Month: February 2021

Showcasing photography skills of her co-actor and Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar, actor Kriti Sanon, on Tuesday treated fans with a sunkissed picture of herself.

The ‘Panipat’ star, who is currently shooting for Sajid Nadiadwala’s ‘Bachchan Pandey’ in Jaisalmer, took to Instagram and shared a stunning closeup picture of herself from the sets of her forthcoming movie and teased that it was clicked by the ‘Khiladi’ star, Akshay Kumar. In the picture, the ‘Raabta’ actor is seen sporting a no make-up look.

Kriti looks alluring as she donned dark mascara eyes and a dark pink lip shade while she effortlessly poses for the lens.

With the scintillating picture, Sanon noted, “When Bachchan Pandey a.k.a @akshaykumar turns photographer..,” using a camera and shining hearts emoticons.

With the post hitting the photo-sharing platform, it garnered more than four lakh likes while scores of the ‘Heropanti’ star’s fans chimed into the comments section and left fire and lovestruck emoticons.

Sanon keeps on sharing the BTS pictures from the sets of her upcoming film ‘Bachchan Pandey’.

Earlier, she also announced that she has joined the star cast of Tiger Shroff starrer ‘Ganapath’ as a lead. She also revealed her first look on social media and introduced the character named Jassi. This collaboration will mark her third project with Tiger Shroff after they both debuted in the 2014 flick ‘Heropanti’ and their T-series music video ‘Chal wahan jaate hain’.

Meanwhile, her upcoming film, which stars Akshay Kumar in the lead, is being helmed by Farhad Samji and bankrolled by Sajid Nadiadwala. It will hit the theatres on January 26, 2022. Apart from Akshay, and Kriti, the film also features Jacqueline Fernandez and Arshad Warsi.

The flick will reportedly be shot in places like Gadisar Lake and Jaisalkot. Akshay’s character in the film is a gangster who aspires to be an actor, while Kriti essays the role of a journalist, who harbours dreams of becoming a film director. (ANI)

A Delhi Court on Tuesday further extended till March 1, the judicial custody of Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and others arrested in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act case in connection with North East Delhi violence.

Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat extended the judicial custody of the arrested accused after they were presented before the court. The court has listed the matter for further hearing on March 1.

The same court in November 2020 had accepted the supplementary charge sheet and said that there is sufficient material to proceed against accused Khalid, Imam and Khan for offences under provisions of UAPA.

More than 750 cases were registered in the northeast Delhi violence, in which at least 53 people were killed and several others injured. So far, over 250 charge sheets have been filed in the riots-related cases in which 1,153 accused have been charge-sheeted. (ANI)

International pop star Rihanna, who has been in the news ever since she tweeted about the ongoing farmers’ protest in India, is making headlines once again. The singer has come under fire for posting a topless picture featuring herself wearing a statement Ganesha pendant.

The 32-year-old singer shared a picture on Instagram that features her in a topless avatar for the shoot of her lingerie brand Savage X Fenty. The songstress can be seen dressed in purple satin short bottoms. To complete her look, she donned several accessories such as bracelets, neckpieces, and statement earrings

However, what caught everyone’s attention, causing a massive outrage on social media, was her controversial pendant. Social media users noticed her sporting the statement Ganesha pendant, after which they called out the star for hurting their religious sentiments.

A user commented, “Stop wearing our GODS in these types of pictures. It is soooo damn disrespectful?”

Another wrote, “SHES LITERALLY WEARING A GANESHA NECKLACE WTF MY RELIGION IS NOT YOUR AESTHETIC.”

A disappointed follower also commented, “You’re wearing a deity necklace and a Murthi of my culture that’s already been culturally appropriated enough in the past few years. How is this okay when a person has more than enough resources to atleast find out the meaning and significance of the chains and pendant around their neck? And how is @instagram allowing it? I’m honestly just disappointed at this point.”

One user asked her to remove the pendant and wrote, “last time I remember she apologized to the Muslim community and now she is doing the same with Hindu faith, plz take it down its utter disrespectful to us. U cant sexualize my religion like that and wear it on your sleeves.”

However, the star who is controversy’s favourite child, has faced intense backlash before as well.

Last year, Rihanna had landed in another controversy during the launch of her brand Savage X Fenty lingerie show. The event had the song ‘Doom’ being played in the background which has a Muslim text called Hadith in it. This did not go well with people and they called her out immediately after which she had issued an apology.

Rihanna had also hogged the limelight nearly two weeks back after she tweeted about the farmers protesting on the borders of India’s capital against the three agriculture laws introduced by the Central government last year and asked why people were not talking about it.

