi has resigned recent times. But,
from the Congress after 10 years of association with it and how much of an
joined the Shiv Sena. Earlier, she had taken to Twitter ex- individual’s con-
pressing her displeasure over the way her party had treated her. Shreya Garg science and under-
standing of the
Chaturvedi was upset that the party reinstated certain Congress concept of feminism has contributed
leaders, who had used indecent language towards her in Ma- towards the making of a world of equals,
thura, which happens to be her hometown. She had been one of needs to be asked.
the most vociferous defenders of the party on Twitter and other In an age, where various hashtags and
media platforms, and had received threats against her family movements have been dedicated to the
and her own life. She did not budge. However, it is this unkindest cause of feminism, one wonders if the
ones, who claim to be feminists are truly
cut that came from within that hurt her. But, should she have the legit ones, and not in the run up to
been surprised? The Congress culture, if it can be called one, becoming one. This misgiving arises due
has been such even as their leader and party president Rahul to the big question mark that looms over
Gandhi speaks of love and decency in public discourse. In one as to what happens to the years of condi-
of his most (in)famous stunts, Rahul went to Prime Minister tioning that has nurtured our percep-
Narendra Modi to offer a hug during parliamentary debate; even tions to view the binary of men and
women in our society?
there, instead of politely requesting the PM to rise so that he We have always been a society where
could hug him, the Congress chief almost ordered him to stand. women have been long suppressed and
And after the forced hug was done, he even had the temerity to oppressed. However, with time people
wink at his fellow MPs, which belied his claim to genuine inten- change primarily due to the influence
tions. What Chaturvedi experienced first-hand has been appar- that their experiences in the past had on
ent several times, and despite the party getting flak for it, there them. One always tends to make a men-
tal note of injustices done to them to
has been no change in how Congress supporters and leaders make sure that their next generation The force is with women today; efforts should be made to not wreck it by misplacing the sense of given opportunity —iSTOCK
behave. Senior party leader Digvijaya Singh described a fellow doesn’t get the same treatment. Per-
Congress leader as tunch maal (loosely translated into ‘a desir- haps, this is why people’s bitter experi- it holds true and if so, then what could for what one believes in. Ironically, first
able object’). He used the same words describing actress Disha ences make them a bit more lax and be the possible reasons for it. It could be we don’t let women grow empowered,
Patani. He had no regrets for uttering such third-grade lan- giving in their relationships with other attributed to the years of forced asceti- and when they seek it belatedly, they’re
guage. And the party has nominated him to contest Lok Sabha people. The pertinent question is, “Can cism, early on in their lives, which has met with an accusatory response. The
they qualify themselves as an equal op- corroborated their belief system to an blame is pinned down to women only for
elections in Bhopal. Similarly, Imran Masood, the Uttar Pradesh portunity giver?” extent that they actually begin to glorify their belated realization. Realization for
Congress leader who infamously said he would chop PM Modi Positive changes are there in plenty their subjugated lives and give it a mean- a right thing, be it advanced or belated,
into pieces, was named in the first list of the Congress candidates yet are the changes adequate enough for ing, that is, the essence of womanhood. should never be discriminated against,
for this general election. When there was uproar over the remark women to rejoice, feel grateful, fulfilled Hence, the explanation of existing role- but given due importance.
in 2014, Rahul Gandhi, who likes to take higher moral ground on and maybe truly liberated? Many times, playing with women in the most stereo- Any battle’s essence lies in achieving
such issues, had said that he disapproved the language. But the the hope to find solace comes from the typical fashion. the goal with minimal collateral destruc-
circumstantial history of ancestors. It They say years of conditioned atti- tion. However, if one chooses to go all up
man was not only allowed to contest the 2014 general elections, serves as a reminder that their present tudes and belief structure makes a per- in the arms, even rightfully so, discard-
but he was also nominated in the 2017 assembly polls in Uttar situation is much more palatable. But is son who he is. It could possibly not be ble fury – a product of belated realiza- ing tact, then the battle maybe won,
Pradesh. Manishankar Aiyer did not learn any lesson from his this what feminism is all about? easy for people conditioned with stereo- tion. It confuses the mind of the recipi- asymmetrically. The fury may be justifi-
chaiwalla remark against Narendra Modi in 2014 when the par- Shouldn’t it be about egalitarianism in- typical beliefs, with respect to the quin- ent and makes the giver look like a rebel able, but would it benefit anyone in a
ty paid heavily for the sheer arrogance displayed by the Congress stead of making do with the existing tessential archaic position of women in without a cause. Anyway a rebel is a re- larger scheme of things, if not accompa-
leader. He again referred to PM Modi as neech aadmi, showing circumstances? For how long, after all, a society, to really recuperate from their bel and with inexplicable sudden fury as nied with long-term strategy and tact?
do we intend to make do? Women get so years of well-nurtured regressive be- its befuddling weapon it has somewhat One mustn’t not let years of subjugation-
that his classist bias just doesn’t go away. Rahul himself erred complacent with the little freedom grant- liefs. One of the major reasons for the got what it wanted, but not with an open led fury dilute one’s better sense of chan-
when he spoke about Rafale documents after meeting the then ed by men or society, at large, that they not-so-massive success of the feminist heart. The response of the society, as a nelling their anger. Firm resolve along
ailing Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar. What was meant do not even think, let alone, fight for movement is owing to the long standing whole, can be best termed as duplicitous. with the sensibilities befitting a wise
to be a courtesy visit was turned into a political one-upmanship their rights. Granted word is cardinal notion of an ideal woman. The ideal One could only hope that people truly person throughout the process of change
by the Congress president, which boomeranged badly. If Con- here; it serves a connotation of its own. woman was uniformly the coy, meek, and understand the reasons behind the sud- could help manoeuvre through the battle
gress is indeed serious about issues of bringing back public de- The period spent rejoicing on small free- a submissive one. These traits of an den fury, for it’s a big blow to anyone to easily. It might take long, but one would
doms also happens to be a bout of an- ideal woman have long empowered men. discover how they themselves abided by at least be able to safeguard against the
cency in political discourse, then the party will have to set its other infliction and deprivation, of less With changing times, women want to a set of misplaced and non-questioned loss of essence between the binary of
own house in order before pointing fingers at others. grave nature, and perhaps not even pal- feel empowered and carve their own existing notions for a good amount of men and women.
pable to some. What could be worse than identities. With power dynamics chang- their life only to discover how colossally The force is with women today. Efforts
a suffering which is anonymous in na- ing in the relationship between men and wrong they were. The problem is com- should be made to not wreck it by mis-

imprudent remark ture at the time, but a source of agony

when seen in hindsight?
Some say women only become stum-
women, society is finding it difficult to
cope with the sudden inexplicable de-
mands and fury of hitherto long subju-
pounded on seeing how they have set a
pattern of living for themselves. Seeking
to grow out of an existing pattern is not
placing the sense of given opportunity.
Let not the society, eager to stereotype
the consequences of progress of women,
Pragya Thakur’s comment shakes national conscience bling stones to a level-playing field be-
tween men and women. One wonders if
gated women.
Now, this is the thing with inexplica-
very easy, one is questioned and made to
feel helpless. It’s never too late to stand
set an unworthy narrative.
The author is a journalist

S
adhvi Pragya Thakur’s statement that she had cursed the
26/11 martyr Hemant Karkare and hence he was killed is
the most unfortunate remark in this election season so far. QUOTE HANGER slowburn
That Thakur has grievance against Karkare, who as the then
Anti Terrorists Squad chief had arrested the Sadhvi in connec-
tion with the Malegaon bomb blasts, is understandable. But that
Dalai Lama Maria Popova In South Sudan, illness as deadly as war
@DalaiLama @brainpicker
B
a statement like this should come from her, when she is contest- y the time he was brought into the Nyachoat’s 22-year-old mother Buk
ing from Bhopal on Bharatiya Janata Party ticket for Lok Sab- If it were basic human “It’s a mercy that time runs in remote clinic in northeastern South Gader. A study by the London School of
Sudan, two-year-old Nyachoat was Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
ha polls, is indeed embarrassing. The BJP has rightly distanced nature to be angry, there’d be no one direction only, that we see the past already convulsing from the malaria (LSHTM) in 2018 showed almost 400,000
itself from the Sadhvi’s statement, but it won’t be enough to hope, but since it is our nature to but darkly and the future not at all.” attacking his brain. After being given people had died as a result of South
simply describe the remark as her personal stance borne out be compassionate, there is. medication he lies fast asleep, naked Sudan’s nearly six-year war.
of the presumed torture she underwent in the jail. The party and feverish, attached to a drip, his
must strongly condemn it, for it is the BJP that is seen as a anxious mother sitting on the bed next
party that puts national interests above everything. If the par- Amit Paranjape Cristiano is the future of
to him. Nyachoat could be saved, but
others are not so lucky. In South Sudan
Indian Ocean science
ty were to uphold that principle, the Sadhvi should be asked to
retract her statement. 26/11 was one of the darkest chapters in
@aparanjape Juventus. He has done very well mind-bending horrors abound of war,
ethnic violence, rape, hunger and dis-
mission reaches end
“A new study projects this year and will do so next
T
our contemporary history and officers like Hemant Karkare, placement. But for civilians living in he British-led Nekton scientific mis-
Vijay Salaskar and Ashok Kamte sacrificed their lives while that the updated labels, which detail the shadow of conflict, the greatest sion on Thursday completed a seven-
season, of course he danger is often being cut off from week expedition in the Indian Ocean
fighting Pakistani terrorists that had launched attacks in Mum- the amount of sugar added to a food
bai. The trio and indeed several other policemen, including
or drink, could help the average US is disappointed like health services, whether due to vio-
lence or lack of development in the
aimed at documenting changes beneath
the waves that could affect billions of
Tukaram Ombalkar who flung himself on Ajmal Kasab, did not
think for a moment about their own lives. The only thought that adult cut sugar consumption by all of us but he’s vast, remote areas that make up much people in the surrounding region over
of the country. According to the Inter- the coming decades. Little is known
they had in mind was their duty to their flag, their nation, i.e., around half a teaspoon a day.” calm about national Committee of the Red Cross about the watery world below depths of
the Tricolour and India. To say that Karkare died because of a Champions (ICRC), which supports the tiny clinic
where Nyachoat is recovering in Udier
30 metre, the limit to which a scuba
diver goes. Operating down to 450 metre
curse given by a Sadhvi who, by her claims, was innocent, is
insulting the supreme sacrifices made by our officers in uni- Elon Musk League flop village, 70 per cent of all illness deaths with manned submersibles and under-
are due to easily treatable malaria, water drones off Seychelles, the scien-
form. The IPS Officers’ Association has rightly condemned it. @elonmusk — Massimiliano acute watery diarrhoea and respirato- tists were the first to explore areas of
The supreme leadership in the BJP as well as the RSS should My Twitter is pretty much Allegri, Juventus ry infections. In case of more serious great diversity where sunlight weakens
have a quiet word with the Sadhvi and make her understand coach illness there is “no place” to go, said and the deep ocean begins.
that she cannot be insulting the martyrs for her electoral cause. complete nonsense at this point.
send your feedback to editor@dnaindia.net

