Author: LokMarg

Indian pace veteran Varun Aaron praised star pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, saying that he is gold for Team India.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was a star for India during the India-Pakistan clash at Asia Cup 2022. He took 4 wickets for 26 runs. He has been the leading T20I wicket-taker for India this year with 24 scalps.

“There is no doubt over Bhvuneshwar at all. He just had a period where he was dealing with injuries and he could not wrap his head around it. He was not coming back soon enough. Obviously, when you are injured and out for a while, you are frustrated because you want to play the best level of cricket,” said Aaron in an exclusive interview with ANI.

“He was doing the same thing for us before he was injured. Now he is coming back and is doing the same job for us, two overs in the start and then two later. Bhuvi is gold for the Indian bowling attack. I am not surprised at all at this. When you are injured you need some time to comeback. That is what has happened to him and now he is back in form,” he added.

Aaron praised Indian pacers for their fine performance against Pakistan, who for the first time in the nation’s T20I cricket history took all ten wickets in an innings.

“It was a brilliant performance by pacers. Especially Hardik Pandya coming in as fourth seamer and what he did was unbelievable. His breakthroughs were key. He bowled very bravely and went for wickets. Pacers have been doing well over a long period of time. They have got a lot of experience in these conditions since two IPLs were held here and these same bowlers were playing in it. It is going to be a good tournament for India and the fast bowlers,” he said.

On Virat Kohli’s run of form, Aaron said that everyone is judging the star batter as per mighty standards set by him and he opined that Virat is doing well.

“Even though he is not having a typical Virat run, he is still among the top five batters of the Indian team. Every player goes through this. I feel it is on us to keep patience and back him. It will just a matter of time before he is back in form,” he added.

Since his last international century, Virat has represented India in 69 matches and scored 2,589 runs across 83 innings at an average of 34.06. He has hit 24 half-centuries across all formats since his last international ton.

2022 in particular has been very tough for Virat.

This year, Virat has played only five T20Is for his side, across which he has scored 116 runs at a subpar average of 23.20. His best score in the format this year is 52. Across all formats this year, he has represented India in 17 matches and across 20 innings, he had been able to score only 511 runs at a sub-par average of 25.55. Only four half-centuries have come off his bat, with the best score of 79.

The pace veteran praised star all-rounder Hardik Pandya, saying that he has come out of his time battling injuries really well.

“He has spent a lot of time out of the game. It helped him figure out his bowling action, made it more efficient and puts less pressure on his back. He is bowling better than he did earlier. There was never a question on his batting,” he added.

Aaron said that Pandya led Gujarat Titans from the front. “He was always calm. He was always there for his teammates,” he added.

Pandya returned to his fully fit avatar in 2022 after dealing with fitness issues over the years to lead Gujarat Titans to their maiden India Premier League (IPL) title in their debut season.

Throughout the season, Pandya led his side from the front with his all-round show, scoring 487 runs at an average of 44.27 in 15 games and hitting four fifties. He also took eight wickets for his side, including a match-winning 3/17 in the final.

Since then, he has shown exceptional form for India in T20Is and has played many crucial knocks, be it as an aggressor or an anchor. In T20Is this year, Pandya has scored 314 runs across 13 innings in 14 matches at an average of 34.88.

He has scored one half-century and various other crucial knocks. He has also taken 11 wickets for his side in 14 matches with best bowling figures of 4/33.

In three ODIs as well, he has hit 100 runs in two innings across three matches with an average of 50, with one fifty and the best score of 71. He has also taken six wickets across these three matches, with best figures of 4/24.

The pace veteran praised Rohit Sharma’s captaincy, saying, “He is a seasoned captain. He has taken Mumbai Indians to so many IPLs. He has proved his worth and we all know how good he is as captain. When you have a great team, captain, captain and coach working well, you get the results.”

Aaron feels that India is a strong contender for Asia Cup 2022, though he said that Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka also have great T20I teams.

“I feel India is a contender in any tournament we play. There is no question about our dominance in T20Is. The way we have been playing cricket and the kind of talent pool we have, is second to none. India is a favourite by a huge margin. Cricket sometimes boils down to a given day and how well a team plays well. If we play consistent cricket, we should bring the trophy. Though Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka are good teams,” he said.

Aaron is extremely happy with India’s massive talent pool, especially in fast bowling. The bowler opines that it is good for Indian cricket.