After Rihanna’s tweet, many international public figures such as Lilly Singh, Jay Sean, Greta Thunberg, Amanda Cerny, and Mia Khalifa also tweeted about the issue. Many people praised Rihanna for raising her voice in support of the farmers. On the other hand, some celebrities including Kangana Ranaut questioned her motive behind meddling in another country’s matters.

Meanwhile, Bollywood stars such as Ajay Devgn, Karan Johar, and Akshay Kumar, and sportspersons such as Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and Anil Kumble called to stand united against propaganda being spread against India’s policies. (ANI)

Kiran Bedi has been removed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a statement on Tuesday.

Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan has been directed to discharge functions of the Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry, in addition to her own duties, until a new appointment is made, the statement said.

“The President has directed that Dr. Kiran Bedi shall cease to hold the office of the Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry and has appointed Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan, Governor of Telangana, to discharge the functions of the Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry, in addition to her own duties, with effect from the date she assumes charge of her office, until regular arrangements for the office of Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry are made,” the statement said.

Earlier in the day, Puducherry Social Welfare Minister Kandasamy said the cabinet headed by Chief Minister Narayanasamy will resign after the resignations of Congress legislators in Puducherry ahead of the assembly elections later this year.

In a video, Kandaswamy said: “Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Puducherry L-G Kiran Bedi have been harassing the Congress government for four and a half years. They are trying to dissolve the regime. We are working to dissolve the cabinet headed by CM Narayanasamy and win the assembly elections again.”

Earlier, Congress MLA from Kamaraj Nagar constituency, A John Kumar had resigned from his post, citing “dissatisfaction with the Congress government.”

This comes ahead of the Legislative Assembly polls scheduled to be held in the Union Territory.

Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC) Sunil Arora has said that the election will be held at the same time in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. However, the dates of the polls are yet to be announced. (ANI)

Robert Vadra, businessman and son-in-law of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, on Tuesday said that he is looking for legal help for climate activist Disha Ravi, who was arrested by the Delhi Police on Sunday for allegedly sharing a ‘toolkit’ document related to the farmers’ protest with Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg.

Vadra told ANI, “I see something incorrect happening in our country. My family is in politics so of course they do get involved in every issue related to the country, but having said that when I saw a girl of age 21 being arrested in this way, the way she was arrested, I am looking for good legal help for Disha and that she should have good counsel and it should be neutral.”

“We support people who are handled in the wrong way. We are not anti-national and are not against the country,” he said.

“I can help farmers and send them food. I can help them in whatever way is in my capacity but that’s doesn’t make me anti-national, because I am not supporting them due to something incorrect,” he added.

Hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the arrest of Disha Ravi over the farmers’ protest, Vadra said, “You are telling everybody to be self-reliant or Atmanirbhar. When you make people Atmanirbhar, it means they do have an opinion, they do have a voice. They see wrong happening with farmers for more than 80 days, they have left their homes and are sitting at the borders. The border has been made secure as if it was India Pakistan border.”

Coming out in support of the farmers’ protest, Vadra said, “You are not willing to listen to the farmers. You have seen what happened when we had the corona pandemic around. For 4 hours at night everybody had to lock down and adhere to rules otherwise people were beaten on the roads. People want to go back to their villages because they didn’t have any earnings and they made their way back walking.”

“If you see unemployment, it is at its peak. People are without a job. If you see what’s happening with the petrol and diesel prices, people are seeing this disharmony and hence they will voice their opinion,” he added.

He said the farmers’ issue is an international issue because people have all come together saying this is incorrect. He added, “We thank farmers– because of them we eat every day but they have been on the borders.”

Raising the issue of the three farm laws, Vadra said, “Why can’t people be involved with the government whenever a new law is created so that we can understand their (concerned persons) side and the government’s side.

“Many people like Disha are going to rebel, revolt and voice their opinion, say things and if you trying to press them down or have another way to say this is incorrect or that is incorrect or you are anti-national. If you talk on any issue against the government it is unacceptable and this is not me saying. Everybody I meet seems unhappy and like my family, I also voice my opinion, because I have been through this for the last 10 years. They keep bringing my name whenever they like. They use my name or send agencies people here.”

He said the government should listen to the opinions of youth. “Youth just don’t want to keep quiet. I have a daughter, who is 18-year-old and I hear her opinions and my son, who is 20-year-old and I hear their opinions. Yes they are independent but if you make people independent they are going to react and we have to accept that.”