The unsolved puzzle of Lal Bahadur Shastri’s death

The Tashkent
Files sets itself up
as political thrill-
er masquerading
as a murder mys-
tery. The latter is
never solved, but
the film succeeds
beyond expecta-
Makarand R. tions.
Paranjape Vivek Ranjan
Agnihotri’s
scripting and directorial skills dis-
pense high drama, in addition to an en-
grossing audience experience, without
really uncovering new facts or theories
about Shastri’s death. With great lines,
flattering lighting, camera angles, ex-
clusive spotlights and close-ups, Agni-
hotri extracts a power-packed perfor-
mance from each of his actors. It is a
sort of Indianized 12 Angry Men closed
committee, rather than courtroom,
drama. To that extent, Tashkent Files
is as much a performers’ as viewers’
delight, offering much needed respite
from the oppressive star system that
dominates Bollywood. who gives her a birthday scoop to in-
Mithun Chakraborty as Shyam Sun- vestigate, Prasad ends up losing her
der Tripathi, the ageing politician as livelihood as an investigative journal-
comeback artist, is especially riveting. ist, but is born-again in the dirty game
In the film Tripathi serves as the head of politics. Stressing her citizen’s right
of the Inquiry Commission on Shas- to know the truth, she is the viewer’s
tri’s death, mirroring the Raj Narain entrée and identification object. Agni-
Committee set up for precisely such a hotri, with a stroke of genius, hits on
purpose by the Janata Government in this ruse to engage the youth of the na-
1977. Sadly, few today remember this tion in a subject of arguably little con-
committee or what happened to its temporary value. Pallavi Joshi makes
findings; all records related to it are an understated if embittered Aiysha
“untraceable,” suggesting one of Ali Shah, the beedi-smoking
many deliberate cover-ups on “sarkari” historian, now wheel-
Shastri’s death. Anuj Dhar, who Soft chair-bound, almost reduced to a
appears as one of the experts in Power has-been. Mandira Bedi as the
the film, is also key source. His NGO lady, Indira Joseph Roy, is
forthcoming expose, Your Prime credible as position-shifting time-
Minister is Dead, is sure to ride on the server, always high-sounding but of
film’s publicity and success. questionable morals. The only charac-
Naseeruddin Shah as PKR Natrajan, ter who makes little sense is the scien-
Tiwari’s sinister, cynical, manipulat- tist Gangaram Jha, revealed to be com-
ing ruling-party opponent and Shweta munalist and denounced as racist in
Basu Prasad, the intrepid reporter, the movie. Though well-played by Pan-
Raagini Phule, are not less memorable. kaj Tirpathi, there is little that is “sci-
Led by “deep throat” (voiced by Agni- entific” to his persona—a scripting,
hotri himself), the mysterious caller though not casting error, perhaps?
The action shifts from Delhi to Tash-
kent, where a rather unconvincing re-
porter-meets-spy series of episodes is
enacted. Shweta, jobless and frustrated
for want of leads, prays twice to Shas-
tri’s spirit, at his memorial in Tash-
kent and at Vijay Ghat, New Delhi.
What does she gain, however? The
viewers’ sympathy and good grades in
her five-step initiation into the murky
deep state underworld led on by her
unknown telephonic source. Why
doesn’t she ask to trace the mobile
number, one wonders. But such ques-
tions, if carried to their logical end,
would deter our appreciation. The film,
in fact, also glaringly glosses over the
man who might have poisoned Shastri,
the cook Jan Mohammad. Unlike the
other witnesses such as his physician
Dr Chugh, Jan Mohammad lived long
after the event. He was not only inter-
rogated by the Soviet Police, but went
on to serve in the Rashtrapati Bhawan,
New Delhi. This is one of the loose
ends, if not false leads of the film.
Ultimately, however, the real pur-
pose of the film is not to try to solve
the “unsolvable” mystery of Shastri’s
death. Instead, it is to reflect on the na-
ture of politics and unknowable deep
state actors. At one point Tripathi says,
the only truth of politics is that it ac-
cepts no truth. That is why, when the
background score shifts from “sab
chalta hai” (anything goes) to “sach
chalta hai” (truth sells), we are not en-
tirely convinced. Tripathi reveals that
the real purpose of the Commission is
not to shed new light on Shastri’s
death, but to give him a “mudda,” a
pretext, to fight elections.
If Shastri was murdered, who would
be the immediate beneficiary?
Wouldn’t it make sense for the Soviets,
especially during the height of the
Cold War, to gain control over India by
engineering to elevate its own candi-
date as India’s supreme leader? The
Mitrokhin papers, with which the mov-
ie begins, claim that the Indian state
was heavily during Mrs Gandhi’s era.
But these have been in the public do-
main for over a decade. Though Shas-
tri’s death hasn’t become an election
issue, the film’s success at the Box Of-
fice has established Agnihotri as a
credible Bollywood-breaking breakout
figure, an independent film maker
who, because of his self-created fan-fol-
lowing, cannot be ignored.
Author is Director, IIAS, Shimla
Views are personal