“The guys who are playing are always on their toes and do not take their place for granted. Now, there are more robust fast bowlers who bowl quick, and bowl different variations. IPL helps a lot, since it was the only tournament happening properly during COVID-19. Domestic cricket had taken a backseat. Having fast bowling pool is always great as due to the nature of what they do, they tend to break down on and off. Arsdheep and Avesh are doing some heavylifting right now in absence of guys like Bumrah and Shami. It is good for Indian cricket,” said the pace veteran.

Aaron has changed his domestic cricket team from Jharkhand to Baroda after 18 years of representing the former.

Asked about his thoughts heading into the new season, Aaron said, “I am looking forward to it. It is going to be a welcome change. I have represented Jharkhand for 18 years and I loved it. It is great to challenge yourself once in a while and go to a new team and culture. I will enjoy the expectations placed on me. The team wants to win trophies, they have a great coach in Dav Whatmore. Obviously, Baroda is taking steps to win trophies. And you want to be part of such set-ups and when you are a part of it, your game goes strength to strength. I think it was the right time for the change.” (ANI)

The Enforcement Directorate’s chargesheet filed against Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez clearly stated that ‘she consciously chose to overlook his (Sukesh Chandrashekhar) criminal past and continued to indulge in financial transactions with him. Not only she but also her family members and friends have benefited from the relationship financially.

ED also concluded that the lure of money ensured that the criminal history of the person she was engaging with did not matter.
Further, the accused Jacqueline Fernandez has consistently shifted her stance with regard to the gifts being received by her and her relatives. It was only upon confrontation with evidence and statements on record that she divided the details. Yet, she had been denying certain assets purchased by Sukesh for her and the investigation on that aspect is going on from the collection of evidence.

The chargesheet further stated that “Investigation so far has revealed that the accused actor is directly or indirectly involved in the proceeds of crime and acquired, possessed & used part proceeds of crime – valuable gifts for herself & her family members in India and abroad and thereby committed an offence of money laundering u/s 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, which is punishable u/s 4 of PMLA, 2002.”

It also stated that Section 3 of PMLA, 2002 Accused Jacqueline Fernandez is involved in the process and activity connected with POC as discussed hereinbefore and thereby committed the offence of money laundering as defined under section 3 of PMLA for knowingly using and possessing the proceeds of crime”.

The accused Jacqueline Fernandez, despite knowing that Accused Sukesh Chandrasekhar has committed scheduled offences and out of those proceeds of crime generated through various criminal activities related to the schedule offences, the part proceeds of crime has been directly received in India and abroad as well by accused Jacqueline Fernandez for the use and enjoyment by herself and her family members and thereby projecting as loan amount in the form of transfers made into the accounts of the sister and brother of accused Jacqueline Fernandez and also bought cars for the father and mother of accused Jacqueline Fernandez and thereby acquired and enjoyed POC.

The Trial Court on Wednesday also issued a summon to Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez to appear before it physically on September 26 in Enforcement Directorate (ED) case related to Rs 200 crore money laundering scam involving conman Sukesh Chandrashekar and others.

On August 17, a supplementary charge sheet was filed by the Enforcement Directorate in the Rs 200 crore extortion case against conman Sukesh Chandrashekar in a Delhi Court mentioning the name of Jacqueline Fernandez as an accused.

The Additional Sessions Judge Praveen Singh on Wednesday, after taking cognizance of the supplementary charge sheet, directed the newly made accused Jacqueline Fernandez to appear before it on September 26.

Meanwhile, a lawyer who appeared for Delhi Police EOW which is also probing the same case informed the court that Jacqueline Fernandez was recently asked to appear for it on August 29. Still, she did not appear so we have issued a fresh summons to her to join the investigation.

To this, the lawyer appearing for Jacqueline assured the court that she would join the investigation and co-operate with the probe agency.

Fernandez has been summoned by the ED several times in the matter for an investigation into the matter.

Advocate Prashant Patil, who appeared for Fernandez, stated that she has always cooperated with the investigation agencies and attended all the summons to date. “She has handed over all the information to the best of her ability to the ED,” he said.

According to ED, during the investigation, searches were conducted at various places linked to Sukesh Chandrashekar and his associates. During the search, 16 high-end vehicles were also seized under section 17 of PMLA and these cars are either in the name of firms of Leena Paulose or in the name of third parties.