Vadra said if there is any wrongdoing, people would like to see the proof, otherwise they won’t believe it. He said he believes in the judicial system of the country. “We believe in the police but everybody who voices their opinion is anti-national. I believe if Delhi police is doing the integration, they are finding what is wrong and right.”

He said, “Serious charges have to be proved. I can’t be saying anything against the judiciary or courts or Delhi police but I will say it against the government because they can’t suppress the voice of anybody who says something, because they are going to have an opinion, because it is a democracy. In a democracy people speak what they feel and you have to accept that.”

On the issue of whether they were talking against the government with the help of international celebrities, Vadra said, “It’s a myth. It’s incorrect. We are citizens of India. We will fight for the people of India. My family will fight politically and I will help in my own capacity and I am not anti-national. We have a right to fight for the people and we will do that.” (ANI)

Students in Delhi and Bengaluru held protests against the arrest of 22-year-old Disha Ravi and demanded her immediate release.

Student activists of All India Students’ Association (AISA) were on Tuesday seen protesting outside the Delhi Police headquarters demanding the immediate release of arrested ‘climate activist’ Disha Ravi. AISA activists were seen protesting with placards amid slogans of ‘Inquilab Zindabad’ and ‘Disha Ravi ko riha karo’ on Tuesday.

Kaushik Raj, a student of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) told ANI, “Today we are protesting at the Delhi police headquarters. We are here to stand in support of Disha Ravi. We want the Delhi Police to immediately release Disha Ravi.”
Another student from the University said the 21-year-old climate activist was arrested because she came in support of the farmers. The Modi government is jailing everyone who is coming in support of farmers in the country. This clearly shows that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah are afraid of the voices being raised to oppose them. The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the sedition laws are the only ‘toolkit’ of the current government.
Meanwhile, in Bengaluru, the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) student activists staged peaceful protests at Maurya Circle against the arrest of Disha Ravi demanding her immediate release.

A student participating in the protests told ANI, “Disha is not only a climate activist but also a student from our state. We want to protect the integrity of students as well as our state. Our biggest concern is that the Delhi Police could not find the real culprits of the Republic Day violence, could not register an FIR for the next two-three days, and all of a sudden the Delhi Police comes all the way from Delhi to Bengaluru to arrest a student in connection with the Delhi violence.”

“The Delhi police cyber cell is targetting Disha through the ‘Toolkit’. What actually is a ‘Toolkit’? ‘Toolkit’ is a set of directives or suggestions on a particular issue that attracts protests, which in this case is the farmers’ issue. The Delhi Police is clearly scapegoating Disha Ravi and we completely condemn this act,” he added.

The 21-year-old activist was arrested from Bengaluru in connection with the formulation and dissemination of the Toolkit document, in the ongoing farmers’ protest. She was one of the editors of the ‘Toolkit’ document.
Disha was later sent to five days of police custody. Later on Monday, the police also issued a non-bailable warrant against activists Nikita Jacob and Shantanu, a resident of Beed in Maharashtra.

According to the Delhi Police, the editors of the toolkit collaborated with the pro-Khalistani Poetic Justice Foundation to spread disaffection against the Indian state. Disha was the one who shared the Toolkit Doc with Greta Thunberg.

Last week, Disha was presented before a Delhi Court that remanded her five days of police custody. Disha Ravi broke down inside the courtroom and told the judge that she has edited only two lines and she wanted to support the farmers’ protest.

Earlier, the Delhi Police sent a communication to Google seeking registration details and activity log of the account through which a “toolkit” related to the farmers’ protest was created and uploaded on the social media platform. (ANI)

India is on track for an economic recovery in the fiscal year ending March 2022, S&P Global Ratings said on Tuesday.

Consistently good agriculture performance, a flattening of the Covid-19 infection curve and a pickup in government spending are all supporting the economy, it said in a report titled ‘Cross-Sector Outlook: India’s Escape From Covid.’ India needs many things to be right for its recovery to continue. Most significantly, the country needs to quickly and thoroughly vaccinate most of its 1.4 billion people.

“The emergence of yet more contagious Covid-19 variants with the potential to evade vaccine-derived immunity present a major risk to this recovery. As does the possibility of early withdrawal of global fiscal stimulus,” said the report.

However, near-term prospects are positive. With a sustained decline in national confirmed Covid-19 cases allowing for a gradual relaxation of formerly stringent epidemic control measures, high frequency economic indicators continue to show improvement.

S&P said the Indian government’s recently released Budget will also support the recovery with higher than previously expected expenditures for fiscals 2021 and 2022.

“India’s improving growth prospects are critical to its ability to sustain the higher deficits associated with its more aggressive fiscal stance.”