Vol 12 n Issue No. 165 RNI: GUJENG/2007/22424. Printed and Published by Rajendra Bathula on behalf of Diligent Media Corporation ltd. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Press, Survey No.148 P, Nagdevta Mandir, Changodar, Bavla Highway, Sanand, Ahmedabad (Gujarat) and Published at Diligent Media Corporation
Limited, Venus Atlantis Building, Unit No. 201 to 208, 2nd Floor, 100 Feet Road, Prahladnagar, Satellite, Ahmedabad 380015. Phone: 079 4060 2000. Editor: Deepak Lokhande Responsible for selection of news under PRB Act.
 w rld
www.dnaindia.com I twitter.com/dna I epaper.dnaindia.com I facebook.com/dnaindia
in brief
Joko’s rival tells
pollsters to move
to Antarctica
Jakarta: Indonesia’s
presidential challenger
on Friday slammed poll-
sters as untrustworthy
and said they should
move to Antarctica so
they could “lie to the pen-
guins”, as he refused to
concede defeat in this
week’s election. Fire-
brand ex-general Prabowo
Subianto has rejected a
dozen so-called quick
counts that say Indone-
sian president Joko Wido-
do was re-elected Wednes-
day by a comfortable mar-
gin. The counts, which
are samples conducted by
pollsters, have been relia-
ble indicators in past elec-
tions. Official results are
not due until next month.
Austria fears for
top climbers
missing in Canada
Berlin: Austrian Chancel-
lor Sebastian Kurz said
Friday his thoughts are
with the friends and fami-
lies of two of the coun-
try’s best-known climbers
missing and feared dead
in Canada along with an
American alpinist follow-
ing an avalanche. David
Lama und Hansjörg Auer
have been missing in Al-
berta’s Banff National
Park since Wednesday to-
gether with American
climber Jess Roskelley.
Their sponsor, outdoor ap-
parel company The North
Face, said the three mem-
bers of its Global Athlete
Team are presumed dead.
Two Australian
divers awarded
for cave rescue
Bangkok: Two Australi-
an cave divers who were
instrumental in the res-
cue last year of 12 Thai
boys and their soccer
coach from a flooded cave
received on Friday a royal
honour from King Maha
Vajiralongkorn in a cere-
mony in Bangkok.
Taliban-Af talks postponed over guest list
Kabul: Hopes for a break-
through in a push to end Af-
ghanistan’s gruelling conflict
suffered a major setback Fri-
day after a key summit be-
tween the Taliban and Af-
ghan officials was indefinite-
ly postponed.
The so-called intra-Afghan
dialogue, due to take place in
Doha this weekend, fell apart
at the last minute in a row
over the large number of del-
egates Kabul wanted to send.
Washington, which is lead-
ing an effort to end the war,
signalled its disappointment
and urged both sides to return
to the table, though organisers
New IRA suspect as
journalist shot dead
in Northern Ireland
London: Police in Northern
Ireland said Friday they are
searching for multiple sus-
pects in the fatal shooting of
a journalist during overnight
rioting in the city of London-
derry.
The dissident republican
group, the New IRA, was most
likely responsible for killing
Lyra McKee, police said after
a clear escalation in recent
violence. The Police Service
of Northern Ireland said the
29-year-old journalist and au-
thor was shot and killed, prob-
ably by a stray bullet, during
rioting in the Creggan area.
Assistant Chief Constable
Mark Hamilton said a gun-
man fired a number of shots
at police during the unrest
Thursday evening. “We be-
lieve this to be a terrorist act,”
he said. “We believe it has
been carried out by violent
dissident republicans.” Ham-
ilton said the force’s assess-
ment “is that the New IRA are
most likely to be the ones be-
hind this and that forms our
primary line of inquiry.”
A murder investigation
has been launched but there
have been no arrests. Police
appealed for calm to prevail
on Easter weekend.
Deputy Chief Constable
Stephen Martin said police
believe more than one person
was involved in the shooting.
“We certainly believe there
was more than one person
who was involved in this last
night. Obviously only one
person pulled the trigger but
House Dems demand
full Mueller report
Judiciary Committee’s chairman issues subpoena, says it
is up to the Congress to determine scope of misconduct
Washington: The chairman
of the House Judiciary Com-
mittee issued a subpoena Fri-
day for special counsel’s Rob-
ert Mueller’s report as Con-
gress escalates its investiga-
tion of President Donald
Trump.
“It now falls to Congress to
determine the full scope of
that alleged misconduct and
to decide what steps we must
take going forward,” said
Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-NY He
expects the Justice Depart-
ment to comply by May 1.
While Mueller declined to
prosecute Trump on obstruc-
tion of justice, he did not ex-
onerate the president, all but
leaving the question to Con-
gress.
Mueller’s report provides
fresh evidence of Trump’s
interference in the Russia in-
vestigation and challenges
lawmakers to respond. The
risks for both parties are
clear if they duck the respon-
sibility or prolong an inquiry
that, rather than coming to a
close, may be just beginning.
“My committee needs and
is entitled to the full version
of the report and the underly-
ing evidence consistent with
past practice,” Nadler said in
a statement.
But the committee’s top
Republican, Rep Doug Collins
of Georgia, said the subpoena
was “wildly overbroad” and
that Trump already declined
to assert executive privilege
in a move of “unprecedented
openness.” Collins said Na-
dler was rushing the process
for political gain.
“This is politically con-
venient,” Collins said, allow-
ing the chairman “to grand-
stand and rail against the at-
torney general for not coop-
erating on an impossible
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani
gave no hint about when the
conference might be resched-
uled. Sultan Barakat, who
heads the group that was to
host the event, said in a state-
ment the postponement was
Journalist Lyra McKee —Reuters
the new ira
The New IRA is a small
group of republicans
who reject the 1998
Good Friday agreement
that marked the Irish
Republican Army’s
embrace of a political
solution to the long-running
violence known as “The
Troubles” that claimed
more than 3,700 lives
there was more than one per-
son,” he said.
He said the violence start-
ed after police entered the
area to search for weapons
and that the gunman was
aiming at policemen when
the rioting intensified.
Mayor John Boyle said the
city was united in mourning
her death. “I have known her
since she was 16 years old,”
he said. “She was bright, she
was warm, she was witty, but
most of all she was an out-
standing individual, a great
friend to so, so many people
in this city in the short time
that she was with us.” —AP
A cardboard cutout of US Attorney General William Barr seen during a
protest outside the White House in Washington —Reuters
‘deeply alarming acts’
Representative Adam
Schiff, the chairman of
the House Intelligence
Committee, said the
acts described in the
report “whether they are
criminal or not, are deeply
As we continue to
review the report,
one thing is clear:
Attorney General Barr
presented a conclusion
that the president did
not obstruct justice while
Mueller’s report appears
to undercut that finding.
Joint statement by Nancy
Pelosi and Chuck
Schumer,
House Speaker and Senate
Democratic Leader
timeline.”
Attorney General William
Barr sent Congress a redacted
version of the report, black-
bloodshed on
The collapse comes at
a critical time and amid
continued bloodshed.
The Taliban now control
or influence about half of
Afghanistan and 3,804
civilians were killed there
last year, according to a
UN tally
“necessary to build further
consensus as to who should
participate”. “Clearly the mo-
ment is not yet right,” added
Barakat, the director of the
Center for Conflict and Hu-
Two youngsters enjoy the sunny weather on a warm spring day in Brussels, Belgium on Friday —Reuters
food galore shipment also includes 40 mice taking part in tetanus vaccination study
Private cargo ship brings Easter feast to the space station
Cape Canaveral, Florida: A
private cargo ship brought
the makings of an Easter
feast to the International
Space Station on Friday,
along with mice and little fly-
ing robots.
Space station astronaut
Anne McClain used a robot
arm to capture Northrop
Grumman’s Cygnus capsule
as they soared 258 miles (415
kilometers) above France.
The Cygnus and its
7,600-pound (3,450-kilogram)
shipment rocketed from Wal-
lops Island, Virginia, on
Wednesday, completing the
trip in a quick day and a half.
alarming in the president
of the United States.
And it’s clear that special
counsel Mueller wanted
the Congress to consider
the repercussions and
consequences.”
ing out several types of mate-
rial, including classified in-
formation, material pertain-
ing to ongoing investigations
and grand jury evidence.
Nadler said he is open to
working with the department
“to reach a reasonable accom-
modation for access to these
materials, however I cannot
accept any proposal which
leaves most of Congress in
the dark, as they grapple with
their duties of legislation,
oversight and constitutional
accountability.”
The materials are due the
day Barr is scheduled to tes-
tify before a Senate commit-
tee and one day before Barr is
set to appear before Nadler’s
committee. Nadler also has
summoned Mueller to testify.
—AP
manitarian Studies.
President Ashraf Ghani’s
administration had on Tues-
day announced a list of 250
people from all walks of Af-
ghan life, including govern-
ment figures, who it wanted to
send to Doha. But the Taliban
poured scorn on the lengthy
list, saying the conference is
“not an invitation to some wed-
ding or other party at a hotel in
Kabul”. Though the insurgents
insisted they would only talk to
Ghani’s government in a “per-
sonal capacity”, any contact
between the two parties in
Doha would have been hugely
significant. —AFP
salad days
It holds numerous science
experiments, including 40
mice taking part in a tetanus
vaccination study, and three
boxy free-flying robots de-
signed to assist astronauts
inside and out.
NASA also packed more
than 800 meals for the six sta-
tion residents. Their holiday
choices include pork chops
with gravy, smoked turkey,
potatoes au gratin, lemon me-
ringue pudding and apricot
cobbler.
Northrop Grumman
named this Cygnus the S.S.
Roger Chaffee after the
youngest of the three astro-
China downplays political impact of BRI
Beijing: China downplayed
the political implications of
its global Belt and Road infra-
structure initiative, saying
Friday that it aimed to boost
multilateralism amid protec-
tionist trends in the US and
elsewhere.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi
said that a conference to pro-
mote the initiative to be held
next week in Beijing would
draw leaders from 37 coun-
tries, underscoring heavy
demand for Chinese invest-
ment. “The Belt-and-Road
Initiative follows the princi-
ple of cooperation and col-
laboration with shared ben-
efits. It embodies the spirit of
multilateralism,” Wang said
at a news conference.
Chinese President Xi Jin-
ping, who has made the ini-
Environmental activists block the entrance to the headquarters of French
oil giant Total in La Defense near Paris on Friday — Reuters
Protestors descend on Weeping teens protest
French multinationals at Heathrow airport
Paris: Climate activists
blocked thousands of em-
ployees from entering the
headquarters of French
bank Societe Generale, state-
run utility EDF and oil giant
Total on Friday, environ-
mental group Greenpeace
said.
Greenpeace said it was
protesting against company
links to the oil and gas in-
dustry, which it calls a driv-
ing force in global warming.
Activists also obstructed the
entrance to the environment
ministry near La Defense
business district.
Protesters plastered giant
posters of President Emma-
nuel Macron carrying the
slogan “Macron, President
of Polluters” and a banner
reading “Scene of Climate
Crime” on the glass facade
of Societe Generale, Reuters
TV images showed.
Police pepper-sprayed
one group blocking the
bank’s main entrance in a
sit-down protest.
Some demonstrators
taped themselves together
while others cuffed them-
selves with plastic ties to