It was further submitted that it has emerged that Chandrashekar had knowingly created the structure for layering and transferring proceeds of crime and thus, actively participated in the process of money laundering. (ANI)

A special court in Kolkata on Wednesday extended the judicial custody of former West Bengal Minister Partha Chatterjee and his close associate, Arpita Mukherjee, till September 14 in connection with the School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment scam case.

A Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Kolkata had earlier extended the judicial custody of the due till August 31.
Partha Chatterjee and Arpita Mukherjee were arrested last month by Enforcement Directorate in connection with the recruitment scam. The ED had raided several premises allegedly linked to Arpita Mukherjee in the scam.

The probe agency recovered cash worth about Rs 50 crore, foreign currency, jewellery and gold biscuits in connection with its raids into the scam.

Chatterjee was education minister from 2014 to 2021 in the Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal.

Following Chatterjee’s arrest, he was removed as a minister and suspended from the Trinamool Congress. (ANI)

Bollywood actor Kunal Kemmu is all set to mark his big directorial debut with Excel Entertainment’s upcoming film ‘Madgaon Express’.

Taking to Instagram, the ‘Dhol’ actor shared a poster of the film which he captioned, “Ganpati Bappa Moriya! As all good things begin with his name I can’t think of a better day to share this with all of you. It started with a thought in my head, which grew into a dream which flowed out through my fingers into words on my laptop, and now it is becoming a reality on its way to the silver screen. A big thank you to @ritesh_sid @faroutakhtar and @roo_cha at @excelmovies for believing in my script and my vision and partnering with me on this exciting journey in the world of cinema. With folded hands and a bowed head, I seek all of your blessings and the blessings of Ganpati Bappa. Introducing “Madgaon Express”.#Madgaonexpress..”

Produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, the official announcement of the star cast of the film is still awaited.

Soon after Kunal shared the news of his directorial debut, b-town celebs wished the actor on his new journey as a director.

Meanwhile, Kunal was last seen in a comedy film ‘Lootcase’ which streamed exclusively on Disney+ Hotstar and gathered decent responses from the audience.

He will be next seen in Amazon Prime Video’s upcoming web series ‘Gulkanda Tales’ alongside Pankaj Tripathi and Patralekhaa.

The official release date of the film is still awaited. (ANI)

All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) Chief and Lok Sabha MP Badruddin Ajmal on Wednesday said that the Assam government should stop its bulldozer drive against Madrasas in the state adding that if needed it will go the Supreme Court.

“We can’t accept the Assam government’s bulldozer drive against the Madrasas in the state. It should be stopped. If necessary we will move to the Supreme Court or any other against it,” Ajmal told ANI.
AIUDF supremo further said that the BJP-RSS are “targeting” Muslims.

“There may be some anti-social people in the Muslim community and the government should take action against the bad elements. We have no issue with it. But use a bulldozer in Madrasa can’t be accepted,” Ajmal added.

Meanwhile, authorities in Assam on Wednesday demolished a madrassa in the Bongaigaon district after allegations that its premises were being used for terror activities.

This is the third madrasa to be razed by the Assam government following the arrests of 37 persons including the Imam and madrasa teachers on charges of being linked to terror outfits Al Qaida in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT).

There were reports that some militants disguised as religious teachers had sneaked into the state and silently gone ahead with their subversive and anti-state activities.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that some madrassa managements were not running the institution but were running a terrorist hub.

“This is the second madrasa we evicted as they were not running as an institution but were running as a terrorist hub. I don’t want to generalise, but we investigate and take appropriate action when a complaint of fundamentalism comes,” Sarma had said.

Recently, Chief Minister Sarma said in a press conference that, six Bangladeshi nationals who are members of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) / Al-Qaeda Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), entered Assam in 2016-17 and Assam police had arrested one among them and five are still absconding.

For better surveillance, Assam Chief Minister reiterated that Islamic teachers coming into the state will be closely monitored and moreover the state was developing a portal where their details will be captured.

“We have laid down standard operating procedures. Locals must inform police if any religious teacher (Imam) coming outside of the state and are not known to them,” Sarma told reporters.

“Police will verify the person and then he can carry out his religious teaching in the Madrassas,” he said, adding that Muslims of Assam have been cooperating with the government in this process.