The economy still faces important risks as it transitions from stabilisation to recovery. “We estimate that India faces a permanent loss of output versus its pre-pandemic path, suggesting a long-term production deficit equivalent to about 10 per cent of GDP,” said the report.

Localised containment measures in India are replacing nationwide lockdowns. This has rejuvenated demand and removed supply bottlenecks and labour shortages, supporting a sharp recovery in infrastructure use.
But the pace of recovery varies widely. Airports are still struggling with most flights grounded.

Utilities are faring better, bolstered by regulated, contracted or availability-based returns that protect their operating cash flows despite an earlier fall in unit demand. “We believe counterparty credit risks and receivable delays pose the biggest risk for utilities (including renewables) while benign funding conditions assuage liquidity risk.”

Likewise, a faster-than-expected earnings recovery has lowered downside risk for rated corporates. An increase in commodity prices and a revival of domestic demand after lockdowns were eased have driven upside earnings surprises.

Changes in consumer choices, for example a preference for personal transport for health-safety reasons, have helped sectors like automobiles.
“In our view, a sustained earnings rebound is key for ratings to stabilise. Roughly one quarter of ratings are still on negative outlook. On the other hand, proactive refinancing by speculative-grade corporates has materially reduced refinancing risk in 2021.”

On the banking front in India, S&P estimates the system’s weak loans ratio at 12 per cent of gross loans and credit cost to remain elevated at 2.2 to 2.7 per cent.

Faster economic recovery and steps taken by the Reserve Bank of India and the Indian government to cushion the effect of the economic crisis have helped ease the stress on bank balance sheets.

“In our view, India’s banking system’s performance is likely to start improving materially in fiscal 2023, trailing an economic recovery of 10 per cent in fiscal 2022. On a positive note, banks are building capital buffers and reserves to deal with the Covid crunch.”

S&P said finance companies’ performance has been a mixed bag and polarisation between Indian finance companies can persist. (ANI)

Seasoned off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin on Tuesday revealed that he had toiled hard during the coronavirus enforced lockdown last year to improve his batting and footwork.

Ashwin hit a match-winning hundred on Monday as India scored 286 runs in their second innings. A pitch where all England cricketers struggled to find their feet, Ashwin came out with flying colours picking eight wickets and scoring his fifth Test ton.
“During the COVID lockdown I practiced a lot with throwing balls on the ball and then batting to improve my drive and footwork and it became good and everything just added up when I hit the century. The reactions were natural,” Ashwin said during the post-match presentation after India’s win.

Ashwin was the show-stopper for India on the third day as he bagged a crucial wicket of opener Rory Burns after hitting the century. The right-arm spinner truly relished the moment as soon as he reached his hundred.

Describing the feeling Ashwin said, “It was my dream to play a Test match in Chepauk and I never thought I would play a Test here and fans will cheer for me. I played my first Test here in 2013 when Dhoni (Mahendra Singh Dhoni) hit a 200 and I took 12 wickets.”

“That was a different feeling altogether but this time it was something else. Taking wickets is good but my century is something else as it came after five years. Many people were frustrated as they thought we have batting abilities but were not able to live up to the expectations. The problem is everyone has an opinion nowadays, they don’t think how a batsman is thinking what kind of help does he require,” Ashwin added.

On Monday, Ashwin credited batting coach Vikram Rathour for his success in the red-ball cricket with the bat.

“I will sleep well through the night, that is all that I am thinking. Even after the last Test, we spoke about how we are going to counter Leach and probably bring sweep to the game. Last time, I was sweeping, I was 19 years old, I hit a bit of sweep shots well today. I am thankful the plan has paid off,” Ashwin told host broadcaster after the conclusion of play on Monday.

“Sort of had a very good day. I can’t say it’s been happening in the last three days, I have been practicisng with Vikram Rathore (batting coach), I would love to credit him with how my batting has come through over the last four-five matches,” he added.

India levelled the four-match Test series 1-1 against England after an emphatic 317-run win in the second Test here at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday.

India remains in contention to make the final of the ICC World Test Championship after completing an impressive victory over England in the second Test to draw level in the four-match series.

The victory in Chennai on Tuesday has lifted India to the second position with 69.7 percentage points on the points table but they cannot afford to lose another match as they need to win 2-1 or 3-1 to qualify for the final of the maiden edition of the championship.

England, who led the table after winning the opening Test, has slipped to the fourth spot with 67.0 percentage points. They can still qualify, but for that, they must win both remaining matches of the series against India. (ANI)