metal poles to make it hard-
er for police to dislodge
them.
nauts who died in the Apollo
1 spacecraft fire in 1967. Chaf-
fee was the only one on the
crew who never made it to
space.
“It’s great to have the S.S.
Roger Chaffee officially on
board,” McClain radioed.
“We never forget that we
stand on the shoulders of gi-
ants. Please know that every
day we remember his sacri-
fice and that we will continue
to honor his legacy by pursu-
ing his passion for explora-
tion. To the S.S. Roger Chaf-
fee, welcome aboard.”
Two hours after its arriv-
al, the capsule was anchored
Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019 I daily news & analysis
Reuters
A man walks past a flower
installation set up for the upcoming
Belt and Road Forum in Beijing
tiative a signature policy,
agreed last month to seek
fairer international trade
rules and address the world’s
economic and security chal-
lenges, in what appeared to
many as a rebuke to Presi-
dent Donald Trump’s protec-
tionist policies. Xi is to ad-
rising for the environment
companies react
„„A Societe Generale
spokesman declined to
comment. A spokesman
for EDF, which relies
heavily on nuclear and
hydropower plants to
generate electricity, said
96 per cent of its power
was carbon dioxide-
free. He said EDF was
committed to curbing its
total carbon footprint by
40 percent by 2030
Employees in business
suits milled around outside
their offices. “I just want to
get inside and on with my
work,” one frustrated bank
employee said.
Greenpeace and action
group Les Amis de la Terre
(Friends of the Earth) have
previously criticised Societe
Generale for its financial
role in oil and gas projects,
in particular the Rio Grande
LNG gas project in the Unit-
ed States.
A Total spokeswoman
said two senior company ex-
ecutives had held talks with
representatives of Green-
peace and Les Amis de la
Terre. —Reuters
Dad saves 14-month-old
from wild dogs in Australia
Sydney: Rescue personnel
said a father fought off sev-
eral dingoes to save his
14-month-old son from one of
the wild dogs that was drag-
ging the boy from their camp-
ervan on an Australian is-
land early Friday.
The boy had deep cuts on
his head from the attack on
Fraser Island in Queensland
state, paramedic Ben Du Toit
said.
The family was sleeping
when a dingo entered their
campervan. Du Toit said the
parents awoke to their son’s
cries, the sound fading as he
was dragged away.
The father ran outside and
fought off several dingoes to
onto the space station by
flight controllers working re-
motely from Houston. The
Cygnus will remain there un-
til July, when it is released
with trash for a few months
of solo orbiting in a test by
Northrop Grumman. It ulti-
mately will make a fiery re-
entry.
Besides McClain, there are
two other Americans living
on the space station, as well
as two Russians and one Ca-
nadian. They will receive an-
other shipment in just over a
week from NASA’s other com-
mercial supplier, SpaceX.
—AP
07
belt and road
The estimated $1 trillion-
plus initiative aims to
weave a network of ports,
bridges and power plants
linking China with Africa,
Europe and beyond. It
obtained a major symbolic
boost last month when Italy
signed a memorandum of
understanding supporting
the initiative
dress the meeting’s opening
ceremony on April 28, and
chair a round table meeting
of state leaders the next day.
The US, another G-7 mem-
ber, has been a notable critic
of the initiative amid trade
tensions with Beijing and
competition over influence
Extinction Rebellion activists protest near Heathrow Airport in London on
Friday —AP
London: Film star Emma
Thompson joined climate
change activists in central
London on Friday to read po-
etry praising Earth’s boun-
ties, part of a series of pro-
tests which have caused trans-
port snarl-ups in the British
capital.
Organisers Extinction Re-
bellion have called for non-
violent civil disobedience to
force the British government
to reduce net greenhouse gas
emissions to zero by 2025 and
stop what they call a global
climate crisis. The protests
did not cause travel disrup-
tion on Friday during one of
Britain’s main holiday week-
ends, but police said they have
arrested more than 570 people
so far this week. Extinction
Rebellion has blocked several
locations in central London
this week after staging a semi-
nude protest in parliament
earlier this month.
“Our planet is in serious
trouble,” Thompson said. “We
are here in this island of san-
ity and it makes me so happy
to be able to join you all and to
add my voice to the young peo-
ple here who have inspired a
whole new movement,” said
Thompson, one of Britain’s
most acclaimed actresses who
An Australian wild dingo dog —AP
rescue his son.
“He was apparently
grabbed around the back of
the neck area and dragged
away. So, if it wasn’t for the
parents and their quick
thinking and fighting off the
dingoes, he probably would
Cygnus capsule arrives at the International Space Station on Friday with
food galore, following a one-and-a-half day journey from Virginia —AP
within global organizations,
territorial claims in the
South China Sea and the fu-
ture of Washington’s ally Tai-
wan, which China claims as
its own territory.
China’s expansion of the
initiative in Latin America to
build ports and other trade-
related facilities has also
stirred alarm in Washington
over Beijing’s ambitions in a
region that American leaders
since the 19th century have
seen as off-limits to other
powers. China is focusing on
countries in Central America
such as Panama, whose canal
linking the Atlantic and Pa-
cific oceans makes it one of
the world’s busiest trade ar-
teries and strategically im-
portant both to Washington
and Beijing. —AP
fear for future
„„“I fear for my future”
Oscar Idle, 17, said at
Heathrow. “That fear
gives me courage to act.”
„„“I want to live in a
society which is not
catastrophic, where
there is not going to be
food shortages, wild
fires and hurricanes
where people can live,”
he said
has won two Academy awards.
She was one of several ac-
tors who read poems celebrat-
ing the beauty of nature from
a pink boat lodged by the pro-
testers at Oxford Circus in
central London.
The protesters formed a
human chain around the boat,
which officials say has been
locked to the ground, making
it extremely difficult for po-
lice to remove. Thompson’s
appearance followed a demon-
stration near Heathrow Air-
port earlier, where a group of
around a dozen teenagers,
some as young as 13 and 14,
held a banner alongside a
busy road which read: “Are we
the last generation?” —Reuters
have had more severe inju-
ries,” Frank Bertoli, a pilot
for RACQ Life Flight, told
Australian Broadcasting Cor-
poration.
The boy was airlifted to a
hospital early Friday.
Bertoli said the boy is the
third child attacked by din-
goes on Fraser Island this
year.
The island is part of an
Australian national park and
is known for its rainforests,
wetlands and extensive coast-
al dunes.
Fraser Island also displays
strong warnings for visitors
to avoid dingoes and to not
try to draw their attention or
leave food behind. —AP
 20
Saturday
April
2019
Ahmedabad
www.dnaindia.com
BOXING
BALL GAME
De Villiers eyes
BBL stint
Former South Africa
wicket-keeper batsman
AB de Villiers has ex-
pressed his interest to
play in the Big Bash
League (BBL) 2019-20
season in Australia. De
Villiers is understood to
be on the lookout for a
BBL club in the back
half of next summer’s
tournament, with a
number of clubs having
been approached by
batsman’s management.
It is believed several
clubs have shown inter-
est in his potential re-
cruitment, cricket.com.
au reported.
Pak PM meets
World Cup team
Pakistan Prime Minister
Imran Khan on Friday
shared his past experi-
ences of playing at the
ICC Men’s Cricket World
Cup with its national
team. The cricketer-
turned-politician Khan
had led Pakistan to its
only World Cup win in
1992, where the team de-
feated England by 22
runs at the Melbourne
Cricket Ground (MCG).
Khan met the men in
green at his Bani Gala
residence in Islamabad.
ECB chairman
may get extension
Colin Graves’ term as
the England and Wales
Cricket Board (ECB)
chairman is likely to get
extended by six months,
allowing him to oversee
the first season of The
Hundred, a 100-ball com-
petition. Graves was due
to step down in May
2020 after a five-year pe-
riod. However, he has
been instrumental in
the development of The
Hundred and is under-
stood to be keen to pre-
side over the competi-
tion’s first season,
which is due to be
launched in July 2020,
ESPNcricinfo reported.
on the tube
(All Live)
Cricket Star Sports
Network: 16:00 IPL: RR
vs MI
20:00 IPL: DC vs KXIP
Football Sony Ten 2:
16:00 Serie A: Parma vs
AC Milan, 18:30 Serie A:
Lazio vs Chievo Verona,
21:30 Serie A: Juventus vs
Fiorentina, 00:00 Serie A:
Inter Milan vs. Roma
Sony Ten 1: 18:30 Serie A:
Genoa vs Torino
Star Sports Select 2:
16:50, 19:20, 21:50
Premier League
Star Sports 3: 18:46
Bundesliga: Bayern Munich
vs SV Werder Bremen,
21:46 Bundesliga: Borus-
sia Monchengladbach vs
RB Leipzig
MMA Sony Six: 22:30 UFC
FIGHT NIGHT Overeem vs
Oleinik
Tennis Sony ESPN: 17:00
Monte Carlo Masters
Cricket has always been Hardik’s priority, says brother Krunal
MI’s Hardik Pandya plays helicopter
shot against DC on Thursday —BCCI
TENNIS Brazilian tennis player Joao
Souza is provisionally suspended again amid a
corruption investigation by Tennis Integrity Unit.
Souza had already been provisionally suspended
on March 29 but was reinstated on April 8
Vikas Krishan will take on American Noah Kidd in his second professional bout to be held at the iconic Madison Square Garden
King Kohli outdoes rampant Russell
RCB ride on captain’s first century of season even as KKR star’s blistering 25-ball 65 almost spoils their party
Match No. 35
DNA Correspondent
sports@dnaindia.net
Mumbai: It was a mountain
too steep for even Andre Rus-
sell to climb.
After a Virat Kohli special
took Royal Challengers Ban-
galore to 213/4, Kolkata
Knight Riders looked down
and out at 79/4 in the 12th
over.
That’s when Russell
walked out, and with a set
Nitish Rana, threatened to
spoil Kohli’s party with a
flurry of sixes and fours to
bring the equation down to 61
runs off the final three overs.
Three consecutive sixes
off the last three balls of the
penultimate over reduced it
further to 24 off the last over,
and althought Russell
smacked a six off the third
ball, offie Moeen Ali kept his
cool as RCB won by 10 runs in
Kolkata on Friday.
KKR looked hopeless for
most of the chase, until Rus-
sell and Rana got together,
forging a 118-run partnership
in just eight overs that threat-
ened to hand the hosts victo-
Orange cap
David Warner
(SRH)
450
runs
KL Rahul (KXIP)  387
Virat Kohli (RCB)  378
Rajasthan aim for double in
return leg against Mumbai
Jaipur: Fast running out of
time, a struggling Rajasthan
Royals will hope to complete
the double against Mumbai
Indians in a return-leg IPL
fixture and revive their cam-
paign here on Saturday.
With six losses and two
wins, hosts Rajasthan Royals
are languishing at the second
last position in the points ta-
ble and they would be desper-
ate to bring their campaign
back on track.
Rajasthan would be taking
heart from the four-wicket
win over Mumbai Indians at
their own den last Saturday
and will hope to get the better
of their rivals once again, this
time at home.
However, it will be easier
said than done considering
Rajasthan’s dismal record at
the Sawai Man Singh Stadi-
um. Apart from their lone vic-
tory against Royal Challeng-
ers Bangalore, Rajasthan have
lost three matches at home.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Indi-
ans have looked formidable
this season with a good mix of
power hitters, quality bowlers
and perfect all-rounders. —PTI
New Delhi: Mumbai Indians
all-rounder Krunal Pandya
feels that the time his younger
brother Hardik spent away
from the game has helped him
become a better cricketer.
Hardik seems to be in men-
acing form with the bat ahead
of the World Cup, having over-
come a back injury and a mas-
sive controversy following his
sexist comments on a popular
TV show.
“When he was away from
the game due to injury and the
other reasons (controversy),
he worked a lot on his fitness.