Assam currently doesn’t have any government-run madrassas as they have recently been converted into regular schools.

However, individual or privately-run madrassas continue to exist. (ANI)

The Centre will organise a two-day Chintan Shivir (introspection camp) on the functioning of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), said sources on Wednesday.
This is the first time that Chintan Shivir will be organised on a theme relating to the functioning of AIIMS. Earlier the date was August 24 and 25 but now according to the sources, the Chintan Shivir will be organised on September 1 and 2.

The experts and stakeholders will discuss standards of teaching, learning, research and service delivery for patients.

The other focus will be patient satisfaction in AIIMS like developing institutional procedures to make facilities available ‘at ease’ to the patients, sources told ANI.

The Chintan Shivir will have directors from all the AIIMS colleges in India and how all AIIMS can be a common platform for various clinical research purposes will also be discussed.

A total of three Chintan Shivirs have been conducted till date this year by the Union Health Ministry.

The last three-day Chintan Shivir was conducted in Kevadia on the future roadmap of the health ecosystem in the country in addition to reviewing the implementation of various Central and State government schemes of the health sector.

Earlier, on May 7 this year, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr Mansukh Mandaviya addressed the concluding session of Swasthya Chintan Shivir, the 14th Conference of Central Council of Health and Family Welfare (CCHFW), at Kevadia, Gujarat from May 5-7, 2022. He was joined by Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare and Dr VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog. State Health Ministers, Health Secretaries, State health representatives, representatives from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, NITI Aayog, ICMR and scientists participated in the three-day long conference.

Dr Mandaviya had started his address by stating that “Siddhi (accomplishment) is the driving force behind any Sankalp (resolution).”

Appreciating the participation of around 25 Health and Medical Education Ministers in the 3-day “Swasthya Chintan Shivir”, he had said, “we have been enriched by deep insight of knowledge due to presentation of best practices by states. This provided us knowledge regarding effective implementation of government schemes in the health sector.”

He further stated that “all States have shared one best practice, so now we have more than 25 best practices to learn from and implement across the country. Goals of centre and States are complementary. It is the goal of states which would define policy making at the central level”. (ANI)

The Taliban marked the one-year anniversary of the foreign troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan on Wednesday, local media reported.

The Bagram air base, which was once the largest US military base in the country, is where the Taliban’s leadership and fighters gathered, The Washington Post reported.
Images released by the Islamic outfit’s media outlet show fighters marching in uniforms, followed by columns of armoured vehicles bearing the group’s black and white flag, according to the US daily.

“We are gathered here to celebrate the first anniversary of the withdrawal,” Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesperson told local media attending the ceremony. “I am proud that our country was liberated on this day and American troops were forced to leave Afghanistan,” he said.

A day earlier, the Taliban declared August 31 a public holiday, according to a document at Sputnik’s disposal. The festive events were planned to mark the anniversary, the document said.

Earlier, the Taliban also declared August 15 a national holiday to celebrate the first anniversary of its return to power in Afghanistan.

The Taliban came to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, after the collapse of the US-backed civilian government and mass evacuations.

On August 31, 2021, US forces withdrew from the country after two decades of military presence. Since the Taliban’s takeover, the Afghan population has been facing a deepening economic, humanitarian and security crisis.

After two decades of war, tens of thousands of lives lost, and trillions of dollars spent, the Taliban are back in power in Kabul and apparently providing sanctuary to al-Qaeda once again.

The withdrawal featured images of utter chaos at the Kabul airport, which some experts compared to the fall of Saigon, stranded Afghan allies and Americans, and a terror attack that left 13 US troops and 170 Afghan civilians dead.

Critics blamed the current Biden administration for failing to act in time despite plenty of warnings that the fall of Kabul was imminent.

Though surveys show a majority of US citizens backed the decision to exit Afghanistan, the chaotic withdrawal process struck a blow to Biden’s poll numbers. (ANI)

The Serum Institute of India (SII) and the Department of Biotechnology(DBT) are set to launch India’s first indigenously developed Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus vaccine (qHPV) against Cervical Cancer on September 1, official sources told ANI.

The most awaited vaccine will be launched by the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Jitendra Singh on Thursday.
According to Dr N K Arora, Chairperson of the COVID working group, National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) said it is an exciting experience to launch a made-in-India vaccine.