We started playing the game
together and one thing that I
can say that cricket has al-
ways been his priority.
“Honestly, there are very
few players who have a work
ethic like him. His goal is al-
ways to improve and if you do
n zone
5
No. of centuries RCB captain
Virat Kohli now has in Indian
Premier League after his 58-
ball 100 against KKR on Friday
ry from a certain defeat.
Russell scored 65 off just
25 balls, registering nine
maximums and two fours
while Rana stayed unbeaten
for a solid 46-ball 85 that com-
prised five sixes and nine
fours.
KKR got close to the finish-
ing line thanks to a jaw-drop-
ping partnership but they
would rue the start that even-
tually was the reason for
their defeat.
Comeback-man Dale
Steyn struck early for RCB,
removing Chris Lynn in the
first over itself. He came back
to dismiss Shubman Gill, and
Sunil Narine and Robin
Uthappa also couldn’t do
much as the game looked
done and dusted at the half-
way mark in the chase.
Earlier, Kohli smashed his
first century of the season
after Moeen Ali’s blistering
knock as RCB amassed 213/4.
The Indian skipper paced
his innings brilliantly and
got out on the last ball of the
innings for a 58-ball 100, his
fifth in the IPL. RCB scored
91 runs off the last five overs
to record their highest total
of the season.
It was Ali who gave the
Purple cap
Kagiso Rabada
(DC)
19 wickets
Imran Tahir (CSK)
Yuzvendra Chahal (RCB)
RR
Match No. 36, Venue: SMS Stadium, Jaipur
Live on Star Sports Network, 4pm
mi eye revenge against rr
RR: Languishing
second from the Team been going strong espe-
bottom,Rajasthan News cially thanks to a collective
Royals will have to pull
up their socks quickly.
They will look for another
win over MI. Expect a new
strategy this time.
Jofra
Archer
Mumbai indians’ Hardik Pandya has been simply unbelievable in his
strokeplay in the death. Can he do it against Rajasthan Royals pacer
Jofra Archer’s toe crushers?
Head to head: Played: 22, RR: 10, MI: 11, NR: 1
Pitch report: Spinners
will have a say while
batsmen will struggle
7
Punter point:
RR: 11/10, MI:
8/11
that, you become consistent,”
said Krunal after the Pandya
brothers guided Mumbai to a
40-run win over Delhi Capitals
here Thursday.
Be it spinners or bowlers
with express pace, Hardik has
developed the ability to hit
them out of the park. “Earlier
he used to smash spinners,
now he is also doing the same
to pacers. He worked on that
area during the off time he got
and he has gotten the desired
results,” said Krunal.
“What I like most about
him is his never give up atti-
tude. Every year, he is adding
something or the other to his
game. In fact, I have also
learnt a lot from him.”
Hardik (32 off 15) and
Krunal (37 off 26) had amassed
51 off last 18 balls to propel
Mumbai to 168 for five against
football England’s Aaron Ramsey
may have played his last game for Arsenal after
manager Unai Emery confirms the midfielder
sustained a muscle injury in Thursday’s 1-0 Eu- ropa
League quarterfinal win at Napoli
much-needed oxygen to their
innings, smashing six sixes
and five fours to seize mo-
mentum after a slow start.
Kohli and Ali shared 90 runs
off 43 balls and there was no
looking back after Ali’s as-
sault.
The match swung in the
16th over when Kuldeep Ya-
dav bled 27 runs with Ali go-
ing berserk, smashing the
star India spinner for three
sixes and two fours. The chi-
naman ended with figures of
1/59 in four overs.
Kohli, who scored his first
50 off 40 balls, changed gears
in the second half of his in-
nings. Such was his domina-
tion that Kohli took just 17
balls for his second fifty.
Put in, RCB got off to an
ordinary start and the ab-
sence of AB de Villiers, who
was indisposed following de-
hydration, was felt very
much.
Kohli mistimed the ball
with a couple of inside-edges
to the boundary, while his
left-handed opening partner
Parthiv Patel (11 off 11) had a
hit-and-miss stay before fall-
ing to Sunil Narine inside the
powerplay.
In the middle of all this,
RCB sent in Akshdeep Nath
(13 off 15) at number three
keeping the in-form Ali in
waiting. RCB made only 42
inside the powerplay.
—with PTI inputs
HOW THEY STAND
TEAM M W L T P NRR
CSK 9 7 2 0 14 0.101
MI 9 6 3 0 12 0.442
DC 9 5 4 0 10 0.146
KXIP 9 5 4 0 10 -0.015
SRH 8 4 4 0 8 0.549
KKR 9 4 5 0 8 0.256
15
RR 8 2 6 0 4 -0.589
13 RCB 9 2 7 0 4 -0.938
VS MI
MI: Rohit Sharma’s MI has
effort. They would like to
deny RR a double win and will
aim to get on top of the points
table after beating them here in
Jaipur.
Key Hardik
contest Pandya
Weather report: It’s going to be
hot and sunny with temperature
being 34 degree Celcius
Watchability quotient: (1-3: Forget it;
4-7: If there is nothing else to watch;
8 and above: try not to miss it)
Dhoni liked my version of helicopter shot: Hardik
New Delhi: Hardik Pandya
has already emulated MS
Dhoni’s signature helicop-
ter shot and the Mumbai
Indians all-rounder says
the veteran keeper-bats-
man liked his version of
the innovative stroke.
Pandya has looked in
ominous form this IPL,
scoring 218 runs at a strike
rate of 194.64 in nine match-
es. He used the shot to good
effect against speedster
Delhi Capitals. Krunal said
the extra 20 runs in the death
overs made all the difference
on a difficult Kotla wicket.
Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli exults after completing his century against Kolkata Knight Riders
at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday —AFP
‘Have to treat
every game
like final’
Jaipur: Ben Stokes Friday
said his struggling IPL fran-
chise Rajasthan Royals will,
from now on, have to “treat
every game like a final” if
they are to make the playoffs.
Stokes, who himself has
not been in the best of form,
said that having lost six of
their eight matches, Ra-
jasthan Royals cannot afford
to lose anymore. “Yes, we are
in a must-win situation and
we have to treat every match
as final and which, I guess,
puts any sort of negative
thought process above our
head. We have only one way
to go and that is aggressive
and positive,” Stokes.
“If you look at most of the
games we lost, we have lost at
the crucial moments. In T20
games two-three or four balls
can dictate the winner, and
unfortunately, we have not
been the team to win those
critical moments. But if you
lose those moments consist-
ently then you deserve to be
where we are. It is unfortu-
nate and disappointing be-
cause every player has given
his best.” —PTI
Kagiso Rabada in their
game against Delhi Capi-
tals on Thursday night.
Pandya smashed 32 off
15 balls to power Mumbai
Indians to 168 for five, a to-
tal which Delhi Capitals
found too stiff to chase. His
inning comprised two
boundaries and three mas-
sive sixes, including the
helicopter shot — a stroke
made famous by Dhoni.
The all-rounder had
“I guess while batting it
was a very tricky wicket.
When I went inside and when
Hardik came in we were not
08
SCOREBOARD
KKR vs RCB, Match No. 35;
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata Toss: KKR, elect to field
RCB R B 4/6 SR
P Patel c Rana b Narine 11 11 2/0 100.00
V Kohli c Gill b Gurney 100 58 9/4 172.41
A Nath c Uthappa b Russell 13 15 0/1 86.66
M Ali c Krishna b Yadav 66 28 5/6 235.71
M Stoinis not out 17 8 2/1 212.50
Extras (LB1, W5) 6
Total (for 4 wkts, 20 Ov) 213 (10.65 runs per over)
Fall of wickets: 1-18 (PA Patel, 3.2 ov), 2-59 (AD Nath, 8.5
ov), 3-149 (MM Ali, 15.6 ov), 4-213 (V Kohli, 19.6 ov)
Bowling: H Gurney 4-0-42-1 (W3), S Narine 4-0-32-1
(W1), M Prasidh Krishna 4-0-52-0, A Russell 3-0-17-1, K
Yadav 4-0-59-1 (W1), P Chawla 1-0-10-0
KKR (target: 214) R B 4/6 SR
C Lynn c Kohli b Steyn 1 2 0/0 50.00
S Narine c Patel b Saini 18 16 4/0 112.50
S Gill c Kohli b Steyn 9 11 1/0 81.81
R Uthappa c Negi b Stoinis 9 20 1/0 45.00
N Rana not out 85 46 9/5 184.78
A Russell run out (Kohli/Ali) 65 25 2/9 260.00
D Karthik not out 0 0 0/0 -
Extras (LB4, W12) 16
Total (for 5 wkts, 20 Ov) 203 (10.15 runs per over)
Fall of wickets: 1-6 (CA Lynn, 0.6 ov), 2-24 (SP Narine,
3.5 ov), 3-33 (Shubman Gill, 4.6 ov), 4-79 (RV Uthappa,
11.5 ov), 5-197 (AD Russell, 19.5 ov)
Bowling: D Steyn 4-0-40-2, N Saini 4-0-31-1, Mohammed
Siraj 4-0-38-0 (W3), M Stoinis 4-0-32-1 (W1), Y Chahal
3-0-45-0 (W4), M Ali 1-0-13-0
Result: RCB win by 10 runs
Man of the match: Virat Kohli
KKR’s Andre Russell smacks one
during his knock on Friday —AFP
Six meter
14 4 1
DC VS KXIP
Match No. 37, Venue: Ferozeshah Kotla, New Delhi
Seven Indian
players to play
Live on Star Sports Network, 8pm
dc seek home comfort
County before
DC: Seeking home KXIP: In middle of table,
Team Kings XI Punjab have
Test C’ship
comforts after multiple
reverses at home will News so far been incosistent.
New Delhi: Seven of India’s
Test specialists may play a
be desperate to buck The likes of Chris Gayle,
few games for various Eng-
the trend.Rishabh Pant will KL Rahul, David Miller &
again be in focus after his Mohammed Shami will look to lish county sides to prepare
for the inaugural World Test
fiercely-debated World Cup capitalise on Delhi’s miserable
Championship series in July
exclusion. record at home.
and August.
The players that BCCI have
Rishabh Key R zeroed in are Cheteshwar
Pant contest Ashwin Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane,
Prithvi Shaw, Hanuma Viha-
KXIP skipper R Ashwin will look to capitalise on DC’s star batsman ri, Mayank Agarwal, Ravi-
Rishabh Pant’s poor form and his disappointment of not getting chandran Ashwin and Ishant
selected in India’s World Cup squad. Sharma, who will play Coun-
ty cricket. Pujara already has
Head to head: Played: 23, DC: 9, KXIP: 14 a three-year contract with
Yorkshire and is set to play
Pitch report: The wicket Weather report: The 49% there again. “Pujara’s con-
will be usual slow with humidity will be bring relief to tract was a deal between him
spinners dominating. an otherwise hot weather. and the county and it’s a long
7
Watchability quotient: (1-3: Forget it; term deal,” a senior BCCI of-
Punter point:
DC: 8/11, 4-7: If there is nothing else to watch; ficial said on Friday.
KXIP: 11/10 8 and above: try not to miss it) As far as Rahane is con-
cerned, he is likely to sign a
deal with Hampshire in the
Delhi track consistently slow: Hesson coming week and is waiting
for the approval of all three
New Delhi: The Feroz Shah Kotla pitch here has been a Committee of Administra-
subject of debate and Kings XI Punjab coach Mike Hesson tors.
termed it “consistently slow”. “Look the surface here, al- “CoA head Vinod Rai has
though we can’t guarantee how the pitch is going to be, already given his approval
most of the games have been consistent.” but Diana Edulji and Lt Gen-
eral Ravi Thodage are yet to
give their approvals,” the of-
ficial said.
“With India set
to play against
the Caribbean
in about fort-
and we ended up night after
with those extra
runs,” he said.
the end of
the World
“While bowling Cup, the
played the helicopter shot we knew how the BCCI has
in front of Dhoni during a wicket would be- prepared a
game against Chennai Su- have and our bowlers proposal
per Kings (CSK), which knew to how to bowl on wherein
Mumbai won by 37 runs at it.” While bowling, their Test
the Wankhede. “I never Krunal, who picked up specialists
thought I would play the the wicket of Colin Mun- can play some
helicopter shot in a game. ro, also tried to bowl red ball crick-
I’ve been practising that in with a slingshot action et in months of
the nets. I went to Dhoni’s like Kedar Jadhav. June till mid
room and asked him if he “The way T20 is July,” the senior
liked my version of the going, you have to o f f i c i a l
helicopter shot. He said it keep coming up with added.“The con-
was good,” said Pandya. something new. The ditions are com-
batsmen are hitting pletely different
sixes from ball one save that they will
and Rishabh (Pant) playing with red
aiming for 170, we thought 145 was batting, so I Dukes which will
was a good total on this wick- thought it was a good also be used in the
et. The way Hardik batted, it time to try something West Indies,” he
changed the momentum for us new,” said Krunal. —PTI said. —PTI
 sP rt
www.dnaindia.com I twitter.com/dna I epaper.dnaindia.com I facebook.com/dnaindia Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019
09
I daily news & analysis

Knocked down City

Hot on heels
HEAD TO HEAD

6 14

look to ‘stand up’

City
Draw
43
Played
23
Tottenham

Cityzens, Spurs lock horns again in key tie two days after epic CL quarters
Golden State Warriors forward
Kevin Durant (R) shoots as LA
Clippers guard Landry Shamet
defends in Los Angeles —wAP
Durant ensures
Warriors victory
Kevin Durant scored 38
points as the Golden
State Warriors made
sure they didn’t blow an-
other big lead by routing
the Los Angeles Clippers
132-105 in game three of
their playoff series. The
Warriors ensured there
was no repeat of game
two, where they squan-
dered a 31-point lead in
the second half, allowing
the Clippers to engineer
the biggest comeback in
NBA playoff history.
Simeone defends
rebellious Costa
Atletico Madrid coach
Diego Simeone has come
out in support of Diego
Costa after the Spain
Ole focussed on
PLAYING TODAY: Manchester City VS Tottenham (5pm), West Ham VS Leicester (7.30pm),
crucial week
Wolves VS Brighton (7.30pm), Bournemouth VS Fulham (7.30pm), Huddersfield VS Watford (7.30pm), Following their Champions League
Newcastle VS Southampton (10pm); Live on Star Sports Select 2 elimination, Manchester United
must think about nothing else
London: The third act of Manchester but a potentially season-defining
City and Tottenham’s trilogy has some
living up to do after a Champions counted for little
week as they look to secure a top
four finish, manager Ole Gunnar
League classic saw Spurs prevail on once more in Eu- Solskjaer has said. United play
Everton, Manchester City and
away goals to reach the semifinals just rope, but it could
a couple of days ago. prove the differ- Chelsea over the next eight
However, their Premier ence with such a tight days as they look to improve
League meeting on Satur- turnaround for both on their sixth place in the
day has huge implications sides. league standings. “These
for both City’s bid to win Guardiola could afford the luxu- three games coming up,
the title and Spurs’ hopes ry of leaving Fernandinho, Leroy Sane, they’re our short term
of just qualifying for the Riyad Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus, Nicolas focus,” Solskjaer said
Champions League again Otamendi and John Stones on the bench ahead of Sunday’s
next season. in midweek. trip to Everton. “We
Pep Guardiola’s men are five games Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino (R) By contrast, Tottenham remain with- shouldn’t think about
away from becoming the first side in a will be banking on Son Heung-min (C) to deliver out Harry Kane and are now desper- anything but having a
decade to retain the Premier League. again in the absence of Harry Kane —Reuters ately short in midfield after Moussa great week ahead of
However, it is Liverpool who lead by Sissoko limped off midway through the us,” he added.
two points as things stand having played goal out for offside. first-half on Wednesday.
a game more than their title rivals. “We have to stand up, we have to re- And should they lose a fifth straight
e
Form guid
City were on course for an unprece- act,” said Guardiola. “We fought a lot in away league game, third-placed Spurs
dented quadruple until falling short in the last nine or 10 months for the Pre- could easily find themselves outside
the most dramatic fashion in the Cham- mier League. We are still there, it is in the top four come the end of the
pions League quarterfinals on Wednes- our hands. Of course it is tough, but we weekend. —AFP City
W W
W W W
day. With the sides level at 4-4 on aggre- have to do it until the end.”
gate, Raheem Sterling scored the goal City’s extra resources am
that would have sent City through in may have Tottenh
ome) L D
stoppage time, only for a VAR re-
enham (h W W L
y

April 20 Tott d (away)

ster Cit

striker refused to prac- view to rule the

tice with the rest of the 2 4 M a n c h e ster Unite
iff (away) April )
April 21 Card
all
team. Simeone said Cos- ley (away have won
(home) April 28 Burn

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ta’s absence on Thurs-
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April 26 Hud 5 of their this
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back with the squad on ,
two p o in ts ey ha a the Spurs today.
v e n sheets
ands as th No. of clea City have

16
Friday. The coach added st
he would not discuss in City’s h their key tie again ing fixtures te r
Manches keep this
in g in to s ’ re m ain es-
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8
specific details.
He re a re th No. of tim beaten m an
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me the ter City h av e he Spurs
Punjab in Santosh can beco at home
out season. T n sheets
n zone

n Spurs nce Liverpool in Tottenham wins over have 12 cl

ea
Trophy final t team si
their EPL
away verall 14
ho have firs of their o
know?
Punjab made it to their n City, w urs, 2008/09 to win th Manches- rs g it
Did you
p u
yers sayin
Sp b o th e S
15th Santosh Trophy fi- es against es against ason la
e EPL match ition best run of gam bs in the same se ee my p
ant to s
last thre pet
nal on Friday in Ludhi- won their their com enham ter clu Manchester City manager Pep
ana, beating Goa by a 2-1 g to equal
are lookin ve wins against To
tt
they liv e. I don’t w Guardiola, City boss Guardiola wants his players to
what e hurt —P
ep
to forget
margin. Harjinder Singh essi respond after their painful Champions
four succ
yers t to th
scored the winning goal
nt the pla them reac League exit —Reuters
on this occasion to put I don’t wa tter. I want to see
a
the home side into the fi-
nal. In the other semis,
doesn’t m
Services prevailed in a

Ronaldo committed to Juventus, says Allegri

thrilling penalty
shootout against a 10-
man Karnataka.

Manush-Raegan
secure bronze
India’s Manush Shah
and Raegan Albuquer-
que clinched a bronze
medal in the Belgium
Junior and Cadet Open,
a part of the ITTF Jun-
ior Circuit Premium, in
Spa. The duo paired up
with Iran’s Amin Ahma-
dian and Radin Khayy-
am to win the medal in
the Junior Boys event.
Vishwakarma,
Niki lead field
National men’s champi-
on Siddharth Vishwa-
karma and ATP-ranked
Niki Poonacha will lead
the field at the $3000 RB-
LATT Asian ranking
men’s tennis champion-
ships in Mumbai on
April 22. The event will
Turin: Cristiano Ronaldo
is committed to Juventus
next season despite his bitter
disappointment at the Italian
giants Champions League
flop, coach Massimiliano Al-
legri revealed on Friday.
Allegri’s injury-hit side
host Fiorentina on Saturday
needing just a point to lift
their eighth straight Serie A
title, days after a shock home
2-1 defeat to the Dutch side in
the Champions League.
Sonia, 4 others taste victories
DNA Correspondent put up a smart defensive dis-
sports@dnaindia.net
“Cristiano is the future of
Juventus. He has done very
well this year and will do so
next season, of course he is
disappointed like all of us
but he’s calm about it,” said
Allegri.
“Cristiano has had an ex-
traordinary season and will
play tomorrow (Saturday).”
Five-time Ballon d’Or win-
ner Ronaldo had been bid-
ding for a sixth Champions
League title to add to his four
Chanu leads
India challenge
won with Real Madrid and
one with Manchester United.
The 34-year-old joined Ju-
ventus from Real last sum-
mer in a 100 million-euro
($117 million) deal which
runs until 2022, with a report-
ed annual salary of 31 mil-
lion euros.
He scored six of his team’s
14 Champions League goals
this season and has 19 so far
in Serie A, four behind lead-
ing scorer Fabio Quagliarella.
Erratic Djoko suffers shock loss
“Ronaldo’s arrival did not
give us any certainty of win-
ning the Champions League,”
continued Allegri.
“Barcelona play a semifi-
nal this year for the first time
after four years and they
have (Lionel) Messi. Football
is not just about individuals.
“We have to put the disap-
pointment of the elimination
in the Champions League
behind us.”
Injuries have hit Juve
hard ahead of the weekend’s
clash, with Sami Khedira an-
nouncing on Thursday that
he is set to have season-end-
ing knee surgery, while Al-
legri revealed that key at-
tacker Mario Mandzukic
could also miss the rest of
the season.
“(Goalkeeper) Mattia Per-
in is out until the end of the
season, as is Sami Khedira
and maybe Mario Mandzu-
kic.” he said. —AFP