“It is very exciting and I must say it makes us very happy that our daughters and granddaughters will now be able to get this much-awaited vaccine.”

“In fact, this is one of the last major vaccines to be introduced. In fact, this is one of the last vaccines that will be launched in the programme. Now, Indian vaccines will be available and we hope that it will be launched in the National Immunisation programme for 9-14-year-old girls,” he added.

“It is very effective and prevents cervical cancer because, 85 per cent to 90 per cent cases, cervical cancer is because of this particular virus and this vaccine is against those viruses. So, if we give it to our young children and daughters, they are protected from the infection and consequently probably 30 years later, cancer does not occur,” Dr Arora further explained.

“There was a shortage in the global market. Now Indian vaccine has come. So, we will be able to take care of our requirements within our made-in-India vaccine,” he said. (ANI)

The number of drones being sighted in Punjab, coming from Pakistan has seen a significant rise this year as compared to the Jammu sector.

According to Border Security Force (BSF), till July this year total of 107 drones flying from across the border side were spotted inside Indian territory, as compared to 97 drones spotted the whole of last year.
As many as 97 drones coming from across the border were sighted by the BSF in 2021 along International Border (IB) including 64 such cases in Punjab, 31 in Jammu and two drones were seen entering from the Line of Control (LOC) in Jammu.

From 2022 till July, as many as 107 drones were sighted along IB that including 14 in Jammu and 93 in the Punjab sector and no drone was sighted entering from the LOC in Jammu.

A senior BSF officer said that most of these drones have come from Pakistan and are used to deliver narcotics, weapons, explosives and ammunition.

“There are teams with anti-drone guns deployed in borders. The patrolling parties keep watch on any suspicious aerial activity and often they recover narcotics substances and arms delivered from these drones,” he said.

In the year 2021, BSF shot down one drone in the Ferozpur sector while this year seven drones were shot down and a huge quantity of narcotics that was supposed to be delivered through drones was also recovered.

The total length of Punjab’s border with Pakistan is 553 kilometres and the 198-km stretch of the India-Pakistan border in the Jammu region is guarded by BSF.

Another BSF officer said that there is no effective anti-drone technology available to shoot down every drone crossing the international border but their men on the ground keep watch on drones or any aerial object crossing the border.

“Not only ground, but we also keep an eye on the sky and BSF personnel are trained to shoot down unidentified UAVs. Sometimes drones fly too high to get detected, we only detect it by humming sound when it comes close to ground,” he said. (ANI)

Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations are in full swing across the country. The festive season is here as the country celebrates the ten-day-long Ganesh Chaturthi on Wednesday.

Ganesh Chaturthi or Ganpati Utsav, which starts on the fourth day of the Hindu lunisolar calendar month Bhadrapada, is celebrated with much fanfare in Maharashtra and other parts of western and southern India with lakhs of devotees converging into mandals to seek blessing from Lord Ganesha. The festival is also known as Vinayak Chaturthi or Vinayak Chavithi.
Following the celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi, several Bollywood celebrities took to their social media handles to extend greetings to their fans on this auspicious occasion.

Bollywood veteran star Amitabh Bachchan took to his Instagram handle and wished his fans through a ‘Ganesh-Chaturthi’ special post featuring Ganesh made from Peeple leaves “Ganesh chaturthee kee haardik aur anek anek shubhakaamanaen”. https://www.instagram.com/p/Ch6YWJ6hHiM/embed

Actor Abhishek Bachchan also shared greetings via his Instagram post, where he clubbed the post featuring ‘kesariya’ Ganesh with Ganpati Arti sung by his father, veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan. https://www.instagram.com/p/Ch6LGtOoRww/embed

Bollywood diva Alia Bhatt extended wishes to her fans via her Instagram story, she wrote “Happy Ganesh Chaturthi Wishing you and your family happiness, prosperity, and peace”

Global icon Priyanka Chopra extended greetings through her Instagram story, she wrote, “Ganpati Bappa Morya!!”

Actor Akshay Kumar sent his greetings to his fans through his Instagram story, where he posted a motion picture of Lord Ganesh and wrote, “Happy Ganesh Chaturthi”.

The festivities began on August 31 and will conclude on September 9. The festivities will end with the final immersion of the Ganesha idols, called the Visarjan. The festival is celebrated with much grandeur in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat among other states. (ANI)