Mumbai: World Champion-

be the first event of the
Asian Tennis Tour
launched by the Asian
Tennis Federation.
T20 league
from April 23
The eighth season of the
Mitsui Shoji T20 League
will be held in Mumbai
from April 23 and Sri
Lankan greats Rangana
Herath and Chaminda
Vaas will attend its open-
ing ceremony, it was an-
nounced on Friday. Jwa-
la Singh, director and or-
ship silver medallist Sonia
Chahal stormed to a 5-0 vic-
tory over Vietnam’s Do Nha
Uyan to enter the quarterfi-
nals even as four other Indi-
an boxers made a winning
start on the opening day at
the Asian Boxing Champion-
ships in Bangkok on Friday.
Deepak (49kg) outclassed
Vietnam’s Loi Bui Cong
Danh in a unanimous 5-0 win
to assure his pre-quarterfinal
berth. In 64kg, Rohit Tokas
aptly put basketball legend believes tiger will win more
play to knock out Taiwan’s
Chu-En Lai 5-0 to advance to
the pre-quarters.
Ashish (69kg) too began his
challenge in an equally im-
pressive fashion, blanking
Cameron’s VY Sophors 5-0 to
reach the pre-quarters while
Asian Games bronze medal-
list Satish Kumar (+91kg)
thumped Iman Ramezanpour-
delavar of Iran 5-0 to make his
way into the last-eight.
On Saturday, three-time
Asian Championships med-
allist Shiva Thapa will begin
his quest for a fourth medal.
Ningbo (China): Former
world champion Mirabai
Chanu will look to strength-
en her chances of Olympic
qualification when she spear-
heads the Indian challenge at
the Asian Weightlifting
Championship starting here
on Saturday.
Mirabai — who jumped
from 48kg to 49kg following
the International Weightlift-
ing Federation’s rejig of
weight categories — has
made a strong comeback from
Sonia Chahal a lower back injury. —PTI
to Medvedev, Nadal survives
Monaco: An erratic Novak
Djokovic suffered a surprise
6-3, 4-6, 6-2 defeat against Da-
niil Medvedev in the Monte
Carlo Masters quarterfinals
on Friday.
The top-ranked Serb, who
has won the tournament
twice, looked out of sorts and
produced 47 unforced errors.
Defending champion Ra-
fael Nadal was not at his best,
either. But the second-ranked
Spaniard rallied from 4-1
down against unseeded Gui-
do Pella to win 7-6 (1), 6-3 and
move closer to a record-ex-

Woods’ comeback greatest ever: Jordan

ganising secretary of the
league, said it will be a
five -team affair.
1 Masters comeback as the
2 sonally congratulate him.
3 back physically. He didn’t
Send in your answers to
sportsdna@gmail.com. Names
of the first 10 winners will be
published tomorrow
Los Angeles: Michael Jor-
dan described Tiger Woods’s
“greatest ever” and added he
called the golfing icon to per-
“To me it is the greatest
comeback I have ever seen,”
Jordan told The Athletic.
“I never thought he’d get
think he’d get back physical-
ly. But he did it. No one ex-
pected him to be back the way
he is now.
“He’s probably the only
person who believed he could
get back. To me, that’s a ma-
jor accomplishment. To me,
it’s unbelievable,” he added.
Woods ended an 11-year
Major drought with a thrill-
ing and emotional Masters
victory. Just two years ago
his back pain was so bad
Woods thought he might nev-
er play again, let alone win
another Major.
File photo of Tiger Woods (L) and Michael Jordan in 2009 —REUTERS
“Mentally, you always
think you can. But you can’t
answer to what your body
has to deal with,” former
NBA superstar Jordan said
of Woods.
“I’m pretty sure he ques-
tioned himself, whether he
could get it back, and he had
to put a lot of work in. But
he took it head-on. He had to
change his game; he had to
He (Woods) is
probably the only
person who
believed he could get
back
Michael Jordan,
basketball legend
change his perspective a lit-
tle bit.
“Dealing with his emo-
tions, obviously he believed
in himself. But until you put
that into action, sometimes
it’s a struggle.”
Jordan added that Woods’
confidence will be soaring
and that should translate
into more victories. “He’s
gotten over the hump. I think
he’s going to win more. It’s
tough mentally. It’s absolute-
ly tough mentally. And then
you think about the physical.
I’m elated.” —AFP
tending 12th title here.
Nadal imperiously won
last year without conceding
more than four games in a
set. So Pella will have regrets,
considering he was serving
for a 5-1 first-set lead when he
double-faulted.
Although Nadal won the
next four games to level at 5-5,
he dropped his wayward
serve again. It gave Pella the
chance to become the first
player to take a set against
him here since Britain’s Kyle
Edmund in the second round
two years ago.
Pella reached 30-30 but Na-
dal broke back and forced a
tiebreaker — his first here
since a third-round win
against John Isner in 2015.
Although Nadal was bro-
ken to love serving for the
match, Pella could not hold
his serve, either.
He saved one match point
at 15-40 down but then dou-
ble-faulted. After 2 hours, 20
minutes on court a relieved
Nadal hugged his opponent
at the net.
The last time Nadal failed
Russia’s Daniil Medvedev serves to Novak Djokovic of Serbia during their
quarterfinal match of the Monte Carlo Masters in Monaco on Friday —AFP
Results (quarterfinals)
10-D Medvedev (RUS) bt 1-N Djokovic (SRB) 6-3 4-6 6-2,
2-R Nadal (ESP) bt G Pella (ARG) 7-6 (1) 6-3, D Lajovic
(SRB) bt L Sonego (ITA) 6-4 7-5
the last eight of a Masters
did you know? tournament for the first time
Since his Australian Open but Djokovic struggled more
triumph in Janaury earlier this in the windy conditions.
year, Novak Djokovic has not
made it past the quarterfinals
“It’s tough to find rhythm
and he doesn’t give you much
of every tournament (Indian rhythm,” Djokovic said. “He
Wells Rd 3, Miami Rd 4, Monte was very patient and played
Carlo QF) well tactically.”
Djokovic double-faulted at
30-30 to give Medvedev his
to reach the last four here first match point and a back-
was in 2014, when he lost to hand winner secured a first
countryman David Ferrer in win against Djokovic at the
the last eight. fourth attempt, and a first
Nadal next plays No. 9 victory against a No. 1.
Borna Coric of Croatia or “He played worse than be-
No.13 Fabio Fognini of Italy. fore and I am gaining more
They were playing their experience,” Medvedev said.
quarterfinal later Friday. “He was not so good in the
Earlier, the 10th-seeded first set and made a lot of
Medvedev was appearing in mistakes.” —AP

10 www.dnaindia.com I twitter.com/dna I epaper.dnaindia.com I facebook.com/dnaindia
snapshot
‘China ready
despite India’s
boycott of BRF’
China Foreign Minister Wang Yi
Particularly they have
established mutual
1 trust between the
leadership and they
jointly planned for the
future of improvement and
strengthening of China-India
relations
After the Wuhan summit,
we see all areas or progress
between the two
2 countries and we
have bright prospect
for this relationship. We are
now preparing for the next
summit of our leaders
So far 37 heads of state and
governments had confirmed
their participation in the BRF.
Representatives from
3 over 150 countries
and 90 international
organisations’ close to 5000
Above all, connectivity
initiatives must be pursued
in a manner that respects
sovereignty, equality and
territorial integrity of
4 nations. No country
can participate in an
initiative that ignores its core
concerns on sovereignty and
territorial integrity
The BRI is a multi-billion-
dollar initiative launched by
President Xi when
5 he came to power in
2013. It aims to link
Southeast Asia, Central Asia,
the Gulf region, Africa and
Europe with a network of
land and sea routes.
FB had ‘millions’ of
Insta users, passwords
“Millions” of Instagram us-
ers had their passwords
stored in unencrypted form
on internal servers, Face-
book said Thursday, raising
its original estimate of tens
of thousands.
“We discovered addition-
al logs of Instagram pass-
words being stored in a read-
able format. We now esti-
mate that this issue impact-
ed millions of Instagram
users,” Facebook said in a
blog post.
“We will be notifying
these users as we did the oth-
ers. Our investigation has
determined that these stored
passwords were not inter-
nally abused or improperly
accessed,” the social net-
work said.
Facebook, Instagram’s
parent company, revealed
last month that the unen-
crypted passwords of hun-
dreds of millions of users
had been stored, putting the
number of Instagram users
affected in the tens of thou-
sands. The social network’s
I will only say one thing, that I am not going to say
anything about the BJP candidate (Sadhvi Pragya). I
have never criticised my opponent and I am not going
to speak regarding her. I want to say that Hemant
Karkare was an honest and committed officer
— Digvijaya Singh, Congress’s LS poll candidate from Bhopal
‘Pak plans new ways to destroy India’
Intelligence reports claim that Pakistani terrorists may launch a Pulwama-like in the Valley during LS polls between Apr 11 & May 6
DNA Correspondent
correspondent@dnaindia.net
New Delhi: Intelligence
agencies have alerted the se-
curity establishments in
Jammu and Kahsmir on Fri-
day, saying that the Paki-
stan-based terrorists have
planned a fidayeen-like at-
tack with ‘motorcycle bomb-
ers’ in the valley during the
ongoing Lok Sabha polls.
These motorcycle fiday-
een attackers are named af-
ter Mughal emperors as
well, say intelligence agen-
cies. The valley on February
14 faced a massive terror at-
tack in Pulwama, where 40
CRPF personnel were killed.
“The fidayeen attackers
could be riding a motorcycle
with explosive-filled bags fit-
ted on both sides. The two-
wheeler could prove to be
more maneuverable and
easier to reach any target,”
said the intelligence agen-
cies, adding that the attack-
er could strike during the
California almonds a ‘catalyst’ of terror in J&K
New Delhi: California al-
monds, known worldwide for
their high nutritional value,
are being used in cross-LoC
trade as a mode to earn prof-
its which are funnelled to ter-
rorists and separatists in
Jammu and Kashmir, offi-
cials said Friday.
India indefinitely sus-
pended cross-LoC trade at
two points along the Line of
Control effective Friday, fol-
lowing reports that it was be-
ing “misused” by elements
from across the border to
smuggle weapons, narcotics
and fake currency.
The almonds produced in
keep it safe
„„“We discovered addi-
tional logs of Instagram
passwords being stored
in a readable format. We
now estimate that this
issue impacted millions
of Instagram users,”
Facebook said in a blog
handling of user data has
been a flashpoint for contro-
versy since it admitted last
year that Cambridge Ana-
lytica, a political consultan-
cy, used an app that may
have hijacked the private
details of 87 million users.
Facebook has announced
a series of moves to tighten
handling of data, including
eliminating most of its data-
sharing partnerships with
outside companies. The Cal-
ifornia firm reaches an esti-
mated 2.7 billion people with
its core social network, Ins-
tagram and messaging ap-
plications. — AFP
Security forces have been asked to “sensitise and brief under command
troops to keep extra vigil and alertness to avoid any untoward incident”.
polling days or even during
campaigns.
The intelligence agencies
have shared terror alert
with security forces. It has
been directed to “sensitize
and brief under command
troops to keep extra vigil
and alertness to avoid any
untoward incident”. The
agencies are also aware that
Pakistan-based terrorists
are holed up in North Kash-
mir are large numbers.
Jammu and Kashmir will
go to polls in five phases
California in the United
States have been regularly
finding their way through
LoC trade involving a large
transport network.
According to the modus
operandi, Pakistani traders
under-invoice products like
California almonds. After re-
ceiving the consignment,
traders on the Indian side sell
California almonds at the
prevailing market price and
make extra and undue profit
due to the under-invoicing, a
security official said.
The extra money generat-
ed is handed over by the trad-
ers to terrorists, separatists
Offering prayers
Chief Justice of India, Justice Ranjan Gogoi with wife Rupanjali Gogoi and daughter Rashmi Gogoi at the hill temple
of Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala in Tirupati, on Friday — pti
Mona Lisa didn’t suffer from thyroid
Houston: Italian polymath
Leonardo da Vinci’s muse
for the iconic Mona Lisa
painting may not have suf-
fered from hypothyroidism
as suggested by recent stud-
ies, scientists say.
from April 11 to May 6. The
counting of votes will take
place on May 23. Assembly
elections are likely to be
held inthe valley after the
Lok Sabha polls.
Earlier in April, a CRPF
convoy was targeted using a
Santro car bomb at Banihal.
The explosion took place at
around 10.30 am on the Sri-
nagar-Jammu Highway. The
bus narrowly escaped with
minor damages in the re-run
of a Pulwama-like attack.
“The car caught fire and
or anti-national elements in
the Kashmir valley to fuel
anti-India activities, the offi-
cial said. It has also come to
the notice of security agen-
cies that a significant num-
ber of trading concerns en-
Michael Yafi, from The
University of Texas Health
Science Center (UTHealth)
in the US, noted that the
painting doesn’t match the
countless other depictions
of goiters or enlargements
inside story
„„These motorcycle
fidayeen attackers are
named after Mughal
emperors as well, say
intelligence agencies
„„The security agenc-
ies are also aware
that Pakistan-based
terrorists are holed up
in North Kashmir are
large numbers
the rear of the CRPF vehicle
suffered slight damage.
However, no CRPF person-
nel was injured,” said a
CRPF officer.
The car was gutted. One
intact and another damaged
gas cylinder were found
near the blast site.
A letter recovered from
the scene had identified the
driver as a Hizbul Mujahi-
deen operative, who men-
tioned his intention to carry
out a February 14 Pulwama-
type attack.
gaged in cross-LoC trade are
being operated by persons
closely associated with bann-
ed terrorist organisations,
specially Hizbul Mujahideen.
Some Indian nationals
who have crossed over to Pa-
kistan and joined militant
organisations have opened
trading firms in the neigh-
bouring country. As a result,
many Pak-based trading
firms under the control of
militant organisations are
trading with firms operated
by their relatives in the Indi-
an side.
The cross-LoC trade is also
being used as a regular chan-
of the thyroid gland.
The painting of Lisa Gh-
erardini has captivated mil-
lions since it was created in
the early 1500s, including
experts in the medical com-
munity. —AFP
second
front
page
Ahmedabad I Saturday, April 20, 2019 I daily news & analysis
UK govt issues
travel advisory
to its tourists
London: The U’s Foreign and
Commonwealth Office (FCO)
in an advisory to its citizens
planning a trip to Pakistan
has urged them to avoid visit-
ing numerous places, includ-
ing areas located close to the
Line of Control. The UK FCO,
in an advisory, said that for-
eigners may become “direct
targets” of the attacks espe-
cially in densely populated
areas, such as markets, shop-
ping malls and restaurants.
“Protests can take place with
little warning and turn vio-
lent quickly. You should avoid
demonstrations, large crowds
of people and public events
throughout Pakistan. You
should be extra vigilant at all
times and minimize your ex-
posure to areas that pose a
higher risk,” FCO said. —ANI
nel for funneling drugs such
as cocaine, brown sugar and
heroine into the Kashmir val-
ley, adversely impacting the
youth and converting many
into addicts, the official said.
In a recent example, 66.5 kg
heroine was seized from a
valley-based consignee and it
was found that the drugs
came through the cross-LoC
trade.
The trade is being exploit-
ed for periodically smuggling
arms and ammunition into
the valley. Numerous sei-
zures have been made of pis-
tols, grenades, spares and
ammunition. — PTI
Will drag Rahul to
court: Lalit Modi
New Delhi: Former Indian
Premier League (IPL) chief
operating officer (COO) Lal-
it Modi on Friday hit out at
Congress president Rahul
Gandhi over his “all thieves
have Modi in their sur-
names” jibe and said he
would take the Congress
chief to a court in the UK.
“The papu @rahulgandhi
says “All MODI’s are
CHOR’s”. Well he will be
taken to court in the UK by
Me. But reality is that the
world knows 5 decades of
daylight looting of India was
and is done by none other
than the Gandhi family,”
Lalit tweeted.
Gandhi, while addressing
an election rally at Kolar on
April 13, had said, “I have a
question. Why all the thieves
have Modi in their names
whether be it Nirav Modi,
Lalit Modi and Narendra
Modi? We don’t know how
many more such Modis will
come out.” The Congress
chief drew flak for this re-
mark from Prime Minister
Photo for representation
LoC trade to resume
after stricter systems
Sumit Kumar Singh
singh.sumit@dnaindia.net
New Delhi: A day after India
suspended all cross-LoC
trades with Pakistan, citing
regular incidents of smug-
gling of third party goods,
terror funds, drugs, arms and
fake currency notes, the Cen-
tre stated on Friday that they
will revisit the issue of re-
suming the trade putting
stricter measures and sys-
tems in place.
“New measures are ex-
pected to restore the benefit
of LoC trade to local popula-
tion only, rather than allow-
ing terrorist organisations
and unscrupulous traders
based far away from these
trading points to siphon off
the benefits and fuel instabil-
ity in the valley,”said a source
in the Central government.
The centre stated that LoC
trade across Chakan-Da-
Bagh and Salamabad was in-
tended as a confidence-build-
ing measure for the people
living in remote areas of
Lalit Modi
NarendraModi as well as
Bihar Deputy Chief Minis-
ter SushilKumarModi. Su-
shil Modi on Thursday filed
a defamation case against
Gandhi over his comment in
Patna Civil Court.
“I have filed a defamation
case against Congress presi-
dent Rahul Gandhi. In an
affidavit, I have stated that
Rahul had said all people
having surname Modi are
thieves. His statement has
hurt the sentiments of peo-
ple. Besides, it has also hurt
the watchmen in Bihar,” he
had said. — ANI
hell hole
„„National Investigation
Agency (NIA) also
decoded the modus
operandi of the dubious
hawala transactions for
terror financing
Jammu and Kashmir and liv-
ing across LoC in Pakistan
occupied Kahmir.. However,
third parties manipulated
the trade and misused it for
trading goods being produced
from outside the valley.
Sources also stated that
while charge sheeting busi-
nessman Zahoo Ahmed Wata-
li, who was the president of
LoC traders association, it
was found that he was in-
volved in funneling money to
terrorists, separatists and
subversive elements in the
valley. The Enforcement Di-
rectorate (ED) has already
attached his property worth
crores and further investiga-
tions are still on in terror
funding case.
ND Tiwari’s
son smothered
to death, says
autopsy report
Saakshi Chand
sakshi.chand@dnaindia.com
New Delhi: Rohit Shekhar,
the son of late politician ND
Tiwari, was smothered to
death, revealed the post-mor-
tem report on Saturday.
The report also mentioned
that an ‘unnatural death’,
prima facie, was caused by
smothering the victim with a
pillow.
“Following the reports,
Shekhar’s death probe was
transfered to the Crime
Branch of Delhi police. While
we have filed a case of mur-
der, the autopsy report sug-
gests death due to smother-
ing. Police teams have also
analysed the CCTV footage
of the crime scene,” said a
senior police officer.
The cops also found that
Rohit had gone to Uttara-
khand to cast his vote on 17th
April. He returned to Delhi
the next day evening.